#Might make a longer post about it... but the infodump

[withoutzeuzey]

I'm gonna post this wip here as well because idk when im gonna finish it...

This drawing was inspired by the old circassian corset tradition (which i'll be infodumping about under the cut)

Let me give you a little detail about this drawing because I love talking about circassian culture. Traditionally, circassian women were required to wear corsets from puberty until marriage. They wore it day and night. (Well ofc they changed the old corsets into clean ones but basically they wore it all the time) On the wedding night, the bridegroom initiated the consummation of the bond by cutting the laces of the corset one by one with a sharp dagger. This required high skill and any scar on the bride's body, no matter how small it is, brought great shame upon the groom. This procedure also helped showing how much self-control the groom has (haha)

I know everyone loves knifeplay with Abysswalker (me too) so it always reminded me of this tradition whenever i heard someone mention it lol. As circassians are mostly people in diaspora, Rafayel's story always makes me think of my culture and people, that's why i love drawing paralells between them. I think this tradition just fit Abysswalker and the princess but i might make a circassian backstory for my mc because it feels nice implementing things from myself to the story.

Here are some references to the circassian corsets. The one on the left is apparently a kabardian corset and the other 2 are back and front of adygean corset. I went with the kabardian corset even tho im abkzah because it got more reference like the pic above lol

The corset has been used for good posture, small waist etc but unlike european corsets (which have been a thing in caucasia for much longer than europe), circassian corsets restrict the chest area much more because small bosom was the beauty standart for them. The wood in the corset is a bit crazy,, so sad for the women who were required to wear those. Im not advocating for corsets but still, it's fun to learn about traditions like this and implement them to the fantasy genre

[thatoneluckybee]

do y'all ever wonder how shin felt during the last battle with maple? watching the ai of his younger self being destroyed while begging for its life?

I feel like there's some symbolism there maybe

[codacheetah]

Tell me your opinions on the stuff. Any stuff.

Grins. Smiles, even

I'm using you as an excuse to infodump my theory about the Island because I've had no in to do that, and my theory is pure opinion. Anyways:

THE ISLAND IS STUCK IN THE FUCKING FUTURE

(SCARE CHORD)

Hi so you might ask me. What the fuck do you mean by that. Well. Let's start with what we know about the Island, the King, and Wish Craft. (long ass post under cut. sorry)

The Island was redacted from the perception of outside world, via Wish Craft.

Wish Craft has the power to enable Time Craft. We see this primarily through Siffrin's timeloops, but also through the King's powers.

One of the King's powers is to show the saviors a "vision of the future."

...And this same attack is deflected back at the King by Mirabelle in ACT 5, in which the King is able to see the Island before being frozen in time.

...So. The King's "vision of the future." We're never told explicitly what this vision is. All we know is that it's apparently powerful enough to wipe the party in one hit, hearing it from a distance hurts your head, and that whatever Siffrin (and Loop) saw, they don't seem to actually be able to describe it. Even the King himself doesn't know what his vision entails.

We don't know whether the party all sees the same thing when struck by the vision, and Adrienne's answer to the question about it in the Reddit AMA is. vague? It's not a "no," and the specific wording makes me think the answer might be yes. But that's me reading into it.

Now. What do we know about the Island's redaction? The Island was affected by the wish recently, as in "like a decade ago" recently. We know that nobody in Vaugarde or the rest of the world is capable of thinking about the Island, anything closely tied to the Island's culture, or people on the Island for very long. When they do recall these things, they slip right out of reach. Particularly, the consequence for trying to think about the Island (or, more specifically, break the wish that forces the Island out of perception) is significant pain, localized in the head.

And that said pain is enough to become lethal, if pressed hard enough.

From here forward I'm running with the assumption that the King's "vision of the future" is not personalized to any individual, and is unchanging throughout the course of the whole story. Now. Remember the end of ACT 5, where the King gets hit with the deflected "vision of the future", and instead of dying, he recalls the Island and gets frozen in time? Very odd, yeah? Why wouldn't the King just die like everyone else does? He even does take 9999 damage when trying to say its name, like Siffrin does, and like the party does when they're hit by the attack.

Well. We know that he has a "true wish" that the ability to freeze Vaugarde in time grants. I don't think it's at all a stretch to guess that the King's "true wish" is to be able to remember the Island. My personal guess is that the King (and Siffrin) brought this "true wish" into effect via the "SAY ITS NAME" sequence- he even tries three times, a significant number in wishing.

The King (and Siffrin's) wish breaks, because it can't be fulfilled in this moment without breaking the wish to prevent the Island from being thought about. However. Consider the conditions at the end of ACT 5- the King sees the vision of the future reflected back to him, and what he sees is the Island. He remembers the Island, fulfilling his own wish, and is frozen in time. I consider this a compromise between his wish and the one binding the Island- the King gets to remember the Island, but nobody alive is able to think about it, because he's frozen in time; it's like the Universe is correcting itself (I WILL GET BACK TO THIS). The wish of all of Vaugarde to defeat the King is fulfilled, since he is no longer a threat, and Siffrin's wish wraps itself up soon after.

MY POINT BEING. The King's attack is a vision of the future. This "future" is of the Island, in some uncorrupted state. The saviors see it when he attacks them, and he sees it when it is deflected back to him.

The logical next question is "okay, so the Island exists in the future, but how do you know time shenanigans are even related to the Island?"

Recall a very odd series of interactions throughout the game, in which you try to interact with a piece of equipment that you already own.

The game rewinds slightly, before the item disappears, as the Universe corrects itself.

This is awfully similar to two particular events: looping back without seeing the death screen, and talking to the Daydreaming One about her sister. The latter is more interesting to me for the purposes of this theory.

In both instances, something is misaligned within the Universe (an item existing in two places, someone remembering something they're not supposed to) and it is corrected through some sort of rewind. Also compare the dialogue above to when you try to give Mirabelle the Stylish Bow when you already own it.

The world glitches, but Siffrin defuses the situation before the Universe has to intervene. Omitted from the screenshot is the fact that Mirabelle's portraits switch to happy from "catastrophically anxious" with no transition after Siffrin shows her where the bow is. Important to note is that when Mirabelle tries to recall receiving the bow, her head hurts, much like how trying to break the Island wish causes a headache.

The Universe leads you away from perception, and you can only follow.

My theory that I keep circling around is that through Wish Craft, the Island has been displaced temporally. The denizens of the Island, as well as the Island itself, still exist, but they are in the future. The Island is still loaded into the world, like how equipment is before you try to interact with it, and the Island cannot leave this quantum state, because it never actually went anywhere. The magnitude of the redaction event is so severe with the Island, because it is so much larger as an entity than a sword or a bow. There are of course things I don't really have pieced together, like why somebody would wish the Island into the future, how far into the future it is, or why equipment behaves this way. But it's the only Island theory I've seen that I have some level of confidence in, so I might as well lay out my cards for it.

[utilitycaster]

Whenever people are like "well LIAM'S characters never faced any backlash when HE played characters in the spotlight" and "no one will let WOMEN have negative qualities" when Caleb and Vax and Orym have received pretty constant hate for main character/sadboy/scene stealing and when meta writers outright stopped talking about Imogen because a particularly mindless set of hit dogs are still hollering about how she is so good and kind and how dare you call her selfish, it's really like...in the service of trying to make your failure of a point you've just said something that literally anyone with a memory lasting longer than the apocryphal goldfish length can immediately debunk, which in turn absolutely shreds your credibility going forward, if you had it.

More generally there's something very vile here, because on the surface this statement does look like an attempt, if one ignorant of pretty much any fandom conversation, to defend women. The thing is it's come from a place of defending Dorian and Ashton's plan - a man, and a nb person who would not identify as a woman - that requires a particularly great deal of sacrifice from the women of the party. So of course they just switch tactics. Instead of "how dare the fandom not think women are always best" it's "how dare the fandom disrespect a disabled nb person and a person played by an indigenous actor." And I'm sure they'll switch again. Because pretty much every character in this campaign is on some axis of oppression, and there's a few people in this fandom who, instead of considering these things as important details that inform these characters, seem to largely treat their minority statuses as ammunition. Feminism and antiracism and queer advocacy are all just part of a shell game to them - accuse everyone who disagrees with them of being a bigot, say that their opinions are inviolate because they match that of literally any character who isn't a cis het white man, of which Bells Hells has none. Unsurprisingly, it's that social media purity culture that's just the evangelical church with a gay hat: they are always the victim, and everyone who disagrees is the devil, and being a good person always happens to line up with what you already wanted.

There are several posts from the past day or so accusing people of liking Campaign 3 less than the two previous ones which refused to accept that this might be due to the hurry-up-and-receive-an-infodump pacing, the singular focus without much time spent on backstory, the gaps in party composition, and the fact that the plot manages to combine the weakest elements of each campaign - the fetch quest/NPC guidance heavy nature of C1, and the meandering/slow start of C2. No, it must be the awful, sinful fandom unable to handle the lack of a major M/M ship (false; Dorian and Orym aren't canon, but neither were Vax and Gilmore, and the latter was sunk far sooner) and the fact that a female character is at the center of the story (see above re: how hostile the same people making these accusations have been to anyone who actually wants to discuss Imogen in a way that doesn't fit their specifications). Just to repeat this: many fans have outlined a number of purely narrative and structural reasons why C3 isn't working for them. These people have assumed this is all a lie, because assuming otherwise that would require either addressing these critiques, which in turn would require admitting other people can have valid opinions that oppose their own without being horrible bigots - in favor of throwing out whatever random accusations they think might stick. It doesn't matter what's actually being said; they're not actually listening, and for all they might talk about fans of color they sure all seem to be white; for all they talk about misogyny and queerphobia they sure won't hesitate to immediately assume the worst of queer people and women who say things they don't like. And rarely do they address any of the actual ongoing bigotry that does exist in the fandom; it's all random accusations because you agreed with the white woman instead of the brown man or vice versa; or it's the constant dredging of years past discourse that, as the first paragraph indicates, they will then ignore whenever convenient.

These are all pretty transparent signs of a bad faith actor spreading misinformation. To be clear I don't think this is any kind of conspiracy or has any organization to it. I think it's a just handful of deeply self-absorbed people who either refuse or literally cannot comprehend that someone could disagree with them without being a bad person and who will gleefully cry wolf with these accusations of bigotry. But it's been going on for quite some time and it's been a problem this campaign in a way I at least do not recall it in past ones, and it's had an absolutely devastating effect on the fandom conversation. Ironically, by trying to boost Imogen and Campaign 3 by shutting down any criticism of them, they've shut down far more of the conversation, hopefully not irreversibly, and I think it's time to point that out.

[clericofgale]

Spoilers for Patch 5 and the whole game.

I posted my thoughts about the new ending Gale got in patch 5 on Reddit first, but I might as well post it here with some revisions. I'll say it, I love the god Gale ending. But it is NOT his good ending to me. Before I would never have pursued it, but now it is tantalizing to say the least. I'm into it though Gale the mortal is still my preference.

"Gale Dekarios cuts a poor figure next to the wizarding prowess of 'Gale of Waterdeep. You like so many things about me I'd have sooner discarded…"

By ascending Gale, you are killing Gale Dekarios. The nerd that hits on you in front of everyone while you're covered in zombie blood, procced to infodump an entire tangent to complement you, and yet somehow stick the landing to hit you with the most romantic poetry you've ever heard. A sensitive man who wears his emotions on his sleeve and wants to make the world a more beautiful place. An artist of the weave and a poet. The owner of the most overbearing tressym in the world. The moment the spell was complete, Gale Dekarios died and Gale the divine was born.

Even then, why is god Gale now so enticing to me unlike ascended Astarion? Because he loves you. He wants you by his side as an equal. It's actually sweet and romantic, just like all of Gale's romance is. I'm nothing if not a sucker for a romance.

"Follow my Lead" "Show me more. Show me it all." "I want you to seize the crown and make us a new world"

BeMyGod is the name in the data file for the boat scene where Gale asks you if you'll be with him when he seizes the crown. I know file names can be arbitrary, but if you agree to his proposal, you really are asking Gale to be your god. It's so easy to say yes. You're in the stars, Gale says I want to show you so much more, but it's not worth it without you. All you need to do is say yes. You're angry at Mystra who demanded so much of Gale, caused him such suffering and won't lift a finger to help. So You say yes. You love him. He loves you.

When Gale ascends, even in 6 months he is a different entity. The devs indicate: "His posture/demeanor here should feel slightly more aloof/detached than the regular Gale - he's been immortal for six months, his ego is as powerful as his magic. The real Gale's insecurities still lurk beneath his godlike confidence, as does his love for the player, but this is clearly a Gale setting out on a darker path."

The Gale here is a twisted version of the one we loved. His flaws are worse, he good traits have mostly disappeared. Namely his kindness and tolerance to deprecating humor. He no longer tolerates any perceived slight or jab. He doesn't let go of his bitterness towards Mystra. His ego is large yet fragile. You saw a glimpse of it at the ritual circle scene if you succeed in upstaging him in magic. Now it's only gotten worse. Yes even his insecurity. If you rejected him after accepting the proposal, Gale says this.

Tav: No, I think it's the end. What happened to the man I once loved? Gale: He's the god he deserves to be. I achieved everything we hoped I would, and still I'm not good enough for you?

He's also lonelier than ever. His last 6 months were in isolation, with nobody he could trust while dealing with the crown and celestial politics. Immortals don't really have friends. They have allies and lovers. He stops talking to his mother who was so dear to him. He develops a spell to polymorph people into Tara, his oldest friend who rejects him after ascension. He then develops a spell that summons Shadowdark ale and forces people to dance and be happy, just like the vignette he told you about the Yawning Portal. The third spell is Power word: Ruin. he's finally back to speaking death into being with a single word, just like he used to.

Gale wanted to be a god to make a better world, but now he's a neutral god answering prayers from any alignment. He doesn't care if they are Thayan wizards aiming for lichdom or unscrupulous Amnian merchants. Ambition is a neutral idea. Ambition also drives healers to develop a cure. For adventurers to slay monsters.

What's the most noticeable remaining good trait in Gale? Gale still loves you. He's much nicer to you if romanced. He refuses to be with you if you don't go with him because he doesn't want to hurt you. He admires your good heart if you want to honor the pact with Raphael. He calls you my love just like before. He will fulfill the promise sealed that night in the astral sea. All you have to do is say yes. And the ascension cinematic is a callback to the romance scenes from before.

"Follow my lead. Close your eyes. I have so much more to show you."

And you know what. I'll go with you. Even if we will eventually lose both our humanity in our folly, and dreams become nightmares. Even if I'll come to regret that night when I said yes to the mortal you, I don't want you to be lonely. Where ever you go, I'll go. You'll always have me. And I'll always have you.

As God Gale would say… "A toast then, to our myriad ambitions. May we each get what we deserve."

[cornerdreams-txt]

hiiii so i was talking with a friend about the consequences of q!fit being in. a fucking pit. with dead bodies. for weeks. and we've agreed that, you know, being a 2b2t veteran and a major historian, fit has gone through a lot, that honestly? the worst part just might be the isolation aspect.

on 2b2t, even if it was a fight, or even if he had to duck into cover and hide, there was people. there was other people. fit would see others, he wasn't ever truly, fully alone. but here? in this pit? the only soul is himself. everyone else is beyond his reach. so when he finally, finally gets back, gets to go home, he's... at a loss. everything he'd grown used to is no longer normal to him. it's as foreign and strange as it once was when he first arrived on the island. sleeping on a bed. seeing people. being touched.

pac is unbearably kind to him, when the pieces finally fall into place, and fit's sudden, severe aversion to touch turns out to be touch starvation, and isolation trauma, no matter how hard fit tries to pretend its fine.

after some serious consideration, pac decides a good way to help fit readjust will be not to tell him that he's safe, but to show him.

also this got really long so there's more under the cut! i'm just putting the cut there to shorten the visible length of this post for the sake of scrollers lol

at first, he listens. watches. fit never turns his back on him, no matter what. he's always within fit's line of sight. so, he takes initiative. he turns his back to fit, on purpose. including when they sleep in the same bed - pac will stretch wide and long, then curl up on his side, back to fit, and let himself doze off there, all too aware of fit's eyes burning into the backs of his shoulder.

...fit always keeps at least one hand empty, or filled with a weapon when he's around other people. so, pac happily busies his hands with trinkets and useless items - blocks and books and signs and food and tools and never potions fit wouldn't be able to immediately identify - until fit stops watching pac's hands so warily.

fit doesn't touch him. so pac touches him, slowly, cautiously. absently reaches out to dust off his clothes for him, grabs his hand to give it a little squeeze, blows him a playful kiss if he's feeling extra sappy or teasing, shows him with gentle hands that it's okay. pac isn't going to hurt him.

and he keeps doing it, over and over, making himself vulnerable, allowing himself to appear defenseless and weak in fit's eyes, even when it makes his own anxiety tick and claw at him, because he knows fit won't hurt him. fit might be scared and withdrawn and back, in some ways, to how he used to be, but it's still his fit. he's still safe with him around.

and fit, well. if it weren't for it being pac, he'd call it stupiditiy. he'd call it suicidality to be so open, so vulnerable around someone else like that. especially someone who you know is dangerous and volatile and bloodthirsty and not afraid to hurt others. but it is pac. it's his boyfriend. it's ramon's other dad. so he checks himself, reevaluates, questions over and over why pac would be doing this.

it isn't until pac pulls fit to hover over him while he enthusiastically explains a new creative idea he's been mulling over in his brain, hands gesturing happily within the confines of fit's arms and their chests, rambling and infodumping, occasionally stumbling and struggling to find the words in english while he explains, that fit's brain clicks together that all that vulnerability. all that intentional self-disarming. it's been intentional. it's all. been intentional.

the reason pac has been putting himself in danger (making himself vulnerable) around fit is because he trusts fit. these intentional acts that fit would call suicidality in anybody else aren't pac being stupid or careless, it's a willful, intentional reminder, over and over and over, "i trust you," in every breath he breathes while doing things he knows fit's survival habits and instincts would never let him even try to do, showing him that it's safe, here, because if it wasn't, he wouldn't be doing all this.

if it wasn't pac doing all that shit, fit would call it stupiditiy.

but it is pac. so instead, he's pretty sure it's just… pac.

it's just his boyfriend.

so, he's okay.

[thatguywhodoesstuff]

Another Round Of J X Thad Incorrect Quotes

(I want to thank everyone for the positive reception of this post, it was really encouraging given how niche this ship is.)

———

Thad: Sometimes, I’m embarrassed to be dating J, because one time while we were in class, she yelled at the teacher and told him to shove a marker up his urethra. (Breaks down laughing)

———

J: This is a bad idea.

Thad: Then why are you coming?

J: Someone has to get your injured ass home.

———

J: (Softly) I want to kiss you.

Thad: (Turns to look at her) What?

J: I said if you die, I wont miss you!

———

J: Crushes are the worst. Whenever I’m near mine, I start acting stupid.

Thad: But you always act stupid. Wait���

J: (Sweat appears on her visor)

———

J: Relationships should be 50/50. Thad cooks me dinner, while I sit on the kitchen counter looking pretty as I supervise him.

———

Thad: You have to apologize to N, J.

J: Ugh, fine! But I have to warn you, this might make me a better, nicer person and that is NOT the person you fell in love with!

———

Thad: I want to be with you for the rest of my life.

J: Wow, if I didn’t know better, I’d say that sounds like a marriage proposal.

Thad: (Gets down on one knee) That’s because it is.

J: (Blushes aggressively)

———

Uzi: (Shyly) If I fall…

N: (Warmly) I’ll be there to catch you.

Lizzy: (Looks up from her phone) What if I fall?

V: Then I’ll fall with you.

Thad: (Turns towards J) And if I fall?

J: (Looking at a clipboard) I’ll be the one who pushed you.

———

Thad: (Infodumping about sports)

J: Ugh… Stop doing that.

Thad: (Confused) Stop doing what?

J: (Crosses her arms & looks away, lightly blushing) Saying things that make me want to kiss the hell out of you.

———

J: How… How do you ask someone out?

N: Well, first-

Uzi: Don’t listen to him, he asked me out in an underground lab cathedral.

J: …And you said yes?

Uzi: B-bite me!

(Later, after a bunch of shenanigans)

J: I’m in love with you.

Thad: Oh come on J, we called off the prank war hours ago.

J: …I know

Thad: Ah. Okay. Uh… Cool. Neat. Very cool. Cool. Cool. Coolcoolcool-

———

Thad: Could you cut me some slack, J? I’m sort of in love.

J: (Unmoved) That’s really not my problem.

Thad: (Exasperated) I’m in love with you.

J: (Blushes) Oh… Well, that kind of brings me into the loop.

———

J: My crush isn’t picking up on my hints.

Lizzy: Have you dropped any hints?

J: Well, I think about him a lot and sometimes I even think about talking to him.

Lizzy: (Gives her a look that screams “Seriously?”)

———

Thad: So… You like cats?

J: Yeah.

Thad: (Tries to impress her by slowly pushing a glass off of the table)

———

Thad: Uh… Are you trying to seduce me?

J: (Laying before Thad surrounded by candles, her tie loose and collar flared) Why, are you seducible?~

———

Thad: (Somberly) J and I are no longer dating.

J: Thad! That’s a terrible way of telling people we’re married!

Thad: (Chuckles)

———

V: Do you love Thad?

J: …Yes. I do.

V: I knew it! I told you, Uzi! You owe me 100 bucks!

Uzi: Wha-? We all love Thad! You should’ve asked if she was in love with him.

J: I thought that was implied.

Uzi: (Stares dumbfounded while handing $100 to V)

V: (Accepts the cash with a smug grin)

———

J: Goodnight to the love of my life, Thad, and fuck the rest of you.

———

N: (Trying to be supportive) Just be yourself.

J: Really? N, I have one day to win over Thad’s parents. (Turns to the rest of the group) How long did it take for you guys to like me?

Lizzy: A couple weeks.

V: Six months.

Uzi: The jury’s still out.

J: See N? “Just be yourself,” what kind of stupid advice is that!?

———

Khan: So, are you going to explain how the hell you crashed the bus?

J: Well, we were driving and there was a deer in the road, so I said “Thad, deer!”

Khan: (Casts a look at a nervous Thad, who has been silent since they made it back to the colony) …And what did Thad do?

J: …He said “Yes, honey?”

Thad: (Buries his face in his hands)

———

Thad: Do… Do you love me?

J: We are literally married.

Thad: Yeah, but as a friend or-

J: (Pulls him into a kiss) Does that answer your question?~

Thad: (Nods dreamily)

———

Uzi: (Watching the news) This sucks.

J: This is horrible.

Uzi: I know! I mean, look at today’s news.

J: What? No, it’s not that, it’s Thad.

(Uzi looks at her confused)

J: It’s just, I can’t get him out of my head and every time I look at him, I have this pain in my core, and I just know its his fault, that son of a bitch!

———

N: How is the most beautiful person in the world?

Uzi: (Blushing) I-

J: Thad is doing perfect, thanks for asking.

———

Thad: That was so hot, J.

J: I literally called the skank who just flirted with you a degenerate dog and told her I hope she gets dragged through the streets.

Thad: I am so in love with you.

———

J: My hands are cold.

Thad: Here, let me hold them.

J: (Lightly blushing) My lips are cold too.

Thad: (Covers J’s face with his hand)

———

(At 3 in the morning)

(Lizzy and V run into Thad’s room with air horns and turn on the lights)

Lizzy: Wake up sleepyhead!

Thad: (Wakes up) Ugh, dude!

(Lizzy and V laugh)

J: (Sits up from where she was sleeping behind Thad) What the fuck are you two doing?

V: (Jaw drops)

Lizzy: Wait WHAT-

(J deploys a machine gun and fires at them)

———

[ambrosiagourmet]

I notice no one has asked yet so for the character thing: laios! Or if you want to go for a less common one: the winged lion

Laios!!!!!!

First impression

Honestly its hard to even limit this within the confines of starting the actual manga. I genuinely think I'd have to say my real first impression of Laios was the "autism be damned, my boy can work a grill" joke that gets passed around a lot 😭

Impression now

Older brother.

Loves his friends and family so much. Let him infodump!!!!! A guy that can character arc so hard he becomes a king because its the only way to deal with the things he can no longer let himself look away from. A guy who wants to eat a good meal. A guy who wants everyone to eat a good meal.

A guy who can be all that and still kind of pettily complain that he doesn't get to hang out with monsters anymore & can mope about it soooo annoyingly. A guy who decided to eat the concept of all-consuming hunger because it was the only way to deal with the problem so he might as well try. A guy who can completely change his life by deciding to share his special interest. A guy who can imitate a dog really well.

Favorite moment

Don't make me choooose... okay I'm gonna do three:

1. Assembling Falin's bones with Marcille

The humor. The patience. The slow realization that, despite how absurd of a task it is, it is actually all possible. The moments of admiration for the way skeletons work, the love of the details, the care of assembling all three skeletons just to make sure they get Falin right. Iconic scene.

2. Killing Falin

"Unable to make myself accept. Unable to make myself resist" lives in my soul now idk what else to say. Life is so vibrant and horrifying and raw and beautiful and to let yourself fully be a part of it you must take up space. You must consume. You must fight. You must take and be taken from. Ourgh

3. Talking Marcille down

I love that he looks so goofy on his way up to her. I love the context of how much he refuses to give up on her leading up to this, and how he refuses to give up on her now. I love how everyone is part of this scene, but he's the first one to cross the threshold. I love how she almost blows him up but can't do it (fun fact: this exact situation/post was how she killed Mithrun a couple of chapters ago. It was close).

I love the way he appeals to her mostly just with messy honesty, and I love the silly three rules callback. It's such a sweet chapter.

Also honorary mention for the final page of the story, which gets me every time.

Idea for a story

I'm actually currently fiddling with a longer story concept dealing with the question of Laios needing an heir. Dungeon Meshi is grounded enough in politics that it genuinely feels like a question that the characters will have to grapple with at some point. At the same time, there's no way that like arranged marriage and even having kids in general are not messy topics for Laios and I don't think anyone involved would want to force him to be miserable.

(I also don't personally like the idea of Falin as his heir ftr, bc I think forcing Falin into that role sucks and I don't think anyone would go for it)

So how DO they deal with the issue? Idk! I might write a long meandering story about it! Maybe! I want to, at least.

Unpopular opinion

Ughhhh I don't realllly want to poke this with a stick but yeah I definitely think my most generic (apparently????) Unpopular Opinion with Laios is just that his relationship with Marcille is meaningful and loving. I personally don't view it as romantic and they mean a lot to me as a platonic-life-partners kind of thing, but I also think that dividing relationships in general into Ships TM and Definitely Not Ships isn't really appealing to me personally. I just care them.

(at the same time I really do worry about trying to write about them and it being taken as romantic despite me very intentionally not framing it as such. idk, navigating this stuff is complicated.)

Favorite relationship

UGHHHH LIKE. It is probably him and Marcille. But it's so hard to rank that against him and Falin. Both relationships mean a lot to me and I love them and I love to think about them.

Because him and Marcille have more on the page interactions to dig into and because I don't see them discussed as much, I do tend to gravitate to Marcille & Laios stuff above all else. But like.... don't make me actually commit to picking.

Favorite headcanon

I can't think of a strong answer for this so I'm going to make one up on the spot: I think he giggled to himself soooo much when he included the winged lion in his king outfit but made it so that it looks like the wolf head is eating it. I think he continues to giggle about it years later. I think he gets dressed in the morning and puts on his cloak and goes "get ate, idiot" as he fastens it around his shoulders.

Oh actually for a more genuine headcanon related to the story thing I mentioned above: I think Laios is really good with kids but would be scared of having any of his own. I think he'd have trouble with the classic "I don't want to mess them up the way my dad messed me up" abused kid struggle.

[wilcze-kudly]

https://www.tumblr.com/miss-sweetea-pie/755138140549808128/something-that-ive-been-thinking-about-is-how?source=share

Hi! Apologies, but I've decided that I would no longer be responding to having zk takes sent to me! I started doing these bcs people sent them to me and I saw other people doing it and, don't get me wrong, it was fun to write analyses based around them, after realising that posting a link to the OPs blogs might put them at risk of harassment/hate, I don't think it's worth the cheap thrill of spending like half an hour researching the symbolism of La Pietà and then infodumping it.

This doesn't mean I will stop doing analyses cokpletely, but if you do have requests for me to do them, please just send an ask containing a subject, not a link.

I will be still writing metas about Avatar, but I think I will be trying to remove myself from the Kataang/Zutara ship war. While it's fun to pick apart arguments and research filmography etc, the animosity between the two sides is genuinely quite upsetting and I've noticed its been taking a toll on me. I just find it very suprising how many people view Zutara and Kataang as some sort of dichotomy.

I will still gladly talk about Aang, Katara, Kataang and Zuko, but I want it to be less in terms of going against someone else and more because I genuinely love these characters.

I don't like that I may have contributed to someone getting hate over a questionable, but ultimately rather benign take and I also don't like how I've handled certain conflicts and situations.

I also know that a certain zutara shipper has access to my blog, despite me having blocked them particularly to avoid conflict, which is very cool and not at all disconceting.

So to that person, if they may be reading this, I genuinely apologise for reaching out to you when I did, it was never my intention to cause you discomfort or upset. I had previously seen some of your metas on other characters and I enjoyed them and found your points intriguing and wanted to learn more about them. I apologise for using the term "arguing in bad faith", because I may have used the term incorrectly, trying to express that you didn't seem to interested in discussing the subject, which I understand, as I was the one reaching out to you. I apologise that I missed any cues of discomfort or unwillingness to engage. I take responsibility for that and I mishandled the situation and may have gotten too pushy. I just wanted you to know that I never wished to come off as disingenuous or pushy or make you uncomfortable in any shape or way.

[aishien-the-aishien]

Bakugan AU ramble

Okay, this might be a long one. Also, it's really only going to be an infodump about alternative Vestal biology, so... yeah, if you're interested, keep reading (also, this idea striked me today at some 1:30am and hasn't left me since lmao if there's any holes or contradictions, I'm sorry! I'll be working on this concept and updating it, so ideas from this post may still change)

GENERAL INFORMATION

[The terms "lowborn/highborn" and "lower class/upper class" are used interchangeably and are to be considered common in the Vestal language. The society is strongly divided into those two groups, and their members hardly ever go round with each other.]

- Vestals are all shapeshifters and have two forms: pre-transformation form and transformation form. Pre-transformation is commonly considered the "base" form, but both are natural to the Vestals. Changing into the transformation form is triggered either by strong emotions (mostly fear or rage) or by the rules of Binding[1], and changing purely at will is exhausting and can give a Vestal unpleasant symptoms, such as a fever or muscle sores. Meanwhile changing into the pre-transformation form is usually effortless, though may take slightly longer. Changing into the transformation form is instant

- highborn are typically Avians, lowborn are Canine/Feline

[a reference example of a female Canine Vestal]

more info undercut!

- Avian features, such as wings and feathers, are associated religiously. Canine/Feline features are considered less sophisticated and more "beast-like", mostly by the highborn

- lower classes are typically more religious than upper classes

- Canine/Feline Vestals tend to be physically stronger than Avian Vestals

- the Avian transformation is less severe, leaving the Vestal semi-humanoid. However, pre-transformation Avian Vestals have clear animal features, such as feathered tails

- Canine/Feline Vestals transform entirely into an animal-like creature, typically resembling a larger form of an Earth wolf, fox, panther or, more rarely, bear. However, pre-transformation Canines/Felines have few typically animal traits

- in other dimensions, Vestals are often confined to a single form. In Vestroia, it's the transformation form, though they were able to retain their shapeshifting abilities during the invasion thanks to the Dimension Controllers. On Earth, it's the pre-transformation form, typically even more human-like than their regular forms, especially when it comes to Avian Vestals. Staying in a forcefully anthropomorphised form is uncomfortable for Vestals, making them tired, irritable, and sometimes even giving them symptoms of a sickness such as a fever. Those are the more severe, the less anthropomorphic their regular form is

Highborn characters in the story:

- King Zenoheld

- Prince Hydron

- Shadow Prove

- Lync Volan

- Klaus von Hertzing (half-human?)

Lowborn characters in the story:

- Baron Leltoy

- Ace Grit

- Volt Luster

- Mylene Farrow

- Gus Grav

The Fermins:

A family who used to be Canine/Feline, but its members have undergone medical procedures to give them Avian features instead. This is not unprecedented among those lowborn who have managed to live among the highborn. Clay Fermin has had surgical operations performed on himself, in order to change his Feline body into an Avian one, and Keith Fermin was given various substances as a young child which caused his body to mutate into a semi-Avian one. Mira Fermin's DNA was altered before she was born, causing her to be a natural Avian, the only one among her family members.

[1]BINDING

A Vestal can bind themselves to a person/item, and they will transform in defence of that to which they're bound. The concept is better understood within the upper classes, which means they know they can, for example, bind themselves to an item, which leads them to a better control of their powers. A common practice among the highborn is to bind oneself to an accessory, such as a necklace, and squish it when one wants to transform - since that is instinctually considered "a danger" and triggers the transformation. A much less common, yet clever way of using this, is binding oneself to a word, which makes one transform whenever that word is spoken around them (or read by them, for that matter). Tricky, as it may easily cause an involuntary transformation, should the word be poorly chosen. Members of lower classes are often unaware of those possibilities of binding, and tend to bind themselves exclusively to other people

- Binding is voluntary and can be broken off at any point. An unbound person, however, is much more prone to involuntary transformations, as they become dependent almost solely on the unbound person's emotions

- it's possible for a person who is bound to another person to transform in response to a request by that whom they're bound to. This, however, requires a deep and emotional bond, and can be connected to physical effort

That's it for now, though I do have more ideas, and I'll share them in the future, if I don't forget! I'm planning to doodle the designs of specific characters in this AU, so more info will be coming along with them :> There, a doodle of my favourite lapdog bound to his power-thirsty master

[dyke-pollinator]

(this ask is a get-out-of-jail-free card to infodump about osrs)

OSRS is by far the best mmo as far as I'm concerned. You can do literally anything in it. It's so simple. Its just a little medieval fantasy point and click RNG simulator. But that simplicity is what makes it so addicting.

You can literally just do whatever the fuck you want on it. The game doesnt hold your hand at all, and while I can see how that would be overwhelming for new folks getting into the game, its an aspect that keeps me coming back.

It's kind of a single player mmo. Like sure there's content to do with other folks, and it can be social at times, but like your account is yours. Everything takes such a long fucking time in that game, especially if you're playing as any type of Ironman account, that the game feels more personal.

Like I don't play nearly as much as some folks that I know and I still have nearly 5000 hours of in game time on a single account and its not even in the late game yet.

Like sure these stats are pretty decent for an iron, but I haven't even started going most of the end game content like Raids, CG, Nightmare, ect.

No only that but I legitimately that the osrs content creators are some of the absolute best gaming content on Youtube. By far. It is insane what some of these people do with the game, all because of how much of a sandbox it is.

Even if you know nothing about osrs or Runescape in general, I would HIGHLY recommend checking our SoupRS on Youtube and watch his Gielinor Games series. All of them. Start with the first season, and watch them all if you like it. Its like a survivor style game with challenges, voting, bannings, and testimonies, all through the lens of osrs.

Settled is one of the funniest motherfuckers on Youtube and has multiple videos about region locked accounts that are still easy to understand for folks who have never played the game.

Jeporite has a NorthernUIM series that leaves me in hysterics every video.

J1mmy is one of those content creators that turns everything he touches into something good. I cannot praise all of his videos enough, including the ones he makes that arent related to osrs. However, his osrs F2P series is one of my favorites.

Hannanie is a trans woman content creator that just makes some of the most off the wall insane videos I've ever seen. Seriously, she made a fucking 21 part series about cutting fucking trees in this game and managed to make every installment a banger. Hannanie is a treasure and everyone should know her content.

Imo the only gaming content on YT that comes even close to osrs is probably Minecraft, but that is mostly because you can do so much modding that the content stays fresh.

Also look at my silly little pets:

I promise you I spooned the shit out of every single one of them.

Rock Golem at 89 mining, Groot at 86 farming, TWO fucking rex pets before 140kc, 42kc thermy.

Plus with the RuneLite client, you can make your in game interaction as customizable as you want. My whole client is fucking Miku themed lmao. The community has made so many amazing plug ins for this game including a full HD client with dynamic lighting effects, increased GPU distance rendering, ect.

OSRS is a great fucking game and you should definitely be playing it. I will take full responsibility for the thousands of hours that you lose to it. I could go on but this post is already a lot longer than I was expecting it to be.

As an aside: Ironman does something to you. Why do I have 117k Light Orbs in my bank? Idfk might need em. 20k gold tiaras? Just in case. 10k snake skin? You never know when something might pop up. Hoard Everything.

[liesmyth]

👀?

YES THIS IS TRUE. And that's why you don't fuck around and find out on race day.

Some background for people who aren't into endurance activities: running burns a fuck of a lot of calories, primarily carbs. There's only a certain amount of carbs your body can store and efficiently use as an energy source; failing that, your body will start burning fats. Unlike what #fitspo influencers want you to think, "running to burn fats" is neither recommended nor pleasant — a common slang for it is "hitting the wall" because that's very true to how it feels. It's not efficient, and some people purposefully train on a completely empty stomach to be able to handle it better. There are many schools of thought, studies etc., and I'm simplying a lot here, but the point is:

If you're going to run for longer than 90 minutes, you WILL have a MUCH easier time if you consume carbs at some point mid-workout. There's also the fact that many people aren't comfortable running on a full stomach, or don't want to chew mid-run, and for all these reasons energy gels are veeeery popular among runners. They're calorie-dense and made to consume on the go, and contain a combination of simple and complex carbs designed to be absorbed as quickly as possible, might also have electrolytes. and have different flavour profiles... and some give you the shits. Or stomach cramps. Or nausea. Alas. Such is life.

Some people are more unlucky than others and there's like only one or two brands of gels they can stomach, some people are god's favourite children and they can eat everything, but just to be safe! If you have a big intense workout or a race coming up, always go with a tried and true nutrition for every run that you know for sure works for you.

(Fun fact! Last time I checked, we don't actually know WHY there's so much ???? weird overlap between running and bowels / stomach issues. It's just... very normalised in the running community that sometimes running makes you need to poop and that's just how it is. We all know it, we just never talk about it. Bodies are weird. So... combine that with an energy gel that you're sensitive to? It's hell.)

Anyway. Never fuck around and find out on the day of a race.

Anyway #2: that long introduction above is also why it's important to refuel if you're going to do cardio for extended periods! Like, if you're taking a 2-hour dance class, you might want to snack on dried fruit and you'll feel more energetic by the end of it. Or why football players eat energy bars at halftime, or why it's a good thing to take food along on a hike. Even if you perform better on a mostly empty stomach (I do!) some light nutrition will make you 1) accomplish more and 2) FEEL BETTER.

SORRY I TOOK THIS FUNNY POST AND INFODUMPED I just think sports science is soooo fascinating

[x-bee-x]

I might make a post about all the people. I don't know. I feel like some of them might come back. That this is just a goodbye for now. And I might be in denial but let me live there for a little bit longer it's been a really long week.

Tallulah.

The first egg I met because I used to watch your old papa. My little angst queen. I'm gonna miss your little maracas to get people's attention. Your flute and sometimes guitar playing. Your little mushroom hat that changed colors like a mood ring. Your hatred of avocado toast. Your poppies. I'm gonna miss you Lulah.

Chayanne.

My little warrior. The best chef. I'm gonna miss your little mask. Your pvp battles with everyone. Your desire to protect everyone always. Your love of avocado toast. I'm gonna miss you Chay.

Dapper.

My little scientist. My sunshine. I'm gonna miss you wanting to stop and collect every mob. Your infodumping and entire books about them all as you add them to your collection behind glass or in tanks. Your machines. Your apology brownies. I'm gonna miss you Dappy.

Pomme.

My little Pominette. I'm gonna miss people giving you all the gear and teaching you how to fight. The French Sniper. Your need to protect everyone even before yourself. Your heart. Your diaries. Your flute playing. I'm gonna miss you Manzanita.

Richarlyson.

My little gremlin. I'm gonna miss you causing chaos and blaming pranks on your siblings or both official and unofficial parents. Your little cow hat. Your one leg that started off as a mistake from the person who made your model but became a part of you and caused so many headcanons. Your amazing art. You being Cupid for everyone. Your hatred of baths. Your chancla. I'm gonna miss you Richas.

Ramòn.

My little inventor. I'm gonna miss your meat head. Your prescription goggles. Your machines. Your elevator shaft. Your lullaby. I'm gonna miss you Ramòn.

Pepito.

My baby. The babiest baby ever. The bravest and strongest and sweetest little nugget. I'm gonna miss your bunny plushie. Your gas mask with big eyes. Your crayon writing and backwards letters. I'm gonna miss you Pepoux.

Babies who have not yet officially left but probably will soon.

Empanada.

I'm gonna miss your pancake hat. Your love for all of your Mae's. Your baking. I'm gonna miss you Emmy.

Sunny.

I'm gonna miss your ever growing list of nicknames. Your love of diamonds and money. Your sunglasses and tiara. Yum gonna miss you Poppet.

Leonarda.

I'm gonna miss your many hats. Your amethysts you collect or wear on your backpack. Your favorite animal being pandas. I'm gonna miss you Leo bonita.

Chunsik.

We didn't know you long. I'm gonna miss your Gat. Your love and respect for everyone. I'm gonna miss you Chunsik.

Welp. That was really hard. But it was also kind of cathartic. I'm gonna go before I cry again. Goodbye QSMP eggs I love you.

[tommyssupercoolblog]

HI i'm a tommyinnit factive and this is where I go feral !!! I have a misce submission sideblog called @justomegathingss as well but it's mostly inactive because no one ever submits to it lol

I co-host with my in system husband @septiccoffeefreak so we're in front 90% of the time, we're v clingy so we're always co-con or co front lol. I also write septicinnit fanfic w him and I draw fanart so,,,, both posts w us specifically and the general septicinnit RPF ship will be here. u've been warned!!

I have no DNI but I block freely!! I also am pro RPF and proship ("ship and let ship") so like,, if u wanna block me about that u should do dat- I don't post dark content really or consume it because I don't like to personally?? so that won't be on my blog!!! But it's worth noting I support people's right to MAKE that content, and i don't think someone making or consuming dark content means they condone it IRL.

BLOG NAVIGATION (these links may not work on mobile- app users can use search instead):

#i made a textpost

#asks

#tommy's og art

OTHER (these links are fine on mobile lol):

Portfolio and Comissions

Me and Seán's Ao3 account

Linktree

my old pinned (colourful!!! silly!!! beloved!!! but hard to read and even longer than this one) is under the cut for preservation

OK INTRO POST WHEE!!!!!!

Hewwo besties. hello girliepops. hello boys, hello gamers, hello homestuckers and evil little creatures it is me!!!! hi!!! HELLO hi hi hi!!!! a million hellos forever and ever and....

okay fine sorry, just one last hi: hi!! I'm a Tommyinnit factive in a system and I do art sometimes!! I also play a lot of animal crossing like way too much animal crossing like my autism has me in a chokehold i play it everyday. I use he/him pronouns :3. and I am MARRIED.

My husband, Seán, is a Jacksepticeye factive in the same system as me!! we cohost/cocon together and I love him SO MUCH and I infodump about him and his source sometimes so. BE WARNEDED!!!! his acc is @septiccoffeefreak if you want to go acknowledge how fucking cool and awesome he is which you SHOULD!!! We came up with the septicinnit shipname actually!!! And write the first fics for it!! So understandably I am absolutely FERAL about it like biting clawing going insane feral. my babygirl...

I don't hold myself to a blog theme but I tend to post a lot of decora and cutesy rainbow things on this blog, as well as memes and videos I found on my feed!!! and sometimes!!! if ur lucky!!! I post an omegaverse post!!! (check out @justomegathingss for more as well) or like an actual hot take on the universe!!! though again usually it is just reblogs of sanrio characters and decora fits lol. I also of course post a ton of my art and some original posts where I go feral about something or other and scream really really loud to my terrified (but intrigued and entranced) followers. expect the unexpected. be prepared for chaos

I have no DNI for my blog, but I will block u if I decide that having you unblocked makes my internet experience sucky in some way. this is my little corner of the internet an i will customize it in whatever silly way makes my brain go brrrr

The Magical Special Poggers Tags, with which you can Navigate my Blog:

#Tommy's OG ART wow - art i made!

#I made a textpost - a combo of original textposts, as well as reblogs I made with text on them!!

#asks - asks i received!!! (asks i sent to someone ELSE and am reblogging the response to would go under #I made a textpost)

If I reblog something without any art or text attached at all, that's gonna be untagged (usefully, anyway)- but I figure if you're hunting through my blog for a post it's probably not a blank reblog anyway.

For more information about me and links to my other socials, look at my Caard, Tommyfactive.carrd.co !!! it has a bunch or really poggers info and links to my pintrest and stuff so like u should totally look at it. U might get coolness poisioning from how cool I am though /j

Commission information Here!!

Printify Store here!!!!!

[toxicrivalries]

hi! i saw your tags when you reblogged the f1 and linguistics post :) i am so fascinated with italian and how lyrical it seems to be (but my contact with the language is limited so this might be generalized). i would love to learn anything you know about the language, any lore, facts, etymology, history, etc ahahah anything really.

(plus i am a ferrari fan, i adore how passionate the italians are!)

oh my god okay so ! you've pressed the infodump button times 2 because italian is part of my research so Uhm. Yeah 😅🫡

(just so we're clear: i don't properly speak italian, i understand it very well and can bootleg speak it because i speak french and spanish - but i have read so many fucking papers on the linguistic features of it, and my native language is heavily influenced by it as well)

Okay I'll spare you the hard science and math side of it even tho it makes my brain go BRRRR (listen. you can take the physics & engineering man out of physics & engineering but not the physics & engineering out of the man. resonant frequencies im love.you) BUT

so there's 3 different things that combine to make italian sound very melodic, especially to english speaking ears: intonation (the pitch variation sentences have), rhythm, and word stress. all languages have these features (and some also have tones, for example famously: mandarin).

italian has intonation that varies a lot within a sentence (compared to english), there's a very notable up down nature to most simple statement sentences, and even more variations when you get into complexity. that's the first thing that makes people say italian sounds melodic or lyrical.

rhythm is a biiiiit more complicated to explain but if you've ever had any classes on shakespeare or the homeric epics you've encountered the concept at least theoretically. the "iambic" part of "iambic pentameter" is the rhythm that shakespearean texts have when spoken. now, unfortunately there's no academic consensus on what rhythm italian has (for reference english has trochaic which is the opposite of iambic - stressed syllable followed by unstressed syllable) (DUH dun DUH dun DUH dun). but there IS academic consensus on spanish, which is a sister language to italian: spanish has the same as english. anyway yeah languages have rhythms, this definitely plays into the equation, we (i) just don't know how. (any native speakers who may have an answer to this are welcome to PLEASE TELL ME I'M SO CURIOUS)

and then finally word stress! okay sorry but english kiiiinda sucks at expressing word stress because one of the reasons english speakers suck at saying names from my culture is they seem to not perceive word strsss the same way. Regardless yeah, word stress means there's one (or more) syllables in a word that are louder and/or longer than the rest. some languages always stress the same syllables in words (french always stresses the final syllables, which is why it often can sound very staccato). most languages with varied word stress have rules about which syllables can be stressed. italian varies it - the most common word stress is the penultimate syllable, but the two on either side of it (antipenultimate, and ultimate) are often common too. figuring out where the FUCK the stress goes when you're faced with a new word you've never heard someone say out loud before is every italian learners nightmare (send help i am SUFFERING).

all these features combined mean there's a lot more variation in the overall melody compared to english which is why it sounds lyrical (I've heard people describe it as sing songy before too) to english speakers!

jesus that's a lot of words 😅🤣 hope that answers one of your questions ❣️

[transgymbro]

Hey! Sorry if you've answered this question before, feel free to ignore this or link the ask/post answering it but did you have any trouble starting going to the gym? I really want to start but I'm self conscious about not knowing anything about the machines and etiquette (and a little bit about which locker room I should use). Do you have any advice on any of these?

PS I fucking love trans gymbros

Honestly this is the first question I've had about the gym at all, so no worries! And thank you!

Okay so, cultures tend to vary from gym to gym, but these things will remain consistent:

ALWAYS RERACK YOUR WEIGHTS. If you are using dumbbells, PUT THEM BACK IN THE PROPER PLACE WHEN YOU'RE DONE. It's especially important to put them back in the proper place because if you put 45 lb dumbbells where the 20 lb ones should go, the person using the 20s might not be able to move them out of the way to their proper place.

Clean the machines you were using. This is how you prevent ringworm, COVID, etc. from spreading. There are usually spray bottles/paper towels/wipes around the gym for you to grab and clean your machine with

Don't spend longer than necessary on a machine. Generally people don't mind you being on a machine as long as you're working out. It's one thing to log your exercise/meals but don't be sitting on the machine texting a friend for like 10 minutes.

If a water bottle or other gear is on or near a machine, it's being used. Come back later. This is normally how people say "I'm not done here, but I had to get up to use the bathroom/get water".

If you don't know how to use a machine, ask a staff member or another gym goer. Seriously, gym rats are much friendlier than people assume and they WILL infodump to you, especially when they hear that you're a beginner. Staff members are there to help and they can show you how to use the machines. Also, in some cases the machines will have the instructions written on them. I'm going to put my tips for machines below somewhere.

Here are some things that are more nuanced:

Noise level - Some gyms (looking at Planet Fitness) require you to keep the noise level to a minimum (don't go to these gyms. Screaming/grunting has been scientifically proven to help you grind out that last rep). Others allow you to scream as loud as you want. You can ask, or you observe how much noise other people are making and go based on that.

Locker rooms - My gym allows you to use the bathroom of your preferred gender and despite not binding my large chest I've never gotten shit in the men's locker room. That being said, given how transphobic some laws are, this will depend entirely on your area. My advice here is ask the staff, and if they respond in a transphobic manner, then this isn't the gym for you.

How much to talk to other people - This depends on not only the gym culture but the individual also. Some people don't mind being approached, others want to be left to do their workout. In the very least, if you want to compliment someone on how much weight they're lifting ("damn bro you strong af" "that's anabolic as fuck") you can absolutely do that though. Also, if you are just asking if someone is using a machine, don't be afraid to do so, in my experience this is an interaction no one really minds.

More tips about machines:

Start light - Learn how much weight you can handle before trying to push yourself. Generally, if you can do 15 reps on a weight, you're ready to move to the next heaviest one.

Form - You don't have to worry about this so much on the machines, as you tend to be less likely to injure yourself due to their design. However, this will depend on the machine. Therefore, it's good to keep good form anyway. You can check by reading the machine's instructions carefully, asking a staff member, or knowing what it's supposed to be working and making sure you feel the right kind of pain in the right spots (i.e. you should be feeling strain in the muscles you intend to work and nowhere else, in general). Listen to your body most of all, and if you have any sharp pains, stop.

Feel free to message me if you have any more questions, and if anyone else has good pointers or if anything I said was wrong, please say something in the reblogs/comments!