#Red Mage Reviews

[redmagedovei]

Final Fantasy Tactics: Monsters Only Challenge (Post Run Review)

Version Played: PSX

Rules: Ramza is a Mediator (NOT SCC style). Concentrate/Calc/Blade Grasp are banned, otherwise any secondary/reaction/support/movement abilities can be used. EVERY other party member MUST be a Monster. No two monsters from the same family may be used at the same time. Once per chapter, Ramza can change from Mediator to grind alternate abilities.

Goal: Any%

Challenge Rating: ★✩✩✩✩ Fun Rating: ★★★★★

Overview: I'll be honest. I set this one up on the schedule, as well as made it super lenient on purpose, since I was killing time until the Four Job Fiesta, and otherwise would've had to wait like three weeks with filler content. If I were to redo this, I would either make the grind happen at the very start of the game, or just make Ramza a pure SCC Mediator in the end. Now then. Monsters are very very powerful in Final Fantasy Tactics, in exchange for a number of drawbacks. For one, Monsters can't equip gear, meaning no extra HP, PA or Speed, nor any status resistences. Same with regards to abilities. Monsters can't gain new abilities (save for a specific support ability), and only a select few have the ability to heal. As such, most battles are played quite aggressively, since you're effectively a glass cannon a majority of the time. Early battles can be kind of rough, as high class monsters aren't available from the start. That said, Chocobos are a staple the entire game, and can be acquired from the very first random battle in the game. I guess the hardest battle under the rules I set would be Zeklaus Desert in Chapter 1? It's hard to remember. Letting Ramza basically do anything made it easy, since I could heal, revive, etc. It made a lot of battles, especially in the mid game a bit of AI looping. Kill weak monster, revive, rinse repeat. Which, I mean, it's -tactical- so it works out. Late game is completely free IF you can get a Tiamat and Behemoth. The Tiamat is especially important, since it can hit really hard, and multiple times, at a cost of unreliable hitting (a la Rafa/Malak). Now for the biggest thing: It's EASY to assume that low Faith is a free win button, and for a majority of the game, this is true! HOWEVER! Low Faith will make the Lucavi bosses resort to status effects, since they can't really do damage! This made the final boss especially difficult, since instead of Ultima/All-Ultima, it spammed Grand Cross. Low Faith is a double-edged sword after all! But otherwise, yeah, low Faith helps a LOT otherwise. It makes enemy mages a complete joke.

Final Thoughts/Recommendation: This is a really good "intro challenge" for someone looking to play with self-imposed restrictions, but want wiggle room to avoid frustration. It forces a different style of play, which can make a newer challenge runner more acclimated to playing under forced, clear rules. Plus, there's still room to add even more, for people who want a challenge. And Monsters are seldom used in most casual play, aside maybe Chocobos, so this helps learn a different side to the game. This one is a blast, and I recommend it to basically anyone, though definitely play FFT first casually, so you know what the game is like from start to finish.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

something i noticed

A while back, I wrote this analysis reviewing how unfair the magic education system is in Twisted Wonderland. I would recommend reading that before this post, as it provides tons of context for what I’m about to talk about and add onto the discussion.

In 2-6 of the Tapis Rouge event, Vil has stylists from Luxe, a high end fashion brand, dress up Azul, Jamil, and Ace to be a part of his red carpet entourage. Once the boys come out in their new threads and makeup, Jamil and Azul, two individuals who are meticulous about details, provide some telling commentary.

According to those two, the team of stylists that helped them were mages. Azul further remarks that they were quite skilled mages and that having this kind of talent indicates a “first class brand store”. Their hair and makeup is also suggested to be done via magic, though this service is not normally performed for customers. Previously, we knew that skincare can be infused with magic (Vil does so with his own) and that magic can be used to style one’s hair (Jamil tells us in his Birthday Boy vignettes that he does his intricate hair with magic and used to take far longer with it when he lacked the precision). Idia states in book 6 that Jamil had no formal magic training before NRC, so that means Jamil was self-taught in his hair-handling magic.

… Okay but 😭 WHAT DOES THIS IMPLY ABOUT MAGIC AND CLASS??? Is it just a coincidence that the teams of stylists who staff a high class store are ALL mages? Surely not, given how uncommon mages are in the general population. The store (or maybe the brand itself?) must be going out of its way to hire them because I guess being dressed with magic is a more “luxurious” experience than the normal way. We can also guess from Azul and Jamil’s accounts that the degree of magic these staffers use requires significant skill and precision, which either means they need formal instruction or lots of practice on their own. Neither option is afforded to people with naturally low or no magic reserves at all 💀 meaning jobs like this are gated to mages only.

Now, this doesn’t inherently mean the rich and famous people who frequent these stores are also all mages (Kalim’s dad and Vil’s dad are two non-mages who are extremely wealthy and influential); the majority of them must still be regular people since humans seem to be the majority, and 90% of humans are non-mages. It also doesn’t guarantee that the Luxe stylists are paid more than a non-Luxe stylist (although I do think this is possible for a prestige brand, especially if we factor in commissions on sales).

What’s sticking out to me here is that there exists an association between magic and luxury. The reverse also appears to have some truth based on what little other lore we have; Ruggie states that there are not a lot of mages from his hometown, which could imply a history of non-mages being driven into poorer communities. It all fits together a little too well to seem coincidental… but obviously, Ruggie’s hometown is just one place and could be an outlier rather than the exemplar. We know that most non-mages must live an average lifestyle, not the extremes that Ruggie has experienced. Still, the claim that magic is typically associated with the upper class holds and it continues to be perpetuated in the lore.

Anyway, Fellow and Rollo were right—

[yuurei20]

Twisted Wonderland the Novel English Translation Review: Excellent

Did a quick read-through of the English-language novel (not a word-for-word comparison with the original novel yet), and: it is an excellent translation!

Some quick notes about the more language-sensitive parts:

・As in the English-language game, Grim is referred to as a weasel in the prologue. In the original game, the original manga and the EN manga, he is called a Tanuki.

・Much like the EN manga, the original game/manga’s use of the word “egg” has been changed to “fledgling.”

・The incantation for Riddle’s unique magic is: EN Novel: "Are you ready for your sentence? Sentence first! Verdict afterward."

EN Manga: “Are you ready for your sentence? The verdict comes afterwards. Any last words?”

・The conversation where Yuuya explains where he is from is very similar to the original novel:

"I'm from Nihon," Yuya told him. "Ni-kan?" "Umm. Ja-p-an." Yuya tried the English name of his country, but that apparently did not click for Crowley either.

・The references to Japanese schools beginning in spring and NRC being more closely related to schools in Europe and America have been retained.

・Curse words have been changed into things like “punk,” “dunce,” etc., with Ace repeating “dodo” fairly often.

・The line where Ace tells Yuuya to drop the honorific from his name was changed. Instead, Yuuya thanks Ace by saying “I really appreciated your help yesterday” and Ace responds, “This isn't some highfalutin rich-kid school. You don't need to be so polite."

・The line where Deuce tells Yuuya to drop the honorific from his name was changed to Deuce protesting against Yuuya thanking Ace first instead of thanking him first.

"How come you said Ace first?" Deuce protested. "I'm first."

・Cater consistently refers to Ace, Deuce, Yuuya and Grim as “Acey, Deucey, Yuey and Grimmy. At least once he refers to Riddle as “Riddley.” No nickname for Trey.

・As there are no honorifics Yuuya refers to Riddle by his first name only, Ace refers to Trey by his first name only, and Deuce refers to Cater, Trey, Riddle and Malleus as “Diamond,” “Clover,” “Rosehearts” and “Draconia.”

・The incantation for Trey’s unique magic is: "White to red, red to white.”

・In the original novel Ace says “Thank you,” in English, while in the English translation he says “merci.”

・”Beastpeople” are called “beast people” instead of “beast men.”

・Yuuya reflecting on how Chenya does not use an honorific with Riddle was changed to, “Yuya had only ever heard Trey talk about him so casually.”

・The line about Cater using honorifics with everyone except Trey in serious situations was changed to, “He usually sounded so lighthearted when he called Trey's name…And Cater only said his name so seriously when it was truly important.”

・The EN game switched from “magical healers” to “medical mages,” and the novel went with ”magical healers.”

・Ace refers to Riddle without an honorific just once in the original novel. This is commented on in a line changed to, “You’re already bossing him around.”

・(There is a typo where Cater and Trey are talking about Riddle’s upcoming duel, and a line that Trey says is attributed to Deuce. Deuce is not in the scene.)

・(There is also a typo where Enchanted Mine (changed from ”Dwarf Mine”) is written as “Enchanted Mind.”)

・Ace’s original line of “the way a kid turns out doesn't determine the value of their parents” was written backwards in the EN game, but the EN manga and novel are both accurate to the original game/manga/novel.

・Cater’s line in the original game/manga/novel admonishing Trey for hiding his true feelings has been upheld in the novel as well as the EN manga, with only the EN game rewritten to Cater admonishing himself, instead. (This was possibly subject pronoun confusion.)

・Much like the EN game, Leona’s “Be prepared” was rewritten in the EN novel.

[theguildawards]

Term 2 2024 Winners!

Thank you to everyone who participated in the second term 2024 hosted by The Guild Awards! The mod-team is excited to see so much amazing fanwork and their creators recognized, as well as the love shown for this fandom!

Without further delay, here we are!

Winners of The Guild Awards for Term 2 2024

Best Action/Adventure Fiction: "Flame's Desire" by @kiliinstinct / rougescribe (AO3) Best Alternate Universe/Reality Fiction: "More than just a Fairy Tail" by @chaotickori Best Canon Fiction: "So This Is What Home Feels Like" by @spot-of-tea / spot_of_tea (AO3) Best Angst Fiction: "Redemption" by @spot-of-tea / spot_of_tea (AO3) Best Dark Fiction: "The Last of Us" by @classysassy9791 Best Drama Fiction (tie): "Accepting Fate" by Perfect Memories (FFN) and "World's End: Aftermath" by CairnCircles (AO3) Best Humor/Parody Fiction: "Magic Council Complaint Form #1024: there are mages hiding in the trash cans" by Fireflower34 (AO3) Best Oneshot: "is/was/will be" by Fireflower34 (AO3) Best Character Portrayal: "Silence" (Gajeel) by @firapolemos05 Best Romance Fiction: "Accepting Fate" by Perfect Memories (FFN) Best LGBTQ+ Romance Fiction: "Between Moon and Venus" by Woethe (AO3) Best Serial Fiction: "Taming The Beast" by @dawnwynters Best Ficlet: "Fairy Tail Platonic Week 2024 -Chapter 2: I Missed Our Shenanigans" by @fairytail-multishipper /Luminousrain (AO3) Best NSFW Fiction: “Love Rehabilitation” by annequinox (AO3) Best Completed Fiction: "Finding Forgiveness" by @teleiapotami / Teleia_Potami (AO3) Best Action/Adventure Artwork: "Team Natsu" by @astral-fairyy Best Alternate Universe/Reality Artwork: "the haters can't stop me" by @captainuranium543 Best Canon Artwork: "Red, The Colour of Life" by @pencilofawesomeness Best Angst Artwork: “Happy Rogue Day🖤🐸” by @oryu404 Best Dark Artwork: ""Acnologia Eats Irene" by @love---mandy Best Humor/Parody Artwork: "Pay back" by @shiiro-arts Best Kiss Artwork: "untitled" by @lidiscr Best Romance Artwork: "a soft Lokana" by @artsophiehml Best LGBTQ+ Romance Artwork: "causing problems and sucking face" by @phoenix-before-the-flame Best Character Artwork: "My first fashion icon was Lucy" by @hyun-illus Best Duo/Pairing Artwork: "Leave this to us" by @celestialrayna Best Group Depiction Artwork: "Team Natsu" by @ars-de-elysium Best Manga Coloring: "Fairy Tail/Lolu Coloring" by @almaween Best Redraw Artwork: "erza redraw" by @raptortier Best Overall Artwork: "Art Contest" by @pencilequipped

Congratulations to all the winners! Your awards will be ready soon! Please send one of the mods or our ask box your preferred email address so we can send them to you!

And thank you to those who voted for the Roulette Category for next term! The Roulette fanfiction category for next term will be: Best Mystery Fiction. This will be defined as: A story that has a character holding a profound secret or something kept cautiously concealed. May tend to excite curiosity or wonder in the reader, or may include something that cannot be explained.

As this term comes to a close, The Guild Awards will be taking a short hiatus. This time is always spent reviewing the process and seeing what can be revamped for the next term. We also love hearing from the fandom (ie: YOU!) for suggestions regarding any changes or additions.

We will officially be back in full swing on March 1st! We will still be around in case you have questions or concerns, but please take this time to read new fanfiction and find new fanart.

Want to stay immersed in all things Fairy Tail? Join our Discord! It's open to everyone!

You can also keep up-to-date with all current fandom events by checking out the @ftguildevents page!

As the day gets closer to the start of the next term, we will be keeping everyone in the loop when it comes to changes and updates. We hope everyone has a lovely holiday season! Thank you again for making this such a fun experience! See you soon!

~ The Guild Awards

[ghostwise]

oooh 51 for the touch prompts :)c

51. caressing the other’s cheek, 1k tags: rook x harding, male laidir, act 2 spoilers

Acute lyrium toxicity, reads the header across Emmrich’s handwritten notes. It is not something he is often called upon to treat, so he’s spent the past couple of evenings brushing up on the subject.

He’s read about lyrium’s use in dwarven runecraft, its application in the Circle of Magi as well as the Templar order, and, most intriguing to him, its susceptibility to Blight. He has even reviewed first-hand reports of red lyrium from the Inquisition, courtesy of their very own Inquisition scout, whose interest in the subject has become an all-consuming drive as of late. And for good reason, following her encounter with the Titan’s shadow.

Emmrich has read enough to feel reassured. By all accounts, Rook received a lyrium dosage several times greater than that given to a mage during their Harrowing, and yet, he is still breathing. Whatever Harding did to him down there worked. Usually non-lethal, once the substance is cleared from the blood, so say the texts.

But for Lace Harding, such words hold little weight. She won’t rest until she sees Rook open his eyes.

So Emmrich waits with her. He brings her another cup of tea and Manfred hovers close by, sugar tongs in hand.

“Thank you,” Harding whispers. She smiles weakly as Manfred sweetens her tea. One cube, two cubes, three. Four.

“That’s quite enough, Manfred,” Emmrich murmurs.

“It’s alright. I need all the sweetness I can get,” Harding says, and, for Manfred’s sake, sips at the sugary tea.

The skeleton utters a pleased, gurgling hiss before returning to Laidir’s side, sitting opposite Harding.

“You know, Harding,” Emmrich says carefully, “You should rest. His condition is stable. And I dare say, Manfred has been as constant a caregiver as you and I have.”

“Thank you for your concern,” Harding says evenly. “I’m fine.”

“Lace-” Emmrich sighs.

“Really, Emmrich.” She looks up at him, a puffy and dark quality to the skin under her eyes. “I’m fine. You forget, I’ve spent the last decade… dealing with crisis. Finding solutions.” She shifts and sets her teacup upon the bedside table. “With the Inquisition, I set up new outposts and explored places I’d never dreamed of seeing. Since then, I’ve traveled everywhere—tracking Solas, fighting Venatori, slavers, mercenaries—so, sitting here beside him? It’s easy, Emmrich. Too easy, maybe. This isn’t a problem I can aim an arrow at. It’s…”

Emmrich watches her lapse into silence. She’d done a good job putting things into words, up until she hit a feeling she couldn’t name. He’s a romantic himself; he’s well aware of the tangled paths hearts can take.

“When you first became aware of this… complication, between your emotions and your new-found abilities,” he says slowly, “You mentioned feeling somewhat responsible. And I told you-”

“To be patient,” Harding completes.

On the bed, Lirio lets out a raspy breath. She looks at him for a moment, waiting for his breathing to relax again, before continuing.

“I appreciated that, you know. It was good advice. Everyone else kept saying, don’t worry. But why wouldn’t I worry? I had no clue what was happening to me, and I worse, I was hurting someone I cared about. Or they’d say, it’s not your fault. But it wasn’t about it being my fault, it was about…”

Another pause. Emmrich let his mind wander for a moment, down a hypothetical path: if he had changed, unexpectedly, completely, in such a way that he inadvertently hurt those dearest to him, what would he think?

“It was about understanding yourself,” he guesses. “Making peace with the power.”

“Yeah,” Lace nods. “Yeah, I never felt it was my fault. But I knew it was my responsibility to figure it out. Maybe I never would. And would he be okay with that? Would I?” She glances away, recalling the conversation. “He said he would. I’m inclined to believe him.”

“And now?” Emmrich prompts.

“Now…” Lace shakes her head at the wonder that is her life. “I didn’t ask for this gift, but I have it anyway. The pain the Titans experienced eons upon eons ago… to me, it feels like it happened just yesterday. That’s not my fault. That’s not anyone’s fault. I don’t think it’s something the Titan did to me purposefully, anyway.”

She hesitates, gathering her next words. She still finds it challenging to explain some pieces of what she experienced, but she tries anyway, knowing Emmrich will try to understand.

“Their sense of time is different… a continent could take a lifetime to form, mountains and forests blinking in and out of view. They don’t exist, quick and isolated from others, like we do. And I’m not sure if Titans feel love like we feel love. But they feel connection, through the lyrium. And without connection, there’s just… nothing. The most horrible nothing. A complete inversion of the connection they need to survive.”

“Isatunoll,” Emmrich says with a smile.

“Isatunoll,” Harding echoes softly. “I’m not a Titan. I have to feel like a person feels. Lirio helped me see that.”

“Ah, yes. By exposing himself to the Titan’s lyrium fully!”

Harding glances up at him. Suddenly, she laughs; the clearest sound of laughter he’s heard from her in days.

“You are looking at me with the biggest, cheesiest smile, Emmrich,” she says. “You’re all… mushy and sappy…”

“It’s terribly romantic, Harding,” Emmrich sighs. “I’m happy for you. That’s all.”

“Um. Thank you.” She giggles. “Really, thank you. For all your help. I’m happy too. Or, I will be. Just as soon as I can speak to him. As soon as I know I can…”

Across the bed, Manfred clatters his ribs. A shiver of bones lends way to a happy hiss. Emmrich and Lace look up, conversation forgotten, as Lirio stirs; all stiff muscles and post-lyrium aches.

Lirio cracks open his eyes and blinks as the world around him comes into focus, slowly. All he can see is a bloom of red, the exact shade of which immediately thrills him. “Lace,” he murmurs, though he can’t quite see her yet.

“Lirio,” she breathes. “I’m here.”

She reaches a trembling hand to cup his cheek. She watches for that characteristic blue glow, but it doesn’t come. Then Rook reaches up to cover her hand with his own, leaning into the touch as naturally as rain falls on the windward side of a mountain.

“I’ll fetch more tea,” Emmrich says hurriedly. He pulls Manfred along, away from the two.

As he goes, he thinks to himself again, isatunoll. And wonders whether mountains and people have more in common than Harding had guessed.

[coldshrugs]

glamtober #19 - magic

rebuking pirate-y red mage on this fine day.

items used:

weapon: ala mhigan rapier head: high allagan mask of casting (currant purple) body: paglth'an chestwrap of casting hands: false nails (jet black) legs: warg tights of casting feet: high allagan boots of casting (jet black)

including an alternate shot that didn't pass peer review under the cut, because it shows the front of the glam a little better.

[amaryllis-sagitta]

So, where is the "secret ending" at?

This shit almost looks like some planetary alignment. We've already had Elgar'nan hasten a moon somehow to trigger the eclipse (???), but originally the gods were waiting for a celestial alignment. They needed the magical properties of an eclipse.

This kinda messes with the series' approach to the role of the hero. So far, we've had individuals rise to the occasion, however they could under their circumstances. That the Executors are actively scheming kinda shifts attention to the Kairos (the critical timing) itself and brings in a more fatalistic feel, through this supposed convergence of events into what comes next.

Yet, if we review the plot while looking at all the slides showing their influence, they mostly seem to have had an interest in the Blight.

FIve (?) priests by an altar with human sacrifice under the image of the Golden City, and the Tevinter sigil on the left - that's supposed to represent the Magisters Sidereal. They broke into the Black City, now revealed as a "quarantine zone" for the Blight. The goal might have been to free it all, but only a fraction of the Blight returned with the magisters to the world as a result. According The Dread Wolf Take You, Fen'Harel has recently thwarted another attemptto break into the Black City.

The Blighted Evanuris, imprisoned in the place of Regret, tried to control darkspawn in the world, gathering them around their Archdemons. Humanity devised a way to kill the Archdemons, and the order of Grey Wardens guarded the secret recipe and carried out the duty. Four Blights were ended with their respective Archdemons' deaths, rendering the bound Evanuris "mortal". As a result, most Evanuris might have withered away in their prison since.

It turned out that Grey Wardens kept Corypheus, one of the Magisters Sidereal, imprisoned under the Vimmark Mountains. They hired an apostate named Malcolm Hawke to renew the wards on the prison.

The Fifth Blight begun, and during the first battle of Grey Wardens aided by Ferelden and the local Circle of Magi, Teyrn Loghain ordered the retreat of his forces from Ostagar. As a result, Fereldan Grey Wardens were almost wept out. The family of THAT Malcolm Hawke was driven out of Ferelden.

Flemeth had to send her daughter and future vessel of Mythal, Morrigan, on a mission to accompany the remaining two Grey Wardens of Ostagar (and, as we learn later, to find an opportunity to carry out the Dark Ritual and purify the Old God's soul through an "Old God Baby". Thought that state was discarded in DATV). With Morrigan's defiance and drive to learn her mother's secrets, Flemeth was killed in her dragon form... or something else happened to her that prompted her "respawn" at the Sundermount in DA 2. In retrospective, there's a feeling that Flemeth being weakened somehow mattered here, and that Morrigan might have been sent away from the Korcarri Wilds as... a means of protection.

Flemeth's weird conversation with Hawke about fate and a leap into the abyss hints that she foresaw Hawke's role in The Plot. Hawke was taken to Kirkwall, where they looked for odd jobs as an immigrant and ended up going on a treasure hunting expedition in the Vimmark Mountains...

The red lyrium idol had lied dormant under the Vimmarks, inside a Titan's corpse, the presumably first discovered vein of blighted red lyrium. With DATV reveals, it doesn't seem like a coincidence that Flemythal checked up on the Dalish who lived in the area and probably also other things.

The Tethras Brothers' expedition with Hawke onboard found the idol and Bartrand stole it, having his mind twisted in the aftermath. Bartrand eventually sold the idol off to a woman who turned out to be Knight Templar Meredith Stannard herself, whose reign of mage terror and paranoia was likely fueled even further by red lyrium. These events snowballed into the doom of Kirkwall and were a major contributor to the outbreak of the Mage-Templar war.

Hawke pursued the trail of their father, and they discovered imprisoned Corypheus. Despite Hawke and Varric thinking they defeated Corypheus for good, he sneaked out, having hopped into one of the Grey Wardens present at the site.

Around the year 9:40, Fen'Harel decided he must re-join the world of living, regain his powers, and tear down the Veil ASAP. He set now-freed Corypheus onto the trail of his Orb of power. Corypheus chose the Conclave, called by Divine Justinia Vth in Haven to end the mage-tempalr war, as his opportunity to tear the Breach in the sky and return to the Black City. With the ritual interrupted by the future Herald of Andraste, Inquisition's events ensued. Fen'Harel joined the Inquisition undercover to grant them resources of his former rebellion and nudge it towards success, as he needed someone else to kill Corypheus and let him close enough to his Orb.

In the secret ending, Flemeth is shown in a slide next to Corypheus and the Breach. And we realize that, once again, Flemythal was weakened. After defeating Corypheus, it turned out that Fen'harel's orb got destroyed, and that he could not recover his powers from it anymore. In the DAI post-credit scene, he admitted his mistake of giving his Orb to Corypheus to Flemythal, and she offered him her powers (the final statuette mural in Lighthouse seems to lend this scene a tone of underlying conflict or reluctant consent on Mythal's part, rather than apology and sorrow). Flemythal with experience of entire centuries was no longer an actor in history, even if Morrigan salvaged her legacy and whatever memories of Mythal she could.

The red lyrium idol, now imbued into the red lyrium husk of Meredith, got stolen. Through trickery described in The Assassin's Tale in The Dread Wolf Take You and the intrigue of the comic books from Knight Errant to Dark Fortress, the idol found its way back to Fen'Harel's agents. It was purified into Solas's dagger, as recognized by Rook's vision of Varric in DATV.

According to Luck in The Gardens from Tevinter Nights, an eldritch being named Cekorax haunted Minrathous at some point. It was neither from "this world" nor from The Fade. It had very Void-y things to say about embracing peace in blindness.

Fen'Harel abandoned the Inquisition after Corypheus's defeat. Ten years of distractions, double crossing factions, planting his agents and work undercover followed to ensure the success of his plan. During a crucial meeting of spies at the Teahouse, he made an appearance in disguise, among agents who want to share intel... about his plans specifically. And an Executor was among them. Fen'Harel killed several birds with one stone: petrified the Executor before they revealed to others what they knew, killed the Carta assassin and the Mortalitasi. The agent of the Inquisitor begged for her life, and Fen'Harel granted it - but not before sending Charter away with a warning about the Executors. He also hinted that a greater threat to "all existence" urges him to carry out his plan no matter what.

Varric Tethras established a new network of connections that eventually discovered Fen'harel's hideaway in Minrathous in the nick of time, just as he was moving the remaining two Evanuris to a new, more stable prison before taking down the Veil for good. Rook, informed solely by Varric so far, makes a quick call to interrupt the ritual while Varric tries to talk Solas down. Events of Veilguard ensue. Having swapped with the Evanuris in the Fade prison, Fen'Harel grants the Veilguard the resources of his former rebellion and nudges Rook towards success, as long as it benefits him. He needs someone else to dispose of the Evanuris for him and get his ritual dagger back.

The Veilguard learns about the origins of the Blight and Mythal's and Fen'harel's involvement in it. In retrospective, Mythal commissioned a weapon that would stop the Titans from retaliating for the elvhen firstborn stealing lyrium to make bodies for themselves. By tearing the Titans' spirit essence ("dreams") from them, Mythal corrupted them, which spawned the Blight. Mythal buried the secret of the Blight and tried to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands.

But some people might have found the Void of their own accord and splintered from the Evanuris. These were erased from history and deemed the Forgotten Ones. When Elgar'nan usurped all the power, Mythal turned her back on Fen'Harel to be closer to Elgar'nan instead, where she assessed she was more needed as the gods' Peacekeeper. Ghilan'nain joined the Evanuris in her pursuit of an ultimate transgression. Fen'Harel stepped at Elgar'nan's ego so effectively that the Evanuris wanted to embrace the blight to defeat him???? Mythal gatekept the knowledge again, so Elgar'nan got rid of her. [I'm not sure of this part to be fair, I'm probably missing something. DATV Act 2 was terribly hazy for me]

This prompted Fen'Harel to carry out the Great Betrayal, lock out the Evanuris, and quarantine the Blight in the Black City. The Veil, kept up by the Evanuris's own life force, was established together with the Black City, but it also pulled all the celestial spirit essence to stick to one area, which became the modern Fade. Thus, the Great Betrayal weakened the world's magic and doomed the elvhen race to the Quickening. It seems that Fen'Harel did not expect the full extent of the Betrayal's consequences, and the Veil was doomed to slowly deteriorate on its own anyway. As we learn, the Archdemons being killed in their respective Blights likely led directly to other Evanuris' demise. Fen'Harel feared the Wardens preventively killing the remaining Archdemons in DAI because, before taking all the "precautions" and preparations between DAI and DATV, he must have expected this to abruptly end BOTH "veils" and make the Black City burst open.

The Veilguard slays the two remaining Archdemons and two remaining Evanuris, and no matter the outcome for Solas, he is bound with his life's blood to keep the Veil up - by choice, by trickery, or by force. Wardens near Hossberg hint that the Blight might have started to respond to some other "song", that Antoine sensed underneath the Archdemon/ Evanuris song.

In his "good" ending, Fen'Harel vows to do whatever he can to soothe the sundered Titans' blighted dreams, though he cannot heal it completely. Still, his Dinan'Shiral is far from complete.

CONCLUSION: The Executors seem to show keen interest in the quotient of the Blight in the world, its power, its gatekeepers and its enemies. They might try to snatch control over the Blight once it has started to sing "something else" than the Evanuris. And thanks to a cascade of events that led up to DATV, the Taint is virtually everywhere. Its greatest gatekeeper Flemythal is no longer active and Morrimythal isn't nearly as experienced and competent to fend off cosmic threats. Fen'Harel has been bound to fuel the Veil.

PERSONAL TINFOIL THEORY: The Blight channels whatever is the strongest currently manifest will of the Void. First, it was the corrupted spirit/dreams of the Titans themselves, then, the Evanuris used the Blight as a weapon and made the Archdemons their proxies in the Blight's "song", now it can be the Executors, or the returning Forgotten Ones. Perhaps the Black City has formed a will of its own, even - the Blight eruptions we dispatched across Hossberg Wetlands seemed to be eerily more intelligent than the "regular" Blight.

[norbezjones]

Bez Reviews Independent Books 5: The Last Bread Mage

Hey everyone!  I wanna do little reviews/writeups for the independently-published books I find on itch.io, and so, here I am.  I want to review one book every month or two (or quicker, if I’m lucky); it’ll get me reading more, and get authors who often go without feedback some thoughts on their work!  I think it’ll be cool for everyone!

If you want your book reviewed, the only requirement I have is that it’s hosted on itch.io.  Even if itch is just one of many places you can get the book, I want to review books that have a home there at least.  Feel free to get in touch with me with your books—I’m @NorbezJones on Twitter (I refuse to call it X), Bluesky, Pillowfort, Threads, Instagram, and Tumblr; I’m norbez2.0 on Discord.

Looking forward to seeing your books! <3

__________

After I reviewed M. Kirin’s Memory Leak, Kirin ( @maxkirin ) contacted me and asked if I wanted a review copy of another one of their books, The Last Bread Mage!  I said yes, and here we are!  So to make it plain as possible: I was giving a free copy of this book in order to review it.  However, that does not sway my opinion of the book either way, and my opinions are 100% my own.

So, what’s The Last Bread Mage about?  Well, in a fantasy world, the end times have arrived.  A red mage named Fel manages to survive the destruction of his magic school, and he finds a saint named Amara, who insists they must go to The Pinnacle, the center of the world.  Along their journey, they find a knight named Virgen and a thief named Dormi.  The four journey to the center of the world using the help of Fel’s magic, and when they get there, they make a surprising discovery.

There are almost 30 chapters, and between each chapter is a mini-chapter that describes something that ended off the previous chapter and/or will start off the next chapter.  This “something” can be an object, a person, a piece of worldbuilding, anything really.  These mini-chapters are a cool idea and add a lot to making the world feel real.

So, I won’t bury the lead: I liked this book a whole lot.  I really, really love it.  And not because I got it for free—like I said, that does not affect my opinion, and I honestly wish I could go back in time and spend money on this.  I’m going to make this review as in-depth as possible to make up for the fact that barely anybody has read this fucking amazing book.  I have criticisms, obviously, but overall, this book is a 10/10 from me.

It reminded me of the thick sci-fi & fantasy epics I read to pass time in the hospital (to be clear, that is a compliment), immersing myself in deep worlds with rich characters between the pages.  I wish I’d had The Last Bread Mage during my last trip to inpatient.  I’m glad I have it now, at least.

Also, it’s one of those books that the more you read it, the more the meaning of the cover becomes clear & changes.  The last time that happened was with Still Life With Woodpecker, and it was pretty cool to see it happening here.

You might be asking, “Why is it called The Last Bread Mage?”  This is because Fel is the last red mage, and “bread mage” is another name for “red mage” due to the fact that red mages make bread for hungry people.  They basically use their magic to bend the rules of the universe using the three basic components all things are made of: texture, fiber, & substance.  By mixing & matching these basic materials, they can turn one thing into an entirely different thing, like when Fel renders the bars of a cell into bread.  They use up energy when they do that though, so they can’t do it forever—after all, even magic-users are only human.

The magic system in this book is very interesting, and makes for some very unique ways for Fel to get him & his friends out of the perils they end up facing.  It also soon leads to theological implications, because red mages’ magic changes the logic of the universe set by God.  However, God can only “see” the basic components all things are made of, so since a transmuted item retains the same basic materials, in God’s eyes, nothing has changed.  These theological implications are explored in various ways and go in many directions I didn’t expect, like when Fel uses his powers to make him & his friends not exist in the eyes of God.

There are also times where Fel’s powers go awry, though, through no fault of his own.  Basically, the apocalypse occurring in the world is causing the world’s logic to fall apart, drowning continents and making fantastical creatures appear that previously only existed in fiction.  This means that the logic behind Fel’s powers sometimes fails him, such as when he tries to make a doorway for him & Amara to escape down the block from a threat, but when they go through that doorway, they’ve been transported halfway across the world.

By making the story about the logic of the universe and how it can be exploited or make what should go right go wrong, the book carries a consistent throughline throughout the whole thing, even & especially when Fel does his most shocking action near the end of the story.  It’s a very admirable feat.

Speaking of the ending, I do want to talk about that.  If you don’t want to be spoiled, skip to the “SPOILERS END HERE” line.

**SPOILERS START HERE**

When Fel and his friends reach The Pinnacle, they meet a few other folks there—and they meet God.  I wasn’t sure if God was going to end up being real or not, but there it is, fretting as the world comes to an end.  It’s revealed that God made the world in an effort to make order out of chaos, but chaos keeps seeping through, no matter what it does.  It has ended & restarted the world many, many, many times, always bringing back The Chosen Four (Amara & three others named Lumbre, Huesos, & Frio) and The Fated Four (Fel [true name: Felicidad], Virgen [true name: Virtud], Dormi [true name: Domino (a name Dormi finds “fucking stupid”) & Beatrix [true name: Hambre])

Beatrix is a very interesting character.  In this lifetime, she was the butcher in the prison Dormi was locked up in, ruthlessly killing many of Dormi’s friends.  But she regrets being that person, thought she had to make herself into what she now realizes is a monster.  Her & Dormi’s reflection is shown in this passage:

“Dormi and Beatrix‌—‌who had been incredibly lost until this point‌—‌found themselves looking at one another. They thought about the life they’d led and wondered how different things would’ve been had they switched places. It humbled Beatrix, for she had been taught to hate the people of Gritlan, and it scared Dormi, for they were terrified of the butcher they might’ve become.”

The eight of them are always created when a new cycle begins.  Amara remembers every single cycle, every single timeline that has ever existed.  So does God, of course.  And now, it’s time for the world to end for a new cycle to begin.

The Chosen Four all carry pieces of The Worldly Egg, from which a new cycle of the world will hatch.  They take out their pieces, the egg forms—but God doesn’t hatch it.  Instead, God admits to them that it is tired of change, of chaos.  It longs for predictability, and wants this all to end.  It wants this to be the last cycle to ever exist.

Of course, everyone else protests.  So, God asks them all to vote whether this should be the last cycle of the world.  God votes Yea, as it is tired of doing this over & over again.  Everyone else votes, until finally, Fel has to be the tiebreaker. 

But instead of voting, Fel takes the The Worldly Egg and rends it, crunching it down to its most basic materials and absorbing them into himself.  In doing so, Fel absorbs everything existing into himself—the world, his friends, even God—and becomes the new creator of the universe.  The Prince of Absolute Chaos.

He creates a new cycle, brings his friends back.  God is reborn as a child, and as a being who has never had a name, it asks Fel to have his—to be named Felicidad.  Fel says yes, as long as, “[Y]ou must promise me to honor the name by living a life full of joy, laughter, and smiles.  Do you promise?”

The previous God thinks about it—after all, life could be full of “joy, laughter, and smiles” or it can be full of “misery and misfortune”.  In the end, it promises Fel it will uphold the name, and the book ends on that final exchange.

I teared up quite a bit as I read through the ending, and even going back to find quotes for this review made me tear up again.  Saving your friends, saving the world, and even saving God—there’s something very beautiful in that, I think.

I also love how Kirin was able to bring aspects of his Mexican culture into the book, by making all of the true names that of “the first language” within the book’s universe (Spanish).  It’s a nice little touch and I think it’s neat.

**SPOILERS END HERE**

Now for my criticisms.  Like Adrian in Memory Leak, Fel is referred to as “the young man” quite a lot.  Sometimes this happens multiple times in the same paragraph.  This seems to be in an effort to avoid using pronouns instead, but sometimes, it’s better to just say “he”, as someone who also has this problem in eir writing (thanks, OCD [literally, not a figure of speech]!).

That’s basically my only nitpick.  I wish I had more to criticize honestly, but I really don’t.  Good problems to have.

In conclusion, I’ve never been angrier that a book isn’t popular than when I finished this one.  Where are the Tumblr shitposts and multiple pieces of fanart for this book?  I’m so mad lmao!  Also, I imagine I will have that feeling quite a bit as I continue this book review series.

I want to leave off with these words that Amara says to Fel, because I think they’re beautiful:

“‘The only thing worth a damn in this world is being the best versions of ourselves. What does that look like to you, sweet Fel? What does the best version of you look like? It may seem far away, unreachable at the best of times, but you should reach out for this impossible ideal. Be the truest version of yourself. That’s the only thing we can do. Everything else? My dear, everything else is a gamble.’”

So true, bestie.  Amen.

[rottenpumpkin13]

Mass text from Director Lazard:

Attention! According to my sources, the Department of SOLDIER is getting a surprise inspection by the President in less than 2 hours. Please wear your uniforms (shirt included!) and be on your best behaviour. If you have to, you can use the storage room 4903, but please no human or animal corpses this time. Use the incinerator in R&D. Please remember to pick up all your belongings after the inspection, let's not traumatise our cleaning staff again.

The Fire Olympics scheduled for Saturday is an unofficial event and we are NOT going to mention it to the President.

Kind regards,

Lazard

Inspection Day

• Lazard sends the email, then casually goes back to work, reviewing some documents, the norm. The SOLDIERs are a handful, sure, but trusts his men. They're good people and that's why he's letting them have the fire olympics. After all, they deserve it. They've been on his best behavior lately and—why does he smell smoke and hear screaming?

• He gets up and rushes out into the main hallway.

• First thing he sees is Sephiroth running from a determined Angeal and four other SOLDIERs. Angeal has a uniform shirt in his hands and the others are all holding tranquilizer guns.

• Angeal is laughing manically while chasing him, screaming "HAHA WE GOT YOU NOW BITCH" and Sephiroth is heard replying with "I REFUSE. NEVER. OVER MY DEAD BODY."

• Genesis is crying. He's playing tug of war with his red coat while two 3rds try to wrestle it away from him.

SOLDIER: Commander, I understand why you're upset, but it's not part of the issued uniform!

Genesis: But I'm the Crimson Commander! The Red Mage of ShinRa! How else am I supposed to show that I'm special!?

• Meanwhile Kunsel stumbles out of Genesis's office looking dazed and petrified.

Kunsel: The amount of illegal shit in this man's office OH MY god. Zack! Hey Zack, help us drag some of this kerosene, gasoline, fireworks, Molotov cocktails, Dynamite, Sephiroth cardboard cutout filled with bullet holes, and what I hope isn't drugs down into the storage room...Zack? Zack, where are you going?

• Zack ignores him. He's holding a box of leashes and cages and looks as white as a sheet.

Zack, mumbling to himself: I knew this was going to happen one day. Okay, Zack, you got this. You got this, don't panic.

• And then Cloud stumbles out of Angeal's office holding a.... suspicious..plant.

Cloud: CODE RED. CODE FUCKING RED. HEWLEY HAD MARIJUANA IN HIS OFFICE.

• Angeal, who was passing by holding a struggling Sephiroth with duct tape over his mouth, stops cold in his tracks.

Angeal: I had WHAT in my office?

Genesis, hopeful: Oh! It grew!? <3

Angeal: YOU WERE GROWING WEED IN MY OFFICE???

• At that moment Zack walks buy with about 8 dogs on leashes and a cage under his arm that contains a feral hamster.

• But no one pays attention because Sephiroth has freed himself, tears away his shirt, and is running away screaming through his duct taped mouth.

• Angeal and the other SOLDIERs run after him, nearly crashing into a dispirited Roche coming in

Roche: Bad news, guys. How are we gonna cover the hole in the lounge wall from the time I drove through it on my bike?

• Zack walks buy with 3 pigs on leashes and an exotic bird on his shoulder.

• Angeal walks back in dragging Sephiroth. Sephiroth has his hands and feet bound. They put him in another shirt and are now left with the arduous task of tying his hair up.

Sephiroth: #$*@&!

Angeal: Woah! You kiss your mother with that mouth?

Sephiroth:

Angeal: Ah shit, man, sorry.

• Zack rides by on a horse.

• Genesis walks in wearing the standard SOLDIER uniform without his added accessories.

Genesis: No, no, noooo! I look so boring! How am I supposed to—ACK!

• Kunsel crashes through the ceiling and falls on top of Genesis. Genesis is now partially unconscious on the floor covered in white dust, and there is now a gaping hole in the ceiling.

• Kunsel: Guys, quick, someone help me burn these illegal documents I stole from the turks and was hiding in the vents!

• A few SOLDIERS run out of the elevator hacking and coughing with watering eyes.

Luxiere: Commander Rhapsodos's illegal items broke the incinerator.

• Zack runs by chasing 7 chickens.

• Cloud runs in.

Cloud: You're not gonna believe this! Remember the stolen materia the Turks were investigating a few months back? I found the stash here. The culprit is a SOLDIER!

Genesis: Well they're not going to confiscate MY loot!

Cloud: IT WAS YOU!?

• Zack passes by with what could potentially be all of the Chocobos in Midgar.

• Angeal finally gets Sephiroth into the complete, official SOLDIER uniform sans accessories. Sephiroth looks severely miffed and wants to run away, but Angeal is holding a tranquilizer gun.

• Zack walks by with an Alligator. It's notable to mention that the alligator has a name tag that reads Lacoste.

• And then Roche walks back in.

Roche: Im gonna pass out. Did you guys read the handbook? Article 38 says all SOLDIER operatives cannot have hair that exceeds 30 centimeters.

• Angeal looks at Sephiroth.

• Sephiroth looks at Angeal.

• Angeal pulls out a razor.

Sephiroth: OH NO YOU DON'T

• Both he and Roche run away screaming.

Genesis: Oh, I almost forgot about the stripper pole we installed in the gym. Better go take that down.

• Zack rushes by riding an ostrich.

Lazard: I'm going to get fired.

[the-black-mage-of-phantasm]

Red My Mind: A Red Team Fanfic Summary: While hunting for Christmas decorations, Diana learns a lot about the red team. Ao3 Link to Story, FFN Link to Story Art by the wonderful Pili BlueBerry on Instagram!

Current Chapters: 1

Current Length 10,441 words

Updates (Hopefully) Monthly. Next update, January 29th.

My gift for @thewholekittyandkaboodle for the @lwasanta secret santa gift exchange. Both art, and a fanfic! I was assigned to make a a fic centered on the red team, with one of the major themes being teamwork. And this gave me the idea to do a character study of the red team through the eyes of Diana!Thus, this story was born, and I teamed up with a good artist friend of mine, Pili, to make the cover! I tried to get this out by Christmas, but my job got busy, and this story took a life on its own, and what I had planned to be a one-shot turned into a three-shot. But still, I’m sorry for the delay; I’m gonna do my best to get out the next chapter in about a month. For those of you who follow Envenomation, know that there might be a one/two week delay because this fic has taken up a lot of my free time lately. Again, I’ll do my best to get it out soon, but, right now, I’m honestly feeling a bit sick, so I’m not sure how much writing I’ll be able to get done. And with that, these notes come to a close. Don't hesitate to tell me what you liked and/or didn't like about this chapter in the reviews!. This is Black Mage of Phantasm signing off. Peace!

[redmagedovei]

Pokémon FireRed: Flying Monotype (Post Run Review)

Version Played: GBA Rules: Only Pokémon that are Flying, part Flying or evolve into Flying types may be on the team at any given time. (Charmander OK, Scyther OK unless it evolves) No Legendary/Mythical Pokémon allowed. Goal: Elite Four (Any%)

Challenge Rating: ★✩✩✩✩ Fun Rating: ★★★★✩ Overview: Super simple without being completely free. Flying is a fun type with a lot of hybrids to keep some diversity. The lack of a Physcial/Special split kinda hurts, but that's old Pkmn for you! But this one was fun. A lot of mons made me surprised at how versatile some can be, casually! The team was as follows: Inferno?! (Charizard) Oberon (Butterfree) Manafa (Gyarados) Kweh ' v ' (Dodrio) Freyja (Scyther) Haruka (Dragonite) Final Thoughts/Recommendation: This is another on the list of good entry level challenge runs! I picked this one for its relative ease, since it was sandwiched between two other hard runs, at least in terms of intended scheduling. Truth be told, I wanted an easy time because I wanted a break between tougher runs. That said: Any monotype can be made easy or hard depending on the type used. Flying is relatively easy. Butterfree pulls a lot more weight than one might expect, and Dodrio is a beast in any capacity. Special attackers for my run were Charizard and Dragonair/Dragonite. Any other fliers might be viable, though. Not a lot in terms of walls, surprisingly. Just don't overlevel for Surge and remember that Brock doesn't actually have any Rock-type moves. (DISCLAIMER: Rare Candy cheat WAS used before the Elite Four to cut down on multiple hours' worth of grinding. This is justified to me, because I'm denying 'mons of extra EVs at the end of the game, and all I'm ultimately doing is cutting down on time spent grinding.)

[elfenphoenix]

Honest review of Dragon Age: the Veilguard so far

Positive: I like the map layouts, the exploration mechanics, and oh my GOD do I love the hair graphics. I'm still getting used to the equipment upgrade system, but I think I'll figure it out with time.

I haven't met all of the cast yet (outside of reading Tevinter Nights and listening to Vows and Vengeance), but so far they're pretty interesting! So far the least engaging has been Neve, but I think that's just because she hasn't shown very much strong personality yet? Which might BE her personality, but I'll see.

Negatives: i don't like the redesign of the darkspawn. They look like cartoons, now. Part of what made them so creepy/interesting was how they looked very much like twisted versions of the races that each variety came from, but that's all kind of gotten lost in the weeds, i think. They just look like generic beasties now. Like something fortnite would put out for a Halloween skin.

I'm tentative about the world state. I don't like that apparently my Inquisitor's love interest is more important to the narrative somehow than... idk drinking from the Well of Sorrows? And lore-wise i am uncomfortable with the retcon that the elves apparently just... all recognize that their gods are evil? Like that was a HUGE revelation in Inquisition so it feels kind of... dismissive? That everyone is just like "oh yeah the elven gods are EVIL we all KNOW it'd be TERRIBLE for them to return.

And now (true rant under the cut):

I hate the combat. I HATE the combat system. It doesn't feel different at all to play as a warrior versus a mage versus a rogue. The abilities all have different names and different animations, but functionally what you are capable of is the same. Which i don't like. The whole point of having different classes is to accommodate different playstyles, isn't it? I like to play as a warrior because I DO NOT LIKE FAST-PACED BUTTON COMBINATIONS. I like to play as a simple meat shield, cutting through enemies or taking the hits. And with every single other Dragon Age game, that was fine. But with the current mechanics, it doesn't fucking matter. Can't just use a shield--enemies have attacks that you HAVE to dodge. So there's combos for blocking and attacking, plus there's the stagger bar, plus the little aura that shows up when you're about to get hit, which you have to watch carefully becaus if it's YELLOW then you want to block but if it's RED then you MUST dodge... ALL THE WHILE your health bar is on the BOTTOM LEFT corner of the screen, nearly impossible to keep track of while you're ALSO keeping track of all that I've already mentioned. There is so much going on on screen at all times that by the time I remember what buttons to push I've already lost half my health or more. In many ways, the combat reminds me a lot of the Spider-man game, which is a very great game! Which I can't play. But what makes it a good game nonetheless is that it makes sense? Like, you're Spiderman, of course the gameplay is going to be fast-paced and reflex-based. If you don't like that, then play a different game. But what I always liked about combat in Dragon Age up until now is that it WASN'T like that, provided you chose a class that worked for you. It WAS the game i played because I'm not cut out for Spiderman. It still posed plenty of challenge without getting my fingers twisted in knots. And I know people will say "well hey if you don't like it then just turn down the difficulty!" But that's missing the point. If I wanted to play a fast-paced button combo game, I'd play something from Fromsoft. But I don't. Why? Because I'm not good at them. Which is why I play Dragon Age. I got to play an amazing fantasy RPG without feeling like i needed to "get good" just to enjoy the game. It's just... so incredibly frustrating to me that they took one of my favorite things about the franchise and just... destroyed it.

That's not to say that I don't understand the desire to make a different game than what came before. Inquisition had its issues, da2 had its issues, origins had its issues... and it makes sense to want to make changes and improvements, but this...

My friend told me that she thinks the changes are to make it more similar to Mass Effect. I can neither confirm nor deny, but I don't want to play Mass Effect! I want to play Dragon Age.

...anyway. tl;Dr I hate the new combat system and I wish bioware/EA didn't feel it was necessary. Not everyone wants every game to be complex button-combos.

[pbear]

Fairy Tail 100 Years Quest Review - Episode 13

Pretty good episode if I do say so myself

The Erza and Laxus fight was probably the best fight of the series for me so far. (The fights are so short though) I loved seeing Erza's enchanted blades representing Natsu and Gray. The enchantments on her swords have helped add some more variety. I would love to see swords enchanted with Wendy and Lucy's magic in the future too.

I had to look up where Laxus got his red lightning because I completely forgot how he got it during the Alvarez arc.

Erza being happy to see how strong Laxus is was sweet. I think there's also a really sad element to it because it implies that Erza feels the need to be able to protect the guild on her own. (I mean, she's not completely wrong about the defense of the guild because they all got taken over by the White Mage but I'll let it slide)

Super frustrating that Kiria gets her way. She would have been instantly taken out if she enters that fight, let's be real.

I did think Touka actually having a crush on Happy was funny. It also kind of made sense since she's actually an exceed. (I forgot about the hints that were dropped about that in the first couple episodes) It was very suspicious that the White Mage refuses to answer Natsu's question about why she's possessing a cat. I'm curious if that will come back around.

DANG Happy was savage this episode. The White Mage fully took that orb to the back. It looked painful. I audibly gasped. Then, these crystals and branches begin taking over her body. It was actually pretty creepy. The orbs haven't been explained that much so I have no idea what could be in them to cause this. Very interested to see how she's going to react to this.

[jasper-pagan-witch]

2024 Grimoire Challenge Review - January Week 1

Well, I had to wait until Wednesday to get out of the house and get a binder and some paper for my challenge grimoire this year, so I basically speedran all of the December prep and the first week of January, because I will never learn and never improve on this habit of mine.

Keeping in line with other grimoires I've used in the past (such as the Epsilon Ledger and the Delta Book of Tarot Spreads), this red binder has been named the Eta Binder. I wrote down my proper name (let's go, trans mages!), tacked @2024-grimoire-challenge onto it to remind myself that that's what we're doing, and gave it a date of working. Since I started on Wednesday, that's 1/3/2024 (because I'm an American) to an unknown end date.

I had to scramble to come up with a list of 52 plants and stones to work on. I just went through the list of herbs and teas offered by my local ("local" being half an hour away) spice shop and capped it off with some Missouri flowers. For the stones, I just flipped through Judy Hall's Crystal Bible (somehow both a really good and really bad reference book) back and forth a bunch of times until I had a list of crystals I hadn't already done dives about.

As for my magical study ideas, I mostly just threw shit down that I've been interested in or have just gotten interested in. I gave each deity I worship their own bulletpoint and also split up the specific areas of pop culture magic I'm digging more into. I made sure there was a blend of comfortable old stuff, brand new stuff that I'm not sure of, and things that are generally outside of my purview.

Through the power of "work had too many 3-ring binder dividers", I have split my binder into seven sections - 1 is Plants, 2 is Stones, 3 is Work-Related Notes, 4 is Spells Designed (if I complete any, they'll be moved into my spell binder that also houses all of my correspondence lists), 5 if Journal, 6 is currently blank, and 7 is Empty Pages.

Then I finally got started on the actual projects. For the plant and crystal prompts this week, I used an integer generator online to choose two numbers randomly and received caraway (aka Carum carvi) and muscovite (aka KAl2(AlSi3O10)(F,OH)2), so I used my normal research process for the two. It was actually pretty fun, if you ignore the fact that my hand hurt so much because it ended up being 4 pages (well, 2 pages but front and back) EACH of information drawn from books and digital sources that I was all but copying word for word.

As for the Work-Related Notes, that's where I've saved things like my Definitions page, Spellwriting 101 (in my practice), and a page about my Common Tools.

I will admit that I skipped the year outline, mostly because the passing of the year means near nothing in my craft. I don't celebrate any particular "magical holidays", I don't work by the moon cycle, I'm definitely not Wiccan and thus don't celebrate the Wheel of the Year, seasons just mean whether or not I have to wear a coat, and I don't care about matching particular workings to days of the week. I'm starting to think I'm just a deeply boring person, upon reflection.

Then we get to the Work Spaces / Altars page, and oh boy! I don't actually do...workings at my altars, so they're probably better described as shrines. I have my Primary Work Space (my wooden desk, the metal microwave stand I've stolen from somewhere, and the tiny red bookshelf under the microwave stand) that is an absolute MESS at every given point that holds whatever the fuck I'm working on, regardless of what project it is. I have a Thoughtform & Spirit Shelf (which is actually a partial shelf) in my big red bookshelf that holds the anchors for my thoughtforms but also my PokeFamiliar. I have five altars around my room that are currently holding seven deities, a candle for an eighth deity, the Lokifam, three spirits, the Unknown Benefactor, the symbol of an animal spirit I want to reach out to at some point this year, and Jasper's Casper (an adorable little ghost that my coworker and her daughter crocheted for me to celebrate the first anniversary of me working at the library).

Shit's a bit cramped in here!

And today, I'm writing about my Personal Practices that have made it into my craft. I'm actually working on this now, but I paused to write up this summary. It's pretty neat to think about all the stuff I've done that I still do.

Results: My hand hurts and my head is throbbing, but c'est la vie. This is a really fun challenge, and I hope it goes all the way through 2024, unlike when I tried to do the 2023 challenge and the host of that one vanished into the aether.

[inquisimer]

2023 writing round up

bringing back this fun little year-end writing review from last year :3 it's always so fun to look back and see what all the little pieces and all the time adds up to!

tagging if you'd like to join in: @shivunin | @rosella-writes | @fadedsweater | @exalted-dawn-drabbles | @kiastirling-fanfic | and @warpedlegacy

words posted: 109,617

additional words written: 84,453

grand total of words: 194,070

fandoms: 2 - Dragon Age & Dishonored

highest kudos: The Lie Upon Your Sleep at 20 - a bit of fluff & hurt/comfort with my healer OC Ness and Cullen

highest hit oneshot: to be seen feeling at 200 - a piece I wrote for my friend @dreadfutures as part of the DAFF Discord OC Swap. An exploration of her Mahariel as Warden-Commander and Teryn during Awakening and his life with Morrigan and Kieran in the Crossroads.

new things I tried: Writing non-canon romances! And participating in a lot more fandom exchanges.

fic I spent the most time on: hard to say, probably my unpublished Surana Lavellan rewrite! Of my published fics, I think it would be if our demons cannot dance - angst, hurt/comfort, and missing scenes for my anders rivalmance.

fic I spent the least time on: either Not Like This, a character study of Emily's guilt/regret as she flees Dunwall in D2, or I carried my own ashes to the mountain, some light hurt/comfort and fluffy friendship between Brosca & Zevran on their way back to Orzammar

favorite thing I wrote: any of my pieces with Siobhan Hawke, my Blorbo of the Year for sure. She's so different than the type of Hawke I usually play, being Red-Purple and leaning into the politicking aspect of her role in Kirkwall. I've loved exploring a Hawke who doesn't run away from Kirkwall, who stays and works within the system to make things better. And of course writing her different dynamics with Loghain and Sebastian have been both interesting and challenging for me creatively.

favorite thing(s) I read:

Things my heart used to know (things it yearns to remember) by NiriKeehan (@nirikeehan) - the gift I received as part of the DAFF Discord OC swap, an incredibly well-done piece of my OC Neria and Cullen finding common ground in their respective roles in the Inquisition

A Fool's Death and a Hard Choice by RosellaWrite (@rosella-writes) - an beautiful study of Warden Loghain leading up to and through DAI, his journey looking for Mahariel, how he meets up with Hawke, and his reunion with Morrigan & Kieran at Skyhold.

In Flame Forged Anew by Plisuu (@plisuu) - DAI as experienced by Connor Trevelyan, Templar turned mage turned Tranquil turned Herald of Andraste. He's a little fucked up by it all and this compelling story will tear you to shreds right from the start.

Dirty Little Secrets by SylvanRain (@sylvanraindrop) - DAI retold from the perspective of one of Leliana's agents, featuring the smoothest motherfucker Lavellan, lots of intrigue and spy shenanigans, and Cullen being both endearingly soft and Good At His Job

what we talk about when we talk about whalers by patho (ghostsoldier) - a collection of one shots set in and around the Knife of Dunwall DLC for Dishonored, ranging from lighthearted and funny to absolutely heart-wrenching ;-; beautifully well-done snippets that build out the in-game mechanics and lore!

writing goals for 2024: finish my Surana Lavellan rewrite up through IYHSB, which is when I've promised myself I'll start posting it again 😤 and also to finish at least one of the smut pieces that I have half-started in various drafts

new works: 21

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[nobodyexpectsthe]

@onlyinthedas

he should be dead.

that's the simply truth of it. it's the consensus of both solas and surgeon, science and magic shaking hands over what should have been an impossibility. that he made it all the way from the free marches to the lofty peaks of skyhold is nothing short of a miracle.

and it's a cruel one at that.

the report his rescuers give is harrowing. the state of the bodies, the frenzy of the townsfolk - and the destruction that one grieving mage had caused painted a terrible picture. pirith had clearly not anticipated surviving his own last stand, but there he was. in their care, hanging on by a thread by still hanging on.

it worsens with each word. a note that he'd been awake for much of the return, lost to the delirium of fever and unable to recognize friend from foe. the men had feared that he'd give himself over to a demon and had quietly debated on if killing him would be better, more humane and safer for them all. but the sheer will to live that the elf had to possess to survive the first few days stayed their hands. they did what they could to ease his suffering. the mages keep him stable, they have men ride ahead to call for the medics to prepare somewhere clean and warm. the dirt won't do for this.

it's weeks before he's awake. the pain is mercifully dulled by poultices and potions. expert hands wrap his burns and far more powerful healers step in to do the work that soldiers and field medics couldn't. but they can't do anything for the pain that comes when he awakes and finds everything he held dear has turned to ash.

a cruel miracle indeed.

the people are kind, but it's a kindness born from pity that makes his guts twist. words echo, and too often he has heard the orlesian delegates sigh ah, the poor little rabbit like that does something. he'd healed well enough while unconscious to move, and so the moment his eyes are open he begs to be of use. to make his survival worth something.

the best they can do is hand off their notes on the downfall of his people. red lyrium.

he knows who the heavy footsteps belong to well before he looks up from the notes he'd been given to review. the healer - surgeon - had mentioned the return of the inquisitor the previous night, indicating that he should expect a visit before long. pirith looks up from his scattered work, uncertain what to expect from the man the humans have appointed herald of their god.

"you must be him," carefully he sets the papers off to the side, turning his full attention to the man before him. the elf's voice is raw, still wrecked from smoke inhalation and strained by the energy it takes just to be upright. "it is nice to put a face to the title. andaran atish’an, inquisitor... you answered my call for aid when no one else would. for that you have my thanks."

even if it had amounted to nothing in the end.