#also this is just like. a cultural thing for me too

[cripplecharacters]

Hey folks, fully abled writer here! I've got a question about nicknames/descriptive names related to physical differences and abilities. I write a lot of fantasy fiction with differing name and language systems than the real world. I'm also fond of using compound names, such as "Dawnbringer, Hardcutter, Bluemark, Bearhunter, etc." So in a fantasy world where much of this society has given names and clan surnames following a specific theme of strength and durability, I have a character that has both his given name but also a nickname many people call him. This nickname is "Firebrand," and I invented him many years ago when I wasn't very critical of my writing or biases and just wanted a cool-sounding fantasy name. He is is a city guard in a city that is regularly attacked by fantasy animals for plot and environment-related reasons, and as I developed this character more I decided that rather than his original dark edgy backstory where he was called Firebrand because he was tortured, he now gains the name Firebrand because he survived a dragon's fire breath and came out of it with burn scars up his chest neck and arms, particularly on his hands that limits some of his movement and dexterity. I intend to make it clear in the story that it isn't a derogatory name, it's part of their society's theme of having names that signify how people survive things.

He likes the nickname and the meaning it has in his culture, because to him it means he's good at his job and he has survived hard times. Right now, the story is told through third-person P.O.V, and he is primarily referred to in non-dialogue narration as his nickname. In dialogue, he usually introduces himself with his given name and surname, but many people including the rest of the city guards refer to him with the nickname . His family and boyfriend will use either name for him depending on the context and company. At a later point in the story, when he and some others end up in a situation where they are dealing with fairies and the magical rules about giving them your name, his nickname gives him an advantage against the fairy rules.

Is this a reasonable concept at all, or is it all very weird to use an injury and acquired physical difference to identify someone with? Or, if the concept is alright but the name itself is bad, do you have any suggestions for how I might want to come up with a different nickname? I'm thinking if the use of the word "brand" in the nickname has too much of a negative connotation, I could try to replace it with something like "Firehand" or "Firebrave" that might have a clearer positive connotation to readers as well as his in-story society.

And although it's not the purpose of this question, I have been doing research about burn scars and treatment; this blog has been helpful! Since the burns were deep and he has limb tremors and cramps as well as scars, he has exercises and ointments to keep his scarred skin flexible, and he takes care not to take long tasks that will strain his hands with fine motor skills or whatnot. When on duty, his uniform includes gloves and a high collar for protection, but in casual clothing his hands are bare and his clothing doesn't hide his scars unless it's for weather protection. I may come back in the future with more questions about that, but I've determined what I need to start with about the physical effects his injuries have on him.

Thank you, and I hope you're all having a good day!!

Hello!

This sounds fine and pretty cool to me. The most important part is that the name isn't intended to be derogatory and that he actually likes it.

As a different disability-related example, "Wheels" and all its variants is a surprisingly common nickname that wheelchair users use (mostly younger guys). Sometimes you have a few of these dudes in one group and three people look at you when you try to call for one of them, it's just a fun nickname. Could it also be a cartoon-bully level derogatory insult if it was used for a character that hates it? 100%. It's very context dependent.

That's the same sentiment that's crucial here I think. Your character likes it and is proud of it? Go ahead. It makes sense in his cultural background and his nickname falls under a similar naming convention so it fits. I like the mention of how it reminds him that "he has survived hard times", since it's something that I've heard from burn survivors who explain why they choose "survivor" over "victim" to refer to themselves.

To answer your actual question: yes, I think it's a reasonable concept that makes sense in the character's setting. In another context yeah, it could be weird to identify with an acquired physical difference like that, but other people will do it anyway, you could as well make it "yours" and be proud of it, wear it as a positive. I don't think it's something that is an automatic "no" even if kinda weird. I'd go case-by-case and in your character's case it seems great.

As for the actual name, I agree that "brand" does have a negative connotation in English, all the criminal/cattle/label associations are less than ideal. I don't think it's detrimental to the concept like some other potential nicknames could be (looking at all the No-Faces and Half-Faces, which I do think are strictly derogatory) but if changing it to something less loaded wouldn't be an issue I'd probably do that. Both -hand and -brave are pretty awesome (the latter kinda reminds me of a warrior cat name but that's definitely a me problem), since they're either neutral or very positive in their connections.

Personally I care more about the fact that you're researching your character thoroughly, don't think that him being a burn survivor comes with some intrinsic negative traits, nor seem to put him in one of the Four Boxes. That's more important than terminology and vice versa - one could use the most up-to-date correct terms to refer to their OC and still make them into an offensive nightmare with bad execution. It doesn't mean that specific words aren't important but they (generally) aren't what breaks or makes representation that people want to see.

You seem to be doing good: my advice is to rethink the -brand part due to its connotations, and just keep researching as you write him.

Hope this helps,

mod Sasza

[ahsoka-in-a-hood]

*reading discourse-y posts again* I do think there's often a rejection of any mundane considerations in the jedi, which I sort of get, since they're fantasy space wizards with swords, so any mundanity can feel incongruous, but for me that's part of the charm.

Take for example a discussion about why Anakin didn't visit/follow up on Shmi during his apprenticeship. If I proposed that maybe he could not afford it, that's deeply mundane. The idea that the temple is just really really far away and they didn't have a private ship they could borrow on their off time, and there's not actually a galactic internet he can facetime shmi, a poor farmer, on, that's very mundane for a fantasy space wizard with a sword.

But they're monks. They don't have a salary. They don't have personal wealth. They have some collective resources, and they're granted some resources by various parties. Anakin is eventually able to go to Tatooine when Padme offers to take him there. Maybe he faced censure for the unauthorized trip offscreen, but not enough to affect the plot in any way. Similarly, when Obi Wan goes on a personal mission to help Satine, he borrows Anakin's fixer-upper ship, and he isn't shown to get into trouble for taking a little vacation either (so maybe it's not just that it's super duper strictly forbidden.)

So then like. Yeah, there is a cultural reason for parents not being in contact with children sent to the temple. For sure. There's plenty of spiritual/cultural things going on, that get bound up in this. If it's part of your religion that you're part of greater whole and that some people aren't fundamentally more important than others based on things like blood, there's not going to be a prioritized resource allocation for visiting family members on the other side of the galaxy. Shmi deserves help as an enslaved person, but not more than any other enslaved person. Then maybe you have Quinlan running some op on tatooine, and maybe he could give Anakin some peace of mind, except if that would compromise opsec in any way, in which case that's not his priority. That's a cultural reasoning.

But also maybe sometimes the reason Anakin didn't go sooner is because he didn't have a sugarmama yet and maybe the reason Qui Gon didn't free Shmi is that his mind tricks didn't work on Watto. Maybe the fantasy space wizards with swords have normal-people problems too.

[alexanderwales]

When my wife and I took our trip to South Korea, one of my goals was to try a lot of foods. I had a whole long list, compiled as I'd watched some Korean documentaries and food shows, and I managed to eat almost all of them.

Then, when we came home, I set to work recreating as much as I could, trying to get the flavors how I remembered them, working from a Korean cookbook, and making substitutions where I had to, mostly due to a lack of specific fruits and vegetables. Perilla leaves are virtually impossible to find where I live, and you can get daikon radishes but not Korean radishes, and I would prefer to make things "correctly" before I start doing Americanized versions.

And tonight, two years later, I've finally gotten around to making my second-to-last dish on the list, jajangmyeon (자장면), a relatively simple sauce-and-noodle dish.

It's pork, veggies, and black bean paste that's black as tar. It's amazing, lots of salt and umami, not too tough to make, and I think my recreation is probably as close as I can be expected to get. I do wish it had been more black though, and I didn't have cucumber to garnish, plus the noodles I used weren't quite right, but such is life in the kitchen.

I have two cultural notes about this dish.

First, the spelling is either jjajangmyeon (짜장면) or jajangmyeon (자장면), and this is apparently somewhat contentious. This is actually a Korean Chinese dish that was originally brought over by Chinese immigrants, and has only really been around for something like seventy-five years, having been popularized after the Korean War. Wikipedia lists the difference in IPA as "[tɕa.dʑaŋ.mjʌn]" vs "[t͈ɕa.dʑaŋ.mjʌn]" and for the life of me I cannot tell what's even theoretically supposed to be the difference between the two. Maangchi actually has a video where she writes it both ways and says "see? same!" so whatever. It's the kind of thing that drove me a little nuts, because I wasn't sure which spelling was correct, but it turns out that this is just one of those transliteration issues where both are kind of right and if the letters are supposed to represent sounds, they're nearly indistinguishable.

Second, South Korea has Valentine's Day on February 14th, when women are supposed to give men gifts like chocolate or otherwise profess interest, then has White Day on March 14th, when men are supposed to "pay back" the women for Valentine's Day. But in South Korea they also celebrate Black Day, which is April 14th, and if you didn't get a gift on either of the two previous holidays, you dress up in black and commiserate with the other single people while eating some black food. The staple food is jajangmyeon, which is as black a main dish as you can get without adding squid ink or activated charcoal.

[decepti-thots]

☕ ~ trans woman whirl?

I love trans Whirl headcanons but I think I love them for totally different reasons than I usually see, tbh? That is- I think a lot of the time the fandom just goes 'oh! Girl Holoform Spotted! now this character is girl, and we can say character is trans girl because in the comic they are called he/him' and tbh I find that attitude as fandom often implements it annoying for a couple reasons; one, it often feels like a kind of 'if character Looks Like Girl, well, character Is Girl' deal which tbh feels kinda shallow to me ngl, and two, it (and similar under-expanded upon headcanons) not infrequently seems to be a way for the fandom as a whole to justify the general lack of content for the very explicitly canon trans characters by instead being like 'all the material we make for these characters not treated as such in canon proves that we definitely love trans characters. don't think about how lug or anode or arcee don't get that same attention, or that this content only offhandedly actually deals with transness 90% of the time', you know? Bit mean, but I can't help but feel that's a repeated tendency in the fandom, tbh. I would feel less like this if the fanon trans headcanons did not just vaguely go 'oh. also ig they are trans, how nice' with no follow up and instead actually treated these characters as having opinions about being trans, but in too many cases they unfortunately... don't. (And no, them being robots is not an excuse. Anode has opinions on this. Arcee has opinions on this, a lot of them!) But we're here to talk about Whirl, and I want to talk about why I do love trans Whirl, so.

I love trans Whirl for reasons far outside of that, and I think taking that approach to the idea does it a disservice tbqh. Specifically I like trans Whirl for the same reason I like reading Verity as trans, because it adds to Whirl's character arc about being denied agency over identity and clawing it back on purpose in a way where the trans reading feels especially resonant and like it genuinely adds to the overall subtext of her arc. Whirl's entire character is one where the violent removal of agency in her life is so much a focus it changes the course of history; Whirl refusing to let the functionists that ruined her life win is why Elegant Chaos plays out as it does. Whirl is a character whose entire sense of self as a person with the ability to make any choices at all was viciously ripped away from her, and in turn a character whose response to that is to make her ability to choose exactly what she does so utterly undeniable that even if you hate her, even if you think she's repulsive, even if you want to throttle her, you cannot pretend she is not in control. In that specific context, adding in the idea that she would choose her own gender, in defiance of a Cybertronian culture that implicitly treats gender as an alien unwelcome influence, so she can have what she wants- that rules. There's also such a line to be drawn there between Arcee's arc and Whirl, I think, that is so great. That's where I see why it is so good. Being seen as just a gun to be aimed that everyone professes distaste for but still wants to stick around and do dirty work, but you insist upon your interiority being seen as just that; your interiority. And all the things the people who want to do to you which you hate being what you embrace. It's fantastic. I simply prefer that as an angle through which to view the ideas than like... haha well Whirl's holoform is Girl With Guns how funny. You know?

And one of her most "humanising" moments is when she extends that to someone else. I'm thinking of when she tells Tailgate that Cyclonus was lying about his injuries; that part where Cyclonus is trying to protect Tailgate in a way that is ultimately toxic for them both. Sure, everyone else agrees that the best way to handle this is to lie for your own good so you don't make a decision people don't want you to. But that's not fucking fair, and who gets to decide what's "your own good"? Viewing that in light of a Whirl who is not just vaguely a woman but specifically linking that to the way Whirl's rigidly defined role under a functionist heel ruined her sense of identity, because they know what's best for you whether you like it or not- damn, that is COMPELLING. And I find that just. So much more compelling than what fandom so often does with the idea. Whirl, above all else, knows how important demanding agency is. I think that makes Whirl a character ripe for a reading as trans, and I love that for her so much. she'll grab you by the throat and make you acknowledge her. and she's right every step of the way, no matter how much you want to look away. i love her.

tl;dr WHIRL TRANS WOMAN GOOD. LOVE IT. no really i just, it's so good.

[archerdepartures116]

Permission to use/add your idea of zhongliu for my fic that's already being made...? It's just...after seeing the zhongliu ship that you made, I just want to share my comfort ship with you: venqiu/venjiu! (So uh, sorry if this ends up more like me oversharing stuff–I know this is long, and it sounds more like a brainrot or whatever, but it just HAS to be shared, so please bear with me–)

I haven't gotten around with drawing them yet, but I think Venti and Shen Qingqiu/Shen Jiu would look cute together. (I do have a fic written already! It's most likely going to end up a oneshot, unless I find more motivation to make several more chapters.) Venti is used to interacting with people, and he's great at picking up on things, and comforting them! Like that one time he met the adventurer "Stanley". He's also great at music, which he could use to ease Shen Qingqiu, and they might even do an instrumental duo now and then. I also think that Shen Qingqiu would be at ease around him, because –

1.) Venti just gives off a feeling of being harmless

2.) While Venti's usually broke, and at times pathetic, he's not the Shang Qinghua type of "pathetic, suspicious, and a snivelling coward"

3.) Venti would not push for information if Shen Qingqiu doesn't want to share it, and shares his thoughts and feelings freely. (Unless it has something to do with Celestia and all those things.

4.) Venti will not be bothered by Shen Qingqiu’s attitude, would humour him but not treat him like a child. Would be understanding, and try to guide him to be better, while telling him to live however he wants, since he's now free.

5.) And if the chains of Shen Qingqiu’s past comes for him, Venti would willingly break said chains and free him, because people like Shen Qingqiu are not meant to be caged or tied down. (In reference to Venti freeing Vanessa from her chains, and freeing Mondstadt from the tyranny of the nobles.)

6.)Sure, Venti can be...a whirlwind of chaos and all, but he's really understanding, and won't poke Shen Qingqiu for information about things that he's not comfortable with telling the other. (Plus he most likely already knows about Shen Qingqiu’s past and all that, due to being well...god of wind and all. It would be a little funny if the Bai Zhan War God's lover,aka Zhongli, meets Venti and he finds out that the midget whom Zhongli finds annoying is Shen Qingqiu’s lover.)

[There's more, but this is it for now dhdhshs although...if uh, if it isn't too much, and you wanna try your hand at drawing them, I'd be honoured.]

Yeah ofc!

I can see the vision, I think the mix of cultures would be cool also and compared to the rest of the cast of characters, I think Venti is the best way for so to heal from his angst lol (everyone in svsss just isn’t that breath of fresh air for him methinks)

The harp and guzheng… what would that sound like haha

[miijiu]

Hello, sorry for the long text and for using English, my Chinese isn't good enough to write to you properly.

I wanted to thank you for always writing your thoughts about Silvaze ⚪🟣 and expressing your reasoning and/or passion behind the two. My favourite Sonic game story has always been 06, but the difficulty in finding others who also find love in the story due to the memes and universal hate (which I believe to be from of the lack of understanding of the themes and narrative) makes it rather lonely.

I'm glad to hear you share the same thoughts that ⚪ is essentially a "shonen protagonist" as he's the one who wants to become a hero for others (versus 🔵 who fights for what he likes, and ⚫ who fights against what he dislikes). ⚪ Thinks about the morality of it all; one of my favourite things is that... He didn't hesitate in killing 🔵 at first, even mocking 🔵, yet when 🌹 protects 🔵...!! Because ⚪ spent time with 🌹, he re-evaluates the situation and wonders if it's the right thing to do! His earnesty and kind-heart is what separates him from 🟣!! Where 🟣 says "you're so naive" (I do think it's better if it was localised as "you're too soft" due to the double meaning of naive...) as 🟣 believes they cannot miss their chance to change the future. I love how ⚪🟣's obligations ties them together yet their differences still show... And that's what 🟣 likes about ⚪: his kind heart. Even in the end when 🟣 sacrifices herself, I find it interesting the English doesn't seem to have this line: "you should be prepared to make sacrifices", where it highlights ⚪🟣's differences; 🟣 is willing to go to the extremes, and ⚪ believes there's always another way, a kinder way, a better solution where everyone can win. It's why ⚪ is hope.

... Sorry, I ended up rambling unnecessarily.

I'm just very thankful you express such love for 06 and the writing, and also bring your understanding of the characters to light as it helps people like me realise we're not alone in this thinking. It must be difficult to express these thoughts publicly as the cultural difference and fanon skews the representation largely causing discourse or arguments which are entirely biased, yet you preserve and persist, and you create and share, thank you so so much 🤍💜

This means so much.

I dont answer to tumblr questions in general. but your words r really heartwarming and I hope you dont mind me sharing.

I relates to what u said. some of ur wording and understandings even capture the very essense of their characterazations that I found difficult to express.

I rlly like how you interpret the 🦔"naivety" as "kindness". I think that works enough to convey the subtext of the original language, and showing Silver's character arc in 06.

Thank you so much.🙏🤍💜

[glass--beach]

do you think the french deserve the hate given to them ?

um. i have no idea why you would ask me of all people but you're getting a genuine answer regardless. i think for a lot of people it's just lighthearted jabs that don't mean much and don't truly hurt or upset anyone. these kind of jokes between imperial core countries lack the oppressive power that comes with racism or hatred of countries in the global south. i AM a little suspicious of the way some americans hate french people though because a lot of that was motivated by france's opposition to the USA invading Iraq in 2003. i think anyone that's about as old as me and lives in the US remembers the whole "freedom fries" thing lol. it can also get into the kind of thing that people on here like to do with british people where they seem to delight in being allowed to use this race realist kinda language against a non-marginalized group. i'm not gonna say that's like, problematic, it just rubs me the wrong way. there's a lot of french culture i love and i kinda think people are more or less the same everywhere so it's just like. whatever? also you have to respect that the french are a million more times effective in their protests than the US is. our culture is wayyy too obsessed with keeping things peaceful above all else and it's hurting us lol

[operative-arrow]

Oh man I found this choice really agonizing! In my very first, gut-reaction run, I did choose Treviso, eventually. But the thing is that both choices are bad because people die either way. That's, in my opinion, part of what the game is saying. Sometimes all your options suck.

Among my reasons for choosing Treviso in that run were: (adding a cut just to not slap a big wall of text on everyone's feed)

A) that Minrathous has a powerful mage culture, and while some would likely be siding with the invaders, you'd have a sizeable resistance even outside the Shadows.

B) Tevinter also actually HAS a military. There's an army there, full of regular soldiers and mages alike. You've got magical constructs. You've got defenses.

C) the Archon's Palace is a giant floating defensive structure with MAGIC CANNONS we see firing immediately at the beginning of the game and is also usually full of the more powerful mages.

On the other hand you have:

A) Treviso is essentially a merchant, fully civilian, city. There's no military. Barely any guard.

B) If there's not a Circle in Treviso itself, there wouldn't be much magic support.

C) The Antaam is probably on the dragons side and the city already can't resist them without our help.

D)Assassins are not soldiers. as Teia says they aren't able to field a battalion but they protect Antiva their way. Which is fine, I guess, against political intrigue from other nations. But uh... This is not that.

Between these two cities Minrathous has a much better chance of holding out until the other location is safe. Plus, I sent our new Grey Warden at that point to the other city.

I know none of that matters in-game and that mechanically it really is just 'what city gets destroyed?' But those were the thoughts going through my head when actually engaging in the role play of the setting.

And, to be honest, you do split your team. It's presented as a binary choice but you still TRY to have it both ways. You try to save both. And it fails on both fronts. The dragon that you personally fight gets away, and the other city is destroyed.

So realistically your Rook has to deal with the regret of thinking if you had your whole team (minus Other City Resident) maybe you could have killed one right then. And that would have made the sacrifice that still happened actually mean something.

But you made a choice. And when I stepped into Minrathous the first time after my choice, and I saw the devastation of the Shadows' hideout? The blood where Bren was standing. Lorelei gone. (Not to mention the failed rescue attempt later) The carts full of Shadow Dragon bodies and the gallows in every corner of Docktown. I gasped. There was a real lament seeing this faction, one that I actually agree with far more than the Crows, destroyed. But for me, I was making the choice based more on the city, which one had more things protecting the regular people. The idea of a blighted canal system poisoning the water supply.

That probably got way too long and rambly, but the TLDR is that I think there is no right choice and if you genuinely engage in the role... It's a heavy one.

I feel like people who say saving Treviso is the obvious correct choice because Tevinter is full of slavers or whatever are missing the point. Neve admits Tevinter is broken, it is, but if you don't intervene it falls to its worst elements because almost everyone fighting for something better dies fighting. The reason we're shown Dock Town, a part of the city that is poor and desperate, is so we can see Tevinter isn't all evil magisters vying for power, and when the Venatori and others do terrible shit like summon demons, it's ordinary citizens caught in the middle who pay the price.

In Treviso, ordinary citizens pay the price for Antiva's lack of a real military force to defend them. The Crows are not enough just as the Shadows are not enough. Both cities suffer from leadership failing the common people. Both cities are deeply flawed, but they are worth saving, because they're someone's home.

[madockisser]

is it strange that i want to know what cardan like thinks abt like everything- especially mortal shit. like i want to see what he thinks of different films, music, celebrities, books, or mortal clothing, etc. like idk i just obsess over what he’d think about certain things.

Random faerie lore- specially cardan/ faeries in the mortal world

LOL i hope not because i do that! also thank you for asking this, i was hoping someone should ask something that would allow me to spew my faerie in mortal world knowledge out!

now- honestly cardan and that Alice and wonderland book is what made me fall head over heels for him

i remember seeing it on TikTok years ago, about how Alice and wonderland is a mortal book that mirrors Jude’s life, and that cardan saw Jude in Alice.

and i hadn’t even considered it before, i was young and didn’t gaf abt little details, but look at me now, delving into every little thing abt that series.

since cardan is fae, it’s natural for us to wonder at how he sees the world and Jude.

below are some things i PERSONALLY think he may like or dislike about the mortal world.

i think he’d really enjoy learning the history of human music, i think he would like classical music (seems most likely)

i love to think that he’d get obsessed w how Jude is Latina and want to learn more about that part of human culture. I feel like he’d encourage Jude to do so too, since elfhame is all about HIS culture and whatnot.

he’d probably also like casually reading about human history, cross referencing it with faerie history and stuff, but also having to unlearn any biases both humans and faeries may write in their history books

i don’t think he’d like celebrities much, since he isn’t fond of “fake people” and that’s pretty much every celeb (sorry) BUT i think he would enjoy watching their drama lol, if it were like the early 2000s or even 2010s i feel like he would have fun w that sort of reality show vibe

he’d probably adore human poetry, like the old ones, and he’d probably enjoy older movies too. i can imagine him enjoying Shakespeare (bro would love Romeo and Juliet and compare it to him and Jude) and liking the ballet or marching bands or something random like that (😭)

anyway i just know he LOVES Jude’s mortal underclothes, lowkey he’d probably love the thought that she’s the only one in elfhame wearing them (he’d also probably see them as sorta sexual, only because when i think of faerie underclothes i think of a nightgown and possibly a corset, which doesnt show a ton of skin, whereas a bra and panties are wayyy more revealing)

you didn’t mention food, but there’s a ton of salt in mortal food, but i still think he’d eat it anyway. i guess the way salt works is that it just dulls magics(?) like it won’t physically harm him, but his magic won’t be very strong, like a depressant drug or something (is that a weird comparison 😭) BUT it reminds me of how nevermore is like an enhancer drug, so does that mean nevermore is the opposite of salt? (Literally just spewing nonsense atp)

but he liked dumplings, i think he would like other Asian foods. he’d hate pickles bc of the salt content, and he’d hate chips for the same reason i feel like. he’d probably love a good fruit salad (giggling at this) and trying all the human fruits that they don’t have in elfhame (also desserts)

anyway faeries have to be careful about chemicals, vivienne buys all organic shampoos and body washes, so we can assume she has to be careful with the same. it’s to be noted that her and oakey eat fish sticks and chemically dyed cereal, AND also pain pills? so i guess what they consume doesn’t have to be completely natural?

Add on: in the modern faerie tales, faeries cannot smoke cigarettes or they pretty much die on the spot according to roiben, when Kaye takes a drag her eyes water she she starts choking. ALSO corny in tmft, sprays a faerie in the face w a cleaning spray and bro dies on the spot so…

personally, i think the more checmially foods they eat, the worse they feel, and the lower energy they have. faeries seem to run on the foods they eat like it’s fuel, soo eating human food is probably not too great for them. vivi seems to be doing fine tho(perhaps bc she’s half human AND she grew up eating that stuff? Same w Kaye). Makes sense why oaks a vegan as well in tsh.

anyway imagining cardan in the mortal world is funny but weird, like he totally doesn’t fit lol

what i can remember from htkoelths, he seemed used to the strangeness. like he expected it.

since elfhame seems so small compared to the mortal world, i assume that some faeries are pretty casually human like, in terms of clothing and even behaviors (based on the bomb, kaye, etc)

also a lot of them (the ones not from elfhame or living on the isles) live nearby humans, so they’re pretty used to them I’d say.

It makes sense for the fae to be used to humans, since they’re everywhere. they’re also in elfhame, whether they’re glamoured or no.

anyway, cardan had access to the mortal world, so who knows how often he really went and dropped off slaves, or just went to visit.

balekin probably took him once and was like “damn little bro, look at all this hot garbage! Humans suck so I’m gonna use them to belittle you! haha”

anyway, i refuse to put anything else in my drafts bc im scared my drafts are slowly disappearing (BTW someone sent me a Locke and cardan ask the other day, and IT GOT DELETED after i wrote half of it, so if it was you that sent it, resend it perchance bc i forgot what the question even was)

on that note, thank you for the ask! this was messy and randomly thrown together lol but i liked writing it 🫶 feel free to add on as always!!

[withoutzeuzey]

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

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

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

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

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

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

[pickyourpoisonandevolve]

Thanksgiving Drabble w/ the 141 + Black Reader

Notes/warnings: just a fluff piece from me. I don’t know how to do drabbles/imagines but I SURE DO enjoy reading them and I have a brain baby to birth. Idk if this is TOO specific for a drabble but reader is black/female/american. Because those things aren’t often represented in these! And also I can do what I want at the end of the day. Just… just walk with me here.

The military is an easy place to forget that your squadmates are real actual people with families and backgrounds, on account of the inherent assimilation. Not that it wasn’t needed, but you get so busy creating your own language and communication styles that I think being able to express cultural habits and likes get a little seldom.

All that to say, you and Gaz LOVE to cook together, as it makes you nostalgic for your respective families. And you’ll be damned if these Brits make you skip Thanksgiving. The rest met your enthusiasm with “fucking Americans” but Gaz thankfully was more than happy to join you in the prep, you both bonding in hatred for the same old shit from the base kitchen. But most of the base is gone so you lot have the kitchen and common room to yourself, and that means you and Gaz are making a FEAST.

Pulling greens, the dishes that take 6-8 hours to make, the shit talking, the hyper specific recipes that you bicker about, the music played. You both are IN IT, and Johnny, Simon and Price didn’t have anywhere else to be, and are more than happy to eat what you make. (As they aren’t the most talented cooks of the bunch) Sausage rolls and chip buttys a Thanksgiving does not make.

It tickles the other three to walk by occasionally, listening to you to just… talk. And vibe. About old experiences, moving in tandem, bitching occcasionally. It had a spooky parallel to how you all worked in the field, seamlessly in sync, but the juxtaposition of it being wholesome. You all got to live in a temporary bubble of normalcy and domesticism. Like a big weird family, you could forget you all killed people for a living.

Price had shit to do, so he did flybys through the day, but they increased in frequency as it went on, his smile growing each time. His little grinch heart growing, seeing his team get along. You tossed cookies at him, hoping to get a rise out of him, but all you were met with was a “thanks, love” and a wink. You made a mental note to do that at a frequency of everyday forever.

Soap didn’t want to miss anything (or feel left out) so he kept to his favorite things: “watching TV” aka TikToks and passively watching a show, interjecting in conversations and stealing food when no one was looking. (Everyone was looking and he was slapped and yelled at A LOT)

Ghost was just unfamiliar with this intimate of camaraderie. He stopped in occasionally for tea, which Gaz and you started making for him. You could see his little eye crinkles as you prepared his tea just like he liked it.

Gaz and you started singing together as you plated the meal on the kitchen island. The rest of the team was holding a flight pattern in the common area, pulled in like the smell lines in an old timey cartoon, scotch already prepped and poured. But there was a moment where you two got swept up in your comfortability, and started singing in earnest. (This song in particular) You two didn’t make it a habit of getting too relaxed in front of the others, big tough soldiers and all, so this was a rare, near nonexistent sight.

Better days comin' for sure

If this world were—

If it was up to me

I wouldn't give these nobodies no sympathy

I'd take away the pain, I'd give you everything

I just wanna see you win, wanna see

If this world were mine

The three on the couch looked back with open mouths and smiles as you carried on. Literal years you all have worked together, how did they not know you two sang, and HARMONIZED? Did you practice?

You noticed first, brought back to reality and almost dropping a dish. Scandalized! Embarassed! Blushing furiously! Gaz thankfully was impervious to their bullshit, and told them to fuck off and come eat. Typical soldiers, couldn’t sit down proper for anything, food included, so you all settled into conversation and a full meal standing around the island. Enjoying the bubble, enjoying the peace, enjoying the moment.

Johnny, Price and Simon graciously offered to do dishes and clean. (Leftovers for days!) And after a while, you all dispersed. Soap stole a half of a pie and was inbound on falling asleep with his pants unbuttoned on the couch. Ghost was tactically figuring out how to look aloof and fall asleep on Soaps shoulder. Gaz had family (and a lady, you suspected) to FaceTime and Price hung behind you on the way to the barracks. Before you made your good nights, he offered to share a new bottle of bourbon his Nan sent in his room. Super casual. No pressure. Maybe he could hear your pretty voice sing just for him this time.

(This Drabble is sponsored by holidays, KDots new album, and an excuse to flirt with Price. Happy Thanksgiving, Americans are all on native land, and fuck Columbus)

[championofthefade]

Thinking about Veilguard sometimes really makes me start picking it apart.

Yes, I did like it for what it is. But as someone who played the three games for the first time this year, I found it disheartening at times.

Long story short for those who rather not read my rambling: I liked Veilguard, but there are parts that just don't feel right and that everything we've done in Thedas the last three games were all for naught. (I'm yapping about my complaints, might make a more positive post later)

It's a mixed bag, really.

While I liked the gameplay, there are things that just don't rub me the right way.

The first immediate example is how the (only, in my opinion) major choice we are presented with is choosing Treviso and Minrathous. We have the choice to harden the other companions in spirit, but the only ones that actually are affected are Lucanis and Neve.

While I have done both paths, I can't say that one is a better choice over the other. Shadow Dragons are decimated if you choose Treviso, Treviso is blighted if you choose Minrathous. I think that it's fair that Lucanis doesn't want to romance Rook if you choose Minrathous, because he wants to save his city from dying. He trusted you to follow through, while Neve expects that you won't since she's a cynic. Which makes sense why she's willing to still romance you if you choose to save Treviso, although it'll be a bit more challenging to, because you were presented with an impossible choice. I don't mind that he ends up with Neve, even if the romance for all the companions kinda fall flat if you think about it too much.

Another thing is Taash. Their identity is important to their story, but having Rook (us the player) choose how to deal with their cultural crisis doesn't make sense and makes me not want to repeat those quests. Why is there no option to embrace both the Qun and being Rivani? Why am I the one choosing how Taash chooses to express themselves? Relating back to the city choices, Lucanis and Neve both choose their hardened options with Illario (getting jail) and Aelia (being given to the Threads). With Taash, the choices are a little less clear to me. I think we shouldn't be able to dictate one's cultural choices.

One of the worst choices that we have to make as Rook is Harding vs Davrin. Thinking about the amount of people who are saving Davrin just for Assan is actually crazy to me. I love Davrin, but he's reminding me of what happened to Wyll in BG3, and it's not a fun time. (I can barely pick up BG3 for various reasons and this is one of them.) I'm glad Bioware doesn't pander to the fans that are loud, because I don't have to worry about everyone's favorite white boy getting more content than the only black companion (saying this as a white person myself). I will always save Davrin because he is a compelling character even without Assan. I love the feather-brain but I feel like I want to know Davrin more than his mythical son.

I hate that we only got three world state choices, two of which don't really matter since it's more flavor text. It doesn't matter if we disbanded or merged into the Chantry, we don't see the consequences of those actions. It doesn't matter if your Inquisitor wants to Stop Solas at All Costs, because apparently they feel responsible for Solas being... Well, Solas. And our romances, outside of Solavellan, were reduced to a codex entry and sidelined.

Yes, Solas is important, and yes, I expected his romance to be given more light. I'm in the camp of people who feared that was going to be the case. And it was.

Yes, I agree that him getting a Good Ending with his vhenan is one of the better endings, but his friendship one and facing his fear of dying alone is also important. I liked playing a Rook that tricked him, I liked playing a Rook that chose to fight him as well. I'm glad we have at least those aspects that we can control.

As someone who has romanced Lucanis and Neve so far, I wish there were more little cutscenes, and not just for Lucanis. I'm just okay with how things are, even if they're a bit empty in comparison to what we could've had. That being said, I think that there's always room for improvement to have a more fulfilling resolution to the romance in the game the devs claimed was the most romantic. I wish there was more, I wish that there had been more to support that claim. I want to feel closer to these companions, and I am sure that I will as time goes on. But as it stands, for now after sitting with the game for nearly a month (11/29), I wish we had gotten more.

I would like to say that it really doesn't feel like the most romantic compared to the other three games. (Blackwall's "heart laid bare", Dorian's "you're dreadfully dull and I hate you", Josephine's letter of "let me make a promise to you here. I dream you will say yes", Zevran's "I'll storm the Black City for you, never doubt it", Anders' "ten years, a hundred years from now, someone like me will love someone like you, and there will be no templars to tear them apart", just to name the few that feel more romantic than what we're sitting with for Veilguard romances. And one of them is a codex entry.)

I hate that we have to learn through missives that the South is gone, save for Skyhold. I hate that we had no power to help the South, and that the last three games were all for naught. It's upsetting to know that Ferelden is gone. RIP Orlais, you slayed too close to the sun. Kirkwall being empty is a scary thought, but it's gone too.

It makes me wonder where HOF is. Did they ever find a cure? Are they even alive? What about a Hawke that didn't get left in the Fade? You mean to tell me that they wouldn't be out there in the frontlines doing something? You mean to tell me that they're sitting on their asses?

Varric dying is something else entirely, but it's just gut wrenching that we don't even get to mourn him. A second playthrough was mindbogglingly eye-opening. Harding was mourning when you check on her in her little room. Neve reminisces about how Varric brought her onto the job and she wishes that she didn't take it. They were mourning while Rook probably looked like they were in the denial stage of grief. What killed me inside was the fact I caught it the first time when Bellara name dropped Varric like she didn't know he was there. That's when I started thinking maybe he was gone, but I didn't want to believe it. I had to step away from my computer when the reveal happened because I was devastated.

We don't get to see just how the team made the fake lyrium dagger, or how they even managed to find Rook in the first place. We don't get to see the love interest's reaction, only the aftermath where they are still registering that Rook is there. We don't even get an explanation on how those things were possible. To create a perfect lyrium replica and locate someone in the Fade? Knowing that we could've had a mission to save whoever was left in the Fade hurts. RIP to those left in the Fade.

The secret ending is just... Bewildering to say the least. What do you mean that there's an even bigger force that has been controlling the narrative from Across the Sea? What do you mean these incredibly well written villains had no agency in their choices and were being used to orchestrate whatever the hell the Executors wanted?

Again, what do you mean that all that we've been through in Thedas just doesn't matter anymore?

[tododeku-or-bust]

If it's ok I have some thoughts about that post about whiteness you just reblogged. Parts of it are good but I do feel it's too usamerican centric. Not in a "hur dur us europeans are better and racism isn't real here" way but because the explanation they partly give for white supremecy is a lack of identity/culture and as someone who grew up in a european country that has a strong sense of identity it doesn't explain the rampant white supremecy issues we also have here. I think it's a big blind spot and that its a dangerous fallacy. I'd love to hear your thoughts

I mean, yes and no. The loss of culture bit as an excuse is definitely American, though I assumed the post was primarily talking to white Americans. Because there was a trade off when they all came to colonize here. It's a lot easier to convince poor white migrants that "hey at least you're white" when you tell them to give up everything about themselves to make sure they don't bond with the local oppressed people of color and revolt. So that did happen, on purpose.

The thing about whiteness being an identity of power to band behind is pretty universal, though. It's why when you put a bunch of Europeans from different nations together, they'll squabble like a mf. The Brits and French thinking they're better than Irish and Italians, who think they're better than the Polish and Greeks, and whatever combo.

But the MOMENT you put someone that visibly isn't them (i.e. not white) in the room, that bond of whiteness clicks. That hierarchy snaps into place, that "I might not be as white as you, but I'm CERTAINLY not them". It's how you end up with people who are afraid of dying in Ukraine under Russia's thumb somehow having time to still hate Black migrants and aid workers. Everyone might not know who they are, but they sure know who they aren't. And that's part of the allure and power of whiteness, and thus white supremacy.

But that's me. There are people who could probably explain it better.

[tavolgisvist]

‘We’re not really capable of ad-libbing,’ says John, ‘unless it’s among ourselves, and that’s too personal. I mean, I can count the people on my fingers who can understand what we’re about all the time.’ <…> ‘The trouble is,’ he says, ‘it’s only us who can write for us.’ He explains that his first line in the script is one he is supposed to say when Paul enters with an old man. ‘I’m supposed to say, “Uh, who’s your friend, Paul?” I wouldn’t say that. I’d just say, “Who’s the old crip?”’ <…> He wants to call the book John Lennon in his Own Write, a title suggested by Paul. I say that since he also plans to do sketches for the book it should be called John Lennon in his Own Write and Draw. ‘Right-hand draw,’ says John. I tell him that parts of his writing are very much like Ulysses. He says he has never read Joyce and the only influence on his writing that he knows of is Lewis Carroll. ‘I don’t go in for much of those culture things, like Paul,’ he says. ‘Just drop a name and Paul will go; I’d rather stay at home when I’m not working but Paul goes out to Harry Secombe and Lovely War. I suppose I should like those things, but I just don’t.’ <…> The Beatles have a few days free and Ringo has gone to Liverpool. It is now midday and George has just woken up. He wanders into the sitting-room where he is fitted for a suit by the Beatles’ tailor, Dougie Kingman. He then gets dressed and prepares to go out for lunch. Once in the street he keeps looking around for fans and seems both, annoyed and pleased when one of them finally asks him for his autograph in Park Lane. At lunch he tells about a television programme the Beatles have appeared on. The host, a Liverpool comedian called Ken Dodd, had said he was thinking of becoming a pop singer and wanted a ‘down-to-earth name’. George had suggested ‘sod’. After lunch he produces a copy of a contract the Beatles made in Germany. He is taking it to their music publisher to find out how much they are owed in royalties. He has been carrying it in his pocket for two weeks. Before that it lay in a suitcase in Liverpool and London for three years. A few days later John is in a taxi, passing a store that has a red night shirt in the window. He tells the cab to stop, goes inside, and asks how much the night-shirt costs. ‘Six pounds,’ he is told. ‘That’s a lot,’ he says, ‘but I think Cyn would like it.’ While it is being wrapped the clerk asks him to look at some jackets that have just arrived. He winds up buying three and a coat. The bill comes to £107, but he doesn’t have his cheque-book with him. The store presents a blank cheque but he can’t remember what branch his account is at.

(Love Me Do. The Beatles Progress by Michael Braun, 1963/1995)

Part (I), (II), (III), (IV), (V), (VI), (VII), (VIII)

[y-rhywbeth2]

@chexala Astarion and Shadowheart both seem very disconnected from the arts (probably because of the Trauma) and it makes me wonder which (if any) they were into Before, and which (if any) they might get into After. Maybe this is also why they are both into personal aesthetics, since it's basically the only "art" they had any access to or control over during their Ordeals.

Sharran doctrine isn't big on creation or positive self-expression, and the depressing horrors of living as a vampire's slave would also put a dampener on creativity and joy, yes. Especially because the whole thing with elves prizing art is about how it's an expression of life and being alive, which both the religion and undead would take issue with.

Elves' most valued artforms in order from most to least: Magic -> Music -> Poetry and Literature -> Sculpture ('Shaping' if you're an elf) -> Tattooing -> Cooking (Those are the big ones. Theatre, philosophy, engineering and textiles is also fine, as is any self-improvement or skill you commit yourself to. No arts except song and dance have been cited in courtship though. Painting doesn't count as an artform itself).

Astarion does have some creative hobbies that he's into: tailoring and embroidery, literature and, going off of EA, he possibly writes poetry (might be quoting). Going off of his playing with human organs as props and dramatically re-enacting Poe, he might be a theatre nerd. As an elf he should probably be able to pick up singing naturally. He also likes playing with knives in a flashy manner, and that's... technically an art. While I'm not entirely sure how this stuff is handled by elven diaspora (although he references Evereska, so I'm not sure the degree to which that applies to him): As a 30-something, Astarion would only 'recently' be at an age in elven society where he'd be expected to start a formal education ('magistrate' is not a career in Baldur's Gate, it's more jury duty for high society, so it's not an indication he had a job or commitments or even a formal legal education), and (particularly as at least half-silver elf) probably have been left to his own devices to play around with hobbies and skills and work out what he enjoys. He also complains about art and artists at any opportunity, but these tend to be in response to paintings and painters, which he probably associates with Cazador and paintings don't count as real art by elven standards anyway.

Shadowheart was only a child before she was kidnapped, so her 'before' was probably drawing, exploring creative hobbies, and gardening and singing with her parents (music and caring for houseplants being important elfy things to impress on one's children. She does like her potted plants that she drags to all our camps. Maybe she enjoys bonsai and landscaping (or will, if she has the opportunity.)) She likes books. As a priestess who would be singing hymns, and one who voices horror upon realising that she was likely sent undercover as a bard and forced to sing, Shadowheart can sing she just doesn't want to. Dancing is part of Shar's image/thing, so I'd imagine there's some dancing in her faith too. But I don't think singing and dancing outside of specific forms and times meant to honour Shar were on the table. Arnell is excited to try and catch up on all the parenting opportunities he missed over the last 40 years, like dad jokes, I can imagine him also reintroducing her to elven culture and trying to teach her some songs, which Shadowheart will probably be happy to humour. Her mother is also teaching her recipes, so experimenting with cuisine is on the table as well.

I think song and dance are 'loud' expressions that are a bit too flashy and personal for either to be comfortable with. I think, if they're in a good moon, they might humour dancing, in private. Trying to serenade them if you romanced them will likely earn you a playful mocking. Selûnite Shadowheart might try singing for fun, later in life. Astarion has one line where he's humming something in the middle of combat, which is probably the closest you're getting to hearing him sing.

They'd be big on aesthetics regardless of trauma, since it's an elf thing. Personal aesthetics as a form of self-expression are also particularly important to moon elves. I imagine that side of them might actually get more focus in the future, assuming Shadowheart doesn't stay with Shar, considering reclaiming autonomy is a big part of both their arcs.

...it had never ceased to amaze Araevin that [his fiancée's] heart had turned to him. He had no gift for songs of love or dances beneath the stars, not compared to a dozen other noble-born lords and princes who had wooed her...

The traditional elven courtship of dancing and composing songs that has already been mentioned: if you can't dance, and worse, can't sing, your dating pool shrinks significantly.

But also in light of my realisation that elves have a lot in common with birds, I'm now thinking of birds with their courtship songs and even more specifically, dancing. On one end is like swans and seabirds who do their dancing as courtship and as greetings between mates (which makes sense for elves who spend a lot of time apart the same way some seabirds do: Araevin up there hasn't seen Ilsevele for almost a year. This is normal, although intermittent check-ins are at least appreciated.)

But on the other hand of bird dances as courtship: elves doing bird of paradise type nonsense. Build me a stage and do a funny little dance with your brightly coloured feathers in funny shapes, or I shan't be impressed.

[angelsdean]

yes i absolutely view dean's pb&j as widower's arc grief shenanigans (if cas told sam abt his pb&j adventures he definitely told dean abt them at some point. dean would absolutely have asked cas what his fave human food was).

however, i don't think it's weird at all to eat a pb&j for breakfast. it's basically like eating two pieces of toast (breakfast food) but you just made a sandwich out of them. i'm abt to eat a pb toast rn. almost debated having a jelly one too but not feeling it. just bc mothers slapped together pb&j's for school lunch does not mean it's actually a lunch food. a Real sandwich is savory. it has meats. veggies. cheese. SOMETHING other than spreadables. pb&j is a snack sorry