#Lapis Lazuli-type gem

[lapislazulis-oceanroom23]

Promotional image of "Alone at Sea" by Kat Morris

[disgruntledexplainer]

Deltora, a subversion of fantasy tropes (or perhaps more accurately going back to it's roots)

@yellow-eyed-green-crocodile OK, here we go.

Deltora Quest is a children's book series. It consists of 16 books, though it exists in an expanded universe which contains another 12 books, not counting Tales of Deltora, Secrets of Deltora, and Monsters of Deltora (as well as the little-known extra book The Land of Dragons, which contains about half of what's in Tales of Deltora plus 3 additional stories which you can't find anywhere else).

The books were written during that time when Scholastic was doing it's darnedest to get kids to actually pick up a book and read. You know, the era of Animorphs, Secrets of Droon, and other books like that. Pre-harry-potter stuff. But deltora always stuck out as somewhat... odd.

For one thing, the setting. Deltora is a land absolutely INFESTED with horrifying monsters. we're talking lovecraft-level stuff. indeed, these things are so powerful that going toe-to-toe with them in conventional combat is laughably absurd. I mean, just look at this thing:

each of those little globes is a stomach the size of a PERSON. a sword ain't doin SHIT against that thing. and it wasn't even the primary monster from the book it came from. do you know what was? THE SAND IT'S STANDING ON. YES, THAT ENTIRE DESERT IS A SINGLE MONSTER.

there are also dark sorcerers, capable of, for example, turning an entire town into a fetid swamp in a split second, and deflecting any weapon directed at them. the main villain is a sorcerer of such incredible power that he makes zeus and odin look like chumps.

in order to defeat these creatures, the main characters are consistently forced to use their wits instead of their weapons.

but this isn't what I am writing this post about. every fantasy book has monsters of some kind. probably. no, what REALLY stands out about the Deltora Quest series is the BELT.

this is the Belt of Deltora, a composite magic item formed from 7 gems, each linked to the power of the land, bound together by a belt made by a simple blacksmith who united the seven tribes of deltora and became it's first king. it is considered the single most powerful mystical object on the continent, and uniting it is Deltora's only hope for survival.

except from a generic fantasy perspective, it kinda sucks.

in most generic fantasy settings, the characters are attempting to accumulate magical power which they can use to engage their enemies directly in combat; alternatively, they may be trying to build a big enough army or something similar. but the gems don't work like that. lets take a look at what the gems can actually do, shall we?

the Diamond: Gem of Strength or Fortitude, can give physical strength, fortitude, and courage to the wielder, as well as the ability to cure diseases in the person who touches it. it punishes those who attempt to take it in a dishonorable manner with misfortune. It can allow the wearer to telepathically communicate with and heal Diamond Dragons, and a nearby dragon of it's type boosts it's power, and vice versa. it also has this weird synergy with the topaz where the topaz can summon the strength of everyone who believes in the wearer (in a metaphorical sense) and the diamond transforms that belief into physical strength.

the Emerald: Gem of Honor, dulls in the presense of evil or at the location of a broken vow, is a remedy for sores and ulcers, and is an antidote to poison for whomever touches it. It can allow the wearer to telepathically communicate with and heal Emerald Dragons, and a nearby dragon of that type boosts it's power, and vice versa. Note that out of all the dragons, emerald dragons are arguably the biggest and most powerful. It might have other powers as well, as it's potential isn't as well explored as the other gems.

Lapis Lazuli: Gem of Luck or Providence, protects the wearer from evil and brings good fortune. also may have some subtle effect on the weather, though that hasn't been confirmed. it is arguably the most powerful of the gems for the protection it provides, but the nature of it's power is ill defined, and certainly outside of the wearer's ability to control. It also allows you to detect the location of the Opal as if it were a compass, and is more powerful when in close proximity to it. It can allow the wearer to telepathically communicate and heal Lapis Lazuli dragons, and a nearby dragon of that type boosts it's power, and vice versa. If the opal has it's power boosted by a nearby opal dragon, the Lapis Lazuli's power is also boosted if they are close to each other.

Topaz: Gem of Faith, can allow the wearer to make contact with the spirit world during a full moon. the character can see ghosts, and sometimes the spirits of the hallowed dead (those who are in heaven) will appear to the character and given advice, those this is extremely rare. It also clears and strengthens the mind and protects the wearer from the terrors of the night (also ill-defined). It's powers are all strengthened during the full moon. It can allow the wearer to telepathically communicate with and heal topaz dragons, and a nearby dragon of that type boosts it's power, and vice versa.

Opal: Gem of Hope, has the power to give glimpses of the future and can enhance the wearer's vision, and it can also fill the wearer with hope for the future (which helps counteract the panic that the visions of the future often produce). It can detect the Lapis Lazuli like a compass, and is more powerful when in close proximity to it. It allows the wearer to telepathically communicate with and heal opal dragons, and a nearby dragon of that type boosts it's power, and vice versa. If the Lapis Lazuli has it's power boosted by a nearby lapis lazuli dragon, the opal's power is also boosted if they are close to each-other.

The Ruby: Gem of Happiness or Love, it grows pale in the presense of evil, or when misfortune threatens it's wearer. Can be used in conjunction with the emerald to fully distinguish between danger, evil, and vow-breakers, since their powers overlap a little. It wards off evil spirits (also ill-defined) and is an antidote to snake venom, and also apparently repels snakes and venomous creatures in general. It allows the wearer to telepathically communicate with and heal ruby dragons, and a nearby dragon of that type boosts it's power, and vice versa.

The Amethyst: Gem of Truth or Wisdom, changes color in the presence of illness, pales near poisoned food or drink, and guides the wearer toward sincerity, security and peace of mind (AKA calming the wearer when touched). It also boosts the power of Toran Magic. By A LOT. It allows the wearer to telepathically communicate with and heal Amethyst dragons, and a nearby dragon of that type boosts it's power, and vice versa.

True, this is a lot of variety in powers, but with the exception of the Diamond most of this is pretty useless in combat. Especially given that the sorcerers in this world can do things like call lightning down from the sky, or create and control thousands of soldiers made out of goo. And compared to the combat capabilities of end-game weapons of other setting? it's chump change. it should be noted that the gems DO NOT allow the wielder to control dragons, only telepathically communicate with them, meaning that the King of Deltora must still negotiate to get any help, and the Dragons are rarely cooperative, even in the face of their own extinction. The gems don't give you the ability to control the elements, warp space and time, kill with a thought, fly, or turn into a glowing giant (whatever the anime adaptation might say to the contrary).

No, what the gems allow the user to do is: keep a level and clear head, detect potentially dangerous situations, and heal people of ailments.

but here's the thing; given what I said about the monsters in deltora, any of the spectacular kinds of magic would be pretty much useless. The Shadow Lord is beyond anything any mortal is capable of fighting; he has integrated his twisted will with the spirit of half a continent, and has experimenting with new and more twisted kinds of magic for thousands of years. Frankly, even by the standards of most "dark lords" like Sauron, Melkor, and Galbatorix, he is unimaginably powerful. a direct confrontation with him is laughable.

so then, why is the Belt considered one of the most powerful objects on the planet?

Well, because what it grants isn't power.

it grants FREEDOM.

freedom is defined as "the power, rooted in reason and will, to act or not to act, to do this or that, and so perform deliberate actions on one's own responsibility. By free will one shapes one's own life. Human freedom is a force for growth and maturity in truth and goodness[...]" -Catechism of the Catholic Church section 1731

in other words, Freedom, properly defined, is not the ability to do what one wants; that is power, not freedom. Freedom is the ability to do what one NEEDS to do. Freedom to protest. Freedom to preach. Freedom to worship. Freedom to defend oneself both physically and legally. These are freedoms.

Now lets look again at what the belt enables one to do. It allows one to clear and calm one's mind and strengthens one's will, heals, protects from certain kinds of danger, and allows one to heal others. These are not powers, they are FREEDOMS.

oh yeah, and I forgot one more of these freedoms:

WHEN ALL THE GEMS ARE PUT IN THE BELT TOGETHER, THEY PRODUCE A MAGICAL SCREEN WHICH BANISHES DARK MAGIC AND THOSE WHOSE SOULS ARE TAINTED BY IT.

it is not combat power, but it is a power FAR GREATER THAN ANY COMBAT POWER COULD EVER FEASIBLY BE

In a sense, this subverts normal fantasy tropes by going back to its roots. When JRR Tolkien wrote the Lord of the Rings, he wrote a book about simple working class and middle class people defeating an evil by DESTROYING POWER (with a One Ring being a kind of stand-in for power itself in all it's forms). yet, it seems that every writer since has taken a look at his work and gone "look at all this cool world-building and monsters and magic! but the protagonists and themes are kinda lame. I KNOW, i'll REPLACE those complex and nuanced themes with EDGY GRIZZLED WARRIORS AND POWER-HUNGRY SORCERERS, and make the story all about CONSOLIDATING AS MUCH POWER AS POSSIBLE TO DEFEAT SOMEONE WHO HAS ALSO CONSOLODATED AS MUCH POWER AS POSSIBLE, BUT IN AN EVIL WAY. sometimes they even have their characters performing actions which are completely morally bankrupt (razing cities, killing civilians or surrendering enemies, etc), and justify it because "main villain is worse". because in other words, most fantasy writers decided to completely rip off all of tolkien's world, down to the very creatures that inhabit it, but HORRIBLY INVERT the themes

Meanwhile, Deltora seems to do the opposite. It doesn't copy Tolkien's world. there are similarities; the Shadow Lord is kinda like Sauron if you squint a little. but the world is populated with plenty of creatures that don't line up at all, and even those that are similar are only superficially so. meanwhile, Emily Rodda (the author) took a look at Tolkien's themes, smiled and nodded, and proceeded to ELABORATE UPON THEM. The kingdom of deltora fell because the rulers detached themselves from the needs of the common man and physically separated themselves from them out of cowardice. the shadow lord twists and destroys nature to produce his horrific experiments which mirror in many ways modern genetic engineering. the battle is won not through force of arms, but through planning, cleverness, and uniting the tribes under a common cause.

there are other things, like how each gem corresponds to one of the seven virtues, or how so much emphais is put on using logic to solve problems, and similar things, but this post is long as it is, so i'm going to stop here.

[love-takes-work]

Streamily Signing with Jennifer Paz as Lapis Lazuli and Malachite

Jennifer Paz did a signing through Streamily for fans who bought a signed print. Here are just a few highlights of the stream.

She remembers dressing up as "Bob" for a charity purpose.

She does some line reads that Lapis had in the show.

Lapis was not Jen's first voice over work. She did The Angry Beavers back in the 90s. She's done a lot of ADR work for films. However, Lapis was her first recurring character.

Regarding a fusion between Peridot and Lapis, she didn't think much about that, but she thinks they could work together at a nursery in the barn and being a therapist.

She points out that she can't draw "worth shite" when a fan wanted her to draw on the print, so she just wrote her favorite quote ("I just wanna go home").

Responding to "can you do impressions of other Steven Universe character," she did some callbacks from "The New Crystal Gems," doing "the Garnet" and an Amethyst impression.

In response to someone asking if she auditioned for the role of Amethyst, yes she did audition for Amethyst and recorded the pilot episode for it. They just decided she wasn't the right voice for it. She loves Michaela's take on the character.

She loved the Mary Poppins rendition by Lin Manuel Miranda.

She comments that Steven Universe helped her with her mental health.

She thinks Lapis and Peridot were great as an Odd Couple type.

Her plans for the holidays include in-laws coming in next week and her kid gets to hang out with his grandparents. She loves her in-laws who are coming in from Philly. They love to drink and she's not a drinker.

Can Lapis waterbend people's tears? Yes, Jen thinks she can. Ask Rebecca, though. She could've done something to Blue Diamond with that. Jen loves that Lapis said "I've felt worse."

Jen quotes when Lapis said "No" to "Lapis, fly us in!" She loves that Lapis is a "waterbender" but her humor was so dry. She's getting over being traumatized and just wants others to do their stuff.

She gives some advice for handling adulthood: the only way out of difficult things is through it. If you avoid difficulties they will come back somehow.

She thinks Lapis would enjoy flying a kite.

Wouldn't it be funny if Lapis became Bob the Coach and started a Little League? Maybe she'd say "There's no crying in baseball."

Her favorite character from Steven Universe was Greg.

Lapis did a lot of sleeping and reading to recover from her trauma.

Jen's favorite colors are blue and magenta.

Jen used to not know what "ship" meant in a relationship context and had to find out on Urban Dictionary. She has a Gen Alpha kid now and there are phrases she is forbidden from saying them.

One of her favorite lines from "Hit the Diamond" was "This plan sucks."

Her favorite ship was probably Stevonnie.

She thinks if Steven and Lapis fused it'd be because they were playing catch or hanging out--it would be accidental while playing a sports game.

Someone started a goth band called Cult of Lazuli because of Steven Universe and Lapis. Jen loves this!

She can't commit to saying a favorite song. She agrees that Lapis would secretly listen to Taylor Swift.

She would love Steven Universe to come back but she doesn't know if it will. She'll just say yes, in her opinion it will come back.

Her opinion is that Lapis's water powers are somehow related to Blue Diamond's.

She made a joke about how Cult of Lazuli rocks "because we're rocks."

While signing a Malachite print, she said some stuff toxic relationships and how incredible it was that Lapis dragged Jasper into the sea--but for what? She hopes those who have been in toxic relationships are okay now.

She could not sing in Brazilian Portuguese in response to a request, but she took out a shaker and sang some of "That Distant Shore" in English. She thinks it might be fun to learn it in Brazilian Portuguese and loves the singer who did the voice for the Brazilian dub.

She would love if someone could do fanart of Lapis singing "Home" from The Wiz, or "Home" from Beauty and the Beast--all the music about home should be a Lapis playlist.

She answered what kind of car would Lapis have? She would have an electric car, because as a reformed terraformer, she cares about the Earth now. The car would be a VinFast, "because uh, just because." ;)

She was at one time bald due to alopecia during one of the cons that she had met one of the fans at. She remembers L.A. Comic Con. She was wearing a wig that she referred to "a bob wig." (A "Bob" wig? Heehee!) She found it itchy. She asked Kimberly Brooks and Michaela Dietz if they could tell she was wearing a wig. She was stressed out and ended up recovering through the use of addressing vitamin deficiency. She sends a message of support to anyone struggling with alopecia.

She signs some prints with "I'd love to see your color shining through," "Maybe I'm not alone," and "I just wanna go home."

She shared that her mom's name is Aurora (which was somewhat similar to one of the fans getting a print).

She shares that she loves the Muppets and her favorite characters are "the two curmudgeons in the box seats."

She said "Bob" is a favorite for her and she has a few new items in the shop. Some orders were not made in time to get into this signing, so she wants to schedule another one.

[slothpoth]

Who Arcane Characters Would Like The Most If They Watched Steven Universe + How they started watching

Im going to preface this by saying it may not be 100% accurate, this is my pregame before I rewatch ALL of Steven Universe beginning to SUFuture so why not shove the current interest in?

BY THE WAY: this is them watching no matter what so if you’re like “omfg they would never!!” Now they are. What’re you gonna do? Scroll??

EDIT: IM SO SORRY I MEANT TO PIT A RWADMORE HERE

Jinx

Jinx was a hard Amethyst stan until the movie came out and Spinel ChokedSlammed Her Into The Floor

She started watching because she caught the tail of “So Many Birthdays” (the one where Steven ages and ages and ages) and immediately decided this was her thing now

She gets into arguments online about her favs and she is the one posting getting blocked and bragging about winning the argument

“You can just say you don’t understand characters who are complex, you don’t have to write all this for things we OBVIOUSLY KNOW.”

While Amethyst and Spinel are her favs, she will go to BAT for any character being mischaracterized

Do not let her catch you talking shit about Mx.Lapis Lazuli, she will Hurt You.

Vi

Speaking of people with will Hurt You, Vi does not play about Steven Quartz Cutiepie Demayo Universe.

Vi started after multiple instances of Jinx ranting to her inconsistently for hours about arguments she gets into online

Like Jinx bursts into the room like “Vi, These people couldn’t fucking comprehend media if there was a gun to their head, and Yknow what? I’m putting it there” and Vi is hooked

“Oh my god…..they are stupid…” “THATS WHAT IM SAYING” I kinda hc that vi is the type that likes hearing about drama no matter where it comes from it just has to be juicy

One time Jinx called Steven a normie favorite character pick and Vi then went on a 95 minute rant about how kind and sensitive he is

“Steven is a sensitive and kind boy who tries his best no matter the circumstances, even if he fails he still tries to be good. You have NO RIGHT to act like he’s some—“ “ VI OH MY GOD NEVERMIND IM SORRY, WE’VE BEEN HERE FOR AN HOUR PLEASE LET ME GO”

Vi kins Steven Universe and SU Future made her ugly sob with chest pain

Caitlyn

Caitlyn likes Pearl because the lesbian yearning over their ex to nerdy fem who can pull without trying storyline intrigued her deeply.

Originally Jinx compared her to Pearl because Jinx thinks she’s prissy and overbearing, this made Caitlyn block all official Steven universe accounts on every piece of social media.

Later Vi compared her to Pearl because Vi thinks she tries her best to help everyone even if she makes mistakes sometimes, thsi and Caitlyn unblock some Steven Universe accounts and watch alongside Vi sometimes

She doesn’t end up watching the show from the beginning, she just asks Vi questions and Vi explains how something fits into the story

“Why does Lapis despise Peridot so much? She’s like half her size if she’s an issue push her over” “Well Peridot reminds her of her trauma of being constantly used wherever she goes and never living for herself, she’d just be constantly triggered like she has been for thousands of years” “ohh… why don’t they just build a second place on the land?” “Cause the barn is cool” “ah,, makes sense.”

Any mention in the show about Pearl having a bunch of people’s numbers and Caitlyn is out of her chair cheering.

Ekko

Ekko is a fan of Bismuth and he’ll tell everyone else that it’s because the crystal gem rebellion was super interesting to him but deep inside his interest was first peaked because he finds the Bismuth puns genuinely funny like he guffaws at every one.

He started watching when Jinx showed him the clip of Steven having to poof Bismuth, and he made sure to go back through the series to really get what’s going on.

When the cluster was introduced he was appalled like this is the world’s greatest home-world hater, like he was even iffy on peridot for a whole extra season it was so bad

“At least she’s trying to redeem herself?” “I don’t care if she stops homeworld by herself I Don’t Like Her.”

The Diamond arc? Oh he is SAT for every episode and he is HEATED. He’s getting them (Jinx + family) sound complaints cause he keeps pausing to complain about whoever happens to be on screen

*blue diamond starts speaking* *insta pause* “AND HERE COMES THIS ONE.” “EKKO FOR FUCKS SAKE LET THE SHOW PLAY”

Ekko thinks the diamonds got off easy and drew a comic (that he keeps to himself and jinx) about how HE would’ve ended the show (it’s 48 pages)

Mel

Connie is so special to Mel, so special she sees herself in Connie so much that’s her daughter

Any scenes where Connie and her mom are clashing? Mel is pouring almost obsessively over the scenes just “oh my god…..oh,,,my god,,,” like if Mel had a kinlist?? Oh yeah. Absolutely.

She actually keeps pretty good track of animation projects and new series so she’s been watching since the beginning. The pitch of sentient rocks living around and with this half human half rock boy? Yeah she was definitely intrigued

And now emotionally wrecked, like she saw a clip of season 1 Steven while presently on the homeworld arc and almost fell to her knees her BABY

Auntie!Mel bonds with Jinx and Vi over it when visiting their house its like:

“Mel, if you wanted to run away from your home and ended up hurting people in the process, wouldn’t you take accountability for that?” “Well that depends on who I hurt.” “Let’s say you leave someone in a garden for like mmm random number six thousand years—“ “Spinel has full reason to be upset, I’d do worse if I were her” “RIGHT???”

“Whyre you and Jinx arguing? Aren’t you a bit old for the silent treatment?” “She keeps calling me basic for liking Steven.” “Steven? The character on a slow creep to a world terrorizing meltdown?” “RIGHT.” “Vi, not everyone you meet will have good taste like you and me, I’m so sorry”

She does think Jinx terrorizing online spaces is a little funny but is trying to be responsible and won’t tell her that outright

And by not tell her she means trying not to roll over laughing hearing Jinx read out the arguments

Sevika

If you asked Sevika why she liked Jasper, she’d say something like “I too have been forever changed by a lesbian relationship” or “smash.”

If you asked Sevika while she’s in a sad drunk mood she wouldn’t verbally answer and just mentally spiral about the perfect solider who keeps losing and losing and losing and losing and—don’t refill her cup, Sevika is going home, don’t call her damn phone, she’s busy

In this modern scenario, her and Jinx are still coworkers so when Jinx is watching video essays or character compilations on her breaks, Sevika will walk by and either stand and watch an intense part or make fun of what’s on screen

*Jasper climbs up the side of a boat to beg on her knees for Lapis to re-fuse* “ohh I’ve been there before,” “She’s begging her to reform into an eight armed monster where they constantly fought for dominance in the headspace at the bottoms of the ocean because Lapis— the blue one— didn’t want Jasper— the orange one— to kill Steven— the boy one.” “oh yeah no, me too (wtf??)”

Overtime Jinx started to refer to Jasper as Sevika’s favorite and kept giving her vague updates on her condition, that being said Sevika rewatched the entire series and future when she heard news of Jasper’s Shattering

“They shattered your goat.” “What goat??” *shows photo of Jasper’s shatter gem in Steven’s hand* “IS THAT FUCKING JASPER????”

Like she didn’t even wanna talk about what happened afterward she blocked Jinx and started watching immediately, Sevika was getting to the bottom of this (of what?? We have no clue she’s hurt rn)

Sevika will not discuss the emotional impact Steven Universe had on her. You’d have to have her at gunpoint and chemically paralyzed.

[pocket-gems]

So something that always bothered me...would geos, star gems, rutiled gem , ECT be their own gem? In fact how would anetrine work? What about gem ores since it's just unpolished gems, I feel like any gem related stuff that isn't a normal gem wouldn't work in my bases on the lord

(This is just how I think the show would make it + real life facts)

Star Gems

If a gem has inclusions, it comes from another gem. If you separate a Star Ruby you get a Ruby and microscopic inclusions of Diaspore (and mind you, this does not apply at all 100% of the cases with other Star gems or even Rubies).

I don't really think "Star Gem" is a real thing, it just happens to be named like that because it looks like one. Honorable mention to Double Star too!

Cat's Eye

Pretty much the same but with Cat's Eye. Called like that because it looks like a cat's eye.

Phoenix's Eye, Tiger's Eye and Dragon's Breath are not a type of it but follow a similar logic, that's why I'm grouping them here.

Rutilated/Rutiled Gems

If a gem has rutile inclusions, it creates a natural fusion. If you separate a Rutilated/Rutiled and the Gem you just get a Rutile. That's literally just a Rutile.

Trapiche Gems

Same thing as the stars. They're named after the Trapiche Wheel and its spokes.

Geodes

Geodes are a nafural fusion of the same kind of gem (and not the same type of gem). That's literally a naturally formed cluster.

Ores

Ore is a natural rock/sediment that contains valuable minerals, typically containing minerals. If Bismuth, a metal and Pebbles of all things can exist, that means other metals and ores can exist.

On the show there are examples of unpolished and polished gems being bubbled. Polished is when a gem has a cut/cabochon.

Natural fusions

An Ametrine is a natural fusion of an Amethyst and a Citrine. Natural fusions are defective. Natural fusions are defective

Inclusions

Inclusions are in pretty much every single gem, it's a form of natural fusion. Cat's Eye, Trapiche, Star and Rutilated are the obvious ones. A gem that also has inclusions would be a Ruby Zoisite and a Chevron Amethyst. If a gem has any sort of pattern it's because it has inclusions.

Some gems are formed because they are a natural fusion but that doesn't mean they look like one. Lapis Lazuli is mostly composed of Lazulite and Calcite (and Pyrite sometimes) but because they have other components going on, they are it's own thing. And those sort of Pyrite inclusions just means freckles.

Inclusions always come from a different gem, that's how they work. If a gem has inclusions they result on some kind of pattern, like with Snowflake Obsidian. It doesn't have to be just freckles.

Depending on the type of inclusions, it can result in a natural fusion or just a gem with inclusions: A Ruby Zoisite can be just a Ruby with green spots or a natural fusion of a Ruby and a Zoisite if the inclusions had a higher level than usual.

There is no such thing as an individual Star Gem, Trapiche, or Cat's Eye, because it's all inclusions. If a Star Ruby has Diaspore, then the Diaspore (or whatever inclusion) IS the """Star Gem""", just like a Rutilated Gem is just a Rutile.

Hoping that cleared things out.

[picturejasper20]

Bismuth is an interesting character to talk about because, in spite of her having just few appearances in the show, she is almost treated with the same importance that characters like Peridot and Lapis Lazuli have, who show up from the first season and their arcs are spread out through the series.

I believe this comes from how key her introduction episode is, as it mark a ¨before and after¨ in the series, when Steven and the audience begins to learn more about the dark secrets that Rose Quartz kept and how her image of ¨perfect hero¨ for Steven and others starts to break down.

Bismuth is described as the ¨biggest Crystal Gem¨, in the sense she was very passionate about the cause and she was pretty well loved and respected in her team. She seemed to be one of the closest Rose's friends along with Garnet and Pearl back during the Gem War.

It is unknown how Bismuth met Rose Quartz and decided to join the Crystal Gems but based on her dialogue we can get an idea that she was moved by Rose Quartz's ideas and later became part of the movement.

¨And she asked me what I wanted to build, and I'd never heard that before. And Gems never hear they can be anything other than what they are, but Rose opened our eyes.¨

So Bismuth was sent to Earth and when she met Rose Quartz who was ¨just another Quartz soldier¨, she was asked what things she was interested in building. I assumed that Bismuth was taken out by this and over time started to question what she wanted to do and be.

Based on Unleash the Light, Bismuths as gems appear to have an overall sentiment that they aren't respected for their work and they are overlooked. They seem to be gems that are more likely to rebel or demand proper respect than other type of gems- at least based on the game events. I think Bismuth shared a similar feeling as well that made her become a Crystal Gem not so long after meeting Rose.

The other idea that got her was that she could be something different- she didn't have to only build what the Diamonds told her. She could try building her own things! So she choose to use her own skills to create and make weapons for other gems in the war.

Bismuth really looked up to Rose- she adored her- so much that she built a statue dedicated to her. She believed in everything that Rose said and she was willing to do anything for her.

This passion and idolization ended up backfiring on Rose Quartz in a way, as her constant words about how terrible Pink Diamond was had a clear effect on Bismuth, thus making her a fanatic Crystal Gem- someone who considered taking some more extreme measures than the ones Rose had been applying so far.

Rose have indirectly created her own enemies, if it could be put in that way.

One day Bismuth comes up with a weapon- which looks more like a torture device than something to be used on battle- and shows it to Rose. She believes that this could change the outcome of the war and maybe lead them to victory. She shows how it works, probably shattering some statue to prove her point.

Then, for one reason or another, Rose didn't seem to be fond of this idea that Bismuth had- perhaps because she didn't want to be shattered herself or she didn't want that for the other Diamonds, maybe she was scared of this being used in more innocent gems or she didn't want to be like the Diamonds. Whatever was the reason, Rose decided to hide the Breaking Point and poof Bismuth, hiding her inside Lion's mane at some point.

She never told to Pearl and Garnet what happened to Bismuth- not even centuries after the Gem War ended. Probably because she wanted to keep the idea of Pink Diamond's shattering being faked since she previously rejected the breaking point? Maybe it was out of fear of not knowing how Pearl and Garnet would react?

What it is sad is how Bismuth still kept talking good of Rose after being freed by Steven. She went on for a while like she hadn't been betrayed by one of her best friends until she has that fight with Steven near the end of the episode- for what was a misunderstanding and her being too confused at believing that Steven was Rose Quartz for a moment.

After coming back in ¨Made of Honor¨ having some chats with Steven about what happened and learning that Rose was Pink Diamond, Bismuth changed the way she refer herself to Rose. Based on the interactions she has with Steven, she appears to have changed her admiration for Rose Quartz to looking up to Steven now. She tells to Steven about how he has been able to bring the whole team together and how they are more following him rather than Rose Quartz.

In the time skip both in the movie and Steven Universe Future she is seen helping in Little Homeworld, building it or talking to other gems. There isn't much comment on how she feels about Rose in the scenes she shows up, but the overall feeling is that she is still a Crystal Gem because of her friends and Steven and not so much for Rose. It is unknown if she hates Rose- or if it is more of feeling mixed about her. I want to think it is more the latter, as she still kept talking good about her to Steven on ¨Bismuth¨.

Bismuth and Rose Quartz's relationship is a very sad one. Bismuth was betrayed by someone she really looked up to and was close friends with ( and very likely had romantic feelings for) for reasons that not even Rose herself understood. Fortunately Steven freed her and decided to give her the chance that Rose Quartz didn't after she got bubbled. She remains part of the Crystal gems, but more for herself and her friends than for the gem she once idolized.

[shiny-gem-ocs]

Gem worldbuilding notes

Wanna make a Houseki no Kuni oc? Lucky you. I've been compiling notes on the manga's worldbuilding and this might help you if you wanna stay canon-compliant, disregard canon entirely, or even make your own lore!

Creating an OC is all about creativity, so I tried to include my ideas on how to meet canon in the middle too.

Notes are under the cut!

On the world:

After the Earth was destroyed by six comets, it was flooded, and the island where the story takes place is the only place where Gems - one of the three remaining sentient lifeforms on Earth - are born, on a place called Shore of Nascency.

There's very little animals, all which are invertebrate, such as bugs, jellyfish, and snails, the kind the Admirabilis mimic.

Lunarians always come out in the sun, so much that their ships were named Sunspots. Later it's revealed they can come out at night as well.

While on Earth, Lunarians cannot speak.

During all the time the Gems have been alive, maybe there were minor lifeform explosions or extinction events, if you want different animals or plants in your world. Maybe even the gems themselves cultivated or bred them.

Who knows if there are other islands, and what kind of post-apocalypse life is flourishing in them. Admirabilis live on the ocean, they might've been around other islands as well, and could tell stories. Gems might've travelled to other islands. You could ignore canon completely and say new Gems are being born on another island, completely cut off from the society Adamant raised, or that new sentient lifeforms are being born somewhere else in the world. Thought that would be the kinda canon-break that disregards the whole story.

On the Gems' formation:

Gems are born from a combination of microorganisms originating from the sea, that make their way through the cliffside on the Shore of Nascency in the island, in unspecified - but geological - ammounts of time. What makes them alive are those microorganisms, called inclusions. The cliffside is often producing bits and pieces of rocks, and sometimes, it produces "stillborn" gems that fully have humanoid shapes but no inclusions.

Gems don't necessarily have to all be see-through gemmy crystals like Phos, the cliffside spits out any type of naturally-formed rock, geography be damned, as seen by the existence of Lapis Lazuli and Obsidian. Rareness of the mineral doesn't seem to matter either. But given they are formed naturally, the existence of synthetic or organic gemstones are not canon. Think pearls, coral or amber, or think glass, aura quartz and goldstone. On that note, Gem society might lack the technology to make synthetic gems altogether.

I admit I don't really know how to circumvent it without fully ignoring canon, but I do have some thoughts. Maybe for organic gems, the animals or plants that produce said gems died near the cliffside on the Shore of Nascency, and were overcome with inclusions. For sythetic gems, maybe they're an experiment from the people on the Moons - though in canon they say they didn't have that technology. Maybe naturally formed gems were altered by chemical reactions. I don't know, I admit. But a creative fanbase as this one might find an answer.

On the Gems' biology:

The gems are immortal. They can't die of old age, and if they crack, they can be put back together. They're entirely homogenous, their body doesn't have organs, instead functioning as one. Their inclusions hold their memories, which means if they get a body part removed from the whole, they lose the memories in that body part.

Also, fun fact, the Gems don't have teeth! I supoose if you want your Gem to have teeth you can just ask Adamant to sculpt it on them. Maybe they get the idea from him having them.

If a Gem loses a body part, it can be replaced with new material. On that note, Gems can sometimes be born with imperfections such as missing body parts, as shown by Padparadscha.

Due to being able to break, gems with lower hardness must be more careful than gems with higher hardness.

They get their energy to move from the sun, so they lose their energy and sleep when it's dark. And come winter, when there's less sun, they prefer to hybernate.

Honestly, you can still give your gems different body types, it's not gonna hurt anyone. It doesn't stray from canon other than about their physical shape, so you can justify they can be formed with more body mass and still be the bones of humanity.

They all have the same height and same body type - those spindly things, all leg and arms and skinny torso with no boobs. This is explained in canon due to the fact they descend from humanity, specifically their bones, and so were reborn in that skeletal shape.

Sensei smooths them out in a mold, and gives them eyes made of simple rock with part of their gem as the iris, so they can see better.

Gems have feelings and emotions, which can manifest in their bodies if they are too stressed, as cracking and breaking.

Padparadscha shows us that some gems have weaker inclusions that don't take to new materials, therefore you can still make a canon-compliant disabled Gem. In fact, my own OC is one. On that note, Gems do have a concept of mental illness, as they can become mentally ill, so they can probably be born mentally disabled as well.

Gems sometimes have superpowers, which in canon always have to do with the properties and uses of their real life rocks.

On Gem society:

The gems are immortal, but they all have kind of a childlike personality. It's not like they are children, or teenagers, they're just somewhat innocent due to the world they live in - plus the constant state of war. But they can be mature and wise as well, especially older gems like Padparadscha or Yellow Diamond.

Usually only one gem stays in winter patrol duty as the other gems hybernate (usually). When the winter is warmer and has more sun, the gems, even though they are weaker, stay awake and patrol the island as normal.

Everything they have is in what the island produces. They use the plants found in there to make glue that restores cracked gems, to make the powder they wear on themselves to mimic skin, to make paper, clothes, furniture, everything. This means they have crops, agriculture, and animal breeding and handling.

On that note, due to the lack of resources, they have very little material to make anything. For exemple, fabric for clothes, which explains why they all wear the same uniforms, and only change into high fashion during hybernation once a year.

You could say there's eras when they have more material for clothes, if you want your Gems to have different fashion.

They wear a special powder on their bodies to mimic skin and to protect themselves from the elements. It became cultural in their society, with gems considering themselves ugly if they don't wear it. In canon they mimic specifically light skin because they want to look like Adamant.

Cairngorm is a Gem that couldn't care less about powder, so it's not wrong to want to have powderless gems - and even make it the new fashion in different eras of Gem society. On that note, if you want different "skin colors" for your Gems, just say the powder seeds come in variety of colors and shades, and let your Gems experiment with them.

Combining the lack of animals in the world and the fact all Gems are genderless and sexless, they don't really understand sex. They know how animals breed, but have no concept of sexuality. Culturally they have some sense of shame, since they wear clothes and don't like being seen without them, but that's about it.

Gems don't have the cultural act of kissing, but they have the concept of romance, in their own ways.

Okay fellas, as the resident asexual, I admit I have NO IDEA what the smut scene in this fandom is even like. I do like to ship gems, but if you want your gems to have gem sex, I leave that one to you. As for gender, who knows, maybe they can learn what it is from the Admirabilis or the Lunarians, decide they like it, and pick a gender for themselves. Maybe they can add boobs on their chest as a sort of transition. Adamant has never imposed gender on the gems, he will surely be supportive of his transgemder children. I'm not gonna get into Cairngorm or else we'll be here all day. (I don't consider either Cairngorn's gender nor sex scene to be consensual, that's all I'm gonna say on the matter.)

Lastly...

It's frowned upon to not have a designated job in Gem society. Due to the constant state of war, you must be useful. It can get ableist.

Phos was the only gem in canon to have so many parts of them replaced, to the point they became a new type of human and could pray away everyone.

Given that the first point motivated the entire story, and the second was the result of the entire story, I think ignoring canon in this instance indeed means, well, disregarding the whole story. But sometimes we just make OCs to play in the sandbox and that's okay.

[jkcosmicart]

Introducing my Steven universe AU series: EVERGREEN AU 💚💚💚

Evergreen is a Steven universe alternative universe. It’s an extremely parallel universe from the original, so any characters of the og doesn’t exist. It’s about four gems who live on earth. They have their own problematic past and some secrets I will show in the next episodes. The history have A LOOT of layers and I want to share it so much with you guys.

Green:

Green is a unknown type of gem. He have some powers like: laser light and some undiscovered yet. His currently weapon is a boomerang 💚

Pearl serves no one anymore. She have all pearls skills including her weapon: a fan that she can use as knife or a shield. 🩷

Bluebird azurite used to be a lapis lazulis commander on the terraforming missions on colonies. He can control ice and water and his weapon is a ice stick. 💙

A permafusion of a ruby and a blue jade. She can control the wind, her weapon is a whip. 💜

There’s already a first oficial episode of the season one on my YouTube! Jkcosmicart

[lunanova99]

I now introduce a lapis who loves earth, a carnelian who has risen to the top of the ranks and is pink diamond's favorite soldier and finally the bloody fusion between the two bloodstone or heliotrope if you prefer that!!!

[ID Start: three new gems for my white diamond au

Image 1: a lapis lazuli sitting in a pobd holding a duckling while staring lovingly at it she's the white diamond universe equivalent of lapis so she has curly hair reminiscent of snow white and a gem placed on her bellybutton

Image 2: a large carnelian gem she's of a tall and muscular build and has a wolf cut or as close to one as I could get she's staring off confidently while straightening her chain whip she wears a blue bathing suit type gem soldier uniform with fingerless gloves and tall boots that go up her thighs

Image 3: carnelian standing in a room while blue pight shines down on her abd she does the diamond hand gesture likely being addressed by blue diamond in a room with other unknown soldiers she stares mostly ahead with a blank look her gem is on her left eye

Image 4: a portrait of bloodstone who is the fusion between carbwkian and lapis she has three eyes looking blanky at you she has long flowing dark blue hair and five fingers sprouting from her skull that hold onto her head carnelians gem is on her left lower eye she has dark green skin and red splotches all over her body she also has blacl talons shooting up from her lower jaw

End ID]

[batunatu]

Hi!! I know you as THE Radar fan and take everything you say as canon /j lol. I DO however, love your Radar headcanons and think you understand his character really well!! I wanted to ask if you have any really specific headcanons for Radar!! I also wanna know if you think Radar is nearsighted or farsighted!! ((ﾟ□ﾟ))

HIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII HOLAAAAA HELLOOOOOOOOO

WOAH, they haven't called me that for a while, since the end of 2021 my "obsession" or "hyperfixation" persists on the radar (idk if I should call it that because idk if i'm neurodivergent or neurotypical but i live overthinking about my nerves like that huhhh it's beside the point) BUT YES, i was in a big obsession with aidesse (ohno) and aiden and blaze rods in general, i think i started to get bored w aiden when i gave more attention to radar because i liked a little the concept of radesse so i started to get very fond of it , identify myself w him and draw him religiously lol(?, that's how i created the perfect formula for chaos and when i started to pay a lot of attention to radesse, BOOOMMM, brainrot.

from my abandoned channel on youtube to my now tragically paused tiktok account, they always recognized me as the radar fan and since i was very interested i was always very defensive with his hc being a minor EWWW, i was in several debates when there was a considerable amount people if it's not that EVERYONE hated radesse because of the popularization of that hc. so yeah lol i became the radesse/radar CEO or "that radesse artist" on tiktok, sorry for the infodumping lmfao

anyway, my mistake is that i never write down my hcs so I'll try to improvise a little HMMM

first of all, PRIDE MONTH, so radar is a bi boy, i always saw him preferring boys (and huhh how do i say this without sounding weird... older women-) and i had a couple of ideas of him only having ex-boyfriends. so radar would be like achillean if he wasn't with f!jesse i guess?

and i think this is self-projection but i like to believe that he falls under the enby umbrella so i like that he is boyflux with he/him pronouns because i am girlflux and there is not much visibility of this micro label. i love to think that he looks androgynous so he loves this thing of wearing and styilizing clothes, let's say that sometimes he looks like that softboy/dark academy mf you would see in a wattpad story and sometimes he experiments with fashion, although he doesn't seem like he is a boy who loves to show off branded clothes so he is a gucci boy ( or well, this brand reflects very well the type of clothing i see radar wearing)

REFERENCES!!!

and i like to think that sometimes he wears baggy clothes and then shows off his figure, he is very versatile and let's say that soft colors and color palettes are his thing, he is an organizing boy, perhaps a perfectionist.

WOAH, let's continue

well, before eric confirmed that radar was asian, i had a hc that he was peruvian or chilean or latino in general. at first i also had a hc of him being from malaysia but then it convinced me that he was filipino, i heard that the culture of that country is similar to that of latin america. that doesn't mean that i often draw radar being argentine or practicing the argentine gaucho culture, but nahh, he is 100% filipino.

Well, I LIKE THIS HC, IT IS VERY RECENT AND WAS MADE FOR THE LAPIS AU but i made up a last name for him because i don't like giving him yuri lowhental's last name lol, his last name is benitoite, it is a precious gem since i have the idea that in the universe of mcsm it is common for people to have last names by precious gems etc (? also, lapis lazuli and benitoite look similar so it is perfect for me.

i feel like ray sees jack as a father figure or well, jack sees radar as a son along with petra and they both got used to that type of relationship, aww

radar in terms of musical tastes, he is like emmett from lego movie, he listens to and loves commercial music, i think that google corporate music. although, he likes city pop, a bit of 2010's pop, shibuya kei: gorillaz, fantastic plastic machine, CAPSULE, miranda bc why not, pizzicato five, glass animals, patrick watson, tally hall, lemon demon, blur, lady gaga

yum here's the playlist

OHH AND THE NOW NOW IS HIS ALBUM, each song reminds me a lot of radar, especially humility, tranz, fireflies, kansas, souk eye, ALL OF THEM, EVERY SONG ON THAT DAMN ALBUM IS FOR RADAR.

ok soo tumblr hates so it wont let my copypaste augh

my poor guy

I WOULD LIKE TO KEEP WRITING HCS ITS SO FUNN

huh, and thanks to the headcanon of my dear mootie mksbigg3stfan ;33 radar would be farsighted for me, that scene when his glasses break and he asks Jesse if they were there when he is 1 meter away from them, lol, and well, i have problems- HE'S GOING TO HAVE HIS EXERCISE ROUTINES AND HE'S GOING TO BECOME AN ATHLETIC DAD dammnnn

yumyum see ya later YEEEEE I LOVE THIS

[doseofnerdshit]

SU- Gems Powers, Weapons and Roles

I realized something when looking at the Rubies and their weapons.

So we see only two of the Rubies weapons. The original Ruby on the left has a gauntlet-type weapon. In a later episode we see Eyeballs weapon to be a small dagger on the right. I assumed each gem species/type would have the same weapon, it’s unclear why they wouldn’t, but Ruby and Eyeball clearly each have different weapons.

I came to the conclusion that each gem will either have a power/special ability OR a weapon, depending on what they were made/used for on Homeworld.

So using Rubies and Sapphires as examples- Rubies have weapons, Sapphires have powers. Sapphires wouldn’t have weapons because they were only created for seeing the future. Rubies wouldn’t have powers because they were only created to be small bodyguards.

Also implying that Pearl was not created with her spear, (although we see several inside her gem in the episode A Single Pale Rose’) yet no other Pearls displayed any weapons at all, and logistically why would they need any? They were only made to be companions and assistants for Diamonds. Volleyball had a ribbon wand, but no other Pearl we’ve seen ever came with a weapon, they aren’t made for fighting. (As Peridot says in Back to the Barn)

In terms of Lapis’s- I’d assume their power/weapon would be their wings and the ability to harness and control water.

Every weapon we’ve seen on a gem has always formed or come out of their gem, which is consistent with the original Lapis Lazuli and her gem placement on her back. However, in SUF featuring more Lapis’s with different gem placements- their wings were still on their backs.

Proving that perhaps their wings aren’t a weapon, but their ability to harness water alone is a power. Especially because they were created for terraforming planets.

Peridot has, by definition of the show, ‘metal powers’ (which I think should be called “mental powers” due to the fact she can move things other than metal as well) which makes sense because she was made to check up on kindergartens, so if a rock or something were to fall, metal powers would be pretty useful.

Every gem by their purpose either will have a weapon or a special power due to their use.

[styx-lethe]

Portugal as an Lapis Lazuli

Here are some of my ideas for the Hetagems au and information on Lapis!Port

Hes part of the Golden Diamonds court and is one of the six highest members in golds court, despite him being a working class gem.

He and rest of the six (romance nations), are part of the Golden Diamonds inner circle and the diamond considers them as his children and grandchildren.

Portugal is oldest of "the six"and is the "oldest brother" and "son" in the inner circle.

Portugal is in charge of the terraforming and builder gems in golds court, they follow him because he is their superior in the court and Lapis!Port only answers to Golden Diamond.

The Diamonds are Rome=Gold, China=Red, Britannia=Green and Germania=Ice blue.

The Diamonds are not a family, but more of a friend group/Coworker situtationship.

The reason why gold is the headhoncho of the diamond empire is because he has the most efficient court, fleet and gems and he has conquered the most planets, but he also is more powerful and influencal compared to the rest of the Diamonds.

The design choises and lore related to them

All of the golds court wear greco-roman clothes or armor.

Also every member of golds court wears some type of golden jewelry. The lower gems minus pearls wear only one piece of golden jewelry and the higher the gem the more jewelry they wear.

The highest members of the court also wear jewelry that is made out of gold and shatered gem pieces.

These pieces of jewelry symbolise both status and honor and are granted to high gems and those who earn them.

But they are also a method of keeping the gems in submission and in fear of disapointing their diamond.

Lapis!Ports arm pracelet is made of indigo shapphire shards and gold.

Lapis!Ports beatymark and markings are splater stripes that are found in Lapis Lazulis.

If you want to ask something about hetagems au or want to tell about your own ideas or headcanons for this au, feel free to comment in my askbox

[inspofromancientworld]

Cylinder Seals

By Marie-Lan Nguyen (2006), Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=514757

Somewhere between 7000 and 3500 BCE, cylinder seals began to appear around the ancient Near east. These seals are about 1 inch (2-3 cm) wide and are of durable materials like gems, glass, obsidian, lapis lazuli, or carnelian. They are carved with scenes and later characters that can be rolled against a soft material, like clay, to leave an impression by the clay filling the depressions in the seal, leaving a raised impression behind.

By Madman2001 - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2876197

Seals that are called roller stamps are meant to leave an ink type impression have been found that were made by the Olmec people in the New World. These were used to mark things like cloth or other surfaces that could accept an inked impression.

By Gryffindor - Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3740427

These seals seem to have served for a few purposes, especially in a pre-writing society, or one where only a small portion of people are literate. They could be used as a type of signature or branding. They were often found buried with people as a part of their grave goods, so it's most likely that each seal denoted a particular person.

By William Henry Goodyear - Brooklyn Museum, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=31154350

Most of the seals that have been found have a hole running through the center of them, indicating that it was likely worn to be easily accessible, most likely on a necklace, so it was available when needed and the cord could be used to roll it across the clay as well.

By Anonymous (Mesopotamia) - Walters Art Museum: Home page  Info about artwork, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18795946 and By Anonymous (Cyprus) - Walters Art Museum: Home page  Info about artwork, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18836359

The theme of the images were often religiously inspired or telling a story that relates the bearer to the world around them. Darius I of Persia's seal showed him 'aiming his drawn bow at an upright enraged lion impaled by two arrows, while his chariot horse is trampling a dead lion', framing him as a conqueror and warrior.

[sixteenth-days]

hallo,

dunno if this has already been asked but what's the hierarchy between gems? I can infer some (diamond > pearls > emeralds) but I haven't watched Steven universe so I haven't really got a clue.

love the au btw :D been reading it !!

sure! i'll just talk about the gems we've seen/mentioned in the fic so far, roughly arranged from highest to lowest. a lot of this is only inferred in su canon, so some of this is my own thoughts and interpretations of what we've seen applied to the fic.

highest:

diamonds (lizzie)- diamonds are the ultimate commanders of the empire. there are four of them and all gems ultimately are under a specific diamond.

emerald (ren)- emeralds are high-ranking military gems who command their own ships or fleets and are considered members of the homeworld aristocracy.

sapphire (scott)- sapphires are also members of the aristocracy. they are very highly prized for their future vision ability, and also have some ice-based abilities.

upper-mid-level:

aquamarine (grian)- sort of a specialized chaos agent, but highly ranked and trusted regardless- the one we see in canon is personally dispatched for a diamond for a retrieval mission.

lapis lazuli (jimmy)- lapises are not considered part of the aristocracy, but they are still considered to be very valuable and powerful due to their hydrokinetic abilities and their importance to colonization projects.

topaz (skizz)- topazes are very powerful combat gems, and like aquamarines are high up in their respective diamonds' courts.

mid-level:

quartzes (etho, cleo, tango)- quartzes are soldiers. they're individually quite strong but do not rank particularly high in the hierarchy. jaspers, amethysts, and other quartzes all fall under this- different types will have different abilities. they're supposed to be quite physically imposing but it doesn't always work out that way.

snowflake obsidian (big b)- obsidian is also a type of soldier gem. they also have frost powers, like sapphires.

spinel (scar)- scar is a bit of a weird one. spinels are entertainers to higher-ranking gems rather than being intended for martial use- he's a personal favorite of pink diamond, but himself does not rank very highly.

nephrite (bdubs)- nephrites are pilots in addition to being soldiers, and probably fit into the larger mid-level grouping of technician gems.

bismuth (impulse)- bismuths are blacksmith/construction gems. you can see how none of them gems sent on the initial mission to earth were considered particularly 'valuable'

lowest:

ruby (martyn)- rubies are disposable foot soldiers. there are a lot of them, and they are usually sent in groups so they can fuse together and become one very large ruby- they also have fire-based abilities.

pearl (joel, pearl)- pearls are effectively personal servants/assistants for higher ranking gems. the reason ren isn't happy joel is on his ship isn't that joel outranks him (he doesn't) but because joel has a direct line to report to his diamond.

uhhh, let me know if i forgot anyone! the last thing of note is that within their type, gems will also be judged on the color, cut, and size of their gem, which impacts their physical form- gems that are not considered to be a good cut or off-colored will be considered lesser, and a gem that develops poorly can come out smaller or underpowered.

[pocket-gems]

What would your take on a Phoenix Lapis Lazuli look like?

I remember making one for the types of Lapis collections, it needed an update

Apparently Phoenix Lapis Lazulis are artificial (wich I didn't know until recently) so they would be perfect because of that. I see them being a more energetic stronger version of Lapis Lazulis, maybe created with the help of Pink Diamond?

As cool as having fire wings for these kind of gems is, I can't see it. Feels so out of place for a water gem BUT I do see having an easier time dealing with high temperatures since Lapis' powers are very dependant on the terrain.

[lunarthing159]

So, Since The Main 8 Cast Have Been Revealed For The WitchCraftSMP Gemcyt AU, I Suppose It's About Time For A Summary Post!

If You Don't Know What I'm Talking About, Look At The Tags Of This Post And/Or Go To My Blog And Check For Those Tags Before Clicking Read-More. That'll Show You The Progress So-Far! Also, I Will Try Writing The Below Without My Usual Typing Style As To Make It Easier To Read ^v^

● Starting Up, A Height Lineup!

In order from Shortest to Tallest, we have:

Citrine/Eloise, GoldPearl/Shelby, Jade/Scott, LapisLazuli/Prismarina, GrapeAgate/Lauren, CherryBlossomJasper/Cupquake, Amethyst/Cleo, & Spessartine/Joey

Eloise & Joey were purposefully placed next to eachother in the heights lineup as to showcase the height range of the whole cast. I also tried making sure that no two colored gems were next to eachother as to make it more apparent where everyone starts and ends. As shown with Citrine & Spessartine, I was not always able to do this ^v^"

● Next Up, Worldbuilding!

This AU takes place in a similar worldbuilding to Steven Universe. With the Diamond Authority and Gem Hierarchy System, including it's stance on 'Off-Color' Gems. Off-Color Gems are basically the outcasts of society, cross-gem fusions, flukes, and rebels fall into this category. If a gem isn't useful or otherwise challenges authority, they are Off-Color.

The AU's worldbuilding has everyone, through one way or another, end up on the same rebel planet. On this planet, they are hosting a competition between their resident 'Off-Colors' to showcase they can be useful outside the boundaries of which they were created. Pearls don't have to be servants, nor do Agates have to lead. They can choose their own fate and thrive! If a gem likes their role, that's fine! But if they don't, they shouldn't be labeled a fluke simply because they long for change.

Everyone's Off-Color traits are explained and elaborated on in their own posts, so look to those if you'd like more information. I also plan to write some stories about how everyone got onto the rebel planet from their life before. Some starting at the beginning of their life, others starting at whenever they gained their off-colored trait.

● Fusions!

I already have a few fusions between the cast members planned out, however I will wait to post anything for one reason, You All! Same with the base Gemcyt AU that started this all, I want all of you to be able to draw your own fusions! Whether they become canon or not, whether I take inspiration or not (I will ask if I can before tho if I do), I want to see y'all's creativity with these gem-ified block people!

● What About The Others?

The Others, in this case, refer to people like Bertha, Mertha, The Supreme Witch, Milo, & ect. For now, I have yet to make them, however (for the majority) I already have gems picked out for them. I just gotta draw them.

● Extras?

Extras! The main thing I want to talk about first is that, while I may change some/alot of backstory to fit into the worldbuilding, the character dynamics themselves will remain the same. Lapis Lazuli & Gold Pearl will remain friends just like Prismarina & Shelby, the same applies for Amethyst & Jade / Cleo & Scott. Lapis & Amethyst will have a rivalry just like Pris & Cleo did. And, of course, Grape Agate AKA Lauren will likely have a strained dynamic with Spessartine Garnet AKA Joey.

Another thing is that, while the art above may seem very simplistic, I mainly did so as to make color-palettes easier to replicate! I might draw more detailed versions of them another time, but for now, the blank colors with minimal shading is good for color-picking & quick refrence!

And finally, if you have any more questions about this AU, feel free to plop an ask into the ask-box and I will either answer your question or tell you if it's already been answered!

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With That Said, I Am Now Going To @chrisrin And Say "Hello! I Have Spent The Past 2-3 Weeks Drawing / Writing Some Magic Gem People" ^v^

If You Don't Know Who This 'chrisrin' Is Or Why I Am @ -ing Them? Go Check Out Their Blog! They Are The Creator Of The Initial Gemcyt AU That Started It All & They Also Have Alot Of Other Really Cool Stuffs!