#Non cr

[somewhatsentientspellbook]

If you want to know more about the kind of person I am, just know that at 9 years old I spent a week preparing for a monster-themed costume party by writing down a list of my character's traits and key backstory moments in a notebook

Said character was a 'vampire countess' who had been born a peasant and therefore didn't like to hunt the poorer citizens in her town - instead choosing to, quite literally, eat the rich

Other things written down included, but are not limited to:

Kind to poor people and pheasants (I am unsure if child-me meant 'peasants' or if she just really liked birds)

Retractable fangs (cool character design that I think was used to justify removing the fake teeth without sacrificing the aesthetic)

Likes staring at her old home (ooh, a mysterious and tragic past...)

Has a pet jaguar that is her friend (because who doesn't want a sick-ass animal familiar??)

I then proceeded to be one of the scariest looking kids at that party and won a prize for best costume

[esclair]

Crawls out of my cave

hi I’m not dead I just don’t have anything to post

new DMATA content soon? Maybe? I’m working on a design for the academy. Maybe I’ll talk more about my ocs if anyone wants to hear about them

[sisaloofafump]

Fun fun fun! AHHHHHH

[essektheylyss]

A funny thing that was said in the episode was, in his description of the house, Liam specifying that Caleb "teaches from time to time" at Soltryce Academy, which raises so many questions about both how academic appointments work here and also Caleb's financial situation.

For instance, is Caleb just a guest lecturer at Astrid's behest? What's happening with that now that she (and, from what it sounds like, most of the Assembly) is in the wind? Do they have adjunct positions? Does he piss off the administration often enough that his classes get cut every other semester? Does he travel so frequently that a full time position isn't feasible? In that case, how much is he tutoring? And what is he doing besides snooping on Ludinus's activities? (Also who is taking care of the garden while the house is empty?)

In that vein, what's his primary line of income? It's clearly stable enough to have maintained the same house for several years—does he own it outright? Is he cobbling enough together from his various teaching gigs plus whatever he's making from adventuring? Is he technically employed by the Cobalt Soul? Being a wizard is expensive even when you're camping in the woods most nights; it's probably a lot worse when you've got costs for house maintenance to worry about.

Personally I think the funniest option is the Cobalt Soul keeping him on retainer for very high profile investigations that are of interest to him (so, you know, primarily the Ludinus situation, but considering there's at least one other wizard on Beau and Caleb's kill list, probably anything involving high level mages). Specifically because it implies that the Empire has a strong stance against the concept of Non-Compete clauses.

[captainofthetidesbreath]

it's kind of funny that we're back at the start, as it was known from the very beginning, as the story always was, the old lore: "the Divine Gate was built in response to the destruction and suffering of the Calamity as the Prime Deities realized was far too much and, as such, they needed to also remove themselves from Exandria to protect it from the ruin that the gods dwelling here brings"

[maesonc-artistic-adventures]

The flip of a coin.

[eldritchamy]

two and a half years of mutual pining and sharing a bed and their first kiss is in the goddamn bread aisle is actually the gayest way this could have happened tbh, that’s the grade a lesbianism we deserve

[towards-toramunda]

I love that Liam picked the race for Scanlan, Nott, and FCG (the lil guys) but not Taryon Gary Darrington or Braius Doomseed (both tall)

Is it that Sam is a lil guy at heart or Liam sees Sam as a lil guy. Much to consider.

[dol--blathanna]

Thinking a lot about Orym choosing a rabbit when asked what animal he would pick if cursed with lycanthropy.

Because, it makes sense. Orym is small, quick, agile, jumps well, and is highly perceptive. That definitely evokes rabbit imagery. But a lot of Orym’s identity is also tied up with being a protector – giving people AC bumps, the shield being as much a part of his fighting style as his sword, even his title: Saviour Blade of the Tempest. He wants to be a “Shield that protects Exandria”; his priorities about saving the gods are less about the gods themselves, and more about protecting the people of Exandria from the unintended consequences and bloodshed of releasing Predathos. And it would’ve been very easy to pick a large, strong predator to try and evoke the sense of a protector – a wolf, for example, an animal associated with loyalty and protecting its pack. Yet Orym chose a rabbit.

And I think that’s interesting, because rabbits are often seen as ‘cute’ animals – but they’re also a prey animal. In fact, they’re a common food source for many animals across several ecosystems: foxes, wolves, wild cats, dogs, birds of prey like eagles or owls, coyotes, stoats, and humans (and that’s just off the top of my head). Rabbits are skittish, easily frightened; to be rabbit-hearted is to be timid or cowardly. They are not generally associated with fierceness or prowess in fighting. Mice and rats are prey animals too, but typically seen as vermin (rabbits are sometimes seen as vermin too, but a farmer could eat a rabbit – they wouldn’t eat a rat). Deer are prey, but they have hooves and antlers that bring a danger to hunting them, for any animal – the difficulties of hunting rabbits are more related to their evasiveness, speed and good hearing than any life-threatening danger they might pose. Rabbits are, first and foremost, prey animals. They are killed and eaten, so that another animal might live.

Which made me think a lot about one of Orym’s other key traits: self-sacrifice. Bait and switch doesn’t just bump up his ally’s ACs, it specifically switches their place to put him directly in harm’s way. Goading attack is meant to encourage enemies to attack him instead of his friends. He literally made a deal with a hag, essentially exchanging his own life for power to protect his friends. How many times has he gone down in a fight? He’s not the only tank – but unlike Ashton (and Chetney, who also uses ‘self-sacrifice’ in his fighting style with his blood curses) he has no abilities to reduce the damage from the hits he takes (barbarian rage and the werewolf form).

(Side note: I think it’s pretty interesting that Chetney, the wolf, has attacked Orym, the rabbit, more than anyone else when losing control. That Orym’s facial scar was given to him by a friend, not a foe).

Of course, Orym isn’t the only character with self-sacrificial tendencies (FCG wins by a landslide), but I just can’t stop thinking about how weirdly perfect it is that he chose a rabbit for his animal. Rabbits are prey animals. They are eaten, so that other animals may live. Orym takes the hits, he goads and switches with his team mates to put himself in danger, he makes a deal with a hag at the cost of his own life. He’s a soldier, throwing his life away for a cause over and over again because Ludinus must be stopped, because Keyleth has put her trust in him, because it’s the only way to protect his friends, to protect everyone, because it’s the right thing to do. Orym is a rabbit. He’s always been a rabbit. That day in Zephrah, it could have easily been Orym who died instead of Will and Derrig – “unfortunate but necessary sacrifices”, as Ludinus viewed the attack. It’s unfortunate they had to die, but it was for the greater good, according to Ludinus. It’s unfortunate that a rabbit has to die, but it will feed a family of foxes, or stoats, or even a hungry human, so it’s acceptable, right?

Orym is a rabbit. He is giving himself to a greater cause that could very easily kill him – he already willingly signed his life away to Nana Morri. Because that’s what rabbits do. They die to feed others.

And the theme of being disposable is present across the entire group, not just in Orym – Bell’s Hells has been called a “party of NPCs” before. Aside from FCG’s death, I’d say Laudna perhaps fits this theme the best: she was literally murdered and hung from a tree simply because she looked similar to Vex, acting as a warning to adventurers she had never met before. But FCG’s death was – rightfully – viewed as a terrible tragedy by the group. Laudna’s decision to remove Delilah, finally freeing herself from her abuser and emphasising she is more, and deserves to be more, than just some disposable puppet – this was rightfully viewed as a very good thing! But Orym seems to be embracing this identity of self-sacrifice instead, rather than this mindset being properly challenged or acknowledged as a bad thing. After all, there’s no time. There’s too much at stake. Keyleth, Bell’s Hells, all the memories of those who have died in this fight, all the people who might die if Predathos is released and kickstarts a second Calamity – they’re all relying on him, right? A rabbit feeding so many animals with his sacrifice. And it’s not malicious compared to the way that, say, Delilah killing Laudna was an incredibly evil, fucked up and unnecessary thing to do. If Orym died to save everyone else, well, at least everyone else would be saved, right? Saving lives is good, isn't it? How could he complain?

Because rabbits are prey animals, and Orym is a rabbit too. Destined to die so that another animal may feed.

Except, that’s not true. Rabbits are more than just prey. They’re highly social, and thrive best living with others. They’re playful, they enjoy running around and kicking their legs just to show their enjoyment. They’re inquisitive and mischievous, even being associated with tricksters in some folklore and stories. They’re also associated with innocence, playfulness, spring, youth – all manner of things, depending on the story or culture. And they’re not helpless, either, even if they might be thought of as such. They can bite and scratch and draw blood quite easily if they want to! In fact, freezing up isn’t their only response when being attacked by a predator, they are known to fight back if cornered. They can sprint quickly, they have excellent hearing and senses of smell, they know how to evade predators.

Rabbits are prey, and they are also survivors. They have their own social dynamics, their own habits and dislikes and preferences. They are more than just a wolf’s meal. And Orym is more than a soldier, too. He’s more than a “necessary sacrifice”, he’s more than just a shield and sword. He deserves more than to die for a cause. He deserves a happy ending, just like everyone else. I hope he remembers that.

Orym is a rabbit. And the message isn’t that he shouldn’t be a rabbit. It’s that rabbits are worthy of surviving, too.

[mixtercandy]

i dont watch the crk stories im assuming that white pearl falls in lov wit frilled n nothing bad happens ever

[utilitycaster]

just as there's something worth noting about how both D20 and CR have lately had strong messages about how fear and resentment makes you easy to radicalize, I think there's also something for how they've both had cases of mortal politics ultimately affecting the nature of the gods. Not just for an understanding of fictional D&D gods as living entities, though that's also valuable, but for an understanding that ultimately, these are concepts shaped and changed by people; people desired conquest and so made Ankarna into a god that supported that. I've repeatedly said and will continue to maintain that while Brennan does hate capitalism, the theme he consistently returns to is the much deeper one of "the bad people are those who exploit and dehumanize others in the service of their goals" and jokes about capitalism as the BBEG aside, if you destroy any one concept's physical manifestation, you still have to contend with the people who upheld it.

[somewhatsentientspellbook]

obligatory birthday post™

[son-of-the-sun23]

Hearing the news about Sam's recovery from tonsil cancer made everything make sense as to why C3 was taking so many breaks. I mean, at the same time they're also branching out as a business and creating new series but spreading things out to pace the production of C3 while Sam got the treatment he needed makes me a lot less inclined to get irritated about the frequent breaks as I've seen people on Twitter are. If anything, I'm glad about this mini-hiatus C3 is taking with having Brennan Lee Mulligan DM another EXU spinoff for a bit.

[trivijoy]

⠀⠀（❀ ˘˘）⠀⠀⠀⠀↷⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀✯⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ under

⠀⠀（❀ ˘˘）⠀⠀⠀⠀↷⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀✯⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀the sea

[essektheylyss]

Look, I don't mean to be a broken record but my God, do you understand how much Essek's arc means to me?

Have you ever been so certain that there was one thing alone that you were meant to do, and you were encouraged to do it, and you put in the time and effort to learn and feel confident in it even beyond whatever measure of talent you'd started with, and then realized that no matter what your parents and your teachers said, the circumstances of the world were not going to let you do that? Have you ever had to leave the one place that had the resources and means to do that thing because those circumstances had become untenable and if you stayed you were going to be crushed under the weight of them? Have you spent years reckoning with the fact that you are so foundationally unsatisfied with anything else but you are not going to have this in the form you thought you'd have it, if at all, and instead had to force your way through appreciating the little things you do have—your partner and friends, who might not be there everyday but are there enough; what small work you can do, even if it's not exactly what you want to do, but it helps someone; the fact that there is a garden that you can tend to and cats to pet—and hope that those small things can amount to enough that the void that lives in you feels small enough to ignore? Have you found yourself surprised to realize that, while that will never quell it entirely, you can have that thing in piecemeal sometimes and maybe one day you'll have it again, and in the meantime somehow, miraculously, the rest is enough?

Like, do you get it? Does anyone hear me?

[finncakes]

"I'd be up shit's creek by myself. I was by myself. It's not great."

"Yeah. No, it's not."