#and wol is an adult!! stop!!

[khajiitclaws]

Once again I’m here to day. If you ship alphinaud or alisaie with your wol. You are disgusting and weird.

[redwayfarers]

forever thinking abt the fact that nika's speaking voice betrays how young he really is (24-25 in arr) and how his attitude is that of a 80yo dude who's spent a lifetime hating everything around him and that makes me YELL

[anneapocalypse]

On the Former Scions and Leadership

Something that's kind of interesting to me about the Warrior of Light, which has always been there but which Dawntrail has me thinking about in a new way, is that the WoL really isn't a leader.

(Disclaimer: Obviously everyone has their own version of the Warrior of Light and is free to headcanon over and rewrite parts of the story to suit their character, and so what I'm saying here may not apply to everyone's character! For our purposes here, I'm just talking about The Warrior of Light as written.)

(Further note: I understand that there are a variety of feelings out there about the new characters and everyone is entitled to their own opinions about that; however this post is not an invitation to trash those characters in the notes so please refrain from that here; thank you.)

The Warrior of Light is a hero, but not a leader. Thanks to the linear nature of FFXIV's storyline, the game can't really offer us the conceit of making real choices, and so pretty much everything the WoL does is a result of someone else asking them to do it. So many of our major relationships with NPCs are with leaders: Minfilia, Nanamo, Kan-E-Senna, Merlwyb, Aymeric, Raubahn, Hien, the Exarch, Vrtra, Fourchenault, Wuk Lamat and Koana, every guild leader in our job quests. The WoL is someone called upon by leaders rather than being a leader themselves.

The Scions themselves have an interesting relationship to leadership in general. I've written before about how much the Scions feel like they're living in the shadow of Louisoix, especially in ARR, and how this affects their actions. As the leader of the former Circle of Knowing, Minfilia steps into the leadership position in his absence. I love Minfilia dearly; I think she has a true gift for bringing people together, making people feel welcomed and not alone, and helping them find purpose. I think all those skills probably availed her well as the leader of her Echo support group. It's when the Scions suddenly find themselves in the spotlight on an international scale following the defeat of the Ultima Weapon that I think the cracks start to show. I think that, very understandably, Minfilia is not prepared for the weight of that situation, and that's part of the reason she allows Alphinaud to step into such a leadership role himself (and also, and I say this with all the love in the world for both Alphinaud and Minfilia, why she even kind of lets him push her around at times). For Alphinaud himself, his experience of leadership with the Scions is disastrous, for which I think some responsibility also has to be laid upon the adults around him, who might have seen the red flags but didn't stop that train.

When Minfilia disappears, I think it's so telling that no one else steps up to fill the role of the Antecedent. Alphinaud is no longer so eager to take on that burden, and no one else is jumping at it either. Certainly the Warrior of Light isn't going to do it. (They're the boots on the ground, and the Antecedent is largely an administrative job.) The Scions instead just kind of agree to keep carrying on doing what they each do best, without an official leader. If anything, the glue holding the Scions together at this point is Tataru, who keeps the books and manages the budget and does her damnedest to keep certain people from putting overpriced purchases on the company card.

And that's not to say that none of the others have leadership skills! But it's interesting how, for those who do take on leadership positions, it's generally away from the Scions. After years of hiding under her sister's identity and "Papalymo's little shadow," Lyse takes an active role in the Ala Mhigan resistance, and helps to lead her people to freedom--a journey which ultimately takes her out of the Scions as she decides to stay in Ala Mhigo.

I'm counting G'raha as a Scion here since he does become one eventually, though not until after his hundred-year stint as the Exarch. It's clear both from the community that has grown up around the Crystal Tower, and from some really great G'raha moments in Endwalker, that he has real skills both at bringing people together for a common cause, and at taking charge in a crisis to protect the vulnerable. For the most part, though, he seems quite happy to take on a sidekick role after he returns to the Source. After a hundred years, I imagine anyone might be ready for a break from being in charge.

Y'shtola is harder to analyze because she's gotten less direct character development than most of the surviving Scions, and has remained largely in a supporting role thus far (though she remains a very interesting character to me, and I am hoping for a bit more of her in the Dawntrail patches given the setup for a cross-rift-travel solution). Y'shtola has always seemed reserved and a bit of a loner, and never seemed particularly interested in leadership until she threw in her lot with the Night's Blessed in the First. By the time we meet her again, she's become a trusted figure among the Blessed and the others clearly look to her for guidance and leadership. (It's also kind of interesting to me how both of the characters who wind up in leadership positions in the First are Seeker Miqo'te, and it probably was just a coincidence, but it'd be interesting to analyze how Seeker culture might prime a capable person to be willing to rise to the occasion where they see a group of people need.) Yet Y'shtola too seems perfectly content to settle back into a support role when she returns to the Source.

Endwalker is all about standing together, working together, the necessity of hope to overcome despair not merely individually but as a collective effort. The Scions all rally, each bringing what they have to offer, and they do so without ever appointing a new leader. They go where they see a need, like Urianger choosing to stay on the moon, or Thancred watching over the Warrior of Light and the twins when things go south on the relief mission to Garlemald, or the twins later taking a personal interest in the rebuilding efforts there. They also defer to leaders within the Eorzean Alliance where appropriate, happy at this point to work alongside the nations' armies rather than attempting to command one.

And the more I look at the Scions' history this way, the more their disbanding at the end of Endwalker seems inevitable and the logical end to the organization. In a very real sense they have completed the work that Louisoix and Minfilia set out to do. They've been leaderless for some time now already and it has not stopped them from doing good where needed. They are not leaders. Their goal was never to steer the course of world events indefinitely. They've all learned a lot about applying their individual talents for the greater good and having faith in one another to do the same, without having to be directed by one charismatic leader every step of the way--a major point of growth from where they were in ARR.

And all of this makes our role in Dawntrail really interesting to me, because it's all about leadership! And the Warrior of Light and their companions are, as characters, perfectly primed to take a supporting role and take initiative in that role where needed (see: Thancred and Urianger doing what needs to be done behind the scenes during the second act crisis). What the former Scions aren't, as a whole, at this point in their story, is people inclined to step up and take over. And this is a good thing for this story. Both Wuk Lamat and Koana need to learn and grow on their own, and in the context of their own cultures. The former Scions can help, they can support, and they do, but they aren't going to take over. Sure, they have opinions! At various points, we see characters on both teams (including the Warrior of Light) make some pointed faces at one another indicating that they have some doubts about the direction in which their candidates are taking things. But they withhold direct judgment or criticism for the most part and I think that makes sense both for their characters, and for the nature of the story.

I also think it was probably intentional that the former Scion with the most extensive leadership experience, G'raha, is not one of the characters hired by the claimants and doesn't come back to the plot until later. While I love G'raha and I did miss him, I understand story-wise why he couldn't be here; his unique circumstances mean that he has had more leadership experience than most people could ever have in a single lifetime, and it's probably for the best that that doesn't overpower the experiences of our young claimants who need to learn their own lessons on their own terms.

The support role of the former Scions also makes sense in other ways, I think, in terms of allowing the Turali characters and especially Wuk Lamat, as the main character, to shine in their own right and to avoid what could otherwise have been some problematic tropes. But I also think it works pretty well as a natural outgrowth of who these characters are and have grown into over multiple expansions, the Warrior of Light included.

[nights-at-crystarium]

DUMPS A MASSIVE STACK OF NOTES IN FRONT OF YOU OKAY SO- No I didn't just wait and hope for someone to ask about them, why'd you think that- I'll omit the details of how they grow close and what pushes them apart, but lemme dive into the broader chemistry. A fair warning for Fragments-spoilers if you wanna experience the comic's story as it unfolds.

Vivi needs An Adult, someone who'd stand up to his unruly character, ground him in reality, protect him. Raha perfectly fills this role, but so does Emet, merely with a different flavor. Vivi needs someone who experiences isolation and dehumanization on his level: being the wol is a lonely experience. He looks for an equal. He's okay with Emet's condescending attitude, his self-esteem doesn't want for coddling, and he can talk back anytime.

The Soulmate Magnet trope's fun, but on its own it's not enough for these two. Well, it obviously is for Emet, who seizes the chance to nibble on some crumbs that are left of Azem, what's dignity in face of all-consuming desperation. Vivi, however, his whole thing is showing middle finger to his destiny, the further it goes, the more allergic he gets to the "ooooohh it was meant to be this way~" bs that gets thrown at him ever so often. Emet's careful with the order and amount of information he discloses to Vivi, like expertly boiling a frog. Manipulation or not, they mutually benefit from this relationship. Emet gets his partner back, even if it's Not Him, half of Him feels pretty damn familiar, and Vivi gets a clear escape route from his destiny. Exchanging meaningful looks and knowing chuckles with you because we can tell that he embraces his overarching, ancient destiny this way, but shhhhhh, let him enjoy his hubris.

Out of the two, it's Emet who's a sad fool making a mistake that'd cost him everything. Of course this relationship has an impact on Vivi, but at least it doesn't kill him, eh- *gets kicked*

More under the cut /o/

Emet knows that he might be sabotaging himself, but he won't stop. He's infinitely more vulnerable to the Soulmate Magnet out of the two. He acknowledges that this could easily fail, that he might have to kill Vivi, but my Emet's killed so many not-azems anyway. He trades the potential pain of tomorrow for the small illusion of comfort today. As time goes on, he dares hoping again, hoping that this time might be different, goes all in with his cards, and, well, *waves vaguely* you'll see how that goes eventually.

The line between wolgraha and wolemet in Fragments is thinner than one may expect, the divergence where Vivi fully sides with Emet hinges on one human impulse. They already feel comfy enough, but Emet still hesitates to bare too much of his heart. They simply need more time together, which they can't have in canon because everyone expects Vivi to keep killing Lightwardens. The moment Vivi sees Emet's genuine smile and realizes that he wants to save him, to make him smile again and again, is when he trades entire world(s) for that. The catastrophic divergence isn't some epic scene, but a quiet click in his head. This decision still doesn't come easy, but Vivi would do it once he's sufficiently invested in Emet. The world owes him so much anyway. Time to take back what's been taken from him.

One important difference between Vivi and his Azem: what they'd do in a trolley problem. Vivi would literally burn worlds for one person dear to him, Azem would do (and actually did) the opposite, he didn't support the Zodiark plan AND left his lovers (Emet and Hyth) because he saw himself belonging to the people as a whole. This's becoming a tangent but Vivi absolutely hates his Azem when he finds out what - who - that infamous betrayal was really about.

But yeah Vivi takes Emet's side once he learns enough about him, he generally finds his company easy and pleasant. Another difference between Vivi and Azem: Vivi's incredibly nonjudgmental, embrace your cringe kinda guy. It takes time (which, again, they don't have in canon) for Emet to stop expecting to get teased at every turn, but even in the canon timeline he grows fond of Vivi, Vivi himself, not Azem, because Vivi's kind to him in a subtle, emotionally intelligent way that Azem's never been, he's casual and easygoing and dismissive, Emet's "tsun" just has no reason to activate. He expects betrayal, and it just. Never happens. (ofc it does in canon, but again, the line between canon and divergence is super thin).

Emet doesn't awaken Azem's memories in Vivi for several reasons. Vivi doesn't remember how they were back in the ancient past, but Emet does, he knows how to hold Vivi, who doesn't need much tbh, just company, just being quiet together. He acts disproportionately tired to the 3 years he's spent being the wol, and Emet, conveniently, just wants to chill with him. Funnily, Raha's regained excitement to be alive ends up being too much for Vivi sometimes, but I'm straying off the topic.

I treat their world as a real world that has literature, fiction, tropes, and Vivi tends to dream of being seduced by a villain. He thinks "enemies to lovers" is hot. He's cringe and he doesn't care. Surely this isn't the main force that drives them together, but it's worth mentioning for giggles.

Perhaps the most deliciously fucked up thing about villain!Vivi is how normal and human he'd remain, and drag Emet back up with him. He has no interest in the unsundered world, but he'd join the labor to make Emet happy. (I think I hit Vivi's chaotic neutral alignment on the head here). As long as Emet's in charge, as long as Vivi has no real pressure of responsibility, as long as he's merely a weapon (ironically, yeah), an instrument in master's hand, he doesn't mind. This pic should make more sense now.

Vivi finds someone who can save him from his destiny, break free from Hydaelyn, he never has to make another decision again if he's with Emet. His manic search for agency loops on itself, but hey, he DOES choose this, so arguably, this's more agency than he has as the wol. Even this early in the comic we can see that he simply wants to vibe, to be left alone. Just for that, Emet's actually better than Raha, if we dismiss the morals and destruction of worlds and all such nonsense.

When Emet's inevitably gone at the end of 5.0, it doesn't spell the end of their story. He lingers in the form of Vivi's obsession, questions that Vivi didn't get to ask him, agony of the Soulmate Magnet that Vivi's now aware of, Raha's bittersweet memories of him. He haunts this story forever. And ofc I'm writing an au on the side where he gets to live. It's not as enticing from the storytelling perspective because it's just "duh Emet lives and gets to be happy", but damn it heals my soul to indulge in that.

[gatheredfates]

KORET SWAN.

Nickname: Kor. Generally only reserved for people she knows well, otherwise it's Koret or Captain. Age: Mid-thirties. Nameday: 32 Sun of the 5th Umbral Moon (All Saints Wake) Race: Mix-race Ala Mhigan Highlander (on her father's side) and Limsan Midlander (on her mothers). Gender: It's complicated. I could write an entire essay about Kor's perception of gender and where she fits in it but that would take up 90% of this mini dossier. However, to keep it brief: Kor is unsure if her desire to abandon her femininity is due primarily to her father's distain of it or that she simply does not see herself as a woman. There are times where presenting masculine suits her, pronouns and all, until she suddenly feels alienated and abandons it altogether. There are times she feels she is everything and nothing at all. There are times were being a woman is a comfort and strength. She fits somewhere on the spectrum of gender fluidity, but she is constantly questioning her place and constantly feeling invalidated by the way her own mind undermines her when it comes to it. She is a pronoun because it is easy; she is not employed because she believes she is always female. If she could stop thinking about it altogether, she would do it in a heartbeat. Orientation: Bisexual, no preference. Profession: Captain of the Wolfsbane; a notorious galleon once commanded by her father, Dimitri. It was 'gifted' to her in a decrepit state when Kor was considered old enough to command.

Fleet Captain of her father's ships in his death, answering predominately to the thalassocracy of Limsa Lominsa when called upon - though she mostly ships goods for Firelight Trading Company.

Warrior of Light in the applicable verse!

PHYSICAL ASPECTS

Hair: A deep, wavy crimson, cut just above the breast. Kor will often plait it when she is working — if not cut it shorter altogether. See aforementioned gender grappling. Eyes: Amber. Her father's eyes. In her non-WoL verse, she lost her right eye in an altercation with @riftdancing's Blink after her father tried to pit her against the other woman and her forces. The loss of vision was a mercy to spare her life. Skin: Pale, closer to her mothers, though she tans without too much trouble. However, seeing much of her skin beyond her face is reserved only for those she trusts, as beneath her clothes her body is marred with scars and pock-marks from her father's abuse. There are callouses on her hands. Tattoos/Scars: See above regarding scars. She is considering adopting some tattoos in light of seeing Vamp and Rex's, but hasn't committed fully to the idea yet. FAMILY

Parents: Dimitri Swan, youngest in a family of Ala Mhigan men forced to watch their city fall. He abandoned his homeland quickly after revelations about the Garleans and the Mad King emerged and took to Limsa for promises of wealth and prestige. Fighting, bargaining, trading and even killing for what he wanted, he became a notorious figure within Limsa Lominsa — reviled and respected in turn —and was not one readily crossed. His desire for a true-born son to inherit his legacy was all-consuming and, ultimately, his undoing.

I haven't given a name to Kor's mother yet, but she was a pretty little thing Dimitri met one night in the Drowning Wench. He wooed her with promises of a luxurious life and the first few years of their marriage were unremarkable — primarily due to Dimitri being constantly at sea. However, when she failed to produce a living heir after two daughters and numerous miscarriages/stillborn children, his opinion of her soured. She died when Kor was thirteen of a 'mysterious illness', though she maintains her mother simply gave up on life due to his ongoing abuse. In her youth, she hated her. As an adult, her opinion of her is complicated. Siblings: One full-blooded sister, Lily. Because I play hard and fast with character ages, and the canonical passage of XIV time makes no sense to me (and I don't subscribe to it), she died at the start of ARR. Whether that was one year, five years or anything in between... you tell me.

Kor is also aware she must have an innumerable amount of half-siblings due to her father's sexual appetite. Even when their marriage was good, there were always rumours he was taking women in far-flung ports — something he denied at first, but wholeheartedly used as a battering ram later as another blow to hurt his wife. It would bemuse Kor if he only shot blanks, but she's not an optimist. At this stage, none have come out of the woodwork and tried to communicate with her. Grandparents: She knows little about them. The ones on her father's side died during the fall of Ala Mhigo and the ones on her mother's she never learned anything about. Others: (God this is going to get so long).

To begin, Kor has a rather large extended family. On her mother's side, she has her cousin Paprika (played by @riftdancing). On her father's, she has Ashe and Eve. Dimitri tried to look like he was assimilating into Limsan society by taking on his wife's last name and abandoning his own, leaving Ashe with to carry the mantle of 'Hawke'. However, Kor was never close to any of them until adulthood.

In Ashe and Paprika's case, though they lived within the same city-state, Dimitri's iron fist over his family ensured Kor couldn't ask for help. They were also not really in a position to assist without inflicting his retribution onto them. Dimitri abandoned his brother when Ashe's father first arrived, and consequently isolated his wife from any contact with her family.

Eve didn't come into the picture until Kor was well and truly an adult. Ashe kept up with her via letters but, due to going due west to Thanalan with the other refugees, she was only able to escape her own captivity in her mid-twenties. They are incredibly distant for numerous reasons I won't get into here (because it'll be a novel).

Kor found a pseudo-father figure in my partner's character Rex, though she will not admit it to him directly. They came into contact through my character Crow (I enjoy all my characters being loosely interconnected), another fleet-captain hoping to push Dimitri out of the picture because he conflicted with her aspirations, and he quickly surmised her predicament through Crow's inference and Kor's eventual admission. His company is a second home to her, both metaphorically and literally these days.

Literally because she's dating one of the Head Mechanics — an Ala Mhigan man by the name of Vamp. This was another cheeky ploy by Crow to give Kor some connections to her homeland in the company of a man she knew to be gentle and kind; to the point she refused his charter from Limsa to Ul'dah, even if Rex was paying handsomely for the fare. Crow hadn't expected them to grow as close as they did... but she also won a bet, so that was nice. If she's in Firelight, she can be found in the workshop or the airship hanger keeping Vamp company while he works on Firelight's various vehicles.

Her relationship with Blink is... a thing. Don't quantify it. In another life, they're dating. In another-other life, one is dead by the other's hand. She's the embodiment of 'I fucked around and found out' — literally! What are they? Is she an ex, an enemy or something in between? Who knows! She calls her a friend these days. That's close enough.

You know who Kor's best friend is? She won't say it. It's Sarrai. Sarrai will happily say it, though. She'll sing it from the rooftops! She once asked Kor for her bones if she successfully died and the Captain was far too taken aback to say no. Dark humour wins again.

There's also some lore around her and my other best friend's OC Beau, but a lot of that is tied into Beau's WoL verse and makes it hard to properly quantify here without talking about that verse and making this post even longer. However, there's a lot of homoerotic tension. That's all you need to know. Same for the numerous connections she has with my friends' ocs at FTC and beyond. Most of them aren't active on tumblr but they know. They know. Pets: I jokingly have the Ugly Duckling out on Kor. She had a dog called Nipper in her WoW verse. Maybe she has a pet? Who knows.

SKILLS

Abilities: Kor is a captain. With that come a myriad of skills including, but not limited to: commanding a ship and reading the seas; diplomacy, negotiation and bartering; mastery over a myriad of weapons including a gunblade and a musket (I maintain Kor was a musketeer in ARR despite it being moved to machinist in HW); a depth of political understanding/manoeuvring; and a shit-tonne of luck. She also possessed the Echo, a 'gift' given to her the night her sister died. Hobbies: Kor is a workaholic. Down-time is few and far between, because it gives her too much time to think. However, she does enjoy reading for its escapism.

TRAITS

Most positive trait: I think it's her accountability. Kor doesn't like to admit she is wrong and doesn't like to look weak, yet she will grit her teeth and apologise eventually because she knows it's the right thing to do. She's also got mountains of endurance and will put her own life/limb on the line for her love ones because she knows she can take it. Most negative trait: Her melancholy. Kor is jaded from a lot of life's experiences, and this manifests in someone who is closed off, hostile and downright nasty when people push her too far. She battles with extreme suicidal ideation that can often make her endurance a detriment because she doesn't always care if she dies. Her father called her a dog for her bark but she's also known to bite.

LIKES

Colours: Navy blue, bottle-green and red. Smells: Sea-salt, brine and freshly-carved wood. Smoky cedarwood colognes and anise. Rum and other similar spirits. Coffee. Textures: Water, wool and steel. The feeling of wood beneath your fingers. Drinks: Hot chocolate.

OTHER DETAILS

Smokes: Frequently. It's her go-to vice, only because it has less 'negative' side-effects to alcohol. Dimitri was an alcoholic and Kor possesses his rage. She knows what she can be like when she drinks. Drinks: ...Semi-frequently. Just because she knows what she's like doesn't mean she won't partake, especially in times of turmoil and strife. These days she tries to drink sweeter things like mead and wine, rather than hard spirits/beer, because she finds she's more aware of how much she has drunk rather than losing herself to the bottle. Drugs: She's dabbled, but it's not for her. Kor has an addictive personality and wrestles enough with booze and tobacco. She doesn't need anything else. Mount Issuance: Does a ship count? I also fully believe that the fall of Garlemald has brought technological advancements to Eorzea and Rex would not have passed up the chance to build things like cars and motorbikes. If so, Kor has the latter. Been arrested: Sure! She's been drunk and disorderly and had a few nights in a Limsan gaol. That's kind of the part of being a privateer, y'know?

Tagged by: @sundered-souls — at least for this one! I'm going to try and do one character per tag. Tagging: @halikyon, @zylphiacrowley, @abracarabbit, @laurel-resting, @starforger, @corsair-kovacs, @cindernet-explorer & @eriyu! (provided you haven't done it already; if so, maybe an alt?) If you'd like a chance of being tagged, you can like my permanent interaction call here!

[windupnamazu]

lulun's ffxiv 2024 wrapped!!!!!!!

woah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

my. fc got me. a GAMER COMPUTER?!?!??!??!?!?! SNIFFLE ..

i got SUPER BACK INTO MODDING with dt!!!!!!!! its easier and more fun than ever!!!!!!!!!! i still dont know how weights work!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I FINALLY GOT BIG FISH!!!!!! im still working on the final fish but ill get there eventually owo)9

i got three lines in wt for the first time!!!!! i sold a coat for gil!!!!!

we cleared p12s! not as current content but you Still have to learn a bunch of mechanics!!! this is important because now ive forced oomfies hand and our woloc ship is canon MWAHAHAHAHA

WOAH WE CLEARED M4S AS CURRENT CONTENT this was a big one for me cause i havent reached a fourth floor since eden's promise :') but in dt we finally(!!!!!!) have a static!! and friends who can sub for us!!!! so we dont have to pf anymore which is how i kept getting burnt out before the 3rd floor in each tier of pandaemonium!!!!!!!

i went to a con!!! as The Adult to my younger siblings!!! i have really severe agoraphobia and anxiety so this was a really monumental thing for me TwT and they didnt have a single ffxiv thing there!!!!!

coco cocoda got turned into a shrinkydink

i made wol photocards :)

we went to pom west!!!! fc meetup!!!!!

i made my g'raha tia itabag 2.0 after a major part of 1.0's bag unceremoniously disappeared somewhere in downtown toronto during pom east last year :')

went into an ultimate for the first time (uwu) and now my static's progging fru!!! (we're trapped in dd)

completely redecorated our fc house!!!!!! i have to say i popped tf off but i dont have a nice screenshot of it

we went into cod chaotic with 23 beloved oomfs and oomfs-in-law!!! there were a lot of people. it was really scary but it was FUN they really werent lying that cod do be chaotic

i overhauled half my wol roster cause i decided it needed more yaoi and i was right

i organized six flash zines for my besties bdays featuring their ffxiv ocs!!!!!!!! heres what i consider some of my Greatest Hits ...

i could literally have every job at 100 by new years if i wanted... i might just do that ..! i probably could have had it done before 7.1 released but i got lazy and stopped doing roulettes and i leveled my last like, 6 jobs exclusively through frontlines. this is bad because i saved nin for last because i actually really like nin and wanted to have something fun to end off my leveling with but i havent been PLAYING IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

next year i would like to clear fru :) and keep raiding with my friends!! and i hope my mental health improves!!!! i hope i challenge myself to go outside more!!!!! no. i Will. challenge myself to go outside more!!!!!!!!! i hope b'ig nunh explodes. im going to do my best to step out of my comfort zone more and more next year!!! im going to talk more with people outside of my core friendgroup and im going to do more content and im gonna DRAW!!!!! a couple of us are hoping to table a con this year so im going to do my best!!!!!!!! i will!!!!!! YAY

[twinkle-art]

would you ever be in the mood to elaborate on what your emet/WOL dynamic is like? the bits you've posted have me curious

(gripping my thighs so hard i draw blood) yeah i don’t see why not

so as i’ve previously outlined, my particular brand of emetwol (platonic) hinges on the fact that he reminds andromeda of her mother. like. a lot. 

i’ve gotten so deep in here that i’ve grown wholly desensitized to this premise and it’s not weird to me anymore so we will be moving right along

(fig a- silly joke i made early into shb before i knew how dark this was going to get)

the crux of their relationship, to me, is that they are two people who flatly, abjectly refuse to truly see each other past their respective projections for nearly their entire time together, and this renders the very intense emotions they evoke in each other all the more corrosive to them. the exact emotions they even have towards each other are also… nebulous and hard to define, but they’re definitely bad. well. mostly bad. it’s complicated. 

This… might seem like a strange angle to take for someone who is pretty transparently sympathetic to emet-selch outside of all the atrocities but it’s definitely worth noting that andromeda’s difficulties holding him in her mind as a purely evil person despite her best efforts do not come from a belief that he is, in fact, secretly a good guy or anything. It’s first and foremost because she has a psyche that was shaped by an abusive upbringing, uncomfortable as that is. 

Without dwelling… too much on the details because this is quite heavy and I prefer keeping it tastefully vague (after this aspect of her character emerged shockingly organically as a frankly very obvious explanation for a LOT of her personality) her home life as a bastard child in garlemald was Bad. her step-family was bad. her mother had good intentions but was simply not there when she needed her. and all of this left her as an adult who is, frankly, pretty easy to manipulate if you prey on her bottomless, ravenous hunger for love and recognition… or the fact that she is just straight-up conditioned to respond to a particular flavor of authoritative influence. it is nothing short of a miracle that the scions found her first. 

i’m saying she’s dog-coded. is what i’m saying. you get it. 

(there IS also the whole.. uh. garlean fascism aspect. I don’t think i need to spell out why that’s relevant to her relationship with the guy behind the god-emperor she grew up being expected to revere)

NOW. as the arbiter of this reality, it’s not my read of emet-selch’s character that he enjoys doing any of this shit- him inevitably taking advantage of this glaringly obvious weak point is a wholly pragmatic move that ultimately contributes to the fact that she’s unwittingly making him nearly as miserable as he’s making her. Like, once he realizes what’s going on I fully believe he’d feel kind of dirty about it (never mind that this is a shard of azem he’s psychologically tormenting more than is strictly necessary. the man is sentimental) (also he thinks the mom stuff is fucking weird)

this doesn’t stop him tho. lol

a quick aside on azem and emet’s relationship since that’s never not relevant to these; they were very close, I hesitate to say overtly sibling-like since i think that’s a kind of an easy oversimplification, but the type of love they felt for each other was definitely more of a familial one than anything else. she trusted him more than anyone else, and he loved her fiercely and unconditionally, even if their day-to-day dynamic involved taking the piss out of each other constantly, and the fact that the last time he ever saw her involved a blow-out screaming match between them has not sat well with him these 12,000 years. 

And so, they each project these warped reflections of people they love and resent in equal measure onto each other- andromeda with the mother she never expects to see again, emet with the friend he can’t let himself admit he’ll never see again- and it makes their presence both painful and comforting. their unwillingness to detangle themselves because of that extremely twisted feeling of nostalgic comfort borders on emotional self harm honestly. 

and that’s before factoring in that they’re championing opposite sides of a world-defining conflict

with her canon-divergent stint in amaurot that i swear i’m going to fully flesh out in art someday, no seriously, i mean it this time, the bubbling Weird Vibes that accrued any time they were left alone during shb come crashing down all at once and it is brutal. as she slowly loses her grip on reality (to the point where even she’s not certain what really happened that week and what was a hallucination, in retrospect) his mask also begins to slip, as the tiny part of him that so badly wants to believe he can get through to her gets louder and he decides that she’s not even lucid enough to warrant keeping up the act. despite his best efforts i do think this forces him to confront andromeda as Andromeda, not just as Thee Warrior Of Light or as 8/14th of his dead bestie

anyways it probably gets to the point where he’s fully trauma dumping on her while she’s half-consciously lying in his lap wondering why her mom’s calling her perseus before the scions bust in to collect her. you know, really normal stuff

ultimately andromeda takes his death at her hands hard for… a number of reasons (and as i’ve previously touched on, feels bad and weird about the fact that she’s taking it hard at all) the largest of which being that she simply had not parsed how she felt about him beforehand, and was left to sift through a LOT of intense shit tied up in some really fuckin sensitive parts of her psyche for the first time in her adult life all while knowing meaningful closure was out of reach. it sucked. 

their surprise reunion in elpis was… both helpful and not to this end, on account of being extremely one-sided. much like emet did to her in the days leading up to his death, she only comes to finally understand him by observing him in this unguarded, regressed state- even if she is now a total stranger to him. 

(hades found her.. unnerving, to say the least. she didn’t do a very good job leaving their Whole Thing out of her recounting of his future and he can’t deny that how obviously deeply affected andromeda still is by that gnaws at him even while he tries to reject it as total bullshit. it gets a bit lost in all the noise but he finds the thought that he’d do that to her a little stomach-churning)

i don’t know if i’d really call it cathartic but at least she can see him as a full person without it physically paining her now. that counts as progress

thank you for coming to my talk. here’s their playlist and here’s a drawing i did of them as dgs kitty mascots. i turned it into a cutesy phone background for myself. no i’m not sure what’s wrong with me either 

[battlecrazed-axe-mage]

How do you think your WOL feels about the other Scions?

Under a readmore because it got kind of long!

Thancred: I had an Ul'dah start, so he was her first connection with the Scions! Very proud of how he's grown as a person in the time she's known him. Teases him mercilessly in the most affectionate of ways. Probably hooked up with him at some point early on; they don't talk about it these days, but mostly because that's not where their relationship landed

Y'shtola: Absolute greatest respect and a little bit of fear. She trusts Y'shtola's words and plans pretty much more than almost anyone else she knows--UNLESS Flow is involved. Please stop solving problems with Flow we're running out of ways to pull you back out. Fully supports all of her high level mage nonsense and wants to help with her dimension-crossing thing any way she can.

Urianger: At this point, if Urianger starts doing something that superficially looks like plotting against the group, she takes it on faith that he knows what he's doing and has a good reason. When he eventually confesses his duplicity and cries for forgiveness, she wraps him in the tightest hug and goes "it's fine, look, don't worry about it. I know you." Will listen to him endlessly even if she only grasps a fraction of what he's talking about

Alphinaud: Baby brother. Incandescently proud of him and the capable young man he's become in the time she's known him. When he called her his family in Eulmore she got a little misty-eyed; considers him and Alisaie basically actual family. The only person whose plans she trusts above Y'shtola's. He's going to be a great leader someday, and she hopes she can be helpful when that day comes.

Alisaie: Baby sister. If Alphinaud is the twin she loves but doesn't understand, Alisaie is the one she understands in every mote of her being; Alisaie is basically her but younger. Do NOT leave the two of them alone to carry out some part of a plan, they enable each other's most reckless and ill-advised impulses and will yes-and each other until only fire lives here now. (Probably my favorite of the scions)

G'raha: Her spouse's boyfriend. Not her type as a lover; something closer than a friend; ranks just below the twins on the list of "people I would kill and/or die for". Raha is an absolutely essential pillar of her life at this point so please stop trying to martyr yourself godsdammit. If ever she has a dilemma she can't see a way out of, or if she wants a second opinion of something, he's her first thought

Estinien: Understands him as a brother-in-arms and lets him dictate the terms of their friendship (so they're not super close, but warm enough when their paths cross). Keeps tabs on him for Aymeric's peace of mind as best she can. There's few people she trusts more to have her back in a fight. Makes a point to treat him to a meal anytime they see each other because she still fully does not trust him with money and wants to be sure he's eating

Krile: Worked closely with her for an extended period of time on the displaced Isle of Val and got to know her in that time. Krile is probably the scion that knows the most of her secret fears and uncertainties; my character feels it's only fair after Krile trusted her with her own survivor's guilt over being the only one to escape the isle. Despite Krile being younger than her, considers her a bit of a "responsible adult" and can be reined in by her

Tataru: Bestie!! Eternally indebted to her as the beating heart of the Scions. Would move mountains for her. Probably relies on her quite a bit as someone who's also started selling her crafts (mostly soup lately) and sells out of her storefronts. Every aimless adventurer needs a pragmatic tether to the real world, and Tataru is hers. They get together every so often to gossip and catch up, when my character makes it back to town

[aetherstorms]

So a post popped onto my timeline due to the Fandaniel tag, and it reminded me that a vast swath of the fandom apparently hates Hermes. They hate him for being depressed, for living in a society that he doesn't fit into, for being unable to conform, and for causing the Final Days (I assume). So I've decided to write it. I've decided to say why I love Hermes, and why I still love him as Amon and Fandaniel. This is going to be long, and contain personal comparisons to support why I feel such a strong attachment. Obviously this is very personal, so if you don't want brief insights into a stranger's mind, just keep on scrolling. It really is a lot to take in.

First of all, and I believe this is my first time saying it on this blog, but I'm autistic. As such, I live in a society I don't fit into. I have a lot of trouble with face to face interactions. I have a lot of difficulty maintaining eye contact and reading body cues and tone, and this has only gotten worse since the start of the pandemic due to avoiding people as much as possible to avoid getting sick. I don't see Hermes as autistic, but the fact he feels differently than those around him, the fact that he has such high empathy for the creations of Elpis, definitely causes him to be isolated. Whether they actually push him away, or he just has trouble connecting because they can't understand his point of view, it's pretty clear to me that he's quite lonely.

His short story told me that it was probably more of the second thing. They don't seem to reject him, but they can't understand his feelings, so he withdraws. When he decides to make Meteion, his fellows in Elpis apparently go to great lengths to help him create her. They want to help him, they want him to be happy. There's simply a gap they cannot bridge. Unlike in real society, those around him are compassionate toward him despite his differences.

But, through no fault of their own, this compassion also hurts him. He worries that he is an aberration. Because no one around him feels as he does, he thinks of himself as a freak, as someone different and it bothers him. He withdraws further. How often has this man removed his mask to have an earnest conversation with someone? I feel like when he's talking to the WoL it may be the first time he's done so, at least in his adult life. If he had even one friend, or person he considered a friend, might he have broken so easily? Or would that one tether have been enough to give him pause? It's hard to say, since in that moment it was so so very clear that he wasn't in his right mind. He had heard Meteion tell him horrible things, and he felt he needed to subject himself to all of it.

Yet, remember his question at the end of Ktisis Hyperboreia? Even though Meteion was telling him previously that all the Meteia found was death and murder and pain, he still asks her 'was there happiness in those distant stars? Was there a reason for living?'. He still hopes for good news. He still wants to hear that things can be okay. Meteion does not give him good news though. She tells him more of the same, more suffering, more pain and death. She snaps completely, overcome by the agonies of her sisters, and Hermes falls to despair. If this is the whole of the universe, then this must be what Etheirys also deserves and if they can prove themselves better than the whole rest of the universe, only then will they be able to survive, whether they deserve to live or not.

The fact that much of the fandom seems to hate him for this decision is troubling, to say the least. They slap the 'bad guy' tag on him without any further thought. They don't consider why he makes this decision, they don't see him as a man at the end of his rope, who sees no other choice he can make. As it turns out, he could have stopped the Meteia right then and there. His staff can apparently communicate with them, so he could probably have ordered them to return like Emet-Selch told him to. But his sympathies do not lie with mankind, not in that moment. He sees the Meteia as being the ones in the right, as of course they must be as creations that sense emotions. Even though he asked a flawed question, he isn't thinking straight. He was a man with depression, and having been pushed to the brink, he makes a decision that in the moment seems like the correct one.

From the perspective of those around him who obviously aren't privy to his thoughts, of course this seems an evil act. From that perspective, of course they would hate him. But we the player have seen him struggle. So why do so many hate him for this decision when they must surely know that the circumstances that brought it about were unusual? Did they forget that not long before they were chasing Meteion because she very much did not want to give her report, knowing it would hurt Hermes? Did they forget that just before she began her report, she was expressing that she was sorry to Hermes? Did they forget that she had been fighting against the will of her sisters to give that report? She knows this man, her creator, better than anybody. She knew what this news would do to him. If anyone is the villain here, it's us for forcing her to give her report. But only Meteion must know how this is going to go, or at least she has the best guess, and we can only do as the game dictates. The ending was a foregone conclusion, and it's one we already know. But why do so many hate him when they know more about his pain than presumably anyone aside from Meteion?

But that's just Hermes. Why do the players hate Fandaniel? Because he's flamboyant? Because he's annoying? Because he's weird? Because he's an utter nihilist? Maybe it's that last one. If you don't have depression, without knowing why he feels this way in the moment it's presented, it's easy enough to go 'what the hell?' and hate him for wanting to destroy everything. But why continue to hate him afterward? With the context of Amon and the things he saw? The player knowing he suffered for five millennia (he states ten when dying as Zodiark, which I still find curious) and found nothing good. He was a man who was forced to help kill entire worlds on top of the belief he already had in Allag that it should all end simply because his Emperor willed it so.

Now, to be perfectly honest, as something of a nihilist myself, I admit I might have a leg up on understanding him here. I see the atrocities around me and think how much better it would be if humanity just stopped existing. But I also make a point of seeking proof of the opposite, just as Hermes did. Maybe Amon's problem is that, like Hermes, he was isolated. Given current evidence, it seems like Noah was his only confidant in Allag and she stated that he was dour and serious until he succeeded in bringing back Xande, and he may not have tried to gain friendships among the Ascians. With that assumption, it's hard to want to find the good in mankind. He certainly wouldn't have been encouraged to find it.

But why not hate Emet-Selch, who created the Empire that broke Amon in the first place? Who had, by his own admission, created many Empires, all of them presumably as horrible as Allag and Garlemald. Why is he so popular? Because, also by his own admission, he kept trying to find a connection to us? Because he sees what he's doing as a step toward restoring what was lost, something the player can more easily relate to? Which even the Scions admit sounds logical from a certain point of view? Do they hate Fandaniel because he has no wish for anything better, but rather an end to everything?

I like Emet-Selch, but I have no idea why others like him, only why I do. Just as I can only guess why others hate Fandaniel, Amon, and Hermes. If I was given a big red button to kill all of humanity, would I press it? The answer may surprise you. I wouldn't. I wouldn't because I have people I care about, because I own pets specifically to keep me from killing myself when my depression would otherwise overwhelm me to the point even my friends wouldn't be enough. Hermes, Amon, Fandaniel....they don't seem to have had those things. By all indications, they were very alone and while Noah seemed to have a greater insight into Amon than any of Hermes' colleagues did, even she could only tell us so much.

Hermes had Meteion, but then she brought him multitudes of misery, a whole universe of it. His only tether had told him it essentially wasn't worth it and Amon states he dreamed the memories Kairos had supposedly erased until he was given the seat and memories of Fandaniel, giving him context. But he was plagued with these dreams supposedly his whole life. He dismissed them as dreams at first, but to see such things night after night probably didn't do his mental health any good and then he finds out these aren't dreams, but memories. He knew about the true cause of the Final Days, and then he's given no reason to believe in the good of man when he's basically made to foster the opposite. Is it really any wonder he was so manic at the end? His goal was finally coming to fruition. His suffering would finally be over.

Maybe that's why so many people like Emet-Selch. He's a bastard and a mass-murderer sure, but he's been doing all of this for a cause he believes in. Twisted as it may be, it's relatable; he just wants his loved ones back. This is a story told all throughout history, of people doing whatever it took just to get their loved one (usually their lover) back. The man is a walking Greek Tragedy. Fandaniel on the other hand wants everyone, including himself, to die. Not just die, but suffer on the way. Most people won't stop to think about his reasons, even when he outright hands them to you. It really does show how experiences shape you. If you haven't experienced things in life to make you feel the way he does, it can be hard to see why he'd think this way.

When Kairos does its work and we see Hermes outside Ktisis, he's obviously still injured and no one knows why other than Hermes' 'vague memories' of what he decided he would believe had happened to Meteion. He gave himself an ending that would ensure he never looked for her, never tried to use his staff to call out to the Meteia again. He was wounded physically, but emotionally he was shattered. He calls himself a murderer in Hythlodaeus' short story, after all. he is depicted as a man who throws himself obsessively into his work to the point of self-neglect, most likely to punish himself and also to distract himself.

When the Final Days came, how did he hold it together? How did he not fall to despair to be consumed by his own aether creating a monstrosity? Did the Meteia consciously spare him? No, I don't think so. Meteion offers him oblivion before she flees. She sees this as a mercy he has denied. She loves him, she would not want him to keep suffering. In this I can't guess how he managed not to be consumed. Maybe he suspected the true cause, or at least a part of it, and as he'd said, he would be working against the Meteia. He seems to very much be a man of his word, at least. Even to his own detriment. One cannot deny one's nature.

But yes, I both understand and don't why so much of the fandom seems to hate Hermes and his reincarnation, but if you've made it this far, you definitely deserve accolades. This was a lot, but I found I could no longer leave it unsaid. It was an unpacking of myself, the character(s) and an attempt to figure out why those who dislike them do so.

Of course, there is a difference between empathy and mimicry. Most of us have a healthy separation of fiction and reality. He's just like me fr, but that doesn't mean I'd want to do what he does if I had the power to do it. He's a fictional character with fictional pain that just happens to reflect a mindset I can understand. But it seems many can't understand or relate. They just see a man with an incomprehensible viewpoint and they don't even try to understand his thinking. I think I can understand why they don't understand, but at the same time it really just proves his own point, doesn't it? No one tries to understand people who are different than them, it seems. Not if they're the majority. At least the people in Hermes' life were apparently kind in their interactions with him, misguided as he saw their attempts.

[ivoryminitower]

Echoes of Home: 52 - Tsu'na ("presence")

Echoes of Home: FFXIV AU OC – WoLs on Earth

I have not had chocolate in a while.  It is a low-level recipe.  We soon learn how to make better healer food.  But in Earth people apparently eat it for pleasure.  Certainly the chocolate Husband brought me does not affect my piety.  But I do like the taste, even if it is milder than I remember.

We made chocolate in Eorzea using kukuri beans, which grew in La Noscea.  But La Noscea is a collection of islands surrounded by ocean, and the ocean here is a thousand malms away.  Husband tells of places called Jamaica and Bahamas, which are even further away.  If I want to make chocolate now I must find a source of kukuri beans or a substitute.

Husband had an idea for changing people's perception of us.  He said that normal couples argue, so we would seem more normal if we were seen and heard arguing.  We have argued before, but the things we argue about are things we do not talk about with Earth people.  Husband thought we should argue about things that are stupid and not important, and only sometimes.

Husband called this developing "shtick": "a gimmick, comic routine, style of performance, etc. associated with a particular person."

We tried it with May.  We went shopping at her store together, which we had not done before.  Her store has sliced bread and "sub rolls", so Husband got one and I got the other and we met at the register and argued about which we should buy.  "Sub rolls are better for sandwiches!"  "Sliced bread is better for peanut butter!"  It was certainly a stupid thing to argue about.

After we argued for a bit, we stopped, we looked at each other, we kissed, and we told May we would take both.  She was chewing on her lip.  I think she was trying not to laugh at us.  Perhaps now I am more a woman who argues with her husband rather than a cat that does not want to be petted.

Husband called this developing "context": "the circumstances that form the setting for an event, statement, or idea, and in terms of which it can be fully understood and assessed."

There was not much of the afternoon left, so Husband went to the Pit to check the shed before dinner.  I shifted to Ninja, Stealthed, and went to the diner to see what patterns I could observe.

We usually see young people at night.  The people during the day were older -- adults eating alone, or in pairs, or with children.  I went by the tables, listening to the conversations.  Most of them were not about Husband or me, which was encouraging, yet not useful.

The one table with people talking about me appeared to be a family.  I recognized the boy and girl at the table; they had come into the diner more than once during our shift.  The adults were probably their parents.

"But Mom!  All the kids come here at night!  It's real popular!  And it's safe too…it's not like we're going to parties and stuff."

"I don't know how safe it is.  I heard the woman who works here has tattoos and body piercings.  She could be dangerous."

"Miz Tsu'na's nice!  She's just into comics and video games!"

"Still, you should be home working on your schoolwork."

"We do our studying here sometimes!"

I did not understand "body piercings".  Did the woman mean my earrings?  I saw several women with earrings in town.  I did not understand why they were a problem.

What I did understand was a problem was that we had been worried about people who had seen me, yet this woman had never seen me and was still unhappy about me.

I could at least change her not having seen me.  I went into the kitchen, switched to Earth normal, got a serving tray and set out four apple pies from inventory onto saucers.  Then I turned.  "Mr. Hartman?  Can you help me with something?"

He was at the grill.  He started and spun around. "Jesus, girl!  Where'd you come from?"  He looked me up and down. "You need help?"

I gestured to the pies.  "How can I make these different?"

"Different how?"

"At all."

He stared at me, then looked at the pies. "They still warm?"

"Yes."

He got a brush from among the tools near the grill and brushed a small amount of butter onto each.  Then he got a bowl and poured in sugar and cinnamon and stirred them together.  He sprinkled the mixture across the pies, where it stuck to the melted butter.

I am a Culinarian.  He is a cook.

"That what you need?"

"Yes.  Thank you, sir."

He watched me carry the tray out of the kitchen.  I went to the table with the family and addressed the girl.  "Hello.  I have seen you here in the evening, have I not?"

"Sure!  We come here all the…"  She stopped and looked at her mother.  "...I mean, we did, yeah."

"I thought so.  Perhaps you can help me…I am trying something new with the apple pies.  Could you try them and let me know what you think?"

The man spoke up. "We didn't order these."

I smiled and set the saucers on the table. "They are free for our valued customers.  Enjoy your day."

The boy and girl looked eager.  The parents stared at the plates.  I took the tray back to the kitchen.

Mr. Hartman was still watching as I came back in.  "Advertising?"

I thought of what Husband might say. "Community-building."

"Same thing."

Later, Husband called it developing "presence".

[ahollowgrave]

Hiiii do you have any more writings or musings about None? I was in your writing tag the other night and they came up a couple times but I'm not sure if I should be picturing a miqo'te or some sort of service animal/familiar lol

Hello! That's so fair, my Odette writings do not offer a lot of description for them! They do have their own tag [HERE] although not much is in it, currently. Some of the screenshots I'm including here and the writings which you've already seen! I'm very sorry for how rambling this is but None is where a lot of alts and relationships spawn from! None is neither a miqo'te nor a service animal (though I think they'd give a huff at the title)! None is the saddest creature in the whole world, a widower, Odette's favorite lil guy, Gerry's estranged step-parent, and a Lalafell:

A Lalafell ranger who makes their living guiding people through the Shroud. These days they are 'mostly' retired. They're well past their middle age and when they were younger they made a deal with sylphs. To be fleet-footed and quick and the best hunter. It came with some side effects:

They wear a hat to cover the ears. It's a bit silly to have two sets and, frankly, None doesn't wanna talk about it. They are stoic, pragmatic, and a bit of a hermit when they can afford it. None is a widower, their late wife was an duskwight woman named Aloutte, who was a widow herself with a young child; Geraldine. None and Gerry were never close and in the wake of Aloutte's passing that distant only grew. None and Odette met at the Menphina temple she was raised at. The Sisters there offer grief counseling and when Aloutte first fell sick she made them go to make the transition easier. A child at the time, Odette was obsessed from the moment they met. A pale shadow trailing after them. Where None failed with Gerry, they bonded with Odette. After Aloutte's passing None returned to the temple to live long term, some grievers need more support than others, they and Odette spent a lot of time together. They very much fill a uncle/aunt role for Odette; a trusted advisor who isn't the adults who raised her. When Odette took her vows and started to travel it was None who traveled with her, taught her basic outdoors skills, bought her Beauty and taught her how to care for chocobos. When Odette has to leave her flock of karakul to travel it is None she calls to care for them. Also, while Aloutte's loss and the grief that follows is very important to None as a character I feel it is important to note they were the saddest creature in the whole world before they knew the warmth of Aloutte's embrace! Sometimes you're just born with a heavy heart, you know? Because of how important they are to Odette. Odile... fucking hates their guts. Oooh, she hates their guts so much!!! The feeling is mutual and Odile and None have come to blows a few times. Something they both keep from Odette; None because they don't want to make her worry, Odile because she'll use the information to drive a wedge at some point. None also features in Odette's WoL AU, they're an honorary scion and spend most of their time with the other off-screen members. They spend time with Krile and Tatatru discussing lalafell things and I like to imagine that F'lhaminn and None have a lot to talk about. This is... pretty long so I will stop here! But I hope this satisfies some curiosity about None and thank you SO MUCH for asking about them!

[kvira-greystone]

WoL Think Thonkers

What do they do in their down time? Do they have any hobbies outside of Primal-slaying and world-saving? Are these lifelong hobbies or recent interests?

K’vira loves baking and cooking for her friends and loved ones! She considers the culinary arts a hobby after she started eating not to merely survive, but to simply enjoy her food. She loves trying new recipes (often at ungodly bells of the night) and always has someone nearby to taste test her latest creations. She prefers savory meals, ones that take hours to create because it means a big sit-down meal where she can drink and enjoy her company along with her meal. 

Another thing K’vira enjoys is reading. She knew her letters and numbers as a child, but growing up where she had to be an adult at such an early age meant she stopped studying long before she should have, and grew up a rather slow reader who found it difficult to read more than children’s books. She felt embarrassed by it for the longest time, but after talking about it with Leveret before they even got together as a couple, the viera helped K’vira grow stronger and more confident as a reader during downtime between adventures. 

However, it wasn’t until after the fight with Endsinger (but really mostly the final battle with Zenos), where K’vira actually had to sit down and heal for a long period of time, that she finally started to read to keep the dullness and monotony away while recuperating. She found the stories thrilling and fun while she was bed-bound, and whenever someone came to visit her, she always begged them for a book to bring with them so she could read it after they’d left.

[wayward-travelers]

Welcome ~

You are now on my FFXIV OC sideblog, where you'll find my original posts about the game (and very occasionally Dragon Age and Baldur's Gate 3). A few things to know about me and this blog:

I'm Skaar (he/they), an adult from Europe

Follows come from @undisclosed-id

I reblog other people's FFXIV posts on @sundered-souls-hub

This blog is NOT spoiler-free

Since I don't believe DNI are all that useful, I'll keep my interaction rules short and simple:

I delete hate mail without acknowledgement

Bigotry and meanness will get the culprits blocked on sight

I won't reblog callouts and I WILL unfollow and/or block anyone who partakes. Stop harassing people.

Please send an ask before reblogging an ask meme from me

Feel free to tag me in dash games. It takes me a while to get to it but I'll do them eventually!

You have my permission to draw my characters if you want to, just keep it SFW

If you also play on Chaos DC and see me in game, feel free to say hi o/

Thank you!

(List of characters and mobile navigation under the cut!)

This blog is centered around my WoL verse, a canon-divergent AU in which there are two WoLs: Inge, pictured at the top, and Aïcha, pictured right above this. The MSQ and important sidequests are split between them and a few fellow adventurers (other OCs of mine).

Roster

Inge Sjasaris: about, aesthetics, meme tag (Azem's shard)

Aïcha Bedi: about, aesthetics, meme tag

Non-WoLs

A’idan Tia: aesthetics, meme tag

Aku Ratyasch: aesthetics, meme tag

Alakja Bloom: aesthetics, meme tag

Emhih'a Litka: aesthetics, meme tag

Griveroix de Gorgagne: aesthetics, meme tag

Hanae Corvus: aesthetics, meme tag

Kazan Takeuchi: aesthetics, meme tag

The Advocate: aesthetics, meme tag

You'll see me talk about the FCU or other characters sometimes. The FCU is my FC RP verse and the names not on here are either characters I strictly roleplay with them or characters that have been shelved/are on hiatus.

Others like A'idan and Inge exist in both verses, but I'll stick to the WoL verse on this blog unless an FC mate sends me an ask about them.

Other important tags

— OOC: OOC stuff — The More You Know: general meme/asks tag — answered; OOC: my replies to asks about me/addressed to me — It's Always Screenies In Eorzea: my screenshots — My writing: well, what it says on the tin — FFXIVwrite2024 masterpost

-> You can also find me on Ao3, BlueSky and Pillowfort

[mahvaladara]

I was tagged by @izayoirii. Thank you. I love doing these.

B A S I C S

Name: Khal'lil Varysia (Khalil)

Nicknames: Khal, by everyone, dragon, by Mako, my child, by Hydaelyn, Star (by others of his race and dragons).

Age: Adult, appears to be in his mid thirties.

Nameday: 10th of First Astral Moon. Was the day he was found.

Race: Asheren (outsider) Dragon, everyone believes him to be a Raen Au'Ra.

Gender: Male

Orientation: Pan. Catching feels for a deaf librarian.

Profession: Warrior of Light, Wandering Scholar, Mage, wandering star.

P H Y S I C A L     A S P E C  T S

Hair: Long, red and straight. He leaves his side-bangs loose and ties half of his hair in a bun. He also likes side-braids.

Eyes: Shifting between a sharp green and neon green.

Skin: Pale and caucasion, littered in gold scales. Khal does not tan easily, and if it was not for being a dragon, he'd walk around sunburned.

Tattoos/scars: Khal has a very deep scar on his chest, right over his heart. It appears he was pierced by something or pinned. The scar's a little bruised from being shot by another dragon and later on by an ascian cause seeing his friend get shot was not deterrent enough to stop him from trying. He has a few adventuring scars on his arms and back, some spells he failed to dodge or a blade who got to close for comfort, or a lesson or two from being too cocky.

As for tattoo, Khal doesn't have tattoos but he has full body warpaint on. It's quite water resistent and not easy to smudge. When it does get smudged he either paints it back on himself, asks someone else to help him with it, but most of the time just uses magic to reapply it.

F A M I L Y

Parents: He has no parents. His parents passed away several decades/centuries ago. Far before he became lost and was buried. His parents disappeared around the same time the rest of his race started disappearing.

Siblings: No siblings he knows off. Khal is a lone star.

Grandparents: Technically, Majah, as the mother of all Asheren, would be considered his grandmother.

In-laws and Others:

Mostly friends. He holds very few people as important in his life. He cares deeply for Ryl and feels a connection with the elezen, as if they have met before in another world. He respects and looks up to Mako, as a much older and much more skilled WoL. Gets along with Ishwa, Inouva and Haoru and often goes adventuring with Gal, another fellow adventurer.

S K I L L S

Abilities:

Very simmilar to the Echo but also different, Khal has the Sight, associated to a third eye he choses to hide. The sight gives him sinesthesia, and he can see emotions, auras and intentions. The rest of it acts almost identical to the Echo. He has no control over it.

Khal as a great prophiciency at many types of magic, from wielding it with the use of grimoires for offense or defense, to mixing it currently with a blade with red magic, Khal has understanding of both white and black magic and arcamina. He is absolutely fascinated by the flow of aether which has lead some of his friends to suspect that perhaps Khal comes from the realm of Aether or from another world watsoever.

Hobbies:

Seamstress, journaling , botany and traveling. Learning anything he possibly can. Khal is a knowledge hoarder. Reading, he's an avid reader and often visits libraries to borrow books.

T R A I T S

Most Positive Trait: Selflessness and curiosity.

Most Negative Trait: Recklessness and pride.

L I K E S

Colors: Wine Red, Moad and Rhotano Blue, Grape Purple.

Smells: Pine, lavenders and sandalwood. Also the scent of freshly baked bread.

Textures: Silk, cotton and fresh grass under his feet.

Drinks: Chamomile and lavender tea and Mead.

O T H E R    D E T A I L S

Smokes: No.

Drinks: Water, Tea, wine and mead. He loves mead.

Drugs: He does not take them. But someone needs to remind him some people don't want heroes around, and that qualifies WoL too. He should be careful with what he drink or eats. We never know when it might be drugged or poisoned.

Mount Issuance:

A white chocobo named Volante and a calvary drake he's still trying to tame.

Been Arrested: No. At least not yet.

I tag: @izayoiri (make for another char); @lazysunjade (for any character you wish); @dandylion240 (any character you wish).

[neriyon]

WoLs and FFXIV OCs

Hawu'li Puu • Keeper • 23 • he/him • WHM/SMN “Prelude in Violet” • Beloved main blorbo and the Warrior of Light. Cheerful, talkative catboy healer who loves food and the world. Wants to help everyone. Goodhearted but rather naiive. Bad with money. Will try to eat things not meant as food. Separation anxiety, cannot be left alone for too long. Part of a trio of co-WoLs who he met when first leaving Gridania. Gay and poly, usually shipped with various npcs. Server: Lich

Maito Tee • Raen • 19 • she/her • BLM “Of Stranger Shadow” • Oldest alt, originally made to be another WoL. Currently reclassified as a semi-retired Scion (she might be young but she’s way too tired of all this shit). Moody, introverted lizard girl who’s bad at expressing her emotions. Often comes across as rude or angry. Quick to resort to violence (“fire IV your way out of troubles”). Likes fancy desserts and soaking in hot springs. Currently taking time off to relax and spend time with family. Lesbian, not really shipped with anyone rn. Server: none

Yusui Kuura • Raen • 26 • he/him • AST “Finder of False Gods” • Maito’s older half-brother. Smug and provocative lizard with questionable morals who’s favorite way to pass time is to annoy others. Working in Glass Camellia - shop that’s antique store on paper but in reality sells various merc services for clients willing to spend the gil. Likes quality tea, peaches and strong reactions to his provocations. Rarely knows when to stop on time and ends up injured. Insomniac. Bi, possibly demiromantic - only shown romantic interest to his 2 childhood friends. Server: none

N'jinh Tia • Miqo'ra • 27 • he/him • DRG/MNK/GNB “Thrillseeker” • Hawu'li's new travel buddy while his original co-WoLs are taking a break. Orphaned at a young age, got later half-adopted half-enrolled by a small secular group of monks. Abnormally resistant to damage, but can't use any magic. Over-confident in his own abilities, leading him to treat even serious fights like a game with no real dangers. Bi, no ships yet. Server: Spriggan

Naho Mewrilah • Keeper • 23 • she/her • DNC/BLM “Flamelady” • Selectively mute catgirl who likes dancing and performing. Bright, energetic and very free spirited. Grew up on a pirate ship, is currently travelling the land to see other cultures like her adventurer mother did before her. Great with animals. Scared of bugs. Friends with Maito. Bi, her relationship status is honestly a mystery. Server: Phoenix

Chiluku “Chili” Gharl • Xaela • ??? • he/him • DRK “Shadow of the Other” • Shy, anxious and clumsy max height au ra. Strong enough to carry huge sword around all day, but will accidentally knock over your flowerpot with his tail and then cry while repetedly saying sorry. Born as Kagon. Got kidnapped by garleans as a kid for having echo, devoleped “Sen” (Esteem) as a young adult and managed to fight his way out. Currently working as a bodyguard-for-hire in Glass Camellia. Bi, currently not dating anyone. Server: Moogle

Einn • Rava/Veena mix • ??? • he/him • RPR “Gatekeeper” • Viera who appeared from the forest during the events of Endwalker. Generally polite and princelike, but clearly avoids talking too much about his past. Sometimes gets strong personality shifts based on moon phase - he’ll get more aggressive, before dissapearing into the woods for a few days. During this time he’s known to cause trouble to anyone who dares enter “his” forest. Possibly tempered. Works as a gleaner post-EW. Gay, sometimes shipped with Erenville. Server: Twintania

Momoka “Momo” Komori • Raen(?) • ??? • they/them • SAM/NIN “Lullaby of a Departed Soul” • Mysterious nonbinary auri who pretty much counts as a cryptid. Appears randomly and leaves just as quick. Seems to have no loyalties towards any living being, though them appearing usually means there’s some ghost or demon involved. Part demon themself, often seen with huge white snake called “Emi”. Sexuality and relationship status are a mystery. Server: Twintania

Yulan Castalia • Veena • ??? • he/him • crafter/pictomancer "At Art's Horizon" • Introverted and a bit shy viera lad with a fondness for flowers, mammets and creating things. Mainly working as a goldsmith, but can do most crafting jobs - just don't ask him to cook. Likes to paint. Can't swim. Often hides when forced to talk to unfamiliar people. Temperamental and a bit of a tsundere. Gay, not shipped with anyone yet. Server: Zalera

Firn • Rava • few thousand years • he/him • Sword mage (pld x rdm) "Of Unbreakable Oath" • Cold, knightly viera with demeanor almost as icy as his namesake. Originally hailing from the Sixth, one of the rejoined shards, he is taken in to work with the ascians after the destruction of his home. Generally very aloof towards others, but for some reason seems to attract small animals. Fiercely loyal with a strong sense of personal moral code, he seems to now wander Eorzea in search of the reincarnation of a mysterious past charge, whom he seems to barely even remember. Server: Alpha

Edited Jan 8th: Finished reworking N'jinh's info + updated his picture.

[autumnslance]

Hi Autumn/Lyn! First things first, as someone who's embarrassingly into WoLcred stuff, I wanted to say that I love your writing and I'm a huge fan! Thanks for sharing your work with us!

I really relate to your WoL Aeryn (I too am Thavnairian irl Indian, in love with Thancred, love reading, main RDM, etc etc), which is super funny to me because I don't identify at all with my own WoL, who was originally meant as a self-insert, even (I didn't know what an "OC" was so I just made myself but in-game?), but then had her own ideas and went and became her own person (example: she has dyslexia and hates reading). No clue how this happened, and I still love my daughter OC dearly, but… you see why I also love your Aeryn. Lol.

I wanted to ask, did Aeryn inherit her grey eyes from her father? Or does the Thavnairian side of her family have a tendency towards grey eyes too? Does she have any relatives other than Zaine who have grey eyes?

I'm not sure why, but I got fixated on this one little thing because I've always loved grey eyes (especially described in literature) and the idea of a South Asian fantasy-equivalent with grey eyes fascinates me. Anyway, apologies in advance if this is too weird and/or offensive! Also sorry about how long this ask got! Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a great day!

Thank you so much, what a lovely ask to get! And funny how our WoL kids just do their own things, huh? Can't stop won't stop the WoL, not even their own writers. 😉

Aeryn did indeed get her eyes from her father (and it is mentioned most strongly, I think, in Bearing Sins of the Past), though there's probably some predisposition in her mother's side; her mom's eyes were very dark blue. I lean into the fantasy world's idea of "similar, inspired and influenced by, but not 100% the same" for the setting and characters, and am pleased Thavnair ended up labeled by the devs explicitly as a "melting pot" society (which makes sense for such a centrally located trade hub). Since I had Aeryn raised in Thavnair, with her reasons to return to Eorzea as an adult, but this was back in late Heavensward/early Stormblood before we had it in game, I had her mother's people be a more "recent" immigrant group (within the last couple hundred years) so they have mostly assimilated into Thavnairian culture, while maintaining some of their own traditions to give myself leeway, not knowing how the devs would go into the South Asian influences when we eventually got there.

Also I am very white, and know there's nuance I'd be missing, so while I wanted it to be a part of her character, and be respectful, I'm not trying to write about an Indian experience I have no inherent connection to, but a character whose upbringing includes similar influences to shape her. It's a weird and fine line when writing characters different from oneself.

There's also the meta where I based Aeryn's appearance roughly on the unused CGI Midlander woman model, though Aeryn's darker skinned (I'm still not sure if I want to adjust her facial features post-graphics upgrade or not, I might need to play around a bit). I wanted her to do some dragoon stuff for HW, but not just cuz "she's the WoL" so that got some of the backstory in there, which also worked with "she left as a kid and is now returning as an adult." And the idea that 1.0 WoL, based on Meteor (with some color shifts again), was her lost brother and it gave her a weird tie to Ardbert (before Shadowbringers even came out!).

Even the skintones for my FF14 characters are meta, as having played in earlier versions of World of Warcraft where the natural skin color options for humans/dwarves/gnomes/blood elves were "different shades of white", and my priest glowed like a lightbulb under Ashenvale's bloom lighting, seeing the sheer variety of the palettes in FF14 back in HW was a delight, and so Dark Autumn ended up brown cuz it wasn't an option at all in the other game (at that time). Even C'oretta's in the middle of the options for Seekers as my lightest OC...and Iyna being darkest Rava was playing in the Benchmark while annoyed at the examples shown by the devs at that FanFest.

What a character looks like, either in a visual video game or in a piece of writing, often comes early on to me, and in Aeryn's case, there was an appearance I wanted to adjust and build off of, and then went "OK, so what's the reasons for not only her looks, but also X and Y things I want to do with her story, and how would that work and shape her, and let's use the devs' trick of being a little vague here and there for now until the lore updates, and...."

I do fret sometimes, about how my characters look and how I portray them, especially with Thavnair having such a strong inspiring influence. But I mostly follow the game lore, fill in some gaps with light research, make up a few of my own things and remain consistent with them, and try to be true to the character and story I've written, and let the rest sort itself out. I can't and won't please everyone, but I'm always glad to hear from those who love my girls and their stories.