#and i want them to summon cthulhu about it so very much

[betweenlands]

i think someone needs to lock squiddo and forgelabs in a room to see what kind of entirely new backstabbing gremlin behavior heretofore unthinkable by mankind might pupate out of the resulting scheme

[blacknedsoul-blog]

I think the Deans are fucking Lovecraftian gods

If you're a regular reader of my nonsense, you may have noticed that on more than one occasion I've referred to the Deans as "Nyarlathotep Tumblrsexymen": no, I didn't have a stroke on the keyboard, this is a reference to an entity that appears in the stories of Howard Phillip Lovecraft. A writer who is widely known because there were even people who thought that the Necronomicon, a fictional text part of his work, actually existed (and because he was such a recalcitrant racist that it has become a meme about how extremely racist he was).

And since I'm still going through my pile of papers on Gothic fiction, let me take a moment to talk about Lovecraft's work, why I have reason to believe that the Deans have something in common with these creatures, and what that might mean for the development of Nevermore.

A Little About Lovecraft's Gods

To understand a little bit about the kind of creatures we are talking about, I have to stop at a brief (seriously brief) description of cosmic horror: This is a type of horror that takes elements from the scientific publications of the time (which makes it close to science fiction) to give it verisimilitude, it has at its core a deep nihilism, the breaking of scientific canons, the fragility of the human mind and societies contrasted with the vastness of the universe, an enormous fear of "the unknown" for the white man (fed by his racist paranoia), and seasoned with tentacles and creatures that remind us of sea creatures, because Lovecraft had an enormous fear of the sea.

The gods in these stories represent, on a symbolic level, the vastness of the universe, the terror of the unknown, and the fragility of the human mind: they are entities older than time itself, contact with them tends to shatter the mind, and humanity must be very, very grateful that most of them are locked away or incapacitated in some way. Also, the way to access them is through very specific rituals that have been lost over time, so thankfully they're not very easy to contact either.

Similarities with the Deans

Let's start with the most obvious: the Deans, like the Lovecraftian gods, seem to operate in their own plane of existence, beyond what humans understand as "life" and "death": Nevermore is a kind of limbo, but we know, thanks to the Raven, that these guys came from another place and had enough power to kick the crap out of psychopomps without any problem.

However, just like Lovecraft's gods, these enormous powers don't make them able to do whatever they want; as I said, these entities are usually locked up or incapacitated in some way and can only have contact with humans under certain circumstances (like being summoned in rituals), and getting out of their prisons usually requires vague events like astral alignments that are completely out of their control.

The Deans, like Lovecraft's gods, seem to be subject to rules that are above them, and while they can bend them a bit to achieve their goals, it's not like they can do much about it.

Another thing they have in common with Lovecraft's gods is the ability to create servants that function as extensions of them to fulfill their designs. There are many creatures that follow this line in the stories that speak of The Myths, but the best known are the Shoggoth that appear in the novel At the Mountains of Madness: artificial beings created by the Old Ones to rule the Earth, described as amphibious, amorphous masses similar to amoebas.

Although the Deans prefer their minions in the form of animated dolls. I suspect this decision is based on the story The Sandman by E.T.A. Hoffman. I have no proof, but no doubt.

Now for the joke that brings this essay to life: the creature in Lovecraft's universe that most resembles the Deans is a being called Nyarlathotep. This creature belongs to the category of "Other Gods" (not the old ones like Cthulhu) and gets very nice nicknames like "Crawling Chaos".

Nyarlathotep is a being who enjoys causing chaos, death and madness wherever they go. They can communicate with humans, which they use to psychologically torture them and make them lose their minds. Something they seem to enjoy quite a bit. In the same way that the Deans view this sadistic battle royale, they have set up a fun game.

Then there is the ability to manipulate and alter the human mind, which is called into question in stories like Nyarlathotep and The Rats in the Walls (where it is apparently Nyarlathotep who messes with the protagonist's mind so that he tries to kill his friend).

This is something we've seen manifest in Nevermore in two different ways: the ability to trigger or unlock memories.

And the ability to change them. While we can't know if what was shown to Annabel is 100% real, we do know that showing her the end of her life caused a permanent change in the way she retrieves her memories: from the end backwards. If this memory is somehow altered, we also know that the Deans are capable of photoshopping people's memories.

Finally, Nyarlathotep has the ability to shape-shift, which allows them to appear as humanoids in several stories, such as The Oniric Quest of the Unknown Kadath or Dreams in the Witch's House. His human form is considered "unnatural", "strange" and "disturbing" by those who see it (remember that Lovecraft was extremely racist, so he always presents himself as a black man). As a pharaoh in the Randolph Carter cycle and as a charcoal humanoid figure in the second story cited).

Here, the human form of whatever the Deans are is also quite atypical: not only are they ridiculously tall (7 feet), they have heterochromia with a white-colored eye (which I would venture to say may be a reference to the cataract eye mentioned in the story "The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe), and their synchronized movements are amusing on paper, but possibly strange to look at for the characters.

Otherwise, there are two other entities in Lovecraft's universe whose descriptions can be loosely associated with the Deans: Yogg-Sothoth and Azathoth. Both are beings of dual nature.

The former is an entity associated with omniscience and appears in stories such as The Strange Case of Charles Dexter Ward and The Dunwich Horror. and is described as "the key and the door".

Azathoth represents omnipotence, is the center of the universe, and is described as "the beginning and the end" or "the alpha and the omega.

Implications for the comic

The fact that the Deans have elements in common with Nyarlathotep brings up an interesting point: although Nyarlathotep has far greater freedom than other beings, they is a servant of Azathoth. In other words, them powers are subservient to a more powerful being whose plans they must follow. They may amuse themselves in the process, but they is still essentially a butler.

On the other hand, the Azathoth connection might be vague, since this creature is a lobotomized god, so he can't do much. But if the reference is to Yogg-Sothoth, it gets a little more interesting, because that entity is the one who is supposed to release the original gods when the time is right.

And I don't know about you, but these references have me wondering if the Deans are working for something much more messed up than they are, or if they're using the souls of the students to bring back something much more sinister.

[rainforestakiie]

purgatory collar au?

i have this au idea, but i’m not sure how to execute it or if i'll write it.

when adam dies, god places a thick black collar around his neck with a chain dangling about an inch down his chest. it is called the 'purgatory collar,' and adam is required to wear it.

this is where it gets a bit fun!

monsters like cerberus, hydra, sphinx, and others are titled 'the first' by god. they are beings that existed before angels and humans were even a thought. god had attempted to create life before, but it became deranged and transformed into the purgatory monsters.

when adam dies, as he is the first pure soul, god tasks him with leashing 'the first' and binding them within his soul. he can summon them all at once or one by one. the chain on his collar transforms into long leashes that connect to the monsters' collars.

to do this, adam summons another version of his purgatory collar and has to get it around the monster’s neck to leash them.

adam is able to:

make the chain between him and the monster's as long, heavy, weak, big, or small as he wants. think of it like a lead you would use on a dog when taking them for a walk. adam is in complete control once he gets the other collar on the monster.

by the time he returns to heaven/hell and meets lucifer, lilith, charlie, and others, he has leashed:

cerberus: his favorite and 'best friend.' adam often plays ball with cerberus. cerberus has two forms—one where he is a giant dog with three heads, and another where he is three tiny red puppy-like monsters with sharp teeth. each head has a different personality. adam has him out often, either snuggling into his red fur or playing ball with him in his three puppy form.

hydra: adam's second favorite.

sphinx

minotaur

chimera

orthrus

medusa

harpies

scylla

a siren

typhoeus

banshee

cthulhu: i thought it would be interesting! but cthulhu is sleeping, and when he wakes up, adam gets high, which puts cthulhu back to sleep.

kakia and lamashtu: the goddesses of evil. while they have full access to adam's mind, they don’t do much. they claim they are waiting for adam to come to them for help, and when that happens, they will own his soul. but they also fear cthulhu, who rests within adam's soul, so who knows if they’re telling the truth or not.

and many other evil monsters and gods.

when adam returns to heaven for a meeting with hell, he isn't paying attention. he's focused on leashing a very powerful being that's somewhere in heaven or hell (not sure which yet), and it's causing lamashtu to act strangely.

eventually, lucifer discovers adam's secret—no one knows about the collar or the purgatory monsters. when something begins to infect adam's mind, lucifer suggests adam leash him. this way, lucifer can enter adam's soul/mind and speak with the two evil goddesses.

once lucifer is leashed and finds his mind connected to all the other monsters adam has leashed, as well as adam's own mind, the goddesses start preying on lucifer's sexual desire for adam.

it becomes a battle of mind and wit, to the point where adam has to go in and pull lucifer out. lucifer is still leashed, and adam doesn't know how to unleash someone once they've been leashed. however, after this, lucifer becomes even more touchy-feely with adam—the goddesses have removed all his barriers and filters, and lucifer can't control himself anymore. the longer adam keeps him leashed, the worse and more obsessive lucifer becomes. to the piont where he is actively trying to have sex with adam, to marry him and impregnant him. both goddess are whispering in lucifer's ears, making him even more deranged.

what do you all think? good or bad?

[boatem-probler]

These Aliens Have Been Watching Too Much Anime in... Tokyo Soul!

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / You Are Here!

It's been a while, huh? Yeah, I'm taking a summer class, and that started, so I've been a little busier than I was when I started doing this. This report is actually backlog, I wrote it up... I don't even know, like a month ago or something? So yeah, these are definitely gonna come out slower from now on.

In these episodes, the Chupacabra summons Cthulhu to find out the winning lottery numbers, Taurtis hits explosives with a gun, and the most useless aliens fail to invade Earth (not the aliens from last time, different ones).

This report contains mentions of: stalking, violence, guns, death, and splarging (i.e. sexual humor).

Previously on Tokyo Soul:

Sam: “You guys have problems, you know? I just wanna point that out. Everyone here, except for myself, clearly, has very serious mental problems.”

This Time...

Episode 33 – SHES BACK!

Dom and Jerry have gotten the house a new TV. It’s a motivational poster with a sign pointing to it that says “TV”.

Taurtis is still missing.

Jerry has one of the giant alien swords now, which he apparently got by strangling some random old guy.

Sam decides to wake Grian up by making out with him. Grian is distressed by this.

Sam and Grian open the front door to go to school and BAM! Taurtis with a giant gun!

It seems like Taurtis was captured by aliens, given a gun, and told that Sam and Grian had been replaced by aliens, or something like that. Correction from later: he stole the gun.

Regardless, they all head to school together. Grian and Taurtis share an umbrella.

Also, Sam got a letter in the mail from a “secret admirer” telling him they’ll be looking for him at school. Grian points out that Sam having admirers hasn’t tended to go well for him or the admirer.

Taurtis: “That’s why I don’t admire you. Too dangerous.”

Geode has stolen and is wearing Señor Loro’s Christmas sweater.

Invader is at school! She’s in town to see her uncle, who is apparently Dr. Nurse MD. He’s also “technically” not related to her.

Mr. Chupa has Igbar von Squid in a cage in the middle of the classroom. Mr. Chupa says he found some old books in a back room of the school and recreated a ritual from one of them.

Grian insists this is a very bad idea, while everyone pressures him to read out the ritual text.

Grian: “Are you not listening to me?” Taurtis: “We never listen to you.”

Grian reads out the ritual text. It’s basically a bunch of nonsense that’s obviously meant to sound more comedic than ominous.

Igbar starts moving around in the cage. His eyes are red now. Mr. Chupa picks a random student to go in the cage too. “Igbar” eats the student. Specifically “swallows him whole” according to Grian. Or “consumes his soul” according to Sam. Eyewitness accounts differ. Either way, Igbar is now Cthulhu.

Also, today I learned that Cthulhu is spelled with two H’s. Actually maybe I didn’t learn that, because it was autocorrect that told me to spell it that way and it’s been a bit unreliable. Whatever.

It turns out that Mr. Chupa summoned Cthulhu because he wants to know the winning lottery numbers.

Episode 34 – JERRY IS CRAZY!

Mr. Chupa allows the students to ask Cthulhu some questions. They’re pretty much entirely inconsequential. Taurtis wants to know Sam’s “true motives” for being friends with him and Grian, but Sam’s secrets, if there are any, are saved by the bell.

Dr. Nurse has started thinking about how valuable the elderly are after some “pranksters” killed a bunch of them at his hospital, so he has the class interview an old man who is very obviously an alien.

Sam, for some reason, has two of the “wire” textured head blocks from a few episodes ago in his locker, and they are in fact named “C4”. Grian is a bit horrified to learn that he recently had a bomb strapped to him.

Also, Mr. Chupa has been running around in the background for a while, as he has apparently lost Cthulhu.

I’m pretty sure whatever explosive these kids have isn’t C4, which means Taurtis definitely shouldn’t be smacking it with a gun. C4, as we all know, is a stable exp-

Grian gets shot in the leg again getting the bomb away from Taurtis.

Invader was apparently rummaging around in Sam’s closet, and found his old school uniform.

Geode is participating in gym class for some reason.

Jerry announces they will be playing Monster Tag, which is basically like sharks and minnows or zombie tag, and involves Jerry chasing everyone with his giant sword while wearing a monster mask.

Episode 35 – TERMINATOR!

Monster Tag turns out to be pretty mundane and not sinister, but we do get to hear Grian having a very good time being on the chasing team.

Geode and Dom are just playing Splatoon in Geode’s classroom. Also, the old guy from Dr. Nurse’s class is in the test tube in the back.

Geode tries to teach the class how to identify aliens, but he only knows one type of alien, so he can only conclude that the old man isn’t that type of alien.

As the bell rings, someone named Rowan Artifex types in the chat that they’re looking for Sam and Grian. Sam and Grian are confused and a little disturbed by this, because Rowan is dead.

Taurtis has been neutralized, Rowan says, which the boys figure is because the original, non-cloned Taurtis is in fact dead.

Also, Rowan is the Terminator now.

Also also, J the Star from the FUTURE is outside the school, he’s here to take the boys to the FUTURE in his FUTURE car. Unfortunately, he crashes the FUTURE car.

Also also also, there’s a giant spaceship hanging in the sky in the middle distance.

They run to the police station to get help from Okami.

The SWAT members try to hold Rowan off, but he is naturally unfazed by being riddled with bullets and just starts killing his way through.

FUTURE J the Star blows a hole in the police station wall with FUTURE TNT so they can all escape. FUTURE TNT looks a lot like a powder keg.

Okami drives them all away in the SWAT van.

ONE PUNCH MAN SPECIAL

Okami parks directly under the spaceship. This also happens to be right in front of the hospital, which Dr. Nurse is NOT happy about.

J the Star fucks off.

Okami explains that in order to defeat the Terminator, they’ll have to destroy the “source”, which is probably in the spaceship.

Grian: “I hate getting all SWATed up, I usually get shot.”

Taurtis has somehow changed into a One Punch Man cosplay instead of a SWAT uniform. He’s even shaved his head.

They head into the hospital to get up to the roof, now being chased by Rowan, but Sam decides to hang back and shoot at him for some reason, which means Rowan is able to shoot Grian a couple times.

They get in a helicopter on the roof and fly up to the spaceship. Okami tells them to destroy the “core”. Jerry stays on the helicopter, but he throws Taurtis his giant anime sword.

The insides of the ship are… Fleshy.

They come across some aliens standing around in front of a tube of lava labeled “Free Alien Repellant”. These aliens are not little green guys. They are Doraemon, the Pillsbury Doughboy, and someone named Jeice who I think is supposed to be from Dragon Ball Z. They are all wearing uniforms.

They attempt to defeat the humans, but they accidentally end up killing two of their own number with an off-screen buzzsaw in the process, and the humans quickly dispatch the third.

Grian is pretty sure these guys have nothing to do with the Terminator. He’s still up for killing them though.

There’s another Doughboy. He says he’ll give them a “splarging” if they let him live. They come across two other aliens “splarging”, which apparently involves one of them hitting the other one with a stick.

Guys I don’t know what the hell’s going on anymore. I would say it was probably just because this is a special but I’ve watched bits and pieces of the episodes after this and it all just turns into mush, guys. I am in miseryyyyyyyyy-

Anyway the boys get Doughboy 2 to lure the splarging aliens into a hallway so they can kill them.

Wait oh my god is that Joel Smallishbeans’s old Shrek skin. It’s not exactly the same but like, there’s definitely a resemblance. It might just be that they’re both supposed to be Shrek though.

Anyway there’s a room with a bunch of aliens in it and Grian shoots one while the leader guy is doing an Anime Villain Speech. Leader Guy starts charging up, but all that does is kill all the other aliens in the room. Leader Guy dies in one hit.

They get a different alien to show them where the core is, but this turns out to be a trick, and they’ve just been led directly to the actual leader, Boros. Boros pretty much just wants to fight one of them. Apparently it was foretold by prophecy. Sam and Grian volunteer Taurtis.

Boros wants to know his “terms”.

Taurtis: “How about, the first person to kill Sam wins.” Grian: “Ooh, I like that one!”

They just end up fighting to the death like normal though.

Grian decides that he’s “the prize”. He jokes that he’ll give Taurtis “a good splurging” if he wins. Then he takes it back when Taurtis and Boros take a break and just start chatting.

Also they’re on top of the spaceship now, so Grian runs over to where Okami’s helicopter is.

Taurtis and Boros decide to fistfight instead of swordfight, and Taurtis kills him in not one, but two punches, which is still pretty impressive.

Grian: “I changed my mind, Taurtis, I’m gonna splarg you real good tonight.”

Taurtis wants to keep the ship, but Sam put the rest of the “C4” in the control room, so they helicopter out of there before it blows up.

Doughboy is still with them. Grian tries to assign him the basement dungeon room, but Doughboy decides he likes Grian’s room better, and says Grian should have the dungeon. Sam and Taurtis insist Grian should go in the dungeon as a “sign of trust”. Grian reacts very strongly and violently to all of this, and he mentions Sam locking him in the dungeon as a reason why he feels so strongly about it. They’re not backing down though, so Grian runs upstairs and locks himself in Sam’s room instead and starts going through all his stuff.

Grian Trauma Count!

Deaths Witnessed:

1 Student

An Indeterminate But Large Number of SWAT Team Members

10-ish Aliens

Injuries Sustained:

Shot a good few times (there is NO way this kid's legs are normal after all this)

Traumatic Events:

More harassment from Sam

Peer pressured into performing an eldritch ritual which gets someone killed

In the process of this, his friends straight up tell him they never listen to him

Also he finds out he had explosives strapped to his head yesterday

More guns and being shot at, yippee

Teacher from his old school is brought back to life specifically to kill him and his friends

Whatever the hell is going on with these aliens should count I think

The way he reacts to Sam and Taurtis trying to pressure him into giving up his room is telling I think

Next Time... Minions.

[eldritchtouched]

Outer Gods and contact

Mohg is quite unusual, in that he's got direct contact with an explicitly stated Outer God in the text of Elden Ring. Nobody else does, and I find that deeply interesting.

Again, Outer Gods, in works that understand the larger implications of the concept, are fundamentally tied into the very nature of reality. You can't actually get rid of them and have shit function normally in the world. It'd be like if you could turn gravity off for a planet and the inevitable disaster that would follow. There's a whole thing where they have periods of being directly active and perceptible on a human scale, and periods where their influence is not obvious, but that's not them not being there at all. They're still there.

Being in direct contact with one in stories that utilize the concept (and don't just make Outer Gods Discount Satan) is notably rare and the same holds true for Elden Ring and its various larger-scale divinities.

Marika's situation is very interesting because the Greater Will both seems weaker than the term Outer God would imply, by needing a vassal to even have the ability to get to the world in the first place (which is more like a Great Old One like Cthulhu and the various normal aliens with such advanced knowledge that they appear like gods to randos, if speaking of the Cthulhu Mythos), and who the direct contact is with. It's the Elden Beast as a vassal with Marika, and the various pairs of Two Fingers, that everyone's contacting.

The Lord of the Frenzied Flame does not make direct contact, either. You have the representatives of it, Shabriri and Hyetta, and the Three Fingers. But not the Flame itself. And it has to be summoned to a world to begin with, which implies it is not natural to that world from the start.

Malenia is deeply tied to the Scarlet Rot, but the Scarlet Rot is not directly, actively bothering her. Gowry might be a Kindred of Rot, but the description on their ashes implies that they were born of Malenia being divine and seek her despite her rejecting them because they are part of what the hates about herself.

But the Scarlet Rot god merely is, underground, and influencing the world. It has the power to influence the world while its body might be sealed away, unlike the Frenzied Flame or Greater Will (implying the other two are much weaker/younger/not Outer Gods). Though perhaps it is a situation where Malenia actively loathing that aspect of herself and Mohg doesn't loathe that he's an Omen, means Malenia doesn't draw on the Scarlet Rot for power like Mohg does, and could perhaps do something similar if she wanted...

Placidusax's deity left, which becomes a question of whether or not that leaving is of the implied lack of perception found in Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos works (which is more like 'they're simply perceived not to be there, but they're still there in some weird interdimensional thing), or from actively leaving entirely (which implies being a smaller scale being/not an Outer God).

The Twinbird's god, likewise, has no direct connection. The Deathbirds are children of the Twinbird, and we deal with the Deathbirds, but that's still not direct contact with the Outer God tied to it. And there's how there's overlapping things going on, where spiritflame/ghostflame/blackflame are slightly different though also tied to the same stuff.

(And the Gloam-Eyed Queen is implied to be a character akin to Marika or Placidusax, so that's also not direct contact.)

The same can be said of the Dark Moon. Aside from its ambiguity/question of if it's even a being at all or if Ranni was merely inspired by the implications of the dark moon as a concept, Ranni is not in direct contact with it, either.

Eiglay is also something closer to a Great Old One in terms of ability and power and overall nature, as opposed to some cosmic scale entity.

But Mohg is in direct contact with an Outer God. Bloodboon and its ritual variant on his spear are explicitly the user of the magic stabbing into her essence and drawing out the bloodflame to use in battle.

Between that and the fact that he has no dual identity (he doesn't go under a different name or identity like Morgott, Miquella, Marika, Godfrey, Godrick...), I think the whole 'mother of truth' title with the Formless Mother might have more merit than people seem to think... Something is going on in the background, between that and how Miquella also has his own ties to blood magic, and also with Miquella's needles being as they are (inserted into flesh).

Which means that I think he's probably more important than how he's gotten written off by the fandom as insane and pure evil. (And the characterization of him being "insane" comes from Gideon, whose motives are deeply suspect. And, like, Rykard's plan is actually the insane one...)

[moonfurthetemmie]

Carter

yeah he needs to be unfused. defused, even. split into his base components. gorgeous wings though

made that coat himself, and figured out how to make the stars glow with magic.

his abilities in a balanced state/at equilibrium is probably 60% ‘stage magic’ and 40% hypnotism and trippy illusions to help him draw people into Yighraru’s service. Or just make them do something stupid/weird/unhinged for fun. Probably has recreated the grisly scene that played out when the rings came to Gonzalo and Petruccio’s home village at least once.

The ‘stage magic’ is essentially controlling practical effects as well as other things to add a little pizzazz to costumes/clothes, set pieces, props, so on. That’s probably how he managed to make his coat glow.

Keeps breaking out in mad giggles randomly. Talks to himself. Quite excited about this, though. Gonzalo and Petruccio can never be separated again 🥰

Refers to himself as a singular entity and a plural ‘we’, which can mean ‘Gonzalo and Petruccio,’ or ‘Gonzalo, Petruccio, and Carter’. Even in context, it’s not clear which. It’s not a royal ‘we.’

Fascinated by his new wings. They’re not like Gonzalo’s; even ignoring the color change. How the frick did that happen

also it’s far more obvious that something has a hold of Carter and his mind than it was with Petruccio and Gonzalo as separate entities.

Has several of Gonzalo and Petruccio’s magic-caused marks (more green and blue crackles, more yellow and blue symbols), and has Petruccio’s freckles and Gonzalo’s snake tattoo. They’re just as confused about the tattoo transferring as everyone else is. I just didn’t think it was fair to have him resemble Petruccio so much more

Front of hair is pulled back into a half-ponytail.

Has Petruccio’s rapier and Gonzalo’s dagger. Dual wielding isn’t advised, but it gives him options

I made the coat slightly metallic with the intention of having it look like metallic thread was used, but instead it looks like satin and I’m genuinely thrilled about this

I know I already gave the reasoning for his name, but just to make sure i've covered my bases: I named him after Randolph Carter, who is a recurring character in the Cthulhu Mythos and may or may not be an HP Lovecraft stand-in. It would’ve been Lovecraft, but that’s Obsidian’s canon last name which I can’t say/type that with a straight face, and that’s not very fair to Petruccio, now, is it? anyways thanks mom for having a braincell

He’s both much more stable and significantly more unstable than Entropy

Petruccio and Gonzalo are so incredibly close, and have the same goals, so he has no conflicts there. however they're both batshit insane and he is no better. Worse sometimes, even. No one is quite sure if them becoming one person is better or worse, because on the one hand, now they only have one guy to deal with, but on the other hand, he is…quite a problem.

also hey. fun fact. i was thinking that the reason the rings made the one guy go absolutely ape shit so fast and cause a huge scene is because, worn together, they're far too powerful for a single being. With Petruccio taking one and Gonzalo taking the other, they were able to use them very well.

Carter…since he was already too far down the rabbit hole to get too fucked up too fast, it's not as bad. And he is still technically two guys? But it's still two incredibly powerful cursed artifacts warping one singular mind, so he's not that much more resistant. everyone is absolutely terrified by how much worse he's getting.

Clever, creative, dramatic, and cutthroat. He might actually sacrifice some of his team on stage in public. Possibly even Bella, if he thinks it'd be a good show and/or Yighraru would want her. but bella would probably let him at this point.

If Gonzalo and Petruccio couldn't summon Yighraru, he definitely will. someone help

[kyndaris]

Hello Madness, My Old Friend

From Octopath Traveler 2, I decided to keep with the theme of hidden cults and try my hand at the remake Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened. With only a few short weeks before my trip overseas, I didn't want to get sucked into a lengthy role-playing game and leave it unfinished while I was overseas. Which was why I chose to play games that wouldn't take too long but could still tell a compelling story. So, after enjoying the new direction of Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One, I was eager to see what Frogwares would do to change of their first Sherlock Holmes games. Coupled with my obsession with the Sherlock Holmes stories written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and the Cthulhu mythos, my excitement was tangible.

Unfortunately, The Awakened did not live up to the lofty expectations set by the predecessor. Still, given the developer is headquartered in Ukraine and the game entered production soon after Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, I can forgive its many foibles.

Besides, Frogwares has never been a triple-A studio.

As such, I struggled with the stripped back gameplay and the jankiness of the game models. There were also several moments when the lighting, especially for hats, looked terribly strange and pulled me from the scene.

Faults aside, there were also many elements I loved about the game. Namely the story and the callbacks to Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One. This, more than anything else, made the two games feel connected. What's more, the backstory in Chapter One also felt conducive to the descent into madness that was Sherlock's story arc throughout the game. Yes, I would have liked some more backstory on the ultimate villain, with perhaps a nice tantalising story connection to our characters beyond a reference to the previous game of the same title, but alas.

Now, if you've ever played a Frogware Sherlock Holmes game, there isn't many surprises. In fact, I felt there were fewer instances for minigames. Gone is the combat and chemical mixing introduced in Chapter One. Sherlock is wholly dependent on the power of investigation and the occasional use of his extensive archives (which he seems to carry with him). This meant the story flowed better as Sherlock and John traipsed to several corners of the world in order to unravel the mystery of a missing Maori servant in the employ of the bullish Captain Stenwick.

It isn't long before Sherlock and John stumble upon their first major clue: The Black Edelweiss Institute. There, they unravel the mystery of the mental institution, including how the previous director was disposed and taken over by the distasteful Professor Gygax who brutalises the patients and uses the Institute as a cover to procure sacrifices for an unknown ritual.

Despite a brief encounter with the unknowable, Sherlock and Holmes find letters pointing them to New Orleans. So, off they trot across the Atlantic where they learn details about an auction selling precious black opals and journey into the bayou to save Mr Arneson, a local man. There, they retrieve an ancient book.

Returning to London, the local bookseller is manages to decipher the unknown language, which points to a mythical sea god that looks very much like everyone's favourite eldritch being. With the help of maps at the bookstore, Watson is able to pinpoint the location for this grand ritual. Everything culminates in a 'battle' atop a lighthouse on the Scottish coastline, with the duo putting a stop to the summoning of Cthulhu to our plane of existence.

Riveting stuff, I must say! Although, as I've stated before, it would have been interesting to have had some more focus on the villain and their underlying motivations. Still, the relationship between Sherlock and John was compelling. Especially as they were still finding their feet as flatmates at 221B Baker Street and had yet to establish the strong rapport they would come to develop in the latter games.

As I've stated above, the gameplay itself isn't as good as its predecessor. No longer are there multiple cases to solve. The Awakened is primarily focused on the one major mystery of a disappearing manservant, which dovetails into a world of secret cults and their attempts to ritual summon something beyond human ken. Of course, in so saying, the case does come to a proper conclusion instead of leaving it open-ended to the player. No longer did I have to ponder if I made the right choice when it came to the cases Sherlock closed as I interpreted the evidence to their logical conclusions.

And because of this the game is also much shorter.

I finished The Awakened in only a few short hours and Howlongtobeat.com seems to indicate it's about 9 hours at most. That isn't to say short games are bad, and I'm thankful I didn't have to pay an exorbitant amount for it.

Another gripe I had were the mechanics themselves, such as the map not providing an indicator for where Sherlock was located. Thankfully, though, each of the sets were quite insular and there wasn't any significant fear one would get lost. Although, I'm sure if I had my direction challenged friends play, they might still lose their way.

Yet, I must confess I was still hoping for a meatier experience. Time will tell what the next Sherlock Holmes game will be or if there might be any new changes implemented to the pre-existing formula. I, for one, would be keen to see a slew of quality investigative games for my favourite detective. But for now, I will continue to wait even as madness beckons to me.

[pof203]

A Summoner Birthday

Previous post: https://pof203.tumblr.com/post/721440855573020672/a-summoner-birthday

Battle ahead.

Enemies:

Blue Fencer

Fire Mage

Water Wraith

Red Yaksha

???

Preselected Characters:

Lupin

Wakan Tanka∞

Maria

Bigfoot

Choji

Selected Support Character:

Masked Ball Christine

Story (Chapter 2 Part 2)

Here we go!

Boundless Tail!!

With that last blow, you managed to defeat the Wicked Stepmother and Stepsibling as they start to regain their true selves.

FLASH

Oh my goodness! What are we doing here?!

I don't know. I remember that we sat down to watch television, then suddenly, we're here. Wherever hear is. And why is Lupin here, too?

Lupin: The TV you were watching. Does it by any chance connect to the Internet.

Babalon: I'm not sure how that helps, but yes. A lot of television sets connect to the Internet these days.

Then I guess we better get you up to speed.

One explanation later...

Arc: So, we're back in Boogeyman's world.

Boogeyman's Voice: Pretty much. Are you upset?

Arc: More like surprised. If I had known Lupin and his friends would be coming here for his birthday, I would have come in case of trouble.

Lupin: I just didn't want to cause you trouble.

But do not worry. As soon as we find all the breakers and reboot the system, we'll be able to send everyone back.

Babalon: I hope you can... (suspicious) I just hope you can do it with an Invader around.

I'm a little hurt to hear that. Was I really that bad during that time?

Lupin: You were just going through some issues and I help you get through them. You were never bad at all.

Arc: I know Lupin and I don't get along very well, but I know he's a good judge of character. If he says you're not bad, even during the Invaders' move, then he's right.

Wakan Tanka: I know. And I thank you for that, My Lupin.

You take each other's hand and then embraced happily.

Bigfoot happy to see Wakan Tanka happy. Wakan Tanka and Heyoka happier together. Makes Bigfoot happy.

Arc: (shocked) Hold on, I just realized something.

Babalon: What is it, dear daughter?

Arc: This story we're in, I know it, too.

Maria: So?

Arc: Well, in the story, the girl had two wicked stepsiblings. But it was just me and Mother here.

Babalon: Come to think of it, you're right. Where's... (shocked) Oh my goodness!

Maria: What's wrong?

Babalon: I just remembered. Before me and Arc went to watch our show... I saw Azathoth playing an online game. You don't think...

Lupin: That he might be the other Wicked Stepsibling?

Arc: If that's so, where is he?

Maria: If I have to guess... He's already at the ball.

Arc: Then we have to get to him.

Lupin: (checking the map) The map says that the breaker is at the palace where the ball is. But it says the palace is still a ways from here.

Babalon: (taking one of the pumpkins) Then we have no time to lose.

Maria: (confused) Are you going to...

Babalon: Why not? In this virtual world, magic works like a charm. And I'm ready to do my part for my family and friends.

Bipedid... Bobbili...

Poof.

In an instant, the pumpkin transforms into... an orange stretch limo.

Choji: That's amazing! Volos is never gonna believe this.

Maria: It's beautiful... And modern.

From Wicked Stepmother to Fairy Godmother in a snap.

Babalon waves her wand again to Arc and their clothes change.

Now this is much more appropriate for this world. Let's go!

We get into the limo and Babalon drives us off to the palace.

In the palace, the ball was in full swing as dancers glide through the room. Sitting on the throne was who we were expecting to be.

That's right, everyone, just dance. It's gonna be okay... For me, that is! *maniacal laugh*

Babalon: (worried) Azathoth, please stop this!

Azathoth?: Mother! You and Arc have arrived. Just watch, I'm about to make you the proudest mother ever once I've captured the Prince's heart... Speaking of which, there he is now. Welcome, Prince Cthulhu.

You can tell that he's talking about you.

Lupin: Hey, you're good kid and all, but I already have someone and I love him dearly.

Wicked Stepbrother: I see that... But you can do way better.

Bigfoot: (upset) What that mean?

Wicked Stepbrother: Why would you want to be with him? You only like him just because he's popular, just like everyone else. But when he was a god and you realized you had the power to take that from him, you saw it as your chance to have him all to yourself.

Wakan Tanka: (tearing up) ...

Lupin: That's not true! I did what I did because I truly love him and he loves me.

Wicked Stepbrother: (scoffing) Last I heard, he loves everybody. What makes you so different?

Bigfoot: (sternly) Because he Heyoka. Wakan Tanka love Heyoka then, love Heyoka now. And Heyoka love Wakan Tanka.

Wicked Stepbrother: Though I don't understand why he would love him in that powerless state. Prince Cthulhu, you and that Invader were both gods, yet you took that away so you could have him all to yourself... But me, I can be way better than him. I am like you. You will be mine.

I understand that you want to make Mother happy, but this forcing Lupin to love you is not the way to do it.

Babalon: It hurts me to see you like this.

Wicked Stepbrother: We've said enough! Bring the Prince to me, my dancers!

Wakan Tanka: (determine) No!

Wakan Tanka and the others try to protect to you, but there are too many dancers to fight off. You try to fight them, but they quickly pick you up and take you to the Wicked Stepbrother who then tried to wrap you up in his tentacles.

Wicked Stepbrother: Now, Prince Cthulhu, I have won you. You are now mine and mine alone.

You try to fight off the tentacles as the Wicked Stepbrother tries to lean in to kiss you.

Wakan Tanka: (losing his temper) THAT'S ENOUGH!!

Wakan Tanka runs through the dancers and grabs the Wicked Stepbrother by his shirt, pulling him away.

Wakan Tanka: (burning with energy) I know Heyoka is the prize in the Game, but that's no reason to treat him this way. He has made up his mind. Though this does not mean I have officially won the Game, he decided to be with me... You think I have completely lost my godhood?

FLASH

Then you need to think again.

With one hit from his fist, Wakan Tanka∞ frees you from the Wicked Stepbrother's grasp and you rejoin the others.

Wicked Stepbrother: (angry) You don't frighten me. I will defeat you!

Bigfoot: (determine) Wakan Tanka and Lupin together! You no take him away.

I make sure that.

Guess it's time to get cooking. You ready, Maria?

Maria: This is suppose to be a story about the character my clothes are based on, but Azathoth's warped mind is change the story, and not for the better.

Lupin: Don't worry, we'll fix it.

You take Wakan Tanka∞'s hand.

Lupin: Together.

Wakan Tanka∞ smiles happily to you.

The battle begins.

To be continued...

[griseldagimpel]

Okay, but what is The Locked Tomb about, actually?

You’ve probably heard of The Locked Tomb series, but also you’ve probably heard it described as Lesbian Necromancers IN SPACE! And that’s true, but it doesn’t really tell you what the book’s about. And it might not give you enough information to decide if it’s up your alley or not. So what’s it about? Well, avoiding major spoilers, here goes.

It’s a sci-fi/space fantasy series, but it also owes a lot to the mystery genre, as each book has one or two central questions that drive the narrative. It can be rather on the gory side, but it doesn’t have any graphic scenes of sexual violence. As you can probably guess from the bit about necromancers, it deals with death, like, a lot. There’s a bit of not-too-graphic cannibalism and some light necrophilia, although neither was so intense as to put me off the series, even thought neither of those are my Thing. Finally, there’s a character in the second book (the Saint of Duty) whose characterization is definitely a bit in Racist Stereotype territory, so head’s up about that. (I can elaborate on this point if prospective readers want more details, but I’m not interested in fighting with anyone about this point. If you feel differently here, fine, but this is my post.)

While I don’t know if the author was ever in the Fullmetal Alchemist fandom or not, the series very much strikes me as having a strong Fullmetal Alchemist influence. Seriously, if you liked Fullmetal Alchemist but wish it had more female characters and was queerer, you’re going to love The Locked Tomb series.

The first book is Gideon the Ninth. It’s about a necromancer (Harrow) and her indentured-servant-turned-cavalier (Gideon) who are summoned to [big, creepy, mostly abandoned] Canaan House at the behest of the God-Emperor of the Nine Houses to undergo Lyctor trials, Lyctors being quasi-immortal super-necromancers. Each of the other houses has also sent candidates, and there’s very much competition between them.

Gideon and Harrow have a bad history between them, and their evolving relationship is the emotional core of the book. If you like enemies-to-lovers, it’s a variant of that. The central mysteries are “How does one become a Lyctor?” and “Who’s killing the necromancers and cavaliers at Canaan House?“

The second book is Harrow the Ninth. It follows Harrow after she has become a Lyctor in the service of the God-Emperor. But something’s not right, and Harrow’s forgotten about Gideon. Further, there’s a plot against the God-Emperor, and a corpse that won’t stay put when it should.

This book introduces the Resurrection Beasts, which are the big cthulhu monsters that Lyctors fight. The central mysteries are “Why doesn’t Harrow remember Gideon?”, “What’s the plot against the God-Emperor?”, and “Why does that corpse keep moving around?”

The third book is Nona the Ninth. It’s about a girl, Nona, who’s being raised on the planet New Rho by three characters from the previous two books. The central mystery is “Who is Nona?”

As Nona plans her birthday party, New Rho slides toward full scale societal collapse due to a combination of the conflict between the Houses & the Blood of Eden and the Resurrection Beast that is threatening the planet. In parallel to this, we get the God-Emperor’s backstory, which does not disappoint in the slightest.

The fourth book is Alecto the Ninth, but it isn’t out at the time of me writing this.

[inkdemonapologist]

[BatIM Call of Cthulhu Masterpost]

REMEMBER BACK WHEN WE GOT INVITED TO A MASQUERADE??? And we figured out the masquerade guests are definitely the sacrifice meant to summon their eldritch deity and that the party will probably be the location of the final ritual? ANYWAY WE’RE CRASHING THE PARTY, which means we need costumes.

The party is Alice in Wonderland themed; Sammy hasn’t read the book but got kin-assigned the March Hare by Joey, so naturally i’ve been doing nothing but drawing this loser in a dapper rabbit costume for an entire week

---

Anyway have a little smattering of out-of-context quotes from session 11

[Sammy is played by me, Joey is played by Boo (inkyvendingmachine), Henry is played by Maf (inkcryptid), Jack is played by Mochi (whatyouwantedmetosee) and Thren (haunted-hijinxer) is our GM!]

[Sammy] Sammy just has no magical powers. [Jack] YET. [Sammy] Yet. Correct. ...He doesn't want any. [GM] Half of him doesn't want any. [Sammy] That's... accurate, yeah. Half of him ALSO wants the OTHER half of him to stop having magical powers. [Jack] No Magical Girl transformation? [GM] *laughing* Is that what that is? [Jack] I'd watch a magical anime where the main character drugs themself and then becomes a weird... religious... madman! [Sammy] That does sound compelling! Maybe you should see if you can find a franchise that contains that element, and then become a big fan of it and draw a bunch of fanart for some reason. [Jack] Yeah, I dunno, I mean... it's so tiring getting into new media, I need to get a friend who will drag me into it. [Henry] And then you guys can start a roleplaying game with it and drag me into it! [GM] There's an idea! [Jack] Yeah! Someone should get on that! [GM] And if there was such a theoretical game... people might have to figure... what they're doing when they wake up!

[Sammy] We were put in a situation before where we were told that the only thing we could do was kill the host, but we found a way around it last time, [Peter] What way was that? [Sammy] Complicated.

[GM] Henry is the first to notice the apparent cultist, camping out, looking tired, trying to spot you guys. [Henry] Uh, Henry is just going to tap Sammy on the arm and point him out. [Jack] Bros! You've got to unionise! Look at these working conditions! [GM] Maybe one of these days you won't spot them, right? Hope springs eternal!

[GM] Okay, you can make an intimidate! [Sammy] Okay! *rolls* FIFTEEN IS -- this is the only thing Sammy's good at now -- fifteen is a hard success!

[Jack] I'm proud of him! [Sammy] Someone has to be.

[GM] Allison chats with everyone, and gets you into the costume room! Everyone seems relatively friendly! [Sammy] Except Sammy. Sammy doesn't seem friendly.

[Joey] My idea was, Joey would be Mad Hatter -- [Sammy] Because he needs a hat, [Joey] --Yeah, so he can have a hat -- I was thinking Sammy could be the March Hare, Jack could be White Rabbit, and then Henry could be the Dormouse, [Sammy] Yes! And then the Haiti boys are all the Mad Teaparty, which is great, because the Mad Teaparty is canonically trapped in a time loop. [Sammy] Because we tHOUGHT ABOUT THIS TOO MUCH,

[Jack] Kin-assign Pete! [GM] He's content to wear anything that looks like it fits him, as long as people aren't trying to push a co-ordinated effort. [Joey] (Pete can be Caterpillar,) [Jack] Catter-pete-lar [Sammy] Oh my goodness. Completely unnecessary. [Jack] This is a pun that Jack might make, out loud, to Pete [GM] Pete laughs, despite himself! [Sammy] I feel like, Jack would make this pun, and then Jack would be SO pleased with himself that Pete would laugh, because Jack was so happy about it. [Jack] Yeah that sounds canon. ....It IS canon!!

[Jack] You can like, actually pretend to be people who decided to come to this party to enjoy it, and not just steal and/or murder!

[Henry] I want someone on the help, because I feel like we would have more control if we had someone on the inside, [Henry] And Henry does have a very forgettable face, apparently!!

[Joey] What are the staff wearing? Target red shirt, khaki pants? [Sammy] Perfect! Everyone will fall for it! Based on my experience wearing red shirts into Target!

[GM] I guess this does mean Joey misses an opportunity to dress up Henry. [Joey] *excited gasp* Wait, wait, [GM] What? [Joey] Sorry, this has nothing to do with anything that's happening right now in the roleplay, but I just suddenly realised that (1) when Henry got married, was Joey his best man, and (2) did Joey get to pick out his tuxedo for him [Henry] UHHHH... I feel like, Henry usually defaults to Joey for outfits and stuff, but he would hesitate a bit to ask his best friend who has an obvious crush on him to help dress for his heteronormative wedding!

[Joey] There probably is at least one of the wedding photos where Joey is insistent on standing very next to Henry -- while Henry's next to Linda! -- but, [GM] ...but also, Joey is here, [Joey] But also Joey is here. [Sammy] ...absolute disaster of a man... [GM] But the tuxedos look good! [Joey] Yes. Henry was properly fitted.

[Sammy] I don't want a full-- I don't want a freakin' fursuit, because-- [Henry] (FNAF in the distance)

[Sammy] But I feel like, since both White Rabbit and March Hare are, like, dapper rabbits, they could do something like, yeah, splicer mask and also a hat. [Jack] I mean, Jack's not opposed; Jack likes hats. [Sammy] Jack absolutely should have a hat, I agree. [Jack] He's getting so many hats! So many hats, and so many boyfriends, [GM] He can't be stopped! [Jack] >:3c He shouldn't be stopped.

[GM] I'm still just stuck on the phrase "Dapper Rabbits."

[GM] If Joey and Allison are talking further away, I guess it's moot. Though Allison did see Prophet Sammy! He changed in her room. [Sammy] Well, nobody explained him to her. Sammy just showed up the next day and hoped that we wouldn't talk about it, and then we didn't! It was great. [Jack] Sammy's over here, hoping that Allison is distracted by Joey so that none of this conversation is being listened to, [Jack] MEANWHILE, smash cut to the other side of the room, where Joey is explaining SillySam,

[Joey] A lot of Joey's lack of giving information was to keep her out of it, and not paint a target on her back... but now? She has a target on her back, so... Sure! You can also sacrifice yourself, for the greater good!

[Sammy] I'm sure someone in this party will thank Allison. It won't be me. But I'm sure someone will.

[Henry] Henry's already smearing his blood on people, he's gonna agree to whatever at this point.

[Sammy] DEFINITELY not a cult, now hold still while we put this guy's weird glowing blood on you, it's fine. [Jack] Welcome to the flock!

[GM] What does this mean for Prophet Sammy's sacrificeability rating on Henry, though? Now he's potentially long-term useful... [Sammy] I mean... [Jack] The Prophet isn't here so he doesn't need to know about this! [Sammy] ...I feel like, if something has greater value, then it's an even more impressive sacrifice. That's why you sacrifice an unblemished sheep, traditionally. If it's not a blemish-- [Sammy] Like, that's most of what he was worried about, like, “does this make you not fit for sacrifice.” But if it's actually a really cool thing, ...!

[Sammy] Sammy's nervous. [Jack] Jack is also nervous. [Henry] Henry is also nervous! [Jack] Oh, that's always a good sign, [Joey] Joey's going to be confident! [Henry] ...Of course he is. [Joey] Someone has to be! [Jack]...is he "Confident" or "Confident (Fast Talk)"? [Joey] YES. That last one. [Sammy] *muttering* That's the best we got, unfortunately.

[Sammy] If Jack or Henry express nervousness, Sammy agrees with them. If Pete is nervous, then Sammy will very aggressively say that Joey knows what he's doing.

[Sammy] Allison, don't use a spell to bind people's souls together in order to avoid crunch,,, [GM] You never know when something might be handy! [Sammy] I mean, [GM] Waste not want not!

[Henry] Does Henry have to draw in blood on himself...? [GM] No, Henry has a lot of his own blood on his person.

[GM] Aw, man, Bendy should've commented on the rabbit outfits! I'm sure he'd find that hilarious. [Joey] ...why...? [GM] WHY? It's just objectively funny! No additional reason is needed!!

[Joey] Joey will go through his notes, and confer with Henry and Bendy on, okay, shall we try this, and see if we can help Bendy as well? [Henry] Henry is down to try! [GM] Bendy is worried about Henry overexerting himself. [Henry] ...Henry is down to try!

[Jack] Worst case, Jack looks at the symbol, and then he can be seeing-eye rabbit for the rest of the group!

[GM] Norman wonders what the plan is! [Henry] Bold of you to assume,

[Sammy] We're having such a good sleepover! We did a weird blood ritual, and we're braiding each other's hair~ [Joey] Having a fashion show, [Sammy] Yeah! We went out and got clothes, [Jack] Can't believe Joey called a boy, [Sammy] Gotta ask Joey about the boy he likes... wait, no, don't do that. [Jack] I'd say it's time to play seven minutes in heaven, but I think we, we did that early. [Sammy] WE DIDN'T DO A VERY GOOD JOB,

[GM] Norman wants to see how this plays out. [Joey] Okay, well, try not to get sacrificed, then, [GM] He laughs, and thanks you for the advice! [Sammy] *Hypnos Hadesgame voice* "Try not to get sacrificed, okay?"

[Henry] Allison is very helpful, and not weird at all!

[Joey] We already have the banjo case full of ritual circles, and Joey would rather have the emergency circles than Sammy carrying around bOTTLES OF INK. [Sammy] WHY, WHY WOULDN'T YOU WANT THAT TO BE HAPPENING? WHAT WOULD BE THE PROBLEM WITH THAT,

[GM] Make a sanity check! [Jack] Wait, what's happening? [Sammy] Joey was trying to think too hard.

[GM] Sammy does manage to catch that there's a little-- next to the kitchen, when you go into the place where they're serving food, there's a sign that says "Sheep Shop" over it. And there's a person wearing a sheep mask, handing out food. [Sammy] OKAY, THAT'S FINE,,, I don't feel like Sammy has actually read Through The Looking Glass, so I don't know if he knows why this is happening. I think he's just concerned. [GM] Excellent. Ideal response.

[GM] And Joey has NEVER seen the symbol EVER because he's incredible at not looking at creepy symbols! Which you wouldn't expect. [Sammy] I'm sure Joey will put this in his autobiography.

[Jack] :/ No Hashtag Gay Rights at this party,

[GM] Seems to be another party-goer; in fact, you recognise the voice! [Joey] Ohhh. Kyle -- I don't know his actual name, but -- [Sammy] (Dennis!) [GM] (Yes, that's-) [Joey] -- Kyle.

[Henry] Henry is going to try to sneak up on Moonlight while he's distracted! [GM] OH! ...Okay! He's very distracted, Sammy just screamed! [excited noises from everyone beCAUSE NO ONE EXPECTED THIS] [GM] You successfully sneak up behind him! [Henry] I'm going to grab the staff! [GM] Make a Brawl check, with advantage! [Sammy] (He has SO many limbs that don't work my dude, you got this,) [Henry] That's a success! [GM] You snatch it! [Henry] I RUN!!!

[Joey] We're just both escorting Jack, now. [Sammy] Would you say Jack is late, for a very important date? [Jack] Well YEAH, his Face Removal was scheduled like 2 dreams ago!!

[GM] He'd have to roll for it, to see if it felt familiar to his trip to Carcosa. [Jack] Extreme success! [GM] Then he would pick up that familiar feeling! [Jack] Oh, nice and homey at this party! Really nice. Nostalgic! It's been a while. [Sammy] Hm, [Jack] Maybe he should go play the piano, for old time's sake! [Sammy] NO

[jinmukangwrites]

Summary: Peter needed a place to stay after the universe forgot about him. Luckily, there's a complex in Hell's Kitchen that won't ask questions. It's only chance that Peter recognizes the face of the Lawyer upstairs.

Meanwhile, Matt cannot help himself from checking in on his new, young neighbor who couldn't be old enough to be out of highschool.

Notes: finished Daredevil and defenders. HC still here. I guess I'll continue this XD

---

Peter walked out of the gas station with a huff, forcing himself to take deep breaths and not look upset. It wasn’t the manager’s fault that Peter couldn’t provide information about himself. Really, this was his fourth job interview where he had to walk out of because “I’m a hard worker, but I can’t provide any form of government ID” didn’t sound reassuring enough. He almost expected it at this point, even though the Help Wanted sign seemed urgent enough to be hiring anyone.

What were employers doing with your personal information anyways? Peter was raised to think his social security number was something that no one could know, and that drivers licenses were just for the cops that pulled you over. What did these things have to do with how good of a worker Peter was?

Maybe he should just try putting in random numbers instead of saying he didn’t have them. He seriously cannot think of what a gas station would do with that information besides just putting them into a computer to forget about.

Or maybe there was someone out there who could make him fake IDs but have it so it wasn’t illegal. If that were possible.

He sighed, rubbing his face and walking carefully on the sidewalk to avoid the little clumps of slush that had stubbornly remained after the snowstorm the other night. Curse his Parker luck. Of course the spell would do more than just make people forget who he was. It worked like a virus, hacking into computers and corrupting every bit of information that was even remotely connected to his name. Even things that were written down on paper were somehow blotted from existence like someone had spilled a very convenient ink bottle. His profiles were there, but impossible to access. He was a glitch in the universe’s system, making his very identity invalid.

He really wished he thought of this before asking Stephen for that new spell. Maybe he could have made it so that everyone would forget who Peter Parker was but he’d be able to keep his internship at Stark Industries somehow.

Or who knew, maybe asking Stephen to change that spell would summon Cthulhu somehow.

The sun brushed warmth across the back of his neck as he approached his new home, having decided it was time to call it a “night”. The time was late enough to warrant most businesses to lock their doors, and soon the only people still out would be those unfortunate enough to not land a day shift... and those who wanted to cause problems.

In the short amount of time that Peter had lived in Hell’s Kitchen, he’d done a pretty good job so far at avoiding running into those problems. He didn’t even check the news for this part of the city, choosing to stick to avoiding any channels or feeds that even mentioned Hell’s Kitchen. The closest to any crime he had come to encounter so far were sirens in the distance... but he’d come to realize that sirens in the distance were pretty much white noise to this city, nothing more special than turning on a fan. If he were to chase those around Hell’s Kitchen, he’d be running all night. Maybe that was why Daredevil was so mean. Mans in need of a nap.

He didn’t regret turning a blind eye. It wasn’t any different from simply not entering the city when he lived in Queens. Daredevil wasn’t as active as Spider-Man, but he was still going out and beating up criminals to the point of hospitalization... and Peter was pretty sure May wouldn’t mind him avoiding that kind of noise. Spider-Man didn’t purposely put people in hospitals.

The entrance to his apartment complex smelled like cigarettes and coffee, which actually smelled kinda nice compared to the rest of the city and it’s cocktail of stenches. There was a woman leaning against the wall near the front doors who glared at him while he entered, so he lifted his hood and turned his eyes away from her, swallowing.

The rest of the people in this building were not as nice as Matthew Murdock.

It didn’t feel like home when he unlocked his door and revealed his new living space. It was barely bigger than a low-end college dorm room. Two sections; his small bedroom and a bathroom shoved in one, while the other consisted of a meager kitchen, a desk, and a couch. It was about as familiar to him as a hotel room off a random freeway exit cross-country would be.

He locked the door behind him and hung the key on a nail jammed into the wall—it was there before he moved in—and went to his mini-fridge. He had leftover Panda Express and some chocolate milk. May would be lecturing him on the importance of a good diet, but he didn’t exactly have the money to go out and buy nutritional food at the moment. He wondered if that was why obesity was a problem in America. It cost too much money to not live on junk.

While he ate, he scrolled through more job listings, only to shut his computer with a groan after finding nothing worthwhile. The sky was an orange-gray when he decided to screw it and just head out for the night. Peter Parker’s life was so complicated right now, so complicated that he could hardly go the day without a constant headache. But Spider-Man didn’t have to worry about Peter’s problems.

Peter could use a break from Peter for a couple hours.

The cold bit through his new suit, in ways that it never had before in his old ones. He still had his old ones, but the technology didn’t recognize him anymore, and he didn’t know how to re-program himself into the system without Happy telling him the codes. But his new suit would do for now... even if it didn’t block all the cold or armor blows. It was just spandex. He tried not to be too salty about it because he was pretty sure Peter 3’s suit was just spandex as well.

The night passed by exactly how he hoped it would, with nothing but a few low-level crimes to stop here and there. He swung to Queens first, like he had every night since the Great Forgettoning. If he went through most of the city without anything too big and dangerous, he’d follow the sound of police scanners and sirens to other parts of New York. He only had one major scuffle tonight, which happened to be a drug deal happening on the rooftop of a bar. Peter webbed all of them up but slipped on a puddle of slush down into the alleyway below, landing rather ungracefully into a thankfully open dumpster. Smelled like body fluids and beer, but he found a quarter-full bottle of window cleaner in there that he could use to make more web fluid so he counted that as a win.

He returned back to his apartment just before the sun was beginning to rise again, tired to the bone and pretending not to notice the sirens in the distance once again. White noise, Peter Parker. White noise.

-o-o-o-o-

“Take a look at this,” Karen announced, shoving a piece of what sounded like card-stock and smelled like ink onto the desk Matt and Foggy had been sitting at. Foggy, ever his best friend, immediately started to describe what Karen had just presented.

“It’s a picture of a funeral, and the people gathered at it. What is this, Karen?”

“It’s May Parker’s funeral. Look there, at that guest.”

Foggy huffed and Matt smiled, leaning back in his chair and waiting for Karen’s discovery to be revealed. He was going to let Foggy figure out this one, as a gentle tiredness lingered on his eyelids despite the cup of coffee he had this morning. He may not have gone out as Daredevil last night, but it seemed life wanted to cause problems for Matt Murdock regardless and wanted to find other ways to keep him awake.

“Kay, it’s just some guy.”

“That’s Harold Joseph Hogan. Front and center,” Karen said while her fingernails tapped what must be poor Hogan’s face.

“Harold... wait. You mean Happy Hogan? Tony Stark’s number two guy?”

Now this was getting interesting. Matt leaned forward in his chair as Karen nodded; her hair brushing on her shoulders. “The very same. I talked to one of May’s co-workers at the relief shelter who attended, and apparently he gave a really heartfelt speech about their relationship. They dated.”

“Doesn’t Hogan still have connections to Stark Industries?” Matt asked.

“From what I’ve heard, he still personally assists Pepper Potts. He’s more than an assistant, like a family friend or something,” Foggy mused. “What was Parker doing giving us money when she dated a guy who’s probably shaken hands with Captain America? The lawyers Stark Industries and the Avengers had queued up...”

“I don’t know.” Karen paused, and sighed. “That’s what I’m trying to figure out. None of this adds up. We don’t have anything to go on here. All we have is her money and Matt’s recordings with her. But those static out every five seconds and Matt apparently doesn’t remember what they were about.”

Matt frowned at the tone of her voice at that last second. Yes, it was true that Matt did have meetings with May Parker. He recorded them as always... but the recordings all got corrupted somehow and no matter how hard he tried he couldn’t remember what he was hired to do for her. Something about protestors outside her home? All he could really conjure up was the vague sound of her voice and the smell of her humble abode. She was his client, but anything more than that is just like the static in the corrupted recordings.

“I already told you, I really don’t know what she hired us for.”

“You sure you weren’t drunk while taking her case?” Foggy asked, his voice teetering the edge of teasing and seriousness.

Matt sighed. “No. Nor concussed or anything like that. And even if I was, that wouldn’t explain why the tape corrupted or why Karen doesn’t remember the phone calls with her, office manager.”

Karen scoffed at the return fire. “At this point, I’m ready to believe we took her case and someone wiped our memories after. I mean, she dated a guy who had major connections to the Avengers.”

Yeah, but the Avengers weren’t exactly existent at the moment. Most having gone solo or missing... or dead. Whatever hopes of a group of super heroes who lived in a tower dead-center of New York was long dashed after the blip. Hell, even before that the Avengers were doomed to fall years ago, thanks to those pesky Sokovia Accords and the division that they caused. Matt could only be thankful that no one thought Daredevil had any superpowers and he didn’t get wrapped up in all of that. As far as the UN was concerned, Daredevil was the police of New York’s problem.

“That or whatever replaced S.H.I.E.L.D Men in Black-ed us.”

“Men in blacked us?” Matt asked.

Foggy made an oh sound. “A movie. They had these secret agents who dealt with aliens and had these little wands that erased the memories of people who-“

“I get it,” Matt said, cutting him off. He sighed and pulled out his phone and had it read the time. It was getting late, and he wanted to get back home earlier tonight. He hadn’t had the chance to talk to Peter a single time in the past week or so that he’d been living there. The kid frequently disappeared during the night and Matt hoped to catch him leaving and figure out where. “Let us know if you figure out anything else, Karen. I’m going to head in early, tonight.”

“You still good on the Bret case?” Foggy asked. “You have the opening statement.”

Matt groaned. “Don’t remind me. I have it all typed up but my embosser keeps jamming up.”

“Have you seen if there’s anyone who can repair it?”

Matt stood up and shrugged, packing his things and assembling his cane. “The stupid thing is ancient. I would have better luck investing in a new one.”

Foggy scoffed. “And how much money is that?”

Too much.

“It’ll be fine. I have a good memory, I usually don’t use my notes anyways.”

“If you say so. Just let us know if you need help with anything. Bret’s counting on us to make corporate pay for shitty workers conditions.”

Matt laughed and nodded. “For sure.”

[prokopetz]

Hey, can I get some recommendations for a tabletop RPG that could support Pokemon-style gameplay? Managing multiple ‘characters’, factoring in random encounters, building up a story rather than solely being about combat, etc. Thanks!

Sure thing.

If you’re in the market for a rules-light option to ease into it, you might have a look at Pokéthulhu 3rd Edition. It’s admittedly a parody game – as the title suggests, it’s about taming various miniature Cthulhu Mythos beasties – but it’s a very solid one, and it does more with less mechanical heft than most “serious” examples of the type. Notable for having one of the very few tabletop RPG combat systems that’s well suited to running one on one duels.

On the flip side, if not everybody in your group is interested in playing a trainer-type character, you could check out Anima Prime. Its core competency is really more Final Fantasy XIII than Pokémon, but it will handily support trainer/summoner type characters alongside RWBY-style weapon masters, battle wizards, and such. The big drawback is that it may be more combat-centric than you’d like; it frames scenarios as a connected series of tactical set-pieces, with freeform RP scenes serving mostly as a way to recover resources between fights.

(The preceding two recommendations have free versions available. For everything below this parenthetical, you’ll have to pay.)

If you’d prefer something less indie and more traditional, you might look into MajiMonsters. This one will give you type matchup grids and crunchy move-lists and everything you’d expect from a full-featured tabletop Pokémon clone. Far warning, though: it’s very much not a pick-up-and-play game. In terms of its learning curve it’s about on par with the current edition of Dungeons & Dragons, so unless you’re interested in making Pokémon-style games your group’s main focus, it may not be worth the investment.

In terms of forthcoming games, if comedy style body horror isn’t a turn-off for you, you might check out Mortasheen, which is just wrapping up its crowdfunding campaign at the time of this posting. (Full disclosure: I’m a backer.) The linked Kickstarter page will give you the full sales pitch; it’s created by Tumblr’s own @bogleech, so if you have any questions, they’d be best equipped to answer them!

Finally, I’m going to throw in a rec for Monsters and Other Childish Things. I suspect it’s not really what you have in mind, as player characters are limited to one monster apiece, but I’ve had more fun with its monster creation mechanics than I have with any other game in the genre. It’s also a good one if you want some serious relationship drama to go with your monster taming, as the monsters literally feed on relationship drama to power themselves up.

[scottymcgeesterwrites]

ScottyMcGeester Plays Every Final Fantasy Game*

*Okay, all the main games except 11 and 14 since they are online only, and also no spinoffs or sequels.

THE INTRODUCTION

Years ago, I had a goal to finish every Final Fantasy game. As of December 30, 2020, I finally reached that goal. I originally started posting these reviews way back in 2017 on VGF(VIdeo Game Forums), and posted one review after another as I completed each game. I had already finished a few before I started reviewing the series, such as Final Fantasy I, II, VI, IX, and X.

Final Fantasy X was my very first Final Fantasy game, way back when it first came out on the PS2. It took me years to finish that game, mostly because I was still a novice at RPGs and I didn’t quite know what I was doing. Still, the world and concepts of Final Fantasy gripped me. As a sci-fi/fantasy writer, they inspired tons of elements in my stories. The series spans a multitude of genre-bending stories – sci-fi, fantasy, some steampunk, modern fantasy, space, traditional fantasy with knights in armor – and a whole lot of crystals. I wrote these reviews as if you have no idea what Final Fantasy is – whether you are a gamer or non-gamer. This first post is a general introduction to the series as a whole, but even if you are a die-hard fan already, there are some things that I explore that I hope you'll find interesting. What is Final Fantasy? Final Fantasy is a roleplay video game series that started back in 1987. The first game was reminiscent of Dungeons and Dragons, where you could choose one of six roles for a team of four: White Mage, Black Mage, Red Mage, Thief, Monk and Warrior. Square, now known as Square Enix, developed the game. A legendary rumor about the title “Final Fantasy” comes from the story that they were on the verge of bankruptcy. They only had money for one more game, a fantasy game. They dubbed it “Final Fantasy.” This apocryphal story is nowhere near true. Square had made video games before and they didn’t do well, but the company itself wasn’t on the verge of bankruptcy. What happened was that the developer, Hironobu Sakaguchi, had planned to retire. He didn’t see any foreseeable future in video gaming with Square’s mediocre performance. He wanted to make a fantasy game and dubbed it “Final Fantasy”, since it was to be his personal last work. He also wanted the game to be abbreviated as “FF” – they originally had “Fighting Fantasy” in mind but that name was already trademarked by a board game. Final Fantasy initially sold 400,000 copies in Japan and became and instant hit. Nintendo of America approached Square to release a localized version for the states. Final Fantasy became far from Sakaguchi’s last game. What’s Final Fantasy about? Every main Final Fantasy game has a new story with new characters and even new gameplay. Some games have direct sequels and are recognizable with a subtitle, or an additional number following a dash. For example, there is Final Fantasy VII, and the direct sequel to that Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII. There's a direct sequel to Final Fantasy X titled Final Fantasy X-2. But even though each Final Fantasy game is different, there are still central elements that make them a Final Fantasy game. You can’t just write up a random fantasy story and slap the Final Fantasy name on it. The following elements are what make a Final Fantasy game. Some are obvious while others not so much. Chocobos:

Chocobos were first introduced in Final Fantasy II, but have been present ever since. They are cute, large birds that the characters often ride across fields or sometimes call into battle. They have practically become the mascot of the series. Moogles, Cactuars and Tonberries – oh my!

Moogles (pictured above) are telepathic creatures that help the players, or sometimes they can be a playable character. They debuted in Final Fantasy III.

Cactuars (right) and Tonberries (left) are cute, unassuming enemies that are actually highly dangerous, killing you in one shot if you are not careful or fast enough. The former debuted in Final Fantasy VI while the latter debuted in Final Fantasy V. Summons:

Sometimes they go by different names, like eidolons or espers. Summons are massive, fantastic beasts that you can call upon to aide you in battle to fight the enemy. Summons became a staple ever since Final Fantasy III. In some games, they are merely there to call into battle, while in other games they are central to the story. Airships:

Airships have been present since the first game. They are massive boat-looking airplanes. In the more recent games, airships look almost like spaceships.

Cid:

With the exception of the original Final Fantasy (except in later remakes), every game has a character named Cid. Cid is typically the character who owns an airship.

Items and Magic Spells:

Each game shares virtually all the same items and magic spells. Antidotes. Eye drops. Maiden's kiss. Holy water. Phoenix Down is well-known for reviving knocked-out characters in battle. The spells follow a hierarchy of levels. For example, Cure is the basic spell to heal somebody. The second level spell for healing is Cura. Then Curaga. Then finally Curaja. Most other spells follow the same format. The same high-level spells also frequently appear throughout the games, such as Holy and Flare.

Crystals:

With a few exceptions, crystals appear in nearly every game. They often serve as plot devices, whether they be the force that protects the planet or powerful objects coveted by the enemy. They also oftentimes have a consciousness of their own, communicating with the characters and calling them to their destiny.

Mythological References:

Final Fantasy is riddled with mythological references. Many summons and creatures take the names of mythological creatures or deities, such as Shiva, Bahamut, Leviathan, Behemoth, Odin, and Ifrit. Certain villains share the names of mythological figures or they are derived from certain mythological concepts, such as Gilgamesh and Sephiroth. Many of the games have legendary weapons you can find near the end of the journey. These are typically named after legendary Japanese figures, such as Masamune and Yoichi, or other world mythologies, such as Thor’s hammer Mjolnir. Saving the World:

Final Fantasy isn’t about saving a particular princess, or person for that matter. The ultimate goal is to save the entire world, or even the very fabric of reality. Evil spreads in many ways, such as a sealed darkness trying to break free, empires with ambitious goals, villainous subordinates who pull the strings of politics, or empires destroying the environment. Typically, the main cast consists of characters from all walks of life. They all have to learn to work together and get through their personal struggles to save the world. Existential Crisis (or Startling Revelation):

By the time you reach the third act of a Final Fantasy game, some startling revelation forces the characters to question their very existence. A villain is revealed to be a hero’s family member, a main character realizes they're a clone, another realizes that they cannot live without magic, etc. Typically, the main character questions the nature of their soul, if they die like regular beings and become part of some greater life force, or blink out into oblivion. Whatever the revelation may be – it serves as a final crisis that the characters have to overcome. The Descent into Hell:

Every third act of a Final Fantasy game ends with what I like to call a “descent into hell”. The final dungeon is always some kind of bizarre world. In Final Fantasy II, you literally descend into hell to fight the Emperor. Throughout the series, hell is more metaphorical. The final dungeons can be a massive, sprawling tower or dreadnought, or a strange dimension that appears to have no rhyme or reason. Sometimes I'm reminded of M.C. Escher’s work, “Relativity”, or sometimes it reminds me of some cosmic horror featured in the Cthulhu Mythos. These final dungeons can be inter-dimensional rifts between space and times, pockets in reality, subterranean depths, insane worlds that the villain created, and worlds of darkness. (Final Fantasy IX's Memoria)

(M.C. Escher's “Relativity”)

These stylistic approaches for the final dungeon represent the oncoming battle with the forces of chaos. Fighting God:

After venturing through the surreal and hellish final dungeon, you face the main villain. The main villain always achieves godlike status or the characters actually have to defeat a god in order to save the world from its oppressive reign. Many stories appear to throw in a last minute ultimate god who was pulling the strings of the plot the entire time. The purpose of dealing with gods and goddesses represents the characters’ desire to control their own fate and alter their destiny. Most of these bosses are strange and grotesque, definitely getting a Cthulhu vibe from them. I looked at them and thought, "Christ, what the hell is THAT supposed to be?"

It always feels like THE final fantasy:

Each game, no matter what happens or how it happens, feels like the be-all-end-all of its story – its fictional universe. Direct sequels were unheard of until Final Fantasy X-2, which while fun, was wildly different in tone from the original game, and critics pointed out that it ruined the finality of Final Fantasy X. This is one reason why I think direct sequels to Final Fantasy games fail – what else could the main characters possibly face that is more dangerous than the one they just encountered? Anything else would feel like child’s play to them. NOTABLE PEOPLE Aside from the characters, stories and games themselves, the people behind the series have achieved legendary status. Nobuo Uematsu:

The original composer of Final Fantasy. Uematsu single-handedly scored the first 9 Final Fantasy games. Uematsu surprisingly never had any formal training in music – a trait that would ostracize any composer, such as Danny Elfman. I find that the those who haven't had any formal training usually break the mold with music. Uematsu started working for Square at around 25 for the first Final Fantasy game, starting out with nothing and never suspecting his job would lead him where he is now. His music is unique for incorporating elements of classic and progressive rock, specifically in the battle themes. Uematsu’s themes for each game have achieved instant recognition in the gaming world, as recognizable as the theme to Star Wars or James Bond. Tetsuya Nomura:

Tetsuya Nomura is a video game designer and director who started at Square in 1990. He rose to prominence when he was given full control of designing the characters for Final Fantasy VII – arguably the most popular Final Fantasy game to date because of its characters: Cloud Strife, Tifa Lockhart, Vincent Valentine and Sephiroth. Nomura went on to create more legendary characters for Final Fantasy VIII, X and XIII. Yoshitaka Amano:

Amano is the artist whose work is most known now in Final Fantasy. He has done concept art and design for every game in the series. His style is instantly recognizable. He has also drawn for many anime shows, comics and mangas, such as Vampire Hunter D and Sandman: The Dream Hunters.

And last but certainly not least - THE MUSIC Final Fantasy has left its mark in the musical soundtrack of video games. Each game more or less shares three of the same memorable tracks.

The Prelude:

The Victory Fanfare:

The Final Fantasy Main Theme:

THE REVIEWS

Each review I post will critique major aspects of each Final Fantasy game, such as its gameplay, graphics, story, and music. Today is currently January 3, 2020 (technically the 4th when I post this because it’s past midnight), and I will be posting one review per day so as to not lose my sanity editing and formatting everything at once here. So look forward to the very first review tomorrow starting with the very first Final Fantasy game.

[k7l4d4]

Luz the Seeker (Owl House/Huntik: Secrets & Seekers Crossover Idea)

I want to ask, has anyone thought of a Crossover fic between the Owl House and Huntik: Secrets & Seekers? If not, I will discuss my own!! Everybody clap your hands!!!

To help with people who don't know it, I shall now info-dump some of the lore!! And by some I mean a lot. In the World of Huntik, spirits of incredible power, known as Titans, are native to a separate Dimension, also known as Huntik. For generations, the Titans have been summoned to Earth to aid humanity, with the most famous being the Legendary Titans of Casterwill, an ancient sorcerer who saved the world from the Nullifiers, another species native to Huntik, but are instead pure evil, consumed with nothing less than the desire to see all of reality destroyed and subsumed into them. After their defeat, Titans have been scattered throughout human history, lending their immense power and potential to those people who can bond with the Talismans that act as their method of summoning and anchor in our world; these individuals are known as Seekers. Titans are principally divided into Eight core categories: Draco-Titans, Gaia-Titans, Hecto-Titans, Krono-Titans, Litho-Titans, Meso-Titans, Swara-Titans, and Yama-Titans. Each corresponds to a region of the world in terms of design, though some can seem off theme to some extent, and each has some form of connection to historical myth, legend, and even historical facts. Draco-Titans are a type of Titans featured prominently in European legends, particularly those of Medieval England. The fighting style and noble, chivalrous nature that most of them possess, inspired people to act the same and developed into the code of chivalry followed by knights. Draco-Titans' amulets are usually steel-blue with a grayish-pink gem in the center. Gaia-Titans are a type of Titan which tend to be protective and helpful. Gaia-Titans are strongly tied to nature, particularly wood or plants. Because of these ties, most of them are green or greenish-brown. Some may be covered in bark or leaves, with some even looking like walking trees, such as Dark Dryad. Gaia means Earth in Greek, so these Titans are essentially Earth-Titans or Nature-Titans. Gaia-Titan amulets tend to be a pale silver white with a light green gem. A notable exception is the Amulet of Will for Overlos. Many Gaia Titans are found mainly in Ireland. Hecto-Titans are Titans based upon Egyptian legends. Many Hecto-Titans appear like mummies with a monstrous appearance, earning them a place as the monsters residing in Egyptian tombs. Their terrible nature and taking enjoyment from chaos and destruction means that bonding Seekers need to possess a similar attitude. Their amulets tend to be yellow with blue and green highlights and a pale silver gem in the center. Krono-Titans are Titans that are based off of Greek or Roman mythology. These Titans tend to be warriors, a fitting position considering the war-like nature of the Greeks during ancient history. The word 'Krono-Titan' may be based on Kronos of mythology, the imprisoned Greek Titan and father of Zeus. Krono-Titan Amulets tend to be orange and yellow with an aqua gem. Litho-Titans are a very durable type of Titan because most of them are composed of rocks or ice. Litho-Titans usually carve themselves a place in history, even among humans who know nothing about Seekers or magic. Metagolem became the famous Golem of Prague. Gar-Ghoul inspired the gargoyle statues on the rooftops across Europe. Fenris and Ymir are famous among Norse mythology, being responsible for the birth and death of the world. Litho-Titans act almost as if they want to be known for their power. Lithosphere is the ground part of Earth. Litho-Titan Amulets tend to be stone grey, with occasional light blue highlights for ice-based Titans, and have a purple gem in the center with yellow outline around the gem. Meso-Titans are powerful Titans that are difficult to control. They tend to be aggressive and may cause collateral damage if not watched carefully. Some Meso-Titans control powerful natural forces, such as earthquakes, hurricanes, and tornadoes. Others use combat attacks based on stomping, jumping, and spinning. Meso-Titans often resemble creatures of Native American and Central American stories, such as fierce warriors and totem like monsters. Mesosphere is the middle part of the Earth's atmosphere. Only a Seeker with a very strong will can bond with, let alone control, a Meso-Titan. Meso-Titan Amulets are typically grey with black or yellow highlights and a blue gem. Swara-Titans are a type of Titan, most often used by villains, and are based upon African legends and insects. Like Araknos, a large number of Swara-Titans tend to lean toward arthropods such as arachnids and insects. Swara-Titan Amulets tend to be brown with a darker brown or gold trim and a red gem. Yama-Titans are clever and often overly independent. They often think that their way of doing something is better than their bonded Seeker; because of this, successfully controlling a Yama-Titan can require concentrating exactly on what one wants them to do. Human-like Yama-Titans often have features common to Asian myths, such as clothing or weaponry. Yama-Titans were appropriately common in ancient Asia. People told stories about them, and these stories eventually became myths. Yama-Titan amulets tend to be black with silver highlights with a pale green gem. A notable exception is the ring of Tao since the amulets of Legendary Titans are gold with a gem that matches the Titan. The Legendary Titans are an incredibly rare, powerful type of Titan which were originally controlled by Lord Casterwill and his family and whose Rings and Amulets were later hidden with greater safeguards than the Amulets of any other Titans. The Legendary Titans find their places in the legends of many ancient civilizations and were sometimes considered gods. If a Seeker attempts to use a Legendary Titan without the Amulet of Will or without passing the proper Casterwill test, they may be put under a powerful curse. Three Legendary Titans, Tao, Behemoth, and Araknos, are involved in a ritual to summon Overlos from the Amulet of Will. Because they could technically be considered a sibling species to Titans, I'll include some info on Nullifiers, especially as they can be summoned like Titans. Their isn't a whole lot to say about them, but Nullifiers are often ludicrously powerful, with a bevy of mind-bending abilities as a whole, they largely draw inspiration from the Cthulhu Mythos when it comes to appearance. Nullifiers do not have the standard Classes. In addition to their type, Titans can also be identified by their Class, that is to say, if they are Blasters, Enchanters, Explorers, Scouts, Sentinels, Sharpshooters, Sorcerers, or Warriors. Blasters are those whose specialty lies in high-power blasts as their combat method of choice, and are surprisingly rare. Enchanters are, like Sorcerers, those with principally mystical powers, but are usually geared more towards indirect combat or support, or are associated with more "good" legends as a whole. Explorer Titans are those that excel in espionage, information retrieval, and stealth, distinguishing themselves from Scouts by being larger, more humanoid, and often having more direct combat options. Scouts are often small, with a higher emphasis on information retrieval, spying, and so on, than combat. Sentinels are those which are typically used to guard or watch over something or someone, with a bigger emphasis on durability and defense than the other martial Classes, and are as rare as true Blasters. Sharpshooters are high flying ranged-attackers, with a big emphasis on movement and speed, and while pretty rare in terms of variety, are not as rare as those of Sentinels or Blasters. Sorcerer Class Titans are associated with magical abilities, but often of a darker bent than Enchanters, they are often more likely to be direct attackers as well. Warriors, the absolute MOST common Class, are straight up melee fighters, with the occasional esoteric power thrown in, often wielding swords and shields, or more odd weaponry on occasion. All Seekers, by virtue of the connection they have gained to the Titans, can wield magic. The forms of magical spells Seekers can wield are rather varied, and rather than being marked by specific schools, are instead based on how they are used. It's not something I'd go to much into right now. The nature of the connection that the Titans and their Seekers have is known as the Bond; Titans fresh from Huntik are essentially blank slates when it comes to bonding, and while certain personality types might bond easier, the first bond they gain will always color them when it comes to bonding later. Titans lack true personality when they are first summoned and bonded in our world, communicating mentally with their Seeker through Intuition, feelings, etcetera as opposed to words, and finding the language based thoughts of humans, and Witches, unnatural, not that it will prevent them from obeying. The mentality, thought process, and beliefs of their initial bonded will permanently influence who that Titan can later bond with, as they will invariably bond easiest with those that have a similar personality and attitude to their initial bonded, though the bond can sever if the Seeker's personality changes too much from the mindset that allowed them to bond in the first place. Seekers who've established a particularly strong bond with their Titans are capable of Powerbond, initiating an incredibly powerful transformation that greatly augments the powers and fighting abilities of their Titans and themselves. Anyway, now that the info dump is out of the way, my basis for this crossover is for Luz to be a young Seeker with a reputation for causing havoc. She basically enters the Boiling Isles the same way, but that is when the divergences start. In this AU, I would like to think that the Titan that composes the Isles is a Titan in the Huntik sense, that transported to the Demon Realm and died. As it perished, its essence merged with that of the Demon Realm, and gave rise to the Witches, who are analogous to a hybrid between Titan and Human, though not quite all the way. Titans summoned on the Isles often display heightened intellect and learning ability, and are capable of staying summoned functionally indefinitely so long as they are there, though sufficient injury can dispel them and send them back. Due to her background as a Seeker, however young and inexperienced she may be, Luz is even more used to insanity and danger than her canon self is, and is extremely curious as to the nature of the Isles and its magic (Eda: Can't you cast your own spells already, kid? Luz: Yeah, but not THIS KIND!!!). My biggest issue is finding a way to expand the idea beyond just having Luz use Seeker powers and Titans in the Owl House, with the appropriate butterflies and shenanigans as a result of course, so I've composed a couple of possibilities. My first idea is that Belos is unknowingly connected to the Nullifiers, partially to explain his incredible strength and extremely bizarre abilities compared to the already strange nature of the Isles, and that all his efforts have been unknowingly orchestrated by the Nullifiers to grant them a foothold in the Isles to destroy it and the rest of the Demon Realm, and then move on to Earth. My second idea is a new faction of Seekers, not so much evil as morally grey and with a mixed roster of good and bad, has stationed themselves on the Isles, and are conducting experiments on Titans there; the nature of the experiments is to find new ways of modifying Titans to possess new and interesting abilities for their goals, as well as the creation of genuinely artificial Titans entirely, dubbed Neo-Titans, which, if I got that far, would differ from the rest of their kind in having themes closer to Science Fiction and Alien-life than the mythological basis of their peers, being sleek and technological and possessing powerful abilities beyond the standard. Anyway, this is mostly me ranting, sorry, but if anyone is interested in this or wants to talk or has questions about it, let me, okay? Thank you.

[utilitycaster]

So, to keep dunking on Pathfinder/3.5e and also for lack of a better term...indie, looser systems, I do have a handful of reasons why the systems themselves don't sound like things I'm into but more generally the reason I keep making cheap jokes is because the way people sell these systems is so antithetical to what I want out of TTRPGs. Which doesn't mean they're not good, or that they're not right for other people! But god...you are not superior for liking something other than D&D 5e, you are just a person who isn't into that particular experience and if you want to get people to play other games...learn to fucking sell it.

The crunch of pathfinder has some appeal, because I do love math and rules, but it always feels like the arguments go like this.

"I can't figure out how DCs in 5e get set!"

"well, the DM sets it based on a rough estimate of difficulty, using their brain; the DM's Guide gives a scale broken down by 5-point increments that you can use."

"What? You mean I, an inveterate metagamer cannot find it by adding up 8 numbers based on the weather, my class, my feats, active spells, and the migration patterns of nearby birds in a process that brings the narrative to a screeching halt?"

Or else it goes like this (this is a literal screenshot from a reply on a shitpost I made about paladin archetypes):

Well, in 5e you are allowed to ride things without being good at dex on the grounds that the average normal person in a pre-industrial society would probably be able to sit on a horse (animal handling is also an option). You can play a halfling paladin by playing a halfling whose class is paladin, and if you cast summon steed a reasonable DM will allow you to flavor said steed as a celestial wardog. You do not need special abilities to...turn around? in 5e? damn you lived like this? and sure, you can have a spear or lance as your weapon. I guess charging doesn't do much in 5e (the charger feat exists but isn't amazing) but like, you could do it.

Like, seriously, so many posts are like "I don't see a ruleset for how I can confirm I was able to drink my coffee without dropping it on the floor? 5e seems bad" and in general 3.5e/Pathfinder appear to treat your character as a Sim or something, where if the ladder disappears from the pool you're just like "guess I'll die" [note: I haven't played either 3.5e, Pathfinder, nor the Sims but like. I'm right.] And if you want to play this that's fine! Crunch can be very fun! but god it's unnecessary and it seems like there are too many rules for the sake of just like, having rules.

Moving on to the looser systems, the "just a d100" or "just a d6" ones that "foster more RP": so many of these "foster more RP" by having systems that actively corral the conversation, or PC emotions, instead of just...letting people talk. I actually find things like Monsterhearts "turn someone on" mechanic or the sanity mechanics in Call of Cthulhu really off-putting! I'd rather be allowed to respond to things genuinely, in character.

"But M," you say "that's kind of the point of Call of Cthulhu, the sanity slippage." And you know what? You're absolutely right! Because that is where my point is leading:

The TTRPG game you pick should be mostly based on the kind of story you want to tell, and anyone who ignores that in their considerations can themselves be ignored.

I happen to enjoy Dungeons & Dragons because I enjoy that particular form of fantasy in a quasi-early renaissance* setting, and I would, perchance, like to explore a dungeon and maybe even fight a dragon. I do not want to be dealing with horrors beyond comprehension**, except in the sense that I'd like to smite/disintegrate/viciously mock them. I do not want to pretend I am in high school again, under literally any circumstances, even if I can hex people. I like fantasy combat because I am both simmering with incandescent range basically always and yet I cannot typically act on it*** and I'd like to be able to save the world through hitting things with a sweet-ass sword or casting. Hyping up a system because it lacks combat is absolutely the wrong tack with me.

And if you don't like that it's fine! But I have yet to see someone actually make an argument, to me specifically, for a different system, that actually accounted for even a whiff of my own personal preference and honestly at this point the damage, while not irreversible, is pretty severe; my attitude towards anyone trying to steer me from D&D 5e is pretty cynical.****

*look I will pick many battles on any hills wagering that ultimately I will only die on one and this is on the list. Anyway if printed books are available and gunpowder has reached your vaguely European-in-flavor society? It's Renaissance.

**always thought this quote was from Lovecraft but it's from Tesla, objectively a much better dude despite a shitty dude using his name to sell cars.

***Yes. I am an eldest daughter. Why do you ask.

****This is also the root cause of why I adamantly refuse to watch either Titanic or Finding Nemo.

[bellamioneotp]

Bellamione Fic Master List

Making a list of Bellamione fics to guide the poor innocent souls into temptation organize stories based on AU type. 

DARK AU’s

Bellatrix isn’t a bright ball of sunshine, but rather than have a story where she becomes a better person, Hermione becomes like her, or even joins her side. This AU type isn’t limited to only that, but also to general dark themes in the story such as violence, war and ‘wtf this is so wrong but yet I can’t stop reading’. 

Reign Down Like wow. A whole world built around what if Voldemort survived and used Hermione in his evil schemes and had Bellatrix engaged to her. Very detailed and the author doesn’t hold back on aspects of the new world that can be somewhat unsettling. 25/10 this will leave you wondering just how sexy dark magic can truly feel. 

The Dark Corners of the Earth This one is dark in an entirely different sense. Bellatrix and Snape are pitted in an ancient war against one another and Hermione is caught in the middle. The romance moves a bit too fast paced for me but the lore and detail in this will have you really thinking this story over the next few days, trying to figure out just wtf is going on. 45/10 will have you hoping your nightlight can keep Cthulhu away. 

Haunted This story won’t leave you haunted, but it is pretty good even with it’s short chapters and all. It tells the story of Hermione sort of losing her marbles but I won’t get into too much detail. Just read it for yourself; it’s a quick easy read. 10/10 is poetic as fuck. 

I Dream of Sin Takes place in a sort of canon world in which Hermione is an American teen being bullied. You can imagine how well that goes for the bullies especially when she learns she has magic and is taught by Bellatrix herself on how to use it. It gets progressively darker each chapter. 16/10 don’t want to mess with magical nerds ever. 

For whom the Bell Tolls is an interesting look into how Hermione’s actually a death eater and Bellatrix is not. While Hermione is not bat shit insane, she is a murderer and Bellatrix is the sane one. Nice to see things switched up. This story is not necessarily as dark as the others but it gets brownie points for making the usually good Hermione evil right off the bat. 9/10 come to the dark side, we have cookies. 

Staring at Nothing is just...wow.  A very powerful one shot about Hermione’s descent into darkness as told by Harry’s perspective. 10/10 for who needs friends anyways, when you’ve got black leather. 

Visions of You in which Hermione is a depressed youth after the war and has to deal with hallucinations of Bellatrix. Hermione isn’t dark here so much as she is gray type, and the story has a permeating tinge of sadness to it, given the circumstances. 8/10 for maybe Bellatrix isn’t a hallucination? 

Deep Below what’s more awful than being accused of Harry’s death? Being falsely accused of it, and having to deal with trying to prove your innocent. This is a situation Hermione ends up in. But will she get out of it? 8/10 for this gets deep. 

How to Love Bellatrix captures Hermione and sort of indoctrinates her into the world of darkness. Hermione is mad at first, but then she realizes how sexy Bellatrix is and is like, ‘alright fam, sign me up’ and boom Bellamione. 8/10 you love this story but not it’s update schedule. 

TIME TRAVELER AU’s

Basically, what it says on the tin. Someway or another, Hermione goes back into time to stop Bellatrix from ever becoming evil. Drama and romance ensue. 

Future Shocks A good time turner fic with a more modern take on war. It’s pretty long and it is the slowburn of all slowburns. But it’s a very interesting story and the ending will have you definitely shook. 8/10 will shock you awake from that boring lecture you’re reading fanfic in. 

Time Heals all Wounds Hermione gets sent back in time to ‘redeem’ Bellatrix but not in the gift card way, more like saving the future type way. They end up, you guessed it, falling in love and changing the future somewhat. 6/10 is a young teen romance that will have you reliving your adventures as a young sapphic witch. 

Mirror, Mirror Not exactly a time turner fic, more like a parallel world, I suppose. Hard to explain but has good amounts of mystery and trying to understand what is happening. Focuses more on Bellatrix’s POV which is a nice change of pace. 8/10 will have you looking in the mirror and summoning Bellatrix like she was Bloody Mary. 

Let the Light Come and Take me A time turner fic that ends up with Bellatrix time traveling but to the future and the chaos her arrival there causes for those who are acquainted with her devious ways. Looks at the growth of our two ladies relationship into something more. 5/10 if it’s not slowburn romance is it really Bellamione?

The One Within the Other this story is about, you guessed it, time travel! Hermione goes back on purpose to stop Bellatrix from achieving her evil potential and in the process love blossoms. 7/10 for never enough time to read Bellamione in peace!

Caught in the Time series this is a series of three full length stories about Bellamione stuck in different times and universes. So much happens in them it’s kind of hard to summarize so the best thing to do is read them. 8, 8.5, 7/10 I’ll let you figure out which score goes for which series.

Just say When started off as a time turner story but then it ended up becoming something more of an espionage tale. It’s a good read and interesting to see how Bellatrix aims to save Hermione from a dementor’s kiss (spoilers!) in order to save their future together. A good mix of romance and action. 8/10 The name’s Black. Bellatrix, Black. 

The Broken Wand It all starts with a wand and then before you know it, boom, time travel happens. Featuring Loki and adventure all around, this fic has interesting plot points to keep you engaged despite the slower update times. 7/10, will break your wand too. 

Hourglass basically, a young Bellatrix is brought into the future and consequences abound from that mishap. The plot is a bit wonky and there are some logic mistakes, but if you can get over it, it’s a decent time travel story. 5/10 for it must be canon that Bellatrix has a lovely hourglass figure. 

Times they are a Changing where Bellatrix travels back in time to save her wife, Hermione. Nice to see a story where Hermione isn’t the one doing all the saving. Unfortunately there’s only six chapters to this story and it’s unlikely it’ll ever get finished but it’s a nice fresh concept. 6/10 for that’s how many chapters there are. 

Destined in this one, Hermione experiences some wonky times after the battle at the department of mysteries. Hermione has to find a way back home, but perhaps she might find love along the way? 10/10 for this is destined to be an interesting read. 

HEALER AU’s 

Let’s be real, Bellatrix has got a lot of problems and these authors try to solve them, with sex. And you know, medical help. But sex definitely helps a lot. 

Portrait of a Tragic Woman Not a typical healer type au, because Hermione is a therapist whose helping Bellatrix with her mental disorders. Focuses a lot on the relationship between the two and really makes you try to figure out what exactly is up with Bellatrix and what is her past, etc. The ending chapters will leave you shooketh and wondering what even is real anymore. 50/10 because it feels like an acid trip, man. 

The Healer is only one chapter but still worth a read. Hopefully the author will have some time to get back to it because it has a huge potential. 6/10 because I need some healing. 

1k is a one shot, featuring Hermione as a therapist and Bellatrix as her patient. Can’t say too much without spoiling it, but despite it’s short length, the author paints a vivid look into Bellatrix’s mind if she was just an insane muggle. 1k/10 because that’s one patient I would never like to meet.

Darkness Underneath I mean, Hermione runs a team of healers, so technically it’s kinda a healer au fic, right? This story looks more in depth at the Death Eaters and dark magic surrounding them. 9/10 is that a dark mark or are you just happy to see me?

TEACHER AU

We all know this is the holy grail au of this fandom and yet there’s only a couple of long stories for this. Someone, write some more!

Fractures A long fic, that has a sequel. Basically, Bellatrix is Hermione’s teacher during a very trying time for Hermione when a competition goes very wrong and dark truths are revealed. Lot’s of action, Bellamione interactions, and overall interesting plot. 8/10 will leave your heart in fractures when you find out the sequel is unfinished. 

In the Dead of Night Hermione asks Bellatrix if she can teach her some.....magic and things end up becoming very magical indeed. Bellatrix is the teacher in this story (because who wouldn’t want her as a teacher). It’s a WIP with only a couple of chapters out. 7/10 time to learn some real lessons, Granger ;)

Just a Brand features not only Bellatrix as a professor, but a magical soul mate bond between Bellatrix and Hermione that leads to much deliciousness. There’s a lot of chapters to this story but they’re pretty short. An updated and revised version can be found on a03 for those who like longer chapters. 7/10 Bellamione is branded on my soul. 

It Just Felt Right is another fic with Bellatrix as the professor. Hermione starts off hating her and then it evolves into liking Bellatrix. The fic leaves off before any real progress can be made so if anyone is up for reading an unfinished fic from 2012 then go for it. 6/10 for this story feels right but not write because it’s abandoned :(

CRIME AU 

Because there is never enough crime involved even with Bellatrix, these authors amp up the trouble and make it double. And gay. So very gay. 

Two Sides of the Same Coin where Bellatrix is basically an auror. It’s only five chapters and it hasn’t been updated in a long time but it’s an interesting concept worth checking out. 9/10 wish there were more sides to the coin. 

Murder Most Horrid A crime story, where Bellatrix is a magical cop and Hermione is a murder suspect. Bellatrix interrogates Hermione by banging her and then the two of them proceed to basically get married the day after. A bit ooc for Bellatrix but very in character if you consider this world not from the canon. -89/10 for how badly your vision will deteriorate if you try to read this all in one night. 

The Mysterious Department Technically Bellatrix and Hermione are both magical detectives and they go and solve crimes and shit while also possibly trying to prevent the world from ending. You know, just casual stuff. 10/10 for the perfect crime, would commit again. 

Darkness is Falling A story that has Hermione as an auror who replaces Bellatrix’s old partner. They butt heads, they solve cases, and naturally, begin to fall in love. 7/10 for this case is closed. 

Some Things Aren’t Seen Hermione investigates Bellatrix’s crimes and past and ends up over her head. There are two follow ups to this finished work, all in the same vein. It’s all a good bit of fun watching Hermione try to take on the criminal Lestrange. 7/10, no, this has no relation to the musical Wicked. 

SOUL MATE BOND 

In one way or another Bellatrix and Hermione have a special bond in between them that destines them to be together. Angst, love, friendship, all abound in this au type. Features a combination of other factors thrown in, but the stories put in here are largely advertised in the blurb as more focused on the bond. 

Lotus Flower Hermione finds out after Bellatrix’s death that they are bound together and that because Bellatrix is dead, Hermione is dying as a result too. This begs the question, will Hermione go back in time and save Bellatrix, or will she willingly submit to the bond’s curse? 8/10 I think we all know what Hermione chooses.

Our Mercurial Selves ever wonder what it would be like to have a murderer share your mind? In this one, Hermione and Bellatrix can communicate telepathically with each other, creating a bond that draws them together. Features evil schemes by Voldemort, a flying horse, and Narcissa beating the ever loving shit out of Bellatrix for even daring to breathe in Hermione’s direction. 9/10 will leave you with warm fuzzies for the Malfoy family before the ending crushes you. 

The House Ring Bellatrix sends Hermione a magical ring that engages them and basically makes them wives. Prophecies abound about how Bellamione is meant to be the one and only true pairing. 7/10 for that ring better come with diamonds.

Demons AU

As if Voldemort isn’t scary enough, there are demons and scary things in this au type that will leave you and Voldemort both calling for mommy. 

Unsteady Precipice technically also a time traveling fic, except Hermione ends up in an alternative universe. where she tries to change things from happening in the canon world like they did. But will it work? Who knows! Only a few chapters are out so it’s hard to tell where this story will go, but one things for sure, it’ll be good. 9/10 if you don’t pray after reading this the demons will get you. 

A Demon in the Mist is also about, gasp, demons! Dangerous things are afoot in this story and Hermione is caught in the middle of it all. It takes part in the same universe as the caught in time series by the same author, but with slight alterations. Unsure if the story will be finished as the author has contemplated leaving fanfic writing. 7/10 can you find the demon in the mist?

MAGICAL CREATURES AU

Technically a category, right? Let’s pretend it is, because there are some stories out there that pit our two ladies as other than human and it’s fun to read about it. 

As we Chase the Sun Very Black family centric and features Bellatrix as a big fluffy wolf. What’s not to love? Cuddles, and hair balls, and good times all around. 9/10 would tame that wolf. 

Sing to me Your Insanity in which Hermione and Bellatrix are both sirens and will basically die if they don’t do the ol’ frickity frack. This is a long story and the slowburn feels like hellburn but it’s worth the read. 56/10 but you will need earplugs so those sirens don’t seduce you too. 

Metamorphosis in which Bellatrix is also a wolf and doesn’t like being stuck with Hermione but gets used to it and basically they’re house wives of London and don’t know it. 8/10 for your mind with undergo metamorphosis from slightly obsessed with Bellamione to even more obsessed. 

This Poisoned Blood of Ours vampires, vampires everywhere! Two parts to this series and features a confused Bellatrix and a changing Hermione. 7/10 do you think vampires like steak rare?

Cursed Doll Pretty self explanatory title. Someone ends up as a doll and shenanigans ensue. Won’t say more because it’s only two chapters, but it’s well written and worth a read. 10/10 Chucky? Is that your sister? 

Liquid Measure these chapters are thicc boy. Only two chapters but such a good set up and everything. I hope the author is able to update at some point. 10/10 makes me thirsty for more!

My Demons in the Dark Hermione is a ghost. That’s it, that’s the plot. Boo/10 for this not so spooky spirit.