#Q1 achievements

[butch--dean]

set my alarm to get up for my work trip tomorrow at 2:45 am 🥲

[giannaln4]

I Missed You

lando norris x fem reader

summary: You missed seeing Lando being happy after a race, and you couldn't wait to tell him how proud you were.  (1.4k words)

warnings: fluff, stablished relationship, a bit of mclaren slander

a/n when i tell you i loved this idea SO SO much. i’m not too sure i’m happy with how this turned out but i really hope you guys enjoy it 🩷 i apologise for posting this just before the race but it was a bit hard to get started for some reason 😭 anyway pls let me know what you think!!

check out the original request here!

↺ back to navigation — send me a request!

The weekend in Monza was one you were hoping to forget. The tension in the air reflected not only in the team but also in the comments people were making about it, having even sports commentators and content creators question McLaren’s entire strategy to keep their fighting position in the WCC and also have a shot at the WDC. 

Lando’s demeanour immediately after getting off the car was something you would never forget, though, even if you tried. It was pretty obvious for everyone, even if he tried his hardest to never say something bad about his team and his teammate. That team was his home anyway. He had been with McLaren even before his F1 career started, and even after weekends like this one, he would never doubt he wanted to achieve great things with them.

That is probably what made it harder for him. This year they were competing not only for points and podiums but for something bigger, and after knowing what he is capable of, ending up in that position absolutely crushed him, and you hated to see him debating with himself. 

Once the weekend was finally over and you were leaving Italy, you wanted to make him feel better, telling him how great he was and how proud you were. You even shot some comments at McLaren for everything that went down, but he didn’t want to hear it; he barely wanted to talk about it, so you just dropped it. You understood him anyway, so you had to leave everything behind and just be supportive of your boyfriend.

You were hoping this weekend would be different, better, everyone was, and there was a lot of talking in the team that they would make the right decisions to keep fighting now that they had the chance. This, of course, would only mean something until they actually proved it during the race. 

Lando was in a better mood coming into this weekend; he trusted his team and he was confident they were backing him up. That was until the qualifying came. A yellow flag being pulled out by mistake during Q1 caused him to lose the opportunity to even put up a fight, and he ended up being P17. It wasn’t even his fault, but you knew he was beating himself up for that result. 

“Lando,” you called him right after he came back to the garage to watch the rest of the qualifying. He looked at you with a disappointed smile. “It’s not your fault, baby.”

“I know.” He pulled you into a hug, not wanting you to worry about him too much. “There’s nothing I could have done. We just have to wait and see what we can do tomorrow.”

“I’m sure you’ll do amazing,” you replied into his chest, rubbing small circles in his back to let him know you were there for him, no matter what. 

“We’ll see. The car felt okay, but it’s hard to overtake on this track. It’s quite a long straight.” He let out a nervous giggle as he pulled away; he didn’t sound as confident as you were hoping, but you knew he was right. “Some of it is just going to have to cross our fingers.”

There was no point in fighting him when he got like that, so you just nodded. “I’ll be crossing everything I have then.”

He went off with the rest of his team as you stayed back to watch the rest of the cars complete the qualifying. The air was starting to get tense again, and even though you knew everyone was nervous with Lando’s result, you weren’t sure if it was just your own feelings talking. But like Lando said, you were going to have to wait and see what the team could come up with, you were just hoping they would do the right thing.

Race day was finally here, and with Lewis starting from the pit lane due to a new power unit and Pierre being excluded due to fuel flow rate, Lando had been promoted to P15. Sure, it would have been better if Lando had the chance to fight for his starting position, but at least that was something. 

You could see he was still not completely confident in how the race would go, but you trusted enough for the both of you. 

Watching the race from the garage was something that always made you incredibly nervous, but especially in this position. But Lando managed to get to P12 by lap 2, and everyone was incredibly excited by his overtakes. 

As the race went on and he felt more confident with the car, he started to climb his way up to the top 10, trusting the team’s decisions with the strategy they were sticking to, and you were so glad everything was falling in place. 

The rest of the race still made you bite your nails at how nervous you were, but the bliss in the entire garage when he overtook someone was indescribable. He was driving the race of his life, and even the radios he exchanged with the team radiated that. As always, the last few laps were nervewracking, but the fact that he made it all the way to P6 and was even helping Oscar with his own race left everyone with a good taste. Not a complete terrible weekend after all. 

During the last lap, however, an unfortunate crash between Carlos and Checo pushed him to P4, meaning he gained 11 positions during the race; not that you ever doubted him, but seeing him end up there with the fastest lap after an absolute mess of the qualifying made you excited to see him. After confiming everyone was okay, you took the liberty to celebrate your boyfriend’s race.

Lando got out of the car and went to greet his team, cheers and smiles all over the place. Everyone was praising him for the incredible work he made, and his smile didn’t go away for a second the entire time. 

You knew you would still have to wait to congratulate him; he still had to do media before coming back to his room, where you were waiting for him, but seeing him so happy in the monitors made you grow impatient. 

It felt like it had been a while since you saw him so happy after a race.

After what felt like forever, you heard him come back to the garage. You stoop up from the small couch and opened the door, where you were greeded by your boyfriend. 

“Hey, you.” You said, closing the door behind him.

“Hi,” he replied, smile so big you could see his dimples.

“That was amazing, Lando. I knew you would do amazing, but I can’t even describe how proud I am.” 

He smiled even more at your words. He closed the distance between you when he took a few steps, wrapping you in his arms and kissing you deeply. You could even feel him smiling then, and that filled your heart.

“Thank you; it was a good day,” he said when he pulled away, looking down at you with loving eyes. “I think everything worked out.” You just nodded as you admired him.

“I missed you,” you whispered as you brushed a few curls that fell on his forehead.

“What do you mean? We’ve been together the last three weeks. You saw me just before the race." To say he was confused was an understatement, and you could see it in his face.

“I mean you, this. I missed seeing you so happy and smiley. Looks good on you.”

Lando was a bit embarrassed by your confession; he thought he did a better job at hiding how much the results affected him, at least to you. It was never his intention to be so down when he was with you, but man, was he endeared by your words. “I needed this,” was all he said, and you know he was right. And it wasn’t only him; you knew the team needed this as well.

“I know, and I know you hate to hear it, but I told you.”

He let out a laugh, not a nervous one this time. “Yes, you did,” he hugged you again, much tighter as he buried his face on the crook of your neck. “Thank you for being here and supporting me, even during my bad times.” He spoke with so much sincerity. 

“I wouldn’t change it for the world.”

[im-probably-crying-rn-ngl]

some people say george isn't as good as the other "future wdcs" of his generation or he isn't even all that good in general. but don't you ever fucking forget the never ending terrible circumstances that plague his f1 career that he gets up and tries to beat every single damn race weekend. sadly i am also guilty of losing faith in him so as a reminder just some of george's achievements:

even before setting foot in f1, he won gp3 and f2 in his rookie seasons. he STILL holds the record for most points in a single season in one of the most competitive f2 grids ever.

williams in 2019 weren't capable of even getting a single point without 2 dsqs but george STILL out-qualified his teammate in all 20 races as a rookie.

in 2020 george sat down in a car he had never driven, put on shoes that didn't even fit him and STILL almost won the race. he continued his domination over his teammate this year.

george had one of the most impressive qualis in one of the slowest cars and brought williams to a front row start in a time where they were regularly knocked it q1. he earned his mr saturday title, multiple times. if mercedes weren't going to give him the seat, someone else would have.

in 2022 he was finally called up to go up against the most successful f1 driver in history in his team and he did his absolute best. to make it easy to visualise, george beat lewis this year by larger margin then nico rosberg did in 2016.

even in his scrappiest season in 2023, he matched the greatest qualifier in qualifying and in pace. he's one of lewis' closest ever teammates in both. this is lewis hamilton, the greatest of all time. there is literally no one else who could be a greater challenge for someone pulled up from the back marker of the grid.

multiple wdcs, drivers, commentators and tps have spoken about his talent. he continues to push to the limit in every car even if it fucks him over and even if it doesn't end up mattering. does he make mistakes? yes. but they don't at all take away from his skill.

mercedes already has their golden boy but if toto can't see that, then he can shine elsewhere. he has done what others have and more. he has the mentality because he knows what it means to pick yourself up even if you keep getting knocked down. he's a future champion and that's on that, all he needs is a car.

[papaya-queen]

THE ALCHEMY – Paul Aron x Y/N

Hey ! I've written some new stuff ! This is a Paul Aron x reader inspired by the song The Alchemy by Taylor Swift. As always, if there's any mistakes please tell me. Hope you like it :)

word count : 1011

Paul was one of the best rookies the F2 championship had seen in a while. Having at least one podium every weekend, leading the championship... The list of achievement was long, enough to make Mercedes regret their decision of letting him go. Having one the F1 team practically begging for you to back to their academy was a great feeling but something was missing. Something that would make enough impact for him to be considerate in the F1 seats for the next season.

His maiden win

He wanted to come out on the market as a winner and not only a good driver. He would prove to everyone that he could go to F1. He wanted to bash Mercedes and go elsewhere. He had the car, the talent, the confidence, he just needed the moment. Now, for the Silverstone Grand Prix, he was more determined than ever. Especially with his girl in the crowd.

Y/N and Paul were high school sweethearts. They met in an assemble one time, becoming friends, best friends. Eventually, one time after class, Paul had the confidence to ask the girl on a date. You could say it went well. They were now together for almost 3 years. When they graduated, Y/N started going to Uni, she wanted to become an engineer in motorsport. She could not attend all of Paul’s races, but they made it work. She went to one or two weekends and Paul would always fly back to Tallinn. They supported each other like no one. Paul would always talk about your great achievements in Uni and Y/N could not stop yapping about her boy leading the F2 Championship. She was more than exited to finally come to a race. The finals ended and she was enjoying her break. Paul and she choose Silverstone as their together race weekend.

They took the plane to London early in the week to spend a few days off. Enjoying the beauty of England, shopping, chilling together. They got I ❤️ London matching shirts, took pictures, ate in restaurants. Living like a normal couple. Sometimes, a fan or two would interrupt their time but they were the kindest heart, always took the pictures and chatted a little.

Friday came fast. Paul was in the Hitech motorhome, preparing his qualification session, putting his fireproofs on, training his reflexes, revising the track. Y/N was chilling on the couch, watching her boy. He settled newt to her, leaning in her touch as she started brushing his blonde curls.

“You’re going to kill this, love!” she said. They cuddled on the couch for a long time before the quali. Inevitably, Paul had to go in the car. Y/N followed him, helping with his helmet, reassuring him as much as she could.

He went out in quali, easily passing Q1 with the best time. He continued the quali confident, setting yet again the best time in Q2. Then in Q3, he pushed the car to the limit, setting an incredibly good lap. Ollie came with a better lap just after. With only 1:00 left, Paul went and pushed the car again. He gained time in every sector, hopping it would be enough to take the pole. As he finished his lap, his engineer screamed in the radio:

“AND THAT’S POLE POSITION,1.2 SECOND AHEAD OF P2!”

-

The result of the sprint race was okay. With the reversed grid he was starting P10 and finished P7, grabbing points for his standing. The feature race was starting. From the Hitech garage, Y/N was staring at the screen, hoping that nothing would disturb her boy’s race. He was leading, putting time between him and the second driver. The pit stop was quick, and he did not lose any position just time between him and Ollie who tried to get him. She was holding her breath for the last ten laps. Everything was going so well. Ollie was far behind. Y/N knew it was over for him to try for P1. Paul was pushing even more than before, getting the fastest lap and even more time on Ollie. He crossed the finish line as first and Y/N started crying. She ran outside the garage with the engineers and team. They started chanting his name as he parked behind the P1 sign. He ran over to the team, lifted in the air by all the mechanics. Ollie and Kimi arrived in P2 and P3 and joined the celebration. Even if they were rivals now, they still are teenage boys and best friend. Paul was so involved in his team and friends’ celebrations; he didn’t saw his girlfriend before he climbed the first step of the podium. The tears were still flowing Y/N’s cheeks as the Estonian anthem resonated. She was so proud of her boyfriend. As soon as the anthem ended, Ollie and Kimi grabbed their Champagne bottle and opened them in sink to spray the winner. Paul was drenched in champagne by his friends, eyes closed, stepping down the podium, blinded by the alcohol. He finally managed to dry his face, opening his eyes again. He saw his girl with his team, and he knew he could not wait any longer. He ran down the stairs to the track, leaving Ollie, Kimi, his trophy on the podium. He grabbed Y/N and put her down in front of him. Her hand on his cheeks, his hands in her hair, the slight smell of champagne in the air, the people watching.

“I’m so proud of you, love” she said pressing her forehead against his.

“You’re my lucky charm, Kallis!” He responded before kissing his girlfriend.

The moment was truly magical, like a Disney kind of kiss. All romantic with their friends, the team, the public cheering for them. All of this ruined by Kimi’s idea of pouring the rest of his champagne bottle on the young couple from the podium. Paul and Y/N laughed it off, they could not care more when they were having the moment of their life, looking at each other with the biggest heart eyes.

[walkingthroughthisworld]

As amazing and terrifying of a machine as it is, it is those four people inside that determine how well that amazing tank performs. While a bad tank can certainly cause a good crew to perform poorly, a perfect tank will not get a crew that needs some more training past gunnery qualification.

Yearly tank gunnery qualification is the highlight and defining event for tank crews, reputations are made and broken, wagers and friendly (sometimes not so friendly) competition abound at every level from tank crew to platoon, company and battalion. 

Tank gunnery is no simple matter, during my time the Table VIII intermediate tank qualification was graded on a scale from 0 to 1000 points with 700 being required to simply Q1; which means qualifying on your first attempt. Getting a Q2 or even Q3 is humbling for a crew and not entirely uncommon. 

A score of 800-899 is marked as superior and could earn the crew an Army Achievement medal. Scoring 900-999 is marked as distinguished and could earn the crew an Army Commendation medal. To receive a 1000 point perfect score was extremely rare, I only saw one in my time. That person received an Army Commendation medal and plenty of bragging rights.

(via 'I Served on U.S. Army Abrams Tanks—Giving Them to Ukraine Is Risky')

[mascwoman]

I was talking with HR about promoting again and he says he wants to get me to a new role in Q1 2025 and that he thinks I’m there operations/metrics/accountability-wise but that he wants me to work on slowing down and building more relationships bc he feels I get tunnel vision when it comes to achieving results. And like, I fully agree but this is gonna be so hard, lmao.

[estebanocon]

Ok, here's my recap of seeing Esteban over the Singapore GP! I've been attending every Singapore GP since 2017 and have supported Esteban each year. For me the highlight from this year was finding out that not only does he recognise my face, he also knows my name. 🥹

The video above is a compilation from two days: Thursday and Saturday. Full story below the cut. 👇

PRE-RACE WEEKEND / ESTEBAN'S BIRTHDAY

I've been travelling since late July and my flight back to Singapore from Vancouver was actually on Esteban's birthday. I had already committed to editing a video to celebrate his achievements at Alpine. Some of you (bless y'all, seriously) answered my open call for art/video/message submissions and I spent the afternoon before my flight putting it together. I'm happy I got it done and I was even happier when Esteban commented thanking us for it just before I got on my plane. You can watch the video on Instagram here.

THURSDAY

A.K.A. The day after I arrived back in Singapore after 2 months on the road and a 16-hour time difference. I have no idea how I wasn't severely jetlagged lol.

I got to the paddock entrance after 1pm, early enough to still get a spot in front of the barrier, but gosh there were so many people this year. Either F1 has really exploded in popularity (especially with the younger generation) or we just have more fans from overseas coming to Singapore for the race (why tho, it's so hot y'all). Luckily I had a friend with me and he was kind enough to help me take videos when Esteban arrived.

My friend hadn't hit record yet so the video missed Esteban saying "good to see you again, how are you doing?", and you can scroll back up for the rest. ☺️ He thanked me after I asked if he'd seen the birthday video and then there was an awkward moment when I didn't know if we were doing a fist bump or a handshake but man's a gentleman and didn't make me feel weird about it. 🫠

I don't know why after seeing him so many times I still get nervous but I was, and I struggled to take the cap off my marker so he could sign my cap. He very kindly took it from me to open it himself but my marker betrayed me and wasn't working properly (now that I think about it, it also happened the very first time I asked him to sign my hat back in 2017 🤡). Thankfully the girl next to me offered her red marker which actually worked (though Este stabbed the life out of it first to be sure). 🙏

I initially wanted to hang around in the evening with some friends who were coming after the pitlane walk. But at 7pm it was already super crowded and I don't even know why (all the drivers, TPs and media are already in the paddock at this point and won't come out till late that night). So yeah, I just went home to not tire myself out before the race weekend actually started.

FRIDAY

I've accumulated quite a bit of merch since last year so I was bringing a different one on each day for him to sign haha. In the selfie I'm wearing a shirt he signed the day before.

I normally try not to take up too much of his time because he always does his best to make sure all the fans get something from him. I only had one shirt for him to sign but after he did, he continued standing in front of me so I just took out my phone for this picture and then he went on his way. Este is bestie fr. 😭🫶

I didn't hang around outside the paddock again on Friday night because I went to watch OneRepublic. ✨

SATURDAY

The best day for me because this was when I managed to get most of my selfies (including with Mick, who I missed on Thursday because he came with Esteban and obv I have priorities) and also because Esteban managed to drag the car out of Q1. 👏

It was also a good day because I asked Esteban if he could write my name on the cap and as I was trying to spell it out for him, he cut me off because he knew, he just didn't see it was me at first because some guy had draped a huge flag over my friend and me for him to sign. 😭🫶

We tried to wait outside the paddock after qualifying but they started chasing us out at 12am and since they had armed police out in full view, we decided to not fk around and find out. (At previous SGPs they'd stay in the van so we never actually saw them.) Also didn't help that Esteban chose that moment to leave so people started mobbing him and even though he tried to stop at first, security physically pushed him to the exit. 🥲 (which was probably for the best tbh)

SUNDAY

I actually gave Este the wrong hat to write my name on (I wanted him to write it on the cap from his store, not the Alpine one) so I had to ask him again and he kindly obliged.

That night I was lucky to catch him just before he left the circuit, there were some fans running alongside him because he wasn't stopping but he stopped when he saw me. 😭🫶 I got a quick hug and he said see you next year so I guess the greedy mfs at SGP are going to continue getting my money smh.

BONUS ESTE'S BESTIES

Here's a picture of stuff I got signed by Este, as well as some gifts I got from other Esteban fans! And also, a picture of me and Fiq who I met for the first time on race day.

[secret-third-thing]

You're a smokehound puppy that's escaped the kennel. Now you just need to find Eris! Navigate this replayable interactive fiction to find your master! Made for @erisweek2023

CLICK TO PLAY HERE ("Optimized" for PC, but playable on moble)

🔥 FEATURES 🔥

3.5 Endings

Name your dog

Forbidden Romance(s)

Pop Culture References

Spooky Things in the Woods

VanStinky?!!

You are a dog and it reads like it <-IMPORTANT

So many glorious typos and errors that I will fix over time!

🦇 Bonus Achievement: Can you find the Smutty Azris Scene?

I made this in about two weeks, which is kinda bonkers. Consider this a warning that this may be buggy!!!. If you run into any game BREAKING issues, just ping me and I can make a fix tonight. There's going to be mistakes, but honestly that's fine. Let's just call it "dog logic." Bark bark! Right?!

Want to know more about how I made this? Read the dev log here <3. If you're interested in making your own, let me know! I am always happy to help!

❤️ SPECIAL THANKS ❤️

First of all, thank you to @lucienforhighking for helping me when I PANICKED over the smut-ish stuff. Definitely not my wheelhouse.

Thanks to all my fellow gamedev friends who completed multiple playtests, my best friend who is a cat person, and @heart-forge, who I owe my sanity to (That restart thing was driving me nuts!)

Also thanks for the folks at @elucienweekofficial (specifically @separatist-apologist and @the-lonelybarricade) for spurring on the new interactive format.

👀 WANT MORE? 👀

If you're interested in more ACOTAR interactive fiction, but want to play from the perspective of a fae, then go here to learn more about Gods We Can Touch: a multi-chapter branching narrative where you are a spy during Amarantha's ball. Will you help the High Lords escape Amarantha's clutches or will you ensure their downfall?

I promise this will be more polished 😉 The prologue/chapter 1 will be released in Q1 of 2024.

[jamethinks]

Damian and the Forgers (1)

For the past week or so i keep seeing people say that Damian should have lunch/dinner with the Forgers due to the previous chapter (106) where he had an exciting and engaging dinner with his family. I have been so deeply confused about this whole idea as i fail to see how it would be beneficial to Damian or what could theoretically be gained from an evening with the Forgers. After much thought I think I have a somewhat coherent thought to explain why this idea sucks to me.

Firstly, we have to answer 2 important questions: What is Damian's relationship with his father/family; and what impact does this have on his character?

Going forward we will be taking a "The curtains are blue because the character is depressed." approach. some details may seem irrelevant but i don't care.

Q1. What is Damian's relationship w/ his Father/family?

Obviously a very strained one with subtle hints towards emotional abuse. Donovan manages his family with an iron fist, keeping them all equally invested in happiness but in distinct ways. Like any good dictator he promotes individualism and strives to create a divide between his family, ensuring they all have a different version of him in their heads so they can never fully relate with one another.

One important thing to note about Damian is his title. He is the scion to the Desmond estate, not the heir. An heir is the person who is set to inherit their family's wealth while a scion is merely a descendant of nobility. Essentially, Damian has no claim in his family only a title to uphold. This creates a sense of inadequacy in him. Donovan's approach for handling Damian is through neglect, ignoring and avoiding him further enable this sense of inadequacy.

He doesn't spend much time with son and is seemingly completely unaware of what his son has going on. Chapter 38 we see the two of the having a conversation (?) and there are a lot of important details throughout*. When Damian is upset that his father seemingly did not care about Anya attacking him, Donovan responds by sighing, expressing irritation. Immediately, Damian goes quiet. Later, Donovan remarks on how he sees everyone as an opp even his own children. Lastly, when Damian shares his achievements at the end his father his father congrats him and tells him to continue to not "besmirch" the family name**. He's also dismissive of his decision to see his son, reducing it to simply a whim***.

In this rather brief interaction, Donovan is able to re-establish his position as Damian's father and also drill and important message into his head. He has to work for his father's approval. It is a privilege, one he is yet to earn.

Q2. What impact does this have on Damian as a character?

In short, he's desperate. He is a child and understandably craves his father's attention and affection*. As a result Damian spends his life seeking that love that any human would want and he does so by doing things he believes will make his father happy and satisfied.

Damian idolizes his father. He has said on multiple occasions he wants to be a politician like his father. For the career thing he wrote a piece extensively praising his father**. He also wanted to make a griffin for the craft project to honour his family name and father. He was worried he father would view him as weak for crying after the bus hijacking. He is immediately filled with glee at the slightest hint of a compliment from his father. He has dedicated his life and identity to his father (well he's six so idk).

One way that Donovan has taught his son to seek his approval (directly or indirectly) is through his interactions with Demetrius. By attending the imperial scholar mixer, and rewarding Demetrius with his presence, he tells Damian that this is a way to earn his attention. Whether or not Demetrius actually wants his father there is irrelevant***, it's what Damian wants and by denying it to him he ensure Damian constantly at his whim. It also creates a foundation for future resentment he can exploit later on.

From here we get Damian's main goal and fundamental belief. That if he becomes an imperial scholar he will be someone worthy of his father's love (represented through his occasional presence). Damian believes that he has to work for it and it's absence is not a fault in his father but a fault in himself. He is the problem. He has not given his father a good enough reason to love and trust him. Through his limited world view he has concluded that his father's love (or at least an avenue to it) can be forged through becoming an imperial scholar like his brother.

None of this is true but that's a fact he will have to accept as an adult but until then his father has him where he needs him. Desperate and submissive.

I will have to make a part 2 this is too long bruh.

Notes: wink

q1

* prior to their meeting, Damian is seen having a phone call with his brother. In that moment, Demetrius says he can't promise anything. This leads me to theorize there may have been cases where one or the other attempted to organize a meeting with him and he didn't show up. the good ole leaving your kid all dolled up on the side of the road wait for you to take them on a trip. wickedness

** the exact line is "continue striving not to besmirch the Desmond name". the choice of word here is interesting. As opposed to something more positive like uphold or meet or maintain, he said besmirch. he's not telling him to do well but rather to not embarrass him or tarnish the family name. he doesn't see what Damian has done as an achieve but simply him not making things worse. a subtle reminder that he hasn't done anything special.

*** i do believe he showed up on purpose. it was more or less a way of resetting Damian. he stays away for too long eventually Damian will lose interest and the plan will fail. By showing up, briefly, he reinvigorates a sense of hope in Damian, remotivating him and setting back the clock until the next time he has to show up again.

q2

*by preventing his mother or brother to give him that affection he able to isolate Damian. Damian specifically craves his fahter's attention as he is the patriarch of the family and in theory with his approval he will have everyone's

** it should be noted that his father was not aware of this piece. which shows he is not actually engaged with what his son is doing. he's also likely not aware of his other achievements. however, this was during the conversation with Loid where he seemed rather on edge on more focused on examining Loid so it's unclear why he said that or how truthful it was.

*** like i said before, each member is given different versions of Donovan which makes them experience each interaction differently. that's not to say Demetrius doesn't what his father there but rather we dont know how he feels about his father's presence as we never see the relationship they have. the effectiveness of this is reflected in the chapter where the two boys met and Damian mentioned his father which quickly turned Demetrius' mood sour. How Demetrius experience's his father dictates how he views his brother, this results in the distance between them.

[denmark-street]

A new description update on Linkedin from Warner Bros. Senior Global Brand Manager has revealed that Hogwarts Legacy sold 256% more than predicted.

Spotted by Twitter user @bogorad22, the description states, “Achieved 256% to plan sell-thru at launch and exceeded 12M units in sales in first two weeks earning $850M+, secured additional 1.8B impressions through a WBD gaming 1st of its kind Fusion program, and broke all-time Twitch record for most peak concurrent viewers ever for a single player game with 1.3M views.”

Earlier this month, GamesIndustry.biz reported that Hogwarts Legacy was so successful that the Q1 2023 total sales for video games outsold Q1 2022, despite Q1 2022 having games like Elden Ring and Horzion: Forbidden West releases.

It’s been a couple of months since Warner Bros. officially announced the 12m sales figure for Hogwarts Legacy, but we could hear more on its sales in the company’s upcoming 2023 annual meeting of stockholders meeting on May 8.

[laura1633]

Oh my fucking god that was stressful. I was worried Max was out in Q1 then Q2 with the damage and he still gets P4!

If they can fix the car without taking a penalty which surely they can then he absolutely can still win this.

I thought it was going to be damage limitation from the second he went off track so P4 (with Norris only P3) is actually pretty amazing.

Come on Max, the win is achieved tomorrow and he has kept himself well in contention.

[the-himawari-otome]

B’s-LOG August 2024 - Special Feature Translation [Secret Love Talk - Lucien Neuschburn]

"You're lovely when you're in love. I'll support you."

The "importance of love" in your life?

Lucien: 100%

Q1: Why did you choose that number for the "importance of love"? Do you have anything else essential to you besides love?

I answered 100%. However... for me who's striving for the throne, achieving what needs to be achieved and protecting what's important to me are essentially the same thing. The reason I even sacrifice my sleep to dedicate myself to my duties and continue to keep my eyes on both domestic and foreign affairs is for the sake of a future with the person I love.

Q2. Do you think friendship can turn into love?

Pardon me!? Is it possible for it not to be possible... after all, you never know when that wonderful moment will arrive. I believe that the flower of love can bloom at any time and place.

Q3. Is it possible to get back together with an ex-lover? Or not?

I'd like for us to reconcile...! After all, I am certain I will never come to hate her. I will surely always have feelings for her. If I am bestowed another chance, then I will definitely give it my all. ...*Sigh*. Just imagining it made me sad...

Q4. When you're talking about love, what can you say to make the other person, who doesn't pay attention to you at all, "become conscious of you"?

You're lovely when you're in love. I'll support you. ...However, there is one thing I'd like you to remember. There is a man by your side who loves you, who wishes to make you happy with his own hands, and who wants to be with you forever.

---

[DO NOT USE OR REPOST MY WORK W/O PERMISSION, THANK YOU]

[hankcon-bingo]

Interest Check Summary

Hello, Hemlock here!

Once more, thank you to everyone interested in signing up for Hankcon Bingo! I appreciate the time in filling and sharing the Interest Check form. 💙💙💙

The total interest checks received were 27! 🥳 (One shy away from 28, an important number in DBH 😉)

In summary, here is a short breakdown:

💙 A Hankcon Bingo event running from October to the end of December (with January as a catch up month.)

💙 Mini prompt fests outside the main Bingo with generic or themed prompts. No sign-up required.

💙 3x3 (Nine square) bingo cards with the option to request second cards for extra inspiration and badges.

💙 An A03 collection and hashtags on Tumblr and Twitter will be highlighted to make works easier to find and share.

Please let me know your thoughts or any feedback you have. I am hoping to post a concrete schedule in the coming week for a Hankcon Bingo as well as prompt surveys for both this and prompt fests that could take place this year. 💙

Please find enclosed below the percentage breakdown for each question, followed by summaries on how this can work towards the Hankcon Bingo event.

Q1. Are you interested in participating in the bingo?

66.7% - Yes

25.9% - Yes, I just don’t know if I’ll be able to sign-up.

7.4% - I want to do a fest indeed!

0% - No, but I’m interested in the content.

Q2. What size bingo card would you prefer?

63% - 3x3 (Nine squares per card)

33.3% - 5x5 (Twenty-five squares per card)

3.7% - N/A - I want to do a fest!

Q3. When would you like the event to start?

81.5% - October

55.6% - November

51.9% - December

40.7% - September

29.6% - Sometime early in 2025 (Either February or March)

18.5% - August

Q4. How long would you like the event to run?

59.3% - 3 months

40.7% - 6 months

Q5. Where do you prefer to post Hankcon content?

92.6% - A03

63% - Tumblr

33.3% - Twitter

Based on this feedback, there is a preference for:

💙 A Hankcon Bingo event over a prompt fest 💙

As expected, the thirst for a Hankcon Bingo is still strong! Consider a 2024 Hankcon Bingo event officially set in stone!

There was a smaller mixed response between those wanting to take part but being unsure if they will sign-up, and wanting to do a fest instead.

With this in mind and further clarification from the OG Mod, I have been considering running mini prompt fests outside of the main Hankcon bingo. They would be something fun to do, and be an alternative option for those who are unsure or unable to commit to a full event (but bingo participants are more than welcome to do both, of course.)

These would be week long fests at different times of the year, a prompt a day, that can be generic or themed. Themed examples:

💙 Seasonal like Summer, Fall, Halloween, Winter, Valentines, etc.

💙 DBH anniversaries like the official game release, THE HUG, Connor or Hank’s birthday, etc.

💙 Tropes like AU, hurt/comfort, canon divergence, etc.

No sign-up would be required to take part in prompt fests, just create something if one or more prompts speak to you, and enjoy. ☺️

Depending on the bingo start date, we could try a small fest beforehand. Would that be something that you all would be interested in?

💙 3x3 (Nine square) square bingo cards 💙

There was a majority preference for 3x3 square bingo cards. As clarified in later section, smaller cards might work better if the event runs for 3 months as opposed to 6 months.

Participants will be more than welcome to request second cards if they finish the first cards, and are hungry to create more Hankcon content! There are extra badges for second bingo card achievements too!

💙 October starting period 💙

The majority of responses preferred an October start date for a Hankcon Bingo event. This actually works out in getting everything ready as well as for those of you (myself included!) creating for the DBHRBB which should have wrapped up posting by the time the bingo begins.

💙 3 month event 💙

A bingo running for three months was preferred, meaning that with an October starting month, the event should run from October until the end of December.

January could be a grace month for last minute posts, etc, as December can be a busy month for a lot of people with holidays and the sort.

💙 Posting on A03 💙

A03 is the preferred place to post Hankcon content with decent numbers for Tumblr and Twitter.

There will be a Hankcon Bingo collection available on A03 if you would like to add your works (art very much welcome!)

Anything posted to Tumblr will be reblogged, and hashtags will be shared nearer the time to make finding content easier on both Tumblr or Twitter.

I understand this is a lot to take in, so I appreciate your patience for reading this far. 😅

Thank you very much for your time, and I look forward to any feedback or comments everyone has on the direction of thr Hankcon Bingo this year. 💙

[nuetheureux]

Q1 update on 2024 Nudist Resolutions

As you may know, I love resolutions and I love nudism. Every month, I’m reflecting on my progress and every quarter, I try to assess where I am and what needs to be corrected to ensure goal achievement. Yes, my yearly goals include nudism as it’s an integral part of my life, as I aim at living more and more naked, when temperatures allow of course, and bringing more people into the naturist…

[thewakingcloak]

The State of Things Yet to Come

The Ghost of Spacefarer Things Yet to Come is a hard guy to get ahold of, but I have at last wrangled him and tied him down until he wrote the blog post he promised:

The blog post he promised

I have looked into the future… where I am from… and ok yeah let's start off with the big news first! In the future… ProtoDungeon: Episode III will be on Steam!

That means you can wishlist ProtoDungeon: Episode III on Steam!!!!

And here's a little mini announcement trailer for just this occasion :) (and turn up the sound! I made a lil tune for this!)

So please go give it a wishlist!

Steam's inner machinations are something of a secret to everybody, but wishlists absolutely help the folks who make games. It's one of the most important ways you can help me, even if you're not sure you'll ever buy it. Wishlists get games seen, so please wishlist!

I'm really excited about this. This one actually my original plan for ProtoDungeon, to put each individual episode up on Steam and use the experience to improve… but I was talked out of it by a guy who was mad that Episode I wasn't a full-length game, and by his predictions of my failure. I switched to only publishing for free on Itch and decided The Waking Cloak and ProtoDungeon DX would be the only games I put on Steam.

I wish I'd never listened to that guy. He clearly didn't care about me, and I let his words and attitude control me.

The future is ever-shifting

There's a lot of things I've been doing because I felt like (and have been told) I should be doing. So for the future, I had been intending to really hit the ground running on all fronts, posting to social medias everywhere, launching tiktok and insta reels and youtube shorts, and generally pouring my efforts into "marketing."

I don't think there's anything wrong with this, but it's also… not me? It's not really what I want for my future. I've thought long and hard about this hobby, and I want to enjoy the parts I enjoy, and not let pride prevent me from letting other people take over the parts that I'm not really good at and don't have the time for anyway. Let's face it: my plate is full with my job, my kids, my house, taking care of my wife, chronic illness/pain, etc.

On top of that, I've been off social media for a long time now, and it's been so restorative. I don't fault anyone for being on any of them, and I'll poke my head up every now and then, but… I'm letting go of "making it" on socials. I can't keep up with the sacrificial requirements of the Algorithms. I can't keep up with the comparison game with everyone else making stuff on there. I had spent a lot of time curating my feed(s) so that I saw only wonderful people making wonderful art, and I still felt like I was always "coming up short."

The new plan: just post here on the devlog… just things I want to post. Focus on making my games and having fun doing it. I'm not gonna spend time finding the opportune moment to generate traffic or to say just the right things to sell people on playing my games or learn all the metrics and stuff. I won't post in every conceivable space hoping I'll get enough momentum to go viral or even just noticed.

Will that mean fewer wishlists, fewer followers, fewer people playing my games? Yes. And I'm content with that. I just want to enjoy the act of making games. I don't need to "make it big" anymore. I look up to folks like ConcernedApe (solo dev of Stardew Valley) and Team Cherry (small team behind Hollow Knight) and their lovely games and experiences, but I don't need to BE them anymore. I'm me, and I like being me.

Okay but what am I actually doing…?

Practically speaking, the plan is now as follows:

Publish ProtoDungeon 3 on Steam/Itch for $8.99, with a two-week launch discount of 15% (so, $7.64). I'd like this to be in Q1 of 2025, but I'm keeping things loosey goosey here

Publish PD1 and PD2 on Steam for $4.99 each, with the same builds as on Itch now (so they won't have Steam achievements). These might come before 3 is released, we'll see!

Continue with episodes 4 and 5, also on Steam/Itch--these will be significantly quicker to develop than 3, as they will be smaller and also will not require fundamental changes as 3 did. Pricing will probably be lower than for episode 3 and likely higher than episodes 1 and 2.

All of the above will be self-published!

Once those are complete, I will be working on The Waking Cloak, and it's here that I'm seriously considering looking into a publisher. I do want my games to be played by more people, and having professionals handle all the marketing and socials and console porting and other fine details would be such a burden off my shoulders. I've got my eye on a few in particular, but I'm putting more thought into this before I say anything else.

What about…?

Why are you working on ProtoDungeon and not The Waking Cloak? Trick question! (You didn't know you were asking a trick question, did you?) I say this a lot but it bears repeating: ProtoDungeon is helping me build up the mechanics and assets for The Waking Cloak, and is helping me get lots of practice with game design, as well as with art and publishing and so forth.

Will ProtoDungeon have spoilers for The Waking Cloak? Nope! The only spoilers will be purely mechanical, but I'm holding back a lot of puzzle concepts and a few mechanics for TWC itself. ProtoDungeon is a separate prequel story and has unique dungeons that will not show up in TWC.

What is ProtoDungeon DX? This will be the combination of all the ProtoDungeon episodes, with the early episodes rebuilt, and with additional content (like an overworld). I'm planning on working on this after The Waking Cloak. There will be some kind of discount based on your collection of individual ProtoDungeon episodes. I don't know how that works yet, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Whatever happens, I want to make sure it benefits y'all.

Why isn't ProtoDungeon free anymore? Simply put, because I think they're worth it. I've put a lot of time and effort and love into them. Also, I have a family to support, and this hobby is not free either! The episodes are short, yes, and that's why they'll cost less than a movie ticket.

Patreon? Development will be open and free as always, but patrons will get a first look (like with this post!) There are other goodies at higher tiers, too. And I should mention: funds go towards stuff like key art, publishing fees, and other minor operating costs. I was able to commission some wonderful art for ProtoDungeon: Episode III with y'all's support, but I've also bought some music tools (such as Chipsynth SFC), and I have a Studio Spacefarer P.O. box as an official address for legal reasons when publishing newsletters. I also am able to keep the main site, https://studiospacefarer.com, up with these funds. So, thank you!

To the future!

ProtoDungeon: Episode III has been a difficult beast to tame, partly because of fundamental changes to all the systems, but also because of where it fell in my life, amidst the pandemic and grief and changes and moving. It's become more important to me because of that, because it's a way to process everything. I had always known ProtoDungeon was about grief, but now it's much more personal.

I'm excited to work on things again. I look forward to sitting down and working out the details and adding the new ideas. I can't wait for y'all to experience it. Thank you for following along, and here's to future days!

Oh and did I mention…? please wishlist ProtoDungeon: Episode III on Steam :)

[isawthesainz]

Race Recap 13: Hungary

Sunday 21st July 2024

Build-Up:

On 12th July, rumours emerge that Valtteri Bottas is in negotiations with Williams

On 18th July, it is announced that Kevin Magnussen and Haas will part ways at the end of 2024

Charles Leclerc crashes at Turn 4 during FP2, briefly bringing out the red flag

Sergio Perez crashes at Turn 8 during Q1, hitting the barriers and bringing out the red flag. The session restarted with only 5 minutes to go

Late laps from Kevin Magnussen and Valtteri Bottas mean that both Sergio Perez and George Russell are knocked out in Q1 and will start from 16th and 17th respectively

Yuki Tsunoda crashes at Turn 6 with just 2 minutes left of Q3. The race restarts but only Daniel Ricciardo is able to improve his time

Lando Norris achieves his third career pole, with Oscar Piastri locking out the front row for McLaren for the first time in 12 years

Race Highlights:

The two Mclarens and Max Verstappen run wide into Turn 1. Piastri takes the lead and Verstappen rejoins the track in P2

Verstappen is noted by race control for leaving the track and gaining an advantage due to not conceding the place

Red Bull tells Max to give the place back to Norris, which he does on Lap 4

On Lap 34, Alpine tells Pierre Gasly to retire the car

Norris pits on Lap 46, rejoining the race in P4. Piastri pits on Lap 47, rejoining in P3 behind his teammate

On Lap 48, Piastri runs wide into the gravel. The McLaren Race Engineers advise Norris that they want to re-establish the same order as before the pit stops and to allow Piastri to pass. Norris agrees to give the place back once Piastri catches up to him, but would not slow down to let him past

On Lap 55, Norris is told to save his tyres and stop pushing to allow Piastri through

On Lap 57, McLaren informs Norris that his is still pushing the tyres too hard, saying ‘We’re sure you’ll do the right thing’

By Lap 61, Norris has build up a gap of 5 seconds to Piastri

At the start of Lap 63, Verstappen tries to overtake on the inside of Hamilton and passes the Mercedes driver. However, he locks up into Turn 1 going across the path of Hamilton, hits his front tyre and gains air before going off the track. He manages to rejoin the race but loses a place to Leclerc

Both Norris and Verstappen exchange some tense words with their Race Engineers, with Gianpiero Lambiase (Verstappen’s Race Engineer) telling him that it was ‘childish’ to argue on the radio

Norris slows down and allows Piastri to pass at the start of Lap 63

Piastri achieves his first F1 win in only his second season, with Norris finishing in second place for a McLaren 1-2. Hamilton finishes in third, taking his 200th podium

Race Results:

1st Place: Oscar Piastri

2nd Place: Lando Norris

3rd Place: Lewis Hamilton