#and rook kinda complains about their team

[miyku]

[cheapshrimpysheep]

Dating in a Dream - Epel Felmier

SUMMARY: What would his dream be like, exactly the same as in the original story, but with the small detail that he is dreaming that you two are dating?

CHARACTERS: Epel Felmier x Reader 🍎🦐

TAGS: Fluff; GN Reader; In a Relationship (kinda)

WARNING: Spoilers from Book 7 and Epel’s dream (Eng Server)

WORD COUNT: 1.530 words

COMMENTS: As English is not my first language I asked Gemini for help with Epel's dialect/accent. This was written as a companion piece to the original dream story, so the parts that are the same as the game are just summarized.

I hope you enjoy 🍎

Dating in a Dream: Idia / (Epel) / Rook / Vil / Kalim / Jamil / ...

“Aether signal tracking successful.” Ortho says when you land in the new dream, along with Grim, Silver and Sebek. “We have arrived at the designated coordinates.”

You're on Main Street, looking around and trying to figure out whose dream it is. That's when you hear abnormally heavy footsteps running and getting closer. You look and see an Epel's head in a body that looks more like Jack's, which made it all the more strange, uncanny, and almost hilarious.

You hear him saying something about being late and that's why he doesn't see your group. Grim was the one who had to shout to get Epel's attention.

“Ah, Grim! (Y/N)! Good morning! And behind you, Ah see... Ortho and some Diasomnia fellas Ah don't hardly know. Ah don't get why y'all're glowerin'.”

“Cease your incessant mumbling!” Sebek says.

“Huh? Ah was just... Ain't you Sebek from Class D? What's yer problem? Y'wanna start somethin' with me, huh?”

Epel approaches Sebek as if he were ready to start a fight, that's when you put yourself between the two of them to ask Epel to wait and say that there's no need for that.

“Oh, they’re yer friends? Sorry babe.”

“W-what did he call (Y/N)?” Grim asked with wide eyes, the same expression as everyone else.

“Hey, since you're here... Ah was goin’ to ma Spelldrive practice. Don't you have cheerleadin' practice too? You always practice with us.”

“C-cheerleading?” You ask.

“Yeah. You probly forgot ‘cause you're always so busy. If you're free, come with me. Ah always play better with you cheerin’ me on.” He smirks at you. “And Ah know how you love seein’ yer boyfriend win another game.”

“BOYFRIEND?!” Everyone said in unison.

“Oh boy.” Idia's voice says through the tablet. “Dude is dreaming that he's some sports team captain who's dating the head cheerleader. So cliché. What did I tell you about his imagination being weak?”

“Epel Felmier. May I make you a few questions?” Ortho asks and Epel agrees. “From what I understand, you and (Y/N) are dating, correct?”

“Ya bet we are!” Epel confirms with a huge smile. “Ain't they just as kind as can be, and as pretty as a picture?” He grabs you by the waist to pull you against him. “Shoot, Ah must be the luckiest guy aroun’!”

“Aww, so sweet.” Idia says. “If I get diabetes after this I'll be sending this guy the bill for my medication.”

“You two really make a very cute couple.” Ortho says to Epel. You didn't know if he was being sincere or sarcastic just to keep the conversation going. “When did you two start dating?”

“Lesse... When was it again? It was after I gained muscle and get this tall. And that was... Uhh... When WAS it? ... Hrk! Mah head... It hurts!”

The dream begins to distort, but when you think Epel is about to wake up, Vil and Rook appear, darkness versions of them.

“I believe it was near the end of winter break when your height surpassed mine, Eple.” Darkness Vil says.

“Oui. And you two started your love affair in the spring.” Darkness Rook complements. “Tellement romantique!”

“Really?” Idia complained again. “You start dating in the spring? How predictable. Were the birds also singing their hearts out when (Y/N) said 'Of course I want to date you, silly' ?”

“Epel.” Darkness Vil speaks again. “You left the dorm rather early today, so why are you standing around shooting the breeze?”

“Ah was on mah way to mornin’ practice when Ah ran into (Y/N) and these other folks...”

“Conversing with friends is indeed a valuable thing, but are you not the Spelldrive club most promising rookie?” Darkness Rook says. “I hear as much all the time from Leona.”

The two darkness figures with the appearance of Vil and Rook continue talking about how Eple is strong and such a talented player that the students of Savanaclaw would like him to ask to transfer to their dorm, but Vil would never allow it because he doesn't want to lose a student like Epel.

“That’s enough idle chitchat.” Darkness Vil says. “Off with you, now, get to your club.”

“Yessir. You coming with me (Y/N)?”

“NO!” You say. “This is not you Epel! You're not this tall, muscular guy. You are a boy with a cute and delicate appearance but a will of steel. We may have never started dating, but the truth is... I like you too Epel. I really do. But not this you, the real you. The Epel who said in SDC that he was going to maximize his weapon and beat Neige with his charm! Did you forget?”

“Epel. Cease listening to those spudlings.” Darkness Vil warns him.

“Yes, indeed. You will never go wrong by heeding Vil, Epel!” Darkness Rook encourages.

“You were finally accepting yourself.” You continue “Finally seeing yourself the way I see you. You were so cool! I was so proud of you!”

The dream world distorts again until Epel breaks and awakens. His body returned to normal, and he was wearing his dorm uniform.

“How could I have forgotten?” Epel says with tears in the corners of his eyes. “I was going to accept the strength only I had, a strength like that poison apple... I swore it that day!”

You feel so happy to see him return to the Epel you know that you can't contain the urge to hug him. He stays still for a second because of the surprise, but right after you feel him returning the hug with affection.

“Oh dear, Epel...” Darkness Vil says horrified. “You look so frail now.”

“Misérables! Your physique towered as high as the Seven jeweled Hills themselves. Where has it gone?”

“You poor thing. That dirty spud have cursed you with a pitiful form. You certainly deserve someone better than them. Come to me instead. I'll restore your brawny beauty.”

“Yes, Vil, that's a marvelous idea! Come, Epel. Join us.”

Epel is silent for a moment. To then tell them that the Rook and Vil he knows would never say those things. And that he would be lying if he said that he didn't wish he could be big and brawny.

“But the strength I want... The brawn I want... The beauty I want... The love I want... That's for ME to decide, and for ME to claim myself! And one more thing... You insult (Y/N) again, and me punchin' yer fake face'll be the least of yer worries, I guarantee it!”

Darkness Vil and Rook tried to convince Epel to choose the dream over reality, but this only angered him even more and made him and the others attack the darkness figures. Epel finishes the fight by using his signature spell on the fake Vil and Rook.

“Hey, Epel! You finally awake?” Grim asks.

“Yeah, my head's clear now. I must've looked like a real doof to you guys, huh?”

They chit chat a little about Epel showing how strong he is for being able to overcome the darkness. Until Grim speaks again to caught Epel's attention with a serious expression and crossed paws.

“Enough chit chat. Epel, I need to sort somethin’ out with you.” Epel looks at Grim puzzledly and Grim points at him with a cute, threatening finger. “What are your intentions with my hench-human?”

Epel practically jumps in place with a panicked expression and flushed cheeks. He opens his mouth to say something, or at least try, but he can barely say a word without stuttering.

“If you need, I can play the audios of what you said so you remember what you could explain first.” Ortho suggests with a look of someone who smiles mischievously.

“NO! REALLY DON’T DO IT!” Epel begs. “Can we just forget about that for now and focus on the real issue here? I don’t even know what's going on. What was up with the fake Vil and Rook? What’s happening?!”

They show the explanatory video to Epel, explain the plan and that he should go with them to the next dream as they would go to another Pomefiore student's dream. He agrees and Ortho creates a dummy version of tall and brawny Epel to stay in that dream so as not to alert Malleus.

“Eugh! Now that I'm looking at it again... How in tarnation did Ah ever think Ah looked cool?!”

“Indeed.” You say. “The real you is so much better.”

He looks at you surprised and flattered.

“R-really?... Huh... hey... sorry about... huh...”

“I like you too, Epel.” You admit.

“You... WHAT?!”

You tell him that the feeling is mutual and everything you like about him. You also talk about how you prefer the real him, rather than that... weird version of him.

“You know, I could cheer for you in a game or two if you want.” You tease him.

“I’m... not gonna lie, I would love that.” He smiles, cutely and excited. He then gains the courage to hug you and kiss you on the cheek.

“PDA Alert!” Idia's voice is heard through the table.

Epel immediately moves away from you, embarrassed for having done it in front of the others.

If you would like to read more from me, you can find it in my pinned post: INDEX

[loojii]

Jacques incorrect headcanons:

Despite looking in pretty good health, he has a constant coughing/sneezing problem if he’s around any kind of smoke.

Pretty strong accent

Terrified of monsters to the point where if he watches a movie with some or hears a story containing some, whomever he is with has to pry him off of them with a crowbar when he jumps on and clings onto them with his entire body in fear. Cater learned this the hard way when he played his world’s version of Monsters Inc for a movie hang out. Bonus points if Jacques genuinely loves horror films/stories.

Often gets roped into zany situations/schemes without his saying so, whether it be Cater or their mutual cheerful Dodo-“esque” friend. Mostly situations that they think is a great idea HE winds up having to try/test out. Don’t pay heed to his complaining; he kinda enjoys them tbh.

“Aw c’mon, Jaqui~ have I/we ever steered you wrong?”

“Well-“

“See? Nothing to worry about!”

If Dodo friend is a thing, she actually started out as one of Cater’s online fans. The nonstalker version of Rook. Is the one that sends them the most suggestions about different wacky trends to try (most of them accidentally wind up being at Jacques expense.) Came up with the names CaJaq/JaqCay as a fan thing for her fave duo. Cay-Cay loves it.

Like an actual Lizard, Jaques has the habit of collapsing and “playing dead” if a situation gets too stressful/awkward. The first time he did it, Cater was alarmed, but seeing that Jaq wasn’t actually dead/dying, he spammed a lot of photos. Since he’s not an actual lizard, it is unknown why he does this on instinct.

Might be distantly related to Sebek. Very distantly.

You’re a great asset to this team ✍️

Him being afraid of monsters (and then more specifically giants) would make sense seeing the whole giant Alice scene :O

JaqCay is peak

[stardustandash]

It feels kinda like swinging a bat at a hornets nest but I think a lot of people's problems with Veilguard's writing is exactly why I love it?

Sure, it's campy and cheesy in places, but that is a staple of BioWare. Y'know, the game company known for rpgs with fun and campy dialogue. Like how have you forgotten your roots in Origins, DA2 and Inquisition, not to mention Mass Effect. Veilguard's dialogue tone feels very much in line with what came before, and is refreshing after playing games that are 90% serious dialogue only. If your tastes have changed over the decade since Inquisition that's fine, but maybe it's time to admit that to yourself and move on to a different franchise without hating on this one.

The other thing is that it does a lot of subtext. In Inquisition a lot of my problems with the writing was that every single thing was spelled out explicitly and it baby-stepped you into everything. Veilguard puts a lot of implications and subtext into their writing, and I see people complaining about things that are there, just not overtly said by anyone. Or it's something that has an answer in the codex. Solas lies because he's manipulating you, not because the writers are bad and forgetting canon. Brush up on media literacy and read a book or smth.

And while it would have been nice to have poor Rook included in more things around the Lighthouse with the companions, there's not a lot of space for it in the game. You're on a deadline to save the world, and you're in charge. Book club happens when you're on a mission with the companions not involved. It kinda ruins the immersion of "must build a team to save the world." Would it be fun, yes, but also, not everyone's Rooks would have the same relationships to all the characters. Sometimes it's just more fun to have headcanons.

As for the romance writing... Guys... this is an action rpg series that has romance, not a romance series with some action rpg elements. I love the romances, I really do, but they aren't the focus of the game. And if it's what you want out of a game, there are other ones out there that will fill your needs. One of the best tools in any writing is "always leave them wanting more". It's better to have less and your audience wanting more, than having too much and your audience getting bored with it. There's just enough romance content to drive you wild and keep thinking about it. That's the perfect amount. And between companion commentary and the tidbits here and there like Elgar'nan and Ghilan'nain threatening your LI, there's a lot in the game already.

TLDR; Veilguard's writing is doing what it's supposed to. It's following in the footsteps of the DA and Mass effect games that came before. Are there problems and plot holes? yeah, but no more than the other games. I have my own personal gripes with some of the writing in the factions and quests, but it doesn't detract from how much I love the game overall.

I'm just so tired of ppl hating on anything new in a franchise just because it doesn't personally cater to their tastes.

[zombiefishgirl]

How each member of the Veilguard met Mer!Mara and what were their initial impressions of her? Besides Lucanis, of course ;)

Neve-Beautuful but something off. Chronic pain issues obvious in how she moved. Not used to a high social status, her hair was not elaborately done up, scarcely brushed in fact. She seemed fascinated by Neve's prosthetic. Not in a cruel way but almost childlike in curiosity. A little standoffish. Protective of her child/ren (number dependent on which AU). She seemed nervous but eager to help. Met her when she and Rook were helping Lucanis and guests relocate.

Bellara and Davrin-Uncanny valley! Danger! Do not approach! But also...hot? Seemed to sense when she was being watched and would play up to it. Assan trusted her right away so that went a long way to reassuring Davrin.

Bellara complained of a headache one night and a fresh healing potion that soothed and did not taste awful appeared at her door in a beautiful bottle.

Bellara met her when she came through the Eluvian, she tried to hide how startled she was but could tell that she had hurt the other (elf?) and felt guilty for weeks.

Davrin was looking for Lucanis. Getting to know the team and saw her swimming naked. He was not staring! Well maybe a little...

Harding-Nice but odd maybe? Seemed shy and couldn't talk. Or rather with her voice, the hand gestures were talking. She would learn to help her feel less lonely. She helped the Dellamortes settle in and was surprised at how little the woman had.

Emmrich-A fascinating mystery! He scarcely noticed anything odd in her beauty, decades in the Necropolis rather altars ones barometer for such things. Obviously a devoted mother and a charming conversationalist (so fortunate he had learned Antivan signing from a former paramour! It came right back to him too. Manfred enjoyed this way to communicate too and loved having new playmates (one does hope the puppy does not run off with a femur again though, it can be so tricky ethically sourcing a matching set!

She had come to introduce herself as Varian was so excited about his new friend Manfred, remarkably accepting that her sons new playmate was a wisp possessing a skeleton.

Taash-"Hey did you know your wife is a mermaid?" Said on seeing Mara sitting at the Dining table and chopping ingredients. Kinda weird she had legs but wasn't in heat (well beyond a general pervasive lust aimed at the startled assassin) but whatever.

[livingthedragonlife]

50 Question for Rook

i wanted to answer all these too! despite the title of the game itself, i did ruin it a little bit by adding spoilers to my answers so! be warned!

[the ask game in question]

[my Rook, real name Valonril, also Val, I use all 3 interchangeably]

1. How old is Rook?

He is 28!

2. How did Rook get the nickname? What do they think of it?

Well, Varric says he gives it to you because it’s a powerful piece but you “think in straight lines.” Upon hearing this, Val was originally like “um?? rude? But also true, so I can’t really complain.”

3. What was Rook’s life before their faction?

Valonril was a Dalish elf and lived with his clan. He was the apprentice to the craftsmaster and had a special affinity for repetitive work and precise measurement. To this day, he can craft armor and other leather goods like belts and pouches.

He’s also trans, which his parents were split down the middle about. His dad was furious and transphobic about it, his mom wanted to support him but hated seeing him fight with his dad and always insisted he would “get used to it” and “he just needed more time.” Time passed, Val discovered the HRT potion at around 18 by asking other clans, and nothing changed. At this point, the other clan members had started to “take sides” and he absolutely hated it.

4. Which faction did they join, and why? How long has it been?

Rook left his clan at 20 after hearing about the Veil Jumpers, both to get away from his transphobic environment, but also to see if he couldn’t discover any evidence of trans ancient elves like him. The HRT potion recipe had to come from somewhere, and if other Dalish clans had the recipe, surely the ancient elves had it too. Instead! He learned some other things about Dalish history!

Despite the unpleasant surprise about the gods, he enjoyed the work of sifting through ancient ruins and learning history, even if it was difficult history. He’s been there ever since! But since Strife kicked him out for a year, I guess it’s probably closer to 7 years than 8 years.

5. What was life like for Rook before joining the Veilguard?

Discounting the year he spent with Varric, Val was defending Arlathan, discovering ancient elven artifacts, learning history, doing classic Veil Jumper things. He made friends! He was having fun! He got magic top surgery and felt free in his body for the first time! Wow!

Lots more under the cut!

6. What was the reason that brought Rook to Minrathous?

Hunting Solas, and that’s about it. His clan avoided Tevinter for obvious reasons, and he would never have come to Tevinter on his own unless it was absolutely necessary.

7. Why does Rook agree to join the Veilguard?

Because nobody else is stepping up to keep the world from being destroyed! Someone’s gotta do it!

8. What makes Rook a good leader?

Rook loves his team and wants to make sure they’re at their best, but he also has enough stubborn conviction to make tough choices and make them confidently.

9. What is Rook like on the battlefield?

He’s mainly an archer, but can whip out the double daggers if the bad guys get too up close and personal.

10. Does Rook know their history? Do they know of the HoF, Hawke, the Inquisitor?

Val doesn’t consider it “his” history, really? He’s not a Fereldan, he’s Dalish, and holds no loyalty to their heroes, even if the Hero of Fereldan was an elf (a city elf). He’s never been to Kirkwall, he’s heard about the champion, but he kinda doesn’t care? The Inquisitor was Dalish, but it’s not like his clan was even in the area at the time—they got the Fuck out of there when the demons started pouring from the sky. He’s proud that a Dalish elf got some recognition, but everyone still called her the Herald of Andraste, which annoyed him (and her too for the record). He cares as much as it impacts his life, but most of the time it really doesn’t.

11. Does Rook keep up with current events? (How aware of the situation are they at the start of the game?)

Varric had to catch him up to speed about most things outside Arlathan forest—Val really didn’t know all that much outside of the rumors and news sharing between other Dalish clans, and didn’t feel safe going into the cities much while he was a Veil Jumper.

12. Does Rook have any family? Do they keep in touch?

For a long time, his clan was his family. He does not keep in touch with them anymore, due to the aforementioned transphobia, and isn’t sure he ever wants to find them again to see if they’ve changed.

13. Did Rook bring any trinkets/sentimental items to The Lighthouse?

Valonril brough his beloved June’s Knot, an impossible puzzle named after the god of the same name. Since the game has never depicted one, I’ve imagined it as a 3D sliding block puzzle. If it could be solved, it would create a smooth surface on all sides, but there’s always at least one block out of place disrupting the shape. He loves that thang and carries it everywhere to fidget with.

14. What does Rook see when they look in the mirror?

The man he always knew he was, after years of trying to find and make him.

15. What’s the first thing people notice when Rook enters a room?

Based on the reactions of the friends I’ve shown screenshots to, it’s “oh my god he’s beautiful???” Which makes me feel very proud of myself for spending like 2 hours creating him.

Realistically, in-game, the first thing anyone in Thedas would notice right away is that he’s Dalish. Val has the full design for June’s vallaslin, from his forehead to the base of his neck, and he notices who stares, and for how long. He makes a point of staring right back.

16. Got any tattoos? What’s the story behind them?

Yes, several!

He has the vallaslin of June, the god of crafts. It’s both a practical meaning, because Rook was the craftsmaster’s apprentice before he left his clan, and a personal one. In the myths about June told by his clan, June “created himself” and as a trans man that story always resonated with him. He got his vallaslin right on time at 18, and picked it for those two reasons.

His other two tattoos are on his chest and right arm. The one on his chest is the little swirly/diamond design, he got it to commemorate his top surgery after it fully healed. The sleeve on his right arm is something he’s just doing for funsies—he started it while in the Veil Jumpers and unfortunately had to stop before the design was complete (it doesn’t cover the back of his arm or his shoulder) because Strife told him to fuck all the way off. He plans to finish it at some point!

17. How’d Rook get those scars?

Every time someone asks about Val’s top surgery scars, he changes the story to see what ridiculous thing people will believe. Sometimes it’s a bear attack, sometimes it’s from a bandit attack, sometimes he got too close to an artifact that tried to cut his hair. But yeah, it’s from top surgery.

18. Their fondest childhood memory:

Valonril didn’t really like to play with the other kids in his clan. They were too loud and wanted to run around all the time, when he just wanted to sit and play with his puzzle and listen to stories. Isera, his best friend when he was still in his clan, once came over to him while he was playing with his brand new June’s Knot toy and asked him why he wasn’t playing. He said he was playing, he wanted to play with his puzzle. It was fun. Skeptical, she sat with him and asked him to prove how it was fun. They worked on the June’s Knot together for a while, and it turned out puzzles are even more fun when you work as a team. Val glued himself to Isera from that day on, and they grew up to call each other “sisters” before Val came out, corrected to “siblings” after he began transitioning.

19. What is Rook’s love language? What love languages do they respond best to?

Quality time in both cases. Gift giving is a close second, but more than anything, Rook just likes to spend time with the people he loves. He wants to sit together and parallel play.

20. What’s it like to see them smile? Their laugh?

Rook smiles a lot, as he’s a goofy silly guy. He has prominent smile lines, his eyes squint a little, and even his tiny smiles show a bit of teeth. My guy likes big smiles!

When he laughs, his nose scrunches up and his eyes get even more pinched, if not completely closed. He also tends to laugh with his whole body, leaning over or throwing his hands everywhere.

21. What does Rook’s voice sound like? One of the voice options available, or do they have a different accent/voicecast?

He’s got the first option British masculine voice with the medium pitch. In-universe, it’s because his clan hung around Ferelden a lot. In the real world, it’s because that one was the only voice I personally felt like I could enjoy listening to for 90 hours lmao

22. Most embarrassing memory as a teenager:

Let’s do a light-hearted one, since his teenage years were rough while he attempted to assert his trans identity.

Once he accidentally put the thumb for a pair of leather gloves on the wrong side, and didn’t notice he created a pair of two left hands until he excitedly presented them to Hanarel, the craftsmaster and his mentor. He never forgot to check the design ever again.

23. What does Rook wear in the off hours? Do they like dressing up?

He dresses down as much as socially acceptable. If he’s not working he wants to be comfy, dammit! Also he goes barefoot. Shoes are a necessary evil at best, he hates being forced to wear them even if it’s an objectively good idea.

24. Does Rook have any nightly rituals before bed?

Messing with his puzzle as usual. When he gets with Davrin, it’s cuddling up by the fireplace with his boyfriend and their giant bird son. And making sure Assan gets his special nighttime treat (don’t tell Davrin)

25. How does Rook like to spend their free time? 

He enjoys playing with his puzzle, of course, but he can also be found hanging out with Bellara snarking at the Nadas Dirthalen, sitting in Harding’s garden room for a chat, playing with Assan (in or out of the Lighthouse), and pre-relationship making any excuse to talk to Davrin. After they get together, he likes to watch Davrin carve his little statues, and even parallel play by taking on a project of his own at the same time.

26. Rook is in charge of the grocery list. What’s on it?

In my mind, since Lucanis and Bellara do the cooking, most of the essentials are kept stocked, and Rook mostly goes out for himself or to pick up stuff other people need when he’s leaving:

him-ma* supplies (month supply, FRESH) (Veil Jumpers for herbs, Dock Town for agents)

Whatever Bellara forgot she needs this week (eggs, lemon)

Out of onions again??? (ask Lucanis to get double next time)

Spiced jerky

Dried fruit (whatever’s there)

Bread

Honey (for the bread)

Treats for Assan – no cheese allowed anymore :(

*Elvish for “gender transition” from this fan dictionary

27. When was the last time they cried?

Though the game doesn’t LET HIM, in my heart Valonril cries quite a bit. He prefers to break down in private or around specific people he feels safe with, if possible, but sometimes he can’t help it.

28. Does Rook have any pets/animal companions?

He WISHES he had a pet. He pets every single cat and dog in all of Northern Thedas, and seriously debates adopting a cat off the streets of Minrathous and bringing it back to the Lighthouse with him. When Assan got over being jealous and warmed up to him, Val was so happy and had the adoption papers ready.

29. Any vices?

Val is a sugar fiend. Sugar and candy were so rare growing up Dalish, and arguably even more rare as a Veil Jumper, that he will pounce on any sweet treat he sees. He picked the hot chocolate option in Treviso (before it got destroyed) and will never turn down a sweet anything.

30. What is Rook’s class? Did they choose it?

Well, I chose it, because I always play a rogue in all RPGs

In-universe, he learned archery before any other weapon when he joined the Veil Jumpers, because he was nervous at the prospect of being up close and personal in a fight. Eventually, he learned to fight with daggers, but only after mastering a bow first.

31. What specialization does Rook pursue? What called them to it?

I chose Veil Ranger because it’s what I personally liked playing.

Over the course of the game, Rook became increasingly invested in not just being a Veil Jumper, but what the Veil Jumpers represented. Preserving history, even if it’s uncomfortable, even if it’s not what anybody wants to hear. Preserving the lives of people who lived before, and the relentless pursuit of knowledge. He wanted to lean into those ideals and use them to save the world in a way that would feel most satisfying. He knows Elgar’nan and Ghilan'nain wouldn’t just kill a bunch of people—they’d wipe history clean. A blank slate for them to claim whatever they wanted about the world before they conquered it. He’s not going to let that happen.

32. How would a desire demon tempt Rook?

It would be difficult, but a desire demon’s best bet is to tempt him with the promise of magic bottom surgery. It’s what he’s been chasing for his entire transition, to the point where he’s unsure if it’s even possible without blood magic (which he doesn’t want to do), so if a demon were able to convince him it can give him the dick of his dreams without blood magic, pinky promise? He’d be in trouble.

33. What do fear demons look like to Rook?

Disappointment and/or rejection from the people around him. Rook fears the ever-present specter of “what if I’m not good enough?” Especially when people’s lives are in his hands, he worries every day about being the best possible leader he can, and takes every step fearing his inadequacy.

34. How does Rook begin their day?

Wake up. Wonder why he slept on the stupid couch instead of imagining a bed with his mind. Fix his hair (it’s a mess every morning). Go to the dining hall. See Neve and Lucanis who have been awake all night, chatting over yet another pot of coffee. Wonder how they aren’t dead yet. Pour himself a mug and laugh at their faces as he dumps cream into it. Eat whatever he feels like he won’t burn (the magic stove intimidates him).

35. Ultimate comfort food meal:

Hearth cakes are more of a dessert, but it’s still the first thing that comes to his mind when “comfort food” comes up. Especially when made properly, with halla butter and hardwood ash, it’s his favorite thing in the world.

36. What would Rook say are their flaws?

Oh, he would not be able to relay his flaws accurately. He’d say something like, “I get too worked up about my decisions, what’s done is done, and I need to focus more on moving forward instead of dwelling on the past.” Which… okay, sure, not dwelling on the past is good. But you also tend to make all your decisions on your own, because you think that’s what being a leader means, and refuse to let anyone try to alleviate your stress. Maybe you should work on that too.

37. Does Rook ascribe to a faith?

He’s not sure anymore, to be honest! The truth about the Dalish gods not actually being gods, and in fact being really shitty, was revealed to him before the events of the game, but he still reflexively uses their names to praise and curse, he still prays over his HRT potion, he’s still vallaslin despite what it used to mean. At the same time, it makes him feel kind of gross. People like that don’t deserve to be venerated. But what is he supposed to do, throw out his entire culture because of it? Reject everything that he grew up with, that made him who he is? The gods were terrible, but the stories the Dalish spun about them still shaped his life in a way he can’t unpick.

38. Did Rook have any relationships before Veilguard?

Some, but they were almost all short lived. The relationships in his clan, pre- and early-transition, never lasted more than a few months, and when he joined the Veil Jumpers he didn’t even consider starting another one until he got top surgery. Then he entered his Slut Era and had some casual sexual relationships. His longest exclusive romantic relationship there lasted a year and half and ended when the other guy decided he didn’t want to Jump those Veils anymore and left. He didn’t date or sleep with anyone before Varric showed up six months later and he got kicked out.

39. What is their room at The Lighthouse like?

Valonril decided he was going to decorate his room however he wanted, Solas’ preferences be damned. He set up a lot of Dalish stuff, like the big halla statue and the elvish bass, but also threw up the tapestry of ancient elvish tiles and wing sketches. He has his HRT potion set up on one table, a couple books are pulled out of the bookshelf, and after a particular someone overheard a particular comment, a big bouquet of Broma’s Bloom showed up in a vase by the giant fish tank.

40. Describe Rook’s bed:

That green couch or Davrin’s bed. Those are the two places he sleeps. Guess which one he prefers.

41. What’s on their nightstand?

He keeps the shaving mirror Varric gave him within “slapping the alarm clock” distance, so he can wake up and untangle his hair first thing in the morning.

42. Something Rook regrets:

He’ll always regret leaving his clan, even if it was the best thing for him. He never would have been able to transition comfortably, and he wouldn’t have ever found out about magic top surgery if he hadn’t left. But he misses it, despite everything, and sometimes wonders if he could have made it work somehow. The answer is always “no, not really.” And yet…

43. Is Rook the type to gossip?

Okay so he accidentally created a besties group for Hot Goss with Bellara and Harding because the two of them were deeply invested in him getting with Davrin, and he needed a place to vent and update them about his gay feelings. When his relationship solidifies, he immediately flipped the script to pestering Harding about Taash and what THEY were up to, and of course everyone’s noticed what Neve and Lucanis have going on. So I’d say yes, but only about extremely stupid things lmao

44. What is Rook really good at?

When he was the apprentice to the craftsmaster, Rook was always handed the projects that required a lot of repetition and precise measurement. He had a knack for eyeballing how big something needed to be and being correct, give or take a half-inch. He also really enjoyed the repetitive tasks that everyone else found boring or too time-consuming.

He’s also good at puzzles! He loves puzzles and has spent so much time doing ancient elven puzzles in Arlathan, it would be hard not to get good at them eventually.

45. Who was Rook’s closest friend before joining the Veilguard?

His bestest friend ever in the Veil Jumpers was Eloren, fellow transmasc Dalish elf who joined at around the same time he did. They bonded over transition and being really bad at calming artifacts.

46. What does it take to earn Rook’s trust?

Rook tends to automatically trust other Dalish elves more than other people, due to the upbringing that drilled into him that he shouldn’t trust outsiders. He’s not an unfriendly person, and he is better than he used to be, but others do need to work a bit harder to get him to open up.

One big thing they can do, though, is demonstrate they care about common people. Even with the reflex to close himself off, he can relate to and respect anyone who wants to help the downtrodden. The “demonstrate” is the key word here, though—despite all the talk Solas had about making the world better for everyone, he clearly didn’t actually care about any of the downtrodden people he claimed to be helping, because a lot of them would have died.

47. What’s Rook’s temper like?

Valonril is a chill guy until he isn’t, I’d say. There are a few buttons that, when pushed, instantly make him angry:

He doesn’t like being talked down to.

He doesn’t like being accused of being uncaring.

He’s stubborn about his choices, even more so when [he thinks] he’s doing the best he can to help people.

He can’t stand the people he love being talked down to or disrespected, especially in front of him, especially if they’re trans. He doesn’t want anyone to be treated like he was growing up, being called crazy or accused of not knowing himself.

Valonril knows the choices he makes, and he makes them on purpose. You can dislike them if you want, but he’ll slap you if you accuse him of being thoughtless.

A few examples: Strife bringing up that he lost the map the first time they meet again after the ritual turned an awkward-sort-of-tense meeting to Val grinding his teeth trying to be civil because he has bigger things to worry about, you bitter asshole. He had a very quiet shouting match with Taash’s mom. The first thing he said to Solas after getting out of Fade Prison was a bunch of colorful swear words.

48. A color, flower, animal, and weather to describe Rook:

Color: Maybe it’s just because I had him in the Veil Jumpers armor the almost the whole game, but Val is orange to me. Like an “autumn leaves just fell off the branches” orange.

Flower: Amaryllis, because I love flower symbolism. They represent determination, pride, beauty, love, and perseverance. They’re mostly red, but they can also be a combination of red and white, and some of them have a white petal with a freckled red spray. I like that because he has very light freckles on his face (side note, I wish I could have increased the opacity of his freckles without changing the entire complexion template)

Animal: This was tough, but I think Val is a fox. In real life cultures, foxes are know to symbolize navigating difficult situations, being resilient, cunning, and stealthy. Fits the rogue class for sure, but if “saving the world from your own gods” isn’t a difficult situation to cunningly navigate, I don’t know what is. They’re also playful and mischievous, often characterized as trickers. While he’s not really a trickster, he is a big goof, loves stupid puns, and embarrassing the hell out of his friends and boyfriend, so I think that counts.

Weather: I think Valonril is a sunshower. Rain without clouds, with the sun fully visible. A bright and cheerful storm.

49. What will always make them laugh?

Stupid puns. He’s a menace.

50. Are they a mystery, or an open book?

Val makes a point of being personable and friendly. Being a leader isn’t his whole personality, he does other things, and he’s not shy to be who he is anymore.

+1 What does Rook smell like?

He cleans his own armor and weapons very often, so he almost constantly smells like tallow and beeswax. The floral soap he uses isn’t nearly strong enough to cover it up, so basically, he smells like flowers and leather conditioner.

Near the end of the game he uses electricity magic on his weapons a lot, so I imagine once he starts doing that he smells faintly like ozone during and slightly after a fight, kind of metallic and sharp.

[gikairan]

If you wanna know my thoughts on the game (There will be some spoilers)

Its good! I had a lot of fun! At no point did i go "wow im not having fun"!!!

The combat didnt overstay its welcome, and stayed a good difficulty all the way through. The major bosses managed to all feel pretty different and were engaging to play

And like.... ive seen hints of what people are Discoursing about and i just dont care...

One is "you cant be evil!" And like, have you been able to be evil since DAO? Have you?? Because you kinda havent.

"Writing is bad" Idk man it seemed fine to me. Look, maybe i just like wallowing in trash or something, idk. But nothing made me cringe, nothing made me wish for it to end. Like, the worst i feel in terms of the games writing is that there was one faction, and associated companion, i could not care less about. So that content was a slog. But ill be honest, the entire concept of that faction was always going to be a hard sell to me.

"Companions arent mean to each other!" Idk man, half the fandom hates the (mostly female) characters that are mean to their male favs so like... having everyone get along was probably for the better. Also did you miss the part where Solas commends you for building a team based on trust and friendship? It is literally a power of friendship story!

Like ill give that theres not a lot of opportunity for roleplaying. Rook DOES feel like a very set personality that you can customise exactly what they say, but it all kinda ends up the same vibe But... have many Bioware games are different? Having a voice acted PC limits how many dialogue options you can have, because otherwise the amount of voice lines needed just grows and grows and grows. Like it doesnt feel wrong to me, because thats sort of what i expected from a modern Bioware game? And maybe others should lower their expectations too? this is clearly the course the studio is on, and if you dont like it... you dont have to play their games? Spend more time playing Larian games, or... Owlcat i think theyre called? The ones who made the Pathfinder games, and Warhammer Rogue Trader. Give them your money, and prove theres a demand for that kind of stuff. Instead of expecting a studio owned by a publisher a little hostile to single player story based games to give you that kind of RPG.

Like, i had a good time. I dont really care what other people didnt like about it. There wasnt any big major things that bothered me..... Seriously my biggest complaint is "I dont like how they handled Taash being an immigrant, and their Choice being a binary decision between Qunari culture and Rivain culture. Especially combining with their sub-plot of exploring their gender identity as... non-binary. It feels contradictory!"

Everything else is fine! Its exactly the kind of game i enjoy!!

I also did feel like Bioware heard some of the most common complaints about Inquisition and basically did the opposite. WAY more focus on companions, reduction of busywork quests, more focused maps, making a big decision that actually has major consequences for the rest of the game.... its all a pretty big improvement. I appreciate it a LOT, because playing inquisition again was a struggle. This is way more FUN to play, and will be easier for me to replay in the future

IDK man, i just wish people would stop complaining every time a new dragon age game comes out and it isnt exactly what they want 🙃 I definitely have a lot less complaints about this game than Inquisition, and boy did i get tired of the discourse around Inquisitions release!!

[kurayami10]

Rival's beauty

Vil Schoenheit x (Neige's sister) female Reader

Notes: I almost end up writing the whole chapter 5 Word Count: 1.5K Warning: Heavy spoiler chapter 5

Re-uploading my stories is prohibited.

  Vil has disbelief on his face. He’s madly in love with his arch-enemy's sister. He never knew that Neige had a sister. Neige being the most famous actor and Influencer in the world, Vil honestly never knew Neige would have a sister. He meets Neige’s sister on the first days of VDC, and he already has feelings for her, and it's like love at the first sight or something that’s what Vil thought about it.

At first, he didn’t want to admit that he had been looking at the girl when she was helping her brother on the stage, but he was very kinda distracted that he had been looking at her for about 10-20 minutes. Vil didn’t believe in himself him being ridiculous in love with a girl he barely knew, but every time when he looks her—he can’t help but feel a little spark in his heart.

    After a few days of knowing of Neige’s sister's existence, Vil and his team finished their practice 2 days before the Vocal & Dance Championship. Rook is the first person to know of Vil's worry about something that he knows, of course, due to him being the Vice dorm of Pomefiore. He walks toward Vil and places a hand on his right shoulder.

     “Roi du poison, What’s wrong?” Rook worryingly asks as he looks at Vil on his face, then Vil knocks out of his state and stares at Rook, “Nothing, I was only thinking strategies to win this competition” as he tries to change the topic and avoid Rook’s gazing on him. Then Vil walks away and sees Ace and Deuce whisper about something and as soon they see Vil coming toward them, quickly stopped whispering and got in position. 

     “Shoot, Vil is coming.” Ace curses and slightly push Deuce away from him, causing almost trip over on the floor, but Deuce manages for preventing to happen. As soon as Vil sees his team, he clasps his hands, “Alright everyone, One more practice, and then this is over until tomorrow.” while everyone groans and went in on their position in line.

      A few hours pass by, and everyone goes back to Ramshackle Dorm to rest for the next practice, as always Deuce and Ace feel pain in their feet, as they were dancing and tripping too hard hours ago.

    “Man, I hate this, why are we even in this stupid championship.” Ace complains as he sits on the sofa in the lounge of Ramshackle Dorm. “We are here to win the championship, and that’s why Vil wants us to help him to win it, Ace” Deuce explained. Ace entirely sighs and groans, “Whatever, we better win it, then after this, am I out.”

    Then Epel came into the living room with an apple juice in his hand, “Guys…I just saw a girl standing outside the dorm, and I think she’s looking for Vil-senpai..” as Vil soon hears his name, he gets up and walked toward Epel, “Baby potato, who’s this person?” he questions to Epel, “ Her name is Y/N LeBlanche, and she told me if you are here.” and that moment when Vil’s eyes wides a bit.

    ‘Neige’s sister…? Here to see me? For what?’ he curiously thought about it. Then he goes to the main door from Ramshackle Dorm, and as soon he opens the door, he sees a h/c haired girl and her s/c glow as the sun shines on her beautiful skin. “Hello!” the h/c haired girl greets and gently waves at Vil with a cute smile on her face, “Hello there…Is there something I can help you with?” Vil looks at her trying to keep his focus here. “Yes! Are you the competitor of this year's Vocal & Dance Championship?” the girl curiously asks.

Vil stares at her for a minute, ‘Why is she asking this question?’ he sighs, and calmly looks at the girl, “Yes, Why are you asking or do you need something?” then h/c haired girl just smile at him, “I was just wondering since I want to explore around the school before the Championship but I’m kinda lost, and I end up in here, hehe.” the young girl chuckles, “Oh, My name is Y/N LeBlanche!” Y/N cheerfully says while she smiles.

   Vil just stood there not knowing what to do, so he tries to speak up, “Nice to meet you, Y/N.” he gently greets her. ‘Why is Neige’s sister in here, again?’  as he stares at Y/N again, ‘I need to say something’  then he clears his throat, “My name is Vil Schoenheit, Is there something else that you need, Miss LeBlanche?”

    Y/N smiles at him, “No, but I do want to wish you luck on this competition…I know you’re competing with my older brother but good luck on this contest.” she smiles at him. Y/N maybe be Neige’s younger sister but this doesn't mean she must support her own brother, she’s allowed and believes she can vote for another team rather than her own brother’s team.

     Vil didn’t know how to react or respond, and he keeps looking at her, but he is currently torn between his past and present. All the pain he had when he was a child, and when he was in middle school—he was being bullied by mean kids because he was chosen the role of villain. He heavily dislikes being the villain, and he was never chosen the role of a hero, all the positions that he has taken in the past are always the villain role, and that's why he have being bullied from his home the Land of Pyroxene. Vil hates Neige all his guts, and wants to beat him in this year’s championship, he only hopes to win it.

     Maybe is this the time to change just for a bit? He won’t just let his guard down that easily but he stared at Y/N and slightly smile at her. Also, he’s glad he met this girl that he just met a few days ago while he was just staring at her helping Neige’s song on the stage.

About a few hours ago after Vil and Y/N's encountered, Vil thought that Y/N would be like her brother’s personality but he was kinda wrong about it, in reality, she’s different than her brother, but he doesn’t mind that she’s being honest with herself saying like “Don’t worry what’s gonna happen after the VDC” something like that. He just wants to be good himself and show the world how good his work is and he’s very hardworking. 

No matter what he tries in order to be at the top, he won’t beat Neige ever.

    It has been 2 days since Vil meets Y/N in person, and now he’s very nervous about today's competition. Currently, he sees his team all already discussing their next move once they're next up to the stage. Vil sees Neige with the dwarfs up on the stage and all of them greet the audience and prepare to sing. Then he saw Y/N talking with some RSA male students thanking them for coming for her brother’s performance. Her beautiful smile shines in his dark world, and he tries to not blush in front of his teammates but failed as he keeps staring at her as always.

  Suddenly Y/N turns toward Vil and a huge smile appears on her face and runs toward him, ‘She’s coming toward me…I don’t want the rest to know I like her or see me red when she’s near me.’ then he quietly walks away from his team and meets up with Y/N as soon she gets near him.

“Hi, Vil!” Y/N happily greets him as she hugs him not too hard. Vil personally heavily dislikes anyone touching him or hug, but…he’ll let Y/N and he doesn’t know why he lets her hug him, but it this very weird of him to let someone in his personal space.

“Hello, Miss LeBlanche.” he formally greet her then Y/N gave him a weird look and laugh, “Vil! Just call me by my name, Y/N, and no need to be formal toward me.” she chuckles then steps back a bit and looks at Vil’s eye. “I want to say again that good luck on VDC!  You have my vote…and remember I would be cheering at you once you’re on the stage!” she smiles at him.

Y/N wishing Vil good luck on this Vocal & Dance Championship? This is very rare of this. Vil actually never got a compliment or wished luck for him, but he only hope he just win for once. He doesn’t want to show his hatred for Neige in front of Y/N since her brother, because Y/N would probably he's mean or something.

After a few lines when Neige finished up the song and he cheerfully looked at the audience, smiles at the crown and they all clapped and scream for Neige’s adorable at the Heigh-ho! song.

Heigh ho, heigh ho, I’m hungry!

It’s about time. Let’s bake delicious bread!

Let’s bake, let’s bake! Birds, you sing too!

Every day is so wonderful, so fun!

Then suddenly the crowd screamed and threw beautiful confetti at Neige, while some of them sob at the cute performance. This made Vil really angry doesn’t notice that Y/N was looking at him with worry on her face.

She wants to help him, but she’s too afraid that Vil will say  ‘I don’t need help’ or ‘I don’t need anyone's pity’ because in reality there is something wrong with him. Vil just left from there and went inside the building and was unaware of Y/N as she looks him leaving her behind and Y/N not knowing what would happen to him as she felt something negative energy from him. ‘Vil…..’

[rook-specter]

Rook's Poker Night at the Inventory conversations Part 1

Badgerclops: Hey Clairen, you kinda remind me of Mao Mao if he was cooler. Don't tell him I said that. Clairen: Oh really? What's Mao Mao like? Badgerclops: Well first off, his full name is Mao Mao Mao, and- Kani: Seriously? And I thought having 4/5 of my team having the same surname Maki was crazy... Badgerclops: I think that's even crazier, actually. Anways, back to what I was saying. Clairen, you have a sword, you're a cat, and you're fighting evil. Except you're a lot cooler, and I don't care if I'm hurting Mao Mao's feelings by saying this. Clairen: Interesting...

Kani: Hey, Peppino? Peppino: What-a is it? Kani: You've dealt with sentient food, so can you tell me some of your stories? Peppino: I'm-a not-a sure about-a that one, crab lady. I guess-a there's this Cheeseslime named The Vigilante, and he's-a probably one of the only big-a threats I faced that I don't-a have beef with... Kani: Yeah, and you can get real angry like me... Except you're even more dangerous... Running through all those Cheeseslimes like crazy...

Badgerclops: Yo crab gal, do you ever realize that being the smallest one at the table, or ON the table, gives you a lot of disadvantages playing poker? Kani: Yeah, but I don't let that bother me. I'm a crab, I'm not gonna complain that it's hard to do something just because I'm small. Badgerclops: That's some dedication right there.

Peppino: YEEEOOOOWWWW!! Kani: What the?! Clairen: What's wrong, Peppino? Peppino: Nothing... I'm-a just reminded of... THE WAR. Kani: The war? Badgerclops: Oh boy... Peppino: Every few-a minutes, I'm-a reminded of the dark-a times of my life... where I served in the war... It-a brings me neverending pain... And the memories won't stop... Kani: That is some bleeped-up bleep, Peppino. Clairen: That's almost as bad as the dark future I come from... Peppino: NO, DON'T-A REMIND ME AGAIN!

Peppino: So, uh... How-a did you guys find-a the inventory? Kani: Tako found a poster for it while we were fighting the Legion of Low Tide. He decided that we go there on a Saturday night, but he was kicked out due to the mess he made with his ink. Clairen: Ayala mentioned it, so I was curious. Was it some kind of hideout for heroes, or was it Loxodont's secret lair? As it turns out, it's just a place to play poker and get drinks and snacks. Badgerclops: We just kinda stumbled upon it, and Adorabat got all excited when she saw it, and went, "Oooh, looks like a fantastically fun place!" and I was like, "Adorabat, you're not old enough to be in here! Aren't you five?" and then she was like, "Yeah, you've got a point." And then Mao Mao was like, "What's the point of this location?" and then I was like, "To have fun!" And then- Kani: Okay, this is gonna go on for a long time and make me crabby, so how about you cut it there. Badgerclops: Okay, fine. Jeez.

Badgerclops: So, uh... Peppino, do you think I could stop by your pizza place to get some pizza? Peppino: A-yeeesss! That would be-a fantastic! Clairen: Okay, but are your pizzas up to health code? Peppino: Uhhhhhh... Badgerclops: I couldn't care either way, pizza is pizza.

Badgerclops: Hey, crab gal. Why are your pincers on your head? Kani: Don't give me weird questions about my anatomy! Badgerclops: I'm sorry, that's just not... anatomically correct! That just makes you more of a cat... crab... Kani: Well, I do have the claws for it.

Peppino: Okie dokie, Clairen. You're the element of-a fire, and you wield a fire sword? Clairen: Yep. Peppino: Ain't plasma and fire the same-a thing? Kani: Not really. All fire is plasma, but not all plasma is fire. Like, a lightning bolt isn't fire, but it's still plasma. Badgerclops: Heh, so that just makes classifying plasma as fire even more dumb. Kani: Well, I wouldn't go that far. Clairen: Well, if you really want to see how my world works, then you just come to Aether yourselves.

Badgerclops: Seeing all these aces reminds me of my hyperfocus machine that makes edible playing cards. Kani: Wait, what? Badgerclops: I don't remember making it, but it exists! Do YOU have a hyperfocus mode, crab gal? Kani: If by a hyperfocus mode, you mean, "going crazy creating stuff and then forgetting the next day", kind of. Sometimes I have random bouts of creativity, so I create something like a paper shredder on wheels with a knife taped to it, and the others just get confused as to why I made them, and I do remember making them, I just don't remember WHY. Peppino: Did the knife paper shredder have-a sentience? Kani: I wouldn't call it sentience, more like... a drive of chaos. Clairen: You two make some... really crazy stuff.

Kani: Hey, Badgerclops? Badgerclops: Yeah? Kani: Why do you call me crab gal? You know my name. You know it's Kani. Badgerclops: I dunno, that's just the name I default to. Don't you ever have one of those moments? Kani: Ikura certainly has those moments. Badgerclops: Are you and your friends literally just... sentient sea creatures? Kani: Not all of them, Wasabi's a mound of spicy mustard. Peppino: Hit-a that shit with a net. Kani: ...What???

[pianostarinwonderland]

Okay so, now that the EN translation's been out for a while, what are some things you like and dislike about it?

In general, the EN localization isn't bad at all! I see that the team does put care into the way they translate the character writing: what words should they use for translating someone's dialogue, what phrasing can they go with, etc. There are grammatical errors, sure, but what game doesn't have grammatical errors? XD It's clear that they are treating this seriously, and especially compared to some of the things I hear about Enstars' localization, I'm like, "Yeah. We got off really well."

I'm pretty content with how the Octavinelle trio is localized. Their writing is handled well. I really love how they write Azul's dialogue! He's a mix of brilliant and comedic, and I live for it. Jade and Floyd are also good. I like the way they capture Floyd's spontaneity. I like that they captured the "textbook spirit" (idk how else to word it) that Jade's dialogue tends to have. Honestly, as long as they don't totally fuck up Octavinelle, I won't be totally pissed off.

I also like some of the translated titles/event names! The Phantom Bride as the EN name for Ghost Marriage is absolutely gorgeous, and it manages to capture this whimsical Disney vibe in just 3 words. The 'Mean Bean Machine' is a title you earn from completing the first Beans Day event, and that has to be the cutest fucking thing on earth.

By no means am I saying that the localization is perfect, however. There are still terms that I dislike or prefer to not use simply because I don't understand the need to change them. I will still use dorm leader over housewarden, unique magic over signature spell, magical shift over spelldrive, magical wheel over blastcycle. I'm a JP player, so the habit will be difficult to break, and I do expect for a lot of players to have an awareness of the JP terms, especially on this blog. 😅

I will say that most of my issues with TWST EN are centered around how they localize certain terms for Jamil. 🤡 I'm Filipino and not Arabic or Indian or African, so I acknowledge that I don't really have much of a say in this. But I heard people from those nations/cultures reacting to Jamil's UM being Snake Charmer and Rook's nickname for Jamil being Monsieur Pyramide. 😭 And they dislike it for the reason that it's orientalist or that it's disrespectful. It's so weird that they'd take out Sam's bones but pull this shit off with Jamil. Rook's nickname for Jamil especially ticks me off because not even thinking of the connotations, how does a pyramid even describe Jamil? At least Monsieur Multi can let you infer on Jamil's talents, but why pyramid? To say Jamil's talent is great or something? That he's some complicated maze or something? 🤨

This is a small thing, but I also am miffed that Absolutely Beautiful was commissioned in the EN version, where in the JP version, it was written by Vil. Vil is known to work very hard for himself and his career. He knows that this is an event that people around the world will watch, and he also knows that Neige is going to compete against him. In one sentence, TWST EN just... undermined Vil's character. 🤡 Like damn, chapter 5 already kinda sucked in its execution, at least keep the part about Vil writing his own song.

In general, I do find that there are inconsistencies with the writing. You can identify which stories got the good writers and which stories got writers that decided to go fuck it with the canon lore. In the kind of format that TWST is, the inconsistency is a bit glaring. But it isn't a big enough issue, unless it's mistakes like Ruggie being Savanaclaw's vice dorm leader.

Lastly, although this isn't a problem with the translation anymore, I do get concerned about the pacing of events. I'm not personally too bothered because my main account will always be the JP version, but hearing people panic or complain about the pacing of the events is very worrisome. The intent for fast paced events is to incentivize more players to spend, and I also understand that if the content is there, why be as slow as JP? But honestly, this is also one very good way to lose players. 🧍 TWST EN has to be really careful because it's already harder to make money with mobile games in the west than in Japan due to cultural differences. They can't scare off their players.

So yes, there are good things about the localization, there are things that can be improved. Overall, TWST EN is being done with care, and I think that's what really matters. As long as they are also listening to feedback, then it's going to go well.

[chibichibisha]

Omg I was looking through the drive file and I cannot believe I forgot about track and field club they're so cute. But now I wanna know what clubs everyone else is in!! So sha, oh wise one, tell us about The Clubs

Something I love about these types of settings is that we don't only have dorm interactions, we also have classmates and clubs!! And that expands a lot the relationships of a character! And at the end it feels natural that they know more or less everyone around the campus. Be ready this might get long!

So just as you know already, Kero is in the track and field club!! He is an upperclassman for Jack and Deuce and he wants them to rely on him for that, so he always wants to be supportive and cool for them. Thing is, he is sometimes too careless about it, and more than teaching them things or guiding them, he just puts the passion on the team, haha. Deuce and Jack like him though! They are a cute group of doggies.

Ermine is another one that is pretty clear already because of his bday card, he is on the Light Music club. He wanted to be active in it, but in his first year realized that they aren't too interested in performing. So he mostly uses his trumpet on dorm activities. He has a good relationship with the rest of the members, and honestly, they are the main reason Ermine has a break, since they insist him into joining them into their snack time and chatting. He is the most serious and diligent, but he is more "himself" with them. He usually listens to Lilia's advice, goes along with Kalim ideas and lets Cater take selfies of them. Pretty chill group.

Nahal is on the basketball club!! He doesn't look like it, but he is somewhat a sporty guy, a good balance between good student and good athlete, so that's why he choose a sport club. He may be the shortest on the team but he is quick and can jump pretty high. Ace kinda complains always about Nahal "cheating" because of his wings, which makes Nahal confront him every time. He is wary of Floyd but that doesn't mean he also lectures him, and runs away from him afterwards. Jamil is with the one he gets along the best, but is a bit tired of Nahal putting on a fight so easily if gets offended haha. A bit of a chaos, but they have fun.

Gilmo is in the board game club. He is also an upperclassman in the club for Azul and Idia (even if Idia is now on the same grade) so he usually does as he pleases. He likes card games the most and teaches others about the different variants, or what you can do with them. He is a bit too eager about making bets for everything, but he is not allowed. He is fond of Azul and Idia, but he spends more time with Ortho. Ortho is the one that shows him the latest game that Idia enjoys, and Gil is always surprised about how advanced they look. Nobody has won him a card game yet. Monopoly games are a big event on the club, but they never finished one haha.

Rossain is part of the Movie Appreciation Club and is an actual actor. Vil doesn't like his egoistical side, but recognizes his talent, so prefered to take him under his wing and show him the right way and not let it waste. Because of this, Ross respects Vil a lot even if he still envies him for what he accomplished already, but maintains a bit of a “student/teacher” relationship. Vil is able to make Rossain listen to him and usually asks him for some favours, and Rossain complains but he actually does as he is asked. Whenever Rossain may get in trouble because of his complicated behaviour, Vil threatens him to kick him out of the actor team and leave him for the support one, which Ross always whines about. Also, Rossain likes to appear more intellectual and smart than what he truly is, so he doesn’t understand the indie movies Vil makes them watch on projects. Ross is totally Vil’s minion after a couple months at the club for sure. Could be worse, Vil appreciates Rossain deep down.

DeShawn, of course, is in the Magical Shift club. Seems pretty obvious for a guy like him after all, but even being in a sport that is quite ruthless, DeShawn is known for his too violent way of playing, which makes him get scolded easily by Ruggie on Leona’s behalf, when he actually doesn’t mean to get on problems, he just doesn’t think too much. When he plays with the team, it is one of the few times he is having fun for real, and his mood is much better than the rest of the time. In fact, he is not that bad of a teammate, but it’s hard that he listens to others and convinces him not to risk too much. That’s sometimes good, and sometimes not that good. DeShawn also thinks Leona is a very cool guy and respects him as a leader, while Leona doesn’t mind much, but likes to be admired that way. He is competitive against Epel and doesn't underestimate him, so you can call them somewhat friends. Actually a cooperative club, but ruthless.

Malik is in the Mountain lovers club! He was on the basketball one but got bored and changed it the moment Jade found it. He prefers a much more relaxed club, and the activities that offer him are actually pretty enjoyable for him. The hikes on the mountain and the green nature reminds him more of his hometown, so he thinks he will stay in this one for long. Pretty chill with Jade, actually, doesn’t mind his love for mushrooms and doesn’t mind that he is interested in pretty plain stuff that they found on the walks. Malik explains to Jade the different plants he recognizes and Jade explains to him the contrast with his own birthplace. Malik sometimes scares away the animals they found, but it’s not his intention. A weird duo that actually gets along pretty well.

Virginie is in the equestrian club, if you guessed right. He took horse riding classes when he was a kid so it seemed like a club where he could have a base on from the beginning. Despite his refined and unbothered look, and taking into account he doesn’t like physical work, Virginie knows a lot about horses and the cares of them, and seems to like when first years listen to his advice about the discipline. He is not the best at races honestly, but he is almost the best at dressage. Riddle kind of admires this, but Sebek is not very interested. Virginie gets along the best with Silver.

Finally, Cornelius is in the science club. He is aware that it is a bit of a polifacetic club, where one does not only execute some experiments and create potions, but they also raise their own ingredients and make better formulas for different stuff. For him, it is quite funny, because he is interested in the oldest way of alchemy. What can he create? Will he discover something? If he applies other methods, would the result be different? He does not pretend to go blindly or chaotically about it, like maybe Rook can be seen (since he seems to need supervision everytime), Cornelius is genuinely curious about every possibility, and compares different methods to see how things had advanced since he was a kid. Trey is also scared of this, but one can rationate with him, most of the time at least. Everyone at the club believes Cornelius knows how to create an homunculus, and someday he will be successful. He is fond of his fellow clubmates and always invites Trey and Rook to try and prove his new hipotesis.

[tsukikoayanosuke]

(Temporary) Final Thoughts of Pomefiore Arc

Since this is my official first-time experience of playing this 'live', I haven't read the translation fully. So, I'll probably re-doing this after reading/watching everything.

Essentially what I like and what I'm mixed with.

I will first address something that has been bugging me since early update. And that's about the delay. Now, I'm not going to talk about the actual delay, but the reaction. Lots of people complaining and blaming the staff and just... Guys, give them some slack. Do you know what happens when you rush production? You'll get something like Frozen 2, where they had to edit so much stuff in just 6 months before the release date because of the failed test screening. As someone who once made an RPG, coding is hard, especially something massive like Twisted-Wonderland. Sitting in front of your computer for six hours straight, coding and beta testing over and over, making the OST, scripting, voice acting. This is a massive group project and it can't be rushed even if you want to unless you want it to be glitching so bad like the Ghost Marriage incident (or was it Fairy Gala?)

Especially during this pandemic and all its protocol. My parents are professors and even they don't go to campus every day, instead, they use zoom to teach and for work meetings. I barely go out from my own house except for physical therapy and volunteer work, which usually once in two weeks because we take turns. Are you saying the staff must risk their health just for a gacha game? Guys, they might be a professional, but they are still human. Cut some slacks. Be grateful we haven't gone into absolute development hell. Yes, the Halloween event was big, but Pomefiore Arc is part of the Main Story, of course, they will give extra care compare to filler event (which might be created in the first place to give them more time in Pomefiore Arc development, which is why we don't get any Christmas event)

On to the story, I don't know how to rate the scale, but it might be slightly lower than Scarabia Arc. Can you really compare a school talent show to a rebellion? Also, in paper, this should be more light-hearted than the four arcs before it.

However, the lack of stake didn't reduce the content quality. From what I remember, there is not a single chapter that can be count as filler, from Yuu's befriending Mickey, the understandably training arc, Vil's unique magic, Deuce and Epel bonding, and the actual VDC (but I do think the tour around the campus with Riddle and Trey was a bit boring)

Also, slight worldbuilding. We finally see Sage Island in its full glory and found out RSA is a freaking Disney Castle and on the same island!

This also gives us possibly the longest rhythm game, plus chibi Jamil rapping. There's just a lot of singing in this episode, which is understandable.

I appreciate Yuu finally taking notice of the Great Seven dreams, which I hope we can get more of this and actually do something with this and not just Disney Movie references, which later in the Episode shows Yuu sort of connecting their dream and Vil's poisoning attempt.

Speaking of Vil, he's a fantastic character. Okay, I aware that we can't like all characters, there will be haters anywhere. But it seems like Vil is hated a lot because he's 'arrogant' and 'only care about beauty'. Guys, he's not Jeffery Star. This Episode shows Vil as someone much more: a hard worker, passionate in acting, and a great teacher. I always see Vil as the more mature of the cast, the mentor. And he's also basically bullied when he was a child. "TV told me how to feel" as they would say, and children believe everything they saw on TV, so of course they would see Vil as the villain. It's also interesting, as someone mentioned earlier, how Vil is a foil to Leona, where Leona just gave up, Vil doesn't stop and keep striving, and that's an admirable trait. He just wants to get the protagonist role for once and break the norm.

Another character that I like is the new combo, DeuPel (Deuce and Epel). I should've known that they will be bad boy buddies with one trying to get away from the past, while the other wants to embrace it but can't at the moment. The shouting moment at the beach is wonderful despite I haven't read the full translation. Separately, Deuce shines so much with his willingness to learn. Meanwhile, Epel finally respecting Vil and all the training is probably one of the best character development so far.

Why one of the best? Because Kalim has great character development. How he grows to be more mature in this Episode really warms my heart. Again, I need to read/watch the translation to appreciate this more. The way he reassures Jamil to take the part as the main singer, but at the same time work hard to maybe get a spot as well is great.

Sadly, because Epel taking the spotlight as Deuce's partner, Ace was sort of underused. Same as Jamil, but sort of worse since he overblotted in the last chapter but has less development than Kalim. Rook also might seem doesn't do much, but he's more as Vil's support, which is why I kinda forgive him.

But, the highlight of this is probably our very own Snow White, Neige Blanche. Can I just say how much I appreciate that Niege doesn't have a dark side? He's a sweet boy and I just really appreciate that considering we're surrounded by a cast of not so great people, it's kinda refreshing to see someone just pure. The dwarves' design are also adorable, can't really say more since we haven't seen them in depth.

And since this is a School Festival Arc, all 22 students have a cameo. I know some people who are thrilled to finally Idia in the main story and to meed Che'nya again since Episode 1.

Unfortunately, Crowley proved to be useless again. When he finally appears in this final update I screamed: "SIR! Where were you?!"

Let's go back with Rook. What he did in the last update was definitely shocking. I knew something is wrong when he smiles after Vil's monologing. So this is the only time through the update I read the translation. And I sort of get it.

So, Rook and Vil's relationship should mirror how the Evil Queen and the huntsman. I mentioned above that Rook is Vil's support and I mean that. Rook and Vil's relationship is another level of prefect and their vice. It's just fascinating. Rook is just as reliable as Jade, but also not afraid to against his perfect like Jamil, also is not afraid to say something against his perfect, unlike Trey.

And it shows in this finale. Rook is always praising the beauty of things and Vil's hard works is truly a sight, but the way Vil unable to believe in himself, it clouded what is supposed to be something truly beautiful. Compare to Neige who is basically Snow White, the purest Disney Princess, there's just no way Rook would not pick RSA. I admit, I was pissed when RSA win, but when Rook started talking, I knew there was something more. And I finally found it. Rook's message is basically "believe in yourself", the most Disney-thing ever.

Saving the best (or worst) for last, I was terrified when Grim happened. We already guess that Grim is the same monster in the prologue, but I never thought it will happen so soon. The flashed of the monster and Yuu's carriage is also a point, but we have so little info that he can't pull a conclusion yet. Is this a timeloop? Is this a vision? This is the darkest ending we've gotten and I'm scared of what will happen.

Overall, Pomefiore Arc is an enjoyable Episode, definitely a step up emotionally. The cast are wonderful as always, the theme of hard work and believing in yourself are spot on, Vil's hero journey is great (I'll give more explanation soon). Great job, team.

[fumikomiyasaki]

Leroy Violet

Relationships with The Twisted Wonderland Canon:

Heartslabyul

Riddle Rosehearts:

Leroy can't stand Riddles attitude. He doesn't head any on Riddles Orders and avoids him at any cost. If they do have to do something together, Riddle mostly complains about Leroy and his Style of Fashion which leads to them bickering hours on end.

Ace Trappola:

Because Ace is a bit more in the mischievous Side, Leroy did Took and interest in him as Well as They more have some Chatter from time to time.

Although he still occasionally teases Ace as well.

Deuce Spade:

Leroy calls Deuce sometimes a boring piece of Wood. He tolerantes him sometimes when Ace is around. But his serious attitude mostly is quite a Bore to Leroy.

Cater Diamond

Leroy keeps a close tie to Cater because Cater keeps Up with all sorts of Trends and Leroy's Goal is to stay popular. They so chat from time to time competing a bit in who is better.

Trey Clover

Because He protects Riddle so much, Leroy likes to call him his guard Dog. He also has No respect whatsoever for Trey, because He thinks Treys way of living seems Like livking the shoes Just To get Advantages, which Leroy despises. Leroy after all thinks a leader should Not command But recommend and encourage the group. Which is why He sees himself as one.

Savanaclaw

Leona Kingsscholar:

Leroy doesn't Like Leonas prideful Nature, because He likes to be treated as an equal.

However despite that Leroy mostly tends to stay away from Leona, mostly because He fears to upset him.

Ruggie Bucchi:

Ruggie and Leroy is a Team you don't wanna mess with. Together They plan pranks across the school using Leroy's invisibility.

They also hang Out eating together to come Up with new ideas. It caused both of them quite a Reputation around the school.

But in the end Leroy kinda Sees Ruggie as a junior and wants to See him grow Stronger than He was in His past.

Jack Howl:

Leroy made a Deal with Jack to not talk with him. Mostly because it didn't end well the first time. Still Leroy is quite curious about His Powers.

Octanivelle

Azul Ashengrotto

Azul and Leroy have a neutral relationship to another. Leroy respects him but also doesn't trust him. Mostly because He thinks His contracts are "fishy". However Leroy kind of feels that Azul went through something similar to him to be like this.

Floyd Leech

Leroy and Floyd usually get along pretty well. Leroy thinks Floyd is refreshing because He is unpredictable. And mostly They Just hang out and Talk about what weird new ideas they had all day.

Jade Leech

Jade doesn't like Leroy much. He thinks Leroy is a Bad influence for His brother (even though it is probably the Opposite).

As Well as Jade got caught Up in lots of Leroy's pranks by accident and so has Had lots of Bad experiences with him.

Scarabia

Kalim Al-Asim

Leroy is not really interested in Kalim or His riches. Occasionally thanks to Mellow getting along with Kalim He helps him Out, But except that Leroy Sees Kalim as someone uninteresting to him.

Jamil Viper

Compared to Trey Leroy respects Jamil more, for one because He thinks Jamil is not bound by His duty and secondly because He thinks Jamil Has a cool Look that Leroy kind of admires and respects.

He is quite taken aback to Talk to him.

Pomefiore

Vil Schoenheit

Leroy is disgusted with him. Not only because Henry hangs Out with him, But also because His Sense of Beauty is to Leroy just ugly. Because Leroy wants to Look cool, Not beautifull and also because He feels Vil IS pretty demanding, He avoids him.

Rook Hunt

Leroy gets headaches from listening to Rook. He tends to distract him once Rook tries to talk to him.

Just To make a dash and run away.

Epel Felmier

At first Leroy wanted to Take Epel similar to Ruggie under His Wing, however once He saw how Epel actually His He tends to Just leave him be, because Epel can fend for himself.

Ignihyde

Idia Shroud

Leroy Sees in Idia the only Person He can Share His secret Side with. The nerdy Leroy who wears Glasses, reads Manga, wants to stay inside all day and dislikes pressure. Mostly because Idia is quite similar to him. So They make a deal that Leroy gets him stuff from the outside and Idia keeps Leroy's Secret.

Ortho Shroud

Of course Ortho also knows about Leroy and Idias friendship but mostly He wants to get both of them outside and be who They want to be. So it's quite a struggle stopping These bookworms from hiding.

Diasomnia

Malleus Draconia

Although most people don't approach hin, Leroy felt that it was not only because of His powerful aura But because Malleus is quite similar to Leroy's past self a Outcast. As he saw Malleus Play with a Tamagotchi in Secret, Leroy was Sure about it.

So he Kind of tends to use His Invisibility to surprise Malleus and see what He is doing, But mostly without actually talking to him.

Lilia Vanrouge

Leroy tends to talk occasionally to Lilia but mostly Just trying to get information out of him and failing at it.

Sebek Zigvolt

Leroy tends to get annoyed with him quickly. His overly loyalty to Malleus kinda pisses Leroy Off, because He thinks it harms Sebek more than it helps him. He fears it won't end well for him to blindly follow His Leader.

Silver:

Similar to Lilia He Took interest in who He was, however with some attempts where Silver didn't Know himself how to answer Leroy's questions, He gave up and left Silver be.

[burnededens]

   ( avan jogia, trans male, he/him, assassin’s creed: syndicate ) * &. i know it must be scary for you, jacob frye, after not surviving the takeover. to turn into someone like jacob "jake” fowles, a twenty-five year-old bartender at dragon’s breath brewery & fighter at the ring, right here in castle town. just remember that you are as charming as you are reckless, and to be wary, be safe, be true to who you are : neutral through and through. ( hylia gets assassin’s creed on main )

   SO FUN FACT - I have been wanting to write this character in this group for months and it is absolutely a crime that it took me this long to pick him up but here we FINALLY are ! I’m genuinely shocked he’s the first Assassin’s Creed character here because I personally think all of the characters are phenomenal and it was either gonna be this character or the protagonist from two games before ( Edward Kenway of Black Flag ) but I have a slightly greater preference towards Jacob so !! Behold the living embodiment of chaotic good !! Obvious tws for death , violence , and murder under the cut because this is a series about assassins , but also gang stuff ( and a very small bullying mention in the post-snap portion ) too. I hope this is easy to understand !! 

BEFORE THE SNAP  /  J A C O B   F R Y E .

S’OKAY again I will always try and explain the games’ history and Syndicate’s specific plotline in the simplest of ways - and especially because AC can get very confusing very fast. Thankfully Syndicate is one of the more straightforward entries , but before I get into that , I have to give a basic rundown of the lore since... it will not make sense if you haven’t played any of the games.

A long long long time ago , there were these people called the Isu , and the Isu crafted something that the AC franchise refers to as Pieces of Eden. The Pieces of Eden ultimately has access to control other living beings , and they were extremely powerful.

Flash forward a little bit where you have two forces - the Knights’ Templar and the Assassin Order/Brotherhood - that struggled for these Pieces of Eden for two very different reasons.

The Templars valued order and wanted to use them to control others to achieve a utopia - believing that human corruption & essentially free will were what caused most evils of the world.

The Assassins valued freedom & wanted to preserve the free will of the world , believing that control would do them no good and a mutual understanding under this freedom would be what created a utopia.

So basically , Templars wanted peace via control and Assassins wanted peace via freedom.

Templars wanted the Pieces of Eden to control , and the Assassins knew this was Not Good and often sought to keep the Pieces the fuck away from the Templars ( at least , that’s always how I saw it. )

Of course , because we’re now on like ten main games and seventeen spin-off games it’s OBVIOUSLY way more complicated than that , just that’s the most nutshell way to explain everything. That being said , let’s jump more into Jacob & Syndicate. 

SO JACOB. Jacob is one of the two protagonists of Syndicate , the younger twin to the other protagonist , his sister Evie. They were born in Crawley , raised by their Assassin father , but while Evie was always more . . . into the Brotherhood and assassin ideals , Jacob always was more of a rebel & a free spirit. But nevertheless , he grew up an Assassin like she.

Flash forward years later where the main plot of Syndicate starts , during the Industrial Revolution in 1868 , where the twins are set on heading to London , which is pretty much entirely under control of the Templars ( namely Crawford Starrick and his network ) & their syndicates ( ha ha hA ).

This . . . is sort of where Jacob & Evie separate in terms of goals - Evie’s well-aware of the Pieces of Eden and aims to collect them before the Templars do. However , Jacob’s more so intent on taking down Templars & liberating London from their control. He goes as far as to even starting a gang with his sister - known as the Rooks - to combat the Templar-controlled gang that has London’s boroughs in its grasp known as the Blighters. 

Evie’s basically like “okay we’re going to collect the Pieces of Eden so the templars don’t have them bc Starrick will be more powerful if he has them” but Jacob says to her “fUCK YOU I’M A MAN WHO’S GONNA FREE THE PEOPLE” and. Yeah.

Throughout the game , Jacob’s the twin that exhibits a more impulsive , reckless , yet well-meaning approach to problems - and that sorta kinda . . . means that when he solves problems , he also accidentally makes other problems , and his sister has to clean them up because hey , you killed this Templar leader and angered a bunch of Blighters and we are fucked and Jacob can’t really. Grasp that because he’s too focused on freeing London NOW and taking out Templars NOW and [ Sleeping With Sirens vc ] do it NOW and remember deal with it LATER.

There’s a few cases where Jacob has even so ( both unintentionally and intentionally ) teamed up with Templars because he thought they could help him accomplish his goals in taking London back from them.

He teamed up with Pearl Attaway ( a businesswoman who controlled most of London’s transport and wanted basically a monopoly ) and didn’t find out until later that she was a Templar and had to assassinate her since she was the exact type of controller he wanted to rid London of

But also he struck a deal with Maxwell Roth ( basically a Blighter gang leader who had a shitton of power ) to work with him - but Maxwell saw this as let’s cause as much chaos as possible and fuck the consequences where Jacob saw it as more let’s fix problems by any means necessary and he had to shut down the deal when he saw Roth really just . . . didn’t give a fuck about anyone , including innocents. Jacob’s whole goal was to free and protect the innocents , he just didn’t care how as long as nobody got hurt.

AND THAT’S HONESTLY WHAT I LOVE SM ABOUT JACOB LIKE ... Jacob. Is the epitome of chaotic good like he cares so much about people and protecting the innocents & saving them from control that yeah he doesn’t really . . . consider the consequences of his actions especially when his actions are so chaotic but his primary goal is to free the people of London by taking down Templars and he doesn’t give a fuck how he’s going to do it , he just operates on his code of making sure none of the good people get hurt and the bad guys go down. 

Eventually in the game he did come to realize the errors in his own work and way of thinking - he didn’t think much of the consequences , and therefore caused more of a wreckage than he aimed for. He loved the idea of freedom , but drew the line at absolute careless anarchy like Roth.

Basically be a REBEL not an ASSHOLE.

I love this kid tho like he’s so witty and rebellious and chaotic but also good-hearted and will still help even tho he might complain a lot about it ( looks at Abberline and Darwin ) and he !! He honestly acts before he thinks but I find those characters so refreshing esp bc he’s very emotional and adamant about acting on how he feels and his ideals and it’s honestly so. Idk I really like that about him.

He’s also canonically bisexual and that is something I will never shut up about but if you fucking even tHINK ABOUT ROMANTICIZING ROTH & JACOB’S RELATIONSHIP ( like it’s p much confirmed Roth had a thing 4 Jacob but it’s not. That’s not a Good Thing ) I will personally throw some hands with you. 

...Jacob and Ned however-

SPARE NED?? SPARE NED MA’AM??? 

But honestly anyway TLDR; Jacob is a Victorian chaos-bringer who doesn’t really think much about the shit he does but has a heart of gold he’s just. He’s A Lot. He’s a lil bitch but a good kind of lil bitch.

ALSO ALSO ALSO I AM,,,, not exactly entirely sure where I’m pulling Jacob yet like I could pull him from the end of Syndicate’s main story but also there’s the Jack the Ripper DLC which makes me... feel things, but Jacob’s also significantly older than and a good bit of that DLC’s a bit triggering - long story short, we love and will protect Jacob Frye with our entire lives. 

AFTER THE SNAP  / J A K E   F O W L E S .

So PERSONALITY WISE - Jake isn’t much different from his past self ; the only thing is he never grew up with his twin sister , raised an only child , and because Jacob & Evie are meant to balance each other out , he essentially grew up without an entire part of him he isn’t even aware of.

He was adopted - adopted by a working-class family from London that moved to Castle Town , and that was where Jake was raised.

Now , he was always a bit of a rebel. Always a problem child from the start. There were hundreds and hundreds of cases where he was reported either talking back to teachers , misbehaving in class , sometimes even getting into fights with other kids whether it be they were picking on him or someone else.

And he always liked the thrill of being that rebel - being that miscreant that earned a reputation ; never a mean person , never a bad dude , just somebody who . . . acted out. Acted out for whatever reason - mainly because he never liked the idea of obeying or because he taught the rules were stupid or because the rules meant some people were gonna get inconvenienced. Like , if you see someone getting bullied , why just tell an adult where you can solve the problem right then and there and sock the bully in the jaw ??

That was it. That was Jake’s philosophy.

His parents sent him to multiple hobby & art & educational camps & stuff to try and see if he could find some sort of hobby that would sorta get him out of this ‘problem child’ thing - but it never really worked. He always either got sent home earlier or was asked to never come back because hey , you can’t start a rebellion in the boys’ cabin because you didn’t like the way one of the counselors instructed you about knot tying. 

Never worked out , his parents thought he was smart and would make a brilliant lawyer or doctor or something - but nope , he graduated high school , attempted college but dropped out after two years , and when his parents kicked him out , he crashed with a few friends and made a living on odd jobs before he scored working as a bartender at Dragon’s Breath.

And also . . . both fighting at The Ring and also underground matches for some coin.

Yeah. 

It’s sorta-kinda through this he ALSO became aware of the other people who had to resort to means like this to survive - eventually starting his own gang of people who operated on sorta-kinda Robin Hood like terms - protect the less fortunate , combat the gangs who caused way more problems than he’d like , and also to basically uhhh flip the bird to the rich.

You guessed it - they’re called The Rooks and they’re not really . . . big , they’re just kind of. There. And nobody knows Jake’s the leader but it’s not like he’s really pressed if anyone finds out. 

It’s overall not entirely different from his pre-CT life other than obvious modern differences and LACK OF EVIE sooo. Yeah !!

I’ll hopefully work on a WC page for him soon but as of rn I just kinda want to get some threads going - hope y’all enjoy my dumbass kid xoxoooo

[sassywelshgiraffe]

Name: Ashlynn “Ash” Newfield

Class/Specialty: Brawler/Equestrian/General Troublemaker

Short Bio: Ash was born and raised in Hope County, among the rolling hills and farms of Holland Valley. As a teenager, she became wild and rebellious as a result of her mother disappearing and her father growing more strict, which naturally led to a fair few run-ins with Sheriff Whitehorse. As she grew older and the potential for the charges levied against her for her mischief grew more severe, the Sheriff offered her an ultimatum: wind up in juvie, or become his Deputy and have her records sealed permanently.

Location: Hope County Jail

Recruitment Mission: Ash is available as a companion upon completion of the story mission “Hope County Jail.” Once the player successfully defends the jail from the first Peggie onslaught, they’ll find her inside complaining to Whitehorse about feeling cooped up and wanting to get outside to “do some real damage” against the cult.

Ability One: A Girl’s Best Friend - Having Ash as a companion gives the player access to a horse to ride around the map.

Ability Two: Mounted Combat - Accuracy for all weapon types is slightly increased while in the saddle.

Situations they are best used for: Literally anything that doesn’t require subtlety or stealth

Best paired with: Ash likes to get up close and personal. If she’s not using a handgun, she’s using her fists or whatever melee weapons she finds on the ground. Pair her with Sharky or Hurk for pure unadulterated chaos (and great party banter!). Pair her with Peaches for a team that can pin down almost anything and pull aggro for the player. Pair her with Jess or Grace so she can distract the cultists and bait them into the snipers’ sightlines.

Relationships in Hope County: She’s a local, so she is especially vulnerable to the emotional toll of seeing her home overrun by batshit fanatics. Whitehorse is more of a father figure to her than her own father, and Staci and Joey (although she’s constantly taking the piss out of both of them) are like her siblings. Pastor Jerome, despite failing for years to get her to come to Sunday school and NOT be a pain in the ass, is probably the only person to ever tell her that he’s proud of her and what she’s become. Ash, Sharky, Hurk, and Addy Michaels are the Disaster Squad(™) and when they all get together they are the literal manifestation of chaotic good.

Ambient Quotes:

“My family thought that getting me a horse would help ‘calm me down’ and ‘teach me responsibility.’ Joke’s on them, though. Aires is just as wild as me, and the most important thing she taught me is that animals are more trustworthy than people. They are.”

“Oh sure, when the Peggies destroy property and trespass they have a “holy calling.” When I do it, I’m just an asshole. Pfffft, double standards.

[in the valley] “Huh. Pretty sure I’ve tagged that building before. [pause] And that one. And…”

[in the valley] “Can we swing by Fall’s End? I would kill a man for a beer right now.”

[in the mountains] “We should stop by the Den and see how Addy and Eli are holding up.”

[in the mountains] “What’s with all this wolf symbolism and shit? Jacob some kinda fuckin’ furry?”

[in the river basin, after Whitehorse’s capture] “I swear to god if Faith hurts him… [frustrated scream]”

[in combat] “Fuck, shit, fuck, goddamnit, motherfucker!”

“Rook 3:16 says I JUST KICKED YOUR ASS! WOOOOOOOOOO!”

[any time any of the Seeds, especially John, gives their backstory] “We ALL have childhood trauma, bitch, you ain’t special!”

Misc Info:

Ash’s faithful equine companion Aires is a bay American Quarter Horse and is considered an essential NPC. If her health drops below 0, she will simply run away but can be called again after a short cooldown.

She is a terrible singer but will not hesitate to do impromptu karaoke in the car, even to cult radio songs. (“What? They’re catchy!”)

If anyone ever uses her full name, she will punch them. No exceptions.

She’s a huge WWE fan and will constantly make badly timed references and hum entrance themes to herself while fighting Peggies.

[ben-10-setting-omnicrom]

Yeah, canonically it's not a choice of if Ben would or wouldn't (literally no one on Team Ben is opposed to killing a fucker if they seem it necessary, there's just a order to how easily they go to that option with Gwen (and Rook) being the most opposed to it)) but what threshold of villainy you have to meet for that to be a option.

He's literally tried to kill Vilgax every time they've fought, it's just that he's stupidly durable as hell. Zs'Skayr showed in his first appearance he's perfectly willing to go on a killing spree to get what he wants and even threatened to have Gwen commit suicide etc etc.

I actually have a mini series of posts going over Ben and his team's willingness to kill

Also imo a show being for kids doesn't detract from it's ability to tell compelling stories. Hell oftentimes shows for kids tackle shit other shows won't.

Ben 10 for example literally had an episode on not only the Military Industrial Complex but a Guantanamo Bay expy and a drug ring too. Not to mention the fact all series literally had genocides.

To add on to this, I don't think it's entirely fair to do what some people do and equate Ben with a corrupt cop or whatever. Since Plumbers don't just have the safety of a city to worry about but planets and galaxies. Ben himself has repeatedly saved the universe and literally all of time.

He also doesn't (and shouldn't) kill as a first resort to everyone he fights but proven threats to massive amounts of life. He also doesn't kill people already detained.

People oftentimes just.... Seem to want to pigeonhole him into being far less or a character than he is.

The post here and comments by @jeruld in the notes are all absolutely great points and I've made several posts on the topic myself.

I'll admit I'm not very engaged in the Ben 10 fandom, but why would there be people who have debates about whether Ben should or shouldn't kill when he has already killed and shown the thrive to do so in order to stop the menace of the episode/season more than once? Not to mention that he's very clearly okay with justified murder, even if it would clearly leave some mental scars behind because despite everything he's still a child.

I mean, we have Zs'Skayr when he was 10 TWICE, in AF there was the leader of the Forever Knights he literally threatened to release all the prisioners, Ultimate Kevin right efore Gwen interrupted that final shot?

Maybe the argument is made because he's still a child throughout all of these events and even more that I'm pretty sure I'm forgetting (I haven't included anything from OV since I've never seen it completly), but it's already to late for that, if something, the argument shouldn't be if he should or shouldn't kill the different threats to the planet/galaxy, but rather how much responsability should he hold after all these events that have already happened and are to come. More than once those kills and death threats have been done because there was literally no other option at the moment or was the only option that would actually stop the problem instead of just pushing it further down the line and amplifying it (One way it could be seen as him doing just that would be Vilgax, how many times has his threat level increased because he wasn't able to kill him in the first place in OS?). How much responsability should a child hold for events when he was 10 years old, or when his own life was threatened and his brain was flooded with Adrenaline? Or what about the times where he was a teenager yet still pushed through, not because he was in danger this time, but many others who's life depended on a single decision made in the spur of the moment? Should he be held accountable when he literally knew no better at the moment? What about when he knew better but couldn't see any other option? Hindsight is 20/20 and I bet some people would use that against him in an argument, yet the question remains.

Well, I brought it up because I still regularly come across posts where people will question if that particular mentality suits the kind of character Ben is. It mostly comes down to the fact that people are just divided because, objectively, killing is immoral and "doesn't suit a heroic character."

But yeah, I agree that it has been established within the series already and you bring up a very good point because there are many factors that go into ultimately making the decision to put a permanent end to a threat to society. That’s why I defend Ben’s choice of action in this type of situation. It’s unfair to just point at him and just say it’s wrong as if he’s going around killing for the sake of killing. He's not akin to a corrupt cop. His job responsibilities surpass that of regular earth cops. By exclusively villainizing him for it you'd be ignoring all the facts of the matter.

It's arguable that he is in fact still in his teenage years by the end of canon events, but I dislike this insistence that this show is juvenile and "for kids." If it never crossed the line into borderline young adult fiction, I don't think we'd even be having this discussion. The producers had to compromise by keeping Ben as young and marketable as possible while still being able to tell the story they were trying to tell. And perhaps they would have had more freedom to delve further into the implications you brought up if they had aged him ever so slightly as the show neared it's end.

Overall, I’d argue that since you’re the second person to send me an ask responding to the topic, it goes to show how that there is still still an interest in debating this topic, even if Ben’s own stance has been established canonically. All the questions you’ve brought up just create even more debate on the matter themselves. And honestly, I don't have a problem with that because, as was my main point in my initial post, it would be inevitable for a situation involving fatal outcomes to arise within universe, so consequently, you should also unpack all the implications of that choice of action, as has been touched on in the source material.