#also if the party gets lost in the dungeon they can still eat monsters. as a treat

[ambrosiagourmet]

"But Glitz what about the food dungeon meshi is about eating how does that-" the focus would still be on our fundamental needs but it would be more about the need for connection. The themes of wanting to know and be known are already there in the original story. Instead of being hungry, the Demon craves, above all else, to be understood. It doesn't eventually eat the dungeon lord, it subsumes them. It has a thousand years of souls mixed up in inside it's being now, and all of them make it bigger, more confusing, and lonelier.

Mithrun didn't lose his desires, but he isn't entirely sure if he's the same person he was before he connected with it. He's not sure how much of himself remains and how much is an amalgam of past dungeon lords, brought into himself while he was lost in the "drift" within the Demon.

[chuckeroo777]

Dungeon Meshi Volume 7 Part 1

Welcome back! Today we are covering volume 7! As always, this is a post finishing look, so spoilers ahoy!

So... does Kui have a thing for legs? I can't help but feel like there are quite a few spots where legs are emphasized, and there's even that extra where Namari accidentally reveals she has a leg fetish.

I'm still questioning where they got the stuff they already had. Where did they get the bags and futons?

Kabru. Kabru, were you so desperate not to eat monsters, that you tried eating soap?

Trust me, the real reason is a lot stupider.

Normally I'd make a joke about "Oh if only you knew," but honestly? This one panel is sexier than pretty much every piece of fanart I've seen, so for once, good job not being horny internet.

*Glances over at my succession post where I briefly touch on Marcille's and Izutsumi's reproductive situation.* Oh no, I am a Laios.

Oh boy! I can't wait to smell like fish!

An important image.

Laios: God, I wish.

An important bit of exposition that got cut from the anime. This is how the Faligon can sustain itself despite the tiny mouth.

Not gonna lie, I laughed out loud when I saw this silly thing. I recognized it right away. I was making a card game a while back involving ecosystems made of real, extinct, and fictional plants and animals, and I was having a heck of a time finding mythical/fictional plants that weren't just "fruit but real good" or "fruit but real bad" or "Walking tree". The vegetable lamb is a real standout. (And of course I had mandrakes. They were in the 'real' category, and had a special interaction with fictional creatures.)

Why didn't Chilchuck kick the staff down to Marcille? Is he stupid?

Uh, I get the metaphor, but how does this accomplish anything other than getting you more lost?

I wonder if the rind also tastes like crab. Honestly, this thing sounds great. I'd eat it.

More Kui leg propagnada.

That's an oddly specific thing to be worried about. Like, things are advanced enough in this world that basic plumbing exists, right?

I love how this stupid bell does nothing but annoy Toshiro until the eleventh hour.

Did you? Kabru did, but you just ate an onigiri, and that other stuff Maizuru made.

Falin is a proper cleric. All holy and kind and healing, but willing and able to cave in some skulls.

I love how in this spot highlighting Laios's questionable party, Kabru can't say anything bad about Chilchuck.

Another Laios parallel. Kabru also manages to rope Toshiro into his business against his better judgement.

When you overthink the metaphor and it makes way too much sense.

When you overthink the metaphor and it stops making any sense.

Kitty

Seems like a heck of a loophole. Why didn't we bring this stuff with us?

Haha, get it? Dying? Cause they can't?

I think the fact that Laios has a stronger emotional reaction to a minotaur than he does a succubus says everything really.

They mention it at the brewery too, but I like how they like the orcs. I wonder how much contact they have with the orcs? The orcs don't talk about it really. Do they just leave caches for the orcs to find? Or do the orcs vist the golden country directly? The brewer mentions the hops were a request, so they must communicate somehow.

How I feel about other people's kinks.

Senshi. You can't just drop that line without context. What do you mean? Are they grafting dryad buds to more typical plants? Or are they making horrible plant chimeras? Give me the botany details dangit!

And with that, we will continue in part two!

[grabowskibeepboop]

So, I'm an anime watcher, not a manga reader, blame it on proctrastination but I wanna talk about dungeon meshi so I will, even if I haven't read the manga, so my thoughts so far

Halflings are fake ass bitches, which is not a bad thing, but they will talk shit about each other behind their backs, but when everyone's in danger they will prioritize their own safety along with other halflings in the party, I know that's what we've seen already but I think it's just a trait they all share, exept if they're under different circumstances like one of them has a kobold companion (which btw I don't know where kobolds being furries came from, as far as I know kobolds look like goblins and such, but sure, I like furries so go ahead)

Laios is gay and it's heavily hinted at, okay maybe not that heavily but I'm 1000% sure it's hinted at, I mean who else would hear "there's a naked guy dancing in that painting" and say it's the perfect painting to jump into, and even if you think that's a coincidence and he was just hungry, not being affected by sirens' song and even knowing how to make it uneffective for your party members is pretty gay imo, and maybe it's not a specifically gay trait, but not being able to pick up on when other people flirt with each other or even you is just something I really love about him and I really want to say it's a queer trait, so manga readers, don't spoil me, but can you back me up on this? Or maybe debunk me, I don't know

It's not that hinted at, but I think that even if she's not in love with Falin, whatsherface is gay at the very least, with Falin being her awakening, but even if she's somehow not, Laios is and they're best friends, I'm not taking any votes

Whatshisface, the one with the chimmunk name, sorry I always forget complicated names, but if he's gonna end up with a woman, he needs a dommy mommy, I'm also not taking any votes on this

Personal headcanon because I think this would make for a great gig is that Senshi and I'm sorry if I misspelled it is still older than the rest (as in, I think whatsherface is above 100 or at least close to it, but I think converted into human [or species that live as long as humans] years she's around her early 20s because she's still pretty immature), but as far as I've learned from other media I'd assume that dwaves live around as long as elves, or at least they measure in hundreds, so I want to say he's still older than the rest, but he's a pretty young dwarf, I'd say he's around his 80s or something, but converted into human [...] years he's around his mid 30s or 40s

I wanna say this, not proud of it but at first I thought whatshis-pony-tail's new party consisted of his wives, but it's not so I was wrong, just saying this as a "fun" fact

I love myself a gossip king, I live for the drama too

Honestly wanna say that if I lived in a world where there were monsters I would've assumed that adventurers eat them on the daily, like that's what I would've done, why should I waste all that flesh and ingredients? Like I think video games already let you eat moster flesh do they not? Minecraft does, it is poisonous but still, I wouldn't be hesitant to eat them just because they're monsters, maybe I would be disgusted sometimes, but if I defeated a giant half chicken half snake monster I would be eating chicken for days (if I had the equipment to keep it edible), maybe even the snake part if I didn't feel so picky

The fact that they can make dungeons and they even study it and one of the characters wants to make one is genius imo

Edit with further thoughts:

(I just watched ep.19 so this is newer than the rest) Laios is a furry confirmed?

What if, if the dungeon cleaners get trappet for a long enough time in a different system they become part of that system, so they can be used as replacement for lost blood? (And no I didn't think of this while daydreaming about Kabru reuniting with injured Laios what are you talking about?)

So what if Kabru kissing whatsherface was just them showing that he's not hesitant to use tactical flirting?

So what if Laios has night terrors because of seeing the dead?

So what if I write labru fanfiction in my head even though I don't know anything about them?

So is Kabru just a people pleaser or is he manipulative?

Being a tumblr user makes me ship things in before I even know what they are

Imagine being a furry in a world where you could've actually been born as a dog person

But on the other hand you have a magic bestie who can turn you into a dog so

What am I on?

Edit again

Yooo what it there was an anti-nightmare, that gives you the best dream of your life that can't and don't want to wake up from while it eats your body slowly?

And what if one anti-nightmare can target multiple people, but that way they will both dream the same thing, so it's risky for the anti-nightmare

But it's also a good observer, so it can tell who would work well with who in a dream

They're usually in packs of 2 or 3, but it's not a rare sight that you'll find just one of them

They're in the same family but look different from nighmares

Omg I'm at it again

[mrawkweird]

If you're still running some Netflix, you should totally watch Delicious in Dungeon. Shit's Wild™. 🤯

So one day, a group of people dug up the entrance of a long-lost kingdom-turned-dungeon. A shrivelled old guy crawls out of it, claims to be its king, & says anyone who can off its final boss (a mad mage) will inherit the whole shebang.

Fast-forward to the protag's group...getting attacked by a red dragon deep in the dungeon. And not only that, they're also too hungry to go all out. In order to avoid a total party wipe, Laios's (protag's) sister Falin warps everyone else out to the entrance...while she was in the middle of getting eaten 😱

After regrouping with uhhh half his squad (1 eaten, 2 bailed) he's obviously desperate to rescue her ASAP. There's just 1 problem: they're hungry AND broke. So in order to solve this dilemma, Laios suggests something truly Wack™:

they go full circle-of-life & eat the monsters they kill along the way.

Coincidentally enough I've actually been having an eye on that series for awhile. Like, I see them every lunch break and one day I'll find the courage to ask them if they like Digimon or not. It's funny because there's certain things where I'll just damn near be on the ground floor of and then there's others where I'll be habitually late because starting shit is a commitment and ain't no such thing as halfway crooks.

[blimbo-buddy]

Note before I start: I’ve admittedly not remembered much about the characters and their personalities. Not that I’ve totally forgotten but it’s very likely that some aspects of their characters I’ll get wrong. That’s why I encourage any sort of input: Character fixes, corrections, even potential ideas for the au. There’s a lot of moments in here that are just “I don’t have a solid idea about it yet”

So this idea stemmed from a thought I had with the Chimeras, “Can multiple people be merged with the same monster as one entity”.

Basically it starts out as the regular story does but instead of eating Falin, the Red Dragon consumes Laios, Marcille, and Toshiro. Falin uses her teleportation spell but it only manages to work on her, Namari, and Chilchuck (since the other three already got eaten). Falin’s freaking the fuck out and, like Laios with Falin in the og story, she’s eager to go back and save everybody after recounting some vague information she remembered from Laios, that the digestion of a Red Dragon takes a while. That means if they’re fast enough they could get them all out in time.

Chilchuck and Namari aren't too sure about that idea: They have no money and most of their stuff got lost on that floor during the fight

I don’t know if I’ll have Namari stay with them (same reasons as in canon) but Chilchuck for sure will stay with Falin

He didn’t want to at first but seeing how serious she was on going into the Dungeon, he got a bit nervous at the thought of her alone down there

and also. Y’know deep down he doesn’t want anymore people to die or get hurt

Lot of this is fuzzy but generally things sort of go the same. Falin does suggest trying to eat monsters but she’s not as insistent about it as Laios would be (she still really likes monsters though). Maybe they manage to scrounge up some rations or something (Maybe some scenes where she would rather go hungry than see Chil get hungry). Thankfully they meet Senshi so, cool they got a chef now

I think Senshi would also help Falin realize that, while she has kind-hearted intentions, she can’t keep starving herself in favor of others not going hungry

Everyone needs to eat

Falin’s just really stuck and worried on getting Laios Marcille and Toshiro out and safe. I’m going to.. skip over a lot of the smaller aspects of the story because I’d like to brainstorm more in depth of how Falin would play off of the other characters in place of Laios. Of course in these moments we’d also get flashback scenes of her and Laios/Marcille/Toshiro to show her bond with each of them.

A lot of her info about monsters mainly comes from Laios and some of her newer info about them comes from Senshi

I think when Kabru’s party and Toshiro’s retainers meet, it’s made just a bit apparent that Maizuru and the others are searching for Toshiro (though they hide it as best as possible because sensitive information) maybe one of them overheard Namari talking about it while in a tavern. Even though Maizuru tries hiding it, Kabru pulls a total Kabru and sees right through her stoic attitude and sees a deeply anxious person worried for someone’s safety. He also notices the strange stand-off-ish attitude of the other retainers about retrieving Toshiro

Whoops another gap of info. Again I’ll save these moments for posts or asks about them but I also just. Need to reread the manga again to get a good idea.

Eventually they get to fighting the Red Dragon. Missing info here about how exactly they kill it because Falin , while not completely defenseless and dumb in actual combat, probably wouldn’t have that same knowledge in it as Laios did (Unless I’m wrong (very likely)). But they manage to kill it with just three people, hooray time to recover them all!

All they find is bones

Obviously just like in canon with Falin, the party is too late and Laios, Marcille, and Toshiro were digested  

Now this is the part I’m stumped at the hardest. Because in the og story, Marcille knew dark magic which is how she was able to bring Falin back. While Falin does know resurrection magic, it’s not the same as necromancy

Was there a way that Falin somehow learnt dark magic (did Marcille somehow teach her out of pure trust? Is it in character for Marcille to do that with a banned system of magic with her best friend?)

How the fuck did they manage to get their bones in the right places. How would they not mix them up

Because at least Falin’s bones were fairly easy to figure out, the other bones were from the Wargs

I just really don’t want to accidentally go the “These are WOMEN bones and these are MEN bones” route. Maybe they go by height? Taller people do have longer bones but I don’t know if this also carries weird connotations

However this goes, somehow, someway, the three are brought back to life by some miracle using the flesh of the Red Dragon. Yay they’re all back they can finally go home now(?)

Side note but I imagine Laios got really jealous that Falin got to eat monsters without him

Generally though Falin’s just so, so happy to see her brother and friends back

Might actually have some scenes of awkward but friendly interactions between Falin and Toshiro

That night the three (Laios Marcille Toshiro) feel like somethings off. This leads them back to the Red Dragon’s corpse and right to Thistle. The rest of the party comes across this and yaddah yaddah, Thistle tries getting rid of them and the last thing Falin sees is the three of them collapsed on the ground; flesh and blood piling onto their bodies.

Time skip to when Kabru’s party, Falin’s party, and Maizuru’s party all come across each other. It’s revealed, after Hien and Benichidori (and right after: Maizuru) are killed, that Laios, Marcille, and Toshiro, perched on the rooftops and surrounded by harpies, were transformed into Chimeras

But, not as three separate entities

Rather as three parts of one singular body, their lower torsos connected by three long, feathery necks that sprout from the Red Dragon’s body

They would later be nicknamed the Trimera (portmanteau of Tri- & Chimera

(Very poor artist rendition below. Pretend its Falin's drawing or something)

(Not exactly to scale. Marcille is in the middle but Toshiro and Laios can be on either side)

During the fight, it’s scary how strangely coordinated yet different the three parts of them are when it comes to fighting, likely due to the enhanced abilities from the Red Dragon. But hits are, of course, struck onto the Trimera

Laios is oddly in his element, attacking like a wild beast instead of how he would usually attack

Marcille, thanks to the Trimera still being capable of some speech, is able to cast destructive spells. Getting stabbed by Kabru likely enhanced some rage in her

Toshiro is quick, nobody can catch him off guard and trying to get him from his blind spot is near impossible. Even with a huge gash on his side he's still quick in battle

I would imagine right towards the end, Tade, who manages to recover pretty fast after being whipped by its tail, makes the boldest choice of her life

She charges towards the Trimera, narrowly avoiding another tail whip

Leaps onto and climbs towards Toshiro’s half

She sets her sights on a gaping wound that Daya left right at the spot where the base neck of the dragon (aka toshiro's lower torso) is located

And she starts to violently, brutally rip him off

I think this scene would show the very sad and unhealthy dedication she has to the Nakamoto clan

Toshiro’s dad expects him home at some point, Tade is going to make sure he comes home

The last tendon severs and the two are sent flying onto one of the rooftops, Tade struggling to not fall and to also restrain Toshiro

After the Trimera (still called this even after Toshiro got ripped off) flees, all of the casualties are revived. Tade comes down from the rooftops, Toshiro is barely even responding. Falin doesn’t keep her eyes off of the place that the Trimera fled from. She doesn’t say a word. All she can do is weep while the others try to comfort her. It’s too much for her to handle, it’s all her fault.

What has she done?

oh my god I got the most batshit crazy dungeon meshi au idea last night but I’m gonna let it marinate in my brain for a minute hope you guys are ready

[sonofanumbranwitch]

P5S Seven Heavenly Virtues PT.3. Mariko Hyodo and The Jail of Temperance.

I want to start this one off by saying that Mariko’s Jail, at least in how it relates to her sin, is my least favorite. Namely because her story and character have absolutely NOTHING to do with the concept of gluttony. And I don’t just mean from a food perspective. Gluttony can mean an overindulgence in anything, but Mariko isn’t indulging in anything. Maybe her mayoral power, but that’s still not really the point of her story. The only thing relating her to gluttony is the food and utensils around her Jail, and that her shadow is a big fat monster. And considering pop cultures history of equating fat with evil, it just screams laziness directly into my face. So let’s fix that.

Now we have Mariko “Raphael” Hyodo and her Jail of Temperance. Instead of a clean-up initiative as part her mayoral campaign, she instead is pushing a health campaign. She’s working to limit access to unhealthy foods, and encourage the community to take part in events with heavy exercise involved. At first glance, everything she’s doing seems to be rather positive… Until the thieves catch her trying to force one her workers to vomit up some food.

“Please madame mayor it was just a burger!”

“Do you have any idea how many calories are in those things!? Now spit it all out! What will the people think if the staff in charge of their city is comprised of a bunch of flabby slobs!?”

The thieves confront her, and it plays out much the same in the original. Mariko tries to defend her actions by saying she has to be firm, otherwise people won’t push themselves towards excellence. She argues people lack restraint so she must provide it for them. Her Jail has the effect of not only making people support her campaign, but to obstain from eating unhealthy foods. The problem comes with now they aren't eating enough food to get the nutrients they need either. They feel compelled to only eat low-calorie vegetables like celery, and drink nothing but water, effectively starving themselves.

Her jail remains largely unchanged again. Except the frozen food has wasted away as it was left behind. Her shadow has also been redesigned to look more like her real-world self. Because the whole fat monster is evil because they’re fat is lazy and cliched so we’re not doing it. Instead she’s giving more White Witch from Narnia vibes.

The events leading to her trauma have changed as well. Instead of a snow sculpture oversight, the oversight is related to food catering. An employee hired a less than reputable company to cheaply provide food for the snow festival. But the food was contaminated and led to an outbreak of food poisoning which led to a lot of people getting sick. Even a young girl passed away from the illnesses she contracted due to her poisoning.

Mariko vowed she would restrain the evil and corruption within her city, and she would do whatever it took to look out for the safety and health of her citizens. This led her to her cold iron fist method of governance, and to her overlooking every health regulation in her city.

Her boss form takes an appearance similar to Temperantia from Bayonetta. She uses blast of cold wind to attack, and even uses her wind to restrain the parties movements.

“Someone had to take action! The evils of this world have no self-control Haru-Chan! If you give them an inch they will take a mile and leave nothing but pain and misery in their wake.”

“Mari-San! Don’t you see, you’ve lost restraint as well. I understand your desire to halt the injustice in your city. But you’ve gone out of your way to hurt innocent people as well. Wanting what’s best for your people I understand. But your grip on them is so tight that they can’t breath!”

“Haru-Chan…”

“My father was the same with me. He controlled every aspect of my life. I had no room to move, to be my true self. It was thanks to my friends I learned that life is worth a little risk and letting things out of control isn’t always a bad thing. You tried to control everyone around you so you wouldn’t be hurt again. But I promise there are people who don’t want to hurt you. I don’t.”

Another one down. This feels a lot more thematically aligned to me now. The complaint I’m trying to address with this series is that Atlus tended to slap a label of a sin on certain palaces and jails without really making it feel like that was a core theme of the dungeon. So hopefully I’ve fixed that if ever only slightly.

[comicteaparty]

July 25th-July 31st, 2020 Creator Babble Archive

The archive for the Creator Babble chat that occurred from July 25th, 2020 to July 31st, 2020.  The chat focused on the following question:

Where can your comic be read, what is it about, and why should people read it?

carcarchu

last one

mariah (rainy day dreams)

You can read Rainy Day Dreams on it's homesite: http://rainydaydreams.mariahcurrey.com/ Book 1 of RDD is also currently in pre-orders for both physical and digital books. This volume collects the newly redrawn and remastered first five charters. Currently not all of those pages are online so book buyers will get to see them first https://gumroad.com/mariahcurrey Rainy Day Dreams is a manga influenced, character driven supernatural story with dreamlike pacing. It follows the lives Tristin, an excitable and friendly human who becomes trapped in the Nameless World after a treasure hunt gone wrong, Mara, a reclusive retired knight belonging to an ancient lineage of psychics, and Michael, a sad vampire torn between his vampire instincts and being the soft boy he is deep down. Come for the compelling characters, interpersonal drama, and found family, stay for the underlying slow build of the cosmic machinations of the Nameless World's gods and a villain from the past bent on undoing the very fabric of reality. Reasons you should read it beyond the above pitch: - I've been told by frequently people find it's relaxing to read. We all need a little relaxation - Has a female driven narrative - I take every chance I get to put my characters in ball gowns or party dresses - Monsters! Cute monsters, scary monsters! Monsters that want to eat you, monsters that want to smooch you! - I make this comic traditionally with ink wash so enjoy all the beautiful ink blooms! - Chapter 18 starts this week

CoppertheCarutor

Oh wow, I missed out on A LOT! Dang! Well, here it goes I guess. To start off, please read with discretion, this project is rated R/17+ and for now contains: Abuse, discussion of suicide, blood, violence, queerphobia, trauma, mental illness, self-harm, mild body horror, substance abuse, profanity and full-frontal nudity. You can read my comic, The Guide to a Healthy Relationship, on it's main site: http://tgtahr.spiderforest.com/ I also have it posted on Tapas, Webtoons (nudity censored), Comicfury, FlowFo and Itch.io. The Guide to a Healthy Relationship is a slowburn character driven psychological drama about an emotionally immature alcoholic trying to make amends, and fix his friendship with his ex-childhood friend upon discovering they're not dead. Unfortunately the situation is much more complicated and serious than he can comprehend. Why you should check it out: - Possibly interesting if you enjoy non-fantastical character studies and/or Psychology. - May be cathartic if you like consuming heavy content in a controlled environment. - Has some light horror elements. - Contains an extremely flawed LGBT+ cast. - No romance. - This comic is drawn traditionally with pens and color pencils. - The story is a little over halfway finished. - Contains/will contain beaches if you like the beach. - Lots of sky shots.(edited)

Krispy §[Ghost Junk Sickness]§

(Ahhh this was hard to write out, i'll really miss this server) Ghost Junk Sickness is a free to read LGBTQ+ sci-fi that tackles themes of found family, accountability, and acceptance. It rated T for it's course language and violence, and can be read on it's official website, < https://www.ghostjunksickness.com/ > . Books 1-3 are available on the store (link on site) and we're currently on our way to wrap up and print vol 4! Ghost Junk Sickness is about two bounty hunters with an unstable dynamic who are pushed to pursue the elusive and deadly bounty dubbed The Ghost. It updates mondays and fridays, features an extensive cast with queer rep, topics about dealing with trauma, responsibility, and taking control. GJS has: -Space ships! -Lived in worlds/ extensive world building through illustrative backgrounds and characters - Slow burn character growth, expanding relationships, and new love -Drawn traditionally and worked on by a team of two! -Long run story that reached the halfway point, GJS has a huge buffer of over 800 pages now, so it's a time sinker! - hot lizard lady (best part)

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

holy shit 800 page buffr

OH wait by buffer you mean archive omg

Krispy §[Ghost Junk Sickness]§

(oh YE we only have 70 page buffer now woohopps lol)

Eightfish (Puppeteer)

holy shit 70 page buffer

that's like 10 months

eliushi [Keyspace]

KEYSPACE: A Winged Tale is a story about kids with wings for hair, and can be found at https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/keyspace-a-winged-tale/list?title_no=322364 https://tapas.io/series/KEYSPACE-A-Winged-Tale/ TW: Body Horror (comes with having wings sprouting from the head and more) Keyspace is my passion project about a world between portals that is dying. A Winged Tale is the first story of this series and touches upon the deeper magic that unites the work. It’s about a wingless girl trying to find her missing scientist mother in a laboratory beneath a forest, winged children discovering their origins and Machines that once ravaged the world, now lost. It’s a story for those who grew up with Studio Ghibli stories but want a little more complications and lore but still retain hope for the future. TL;DR: Come for winged hair, sad robots, possibly dragons, lots of science. The comic returns August 1

CoppertheCarutor

AH! Thank you for reminding about a couple content warnings I forgot to add.

LadyLazuli (Phantomarine)

Phantomarine is a story about a haunted ocean, a ghostly princess, and her journey to save her soul from a death god known as the Red Tide King. http://www.phantomarine.com/ TW: death, body horror, limb loss Princess Phaedra's untimely and mysterious death casts her out into the dark waters of the Candlelight Sea, forcing her to wander the world as an ethereal seaghost. Her journey toward resurrection quickly evolves into a grand maritime adventure on her ship, the Mantaluna, along with a crew of similarly-cursed friends and familiars. But Phaedra's mission has a dark undercurrent to it - a divine mystery that, when solved, will force her to question everything about her life, her death, and her world's long-dead past. If you like:

-THE COLOR BLUE (or just the ocean) -general spookiness that never gets too dark or gory -flamboyant villains of various kinds -swashbuckling pirate-y stories -fancy boats and pretty islands -big elemental animal gods fighting -friends and family fighting for each other -lots of hero-vs-villain salt and sass -DOGS

then heck yeah, this is your comic (edited)

Miranda (Into the Swell)

Into the Swell is about a Pirate with nothing left to lose but his life and a Wizard who wants more than a life of entertaining royals with party tricks being thrown together on the treasure hunt of their lives. The official blurb is: Ocean swells are remnants of storms hundreds of miles away. So do past actions cause swells of destiny on the shores of the present. Fate will always find a way. Given the choice between a one way trip to the gallows or a return to high sea adventure, imprisoned pirate Fletcher makes the obvious choice. With Court appointed wizard Kelwyn watching his every move, the two set off to reclaim a stolen treasure for King and Country. The ocean journey leads the duo through uncharted waters that hide dangers and secrets that could unravel the very fabric of their lives. Could this treasure hunt prove more adventure than they bargained for? TW: deaths? You can find it on https://tapas.io/series/into-the-swell or Webtoons It’s just starting out so there’s not much yet but you gotta start somewhere!

Cronaj ~{Whispers of the Past}~

Heyo! For all you who don't yet know me, I work on Whispers of the Past, a fantasy comic about a farm girl and an amnesiac elf man going on a journey to learn who they really are. https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/whispers-of-the-past/list?title_no=191366 Age Rating: PG-13 or T+ TW: death and corpses, blood and violence, bladed weapons, profanity, depictions of racial discrimination, alcohol, miscarriage, suicide, suggestive content Magical powers can only come from the other side... When Aniya discovers a foreigner with amnesia, she sets out to help him find the answers to his nightmares. Along with their growing feelings for one another, they will uncover an identity riddled with magic, bloodlines, and betrayal. What WotP has to offer: - a unique painterly art style - in-depth world-building (including a conlang) - hurt/comfort themes - hella family drama - MAGIC - ace, bi, and POC representation - cute romance - If you like high fantasy like ATLA, this might be right up your alley

Nutty (Court of Roses)

I wanna say first of all that thank you for this server. Even if I couldn't participate often, it was a lovely place, love you all!! Court of Roses is in several places, but its main site on Spiderforest is a page ahead! Best place to read it is here: http://courtofroses.spiderforest.com/ As summer comes to an end in the kingdom of Prismal, the Bardic Festival is in full swing, bringing together musicians and minstrels from all over. But amidst the celebration, a sinister plot of murder unfolds... Follow a ragtag group of bards as they band together and travel the realm of Prismal; Merlow the Rose, half-elf, charismatic leader, bagpiper, and perpetual drunk; Diana the Fleetfoot Fletcher, human tidinit player with a heart of gold; Nocturne, brooding but classy Infernal and violinist; Sven Rockscreamer, goliath drummer and seeker of justice; and Feliks Halfdance, curious gnome who plays accordion and magically conjures their entire backup. And who knows! Mayhaps they'll solve a murder mystery together! The comic is greatly LGBTQ-friendly, and takes inspiration from both classic fantasy themes (Dungeons and Dragons, Lord of the Rings, The Elder Scrolls, etc.) as well as music across all genres. Specific pages and scenes might even include their own suggested theme songs in the author notes. Contains Fantasy Violence and Alcohol Use(edited)

AntiBunny

You can as always read my comic at http://AntiBunny.net/ and is a film noir inspired story about anthropomorphic rabbits and the difficulty with coexisting with humanity. Crime and conspiracies move the plot along, but in film noir there's rarely a clear black and white. Why should you read it? Do you like stories about crime and conspiracies? Do you like bunnies? Do you want to see a contrast of cute and grim, and see relatable characters who deal with mental health issues, and fight a struggle for acceptance? Do you ask yourself the question what is identity? Well then this is for you.

You can find my other comic at http://nailbat.AntiBunny.net/. Nailbat is part of the AntiBunny universe, and deals with many of the same issues, but using a more straightforward and action packed superhero story. If you love superheroes and action you'll enjoy it, and maybe along the way get into the deeper lore of the AntiBunny world.

Holmeaa - working on WAYFINDERS

Thanks everyone who I have chattet with in here, it has been a delight <3 Wayfinders: Off Course Can be read on Tapas or Webtoons (I prefer tapas ) https://linktr.ee/snackbagstudios Whats it about? You may ask. In a world where magic is as natural as breathing, and the gods are known to actually answer some prayers, a ship is sent to keep the fragile peace between 2 countries that has been at war for 60 years. But guess what? The ship crashes almost immediately. Now the 3 only survivors, a runaway monk, with unexplained powers, the noble son and peace advocate, and a chaos child with an affinity for magic washes ashore on an unknown island and is forced together by a magical compass. With navigation, and magic being broken, it is not an easy task to cross the ocean. If only they knew of the chaos which is unravelling outside their comfortable lives. If they thought this adventure was going to be uneventful, they are in for a surprise. Why should you read it? It is a mix between the Road to Eldorado, and Avatar the Last Airbender, and if that short pitch is not enough, I don't know how else to sell it. It has fun colors, anime reference, and a lot of ocean and sinister magics Thanks to all the admins for putting in so much work in this server

Feather J. Fern

Okay, I have like three comics, and the fourth one coming soon so.....Lets get the easy ones out of the way. On Webtoons, you can read Teasday or Don't you hate it when...(DYHIW) https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/dont-you-hate-it-when/list?title_no=486501 https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/teasday/list?title_no=169870&page=1 DYHIW is a gag comic, so if you want a little laugh to brighten your week, feel free to check it out. Teasday is a tea informative comic, but it's on a bit of a hiatus and ending soon. My current project is Gravitational Pull, a story about a depressed magical girl trying to save the world while also trying to get the energy to leave her bed that day. Read it if you like magical girls, space and representation of anxiety, depression, inferiority complex and learning to take each day slowly. http://gravitationalpull.featheryterrarium.com/ And when it comes out, Go Figure is my comedy action webtoon about someone who wants to use a powerful wish to cure their asthma and allergies over anything else.

sssfrs (JOE IS DEAD)

JOE IS DEAD A band of pirates are visiting an island and they discover the dead body of their astronomer JOSEPH CINNABAR. He leaves behind a will with mysterious instructions that none of the pirates really feel like following. The crew decide to send the least-liked and least responsible pirate of them all on a solo mission to carry out Joe's final wishes. If you like: - Alternate historical timelines where the United States doesn't exist - Gay, lesbian, and transgender pirates - Morbid humor, death, dying - Biblical allusion - Warm colors - Alliteration - My handwriting - Birds or anything else, you will love to read JOE IS DEAD, a webcomic worked on entirely by me that will be at 150 pages within a week or so. My background is in marine biology and satirical writing, so I promise you this comic is funny and scientifically accurate. Rated PG 13, mild violence and swearing Where can I read it Read it on http://joeisdead.com/ (the main hosting website with some functional html) or on Tapas: https://tapas.io/series/JoeIsDead It's also on Webtoons but it's a couple chapters behind on there You can follow me on Twitter for information about updates https://twitter.com/sssfrs_

boogeymadam

Sink Your Hookteeth An LGBT+ Cosmic Horror/Love story about eldritch merfolk that fall for a pair of humans who are studying mermaids to cure a supernatural illness. CW: bodyhorror, gore, upperbody nudity, sickness, drowning, tryophobia, eye trauma, If you like:

-sea monsters

-big teeth

-painted comics

-nonbinary and binary transgender, lesbian, bisexual, and pansexual protagonists

-neurodivergent protagonists

-goofy friendship dynamics

-nasty and imperfect wlw couples

-enemies to lovers trope

-childhood friends to lovers trope

then this is a comic you might enjoy :D! It finished chapter 1 a few months ago with 195 pages, takes maybe an hour or two to read, and is currently on hiatus while I am building chapter 2's buffer. You can read it on Its own site https://hookteethcomic.com/ Webtoons https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/hookteeth/list?title_no=300709 Tapas https://tapas.io/series/Hookteeth/info

also i need to read more of these but joe is dead, wayfinders, keyspace: a winged tale, phantomarine, ghost junk sickness, the guide to a healthy relationship, and court of roses are all absolutely amazing and -chefs kiss- please give them all read if you aren't yet!

varethane

Comics!! Chirault A young half-demon named Teeko has been forced from her home, and to make matters worse, is now the size of a squirrel thanks to a wayward magic spell. Her only protection is the demon-hunter Kiran, who is a demon himself and lacks patience for children. Together, they must seek the help of a mage to reverse the spell on Teeko, but the journey is far from straightforward.. My first webcomic-- it's complete, it's a high fantasy adventure comic about finding family, fighting monsters, and also making friends with monsters (both outside and... inside). Check it out if you enjoy any of those things! http://chirault.sevensmith.net/ Wychwood Tiara is a delinquent who has been using a mysterious power to goof around for years without realizing the kind of attention it could attract. When a powerful organization finally tracks her down and attempts to recruit her, she has to decide what she really stands for. This is my new/current webcomic! It's a sci-fantasy genre-blender, with bits of post-apocalypse and urban fantasy thrown in as a treat just for fun. If you enjoy stories involving evil organizations, fire-flinging delinquents, and angsty supersoldiers, give it a look :U (Chapter 4 has just gotten started!) http://wychwood.sevensmith.net/

TaliePlume

Feather Cleanse (French: Nettoyage des plumes, Haitian Creole: Plim Geri) is a supernatural, sci-fi and military Shonen manga. Set in the year 2034 in the Haitian kingdom, Vérité Kindgom, the story follows 14 year old Soleil Andirans, her two older brothers and their cousin who joins their kingdom's military program to help Soleil find a wanted criminal and stopping a mad scientist from taking over the kingdom. This is a personal project that is very dear to me and I can't wait to share with you all hopefully around June of 2023. Why should you read it: -A positive Haitian representation -Strong female protagonist -Learning about a new culture - Family Bonds -Mad Scientists and experimentations - Criminal MasterMinds - Servant and Master relationships -Kings and Queens/Royalties -Dynamic and Impactful Fights Then, this is the comic for you.

shadowhood {SunnyxRain}

Alrighty cracks knuckles SunnyxRain, a webcomic about monsters surviving college.....BY THE POWER OF FANFICTION. Follow Sunny Dupont, a gluttony demon as she navigates college life and fanfic writing with the help of her housemates Liam (a qilin she roped in as her beta/editor) and Aron (an ocean naga as a fan). A story of trauma recovery and learning lessons about life and love. If you like: -housemate shenanigans -fanfic/fandom culture exploration -kickass but seriously flawed protagonists recovering from trauma - VOID CAT -LGBTQ+ cast because I can -coffee gremlin cryptid dudes -sweet slow burn romance -lesser known mythological creature representation Then this webcomic is for you to read, and y'all can come read it here! https://tapas.io/series/SunnyxRain/info and HERE https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/sunnyxrain/list?title_no=409335(edited)

Deo101 [Millennium]

Well, Here we go ^^ I have 2 comics right now, so: Millennium: A sci fi adventure featuring two best friends as they seek to help anyone and everyone they can, where we put together a bit of a misfit crew who are all intent on bettering themselves and the world around them. It's a lighthearted, LGBT+ Slowburn The sci fi is soft and so are the characters It's got found family, hurt/comfort, and gentle handling of heavier themes. It's easy to read and shouldn't make you think too much, it's just an hour or two of simple adventure between friends! It can be read a lot of places! My personal site: https://millennium.spiderforest.com/ Webtoons: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/millennium/list?title_no=110866&page=1 Tapas: https://tapas.io/series/Millennium Comic Fury: http://millennium.thecomicseries.com/ and Tumblr!: https://millennium-comic.tumblr.com/ Time and Time Again: A noir mystery about time traveling vampires! We follow Adam, a vampire, and his subject of study, Steve, the first werewolf/vampire. The two of them are trapped in the 20's, looking to solve the mystery of a missing relic. It's a limited palette, scroll style comic if you're looking for a bit more action and higher stakes, and a more serious tone, then this one might be a better fit for you than Millennium ^^ I'm planning on finishing it up relatively soon, so get in on it now! (It's currently on a short hiatus while school is doing me in) It can only be read on tapas! https://tapas.io/series/Time-and-Time-again

kayotics

Ingress Adventuring Company You can read Ingress Adventuring Company at https://www.ingress-comic.com/ TW: some gore, blood, violence Saving the world is a pretty big deal, but what do you do once you’re done with that and no one needs you anymore? Do you become a magic professor? Do you study a convoluted thesis that no one understands? Maybe you relive the glory days by starting up a one-man adventuring party to gather mystical artifacts for people who may or may not pay you. Or, if you’re Toivo Kissa, you do all of those things. Reasons to check it out! - You like D&D or other stories inspired by it - It’s got bittersweet comedy - Very fun villains - Expressive art - Elves. Just a lot of elves. - Sad Dads and old men - LGBTQ+ cast

maxwestart

Poison Ivy Gulch is hosted on its own WordPress site: http://www.poisonivygulch.com/ Poison Ivy Gulch is a funny Western set in a frontier town in the 1870s. The protagonists are Lotta Doler, a gambler, and her kid sidekick Ace. Other characters include a marshal, an undertaker, a prospector and many extras. Poison Ivy Gulch is a spiritual successor to Tumbleweeds. If you like Blazing Saddles, you'll love this!

sagaholmgaard

Ahh dang, thanks for the heads up!! Here it is: https://tapas.io/series/_Reclaim_ My comic, Reclaim, is about a prince that has to deal with the aftermath of a successful coup. His father is imprisoned and sentenced to death, and he's in hiding with his dear bodyguard. Now he has to save his dad and reclaim the throne from the power-hungry witch warrior Irene, but how can the two of them hope to stand a chance against the entire force of the empire? And what was the real reason for the coup in the first place? This is for people who want a heartfelt fantasy story, with inspiration from Steven Universe and themes around being a better person than you were yesterday, and sticking together through hardships!

PiraPiranha

DEPARTURE is a story about dead brothers, hot guys and competent women! Lights! Camera! Action! The flaws of our predecessors are the burdens that we carry today! As galactic governance has been passed down from generation to generation of divine beings, the wars and insecurities of the previous pantheons are weighing down on our world. Whether it’s vanquishing your greatest enemies, or buying tomorrow’s cereal, keeping this flaming shipwreck of a universe together is going to require a little elbow grease, and a lot of flashy super powers! Follow Kovit, a space fighter turned part-time cook and his friends Casey (Cool, has a nice jacket) and Vermillion (Dumb, has stupid hair) as he tries to help the most powerful beings in the universe keep it together (Ostensibly by beating them up). Check it out here! http://departurecomic.cfw.me/(edited)

seetherabbit

Vulperra is an anthology comic featuring superheros, cowboys and regular common folk in the fantasy world of Vulperra. Most of the stories are about the hero Flash Gauntlet, who travels from place to place to solve problems with his magical gauntlets which were bestowed to him by the goddess of the land. https://vulperra.com/

NAAN

Legendary Beings Ara & Celi is about a young girl, Miyara, who is chosen to be the successor to a specific line of Angels – headed by none other than Ara–and with it, duties that extend beyond the physical world. Only one problem: Miyara has no desire to do the job! What will happen then, especially with Celi, Ara’s counterpart, is intent on causing chaos in her life?! You can read Ara & Celi at its main site: http://ac.jadinerhinestudios.com/ Here is the Webtoons mirror: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/legendary-beings-ara-celi/list?title_no=59422 Doesn't have any trigger warnings (maybe that (1) page in chapter 2 is too creepy-crawly for anyone?), and it's currently on hiatus because I'm working on chapter 4, will update again when I have completed it! So enjoy the 3 chapters so far! If you like: • MAGICAL GOILS • an old school b&w shoujo manga style (according to some people, and I don't even do it on purpose ) • on that note, since the 3rd chapter, the comic is drawn traditionally! (all covers are in color and traditional) • expressive comedy • language jokes and notes • angels and demons, yes, it's one of those but is anybody really the bad guy here • a lion and a jinn walk into a bar-- • slow worldbuilding and character development • heck if I know what else, you should just check it out and tell me what you think later like in the good ol' days

L Hornsby

Heyo, I haven't been very active. I'm not used to Discord. If anybody would like some silly comics about puppies that live in the clouds and enjoy parties (and also happen to be princesses) my comic Princess Pups has you covered. It's all ages friendly so if you have younger kids you want to get into comics, it's a swell read according to my 3 years old :) https://tapas.io/series/Princess-Pups/info

carcarchu

@L Hornsby oh i didn't know you were in this server! i actually read your comic because our comics have really similar names ahaha

L Hornsby

Oh wow hey there! :)

I usually lurk on Instagram and Twitter these days and have been crocheting more than comics lately

mathtans

What the heck, been on hiatus more than a year but there's an archive and it's not like there's any dangling plot points. I personify mathematics! Because equations are people too. The hairstyles are the graphs, and there are puns.

Main site: http://mathtans.ca/

Tapas mirror: https://tapas.io/series/Any-Q

It's called "Any ~Qs" because notQ is the symbol for irrational numbers. So anything irrational, in a sense. Very G rated - maybe PG, some discussion of biological sex and tangential politics. Enjoy, possibly.(edited)

Spring-heeled Jack

Hey all! My comic is a horror comic that features some LGBTQA+ characters in the main cast. Today is also my monthly update on public sites. I do four pages at the end of the month on Tapas, Webtoons, and my website. (Patreon gets weekly updates.) It is a story of a picturesque town with a dark secret and what will be done to keep that secret. I follow a few characters through the the twisting plot and show how the darker side of this town affects them. I think this would be PG13 mostly because there will be some blood, but there are no sexual situations. Currently Tapas has the most recent free pages as I will have to do Webtoon and the website manually later today. Happy reading and please do let me know what you think! <3 Website: https://www.iamfilledwithstatic.com/crocus Tapas: https://tapas.io/series/crocusheights Webtoon: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/the-secret-of-crocus-heights/list?title_no=405820 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/iamfilledwithstatic

DanielHookerArt

I have a series of self published graphic novels. When all copies of the first volume sold out I posted it on Webtoon. It's sort of a Isekai Mystery Adventure, inspired by the 1980's movie Labyrinth.

https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/line-of-ruin/list?title_no=232705

StickFreeks

Hi I'm Christy! I make the webcomic / graphic novel series EXTRA! It's about Extras in the backgrounds of a movie world escaping their fates of getting killed off... by going to go ask the Producer to stop killing them off. (Sort of like The Truman Show, but everyone is in on it.) You can read it at https://extra-comic.com/ I'm always looking to make new comic buddies! (edited)

Annausagi2

Hello! I joined right at the announcement of the channel shutting down, so bad timing. :,O I've been working on my webcomic Helix since 2012: Read from the start here: http://helixcomic.com/ Description/warnings: A street rat is given a second chance when he is dragged from the gutter and into a new life. Will he accept his position at the side of royalty, or fight every step of the way? -Rated M for sex (M/M, consensual), violence, nudity, language, and dark themes.- Warnings: -References to child abuse and sexual abuse.- If you can handle these subjects, I hope you'll enjoy the comic. :) Thanks for reading! UPDATES EVERY WEDNESDAY! ~ Support me on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/Annausagi2 ~ Join us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Annausagi2

Kalli

I joined right when things were shutting down too :( Just my luck Anyway! I'm Kalli and I have a fully traditionally drawn webcomic, called World of Ruan! https://www.worldofruan.com/ It's a post apocalyptic, sci fi adventure type story, following Cait, a mutant mouse/human hybrid and Roxy, her robot companion! I update every Saturday~ And I'm always down for meeting new comic friends!

Cap’n Lee (Flowerlark Studios)

I make Children of Shadow: Ashes and Dark Wings: Eryl. Ashes is an urban fantasy / horror about teens with supernatural powers who have to team up with woodland critters to save the world from twisted monsters. It’s rated PG-13 and has mild language, graphic violence, and intense scenes. Eryl is a dark high fantasy about a fallen angel, a woman on a journey to find a dragon, and a wyvern who has been kidnapped. It’s rated 16+ and contains strong language, nonsexual nudity, and graphic violence. https://twitter.com/kickyourwrasse/status/1277315129793826816?s=21

Tuyetnhi (Only In Your Dreams!)

Only In Your Dreams! is a rom-com Drama comic featuring shoujo and future LGBT+ elements. Also a mainly BIPOC cast! Rated: PG16+ There are some suggestive language & content, and partial nudity. “Cara Luong is tired of her failed dating attempts and settles for Richie, her imaginary lover every night in her sleep. When given a chance to meet him in person for the first time, she suddenly forgets their long-term romance! Now it’s up to Cara to decide if Richie can live as a real boyfriend. That is, if she wants him to exist in the first place!” What it contains: - Dumbassery moments between a dreamer and a dream boi - Expressions that you can feel it in your soul - Main romantic interest participating in healthy masculinity and embracing femmine traits - horror elements in a romance comic? huh-- - Himbo appreciation - A mixed-Black Vietnamese protag for this romantic rollercoaster lol If you're looking something self indulgent, read it why don't you? I release pages early on patreon! https://www.patreon.com/tuyetnhip Otherwise you can check out the site! It updates once bi-weekly on Wednesdays usually! http://oiydcomic.com/ Tapas: https://tapas.io/series/Only-In-Your-Dreams Webtoon: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/only-in-your-dreams/list?title_no=115046 Other links: https://linktr.ee/oiydcomic

alizarin

I joined near the end of the server but I can't wait to participate in the reboot! So many interesting comics in here * _ * I make a comic called Patent the Sun, it basically reads like a big puzzle. It's about two characters who wake up without any memory, but slowly we learn about their whole universe and what happened to them. Oh and there's also magic, aliens, murder, and crossdressing https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/patent-the-sun/list?title_no=123560 https://tapas.io/series/Patent-the-Sun(edited)

Las Pinter

It is a pity that I was not so active here. I create the Tales From Somewhere comics, currently there are two of them: The Legend and The Secret. Both of them are high fantasy stories taking place in a fantasy world. The Legend is about three adventurers trying to survive in their realm. They are aware of being DnD like characters in a cruel world, where the DM wants to kill them as fast as he can... without luck so far. It has some comedy, action, horror and weird elements. This comic is ongoing since a long time, so expect to have big changes in the style and writing. The Secret is about an elf, who begins his journey from the world's end after an apocalyptic event. Accidentally meets a human thief girl, and now they are travelling together and figuring out what is happening to their world. This comic is currently being revamped and the story is continued parallelly. I would rate them R/17+ since they have some blood, violence, profanity and nudity. Website: https://www.talesfromsomewhere.com/ Tapas: - The Legend: https://tapas.io/series/Tales-From-Somewhere-The-Legend - The Secret: https://tapas.io/series/Tales-From-Somewhere-The-Secret Webtoons: - The Legend: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/tales-from-somewhere-the-legend/list?title_no=77159 - The Secret: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/tales-from-somewhere-the-secret/list?title_no=78355 And I'm on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thelaspinter

quietsnooze

Radio Silence is an award winning queer coming of age webcomic about a British rock band’s rise to fame. Hitting the road on a journey of self discovery and acceptance, this coming-of-age tale gives a backstage look at friendships and the plights of fame as experienced by a modern British rock band. On the fast track toward fame, the five members of the fictional British rock band, Radio Silence, enter into an exciting new life on the road with their best friends. As they tour across the United Kingdom, they excitedly embrace this new lifestyle and all the resulting challenges, including living in close quarters with each other with little privacy, and the overwhelming reaction of the public to their new-found success. Main site: http://radiosilencecomic.com/ Webtoons: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/radio-silence/list?title_no=35242 Twitter: http://twitter.com/quietsnooze

Tired Programmer

This is mine. There will be update tomorrow (in 10 hours). https://tapas.io/series/The-story-of-how-humanity-has-thrown-itself-into-the-scrapyard Civilization, technologically advanced in the past, is now in decline. Killer and hacker are trying to survive and find the answers to their questions among the ruins. What will they meet in this crazy and cruel world of misused technologies? WARNING: strong language, violence and nudity. Only for adults.

JUNK

If any creators or readers are looking for another webcomic server to hang out in, you can check out this one: https://discord.gg/qjWJt7

I'll post it in the general channel too. :3

sierrabravo (Hans Vogel is Dead)

I wish we could have had a bit more time, but thanks everyone for creating such a great space for webcomic creators!! I make HANS VOGEL IS DEAD: an antifascist fairy tale with elements of historical fantasy. A German fighter pilot is shot down and killed during the Battle of Britain. When he wakes up in a fairytale afterlife, he learns what the evil he served has destroyed, and must undo the damage of fascism to become a better person. The end of Volume 1 is coming in the next two weeks, and September will be the fifth anniversary! You can read it on Webtoons: https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/hans-vogel-is-dead/list?title_no=62633 and find me on twitter! https://twitter.com/chjorniy_voron

Haruh2 (Colony Life)

This was such a great discord, hopefully we can keep in touch and still chat about comics and such my twitter is : https://twitter.com/Haruh2 Here is my comic Colony Life, ive been working on this for abit and will always love making this comic no matter what https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/colony-life/list?title_no=193784

boniae

I regret that I wasn't more active in here besides occasional lurking, but I always think back fondly to the CTP chat that my comic was discussed in, it was the first time I ever got to see so much in depth feedback and analysis on my comic and I will forever appreciate this server Four Corners is set in 1995, Yokohama, as the story follows Kazuhiro Tsuchiya who now leads his deceased brother's legendary gang, the Four Corners. Kazuhiro is approached by Hideki Yuhara, a schoolmate who claims to have vital information that Kazuhiro should be wary of. The two unlikely delinquents pair up to figure out the reason as to why gangs in the city are being brutally eliminated...though the unraveling of the mystery is darker than it appears. How far will Kazuhiro and Hideki go to rest their case? If you're looking for a slow burn lgbt romance, 90s manga nostalgia, drama, mystery, and a story with a general theme of: misfits who come together against dangerous odds to protect others, especially the ones they love—come check it out! https://tapas.io/series/four-corners/ http://fourcornerscomic.com/ https://twitter.com/boniaeart

snuffysam (Super Galaxy Knights)

I'll really miss having a new comic to read every week! My comic is called Super Galaxy Knights Deluxe R. It's a story of a small woman from a small town who goes on adventures across a strange kingdom. Action, comedy, and very, very slow burn romance... http://sgkdr.thecomicseries.com/ https://tapas.io/series/sgkdr https://www.webtoons.com/en/challenge/super-galaxy-knights-deluxe-r/list?title_no=41795

LeahVillart

I haven't done much work or anything in general these past months because they've been utter shit for me. This year had stuff breaking in my home, my grandma died from covid, family issues, found out my 9yo dog has lymphoma (blood cancer) and I got to a break point and I'm trying to recover from all the shit. Now it's late and I'm tired so I'm gonna make a super sleepy pitching~ I make Teach Me To Kill a horror-comedy webcomic about a school of villains and killers where a new seemingly innocent teacher arrives to help the worst class become the horror legends they are "destined" to become. [IN ENGLISH AND SPANISH] If you like contradicting/opposite genres or themes you'll find it here, violence, blood, kills, but all done with a cute colorful style where nothing is as it seems. With a cast made of crazy humans, detectives, monstergirls and guys like -our sexy looking hybrid vampire Daki who didn't ask for any of the cards she's been dealt and only wants to find true love and not something attracted by her vampiric aura. - Our lil raven kid Nayla who is a sugar bomb ready to explode, but can break a mountain in two. - Kyllian, a boy who's managed to make a personality out of each of his expressions, which sometimes is helpful and others a horrible mistake. - Q.Bee, an innocent looking girl who radiates sensuality in some weird way luring her victims into her trap. You never know what she's thinking or could do at any moment. the cast and world is really huge and don't want to spoil more, but it's filled with slice of life, mystery, action, dark humor, romance, fantasy, paranormal stuff. A total mix. If you give it a read, thanks for doing so and hope you like it! <3 http://teachmetokill.com/(edited)

Comic Tea Party

This concludes our final #creator_babble chat. Thank you so much to all the wonderful creators who have participated in this chat over its existence. It has been great to see your enthusiasm for the craft of webcomics, as well as learn your unique stories of how you pursue it. We are positive these conversations have helped many other creators out, so we appreciate you having them. For this conversation, and all past #creator_babble chats, you’ll be able to find them archived here: https://comicteaparty.com/creatorbabble

[0m3g45n1p3r4lph4]

They would try. Laios would certainly want to try.

So let's assess potential edibilitiy!

First. You have to kill it to eat it. Larval Metroids can basically only be killed via freezing and shattering. From what I can find, there isn't any mention of Ice Magic in DM, but it stands to reason it would exist so I will be acting as though it does.

The shattered membrane would be difficult to work with, but the internal nuclei should be intact which would likely be the ideal parts to eat anyways. There is a chance that these may be slightly radioactive, but I don't think it would be too much of a concern if we're dealing with unmutated larvae. Should be able to cook in a variety of ways, maybe use it like meatballs even. VERY high energy value, enough to at least awaken if not potentially outright physically heal you upon consumption (assuming, of course, the energy isn't quickly lost upon death)

Higher forms of SR388 Metroids, interestingly, become easier to deal with. While their armoured hide is incredibly resistant and their attack power massively increases over time, they become more vulnerable to traditional attacks and much more meaty, so I think they'd not only fare better but also get much more (and better!) Food from it. Probably akin to taking on a Dragon (especially for higher forms i.e. Omegas), and the meat similarly tough. Senshi might want to prep the nuclei as energizing snacks for emergencies, rather than as part of the meal.

All of this still assumes they do not get attacked by a Larva or eaten by an evolution. Samus has a very situationally-convenient kit to be able to shake them off of her and quickly retaliate with ice, as well as a Power Suit which gets drained before her directly, granting her the time needed to shake them off in the first place. I wholeheartedly believe the party would have a better shot against a Gamma Metroid - even an Omega Metroid! - than a Larva. If they pop by a breeding ground, that's it. Marcille, by virtue of Magic, might have a bit longer reaction time as that gets drained first, but that's still not gonna help for long or leave her with the means to retaliate.

Anything outside of SR388 Metroids should be off the table. Every mutation we see of them off-world is derived from Phazon, a highly radioactive, poisonous, carcinogenic mutagen that transforms things into monsters with an insatiable hunger to spread and consume more Phazon. It can be assumed that attempting to eat any form of them would result in radiation poisoning, with certain later forms (Metroid Prime, Fission Metroid, Phazon Metroid, Hatcher Metroid, Hopper Metroid, etc.) spreading radiation by mere proximity.

Do not eat them.

There's one final note to make... if Metroids are in the Dungeon, the magical energy within may very well cause the Metroids to evolve in new ways... there's no telling what forms they could take.

The metroids, by any chance?

[lynxgriffin]

Straight Outta Monster Narnia

HEY HEY I WASN’T EXPECTING TO DO THIS EVER AGAIN BUT WE’RE BACK

I’M GONNA PLAY ME SOME DELTA RUNE HERE

THOUGHTS AS I GO! ARE UNDER THE CUT!

Here we GOOOOOOO~!

Survey Program! Nice! Ominous!

I am here yes!

Truly excellent dude

OH MAKING A VESSEL NOW what are we Xehanort

NEATO I can pick Chara or Frisk heads or others…

Let’s do someone new. This kinda longish hair head.

STRIPES FOR DAYS! Longish sleeves, methinks

The legs are almost all the same LMAO

This is so friggin creepy I l OVE IT

Favorite food is PAIN nah it’s soft

BLOOD TYPE D. D for DOGGO

You have been gifted with kindness, not-XionFrisk

Pain AND seizure. Kinda wonder what happens if you say no tho…

But I don’t want to start over so let’s go with yes

OH FRIGGIN BUUUUURNED BY THE GAME, HAHAHA

Hi Toriel, you’re looking nice!

That’s a lot of friggin trophies over there

Also Kris, you need some eyes

RELIGIOUS SKA

So we have overachieving perfect child and sad boring child, okay

Awww Gerson wrote a book! How neat

It’s only you…..FOR NOW!!!!

It just isn’t home without white fur stuck in the drain, is it

CHAIRIEL’S RETURN!!!!

Also there’s some weird graphical flicker going on when I move and I wonder if it’s not because I’m playing full screen here

“Spray For The Boys, Flamin’ Hot Pizza Flavor” Damn Toby I missed your incredible sense of humor

DOES TORIEL USE PET SHAMPOO please say yes

ASRIEL’S AT COLLEGE AND UNDYNE’S A POLICE MONSTER, PERFECT

PROFESSOR ALPHYS IMMA GET AN A+ IN ANIME CLASS

DAMN who do I pick as my partner

Like…I really want Temmie…but also Snowdrake…

Random snake is also very good…

Ahhh I see this is gonna be pre-determined

HAHAHAHA FUCKIN BURNED AGAIN BY THIS HORRIBLE BLUE DUCK

Thank you cool snake I love your origin story

Oh this reindeer girl is very cute

MOTHA. FOKKIN. SUSIE

I instantly love her, goodbye

Oh Alphys you’re so not good at putting anyone in trouble

I JUST REALIZED TEMMIE HAS HER EGG ON THE DESK

Susie are you eating chalk

Oh sheet I like Susie less now

GAH DAMN THIS ESCALATED QUICKLY

Susie, Kris doesn’t even HAVE a face

Haha totally cut off my answer there

Hmm. I sense…a theme here.

Wow this really is putting on the restrictive aspects here

Now that’s a spooky face

Oh it ain’t gonna be that simple, mean girls

Well, this sure seems like an underground! Also…Kris is green now, okay

Hi there creepy waving things!

To reiterate: this is soooo creepy AND I LOVE IT

Puzzles! We got puzzles again! CREEPY PUZZLES

Whelp, we found Susie, just kinda hiding out in a…dead dust bunny thingie

LOL so much for a party member following you around

Well this is a new and interesting take on the bullet hell mechanics

Such interesting and different architecture

THE KINGDOM OF DARKNESSSSS

Yes let’s take a sudden HARD SHIFT into Final Fantasy

THE QUEST OF THE DELTA KNIGHTS that was an MST3K ep you know

About like…Leonardo da Vinci actually. Except he was a whiny bitch

LMAO Susie just “nah destroying the world sounds neat”

JOKESTER SANS GLIDES IN A FLAMING TRICYCLE SURE WHY NOT

VERY DIFFERENT COMBAT SYSTEM

“Dunno how I got an ax but like, that’s cool”

CAN’T WAIT FOR THE REMIXES OF THIS BATTLE MUSIC OKAY

Dunno if there’s a pacifist version of this game but I stick to tradition so I’m gonna try it

RALSEI. I SEE WHAT YOU DID THERE

THE POWER OF FLUFFY BOYS SHINES WITHIN YOU it sure as hell does, game

The heckin heck Ralsei is so cute

Yup yup we gonna try pacifist this first time!

“If you’re reading this…I guess you’re dead.” Fair enough.

Gaster noises when trying to use the cell phone, hmmmm…

It’s an inverse papou fruit!

Susie just up and attacks this cake, all right

Battle is cool but it’s gonna take some getting used to, think I accidentally used both of my items

YOUR SENSE OF DIRECTION WON’T SAVE YOU NOW

“It’s like a dinner made out of three glasses of milk” Ralsei you’re SO CUTE

Now to see if TP stays leveled between battles…

“I thought you were running away.” / “Yeah, I finished.”

Fugdamn I want —pictures of Spiderman— remixes of this music ON MY DESK TODAY

FRIGHTENING FANFARE

Damn that puzzle still is tricky

Gah damn that was hilarious but also terrifying

We have the power of FLUFFY BOYS and MEAN GIRLS we are UNSTOPPABLE

Ohhh so that’s what the heart outline does!

Now that is a coooool cat and I like him already

Awww I don’t have enough money for the spooky sword

Susie just roastin’ everybody left and right

THEY GOT BARRY

These mechanics continue to be interesting and a bit more complex

“Damn, didn’t get to impale myself” I’m sure you’ll get your chance Susie

It’s really interesting how we’re basically group-battling to PREVENT the tank from beating the crap out of everyone

Oh now that light trick is weird

They keep throwing the usual chess and playing card guys at us and somehow I’m Suspicious

Is that a bucket. ARE Y’ALL HOMESTUCKING AT ME AGAIN

LMAO did Susie call us the Fuckboys or something

Oh, the Shit Squad, I guess!

THE POWER OF THE SHIT SQUAD SHINES WITHIN YOU HECK YESSSS

“I, Mr. Society, am far too intelligent to ever bow down to such a tyrant!” Hmmm.

Oh, it’s Sir Lion Plateface again

L E G S

THE BOSS JUST DRINKS A GALLON OF MILK THAT’S FINE

Well Ralsei got kinda junked there but WE DEFEATED SIR LION PLATEFACE

Cakes…are also my enemy…

Yeeeeah kinda saw that one coming

Susie I get the feeling you’re not going to enjoy being a bad guy either

Dang son I have no clue what’s going on anymore WE JUST HAD SOME SALSA IN A TREE STUMP

This jack’s got my number

That sure is a three-eyed three-headed cat thingamajig

Awww I like Clover

“All proceeds go to kicking your ass” CAN I USE THIS LINE IN REAL LIFE PLEASE

Hot damn we just squeaky hammered our broken cake into ULTIMATE CAKE

Why does a sweet little boy have a mustache indeed.

Create a machine to thrash your own ass, nice

It’s my beautiful death laser duck! Tops in GUN’S

Man Susie and Lancer are just having the time of their lives here

Finally, respect for pinecone-eaters!

Awww Susie, are you actually starting to worry about someone who respects your eating of chalk and pinecones

Oh thank goodness, got through that maze thing

Yes, finally, it’s our DUCK TANK LASER

Why does it say Tuna on it

“Your design sucked so we blew it up” This is like that one Berlin tour guide I had

GANGED UP ON THEM WITH KINDNESS, HA

Whelp, back to telling enemies that Susie will kick them in the shins I guess!

YES LANCER JOIN THE SHIT SQUAD

OMFG THAT FAAAAACE WHAT IS THAT FACE

Hey we’ve got a full Final Fantasy team now! Neat

STOOL FORME

I like how Lancer just sliiiiiides around outside the party instead of walking with

Hmmm well that friendship feeling didn’t last long

You done got locked in the dungeon

Yup sure did eat that jail moss two minutes in

HUH, we’re controlling Susie now

In which choices do not matter…

SUSIE’S FOKKIN PISSED

And we can’t control her actions…but why controlling the human soul?

A pair of eyes got arrested?! What IS the world coming to?!!

Oh dear, we found a bunch of kings in baby jail

Why are these filthy cages so happy-looking

Awwww Susie joined the party for realizes!

So, this about final boss point for this business?

Why are you guys just sitting on a pile of loot

And just who is this sassy lost child?

BAAHAHAHAAA

HECK YEAH WE GET TO FLIRT AGAIN

I am now BED INSPECTOR yes

Hello again fancy blue boy

“Can…can we see it” / “No.”

This sure is a jammin party with CLUB MUSIC OH HO HO HO

Awww he put his bicycle to bed

‘Welcome to my shop, you ungrateful worms” HELL YEAH

I do not wisheth to hear your MP3s! I would rather listen to the sweet song of Death!

Prepare for a battle with…WHATEVER THIS IS!!!!

JUST FUGGIN CHUCK RALSEI AT SIR LION PLATEFACE, I LIKE IT

Six dollars, for all of that?! Geez

WHELP this looks like final boss time…

Hiiiii there Lancer

Oh dang is gettin serious now

Oh woooow that’s…someone’s fetish right there

HOKAY that was tricky but! Having the defense abilities certainly helped with pacifism through that…

Despite ending this peacefully, I don’t think this scene is gonna end on a happy note…

W H E L P

DAYUM that face from Susie!!

Awwww poor Ralsei

We only have BAD-byes WUAH WUAH WUAAAH

DAWWW lil’ Asriel-lookin dude with glasses (and YES I see that anagram there)

LMAO Susie’s face

EPIC ROCK MUSIIIIIC

Also I’ve really been enjoying the color effects

Awww look at this epic adventure you two had in the closet

So basically we went to Monster Narnia, neat

Awww Susie likes Monster Narnia

Oh no we worried Toriel! THE WORST

LIBRARBY

YOU STUDY THOSE HOT DEMON COMICS FOR COLLEGE, TEMMIE

Hiiii Toby you busy makin’ something!

ALPHYS NO, YOU BETRAY MEW MEW KISSY CUTIE

OFFICE UNDYNE, DOn’T ARREST ME

I like reindeer girl’s rowdy hospitalized dad

PARTY ANIMAL TORIEL CONFIRMED

I like how there’s just a poster on the wall in this room that reads PAIN

The police tape simply reads NGGAAAAAHHHHH!

Good grief there’s SO MUCH STUFF TO EXPLORE HERE BUT I HAVE TO KEEP GOING

Snowdrakes don’t have arms, oh no!!!

“Does it hurt to be made of blood??” ….Yes. Yes it does.

HIIIIIIIII SANS

Woah woah woah WOAH WOAH SANS

Everyone is here! Even Ice Wolf!

Yes I’ll take a Double Ice Pizza you weirdos

OH MY GOOOOOOOOOD IT’S BURGERPANTS

10 OUT OF 10 GAME NOW

HIS FACES!!!! “C H I C K S”

That was brilliant, Burgerpants, thank you for existing

Catty!!! Hey where’s Bratty!

Noooo you gotta be besties with Bratty!

Brother Doug…?

Oh no, Mettaton, come out and talk to us!

ASGORE, HELLO

OMG Asgore hugs

Soul flowers….???

Awwww got some flowers for Toriel

THE GAY GUARDS IN THEIR GAY FLANNEL, YAY

It’s so late but I can’t stop until I’ve talked to LITERALLY EVERYONE

Thaaaat’s politics! …Rarely.

Comes to church for the fruit juice, sounds about right

DOG GRAVE, NO

Let’s go into the woods…what could go wrong…

Why can’t I get into the creepy shed…

Well, I think I got everything, so let’s go home now…

ASRIEL MAINS YOSHI IN SMASH CONFIRMED

Awwww Toriel is not big on Asgore’s bouquet!

OKAY decided to go to sleep here.

…Well that didn’t work out great

UHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

UUUUHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

WHAT??????????

WHAT????????????

WHAT?????????

HAHA I HAVE NO CLUE WHAT THE FUK HAPPENED IN ALL OF THIS BUT UH. WHEN’S CHAPTER TWO??

THAT SURE WAS A HELL OF A THING

No really Toby please WHAAAAAAATTT

OKAY I HOPE I DIDN’T MISS ANYTHING IMPORTANT BYYYYEEEE

[ciathyzareposts]

Dark Stone Ritual: Too Zoon

The Game Master gives me one of the main quests of the game.

             At this point, I’ve explored five towns, three caves, and as much of the outdoor area as I can. The outdoor map is structured so you can’t get very far without the skills necessary to navigate through swamps, forests, and mountains (and, I suppose, swimming), but the trainers for everything except “Forestry” must be on the other side of the island. Eventually, you get to a point where the only possible way to progress is a bridge, where a woman wants a password. 

        Everything funnels the player to this bridge.

           The outdoor about 64 squares vertical, ocean to ocean. If it’s also 64 squares east-to-west, there’s still a lot of the game for me to uncover, as I’ve only gone a maximum of 17 squares horizontal. On the other hand, this game does not seem to be interested in predictable square maps. The dungeon maps have all been much longer east-west than north-south–sometimes absurdly so–so perhaps the continent is stretched in the other direction.

           The town of Pelingore is 37 x 15.

           The outdoor map is sprinkled with towns, caves, fountains that raise attributes, and random treasure chests. Every town has a hut nearby where a gnome tells you how many parties of wandering monsters you still have to kill to clear the town. Once you kill them all and return to him, he gives you gold and experience. Each town has an armory, a tavern, a temple, a training hall, and its own variety of special encounters and side quests. Some of them have guild shops that sell magic spells. Each town so far has also featured at least one mysterious square in which a question mark indicates some kind of encounter, but stepping on it produces nothing.

My characters are all Level 11, and combats haven’t been very hard since the first few hours of the game, when I didn’t know how to properly equip items. I’ve purchased some offensive spells, but I have yet to find anything that affects the entire enemy party. Meanwhile, single-enemy offensive spells like “Cold Ray” and “Fire Ray” do less damage than a melee attack, so there’s rarely any reason to use them. My healer is kept busy with “Cure Wounds,” but my sorcerer doesn’t often have any sorcerer-specific things to do, except when I need her for “Townportal” or something. Since I’m never really in any danger during combats, battles have become rather tedious and boring.

             This battle with 8 enemies is merely long, not hard.

           The process of sorting through all the “found” equipment is about as cumbersome as Might and Magic, and to simplify things I’ve adopted the expedient of using the sale price of the piece of equipment as the primary measure of quality. Even then, I have to go through about a half hour of shuffling and sorting after each dungeon.

             A lucrative expedition loaded me up with much better equipment than I already had.

              None of the mysteries I mentioned last time have been solved except perhaps for the skill system. Midway through this session, I found a hut where a trainer will increase your score with each skill–but only if someone else has already taught you the skill. So I was able to take “Forestry” and “Healer” to 100% for the characters who had them, but I wasn’t able to do anything with skills like “Burglary” and “Swimming” because no one had acquired them yet. The long list of skills for which I have found no trainers is a counter-argument to the “small, narrow continent” hypothesis. I suppose there’s going to have to be much more territory if I have to find huts for all these other skills.

              All of the game’s skills can be trained here, point by point.

           I’m acquiring a lot more sub-quests than I’m solving. In Umure, a woman wants me to find a ring that she lost near a cave. In Brelock, a man wants me to rescue his daughter from “Zappo.” In Barura, Baran der Allwissende wants me to find his spellbook. And so forth. I’ve been assuming that these things are all on the other side of the continent, but late in this session, I realized I was mistaken as to the rules of secret doors. The nature of my mistake would be long and complicated, but the end result is that they can appear in far more places than I assumed. I thus feel that I need to go back through the towns and caves I’ve already explored and test more of the walls. There are also a lot of locked doors that I’ve left for later, presumably when I have the “Burglary” skill.

The third cave I explored was called “Glorys,” which introduced a new navigation obstacle: pits and teleporters for which I needed the “Jump” spell to pass and continue exploring the dungeon on the other side. It wasn’t hard to figure out. There was also a switch that lowered a nearby wall, but in general the game has featured nothing of the complexity of puzzles that we see in games of the Dungeon Master style.

       Casting “Jump” to cross a pit.

   Glorys gave me a series of messages related to someone called “Xoon,” which seems to be a play on Might and Magic IV‘s “Xeen.” As Might and Magic IV came out the same year as Dark Stone Ritual, the latter’s developers must have been remarkably quick, or else everyone’s wrong about Ritual‘s proper year.

Anyway, the Xoon messages are a little odd in that each one features what I think is the German word nur, meaning “only” or “just,” as in nur ein wenig (“just a little”) or nur ein gigolo (“merely a gigolo”), only for some reason the letters in the word are spaced out. I don’t know how I’m to regard that odd spacing in a word that you wouldn’t normally emphasize, and I hope some of my German readers might help. Here’s an example:

                      The messages, with what I get for translations, are:

            Xoon: mordet n u r aus verzweiflung: “Xoon: murders only in despair.”

Xoon: schlägt n u r die die ihm wiedersprechen: “Xoon: strikes only those who talk back to him.”

Xoon: liebt blutige getränke n u r wenn sie noch warm sind: “Xoon: loves bloody drinks only when they’re still warm.”

Xoon: liebt gebackene leber n u r wenn sie menschlichen ursprungs ist: “Xooon: loves baked liver only when it’s of human origin.”

           There was a fifth message for which I didn’t screenshot the German, suggesting that Xoon eats only very small children. The dungeon culminated in an encounter with the “Game Master,” who said that if we defeat Xoon and bring the Game Master his head, “the power of the Dark Stone sect is finally broken and you will have passed your first test!”

I next need to find the password to cross that bridge. I may already have it. Two of the towns featured encounters with a “morgogilde.” One told me that “the first two are MO” and the other said that “the second two are ND.” Unless there are more morgogildes that I missed behind secret doors, that gives me a password to try: MOND.

          Here, have a napkin.

          Ritual remains some fun, but I’m starting to worry that it will wear out its welcome long before it decides to wrap up. It has Might and Magic‘s admirable variety, although not assembled quite as artfully as is inspiration. Still, it’s been a major step forward for the Motelsoft brand.

source http://reposts.ciathyza.com/dark-stone-ritual-too-zoon/

[eternal-love-song]

The Tower of Aried - Chapter 2

Vixna goes into detail about her rescue plans.

Inspired by Dungeons & Deviants Roleplay

[Adventure, Fantasy, Magic, Slavery, Fantastic Racism, Explicit Sexual Content, Elves, Dark Elves, Draeni, Monster Girls, Developing Friendships, Team Bonding, Team Dynamics, NSFW] [Original Work]

Read Chapter 1 here.

Arre watched as Nagaira slipped out of the shack they'd sought refuge in, looking for any guards that may have been dispatched to capture her lady. The dark elf nodded once to Vixna, who gathered her cloak around herself and stepped out, followed closely by her companion. Saeryn stood at her side, squeezing the elf's hand once before turning to look at Nyx.

"Not sure what you're waiting on, hero," the wolf said before following the draeni. Saeryn made to follow before Arre placed a hand on her shoulder, fishing a cloak out of her belongings with her other hand.

"For protection," she said, handing the cloak to her friend with a grin. Saeryn returned the smile with a small one of her own.

Standing on the other side of the doorway, Arre's nose wrinkled. The slums reeked and she noticed that the slums were even more run down than she thought after following Vixna's trail.

The wood that made up the lean-tos were rotted through, looking as if all that held them together was hope and desperation. Most of the windows were simply areas of the paper-thin walls that had fallen apart, leaving wide gaps for breezes to cut through. She hoped that perhaps more of them were empty but expected that the only thing empty were the stomachs hidden behind each door.

She followed along, hoping that something bright might catch her eye to distract her and found that, aside from the russet color of her wolf and the white hair of the two dark elves with her, there was no vibrancy here. The colors all looked bleached and dull, and that combined with the lack of people out and about, even at this time of day unsettled Arre.

Arre had only been in the area a few days and only in the city less than a full day, but she knew that the Expanse was home to the monster girls, and Oroan was one of the largest cities in the area. True to expectations, she'd seen more monster girls than anything else in the city. There were merrows in the rivers that separated the districts, tengus perched on some of the more stable roofs and beastkin wandering everywhere. She saw none of that in the slum district.

Vixna strolled down the main street, head held high, back straight, and cloak pulled tight around her, hiding her silhouette from onlookers. Nagaira easily fell in step behind the draeni, appraising everything with a watchful eye, likely still on the lookout for anything that might cause trouble. As an afterthought, Arre figured that Nagaira must have thought that she was trouble.

Meanwhile, Vixna marched along, seemingly unfazed by everything around her. Arre noticed that she didn't flinch when they passed the stockade, though it hadn't been the one she'd been trapped in, nor did she seem to be worried when they passed the guardhouse. Several cobblestones were missing, yet Vixna maneuvered without missing a beat, seemingly oblivious to the squalid living conditions around them.

Moving into the low district was almost as if she had moved into another world entirely. The houses looked like actual houses and there were shops and even a few monster girls out and about. Arre noticed a pair of friendly kitsune cooing at Nyx beside her and she wondered how much preening she would have to listen to because of the attention. Further along, a siren winked at her, and briefly Arre wondered if she should come back after dark.

It was at this point that Arre thought to ask, "Where are we going?"

"The Inn in the Residential District," Vixna answered brightly. "That's where we're staying. It was fairly empty when we arrived, so we shouldn't have to worry about a crowd."

The Residential District was stunning to say the least, at least by Arre's standards. She spared a glance at Saeryn and knew immediately that the dark elf was both amazed by the splendor and also understandably nervous. Her eyes darted from door to door, and Arre slowed her pace to match her friend, catching her hand underneath her cloak and gently squeezing. Saeryn's eyes turned onto the elf and, after seeing who held her hand, relaxed visibly. Nyx sidled up to her other side, brushing against her leg.

They passed larger, stately houses painted in vivid colors, some with small gardens in the yards. There were even more shops and Arre could even smell warm bread and roasted meat that made her mouth water at the idea of getting a bite to eat. She passed many of her elven brethren, travelers like her from areas just outside of the Expanse.

Satisfied that Nyx was there to stay by Saeryn for the time being, Arre pushed her pace to catch up to Vixna. Nagaira tensed at her approach, not hiding her distaste in the slightest. She elected to ignore the dark elf for now. "You seem to know your way around," Arre said.

Vixna turned to smile at her. "I actually don't, not that well, but I explored a little when I first arrived. If I ever do get lost, Nagaira always puts me back on track."

A small smile graced Nagaira's lips as she answered, "You do not make it difficult for me."

Vixna laughed. "That's good to hear. I worry that I'm too much of a handful."

"A handful, yes, but one I am glad to handle."

It was the first smile Arre had seen Nagaira give and it was certainly the friendliest she'd been. She took another look at the wood elf and her face melted back into disdain.

They turned a corner and Vixna turned to gesture behind her. "Here we are!" The Aluminum Wench Inn was large. The inn was painted a dark purple, causing it to stand out among the surrounding area. Above the door, a metal sign with the silhouette of a serving girl hung, likely the eponymous 'Aluminum Wench'. A kitsune watering the flowers greeted the group with a bright smile as they passed her, and Vixna waved at the sluggish naga behind the front desk, who halfheartedly waved back.

There was only one guest in the common area on the main floor and they passed no one on their way up the stairs. The inn was clean and well decorated, with paintings hung on the walls outside the rooms. At the top of the stairs, Vixna paused in front of the first door, holding it open for the party.

"Make yourself comfortable," Vixna told Arre and Saeryn, removing her cloak and hanging it beside the door.

The room was large, not surprising considering how big the inn itself had seemed. There were two beds on opposite walls, both made up as if they hadn't been slept in. There was a desk pushed against the back wall, cluttered with papers and a lantern. Taking up most of the space in the center of the room was a large round table.

Vixna managed to snag an errand boy and pressed a few copper pieces into his grip, asking for a pitcher of fresh water. The boy's eyes brightened and he skipped off to do what the draeni asked of him. While she waited, she gestured to the two chairs in the room, silently offering them to Arre and Saeryn. The two sat side-by-side, and Nyx plopped her head in Arre's lap, and she absently scratched the wolf's ear.

Nagaira took her post leaning beside the door. The boy returned with the water, and Vixna accepted it gratefully, immediately pouring the pitcher into a few cups kept in the room, passing one to both Arre and Saeryn.

The dark elf accepted her water with murmured thanks, but Arre instead focused on Vixna, who moved on to collect papers from the desk. "What can you tell us about your mission?" Arre asked her.

Vixna brought over a small map. It didn't show the entire continent of Aruel, but it did show the surrounding area. Perhaps half of The Expanse could been seen and Arre found herself leaning forward to get a closer look.

Vixna pointed to a marker on the map. "This is Oroan," she said. She traced a diagonal line a short distance away. "And this is the Tower where the Princess is being kept. It's approximately three days away, in the middle of Aried territory. It's likely that we'll have to fight our way through, and once inside we'll have to contend with whoever is holding the Princess against her will."

Arre sat back from the table, a furrow digging into her brow. "And who is holding the Princess?" she asked.

Vixna frowned, placing her hands on her hips and shaking her head. "That's where my knowledge ends. I don't know what we'll face once we get inside, including who holds the Tower or even anything about the Princess." She looked up to meet Arre's gaze. "I'll be honest, this wasn't my first choice for a Tower seize, but Solfiel threw off my plan. Now that I'm here, I can't just leave without doing anything. It wouldn't sit right with me, you know?"

Arre glanced at Saeryn, who'd caught her lip between her teeth and chewed absently. She noticed the wood elf's gaze and gave her a reassuring smile.

Arre sat up, clicking once with her tongue, and Nyx moved to place her head in Saeryn's lap, and the dark elf wove her fingers through the wolf's russet hair. "Alright then. Tell me what you do know."

Vixna gave her another, more relaxed smile. "The arieds are numerous, but not strong. They stand about waist high with two horns. They are known to charge and have a tendency to bite things they find unfamiliar. Alone they aren't much of an issue, but the danger is in their numbers. It won't help that we'll be in their territory." She spared Nagaira a look, who nodded imperceptibly. "There's also been word that there have been karpoi spotted in that area. They tend to use flutes and play music. Could be a problem for you if what they say about wood elves and their senses are true. I'm sure that with all of us together, we should be able to deal with that."

Nagaira shifted towards the newcomers, narrowing her eyes. "To that end, we need to know what you can do to help us."

Arre's fingers rested comfortably on her bow. "As you might know, I can talk to most animals, though I haven't tried talking to Arieds before. I'm agile and there's very little I can't get into. I'm also a good shot. I've got a mount wandering out there, plus Nyx always fights by my side. She can hold her own, of that I have no doubt. Saeryn however, is the most impressive of us all," she finished, grinning widely at her companion.

Saeryn blushed, ducking her head against flash of her friend's teeth. "Please, Arre, I'm not worthy of such praise."

Arre and Nyx huffed in stereo. "Please. You say that every time, and you're wrong every time. You deserve twice the praise."

"Really Arre, please--,"

"How do you fight, Saeryn?" Vixna asked.

It was Nagaira who answered, staring at Saeryn as if seeing her in a whole new light. "She is a Blade Dancer. It is an art held in high regard among the dark elves."

Saeryn looked at Nagaira with wide eyes, surprised that the dark elf was so aware of her, and causing her to stutter. "I-it's true. I c-carry a sp-special p-pair of swords."

"Which she is a master with," Arre added.

Saeryn's face flushed. "A-Arre..."

"That's amazing!" Vixna exclaimed. "It sounds like a sight. I can't wait to see it."

"And what about you and Nagaira?" Arre questioned.

"Nagaira prefers stealth," Vixna said. "And you already know that I practice the arts, but I know how to handle a weapon, as well." Vixna held out her arm, showing off the blue tattoo wrapped around her wrist. Up close, Arre could tell that it was some sort of language, but she couldn't read it. "In an emergency, I have these. These tattoos are spells saved on my skin. I can used them at any time and if I plan well, they really come in handy. Even if I became completely drained of mana, as long as I have the right arcane ritual written here, I'm never completely helpless."

"Wow," Arre said softly, leaning forward to examine the tattoos a little more closely. "That's impressive."

Vixna preened at the praise. "Thanks."

"Do you think that you will be up to task?" Nagaira asked. "Given the conditions that we are aware of?" She looked at them both closely.

Saeryn looked to Arre, ready to accept whatever decision she made. Arre looked down at the map, thinking over what she'd been told. Finally, she looked up at Nagaira, defiance in her eyes as she said, "Yes, we will."

Nagaira nodded at them and took a few steps back. "I hope that proves to be true."

[samiamack]

I was thinking about that but I thought it would be a little bit tooo much trauma for our boy. But then I had an epiphany so like in other dungeons you die for real but in thistles dungeon you can’t. Soooooooo if they died in thistles dungeon then maybe the soos could be revived? But then again how did rok soo escape with his life then? Do we have a similar situation to falin here? Do they meet while the party splits up right after laios’ original team break up(sans marcille and chilchuck)? Cause then they could like bond through trying to get to a companions body in time to revive it. Like they could meet in front of or near the beginning of the story.

And while all that is wonderful for the story and everything it also removes my ability to make it so rok soo lost everyone he loved to monster/dungeon related accidents and I can’t have him mirror Kabru as much and also it’s somehow less trauma and more sadness at the same time? I don’t know how to properly explain it but I guess there are two main routes I can think of each without own amount of angstiness

1) the other soos died outside of the dungeon or in a different dungeon. This adds comparison to kabru as they both lost family to dungeons/monsters. This way we can have rok soo seem apathetic to the idea of eating monsters because everything to live right? But also secretly be pushing down how traumatizing it is for him to eat monsters(for extra spice you can add that he throws up all the food he eats making him increasingly weak throughout the journey and making everyone else extremely worried for him). In this route we can also see rok soo distraught after learning about revival magic(which due to the nature of this type he would either learn about it in an offhanded remark from marcille while they discuss their fear of outliving everyone they love or when marcille goes to revive falin) and then fall to what if for bringing back the soos(potential tension with chilchuck and other characters who aren’t ok which dark magics).

Or 2) the soos died in the dungeon he overhears laios’ spiel on the dragons digestive system and having just given up all hope desperately clings to the idea that maybe he can save the soos(depends on what the writers want to do with the angst level whether revival is possible or not). So he sets out with the crew meets senshi still has some reluctance to eat monsters but not as much and it doesn’t let on as much either because food is food is a way to stay alive to rok soo. Also in this one too soo has no interaction with the samurai guy and dwarf girl(sorry forgot their names) from the last party so they’re meeting for the first time which can be interesting.

Anyway constants for both are rok soos character and overall trauma difference is in the type of trauma.

Now for some fluffy thoughts cause that was a lot!

Marcille and rok soo become besties but in the way that they share trauma and go to each other for comfort(oof I may not be so good at this fluff thing)

Rok soo is ace so chilchuck never sees his interactions with other party members as potentially problematic as there is no romantic intent which subconsciously makes him put rok soo into the child category in his brain(doesn’t help that rok soo is in the range of like 15-18 years old in my head for this au). Chilchuck not only teaches him about worker rights but also how to deal with people and hide your skills so you don’t overwork yourself(which rok soo does anyways but it’s the thought that counts ig).

Rok soo is laios’ first real friend and he does not realize this but does categorize rok soo under friend much like the samurai guy.

Senshi not only has the urge to feed rok soo up as he is massively underweight but also teach him to take care of himself this leads to izutsumi and rok soo eventually forming a sibling bond due to senshi parenting them both. Izutsumi and rok soo don’t really define the relationship with like older or younger sibling titles and authority but like to switch up who’s older and who’s younger all the time.

Talking w mutuals abt dunmeshi crossover when laios’ group finds 20 y old krs alone in the dungeon after lsh and cjs died in there

Marcille being a bad influence on krs by getting him into necromancy bc he wants his friends back

The gang +krs finding out abt the Curse tm and they get rid of it (and krs is left struck by guilt bc its bc of him his friends and his parents died oh god)

Senshi basically adopts him and feeds him like for the love of god please this boy needs to be reminded to eat

Izutsumi sibling bond

Laios and krs autism bonding (laios infodumps when krs goes nonverbal and laios listens carefully when krs has an infodumping moment abt the novel hes been reading)

Chilchuck teaches krs about workers rights and how to slack off as much as legally possible. Krs now has 2 (two) dads

The only drawing i can give for now is this thank you for listening to my ted talk

[bluerosesburnblue]

Liz Liveblogs Bravely Second: Chapter 6, Part 2/2 *FINALE*

Well, nothing left for me to do now. I guess it’s time we finally hunker down and beat this game. I started this liveblog series on January 14, 2017 (July 23, 2016 if we include the Demo) and now, almost two years later, we finally see the end (layer) of Bravely Second

Before we get to the actual story I’d just like to say that I currently have five level 99 Apparati hanging out at Fort-Lune. FIVE. Jeez, somebody share something else for a change! This is why I share any Redshirts, Urchins, Goldies, or Turtle Doves I see! It’s also why I hate it when games make you rely on communication features for 100% completion. Stop that. It always goes poorly

Well, regardless. There’s a certain fairy waiting for... well, not us, but someone down at Norende Chasm and I intend to finish what I started. You got me into this series, Anne! You did this to yourself!

Feels weird to be back at the first ever dungeon in the series. I don’t know if it’s new for this game or if it’s always been there, but if you look off the edge of Norende Ravine you can see a river flowing at the bottom, beneath the fog. And “Dungeon of the Nature” is a great scene-setter, as always

This Party Chat is certainly something. Tiz is just reminiscing about being back and how as kids they were told to stay away due to monsters, but of course everyone played there anyway. And then when Norende was swallowed by the Chasm, he raced through here to see it with his own eyes, and there met Agnès, who would change his whole world. And they came back, again and again in each world. Finally, this was the path they took to the end last time. The place they went to reach the Dark Aurora to chase down Ouroboros. Norende Ravine is the most visited spot in the game in terms of plot, and you’d think it would get old but it doesn’t. “How many more times... will we walk down this road?” And Edea replies “As many times as we have to! Until we’ve wiped away those terrible memories once and for all! [...] The next time we walk down this road, it’ll be to visit the new Norende Village - the one you helped rebuild!” I never expected the game to bring up the Norende Village... minigame, I guess you could call it? I’m so glad they did, and I’m so glad that Magnolia and Yew declaring that all four of them would visit it together is what cheered Tiz up

...I didn’t realize I had 99 X-Potions? I guess my healers have just been really good so far

Oh Aaaaaaaaanneeeeeeee~ Guess who’s heeeeeeeere~ I’m gonna straight up kick your ass for what you did last timeline! And, presumably, whatever you were up to last game!

How predictable that we’ve come to stop you? Do you know what we’ve done since I found out you were here? You had every opportunity to disappear and didn’t! What, have you just been sitting here for a week? I think you’re the predictable one

Also, nice demonic cloud cover. I’m really feeling the glowing red mass underneath these near-black stormclouds

“Your master? But the kaiser is... Denys is gone...!” Bold of you to assume Denys was actually in charge of anything. I thought it was pretty obvious he was out of his depth when Anne mentioned her master and even Denys was confused by it

Hm. “Lord Providence, ruler of the Celestial Realm!” I’d heard that name thrown around before I even started playing the game, but “ruler of the Celestial Realm” is new. Given that his name means “God’s protection,” I guess you mean ruler as in “a deity” and not “a high ranking political figure”

Man, at the angle her head’s at, Anne’s hair protrusions really do look like antennae. It just hasn’t been obvious before I got this angle on her

How the hell is Providence supposed to enlighten anyone if they’re dead, Anne? That’s dumb. Your master’s dumb. Death isn’t enlightenment, it’s just death.

And Providence got all upset that the Moon people were killing his Ba’als, so he sent Anne to deal with it by destroying the moon. But screw that plan! There’s a Celestial shortcut right here! But you know, if something can get from the Celestial Realm to Luxendarc, then I don’t see why the opposite can’t be true, too

And, well, shoot. If Providence is the “ruler of the Celestial Realm” then we couldn’t have Ouroboros getting in! So Anne had to deal with Airy. Or rather, have us deal with Airy. And then she had to get someone to summon the Holy Pillar to take out the moon, and found Denys. Both games have all been thanks to her manipulations. Man, fuck Cryst-Fairies

“Hold it right there! That’s my brother you’re talking about!” You tell her, Yew! Rip her a new one! I’ve got your back!

Fuck, she did the same thing to Denys that she did to the player at the start of Bravely Default. Read us like a book and played to the key aspects of our personalities. Denys’s sense of duty and idealism, the player’s sense of duty and determination to see things through... hell, it’s almost like she read into my completionist tendencies and knew I’d do dumb shit like grinding to max level and job levels and getting the best equipment. Ouroboros didn’t stand a chance once that was thrown into the mix

“Why, he was even ready to kill his own precious little brother for his ‘duty.’” Can I take the use of “precious” as confirmation that it was actually a hard choice for him? Because Denys isn’t here to defend himself and never did get around to talking about it when he was here

I don’t think I’ve ever heard the word “dupe” used as an adjective. Most people go with “dope.” You’re weird, Anne! You’re weird and also a huge bitch!

“Denys died to save this world...” Is he actually dead though!? Like, no seriously, is he? Or is he just stuck in a situation that he will probably die in? Because one of those is potentially fixable in a sequel. ...actually, maybe both of them are fixable in a sequel. Situation’s unclear at the moment

“When Lord Providence descends, Luxendarc as you know it will be completely and utterly destroyed.” If he descends. If.

Yeesh, Anne, cool it with the shade! I know Denys’s kind of an idiot, but you don’t need to say it every other line!

Oh wow. Whoah. This... everything on screen is gorgeous right now? The glowing blue and gold bits on Anne’s final form, the translucent pink butterflies in the background against a starry night sky... yooooooooo. And I thought Airy’s final form was pretty

“Wicked Flight” is still a better boss song, though. Heck, the music right now isn’t even as good as Anne’s last battle theme, and it’s just a remix. I think removing the Spanish guitars and replacing them with a wailing rock guitar really does the song a disservice

That T-pose looks real dumb, Anne. Knock it off

It’s really fascinating what she says here. Humans are born without purpose, so they spend their lives lost and weak, constantly searching for something to live for. She, however, was made with a specific goal in mind, and always feels fulfilled because of it. And I don’t think she’s entirely wrong to observe that human beings spend so long looking for acceptance and purpose, and that the struggle to find some is central to most people’s lives. Heck, I don’t feel like I have a purpose most of the time. But I think, until I find one, if I just keep trying to do good then it’ll be enough. And the good thing about being born without a purpose? You get to find one you like, eventually

Cryst-Fairies are created by the gods to serve them. Anne is the older sister, but never really cared much for Airy, since Airy served someone who would destroy the Celestial Realm, where Anne’s master resided and controlled. Which... I suppose leads me to believe that they were created by different entities, and yet all Cryst-Fairies see themselves as siblings, regardless. Maybe it’s because they’re made of the same stuff? Like a half-sibling thing? Where one “parent” is the magical essence that they’re made of, and the other is the god that used it to create them?

Did Airy even know she had a sister? Like, was she even aware Anne existed? I don’t think she ever, once, mentioned her

Man, this game has a weird theme of “older siblings attempting to murder their younger siblings for a cause”

Oh, good. She can set someone’s max HP to 1. And she used it on Edea. Because even at level 99, Edea has to die at least three times per fight

I don’t think she expected Quadruple Meteor Rain Yew, though. That’s what you get for shit-talking a Geneolgia’s family

Oh. She didn’t even revive. Nice

Funny enough, Anne, Yew learned that secret technique after I knew you were here. So, you know, you had plenty of time to avoid that

If Lord Providence is gonna be here any moment now, then he is really taking his time meandering down the Celestial shortcut

Oh, geez! Altair, don’t sneak up on me like that! Holy shit, the sound of his voice startled me

There’s no need to apologize for Providence using Vega to create the Ba’als. You’re both just victims of an uppity god. Though, as a Celestial, I don’t suppose you have any info on your supposed “god,” Providence?

I love how on the same page Yew and I always are. Altair is family now, of course we’re gonna save Vega. Even if none of us know her, she’s special to Altair. And family of our family... is as good as family, too

Ahahahahah! “Yeah! We’re going to crush a god!” Never change, Edea. We’re upgrading from Ba’al Busters to God Crushers!

Altair just called them “my children”! Team Dad! Team Dad! Team Dad!

“Come, Yew! Let us deliver our pièce de radicchio!” ...let us deliver our piece of leaf chicory? Excuse me? Is that supposed to be like “Let’s serve Providence a bitter meal he’ll regret eating?”

Altair, normally I can at least follow your vegetable proverbs, even if they fall flat, but that one was really... uhhhhh?

So the evil fog in the Chasm is a sign that the Dimensions are in flux. “A holy battleground and an angel’s descent. A chasm of darkness and a glimmering ship.” Would that be the Ouroboros fight, or whatever Sylvie was prophesying about?

Clear the mists and reveal the path to the Celestial Realm. Hey, can’t all of us summon Hresvelgr right now? Can we get him to blow it away?

Ah, we’re using Agnès’s pendant, which can connect people between various worlds. It’s already a spacetime anomaly. Neat! I love it when they use lore, especially something like this, which has been established since the start of Default!

And now they pray, with the help of the pendant, to lift the fog. It’s not enough, so they call Agnès to pray, too! It’s still not enough. Yew cries out for help, for anyone to give them strength. In other games, I could see this leading to a pan-out where everyone in the world prays with them...

But here, they just need me. Time to mash “X” like the good old days and clear the clouds away for my favorite team

Aaaaahahahahahahahah. Ahahahaha! Oh. Oh god. So they use the 3DS camera to put your face in the Chasm once the clouds are cleared but oh man. Oh nooooo, that angle. That was not a good look. At all. I started laughing so hard I had to put my 3DS down. Ohhhhhh. Oh man, that’s a heck of a look for the first time the party gets to see my face. Imagine the first time you get to see your spirit guide and it starts cackling and the connection dies for a few minutes. I’m sorry, guys! I’m really - ahahahaha - really sorry!

I do adore how the Bravely series utilizes the fourth wall. The Celestial Realm is (or is at least based on) our world, and every time they depict it (so, this scene and the Ouroboros fight in Default), they use the 3DS camera. The player is every bit a real character in this game’s universe, and they do a hell of a job merging the two using existing elements of the 3DS hardware

God, nope. Still can’t look at it. It’s like a fun house mirror in there! I get that it’s supposed to be at the bottom of the Chasm, so that’s the angle it’s at, but it looks freaking funny!

I’m glad you’re all so focused on Vega and none of you are reacting to my mug plastered at the bottom of the Chasm. It’s still there, even after the cutscene

Oh. I know that place. That’s the background of the Snowcap Ba’al fights. Welcome to the Via Celestio, path to the Celestial Realm, altered based on Vega’s memories

And I guess Altair is going to explain what each Ba’al represents as we go though, which he’s only willing to tell us because we’re all pals now

Ba’al vi: Snowcap - Represents the day that Altair and Vega met, with ski lifts as its background. Altair was vacationing at a ski resort, and sat next to a young woman on the chair lift. They got stuck up there when the weather got particularly bad, and Altair noticed how scared she was, so he picked a flower from one of the trees their lift stopped near (good reach, buddy) to cheer her up. Despite that moment, though, Altair never got her name, and never saw her again before his vacation was over

Oh, don’t be so cheeky, Magnolia. “Though some might say giving a flower to a girl you just met might be a bit forward.” It worked on you, didn’t it?

So, I guess Altair and Tiz are going to be switching back and forth for this dungeon. And Tiz is conscious when Altair’s in control, since he heard that? That’s existentially terrifying

The glowing gold platforms, surrounded by the already very pretty Ba’al fight backgrounds makes for a gorgeous area... but I’m not feeling the music at all. It’s way too dramatic, with blaring sounds, militaristic drums, and weird wind ambience. I get what it’s going for, since this is the final dungeon and should be suitably intense, but it’s really incongruous with the location’s aesthetic, and also doesn’t fit the emotional tone of Altair nostalgically recounting his life together with Vega as we go to free her spirit. Something like this would fit better in a final dungeon like the Dark Aurora, where we were in an unearthly void on our way to the Infernal Realm. I know I mention “Dungeon of the Nature” a lot, but I really wish the Via Celestio music was more similar to that than, say, “Tower,” which is the music they used for locations like Eternian Central Command, like what we got. I’d actually have really loved if the music here was just Altair’s theme, but with the larger, orchestral sounds of “Dungeon of the Nature.” Something melancholy and soft, but no less grand. Altair’s theme played on piano, but with chimes and a string backing track

I actually don’t like “Tower.” At all. I think it’s probably the worst track in the game. It’s just so dissonant, and I turn my sound off every time I go into a dungeon where it’s playing

Alright, kids, it’s been fun, but you’re gonna have to turn off Obliterate for a sec so we can get those last three Catmancy skills

Okay, I don’t get Luxendarc sometimes. You kids have ketchup and baseball, but Altair had to explain what skiing was? You mean to tell me someone figured out how to make a specific type of tomato-based sauce and independently came up with the rules for baseball, but no one thought to tie planks to their feet and slide down a snowy hill with them on? Seriously, guys

Yew asks everyone what their plans for the future are. Edea says she’s gonna help with the Eternia-Orthodoxy peace talks, so she and Yew will probably still be working together. Tiz just wants to retire to Norende at age... 19? I mean, I don’t really blame him. He did die several times and kill multiple gods. I’d want a break, too. And Magnolia feels she has to return to the Moon and finish helping everyone there recover. Yew is disappointed. It’s a hard position to be in, you know? He loves Magnolia and will miss her dearly, but he also knows how much the people of her home mean to her and he would never come between her and them

Ba’al v: Urchin - Represents the day Altair and Vega met again in the spring, when Altair was transferred to work at the place Vega did, with its background being the rainy exterior of an urban office building with a couple that occasionally passes by, sharing an umbrella. There are little flower gardens, and a city skyline can be seen in the distance. As Altair tells the story, we see silhouettes of himself and Vega acting it out. Or at least, I assume it’s them, since “Altair” looks a lot like Yew in an ankle-length trench coat and “Vega” is just Magnolia’s researcher costume. Altair was an extremely successful scientist, but his superiors grew jealous of his skills and transferred him to a remote, less prestigious location. Altair was so distraught to be there that he ran right out into the storm. Right into acid rain, due to severe pollution in his homeland. Unbeknownst to him, however, he had been transferred to the very place Vega worked, and when she saw him run out, she followed him and offered to share her umbrella. Altair muses how this means that at the time, Vega must have remembered their first meeting on that ski lift, since it became a Ba’al, and he chuckles quietly to himself. Fate, indeed

So the last room had little snowy trees peppering the walkways, and here it’s rainy streetlamps and road signs. God, I love the visual design here. And now that I’m not fighting the Ba’al, I can get a better look at the gorgeous backgrounds

Ba’al iv: Goldie - Represents Altair’s first date with Vega that summer, where he confessed his growing love to her, with an absolutely gorgeous background of a Japanese festival. Lanterns and trees surround a single torii as fireworks go off in the sky above. The appearance of Goldie comes from their attempts to play the goldfish-scooping game they have at Japanese festivals

This is all coming across as so incredibly sad. Altair loved Vega with all his heart, but it sounds like he didn’t even really realize how much she cared for him until right now, where he’s seeing exactly what memories she treasured. And is seeing them twisted and used against the both of them

And Edea’s noticed something else. Meeting in the snow, sharing an umbrella, goldfish scooping... Yew and Magnolia have been unintentionally reliving Altair and Vega’s romance. No wonder he’s so adamant that Yew confesses sooner, rather than later. Altair knows how this story ends

Our little set dressings this time around are floating lanterns. I’m actually surprised there aren’t mini fireworks bursting around them

Most of the enemies in the Via Celestio don’t add a heck of a lot to the lore, but one does: the Spartan. It’s the final variation of a specific type of automaton we’ve been seeing throughout the game, that Altair comments on every time they show up. Turns out, Altair invented them to be caretakers for the Celestial Realm! They uh... I don’t think they did that great a job, but it’s the thought that counts!

And the Bestiary entry is basically “Okay but how do rocket punches and optical camouflage... help? With caretaking?” “I dunno! But isn’t the technology awesome?” Altaiiiiiiiiir

Ba’al iii: Apparati - Represents the struggle Altair and Vega faced together as they tried to continue their research despite the improper equipment and poor funds afforded to them, enhanced by the depiction of the interior of a laboratory with static-y, crackling monitors all over in the background. If we’re following the pattern, then the falling leaves and bare trees outside the window indicate autumn. Vega really kept Altair’s project going, by sneaking restricted data out of the archives for him and coming up with creative solutions whenever he hit a mental block. And when their hard work paid off and Altair’s hypothesis was accepted as scientific fact, then he knew he was absolutely in love with Vega, the woman who supported and aided him and who constantly encouraged him to be his best self. He was a different, better person around her, and he knew it

“If attraction is gazing into one another’s eyes, then true love is setting those eyes on the same shared goal... or so my theory goes.” I can’t say I have a lot, or really any, romantic experience, but this is something I believe strongly. A romantic partner is someone whose skills and personality differ from yours, but also complement yours, and yet who strongly value the same things you do. If you can’t agree on what’s most important to you, then you can’t connect on a deeper level. And I’m not saying, like, find someone who thinks exactly as you do! Because that’s not healthy. But find someone who you can agree on the important things with

Also, love that Altair distinguishes between “attraction” and “love” because they’re very different things, and I so often see people conflate the two

Seriously, guys, leave Yew alone! He’s 16 and this is his first foray into romance. That’s scary and overwhelming!

And there’s bookshelves and stacks of books with desk lamps on top littering the pathways

Ba’al ii: Redcoat - Represents the night that Altair proposed to Vega over dinner. Honestly, this is my favorite Ba’al fight background. It’s just a very pretty, snowy, city skyline with a tall tower and a suspension bridge in the center, but there’s something so beautiful about how simple it is and the shade of light blue they used for it. Altair describes it as a holy night, and since Redcap is a demonic Santa hat tangled in lights, I can only assume he means Christmas. Poor Altair, however, couldn’t afford a wedding ring. Their program funding was awful, after all, and what they gave him for personal pay, he spent on more research to make up for what they didn’t give him. Vega told him she didn’t mind, but he still felt incredibly guilty about it. They married with a small ceremony, and Altair eventually bought her that ring... right before the trip to Luxendarc that tore them apart forever

Altair tells everyone not to despair, since he lived a good life and had goals that he truly believed in that he knows he gave his all working towards, and I can’t help but think back to Anne’s speech about purpose. Altair isn’t technically human in the Luxendarc sense, he’s a Celestial, but he managed to find his own greater purpose and it made him stronger

“You must all live your own lives as well. Have courage! Be brave enough to default on the expectations of others!” WE DID IT BOYS, PACK IT UP, WE GOT A TITLE DROP. In all honesty, though, I love what the games say the symbolism of each title is. To “Bravely Default” is “to have the courage to go against the expectations of others” and to “Bravely Second” is “to have the courage to try again,” and by doing each of those can you get the best ending in each game, further enforcing their message (even if I thought it was a little botched in Default. You're supposed to be going against what Sage Yulyana says... by following Airy, who you were going along with from the start, so there’s really no “courage” involved. Gameplay-wise you never actually disobey anyone, because you completely obey Airy, though I suppose you still have to disobey Sage to an extent, who you trust more at that point)

Tiz has a point, too. Maybe Altair is content with the life he had, but it’s still not fair for all of his efforts to be rewarded with his and Vega’s suffering

Our road-markers in this room are banquet tables with a nice Christmas dinner on them. I was hoping for Christmas trees, but that’ll work, too

Seems like this is our final Tent Event. Magnolia’s cooking is fantastic as always, but the stress is getting to Edea. She’s so worried she can barely even eat, and Altair’s story has really shaken her. Of course it would effect her the most. She knows better than anyone what it feels like to be separated from someone you love across time and space. They’ve packed the leftover food for sandwiches. They’ll eat when they’re ready. One more megalixir, as a gift from our fox friend who I notice found his way into a dimensional rift, and we’re on our way

The final room is a straight bridge, adorned with roses, candles, and floral archways. The background is a church on a hill, blossoming trees on either side and doves soaring across the sky in the background. Ba’al i: Turtle Dove. Altair and Vega’s wedding. This one doesn’t need an explanation from Altair. Just one last save point between us and the end. Don’t think I haven’t noticed you’ve somehow gotten in here, too, Adventurer.

“This is it... our final battle!”

“Let’s do it!”

We’re in a chapel, with nothing but soft wind. Unlike the silhouettes of the Ba’al backgrounds, this is undeniably physical. And gorgeous. Very Baroque in its architecture

Vega’s voice is so much softer than I imagined it would be

I thought she sounded familiar. It’s Eden Riegel, who also voices Anne, so her range is commendable. For those curious, she also voices Iris in Final Fantasy XV, Devola and Popola in NieR and NieR Automata (I think what tipped me off was how similar her Vega and Popola voices are), Marie in Persona 4: Golden and its spinoffs, and Estelle in Tales of Vesperia. And those are just the ones I recognize! Her older brother is Sam Riegel, also a voice actor of renown and player on the D&D show Critical Role, which exclusively stars voice actors. Sam’s great, and probably one of the funniest people on that show. Good to see Eden’s doing great work, too

I guess the thing of note, though, is that she is NOT the voice who narrated the ends of Chapters 1-4 as I had suspected. Her voice is decidedly softer and not British. But if that wasn’t Vega, then who?

She’s so lost in her despair. She’s begging Altair to explain why he left, and why he didn’t come back. She won’t even listen to him explain that he tried, that he died and just couldn’t make it back

Someone told her the wrong meeting place to meet Altair that day. The reason she wasn’t on the ship was because someone didn’t want her on the ship

Ohhhhhh I did not like the voice distortion on “Why didn’t you protect me? Why didn’t you keep me safe!?”

Fuck, Altair? Altair! He just collapsed screaming with black and purple mist coming off of him. Black and purple mist that just formed a robed raven-faced humanoid with the worst voice distortion I’ve ever heard

Hey, are you Providence!? Get off of my weird vegetable-proverb spouting friend, jackass!

I can’t tell if that’s Vega’s voice layered under Providence’s or just another feminine voice. Could be Anne’s, too, since they’re both Eden Riegel

Also, Providence’s theme is pretty great? It’s got hints of the Ba’al music boxes, with a one woman wail in the background

“I’ve never tasted anything so exquisite!” Were you eating her despair? Of course that’s all she was to you. A food factory. And the sadder and more hopeless she got, the better for you, right? God, you’re like depression made physical. I’ve always wanted to punch the concept of depression

She’s held on for so long because she desperately hoped to see Altair one more time. And you used it against her!

And you saw Luxendarc, the world that was intended to be her safe haven and the place Altair was, and decided you were going to use her to power its destruction to break her further by making her feel guilty. What did she ever do to you!?

Okay, two things. One, you’re a fucking dick and I’m gonna strangle you with your own ribbons. Two, the T-pose doesn’t look any better on you than it did on Anne

That’s my boy! “We deny you because we are mortal! [...] our emotions, the memories we create with others - good or bad, this is all we have! I deny your right to claim them for your own!”

“I’m done letting you use the hearts of our friends as your personal plaything! We’re gonna send you flying to the edge of time and space!” Crush a god, Edea! This jackass has no place ruling anyone

Oh, Tiz. “He might be goofy on the surface... uh, like a cantaloupe? But inside is a sweet and sensitive soul! He’s suffered long enough, Providence! It ends today!” This is as much for Altair and Vega as it is the safety of Luxendarc. But, like, I am especially going to kill you for what you did to Vega. No one deserves God Depression

“Nothing is ever hopeless! It’s never too late, you’re never too weak to fight for what you truly believe in! I believe in a world ruled by hope, not despair. And thanks to my friends, I have the courage to fight for it!” Bravely Second, Magnolia. Bravely Second

Oh, poor baby. The light hurts your eyes? Shut them and make it easier for me to end you

That fight background is awesome! We stand in a grassy field, surrounded by telephone lines. A city skyline in the distance. A freaking GALAXY in the sky, with red-violet clouds. And this music is perfect. So perfect! Grand orchestral scores, with sections of electric guitar and lo-fi beats, all held together by sweeping chants. Holy shit, Providence may look pretty dumb, but this fight’s oozing style

What... so Providence can force a party member to do do his bidding? Like having Magnolia try to strike Yew down. That’s not great, but your first instance of doing so is using my healer to attack. And I’m supposed to be scared of you!?

Get him down enough and he starts consuming Vega’s energy to heal up 10,000 HP every few seconds. Fucking rude. Altair’s so upset he took over Tiz and is screaming for Vega... who can hear him. And she’s fighting back! All Altair had to do was tell her the compass was completed and their dreams could come true and her hope reignited!

This ass can still cast Doom, though

OR HE CAN JUST SAY “YOUR LIFE ENDS HERE” AND WIPE THE PARTY. God... dammit. Like, actually damn this god. What a dick. This is what I get for trying to have Yew conserve his MP. Chainspell Meteor Rain is prepped for next round, bitch

I could easily skip replaying this scene, but I wanted to watch my kids trash-talk Providence’s ideals again

God, I forgot to take Obliterate off of Tiz AGAIN. I know it won’t ever work and it’s just wasting a slot right now. I’d still die laughing if it worked, though

That can’t be the end. This is a JRPG, there’s at least one, probably two more forms coming. And come on, you only drop 980pg? What, are you a broke god? What an ass

Vega’s pink soul seems to be freed, though. And Altair’s spirit finally leaves Tiz, his color being blue. They’re really cute together, even if they are just floating, colored orbs

Is... is Tiz gonna be okay, though? Altair’s soul was kinda fueling his... everything

We shouldn’t keep them, though. I think it’s time for both of them to move on. Gonna miss ya, Altair. I know I’ve made fun of you in the past, but I’m glad you were part of this journey

“Keep your hearts like chamomile!” Just had to get one more in there, huh?

I’m so glad Vega’s here to make sense of this. “Chamomile is said to grow best and strongest when trodden on, you see.” So learn from our hardships, and continue to grow ever stronger. Stay stalwart in the face of adversity. Can do, you crazy, crazy Celestial man. Can do

Oh, so I have Vega to thank for your absurd produce tirades? She started the proverbs to get him to eat vegetables. Jeez, Altair, you sound like my dad. The man’s in his mid-50s and still refuses to eat any vegetables but corn and peas. Which SUCKS because I LOVE vegetables, and we only get to eat a bunch of ‘em at family dinners if he’s not around. I had a vegetable burger last night and it was GREAT

“And eat your vegetables.” YEAH, THANKS. I will! Somebody get me a carrot right now! (I’d get one but I don’t feel like peeling one at 9:30 at night, which is when I’m typing this)

Awwww. Altair finally ate vegetables once he got to Luxendarc because they reminded him of Vega

Yew should confess to Magnolia, WE GET IT. Let him figure out his own emotions! Stop pressuring my boy!

Bye, you two! May your afterlife together hold only the best!

Ohhhhh that’s what happened. Okay. So when Providence used Mandate of Heaven to have Magnolia attack Yew, she wouldn’t actually do that on her own. I had to make her do it, and because I didn’t in the set timeframe he used Divine Punishment to wipe the party. I totally misunderstood what was happening there, since Magnolia had negative BP and couldn’t move, and the very next turn was when I triggered the mid-boss cutscene with Altair. The second time I simply killed him on the turn after he cast it on Tiz, so it didn’t matter. That’s a very bullshit tactic and I am eternally grateful to Meteor Rain Geneolgia over there for ending the fight in a timely fashion

WAIT. Remove Obliterate from Tiz, genius. And heal. Trust no one

Hahahahaha okay, yeah. Yeah. I was expecting a cutscene before round two, and I’ll admit the harsh cut to the screen-shattering battle intro when I tried to leave the room made me jump a bit

This is what I saw a screenshot of before I played the game. Before the game even came out in English, even. I was looking up Airy’s sister after beating Default, because I saw the art of the Kaiser and Anne, assumed she was Airy’s sister, and wanted to know if she had a name. Saw the line “Anne works for Providence” and a low-res picture of Providence and clicked out immediately, but was left with the knowledge that the final boss was a purple pyramid named Providence. Seeing it now, there’s so much more to it than I remembered

We cut to the sky, a brilliant blue galaxy that the party is floating in. Magenta clouds adorn the top and bottom of the screen, and from them semi-mechanical, semi-organic looking hands of magenta and black descend, fingers wiggling. An inverse pyramid comes out of the cloud, and the gigantic eye in the center opens and glances around manically. An inverse Eye of Providence, that grants only poor fortune

Tiz, you should know better than to think this was the end. Ouroboros had, like, two forms and five phases

Providence’s voice is distinctly feminine now. And now that he’s unchained from Vega... there’s no internal fight to hold him back

“Who is it that controls you?” *Providence’s eye looks directly at the camera* What? What? I’m his aunt/mother figure/big sis/etc.! And I’ve done a hell of a job keeping him alive, thanks. I don’t see you standing against that Meteor Rain for long!

Man, what is up with this naming scheme? The hands are labeled Providence B and Ab, and the pyramid is labeled Providence Aa

O-oh? Providence can use its own Bravely Second while I’m in the menu? It... did barely any damage, but that’s startling

He’s pulling a *redacted character* Undertale and I will not stand for this! (I actually super love Undertale and I’m excited that Bravely’s pulling the same meta nonsense in battles that the final Genocide run fight of Undertale did)

I... You’re talking to me? Me, Liz, the person sitting here. I... look, I know these kids don’t actually know who I am, that all of the affection I have for them is one-sided. I know my poor decisions have gotten them hurt on occasion. Would you rather I have never played the game? What would that have gotten them? Sometimes you have to struggle for a resolution that benefits everyone, for a good resolution. I will never regret getting Tiz out of that Chasm. Or saving Yew from Denys. Because all of those kids standing there deserve a happy ending and I want to see them get it!

“Persist in this battle, and Yew and his friends will only feel more pain.” Said in a tutorial description box. Look, I want Yew Geneolgia to be happy, okay!? I’m gonna get him a good end! If I stop he ends up stuck in the Via Celestio for eternity! I’m getting him and Tiz and Edea and Magnolia home and you. Can’t. Stop me.

“Isn’t it enough? How much more must they suffer to satisfy you?” Ideally, none! I don’t want to see them hurt, but I want to see them fail to save their world and lose everyone they love even less. Tiz is gonna retire, Edea’s gonna be Grand Marshal, Magnolia’s home is gonna be safe, and Yew is gonna make a new family legacy that he can be proud of! That’s all I want out of this!

You think you can make me feel bad by treating me like I’m just here for the gameplay? Because battles are fun? Joke’s on you, I don’t really care about gameplay! I’m here because I love these kids and I want to spend more time with them! I want to see them grow and find their happy endings, and they give me hope that someday I can find one of my own. SO FUCK OFF

You aren’t my god, bitch

It... means you can cause screen and audio static? Hey, idiot, I do that to myself, accidentally

You don’t control me! You control my input device at best!

Stop that. Stop making my kids hurt each other. I’m not the one who wants them to suffer, that’s clearly you. I would never have the game play at normal speed. 4x or bust

Despair? Oh, this isn’t despair. I’m just fucking pissed. Sorry. I don’t really get sad when there’s a target to take my anger out on actively taunting me

Yeah, fine, just boot me to the start screeeeee-NO. Hey. NO. Take that cursor off of delete. I’ve accidentally deleted save files before don’t do that! Mmmmmm every button just makes it go closer to “Delete All” come onnnnnnn. I will replay this game over if I have to, Providence! I’ll be back in another two years you can’t stop me

I don’t want to press the button. I know I have to. I know the game devs couldn’t possibly be so cruel as to actually erase the files. Not to constantly bring this fight back to Undertale, but it didn’t get me when your save file got “deleted” at the end of a neutral run. It’s so much worse in this game when you have to press the button multiple times and inch it ever closer to delete, knowing full well that the only way to avoid it is to give up and turn the game off

...I hope the game, like, records how long it takes me to finally press that button. I’m just making entries here to stall at this point

Changed into pajamas, went to the bathroom, and messed around with the current timed quest in Hogwarts Mystery for a bit and they still want me to press the button, huh?

...fine. Supposedly there’s a shield that you can only get if you play through the whole game on Hard (EDIT: Nope! The wiki was wrong again) so I’d have to go another round, anyway. Do it, Providence. I dare you

JUST LET ME PRESS “NO” YOU WIGGLY FINGERED BITCH

Yew! Yew, buddy, I’m trying!

THANK YOU MY PRECIOUS BOY. I DID NOT EQUIP YOU WITH A SWORD BUT THAT WAS STILL BADASS AND I’M SO PROUD OF YOU

Ahhhhh! Orchestral version of his theme! I’m actually crying I love this boy

“There’s someone who’s been here, supporting me, all this time.” Yes, hi! Hi, kiddo. You’re great! You’re so wonderful. You probably didn’t see me wave at you when my face appeared in the Norende Ravine, but you’re awesome and I’ve never been prouder of someone

“I’m fighting for you, too!” And I want you to be happy! (I’ll be honest, having Yew talk directly to me is really powerful. I just wanna, like, poke the screen where his hand is and high-five him. Best boy)

YEW GENEOLGIA LOVES ME MORE THAN ANYONE ELSE IN THE WORLD DOES

Nope, I’m actually crying. Hahah. My favorite character thinks I’m cool. That’s a hell of a self-esteem boost

“It’s your will, and mine! We’re in this fight together!” Always, buddy. Whenever you need me

He used the letters SP from the title screen to activate the hourglass. That’s so smart I love the nerd kid

Yeah, Agnès, I love you guys! I’ll always come back to defend your world, even if just to see you again!

Janne. Janne, I really do not like you. Please shut up. Your encouragement is just making fun of me for helping Yew? Wow. Okay. I see you’ve learned nothing

At least Nikolai is grateful for me giving even the empire’s people a second chance

You know what, Minette? I’m glad you’re happy. I hope you get therapy! But a new dad is okay for now

Bella is... smiling? AND HELL YEAH, MAN. I’ll keep fighting for you, Cú! Some conceited eyeball ain’t gonna stop me!

Norzen you-you had glasses this whole time? Wow, I could not tell from a distance! Sure, cloud grandpa. Stars. Yes

Aimee did you and Angelo... really do anything? A’ight, sure, I’ll save your romantic future

Yeah, I can make it as if Providence never existed, Geist. “‘Cause this is our world, right? And you were a part of it, too!” Yeah, I was, Rev. Thanks, kid

So the screen shattered and... DENYS! Hey! Hey someone grab his ass right now! Someone save Denys please he’s right THERE!

“Promise me... that you will watch over my brother. Farewell, my friend... and thank you!” You deserved so much better, Denys. Sorry it doesn’t seem like saving you is in the cards right now. The second I can, I will. Then we can look after Yew together!

My emotions hold power... OH I’M PRETTY SURE BOTH MY RIGHTEOUS ANGER AND LOVE OF YEW TRANSCEND TIME AND SPACE. That’s MY BOY!!!

...oh shit he’s out of MP uhhhhhhhhhhhh

Thank god I never use items and had Elixirs

Get. WRECKED. Singlehandedly. By Yew Geneolgia triple-casting Meteor Rain after Tiz and Edea took out the hands

Also, I didn’t mention, but the music for this fight does exactly what I adored in “Serpent Eating the Ground” last game: most of it is clearly the boss’s dramatic song (already really great, as mentioned in Providence Round 1), but then partway through it cuts to remixes of each party member’s Special Attack song, melded together into one flowing number that completely overrides the Boss’s sound, in a musical indicator of our triumph. There’s some of the main theme of the game, in a sense, I guess you could say representing the player. And I think I heard a bit of Denys’s boss theme in that section. Fitting. He did send me back to the party, after all. And this section only starts up once Yew cuts through Providence’s manipulation, furthering the sense of triumph as the party actively overrides Providence

Well, that’s that, huh? Everyone’s back on Luxendarc, the path to the Celestial Realm is closed, and Altair and Vega have finally moved on together. Seems... there’s not much more I can do for you guys, huh?

...where’s Tiz?

Nonononononnooooo I knew he wasn’t gonna be okay without Altair. No, come on. Tiz, you can’t do this to me again! He just wants to retire

I... should we hang up on Agnès? I don’t know if I want her to watch this. Can’t we just shove me into Tiz again? I can keep the game running until my 3DS’s inevitable complete destruction

Y-y- ...I see. Vaguely British female voice? It was you all along, my Adventurer friend. Or should I say, miss Narrator? By what strange trick of fate do our paths cross anew?

No, Magnolia! She clearly knows... something. And I can tell she’s more than what she seems. How else... could she have made it into the Via Celestio on her own?

I can’t watch Tiz go comatose again. If you’ve got a way to save him, do it already

“But what is a soul? But the embodiment of our wishes, dreams, and desires.” Ummm... the metaphysical culmination of a person’s being? I’ve never quantified a soul before

Fill Tiz’s body... with the dreams needed to bind his soul. And uh, Yew? Yew. Is dumping the hourglass sand on him the best idea?

Oh. That’s how you ended up in those dungeons. You can just open warp gates. I see.

And she handed the hourglass to Tiz in the past... on his way to the Norende Chasm, where we first got the ability to use it in Default. And she was wearing green. I can’t for the life of me remember if she ever wore green in Default, but it wouldn’t surprise me given the amount of sequel nods there were in the international release. What, do you just change into green when you go to the past so your past self knows what’s up?

So ideally, we now have an hourglass with two games, or two and a half years’ worth of dreams in it

Did you create a time loop where the hourglass didn’t exist until Tiz had it and won’t exist after, or did we have two hourglasses and never notice?

Where would that even be hidden on Tiz’s body!? He was in a medical jumpsuit! ...oh, ew. I really hope it was in his pants legs and not... elsewhere

Oh, good, Agnès has it. Whew. Crisis averted

And the Adventurer finally introduces herself. A long, silver-haired woman named Deneb. One of Altair and Vega’s old friends. And, most importantly, probably another Celestial. Possibly the last one alive on Luxendarc

*Great Distance starts up for one last go* Run Agnès! Run with all you’ve got!

Credits are rolling. Let’s see those happy endings we all worked so hard to get

Nikolai is back in the priesthood, preaching to the New Crystalguard, of which Janne seems to be a member. I’m happy for Nikolai, still mad Janne never got over himself, but we can’t win ‘em all. Best of luck, gents! Call me in a few years when Janne has finally grown up

Bella and Cú are just walking around in... Eisen? Ah, well. They’ve got each other. Hope they find a home that accepts horsemen. And I owe you a two a special thanks! The Spellcraft and Triple Wield abilities carried this team, and the Yew Meteor Rain strategy couldn’t have happened without it!

Norzen is back to teaching, and Rifa and Pudgius are glad to have him there

Minette’s happily sailing with her new dad and his cat in his little rowboat. Remember what I said! Therapy!

Aimee and Angelo... did not set up shop in Gathelatio. Or they just haven’t moved locations yet. Pancake business is booming either way (You guys should seriously move, though. If more adventurers find out that Obliterating Chompettes is some of the best experience in the game, they’ll just loiter outside your shop all day and scare away customers! Customers that I’m surprised you even have at the deepest spot in a high level dungeon. ...maybe that’s the actual problem with your current location)

Geist and Rev are... standing around posing in the old seaside shack that was sold to Profiteur? He’d better not have gone back on his deal after I defended him like that!

Aw, Lotus is teaching Sakura to fly the Rubadub. I’m glad those two were with us through this journey

And Great Distance fades out as Agnès arrives, no more distance between her and Tiz any longer

“Good morning... Agnès.” Don’t ever scare us like that again, buddy. Happy retirement

*Great Distance back for Round 2* And now we’ve got the party epilogues!

The new Grand Marshal of Eternia contemplates what to do next, her second-in-command Alternis at her side. When faced with a conflict between two factions, Edea decides she has to go herself, because if anyone can make them see eye-to-eye, it would be her. And I believe her. Alternis declares that he would go to the ends of the world for her, in a way that makes you question whether it was Ringabel or not. Given the way Edea looked forlornly down at her feet, I’ll say “not,” making this a bittersweet end for her

With the peace talks over, Agnès has resigned as Pope, leaving everything to the Matriarch and new Vestal, Sylvie. No longer a Vestal, she has no reason to cling to the surname of those wed to the Crystals, Oblige. No, she’d rather be Agnès Arrior. And now she and Tiz are engaged and planning to move to Norende as farmers. I’m happy for you kids! Enjoy retirement with your sheep. You’ve both earned it

Music fades out again as we cut to Magnolia in the Buster Ship, musing about how wonderful Luxendarc was. Yew races to where he first met her... but her ship is already blasting off back to the Moon. And a ballad starts up as Magnolia walks up to him after he laments that he never confessed. That confession is as awkward as I hoped it would be. And then Magnolia winks at the camera (hi!) and muses about how love really can transcend time and space. Turns out, people on the Moon only tell their true names to the person they wish to marry... and she just whispered something into a very red-faced Yew’s ear. Cute! Just remember he’s 16. Give him a few years to get his bearings, Magnolia. I have no idea how old you are, but maybe take it a little slower. Best of luck, you dorks

One final shot. The Geneolgia mansion foyer, but this time Foundar’s portrait is gone. Now it’s a portrait of Yew, Tiz, Edea, Magnolia, and Agnès eating dinner together... with Denys standing behind them. This is the real Geneolgia family. The one that deserves to be celebrated.

And there goes my name in the credits. Thank you, Bravely Second team. It was a hell of a time and a hell of an undertaking. Almost two years since I started this liveblog, and it evolved rapidly from just a few reactionary bullet points to a full on analysis/reaction. And I’m really glad I did it. I’ve gotten to talk to some cool people thanks to this, and I hope they enjoyed the ride as much as I did!

I really wish I could stick around, kids, but I guess that’s just not how games work. Just let me know if you ever need me again, and I’ll be there. And this time maybe it won’t take me two and a half years to get to it. I’ll do my best!

One final scene, post-credits. Ringabel narrates that they found “the third key,” The Sword of the Brave, to a Vice President over a hyperrealistic shot of the moon

And now we have the final, true New Game+. I love the sparkly little border on the cleared file. But, hey, this isn’t the end yet! The Bestiary isn’t complete! We’re still missing items! And it’s all thanks to the three postgame dungeons! ...but I won’t bore you with that unless there’s demand for it

That being said, there’s still going to be one more update! I plan to do one final retrospective on this game as a whole. What it did wrong, what it did right, and my overall thoughts on the experience. I understand if that’s not everyone’s cup of tea, though, so for those who won’t be joining me, I hope you had a good time reading and thank you for spending the time to look at my ramblings on games I like. For those joining me for the retrospective, thanks for reading! Until next time!

[eleore]

Orient 1 Summary

Warning: As usual, please note that my level of Japanese is basic at most, so I cannot guarantee that the following snippets are accurate. In other words, these can include misinterpretations, and I might have left some parts out because I didn’t understand them. Feel free to share the link, but please DO NOT REPOST, and don’t forget to support the official releases!!

In which a new adventure of dreams, trials, and oaths begins (and with an extra long chapter)...!! Please, do support Ohtaka in her new work, especially once the volume comes out :D

Where to buy the ebook: Book Walker (tagged) | Amazon | All Retailers  

The story opens in a world ruled by the Kishin (demon god, fierce god), who appeared one day 150 years ago, slayed the warlords, and took over the world on men. Their only opponents - the Bushidan (in short, a group of warriors/samurai)!

「Point!」As noted above, Kishin means “Demon God”, written as 鬼神 (demon + god/divinity). When the kanji 鬼 is by itself, it means simple demon, and it’s read as oni. Note that I also will be using bushi so as to be consistent with Bushidan.

In the present day, we see two little kids dueling (quite skillfully, I might add) with wooden swords. Both are 10 years old, and their names are Musashi and Kanemaki Kojirou. Musashi eventually wins, and both happily collapse to the ground, exclaiming how fun swordsmanship is!

「Point!」Kojirou is most likely modeled after Sasaki Kojirou, a master swordsman and rival of Miyamoto Musashi. He was killed by him in a well-remembered duel, which was Musashi’s final fatal match.

Afterwards, Musashi wants to see a scroll that belongs to Kojirou’s father. The other boy is not so eager, as the scroll is precious and thus he might get scolded if they are discovered. Still, they go and read the story in it: the story of the bushi (samurai). According to it, outside of the town there are super strong demons called oni, and the bushi are the only ones who confront them, fighting for freedom... . Their size frightens them, but Musashi quickly points out that’s why the bushi fight together with their comrades.

The flashback ends as both kids, as suggested by Musashi, decide to become bushi in the future, and fight against the oni!

And so, 5 years later, we see Musashi magnificently......!!

...mining ore with a giant pickaxe.

Why is he mining if he wants to be a warrior...? Apparently, as said in the scroll, in this world the oni indeed rule the humans, and are also venerated as guardian deities, with statues and shrines people pray to - and since they eat ore, the schools have mining lessons to get it (especially in this town).

Overall, Musashi thinks this world is insane, and the people are insane for worshiping the Oni; they are not guardian gods, they are monsters! As such, he does not like mining, and still dreams about becoming a bushi. That said, he is a really good miner, and is called a genius, much to his blushy embarrassment, though he quickly keeps himself in check.

Speaking of the bushi, as you might imagine it is said they were evil people who ruled with violence, and discriminated against the farmers. They are quite hated nowadays, much to Musashi’s chagrin. They are heroes! The oni are the evil ones! That is the truth!

All the kids in Musashi’s class seem to genuinely dream to be miners, and they are all made to line up and proclaim this out loud. This whole thing, especially being unable to state his real dream, causes Musashi much distress (this is seen during the whole chapter). The only ones who understand are Kojirou and himself.

By the way, 15-year old Kojirou still lives, alone, in what is left of the house we saw in the first pages. As in the header, he is seen smoking. The two meet there, and have a quick discussion regarding Musashi’s graduation, until he reveals the real reason he is here... and presents his pickaxe, which he calls an sword to exterminate the oni. As promised, he wants the two of them to leave the town and fight the oni.

By the way, it’s not a pickaxe, it’s a pickaxe-shaped sword! Really!

Kojirou, however, angrily refuses. You see, he is discriminated in this era as a bushi descendant, and says this whole “The bushi are heroes, the oni are evil” business was just a “white lie” from his father to comfort him. Besides, Musashi has given up on becoming a bushi, hasn’t he? Going to school everyday, chanting “my dream for the future is to be a miner!!”, he cannot be trusted!

They argue some more, and Musashi leaves. However, it soon becomes evident this was just Kojirou playing the villain in order to protect the life of his brother, as he could live a good life as a miner.

Two days later, Musashi is leading his class during graduation, still upset about the argument and claiming he is serious. Either way, they are about to enter the mine, and his class is so excited about getting to meet the Kishin at last! Maybe they will be like that beautiful, kind woman from the books...?

Of course not, my sweet summer children. The mine looks exactly like you would expect it would, and the oni in it are cat-shaped monstrosities with sharp claws and star-shaped mouths featuring more teeth than a white shark. Not to mention, they are rather eager to use both against the miner, as it’s shown at once.

Also, they are welcomed as the “new slaves”, whose duty is to mine until they die.

Musashi is eager to fight with... with... his pickaxe that was left outside the gate to the mine. Oops... .

Back to Kojirou, he is thinking about how fun it was to play with Musashi, but still thinks this is what’s best for his friend, when he finds a book of his and seems quite shocked. Meanwhile, Musashi continues to somehow fight barehanded against the oni, thinking about how he had hidden the truth from everyone, and lost sight of what was important.

This time, when the teacher asks what his dream is, Musashi proudly proclaims it’s to be a bushi!! And as he is about to be killed...

... Kojirou saves him in a MOTORCYCLE (T/N: I swear to God I’m not making this up). He also brings the book and the pickaxe. You might wonder what was in the book that prompted Kojirou to come? Apparently, Musashi has been adapting bushi techniques so that they could be used with his pickaxe, and thus effectively used the school as “training”. For example, he uses the ground as a sort of “sheath” for his “sword”... and effectively manages to cut an oni in two.

The two continue fighting (Kojirou uses a normal katana), and Musashi brings up how going forward they will fight against the oni, and while a single bushi cannot accomplish this, if the two of them are together, they can!

Just then, a humanoid thing descents from the heavens... a Kishin! Musashi is really looking forward to fighting it... and so, the chapter ends!

My oh my, what a ride! Whatever I was expecting it was not Samurai... ON MOTORCYCLES!! 

I think it was a strong start, that very much felt like something out of Magi - or rather, I wonder if I feel that way because it felt like Magi? Just now I wrote “entering the Dungeon” instead of “entering the mine felt like a Dungeon”, for example ahaha. The Oni definitely have the look and feel of Dungeon creatures, and the Kishin looks like the Medium. Not that that is a bad thing, but it had that distinct feeling.

On our characters, so far they have been likable but, well, predictable. If I had to draw the mandatory Magi parallels, Musashi feels like an amalgam of Sinbad and Alibaba (with a little Aladdin here and there), while Kojirou is more like a mix of Aladdin, Ja’far, and Hakuryuu. Appearance wise, Musashi still looks like Sinbad to me, though at times he reminds me of Judar (the hairstyle?). Kojirou is a young Kouen. 

Based on this, those who have read me ramble for a long time now will immediately know Kojirou is my favourite of the two haha. Not a fan of the cigarette, though, but I guess it’s there to highlight both his “coolness” and stressful life. Not that I dislike Musashi; I just tend not to favour characters with that kind of sparkly personality. Please don’t make Kojirou evil, Ohtaka. Incidentally, I’m guessing the two main students from Musashi’s class will have supporting roles in the future.

The setting itself has been interesting so far. This being Ohtaka, I’m willing to bet it’s not going to be so black-and-white as it’s been presented so far, and we have already started the anachronism stew samurai on motorcycles!!. To be honest, this is what I am looking forward to the most, since Ohtaka does some really nice world building~~.

Now that I think about it, more than Magi, this chapter resembles the opening act of a JRPG, complete with our improbable weapon user hero, first party member, first boss fight, and with what will most likely be a “hopeless boss fight” (you know, the ones that are unwinnable). Now I cannot unsee this.

So, what’s the overall verdict? In my opinion, this was a solid first chapter, that captured quite a lot of what made Magi so entertaining. Good pacing, adequate amount of exposition, interesting setting, and some good character establishing moments. For now, my only criticism is that the main characters follow some of the usual tropes of the genre, but it would be unfair of me to pass full judgement after 70 pages. All in all, I think that this is worth reading for its own merits, and I’ll indeed do so for the time being.

[3d10fire-damage]

Colors That Run Highlights 26

can you hear the lost woods theme playing? i can

Fea got up to do her usual morning routine, but this time Calypso joined her in... prayer? (Corrin has also started praying in the mornings, for his own reasons.)

Ethi awoke enshrouded in moss and mushrooms. Ethi is good.

The group (more so the players than the characters) decided to try to explore 100% of this Feywild dungeon, and so they began retracing their steps (using their/the DM’s map) and searching for the areas they hadn’t found yet.

Eventually they found a patch of woods thick with spider webs (though there was some denial/debate that it could’ve been cotton candy). The group spotted a young tiefling boy wrapped in webs-- it was Garson, the kid that disappeared at the Demstra Day festival. And then, naturally, a group of large spiders appeared.

Slim declared the priority should be to free Garson and get him to safety. Fea climbed onto Xio with him and they rode into the webs. Fea cut the child free and put him on the horse so Slim could make his way to the backline.

Meanwhile, one of the spiders bit Kattie and inflicted some poison damage. Then Calypso punched the spider until it died, shaking spider bits off of her cool gloves. (Calypso also started arguing with the next spider in line.)

Ethi cast good ol’ Moonbeam Meenboom, and Kattie dished out a Cloud of Daggers to help fend off one of the spiders near Fea, who was now caught in the middle of things.

Slim, now with a scared child clinging to him, took out the spider Calypso was arguing with, with a quick shot of his pistol. Calypso, having been fully involved in the argument, turned around like that caveman spongebob meme in reaction.

Once the spiders were all dealt with, Corrin vom’d a bit due to the disgust factor. Fea offered to help.

Kattie offered some candy, given to her by Rashemi back in Hestia, to Garson, now that he was safe. Happy Demstra Day..?

After some more traveling, the Breakfast Club found an area dotted with bits of treasure. Upon some of the group’s exploration however, it turned out the ground was alive-- a shambling mound. And it attacked, as shambling mounds do.

Slim, still with the kid, attempted to lasso the mound from his horse, but unfortunately missed his strike. The rest of the group engaged in melee combat with the creature.

Perhaps due to nostalgia for water elementals, the shambling mound engulfed Calypso, leaving only her lashing tail free. Luckily, Fea was able to get the finishing blow on the creature, homoerotically theatrically pulling Calypso free from the now dead vegetation. The moment was a bit lost on the tiefling, as she was busy yelling about the goddamn forest and spitting leaves out of her mouth.

The group looted the area for some gold and a nice Opalview sword (those things are all over 🐐).

In the next new area, the party found more spider webs. One bundle of web moved and called out for help, and after cutting it open, it was revealed that a boy named Robert Dertrim had been trapped inside. He was one of the kids that gone missing, though he admitted to have run away from his home in Agar. The group decided to walk him and Garson back to the nursery, to keep them safe instead of running around into monsters with them in tow. (Also Calypso tried to eat a piece of web, which was certainly not cotton candy.)

Next stop: that pool of mud the group just sorta walked around the last time.

The group were attacked by two giant crocodiles and green hag. Calypso threw hands with the hag immediately, while the crocodiles targeted the rest of the group. Fea in particular; they basically used her as a chew toy.

Slim managed to yodel the crocodiles into submission, and had them drop Fea and leave. Ethi discovered that necrotic damage, such as that from Chill Touch, can actually heal Fea. We stan. Kattie used Psychic Lance to incapacitate the hag so that Calypso and Corrin could finish her off.

The group later found a disheveled shack-- the hag shack. After some sniffing around, they found some loot, including some vials, an orbular spellcasting focus, and a bag of bones. Corrin took the bones, and Slim took the vials.

There was some discussion of the whole necrotic healing thing, Fea seeming a little mystified by the experience of healing. Most of the group stayed inside to talk (and exchange gifts), but Slim went outside to smoke the devil’s lettuce and work on his shotgun design. And soon...

After a long rest, the group headed to the northern end of the forest and encountered three nymphs at a table, having a pretend tea party. The party’s resident hoes, along with Fea, approached the nymphs after Ethi assured them they’d be safe. Kattie openly described Corrin as a manwhore. Slim leaned against a tree and dozed off during this encounter.

The nymphs, in accented Common, introduced themselves and started getting curious and... handsy, with Calypso and Corrin. One of them also reached for Fea’s bigger sword (ugh phrasing) but Fea pulled back, requesting that any inspection there be much more gradual.

Meanwhile, the other two poked around on Corrin and Calypso’s faces and hair (there were scritches) and kinda worked their way down from there. The nymph speaking with Calypso thought her horns were a pointy hat. The one speaking with Fea seemed confused her face didn’t move when she talked.

It came up in conversation that Ethi’s sister was in charge of Grovestrum, and that she was a very dangerous lady, not to be messed with no matter how hot she was (because of course Corrin asked). When the nymphs had to leave, they each in turn promised Corrin, Calypso, and Fea they’d see the nymphs again, leaning in to touch foreheads. Bruh.

Ethi went on to explain their sister’s habit of luring in mortal men, having sex with them, and then decorating the forest with their bones. Corrin seemed to think that that’d be the best way to die, though the group tried to talk him down from that.

Later on, the group found a clearing lined with bodies hanging from the trees, along with several containers brimming with treasure and gold. Corrin really wanted to loot here, but the whole area felt Very sus, so the group convinced him not to take anything and they all left.

Upon finding a lovely pond with a waterfall, Fea waded all the way into the water to check behind the waterfall. There was nothing back there, and Fea returned to land asking if anyone felt warm. She reasoned that because of all the water, she could give a hug to cool someone off. Calypso took the offer.

Heading south, the party found an area with lots of blue flowers, along with a plaque. Ethi read the plaque aloud, describing a short riddle, which would award a prize if it were solved. A nearby area was nearly identical, but with red flowers. The group took a blue flower to the second plaque, and a red flower to the first one, completing the puzzle, earning them some magical dusts. Calypso accidentally ended up with an extra red flower.

The Breakfast Club discovered a clearing with the beautiful but very dangerous ruler of Grovestrum herself, Verenestra. Upon laying eyes on her, some members of the group had to make a charisma save against Verenestra’s natural charm effect. Calypso failed, but once Kattie grabbed her shoulder, she managed to slap herself and clear her mind of the charm with Stillness of Mind. Corrin also failed (with a very on brand natural 1) and started pulling, enthralled, toward Verenestra and her posse of nymphs.

Working quickly, Kattie cast Bestow Curse on Corrin to lessen his chances of escaping from Fea’s grasp. Fea did in fact keep a hold of him, and the group scurried off... But Ethi was not so lucky. Verenestra walled them off from the party, insisting they stay. Ethi told the group they wouldn’t die fighting their sister and that they would find them all later.

Finally, the party made their way down the path leading to the darkest part of the forest. A voice began speaking to them, calling them filthy adults and promising they wouldn’t be taking the children away from her. They then stood before a giant white tree with some humanoid features-- The White Lady.

Off to the side were Thedda and her daughter, restrained by vegetation. The White Lady was accompanied by some yeth hounds, more eladrin being controlled by white branches... as well as a familiar flute-playing tiefling. Rashemi.

BOSS FIGHT AAAA

[dungeonsdriveinsanddives]

Recap of Dungeons Drive-ins and Dives

The entire group arrived at the town of Kindlewood for entirely separate reasons, at entirely different times of the day but each started out fairly similarly. Upon just arriving in town, each person was greeted by Alistair, a 12 year old air genasi. As the town’s unofficial welcoming committee, Alistair gave them a brief tour around town, only stopping short before the tavern called, Labyrinth, claiming it wasn’t safe for children like him.

The town of Kindlewood was robust and busy as ever; Alistair would then explain how that day marks the three month start of preparation for the Banquet of Concord. This event was specifically for high officials and royals to gather together and break bread as they discussed peace treaties and boundaries. Such a banquet only occurred every 25 years, and the location changed every time. This time, it would be in Kindlewood, and so many people were constantly working to ensure that nothing went wrong, even three months before the event.

As each character met many of the inhabitants of the town (Umara and Dru, the owners of Labyrinth; Griselda, a grumpy gnome in charge of the Arcane Shoppe and Weaponry; O’phelia, her daughter) they would each settle down in an inn or other open rooms for the night.

The next morning, the group all wound up at Labyrinth in need of breakfast. Chadwick, the tiefling bard and all-around womanizer had seemed to catch the eye of Umara, the barwench at Labyrinth. However, his sticky fingers revealed that Umara had quite a temper as well as an interesting skillset involving swords and murder. Before she could do too much damage, she was arrested by the head of a police organization known as the Society of Benevolence. Farleigh, an elven paladin also brought the group in for further questioning.

It was at the Society of Benevolence’s headquarters that the group met again with Alistair, who was waiting to hear about any news regarding the disappearance of his father, Cassidy. Cassidy was the true head of the S.o.B and Farleigh was his right hand, but he mysteriously disappeared after investigating the death of Sir Gaius Fieri. Being short on hands and determining that the group was innocent and that Umara had just lost her temper again, Farleigh tasked the group with one thing; to gather the ingredients for the Banquet of Concord as it was around now that Sir Gaius would have begun.

Alistair decides to tag along with this group, believing that they may find his father along the way. As soon as the group leaves the town, they are encountered by Dad But Also A Bear, a literal bear with crystals growing on his skin and who is very protective of Alistair. He tags along as well, if only to keep Alistair safe.

While going through Cassidy’s belongings at Alistair’s home, the find a secret compartment and papers that point to the existence of a mysterious person named ‘Britanea’ who may have been with Cassidy at the time of his kidnapping.

The next day, the group officially embarked on their journey, save for two members, a human sailor named Plenn and a dwarf barbarian named Diris. Diris, having experience in basket weaving was tasked with weaving a new one with the express purpose of it being attuned. The basket would keep fresh any item placed within it, indefinitely. As the remaining group set out, Farleigh asked that they, while in the Sriracha Desert, find a way to break out a criminal by the name of Westley, who may know something about the murder of Sir Gaius Fieri. Farleigh attempted to ask the officials in the desert for some time with this criminal but was ignored.

Plenn was sent on a journey with O’phelia to a destroyed temple and where he would need to make a distinct offering to the forgotten god and goddesses, Kilvera and Tholv. However, Plenn made a mix-up and instead of keeping mystical runes on him which would ground him to his realm, he left it in the offering for the forgotten gods and goddesses. He and O’phelia left, seemingly without issues but Farleigh was upset at this development.

Plenn was teleported to the Sriracha Desert by a mysterious cloaked figure. Upon arrival, he met with the rest of the group where they picked up the first ingredient (Ghoul Peppers) and began to plot on the prison break. Unfortunately, they were found out by Hakir, the towns advisor, who contacted Farleigh and asked Chief Echo, why he neglected to respond to her. Farleigh replied “Because I’m his ex-wife and he’s still holding a grudge.”

Umara took Westley back to Kindlewood while the rest of the party traveled on to Kelos, a string of towns along the edge of the desert. At the request of Farleigh, Hakir joined the group on the quest.

At Kelos, the group finds that O’phelia’s portion of the Arcane Shoppe and Weaponry has a magical window that can open up to various locations in other towns. They find the window in Kelos, and notice that O’phelia seems to sprouting extra eyes, in similar facial locations to the goddess Kilvera. The interactions ends when the group realizes Alistair and Dad But Also A Bear had disappeared.

Further investigation revealed that Alistair and his bear counterpart were kidnapped and taken to an underground arena where they would be forced to fight monsters. The group eventually found this arena and saved their friends before going to an inn to settle in for the night. The majority of the group became entirely smitten by a shy inn servant named Veronica, each attempting to woo her as if this was a fucking episode of Ouran High School Host Club.

The group noticed a tattoo on Veronica’s palm but only Hakir, who had momentarily transformed into an elven woman named Shianni knew that it belonged to an underground cult that often enslaved people for their own measure. Shianni went out into the street, in her cursed form, until the whole town took notice and she was able to find the cult leaders. Shianni murdered them but not after demanding information on the forgotten goddess Kilvera, as well as a promise to release Veronica from bondage.

While this were going on, Chadwick played his lute, a song that was more or less a signal for an assassin he had grown up with. The assassin showed up, and introduced herself to the group as Honey. Treyton, having known Honey and disliked her immediately began an argument with her. Honey’s only words to Chadwick were to drop his mission entirely.

Treyton, dismayed that Chadwick would let Honey insult him, went off to a local bar for a drink, only to find that Honey was pretending to be a bartender. She then convinced him to go back to the underground arena for a fight, and the two faced off against the worst beasts offered. After winning, the two parted ways, with Honey asking Treyton to find a way to dissuade Chadwick from collecting the rest of the ingredients.

The next morning, as news of the cult leaders having died circulates throughout town, the group is greeted by Veronica who brings them breakfast and gifts them with their second ingredient, Void Marmalade. Upon eating some of the marmalade, Alistair and Chadwick have an other-worldly experience. The group then continued on to Verant Port to collect their next ingredient, Dragonhide.

Verant Port is a port town with a market by the sea, and as soon as the group make it to this town, they immediately find an inn far away from it. The inn is seemingly run by a half-orc child named Devlin and her friend Sylvester, who was previously found in Sriracha Desert. Through Alistair bonding with the kids, they find out that Sylvester’s grandmother died and he traveled alone to the port town where he met Devlin. Devlin’s parents were originally the owners of the inn but a journey in the sea brought them to their end.

That day, the group finds the chef, Phiaren who also doubles as a blacksmith. Phiaren was the immediate contact they were given in terms of where to find the dragonhide. He makes an excuse saying its not ready and promptly snaps Treyton’s quarterstaff in half due to his dislike of non-bladed weapons. Treyton, being upset leaves to get another weapon. As the group splits up during this time, Shianni heads back to the chef’s place only to overhear him speak to Honey. Shianni finds out that Honey blackmailed the chef into refusing them the Dragonhide as well as breaking Treyton’s weapon, as she “never liked him anyway”.

That night, the group finds the kids attempting to summon Lunaris, the goddess of moonlight and tides. Devlin asks Lunaris why she didn’t save her parents and Lunaris apologizes, stating that she only has power over tides. Once a person falls deeper into the sea, she is no longer able to meet them. Lunaris is then taken back by the appearance of Plenn, as sailors are known to regularly pray to Lunaris. She also tells the group of Cassius, a human who’s death locked Kilvera away in the forgotten realm. The gods loved him so much they granted his soul reincarnation ability and so he continues to be reincarnated without knowledge. She also tells them that the only way Kilvera can fully break out of the forgotten realm is through Cassius’ death, who she reveals is Cassidy in this reincarnation.

Lunaris then tells the story of Britanea, an introverted sorceress who loved a demigoddess named Allara so much, that after that demigoddess was corrupted by Kilvera, she went mad and swore to destroy Kilvera at all costs. However, she was unable to do this as Cassius locked her away first.

The next morning, the group plots to get the dragonhide anyway, first having Treyton and Shianni pretend to be interested in Phiaren’s bladed weapons, while Plenn snuck through the back and snatched the dragonhide.

As soon as they were all in the clear, the group immediately left Verant Port and immediately began to journey to Commune.