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indierpgnewsletter · 7 months

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There's Other Kinds Of GM Advice: Theatricality versus Transparency

(This first appeared on the Indie RPG Newsletter)

I find that broadly there are at least two kinds of GM advice – and they have a very different philosophy underpinning them.

The first kind of advice aims at all costs to maintain verisimilitude. It’s a solution that you can implement without breaking the players’ immersion in their characters. This can just be stuff like Matt Colville explaining that if your players are taking too long discussing plans, guess what, orcs attack! We’ve all probably played a game where people were going in circles and not able to decide what to do. If it looks like we’re not able to decide, we’re probably going to be relieved if the GM makes something happen to break the deadlock and prompt us back into the action.

(Historically, this kind of thing was taken to egregious lengths like Gary Gygax saying if players start acting uppity, have a rock fall on their head. It’s mostly gone now but reddit tells me that Cyberpunk Red which came out relatively recently still says something similar.)

The second flavor of advice involves breaking character and talking to your players directly. I know “talk to your players” is a mantra repeated so often that autocorrect suggests it as soon as you type the letter t. At its worst, this advice is vague and unhelpful. We’ve all considered talking frankly to people in our lives, we just find it awkward and hard and annoying. But, but, but – at its best, just describing the problem as you see it and escalating it from a character discussion to a player discussion will make it go away instantly. Like magic. (If you’re not sure what that means: In a previous issue, I discussed Jason Tocci’s excellent advice on escalating conversation in this way.)

And since the theatrical flavour of advice has the weight of history on its side and transparent advice keeps getting boiled down to mantra form, I thought I’d write down some examples of situations and some alternative ways to handle them:

Situation 1: The players are marines discussing whether to dive into the alien lair and recover their stolen engine (their main goal) or go and see if another missing team of marines is okay. There is only 45 minutes left and this is a one shot.

Theatrical: The other marines suddenly come on the radio and say, “hey we’re okay, please complete the mission.”

Transparent: “Hey, folks. There’s 45 minutes left. If we don’t do the alien lair now, we won’t be able to do it at all. Is that fine?”

Situation 2: The players are low-level fantasy nobodies who have a famous wizard friend. They’re about to tangle with some medium-level bad guy and decide to call in their wizard friend.

Theatrical: When the players try to contact her via a telepathic phone call / spell, she sounds breathless and says she’s busy doing something way more important like fighting a dragon.

Transparent: “Hey, folks. If we get the wizard in, she’ll absolutely make this fight a cakewalk. We won’t even need to roll initiative really. Is that what you want? Or would we rather have a fun fight?”

Situation 3: The players were having fun exploring when they meet a cool NPC (an android! an elf! an android elf!) who has this interesting backstory with an urgent, earth-shattering hook. They go along with the android elf because it seems more important but immediately look like they’re having less fun.

Theatrical: Narrate how the android elf meets a group of other android elves and have the elf say, “Hey, now that I have these folks helping me, you can leave it you want!”

Transparent: “Hey, folks. Talking to you as players here, do we want to stick with this whole android elf plot here? It does mean that we won’t do any open-ended exploration. Which would you prefer?” If they want to ditch the elf plot, you could just retcon it entirely or do the theatrical solution.

All of these situations have happened at my table. They’re all relatively low stakes and I think whichever way you handle it, it’ll probably be fine. But that said, some situations absolutely work better when done transparently so if you’ve never tried the transparent way, give it a shot. If immersion matters a lot to you, try it at the end of the session.

/End

PS. The theatrical options often still require the players to willingly suspend their disbelief and go with it. If a player didn’t play along, they might just say “I thought their radios weren’t working, otherwise we could’ve just contacted them before. Why can they suddenly contact us now?” or “Oh, the wizard is fighting a dragon right now. We can totally wait. There’s no reason we need to fight the bad guy right now.” And sometimes I can’t shut off that part of my brain either so I won’t judge. But if there’s a way to sidestep that situation even coming up, I’m going to take it every time.

#indie rpg #ttrpg #ttrpg community #ttrpg design #rpg #ttrpgsolidarity #game design

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cepheustarot · 8 months

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What kind of vibe do you have?

Attention! This reading is for entertainment purposes only. This tarot reading does not give a 100% guarantee that all the describes being ultimate truth. Only you know yourself best.

Paid readings

Pick a pile. Choose one or more pictures. Trust your intuition.

Pile 1: You’re the vibe of a strong person who’s determined, productive and active, and people see you as a leader who can inspire and lead people, you motivate others by your example. You are one of those who are not standing still and constantly busy with anything, you are constantly in motion, around you are always a stormy activity. Along with this comes the vibe of a person of cool head and rational thinking, you know a lot and have a lot of experience behind you, people see you as a wise person, they see you as someone who gives the right advice and can always help. To some extent you can call a genius of some kind, because you will definitely find a way out of any situation, find a solution to any problem. Also you are very curious by nature, love to learn everything new, you literally absorb knowledge (I would also suggest that you’re very interested in sociology, psychology and the like, you’re one of those people who likes to study human behavior, society on the sociological side, human interaction and all that sort of stuff). I also want to note that if you are very interested in a topic or question, then you will definitely find the answer, no matter which way, but you will achieve your goal.

Pile 2: From you comes the vibe of a person prone to melancholy, you can constantly be seen in a brooding state, you seem a little detached from the reality around you and you are immersed in yourself, in your inner world, constantly thinking about something personal, something only you understand. You’re just as hesitant by nature, you’re hard-pressed to make choices, because you weigh decisions everything carefully, consider every option from the outside, and you find pros and cons in every option, you think a lot about the consequences, what your decision will lead to in the future. You have the whole vibe of a person who has a tendency to analyze a lot, not only about yourself, but also about others, you think a lot about the actions of others and as if looking for a catch in their actions. Also, you have an inner linchpin and in stressful situations you become a person who remove his emotions for a while and faces the problem, successfully solving it. You may think a lot about problems, but you never dive into them, you are able to control your thoughts and actions. In other words, you never let problems get you unsettle. You are a pretty determined and hard man who will handle any obstacle.

Pile 3: You have the vibe of a person who is easy-going, you are easily interested in something and you are curious about many things, you can say that you have tried a lot in your life and you always have something to tell others, to share your history and experience in one or another field. Perhaps because you have tried a lot, you do not know what one to do in life, what particular area to choose, as you are attracted to everything. With this you have a vibe of an ambitious person, you most often follow the case to the end, most likely you have a lot of plans for life and you are the ones who think of any little things and details. People see you as a cheerful, friendly person, you always cheer others up and leave good memories, you have a good sense of humor and are able to conduct a dialogue so that everyone will be interested, including you. Partly, you have the vibe of a somewhat naive person who often head in the clouds and build castles in the air. You also stand up your end and if you want something very much, you will certainly achieve, you do not care if people do not support your decisions, because it is only your life and you decide what it will be.

#tarot #tarot cards #pick a card #pick a card reading #pick a pile #pick a pile reading #pac #tarot reading

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essentiallyleaf · 11 months

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day 20. cockwarming. with. jisoo.

1105 words.

tags.

kinktober ‘23, idol x male reader, cockwarming, angst, i don’t even know anymore, possibly the coldest cockwarming fic to ever exist, so much angst and for what.

notes.

short and a little rushed. sounds just like every day of my life. exhaustedly, leaf.

You plop down on the bed, barely able to take your black dress pants off before the dizziness gets the best of you. Jisoo is there, laying still, facing away from you and towards the cloud-shielded moon outside of the open window, like she always is. You can’t really tell if she’s awake or not, and the alcohol certainly doesn’t help.

This must be what they mean when they talk about magnetic fields. We’re immersed in them all the time, but we can’t see it, something about a wavelength our eyes are not tuned to. It’s like even when it’s past your bedtime (which on a weekend night like tonight is at least three hours after your regular bedtime), the sky completely starless, when you zig-zag through the streets and keeping your balance requires a voluntary effort, when your white shirt has more than one almost fully dried Bordeaux stain on it, you don’t know why or how, but your red needle always points back home, back to her.

You always manage to find your way to your shared bed, well, shared right in this moment, but often, too often one could easily argue, the bed feels hollow and freezing as Jisoo’s in it alone. Maybe that’s why the first thing she does when you lie down on it, is take your strong arm and wrap it around her waist to hold her close and share some of your alcohol-boosted warmth, and keep her own arm over it as if to ask you to never let go, never leave her again. She’s awake. Your natural response is to use your other hand to brush her long, silky black hair and watch it flow through your fingers, but as she feels your breath caress her shoulders, she knows that you can’t promise much more than that.

This shouldn't work. Well, to be fair, it isn’t working. But throwing stuff away, whether it’s dropping old photos in the fireplace, or leaving an entire relationship behind you to possibly never see your special person again, that hurts. It’s not just about the value of it, no, if that was the case, if that thing you’re throwing away still brought value to you, then you wouldn't be getting rid of it, right? It’s about admitting that something went wrong along the road, that things didn’t work out, that a wrong turn was taken, and that maybe, you were the one who took it. So the only thing you can do is turn away, keep going down that road, and if you ever happen to look back in a moment of accidental lucidity, justify your own mistakes.

So Jisoo reaches back and starts rubbing the outer side of your naked thigh, slowly traveling up to your ass as you lay a trail of quick kisses on her shoulder. Once she starts fiddling with the hem of your boxers and pushing her own butt back towards you, you get the message. You take your underwear off and stroke your dick a couple times before her nightgown is hiked up and her cheeks fully envelop your length. Your pecks take a trip up to her neck while both of you start shifting your hips up and down, back and forth against one another’s, a couple of low moans leaving your mouth.

It was your fault, but what if it wasn’t? What if that girl, what was her name even, hadn’t asked you for a lighter? What if she hadn’t looked at you all night with those warm brown eyes, what if she hadn’t asked you for a ride home? Any of those would’ve fixed this. The nights of yelling at each other’s faces and the nights of dead silence, the feeling of unbridgeable distance even when holding hands, the cool air of beach days in the middle of August. Maybe invisible walls are the best solution in some cases, and fuck it if they break some people’s immersion, as long as you can see the sun rise in the distance, you can live with not being able to touch it.

Jisoo suddenly stops her motion just to raise her thigh a little, suggesting you to enter. You align yourself with her slit and penetrate her warmth, her slick coating easing you through her walls and quickly letting you bottom out inside her, but as soon as you try to retreat, she puts a hand on your hip, halting its movement. She just places her thigh back down and stays still for a few seconds. A few seconds that enclose some kind of understanding, or, a feeling of understanding, at the very least. Most of the times when you have a revelation, an epiphany, you have no idea what the fuck is being revealed to you, you only see the light bulb turn on. Your kisses get wetter and longer, traveling from her upper neck to her ear and to her jaw, your hand finds itself on her soft, perfectly sized mound. She starts contracting her abdominal muscles repeatedly and rhythmically, squeezing your shaft between her tight walls, your pelvis still fixed in its place. You see her skin glow more than usual under the faint moonlight, and you think you taste a little salt as your tongue brushes her cheek, which you can’t help but groan on every time Jisoo tenses around you.

Invisible walls are not meant to be broken. They’re meant to disengage, to discourage. What does it say about us when they manage to do what they’re meant to? Is it sad, disheartening? Does it speak about our sense of agency as a whole? What if you did something different, what if it was your fault? You can’t go back, so what can you do about it now? Another night of getting drunk, another night of having sex, in each other’s embrace but miles away.

Your hand feels up her thigh as hers reaches between your legs from the back and starts massaging your testicles. You can’t hold back anymore. Her abs contract once, twice. You stop counting, she feels too good. Your thigh wraps around hers as you cum inside, letting out multiple guttural moans right next to her ear. You drop load after load of white paint onto her walls and into her womb.

You think you hear a little sniffle. Again, the only response is to caress her hair and leave one long kiss on the back of her head. Not more. Sometimes we hurt people that love us, love people that hurt us. And if it’s true that opposites attract, then likes must also repel.

footnotes.

sorry if this is depressing. how can i help you get back to horny, the superior mood? lunatically, leaf.

#kinktober #kinktober 2023 #girl group smut #idol smut #female idol smut #kpop fanfic #kpop smut #idol x reader #idol x male reader #blackpink #jisoo #kim jisoo #blackpink jisoo #blackpink smut #jisoo smut #kim jisoo smut #blackpink jisoo smut

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indiepressrevolution · 2 years

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It's ZineMonth!!! Lets talk about some cool games!!

There are so many awesome games crowdfunding right now that today we're just going to talk about 10 cool games that are currently crowdfunding on Crowdfundr! I'll be making more posts about more games in the future, and if you know of a cool game that's currently crowdfunding please add it on to this post!!

Grotty Gobbo's Tea Grotto lets you take control of the cosy Tea Grotto as you blend tea and build a community around you. Make friends, drink tea, go on an adventure, and stay wholesome.

The River Spirit is a guidebook for a solo journaling experience that uses a deck of cards to help you create memories of your hometown and the community found there, only to remix them into new stories and eventually sacrifice those memories for the greater good.

Tangled Blessings is a magic academy horror RPG for 1-2 players that uses tarot cards to reveal your fate.

On the eve of your final exam at Brackroot Academy, what mysteries, secrets, dread, and drama will you recall from your last four years of schooling?

In Dinocar, you and as many friends as you can gather will work together to map out a snippet of that world. You’ll paint a map, draw landmarks, slap buildings into place, and take turns going on chaotic road trips and commutes. At the end of a game of Dinocar, you’ll have a story to tell and a wonderful map to either frame on the wall or stick to the fridge.

Necro Mech Synthesis is a Bonepunk RPG about ghosts piloting mechs via possession! Fight in a world abandoned by God and defend Lady Death herself against the remaining three horsemen of the apocalypse!

Echoes in my Hull is a solo journaling game about remembering the people we have lost. Use a deck of tarot cards to become acquainted with your crew and ultimately be the last existing record of their lives.

GRANDMOTHERSHIP is a sci-fi TTRPG about senior ladies in space. Get in trouble, crochet a new scarf, go ballroom dancing, and find solutions where everyone else has failed.

My Mother’s Kitchen is a solo journaling game about traditions, change, and cooking. You play as the author of the original family cookbook, robbed of memory and trapped on Earth as the spirit of your cookbook. Act as a guardian for your family, and try to remember why you’re bound to the book as you guide your inheritors through centuries and generations.

WANDS & LASERGUNS is a high-intensity solo roleplaying game about being a wizard trapped in an anti-magic future. Pit your old-fashioned wits and wondrous new technology against diamond-studded nobility, cybernetically enhanced gangs, dirty cops with a vendetta, and high-fashion psychopaths. The struggle is real when you're far from home.

Derelict Delvers is a thrilling, action-packed sci-fi roleplaying game that immerses players in a struggle for survival and profit. Players take on the roles of elite space troopers, scientists, and engineers who must explore derelict spaceships and space stations in order to scavenge for supplies, salvage for weapons and valuable resources, and ultimately, hunt down the monsters that threaten the very existence of mankind.

Still not enough games? Check out Crowdfundr's Tabletop Nonstop page or the ZiMo official website for more!

#indie ttrpg #crowdfunding #zine month #zimo23 #ttrpg #tabletop nonstop #IPR Remarks

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romanarose · 11 months

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Darkness on the Edge of Town: Finale

Joel Miller x Fem!reader

Chapter 1 : Chapter 2 : Chapter 3: Masterlist Join my taglis

Fic Summary: Right before a mandatory FEDRA lockdown, Joel saved a woman in an ally from FEDRA guards and is forced to house her for the entire lockdown. I.e theres only one bed

Chapter Summary: Joel get's you out.

Warnings: PIV sex, raw dogging it, unprotective creampie, dry humping, sad ending, uuuuuuhhh thats it.

Immersability: Reader has no age gap, is implied to be approximately Joel's age, possibly older than Tommy. Is not concerned about pregnancy.

Support writers, reblog fics!

******************

Joel spent the day on his radio, trying to get a hold of someone named Tommy. You weren’t sure who Tommy was, but he said he’d help. Was he one of the guards Joel knew? He seemed to know a lot of people, despite being such a grump. You wondered if he worked with someone, someone with a little bit better of people skills.

You were on the bed, flopped and sprawled out, listening to Joel argue with various people as he dialed in an out of communication. Whoever Tommy was didn’t seem interested in him.

“Well he needs to talk to me, I’m his goddamn brother!” This was followed by the slam of a fist on the fist, making you jolt. Joel murmured and apology.

“Whose Tommy?”

A deep sigh. “My brother.”

You sit up, trying to catch his eye but Joel won’t allow it. “Older or younger.”

“Younger.” He grumbles. “That’s why he’s such a pain in my ass.”

Smiling, you stand up and walk over to wear he sat and wrapped your arms around her, feeling his chest. “Just like me.”

He relaxes to your touch, reaching his hand to hold yours. “Yeah, just like you.”

Joel could get you out, easy. That wasn’t the problem. The problem was you had nowhere to go.

The creek of the floor signaled your movements and you walked around the chair, kneeling. “Joel… can’t you go with me?”

He looked regretful. “I really wish I could, darl’n.”

“Why nooooooot??” You lay your head down on where his arm rested.

“Tommy.” Joel admitted to you, looking out the window with an air of wistfulness. “He’s the problem and the solution. He’s a firefly.”

Your ears pick up at that. “Oh?”

Joel scoffs. “Yeah, idealistic fuck.” He shook his head. “Tommy can get you somewhere safe, I know he knows people… but I can’t leave him.”

Another point of interest. “Are you a firefly?” That would explain why he knew so many people.

A soft chuckle. “No, absolutely fuck’n not.” He shook his head. “That’s Tommy’s shit. But him and Tess, they’re family. I ain’t leaving them…”

Tess. Sister? Friend? Girlfriend? WIFE?!?!? You tried to sound casual. “Whose Tess?”

Joel turns to the side, just slightly, eyeing you with a slight smile. “Are you jealous?”

You pull your hand away from him, standing up. “Should I be?” Playing it cool was not working.

“Easy now,” He spoke lowly as he stood up. “It ain’t like that.” His eyes dodged yours for a second. “Well, I guess sometimes it was like that.”

Nodding, you take in his words. “So I’m not like… the other woman… right?”

“No.” He was adamant in his words, sure and firm.

Your arms cross in figurative protection. “Then who is she?”

“Tess is… a friend. Known her a long time, she’s family, and…” He goes to rub the back on his neck. “I dunno… sometimes we… blow off a little steam… But it’s nothing romantic!” Joel is quick to add.

This relaxes you. It was understandable, the situation the world was in meant getting off where you could get. You liked being a pain in his ass, however.

“So, you fuck your family?”

That caught Joel’s attention, his eyes widening. “What?!”

You look up at him innocently. “You said Tess is family, and you admitted to fucking her…” As Joel towered over you, attempting to hide a smile as he realized you were just fucking with him, the back on your legs hit his bed.

“Fuck brat.” He wraps his arms around you, causing you to squeal as you both fall onto the unmade bed. A mess of blankets and sheets ripped off the corners takes you in, Joel’s boxer-covered hardness grinding into where his boxers also covered your sex. The two of you had spent the last few days in various states of undress, and have forgone the sweats for his underwear.

Breathing heavily, you wrap your legs around his waist and control the pace as he works you up. Feeling how hard you make, getting off on that hardness rubbing on you, you get obscenely wet and needy below him. You loved that no matter how big and tough he played, he let you take the lead.

“Fuck me, now” You demand as you shove him off you, both of you scrambling to get your underwear off. All the fear you felt was manifesting in arousal, your anxious for what happens when Ross gets his hands on you, the attraction you felt to Joel, the affection your felt over how he protected you… your head was swimming and you just needed to be filled.

Flipping over to your hands and knees, Joel wasted no time lining up and sliding into you, knowing you enough by this point that you can take him all.

The feral desperation was electric, the fear, the ever-present knowledge that this little window of heaven was slipping away from both of you made everything more intense. His thrusts were slopping, erratic, needy as he whimpered and grasped at your skin. He needed help.

“I got you, baby.” You whisper to him, reaching for the headboard you instruct him to relax, to just feel you. And god does he.

You use your leverage to fuck yourself on his cock, being filled and filled and filled over and over again by your own accord.

“That’s it.” He praised, hands groping and playing with your body, fingers rolling your pearled nipples between them. “Fuck yourself on my cock, use me to get off.”

And you did, god, did you ever. You fucked him until your both came collapsing on the now-bare mattress, a tangle of blankets flowing around you both as you two continued to kiss and touch in your post orgasmic bliss.

“We haven't been very careful, have we?” Joel musses, playing with you hair as you lay on his chest.

“How you mean?”

“Well, I think I came inside you at least a dozen times.”

You chuckle and kiss a plush peck. “I think I’m past the point of worrying about that.”

His eyebrow raises. “Oh? Are you…?”

“Post-menopausal? Not yet, but I don’t think we’re far off.”

He nods, viably relieved.

You wake a little bit before speaking again, bringing up a phrasing of his from earlier that had stuck in your head. “Is this romantic? To you?”

Lifting his head off the wearing-down mattress, Joel’s eyebrows furrow. “Hm?”

The white shirt you still had on draped over your breasts, reminding you they were no longer the pert, young breasts you had before the outbreak. You wondered what Joel looked like before, if you two would have gotten along like that back then… It was impossible to tell.

“Earlier, when you were talking about Tess, you said that wasn’t romantic. That. Emphasis on that.”

He looked like he had been caught. “Oh, um… well, you know-”

“Joel.” There was no way to tell what he was thinking. Was he backtracking because he thought you didn’t feel like that? Or had he just gotten ahead of himself when talking? “It’s okay, you can be honest.”

The bed creaked as he sat up, rough hands ruffling through his grays. “Well. I dunno…” You raised an eyebrow at him, but he insisted he was being honest. “Even before everything I didn’t really… date…” Joel cleared his throat. “Being a single dad didn’t leave much time for that.” Even the slightest references to Sarah was a hurdle to jump, a pain that stabbed at him so deep for a few seconds, he couldn’t breath. For a few seconds, all he saw was her, bloody and dying in his arms, all he could hear was her gurgled coughs and his own voice begging Tommy to help.

She knew him better than to push it, placing a hand over his and bringing him back to this world. “It is for me. Romantic. And I’m not under any delusions that this is a fairy tale. I know I have to leave, and I know you have to stay. You do for family. But Joel sweetheart…” You reach up to touch his face, his soft hairs and fluffy sex hair making you wish things were different. “But who you are- Joel, I need you to understand… You’re not who you think you are. You are a good person, you are loving and gentle and fun, baby…” You kiss his cheek. “I enjoy just talking with you, just being with you. Just… when I leave, just know, there are people who love you for you, not just what you can do for them, okay?”

Joel closed his eyes to your touch, pressing into your hands and humming, practically purring before he sighed and stood up.

“What are you doing?”

He pulled on his boxers again before sitting down at his radio. “Calling Tommy.”

“He ignored you the last several times.”

Joel sighed. “Yeah, because I just said it was me. I wanted… I wanted him to answer me… but if he knows someone needs help… he’s gonna come.” You watch as he calls in, to the fireflies you now know. “Yeah, it’s Joel- no, no wait just, fuck, I know he don’t wanna talk to me but… can you just relay a message? A woman needs his help. It’s important.”

Getting out of Boston did prove to be the easy part. Joel did it all the time, apparently.

The plan was made to leave the final night of the curfew. You and Joel had fucked like rabbits all day, violating every surface of his small apartment in an attempt to get enough of each other to fill the hole you knew was coming in his absence. How do you know someone for a week and feel like he’s already a part of you?

Joel was right, Tommy couldn’t resist a damsel in distress, and radioed Joel back an hour later. After explaining the situation, him and Tommy came up with a plan. Tommy was leaving Boston for a little bit on some sort of mission he refused to tell Joel about, making Joel worry even more. Tommy would only agree to take you if he didn’t give you any more details. Joel offered, even begged to come with Tommy, help him out on getting you to safety and whatever mission he had, but Tommy refused. He wanted nothing to do with Joel, and was only talking to him for you.

So this was goodbye.

“Joel.” A voice in the dark drew both of your attention, causing you to reach for your gun but Joel’s hand stopped you.

“Tommy…” Joel moved to greet him, but as the man stepped into the light, he held up a hand. “I’m not here for you, Joel.” He looked like Joel. Not extremely so, but passable. His face was a little scruffy, a 5 o'clock shadow all around and long, dark brown hair passing his chin. It was thick and wavy like Joel, but no touch of gray. Joel introduced you.

The dark and brooding expression on Tommy’s face softened, his glare fixing into a soft smile as he reached for your hand. “Thomas Miller, nice to meet you. Wish it was under better circumstances.”

You smile back. “Yeah, you and me both.”

“We should get going, are you ready?”

“I can still join-”

Tommy still wouldn’t look at him. “We need to go.” He was more firm this time.

You turn to Joel, heart breaking at the pain on his face as he stared at his brother rejecting him.

“Joel? Baby?” The pet name drew his attention, and clearly Tommy’s as well. You take his hand in yours. “Can you look at me?”

He listened to you like he always did in bed, eyes watering despite his hardened shell.

“I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to be sorry for.”

He shook his head. “I thought I could protect you.”

You place both hands on his cheeks, feeling the scruff. “Joel, you saved me. I don’t know what exactly Ross and those men would have done to me, but there's a good chance I wouldn’t make it out alive, and even if I did…” You close your eyes and shake your head. It wasn’t unheard of for bodies of women to show up dead. Evil men were still men when the world fell apart. “I’m going to be safe, okay? And it’s because of you.”

Joel sighed, as he always did, taking your hands off his face but still holding them. “Please be careful, okay? Tommy’ll take care of yuh, and I ain’t go no doubt he’ll keep up with that mouth of yours.” He gives your hands a squeeze. “Go on, now. Everything will be alright. Promise.” He sounded like he was convincing himself as much as you.

You look at his lips, silently asking but not wanting to make him uncomfortable kissing in front of someone. Joel hesitate, but moves in, hesitating again before giving you a small kiss on the cheek. You’ll take it. Hugging him, you whisper a thank you and a goodbye.

Joel makes one last attempt to talk to his brother and he gently nudges you in Tommy’s direction. He’s assured you time and time again that Tommy is a safe person, that he is a good person and not a rapist, but still the idea of being alone was daunting. You could handle yourself pretty well, but it’s not like you were a weight lifter. Tommy was stronger and possibly more youthful. “Tommy, man, thank you for-”

“This doesn’t make up for all the other shit, Joel.” Tommy interrupted him, pointing an aggressive finger. “Saving one woman isn’t going to undo all the bullshit-”

“I didn’t see you stopping me-”

“NO ONE COULD STOP YOU, JOEL! Jesus, even Tess can ring you in sometimes! You’re a fucking maniac and I don't ever want to see your goddamned face again.” With that, he turned on a heal and beckoned you to follow him.

The last thing Joel saw was your confused face, trying to make sense of Tommy’s accusations.

You watch Joel disappear behind you, and wonder what kind of man you had just spent a week falling in love with.

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While that's technically the finale, I have an idea for potentially a short epiloge! If you're interested, comment!

Reblogs are the only way to spread work!

@trinkets01 @ninebluehearts@luciannadraven33 @my-secret-shame-but-fanfiction @buriednurbckyrd @hiroikegawa @whatthefishh @ramblers-lets-get-ramblin @koshkaj-blog @daddysfavoritesexkitten @csara615 @notesonpretty @kirsteng42 @mundivagantsoul

#joel miller #joel miller fanfiction #the last of us hbo #the last of us #tlou hbo #joel miller hbo #joel miller pedro pascal #tlou fanfiction #joel miller smut #eventual smut #joel miller series #pedro pascal #pedro pascal fanfiction #Darkness on the edge of town #pedro pascal smut #joel miller reader #joel miller x reader #joel miller you #joel miller x you

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saturdaysky · 4 months

Note

10. how do you deal with artblock?

Art block! Hmm. I kinda go through a checklist when I get blocked.

1. What's actually blocking me?

Art block doesn't come out of nowhere. Am I anxious about a problem in the piece? Am I anxious about beginning a piece because if I begin, that means I might do it badly? Do I want to draw but have no ideas? Am I going through a low mood that steals all joy from life and convinces me that my art sucks?

Each of those has different solutions. (Which are, in order: identify what bugs me and make a plan to fix it, start it badly and then start over if I need to, do some studies, take a break). If I can identify why I am blocked, I can often do something about it.

2. Do something mindless

If inspiration has abandoned me, I can always do drawing studies. Figure drawing, fabric studies, drawing things I see around the room, tiny studies of paintings that inspire me, etc. I can just turn my brain off and focus on the process of making the marks on the page match what my eyeballs see. It's meditative, doesn't require me to come up with stuff to draw, and I usually learn a little bit from what I have drawn.

3. Fish for inspiration elsewhere

Inspiration is a thing you can feed. If you're only pulling from your own mind all the time, the creative well will eventually run dry. I find going to the movies by myself both fun and useful because I can totally immerse myself in someone else's creative vision for a while. I often come out with new ideas based off stuff I thought was cool or interesting in the movie. "The scene where he calls to tell her jokes, and she gradually realizes he's in peril and about to die was really sad...how can I steal that energy for my story? :D" or "Wow, Dev Patel's tormented eyes and desperation really made that scene hit hard... maybe I can take something from that for my piece...."

4. Take a break

If it ain't happening, it ain't happening. Why invite misery by forcing it? There are so many other interesting things to do while my motivation takes a nap. It'll wake when it wakes.

#asks #anonymous

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rottenshotgungames · 5 months

Text

Alright, let’s talk about what everyone’s here for: cool powers

Footfall Devlog 2

This Devlog will be covering the basics of what Footfall is and the challenges of making a game so heavily inspired by immersive sims.

So, without further ado:

What Is Footfall?

Footfall is an occult-industrial stealth-action rpg inspired by Dishonored, Mistborn, and Bloodborne. It aims to emulate the systemic ecosystem and emergent gameplay of immersive sims, particularly the fast, creative, movement-centric gameplay of Dishonored.

You play as Gifted of the Watchman, the god of stories and action. You are functional demigods, arcane in nature and forever part of a great cosmic play of chaos and change.

Some basics about how the game is played before going forward:

You get 3 Action Points at the beginning of your turn, each action point representing a period of 2 seconds.

If you do something cool, succeed on a check by 1 or less, or arrive to a dangerous Encounter fashionably late, you can get a point of Adrenaline. Adrenaline allows you to take an extra Action—even on another creature’s turn—or increase the size of the die you roll on a Check. You can only have up to 3 Adrenaline at a time.

Movement is measured in ~3 foot increments labeled "Strides." These are about the average length of a walking stride, and tend to be measured with one's arm.

There’s an interactive, yet digestible, physics engine at play. More about that can be found here.

The Question

The first question one must ask when creating a TTRPG about movement, and probably the easiest to answer, is how to make it interesting. When I say easy, I more-so mean that this is something you’re probably thinking about before you’ve even started writing anything down. This is a question you probably both asked and answered as part of the “I have a cool idea!” phase; at least, that’s what happened with me.

My answer was

Arcane Locomotion

During conceptualization, I decided a traditional class structure was right out. Instead I leaned toward a VtM-style power-centered progression system, with the various “Disciplines” (here called Gifts) covering individual forms of otherworldly movement. Because the spell system is the core of the game—something presumably every player character will be using—I decided that cost-based casting limitation (spell slots in D&D, sanity in CoC) would’ve been an exceptionally poor fit, and randomization limitation (disciplines in VtM, psychic powers in Traveller) has never sat well with me; I ultimately landed on a style of consequence-limitation using heat-management gameplay:

Entropy Quick Reference - Gained by taking the Power action. Cleared by taking an action without gaining Entropy. Once you have 3 or more, you take 2 damage and cannot use any powers for 2 rounds.

As for the powers themselves: First I’m going to provide an overview of the steps of conceptualization and implementation, then I’m going to walk you through the process of applying those steps to one of the Gifts, and finally I’ll show you the current state of each Gift (with some designer’s notes).

The process used is as follows:

Assign a unique form of supernatural movement, or an otherworldly ability that allows for unique interactions with one’s environment.

Identify the core niche of that ability, in what situations does it shine brightest? (i.e. Combat, Stealth, Support)

Create a base power (this one comes with your Xbox) that provides a type of mobility (e.g. social, hidden, group) within the established niche.

Create additional powers that support the Gift’s niche.

Playtest and identify weakpoints in powers and interesting additions to their capabilities.

Create Addendums that modify powers with those weaknesses and possible additions in mind.

Playtest again.

Design Note: A goal of this system is to create interactivity between powers—I want people to figure out cool and unique solutions to the problems they are presented, it’s a core aspect of the design ethos. That means that, during playtesting, a power doing something unexpected shouldn’t be flagged as a problem, it should be flagged as a success.

The Gift of Passage

1. Teleportation. This is gonna be our baseline power set, teleportation is what people think of when they hear “supernatural movement.”

2. Stealth. Teleportation, beyond getting people places quickly (or to places they normally can’t reach), is particularly suited for moving unnoticed.

3. Three aspects factored heavily into the design of this base power: 1.) Teleportation as a baseline. To represent this, this power resets your Momentum and Fall Height to 0. 2.) Teleportation as stealth. To represent this, not only does this power move you unseen, it actively degenerates enemy awareness. 3.) Teleportation as breaking rules. This one was pretty simple—you can teleport to a location without line of sight, so doors and walls can’t block your movement.

4. Two of the three additional powers are, at their base level of conception, just different forms of teleportation. One of them (Sharp Displace) allows you to swap places with another creature or object, and the other (Prepared Recall) is a normal teleport that reverts you back to your original position at the end of your turn. Both of these powers have stealth capabilities beyond Radio Motion’s removal of Notice, particularly Sharp Displace, which contains the following statement: “If you swap places with a conscious creature, make a Stealth check. On a success, the creature comes up with some sort of excuse as to why it isn’t where it was a second ago.” The exception to both of these rules is Flash Step, which act as a parry-and-riposte in short-teleport form (almost every Gift has one of these).

6. During preliminary playtesting, one of the playtesters asked if “swapping positions with Sharp Displace also meant swapping momentums.” I immediately said, “No, obviously not,” but we both agreed that it would be incredibly cool and fun . . . so I added an Addendum that makes it so you can do that exact thing (Momentous Swap). This was the basic process for creating many of the Addendums.

7. Further playtesting has (so far) not revealed any problems. The Gift of Passage is strong in its niche, and sets itself apart from similar power sets (e.g. Gift of Doors).

Here’s the final product:

The Gift of Reaching

Supernatural Movement: Body extension

Niche: Combat, enemy positioning.

Design Note: This was one of two Gifts that had to undergo complete overhauls after testing (the other being Tempo).

The Gift of Pushing

Supernatural Movement: Kinetic projection

Niche: Combat, crowd control.

Design Note: This Gift is the most aggressive and directly combative. It also hasn’t been revisited in a while.

The Gift of Tempo

Supernatural Movement: Time manipulation

Niche: Assault, self-buffs and enemy denial.

Design Note: This Gift is one of two to be actively designed to limit its interactivity with other Gifts (the other being Possession). Time powers are REALLY difficult to balance.

The Gift of Doors

Supernatural Movement: Portals

Niche: Support, group and object movement.

Design Note: This is the gift that most heavily engages with the physics engine, and everyone who picks it up has an ungodly amount of fun (they also tend to be STEM majors).

The Gift of Shadows

Supernatural Movement: Shadow form and manipulation

Niche: Stealth, remaining hidden while acting upon one’s environment.

Design Note: This one is inspired by an old forum RP superhero character I had. It was also kinda lacking up until the recent light update—note to all would-be shadow-ability designers, they work better with light sources.

The Gift of Possession

Supernatural Movement: Entering and manipulating living creatures

Niche: Stealth, social. Hide in plain sight.

Design Note: Up until this point, every iteration of Dancing Puppet has been too powerful in combat and too weak out of combat. Adding the “No direct harm” clause has balanced it out quite a bit, but I’m still not happy with it. Gonna ask a player in the next playtest to take it in hopes that they might inspire some innovation.

The Gift of Mirrors

Supernatural Movement: Self duplication

Niche: Support

Design Note: Matthew Mercer made my favorite 5e subclass and I shall forever live in shame. I haven’t played D&D 5e in years, and I still love Echo Knight.

Conclusion:

There are two big lessons that I want to leave you with today:

Weaponize Playtesting.

Have your cake and eat it too.

When people think of playtesting, they often see it as solely a means to find flaws within their game or to reaffirm design decisions that they’ve made. If we extrapolate that idea—expand its scope—what we come to understand is that playtesting is a means of gauging which aspects of your game that players find engaging or frustrating, and if we look at it from that perspective then we can use playtesting data to determine how to make engaging additions. Sure, players don’t always know what they want, but even if we just look at how they’re playing we can see how they’re attempting to interact with the game and thereby deduce what additions to the formula might make the game more fun for them. This process is what I mean by Weaponizing Playtesting, using playtesting data to help plan how you want your game to develop in the future.

As for having your cake and eating it too, I have a sincere preference for classless games (I never really liked PbTA style Playbooks all that much either), but I understand the appeal of class based games. Classes give you structure, they give you a basic plan to follow in terms of how your character will develop all united under a connective theme. For new and experienced players alike starting with a class then building a character around it can be incredibly helpful, perhaps even inspiring; however, classes are ultimately restrictive, they require you to play within their rules—your understanding of your character’s capabilities will always be, by necessity, grounded in the abilities of their chosen class. Ultimately, I wanted the structural inspiration that classes can provide and the freedom of choice that comes with classless play—the Gifts were my solution, and I think they’ve done a stellar job of providing both.

Self Promotion:

Hey y’all, sorry for the short hiatus. Work has been killing me recently.

If you wanna check out my other games, and get updated when the Footfall free playtest goes live, follow me on Itch.io! If you want more devlogs, and more rpg design talk, follow me here or on twitter.

Either way, I hope you have a great night and a great day.

#indie ttrpg #tabletop #ttrpg #ttrpg community #footfall rpg #game design #role playing games #rpg #this took up the bulk of design #writing and testing these is always super fun #i love seeing what people do with them

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geralt-of-baevia · 6 months

Text

Call It What You Want: Chapter Three

pairing: nooutbreak!joel x f!ofc (Violet Fletcher)

rating: explicit, MDNI 18+

word count: 2.4k

summary: Seeking solace from a painful breakup, Violet relocates to a tranquil town, purchasing a neglected house to renovate. In her new neighborhood, she befriends Harlow, who introduces her to Joel, a gruff and seasoned contractor with a heart of gold. Despite Joel's initial grumpiness, Violet finds herself drawn to his expertise and hidden kindness.

As Violet immerses herself in home renovations alongside Joel, their dynamic begins to shift, with Joel unexpectedly opening himself up to the possibility of love. Their budding relationship faces challenges as shadows from their pasts emerge, testing their newfound connection.

warnings/tags: uhh, i'd say maybe just warnings of injury? that's the biggest one honestly. talks of the age difference, too. And fluff 😉?

a/n: hi guys! i hope y'all liked the first chapter. this chapter is a short one, but don't worry! the next one is much longer and event filled muahahahah.

“So, what do you do?”

Joel looked up at me from the spot on the deck he was working on, sweat dripping from his brow. I crossed my arms over my torso, making sure to stay balanced on the railing where I was sitting.

“What’d’ya mean?” he asked, hammering a nail into a board.

“Like for work. You said you’re a retired carpenter, so what do you do now?” I asked.

Joel stood up straight, wiping his brow on the back of his forearm.

“I’m a school bus driver.”

“Are you a grumpy bus driver or a nice one? Do the little kids love being on your bus route? Or do you always yell at them to sit down and be quiet?” I asked.

“I’d like to think I’m a nice bus driver. I’ve only ever made one kid cry, so I think that’s a good track record.”

I raised my eyebrows mockingly. “Only one?”

“I swear to god, cross my heart and hope to die,” he said, crossing his chest with his finger.

“So that’s why you’re not working right now, huh? You get summers off.”

“Yep. It’s a pretty good deal. I like havin’ summers off. I get to do whatever I want-”

“Like sweating your ass off in the heat fixing bad wood in a deck?” I asked, cutting him off.

“I’d rather do it in weather like this than the pouring rain. That’s a fuckin’ pain in the ass,” he stated. I shrugged.

“That’s fair I guess.” I lifted my arms up to stretch and was hit with the unfortunate smell - of myself. I must have made a face as I threw my arms back down because Joel let out a chortle.

“Can’t stand your own stink? That’s pretty bad,” he jeered. I rolled my eyes.

“I can’t help it! It’s hotter than Satan’s ass crack right now, and the house does not get cool enough. Now was not the time to find out the air conditioning is shotty,” I said in a huff.

“Oh don’t worry too much about it. I’ll bring you over an air conditioning unit for your bedroom that we’ll use as a temporary solution until I can get things to fix the A/C,” he said. Joel picked up another board and a few nails before nailing into place next to the last one he had finished.

“But, with that said, I think I’m going to go take a cold shower. It’ll cool me down and I can wash the coating of sweat I have on me off,” I said, hoping down from the railing.

“Well, this shouldn’t take much longer, maybe 30 mins. Are you sure you can’t wait that long? Then I can go up and install the new curtain. What you have going on up there still scares me,” he said, not looking up from his hammering.

“Joel, I’ve had it like that for three months, it’s fine. And if I wait any longer my stench might knock me out,” I laughed. He looked up at me and rolled his eyes.

“Oh whatever, I’ll be fine,” I said with a fake scoff, heading inside.

I was hit with warm, stagnant air. Even though it was hot outside, at least the air was fresh. I went around downstairs and opened a few windows on both sides of the house to get airflow going before going upstairs. After getting the shower started, I opened the window and went in and opened my bedroom window as well. As I walked back to the bathroom I could already tell the difference.

Once I was in the shower I immediately grabbed my bar of soap and washcloth and began scrubbing my body down, especially my armpits. I could hear Joel hammering outside, it echoing through the open window.

A school bus driver. Not what I would expect from him, but at the same time it suited him very well.

I set down my bar of soap on its holder and the wash cloth along with it before moving onto washing my hair. As I picked up my bottle of shampoo, I accidentally knocked down my bar of soap.

“Shit,” I mumbled to myself, puting the conditioner back down. I went to step to the side to be able to reach down and grab the rogue soap, but I stepped on it instead.

It all happened so quickly. My foot came out from under me and knocked me off balance. I hit my shoulder against the shower wall as I fell. A sharp, stabbing pain struck me. Instictually I tried to grab for something with my non-injured arm. The only thing to hold onto though was the shower curtain.

I grabbed onto it with a slippery hand and pulled it down with the force of my fall, ripping one of the bolts hold it up out of the ceiling. As I landed painfully into the tub, slipping down towards the drain, the bar once holding up the curtain hit me on the forhead. A searing pain masked my face.

All I could do for a minute was sit there, my arm throbbing and my vision tunneling a little. I looked down into the drain and saw the water stained pink, meaning my forehead injury wasn’t merely a bruise, but a cut.

Once I broke through the haze of shock, I started shouting.

“Joel!” I yelled, thanking the heavens I had opened the windows.

Nothing.

“Joel!”

Nothing, again.

“JOEL! I fell and need help-”

Before I could finish my sentence, Joel practically burst through the bathroom door out of breath.

“Violet, what the hell happened?” he asked. He started to take a few steps towards me then stopped, his eyes widening. I knew it had just sunk in that I was bleeding and naked in the tub, the water still going and hitting me in the chest.

“Um, I fell on my soap and hit my arm and now it really hurts and I think the blood is coming from my head,” I told him, trying hard to not let the tears welling in my eyes to blink over. I grabbed the shower curtain and covered myself as best I could.

“Can you please come turn the water off?”

He nodded and came over and turned the knob, the water ceasing with a loud squeak.

“Okay, first here.” I watched as he searched through the cabinet until he found a washcloth. He returned to the tub and placed it in my hand before taking it and leading it up to my forehead. “Put pressure here. We don’t want you bleeding too much.”

“Joel, what about my arm. I don’t feel like I can move,” I said in a whine.

“Not at all?”

I shook my head.

“I have an idea, hold on.”

I laid my head back against the cool porcelain of the tub and closed my eyes, it helping the throbbing that was starting in my head. When I opened my eyes again Joel was standing over me with a towel in his hands. I closed my eyes again, my eyelids feeling too heavy to hold open.

“Okay, I’m going to lay this over you and then scoop you up,” he stated. I nodded, not opening my eyes. “Violet, Vi - you have to keep your eyes open.”

I felt one of his hands grab my face, shaking it gently. My eyes opened slowly. I was surprisingly comforted by his face being so close to mine, his deep brown eyes locking with mine. “You gotta keep your eyes open and stay awake, okay?” I nodded.

Through my haze of pain I saw Joel open the towel and lay it over me. He pulled out the shower curtain from between me and the towel, throwing it to the side.

“Alright, you’ll need to put your good arm around my neck,” he started, leaning down to get closer to me. I felt him move my arm, and with a grunt I was being raised up by strong arms. My body immediately melted against him, his warm chest feeling comforting.

“Which room is yours?” he asked.

“Two doors to the right,” I told him. We started moving again, and before I knew it I was being laid down gently on my bed.

“Alright, what clothes should I grab out for you?”

“What are we going to do Joel?”

He chuckled. “We’re taking you to the hospital, Violet. You have a gash on your forehead and you more than likely dislocated your shoulder.”

“So that’s why I can’t move it and it hurts like a motherfucker?” I asked before adding, “Just pick something out for me to wear, shorts and a shirt. I don’t care.”

He went over to my dresser and started looking for the items I asked for. “Yes that would be why. Once I was camping with my brother Tommy, and I dislocated my shoulder falling during a hike. Tommy popped it back in for me. It was some of the worst pain I’ve been in, but it made it feel better instantly,” he said, coming back over to me.

“That’s so comforting,” I jeered, “now help me get dressed.”

Joel hesitated momentarily but then began helping me get my clothes on. He was patient and helpful, in a way that made me wonder if he was a dad before, or maybe even an Uncle. Once we got to putting on my shirt, we both stopped, not sure how to go about putting my shirt on.

“Here, hold on, maybe this will work,” he mumbled. As he tried to gently put the shirt on over my arm, I clutched the towel to my chest, not wanting anything to slip.

Somehow we got my shirt on, but now my shoulder hurt more.

“Joel? Are you able to put my hair up in a scrunchie for me?” I asked, pointing to my bedside table. Joel nodded and went over and grabbed one of the scrunchies that laid on top of the table.

To my surprise, Joel put my hair up with ease. I relaxed a little as his hands skillfully ran his fingers through my hair and pulled it back.

“Alright, I’m going to go shut all of the windows, and then we’ll get you downstairs and into my truck,” he said with a nod before disappearing out into the hallway.

While he was away doing that, I got to my feet to put on some slippers. I hobbled across the room to my dresser and slid on my shoes. Joel was taking what seemed too long for me, so I ventured out into the hallway to see where he was. When I got to the top of the stairs, I looked down and saw Joel beginning to come upd.

“Hey, hey, hey,” he said, rushing up the stairs to me, “lets take you down gently and with my help, we don’t need you falling down the stairs, too.”

He moved to the side with my good arm and wrapped an arm around my waist, holding me firm and still as we walked down the stairs. Joel took them at my pace, letting me walk down them one by one when I was ready until we got to the bottom of the stairs.

I told Joel where my wallet was, and after he grabbed it and my keys by the door we headed out to the hospital. He had an old beat up truck and I was thankful for the bench seat in it, allowing me to curl up after Joel put my seatbelt on over me.

When we got to the hospital, Joel parked by the entrance of the emergency room. He rushed into the building, returning momentarily with a wheelchair. Joel brought it over to my side of the truck, opened the door, and helped me sit in it.

Once we were in the hospital, Joel helped me check in at the front desk and we were told to wait in the waiting room. Before we left the counter, the nurse handed Joel a clipboard and a pen.

Joel wheeled me over to the corner of the large waiting room and parked me next the empty seat he took a seat in.

“Alright, so you haven’t been here before so they want you to fill out this form. And something tells me you’re not left handed…”

I giggled. “No, I’m right handed. Will you fill it out for me?”

“Sure. Alright, first one: full name.”

“Violet Christine Fletcher.”

“Date of birth?”

“August 23rd, 1992.”

He paused for a moment to do the mental math. “You’re 30?”

“Yes, I’m 30. How old did you think I was?” I asked.

“I thought you were closer to 25,” he responded, signs of relief playing over his face. I rolled my eyes playfully.

“People have thought I was younger my whole life. I guess as I get older that’ll be a good thing,” I said. “How old are you?”

“My birthday is September 26th, 1967,” he stated, mumbling out the year of his birth. I giggled.

“That’s why you’re retired, you’re over 55,” I said with a cheeky grin. He looked over at me and gave me a worried look, genuine panic on his face.

“So… how do you feel about me being 56?” he asked, his voice cautious. My heart began to pound in my chest, almost making me forget about the pain in my arm.

“I don’t have any feelings about it,” I told him sincerely. His face softened, his eyes crinkingly as he smiled.

We filled out the rest of my admission paper, and then we got down to the ‘emergency contact’ section.

“Who would you like me to put?” he asked, tapping at the section with the pen.

“Oh, um, honestly I’m not sure. I could put Harlow because she’s across the street, I could always text her-”

“I’ll just put me, it’s no big deal,” he said. He filled out the information needed and under ‘relationship to patient’ he wrote down ‘friend.’

“Aww, I’m your friend?” I jabbed. He shook his head with a smirk.

“I’m going to go take this to the front desk. Don’t go anywhere, okay?” he joked, giving me a playful wink as he got up.

Getting my shoulder put back into place was one of the most painful things I had ever had happen to me. I gripped Joel’s arm so tightly that I left nail marks on his skin. The doctor put my arm into a sling, telling me that I needed to keep it on for at least three days, icing it off and on. The gash on my head got five stitches and a large bandage over it.

I only got bits and pieces of the information he was giving me. The pain meds they had given me had fully kicked in by that point. I was thankful that Joel was being attentive and taking note of everything.

After a few hours I was discharged with a prescription for antibiotics and pain meds. I was going to bring up to Joel that I was going to ask Harlow if I could stay with her while I was in my sling, but Joel beat me.

“I know we don’t know each other super well, but would you want to stay at my place while you were in your sling? At least tonight while you’re hopped up on pain meds,” he said with a smirk, “I only offer because Harlow will just be at work all day and not be able to help you.”

My chest began to rise and fall quickly, my heart pounding now in my chest even while drugged. Through my medicated fog I looked over at him in the truck and smiled a dopey grin at him.

“That would be lovely, Joel,” I slurred, “you’re so nice to me. And handsome.”

“You think I’m handsome?” he asked.

I nodded, my eyes closing without my consent.

“You’re what they call a silver fox.”

He chuckled. “Well, thank you, Violet.”

I started to doze off before I could respond again, leaving Joel sitting with the knowledge that I found him attractive.

Before I completely fell asleep, I heard Joel say softly, “And I think that you’re beautiful.”

#joel miller fanfic #joel miller smut #joel miller x oc #no outbreak au #no outbreak!joel miller #pedro pascal #pedro pascal fanfic #pedro pascal fanfiction #the last of us #tlou hbo

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rimeiii · 1 year

Text

Random demon HCs (SFW)

Eyo, it's your girl, the one WHB poster who's interested in this game for all the wrong reasons with something non-gameplay related for once! Part of what definitely interests me is the demons in general and how they'll play off with each other + the MC. Doesn't even have to be related to the sexy stuff - some of these demons I feel have the potential to have interesting and complex dynamics with each other, particularly the Avisos demons!

So, um. Yeah. Enjoy my brainrot-

(Also I will be particularly biased towards the demons who've caught my eye. Refer to tier list below. So, um. Yeah. Sorry about that orz)

I feel like out of all the demons in Hell, Belial would be the one most attuned to music. He'd be the one to replay songs again and again, probably wearing noise-cancelling headphones so that he'll truly be immersed in the music. He probably used to love singing as a child, so when his voice was taken away, he was completely and utterly devastated. To compensate, he'd take up an instrument (like an acoustic guitar) or learn how to compose, so that at least he can express his love for music and performance...

Gusion desperately wants to cut down on work, but it's hard. He spends countless days and nights just going around solving problems - and there's an abundance of them in Hell. Honestly, he thought of creating systems to help streamline his work and problem-solving shenanigans, but holy shit everyone just loves wrecking those too, huh. After calculating and approximating the time and effort required to perform his duties, merely solving issues as they crop up is the more effective and less tiring solution to everything. Which is saying something, when that in itself is already tiring as fuck.

Leviathan is a gentleman, through and through. Cool, calm, and collected on the outside, he practically perfected the art of hiding away his negative emotions behind a charming smile and a no-nonsense attitude on the battlefield. The only people able to pry away his emotions from beneath the mask are his fellow kings, the demons of Hades, and eventually MC. And even then, he'll only be able to show his most vulnerable sides to his nobles and, again, MC (eventually). It's hard to win his trust and openness, what with his jealousy often getting in the way of him forming healthy relationships with others.

Beelzebub is actually a pretty bad cook. Like, Mystery Food X levels of bad - at least, starting out. Now, though? Well, the people who said they enjoyed his cooking have somehow deluded themselves to think it's good before the side effects kick in. Does it have hallucinogenic properties? Is it a side effect of Beelzebub's tendency to have weird things happen around him? Or perhaps he really did improve on his cooking? Who knows...who knows.

Naberius and Gusion are the perfect drinking buddies. They'd get together at a random pub somewhere in Hell when they have the time, and they'll spend their time getting buzzed while unloading everything weighing them down at the moment. Honestly, this started as an effort to help Naberius - letting out his emotions bit by bit to ensure everyone's safety is much more preferable than letting his anger and annoyance explode to an extent he becomes a Kerberos. Sometimes, they'll be joined by Bael, although rarely as he is standing in for Beelzebub. More often, Satan shows up and chats with them, as amiable as always - and they end up being his main listening ears if he needs to vent. Satan's secrets are always safe with them, and for that, he is forever thankful.

Leraye and Paimon often make things together! The former has a knack for sewing, while the latter has a lot of ideas for clothes and stuffed toys! Working together, they'd be able to create a large variety of trendy clothing and cute plush toys.

I know a lot of people HC this but yes, Marbas would be a gentle giant. While he's aroused by being restrained, I'd like to think the reason why he's always restrained is because something bad happened while he was doing something while not being restrained. Perhaps he accidentally killed someone with his sheer strength, during a more "daily life" scenario. While his strength is his pride, his ability to heal is a larger source of pride for him - which is why he agrees with the notion that putting restraints on him is for the best.

Sitri is a tea connoisseur! He likes tea, knows which tea leaves are the best, how to make specific blends of tea, how long each tea needs to steep in order to bring out a specific sort of flavor...and among the demons in Hell, there are few who can appreciate the finer details in tea brewing like him. Some of these demons include Barbatos (surprisingly enough), Foras, Bael, Bathin, and Paimon. They regularly get together to sample his teas!

Whenever Bathin wants someone to accompany him in his travels, Amon often takes him up on his offer. They'll wander around without any prior destination, dealing with problems that crop up during their travels along the way. They both live in the moment while traveling, letting the winds dictate where they'll head to next. Amon deals with most of the logistics of travel while Bathin would focus more on finding and learning about the points of interest wherever they end up. An MC who enjoys traveling would love being travel buddies with them!

Mammon's way of showing his affection is gift-giving. Though his gifts might come across as overboard sometimes. Because what do you mean he already sent over some more jewels your way? Nobody needs that many jewels, sir! Either way, Tartaros is a prospering land purely because of the many treasures Mammon gives away to his people. Whether or not these overflowing treasures gets sent off to other areas is a different story entirely.

Andrealphus would be the most sympathetic towards MC, I feel. He knows how it feels to lose someone you care about deeply, to have your life ripped away from you in an instant. He had already been in that position a long time ago, and it would greatly please him if MC would let him support them any way he can - up to and including sticking by their side to protect them.

Out of all the demons in Paradise Lost, I feel like Morax would be the one most versed in the logistics involving healing and first aid. Which is understandable - his method of healing involves transferring his patient's wounds onto him in the form of pain. As a result, he'll have to be able to gauge just how far into the healing process he should perform with his abilities - especially on the battlefield. He'd have his nose buried in books during his free time just so he can increase his healing efficacy.

#what in hell is bad #what in “hell” is bad #whb #whb headcanons #rimei writes

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patent-registration-services · 6 months

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#isopod immersion cooling solutions in hyderabad

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nevermore117 · 6 months

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figured I might talk a little about how I've been making soap so yall can judge my dirty ass workstation

I'm making a new batch this evening so it seems like a good way to show everything from the top. This is a long post, I just like sharing my hobbies and I think soapmaking is fucking cool ok

Part 1:

Essentially, when you make soap you're mixing sodium hydroxide (or another similar base like potassium hydroxide) with water and oils and blending them up. When mixed they go through a process called saponification, during which (from my rudimentary understanding) the fatty acid tails break off from the fat structure because the hydrogen atom in the NaOH (sodium hydroxide) really wants to bond in that spot instead. The Na is an ion and breaks off from the molecule in water anyways, and it and the remaining O bond with the fatty acid tail and make a soap. Don't ask me any more please I'm not out of gen chem 2 yet.

All that means is, you take some water and some oils and some sodium hydroxide and mix it together, let it react, and you get soap. The key is the ratios of oils, water, and sodium hydroxide.

The thing is, sodium hydroxide is a strong base. Which is kind of like a strong acid in how bad it is to touch. You don't want it on your hands, you don't want it in your mouth, and jesus fucking christ it WILL blind you if you get it in your eyes. So PPE (personal protective equipment) is a must. And not just some gardening gloves either, you need proper eye and skin protection.

I have latex gloves, a long-sleeved denim shirt I got from my old job for free, and some decent protective goggles. All of this goes on before the lye is opened and doesn't come off until I'm completely done with everything. PPE isn't a joke.

Anyways. When you're making soap you need stuff like measuring bowls of course, since like I mentioned it's the ratios that matter. I measure everything by the gram with a digital scale. Silicone spatulas are also a must, I have two.

I also have an immersion blender. You COULD stir by hand, but I'm not eager to splash 10M lye around willy nilly so I got the blender. It just makes it easier and gives a better final product. I keep my tools separate from anything I would eat with bc, yknow,

, so no smoothies for this bad boy. Not pictured are plain spoons for adding stuff to the measuring bowls. I use glass bowls bc the lye can corrode metal.

Once I measure out an oil/butter I dump it into a big glass measuring cup. I could use a bowl but the measuring cup has a handle and I'm gonna be heating it up later.

Did you think I was done fearmongeroing about sodium hydroxide? Nope! It isn't just bad to touch, it's also bad to breathe! And it generates heat when you dilute it! That's hardly unique to lye, but it's still a little scary and cool.

The lye comes in little round pellets that I have to dissolve into a specific amount of water to get the right concentration of sodium hydroxide solution, and while that's happening it gives off vapors that SUCK to breathe. Ask me how I know. It's not "gonna kill you, call 911 asap", but it's "OWCH my LUNGS". You know if you breathed some in, it stings for a bit when you breathe in like something irritated the lining of your esophagus. Because it did.

So you have to make soap (or at least dilute your sodium hydroxide) in a well-ventilated area. Hence why I do this in my dirty ass garage instead of a nice clean kitchen. I have a big fan set up right next to my water bath (for keeping the lye cooler as I dilute it plus emergency water for washing), and I open the garage door to get that shit out. No enclosed spaces for me, please.

Now... actually making the soap look and smell nice. I have fragrance oils I add, plus I can also add stuff like soap colorant (NOT FOOD DYE), clay (like a clay mask), exfoliants, etc. I just kinda fuck around with trying new oils together. The appeal of this hobby for me is trying new things and experimenting.

I'll update more with actual in-progress photos once I'm done. I took these after cleaning all my supplies, I have some work I have to do before actually making soap bc it takes a while to measure everything out. Hopefully I'll find some time later this afternoonnnn

#furry.txt #soapdate #yes I know my workstation is a mess #I have to be able to pack everything down once I'm done so I can't really establish a permanent workspace #it's not actually as dirty as it looks this table is just fucking old and covered in speckles #I've tried washing it #it's just damage and not actually dirt #long post

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anti-dazai-blog · 6 months

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Hi, recently discovered your blog, love it <3

I started reading the manga around the Kamui Reveal, and back then already worried about the entire arc. Personally, the Dazai-vs-Fyodor-Setup felt undirected and predictable (back then and yet again at its end).

To me, it’s been already pointed out how Asagiri might have a hard time deleting the original cast from the story, which I don’t fault him for. (He likes creating and writing characters and you can tell, I actually love it.) My problem would just be that he needs to change stakes to the plot, it’s getting in the way of immersive storytelling (because he seldomly pulls through with the stakes long-term regarding the original character cast.)

You can actually write a story with good stakes that are consequential to actions without killing characters off; if you do it well, not having death threats hanging over every characters heads won’t take away from the story. (However, with a setting and worldbuilding like bsd it’s a little unrealistic to not have death as side effect/consequence or characters die.)

Back to the arc that’s been going on for years, it feels weird (unplanned), because that’s opposite to how the previous arcs (and especially the light novels) felt and it’s one of the longest arcs; I would have assumed Asagiri had something in mind for a proper (plot)conclusion (it’s a personal opinion that this arc is not properly concluded (currently)).

When we had chuuya drowns and dazai gets shot scenes, I wasn’t for one second thinking they actually died, I was thinking, how is Asagiri gonna write himself out of these scenes (because to me it felt like he didn’t have a solution, reviving the characters, prior to their death scenes), which is a pretty non immersive experience as a reader.

And it’s really weird to me, because I can’t think of a good reason of how all this happened.

Asagiri is not a bad writer, that’s established and the (i think) last „side“ project Stormbringer was exceptional (personal opinion (and I was still baffled(slight negative connotation) at Verlaine being kept alive (who knows wether he will play a role in the future)), it’s really weird thinking about Stormbringer and this arc being written out at a similar time. (I personally have a theory as to why the light novels are so good: He likes writing snd creating characters, but having them interact in this huge cast and series is understandably difficult, whereas the light novels can be seen as a backstory/part of a character, something he is incredibly good at constructing.(He also doesn’t really struggle killing off people here, because the consequences don’t affect the main story.))

He doesn’t „pander“ to people either I think, or at least it wouldn’t make sense. Bsd might possibly have attracted a shounen audience, but it got popular because of seinen themes and characters (which affects the plot) in the first place, so changing things towards to a shounen lane would be dumb, and also not something like Asagiri would do.

I’ve also skimmed across my rant here and I sound like I hate the arc or his writing, but I actually don’t haha, I actually liked a lot of this arc, themes and characters and still have faith in him as an author and this series, it’s just these particular things that kinda hugely scratch my opinion on this arc and how what’s currently happening feels like a non-answer to everything that came before it.

I’m interested in hearing your opinion on this, if you want to take the time for this huge complaint rant (I’m not mad if you don’t haha), in which ways you agree/disagree/could possibly educate me further.

You blog overall is really cool, love your analyses; lots of love <33

Thank you for the ask, I’m so glad you’re enjoying this blog!!!

You’ve summed up the current arc’s issues perfectly— it seems to be out of place when compared to everything else Asagiri wrote in both the previous arcs and the light novels. It came across as aimless— as if Asagiri himself wasn’t sure where he was going with it and was as taking it chapter by chapter.

That being said, I do believe that it might just be a matter of personal taste—maybe Asagiri’s tastes in storytelling has changed over the years, and the current arc is the type of stuff he’d be more interested to write about going forward. I’d be a bit disappointed if that’s the case (and as far as I could tell, I won’t be the only one), but he might form a new fanbase that this current type of story is more catered to.

Either way, I still have hope that future bsd arcs might revert back to how bsd used to be four years ago.

#anti dazai asks #I started watching bsd in 2021 and back then the manga arc didnt feel so different from the overall tone of the beginning anime arcs #It started getting weird in 2022 I think

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