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dontshootmespence · 4 years

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Shattered Breaths

Summary: After running into two alphas in the middle of the night, you, an Omega, find yourself falling for the elder Winchester brother, but for reasons unspoken, neither of you will act on it.

Pairing: Alpha!Dean x Omega!Reader

Word Count: 6,312

Warnings: Angst. Lots of angst. Mutual pining. Two morons that won’t admit their feelings for one another. Canon compliant death. ABO dynamics. Smut. P in v with knotting and claiming. Some cockwarming. Some quick and dirty oral sex both ways if you squint. All very desperate.

A/N: For those of you 18 and over! This fulfills my omegaverse square for @spnkinkbingo. There’s a TON of build up and it all goes in order from around the beginning of season 7 to after Dean returns from Purgatory.

Beta’d by: The always lovely @stusbunker. Cannot thank you enough! <3

Blood pulsed quickly through your veins as you ran through the desolate forest, low growls from behind pushing you forward at breakneck speed despite the fact that your muscles were on fire. So tired. You were so tired of this.

Moonlight streamed through the trees, lighting a sliver of a path between them that you took without hesitation. Each thud of your feet against the cold ground sent shockwaves through your body, muscles threatening to tear themselves from your bones.

As the growling got closer, you felt a shiver run up your spine and prayed to anyone that was listening to give you a reprieve. Trees surrounded you, light barely hitting your sweat-slick skin through the canopy overhead.

After locking yourself inside for days on end, you ventured outside to feel the sun on your skin. You knew you could be tracked by alphas, especially during your heat, but after days spent underground in an abandoned house, you’d been desperate - and sloppy.

Glancing behind you, you saw a glint of the alpha werewolves’ eyes and pushed your body as hard as you were physically able, running straight into the arms of a tall, well-built man. “Where is it?” He asked, his hands wrapping around your wrists to steady you.

“Them, there’s two of them!” You whispered.

“Stay between me and my brother.” Turning around, you saw an even taller man with his gun drawn and sandwiched yourselves between them.

For a moment, the forest stood still, breath catching in the air as your eyes darted all around. Seemingly out of nowhere, one of the alphas that had been chasing you swiped at the taller of the two brothers, knocking him down and leaving you vulnerable. Turning, you saw the man you’d run into get tackled to the ground by the other alpha.

A gunshot went off, piercing the werewolf in the heart before it collapsed on top of the shorter brother. Quickly, both of you turned your attention to the other man, who was still pinned to the ground, fighting off swipe after swipe of the werewolf’s piercing claws.

Before you could run to help him, the other man rushed past you, screaming his brother’s name.“Sam!”

But the moment he made contact with the werewolf, the unnamed man was thrown backward into a tree.

These men had stopped to help you. You couldn’t turn away now. As your fangs descended, a chest-deep growl emanated from within you, talking the alpha off guard long enough for you to get him away from Sam.

“Now you stand and fight? You stupid, omega bitch.”

He pinned you up against a tree and ran his nose up the side of your neck, inhaling your scent. You felt your claws extend from your fingertips but before you could do anything the unidentified man called for him. “Hey!”

The minute the werewolf’s attention was diverted, the man fired a shot that landed directly between your assailant’s eyes.

When he fell to the floor, you heard Sam call for his brother, Dean, who immediately ran toward him to make sure he was okay. Both had a few nicks and bruises, but they would survive. As soon as they assured the other was safe, their attention turned to you.

“Stay away!” You growled, more for their benefit than yours. “I need a minute.”

They both held their hands up and tried to impress upon you that they weren’t about to hurt you. They’d stopped to help and put themselves in great danger to do so, so you trusted them, but you didn’t trust yourself. Whenever you let yourself tap into the feral side of yourself, you needed time to come down.

“You’re pretty tough for an omega,” Dean said, injecting a little levity into his voice.

Eyes closed, you took deep breaths and noted the lightness in his tone.

“When you’ve been on your own since you presented at 16, you kind of have no other choice.” With each breath, you managed to slow your heart rate and finally felt your claws retract. “You’re hunters.”

Sam nodded and stepped forward, catching you as your shaky legs gave way underneath you. “We are. You okay?”

“I will be. Thank you, Sam. Dean, thank you.”

The brothers guided you out of the forest and toward their car. “Nice ride,” you said, impressed.

“This is my Baby,” Dean replied.

Sam rolled his eyes and laughed, opening the door for you. “Can we give you a ride somewhere?”

“We’re definitely giving you a ride somewhere,” Dean echoed. “I’m not about to leave an in-heat Omega out in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night.”

“Much appreciated, boys. But I’ve got nowhere to go.” More than 15 years had passed since you’d had a place to call home.

“We don’t either.” Sam shrugged. “We travel all over to hunt. You have any money?”

Shaking your head, you retreated into yourself, realizing for the first time since you ran that you were well and truly fucked. “No, actually. I did. But I ran as soon as the werewolves spotted me.”

Dean shot you a pitiful look. “Why don’t you stay with us?”

Running from two alphas into the arms of two others? Was that wise? Probably not. But you’d never been one for the wise. At least they were human, and hunters.

-------

Shortly after joining Sam and Dean on their continuous cross-country trek, you had to distance yourself from them, if only by a few motel rooms; your heat had triggered their ruts. Even though they were both amazing looking guys, you weren’t about to jeopardize your newfound camaraderie by begging one of them to fuck you senseless. No matter how good looking they were. Out of pure need to not screw up the first home you’d ever had, you made a habit of keeping to yourself during your heats and asked them to do the same whenever biology kicked into overdrive.

They taught you everything they knew. You’d come across werewolves and vamps, but that was about it, and there was so much more to this big scary world than you’d originally thought. Leviathans were apparently a thing, and they couldn’t die. At least they hadn’t figured out a way yet. Whenever the boys thought they’d killed one, the same one showed their ugly face again. None of their usual methods worked, so that was fun.

Sam schooled you on the lore, loading you up with facts about any and every creature he knew of whenever he could, much to Dean’s feigned dismay; you could tell in his eyes how proud he was of his brother. He also taught you self defense, which was harder than you thought. Sure, you’d defended yourself a thousand times before but that had been feral swiping and growling and hoping for the best, mixed with a healthy dose of luck. Sam was able to refine your ferocity into swift and pointed movements. After a while, you could even defend yourself against Sam.

Dean, on the other hand, taught you how to handle a knife and how to shoot. For some reason, learning to handle the knife had been easy, but shooting was another story all together. “This is fucking hopeless,” you muttered as your arm fell to your side in defeat.

“A’right, ‘mega,” he said, gathering his arms around you, his hands splaying over your own. A delicious shiver crawled up your spine at the sound of your nickname rolling off his tongue. Only Dean called you Omega; Sam just used your name.

“Relax your shoulders,” he said, his deep, gravely voice rolling through you. It’s a good thing you weren’t in heat, you thought to yourself as you swallowed hard, because not jumping his bones was hard enough under the best of circumstances. “You want to keep your arms extended, but not locked.”

“K, Alpha. Now what? Because I suck at this.”

He chuckled at your back and placed his hands on your hips, moving you into a good standing position. “Like this.” He tapped your leg with his left hand. He was

making this easy.

“Fake it ‘til you make it,” he continued, sending your mind in a completely different direction than the one he intended. Which really wasn’t all that hard to do considering your mind was in the gutter already.

“You make it sound so simple,” you huffed. “You’ve been doing this since you were practically in diapers.” You lost yourself in the thought for a moment; he deserved so much more than that.

“You want to pretend that you know exactly what you’re doing, because it’ll feel more natural, and when it feels more natural, you’re in the better position to hit your target. Pick one.”

Picking one of his empty whiskey bottles that he’d placed in the middle of the area ahead, you leaned forward slightly.

“What made you lean forward?” He asked.

“I don’t know. Instinct, I guess? I figure my body should be pitched forward a little bit to counteract the kick of the gun.”

“See, you’re a fuckin natural,” Dean said proudly. “Grab the grip tight and aim.”

When he let go of your arms, you felt cold and off your game again. You didn’t like to admit how much he steadied you. Something about Dean was comforting, like that first sip of whiskey - warm and inviting. You wavered and his arms returned to where they were.

“You’re questioning your aim,” he said softly. “You had it. Have faith in yourself and follow through on your target.” Stepping back, he pulled out his other gun and hit the furthest bottle back without any problem.

With a deep breath, you playfully growled at him, frustrated at how good he was and how good he looked doing it. “So all I need to do is fake it?”

“Yup. Keep in mind everything I just said, and fake it. Don’t go for the one in the back, go for that one,” he replied, pointing to a dark blue bottle toward the front, maybe 15 to 20 feet away from you.

Turning your attention back toward the bottles, you shook out your nerves, breathed in through your nose, out through your mouth, and applied steady pressure on the trigger, feeling a bit of kickback as the bottle shattered into a thousand pieces.

“See!” Dean said, smiling wide. “I told you!”

You put the gun down and danced around. Sure, you needed consistency, but at least you were making progress. “Now I just have to get my own gun. One similar to this. Because I don’t wanna get used to this and then have to handle something else entirely.”

Dean swallowed hard and picked the gun up, letting it slip through his fingers effortlessly as the grip was turned toward you. “Take this.”

“Dean, this is your gun. Your trusty gun. I couldn’t.” Besides Sam, Cas and Baby, this gun had to be one of the constants in his life.

Gripping the barrel firmly, he extended it toward you again. “Take this one.”

“Exactly, it’s never failed me. And if I can’t be there, it won’t fail you either.” His strong hand glided over yours and opened your palm before laying the gun down. “Besides Sam and Cas, you’re all I’ve got, ‘Mega.”

Pride gave way to sadness before her eyes. She could see the cogs turning, wanting to know more than anything what made him tick. When he closed the gap between you, you leaned into his embrace and closed your eyes as he pressed a kiss to your forehead.

-------

“You okay?”

With a strained laugh, you grabbed Dean by the wrist and pushed him into the motel room. “Me? Am I okay? Dean, what the hell were you thinking?”

If he wasn’t already in pain you’d kick the ever-living shit out of him. As it was, you were about to rip him a new asshole.

“He was -”

“Sam, shut up!” You snapped before turning to Dean, whose mouth you knew was open despite having your back turned to him. “And you! Don’t even! I had that werewolf no problem, and because you had to come out and be Mr. Hero and shove me out of the way, you got hurt.”

Your heart was racing a mile a minute. When the wolf’s claws had slashed through the fabric of Dean’s henley and the skin underneath, your heart nearly stopped. His scream of agony still echoed through your head.

“Sam, are you okay?” You asked, peeling back the blood-stained material of Dean’s shirt. Thankfully, the marks weren’t too deep, but he still scared you half to death.

“Yea, I’m fine. There anything I can do?”

“No, I’ve got this,” you replied. “We have no food and he’s not about to go grab a meal like this though.”

Sam nodded in understanding and ducked out of the motel room quickly. You made a mental note to apologize for snapping at him.

“Can I talk?” Dean asked, testing where you were on the anger scale.

Huffing, you poured some alcohol onto a rag to clean out his wounds. “Depends. You plan on making excuses for getting yourself hurt? Or do you plan on apologizing? Because I’ll only accept one of those as a reason to open your mouth.”

With pursed lips, he mumbled. “You’re a little bossy, Omega.”

“Get used to it. What the hell were you thinking?” Crouching before him, you wiped his wounds clean as he hissed at the pain.

Dean’s hand slipped underneath your chin, tipping your head up so you’d look at him. “I saw you when we first met; scared. I saw your death flash before my eyes, so I jumped without thinking.”

His thumb caressed the side of your cheek. Your instinct was to lean into it, but you were so angry with him. “Fuckin’ hell, Dean. That’s the problem. Fucking think!”

He flinched at your outburst. You were so mad. But it was more than that. “Dean, I’m scared every time we go out. I’m scared of monsters. I’m scared of alphas that don’t know how to take no for an answer. I’m always scared. But I do shit anyway because it’s either do something or die and I really don’t feel like dying. D’ya know what scares me more than anything though?”

When he shook his head, you tried to speak, but felt the words catch in your throat. Your lip began to tremble, all of the fear and adrenaline finally steadying out. “Losing you.”

Swallowing back the bile rising in your throat, you continued. “I ran from my father, an abusive alpha. I was so afraid of being hurt again that I stayed away from anyone and everyone. Until I ran into you. Even when I lived with my father, I never really had a home. And now I do,” you said softly, a tear falling down your cheek. “Do you know what it would do to me to lose you? Not only to lose you, but realize I lost you because of me?”

“I don’t wanna die, but if I die protecting you; I’ll consider it a good death,” he replied. “But I’m sorry. I should’ve trusted you to handle it. Because you could’ve and you were going to. I just...I wasn’t thinking.”

Letting go of a breath you didn’t know you were holding, you bandaged up Dean’s wounds and sat on the crappy motel bed beside him. “Start thinking,” you commanded, your hand cradling the back of his neck.

Without any thought for the consequences or the implications, you pressed your lips to his, memorizing the scent of musk and evergreen that floated off his body. He smelled like home. Wherever he was, you were home. “Please, start thinking. Don’t make me lose you, Alpha.”

Dean nuzzled his forehead into yours and whispered. “I’m sorry, ‘Mega.”

-------

Whenever you weren’t hunting or isolating yourselves during heats and ruts, you, Dean and Sam indulged in cheap booze, cheaper food and bad movies. “If I don’t get food, I might kill one of you.”

Dean popped up from his seat like he’d just been yelled at and forced to go to his room. “I’ll grab some then,” he laughed, an easy-going smile dancing across his face.

Smiling excitedly, you clasped your hands together and brought them up by the side of your face. “Bacon cheeseburger and fries, please. And pie?”

“What kind?”

“Whatever you get.”

“What makes you think I’m getting pie?”

“Your name is Dean.”

“Touche, ‘Mega,” he said with a laugh. Sam ordered a wildly boring salad with a fruit cup for dessert. You could swear it actually pained Dean to hear such an order. “I’ll be back in 30.”

As he closed the door, you ran into the bathroom and changed into your pajamas before picking out your movie for the night on one of the on-demand channels. “This cool, Sam? The Gingerbread Man starring Gary Busey.”

Looking up, he nodded quickly, clearly not registering what you’d just said, as you were sure he’d have some snarky remark. “Yea, that’s fine by me. Y/N, can I ask you a question?”

You bristled at the frankness in his voice. “Sure, Sam. What is it?”

A little chuckle put you more at ease as he spoke. “Why don’t you and Dean just fuck already?”

A very undignified snort escaped you. It made no sense to try and dissuade him of his opinion. It was obvious you and Dean liked each other, wanted each other. “It’s too complicated, Sam.”

He shot you an ‘are-you-serious’ look, which spurred you on. “Dean wouldn’t want a needy Omega at home that he felt beholden too. Plus, I’m not just gonna sit home and raise pups, as much as I’d like them. I need an identity outside of that. And that would come with it’s own host of issues, because I’m assuming he would be ‘just a tad’ overprotective. And-”

“As opposed to how he already is,” Sam interjected, leaning forward to place his head in his propped up hands. “But go on.”

“Don’t be a smartass, Sam. What we have here is good. The three of us. I have a home. If something were to fuck that up by, like oh, I don’t know, fucking Dean and it not working out? I would lose the only home I’ve ever really known. As much as I love Dean, and you know I do, I’m too afraid to risk it.”

Sam looked at you sadly, hoping that maybe you’d all met in a different life. “I understand that. More than you know.”

A comfortable silence hung between you for a moment, and you thought that was the end of it. “Dean loves you, too, you know? If anyone could get my brother to settle down and have pups, it’d be you. Yea, he’d be an overprotective pain-in-the-ass, but he knows he can’t control you. I’m not saying you have to say anything to him. But I think you should. I think you guys are more on the same page than you think.”

For a moment, you allowed yourself to drift off into thoughts of what a life with Dean might be like. Kickass hunters with a family of pups to raise. Happy. Together. It made your heart swell, but then you saw the picture shatter before your eyes and the realization hit you like a truck. The reason you were too afraid to pursue things with Dean wasn’t because it could screw up the home you’d managed to find. In this life, a hunter’s life, you rarely got a happy ending, and if you lost Dean after being claimed by him? The man you loved more than anything?

There would be no coming back from that.

You’d shatter.

------

After your brief fast food, crappy B-movie respite, you finally formulated a decent enough plan to kill Dick Roman. If by formulated, you mean Sam and Dean trusting Crowley, relying on the new and improved bee-loving Castiel, all while watching the boys crumble at the loss of Bobby for a second time, then yes, a plan had been formulated. “This is so, so very stupid,” you muttered. “A bone from a righteous nun bathed in the blood of an angel, head Daddy vamp, and possibly Crowley if he didn’t fuck us royally, and we’re about to walk right in.”

“You got a better idea?” Dean asked.

“Not a one. Ready to go?”

“That’s my girl.”

Speeding down the highway, you chuckled to yourself at the stupidity of this. Dean, Sam, Cas, Ghost Bobby, even Meg had said you could sit this one out, but you weren’t about to let the boys go in by themselves. Maybe you couldn’t do anything that they wouldn’t have already tried. But if they were gonna die, you were gonna bite the bullet with them. You wouldn’t be left alone again.

You split up into teams of two. Dean needed Cas to identify the real, fake Dick, which left you and Sam to search for Kevin and get the hell out of there, all while using Meg as a distraction. Each footstep felt like a bomb going off underneath your feet; you were bound to get caught. But as you snuck through hallway after sanitized, boring-ass hallway, picking the locks of every door in your wake, you finally found Kevin. Who, of course, had to throw another wrench in the already shaky, we’re-absolutely-gonna-get-ourselves-killed plan.

“We have to blow up the lab,” Kevin said desperately, looking every inch a scared child making the decisions of a man.

More than anything, you and Sam wanted to get him out, but you knew he was right. With enough Borax on you to clean the entirety of insert-large-monument-of--choice-here, you doused every leviathan in your path before finally making it to the lab in one piece, if slightly covered in leviathan goo.

With the traps set, you began the search for Dean, Cas and Dick, only to find the head leviathan with the bone sticking through his throat. A wretched sound emanated from the slimy creature’s throat before his limbs began to twitch. “We need to go!” You screamed over the shockwaves building in the small room. “Guys, we have to go now!”

But before they had even taken a step, Dick Roman exploded, flinging his remnants all over the room, and when you could finally see again, Cas and Dean were gone. Sam spun toward you, eyes darting around the room, mouth agape.

“Where are they? You cried, grasping Sam’s jacket in your hands. “What happened to them?”

“I-I-”

“Hello, Sam. Y/N,” Crowley touted upon his entrance.

Sam held you back as you lunged toward the demon without a care for what he might do to you. “What happened to Dean? Where is Cas?”

With a click of his fingers, two of his henchmen had Kevin in their grasp. And with the next, they were gone.

“That bone had a bit of a kick,” he replied with a sickly smug smile on his face. “God weapons often do. Looks like you two are well and truly alone.”

Another snap and Crowley was gone.

Dean was gone.

“We have to find Dean,” you said meekly, numbness lapping at your toes like a wave on the shore.

Off in the distance, other Leviathan approached.

“We have to get out of here,” Sam said.

But you couldn’t move. Your limbs were heavy with exhaustion and a black hole of despair that was devouring you from the inside out. “We have to find Dean,” you whispered.

“We have to go!” Sam picked you up and threw you over his shoulder.

In your grief, you tried to fight him off - you begged him to put you down and go find Dean and Cas, but he refused. “I’m not leaving!” You punched his back with your fist with every ounce of strength you had, screaming until your throat hurt.

“I’m not letting you die, too,” he said, voice ragged as he carried you through the hallways.

“Die too.” The words rolled through your mind like a bullet. “He’s not dead. He’s not dead. He’s not dead.”

Sam threw you into the Impala and slipped the key into the starter, panicking when the engine sputtered to life. As it finally kicked into drive, the monstrous squealing of the Impala’s damaged engine was drowned out by the screech of your anguished cries.

-----

You were caged.

Within these walls. Within this world. Within your skin.

As you trembled, the overwhelming ache between your thighs spread outward to your entire body. You sobbed into the mattress. After losing Dean, you’d done anything and everything you could think of to find him, but to no avail. And then your heat hit.

Despite the medication that Sam had found to help you through them, the stress and desolate sadness somehow made this heat even worse. Pain overwhelmed you, every nerve on fire, boiling like lava. You tried everything to alleviate the pain, even touching yourself in the hopes that an orgasm would lessen the effects, but it did nothing physically, leaving you emotionally worse for the wear.

When your hands slipped across your sweat-slick, nerve-wracked skin you thought of Dean. The way he made you laugh. The way he smiled when he watched terrible horror movies. The way his green eyes saw through your tough exterior into the softness beneath. The way his muscled arms gathered around you, allowing you to find a home in the most unlikely of places. In that moment, there was a brief respite, your heart lightening every so slightly at the thought of home, only to be jerked back to reality when you realized he was gone. All you wanted was for the pain to subside. To feel okay again.

A heavy knock on the motel room door alerted you to Sam’s presence. “Y/N, it’s me. I have more medication and some food for you.”

Grunting in agony, you called for him to come in, noticing the softness in his eyes as he touched your head with the back of his hand. ‘I’m fine, Sam. You can just leave the stuff on the table.”

“You’re burning up,” he said, running to the bathroom to grab some water so that you could take your pills.

He placed the pills into your quaking hands and watched you take them, your eyes numb and forward-facing. “You’re gonna be okay.”

“I can’t do this,” you said, voice barely above a whisper.

“What?”

“The pain!” You snapped through clenched teeth. “It’s even worse now, I can’t, I-” Lifting your head, you saw the sorrow in your soul reflected in his eyes. “Sam, help me. Please.”

He knew what you were asking and he shook his head, standing up quickly from his place at your side and pacing across the room. “No, Y/N, I can’t.”

With every ounce of strength you had, you crawled to the end of the bed, begging. “Sam, this pain is overwhelming. I don’t trust anyone else, and I can’t do this anymore. I trust you. Please, Sam. Please.”

You gasped as Sam wrapped his arms around you, his cock straining against his jeans.

“You’re Dean’s,” he said matter-of-factly, almost more for himself than for you. “I can’t.”

“I’m sorry,” you said as you sobbed into his chest. You repeat yourself over and over again, hoping it would absolve you of the overwhelming guilt that blanketed you - mind, body and soul.

----

After you threw yourself at Sam, he started distancing himself. Of course he came to check on you multiple times a week, he helped you find a legitimate job, ensured you had enough food and money and medication to survive your heightened heats, but that was it. Whether it was because of what you’d done or how he felt about you, you weren’t sure. You hadn’t the strength or desire to ask, figuring it didn’t truly matter either way.

Each day was an exercise in strength, with you going through the motions despite the desire to let go. A year passed.

Then one morning, you woke up with the knowledge that your heat was, in fact, here again. Even though it continued to come every three months as it always had, you could swear you were constantly in the throes of it. Your body hurt, muscles heavy, nerves always on fire to some degree. It never ended. Nor did your thoughts of Dean. Essentially, you remained because you were too scared to die. That and hope. There was a sliver of it still lingering, even though its presence tore you to shreds day in and day out.

At your desk job, you clamped your legs together, wishing that someone out there could satiate your hunger. The medication had done a bit to tamp down your physical pain, enough where you could work without much interruption, but the sexual aspect of your heat still remained in full force.

You made it through another day and began to walk back to your motel room, but it was just a room. Home had evaporated when Dean had been taken from you. As you walked down the street, passing playing children and the occasional speeding car, you inhaled the cool air in the hopes that it would refresh you - bring you back to the land of the living - only to be hit with the scent of musk and evergreen.

A warmth spread over you and a smile returned to your face for the first time in months. It smelled so much like Dean, like being wrapped in his arms all those years ago when he first taught you how to shoot. The feeling of peace quickly left you and you cursed the gods for their inequity, tears running down your cheeks as you stormed through your motel room door.

Collapsing into the bed, you pulled the matted pillow toward your head and sunk into the overly-used mattress, praying that the memory of the scent would stop torturing you when you awoke next.

-----

Hours later, as the sun began to set, varying hues of pink and orange dabbling the dusky sky, you woke to the comforting yet torturing scent. But you were all cried out and instead attempted to move through it, as you had with most things for the past year.

A knock on the door startled you. For a moment, you contemplated not answering. You really weren’t in the mood to talk to Sam right now. You’d text him later to let him know you were okay. With another thud, you swung the door open, ready to yell. “Dean?” You cracked. “Am I alive? Did I die in my sleep?”

Tired eyes smiled at you, happiness overtaking the misery that had filled them for so long. “You’re alive. It’s me, ‘Mega.”

“How?”

“Do you really want to know right now?”

With a disbelieving chuckle, you replied. “No.”

Reaching out, you grabbed him by the collar of his t-shirt and pulled him toward you, lips hungrily finding his without hesitation or thought. He sunk into your kiss, practically collapsing into you as he crossed the threshold into the room and kicked the door closed behind him. “‘Mega, I need you.”

In an instant, you were home again, arching into his hurried kisses. Frantic hands grabbed at the hem of your t-shirt and slipped it over your head before snaking his fingers underneath the straps of your bra.

“You have me, Alpha.”

You jumped into his embrace and wrapped your legs around his waist, pulling at the material of his shirt like someone starved of all sustenance. When your fingers found his muscled chest, you moaned at the feel of him underneath your fingertips. He’d been gone for more than a year, but here he was, in the flesh; he was real.

Dean walked you toward the bed and tripped into it, falling onto the mattress with you pinned beneath him. He let out a breathy laugh and collapsed into the side of the bed, kneeling before you as he peeled your pants and panties down your legs and threw them to the floor. “You were my last thought before closing my eyes,” he said, biting and sucking patches on your inner thighs. “My first thought in the morning. You kept me going, ‘Mega.”

Whining, you bucked up into his mouth and grasped his hair, pulling him closer to your heated sex. With every swipe of his tongue up your slit, you felt yourself melt into his embrace - a stillness overcoming you despite your desperation for his touch. “Alpha,” you breathed.

You shimmied yourself off the bed before him. “Need your knot. Need to taste you.”

“Oh fuck,” he choked out as you licked your lips and slipped them over his swollen cock. “‘Mega, ‘M, not-” He braced himself, his grip white-hot against the sheets as he towered over you.

“Don’t care.” You hastily tugged his jeans and boxers down just far enough to grab his cock. Hungrily, you slid your hands up and down in tandem with your mouth. Each pass left trails of spit dripping down your chin and onto the floor. But you didn’t care. Looking up, you saw Dean at peace for the first time in years, mouth agape, muscles taut, unthinking.

When you moaned around his length and reached your hand between your legs, he couldn’t take it anymore. He lifted you up onto the bed and crawled up the length of your body, laying hungry open-mouthed kisses along your pliant flesh as he kicked off the remainder of his clothing. You managed to lift your head to find his mouth again, whimpering at the sight of the dark flesh of his knot. How he came back, what he did when he was gone, what you’d gone through in his absence, none of it mattered - not when it came down to it. He was yours and you were his, scars and all.

Climbing onto the bed, he moved your head toward the headboard and up against the pillow, placing his cock at your entrance before effortlessly slipping inside.

“Fuck, Alpha. I need you. Need you to knot me.”

Dean chokes out an incoherent word or two, groaning as he hastily slides his hand into your hair. Teeth scrape along the side of your neck as he pumps into you, his knot swelling with each thrust. There’s no grace in either of your movements as he fucks into you, bucking into each other as if your lives depend on it.

As his knot rolled into you, connecting you both, you cried out and bit down on his shoulder, only to scream out again when his teeth found a spot on your neck just below your ear. Whenever you’d heard of omegas and their alphas before, about the connection between them and the wholeness they felt being claimed, you’d never understood it - but you did now.

Every atom in your body felt connected with his. It was deeper than anything you’d ever felt before. “Alpha!” You cried into his waiting mouth.

Thick, hot streams of come filled your insides as he trembled above you, lips finding yours in a desperate attempt to make this last forever. To stay in this moment.

When his eyes found yours, he let out a strangled laugh, thumb rubbing over the spot where he’d claimed you. “‘Mega, I’m not the same man I was.” Already, he was trying to run. But you wouldn’t allow it.

“I know,” you said softly before kissing his forehead. “We’ll figure it out, okay? Where were you? What happened?”

He fell to your side and gathered you close, slipping himself back into your slick heat, needing the closeness. To stay here for just a moment more. Relaxing your head against his chest, you listened as he told you what happened after Dick Roman’s death. Strained words and shattered breaths made you realize he wasn’t telling the whole truth, but he was saying what he could, and for now, that was enough.

Purgatory. He was in Purgatory. Surrounded by monsters every day.

“Thing is…” He started, trailing off almost immediately.

“What is it?” You asked, clenching your walls around his cock. Anything to take his mind off the horrors he’d witnessed. “Dean, you can tell me.”

“Thing is, there was a peace in it. Fighting day in and day out. The routine of it. I-I liked it. The killing. What does that make me?”

You tipped your head up to kiss the underside of his chin, finding the salty taste of his tears. “It makes you human. It makes you a hunter, Alpha.” Dean dipped his head to kiss the mark he’d given you, massaging your breasts as you spoke. “There is something I want you to know though.”

“What is it?” He asked.

“After you died, I thought you were gone forever. And the stress of it all made my heats so much worse than they ever had been. And I-” You broke, a sob bubbling in your throat.

“It’s okay, ‘Mega. I promise, it’s okay.”

“Nothing happened between us, but I threw myself at Sam. It’s been eating at me ever since it happened. I love Sam, but I love him like my brother and I never wanted it to happen. He turned me down, because I’ve always been yours,” you said quickly, trying to get it all out and breathe at the same time. “I was just so desperate and so alone and-”

Grasping your chin, Dean turned your head toward his and cut you off with a searing kiss. “We have some guilt to deal with, I guess,” he said, voice barely above a whisper. He slid his hands down your arms, fingers entwined with yours. “Together?”

Whisper soft, you replied. “Together.”

#spnkinkbingo #spnkinkbingo2020 #alpha!dean #alpha!dean x omega!reader #alpha!dean smut #alpha!dean fanfiction #alpha!dean x reader #supernatural #supernatural smut #supernatural fanfiction #supernatural omegaverse #omegaverse #dontshootmespence #shattered breaths

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sapphire-innit · 3 years

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I recommend Tommy's POV of MCC11, MCC13 Teal Turkeys, and Wilbur's team in MCC13 simply bc I watched em live and they're amazing ^^. Teal Turkeys idk if they saved any vod, but all members posted a recap vid.

More MCC facts!

When Grian massacred Dream's team in MCC9 Survival Games, he shouted THE MOMENT OF MY LIFE! despite just getting married like weeks ago. Illumina crashed the server in MCC13 when he accidentally hit a fox with a treat meant to enlargen chickens.

Wilbur's PC crashed in MCC13 and he ended up punching it at the end of the stream. There were two teams made of fans in MCC10 and everyone just relentlessly bullied them. Quig made a TNT cannon just to destroy them in Skybattle.

DT faced lots of irl problems in MCC11 but somehow they won ANYWAY. Grian was terrifying in MCC13 dodgebolt, to the point where I, Teal Turkeys supporter, shouted WHY ARE YOU GOOD IN THE ONE DODGEBOLT I DONT WANT YOU TO WIN irl

CaptainSparklez is always absurdly close to winning, which is where the Captain's curse meme came from

So yea it's so much fun :D

AHHH Thank you!! I will try to find some time to catch those ones in particular, its very helpful to have ones to aim for lol. ALSO YES THE MCC LORE I love it, its all so wild lmao

Can’t wait til I can catch one live!!! Though choosing a POV is gonna be TOUGH lol (I always was the type to try to catch every POV in an UHC, but I have a feeling thats gonna be a bit Rough with a 3 hour Vod for each team lol)

Recap vids are probably gonna save my ass tbh, I’m still trying to catch up on the main lore over here!!

#dream smp #mcyt mcc #into-the-spirals-of-my-eyes #mcc vod watch list

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radramblog · 3 years

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Every Mono-Black Commander, Part 4: Designed for the Format

In what will be the penultimate edition of this weekly word stream, the cards steadily on average get better, as WoTC realises commander is the most popular format and starts designing specifically for the format. On the other hand, people don’t play lots of these cool and interesting cards because everyone’s obsessed with “multicolour”, the cowards.

Moving on.

Sidis, Undead Vizier (245 decks, 25th most played)

Sidisi is one of those cards I’m surprised sees as much play as it does. Not because it’s bad, but because it seems to belong a lot better in the 99 than in the zone- they’re pretty much just a tutor with a body attached, after all. For a while, though, it was the only commander you could run that was a pure tutor, so if you were into just comboing people out it’s probably not a bad idea.

I think part of the reason I underrate this card is that I always assume it’s 6 mana. And it’s a lot better at 5 than it is at 6. And you can always just sacrifice itself if you really want your commander to just be an overpriced Diabolic Tutor.

Kothophed, Soul Hoarder (29 decks, 73rd most played)

I actually rate Kothophed a bit higher than I think most do. While as the 2nd of Lilliana’s demons he was obviously a fair bit weaker than the extremely banned Griselbrand, and the only one of the 4 not to be mythic, he does do a couple things really well.

For one, he draws a lot of cards. Things are going to the graveyard all the time, especially in multiplayer, and he makes the artifact/aristocrat decks think twice about popping off. The other is that he’s super cheap, at like 40 cents a pop. And I appreciate that, especially considering some of the cards surrounding him.

Liliana, Heretical Healer//Liliana, Defiant Necromancer (645 decks, 9th most played)

Baby Lilli herself looks a lot better than Ob Nixilis of the Black Oath as far as Planeswalker commanders goes, and it’s therefore unsurprising that she breaks the top 10. Everybody loves Planeswalkers, lots of people like Lilliana both as a card and a character, and the card that puts her in the zone is quite solid.

What does she do, though? Well, of the 6 Creature->Planeswalker transform cards, she’s one of the three that can theoretically flip the turn you play her without a haste effect (and Nicol Bolas is only on that list by technicality, because that’s a loooot of mana), and it’s not particularly hard to do so considering the colour she’s in. She then protects herself a little with a Zombie token and acts as basically a multiplayer-tuned Lilliana of the Veil, with a bigger number on her plus and minuses that better suit commander. This lets her work quite well for discard decks, reanimator decks, aristocrats decks, zombie decks, and of course, Lilliana decks. She’s just really solid overall, making up somewhat for the fragility of walkers in the format by being cheap and making herself a blocker.

Drana, Liberator of Malakir (82 decks, 49th most played)

Drana I guess could be used as a tribal or Voltron commander of some description, but to be frank, she’s here for one thing- aggro. Anthem effects are uncommon in black, and Drana just piles on so many counters in such an efficient manner that she kinda makes up for that on her own. I’ve actually never seen anyone piloting a Drana deck (of any of the three Dranas, actually), so I don’t know exactly how effective it is, but putting her at the helm of a stack of tokens or efficient threats just sounds scary. I’m pretty sure she’s only liberating Malakir from its remaining life points.

Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet (124 decks, 38th most played)

Kalitas seeing this much play…actually frustrates me, seeing as he’s basically just a hate piece. Like yeah, he has another ability, and he makes tokens, but come on. You’re just playing this for the exile clause, and it’s never going to make you any friends. Headcrab Vampire over here doesn’t do anything much if your opponents just wait til he’s off the field to do anything spicy, and in that case, what are you doing with him? Very inefficiently voltronning up? Gaining 3 life? It’s a bit sad. I don’t really like him.

Gonti, Lord of Luxury (550 decks, 11th most played)

Aww man, they’re not in the top 10 anymore? Fucking Tergrid.

Gonti is another card advantage commander, but everything on them lines up to make both a fun and a powerful effect. They’re not too expensive, and in addition to effectively drawing a card, deathtouch makes them a great way to dissuade attacks from other players. Their ETB not only acts as card selection, but it also gives you access to effects mono-black lacks, silver bullets you don’t play, or just surprise threats that vastly open up your options. They can whiff, sure, but that doesn’t happen especially often.

I’m biased, because my Gonti deck is among my favourite of my 100-card children, but Gonti is just such a fun commander that I don’t even mind the lack of direction they hand you. I run them as grindy valuey control, but they work great as the helm of flicker, theft, and even Aetherborn tribal decks as well. Just a stellar little commander.

Yahenni, Undying Partisan (306 decks, 21st most played)

Speaking of Aetherborn, Yahenni is also here, and I really appreciate that the two Aetherborn commanders we got are both really cool both in game and in the lore. Shame about most of the rest of the tribe being draft trash. Also, WoTC brought all sorts of old tribes back into the limelight for Commander Legends and the Modern Horizons sets, so where are the new Aetherborn at? Wizards pls.

Yahenni themselves is a pretty interesting commander. Their effects combine into a powerful package more subtle than their flavour text suggests- they not only are a threatening body, as a hasty commander that grows significantly as the game progresses, but they’re also incredibly sticky- a free sacrifice outlet that protects itself from most removal. They’re just a card where all the pieces come together just right, and I appreciate that a lot. One job and that’s aristocrats, but they’re good at it!

Bontu, the Glorified (59 decks, 57th most played)

When we finally got eyes on the Amonkhet gods, I think Bontu was my least favourite. Like, she’s hard to turn on, and has to be done repeatedly? A 3 mana 4/6 menace is a lot, but not enough to justify that in my opinion. And that activated ability is painfully mediocre.

At this point I like Kefnet less, but that’s just because I’ve cast him a bunch of times and I’m pretty sure he’s done nothing most of those times. Both of them are just kind of shithouse though. I expected more from the Magic equivalent of Set.

Razaketh, the Foulblooded (74 decks, 54th most played)

The only thing foul about Razaketh is that mana cost. 8 mana, holy shit. But you get paid off for it, don’t ya? A free-ish sac outlet that, oh, also just demonic tutors. If you have an infinite combo in your deck, this’ll get it.

I wouldn’t be surprised if Razaketh decks therefore get focussed pretty hard once people recognize the power in the zone. Like, running him as a commander is basically saying “sup once I get to 8 mana y’all are fucked”, and in that case people are going to do all they can to stop you getting to 8 mana, whether by blowing up your rocks or just killing your face and dudes. Perhaps consider an alternate route if you don’t like getting beaten up.

Spike, Tournament Grinder (N/A)

Aight, this is kinda cheating, but shshshsh it’s fine. Now, I’m not sure exactly how this works in the zone, but I’m just assuming it can get any “spikey” card that fits within your colour identity? Or maybe it’s just anything. Either way, this gets some bonkers shit.

Even if we assume it’s only legal commander cards in identity, Spike can still draw you some funny things. Dark Ritual, Crucible of Worlds, Bitterblossom, Demonic Tutor, Ancient Tomb, and that’s just the first page. If we do include commander-banned cards, then you can also use them as a spicy secret commander for such hits as Griselbrand, Emrakul, or Braids. Overall, they’re definitely fair and balanced. Un-Commanders when.

Tetzimoc, Primal Death (15 decks, 86th most played)

Oh, Tetzy. I love this stupid stupid card, one that seems to get worse the bigger the decks get. And by that I mean, it’s completely stupid broken in its original draft format, fringe playable in Standard at the time (and by that I mean… I mean I played it), and thoroughly mediocre in Commander. And that’s in the 99, because much like Haakon and Phage he doesn’t work in the zone. He’s a fair bit easier to enable than they are, but it’s for much, much less payoff. Alas poor Tetzimoc.

Demonlord Belzenlok (110 decks, 41st most played)

The last Lilliana contract demon, and the first Dominaria card of the 6 we got to talk about. Belzenlok’s ability is frustratingly awkward, however- while it will never draw you land, in my experience you’re rarely drawing more than two cards off it, and one is very common. Because the thing is, in order to support the dummy thick cards Belzenlok likes to see, you need a lot of cheap ramp and draw, which he does not like to see. And said ability takes up all the space on his textbox that could be used on other things. He’s basically okay, but I don’t see running this over basically any other demon.

I mean, he’s in my Gonti deck, but that’s besides the point, making a fatty and drawing cards is what that deck’s about.

Josu Vess, Lich Knight (69 decks, 55th most played)

Lilliana’s dead brother is an army in a can that packs a mean punch- 20 menace power is absolutely nothing to sneeze at- but 10 mana is monstrous. And casting him for 4 is just not worth it, especially since it makes that 10 into 12 next time. With that said, I recall once a Dominaria draft on arena where I used Muldrotha to cast this guy kicked twice in a row, and while this might just be magical Christmas land, getting to reroll this guy repeatedly with Disentomb effects might be spicy. You can just bury people in Zombies, ain’t that fun? I mean, it’s still 10 mana, so that’s a lot, but yknow

I guess you can also sac the tokens to some variety of altar, but that’s boooooring.

Torgaar, Famine Incarnate (99 decks, 44th most played)

Wait, if it’s Famine Incarnate, why is it an Avatar instead of an Incarnation?

I’m woefully unfamiliar with Torgaar, but it seems like a relatively effective general. It hits that 7 mark for a three-hit commander damage kill, while being able to cost as little as two mana, which is enough on its own- but that chunky power also helps with that second ability, setting someone to 20, assuming other people are willing to help pick up the slack. Fuck your infinite life combo, back down to the ground with the rest of us.

Honestly, this guy just looks really fun. It’s nice that in a pinch you can just have them gain you up to 19 life (or more I guess if you’re Platinum Angel-ing), and they don’t seem broken enough to garner hate. Not bad, potentially underrated.

Urguros, the Empty One (29 decks, 73rd most played)

On the other hand, I’m not sure why you’d pick this of all cards to head your deck. Looking at it, though, it’s mostly just Spectre tribal, which makes sense to me. Don’t think there’s another Legendary Spectre outside of changelings, though that would at least get you Blazing Spectre.

Shoutouts for Spectre being one of the words with different spelling in America that people don’t know about as well.

Urguros is not a powerful commander. They’re slow and their effect is weak. But if you’re running them, you don’t care about power, you care about creature type, and that’s fine too.

Whisper, Blood Liturgist (150 decks, 33rd most played)

Oh, ok. blood liturgist.

Jokes aside, Whisper is more popular than I would have expected. Considering they’re basically reverse Victimize, I’m surprised that people are so into them when that card exists.

Ohh, wait, there’s probably a bunch of infinites with this and Thornbite Staff, huh. Yeahhh, that scans. Though even outside of combo bullshit, I bet they get a bunch of fun value stuff with army-in-a-can-type creatures like Abhorrent Overlord and Sengir Autocrat. Shame about the stats.

Yargle, Glutton of Urborg (208 decks, 27th most played)

A literal vanilla creature, Yargle has overcome the odds to bargle into the hearts of many. The undeniable Best Frog Commander (Gitrog players do not interact), Yargle has clearly captured as many hearts as he’s eaten, considering he got his own Secret Lair filled with cards he can’t really play. His bit in the lore was also kind of hilarious, nearly killing all the protagonists until Muldrotha deus-ex-mythic rare-d him out of there.

The thing is, Yargle is not even that bad aside from the meme. He might be literally vanilla, butt he has 9 fucking power for 5 mana. He’s probably one of the cheapest creatures that breaches the 3-hit rule, and only needs 2 more to get down to 2. And 2 power isn’t super hard. Strap this bad boy with a sword or two and you can just gettem. Let alone the fact that he one-shots things with Tainted Strike. Or Grafted Exoskeleton. Or just about anything plus Fireshrieker. Unironically one of Mono-Black’s best Voltron options.

Isareth the Awakener (30 decks, 70th most played)

Skipping the Battlebond cards because…who plays Virtus or Regna solo… brings us to the painfully mediocre Isareth. A 3 mana 3/3 that lets you cast one thing from your yard, and only if she risks her own life. And you still have to pay for the reanimate. And it gets the exile clause as well. Man, this was the same cycle as Goreclaw and Sai, too. Hell, I even like Lena more after I designed a deck around her. This just sucks. Like, I cannot imagine playing this over Chainer or something.

The Haunt of Hightower (168 decks, 31st most played)

Speaking of Voltron, this Buy-a-Box exclusive is basically a self-sufficient beast of a flyer. Cards go into opponent’s graveyards all the time, and one mass mill effect makes this thing get huge fast as fuck. Add in lifelink so it keeps you going and all it’s really missing is the ability to protect itself, and there’re equipment for that.

On the other hand, it’s 6 mana and a 3/3 base, so if you aren’t able to get things in bins (or if a Rest in Peace/Leyline of the Void is out) it basically isn’t doing anything. And Flying is a much worse keyword in commander than one would think, being probably the most common Evasion mechanic. But I think this haunty boy is still solid.

God-Eternal Bontu (81 decks, 48th most played)

If only the rest of us could age so gracefully. Er, die so gracefully, I guess. Zombie Set is kind of a beating, turning all sorts of useless shash into pure cash. And she can go to your deck if the zone is getting too costly, and she’s a cool crocodile zombie god.

Unfortunately, she does suffer from being an ETB-effect commander, which always feels a bit more mid than I’d like- they do their thing and then just…sit there… and unlike Gonti she doesn’t deter attacks that well. She does attack pretty alright herself, but it’s only 5 power and can’t even trade with two 3/3s. And it’s harder to fuel this all-or-nothing kind of ability repeatedly. There are a few (crocodile?) rocks to use, as well as chump creatures that crave death, but fill your deck with those and that’s all you’ll draw. It’s…fine. She’s fine.

Massacre Girl (285 decks, 22nd most played)

The final card under the magnifying glass today, and probably still the best boardwipe/commander combo. Massacre Girl basically just kills everything, provided things aren’t too massive and there’s fodder around to bite the dust first. If anyone played Hearthstone back when I did, she’s basically a way, way better Defile.

Wait, that’s also a Magic name now isn’t it, shit.

I still think the notorious M.G. goes better in the deck than the zone, but I suppose control decks would appreciate having one of the things they crave most- board clears- available at a moment’s notice. And if you’re building around her, then you can fill your deck with the fodder that fuels her best. But I’m not sure where you win from there.

Ehhh, probably just Revel in Riches.

This brings us to the end of this edition of Black Commanders, and to the start of 2019. Which means the remaining 21 cards all came out in the last 2.5 years, which speaks a lot to how much they were designing cards for commander, and how many sets they’ve been coming out with. Until then.

#ramble #mtg #commander #edh #mono-black #this marks like the fifth time i've accidentally typed MTF instead of MTG #are my typos tryna tell me something?

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dmcblue · 5 years

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John Staats - The WoW Diary

A few months ago, I read The WoW Diary: A Journal of Computer Game Development by John Staats. It's an exceedingly enjoyable book that covers the development of World of Warcraft from an early concept to its initial release in late 2004. Staats was a Level Designer for Blizzard and provides an inside look at the entire development process.

The most striking aspect of the narrative is how little of the game fans know and love was decided ahead of time. The game design itself had many major changes leading all the way up to the release, so the game play fans now remember didn’t even exist til it hit store shelves. The Blizzard team seemed to be constantly open to trying new ideas and very willing to cut any thing that just wasn’t fun or engaging, regardless of how much work they had already poured into it. In general, the insights into how chaotic the game design/development process actually is in practice is almost shocking but also exciting. One really doesn’t know what will happen next in the book, even if you are very familiar with the finished product.

The story and world are similarly undeveloped but also largely ignored, not by the author but by the dev team he’s chronicling. For people looking to dive into the fictional world of Warcraft more, this is probably the wrong book for you. Which leads me to one of my favorite sections:

[The story writer is] often someone high in the organization who is in charge of lore since it’s the easiest creative position. The audience is usually forgiving if the storytelling is bad. [...] I began this book on the premise that I would dispel myths about the industry, so let me lay this one to rest: Computer game stories aren’t difficult to write at all. Not even remotely. Writing stories is so easy it seems nearly half the people in the industry want to do it. [...] The prospect of anyone getting a job writing stories is slim, unless they personally know someone who runs the studio or can contribute to a project in other ways. [...] When I say, “Storytelling is easy,” I’m speaking only about computer games. Writing fiction for books, short stories, and screenplays relies on an entirely different skillset [...] Subtlety is lost on the gaming audience. Things like socialization, user interface, twitch skills, and character advancement are what players focus on. Games require obvious plotlines and archetypal characters because the audience is doing several things at once. [...]

When players say they love a game’s story, what they usually mean is they enjoy the immersion.

Staats hides no details and does not try to mythologize games or the development process. His honesty and lack of rose-colored glasses are very refreshing.

Another (somewhat) shocking aspect of the story is the work culture. Developers are routinely working 10-12 hour days or more throughout the multi-year process. While one hears things like this a lot in the modern game world, it’s still jarring to think of the sacrifice expected from workers in order to make the games we enjoy. We, as a society, basically expect people to give up their social, familial and private lives in order to be entertained. And, as the story of WoW indicates, it’s not just during ‘crunch times’, development can become an eternal process with MMO’s that never stop developing over years, even decades, after they release.

Social commentary aside, the book is a delightful look at the development process with all its chaos, uncertainty and creativity. It honestly makes me long for a job where I would be working with a group of people who are all so creatively engaged with each other and the product. If you are interested in the world of games at all, I would highly recommend this book. It would also be great for anyone interested in business, creative endeavors or coding.

As a side note, John Staats worked as a graphic designer before his life at Blizzard. He designed the layout of the book and it is set out in a wonderful and pleasant way. He’s definitely talented in many ways.

#books #book review #book report #book #Warcraft #World of Warcraft #John Staats #Staats #gamedev #dev #games #video games #mmo

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detectivesplotslies · 5 years

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42? I mean, I know we've already had discussions about Tsumugi before, but I do really like hearing what you have to say about her.

42. Honest opinion on Tsumugi Shirogane?

You know me well. Gonna attempt to keep this bite-sized for a reply but buckle up! So I really enjoyed Tsumugi as a character for quite a few reasons, but for this I’ll cite three.

The first is her very grounded Free Time Events. Aside from the first one with the insistence on plainness, the rest are very realistic stories about her experience in the cosplay and fandom community, her motivations for joining it, and some bits about feeling it wear on her, or parts of it being not fun anymore. Comments about how the character is the important part to her.These were really nice intimate conversations to me, especially as a cosplayer, that seemedgrounded and real (ironically enough) to me. It did not surprise me when I read that Kodaka actually interviewed cosplayers to write these stories, because they had a better understanding of the role than I expected from him. This reason might be a more personal reason to like Tsumugi, but it really struck me.Now onto the meat of the story. I really enjoy Tsumugi’s role as mastermind, because unlike previous ones, she is both vulnerable and actively aware of the setup. She’s out there and part of it, but in a very careful way. I find this interesting from her POV, as she had to be part of the group, but had inflicted a background role to herself, so all her influencing had to be subtle. It’s really fun to watch her on a 2nd time through, see how she sidesteps things with phrasing, answers questions with questions, avoids lying by only partially answering things or changing the topic. When it comes down to it, aside from it being guessable from a narrative perspective, from a group dynamic perspective, her role was played very well for holding the secret til the end.

And third, and this might be mostly headcanon, I enjoy how Tsumugi definitely is cracking to desperation by the end, and just, seeing it all fall apart. She’s had to rewrite the game lore not once, but twice. She has to drop her latest twist because as soon as it’s introduced no one even bites. She has to live with her mistakes and see them through to the end, and you can tell that she’s hanging on desperately to get to that end. For it to culminate in something. Anything. Like she said she gave herself entirely to this, and in those haunted eyes with the dark blue circles under them, I like to think about how much of her is even left with her heart still in it when the vote finally closes. Whether she told the truth or not, that was the end for her in a lot of senses.

Anyways, I thoroughly enjoy Tsumugi, cosplay Tsumugi, etc. if you don’t, that’s fine! I don’t care one way or the other. If you ever want to chat about her hit me up!

#ask meme!#replies #tsumugi shirogane #ramble #ndrv3 spoilers #asks #my mugi #my content

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holocronarchive · 6 years

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How is time marked/measured in Star Wars

Short Answer- by retconning EVERYTHING and starting fresh lol

just kidding

Long Answer-

ok so up til April 25th 2014 (the decanonizing of all now legends material) books would be published with a symbol

^ this would be in the books, with the era the content took place in marked

now for a more IN DEPTH explanation we have the “Eras of Galactic History” which I’ll give quick explinations here

1- Before the Republic (37,000-25,000 BBY) This Era Explores the early days of the “Je’daii Order” (the precursor to the Jedi/Sith) and explores the Force during their time on Tython (A planet in the deep core, the origin of the now known to be Jedi)

Space Travel in this time period is limited though The Ruthless Rakatan Infinite Empire spans the reaches of the known worlds using Dark Force techniques to power their advanced technology and subjugate their neighbors and far reaching portions of the galaxy. (Hence the name Infinite Empire)

Though this era spanned 12,000 years, not many sources were made for it. Which is a shame due to the fact this would have been a perfect breeding ground for “pre star wars” types of content for all to enjoy

2- The Old Republic (25,000 - 1000 BBY)

(My favorite Era...well one of them)

This era explored the earlier days of the Galactic Republic (EARLY EARLY- like...holy crap this thing probably wont work but hey why not try regardless right?) During this time the Jedi Order are the protectors of the Republic are constantly (like...its a soap opera at this point) at war with the Sith. Multiple Sith Empires rise and fall during this period. Each one generally caused by in fighting as well as outward battles with the Republic/Jedi Order

This Era spans 24,000 years yes but most of its content is now Legends, not Canon. My personal Favorites include the KOTOR games (not the TOR game just the two KOTOR games)

3- Rise of the Empire Era/Clone Wars/End of the Republic- 1000- 0 BBY)

Soooo yeah...ok what we have here, is like the waning time of the republic. They claim it is the seemingly golden age, buuuut during this time Darth Bane and his not gonna die mentality creates the Rule of Two, an important philosophy for the Sith that allowed him to begin his plan of REVENGE to take back the galaxy. This culminates over 1000 years to Darth Sidious ushering in the Clone Wars which begins the end of the Reublic and the beginning of the FIRST Galactic Empire.

Personally this era has a LOT of canon and legends content to consume so obviously if you wish to know- first take the canon cause its more relevant and can be more informative BUT the legends content is beautiful and orchestrates HOW the Sith were able to not only survive for 1000 years but do so RIGHT UNDER THE JEDI’s noses. Which that in and of its self was the kick in the teeth of the millennia.

4- Rebellion Era/Galactic Civil War (0BBY-5ABY)

*ABY= After the Battle of Yavin

With the Republic gone, the Empire a force to control all- the Alliance to Restore the Republic forms under the leadership of Senators Mon Mothma and others from worlds who did not wish to see the Galaxy put to heel under the boot of the Emperor and his Dark Lord Vader. This is where Luke Skywalker is introduced and our Main Trilogy takes place. Over 5 years MANY MANY MANY books, games, movies, etc have been created. most of which legends now but still worth the exploring

5- New Republic Era (5-25 ABY)

YAY this era was fun like ya wanna know what is worse than fighting an Evil Empire to bring peace to the universe? FIGHTING ITS REMNANTS WHO JUST DONT WANNA DIE! (Seriously, the Empire is like cockroaches, you stomp on it, but its like BITCH I AINT GONE TRY AGAIN!” This era shows our heroes Luke and company dealing with the now criminal warlords and remnant leaders of the fractured Empire trying to revive and recapture the galaxy from under the Newly established New Republic government. Exmaples of the threats include Ysanne Isard, Zsinj, GRAND FUCKIN ADMIRAL GOD DAMN THRAWN (this is my favorite villain of star wars, dude is perfect) and Admiral Daala.

There are more but these ones are like THE BIG ONES worth a damn.

Not only this but Luke gets a wife, Leia/Han have KIDS, and the Jedi Order is revived under Luke and we get to see a chance at fixing the mistakes of the past (politically with the Republic AND philosophically with the Jedi Order)

6- New Jedi Order Era (25-37 ABY)

ooooooo so ya know how there is a “jumping the shark” thing in most media, once you hit this you usually are gone and cant come back? THANKFULLY this era wasn’t it, this was the “sounds like it...but actually turned out good”

We have an EXTRA Galactic Threat (The Yuuzhan Vong) a species immune to the Force invdaing the galaxy and using their massive forces nearly win. It is only because of the New Republic, New Jedi Order, Imperial Remnant and the Chiss Ascendancy do any shreds of hope become possible. Now I’m not saying “PEACE IS ACHIEVED” its more a “....fight them now fight each other later?” moments that everyone nods to.

7- Legacy Era (37 ABY--)

This is (in my opinion) the “jump the shark era) not because bad stuff becomes made

but because it had a CLEARLY defined beginning...but no end.

The Galactic Allliance and New Jedi Order deaing with legacy of war and peace, crises threaten to split everything, like yeah.

This era (again in my opinion) contains one of the best story arcs which follows Jacen Solo and his journey in the Force.

100 years AFTER Jacen’s story though, its Sith Order is back, they rule and Cade Skywalker is the LAST remaining Skywalker (we hope) and apparently he’s the only hope for the Jedi Order.

SO I hope this helps in terms of what the OLD Legends publishing era was. this as I said- no longer is ALL the Expanded Universe is. There is Canon and Legends, predominantly ALLLLL this is just Legends, as above at the top- in 2014, Disney retconned everything in the EU. Not a HORRIBLE choice but just means we now have all the room to grow outside the movies.

Hopefully this has been informative and helpful in your journey into star wars lore <3

The Holocron Archivist

#star wars #star wars lore #star wars eras #legends content #star wars legends #star wars expanded universe #expanded universe legends #holocron archive

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alastar-wyatt · 6 years

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Blog/Character Roll

I do this once ever blue moon, but I felt like I should do it again! Sooner than normal, I will agree with you on that.

Just a few notes, these will be separated into different catergoies. First will be Active character, Second will be deceased, and third will be a few call out to other writers and their character intertwined with mine (and who doesn’t like a little support?)

Starting off....

Currently Alive and Active in World of Warcraft and ready for any sort of rp:

Sroel Wyatt Gwynn- AKA your favorite worgen rogue Alastar Wyatt.

For those who are new to this character, he’s been around for four years now. His backstory could be considered tragic, spoiled, and shows as he’s reached the ripe age of twenty years old this year! In-game, he’s a worgen rogue. His IC persona is a swordsman cursed human whose talents in a fight has not helped his ego down to earth.

Synric Ronan Silversong ( @synric-silversong )

My Shadow Marksman as I like to call him. He is an half-elf (in age group to Alastar) has reached twenty-two years old! He has been around a lot longer than Alastar, by five or six years now. Not much longer, but that one year makes a huge difference. He is my good-heart character who carries a heavy burden.

Neia Blackwood ( @neiablackwood )

My civilian, as I like to call her. She is a business woman focusing in the craft of jewelcrafting and enchanting. She runs her own business in Ironforge and is more than happy to interact with anyone and all. She was created before Synric by a year, yet, she is the youngest at the nice age of twenty (compared to Alastar age). Neia has an affinity for fortune telling, and its by that she puts on a smile and pretends that everything is okay.

Nairus Amberleaf ( @nairus)

My corrupted druid, as for right now, his story-line is progressing when the new expansion hits and he will, once more, be free from his corrpution. But at what cost? And How? Originally developed to be a feral druid, he ended up having a backstory as a healer, with healing parents. He is a rebellion in many ways, but keen when he feels like speaking. He is third oldest character that I have created sitting around six years total experience with him. Yet, I’ve never fully played him. He has always been a support character, a changing tide to story lines, and a lot more fun than even his creator gives him credit for.

Dennarish Keenthread ( @dennarish )

My newest creation! The Void Elf mage with a normal background, an average life for World of Warcraft, yet, a certain incident threw his life astray and got him caught up in the misgiving that all Void elves fell into. He was created three months ago and is currently one of my favorite to play with. In fact, you’ll more than likely see me on Dennarish now a days.

These also include (not fully fleshed out but capable of rp) Daldina (Void Elf rogue tied into Dennarish storyline) and Nylaria (Night Elf Priestess tied into Nairus storyline).

Those that are deceased but I still fully enjoy writing them on occassions and all staying on the blog @thefracturedmosaic

Madivh Blackwood Aka Azalor/Itzal Blackwood

My first ever World of Warcraft Character, as the name gives way (I wasn’t aware of lore characters at the time). He was created seven years ago and I played him til his death four years ago. However, I do love filling out the missing details of his past and playing around with AU. He was a human rogue specialized in intel gathering and sabotage.

Jacorek Blackwood

My second character created, but never fully developed until a year after his initial creation. He was created seven years ago, half a year after my first. He is Madivh’s father, a rogue human who specialized in assassinations and sabotage.

Azariah Oakenforest

A semi-new character, and technically alive though I am not sure where he is, he was created half a year ago. An elf hunter originally, he fell away from traditions to embrace a darker force in order to get revenge on the demons that stole his life from him. In return, he stole many other lives unrelated to his revenge. The last time he was seen was in Outlands before the dark portal was closed the first time. He excelled in hand to hand combat, bow and arrow, and swordplay.

And my call outs and most cherished RP Partners:

@selisegraves involved with Alastar, despite there separation, Alastar owes her more than either probably truly realize

@divergent-lines for being involved with Synric, Madivh, and Jacorek

@rangarinorli for being involved with Synric

@savianblackwood for being involved with Neia, twins cannot be played by one person (hehe)

@alliesdelimma for being involved with Alastar

And of course there are others, in and out of story-lines, but never forgotten.

#blog roll #characters #ooc #call outs

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swordshade · 3 years

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New Sororitas codex is potentially cool but has me nervous. So far all the 9th codices have all gotten better but this is the first time an army I play tat is already good in 9th (albeit mostly in proxy til I can find some good discounts) is getting changed. Still wish they would adopt a better an cheaper uodate style but thats GW for you. The models are just not doing it for me though. All the classic kits that got refreshed are amazing but these new ones don't match up.

The warsuits still look aweful. Arms are too weedy, pilot is exposed for no reason, legs make no mechanical sense and not in the fun orky way. Nothing lots of other people havent said. I'll stick to Mortifiers and penitents where the exposed pilot at least makes lore sense.

There's nothing inherently wrong with the Castegator but compared to the Excorcist it shares a slot with I dont see how I'd ever take it. The arcing fire and range of the missiles is better for most games and more importantly the gothic pipe organ control mechanism forever solidifies the Excorcist as THE Sisters of Battle vehicle for me, it cannot be replaced.

The Palatine and Dogmata are fine but not particularly interesting. I dont see taking them over Cannonesses and Imagifiers unless their rules are bonkers.

Named characters always have a potential to be cool as paint projects if nothong else, but "regular troop model with big flag" and "that mech you dont like but fancier" dont hit that mark.

Sacresants are the major exception. Armored heavy melee Sisters are something that was genuinely missing from the Sororitas lineup in my mind and these models look great. The shields are cool, the halberds are unique, power mauls will always be cool. They have just enough aditional armor and ornementation to make them stand out from standard troops, and while we dont know their rules yet, based on their design their role is different enough from Repentia (tough and hard hitting vs fast with many attacks) that both will have their own niche.

Overall the new orks have hit much better so far, and I'm excited for Thursday to see that new boss and hopefully some other new stuff.

#warhammer 40k #adepta sororitas #long post #sisters of battle

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carolunea-matea · 7 years

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Steak And Potatoes

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Dean was laughing when I woke up.

“What..”

“Are you guys fucking kidding me? The fucking infirmary too?! You’re like a couple of damn teenagers!” Sam was yelling throughout the bunker.

“I guess Sam is home,” I said between laughs.

Dean tossed me a shirt and a pair of shorts. When he opened the door Sam was standing there with his arms folded.

“Sorry, Sammy!” I threw my arms around him, “Welcome Home!”

“Yeah yeah. Glad you’re ok. I’m going to take a shower. You guys want to go get something to eat since there is nothing in the kitchen?” Sam asked walking backwards towards his room.

“Im starving. I need to shower too,” I agreed, though I felt something uneasy clench in the pit of my stomach.

“How about we all get clean, separately, for the love of Chuck, and meet up in an hour?” Sam suggested.

“Ok. I’ll go clean up the…yeah. Oh drop your laundry in the laundry room please?” I said running to clean up after Dean and myself.

An hour later we were all showered and starving. Dean couldn’t take his eyes off me. I had put his shirt back on and paired it with my jeans and sneakers. I had it tied at my waist with a T-shirt under it. I was shuffling my feet and starting to pick at the skin around my fingernails.

“I’m buying industrial ear plugs before we get home.” Sam only half joked.

“Can we just not go to the diner? I really can’t even,” I said as we made our way to the garage.

“Then where to?” Dean asked.

“Something we can bring back? I don’t know. I’m just, I want to be home,” I said looking at the floor.

“Something wrong, Carebear?” Dean asked concerned.

“I just really don’t want to be out and about right now. I just want to be inside.”

“How about, I go get us some Chinese? You and Sam set up some Harry Potter movie?” Dean looked down at me hooking me under the chin so I would look at him.

Insert Winchester Eyes speak Here.

I nodded slightly.

Shit! I thought maybe this wouldn’t happen this time. I thought things would be different now. I felt the self loathing rearing it’s ugly fucking head.

I walked back to my room and changed out of my jeans, putting on comfy pajama pants.

I walked out in the hall not sure where Sam was. I hugged my arms around myself and backed into the wall sliding down to the floor. I hated this. I hated this so much. I put my forehead on my knees and just waited.

“Carebear? Come on, what’s going on? Something is wrong.” Sam sat down next to me and put his arm around me.

I sighed.

“Sometimes, even with my antidepressants, out of no where, BAM! The depression, paranoia, anxiety. They all come back. I don’t know how to fix it. I don’t want to feel like this. I just want to be happy.”

“Caroline, why didn’t you say something?”

“It just hit. Like a ton of fucking depressing ass bricks. I’m sorry.”

“Sorry about what? Something you cannot possibly control? You take your medication, you talk out your issues, still sometimes, it comes for you. Believe me, that is something Dean and I understand. Come on, let’s go down and pop in Harry Potter. Any one you want. We will get some blankets and pillows. Tomorrow you can make a list and Dean or I will go get whatever you need. I’ll help you set up your office here, too.”

“Thanks, Sammy,” I snuggled into his side not yet ready to move.

We were still sitting there when Dean came back. Sam stood up and took the food from Dean.

“I’ll go get everything set up, ok Carebear? Which movie?”

“Goblet?” Sam nodded and walked away.

Dean got down on the floor with me. He scooped me up and sat me on his lap holding me.

“So what’s wrong, Carebear?”

“It’s all just hitting me right now, Dean. I broke. My depression, paranoia and anxiety are all hitting at once.”

“I’m so sorry, sweetheart. Whatever you need. I’m here.”

“Thanks, Dean. We should probably go down and eat.” I pushed myself off of his lap and stood up. Dean got up next to me and pulled me into a hug.

“You know we are behind you, right? No matter what. Sam and I? We’ve got you.”

I hugged him tighter, trying to will myself to believe him.

I hate my brain sometimes.

Sam had set up the room absolutely perfectly. The lights were dim. There were pillows and blankets everywhere. The food sitting on the table with my favorite almond tea.

“You are the best big brother ever, Sam.” I walked over and gave him a hug before sitting down in a nest of blankets. They sat on either side of me and we ate and watched the movie in silence.

Halfway through the movie Sam got up and cleaned up all the food and brought me more tea. I gave him a small smile of Thanks. By the end of the movie I was leaning against Dean’s chest with my legs on Sam’s lap. I was almost asleep.

“Do you want to watch another movie or go to bed?” Dean asked. I just shrugged.

“You want me to help bring some of these things up to your room and get you settled?” Sam asked.

“Dean’s room?” I felt Dean smile.

“Absolutely! Come on. Let’s go get snuggly!” Dean joked and Sam rolled his eyes. I cracked a smile.

Sam and Dean grabbed a bunch of blankets and I hugged a pillow to my chest.

The two of them created a nest of blankets on the bed. Sam gave me a huge hug before saying goodnight.

Dean pulled me down onto the bed and held me.

“You know I’m here to talk to, right? About anything.”

I nodded, “I just get like this sometimes. Not often. Especially since I started taking my medication. It’s like there isn’t anything anyone can do to convince me my brain is lying to me. It will pass. I will be myself again in hopefully a few days. I’m not going to be much fun to be around over the next few days. I get it if you guys want to just avoid me.”

“Just because we have to take care of you for a few days? Care, you’ve done nothing but take care of us since you got here. We both care about you. Your happiness and wellbeing are important to us. What ever you need until you are feeling better. Just ask.”

“I don’t deserve either of you.”

“Darlin’ you got that backwards. By some crazy twist of fate you came into our lives and showed us what a Home should really be like.”

I just shook my head.

“Come on, I’ll put on League of Their Own til you fall asleep.”

I know I had nightmares all night. I don’t know what they were but they were terrifying. Dean had calmed me each time I woke up crying.

He just held me, letting me know he was there and I was safe. When I woke up, Dean was holding me playing with my hair.

“Good morning, gorgeous.”

“Morning.”

“You hungry? Want some breakfast?”

I shook my head. There was a knock on the door.

“Come in, Sammy.” Dean called out.

Sam opened the door carrying a glass.

“I figured you might not be hungry, but you need to have something. Chocolate Cherry.” He handed me the glass as Dean handed me my pill. Dean got up as Sam sat on the end of the bed.

“So, I’m going to run out and get the stuff on the List you wrote out yesterday. Is there anything else you need?” Sam asked.

“Can I see it?” I reached for the list.

Groceries and some cleaning supplies. I added a few more things to the list and handed it back before grabbing my phone and mindlessly playing a game. I snuggled down further into the blankets and stayed put. Dean and Sam looked at each other before both walking out of the room.

I played my game until I fell asleep.

Dean was at his desk, reading a book of lore.

“Hey,” I called out softly.

“Hey how are you feeling?”

“Tired. Like I need to get up,” I swung my legs off the bed and stood up. Dean watched me over the book while I walked out of his room and into the hall. I went to my room to get my towel, robe, and portable speaker. When I got to the bathroom I put on my “Fallout at the Disco of Happiness” playlist and jumped in the shower. The shower was ridiculously long, I may have used all the hot water in the bunker. But I felt better. Not completely but a little.

Tag List:

@idk-wtf-is-happening @greengellybean @read-the-reid

@anjiepot24 @wandering-rosebud @xcarapherneliabearx

Chapter 27 Chapter 29

Master List

#edit

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rickthaniel · 7 years

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Spider-Man Deescalates the Superhero Arms race

Spider-man does not appear in the intro to Spider-Man: Homecoming. That’s because, at the time of the intro, Peter Parker is seven years old. He’s off somewhere in an apartment in queens, watching the Avengers battle Loki over and over again on the TV. A second grader, utterly mesmerized by the heroes on the screen. When The Avengers hit theaters, my little brother was in the second grade too. Like Peter Parker, he fell in love with Iron Man and Captain America after they blew up NYC in that 2012 climax. They excited him. They inspired him. They showed him, and young Mr. Parker, a heart and a spirit that Marvel has struggled to find since. And now, as Peter Parker comes of age with his latest screen debut, he brings that heart, that soul, back to a genre that has been desperately wanting it.

Since Iron Man first armored up in 2008, escalation has been the name of the comic book blockbuster game. Bigger names, bigger casts, bigger battles. More stars, more effects, more money. From Marvel to DC, escalation has defined the genre, and superhero fatigue has settled in. Hard. Homecoming is not the cure. It is not the new direction, the shift in business strategy, the shining herald of what’s to come. It is, however, a damn good respite, a brilliantly colorful bastion that reminds us why we all got hooked in childlike glee on these movies in the first place. It joyfully recaptures that superhero spirit by looking backwards instead of forwards, prioritizing personality over pizzazz, and fully understanding its own limitations.

Momentum is the key to escalation. It’s the reason Marvel announces films five years in advance, and it’s the reason we’ll stick around through every credits sequence from now ‘til judgement day. The MCU is always looking forward, dazzling us with the next installment before the last one even hits the screen. Very rarely, in this race to the never-ending finish, does anyone stop and take the time to look back. The franchise never surveys its accomplishments. It never gives us time to breathe. The ostensible appeal of a united film universe is the breadth of lore that can be developed over time, but what does that matter if we never get the chance to revel in it?

This is where Spider-Man offers a well-needed break. It takes the time to look backwards instead of forwards. The villain’s whole backstory hinges on the repercussions of that giant battle from the first Avengers. Peter Parker’s entire understanding of himself and his place in the world comes from a culture where Captain America conducts the pacer test and the Age of Ultron is taught in tenth grade social studies. Hell, five minutes in we get an extensive “and now, from Spidey’s perspective” take on Civil War. And it works. It’s funny. For the first time in years, we get to gaze back at all those ticket stubs we bought and remember why. It takes us back to that original Avenger Promise and all the glorious, goofy fun that came with it.

That goofiness shows through every corner of Homecoming, a movie that prioritizes being silly over being loud. There may be no award here for most bombastic comic book romp, but there is a trophy case of personality and heart. Tom Holland’s biggest exploits include catching an elevator, holding a boat together, and swinging on a jet plane. Nothing of the army-battling, world-ending caliber we’ve come to expect. There’s high-budget hijinks to be sure, but compared to the hordes of faceless robots, ridiculous space fights, reality distortions and twelve-man battle royals that have inundated us for years, Spidey’s set pieces feel refreshingly pedestrian.

In fact, Michael Keaton’s blue-collar Vulture repeatedly shows disdain for, and fear of, Tony Stark and the rest of the crew. He’s a thief, not a supervillain. All he wants is to take his score and get out. He’s not here to bend space-time, commit genocide or take over the universe. And in that same vein, Peter Parker seems more interested in accidentally webbing innocent people and buying deli sandwiches than halting the apocalypse. Tony Stark shows up a handful of times just to remind Spider-Man of this. Stay close to the ground, he says. Be a friendly, neighborhood Spider-Man. Know what you can do, and know what you can’t. Know what you’re good at, and know what you’re not.

That’s the real power of Homecoming. It limits itself. It understands that not every hero is Thor, that not every fight is a war. “If you’re nothing without this suit, you don’t deserve it,” Stark chastises Peter after his best attempt at a major action sequence goes awry. An action sequence is only as compelling as its hero, after all. In one breath, Robert Downey Jr. addresses Spider-man, and Spider-Man. Don’t rush to graduate so quick. Focus on the character, on the spirit, on the things that made people like Peter Parker and my little brother care in the first place.

About a month ago I watched Iron Man for the first time. It was the only MCU film I’d missed. The first one. And I was fascinated to discover how…quiet, it was. When the credits rolled, I felt satisfied because for 126 minutes Robert Downey Jr. made me smile, and he made me care. Almost a decade later, Tom Holland has made me do the same. Spider-Man: Homecoming feels like it fell out of an alternate timeline where the blockbuster arms race didn’t reach such ridiculous heights. A timeline where the character was enough. Where success wasn’t measured by an effects budget.

I know I’m romanticizing. In the end, this is just the next piece in the Marvel Cinematic Machine, a machine that keeps turning no matter what I think. But it’s a piece that stands out, that feels unique in itself. There’s far more that makes this movie special, like the diverse and brilliant cast, the smart twists, and a level of nuanced social commentary unparalleled in a movie of this style and caliber. Someone smarter than I can, and surely will, write those pieces. But when I walked out of the theater, I was satisfied to say, “That was special. That had heart.”

#spiderman #spider-man: homecoming #tom holland #robert downey jr #Iron Man #captain america #The Avengers #marvel #marvel cinematic universe #michael keaton #movies #film #comics #peter parker

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saintcheryl · 7 years

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McElstuck Classpects (So Far)

I don’t have all of them because I’m simply not familiar with some of the players. Also just went over possible players, not all of em have to be there. Anyways, here’s what I got.

Grifin

Bard of Light: He needs the codpiece it’s the only way. His story-weaving prevalent in many different pieces of content could fit with the vibes of a traditional fantasy bard, but fuck it, I’ll admit it, the outfit is just really funny. He needs it. He needs the goof. Now for the light part: look, a bard “invites destruction through aspect/allows for destruction of aspect.” Light is about fortune and knowledge. I think that fits pretty damn well, most prevalent in TAZ but honestly? I get that vibe from him in a lot of things. He has the knowledge of games (especially Bethesda) that allows (invites) him to destroy them even more thoroughly.

Travis

Knight of Hope: He is an optimistic, friendly boy whom I love, and I trust. Did you see his mentorship with the Teens? He is supportive and believes in them and a knight takes advantage and fights with their aspect. A valiant, noble agent of hope, of belief. A good man. He does a hit sometimes, yes, but he apologizes. That’s just the knight-y tendencies coming through a little more. And everyone learns from the experience. Don’t do a hit! (Addendum: All HS knights “hide their innermost selves.” Travis may be hiding his true strength, his true power, his capacity for destruction since he does not want to hurt anyone.)

Justin

Heir of Blood: Blood’s all about camaraderie, and in this case with his bros it’s very literal. There isn’t much solid lore behind heirs, but they seem to be surrounded by their aspect in some way, speculated to “protect themselves with,” “become,” or “receive” the aspect. In Justin’s case, his relationship to his brothers is an essential part of his life, not just because of blood relation but also because of their bonds of friendship. As the oldest bro, it makes sense for him to embody such values.

Clint

Rogue of Life: He literally, in a way, gave the boys life. Life also pertains to his role in TAZ, or at least the role he’s SUPPOSED to have, and the safety he contributed to his town through Peace on the Playground. I was struggling with the class and settled on Rogue, but that’s still up for debate. And I’m not saying he’s going to kill anyone (that’d be more thief-y), but there was that story of him POSSIBLY killing that guy in college and selling (redistributing) all his stuff, or whatever. He also “distributes” country music via radio, which I’m sure some people see as life.

Nick

Seer of Space: Originally I felt strongly about him being a Breath player, but after going over descriptions again, Space is undeniably fitting of his role in Car Boys; they’re concerned with “the size of things and their velocity, and their existence in relation to physics” which is basically Car Boys? Dimension, creation. The whole deal with frogs, and Nick DOES greatly enjoy Kero Blaster, starring a frog. Seers “use knowledge to coordinate their team,” which I feel he does since he’s established that the workings of playing beamNG.Drive are VERY finicky and require a depth of experience. He coordinates the show quite well, and certainly uses all the little intricacies to his advantage. TTS is based around him identifying mods, which are quite obvious at times, but still humors seer tendencies. In a fairly literal sense.

Porter

Mage of Time: Okay, I’ll admit, I originally landed on time because of the thought process that went this boy->music/DJ->Dave Strider. But that’s okay, because it works, especially with Nick as space. The boy’s aesthetic caters more to space or maybe void, but works with time because of the theme of reality-bending and alternate universes. Time players are shown to have interests in death and destruction in some way, which this boy has DEFINITELY got with his prominent obsession with worlds ending in unique ways. Especially game worlds, and a huge part of time players is….the responsibility of destroying a game world. A mage possibly “gives up their aspect to gain knowledge of it,” which also just kinda Feels Right for a buncha reasons. Plus, mages are regarded as the counterparts to seers, so there’s even more connection between him and his bro.

Russ

Page of Mind: I’m mostly going off of his LAC-persona, but that makes it all the more fun. Mind is concerned with decisions and their consequences, which Russ has some...interesting history with. A page’s untapped potential ties into his development in decision-making over time. Given, a lot of his decisions were based off of Doug (and the plot of LAC definitely has to play a part in this AU with the whole patron troll thing because uhhh how could it not it’s too good) but that could just be the push he needed to become his true self.

Tara

Witch of Void: Remember Basketball Ignoring Simulator? She turned their game into a game about nothing, about doing nothing, a void, and despite the efforts of the boys and it being THEIR podcast they couldn’t stop it. They couldn’t. She was simply too powerful. Witches “manipulate” or “unlock,” which is certainly what she did here. She was one of the last members of Rev3 before it died out (became a void?) but she was there til the end, both trying to keep it from its void-y fate (“manipulate”) while also finally deciding when to let go (“unlock”). And I’m not sure how to tie in her appearance on PoolGames, Inc. in which she sat in a hot tub drinking various types of alcohol, but it feels like it fits with the classpect, in some way. Witches may break the rules of their aspect, and while I’m not sure exactly how, I do feel like she’s breaking some void rules and choosing what parts of the aspect she wants (also a witch thing). Maybe my inability to pinpoint these reasons is part of why she’s a void player. Who knows.

Simone

Knight of Heart: Heart encompasses soul, motivations, emotions, and possibly attraction. Let’s focus on the last two. Two of Simone’s videos focus on her asking strangers on the street about a) which Joy-con is Sexier, and b) which Pokemon they would date. (Kinda horny things that are also definitely a theme with her.) Very, very focused on emotion and attraction. She brings motivation into it, too, by asking why. A knight “exploits their aspect as a weapon,” and honestly? She really drilled into those people. I wouldn’t say attacking, but it’s got that Vibe, and honestly a lot of these are based on Vibe. She’s also just a funny and honest/open girl in ways that strike me as a heart player. She is, of course, quite jumpy and scared of spooky games, and is quite controlled by her uhhh Feelings during them and voices such. But, she is shown to enjoy them nonetheless, the kind of courage one might associate with a knight. She could grow into it even more; room for character development. Knights also conceal their true selves; she’s suggested that despite her fear of horror games, she absolutely loses it in the moment when playing it. Gets buckwild. Maybe that’s it.

Rileigh

Maid of Heart: I haven’t listened to Still Buffering, but from what I know, she is a Teen and a sweet, sweet girl. Maids may be connected to sylphs, drawing a connection between her and her older sister; they’re also speculated as “made of,” “provider of,” or “protects with” aspect. Heart is the soul or essence of being, and her podcast is all about Being a Teen, something that everyone struggles, struggled, or WILL struggle with at some point in time, and is arguably essential to not only one phase of life but the entirety of one’s life itself. The time in which they learn who they are and find their essence, their soul. The definition of the word “maid” is either a server or an heiress; the former could be a metaphor for how Teens are often controlled by emotions in some way, and the latter could connect to her younger-sisterhood. Thanks, Teen.

Sydnee

Sylph of Breath: She’s a doctor. It’s a given. Making her life just seemed too obvious, and we already got that one heal-y thing going, but breath is also kind of important to living? I haven’t heard her podcasts, so a lot of this is just based on the Vibe I get. Please help.

I still need help figuring out Dwight, Rachel, and Teresa, plus more depth with Sydnee, since as I said, I’m not as familiar with them and their content and don’t have enough to go off of (like I did with some others here that idk as well).

I’ll update this as it happens!

#mcelstuck #long post #im. sorry. not really #i actually do kno dwights content (TIBAS) but i still couldnt figure him out

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mozillogames · 8 years

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You’ll Be Playing Til Dawn In Horizon Zero Dawn

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Have you ever seen the TV show Walking With dinosaurs? It was an old documentary series about dinosaurs, but thanks to the wonders of Horizon Zero Dawn, you can now walk with dinosaurs! You can hear the whir of their gears and the crackling of their servos. Enjoying the warm embrace of their hard metal plating and watching out for the striking glow of their eyes while hiding from their shoulder mounted orbital death cannons.

While they may not be the dinosaurs you remember, the world of Horizon Zero Dawn is meant to be our own, just one thousand years in the future, also with robot dinosaurs, and the only evidence of our modern day society lives on through ruined skyscrapers and overgrown streets.

One of the best things in this game is just the sombre and chilling world. Seeing familiar objects, but overgrown, empty and ruined can be so haunting at times. You have these new societies that have formed, worshiping various fragments from ancient times and having created simple, yet complicated, weapons. There are bows that fire weird pulse arrows and a futuristic, yet rustic tripwire launcher and setter. The juxtaposition that takes place in this land that’s set in the future, but limited to simple tribalistic clans with complex robotic creatures all set against wooden and stone huts adds to this wonderful and unique aesthetic that I got rather enraptured with.

There’s so much to get lost in in the setting of the world, both various biomes you come across as well as the shocking distance between the cultures and architecture of the different tribes themselves. I just fucking loved the world, alright?

The game itself is an open world adventure, similar in style and scope to The Witcher 3, to some extent. In my place of work someone has likened it to Far Cry Primal numerous times, and that doesn’t begin to explain the game, and is ultimately an insult. In terms of stuff to do, there are a number of bandit camps, collectibles and towers littered around the map, however, they aren’t over numerous and you’re not left playing map clean-up. There are vaguely interesting bits and pieces of lore to be gained from at least two of these map items, with one having a rather extensive story for a certain character, another introducing a peculiar character and quest chain.

The world doesn’t feel empty, it’s full of robotic dinosaurs for crying out loud, littered with herds of automated animals, going about their business, but all just waiting to be engaged with and to engage you and make traveling a genuine peril. Sure, the settlements can be a little hit or miss for the most part, but there is still a plethora of interesting quests that take place in this world that I found myself getting completely lost just in living in this world, forgetting about the main story as I was enraptured with these side quests and characters, experiencing the world itself.

This doesn’t mean the main quest line is anything to scoff at, if anything it becomes one of the strongest parts of the game with some of my favorite elements throughout the entire thing. A number of characters are introduced, most of which are placed a thousand years in the past as you learn the history of this world and the events that led up to its birthing, of sorts. It’s incredible as you rapidly get to know all of these characters and I found myself enamored with their story and interactions with this near impossible task they have to undertake, which you obviously have some idea as to the outcome, as Aloy and the world around her are living proof, but how it came to be, watching that mystery unfold is truly outstanding.

I shan’t delve into the story too strongly, just know it’s very good, the only downfall of it is that the very final encounter of the game is a bit weak, but everything else is wonderful!

The characters themselves are all rather interesting, some are flawed more than others, some lost in their devotion to their various cultures and gods, others are “tainted” by the ways of the ancient ones and become lost in a thirst for knowledge and uncovering ancient technology. Aloy is an odd one in this sense as, as my friend put it, she’s either very progressive in her way of thinking, or stuck incredibly in the past, as she takes to incidents very level headedly, not caring for ancient and arbitrary rites that seem to exist purely to limit people. Never hungry for blood or revenge and lost in the ways of a warrior clan, but also oddly not too soft to not know what she wants and how to get it, and at times it feels like she doesn’t quite fit because of her modern way of going about things, well, modern in our sense, one thousand years in the past in the game’s sense, hence my friend’s “progressive/regressive” comment.

The game is not without some flaw, as the climbing in the game leaves much to be desired. Climbing is only allowed when the game deems it so, and this is rarely. Ledges that are shoulder height are insurmountable, as you’re unable to jump high enough to clear them, but the game doesn’t designate them climbable, so you have to rather frustratedly go a fair distance out of your way just to walk up a simple ledge, even when they’re waist height, just tall enough to prove too high for you to jump up and becomes an impossible hurdle, like some kind of lame man’s high jump. Further frustration is added upon the initiation of these climbing segments, whether it be trying to locate the ledge in the cliff face that allows you to grab it, or if it involves jumping directly onto the damn rope/ledge and the game deciding you’ve approached it entirely wrong and you plummet to your death.

Sadly this is something that happened a few times in my experience, I either missed a jump, trying to zip-line down, having to make a leap of faith that even the most devout would struggle with, only to not grab the rope, that’s well above your head, or it’d be trying to take a simple step from one rock to another, maybe onto a log, and the game doesn’t trigger the climbing system, so you’re left taking a normal, non-magnetized step and plummet into oblivion.

I’ve made it known that one of the things that almost ruined the entire game for me were Glinthawks, an aerial carrion mecha whose only whim is to wobble around the sky, never floating still long enough to be even slightly simple and just buzz overhead, dropping ice cold death over and over. Much like dogs, Aloy should be unable to look up, as the camera doesn’t enjoy the soft pan into the ground, as the environment rapidly obscures your vision. It’s not just the annoying combination of nature and camera that sets these flying devils apart as one of the worst experiences in the game, it’s how they detract from everything else that works so well within Horizon Zero Dawn.

With ground based enemies you can lay traps and wires and easily tie them down to the ground. When another enemy comes into the scene you can see them coming as you’re still looking on their plain, maybe not their direction, but a quick spin around will reveal the angry robot gazelle headed at your spine. With Glinthawks, you’re constantly looking up, peppering the sky with arrows, narrowly missing time after time. The rest of the world disappears and all you see is a mech against the background of the sky, craning your neck up trying to keep a track on such a frustrating menace. The only other thing you’ll see approaching are other birds, to add more stress to your day, so you can easily find yourself suddenly taken down by an agitated mechanical alligator and they’re just not fun. There is another flying enemy in the game, the Stormbirds, but they work far better as an enemy as they’re both larger and also come down to the earth far more frequently, not living life above your head, just out of reach forever flying like some kind of aggravating albatross.

As for the rest of the machines, I think I enjoyed all of them. Every machine had a specific way to deal with them, their own weak points and strategies for getting to them. Every single machine is tough in its own right, and the process of learning how to deal with one is great. Not to mention that just because you know HOW to deal with a Fire Bellowback doesn’t mean it won’t still burn away your identity in a blaze of fire. Using and learning the pros and cons of each bit of kit you pick up pays off and works well as you’ll find yourself cycling through your arsenal frequently to get the specific effect that you require.

Horizon Zero Dawn is an outstanding game that I truly loved. The world itself is so enrapturing that I loved looking at the cities, the architecture and the different clothing that scattered the world. The designs of everything were incredible to the point where I’d genuinely consider having figures of every single machine with their strange mechanical designs, even the Glinthawks, the bastards. I love everything that this game stands for, with it being a AAA game that’s done things differently to everyone else, and it’s so easy to just get lost in the characters and world that I highly recommend the game to everyone and anyone. It starts a little slow, but you can quickly find yourself fall in love with a world of mystery and robot dinosaurs with heavy undertones of remorse and loss in the sombre ruins throughout the world, witnessing the final instants of the civilization we live in today.

(You can also watch me play a little bit of the game here)

#Horizon Zero Dawn #PS4 #Sony #guerrilla games #Open World #Action Adventure #video Review #Game Review #Written Review #Aloy #Mozillo

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