#and there were so many fun interesting ways to defeat each enemy

[astral-mariner]

Vegebul headcanons: Vegeta fell for Bulma first

So lots of ppl in fanfic often write Bulma falling for Vegeta first. I see it the other way around.

The ship explodes while he's training, and he suddenly has all this downtime he never had while serving under Freeza. They've had surface-level conversations before, gotten at each other's throats over alien-human misunderstandings as well as serious moral and/or experiential differences. But while he's recovering, he gets a bit stir-crazy and just...finds himself around Bulma rather often, and they actually start to get to know each other.

Bulma finds him dark and mysterious---fascinating to her in an almost scientific way because he's so like a human but so different at the same time. She admires his tenacity; though he would never characterize himself as a victim, she knows he's faced grief and hardship, and carrying on with such clarity of purpose anyway is heartening in a way. Meanwhile, Vegeta just doesn't understand why this woman insists on talking to him, making sure he takes care of himself... He can understand her providing gear and housing---she and her friends need him for the upcoming battle. But the interest, openness, and basic kindness she displays baffles him, especially when he is a sworn enemy of Kakarot's. With Nappa and Raditz things were always complicated. So many roles and expectations with him being their prince. But with this Earth woman, there are no expectations at all. So he doesn't know what to do with her.

He won't let himself think of her as beautiful even if his eyes linger on her. He has just seen so few women like her. Certainly, he's never spent so much time with one either. Always on his way to a new planet. No real friends or consistency of any kind. That's not to say he regards her as a friend. Of course not. He tells himself that she's useful. She has resources, power. And she pursues her own ends with intensity and fearlessness---saiyan qualities he understands.

And then she's in his thoughts day and night. He thinks of her scent or her voice when he's trying to train, when he's lying awake and can't sleep. That sparkle in her eyes when he challenges her, but it doesn't shake her in the slightest. Her laugh, her little touches. He's head over heels for her long before they have sex, but he has no context for feelings like that. He just feels like he's losing his mind.

And it scares the shit out of him. How can he focus on transforming and defeating the one who took his birthright and Freeza's death from him when this woman is just fucking haunting him? He doesn't even know it's romantic attraction. He won't even accept that he's sexually attracted even though his body reacts to hers however fiercely he avoids looking at or touching her.

Meanwhile, Bulma has just broken up with Yamcha. She's not really in a place where she's thinking about a new relationship. She might want to have some fun here and there now that she's single, sure, but she's much more focused on the arrival of the Androids. Especially since she knows how hard her future self worked to warn everyone and give them a chance to have a different outcome than she did. And Vegeta is a powerful asset to have on her side. As much of a jerk as he can be, he works tirelessly to prepare himself for the battle, and helping him become stronger may make a difference in their survival.

Sure, it tickles her scientist brain to have an alien living on her property she can ask about space and otherworldly tech whenever she wants. And Vegeta himself has a fascinating (if dark and disturbing) personal history. He's not what she expects in some ways. Proud, and yet also very reserved and even shy. Aggressive and intense, but at the same time thoughtful, introspective, and so dedicated to his calling that she realizes it's a spiritual thing for him, perhaps even religious.

She finds herself enjoying his company even when she knows that she shouldn't. He's not exactly a true ally. He's not a good person. But he's just so...interesting. And he's more attractive than he seems to realize. She indulges a fantasy or two of what he might be like in bed. But it's not serious. She knows she shouldn't. It would never work out. It would be so fucking complicated and fraught for everyone involved. There's no way an alien man would have the same (or even compatible) ideas about relationships or sex. Even if Vegeta did, he'd never fucking tolerate having a frank conversation about it. He's really kind of a prude.

And yet...they spend more time with each other, and the tension between them just builds. Over months and months, it builds slowly but surely. And one day, it just fucking breaks. One evening, they end up closer than usual. Touching each other, and it gets really intense really fast. No time to really discuss where things are going or what anything means---they just need each other in that moment. And it works out. Somehow. It's almost too easy. Despite all the cultural differences. They have sex, and it feels...good.

For Vegeta, sexuality had previously always been something tainted with negativity. What's the point of having a drive for sex, after all, when you're the last of your kind, and fleeting pleasures are hardly more than distractions? But with Bulma, everything just felt so fucking right and good. Like finally getting to experience all the things he'd always wondered about and longed for even if he never admitted it to himself. Things he thought were impossible. Having sex in a situation where he had a real choice in the matter. With a woman when he had spent his whole life having to accept the fact that no saiyan women had survived. On top of everything, not only does he want her---desperately---but she wants him in return. How she squirms when he touches her, how her scent changes, how she trembles and whimpers when he gets to do all the things he never let himself want before.

It just completely and utterly unravels him, and he can't get enough of her. He thought that, just maybe, if he gave in and slept with her, she wouldn't fucking haunt him anymore, but it just gets fucking worse. He needs her like water. Like if he doesn't get to be in her presence and touch her, he will just fucking lose it even more than he already has. And it fucking terrifies him. He's only ever wanted one thing: to transform and make things right after Freeza destroyed everything. But now he's preoccupied, and he can't handle it. He doesn't know what to do. What any of it means. What he really wants out of any of it. And he has no idea what she wants either. Only that however many times he tries to stay away from her, they always end up tangled up again. He couldn't even tell her how he feels even if he wanted to because he's so clueless about what's happening to him.

Meanwhile Bulma is just absolutely floored by how intense everything is from the beginning. She wonders if it's a saiyan thing, or if he's just intense like that himself. She doesn't know what Vegeta's full history with sex is, but she knows it's complicated. All she knows is that he kisses her like it's his last day on Earth. That he fucks her like he couldn't resist her if he tried (and he does try). And she can't help but ride that high. She brings this mysterious, strong, and austere man to his knees, and her power over him is intoxicating. She knows she shouldn't play around with someone so dangerous even if she's convinced he'll become an ally eventually. She knows that most of her friends wouldn't approve. It's not like she wants to DATE Vegeta. But gods...his desperation, the way he almost worships her, how wild and even frightening he can be---she can't help but indulge herself at least a little bit even if it's against her better judgment. It's not serious, after all. It's not like Vegeta of all people would even want to be some kind of partner to her anyway. He just wants sex (right?), and that's all she wants too. So she proposes a friends-with-benefits situation that they are determined to keep on the down-low.

Vegeta's head is just spinning at all of this. He still doesn't fucking know what to do with her. He can't have an attachment to her---especially not now when his sole focus needs to be transforming---but imagining his life without her is just... So he just lets her call it whatever she pleases, as long as no one else is involved and no one else knows about it. The weakness all the more glaring and real if other people know about it. He can tell himself he is just having sex with her so he can stay focused on training. Nothing more than that. Certainly not.

Over the course of it, Vegeta's feelings for her just intensify. If he was head over heels before they had sex, the more time they spend and the more intimate they become, he only falls more madly in love with her. And while Bulma tells herself that feelings aren't really involved for her beyond the friendship she develops with him, she has little pangs of romantic longing that hit her out of nowhere from time to time. Almost hard not to when the sex is the way that it is. She wonders sometimes if he has feelings for her. Real feelings. But he just couldn't, right? She's just being a silly hopeless romantic like she was when she was younger, and she's over that. He's an alien with a tortured past, and he's not boyfriend material, and she's fine with that. That's not what she wants anyway. Certainly not right now with the end of the world around the corner.

We all know how things go down after this, though, don't we?

But yeah. I headcanon Vegeta falls first and harder, whereas Bulma falls gradually after they become involved. Bulma has experienced good relationships before, and she wasn't looking for a romance with Vegeta in the wake of her breakup. Vegeta, on the other hand, hasn't experienced romantic love or sexual attraction where things weren't fucked up and fraught in some way before. So his "relationship" (re: passionate affair) with Bulma means so much more to him even if he couldn't articulate it. It completely blows him away, but he doesn't have the context or emotional insight to make sense of it. So he just panics, lol.

[regthomas1728]

Editing Responsibly

While Preserving the Author's Voice and Intent

GIF by capricornus-rex

If you're confident in your skills as an Editor, then skip this post! If not, keep reading. I'll be as direct as possible and include fun pictures/gifs.

Covering:

Readability

Focal Points

Tone

Character Development

Grammar/Spelling are not as important as we may think. It’s important to understand the foundations of grammar but ultimately, the most important part is that the story is readable. Many established authors have a style of grammar and beliefs of how grammar *should* be. Authors are going to write with their voice, so readers should learn to read that voice. We can establish our voice through how we write.

Example: Some authors use dashes to indicate urgency or to jump into action or dialogue. Others may use asterisks instead of italicizing or bolding something.

The point: don’t correct style, correct how readable a work is. If you understand it, it’s readable, if you think there is room for misinterpretation or it takes a few times to understand a sentence through no fault of your own, mark it.

GIF by demondetoxmanual

You tell 'em Dean!

Next are focal points. Where is the author directing the reader? Is this the best place for the reader to be? For example, if a war has broke out in a field, are we focusing on all the action or the ramifications of the action? Think about the easiest way to impact the reader? Is the reader going to be emotional reading about the six characters locked in a gun fight? Is this gun fight going to be revolutionary to the story? What’s interesting to watch is not always interesting to read.

I heard the suggestion of focusing on something small. We see this in Mulan when the Chinese Military comes across a burnt village. We see an overview of the damages but the item that gets the most screen time is the helmet on a pike and the doll toy next to it. The implication is that not only men died, not only was the military suffering a great defeat but innocent children were being slaughtered. We see how evil the enemy is and what the military is fighting for. We strongly agree with the mission.

This is not the only way to do something but the main idea is that you make every paragraph meaningful, impactful, and every word important. Quality over quantity (to be further discussed at a later point not in this post).

As a Beta Reader, I recommend encouraging your author when a sentence was exceptionally meaningful, where it impacted you, but simultaneously, you should inform them when a sentence is lacking or setting you up for something and it doesn’t deliver. Tell them when a sentence seems redundant in a way that is not helpful or apart of their voice (there is a good way to use repetition throughout your story to be impactful).

GIF by cutsliceddiced

Ramsay has a lot of shows. One features kid chefs where he is very polite, very encouraging, and gives a fatherly vibe. Overall, 10/10 show to watch with my grandma. Then, there's Hell's Kitchen. The very opposite. He's cooled down over the years but he's still not the nicest guy. Not very fatherly. The tones are different. His word choices are different, his expressions are different.

What tone are you trying to convey in your story. Every word in the english language is different. They all have connotations that imply more than what the given definition may tell us. How you use words changes how your reader sees something. You’re painting a picture, use vibrant colors but also use dull ones to show how important each color is important. Does this make cents? Make dollars?

The words make up sentences make up paragraphs which make up a scene. If your scene is happy, you are NOT going to use the word “nice”. There are also problems with generalizing a scene. Happy is not enough. Try “delighted” “cheerful” “advantageous”. The more you know about the scene, the more you can write for it. Happy can mean nothing bad (content), it can be a roller coaster ride at the state fair (exhilarating), or wedding day, saying the vows and then *final kiss* (glowing/radiant). The english language lends itself to too many ways of conveying emotions. Use it.

GIF by chuuyasblog

Finally, character development is going to make the story. Every plot has been used and overused–there isn’t much that can surprise a reader. Characters, however, can distract from a plot and help you surprise your audience. This is going to be different for everyone but give your audience thoughts, small actions, flaws, and relatable dialogue. (there is too much for this, if anyone wants more about character development, I've got plenty to say)

Awesome Sauce,

Regine Thomas Tumblr Arse | With (His) Spunk regthomas1728@gmail.com

[offscreendeath]

so many great moments on ep. 3 of dungeons and drag queens.

[spoilers below]

first off, the art department is really killing it, but also some really great, fun level design overall as well. the questing queens facing off against 4 powerful, giant enemies is one thing, but this episode shows how much of a difference the battlefield itself can make in any given fight.

It would have been a totally different game if they were in a flat room with no cover, or even the chaotic element of the gremlins as another enemy threat, or the different objects (the levers and wheels) and levels up and down within the room to traverse and navigate. it makes the game that much more dynamic and immersive.

at first I thought 4 cyclopes were way too many for them to deal with but they got dusted in pretty short order, with some great teamwork and strategy from the girls, allowing them outmaneuver and eventually "distract, defeat, and decapitate" them in really creative and satisfying ways. and of course, the sudden entrances from constano and mysaara were really interesting too -- I live for the drama of characters coming into the fray mid-battle, friend or foe.

if I were in their shoes I'd have made a few different decisions, I think, but I don't want to backseat rp too much lol and I think they did a great job all things considered, especially their strategy around their formation at the beginning, and spreading out to keep each of the cyclopes busy.

twyla's flight is clutch as usual, allowing her to take full advantage of the space by avoiding certain obstacles and being out of reach for certain attacks, except for projectiles and spells. the summons were noticeably useful to help them even the odds and overwhelm their enemies and add damage. the wolf summon alone made two cyclopes go prone, which was a game changer! also, princess is a great barbarian tank build. I'd definitely try to keep twyla's growing spell in mind for her to take advantage of in the future if I were them.

of course it was really cool to watch them each try to problem-solve on the fly, which is how a lot of ttrpgs just are. it takes a lot of time to learn how not only your character operates, but also learning your strengths and weaknesses as a party, not to mention the spell mechanics or other specific technical quirks like physics, and it's very impressive how quickly they catch on despite none of them being seasoned players of the game, and even veterans still have difficulties sometimes.

ahhh I love it I can't wait another weeeeeeeek 😫

[thefirstknife]

Dungeon is really good! I'm enjoying it immensely! Everyone in the mood for some fantasy ACTUAL dungeon crawling DnD style will love it! Beautiful location, really fun encounters that feel WAY more fair and approachable than many other dungeons and some incredibly cool lore.

The way you collect lore is also interesting; you can't just get in and grab what you need to understand everything, it's tied to a quest that requires multiple runs. This may be annoying if you don't have your own fireteam, but it's a really nice way to experiment with lore delivery; with each clear you continue a quest and can search for hidden rooms and then inside you get a collectible and can listen to dialogue that is explaining the stuff about the dungeon. The only lore tabs are on the exotic weapon and the exotic Ghost shell; everything else is dialogues to listen to. I'll put the lore tabs below and also add some stuff that I've learned so far. I'm missing final three dialogues as it takes some time to collect everything for the quest. Spoilers under:

First of all, the speculation was wrong! Nobody was correct! The castle isn't Shaxx's and Shaxx wasn't involved and he's not on comms. Strange, but I personally don't mind it that much. The dungeon is led by Petra and Crow, mostly because it's focused on an Ahamkara. The setup is that Scorn were detected on Earth where they haven't been before and then it's discovered that they were drawn to an old Dark Age castle that used to be owned by a Warlord. This Warlord is a new character called Naeem and she lived there with an Ahamkara (Hefnd) with whom she struck a deal with.

The Ghost Shell (Zira's Shell, I assume Zira was the name of Naeem's Ghost) explains that another Warlord killed Hefnd and then told Naeem about the whereabouts of its bones and she went there and claimed the castle and the Ahamkara. She made a deal with the Ahamkara to feed on her, infinitely (because she can just keep dying over and over), instead of making other people suffer for the wishes they make. So like if someone makes a wish with Hefnd, the backfire should go to Naeem. Hefnd agreed. Super interesting insight into Ahamkara. While super grim, it shows that Ahamkara are capable of partnership with people instead of just messing with them for no reason.

The Scorn are interesting because the first boss is called Rathil, First Broken Knight of Fikrul. In one of the lore dialogues, Petra and Crow also discuss Fikrul and it's finally explained that he simply vanished from the Reef and nobody knows where he went. So this is some really interesting setup going on right now, which makes sense given that the second episode is going to be about him (barring any changes in schedule and plans ofc). Furthermore, Fikrul is featured on the lore for the exotic weapon from the dungeon and it's the first and most comprehensive answer to the question of where he is and what he is doing. And it's kinda sad ngl! Rathil was a Scorn guy he called "son" and tasked with bringing back Scorn from Earth because he didn't want Darkness to "claim them." I assume that refers to taking. It's interesting because it would mean that Fikrul is not very fond of the Witness and isn't working with/for it. Speculation for now, but that's how it read. The first dungeon boss and some of the enemies needed to activate damage phases are all Fikrul's guys from the lore tab.

The final boss is a chimaera manifested by Hefnd and we defeat it, but the bones remain and they're being siphoned by Taken energy. The Taken appear half-way through the dungeon and it's unclear what they're doing and why they want the Ahamkara. Perhaps to prevent us from messing with Ahamkara to get through the portal? I assume the Witness would know that Ahamkara could help us follow it, so some sort of contingency plan. Super excited to continue playing tomorrow and get the last three dialogues. Really loving the Fikrul update. It feels so good to know that they're laying the groundwork for the hinted episode that will feature him.

Zira's Shell lore tab:

Buried Bloodline lore tab (exotic sidearm):

[shprka]

Guys I'm a Nanahito stan, sorry, they are just too sexy and interesting, so I tried writing an actors au but this is all I have, a fake interview with actors Nanami and Mahito, for your enjoyment:

Hi everyone!

We have two special guests in the studio today. We managed to catch them both in between their busy schedules, on a world tour to promote the 2nd season of Jujutsu Kaisen which managed to be a massive success worldwide, gaining over 4 million views for the Season 2 Episode 1 Premiere. They play enemies on screen and, if we're being honest, the off-screen chemistry is off the charts too (with a little less fighting and murder, of course).

Interviewer: Welcome, Nanami Kento-san and Mahito-san!

Nanami: Good morning, thank you for having us.

Mahito: Yes, thanks for having us! Take care of us today, please!

While their characters are at each other's throats any time in the same room, it couldn't be more opposite in real life. Nanami-san and Mahito-san are both nothing but kind and polite and friendly to each other and the crew.

They are also absolutely beautiful in real life! We asked Mahito-san about their skincare secret and they smiled evily and said "Blood of the innocents" before bursting out in a giggle. And even got a chuckle from the usually stoic Nanami-san.

I: So, let's start with something fun! What were your first impressions of each other?

M: A gentleman! Nanami-san is very much the dapper gentleman the internet thinks he is.

Nanami-san covers his mouth, is he... blushing?

N: I don't know about that, I have many flaws.

M: Like your messy bedhead? That's not even a flaw, that's cute!

N: Mahito-san... You're a menace.

They seem to be so lost in the banter, they forget we are here, watching every move.

I: Is that your first impression of Mahito-san? A menace.

N: Hmm, yes, let's go with that.

I: Okay, let's go with the most important question - are Gojo-san's eyes really that blue in real life? Or is it Photoshop? Contacts?

N: Oh, well, we didn't get to work a lot with him this season. I hope he's doing well.

M: Speaking of photoshop! Nanami-san's abs are one hundred precent real. He was even doing push-ups in between filming fight scenes to keep the six pack defined. That's dedication.

N: (sighs) We both trained very hard for this season. Mahito-san spend months trained by professional gymnasts and ballet trainers, and I attended the gym every spare minute I got. I was told off by my personal trainer so many times because Mahito-san kept sneaking me sweet treats, indulging my sweet tooth.

M (laughs): Sorry not sorry. You can't deprive yourself of the good things in life.

N: That's what you keep telling me.

I: You both looked amazing this season. You even already answered my question! The fights scenes were definitely the highlight of the season. And both of you did the majority of your own stunts too! How else did you prepare for your roles? How did your characters change since last season?

N: My character Keijirou has a very strong sense of who he is and doesn't let his emotion overtake him, which continues in this season as well. The fight scenes were the most challenging, trying to embody his personality and not let myself go all superhero berserk trying to defeat the enemies.

M: Nanami-san is so professional, it all looks so easy for him.

N: I assure you, it's not. I'm quite different from Keijirou. I let my emotions take control all the time. But in a way, I am also a romantic. I'd love to hide away on a beach with my future spouse.

I: It's hard to believe!

M: It's true. Nanami-san seems so poised and elegant but he is just a giant goofball on set. He always laughs at Gojo's pranks, and it's easy to make him laugh during the scene and break character.

N: That's just you, Mahito-san.

M: Look at him blushing and getting shy. I'm glad Nanami-san doesn't mind to show his true feelings in interviews, he's so much more fun to tease.

N: Mahito-san...

M: Sorry! (Giggles) But to answer your question, hmm, hmm... Hoshi is a very complicated character. He's a demon born of human hatred. On the page, it's hard to imagine what he's really like. In Season 1 I played him in a bit of a different way. I wanted to play a complex villain and a bit of a psycho so I went all out, haha. But season 2 gave me so much more perspective into his character. In the end, I tried finding parts of him I can relate to, and maybe others can. I don't really see him as a villain or a demon. I tried playing him a bit like Gojo-san with his character. Like a god sent to Earth, having to live amongst humans. He doesn't really know human customs but he's learning. Learning through a lens of his own creation and the people that unfortunately became his teachers aren't...the best.

N: Mahito-san is truly one of a kind actor, to portray such a complex character who bears all that is ugly in the world with a smile of innocence and a lightness of a child. I find myself quite mesmerised by their preformance sometimes.

M: Nanami-san is too kind. He always helps me rehearse my lines, and watched my performances in between his own so I can ask him for feedback. Actually, on season 1 Nanami-san helped me understand my character so much before we started filming.

N: Hmm? I didn't know that. What did I say?

M: You said: "Hoshi is a reflection of Keijirou". That changed my whole view about Hoshi and our characters. Hoshi is a reflection of whoever he's up against. But with Keijirou in season 2, he's not against him. He's the closest to his true self in that moment.

N: I didn't know you felt like that. That's an interesting way to look at it.

I: I agree! Speaking of, your two characters have this beef going on on screen, and a lot of fans seem to carry it online too. I'm sure you know Keijirou is widly beloved by fans and his death devasted the internet. Hoshi, on the other hand, seems to be hated even more than Kenjaku.

Though subtle, we pick up a shift in Mahito's demeanor. They seem to hunch a bit and their eyes wander down as they continue playing with their fingers, decorated in various rings.

N: We love to have such dedicated fans but from season 1, we know things can be taken too far. I think the dislike for the character should never transfer onto the actor or any real people. Besides, in my opinion, the reaction fans have to Hoshi only speaks to Mahito-san's immense talent as an actor. And be not fooled by that evil grin, Mahito-san is a an absolutely lovely, kind and witty menace I have ever had a pleasure of working with.

All that is said with the trademark Nanami-san's deep voice and soft tone. Mahito-san looks emotional.

We decide to take a little break, where we see Mahito-san and Nanami-san talking in hushed voices, their microphones off.

We wholeheartedly agree with Nanami-san's sentiment. If we, as fans, want creators and actors to interact with us, we need to be concious of what we do to real people and be kinder to each other.

After the break, we decide to cheer the mood up a bit:

I: One thing no one expected in the fandom sphere is for a new couple to emerge, that fans are very passionate about. Are you aware of it?

M: Is this about shipping? Because I keep seeing tik toks...

N: Ah, yes, I am aware. It'a fascinating, isn't it. How passionate fans are, making art and videos and full on novels of their favourite characters.

I: Any comments on how Hoshi and Keijirou, or more known online as Hoshikei, can work together?

M: Well, they're both dead for one, haha.

N: They live in a sea side town in Malaysia, spending their time fishing, idyllig and talking philosophy.

M: Oh, yes, and Hoshi becomes human and learns some manners.

N: But not too much.

I: Is that your pitch for season 3?

Both laugh.

N: It's for the spin-off.

M: Hoshikei: Kuantan edition. Exclusively on Netflix.

I: I can't wait to see it. Now, let us do some rapid questions you have to answer in 2 seconds. Ready?

M: Ready! Go!

I: Who Gojo-san pranks the most on set?

N and M: Getou.

I: Your favourite Kyoto student?

N: Todo.

M: Mechamaru and Miwa.

I: Who's your favourite to work with?

N: Mahito-san.

M: Nanami-san.

They look at each other surprised but pleased.

I: Did you steal anything from set?

N and M: Yes.

I: What was it?

N: Socks.

M: Too many things.

N: Really? I always think I'm gonna get told off.

M: Welllll... I probably shouldn't mention it too much. But I even have one of Todo's pendants and one of your many many pairs of glasses. And your tie.

N: You have my tie?

M: It's weird now that I said it out loud. Is that weird? I can give them back.

N: No, it just surprised me. You don't even wear ties.

M: Well... I might start to, who knows.

N: Hmm.

Now after the interview, we think it was a subtle tease at a photoshoot that came out this morning, of Mahito-san in full glam makeup, mini skirt, devil horns and one of Nanami-san's, or rather his character's, ties. Mahito-san really knows how to rile up the internet and look good while doing it. We'd wish we could see Nanami-san's reaction to it. But this interview proved they are good friends and are always bantering and there for each other.

I: That's all the time we have today. Thank you so much for speaking to us!

N: Thank you as well.

M: Thanks! And don't forget to tune in to watch me kick Nanami-san's ass in season 2!!

[zweiflugelig]

PLOTTER / SHIPPER

taken from: my alcryst blog :^)

tagging: the person reading this :index_pointing_at_the_viewer:

1. PLATONIC

Write about your muse and their idea of friendship. Ex. how is your muse like around their friends? Do they make friends easily or do they find it difficult to connect with others?

Shez makes friends easily and isn't shy about talking to people. Her adoptive mother made her the one to go out and talk to people on their behalf, so Shez learned how to negotiate and foster good relationships with the people in village and down in town. She has natural charisma and a straightforward, easy-going nature that makes her seem approachable to many.

While Shez usually runs as a solo merc unattached to any company, she makes it a point to stay on good terms with most of the people she meets. A merc hired by the other side one day might end up being an ally on a future job, or an employer happy with her services might recommend her to their friends for work. Word of mouth is essential to getting your name out there, and so Shez considers networking an important part of her job.

3. ANTAGONISTIC

Write about your muse and the conflicts they have with other people. Ex: who are they on bad terms with, what kind of people do they not get along well with, how do they act around people they don’t like

People in general: Following up from the last section, Shez tries to stay on good terms with most people. You never know who you'll be working with in the future, so she's not keen on burning bridges. Even when it comes to a merc on the enemy side, at the end of the day a job is a job. Mercenaries and rank-and-file soldiers are just like her, hardworking people risking their lives for shit pay, and Shez knows it's better not to take it personally. She doesn't have a problem with killing them either; after all, a job is a job.

While Shez doesn't go out of her way to antagonize people, that doesn't make her conflict-averse. She is very comfortable with confronting others about things she doesn't like and telling them to knock it off. She just picks her fights carefully and tries to let difficult things roll off her back.

The Ashen Demon(s): Byleth is a very special case, as they were the one to cut down Captain Berling and her friends in Berling's Mercenaries. Because she was close with the other people in the company and had gotten used to the safety and stability of the group, having that taken away so suddenly on top of nearly dying herself is... a lot. Six months on Shez is still struggling with her grief, and the little gremlin in her skull telling her not to let it go, to get revenge, keeps the wound raw and festering. In Three Hopes she only sees Byleth again after the two year time skip so I'm excited to explore Shez's feelings on meeting them now during the academy phase!

3. ROMANTIC

Write about your muse and their relationship with romance. Ex. are they searching for love or not interested in it in the slightest, what’s their dating history like, how do they act around crushes, how would they treat their partner if they were in a relationship.

no time for dat. Shez lives fast and knows she'll likely die young, so she's not looking for a romantic partner. Flirting is fun, something she enjoys and would entertain from someone she's attracted to, but balks at the idea of a serious committed relationship.

4. CONNECTIONS

write about how our muses could connect with each other! ex. what does your muse like to do that other people would be involved in? do they have interests that other people might share?

Shez's current purpose in life is to get strong enough to defeat the Ashen Demon. She's also always down for a friendly fight or three, whether it's receiving a challenge or asking one of the professors for a spar. Her fighting style doesn't strictly adhere to any one school of thought, instead it's cobbled together from different moves she's picked up over her years as a merc. The way Shez fights is fast and a little reckless, always aiming to surprise the enemy and put them off balance just enough to overwhelm them. She even likes to get flashy during low stakes one-on-one fights with effortless spins and flourishes of her sword(s).

Shez's powers are still a mystery to her. She doesn't keep them secret and would actually welcome people to figure it out for her. The "shapeshifting" isn't something that she can do on her own easily, but being able to call a sword from thin air is very nifty.

While the Church is paying a stipend for her to be here, Shez hopes to continue her mercenary work on the side to keep her name from getting forgotten and also to build up a nice bit of savings before graduation. She will also accept jobs for your muses on a short-term basis provided that the pay is good.

Because Shez has spent much of her life broke as a joke, she's used to scrounging and scrimping to get by. Muses who have also had to rough it out will likely relate to her.

[drysauce]

Begging on my knees, may I ask for mr welt lore 🙏 thank you for feeding my silly little fictional crushes lol

there's so much to say where should i even start jshxhhd

(btw, it's obvious but. there will be honkai impact 3rd spoilers below)

so you know that welt is a playable character in star rail right, but i don't know if you know that many of star rail characters are alternate versions of characters from other hoyo game which is hi3 - like himeko, bronya and luocha for example. welt however, isn't like them, he's not just another welt existing in the star rail universe but he's THE EXACT SAME welt that exists in honkai impact AND that's why he's such an interesting guy

so let's start with the basics - his name isn't actually Welt Yang but Joachim Nokianvirtanen. he took that name later in his life, yang was his mother's surname and welt was a name inherited from a guy named Welt Joyce.

as for why he took the name from that guy: welt joyce was a herrscher, herrscher of reason to be precise (herrschers are very powerful entities with powers given by the force known as honkai) - he used to be a normal german boy human but after the honkai eruption in Berlin that took a huge ton of lives, a core made from the souls of people who died was formed inside him giving him the powers of a herrscher of reason

while generally herrschers are enemies of humanity, he was not - after losing past memories but NOT being against humans, he was taken in by an anti-honkai organization known as Schicksal (with Otto Apocalypse as its leader and overseer) and moved from labs to labs where he eventually met Frederica Nikola Tesla and Lieserl Albert Einstein (pic below. they might look young but those are only the looks, they're actually great minds with years of experience), two scientists that later became his acquaintances. around that time he also met joachim and his father

later on, the schicksal overseer otto and joyce had kind of an argument when joyce didn't want to agree to follow the overseer path with him because he grew to love humanity and otto was a guy who didn't mind doing the most messed up things you'd think of just to reach his goal. the conflict of interests leads to a fight, that results in otto's death (or rather one of the clones, long story)

(fun fact! ^ this line is also part of welt yang's ultimate line in hsr, just differently worded)

the thing joyce is holding here is one of divine keys (very strong weapon, long story) known as the star of eden which is the signature weapon of the herrscher of reason. otto was using a divine key as well (called void archives) and before his defeat, he used the key to attack the city where they currently were with the intention to completely destroy it. joyce managed to stop that but 1. star of eden was destroyed and 2. it costed him his life. while he was dying he gave the herrscher core to young joachim who was nearby alongside with the name welt - and so joachim became the second herrscher of reason

later on with tesla and einstein he split from schicksal and formed another organization known as anti-entropy (which was also dedicated to fighting honkai but without human experiments and all that jazz) and recreated star of eden

in year 2000 took place the second honkai eruption, there's a manga telling the whole story how it went, but to keep it short, schicksal and anti-entropy allied and were fighting sirin, the herrscher of the void. the two herrschers faced each other in a fight, welt using his herrscher of reason powers created a whole army or mechs and artillery showing sirin that the humanity can and will fight against her and honkai

there was no victor, sirin was knocked down and when welt was about to finish her off with the star of eden, otto apocalypse intervened, destroyed the divine key and stopped welt (he really couldn't allow things to go the way everyone wanted even once)

later the fight was moved to the moon where sirin made her base and from where kept on challenging humanity. schicksal and anti-entropy had the talk™️ which resulted in the decision that welt will go fight on the moon but he'll take one of otto's agents to collect rock samples that could be used to create new kind of weapons

to go and fight there, anti-entropy started creating a giant mech - arahato (two quick fun facts! 1. in hsr welt has arahato on his phone case 2. to earn money anti-entropy launched an anime series about it at some point lol)

on the moon welt creates yet another star of eden and occupies sirin's attention, while siegfried (the man from schicksal that was sent on the mission and who also was hi3 mc's father) who was piloting arahato could take moon rock samples for the scientists. however for siegfried to leave safely, welt had to directly face sirin and was eventually defeated (star of eden destroyed again), near the end he was planning to detonate his core to destroy both himself and sirin, but she manage to steal it before that happened, leaving welt's body to disintegrate

obviously he didn't actually die, he put his personality inside the core at the very last moment with the souls that already were there. he survives there this way until the end of the whole eruption, and after it ended, the retrieved core fragments returned to anti-entropy and after next 10 years core repairs itself and welt gets back the physical body. that costs him a lot of energy and power though, he isn't able to be the leader anymore. anti-entropy was taken over by force in that time by cocolia, who was running and orphanage and. who also made a few clones of welt joyce

-> next events are described in the manga called alien space, it's about both the events of when welt came back to life and is a direct prequel to hsr telling what happened years later, i won't describe it in detail because maybe you'd like to read it yourself - but if not i'll gladly talk about that too in another ask or message<3 it's mainly about welt and (hi3) himeko (and void archives too, who after otto apocalypse's death took a body of one of his clones)

next should be the events in the sea of quanta (empty space among bubbles with different universes, long story) - during the expedition, he gets separated from einstein and gets stuck there until a girl named Bronya Zaychik enters it to find her beloved Seele who was also stuck there for a few years (long story, another manga). a lot of things happened, bronya encountered welt who took kind of a position of the guardian of the sea and began testing the girl in various scenarios. after she passed all the tests he decided to make her the successor of his herrscher core, thanks to which bronya was later able to rescue seele and all three of them escaped from the sea of quanta. soon after that he became her mentor in mastering the herrscher of reason powers (there's more to bronya as the herrscher which also has relations to welt but. i haven't got there yet in the main story so i have to stop here lol)

next there's a timeskip to a post honkai odyssey - it's a spin off/time skip story from hi3, featuring, aside from the main cast, welt, his son - joffrey (one of joyce's clones that he and most likely tesla (there's a line that might suggest she became his partner later on) together adopted), and void archives. i saw leaks that parts of it that are relevant to hsr might appear in an upcoming hangout mission for luocha (the guy who's a hsr version of otto) so if you're planning to play hsr you'll see it yourself and i won't be spoiling you the fun here<3

^ it's also related to the timeskip events from the alien space manga

afterwards welt ends up in the hsr universe and is trailblazing together with the astral express crew and finally becomes a playable character

^ another fun fact! in his splash are you can see void archives in the back, welt joyce on the right and tesla with einstein on the left

ok and that should be all i think? if you have any thoughs or questions feel free to ask here in the comments or in a separate ask or on discord however you prefer and i'll gladly elaborate even more

also special mention to unfortunately not canon part of the welt lore from the hoyofest videos in which he and two other powerful leaders became idols because they were broke and needed money:

[purplerose244]

Lessons learned

Hello hello! Here’s to participate to the @ninjago-valentine-exchange! Thank you so much for hosting the event again, it was really fun working on it! 😍

My fic is based on Bruise, Cole/Jay Pair A

It’s an exchange to @destinymanticor’s amazing bruise fanart! I absolutely love it, tired Jay is just so adorable with all of those curls, and it’s also an excuse to throw in some cute couple moments! 💙🖤💙🖤

Hope you like it! Enjoy! 😚

Read it on the AO3

Summary: Years since the black ninja had first encountered the shocking experience that was Jay Walker. Months since the master of earth had his best friend made him the happiest by confessing his feelings. Days since the latest evil threatening Ninjago had been defeated by them all.

Still so much to learn.

Cole wouldn't have it any other way.

Being the official heavy lifter of the team and the master of earth itself, many people were probably quick to judge him as interested solely to physical work. Cole could say that they wouldn’t be totally wrong considering his strength, his climbing skills, his physic, and his dancing abilities – unironically the hardest to obtain of the bunch –, but he could also argue that despite all the workout, something he really liked to do was learning. Maybe he wasn’t as smart as Zane or as witty as Nya, but whenever he was put in front of something new it was inevitable for him to grow fond of the studying process. He had learned how to draw, he had gone to lots of museum, he wasn’t picky over what to explore in the slightest.

Especially when it was sudden, unexpected. Challenging.

Like months ago, when Jay had come to his room to blabber in his very own Jay way, talking for a full five minutes almost without breathing, solely to ask him out on a date. Something new, something unknown. Something inherently beautiful.

Cole was always quick to jump over a book the moment a specific topic caught his interest, to the point of knocking down the whole shelf. That time, he had compromised with sweeping the blue ninja off his feet and hugging him, unleashing that suppressed feeling he had feared would had accompanied him for the rest of his life without mutuality. With the way Jay had gasped so sweetly, laughing breathlessly against his chest, that had been a silly overthought of his and his new boyfriend was going to do his best erasing it from that moment forward.

It was another world to explore. More complex and exciting that he could had ever imagined.

They had known each other for years now, yet perhaps the most exciting part of it all… was getting to know Jay from another point of view.

 Lesson number one.

Jay was an absolute bundle of energy.

It was just another day in Ninjago, which obviously meant that the latest enemies of the whole nation had been defeated and most of the ninja’s daily work lately had revolved around helping the population rebuild the city… again – how many New in front of Ninjago City were there now, it was hard to say. This particular night though, it was a break for them all.

You could say a lot of things about Ninjago. It was big, it was dangerous, it had the lowest prizes for its main city in regards of renting and buying houses, and had the worst luck even seen in all of sixteen realms – fifteen… fourteen, alright the whole ordeal of the different dimensions was still a bit confusing in his head. But one thing for sure, the people here could throw a party. Only a couple of days of work and as soon as the main hall of the theatre had been rebuilt, all had been organized to contain as many decorations, dancers, exhibitions and food as humanly – and inhumanly, too many unusual creatures hanging around at this point – possible.

Kai was a party animal and an attention seeker, so of course he was into it. Lloyd was always getting kidnapped by massive figures of Ninjago to get some very well-deserved thanks. Zane actually kind of loved these kinds of situations, showing off his best of his funny switch – which at this point was simply a Zane switch. Nya always made time for the little fans that would always tail her during the celebrations. Pixal was looking after them all with a satisfied smile.

On the other hand, the black ninja wasn’t too keen on these situations. Perhaps it was a bit of misconception from when he used to be a dancer and all those massive and obnoxious celebrations, but despite this he had always made the effort to be present at least for a while.

The blue ninja, on the other hand… were there words good enough to describe such a sparkle?

“Hey gloomy, that’s not how you blend in into a party! You know you’re really hard to ignore, right?” It wasn’t common for them to dress fancy, so it was a bit appalling seeing Jay rocking his brownish suit – yes they could all wear other colours besides their signature ones, shocker. “Leaning on the side-lines, not talking to anyone while still being impossible handsome, are you even allowed to exist?” There was a tiny possibility that he drunk a bit, mostly given that droopy look he was giving him.

Cole wasn’t sure if it was because of them dating, or this guy had always been absolutely adorable and this was simply paying a closer attention. He put the glass he had been uninterestingly holding the whole night onto the table and stepped forward.

“Is this you trying to flirt with me, Zaptrap?”

“No, this is me working my way up to ask you to dance, Dirtclod!” Jay snickered – alright yes he definitely had some wine –, offering his hand but not completely able to keep it open. “I’m glad I refused the last glass they offered me, I’m pretty sure I would’ve forgotten if I asked you out or not already. Not like it matters, I can make a full of myself and you’ll still find me cute!” Oh this little devious lightning. He was such a jester and a huge dork, so sometimes it was hard to remember how much brain was hidden under that ginger head.

The black ninja grabbed his hand.

“None taken, but it wouldn’t hurt for you to be elegant about it.” The master of earth snickered. “Besides, for all the times you embarrassed yourself, I should be desensitized by now.”

“Rude!”

“Am I wrong?”

“I’m asking you to the dance floor, be happy about it!”

“Am I wrong, though?”

“No you aren’t now get your butt into action!” Hard to say if Jay shouted that one line specifically to get a couple of weirded out eyes directed towards him or he was still in a bit of a bliss. He was at least lucid enough to lead him towards the centre of the room. “Finally! I’ve been dreaming of this moment for a while now, even your snarky remarks will not stop me!”

Cole blinked, letting him take the lead of the dance as too busy acknowledging what his messy guy had just told him.

“You wanted to dance with me that badly?”

“You’re so unaware of how charming you are it’s infuriating, it makes me nervous even now! Why do you think I got a bit funky with the drinks?” Oh. Oh. “Had to tone it down a notch before I exploded, you know how I am.” To think that he would – or perhaps the best word was could – purposely unable himself, solely because of a couple of butterflies in the stomach. He truly was quite the resourceful guy, in a very amusing way.

You know who I am, he said. The black ninja did and didn’t. He always did, yet lately he didn’t. It was a marvellous paradox that made him smile, wrapping his arms around the engineer’s waist.

“I guess so. Interesting, my looks are intimidating then.”

“Focus on the music, Cole.”

“I just hope me wearing a tux isn’t too much for your little heart.”

“DON’T MAKE ME REGRET THIS, COLE.”

It was a bit of a wonder how there was a time Cole absolutely despised being a dancer and everything that the discipline included. He could very well give the blame to how little he was communicating with his father, the bad experiences he had at school, his own insecurities. It had been a while now and honestly, it felt like a whole other world altogether. Maybe it was because he had matured. Maybe it was because he liked his partner a whole lot more.

 Lesson number two.

Jay was a pretty busy person.

Partying was great obviously, and Cole was never going to be a hypocrite by saying that helping the city being rebuilt the day after was better than stuffing his face with celebratory cake – yes, he liked saving the world for that reason too, it was a very good reason –, but there was definitely something about embracing the peace they had fought so hard for and work on dealing with the aftermath. It was disappointing in some ways yet uplifting in others, besides citizens of Ninjago were almost too good at fixing at this point, they almost barely needed them all. Then again having someone able to weld with fire alone and another power up a generator with a snap was better than not having them.

And while it was a bit of a prideful thing through them all to fight over who was the strongest, Cole knew that at the end of the day his guns were the most fitted to do the heavy work. Therefore, after some time that day, he had been left on his own to deal with the last granitic pieces, feeling every muscle turned into mush but still active over the pleasurable thrill of having done something good.

One of the citizens had brought water for the bulding team, him included, so he could take a break. He couldn’t keep going relentlessly – well, he could, but he didn’t want to. It was nice but also weird being the only ninja here, perhaps he was too used moving as a flock with the team.

Right as that thought caught him, his mask started to vibrate. The new communicators were still a work in progresses, but so far, they had not exploded – well done Pix.

He wore the mask and answered.

“Hello?”

“-No no no, you have to use the codename! You chose one, right? Over.-”

This dork. Cole felt all of his tiredness evaporate.

“Ahem. Rocky speaking, over.”

“-Rocky? Really? Over.-”

“It’s simple and immediate, what do you want from me?”

“-For you to have a bit of imagination, and also to use proper walkie talkie language!-” This guy could be the laziest of them all during their vacation days and non, but honestly very few people he knew committed this hard when something truly interested them – or was absurdly silly. “-Ahh, your lack of enthusiasm is making me lose too much time! Rocky, this is Bluejay-flying-in-the-night,-” Dang it, Cole adored this absolute idiot. “-Sensei Wu, I mean the Beardinator, asked me to call everyone and making sure you’re not falling behind with work for today! Over.-”

Cole frowned a little. Jay sounded absolutely charged as usual, but the kind of blabber was almost screamed at this point. He knew the guy enough to recognize when he was hyperfixating over something, or he was overworking himself.

“Well, everything’s good on my side, but I’ll probably be back after dinner… say, are you okay? You sound a bit hysteric, and that’s a lot coming from you.”

“-Okay so on your front everything’s good, same with Nya and Zane, I’ll check Kai next.-”

“Jay?”

“-… sorry, I know you asked me something, but I completely spaced out on you. What is it that you need from me?-” Okay, this confirmed it. “-Whatever it is it will have to wait until tomorrow, Nya and Pixal need help to repair our latest mechs and vehicles, Zane wants me to supervise his check-up since you never know, Kai and Lloyd wanted a sparring partner for the training regime and I got to finish the blueprints for the new security system of our place.-” Wow. Just, wow. It was in equal parts worrying and impressive. Life was easier with such a bright mind around and a reminder was always welcomed. “-… I’d love to make time for you, though… over.-”

The black ninja managed to take off the mask before he let out that embarrassed squeak, because how dare he distract him with how much work he was doing and how dare he take advantage of it by dropping such a cute line.

The main battle for the sake of the world was over. All they needed to do was get through the recovering, and possibly getting some time to enjoy together.

Cole inhaled happily.

“Don’t worry, we’ll get our moment. Focus on what you need to do, but don’t overwork yourself.”

“-Roger that, Rock-hard-muscles.-”

“…”

“-Too much?-”

“I’ll have to close the call, that was too charming and I might faint… over and out.”

What more to ask for this idiot to cheer in delight for finally getting him to use proper walkie talkie slang, putting an end to the conversation with a huge smile on his face? It was ordinary business, but it was different too, this time there was more to look forward to at the end of the tunnel. It was the first time for the both of them. Possibly not going to be the least.

 Lesson number three.

Jay was very light.

There was always a bit of satisfaction in knowing that there was a time to be yet being able to finish earlier. Cole felt like he could go on a bit of a pride parade and mention how he didn’t know his own strength and it kept surprising him all the time – unironically his fans liked to hear that more than him, he didn’t know who was cringier between them and himself –, although this pleasant feeling from being on time likely came from his earliest moments at the monastery training as a ninja, therefore the very beginning of his strong earth power. He liked to keep the time more than how he used to during those ballet years, which was kind of ironic, so when he got back home he had a plastic bag in his hand from groceries and a grin on the top of his lips.

Likely the rest of the team already had their dinner and he himself had provided through the closest supermarket, along with a few over things he was carrying right now – no of course he didn’t by himself a whole cake to devour later, who was he an animal. He could hear the living room animated, a familiar soundtrack coming from Fist to Face 2 and what seemed to be Kai’s perfectly calibrated anguished scream from losing – likely against Lloyd, the poor hothead.

He went to the kitchen to put down his small groceries and join the fun, when he saw the blue ninja in precarious equilibrium onto a chair while getting to the highest shelf. This wasn’t the weirdest he had ever seen in his life – like, not even close –, but he did have a bit of a gasp.

“Jay?!”

“What?” Somehow this guy had the nerve to turn around with a frown on his face, right as the change of position destabilized the whole balance on the chair – it was a flipping stool what was wrong with this guy. “Oh hey Cole, what are you-” Amazing his comedic timing, so perfect Cole barely had a fright when his boyfriend lost it and capitulated, right into his awaiting shaking arms – alright perhaps there was a bit of cold sweat, only a bit!

The chair fell down, the cookie jar that had apparently been the reason behind this recklessness were splattered all over the ground, and Kai groaned again from the other room – unrelated to this and likely because of Lloyd’s superior gaming skills again.

The black ninja was left a bit speechless between the rush, the anger, and the relief. Yet most of all, what remained was the feeling of having the blue ninja picked up. Oh. Huh.

“What in the world, Jay.”

The master of lightning looked at him, smirked, and Cole felt the migraine before it hit.

“Well I guess I-”

“No.”

“But I very clearly-”

“Don’t you dare!”

“I obviously fell for you!” Fury, betrayal, disappointment, despair, and Cole wished it wasn’t such a Jay thing to say, which was inevitably another reason to swoon for him. “Come on, it’s a classic! It was the perfect situation too, I wouldn’t hated myself for not taking the chance! Thanks for the help by the way, I guess I wasn’t paying too much attention to land on my feet.” A fair comment actually, they were all perfectly trained to handle falling, even from such a small height. It made the master of earth wonder if there was something going on. “Good thing you got that core strength of yours, I doubt the others would’ve been luckier!”

Ah, a chance for revenge. Cole grinned. This guy didn’t listen to him and came up with the cheesiest and most embarrassing of all puns? There was only one way to retaliate, one that could be developed only when living between three, then four, then five/six/seven other people all in the same place: teasing.

After all, he had just made another discovery. He really wanted to marvel over it out loud.

“Nah, I don’t think it would’ve been a problem.” Jay raised an eyebrow, Cole smirked. “Dude, you’re lighter than a feather, pretty sure kid Lloyd would’ve been able to catch you.”

What a wonder seeing a blush on him. He wasn’t that mean to teasing that detail as well, but he wanted to gaze at it as long as it lasted. It was weird in a way, it wasn’t like the black ninja was completely unaware of relatively light Jay was. The blue ninja had always been more focused on speed and agility, he was the only one of them that had a childhood without physical training – well technically Zane and Pixal too but you know, Zane and Pixal –, and there was simply a difference of built. It was perhaps this newfound need to find out more about him, that made it so incredible to rediscover this right in this moment, at this time of their relationship.

Jay was pouting, arms folded despite making no attempt at getting free. He liked to be pampered after all, not even his pride could take that away from him.

“I’m a strong ninja, I trained with a martial art master.”

“Yes you did, Zaptrap.”

“I have muscles! They’re just different kinds! It’s not my fault you all are buff in comparison!”

“No it isn’t, Zaptrap.” Cole kissed him on the forehead, that immediately relaxed. It felt like there was more tension though, beyond this silly circumstance. “How about you try fixing your hurt pride through a massive videogaming session?”

“Uh? But I got work to do…” More work? They had all finish their daily routine of helping around the city, what more was there to do? Thinking about now it was suspicious how he was here and not in the living room already. “… uhm, but maybe it can wait until tomorrow! Totally!” Hard to tell if he changed his mind or he noticed how weird it sounded. He simply pointed forward. “Onward, my dearest! Towards the arena, where I will take my victory!”

It was really hard focusing on worrying stuff with him being so adorably him.

Yet Cole was a very meticulous person and again, he liked researching. This moment was fixed in his head. He was going to give him a couple of turns of gaming though. Just this once.

“Alright! Hey everyone, I brought you a bag of grapes!”

“A bag of wha- oh you mean Jay.”

“I’M NOT THAT LIGHT YOU GUYS!”

 Lesson number four.

Jay was a glutton like him.

A premise had to be made that the blue ninja was the only one Cole harboured any kind of romantic feelings. Lloyd was his little brother, Kai was his middle brother, Nya was his sister – his mind refused to acknowledge the triangle fiasco, it was too cringe to compute –, in short they were his family. With that being said, it was really hard to keep his feelings down towards his favourite nindroid after seeing the huge piece of chocolate cake he left for him in the fridge, with the note ‘To my partypooper brother, great work today. Zane’.

Honestly, honestly, that gorgeous piece of metal only deserved love and Cole wasn’t going to be the one to deny him this right. Also, that totally meant he was his favourite brother, so he got to be a little giddy – he totally didn’t see the six other lunch boxes besides his, not at all.

Most of the others were either in bed or preparing for the night and he should have too, but he was feeling a bit too good to drown it all in slumber. He felt like being conscious for a bit more.

He sat on the table, slice on the table, and with the outmost care he took a big forkful of it.

“Oh I love you Zane!” There was honestly no other feeling like that. The moist cake, the creamy interior, the whole experience was simply magical and somehow worth all the migraine going through the most recent villain. “I gotta buy him a present…” His first thought was another pink apron and while it sounded like a fantastic idea, he wasn’t one hundred percent sure if Zane would have still not realized how silly it was going to look.

It was nostalgic though. Today Cole was feeling really, really good.

He was about to take another bite, when he felt steps behind him. It wasn’t even about being a ninja, he had simply lived with these people for so long that he knew them without looking. Perhaps letting his guard down only because it was Jay was a bad move, but despite the sudden hug from behind he definitely didn’t regret letting the attack happen.

Especially for the following kiss on the cheek. Maybe Cole was really easy to please but that made his heart flutter a bit, while Jay simply licked his lips.

“What? You have some chocolate over there!”

After one single bite. Right. Either the black ninja was a massively messy eater – not to be excluded but still –, or the blue one was playing around. The black ninja was much more into the second option, as he grinned all the way up to his cheeks.

“And you cleaned it up for me? Are you my personal maid or something?”

“Well not to confirm that, but I did look great in a blonde wig that one time I was pretending to be a victim!” Wow, that was a massive throwback to the whole mysterious Samurai X saga – Nya still hadn’t let them live it down. “You looked way too vulnerable while enjoying your thing, I just couldn’t resist. Especially after hearing you being so vocal about your love for the local nindroid…” Ah, he heard it. That pout looked a bit too forced to be actually jealous, though. “If I’d known all I needed was a cake to get your heart, I would have given a career in bakery a shot!” And now he was crossing his arms. Drama queen, thy name Jay Walker.

Cole rolled his eyes, getting another bite of the chocolaty heaven in front of him, while never taking his eyes off the ginger beauty in the room.

“Isn’t it even more meaningful? How despite not hiding a roll of cookie dough in your pocket, you still got a date out of me?” He winked at him, Jay snorted with his cheeks a bit red. “Besides, look at what Zane prepared for you in the fridge and tell me you don’t adore him.”

“He made stuff for me too?… OH MY GOSH I LOVE YOU ZANE!” Yep, no one was above the kind of awe coming from having fresh treats from the fridge – quite ironic thinking of that time Zane was standing right inside of it. “It’s a bitter orange pudding too! The ones that got discontinued! Oh, this is exactly what I needed!” Followed the scene of a grown young adult squishing his face against a small container of pudding in absolute delight.

So cute, so cute, so cute. Cole sighed dramatically.

“Hopefully one day you’ll love me as much as you love puddings.”

“Oh that’s rich!” Jay kept the little pudding in contact, holding it like it was his child while giving him a glare. “But please do tell, who would you save from a sinking ship, me or a cake?”

Now he was forcing the pout a lot.

The black ninja couldn’t help it. He pretended to think.

“I mean… you can fly and summon dragons, you would save yourself.”

“Cole!”

“I mean, the cake is basically an innocent to save…”

“Cole!!” His offended glance made him burst into laughter. The blue ninja dropped on the chair right in front of him, full frown in sight – with one spoon in his hand, the little impatient. “Well maybe I’ll save my pudding too instead of you! But since you’re all heavy with muscle and mountain powers you’ll sink, how about that??” He started a bit of an evil laugh then shut himself up with a spoonful of pudding, which immediately turned her frown upside down. “I want to eradicate all that is evil in the universe so Zane can retire and open a restaurant.”

“Seconded.” There was still a bit of a frown in him though, Cole couldn’t stop smiling. He looked at his cake, took a forkful, then extended it towards him. Jay genuinely gasped. “Here’s the thing, if I save the cake and you save yourself, then we can share it.”

The master of lightning blinked. Then he smiled and took the bit, humming in delight.

“Alright, you sold me to it. Not a bad idea.”

“Care to reciprocate?”

“You num num. Here.” Jay grinned and offered a spoonful of his pudding. It tasted lightly bitter and acidic, yet immensely sweet. Annoying but lovely, how ironic. “Cake is good but the pudding is more my thing. You keep yours.” He took the fork and fed him more cake. Now Cole really felt like in heaven. “You got a little something again.” Another kiss on the cheek. Double heaven.

 Lesson number 5.

Jay was… a stressed person.

Cole knew something was up. It wasn’t even about their recently developed relationship, although he was pretty sure that uneasiness in his chest had become much more intense because of it. Once again, they knew each other, and no matter what was going to happen the two of them had started as best friends. Maybe the way they were going was different, but the goal of the whole path wasn’t diverse: they still had each other’s backs.

His sleeping schedule was pretty impeccable. Between being a dancer, a climber and a ninja, there had never been much time to waste. And yes sleepovers and game marathons with the guys were a given, but so was getting plenty of rest after a major fight. All the rooms were closed for the night. Only one was empty.

The black ninja had been waiting for those quick and light steps for quite a while now, laying on his bed without his covers. At some point he felt that enough was enough.

He looked at his phone. 2:30 of the morning.

Definity an enough was enough moment.

The place was dead silent at night. It had taken a while to find a stable place to live in again given how often they had been forced to change place… or for that place to be destroyed. The most recent one had given them all the chance to have their own rooms, and even had one reserved for projects. Between Jay, Nya, Zane and Pixal, it was very much needed – a given for an engineer seemed to be working in chaos, which meant quadruple the mayhem. In exchange for so much space though, the walls were pretty much paper thin, and Cole could hear all of them sleeping: Zane’s absolute silence, Pixal’s light sounds of recharging, Nya’s soft snoring, Kai’s light mumbling and Lloyd’s sleep-talking. Only that adorable hum, even purr, was missing.

The engineers room was wide open, a soft white light was coming from it. Not enough to give food to his thoughts, but Cole did chuckle a bit at the thought of some sci-fi based moment, since Jay had been so adamant at making him watch the entirety of the Starfarer saga – “The first time was a three-way date, this time is you and me! I demand it to be special and with the least amount of sarcastic glanc- COLE!” –, as he approached the door.

There he was, the ball of ginger. The black ninja had seen him countless of times leaning onto the desk, his foot tapping and the protractor sliding so fast onto the blueprints it was louder than a pencil. The fact that the whole scene was almost dead silent was concerning already.

Cole took a breath and got inside.

“Jay?” He got an uninterested, braindead groan in response. “Jay, worktime is over, get off the chair.” A couple of quiet seconds made him think he hadn’t heard.

Then those shoulders shook a little. Ah, he listened.

“I’m not- I’ll eat later, I have to finish this.” Ah, he did not listen.

“It’s the middle of the night, babe.”

“I know I need to shower, I just need to get this done first…”

“You see, I don’t like when you ignore me or you’re too tired to hear, so how about I solve this the old fashion way?” He knew there wasn’t a single word going through to him. He was counting on it. So when without a single shame he grabbed him by the waist, pulled him up and over his shoulders, the strangled noise he got in return was even more satisfying. “You’ve been a very bad ninja and as you know, all bad ninja must be punished. In your case I’d say, sleep in for the time being and put whatever that was on hold.” Without another word he walked out of the room.

The blue ninja seemed to be ready to fight him off, but Cole’s perception must had been right about him being completely exhausted, because he gave up quickly. He opted for a full pout and folded arms, and as usual the unhappy kid act suited him. He leaned a bit to gave him a look, Cole could see him upside down, those curly ginger hair going everywhere.

“I don’t need a babysitter to tell me to go to sleep.”

“Are you sleeping? No. Therefore yes, you need it. Consider it a payback, I’m your nanny, you’re my maid.” Where was his mind going right now…

“I’m fine! There’s no need for this, I got so much stuff to do!” He squirmed a little, not enough clearly. Possibly only to be a nuisance. “The new security system needs to be up asap, the mechas are taking longer than expected, I need to ask dad for a compact converter giggly compressor…”

Memories of a pile of junk. Cole snickered.

“Yeah, no, I still think you’re making that stuff up. And we can go to your folks’ house anytime, no need to rush everything in one night. I know you’re tired.”

“Am not! I’m… not! I’m, like… not!” Not even the energy to go on a rant, it meant he really had zero juice left. Jay grumbled, wrapping his arms around his neck. “What about you, huh? You’re also awake at this hour, and you’re vital enough to pick me up! We have the same training regime, and don’t you dare tell me cute stuff like you were waiting for me and got worried because… because… I can and will smother you!” As a representation he clenched his hold, but it felt more like an embrace and he knew, because he groaned.

The black ninja laughed again. He turned to Jay’s room, as messy yet with a method as ever.

“Again, you weight as much as groceries, I barely need to think about it at all.” He got a light slap behind his neck for that one. “Now be a good boy and… sleep!” Without a warning he dropped the guy onto his bed, making him jump. “Tomorrow you’ll do the rest.”

Jay gave him a baffled look, then he glared again.

“I don’t have time for this, Cole.”

“And I told you you’re out of juice for the day, Jay.”

“I have loads of work left to do, Cole!”

“I’m not letting you faint on a compass, Jay!”

“I CAN KEEP IT UP, COLE!”

“WOULDN’T BE HARD GIVEN YOU’RE LIGHTER THAN A LIGHTER, JAY!”

“BOTH OF YOU! SHUT! UP!!” Oh yeah there we, like, seven other people living under their same roof, currently trying to sleep since it was unreasonably late. If they had managed to wake up Lloyd’s impressively deep sleep then they were shouting pretty loudly. “GO TO SLEEP OR I SWEAR I’LL BE THE NEXT VILLAIN YOU’RE ALL GONNA FACE, AND I KNOW ALL OF YOUR TICKLISH POINTS!” It would have been a weak threat wasn’t that guy some sort of natural tickler torturer able to genuinely knock them all out – if that tied up with being the son of the warlord that was Garmadon, that was to be discussed.

It was enough to make them both go quiet, but Cole wasn’t going to drop this solely because of the current time. Judging from his boyfriend’s still present glare he was ready to die on that hill as well, which was incredibly annoying – obstinacy, an inevitable consequence of ninja never quit. The fact that even like this he was showing some pretty swollen eyelids was ridiculous.

There had to be a way to distract him. And there was. The black ninja blinked, almost feeling stupid for not thinking immediately about it. He smiled.

“If you get under the cover, ready to sleep, I’ll bring you a pudding.”

Jay’s eyes immediately changed mood. There we go.

“Wha- I finished mine, you’re bluffing!”

“I bought one at the store, you know I like snacking. I’m willing to give it up if it means you’ll finally rest.” There was a moment of pondering, where it dawned to him how stupid this conversation was. Then the blue ninja finally relented and laid down. “Be right back.”

As soon as he got out of the room, he let out a sigh of relief, that seemed to remind his body how late it was and how tired he was. He had waited for so long fighting the urge to close his eyes, now his body was slowly shutting down and begging him to take it easy. Jay was high maintenance, he had known this from the very beginning way before getting together. Sometimes he really didn’t understand him, but perhaps that was just what made him… well, him.

He was so out of it he went into autopilot, and suddenly he was walking back with the cold vanilla pudding into his hand. With the hope that the master of lightning had fallen asleep in the meanwhile he got back inside, but obviously it was wishful thinking. He had his eyes wide opened.

… so much they looked tearful.

“Ah, thanks. You can put it on the nightstand.” He was hugging himself, looking at nothing, dark circles visible. “I’ll have it in a moment.” Hopefully he knew he wasn’t convincing in the slightest.

Cole felt a wince inside his heart. Without saying a word, he laid down next to him, making do to what space was left on a singular bed, and started caressing his back. It was very, very tense, it was a block of rock on itself. Under his fingers though it was slowly softening, and so naturally Jay leaned against him, his shoulders touching his chest. The black ninja didn’t think twice embracing him, leaning his chin over the mess that his hair was right now. It smelled like rust and oil. Even after a thousand of showers, that was simply his natural scent.

His breathing was still but heavy, like he was gathering as much air as he could.

“What are you thinking about?”

“… it didn’t work.” It came almost as a sob, but it was more likely that the blue ninja was too tired even for that. “All of those defences, all of those vehicles, I put my hand to it to make them the best they could be. But they’re never enough, it’s so much harder every time and I… I don’t think I can keep up.” He trembled a little.

The master of earth kissed his temple, holding him closer.

“You did good. You and the others, with all of these amazing creations, it’s thanks to that that we win every single time.”

“But every single time, it’s always because of something else. At worst, all it’s destroyed!”

“Yet even after all that, we’re able to survive and being here, talking about it. It’s not by some miracle that we triumph Jay, it’s because of so many different things.” He went over his hair with a hand, fingers between those curls, feeling him breathing. “Our training, our values, our allies, our city, and yes, our weapons as well. And maybe those don’t make it to the very end, but they do make a difference. So don’t push yourself, keep working as you did before. You’re doing great.”

There was silence afterwards. Cole genuinely didn’t know if his boyfriend was way too stubborn to let this one go, if his prayers had been answered and he was finally asleep, or he was simply not responding and pondering over the whole discussion. He didn’t have to wait long, because next thing he knew the blue ninja was turning around, the softest smile of all onto his lips, as he held the black ninja’s face and kissed him. It was always baffling the way he held him, because it was so delicate, like the master of earth out of all people was to be treated with gentleness. It was such a care for him that it made him feel so fuzzy inside, as he kissed back.

Jay’s kisses were, of course, electric. Cole wondered if he knew that the first contact was a genuine little shock, like touching something lightly charged. It always made him smile, it always made him look for more. They were both so tired, yet their lips kept looking for each other in need.

It was like dreaming, a bit. He liked opening his eyes better though, because he was always slightly earlier than him, and he could watch him with closed eyes, bliss in his expression.

The blue ninja giggled, before opening his eyelids.

“How do you know what to say every time?”

“Trial and error, but mostly I like researching.”

“Research?”

“Yep. And you’re my latest favourite thing to explore.” Cole kissed him again, embracing him, hoping to erase all of the worries and the stress from this body, even taking them as his own. But the best way for that was still resting, so he pulled back and leaned their foreheads together. “I want you to be okay. So… sleep, please?” He didn’t have any other trick to pull for this.

Jay smiled and nodded, thankfully. He wrapped his arms around his neck, putting his head over his shoulder.

“Can you stay here for a bit?”

Cole grinned, adjusting his position so he wasn’t going to wake up with a massive backache next morning. Extending his arm out without moving his body he managed to grab the blanket and messily covered the both of them with it, making sure the boy right next to him was completely bundled up and comfy. Right in that moment he realized, with immense relief, that Jay had finally given up and was completely out. Any time now that natural propension to hug in his sleep was going to kick in, making it impossible for the black ninja to escape.

Not like he had any intention to. He simply let his eyes wonder over his boyfriend’s exhausted face, finally getting what he needed. Pride and softness filled him as he let himself go as well.

“I’m not going anywhere.”

 Lesson six.

Jay was absolutely lovely.

… and loved him more than the pudding abandoned on the nightstand, apparently.

[jetwhenitsmidnight]

Silver Under Nightfall by Rin Chupeco

Genre: gothic fantasy romance

If you like: polyam romance, vampire hunter x vampire(s), enemies to lovers, angst, Castlevania(idk what this is but apparently they are similar), Gideon the Ninth's sense of humour

Content warnings: blood, violence, (past) statutory rape, sexual coercion, body horror, semi-explicit sexual content(they get it on a lot, but there's no description of genitals and its mostly skimmed over)

Overall rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/5

Synopsis

Remy Pendergast is many things: the only son of the Duke of Valenbonne, an elite bounty hunter of rogue vampires, and an outcast among his fellow Reapers. Though the kingdom of Aluria barely tolerates him, Remy’s father has been shaping him into a weapon to fight for the kingdom at any cost.

When a terrifying new breed of vampire is sighted outside of the city, Remy prepares to investigate alone. But then he encounters the shockingly warmhearted vampire heiress Xiaodan Song and her infuriatingly arrogant fiancé, vampire lord Zidan Malekh, who may hold the key to defeating the creatures. When he’s offered a spot alongside them to find the truth about the mutating virus Rot that’s plaguing the kingdom, Remy faces a choice—one he’s certain he’ll regret.

But as the three face dangerous hardships during their journey, Remy develops fond and complicated feelings for the couple. He begins to question what he holds true about vampires, as well as the story behind his own family legacy. As the Rot continues to spread across the kingdom, Remy must decide where his loyalties lie: with his father and the kingdom he’s been trained all his life to defend or the vampires who might just be the death of him.

Review

I genuinely can't remember the last time I had this much fun reading!

This book starts off with a whole fight scene, which was so brilliantly executed. Not just because it was cool as hell, but also because it introduces Remy in such a way that readers can get a sense of who his character is and his place in the story right off the bat. His ostracization from most of his fellow humans, his position and reputation as a Reaper; as well as his character: his determination to do what's right, his kindness, his stubbornness and impulsivity.

And I love how Remy's first meetings with each of his love interests perfectly sets up the dynamic for their relationship. Like, Remy and Malekh fighting from the very first time they meet, with Malekh goading him and Remy refusing to back down + Remy's immediate acceptance of Xiaodan and their easy banter, establishes the tone of their relationship from the jump, which is maintained throughout the book, while still allowing them to grow closer as they learn more about each other.

Remy also serves as an excellent narrator. Although he's slower on the uptake than Xiaodan and Malekh, he's still observant and intelligent, and has a snarky sense of humour, never failing to snark at the worst possible moments.

The action scenes were all so fun, and I think the way Remy holds his own against the stronger and faster vampires makes sense. Also the sex scenes ate (sometimes literally lmao).

I have a few nitpicks that keeps this book from being perfect for me, which aren't a problems, its just my personal tastes. I couldn't completely get behind Malekh, because I don't really enjoy brood-y, super-serious, edgy type characters. Which, he has good reasons for being so, given his backstory, but some of his lines which were probably meant to come off as cool and sexy, made me scoff a little and take him less seriously. Other people would probably find him appealing, this is really just a case of "its not you, its me".

Another thing that took me out of the story was some of the names. I mentioned it here, and I do think its fun, but it removed me from the narrative a bit. Singing Waters is a cool-sounding name in english, but Changge Shui in mandarin sounds kind of dumb, and being named Yingyue would get you made fun of by Chinese people.

[ixcaliber]

Games of the month - June 2023

This month my hyperfocus went towards watching as many movies as possible, so it’s a pretty breezy games of the month

1. Haiku, The Robot

Neat little metroidvania about a little robot. It’s cute it’s pretty fun. My two big complaints would be

1) it felt pretty linear. i don’t doubt that there were probably other ways to get to locations than the ways that i took but the experience of playing it it really felt like each upgrade allowed me access to one new path which would lead me to the next upgrade and so on and so on.

2) i like boss fights better when each enemy has a little name pop up. the designs were cool and did some interesting stuff sometimes. i just wish i didn’t have to think of them in terms of like ‘the car battery one’, ‘the tv one’ etc. It makes them feel less memorable.

Otherwise perfectly fine metroidvania.

2. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Chronologically this is when I finished Tears of the Kingdom but I’m not ready to tear into that just yet so lets move on to

3. Life After Magic

This is a free game available through steam or through itch.io. It’s a visual novel where you control Akiko, a former magical girl who has somewhat drifted through life after the big bad that she and her magical girl team fought against has been defeated. With y2k approaching something is wrong and it’s up to you to bring your girls back together and face one more threat.

Hey. I love this game. There’s a good chance this is pretty high up my games of the year list, if not at the very top. I love the girls. I love the trans and nonbinary inclusion. I love the homages to sailor moon, yu-gi-oh and probably some other stuff that I didn’t even get. I love the way the game plays with nostalgia and the way this narrative reaches a head. If you’re like one of the two or three people reading this I absolutely recommend you get and play this one.

4. Monuments To Guilt

This is a digital museum dedicated to hostile design as featured in the Jacob Gellar video Games That Aren’t Games. Throughout you can see a number of benches designed to be uncomfortable, off-putting or otherwise just inaccessible to homeless people and disabled people. It’s a short experience and it is interesting to see this insidious aspect of design presented in the prestigious format of a museum and to see it talked about openly. It’s an interesting little experience.

5. Down In Bermuda

Fun and simple puzzle game. It’s the kind of think that would be approachable for kids, simple puzzle concepts like pipe dreams kind of puzzles, hidden object puzzles, no towers of hanoi to speak of but lots of puzzles that feel like they’re in the public domain so to speak. Nothing too difficult and taxing.

6. Lone Fungus

Another metroidvania from the recent humble metroidvania bundle. This game is okay. I like the cute little aesthetic and the basic movement is fun. The big big Big criticism I have of this game is that so much of the side content is like these nether gates or these ladybird rooms. The first time you go in these you get a little popup or something to tell you just how completely optional they are and they would have to be. The difficulty of platforming going from the actual game to these challenges is a fucking sheer cliff wall both in terms of reaction speed needed and in terms of the sheer length of time you need to platform perfectly.

At one point in the game I got a new skill ability and accessed a little tutorial move about how to use it and it started talking about using it to propel yourself quickly by doing this one kind of dash into it and for the life of me I could not get it to activate properly. I felt like I was attempting to perform some complex speedrun tech and the inputs I had to do were like spread across four different buttons which all needed to be hit so quickly in succession. Impossible. This was about the time I gave up on exploration altogether.

And like... it’s a metroidvania. For me at least that exploration is the point of the video game. If you’ve put me off of doing it I don’t really know what I’m getting out of the experience any more.

Also frustrating is that the final (fourth of four) sword upgrades is locked behind completing every single one of the ladybird rooms. And like, if you’re good enough to manage that you’re not going to need the piddling 2 extra damage that the upgrade can offer. Overall it really felt like so much of the stuff you can find that’s optional is not worth it.

There’s like a relic system (like charms in hollow knight) but the way it costs out the various relics you can only really wear three at a time, probably only two if you want to use any of the useful ones.

And just as a minor nitpick on top of everything else, all the bosses are bigger versions of regular enemies that you fight in the area leading up to the boss. It’s not inherently negative when you do something like this in a game but when it’s every boss fight then it makes them less memorable and less interesting.

Also there’s like two ways to end the game, some npcs tell you to do things the proper way while there’s a couple who indicate this secret back route and imply that everyone else is lying to you. The thing is that like I finished the game and I would still have no idea how I’m supposed to escape through the backroute exit. The way the npcs frame it is like a skipping out on your responsibility to complete the tasks set to you for the rest of the game, but like if it’s weirdly more difficult than those tasks then something isn’t adding up.

I had a lot of complaints about this one. It’s fine if you put yourself into the right mindset, as I said up top the basic movement is pretty fun and the designs are cute. Difficult to recommend it if you like to experience this kind of game in the way that I prefer to though.

7. Growing Up

This is a weird one to describe. It’s a game, as the name implies, about growing up. The game’s like broken up into different aspects. During each turn you get the opportunity to learn new skills; you start as a baby and have to learn skills such as talking and walking but soon you’re in school and your skills become more academic focused. At the end of a turn you schedule these tasks, completing each one a specific number of times can master it which will give you bonuses to your attributes and knowledge points to help facilitate learning new skills.

It’s a very mechanically focused game. Maybe I’m being a little too in depth with my explanation. Okay lets try again.

Each turn has like three major components. Learning skills. Scheduling tasks and exploring the brain map. The brain map is like a little minigame where you move along a randomly generated kind of sphere grid sort of upgrade tree, trying to optimize the attribute gains and bonuses with the limited amount of brain points you have. Since you do it once a turn each turn it’s like ‘okay what do I want to focus on this turn’ and you might always try to grab the thing that upgrades the amount of brain points you can have at any given time, but also skew towards knowledge points if you want to learn something new. It does encourage you to be thinking ahead towards your goals and as you play through the game new kinds of tile are unlocked which add dramatically to the complexity of this minigame and how you play it.

I think this game is very good mechanically. I really enjoyed the loop of learning skills, mastering skills, playing the brain map to try to optimize my ability to learn new skills.

The weakness in the game is the way the narrative is delivered. Which isn’t to say the narrative is bad. In my playthrough I got to befriend some good girls and then date and eventually in the epilogue marry my best friend Alicia.

(Also something of a sidenote but should mention that I got this from the humble pride bundle. It’s great that it does allow for gay and lesbian romances but it doesn’t seem to facilitate playing a transgender or nonbinary character. I’d love to see something added to facilitate that in a patch or free dlc.

(At the birth of your character you’re given the option to pick gender or to let fate decide. If you choose to pick you get to pick male or female. I wouldn’t want non-binary or transgender options added here, but like when you get to an age where you’re going to school to have some pop up or prompt that asks you if you feel comfortable in your gender or something like that and that sets you off along a path of transition. Or to have it opt in, an object you can unlock that allows you to schedule ‘self reflection’ or something that can lead you to a path to transition.

I understand that that might be a lot of work though, as there are a lot of characters in the game and making custom conversations for each of them to acknowledge your transition might be quite time consuming)

The other thing I wanted to point out in regard to it being on the humble pride bundle is at the beginning you can pick your parents. I picked to have two moms. The game allows this and is fine with it. There is however an unintended consequence.

Very early on, when you’re still a baby, I learned how to speak and got this cutscene where one of my mom was encouraging me to say ‘Mommy’ as my first word. And so I did and then my other mom was disappointed that I hadn’t said her name first. Maybe this is a one off oversight, because later in the game when I started dating my girlfriend she did acknowledge that we were both girls, but here at least they’ve not disallowed you to have gay parents but they haven’t made any specific accommodations for it.)

So the way that the narrative works is that the game is sort of presented in a semi-roguelike kind of fashion. It tells you up front that every life is unique and I think what it means is that at each stage of your life it will introduce one new character from like a stock set of characters. I met Jake at like primary school, Alicia at high school and Felicity at like college or something. All the schools were using american terms for the school levels so idk.

You get choices in each of these relationships that can branch them into slightly different directions (i think) but like your control over that interaction is minimal. If I’d been given the option I would never have spoken to Jake again. Not because he did anything wrong but just because I would prefer to be talking to girls. But the way the game is set up these events just sort of happen intermittently as you play and aren’t really informed by any of your decisions in the actual game you’re playing.

And your relationship with your parents is limited to occasionally they’ll give you a goal that you can complete to get a special currency you can turn in for some rewards. They don’t really have characters or expectations or preferences for you. Neither of my moms had like a desire to see me do really well at sports for example.

The other weirdest part is how okay at some point in the game you get two bars to manage. Happiness is your own enjoyment. Get it high enough and you’re relaxed and can schedule extra activities, get it too low and you’re stressed and you can’t learn new skills. And there is parental proudness or something. Get that high enough and you can get perks from them and I don’t know what happens when it gets toward the lower end.

Each activity you can do has some effect on both these meters. Studying will decrease happiness but increase parental proudness. Playing games will do the inverse. In addition to your main academic skills you have stuff like sports that you can gradually gain access to. And they reduce happiness but increase parental proudness. I learned how to start along a creative writing course and that reduces happiness but increases parental proudness. Hell I fucking learned magic (partially because I really liked the magician NPC Daz) and that does the same; decreases happiness but increases parental proudness.

I guess I can see it from a balance point of view but it feels so weird to be playing as a character with no passion. Nothing that they try to do makes them happy. I really feel like you should be allowed to find, or develop an interest. Like when your character is unhappy because they’ve been practicing their magic tricks for too long clearly something is wrong, right?

The overall vibe I get from this game is... you know those posts that circulate on here sometimes where it’s like “If you’re hacking the rules of dnd to do what you want then something is wrong. The mechanics are supposed to lead to the storytelling and if they don’t then you should be playing a different ttrpg where the mechanics do support the kind of narrative you want to tell/experience.”

The mechanics are good, the narrative is sometimes fairly interesting. They are essentially entirely seperate from one another and that’s a shame.

2. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

(some brief spoilers i suppose)

i don’t fucking know man.

its good. its undeniably a good game. better in some ways than breath of the wild, maybe a little too padded out. i never felt a great compulsion to fully explore the depths. It was neat that they were there but they felt so empty. Just large open stretches dotted with huge monsters I don’t want to fight and sometimes I’ll follow a treasure map down there and it’ll lead me to a colliseum full of lynels and I’ll be kerbstomped so hard that it drains my will to continue playing.

That’s how I felt towards the end. The game does the same thing as breath of the wild where the longer you play the more silver enemies it spawns in and though its more managable with the introduction of sages I never found myself wanting to engage in combat.

I genuinely do feel like the silver enemies ruin my experience of the game. I feel like I’m making progress, getting stronger, feeling more capable of dealing with threats. Now that I have my sages with me sometimes I’ll actively seek out a combat encounter and not hate it. There’s this sweet spot where that’s all true for a little bit, and then silver monsters start showing up and my enthusiasm ebbs dramatically. I never killed a single lynel in this game. By the time I felt that maybe I was good enough to start fighting them they’d started spawning in silver versions. 

All that said ascend is such a good ability that it sort of changed how my brain worked a little bit. Playing games immediately afterwards I would just keep thinking ‘oh i can just ascend up there’ and having to remind myself that no most video games do not allow this.

I think I had so much to say about Zelda. About how it feels like too much, about how sometimes you’ll just find yourself caught in a thing of not really accomplishing anything and come off feeling miserable, about the one afternoon where I spent literally hours in a pirate cave trying to solve a puzzle that didn’t exist. I think I’ve just exhausted all that in my brain and all my brain has left to offer is ‘just give me a fucking accessibility menu, let me turn down the damage and the health and turn what is a very good game that I sort of resent into an experience I’d actually like to play’.

[wyrmfedgrave]

Pics:

1. WW1 has several nicknames but, none so foolish as this...

Among the other nicknames are:

A. "The Chemist's War" (due to the poisonous gasses used).

B. "The Forgotten War" (much time has passed - were coning up on the century mark).

C. "The Great War" (there's nothing great about any war).

D. "World War 1" (not known as this until the 2nd World War started).

2. Valkyries on the way to a battle - where they'll decide who died a 'worthy' enough death that they deserve the honor of helping Odin during Ragnarok.

3. Leftover picture from an earlier post.

"Recipes from the Mythos lore of HP Lovecraft" - exactly what's needed to not feel when you're being eaten alive!

With 'fun' drinks like: the "King in Jell-O," "Pink FlaMi-Go," "Sunken Island Iced Tea," "Root Beer of All Evil," "Bloodbath & Beyond," etc...

75 recipes in all, so drink responsively.

4. There's 13 types of dragons in all.

But, though the Lindworm was originally wingless & limbless, you'll note that the modern version has 2 clawed arms & bat-like wings...

Blame it on 'evolution.'

5. The largest extent of the Danelaw in Anglo-Saxon England.

This was land invaded by the Great Heathen Army in 865 AD.

It lasted until 1002 AD, when Saxon King Aethelred the Unready ordered the Saint Brice's Day Massacre!!

This brutal murder of prominent Danes led to vicious war crimes - like the burning of churches & the killing of women & children...

These events would, ultimately, lead to the successful Norman invasion of England.

6. Illustration of the basic myth of the Lindworm.

The heroine is helping Prince Worm to shed 1 of its many skins...

Then, it'll be her turn.

See below.

7. Nordic 'Amazons'?

Not quite.

Female warriors have always been fewer than their male counterparts.

But, the idea of Nordic shield maidens has been known for ages.

Yet, few modern archaeologists truly believed in such tales.

Well, now there's proof that they did exist.

Now, I'm waiting for them to find the burial site of that badass, Lagertha.

She was so fierce in battle, that even her enemies were amazed of her fighting prowess!

1914: Output.

Intro: Ragnar's¹ earlier poem (also from 1914) connects thematically to "The Teuton's² Battle-Song." Both works speak about the 'glories' of war.

In "Teuton's Battle-Song," HPL sees Christianity as a foreign influence that's too weak to follow during war.

Howard tells English-Americans to remember their now muted warrior prowess - a gift from their ancestral roots.

Because it's a special quality that will be useful in the growing War to End All Wars...

Opening Quote: Since I've already posted on "Death-Song" earlier (up- dating needed meanings), I thought readers might be interested in reading some of Lovecraft's more primal version.

The quote HPL used is from the end of "Ragnar's Death- Song."

"We hewed with the brand!! My life is well-nigh over."

"Sharp is the pang, That serpents give. Goinn, the Snake,³ Nests deep in my heart."

"No more will my children rest; Great wrath will be theirs⁴, At the undoing of their sire."

"We hewed with the brand!! Full gladly do I go!"

"With the Valkyrjar,⁵ Fresh from Odin's hall!"

"High seated among heroes, Shall I quaff the yellow mead.⁶ The Aesir welcome me."

"Laughing gladly do I die."

Notes:

1. This is Lovecraft's translation of a Latin version from the Nordic original "Ragnarr Lothbrok's Death-Song."

2. Teutons were folk hailing from ancient Jutland (now Denmark).

They migrated south to Gaul (France) - attacking the Roman Republic in 105 BC. But, were defeated in 101 BC.

Martyrdom: The Roman terms of surrender were that 300 married Teutonic women would become sex slaves!

These matrons begged to minister the temples of Ceres & Venus instead.

But, their request was denied.

So, these women killed their children & strangled each other!!

This is now known as "Teutonic Fury."

3. I firmly believe that "Goinn, the Snake, is the name of the Lindworm⁷ that Ragnar slew to earn his name - &, the hand of his bride!!

But, I've yet to find any info on this dragon...

4. A father's wrathful kids - no kidding!!

Ragnar's sons were among the Danish war bands which attacked England.

They conquered a large portion of the eastern & northern countryside.

Which became known as the Danelaw.

5. Valkyrjar seems to be a misspelling of Valkyrjur, the modern "Valkyrie."

6. Yellow or golden mead describes a honey based Nordic wine.

In myth, when honey was mixed with Kvasir's blood, it was called the Mead of Poetry.

The reddish linden berry was crushed & the resulting liquid was mixed with fermented honey to celebrate the above 'event.'

This magical drink was supposed to convey Kvasir's knowledge & wisdom upon the drinker!

Okay...

7. The Lindworm is a folktale that spread from India to Scandinavia!

Indians have been trading with Europeans since, at least Alexander the Great's time.

Earlier, Indians traded with Sumeria in the Middle East.

The basic story plot is of a cursed queen who gives birth to a prince - in snake form!

He's married off to a smart gal. One who breaks his curse - by stripping!!

For every piece of clothing that she takes off, he sheds 1 of his snake skins completely...

After 7 such sheddings, the curse is finally broken!

(Sounds like the Arabian Dance of the 7 Veils!!)

Lind might mean "soft & flexible."

And worm is Norse for "a wingless, limbless man-eating dragon!"

Next: Part 2 - The Work.

[veinsfullofstars]

So, I got to experience Kirby & the Amazing Mirror recently, and, while I wouldn't call it an absolute favorite, there's a lot about it that I find fascinating - the non-linear Metroidvania-eqsue design of the levels (unique for the series), the subtle hints of worldbuilding in the background art (gorgeous, btw), the introduction of one of my current favorite characters in the series (*meme-points at DMK in the distance*), the music (but that’s a given), etc. In many ways, it feels quite standout from other games in the series up to that point… though, in many others, it feels like it could've used something more, y'know? There’s a sense of underutilization in places, a repetitiveness in all the backtracking and boss encounters, even an emptiness to this strange new world we’re exploring. I'm wondering what might've been done to make the game feel more full and vibrant, to give the player more of a sense of curiosity as they explore and run around.

Now, I’m not a game designer by any means, and I have no idea if any of what I’m about to propose would be practical in either execution or the time frame the original dev team had to work with, but… it’s just fun to conceptualize sometimes, y’know? We’re playing in the space, flexing those “what if” muscles. Besides, you never know what it might spark in someone who could make something like this a reality. And, there’s little I love more than inspiring creativity.

So, hear me out (and warning for full game spoilers for KatAM and minor spoilers for the Kirby series as a whole).

Progressive Copy Abilities: So, like I said, the world is very Metroidvania-inspired in structure, right? Lots of winding corridors, interconnected paths, and secret areas, with an emphasis on backtracking to reach new places. What if the game also had a kind of progressive upgrade system used in conjunction with that structure, where you search for and acquire “keys” that open up new areas and grant access to even more abilities? It could take the place of the Spray Paint collectable, giving it more purpose beyond just cosmetics and more incentive for the player to actually seek them out and use them in the overworld. We’ve already seen something like this before in the form of Deluxe Copy Abilities from KSS, where Kirby cannot gain abilities from enemies but must instead find them hidden throughout the levels, able to switch between them at will once acquired. In KatAM, this could make backtracking feel more interesting by giving the player something they’d want to return to, wondering what secrets might lie behind ability-locked zones (similar to K64, though without the worry of losing a certain ability and having to leave the level to get it back thanks to permanent upgrades). It could also get the player to utilize the four Kirbys in more creative ways throughout the world, giving each one a specific ability and using different combinations of them to solve puzzles, bypass barriers, or defeat bosses. You could even tie the reason for this change in mechanics into the worldbuilding. For example, maybe the magical properties of the Mirror World differ to those of Popstar, affecting or even nullifying Kirby’s own inherent abilities as a result (think KatFL’s Mouthful Mode, KCC’s Kirby Ball mode, or even the scrapped Kagero Mansion concept from KSS), or maybe it could be a more significant way to show how DMK separating Kirby into four has diminished his powers, effectively “Metroiding” him as it were.

Amateur Cartography: The maps in KatAM are very big and very simplistic. It can be hard to find one’s way around all those convoluted branches and segments to get to the next area or secret. The ability to take notes in some way would be a great help. Due to hardware limitations, it might not be as intuitive as, say, The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass where you can actually write on the maps, but just the option to add things like colored pins or symbol stamps as little reminders to return to points of interest would be of great help (not to mention reduce time spent needlessly running around in circles trying to find one specific room).

Counterpart Characterization: I personally like the limited cutscenes and lack of dialogue in KatAM, as it allows story to be conveyed more though what the player observes and intuits rather than what they are told is occurring. That said, I wish we got to see more of that in character moments. Despite their prominence in the opening and ending narrations, both Shadow Kirby and Dark Meta Knight appear very rarely throughout the main bulk of the game outside of brief glimpses in the overworld or in late-game boss battles respectively, giving us very little to go on as to their personalities and their roles in the world they reside in. (Not to say there’s nothing there; we’ve seen SK’s timid nature in how he hides and runs from the Kirbys, and that - though mischievous - he still seems to want to help by the food items he drops; we’ve also seen DMK’s penchant for dishonor and subterfuge in disguising himself as Meta Knight. Just a little bit of animation flourish to convey so much about them, even if it’s only implied.) Now imagine if the player could stumble upon them more throughout their travels, perhaps glimpsing them between screen transitions or wandering about in inaccessible places (think the Batamon from KDL3 or the SA-X from Metroid Fusion). What if we observe them attending to their own tasks alongside our heroes - idling, searching, spying on the Kirbys, or even interacting with enemies or each other? What if DMK makes more attempts to hinder the Kirbys in the overworld, blocking pathways with Copy Ability locks or mini-bosses? What if SK does more to help the Kirbys the further into their journey they go (his own skepticism of the newcomers softening as he sees them actually trying to help)?

Worldbuilding: Like most worlds portrayed in Kirby games, the Mirror World is vast and diverse, not unlike the lighter world it reflects. There’s already a lot of very good subtle worldbuilding in the background art and level design of KatAM - like the strange labs under Moonlight Mansion, the sunken ship at the bottom of Olive Ocean, the decrepit basement under Carrot Castle, etc. -  but it all feels a bit… underdeveloped. Not very indicative of either what this world was like before Dark Mind’s invasion (claimed to be “peaceful” in the opening cutscene but not much else) or how his corruption is actually affecting it. Maybe I’m spoiled by newer games like KatFL going out of their way to flesh out their lore, but I just wish there were more thematic elements shared between locations for players to pick up on, especially given how connected everything is vis-à-vis the Mirror Doors. I want to know more about this place, how it differs from Popstar, how its denizens thrive and survive within it, even how SK and DMK - supposedly created by the Dimension Mirror itself not long after its corruption - view it in their roles as possibly opposing guardians.

Boss/Mini-Boss Battles: This is more of a personal gripe, but I’ve never been a huge fan of repeat boss encounters. I understand the reasons for them existing - work smarter, not harder being one of them, I imagine - but it’s hard to miss the way it diminishes the impact of the fight when it’s the same Mr. Frosty or Batafire in different locations. In my onion, a boss fight (even a mini one) should feel special, the build-up to reach them tense and exciting, the actual battle unique from others the player has faced before. It could be as simple as removing extra mini-bosses and condensing the area rather than padding the game out with too many. Or you could give the extra ones palette swaps designed to fit the areas they’re found in (possibly even changing their typing as well). Or you could even include an additional element or mechanic to the battle itself to keep things interesting (like how Master Hand becomes Master Hand & Crazy Hand in the second encounter). And, to add with the previous paragraph about worldbuilding, perhaps bosses could be made even more unique by having the mirror shards they guard corrupt them in some fashion, their sprite work visibly altered (a dark aura? a reflective sheen? pieces of mirror floating around them?), their attacks and expressions more aggressive until you defeat them.

Meta Knightmare Reflected: Now, this might be a bit of a stretch, but - having played through the Magolor Epilogue - I can’t help but wonder what a KatAM side-mode featuring Meta Knight might be like. Perhaps it could take place inside the shattered Dimension Mirror parallel to events of the main game (think Meta Knightmare from KNiDL or Meta Knightmare Returns from KPR, except this could feasibly occur within canon). It could feature shorter runs through similar/remixed levels from the main game (like in the final chase sequence where the Kirbys run through single rooms from different parts of the Mirror World to get to Dark Mind) with a higher difficulty and a more chaotic structure due to Dark Mind’s corruption and the Mirror’s broken state. Not only would this give him a little more agency and characterization while he’s in “fridged” mode, but this could also be a good way to explain how MK acquired Master when he was supposedly trapped, adding a goal alongside simply trying to find a way out of the Mirror. He could even encounter DMK while he’s in there for even more drama and characterization, the knight and his dark doppelgänger locked in a tense battle for his freedom and the safety of the Mirror World.

Phew, okay, I think that’s about all I’ve got. Did that all make sense? It came from a very stream-of-consciousness-y place, so I hope I managed to sort it into something at least a little coherent. Again, this might all be impractical or slapdash or against the point of the original game, but I haven’t really been able to stop thinking about it since I finished it and needed to get the thoughts out somewhere. I dunno, what do you guys think? Anything you would add to this list? Or anything you would change? Or do you like KatAM just fine as is? Feel free to discuss, I’d love to hear what you all have to say on the matter.

[stickwarlegacyhackgemsmoney]

[HOW-TO] Stick War Legacy Hack Gems Money Generator 2024 Without HuMaN Verification

Stick War Legacy Hack Gems Money Generator 2024 No Survey Without Any Verification.Stick War Legacy MOD APK v2024.1.31 (Unlimited Gold/Gems/Upgrade) 2024.On the internet, Stick War Legacy is a very popular and highly rated game. It’s a strategy game, but it’s so much fun that you’ll never grow tired of it. This game is packed with difficulties that need you to battle like a warrior.

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This is a game where you must control your armies of stickman or stick men, this installment has become one of the most popular and downloaded games today. A clear example of this. They are the various installments and versions that have emerged from it.

Can’t stop playing Stick War? Do not freak out! It has happened to all of us. Due to the entertaining and challenging nature of this game, many users often choose to search on Stick War Legacy infinite gems and enjoy the title to the fullest, without having to spend your money on recharges.

Stick around and find out how to get infinite gems in Stick War Legacy legitimately and easily. You’re going to love it!

Contents disguise

1 Arm your army and defeat your enemies

2 Gem generator for Stick War Legacy 2024

3 Stick War Legacy Mod APK infinite gems — v1.3 (2024)

3.1 How to install Stick war Legacy Hacked Apk?

4 Final words

Arm your army and defeat your enemies

In Stick War Legacy you will have to face multiple challenges with your army of stickmen, putting together your team in formation or units. Within the arena, you must be able to organize your army and create a strategy to achieve success.

In addition, one of the main features of this game are its graphics, which immerse us in an impressive setting, where we must be 100% concentrated in order to successfully complete each mission.

what is stick war legacy

Every time you win battles you can earn rewards and gems, which you can use to strengthen your army and become your opponents’ worst nightmare. Players usually buy gems to level up much faster.

But also, there is another way to get in Stick War Legacy Infinite Gems without having to spend real money, which are used by thousands of Stick War Legacy players to boost their player profile.

If you don’t know them, in this post we have compiled the simplest but most effective methods to earn gems in Stick War Legacy. Do not miss it!

It may interest you: Candy Crush: Infinite Lives & Gold 2024

Gem generator for Stick War Legacy 2024

Use the online Stick War Legacy gem generator to get this precious resource almost immediately, without spending hours playing games or downloading unknown files. It is a tool created by the famous team UNV Cheat Games and it will allow you to have as many gems as you want.

The generator works completely securely and remotely, that is, it is a web page connected to the game servers, sending a series of processed data. So if you are looking to boost your army and profile to the maximum, this generator is everything you were looking for.

Because you have total excess over every single guy in your squad, your duty as a leader in this game is to make them strong so that they can battle hard against opponents.

Stick War 1

You’ll also like the game’s excellent visuals and sound systems. Everything is set up perfectly to tempt you to return to the golden age of flash gaming, stickmen gaming.

So, are you prepared for the ultimate battle between these skinny yet terrifying figures? Make sure to download Stick War Legacy for Android to get the most out of your mobile device’s gaming experience.

Stick War Legacy Gameplay

You will be the leader of a nation of Order in this game. Your people value peace and do not see weapons as gods. As a result, you’ll become a point of interest for the surrounding countries.

Every neighbor will be ready to battle your people and install their ideas in your territory. As a result, you must first gather your army and assault!

Your goal should be to take control of a large number of technical stations and render them inoperable. You must command every stickman, construct units, and mine gold.

You’ll also need to learn Giant, Archer, Sword, Mage, and Spear skills. You’ll be able to eliminate your opponent’s enemies and take over their territory this way. A easy assignment for even the most powerful stickmen.

Stick War 2

Stick War Game Modes

Survival Mode

In this game mode, you must defend yourself from zombie attacks. Furthermore, The game will be fast-paced, and you will need to use your excellent stick fighting skills to win.

How many nights can you resist the zombies’ relentless attacks? Try this mode to see how good you are at stick fighting!

[stickwarlegacyfreegemsmoney]

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Stick War Legacy Hack Gems Money Generator 2024 No Survey Without Any Verification.Stick War Legacy MOD APK v2024.1.31 (Unlimited Gold/Gems/Upgrade) 2024.On the internet, Stick War Legacy is a very popular and highly rated game. It’s a strategy game, but it’s so much fun that you’ll never grow tired of it. This game is packed with difficulties that need you to battle like a warrior.

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Start playing one of the most fun, challenging and addictive installments, without worrying about spending money buying gems. Today, we teach you the best tricks and methods to get in Stick War Legacy Infinite Gems.

This is a game where you must control your armies of stickman or stick men, this installment has become one of the most popular and downloaded games today. A clear example of this. They are the various installments and versions that have emerged from it.

Can’t stop playing Stick War? Do not freak out! It has happened to all of us. Due to the entertaining and challenging nature of this game, many users often choose to search on Stick War Legacy infinite gems and enjoy the title to the fullest, without having to spend your money on recharges.

Stick around and find out how to get infinite gems in Stick War Legacy legitimately and easily. You’re going to love it!

Contents disguise

1 Arm your army and defeat your enemies

2 Gem generator for Stick War Legacy 2024

3 Stick War Legacy Mod APK infinite gems — v1.3 (2024)

3.1 How to install Stick war Legacy Hacked Apk?

4 Final words

Arm your army and defeat your enemies

In Stick War Legacy you will have to face multiple challenges with your army of stickmen, putting together your team in formation or units. Within the arena, you must be able to organize your army and create a strategy to achieve success.

In addition, one of the main features of this game are its graphics, which immerse us in an impressive setting, where we must be 100% concentrated in order to successfully complete each mission.

what is stick war legacy

Every time you win battles you can earn rewards and gems, which you can use to strengthen your army and become your opponents’ worst nightmare. Players usually buy gems to level up much faster.

But also, there is another way to get in Stick War Legacy Infinite Gems without having to spend real money, which are used by thousands of Stick War Legacy players to boost their player profile.

If you don’t know them, in this post we have compiled the simplest but most effective methods to earn gems in Stick War Legacy. Do not miss it!

It may interest you: Candy Crush: Infinite Lives & Gold 2024

Gem generator for Stick War Legacy 2024

Use the online Stick War Legacy gem generator to get this precious resource almost immediately, without spending hours playing games or downloading unknown files. It is a tool created by the famous team UNV Cheat Games and it will allow you to have as many gems as you want.

The generator works completely securely and remotely, that is, it is a web page connected to the game servers, sending a series of processed data. So if you are looking to boost your army and profile to the maximum, this generator is everything you were looking for.

Because you have total excess over every single guy in your squad, your duty as a leader in this game is to make them strong so that they can battle hard against opponents.

Stick War 1

You’ll also like the game’s excellent visuals and sound systems. Everything is set up perfectly to tempt you to return to the golden age of flash gaming, stickmen gaming.

So, are you prepared for the ultimate battle between these skinny yet terrifying figures? Make sure to download Stick War Legacy for Android to get the most out of your mobile device’s gaming experience.

Stick War Legacy Gameplay

You will be the leader of a nation of Order in this game. Your people value peace and do not see weapons as gods. As a result, you’ll become a point of interest for the surrounding countries.

Every neighbor will be ready to battle your people and install their ideas in your territory. As a result, you must first gather your army and assault!

Your goal should be to take control of a large number of technical stations and render them inoperable. You must command every stickman, construct units, and mine gold.

You’ll also need to learn Giant, Archer, Sword, Mage, and Spear skills. You’ll be able to eliminate your opponent’s enemies and take over their territory this way. A easy assignment for even the most powerful stickmen.

Stick War 2

Stick War Game Modes

Survival Mode

In this game mode, you must defend yourself from zombie attacks. Furthermore, The game will be fast-paced, and you will need to use your excellent stick fighting skills to win.

How many nights can you resist the zombies’ relentless attacks? Try this mode to see how good you are at stick fighting!

[zachsgamejournal]

PLAYING: Battlefield: Bad Company 2 & Battlefield 3

I've put hundreds of hours into both of these games. I kinda miss'em.

Reflecting on how I came to love Battlefield, well the story starts with World of Warcraft. When I started playing WoW I didn't understand the tank/healer/DPS concept. Once I did, I fell in love with it and I especially liked being a healer. But that was adventuring, not competitive multiplayer. 

I was never really interested in competitive shooters because I liked story and cinematic adventures. Running in circles with machine guns wasn't "fun" to me. But then I played Warhawk on PS3. To me, the game had Paper, Rock, Scissors gameplay. Everything had a weakness and a strength. Warhawks were fast with advanced weaponry, but were defeated by homing missiles or well-aimed tank shots. Thanks could decimate infantry unless someone had a flamethrower--then the tables were flipped. And then the game modes were interesting--especially Zones. Instead of winning by kills or by capture the flag, you had to control zones around the map. This allowed you to earn points over time. In my mind, this was more realistic warfare, as you were basically fighting over resources and territory. What real wars are fought over. And you could use interesting strategies, like sneaking behind enemy lines to take their base--which pulled their frontline soldiers off the frontline giving your frontline soldiers opportunities to advance.

Then I learned about MAG, a PS3 game with a whopping 128 players per battle. But it was disappointing. A, medic classes were useless because everyone could self heal. Also, everyone was a bullet sponge, so we returned to running in circles. I kinda enjoyed it but not much. A friend heard my complaints and suggested Bad Company 2.

Nailed it.

Battlefield combines the Tank/Healer/DPS of WoW with the Paper, Rock, Scissors of Warhawk, as well as having Warhawks multi-vehicle combat and "real war" strategies. I loved that BC2 didn't have a deathmatch mode. Killing shouldn't be a purpose but a means to an end (in video games. In real life, don't kill.). By giving war simulation objectives like "take and hold this objective" or attack or defend this objective, players had to think more strategically. And because each class has unique advantages, mixing up your classes with your squad maximized your strategic advantage.

Engineers could repair tanks (or unrepair enemy tanks), Snipers had motion sensors and could call in mortar strikes, Assault classes kept everyone stocked with ammo, and medics kept everyone alive through healing packs and reviving. I liked playing the Medic. I convinced several friends to buy BC2 and we had a great time online. Medics had trash guns, but I was more focused on healing anyways. I only played the other classes for trophies.

I also mostly enjoyed the campaign. Many of the levels felt like I was a part of major battles and used various vehicles.

Then came Battlefield 3. I was really excited. BC2 was great but also had a lot of issues. Player movement was a bit stiff. The levels were interesting but not particularly well designed: there were a lot of ways to take cheap advantages of situations: such as when the enemy could invade your spawn point. Battlefield 3 fixed almost everything. Enemies could no longer invade team spawns, movement was more natural and you could vault over obstacles, heavy machine guns could be given bipods to make them more accurate, and the game looked better.

Also...to my surprise, they made the assault class have health and revive while the medic class we dropped for a support class. Support got the dumb heavy machine guns and ability to provide ammo. The support class was very playable and gave some great tactical advantages, but the assault class became unstoppable. Or at least, I became unstoppable. Finally I was a medic with a lethal weapon (machine guns suck, but assault rifles are very versatile). I could walk around a corner facing three opponents and come out on top. I kill the first, injure the other two, but duck for cover before they could kill me, drop a healing bad, get back to 100% and finish the job. Plus I was really comfortable attacking mission objectives. I typically ranked in the top 3, and more often as no 1. Not only did I get the most points, but I very often had the best K/D ratio.

This was on PS3. 

But then I lost interest in killing. But I still missed the strategic gameplay of Battlefield, especially playing medic. I've played the games a couple of times over the years but I focus on healing only. I still attack the objectives very aggressively, while supporting my team. But I don't get kills anymore. I've adjusted my play style to this so well that I still rank high without a single kill. On a couple of occasions I've been the highest scoring player in a match, and with 0 kills! 

So anyway, I played a couple of rounds of BC2 and one round of BF3 recently...

Bad Company 2:

I got into a conquest match in the sea-side desert level with the container ship. The match started 4 on 3, I was on the team with 3. Not great. The enemy team had a helicopter and this person was good. They could hone in and murder anyone the map. It made travel very risky. But I was able to sneak behind enemy lines a few times to steal their first base, but I didn't as long when they came to hunt me down. Because there were so few team mates, I didn't get into many situations to heal or resurrect people, I mostly scored by taking bases. By the time we lost, the teams had increased to about 8 on 9.

In the next round, well to jump ahead, we won. While there were more team mates, I still didn't get to heal or resurrect much. But I did pretty good taking bases and keeping the enemy on their toes. I think I ranked in the top 5 of the whole match and without a single kill. But the scoreboard doesn't show kills so no one noticed.

It was fun to play this game I put over a hundred hours into. It was a very fun part of my 20s. While I feel nostalgia for that experience it's easily overshadowed by BF3's improvements. I deleted it off my Xbox almost immediately.

Battlefield 3:

Now we're talking. The best Battlefield I've every played. I haven't played a ton, but I love this one. BF3's maps are amazingly well designed. While BC2 had cheap hiding areas or overly exposed defensive positions, every part of BF3 feels meticulously thought out. A random rock on in a field might present an amazing sniper opportunity, but it's also very exposed to counter attack and is way out of the way of objectives. So you have to decide, do you want to focus on sniping an enemy or help push into objectives?

I chose any mode and unfortunately I was immediately dropped into Team Death Match. I found it unfortunate that this mode had made it into BF3 and it became something I had to endure with the general map rotations. It's also not a good mode to be a medic. I found a conquest rented server and jumped in. It was basically that or two other TDM servers. 

This is the seaside level with a beach front on one end and a factory like facility on the other. It's not my favorite level, but sure--fine. The teams were fairly evenly matched but I was dismayed to see that the scores were way up. Currently both teams had roughly 400 ticket left and the match was already about halfway through (normally, 200 tickets is the target).

[iidsch]

quick rundown of my main criticisms (many spoilers below):

making a sequel of a game about exploration and not changing the world you have to explore already puts totk on very shaky grounds. yes they added a lot of new content, but hyrule remains the same at large, and as someone who thoroughly scouted every corner of the world, a large chunk of places stopped being interesting, to the point that I didn't even explore some of them.

this means that the new content has to be good to balance the reuse of the map, but i dont think it succeeds at this. the sky islands were very hyped up on the trailers but they ended up being really disappointing, there are too few of them, really scarcely distributed, most of them have the same layout/enemies/resources and the only truly interesting one is great sky island. the depths were a nice surprise, both in terms of aesthetics and gameplay mechanics, but when you realize the map is as big as the surface and that the mechanics and scenery are the exact same throughout the entire area, it becomes incredibly tedious. the few repeated mines and arenas, the one new mini boss, the boss rematches, the yiga quest, and the resources are the only points of interest but that's too little compared with how big the depths are. The caves were a nice addition, one that I actually wanted to see more in botw. I didn't mind that much how small some of them were, although they did get very repetitive; however I take issue with how poorly lit they were, which made navigating them really annoying, and none of the ways to light an area are good enough.

there are way too many things to do in totk and very, very few of them are interesting: 152 shrines, most of which were so simple and easy that they felt insulting; 1000 korok seeds that, although more varied than in botw, are still as repetitive and simple as in botw; 7 minibosses that get repeated ad nauseam until there are 269 of them, and barring the gleeoks, none of them are fun (especially those that appeared in botw); and 139 mini quests so forgettable that the game could exist without them and it wouldn't lose anything important. This is a severe case of quantity over quality and it eclipses the few parts that are good, since most of the time spent in the game will very likely go into finding shrines, getting korok seeds, defeating minibosses, and doing some side quests. It's even more infuriating when you think that the resources put into making so much boring content could have gone into making less but higher-quality content.

the new dungeons are far better than in totk but they still remain worse than the ones in previous games.

i have no idea who thought having the spirits of the sages follow you around was a good idea but i hope they choke on water.

the beauty of the game relies very heavily on its novelty, but once you get used to the scenery, the flaws in the art style become very obvious. the colors are too washed out and dull, the scenery is very repetitive, the world is visually empty and uninteresting except for a few places, and the weather, the bad lighting and this unnecessary but omnipresent layer of dust don't help make the game look nicer in the slightest. elden ring and genshin impact are far, far prettier than both btw and totk combined. even previous zelda games had better graphics despite their limitations.

never before has a zelda game had so much wasted potential when it comes to the story. botw/totk link is the most boring link in the entire franchise, and many characters in the story are very well-written but never get enough screen time to have a fully fleshed character arc or a good conclusion to their stories. the game shies a lot from advancing the main story or giving any new information with regards to the setting - npcs and other characters repeat the same thing over and over again (an example of this is the cutscenes after you defeat each dungeon boss, they are all the same except for mineru's). i also dislike many elements of the worldbuilding that seem to be there just for the sake of having new gameplay but the zelda lore is stupid so it's not that big of a deal

the final phase of ganon was such a letdown in terms of gameplay that it completely destroyed the little excitement i had built during the two previous phases, and I'm utterly dumbfounded by the fact that nintendo made the same mistake as in botw. the spectacle was not worth slowly flying around and then shooting multiple arrows at a target whose attacks don't even hit you.

botw and totk don't meet their scope. if it's a hardware problem, then nintendo either needs to release a new console or make smaller games, otherwise i highly doubt they will ever be able to make a vast open-world game that really fulfills its potential. but if nintendo has the ability to make a masterpiece but doesn't want to then uh. that's really bad.

i can't rate this game because ratings are stupid and the game has bod good and bad things but there's one thing i know for sure and it's that i'm never playing botw or totk ever again

so i finally finished totk and it was bad