#I'm so mad he doesn't have a companion quest

[mire-lurking]

It should be told that because of Automatron and a multiple companion mod, I now have bots named Codsworth and Hellsworth following me around

Idk if Codsworth likes that I named Hellsworth after him but I think it's funny

[velnna]

How does Staeve get along with the other companions? I’m new to your blog so I’ve only seen him with astarion. Is he friends with anyone else?

Things that aren't a callout but feel like one 🥲 sorry I draw so much staeve with astarion I have nothing to say in my defence

Staeve also romanced Lae'zel to a point BUT in my OG playthrough I uhhhhh may or may not have let her die before her quest completed so ??? I'll wait for my second round to see how that goes.

He's also got high ish approval with Wyll and Gale but rejected both romantically so in my head they're friendly (though he did bang Mizora so Wyll's a little mad heh). I reckon he'd sometimes start chatting with gale to take the piss but then end up genuinely curious about his rambles because there's a nerd in him somewhere too.

He and Shadowheart are definitely friends I had her in the party forever and at max approval fjsjfj

He's obviously romancing Halsin as well 🫣

Karlach is???? Unsure, I think she doesn't necessarily like him that much but it's Karlach so they're friendly anyways

This is half based on my 80% complete first playthrough and the one I'm attempting to do (the right way) now since I lost the plot in act 3 and missed so much beforehand I figured I might as well restart

[kirkwallguy]

this has a ton of asunder spoilers so just delete it if you care abt that but the other thing with Cole that pisses me off so much is that just by including him (and Fiona) they bring up a dozen questions about why Inquisition doesn't give a shit about Asunder but keeps bringing it up

Rhys and Evangeline? not there. the war? only about Anders, not the book. Cole dying? random accident and look the guy feels bad about leaving a 12 year old boy (hello anders/justice parallels) to starve to death in solitary confinement. we'll have this kid then go on to smooth over Cullen. anything involving the cure for Tranquility? locked exclusively to Cassandra's quest of all things, and she does literally nothing about it despite the fact that Fiona, the whole mage rebellion, Leliana, and Vivienne knew about it the entire time before the game even started.

the cure was disseminated from Montsimmard! the Circle that Vivienne was the First Enchanter of! and neither of the enchanters get any dialogue about it whatsoever.

the rebel mages even get mad at you if you choose to make anyone Tranquil (a choice locked to mages exclusively for some reason), but then nobody brings up that it can be reversed? Leliana just murders some of them for it? and then Cassandra does literally nothing with the information, there isn't even a mention in an epilogue slide? why do we have an Asunder character here if we don't actually care about anything about him? it's kind of the exact same with masked empire up to and including the white-washing (that briala is a different woman entirely. cole is half-chasind but given morrigan we couldn't expect anything else) but it's so grating because they keep having Cole say this fake deep stuff and tie him to Solas and Varric who have become the Misters Dragon Age but then just ignore the actually interesting stuff about him.

sorry that was too long I'm just constantly baffled by every choice Inquisition ever made

i never mind da book spoilers because i know deep down that whenever i say im going to read them im fully lying to myself

but literally it feels like inquisition is confusing in completely different ways depending on if you have and haven't read it. if you haven't read it you don't know who any of these people are or what's going on, but if you HAVE read it you're confused about why so much is contradicted. they wanted a middle ground sooo bad but they just made a mess. some of this stuff is still news to me i had no idea cold was half chasind wtf.

and yeah. having cole basically have anders' backstory but gone wrong and then be empathetic towards cullen is so crazy to me. recruiting the templars should have corrupted him! cullen could have been the templar he wanted to kill in his companion quest. just ANYTHING that matters.

[cosmicbucket]

this is by no means an educated and informative post but rather a severe understatement of the rage i feel over the interview regarding one Gale Dekarios.

under the cut is a stronger criticism on the narrative's integrity with this ending; everything before that is tearing into the lead writer's statements.

note that I will be referencing other companions as contrast. this is not supposed to be tearing them down nor casting shade on anyone who enjoys these characters; i am trying to make a point through relevant comparison.

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

"the guy who starts off annoying everyone" that is such a blatantly subjective thing to say about a character.

for me personally, i Loathed shadowheart at first because of the immediate fantasy racism towards lae'zel. this is very clearly a subjective opinion as she's the most romanced companion, and I'm not mad about that in the slightest! she rocks! you can't judge a character on behalf of everyone ever. that's a foolish thing to do, full stop.

"constantly asking you to give him your most treasured possessions to eat" three times. he asks you for a magical item, three times. after that you are NEVER required to part with a magical item on his behalf again.

the game practically THROWS magic items at you for completing side quests, looting crates and chests. magic items are in ABUNDANCE and a lot of them won't be useful to your party depending on your companions and your chosen class. meanwhile, astarion's peculiar diet lasts the entire span of the game, creating a situation where should you choose to let him feed on you every night, you suffer a penalty to attack rolls, saving throws and ability checks OR waste a spell slot to remove the condition. astarion is most certainly in no shortage of fans and again! he rocks! but by comparison his effect on the player can stretch so far as to affect the final boss battle. gale's condition doesn't even make it past the end of act 1.

"at the end, he gives himself for the world" is it worth it though. is it really seriously worth it.

you can still defeat the elder brain yourself. it's not impossible. hell, with the right spells it's really fucking easy. are you seriously going to rob yourself of the satisfaction of defeating the final boss by sending someone to their death instead and calling it a day.

I can understand the narrative catharsis of a character who is so selfish, constantly, over and over, doing something selfless for the greater good.

But that just is not what Gale's story is.

Gale is ambitious and boastful, certainly. Gale is not selfish.

His attempt to impress Mystra - The Mother of Magic, Goddess of the Weave - came from a want to be equals with his partner. He explains how she refused to allow him to witness the depths of magic, and while that's a reasonable thing to enforce to a regular mortal, she had made him her Chosen, her lover. I would hope I don't need to delve into the blatant grooming (ie Elminster approaching Gale at the age of eight) and the obvious power imbalance between a goddess and a mortal in a relationship, but his desires - ambitious as they were - were not selfish.

When he asks for the player's assistance, he does so knowing that he's asking a lot from them, especially in terms of trust. While it's easy to see his pushiness for magic items as self-serving, it is quite literally a much larger problem than him. The damage he's capable of "could level a city", and that affects not just your party but the surrounding area for miles. His urgency, his impatience, comes from having to rely on someone else who might not respect the gravity of the situation (which, evidently, a lot of players don't.)

When he realises the magic items are doing nothing to prevent his hunger, he lays it out plainly to the player, apologising for having broken their trust, and gives them the choice to send him away to certain death with no hard feelings. He even explains his plan to find an Absolutist base and hopefully destroy that in order to aid you in his death, should you choose to kick him out. This is in Act 1, way before any massive character developments - that is to say, he is unselfish from the start.

Come Act 2, when Elminster tells Gale that Mystra expects him to detonate the orb to kill the Heart of the Absolute, Gale is immediately willing. He will answer to his goddess' whims without so much as a query. You don't have to convince him to do it - rather, it becomes your choice to convince him not to do it.

And you do have to convince him! You have to actively make the choice, over and over again, to say no, we can find another way. You are not dying today.

Even in Act 3, should you take him through Zethino's Love Test, you are able to call him out for his greatest flaw:

"He thinks he, and the world, might be better off if he were dead."

I am not calling him selfless by any means; he is not a paragon of virtue. He is, however, a character whose hubris (spurred by an abusive relationship with a goddess) is amply punished, so much so that he believes this punishment is entirely deserved. He is a victim of grooming who is told to kill himself in order to gain forgiveness for trying to be equals with his partner, who took advantage of him as a child.

What kind of message is Larian trying to make here? What are they trying to tell their audience? What are they saying to people who relate to Gale?

It's fucking horrible. Do better.

[crossdressingdeath]

Can I just... okay, there's something that's been percolating in my head ever since the Durgetash patch 6 crumbs dropped and I think I can finally put it into words. Because everyone was getting so mad about Durge (and it was about Durge, not Gortash; it was an origin character getting their backstory acknowledged in the game at a point where it should've been from the start, saying it was about Gortash is like saying... I don't know, any unique dialogue Cazador gets in Astarion origin runs is Cazador content) getting five or six new lines when Wyll got nothing and... well, personally I think that's a little silly, first because adding a few new Gortash lines to Durge runs would not be taking away from Wyll content (the two characters have different writers, VAs and mocap actors, for the most part they would not have been pulling from the same resource pool), but more importantly because... if you want to point at an origin character taking resources from Wyll, don't point at Durge. Point at Karlach.

I mean, think about it. Think about how the game runs with these two characters. You likely meet Wyll first unless you go out of your way to avoid speaking to him until you meet Karlach. He asks you to help him hunt down and kill a devil, and you go and you look and you find her and... now you're doing Karlach's quest. They interrupt Wyll's quest in the middle to do Karlach's quest. And she keeps piping up during the conversation with Mizora afterwards, and it turns out that Wyll got sent after Karlach to begin with because Karlach is Zariel's extra-special favourite mortal, and suddenly Wyll's sharing his post-quest transformation cutscene (something which I think we can all agree should be entirely about him) with a character who wasn't even playable until a ways into EA. You can't even properly commiserate with Wyll afterwards, you can only even be nice to him if you choose to read the lines that way; you spend more time chatting to Karlach about Wyll's transformation than you do Wyll! Wyll's act one quest gets almost completely taken over by Karlach, I'm honestly kind of surprised I haven't seen anyone else talking about it. Even him being turned into a devil is barely about him because Karlach's backstory is butting in! There is a reason why no other origins share villains, but where Karlach's connection to Gortash is overshadowed by Durge in a Durge run here she's overshadowing Wyll in every run except maybe (I say maybe because I haven't done it) a Wyll origin.

And it gets even better! Remember how originally you couldn't save Karlach at all? Remember when it was death or mind flayer? Remember what Larian did when people complained about that? I'm fucking amazed I didn't see more complaints about that, given the number of complaints I saw about Durgetash getting five whole lines. Do you want to keep Karlach alive? Do you want to end the game with all your companions still breathing and reasonably happy? Well then fuck what you think is a good, happy and/or narratively satisfying ending for Wyll; you're packing him off to the Hells, because that's the only way to keep Karlach alive if you don't want to go with her (which you probably don't if you romanced someone other than her)! Like, I want you to really let that sink in; they made Karlach's survival completely reliant on how you end Wyll's quest. If you want Karlach to survive and don't want your character's epilogue to be "go to the Hells" (which, again, odds are most players don't) you have to end Wyll's quest accordingly. They could've put that into Karlach's quest! Give her an actual character arc (instead of the line-with-maybe-a-slight-curve she got) where you can encourage her to choose life and go to Avernus on her own or... I don't know, go with Dammon or something! Especially since as it turns out Zariel apparently doesn't actually give a shit, which the PC should be able to point out given Zariel's track record in this game of giving barely enough of a shit to make a token effort at getting Karlach back or killing her! But instead the climax of Wyll's whole damn arc has to share space with Karlach. Maybe not in the game's text proper, but from a meta perspective? If the player doesn't want to go to the Hells but wants Karlach to live, that's likely going to be if not the deciding factor in Wyll's quest then certainly a major one in—as with the transformation cutscene—a situation that should be entirely about Wyll.

I don't really know how to end this. I guess... I fully admit part of it is me being super petty about the sheer number of posts I saw getting mad about Durgetash getting literally five or six lines (crumbs! Barely crumbs! Crumbs that didn't impact Wyll in any way!), but it also really is like... people complained about that but I haven't seen anyone complaining about how Larian warped Wyll's whole story around Karlach. And I think more people should complain about it. Wyll's story got dragged off-course the second they started rewriting it, but they wrapped the whole thing around Karlach when they made her an origin companion to the point where at times it feels like Wyll's playing second fiddle in his own arc, and that's... well, honestly it just pisses me off.

[mazuriri]

Lyney & Traveller thread

This (long)thread will focus on their relationship, following with Lyney’s voice lines AND also those of the story/archon quest.  I'll show you what I think of them and why Lyney x traveller has become one of my favourite ships.

(Last update : 4.6 quest )

•★ Summary : 

1. About Lyney and the Traveller’s actions 2. Archon quest 4.0 3. Lyney story quest 4. Archon quest 4.1 5. Arlecchino story quest 6. Lyney’s voice lines (+ Chinese translation) 7. Teapot voice lines  8. Conclusion

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/!\  Please note: You don't have to agree with everything I said if you don't have the same opinion. Here, I'm just sharing what I think and just analysing. I'm not very good at rewording and my English is not that bad but if I've made mistakes…. I apologise, English isn't my first language. 

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• About Lyney & the Traveller’s actions 

So as you all knew, Lyney and Lynette are members of fatui, and the traveller will have complicated feelings towards them. Just to reminder, I don't think the traveller was upset just because they were fatui.

 ( And stop with '’why is the traveller all friendly with Childe when he too is a fatui???'’. First, the traveler knew Childe long before Lyney. They even have a fight, they had to deal with him in different places etc... and yes, the traveller also has a ‘soft’ spot for Childe thanks to his story quest + voice lines(companion). They've literally dealt after Childe for several meetings and spending time with him, whereas Lyney has only been there for a day(?), with some interaction before the magic show. I also remind you that the traveller is still wary of Childe sometimes. (Ex: Yoimiya, Xinyan…) They’re not all ‘BUDDY BUDDY’ with him.

What I also mean is that we need to spend a lot of times with a ‘suspicious’ person to fully ‘’trust’’ him.) and the traveller is not always pacifist, they have character development. Remember, they dealt with the Fatui and had the most difficult times. (Scaramouche, Signora ….and Dottore too).

• Archon quest  

I think the reason why the traveller was upset was because : 

Lyney and Lynette didn't say they were fatui from the start, knowing the Fatui are there for the gnosis and bad intentions. Perhaps the traveller thought that Lyney had approached them for bad intentions as fatui (but that wasn't Lyney's aim at all). 

 I also think that since the traveller was their defence attorney they didn't have all the information and their client didn't tell them everything. (Basically: You shouldn't deceive someone when they’re trying to save you/defend you if you understand what I mean.) When your client held VERY crucial information, especially on the case, the traveller had the right to be upset at the twins. It’s all about betray/lying and trust, and I’m not mad at the traveller. They have the right to be suspicious/not trust and forgive them easily, it’s totally understandable after the trial. 

Lyney and Lynette thought they could get away without mentioning their real identities, but they didn't. If Lyney didn't mention his identity it's because he knew that first, the traveller had already dealt with fatui (he just wanted to have a good times with them but...), and second, knowing that the fatui are known to be a ‘’evil’’ organisation. The traveller has already experienced with the fatui and all have the same motivations(bad intentions), they can't really believe the twins easily even when Lyney told them that they aren’t bad guys and aren’t like the others. Anyway, the traveller defended the twins until the end after knowing that they were Fatui.

(The tension between them here..... Why do I feel like this is some kind of break up lol?) 

The traveller leaves and wants time alone after what happened but here, Lyney stops them. It's clear that he doesn't want things to end like this, so he thanks them and apologises, but above all he's there to make things clear. He did not approach them for evil intentions, on the contrary, he just wanted to get to know them and be friends with them. As he mentions, he spoke to them as himself, as 'Lyney'. 

That's where Lyney tells their sad past. A lot of people see the traveller as ignorant and they are mad at them for not trusting them, especially with Lynette’s story (and still with the ‘’ ALL BUDDY BUDDY’’ with Childe crap.) I want to make things clear : they're right not to believe the twins yet. Yes, they feel bad for them and I think they even believe or want to believe their story, but after what happened, they're hesitant because they don't want to fall for another lie… Seriously, can you blame the traveller? But for now, they leave because they heard enough and want some time alone to think about it.

When they were about to leave, Navia came and talks about the disappearance case. But the traveller apologises and tells her that they were only trying to defend Lyney. If you say that the Traveller doesn’t care about him then you’re wrong. Yes, they’re still upset and hesitant but deep down, they wanted to defend Lyney to the end and also because they didn't want to see an innocent man accused. 

——————————————————————

• Lyney’s story quest

Their next meeting is in Lyney’s story quest, and you can see the awkward moment after what happened in the trial : 

Lyney greets them as usual (like he did at their first meeting), avoiding the awkwardness of course. But think about it, the traveller saw Lyney, they could have ignored him but decided to come to him : they want to speak to him and spend time with him. Maybe, they wanted to ‘’trust’’ him again and reconcile with him. Well… they decided to help him with his investigation as his assistant. (maybe Lyney also wanted to get a little closer to them, who knows?) 

If you think this is just a ‘’flower’’ then you’re wrong. Lyney knows what he’s doing especially when it comes with his magic tricks : this flower is called ‘Lumidouce Bell’ and this flower represents : parting and the wish for reunion. 

That’s not a coincidence right? Of course not, particularly with the ‘wish for reunion’…. I don’t need to explain that, because the answer is there.

- Anyway, I won’t spoil everything about his story quest but I will concentrate at the end of his quest

So, we learn a little more about Lyney and his relationships, also about lies and truths… Lyney opens up a little to the traveller, and they begins to understand him a little and supports him. Yes, they have reconciled. But that doesn’t mean that the traveller trusts him completely but they are there for him as a friend, like in their first meeting. 

The traveller comforts Lyney and tells him they will always be there for him. Right after this, he decides to change the mood and he gives another flower :

But it’s a different flower : this flower is called ‘Rainbow rose’ and knowing Lyney, what he gives, has a meaning behind it. The rainbow rose represents : passion and romantic encounters. 

Wow, is this a coincidence or not? Lyney knows what he’s doing through action.

Anyway, here comes the funny part : 

We meet Lyney again with Lynette and Charlotte. You know charlotte, she's here to interview. Anyway, the funny part is when Paimon mentions the Rainbow rose that Lyney started to use in his tricks. ( Traveller)

But, Lynette doesn't remember receiving this kind of rose from her brother(yes, she knows the meaning lol), she jokes if the traveller is more important than her. So, Lyney didn’t say anything to Lynette and didn’t give this kind of rose to his precious sister? Well well, that is something.

And Lyney’s reaction lmao 😂 He doesn’t know what to say. Come on Lyney, you have to take responsibility for your actions. Yeah, you JUST what Lyney hm? He knew what he was doing smh. He literally did the same trick his teacher did to his fiance… In romantic sense yeah.

Anyway, he’s lucky because Lynette said she was joking and he was relieved. Why are you relieved Lyney? I wonder…. He could have justified himself ‘’easily’’ , but he was nervous and hesitated to do so. Well, I know it’s not easy for everyone to justify themselves but you know what I mean?  

Finally, Lynette tells the traveller not to lose the Rainbow rose or she'll be very upset, not to forget that she knows the meaning.

Welp, I suppose she supports Lyney x Traveller ? 

Yeah, it seems like it. 

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• 4.1 Archon quest : here

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• Arlecchino story quest : here

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• Lyney’s voice lines 

Ah yes…. The FAMOUS voice lines. As you can see, almost all of them are flirty towards the traveller. I suppose these voice lines take place after the archon quest and his story quest since they have ‘reconciled’ and Lyney is more open to the traveller. And oh my god, he’s the most flirtiest guy I’ve seen (for now). 

Here, I take both Chinese and English translation. No worries, I’m not saying that the English translated it wrong but just a few voice lines where it's kinda different but they are both the same and flirty. 

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･* *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

(Chinese translation)

Lol, he wanted to sleep a little more but when it was the traveller who came, he quickly stand up and was wondering why the sun was so nice…. Yeah okay nice flirt, the traveller is a sunshine : confirmed ✅ 

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･* *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

 

He really observed the traveller to the point of comparing and describing their eyes? Is he attracted to the traveller? Maybe that’s why he decided to be with them and to put on a show just for them. 

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･* *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

Nice flirt Lyney. Of course, it's the traveller, yeah of course

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･* *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

Chinese translation : Ah right, there is one thing that I must emphasize. I don’t talk like ‘that’ to anyone, mainly because it’s you. 

Here, he clearly said that he doesn’t talk like ‘’that’’ to anyone. (I assume he means by talking all friendly and flirty). Perhaps that’s why the title is : Sweet talker ✨ 

(the English one is great too)

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･* *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

We can see that Lyney cares a lot about the traveller. He’s doing his best to not hurt them and to not mention their sibling in the discussions. He understands the traveller’s pain and will do anything to help them. *sigh* He’s very sweet…

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･* *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

Lyney… just admit that you want them to be your apprentice and call you ‘Master’ especially lol. He’s very curious if the traveller will understand his secrets and how long they’d last… Geez all right Lyney! 

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･* *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

Not only that, Lyney is also interested and wants to know more about the traveller! He doesn’t plan to lie of course, he said it himself that he doesn’t want to hurt them again. 

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･* *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

(Chinese translation) 

I love it, It shows that he is worried about the traveller being deceived by the others. Annnd again, he wants them to stare/look at him carefully or he will tell a big lie when they aren’t paying attention…. As you know, this is not the only voice line but here, he really wants the traveller to watch him very carefully……. Yeah, all eyes on him and not anywhere huh?

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･* *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

(Chinese translation) 

When I said that he opens up to the traveller and trusts them, it wasn’t a joke. Enough to the point of telling them that this is not the ‘’real’’ him, by saying that he isn’t that outgoing and chatty, so he uses magic to approach people. In the CN voice, he takes a breath and asks them if they would sympathize with the ‘’real’’ him. If you think about it, this is sad. I hope one day, the traveller will want to know the ‘’real’’ him and accepts him. (I know they will.) 

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･* *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

(Chinese translation) 

Okay, how many times already? This guy really wants the traveller to only think/look at him and not to think troublesome thing in front of him. This is too much,  I know what you want Lyney! 

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･* *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

This one made me laugh. Literally, the food that the traveller made was terrible and Lyney, who doesn’t want to hurt them, decided to do a magic trick lmaoo. This is so funny help but he’s so kind geez…

 

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･* *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

Welp, the traveller has managed to capture the magician's heart… He even congratulated them for doing so. Lyney really fell for the traveller huh? Welp. Guys, I think someone has a crush.

What I find funny is that Lyney doesn’t hold back anything and says what he feels to the traveller, even his past, ''everything''. Don’t tell me he’s not ‘’attracted’’ to the traveller because all of those voice lines are impossible to deny, especially with all those flirts. He really tries to capture their heart too? I wonder…. 

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• Teapot voice lines 

Haa, the place where the traveller invites someone into their home and they stay for some time…. 

When the traveller comes, in CN voice, you can hear that Lyney sounds very happy to see them. This guy really likes to see them everyday huh? 

Anyway, the same in the teapot as the voice lines, he wants to win back the traveller's trust (it’s very important to him) and even tries to test them by saying whether he is lying or not.

When the traveller doesn’t fully trust him yet, he is hurt but we know Lyney, he doesn’t give up. Of course, it will take some time as he said but he also takes his time to get close to them because he doesn't want to put pressure or force the traveller to trust him… I mean, that’s not Lyney. (Kinda cute how he’s kinda scared(?) that the traveller will kick him out lmao. 😭 )

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･* *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

When the traveller trusts him, look at him : he’s happy, all he wanted was to win the traveller’s trust. As I said earlier, he doesn’t lie to them anymore (?) because he can’t bear to see that hurt expression of them. See? He really cares and it hurts him to see their hurt expressions after what happened at the trial (I mean, of course he doesn't want to do the same thing again). This also means that now, he is ''honest'' with them almost all the time! And obviously, he wants to stay with them because he enjoys their company. 

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･* *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

So here, Lyney stole something from the traveller. And if they respond ‘’my heart?’’,  look at what this magicien says. Yeah :  ‘’even my heart has begun to race too’’. Basically, he wasn’t ready for that answer that his heart has begun to race. SERIOUSLY. I’m telling you, this guy is in love AND HE DOESN’T EVEN HIDE HIS FEELINGS. 

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･* *･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

He wants to see them every morning… LIKE HELLO?? 

Remember the ‘good morning’ voice line? Dude wanted to sleep more but when it comes to the traveller, he immediately woke up. When he said that the sun was so nice? But that was because it was the traveller who came? And here, he said it would be great if he could see them every morning?? Literally, the traveller makes Lyney's day even better and puts him in a good mood. (Traveller is a sunshine ✅) 

————————————————————————

• Conclusion 

Now you understand why I ship them? All the proofs are here, and you can’t change my mind. This magicien who hides secrets, tells lies and doesn't open up easily to the others(except Lynette)... has opened up to someone : the traveller, where they barely knew each other. He decided to stop ''lying'' to them, and became honest as he shares his feelings, tells a little more about his past with Lynette, and is always happy to do something for them etc….. If that’s not ‘’love’’, then I don’t know what it is. He even starts flirting with them almost all the time, hmm I wonder why? I mean, he doesn't hide how he feels about them, like come on! Did Lyney fell in love at first sight or what is it? We can clearly see that he became attached to them (as for every characters ofc). 

Every time he flirts with the traveller with his magic tricks and his words and whatever, I’m just like : JUST CONFESS ALREADY LOL

-> To be honest, the tension between them was intense and deep. And when Lyney was really sorry and wanted to regain the traveller’s trust… that just made me feel bad for him 😭. He even said that if that wasn’t for their identities, they could have been good friends without problems. You know that it wasn’t his intention and he really tried his best to reconcile with them (Well, they remained friends despite their identities!). 

You know…. Something like that is perfect for fanfictions am I wrong? I think that Lyney x Traveller is great for angst…. Sorry I love the angst, please don’t hate me. 🙏

————————————————————————

Anyway, I congratulate you on having read this far. I don't usually do this kind of post but this ship really got me and I couldn't stand seeing people misunderstand the traveller towards Lyney. Nevertheless, I’m happy that they have ''reconciled'' ♡. Even if the traveller still doesn’t trust him completely, they’re still interested in him and want to know more about him.

Hope to see more fanfictions and fanarts of them!! (Because I’m starving rn… GIVE ME FOODS RNNNNNNN THIS SHIP NEEDS ATTENTION.)

[vigilskeep]

Why is Alistair mad at Yrsa? Did she let Jowan do the blood ritual?

ya! he hates to see a loserfailman winning :(

i don't find redcliffe super compelling compared to the other main quests, with the notable exception of isolde who is really the standout npc of that area and such an interesting character, but alistair's reaction to either sacrifice ending is a plot beat i really enjoy and i wouldn't like to miss in a playthrough where i'm not sparing loghain, despite the approval hit. alistair actually reckoning with the consequences of someone else making the decisions and not knowing if there was any good answer is great stuff i love it and i love companions who call the protagonist out

yrsa felt there was really only one obvious choice. she's very very unlikely to ever draw her sword against a child no matter the circumstances, coming from a background where children are precious and sacrosanct. (i also think, coming from noble caste orzammar, she absolutely considers an heir more of value to save than a wife in terms of seeing arl eamon/redcliffe as an ally that needs to be won and strengthened? i don't know that that's affecting her decisions so much, her revulsion at the idea of slaying a child is very real and at the forefront, but that is for sure an interesting assumption at play she's making.) she doesn't really Get the andrastian stigma against all blood magic, and she sees isolde's willingness to sacrifice herself as really noble, something she didn't expect at all from a woman she thought extremely little of. yrsa honestly wants to uphold isolde's decision here because she thinks it's a good and just instinct for isolde to sacrifice her life to correct her mistakes, protect her son, and salvage her house and the people she failed to defend. yrsa could not have justified risking those people by going to the circle of magi, simply for isolde's sake

[futchgunk]

Bladders Gat3 Finish doc

:et me get the rest of my fucking feelings out about baldurs gate:

im so mad bc any character who is not human or realism/white passoid is literally regarded with the same type of dismissal that you would see in mainstream media. all the companions that are not white passing are treated like shit and have bad ends.

-Lae'zel (gith) gets abducted by the a bad guy for the last 1/3 of the game (also we could talk about her being the fighter class as default is also a bit racist, but the deep dive will be its own essay). and then she can die and not be able to be resurrected. (resurrection scrolls and revivify spells ONLY work on companions and not npcs)

Wyll (THE ONLY BLACK HUMAN MAIN CHARACTER, side note we could talk about how is name is spelled like a white mormon names their kids) is a big talking point bc he is constantly strung between the expectations put upon him by himself, his family, and then his pact matron. AND NO MATTER WHAT OPTION IS CHOSEN WILL CONTINUES TO SUFFER IN THIS EXECUTIVE PURGATORY. He starts as a "i have to kill this devil" actually its a tiefling (suddenly its now fantasy racial infighting, so of course u dont wanna kill another companion so early in the game, so Wyll is forced through Hell's Circles and the exposure makes him grown large demonic horns. (Wyll does not have control over his body or himself, nor his actions, and only suffers the consequences of the actions of the Tav (PC)). Wyll even gets to have the "I did everything for my father's (approval just to have my father misunderstand me and then the most noble course of action is to be independent because i am still bound by choices prior and also if two black people form any sort of family on screen its disgusting and blasphemous so I might as well treat my father like my brother who i never was able to relate to when i was younger" THIS IS NOT MENTIONING THAT WYLL IS LITERALLY THE SON OF THE DUKE OF BALDURS GATE. HE GIVES UP HIS STATUS OF NOBILITY TO BE HEROIC AND IS JUST FOREVER CONTINUALLY PUNISHED. THE DUKE OF BALDURS GATE IS BRAINWASHED TO RELINQUISHING HIS TITLE AND CORONATES THE WHITE DEVIL EVIL DICK BAD GUY WHO SOLD KARLACH (TIEFLING) TO HELL FOR GIGGLES.

Karlach (tiefling) is a bright eyed noble hearted character that is looking for solace after having 10 years of her life taken from her when she got sold to devil and hell and made a war machine slave because thats perfectly tragic. Her heart is taken from her and replaced with an engine (machine) that is slowly killing her when she is not in Hell. THE ENGINE DOESNT EVEN HAVE A GOOD IN GAME MECHANIC, YOU GET TO SET URSELF ON FIRE TO GET A 'HEAT' DEBUFF THAT U CAN CONSUME ON AN ATTACK, you build heat any other way, so its like only <Lv. 4, and if you minmaxed the opening scene, you get a 2h sword that does this every attack, so like its a bit moot and useless. Furthermore i think its really stupid that shes yearning for companionship and yet is not allowed because her engine makes her to hot to touch. Which rubs me the wrong way as a black transfem (u could argue tiefling coded) because I already feel like that. I feel like im too intense and hot with my passions and i intimidate people to the point that I'm actively denying myself the intimacy i crave so dearly just by existing and expressing myself. The taxation of life shouldn't really exist in video games!! The whole party gets mind enslaving brainworms that magically dont work because the plot armor is really strong yet the demon character who EVEN WHEN THEY SEEK HELP IN THEIR COMPANION QUEST ARE DENIED THE REALITY OF LIVING COMFORTABLY BECAUSE THEY SHOULD ONLY EXIST IN HELL. (cried actually). Before the last of this mess, she offers to turn into a mindflayer just to give herself the peace that she could be the hero that saves the world (become the villain because its better than who you currently exist as, or die being yourself (who has LITERALLY BEEN DEMONIZED). Karlach doesn't get to have have a happy ending because she either dies from engine overdose or goes to hell just to fucking breathe. THE KICKER IS THAT WYLL, THE PERSON WHO WAS GOING TO KILL HER AS PART OF THE WARLOCK PACT, OFFERS TO ACCOMPANY HER IN HELL AND FIGHT BY HER SIDE. WHICH MEANS THAT ALL OF THE MARGINALIZED IDENTITIES EFFECTIVELY FUCK OFF AFTER YOU SAVE THE WORLD.

White victim Shadowheart has the option of rejecting what she knows (which was a lie told her) or believing it. The worst she has to do is kill a bound seraphim, and free her parents held captive by putting their souls to rest (she turns them into light, killing them). She gets sick weapons. Clerics are busted anyway.

White devil astarion got to ascend in pale supremacy and got cool vampire powers (bite+, bite++, buff on kill, and consume buff for heal || next hit crits). The final battle WAS BUGGED FOR ME. I WAS STUCK ON THE BOSS FIGHT FOR TWO WEEKS BECAUSE THE END OF BATTLE SCREEN WOULDNT LOAD. LIKE I MADE A WHOLE NOTHER CHARACTER BECAUSE I BEAT THE BOSS 7 TIMES AND MY BUGFIXED DIDNT WORK!!

if im gonna get so heated about video games i am just gonna go play bloodborne so i have no room to complain bc im constantly sucking

[icanbeyourgenie]

“ Are you stalking me, Wendy? ” – Achilles to Wendy!Yasmeen

❝Yes.❞

❝Okay........ Why?❞

Wendy crossed her arms. She had indeed been stalking this weird boy and his girl companion since they first put foot on the island. She was looking at him with unexpressive eyes and when she didn't answer, he took the lead.

❝I'm looking for my friend. Have you seen her?❞

Still no answer. Nothing but that wary gaze.

❝She's approximately this height.❞ Achilles tried again. ❝Brown hair - well, not always, but it's not the point. She was with me, but I lost her in the fog.❞

❝Why are you here?❞

❝Is it your island? I'm sorry if we trespassed. But we're on a quest from the gods and-❞

❝Why would the goddesses send you to that place?❞

Achilles paused again, realizing she mentioned only goddesses. Maybe they stepped foot in an island of girls only. Like the amazons. Maybe those girls were like Artemis' huntresses and worshipped goddesses only, not the gods. It was risky, but he could appreciate any disrespect made to gods. However, he had no time to think about this. He needed to find Nastya.

❝Look, lady, I can see that you're a very mistrutful person and I respect that. But I would truly like to find my friend. So, can you help me or not? This island is a mess❞

❝Your friend was taken by Tiger Lilly's clan.❞ Wendy finally said, still wary.

❝Okay. Where is that?❞

❝Doesn't matter. She's probably dead now.❞

❝No she's not!❞ Achilles replied, and he was truly mad at that simple suggestion. It didn't seem to rattle Wendy.

❝Your friend is a girl and Tigris Lilly don't let girls live too long.❞

❝Why?❞

Wendy shrugged. ❝She wants to marry Peter and doesn't want any other girl stealing him from her when he'll come back. But he won't come back. He went away many years ago now.❞

At this moment, Achilles thought he truly ended up in a island filled with crazy people. But he didn't care. ❝Nastya is resourceful. More than you think. She's not dead, I know it.❞

Wendy looked at him without saying a word before turning away. Achilles thought she wasn't interested in helping him at all. Until she stopped, a few meters away.

❝Are you not following me?❞

He paused, a little puzzled. ❝Are you leading me to her?❞

❝Yes. And if you make it out alive, you need to leave. We had more than enough lost boys on this island in the past. They're not welcome anymore.❞

[plounce]

I am like. 70% sure that at some point y'shtola says to alphinaud that she was about his age when the exodus happened. But man the colony/mainland/exodus situation w regads to Thancred, Yda, and Lyse specifically has driven me to madness. The exodus was about five years after the conquest of ala mhigo and I feel like the Hext's could have made that journey far quicker then that- still, at the most conservative estimate Lyse still grew up in Sharlayan for ten years. What was her education like??? Yda seemed to have been working with the resistance for a while before her death, so who was taking care of Lyse? And Thancred- he seems to mostly self identify as Sharlayan? You never see him calling himself a Lominsan. Why was he assigned to Thanalan instead of La Noscea, if he knew the area better and had more contacts there? How much time did he even spend in Sharlayan before starting on field missions? (Also fun fact: Palaymo's dad is actually featured in a sidequest in Old Sharlayan! He never says it outright but he talks about having a son who followed Louisoix)

you are vindicated by @eriyu in the replies to my post!!

i agree with you totally about the hexts. god i wish i had more - okay i went and looked at the wiki page for yda and learned more from the encyclopedia eorzea v1:

Yda fled her homeland following the invasion of Garlemald in the year 1557 of the Sixth Astral Era. She and her sister first came to the Twelveswood seeking succor, but were forced to leave after being rejected by the elementals. After moons of wandering and foraging off the land, they found their way to the Dravanian hinterlands. With the aid of her future bosom companion, Papalymo, Yda was given a chance to begin her formal education in Sharlayan proper.

fuck the elementals 2. DAMN that's a long way to go, but coerthas pre-calamity is way less hostile to life than what we see 3. thancred truly copying the hexts in terms of "wandering around dravania foraging for moons". that would be a funny conversation for him and lyse to have

iirc, the only time yda is ever actually seen in game is in the 1.0 echo visions for gridania starters? every other time we see her is actually lyse in disguise (which - i have my own thoughts on the efficacy of that plotline, since we never actually see any meaningful difference between the two hext sisters or get much yda at all, but that's a tangent for a different day). i have to imagine that lyse was living with the totolymos in sharlayan when yda was killed, and the news of her death reached them first, allowing lyse to take her sister's place fairly seamlessly? or something? i don't think this plotline will ever really be touched on since lyse's story got basically finished when stormblood did (oh, lyse. how i wish your writing was a bit better.) (fordola and arenvald have been the continuing stormblood/ala mhigo plot/theme thread characters - lyse didn't show up at all in the role quest!). oh wait apparently there's some other stuff about YDA AND FORDOLA BEING FRIENDS? i have like no memory of this and i don't see a source but here's the wiki page. this is really stream of consciousness my apologies. oh well let's keep going

with regards to lyse's education, we know she didn't get her archon's mark (since it got vanished when she took off the yda disguise since papalymo was the one maintaining the illusion of it). the encylopedia has this to say about yda:

At first, this did not proceed smoothly, given her aversion to the study of letters. All too often, she could be found sating her hunger for lemoncakes rather than books. What Yda lacked in wit, however, she made up with her amazing physical prowess, and in time would channel this talent into becoming an expert pugilist.

considering how the encyclopedia also says that yda is "mysterious", i think that it knows that our yda is lyse, because it doesn't mention her becoming an archon in the entry.

also i agree with you about thancred, and at this point i'm developing the belief that louisoix tended to put his students in situations that were initially out of their comfort zones: yda/lyse got put in the twelveswood (where the elementals rejected them), thancred got put in the city state he didn't have a backstory in (he doesn't seem to have much fondness for limsa), and urianger got sent away from home and from his best friend. "here, kiddos! grow and develop! sink or swim!"

also it's so crazy that there was extremely little time between thancred arriving in ul'dah and watching ascilia be orphaned (also it's so crazy that he blames himself for that when there are people who literally let the goobbue loose). and then he became a teenage alcoholic. for work, of course. (shakes him)

i think there's an interesting compare-and-contrast between thancred and lyse - lyse has always been pretty vocally ala mhigan, and any association with sharlayan is mostly through her association with the scions. and thancred mentions his lominsan heritage maybe three times in my memory - explaining how he holds his breath so long in stormblood, recalling how minfilia called him a "wine-sodden wharf rat", and when he's reminiscing on the lominsan docks at the start of endwalker. beyond that he's pretty sharlayan. i do have the headcanon that he is faking his fancyboy accent, so i have the accompanying headcanon that he deliberately tries to distance himself from his childhood. i do think that thancred could've easily returned to sharlayan now and again to report in person, get info, etc, since he could still teleport back then. just not very often, what with the old teleport restrictions, but his handler is friends with a guy who's friends with the wilfsunwyns, teleportation experts...!

i do think it's interesting that louisoix had three kids from eorzea, had them educated/trained in sharlayan for their teenage years, and then sent them back off to eorzea to do recon and direct action for the circle of knowing. hm hm hm.

okay that's enough rambling. every day i think so much.

[mslanna]

Nooo it's completely fine if you dont write things you don't like or simply don't want im sorry I didn't want to come of as rude or pressuring

But since its ok to share ideas with you how about this:

You know the night where mizora comes to punish wyll and tav decides to just attack her because they care too much for their companions. And I'd guess that mizora is quiet powerful since she's a devil so before mizora strikes tav down, raphael just pops up and protects tav by letting mizora punish wyll and holding tav down so that they don't get hurt by mizora.

I'd actually like it more if raphael just destroys the contract and kills mizora but since he himself is a devil and he doesn't have the crown yet he has to hold back. That's why tav is so mad at him that he promises her that he will make her pay and then he hugs tav and reassurs them that he'll take care of it and perhaps tavs so frustrated of the fact that raphael just held them down so that at first their too angry with him to talk

Sjskskksiaja sorry for dumping this idea on you and I hope it's understandable since English isn't my first language haha

Have a nice day 🌻

I think I mangled the promt somewhat, @shyminnie07 . here's hoping you still like it. 😅

Paying Forward on AO3

When Mizora comes to punish Wyll for letting Karlach live, Tav intervenes. It doesn't go well and they need (and get) a little help from another cambion…

Camp was quiet and Tav watched the fire burn down. They forced their thoughts to follow suit, slowing and mellowing. The last days had been a whirlwind with nary a moment to breathe. Now, with their new friends retreating for the night, the evening stilled and a cool wind brushed over Tav's burning mind soothingly.

They tried not to think about what lay ahead. Tomorrow came anyway. Better to make use of the break while they could. The moment felt like a drop of quiet sandwiched in between two maelstroms.

"Oh no." Wyll's voice came from across camp. "She's coming."

His worried tone urged Tav into action. They grabbed their gear and hurried towards their companion. "Who is coming?" They snapped the last bits of armour into place. "What is happening?"

"My patron," Wyll replied and took hold of Tav's arm. "She won't be happy we spared Karlach."

"She can't have her." Tav's grip tightened around their war hammer. "Or you. She'll have to go through me."

"She's a devil, Tav! Don't get yourself killed on my behalf."

Tav didn't say that getting killed in the line of duty sounded pretty sweet. They'd have done their part and died blameless. Compared to the mess of life, it didn't sound like a bad deal. But before Tav managed to say something stupid, the oily blackness announcing hellfire pooled on the ground before them. Fire shot up and revealed the shapely form of a female devil. Uh oh.

Don't get distracted! Tav told themself to a little avail. The devil knew she was gorgeous and accented all her best features accordingly. Not getting distracted was a quest unto itself and one Tav felt themself losing.

"Wyll," the devil purred in a tone Tav felt not only in their bones. "You've been naughty. And you know what happens when you're naughty."

"And who the fuck are you?" Tav asked just before remembering Wyll said the devil was his patron. Well, patron wasn't a name.

"Call me Mizora," she answered, the disdain for Tav's crude choice of words audible. "I'm Wyll's patron, the fount of his power. My pet's been unruly. And his leash needs a yank."

The devil stretched out a hand, pulled at the air and Wyll stumbled forward as if an actual leash held him around his neck.

"Leave him be!" Tav stepped between the two and felt the invisible leash cut through their chest.

"Wyll and I had a deal." Mizora scanned Tav dismissively. "But Karlach is still breathing."

"You told me devil's only," Wyll spoke up. "She's a tiefling. Not a monster."

"How precious." The devil was unimpressed. "The little pupster's found its bark. Clause G, Section Nine: 'Targets shall be limited to the infernal, the demonic, the heartless and the soulless.' Karlach meets the criteria, pet. Trust me on this."

"I said, leave him alone," Tav repeated and readied their weapon.

"He broke his contract. I am not at fault here."

"Your wording is vague." Tav held their position. "You could have been lenient, but chose not to. I take offence to that."

"And what do you plan to do?" Cold, calculating eyes settled on Tav.

"Wyll won't have to worry about his contract if there is no devil he's beholden to."

"Don't be a fool. What do you think will happen to his powers?" Mizora laughed.

"Wyll is more than his powers," Tav spat. "And he can find a new patron should he want one."

"After you attacked me for not liking the terms of his current contract?" The devil scoffed. "I think not."

But Tav thought back to the devil they met, almost eager to to excite them into a deal. And from the corner of their eye, the paladin spotted the small shadow of Raphael's warlock lurking in the night just outside the camp again. He had his eyes on them. He was an option. Tav shifted their weight back, weighing the war hammer in their hands.

"Tav!" Wyll cautioned, but to no avail.

"Get out of my camp." Tav raised their war hammer. "Now!"

When Mizora failed to leave, the paladin surged forwards and the head of their heavy war hammer connected hard with the devil's soft waist. It was a shame to maul such an exquisite body, but nobody messed with Tav's new friends. Only friends. New friends. Nobody!

Mizora staggered and Tav struck again, cutting across her legs at knee height. A nauseating crunch echoed through the camp. But whatever Tav hit didn't slow Mizora down the least. The devil came at them with incredible speed and a slap of energy stopped Tav in their tracks. Mizora's hand came down and though Tav ducked a way, one of the nails left a long red line down their face.

That couldn't stop them. Tav realigned to their target but Mizora wasn't there any longer. Tav blinked and readjusted their grip on their weapon. A glance at Wyll and Karlach ascertained the devil wasn't bothering them. Despite everything, Tav hoped they scared her away.

But no such luck. After a minute, Mizora returned, looking no worse for wear. "Are you really going to do this?"

Tav didn't bother with an answer and threw themself at the devil again. Just before their hammer connected to infernal flesh, Mizora vanished again. Something whacked Tav on the back of their head and sent them stumbling to the ground. The paladin picked themself up once more, looking for the elusive devil.

As before, Mizora appeared again momentarily. This went on for a while and Tav grew tired and annoyed. Every time Mizora vanished, she added injury to insult, slowly grinding Tav down.

If she had stayed vanished, Tav would have relented, but Mizora kept popping back, ogling Wyll who tried without success to talk Tav down. Not that a little bleeding, scrapes and bruises could top them. Tav was determined to protect their friends.

"Do stop," Mizora sighed after appearing to Tav still leaning heavily on their weapon. Dusts and dirt coated the human's hair and armour. It mixed with blood on their skin. "You cannot win this fight and I am losing interest."

"I will stop when you stay away," Tav ground out. "Leave my friends alone."

"Such misplaced loyalty. An admirable trait, no doubt. But I do not have time for this." Mizora pointed at Tav and laid a full fire ray on them.

Tav stumbled under the onslaught. Most of the heat bounced off the armour but the metal turned uncomfortably hot. They almost dropped their hammer as they pressed on to reach the devil. Mizora languidly repeated her attack. This time, it sent the human sprawling.

Though Tav again deflected most of the fire ray, their shoulder bristled with the heat and their face was singed. They stumbled and got mowed down by a ferocious sweep from the devil. Tav's skin blistered and broke as they skittered over the rough ground. They spat out dirt and blood before propping themself up, ready to return to the fight whatever the cost.

But somebody stepped between them and their target, towering and with wings that obscure Tav's sight. Unthinking, Tav clawed at the newcomer with a low growl.

"Now, now. None of that," came a familiar voice. Tav looked up and found Raphael's black-hole gaze levelled onto them. "Where are you manners?"

"She came into my camp and wants to hurt my friends." Tav struggled to stand. "Over my dead body."

"Yes," Raphael drew the word out into a complete lecture. "Unfortunately, you body is still needed alive."

His arm snapped out before the Tav when the paladin made for Mizora again. They crashed into it, surprised by its unyielding strength.

"How good to see somebody with actual decorum in this – derelict place." Mizora put herself back into order with a curt gesture. "This was all rather tedious."

"I won't let her hurt Wyll," Tav insisted.

"And who are you to decide that?" The devil spread her wings in a subtle threat.

"We can certainly find a solution that involves a minimum of bloodshed," Raphael intervened.

"If it is her blood, maximum is also acceptable," Tav hissed.

Raphael wrapped a wing around the angry human, trapping them in place. "Come, little mouse, calm down. We can settle this like civilised people."

The devils exchanged looks over Tav's head.

"Of course," Mizora agreed with a greedy glint in her eyes. "Wyll, today is your lucky day. Come here pet."

Wyll approached warily until he stood before his patron.

"You know I can't let this slip. But luck intervened on your behalf to let you off lightly." She gestured along her client's body who winced as if a large hand had suddenly taken hold of himand squeezed tightly. Horns sprouted from his head accompanied with the prominent ridges of devils.

"There we are." Mizora turned to Tav. "No pain, just punishment."

Wyll patted down his now features, shock etched over his face. "What have you done?"

"A promise broken, a Price paid. You know the terms," Mizora replied carelessly. "Get used to the new form, pet – there's no going back. Some magic, even I can't undo. Oh, and Wyll? Don't forget. Our pact still stands."

With that she turned to Raphael. "It has been so good to see you again." Each word dripped insincerity. "Until later." Mizora vanished in another flash of hellfire.

Tav peeled out of Raphael's hold and turned to the remaining devil. "What was that?"

"Just a timely intervention, little mouse. I do hate to lose a future client."

"I am not making any deals with you." Tav took a step away.

"Perhaps." The devil shrugged, wings following the motion of his shoulders. "But for now you owe me." With a snap of his fingers, Raphael transported them to the House of Hope. "Now let us discuss the terms of my timely intervention."

"I owe you nothing!" Tav spat.

"You'd be dead without me now."

"Maybe I'd rather be!"

"That can be arranged." Raphael's had closed around Tav's upper arm like a vice and he dragged them deeper into the House. "Maybe a small taste of death will help you appreciate what I just did for you." He bared his teeth as he spoke.

Tav followed because letting the devil drag them was even less dignified. Still they had to scramble to keep up. The devil wasn't in a magnanimous mood any longer.

"You'd have accepted the debt from any of your companions," he hissed. "Time to understand that it applies to me as well. "

"My companions aren't after my soul," Tav countered.

"Is that your worry?" Raphael stopped and Tav ran into him face-first. Black and gold eyes looked down at them as the devil curled his hands around their shoulders. "That I will take your soul?"

"What else could you want?" Tav did their best not to lose themself in the roiling coronas burning over them. The smell of smoke and cherries didn't help.

"Oh, my little pet, there are so many things I want that you can't even begin to fathom." He smiled dangerously. "Of course there are only so many you can grant."

Raphael slipped a finger under Tav's chin and regarded their face for a while. "What is equivalent to the worth of your life?" When Tav didn't answer, he continued: "maybe your own words will have the best result here. No one life is worth more than any other. A flawed assessment, all things considered, but for now it will do."

He leant down and Tav braced for belittling or insult as his breath raked over their skin hot enough to singe Tav's heart. "So this is my proposition, mousling. Your life for mine. A simple deal and easy to fulfil. If you ever find yourself in a position where you are about to take my life, you will not. If you see my life in danger, you will intervene as I did for you."

Tav bit their lip looking for the trap. It had to be one, coming form a devil, especially since it felt innocent enough. But after today they'd go on with their life. They knew where Halsin was and he'd resolve their tadpole problem. They'd never see Raphael again. A relief, that made their heart stutter.

How many devils had they met before this? None. So that was a good prognosis of how many they'd see once rid off their tadpole. Tav regarded the devil towering over them, black eyes, hot breath, sulphur and cherries and all. Once they were back, once they found Halsin, he was a thing of the past.

Speaking over their racing heart Tav held out their hand. "Deal."

"A deal indeed." Raphael gripped their hand with his, never taking his eyes of Tav. His fingers slipped far enough around to dig their sharp tips into Tav's soft flesh. "Now, back and to bed with you. You will need your wits about you in the journey to come."

Before Tav could reply, they found themself back at camp. Their new friends were relieved to welcome them back though worry spread when it became clear that Tav couldn't speak about the nature of the deal they made.

It took a wile for Tav to calm everybody down. They'd never make a deal for their soul and they had not. This much they could say. Whatever transpired was secret but harmless. In the end, Tav crawled into their bedroll slightly confused but feeling overall safe and appreciated.

[sisyphus-prime]

TRANS GAY OLD MAN?!?!??!!?!,!&#^#>#^#>÷^38

Ehm uhm tell me all about him <- is fuckinf normal about old trans gay guys

oh I wish tumblr actually notified me on asks <3

Eric is a character from a game project I'm building on with awful-roffle (cannot tell if tumblr is trying to tag or not so i'm leaving this alone), still in the concept stage. I have one (1) whole doodle with Eric and it's uh

A silly one, but it was silly for the discord emojis. He's the lower person. Readmore time while i pop

So TLDR Eric is an NPC found in Hogsfeet, a side town that will be found in the northern regions of the map in Burning Memories (which is like. Quebec. it's just quebec city and a good chunk of the surrounding region. future post apoc but things HAVE been healing). He, alongside his husband Jeremiah, are the most important NPCs in the town, with multiple quests that involve them, and interactions with the main story line.

Jeremiah is the main construction man in this town, inspired by this is a wall. (He sounds like that) He is incredibly clumsy and falls through rotted wood consistently. Jeremiah thinks his husband is the best thing since sliced bread. Eric thinks the same of Jeremiah.

Eric's silliest fact is that his inspiration was a video of a video set Sesamerot. This one was a core specifically. (he also sounds like that) He still does that. This is not something joked about in setting, and it's treated with respect. Usually, it's a good read on people and situations. Traveler's questions for it are correct EXCEPT on "how will (major plot) situation go. Due to the multiending nature, it either remains vague, but has some sort of direction based on actions.

Eric is a biological grandfather. His children and grandchildren are all grown, but they all moved out of the region. I don't think he ever got top surgery? Maybe? Gonna have to confirm that

Eric's introductory questline is a murder mystery type deal the second you step foot in Hogsfeet. Someone died, yes, but the thing is that it was a week ago and they only found the body shortly before the protagonist, the Traveler, walks in. Eric is the grounding point for this quest, being the major one you return to. There are about 30 other people in this little town, and it ends up being (expunged). They're grateful for your help, and you get more small interactions with them.

Some interactions include

Eric playing his guitar, some country songs

Jeremiah "playing" Eric's guitar in a "seranade" to make Eric laugh

"The coot got stuck somewhere again, could you go fetch him for dinner, Traveler?" - Eric

"Do me a favor, would you? I want to surprise Eric with some (_____) for dinner this week, but I don't have time to go to Dawnberry. Could you? Thanks."

IF you recruit the Hunter(rhys) as a companion, you have THREE old man hanging out. When in Hogsfeet, the hunter will go hang out with Eric, and you have to pick him up before you leave if you want him with you.

IF you go through a plot line with our zoologist and chef, you have a total of FIVE old men hanging out in different areas.

Other! Things, this is all conceptual but you can probably find them in the other towns sometimes <3

Eric is also major in a questline that only happens if the Traveler picks up quests left right and center and rarely does them OR keeps getting worse endings. A key instigator is a situation that happens in town, where Jeremiah fell into a basement of a house he was working in while talking to traveler, investigating a water leak. The basement is full to the point he's treading water, and is like "AH! THERE IS A GAS LEAK! Toss me a light, will you?", and if you throw a match, candle, or shoot your gun it ignites, but he doesn't die. Leaving him in there for too long means he gets out eventually. They're both mad after that. At a certain point, Eric and Jeremiah decide that it's doing more harm than good. They, while neither jumps to do violence normally, will try and get rid of traveler. Just getting them out of the area or killing them, whatever comes first.

Eric was also there for the founding of this little town, we had a dialogue joke about it that probably would be the response.

Traveler: "Hey, why is this town called Hogsfeet?" jeremiah: Y'know, I don't actually know- eric: If I remember correctly there were severed hog feet at the site. Not just one or two. A huge pile. Yep. Traveler: What jeremiah: There were what

He, one of few major NPCS, refuses to address the traveler by their name. Sticking to traveler for any interaction. However, if the game was to be voiced, yk, he'd be one of few who addresses the traveler with any sort of name placement. Funny how that works.

Jeremiah: hey (NAME)! Kid! Hey! Traveler: :D Eric: hey traveler Jeremiah: say the kid's name, you bugger. Gender euphoria and all Eric: Eric: hey them Traveler: :3

tldr think about that one hick great uncle and put him in canada n give him top scars and that's Eric my best friend Eric

EDIT. i think he had top surgery?? we are discussing..

[broken-clover]

Ok so people actually expressed interest so I guess I'll take a good excuse to show off my Neopets customs! I'm definitely not on the level of some really serious users who stake out the really rare items but it's still fun to make my weird cats stylish and give them their own little lore.

Thanks to the anniversary event gifting some free NC, I bought another pet slot and currently have 7!

Dhanue (Donahue/Donnie) is my active main, and even though I know ghost isn't a super rare color I'm absolutely never painting him. Somewhere along the line I just really liked the idea of a steampunk ghost gentleman. He's a gentleman thief with a flair for the dramatic who pretends to be suave but is really a massive troll underneath it.

The only design change I'd like to do with him is finding a better background bc the magma puddle clips into this one. I found one I sorta liked but it's expensive so that's a future goal

0grese was a lucky pound find a few years back! I really love how the robot pets look so weird and angular and gritty without the sleek casing on, it lends well to a slightly spookier aesthetic, I just had to make a her a mad scientist! Though she isn't a bad person, just very timid and odd-looking. She's actually a doctor that studies biohazards and diseases since she doesn't have to worry about getting sick or spreading it to other pets. She also has an unsubtle crush on my Draik but is too shy to say anything

Batatiinha_ (Batat) is another not-really-rare color that I'm not in a hurry to paint. I think it adds to her vibe! I wish I could find a library background that was a bit more ominous, though. And if I can find anymore good gold accessories I might use those, too. I wanted to go for a Midas-esque vibe, with an obsession for riches leading to her obsessively studying dark magic and becoming more ensnared in it until it started altering her body

She and Dhanue go way back, with him often trying to rope her into heists. She finds him insufferable, but it's one of the few reasons she leaves her empty estate anymore and prevents her from becoming a complete shut-in

I love Kaceae way too much, something about baby Aishas actives a rabid part of my brain. I'm not quite sure what I'm doing with her background yet, that's still a to-do, but I'm very happy with her little outfit.

She's, well...she's a baby! She doesn't do much aside from chew on her plushies and nap. When she grows up, she'll become a famous scientist, but for now, she's just baby.

Professor_Giri is the pet I moved to my account with the new pet slot I bought. I traded a Krawk for her current paintbrush and I really love the dark blue, even if Stealthy tends to be more about the ninja accessories. So far I'm happy with her custom! Might change later, but for now I like the vibe.

Giri is an adventure archaeologist who studies tombs, and she absolutely does not know when to shut her mouth. She means well, though. She also knows full well 0grese has a crush on her, but is waiting for the doc to work up the nerve to say something.

Weaclen was obtained from a very lucky fountain faerie quest I got during the festival a few years back. Getting an alien aisha was always one of my dreamies! I love their weirdness. In contrast to the space-age tech and design, I wanted to make his customization a little grungy, with garbage and Slorgs. I'm trying to trade for a few more Slorg accessories, either the raincoat or the little faerie companion released during the last festival, that's another WIP

Speaking of Slorgs, Weaclen can't get enough of the things! He collects as many Slorgs and Slorg memorabilia he can get his paws on, and my account's gallery is devoted to his menagerie. He's actually from the future, but an incident with a wormhole sent him back a few hundred years. He's a descendent of the famed doctor and roboticist Kaceae, and upon finding her as a baby, he takes it upon himself to care for her and raise her until she fulfills her grand destiny in a few decades. He considers it a massive honor.

And finally Zekotah (Zeko) is a pretty simple custom that I'm nonetheless really happy with. Faerie just lends itself nicely to pastel and flowers. If I find any garden-related pieces I like better I might change them, but I like this general vibe a lot

Compared to the others, Zeko lives a pretty quiet, uninteresting life as a gardener, but she's fine with that. She's mostly nonverbal and hates commotion and being crowded, so she's perfectly happy to spend most of her time in the flowerbeds in quiet solitude. Making friends is difficult, so if you're nice to her and don't make a lot of ruckus, she would probably die for you

[zesstra-dnd]

Look at good as Astarion looks I'm sorry but no. He's not supposed to look that old he's was an elf at age 39 he'd still have his baby face and look Like a 20 Yr old lol.

He isn't supposed to look Halsins age who's a bit closer to looking the right age there about especially since Astarion is supposed to be elf 39 Halsin is over 250

Elves live at least to 750 and the aging slows down around age 20 but it's fin to look past since I'm pretty sure they based hi look on Neil his va.

Anyway all that's at most slightly annoying mostly from people who know nothing about dnd and get mad when people point it out lol, honestly it they made it so he was at least around Halsins age when taken it would nflow better, he will definitely have a history in his job as a magister and no I refuse to listen to those saying noo he was corrupt, shut up. Let him be corrupt in the past make it so he was doing simliar shit to his old backstory because that was interesting , he fucked over the gur and they jumped him and Cazador one of the vampires he was selling criminals to noticed Astarion growing far too big for his boots and turned him

Also I hate the mocap thing it's so janky a lot of the time, I'm sick of been made to watch my tav over react to almost everything also the ending kinda sucked, I spend all that time never using a tadpole and the conceqences barely ever are conceqences no matter what the game like "um actually it doesn't matter how well you did one person has to become a mindflayer" there's a sweet friendly mindflayer in the underdark, we could of done an extra quest 1for him or given him an item to protect him whilst he helps us

Give me more body options, more face options, hell the face mods are great they have a whole variety, both young and old so can play as a little old person caught up in this shit

Side side note, there should be more checks on the whole Astarion trying to jump the player at the first meeting, and give me the choice to watch my back instead of just turning my whole back on him I have 2 tavs that would of launched his ass and given him a beating for trying to jump them, 1 would take thier eyes off if him another would be like "mate, that a boar"

Not to mention his actions make no sense when you have companions with you especially more than one like her dipshit what are you expecting to happen next XD, Astarion is operating on one braincell, I know my main tav walks into traps but they know its a trap they just want the shiny

[rosella-writes]

Hiya! Thank you for your answer on choice on the well of sorrows! I struggled so much with it and I initially choose to not have my inquisitor drink from it and after a couple of hours (and your answer), I reloaded and drank from the well. I like the drama of it and solas really wasn't helpful during the entire thing!

Solas: someone should drink from the well but not me, not you and ESPECIALLY not Morrigan!

Me (playing the game): THAT'S NOT HELPFUL SOLAS.

I also like that he got mad about it afterwards! Anyway, I had another question. Should I play jaws of hakkon after or before finishing main quest? I'm trying to trigger dorian and bull's romance and I'm running out of things to do. Also, any tips on triggering that?

I hope you have a lovely day and thank you in advance! 💜

AH I'm so happy that that answer was helpful!! It's a painful choice for Lavellan in particular and it was fun to have the chance to ramble a bit about it, so I appreciate you asking.

I love the post-Well convo with Solas if you drink, since his anger ties in well with his desperate, existential questions afterwards. The talk is so weighty and adding that bit of cronch just makes it even weightier.

I for one really enjoyed having Solas around for the Jaws of Hakkon, since there's a lot there he can engage with. It's a harder DLC than Trespasser imo but worth it. I think my own canon had Virelan go to Basin, then defeat Cory, then the Descent, then Trespasser, but there's all kinds of ways to play! And the DLC is big enough that you could trigger Adoribull pretty easily if you had the two of them through the entire thing and just swap your third companion out (or leave that slot empty, since you'll get the banters quicker that way but it'll be harder gameplay). Their romance banter doesn't trigger until you've locked in a romance for your Inquisitor so keep that in mind.

Thank you again for reaching out! Hope your day's been swell.

[yangxiaolongstan]

ok full disclosure, I fucking hate Strong. not even because of anything about him, but because Fallout 4 is Terrible at Super Mutants. so I'm not really looking forward to him. anyway, let's get started.

the Recruitment conversation with Strong is... fine I guess. I don't like it but overhauling it well would require completely overhauling the Super Mutants in Fallout 4. and yes, that post is coming. without completely changing the Super Mutants I would have Strong be hoping to find the milk of human kindness in order to make peace between Super Mutants and humans. he should recognize that his people are doomed in a way none of the other Mutants can understand. that even though they're physically superior, they will never replace humans because they can't reproduce and aren't as smart as us. as he is he's the epitome of everything I hate about 4's Super Mutants, stupid, violent for no reason, obsessed with strength, and worst of all boring.

Strong's moral compass is completely incoherent. not as in he's evil, but as in there is no moral position that makes any sense of the mess of his affinity. he likes when you do Minutemen quests but doesn't like when you're helpful, he likes when your violent but not when you steal, he even dislikes when you heal Dogmeat. wtf.

ooh and another bad impression on me, he has no conversation at 25% affinity. like with Codsworth I'm disappointed. we could have learned about Strong's history and what he thinks the milk of human kindness is. in my version where he wants to improve Super Mutant human relations he could talk about how worried he is and how, after traveling with you, he's more certain than ever that if they don't make peace, his people will go extinct eventually.

I don't know what causes it but Strong can't seem to find enemies when they attack. the worst example was in the glowing sea where 3 radscorpions jumped us. I had to kill all 3 of them with the deliverer while Strong was busy spinning around without firing a shot every time they dug down. most companions I honestly wouldn't mind much, I have them around for the story. but with Strong, I'm already frustrated enough with him that it kinda drives me batty. he's unpleasant, thus far poorly written, and not useful.

the 50% affinity conversation is... ok? Super Mutants are apparently communists? other than that there's basically nothing to the conversation. I'm kinda baffled by it. I think my version would have Strong ask you about the milk of human kindness since you seem to be the strongest human there is. obviously you can't show him where it is or give it to him since it's a metaphor, and Strong gets mad at you. for the next 15 minutes or so of game time he doesn't talk to you while he calms down. maybe even a speech check that he leaves if you fail.

and no 75% conversation either. jfc. ok ok. I have nothing to work with so this is probably gonna get a little out there. I would have this be the breakthrough for Strong. he realizes that the milk of human kindness isn't real. you aren't keeping it from him, you really can't give it to him. this realization kinda breaks him. his quest starts here, he asks you for help, he doesn't know what to do and there's only one Super Mutant in the Commonwealth who can possibly help him figure it out. the oldest and mightiest, Swan. in my version Swan isn't automatically hostile. he's been alive for so long that he doesn't see any real reason to attack humans. if you've already killed Swan then Strong straight up turns hostile and you have to kill him too. if not, you take Strong to meet Swan and see what wisdom they can impart. Swan tells Strong about the history of Mutants, how the ones in the Commonwealth were made by the Institute but they've popped up all over America from many places. maybe he even drops that he's not originally a Commonwealth mutant, but one of the Master's army who made his way across all of America and settled in the Commonwealth just before the first Institute Mutants were created. he tells Strong that every time Mutants and humans fight, the humans win in the end. the only way peace can happen is if Mutants take the first step and choose to not fight. to attempt peace without a guarantee that humans will accept it. and Strong sets out to create the first non aggressive Super Mutant settlement in the Commonwealth with your help.

see, THIS is why I hate the Mutants in 4. they are the epitome of the core problem of Fallout 4, completely wasted potential. there will almost certainly be a fixing Mutants post later but for now, the big problem is that if they were just a little better they would be great.

100% affinity. finally fucking done. the final conversation is kinda nothing. it might as well not happen. going by my version of Strong, a Mutant trying desperately to make peace, he would talk about how much he admires us for helping him, but eventually tells us he needs to make his way himself, govern the Mutant settlement we helped him found, and help his people outside of your shadow. he leaves his position as your companion, but you can still find him at the Super Mutant settlement you helped him found, as well as wandering the wasteland.

so yeah that's Strong. as far as I'm concerned he's the worst companion in all the 3d Fallout games. thank god he's done. Next up, another settlement needs my help. Preston Garvey and I are going adventuring. and probably Hancock after.

original fixing companions post

Piper

Codsworth

MacCready

Nick

Preston