#because sampo and money

[kuijoon]

2025 is year of the snake

[musubiki]

how was playing hsr? was there anything that you liked in the game and the story?

ITS BEEN AMAZING AS EXPECTED!!!!!!!!! i actually havent played genshin in a while since starting it, i have no motivation to do the filler event while a perfectly good star rail is sitting there waiting to be played :')

but for mechanics, i love they have auto battle so you dont have to nessecarily sit there and invest in every little battle you gotta do....and i love that the resin (resin??) system is a lot more forgiving with a higher cap, lower cost, and allow for overflow...thats nice...i also love that the mc and starter units are very useful. im so emotionally attatched to the star rail crew so im glad they never have to leave my team !!!!

storywise im LOVING IT SO FAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i started playing it at the beginning of spring break 2 weeks ago and im almost all caught up!!! i went through belabog and penacony and now im just doing those leftover intermission main quests which im only now realizing i shouldve done before going to penacony LMAO

and of course.....danmarch....im so soft for them......and also i love sampo i cant wait to see what they do with him

[epicness1000]

17 REASONS WHY SAMPO KOSKI IS SUS

I'm not sure if I've come across a fictional character more horrendously sus than Sampo Koski.

Since I'm kind of hyperfixated on him (and Dr Ratio too), I will make a post on why our beloved blue scammer is very, very sus.

He is the only character to leave no trace when he walks. No splashes in water, no footprints in the snow. Literally no other character in the game does this.

All of his eidolons, save for one, are made up of two words and are very light hearted: "Rising love", "Infectious enthusiasm", "Big money!", "Huuuuuuuuge money!" and "Increased Spending", all of which reference either his love for money, or his warmth. The one exception is "The Deeper the Love, the Stronger the Hate". What? What do you mean hate? We've never seen Sampo be anything but 'haha funny scam boi'. What a strangely ominous thing to say...

Not to mention the art paired with that eidolon. In every piece of art we have of him, you can see the light in his eyes– not here. The light's completely absent.

His defeat pose. Every character is either kneeling, or sitting down. Sampo is the ONLY one who is still on his feet. This must surely be intentional.

The fact that he's among the few characters with an invalid rating from the rating pistol (Alongside Acheron, Jing Yuan, Feixiao, March 7 and Luocha, all of whom are either extremely powerful, or have a completely unknown past as is the case of March 7).

He is the only character to directly acknowledge the player in-game (Sparkle did this in a trailer, but... it was a trailer, so it doesn't count until it's something in-game). Self-aware character? (This is my own headcanon >:)

He very clearly is not a Belobogian native, this is all but confirmed by the fact that everyone states he just showed up one day a few years back (something along those lines). So... where is he really from? His splash art doesn't seem to be Belobog either...

The fact that the trailblazer turned away from him for ONE SECOND, and he disappeared without a sound??? Like he was never there at all.

The entirety of Funny Bone, which shows a very violent side to Sampo. You CANNOT convince me it doesn't hold some element of truth to who he truly is, because if Hoyo truly intended for him to be harmless comic relief with little more to him, why would they play this song live in an official Honkai: Star Rail orchestra accompanied with the visuals? Would they really approve something showing him in such a dangerous, unhinged and dark light when we've never seen him like that in-game?

The fact that he's a Masked Fool. A Masked Fool who apparently has some moral standards, but a Masked Fool nonetheless. Personally, I suspect he wasn't always so mellow.

THAT WHOLE SCENE OF FIREFLY DESCRIBING HIM, HAVING KNOWN NOTHING ABOUT WHO HE WAS, AND MAKING HIM SOUND LIKE SOME SORT OF SKILLED ASSASSIN?? (I know it was a shapeshifted Sparkle but I think the point still stands. Also, this might just be me, but before I realised it was Sampo following us around, the way FF was talking about our stalker unsettled me and genuinely left the impression that she was talking about an assassin of some kind... wouldn't surprise me if this guy's hands have been stained red in the past).

The fact that his backstory snippets are all of him just goofing around disguised as Madame Poisson? When there's CLEARLY more to him than meets the eye?

THE FACT THAT HE'S ONE OF THE FEW CHARACTERS WHO IS NOT ABLE TO BOARD THE ASTRAL EXPRESS YET????? Even Sparkle can board, so it doesn't have to do with the fact that he's a masked fool. And I think everyone else from Belobog can board, so... hmm... sus....

We find him in the Belobog outskirts. I'm pretty sure it's noted that normal humans can't go out there unprepared without freezing to death, or something? I might be misremembering.

HIS LIGHT CONE! HOW COULD I FORGET HIS LIGHT CONE! Firstly, notice it's not just one sniper targetting him, but there is also a man in the corner pointing a gun at him. The art is called "The Eyes of the Prey", yet when you read its description, Sampo is unsettlingly calm, spotting the sniper from a distance with no warning (makes him sound like he has borderline supernatural awareness, which I think fits with the idea of him being 'self-aware'), and is noted to have more money than the hitman makes from multiple contracts. I think the title is also a subversion– with how in control Sampo is of the situation, surviving TWO simultaneous hitmen, it's quite clear that he is not the prey– rather, it's those who target him.

He knows things he ABSOLUTELY SHOULD NOT KNOW. The fact that he implies that Dan Heng is a dragon? Or his 'knowledge' voice line, which clearly expresses his awareness that we arrived by train (when he should not have this information?).

His eidolon activation phrase is "Everyone has a colourful past, wouldn't you say?" We know literally NOTHING about his past.

So, I'm not sure EXACTLY what this all means, but it's clearly pointing to something. Don't let me down, Mihoyo! You usually do, you filthy gacha bastards, but... try to do Sampo justice please.

[impactedfates]

Hii! I loved your platonic Genshin kidnapped child reader so, could I ask for Platonic Honkai star rail men when their child is kidnapped?

★ A/N: Yep, you can. Here you go, hope this is alright!

☆ Genre/Trope: Platonic + Familial

★ Format: HeadCannons (Characters Included (Separate): Sampo, Blade, Argenti + Gepard)

☆ Warnings: Mentions and hints of kidnapping // Mentions of death (In Blades one)

★ Extra: Reader is shorter then most characters (They're about 6-7 age wise) // Characters are single dads // Semi Proof-Read // Short

Sampo is a con man, and he's made many people dislike him, many people want revenge on whatever he did. He knows this, however he never thought those people would resort to kidnapping his own kid to do so.

Look, you can hurt him, you can ruin his reputation, you can do whatever. But to kidnap you just because of your association with him is where he draws the line. As soon as he gets word on what happened he's finding out your location straight away.

And as soon as he knows it, he'll find a way to get you back and the perpetrators won't know what hit them until they wake up to find you gone and a note from the man himself, Sampo Koski.

Blade is pissed. Sure he may not always have time for you however he cares for you a lot. You are his kid, and once word gets to him that you're kidnapped? He is tracking you down no matter how long it takes or the amount of bodies gets left in his trail to find you.

He gets SilverWolf to help track your location and as soon as he knows he's off to get you. He only has to pray to whatever Aeons that you're blindfolded as he's not wasting a minute in hearing the cries of mercy, they don't deserve it.

Once he gets you home he inspects you to make sure you're fine, to ensure you're not hurt. He never lets you leave his sight after that, or anyone's for that matter. If he must leave for a mission he asks for the other members or even Elio to take care of you until he returns.

Argenti truly loves and protects you. As a knight he does this incredibly well so when someone successfully kidnaps you he's more than surprised. He puts a halt in his search for Idrila as looking for his child is far more important in this moment and time.

He isn't sure what he did to get someone to want to kidnap you or if all they want is money. But he will track you down, if they want money then he'll give it to them. However if you are hurt upon returning to him or they still refuse to give you back then he isn't afraid to put up a fight.

He won't go too far, he'll merely knock them out and call the appropriate authorities to take them away. He understands that whatever happened shook you. Scared you, so he'll spend more time with you to try and take your mind off things, take you out to various planets to shop. His search for Idrila can wait. For now YOU are his priority

I feel like Gepard oftens leaves you with Serval when he's out on duty. So the chances of you getting kidnapped are rather low as you have an auntie to protect you, not to mention the Silvermane Guards outside her workshop and how I feel Serval would make small guard robots.

So it comes to a surprise when he finds out you've been kidnapped. He doesn't bother asking questions, for now he quickly gathers a search party and gets others to ask around as he investigates the workshop. Perhaps you were kidnapped by a worker of Serval, this gives Gepard a good idea and he searches the houses of said worker.

Once he finds where you are, he wastes no time in arresting them and anyone else who happens to be in there as he quickly goes to your side to check on your wellbeing. He takes you to the doctors to get you checked up and once you're confirmed to be okay he's relieved.

Bronya gives him a few days off so he can spend time with you, it also gives him time to figure out how to ensure this won't happen again. He still trusts Serval to look after you, and she's already making sure to be careful who she lets work with her but he wants to be doubly sure nothing will happen to you again.

I need Blades banner to go so I'm not tempted to pull for his LC. I need Loucha.

[feroluce]

On Sampo's name (ALL of his names!)

I feel like everyone who's a fan knows the meaning of Sampo's full name by now- the sampo was a legendary item that could magically make endless supplies of gold, flour, and salt, all priceless items at the time! So it works perfectly for a scammer businessman like Sampo. ☆

"Koski" is the Finnish word for "water rapids" which might seem kinda random but actually makes sense for him, since Aha and the Masked Fools are also referred to with water terms:

This kind of analogy isn't specific to only Aha and the Masked Fools, but it does still tie them together. So water rapids fits perfectly! Sampo wants to stir the pot! He likes to shake things around and spice things up! He's taking that stagnant pool and turning it into water rapids! It would actually explain his ridiculous hair color, too; a dark blue wave tipped with white foam haha

EDIT: an amazing contribution from @ricochetlovebombs, who heard it from hoyolab user Rattaboy. If you interpret his first and last name together, instead of separately like I did, you would get something like "money river."

In other words, Sampo's name literally means CASH FLOW SKXJMDMDMD

What I really wanted to talk about is his drag alias name, though, Brughel Poisson, because to me that's where it gets really interesting.

So like in the English version, Sampo goes by Brughel Poisson when he's in disguise. Searching for just "Brughel" itself doesn't seem to get you much at first: a Flemish and Dutch Renaissance painter named Pieter Brueghel the Elder, who was famous for his landscapes and peasant scenery, especially Hunters in the Snow and The Blue Cloak.

He's referred to as "the Elder" because he had a son also named Pieter Brueghel (the Younger), and he began a long line of painters, all named Brueghel. Some of them did original work, and many of them created reproductions of the Elder's art to sell. The Elder was also famous as a printmaker. All of this is hilarious when you remember that Sampo is an infamous counterfeiter and has sold a relic called the Parallel Universe Printer JSKZJSMD

There is also something called Brueghel's Syndrome, named after one of Brueghel's paintings called De Gaper, which pictured a man yawning widely. It's a condition that causes the mouth to open and gape uncontrollably, twisting a person's countenance into a distorted mask of their usual face.

Tumblr doesn't have a way of censoring pics like twitter, so for the sake of the medically squeamish, I'm just showing De Gaper here. But if you look up Brueghel's Syndrome, you can find pictures of actual patients, some of whom really do make faces resembling Aha's comedy and tragedy masks!

In the Chinese and Japanese versions, his alias last name is a lot more silly- In those, "Sampo" is phonetically written as "san-bo" and "san-po." And in disguise, his last names are phonetically written as... "Bo-san" and "Po-san." The Chinese version uses different tones, but still. This smug asshole seriously just decided to write his own name backwards and called it a day NDMKXMDMD

In the English version, Poisson itself is kind of a reused Hoyo asset- it's also the name of Navia's fishing village in Genshin Impact. Which is a really silly name for a village, because it literally just means "fish" in French smzjxkdkdk but!

Again, more water imagery. And in English, if something is suspicious, we say that it's "fishy," which is perhaps the most fitting association yet for someone as shady as Sampo ☆

And for a good while I thought that was the only connection. But then. My beloved @hydrachea, who is an actual native French speaker, dropped this on me right after April Fool's Day:

Poisson is literally the word you use to pull an April Fool's prank.

[thesaart]

Rattenfänger of Belobog

Rattenfänger (rat catcher) is the german word for the pied piper. I loved this fairy tale when I was a kid. Part of me just wanted to draw Sampo as the Pied Piper because I really love both characters but the more I thought about it the more I realized how well Sampo fits into the role as the Pied Piper. The story of the Pied Piper is that there was once a town plagued with never ending amounts of rats and then one day a mysterious figure approaches the gates of the town, proclaiming he could get rid of this plague but of course for a price. The townspeople at first don't believe him making fun of the colorfully dressed man, however after he pulls out his flute and starts playing a melody so beautiful that all the rats crawl out of their hiding spots. The townspeople, struck with awe, quickly step aside letting the man walk out of the town taking all the rats with him, leading them to a river where they all drown. After making his way back he is denied his payment, he walks away proclaiming that they made an enemy of him. The townspeople ignore the angry man and go back to their lifes. Then at night a beautiful tune dances through the streets of the town. The next day the adults discover that all the children are gone.

So how does Sampo fit into this? Just like the Pied Piper, Sampo is an alien where we meet him. His story, history and powers are all completely shrouded in mystery.

He makes deals with others but from what we've seen he's not really clear with the payment itself. (yes, he does stuff for money but I don't remember if it's ever said how much. Also why would he even need the money of the people of Belobog? Shields have no value outside of Jarilo VI and he doesn't seem like a character who if he can't afford something wouldn't just steal it.) Also more often than not his payment can be as simple as to be introduced to other people, so in that respect he's also very nebulous. Anyways aside from that he is also incredibly charismatic and even though people don't trust him they end up still making deals with him because more often than not he's the only one who can help.

One more thing, are either one of these characters good? The Pied Piper helped the town, he got rid of a devastating and dangerous plague and he would have never done what he did if the townspeople would have paid him, however he did go too far. And with Sampo it's also not simple. Yes he helped with the stellaron crisis however we don't actually know why he helped. He seems to be interested in the survival of Belobog but it's never said why. If it was truly only to entertain the tavern then why would he be protective over the planet (keeping Sparkle from going there). Aside from that he is a criminal organizing heists, stealing, smuggling and scamming and maybe even more who knows. My point is that both characters will do things first and foremost for their own benefit and even though both are not opposed to helping people it's just that neither of them are altruists.

[bonknigirlinthehood]

Daycare Day!!

HSR Daddies x Child!Reader (platonic)

Characters: Blade, Jing Yuan, Gepard, Sampo, Welt, Dan Heng and Luocha, and gn! reader(separate).

Synopsis: Hsr men's reaction to leaving their child at daycare for the first time.

CW: Family Relationship, Father-Child content.

TW: none

author's note: this is purely a word vomit. might contain bad grammar or spelling, and yes i have favoritism towards Blade and Jing Yuan.

BLADE

Blade doesn't like it when he must leave you with someone else during his mission. The other Stellaron Hunters are very busy and cannot help watching over you, not even Elio so he had no choice but to put you in a daycare for the time being.

 He makes sure to check the security of the daycare, even paying a huge amount just to add more security in there.

Making sure you know how to call him whenever you are in danger. 

Hates when there's another phone number in your (temporary) phone other than him, but for your sake, he allows you to have his colleagues numbers to call or chat.

Will put a different ringtone only for your contact, so he'll know if it's you who are calling or sending him messages.

Gets anxious when there's no chat or call from you for quite some time (even though Kafka makes sure not to spam your father with chats or else he'll get distracted from his job).

Constantly checking his phone whenever he can to see if you send any message.

At one point he will be the one who sends you a message first asking if you are doing fine at the daycare, if they give you food, or if you get bullied. 

The moment he is done with his work Blade immediately goes to the daycare and picks you up.

You will look happy and fine, a contrast to your father who looks stressed.

But his expression will brighten up the moment he sees your happy face.

Very anxious dad 0/10 he won't do it again (Kafka makes him do it again in the future because he had no other choices).

JING YUAN

He was sad to leave you alone, but with his secretary and Tingyun's assurance, he finally obliged.

Will make sure you get treated just as well as when you were with him.

Will give you allowance money to spend!.

Send you messages every 30 minutes.

He will ask Tingyun to send him some of your photos or even videos.

His knights would catch him giggling at his phone whenever he was doing a video call with you.

Constantly saying 'I miss my baby~' and 'Papa can't sleep without my baby kissing me :('

Fu Xuan would help watch over you, and will cringe whenever Jing Yuan makes those voices to you during the call.

Won't waste any time going to his office, he will go straight to where you were.

Fu Xuan knows he won't go to his office so she waits with you.

Jing Yuan would open the door with a big smile and arms open wide, waiting for you to run towards him.

And you will run and hug him, only for your father to notice Fi Xuan throwing daggers through her eyes.

She will scold Jing Yuan for not making a report and said if he doesn't finish it before your bedtime, she will revoke your permission to enter his office.

Both of you were shocked when she said that, and you gave him sad puppy eyes, saying "if papa doesn't work…i can't visit you anymore…".

Jing Yuan will immediately do a Speedrun of his reports. He can't work without you as his mental support!! He needs to keep you able to enter his office whenever you want to!.

Fu Xuan couldn't believe that threat would work. Your father totally forgot the fact his position is higher than hers 😭. 

GEPARD

Would leave you with Serval.

He loves his sister to death but oh how worried he was to left you alone with her💀.

You weren't given a phone so whenever Gepard wanted to ask how you are doing he'll need to ask though his sister.

Serval would send him photos and videos of you trying to sing and play musical instruments, and Gepard would chuckle at it.

Silvermane Guards will constantly see him glued to his phone during breaks (they think it's kinda cute).

Would do a sleep video call. He would video call Serval only to see you already in bed, wishing him to get back as soon as possible.

He would call again in the morning. Greeting your sleepy figure and getting a 'good luck' for today from you was the thing that got him going throughout the day.

Would buy you gifts on his way back.

Very happy to see you greeting him on the door and giving him a hug.

SAMPO

Put you under Natasha for obvious reasons.

Continuously asking her how you are doing to the point she actually mutes him for distracting her from working.

He said he will leave you for a day but he keeps showing up to the clinic almost every hour.

Same as Gepard, he would buy gifts on his way back.

He trusts Natasha, that's for sure, but he can't help but feel anxious about his bby! :( 

When he gets back, Natasha will scold him for giving you too much unhealthy food, even going so far as to give him a book full of recipes about food for kids.

Yet after the two of you were out and far away enough from the clinic, Sampo would pull out a back of fast food he got from overworld and your eyes gleamed at the sight. 

"If you promise not to tell Nat about this~" he makes the shush motion with his finger, and you nod vigorously. "Yes!, Yes!, I promise!".

The two of you happily eat the food together while you listening to Sampo's story about the overworld.

WELT

Was a bit anxious to leave you on a daycare of an unknown planet, but Himeko calms him quickly about it.

"It's okay, Welt. This will be a good experience" . "I know, but still…*sighs*"

Every 2 or 3 hours, Welt would send you a message, asking if you are okay being there.

Would daze off overthinking if you are okay at the daycare.

When talking with an important person from that planet, he will make sure everything goes smoothly and quickly so he can go pick you up asap.

Welt would drag Himeko to quickly go to the daycare.

Would check first if you got any injuries on your body before hugging you.

Will bring you to a nearby restaurant to eat dinner together alongside his other (not so) kids.

DAN HENG

Anxious? Anxious.

Dan Heng would swarm Welt with questions about the best daycare to go to.

His preparation, if not top notch, was too much. Even Welt had to warn him to not pack too many things onto the bag.

Dan Heng would be the type that needs so much reassurance. It's okay sir, your kid's going to be fine.

When he finally lets you go and walk away, he'll turn his head around every 5 steps, as if thinking this wasn't a good idea at all.

Would try to call you several times during the day, in which you answer every time; "I'm fine, papa!"

Buys cake for you when he is done with whatever job he is on.

When he arrives at the daycare, you would have already fallen asleep and the teacher had to carry you out of the room.

Dan Heng will immediately feel relaxed after seeing your face. He snuggles to you to comfort himself (my man is a dragon do not forgor).

LUOCHA

My man would do shit ton of research before finally deciding which daycare he would trust you into.

Like Blade, he would pay a hefty sum just to add additional security.

Luocha needs to calm you down at first because you refused to go to the daycare.

"It's alright…daddy will pick you up at 5pm. Be good for me, hm?"

Give a lot of kisses on your cheeks and forehead.

The type of dad that is always thinking about you whenever he passes by something and ended up buying it.

"That hair ornament would look good on my child, I should buy it". "Oh this children's book is popular, i should buy it too". "Oh and this–"

By the time he got back to the daycare, there would be many shopping bags around him.

You would run into him immediately and start babbling on what you did throughout the day. 

Luocha would bring you over to one of the most expensive restaurant in Luofu.

He also diligently listens to you while trying all the new accessories he bought on you.

Gosh this man spoiled you so much, well maybe a bit too much, but he can't help it since his baby is too cute!.

[almondest]

Star Rail Men

If they gave you gifts.

:: Blade ， Jing Yuan ， Dan Heng ， Sampo ， Gepard

Blade will most likely give you one of those necklaces with like a small container with his blood in it, claiming for it to be fake blood.

He handed you a small velvet box, disrupting your time in reading.

You looked up, curious eyes on the box he was holding. "What's this?"

He smiled at you, taking your book away and placing the box in your hand. "Open it, love."

You were curious, but shrugged it off as you did what he said. "This..." You stared at the beautiful scarlet necklace in awe.

Jing Yuan would shower you with lavish gifts, probably any type of object he thinks you'll like, he'd take it. He'd buy it without hesitation. For you, he'd happily spend his money.

After returning from a tiring day of work, you opened the huge doors of your shared home with Jing Yuan, Gasping in surprise at the mountain of either wrapped or boxed trinkets.

"Yuan!" You shouted his name in despair, catching his attention as his head peeks out of the gifts.

"What is it? Are the gifts too little?" He asked, smiling like an idiot.

Dan Heng now, he'd be the type to buy you a gift JUST BECAUSE.

"What's with these flowers..?" You ask in question, but still feeling touched with it nonetheless.

He shrugged his shoulders at you and walked towards you, wrapping his one arm around your shoulder and giving you a quick forehead kiss.

"Just because. Love."

Sampo will definitely mistake his gift with something else with a similar structure. I can imagine the box in his ult being given to you instead of the legitimate one.

"I'm home~ look at what I got for you!" He cheerily says, skipping towards you with a huge grin.

"Hmm?? What's the occasion?" You ask curiously, about to open the box with excitement.

"Mmmm, just a little some.... thing?" His smile that was once written in his face was now a look of horror. His 'gift' was none other than his well-known smoke bombs.

"Oops...?"

Gepard would give you simple yet meaningful gifts. He probably took his sweet time at the store, staring at the countless choices, looking for the gift that'll suit you the best.

"Happy Anniversary love." He smiles gently, holding up a box containing a single pandora charm.

You stared at the box before making your way towards him for an embrace.

"So, what does the new charm indicate this time?" You ask, staring at your bracelet with a few charms wrapped around your wrist.

[sunderingstars]

☆━━━━━ ⋆⁺｡˚⋆˙‧₊☾ ◯ ☽₊‧˙⋆˚｡⁺⋆ ━━━━━━☆

✩ ‧₊˚ ⌞ DOLL THEORY ⌝

sampo analysis m.list

— what the stars reveal: theoretical speculation, interpretative analysis, waxing poetic, red string conspiracy theory board in full swing

— word count: 6.1k

— overview: (as of 2.6) going out with a bang by outlining my doll!sampo theory, including evidence from the simulated universe, limited-time events, dialogue, and more! not many photos in this one, since i’ll just be referencing the other analyses i’ve already completed — you can visit the masterlist here.

☆━━━━━ ⋆⁺｡˚⋆˙‧₊☾ ◯ ☽₊‧˙⋆˚｡⁺⋆ ━━━━━━☆

✩ ‧₊˚ ⌞ DISCLAIMER ⌝

When discussing theoretical speculation, I do not believe these events to be set-in-stone or even canon, only that this is an interpretation of events I am very interested in talking about! I have no idea if any of this will actually end up being true, but it’s fun to speculate. Even if it all is proven false later on, I still think it’s a fun idea to play around with for AUs and the like! Enjoy!

✩ ‧₊˚ ⌞ INTRODUCTION ⌝

Doll Theory is the name I have ascribed to my theory that Sampo is a creation of Aha similar in function to the doll in the Aha Stuffed Toy occurrence within the Simulated Universe. This includes sharing Aha’s physical appearance (the silhouette), being created to vent extreme emotions on, and being betrayed or discarded by Aha once the Aeon was done with him. I often imagine Doll!Sampo to be or have been an Emanator at some point as well. 

This theory can easily run in sync with other Sampo theories, such as Aha!Sampo, Masked Fool!Sampo (canon), and the aforementioned Emanator!Sampo. Sampo as a protector of Belobog, Sampo as “Mr. Cold Feet,” Sampo as a worker (or boss) disillusioned with his job, Sampo who wants to help the Trailblazer — it all fits here!

(Note: reading my other analyses isn’t needed to understand what’s going on, but I figured I’d include links in some sections for those interested!)

✩ ‧₊˚ ⌞ EVIDENCE ⌝

Related Analyses — Simulated Universe, Kit & Abilities, Divergent Universe, Name & Etymology, and Notable Topics. Masterlist link!

Aha Stuffed Toy

The main piece of evidence that sparked this theory is the Aha Stuffed Toy occurrence in the Simulated Universe. Summarized, the occurrence details the existence of a toy — or “doll” — created in Aha’s own likeness for the purpose of venting extreme emotions on. Aha wishes to see Themself beaten up, and is not involved in the “quality control” process. Upon interacting with the doll as a player, you have two options: pat it lightly or hit it hard. Both options have a random chance of granting varying quantities of Cosmic Fragments, or none.

In certain outcomes, the doll is broken, destroyed, or its head explodes. In the case of the Elation option in Gold and Gears, the doll even gains sentience and steals your Cosmic Fragments, accompanied by the line “Only Aha knows the secret.”

I connect this to Sampo mainly through his trade, affiliation with Elation, and namesake. His trade of being a con-man centers much of his actions around money — whether giving or taking — much like the doll awarding or stealing Cosmic Fragments. With Cosmic Fragments as a stand-in for in-universe currency, it’s easy for me to see Sampo as serving a similar function concerning the flow of money. Additionally, he is the only character so far connected to both the Elation and this amount of currency-based identity.

However, my main idea comes from Sampo’s namesake — a Finnish mythological artifact known for distributing wealth upon others. Not only was the Sampo forged by a god (mirroring the creation of the doll by Aha), it was tied to granting others wealth (Cosmic Fragments), conflicts were fought because of it (small link to the “conflict” of beating up the doll), and it was ultimately destroyed (much like the doll breaking or its head blowing up). That, paired with the cryptic line “Only Aha knows the secret” that causes the doll to become sentient and steal our Cosmic Fragments (much like Sampo cheats others out of their own money), leads me to interpret this occurrence as being intertwined with Sampo’s own identity.

Curio Hacker

Curio Hacker is the main Sampo occurrence I’ve seen people talking about, and for good reason. The “blue-haired entity” is an immediate connection, and its general demeanor matches Sampo’s.

However, my main sources of evidence come from the Curios here. Organic Heart and Mysterious Magnetism, to put it simply, carry heavy themes of experimentation, creation, and the blending of multiple objects or concepts into one before abandonment. If we look into the question of why Sampo might be trying to replicate these Curios and how he even managed to access the Simulated Universe in the first place, we can arrive at the conclusion that these two in particular have some sort of meaning or connection to who he is or what he is trying to accomplish.

Given the Curios’s heavy focus on creation and combination, I don’t think it’s too far of a stretch to assume Sampo may be a creation or “combination” himself — likely a bridge between the mortal and immortal as an Emanator, insentient and sentient consciousnesses as a Doll. He is an enigma, just like Organic Heart and Mysterious Magnetism.

The *Perfect* Grand Challenge

Another occurrence that is heavily Elation-coded, The *Perfect* Grand Challenge once again showcases toys and dolls in the spotlight, this time inside an arcade machine. Not only does this occurrence have several nods to a “programmer” (linking to the blue-haired entity in Curio Hacker), but it also features a doll whose head blows up after venting extreme emotion. 

My main takeaway here is the existence of multiple dolls, which may imply that Sampo is not the only one of his kind, merely another step in his creator’s pursuit of “perfection”. Although the concept of “perfection” doesn’t seem to fit with Elation that much for me, I could still see Aha becoming enamored with the idea of a “perfect self,” if only for shits and giggles. 

Masked Fools Boundary Equation

In the Divergent Universe Masked Fools Equation Expansion, triggered by collecting sixteen Elation blessings, part of the story sees our point of view character (who I interpret to be Aha) drinking a beverage concocted with “fruit extracted from bitter hatred felt after falling from great heights.” This is more a combination of Emanator! and Doll!Sampo to me, since I connect “fruit” to “Organic Heart” which is part apple, “bitter hatred” to Sampo’s Eidolon “The Deeper the Love, The Stronger the Hate,” and “falling” to be a kind of betrayal or violence associated with both the doll and Sampo as a character. 

My guess is that Sampo may have previously been an Emanator, but had his status revoked, causing him to “fall from great heights.” In this way, the doll would also be harmed, allowing for a “reward” — or in this case, a nice amusing beverage — to find its way into Aha’s possession. This could also be seen as Aha growing bored with Sampo, essentially discarding him like a used toy.

Jester of Anatta

I’m putting this here because I feel like every single word of the original text is important!

This is a four-star equation combining blessings of Nihility and Elation. Not only is it a four-star like Sampo’s character rarity, but it sits in the exact intersection of his affiliations — his playable path being Nihility while his in-game affiliation is with the Masked Fools, an Elation faction.

— Exploding in the face / head area.

— Explodes “like a bomb” — his ultimate uses a bomb to hide his face and he has a lot of bomb imagery surrounding him.

— The audience laughs and “gains something” from his pain, though he is soon forgotten.

— Intentional self-destruction for others’ gain.

— Stealing, being pursued by private guards, blowing things up — all acts for attention, all acts Sampo has canonically committed.

— Reference to the subject as a “clown,” mirroring Sampo’s “Clown’s Items” from Penacony.

— “Lying in rags and debris, you mock your pathetic self.” Debris implies physical acts of destruction, rags implies a loss of wealth and status.

— The abandonment of others.

The main connections I make are to the doll’s head blowing up, the abandonment themes of Curio Hacker’s Curios, and a type of “reward” being gained from physical pain. The extreme emotion in this case not only would be Elation itself from the audience, but the intense self-mocking and pain of the “clown.” After all, Aha Stuffed Toy never said the emotions being vented had to come solely from the outside — it’s possible that stress or hatred turned inward could do the same trick.

Also, the “rags and debris” implies a type of being spent, perhaps something akin to the Sampo bleeding out all its wealth to others only to be left behind as everyone moves on.

Other Evidence

— The Simulated Universe occurrence Ace Trash Digger is also a huge connection; here’s a short post where I detail my thoughts on it.

— Additionally, here is my post on the Ship of Fools Unknowable Domain occurrence, as it pretty blatantly references Sampo (and Sparkle!) as well.

— In the trash can event, Sampo’s stage “Hazardous Waste” directly refers to an effect that causes him to be “beaten up” so he regenerates energy and attack. “Hazardous Waste” may also be a reference to his abandonment or “fall from great heights,” making clear that even though he has been discarded like the toy he was made to be, he is still very dangerous, much like the venom-tipped fangs on the shoulder of his outfit.

— Sampo’s downed pose is unique among Star Rail characters, looking like a doll folding down to protect his face.

— His line when hit by a heavy attack — “Hey, watch the face!” — could be another extension of him trying to protect himself from “breaking”.

— The Noblesse Worm Aha made an Emanator once. Since we know that Aha is fast and loose with who They promote to (and demote from) Emanator status, I don’t see it as too far of a reach to assume They might turn one of Their own doomed creations into an Emanator for the cruel, hilarious irony of it all. (And for that yummy beverage, of course.)

— The Sampo of Finnish mythology is huge here, since its narrative, function, and eventual fate is directly mirrored by the Aha Stuffed Toy occurrence.

— This line from a starskiff on the Skysplitter:

(Not directly a piece of evidence, but it summarizes a lot of my feelings on Sampo’s sentience.)

— “Eyes of the Prey” is a light cone that positions Sampo as both predator and prey — and Emanator!Doll!Sampo would fit this perfectly, the Emanator in him being the predator and the Doll in him being the prey.

— Sharing an appearance with Aha (“created in Their likeness”): red on the outside of his outfit much like the oranges and reds of Aha’s masks, similar silhouettes, not visiting the Express due to potentially being recognized from Aha’s time there, Aha being referenced but not described in the Astral Express dream bubble because They may look similar to someone we know and would recognize (like Sampo) — even shares similar vocal quirks like referring to himself in third person.

— Being beaten up for rewards & venting of extreme emotion — usually no “nice” dialogue options to him in-game, basically a punching bag for most people around him like Topaz collecting his debt in her trailer, people are just mean to this man for no good reason honestly. I’d like to think this is because the universe literally dictates them to be, as that is his purpose.

— Sampo has several unique “quirks,” such as not leaving footprints, that imply he may be different from a normal being. As a creation of Elation, this could be side effect of his existence (or potentially his attempts to subvert it).

— In the Tatalov sequence, Sampo directly refers to a “truth” he is trying to reveal. It seems he can’t tell us upfront, so this may be the “secret” only Aha knows.

— Sampo is well-known for scamming people and essentially stealing their money, much like the sentient doll who steals our Cosmic Fragments in Aha Stuffed Toy.

— The doll also makes a direct fourth wall break by looking at us, both the Trailbazer and by extension the player, which is something Sampo has also done by looking at the “audience” and addressing us.

— Jester of Anatta, the doll, and many other pieces of evidence listed so far have heavy themes of voyeurism looking in on another’s pain.

— The “quality control” mentioned in Aha Stuffed Toy carries similar themes of experimentation and creation as the other mentioned occurrences. Given that They are not involved in this process, this could also link to abandonment and even the idea of Sampo being “buggy,” hence the hacker in Curio Hacker and his lack of footprints.

— Additionally, an Intellitron NPC in Dream’s Edge named Kirk talks about Asmon Rim, an Elation planet that began to treat other lives as toys in their pursuit of the Laughter. While I’m not sure how much this factors into Sampo’s story given the existence of Kalevala (the planet) as a likely origin for him, I still feel it’s important to mention. Asmon Rim definitely lines up with the overall dehumanization of the Aha Stuffed Toy, although it does lack the direct involvement of Aha. Perhaps Sampo found himself there somewhere along his journey, or perhaps his betrayal occurred there or something similar. Food for thought!

✩ ‧₊˚ ⌞ INTERPRETATIONS⌝

Related Analyses — Eidolons, Penacony Voicelines, Simulated Universe, Outfit & Design Motifs, and Notable Topics. Masterlist link!

Beyond just evidence, Doll Theory lends itself to certain interpretations of canon, mainly the many mysteries surrounding Sampo and his role in the story.

Tatalov

While the Tatalov plotline still confuses me in general (as I feel it was meant to), the closest interpretation I have for it under Doll Theory is that, since we are in Sampo’s dreamscape, the plot itself is meant to mirror Sampo’s own existence. As he says after Firefly interrupts the dream bubble, he’s trying to “reveal” a specific truth, which is likely something to do with his identity or role in future events. 

In this case, I see the trash cans as being stand-ins for either other dolls or Belobog’s people, with the giant Sampo at the end equating to the Sampo we know. It may be trying to point us towards Sampo’s status as an Emanator by enlarging him to a size reminiscent of Phantylia, or imply he is attempting to go against his creator — likely Aha — through the lines “Become the garbage king / though the cans have long been broken.” (Also note the specific use of the word “broken” here.)

Again, Tatalov still confuses me quite a bit, so I feel the whole thing could be symbolic of Sampo’s backstory as a doll and goal of gaining power to inspire others to fight back, or it could also be symbolic of him protecting Belobog (or both!). The jury’s still out on the specifics.

Eidolons

Although I already covered Sampo’s eidolons in its own analysis, my interpretations have changed a little, so here I am to quickly go over each eidolon for Doll Theory.

— Rising Love: Rising into being, creation. “Love” could stand for Elation itself, Sampo’s early love for Aha / his purpose, or Aha’s “love” creating him. Also could be indicative of rising to Emanator status. Also also, could be the “rising love” of an audience becoming enamored with him / entertained by his suffering, much like in Jester of Anatta. He is facing away from the viewer, just another faceless doll. (This eidolon may also be referencing a period of time where Aha becomes “re-interested” in Sampo, meaning Sampo is the recipient of this “rising love” coming from Aha after being discarded for a long time.)

— Infectious Enthusiasm: Doll!Sampo as an extension of Aha, being made in Their image. Aha is known for having “infectious enthusiasm” specifically, so this is probably the point Sampo is closest to Them. Sampo as an Emanator would also fit this idea. Being surrounded by Elation, specifically of the intense kind. The constant need to perform. Now that he has been lifted high as an Emanator, we focus on his eye, a small yet more identity-laden part of him — he is not “just another plaything,” or so he thinks.

— Big Money!: Tie-in to the doll bestowing wealth. He grants currency onto others; his existence is full of it. The audience is scoring “Big Money!” by venting on him or watching him suffer, and if he is being self-destructive, he may be receiving it too. May also be indicative of a turning point, a shift in understanding of his own purpose and identity given the next eidolon. Here, he is seen flipping through bills with a smirk; this may be when he begins using earning money as a coping mechanism, or a way to take back autonomy for himself.

— The Deeper the Love, The Stronger the Hate: The dichotomy of his existence; the irony of a doll. Being showered with so much love by others, only to realize that love is conditional on your pain. The more the audience loves, the more Sampo hates himself for being helpless, for being miserable. The more Aha bestows Their “love,” the more Sampo begins to resent his creator for creating him. The more Sampo allows himself to feel love, to feel Elation, the more that hatred festers within him, the idea that he must be made for more than this. He is smiling here — attempting to transmit the love, the enthusiasm, the Elation his purpose demands — but he is unable to hide the hatred hiding behind his dulled eye. (This could also be seen as the moment of “betrayal” where Sampo loses his Emanator status, effectively being robbed of the only power or agency he had.)

— Huuuuge Money!: Sampo has begun to get used to the wealth constantly spilling from him, although it does not change the feelings in his heart. While the money flows more than ever, he enters a cycle of self-destruction, tying his identity to earning money himself, leaning into the con-man persona. The name also implies a heightened intensity of him either making money, or others making money off of him, which would be directly correlated with increased pain or suffering. He stares head on, somewhat tiredly.

— Increased Spending: Likely referencing his attempts to “hack” the system or bypass the nature of his own existence, paying a cost to reap a greater reward later on. To me, this seems both like a calculated plan, but also like spinning out of control, almost like a gambling addiction. He looks more serene in his art, though, so maybe he has found some sort of peace in his attempt to break free.

Overall, this interpretation has a similar track as my other analysis, going from rising to Emanatorhood / dollhood through creation by Aha, being surrounded by Elation and full of it, and being closely intertwined with currency, to a “betrayal” or slow-building hatred of the self or others, which then transitions into an even bigger spiral of planning, spending, and suffering.

Clown’s Items

This could reasonably go in the evidence section, but it also has interpretation so I figured it could go here.

The Clown’s Items — being the items Sampo asks for in the Penacony main quest — are as follows: Moment of Betrayal, Cloud of Doubt, and Everlasting Hatred, in that specific order.

The cool thing is, those are actual consumables on the game! Although I don’t believe they were created by the devs with Sampo specifically in mind (as some of them seem similar to other characters, such as the blade stabbing through a rose that reminds me of Argenti), I do believe they were included by name in this quest to imply something specific.

(Note that these consumables are focused on attack / crit increases and damage reduction.)

The art is of a knife stabbing a dead rose with vibrant red petals in the reflection. This can connect to the red roses in Sampo’s ultimate. “Moment of Betrayal” also increases Crit, much like Sampo’s attack increases after being beaten in the trash can event.

The description could be a connection to the audience from Jester of Anatta / the people seeking wealth from the doll (“persuasion and incitement from those people”).

The betrayer and betrayed could be twofold: Sampo betraying Aha, subverting his purpose through sentience and attempting to break free in a moment of surprise, or Sampo himself being betrayed, potentially by someone within the Masked Fools or even by Aha Themself.

I read this as either Sampo betraying Aha, his creator — “Et tu, my child?” would be a direct reference to Aha as Sampo’s creator or “parent” — or the Masked Fools betraying Sampo — the line would now be Sampo speaking to those below him from the status of Emanator. It may even be a combination of both, as Emanator! and Doll!Sampo often go hand-in-hand in my mind.

Perhaps Aha betrayed Sampo by taking away his Emanatorhood, which the Masked Fools then made worse in Sampo’s time of need, while Sampo now plots to turn the tables and betray Aha in the future. Who knows? It’s all speculation!

(Defense and taking less damage may tie in to a form of self-protection, of finally distancing oneself from hurt.)

The Cloud of Doubt focuses on a burning door amidst deep gray smoke. This could be a reference to Sampo’s old life burning down around him after the betrayal, obscuring itself in the haze of an uncertain future. “Doubt” is also what likely set in after everything happened, perhaps even a seed in his mind for a long time as he performed and bled and suffered.

As an Emanator, he likely prided himself on his confidence, but the description of the item may be his internal self talk later on. If his existence was a lie, if there was no greater purpose to his suffering, then what was the point? Why would anyone trust the self-pitying Jester of Anatta or the false bravado of an Emanator or the sad life of a doll only made to be broken?

Then, he was likely tempted to burn. The hatred has already begun to set in, and he decided on whatever plan he was going to set in motion. The house he’d lived in was burning, so why not destroy the house? He wasn’t planning to live there anymore anyways.

“And that spark had already been ignited long ago.” The spark, a chorus of laughter looking in. The spark, a thousand cuts. The spark, a shallow ember set before a door, a bird with clipped wings, a puppeteer’s string pulled taut, taut, taut, until finally… snap.

Hatred hardens the soul. Quite simply, hatred hurts. The bird has been speared through the chest with an amalgamation of tar-black weaponry, heart-shaped, a love hardened so cruelly and so slow it bubbled under the flesh until it simply became too much for the poor, dead bird.

The description asks “you” to consider sending a letter of forgiveness to your enemy. That, paired with the quote, leads there to be a strange self-awareness about the item. While the name is “Everlasting Hatred” and the art is macabre, leading me to believe it would fall into the same vein of straightforward emotion as the last two, the text on this one urges us to to the opposite of the item’s name. Instead of Everlasting Hatred, it tells us life is “too short to be wasted on feuds”.

I’m not sure if this means Sampo still carries this hatred and the text is a warning message, a cautionary tale of what may happen if he continues to hold onto it, or if Sampo has reached that enlightened point of realizing he needs to let go of his hatred. Whatever the case, the hate was there at some point, making it an important part of his story.

Betrayal and doubt catalyzed to create hatred, a resentment of his own purpose and creator, perhaps even himself. But hatred is as strong and deadly to oneself as it is to others, and it is important to be wary.

Overall, I see these items as taking us through a chronology of emotions, if nothing else — betrayal to doubt to hatred. Not only that, but betrayal as a singular moment, doubt as a haze present for quite some time, and hatred as a growing, bone-deep killer.

I tend to see this as an inciting incident, either Aha revoking Sampo’s Emanatorhood or some other cruel joke (or even creation itself as the joke), which then lead Sampo to question his own existence and purpose, which lead to doubt and eventual hatred once he realized his suffering was all some sick joke.

There are other interpretations I could make, of course, but this is the one I like the best!

Other Interpretations

— Throughout Penacony, especially considering Tatalov and how mysterious Sampo is on the whole (even on Belobog), it seems there is something not just that he won’t tell us, but potentially can’t. (Hence the distinction between “trying to say” and “reveal the truth” in Penacony.) Not being able to speak certain truths would certainly line up with a “secret that only Aha knows.” Perhaps part of Sampo’s existence is being unable to express his identity and purpose for fear of “ruining the joke” (Aha’s decision, not his).

— In many conversations, there only seems to be mean dialogue options to say to Sampo in-universe. It may be that the devs subconsciously find him annoying, or the game is supposed to be telling us the Trailblazer themself doesn’t like him, but I also think it could be a byproduct of his existence as a doll. Since Sampo’s purpose would be to be the recipient of emotional venting, it makes sense that others around him may be more… driven to extreme emotion in a subtle attempt by the laws of nature to, well, exercise his purpose. We may only have mean dialogue options people are supposed to become frustrated and angry and annoyed around him; being nice to Sampo too often may go against his entire reason for existence. If he was quite literally created to provoke these actions from others, it would make sense that people would act like this around him through no fault of his own.

— Under Doll Theory, I believe Curio Hacker may be Sampo’s way of trying to escape own existence or fate. Perhaps the “price” he is paying is to finally break free of his endless cycle of suffering and wealth. Additionally, the “hacker” part of Curio Hacker implies he is trying to bypass or find a loophole in something.

— Also, while I do believe Sampo’s outfit coloring may be to mirror Aha’s splash art coloring, it does not escape my attention that the red is on the outside, like blood. Red is also the color used by matadors to rile bulls up and… yeah… I’m sad now. :(

✩ ‧₊˚ ⌞ POTENTIAL TIMELINES & EVENTS ⌝

A quick and dirty of general events I feel could be chronological to Doll!Sampo’s story:

— Creation ➜ Abandonment ➜ Rebellion

— Betrayal ➜ Doubt ➜ Hatred

— Rise ➜ Pure Elation ➜ Suffering ➜ Spending

(Update: After looking at “Ace Trash Digger,” some of my thoughts below have changed. Mainly, I believe Sampo’s “betrayal” by Aha can be narrowed down to abandonment and being discarded on Jarilo-VI. I also think Sampo may not have become an Emanator until after he gained “advanced awareness” in Belobog, meaning he was just an Aha Stuffed Toy for a long time after his abandonment until he did something that prompted Aha to take interest in him. However, it is still possible he had been an Emanator Stuffed Toy previously, had that power revoked when he was discarded, only to gain it back once Aha took an interest again. Whether the abandonment happened because of a “joke gone too far” or Aha just genuinely believed Sampo to be “waste” is still up in the air. Okay, back to the pre-written stuff!)

(Additional Update: Due to the Ship of Fools Unknowable Domain occurrence, I also now believe that Sampo was likely abandoned due to being “unfunny” or otherwise “damaged goods,” and that Aha may, in fact, still view him as such. Alternatively, Aha may view all of Their dolls as unfunny, with Sampo being the singular part to catch Their eye due to his ability to survive and advance his existence on Belobog.)

Generally, I tend to believe Sampo was created either as an Emanator from the beginning, or as a doll — one among many — that Aha decided to rise to the status of Emanator. From there, he would experience the life of Jester of Anatta (or something similar), although he may have been able to convince himself it was worth something or that he was “special” due to his status and proximity to Aha.

However, despite giving and giving and giving through all the suffering, a betrayal would occur — likely something to do with Emanator status or another, similar kind of betrayal — that made him question everything. The doubt finally flared up and he realized how cruel his purpose, and by extension his creator, really was. Then, with that doubt morphing into hatred, he set out to find a way to break free, to get back at the one who betrayed him and subvert his own existence, paying a heavy “price” to do so.

Notes: Since the canon timeline of… well… anything having to do with Sampo is unknown as of now (2.6), there are several different amendments that could be made to this. For example, the “betrayal” may have been Aha revoking Sampo’s Emanator status as a joke, leaving him completely defenseless as a plaything for the Masked Fools or others, before reinstating his Emanator status once the joke got old.

In this way, Sampo could be an Emanator currently while still having the experience of losing Emanatorhood. Additionally, Sampo’s hatred may have turned to some kind of resigned enlightenment that is now present in canon, or it may still be there for all we know.

While there are many branching paths this timeline can take, I will stand by the general chronology of creation to suffering & betrayal to whatever plan he has going on now.

Additionally, throughout all of this, there’s a good chance that Doll!Sampo has either been earning money himself as an attempt at autonomy and self-control, or even perhaps a lingering compulsive cycle having to do with his currency-oriented origins.

✩ ‧₊˚ ⌞ THEORY OVERLAP ⌝

As stated in the introduction, Doll Theory can be used alongside several other theories.

— Emanator!Sampo: This is the main theory I see working with Doll Theory, as Aha is known to have a penchant for making literally whatever they find funny into an Emanator. With that poor worm in mind, I would almost be more surprised if Doll!Sampo wasn’t an Emanator at some point.

— Aha!Sampo: While my thoughts on the Aha!Sampo theory’s canonical likelihood have changed since starting this analysis, I still think it could work. Although Doll Theory does not see Sampo as a direct manifestation of Aha in Their entirety, he could still technically be “Aha” — or rather, perceived as Aha by others — due to similarities in appearance, voice, and mannerisms due to being created in Aha’s image.

— Mr. Cold Feet’s disillusionment and loss of confidence also work here, since those feelings of wanting to quit his job and being so exasperated with the Fools could stem from his unique perspective as a doll.

— Sampo wanting to protect Belobog makes sense as well, as he would likely see the Underworld as similar to himself — an underdog, a place where people suffer not because of their own actions but because of the misfortune of having others who exploit them. After the planet begins to emerge into the cosmos proper, Sampo now likely sees the whole planet as this vulnerable place in need of protection. He said it himself — he looks out for the little guy.

— Curio Hacker!Sampo is already something I interpret as evidence of Doll!Sampo, since Doll Theory gives him a direct reason to want to “hack” or find loopholes in the world around him.

I feel like many other theories could run alongside this as well, but these are the main ones that came to mind. Feel free to let me know if there’s any specific theories not mentioned here that you want to hear me talk about in proximity to Doll!Sampo!

✩ ‧₊˚ ⌞ THE VIOLENCE OF CREATION ⌝

Something that sticks out to me about Doll!Sampo is the theme of creation. Due to being based off the Aha Stuffed Toy occurrence, we know that he must have been created by Aha like the doll. However, that implies a certain… cruelty, intentional or otherwise. We know Aha to be casually cruel for the joke, like leaving the Noblesse Worm to suffer and die after They got bored of Their little experiment, so it wouldn’t be surprising to me that They would make yet another ill-executed joke.

Sampo’s creation specifically, though, speaks of an almost violent intention to me. Aha is an Aeon, it’s not like They’re unaware of the suffering of mortals. If anything, They’re likely to delight in it. So, They intentionally created a doll, a sentient being capable of feeling pain, to be used for the express purpose of suffering. They wanted to see Themself beaten up, and instead of taking the brunt of it Themself, in Their own form and consciousness, They created another being to go through it for them. A doll with the face of its creator, meant to be tormented. That’s violent to me. That’s cruel. 

I don’t have much else to say, other than I wanted to point it out. Creation, especially of godly origins, is often seen as divine and pure in nature, even within the HSR universe. However, I do not believe there is anything well-intentioned about Aha’s creation of Sampo. In my eyes, it’s just divine cruelty.

✩ ‧₊˚ ⌞ THE UNCANNY DIVINE ⌝

Speaking of divinity, I do love the idea of Sampo being both so uncanny and so… godly. If he really is an Emanator, or even just made in the image of Aha, that puts him in proximity to what many in-universe see as a religious figure.

In popular culture in our own universe, religious figures are often seen as comforting, pure, and remarkably virtuous. What I love about Sampo is he’s just so uncanny. He doesn’t leave footsteps when he walks, he’s incredibly cryptic, he’s a con-man for a living. He’s so mysterious in a way that fits more into the uncanny valley than it does into any divine book or religious text, and I love it. He is out here living his life as a god, quite literally just fucking around and finding out.

✩ ‧₊˚ ⌞ THE TRAGEDY OF A DOLL'S EXISTENCE ⌝

Tragedy. Cruelty. Suffering. These are all words I associate with Doll Theory. It is by far one of the darker ones out there, at least in concept. Sampo has no control over his means of creation, no autonomy to decide his purpose or his next steps. They are all determined for him by the god he is a son to, the ever-watchful eyes of a crowd holding their breath and baring their teeth for a good show. He has no choice. This is what life is.

He is Organic Heart. He is the combination of two twisting things never meant to be joined, a still-beating sentience trapped within the rotting shell of a fruit. Mysterious Magnetism clings to him like a ghost, a wanting, warping thing that fractures the senses. At his birth, his fate was sealed. A heart can never be more than a heart, an apple never more than an apple. Since the beginning, he was made to be devoured.

He is the Jester of Anatta. He rises, he falls, he entertains just to fall apart. The audience claps. It was easy, at first, to convince himself this was privilege. He was privileged, special, important. He was born in proximity to the luminosity of an Aeon, not just in voice or in appearance but in soul. The vibrating shadows of the audience did not know this privilege — he should be grateful. But time wore on, as always. Soon, a seed of doubt was planted, buried among soft fields of self-pity. Was this all life was? Was this all he was meant for? … Was this really a privilege? He breaks for the thousandth time, and wonders.

He is Betrayal. Doubt. Hatred. The one sliver of power he had clung to, had convinced himself was worth it, is gone, nothing more than a cruel joke twisting in the wind. It does not matter what happens next. All that matters is now. By the end, he is spent, all hollow cracks and the fading whisper of a laugh. What was once full is empty. Like a small ceramic bank, he collects his pieces off the floor. He uses spare coins to wedge himself together, but tar seeps through the gaps.

He is Curio Hacker. Electronic, buzzing, only existing in mirrors. He’s picked up a sort of gambling addiction, and now he’s virtually virtual. Pay the price, take the wins, cut the losses. That’s how life goes. He makes himself an offer he can’t refuse. “You sly dog,” he says, eye-to-eye with a seeping black gash in the mirror. “You drive a hard bargain.” He accepts, eventually, and begins down a long road. No fault but his own, but the price is worth paying. A clipped bird in a winged cage, isn’t that ironic? He leaves with more than a few deals in tow.

He is Hazardous Waste. He’s made his home in a far-off place, finding some strange warmth in the biting cold. Still, he can’t shake the feeling of lingering dread, of the tar inside hardening, cracking, bubbling into poison. He may be discarded, but his bleached fangs hold a venom of their own. He thinks about how far he’s come. He wonders if anyone remembers him. For a moment, he hopes he’s reached for again, plucked from obscurity for a last show, just so he can bite the hand that feeds. A predator is still prey to something, but he doesn’t care. He’s become more than a thing, more than a limp-limbed marionette. He has teeth, now. He will use them if he has to.

He is a doll. A stuffed toy. A freshly-painted mound of clay shaped into form and rolled under the bed, out of sight, until he collects dust in the darkness. No amount of running can change that. No amount of growing can stop it. Despite his efforts, the constraints of his own existence wear thin. Tape over his mouth, laughter in his ears, a headache building where his head has cracked against the ground. The only thing that’s changed is the money in his pocket. He clings to it like a lifeline, like a perfect goddamn savior, as if a small bit of green can wash away centuries of spilling gold. As much as he tries to hide it, he is scared. The paper reminds him of brightly-colored confetti.

He is a hacker, he is a toy, he is a model of a god. He is more than the sum of his parts; he is confined to everything that he is. A heart-apple, an apple-heart, and a generous amount of venom-tar in between. He is hatred, doubt, betrayal. He is a protector, but never protected. He is a vessel forged from divine cruelty, born anew from the warmth of snow. He is all of these things. He has to be. And isn’t that just a tragedy?

☆━━━━━ ⋆⁺｡˚⋆˙‧₊☾ ◯ ☽₊‧˙⋆˚｡⁺⋆ ━━━━━━☆

.𖥔 ݁ ˖ જ⁀➴ thank you for reading my magnum opus! this theory is very dear to my heart and has been driving me insane for at least four months !! :)

☆━━━━━ ⋆⁺｡˚⋆˙‧₊☾ ◯ ☽₊‧˙⋆˚｡⁺⋆ ━━━━━━☆

© analysis by sunderingstars. do not copy, repost, translate, modify, or claim my work as your own.

[otomiyaa]

Nim's Lovely Tickletober 

31 Tickle Drabbles in October 🧡

Hi all! This will be the post where I'll eventually collect my Tickletober fics in a masterlist, starting tomorrow! I'll be using the #lovelytickletober list made by @lovelynim.

The plan is to write tickle drabbles for each day, pairings/fandoms were chosen by yours truly for maximized self-indulgence but hopefully there'll be something that you guys can enjoy with me💕

I'll do something I didn't do last time which is announcing my pairings before publishing the fics👇 This because for most I've got the ideas and outlines pretty much done so I want to make it difficult for myself to change my mind at the last minute!

LINK TO AO3 COLLECTION

Day 1: “Ready?” - Lee!Chigiri x Ler!Kunigami (Blue Lock)

Day 2: Accident - Lee!Chilchuck x Ler!Senshi (Dungeon Meshi)

Day 3: Cleaning - Switches!Hoshina x Kafka (Kaiju No. 8)

Day 4: Upside down - Lee!Loid x Ler!Yor (SPY x FAMILY)

Day 5: (Un)tie - Lee!Yuri x Ler!Otabek (Yuri On Ice)

Day 6: Order - Lee!Kuroo x Ler!Tsukishima (Haikyuu)

Day 7: Teaching - Lee!Solomon x Ler!Beelzebub (Obey Me)

Day 8: Exposed body part - Lee!Boothill x Ler!Argenti (Honkai Star Rail)

Day 9: Dance - Lee!Adachi x Ler!Kurosawa (Cherry Magic)

Day 10: In secret - Lee!Henry x Ler!Alex (Red, White & Royal Blue)

Day 11: Noise - Switches!Ed x Winry (FMA Brotherhood)

Day 12: Wall - Switches!Clark x Lois (My Adventures with Superman)

Day 13: Alone - Lee!Kaveh x Ler!Alhaitham (Genshin Impact)

Day 14: High - Lee!Hachi x Ler!Nana (Nana)

Day 15: Faking it - Lee!Hisashi x Ler!Mao (Tasogare Outfocus)

Day 16: Doctor - Lee!Sawyer x LerJack (LOST)

Day 17: Underwater - Lee!Xiao x Ler!Aether (Genshin Impact)

Day 18: Clothes - Lee!Deku x Ler!Bakugou (BNHA)

Day 19: Make up - Lee!Gepard x Ler!Sampo (Honkai Star Rail)

Day 20: Posing - Lee!Lyney x Ler!Wriothesley (Genshin Impact)

Day 21: Singing - Lee!Dan Heng x Ler!Caelus (Honkai Star Rail)

Day 22: Cheating - Lee!Miyamura x Ler!Hori (Horimiya)

Day 23: Money - Lee!Jinshi x Ler!Maomao (The Apothecary Diaries)

Day 24: Bully - Lee!Reader x Ler!Sylus (Love and Deepspace)

Day 25: “No.” - Lee!Wade x Ler!Colossus (Deadpool)

Day 26: Timer - Lee!Aventurine x Ler!Ratio (Honkai Star Rail)

Day 27: Picky - Lee!Cherry x Ler!Joe (SK8 the Infinity)

Day 28: “The number you have dialed…” - Lee!Takeda x Ler!Ukai (Haikyuu)

Day 29: Help - Lee!Moze x Ler!Jiaoqiu (Honkai Star Rail)

Day 30: Magic - Lee!Frieren x Ler!Himmel (Sousou no Frieren)

Day 31: Rest - Lee!Narumi x Ler!Hirotaka (Wotakoi)

[kuijoon]

sampo lore drop in 2.4 was kinda crazy (i’m losing it please give me sampo lore hyv)

[dilvuc]

Fiiinnnee... I'll retell my request of my one shot of Sampo plss.. (I literally already told you my request on discord pooks)

Sampo one day decided to explore Belobog and hearing gossip about a new wealthy businessman (the reader) who, let's say makes money by designer clothes (like the reader from Kaeya's oneshot) he makes clothes for the higher ups like Cocolia and Bronya and is basically just well known

He walks around in the upperground and stumbles upon Serval outside her workshop talking to a random guy (the reader, we call him random guy because Sampo doesn't know yet)

Let's say, Serval is commissioning the reader to make her a new outfits that matches her and her siblings (I want fluff) and Sampo is basically eavesdropping in the conversation. (There was nothing secretive it was just the reader and Serval chatting while Serval was commissioning the reader to make matching outfits for her and her siblings)

Serval goes back inside her workshop and reader then drops his facade while then looking at the direction of where Sampo is hiding, he shouts for Sampo to come out (I think he'd go with something like "I know you're there" or "get out, there's no point in hiding" question)And basically their relationship onward is like an enemies to enemies and lovers (I like enemies while being lovers 😍😍)

(I literally just copy pasted this from our discord convo -Li anon)

❝SECRET RELATIONSHIP❞

𝖌𝖊𝖓𝖗𝖊: fluff

𝖌𝖊𝖓𝖉𝖊𝖗: male

𝖙𝖎𝖙𝖑𝖊: SECRET RELATIONSHIP

𝖕𝖆𝖗𝖎𝖓𝖌: sampo x m!reader

𝖜𝖆𝖗𝖓𝖎𝖓𝖌: none

𝖘𝖚𝖒𝖒𝖆𝖗𝖞: Sampo one day decided to explore Belobog and hearing gossip about a new wealthy businessman (the reader) who, let's say makes money by designer clothes (like the reader from Kaeya's oneshot) he makes clothes for the higher ups like Cocolia and Bronya and is basically just well known

He walks around in the upperground and stumbles upon Serval outside her workshop talking to a random guy (the reader, we call him random guy because Sampo doesn't know yet)

Let's say, Serval is commissioning the reader to make her a new outfits that matches her and her siblings (I want fluff) and Sampo is basically eavesdropping in the conversation. (There was nothing secretive it was just the reader and Serval chatting while Serval was commissioning the reader to make matching outfits for her and her siblings)

Serval goes back inside her workshop and reader then drops his facade while then looking at the direction of where Sampo is hiding, he shouts for Sampo to come out (I think he'd go with something like "I know you're there" or "get out, there's no point in hiding" question)And basically their relationship onward is like an enemies to enemies and lovers (I like enemies while being lovers 😍😍)

our beloved pathetic slu—ahem, sampo decided to explore the overworld. even after belobog was saved by the astral express, he can wander around freely…he just doesn't need to get himself caught in illegal activities. as the male took a stroll around belobog, he noticed people were gossiping about a new businessman…? he eavesdropped on one conversation.

“You mean…[Y]...THE [Y], the one who designed clothes for the Supreme Guardian and Miss Bronya?!” One of the citizens asked their friend. “Is he really here?”

“Yep, that's him. I wonder what he'll be working on next? I have been saving my money since I know it'll be very expensive…” another citizen stated. “I've heard that he just started his businesses a few days ago. We first heard of this when someone rumored that the Supreme Guardian’s clothing was designed by him.”

“Wow…”

“Oh…? A new businessman, they say~” sampo chuckled, rubbing his hands as the two citizens walked away. “Who’s this [Y] they're talking about…?”

the blue haired male noticed serval talking to an unfamiliar gentleman, so he decided to eavesdrop on them and listened in.

“I see. I think I'll be able to get done on time.” the mysterious male told the blonde. serval beamed, “I knew I can count on you with the design. Remember: there's no need to overdo it.”

“I won't.” the male nodded. “See you later?”

“Yeah. See ya later.” serval waved to the male before heading into her workshop. the mysterious male’s smile turned downward and demanded sampo, “Hey, how long are you gonna stand there? Come out and show yourself.”

sampo flinches and slowly steps out of his hiding spot to reveal himself to the male. the [h] haired male sighed, “Who are you and why were you eavesdropping on us? Matter of fact, I don't think I have seen you before except I've seen you on the wanted poster before belobog was saved by the astral express.”

“Ah…well, I'm Sampo Koski. Nice to meet you…uh…” sampo trailed off, awaiting for the male's name. the mysterious male sighed, “[Y] [L]...”

“Mr. [L]~ A beautiful name for a handsome young man~” sampo beamed, rubbing his hands together.

“...You know you're not so good at hiding your “i'm gonna scam the hell out of this businessman” face.” [y] deadpanned, crossing his arms, “And flirting…? Sorry, I don't do shit like that.”

“Huh. You're no fun. What's with this fancy of yours? Fashion?” sampo asked.

“What else do you think I am? A delivery boy?” [y] raised his eyebrows. “What are you plotting, Koski?”

“Hey, hey~ Come now, my friend. And just called me by my first name…” sampo frowned, correcting the male. “I'm just trying to have a friendly conversation, that's all.”

“Firstly, I'm not your friend. Secondly, your “friendly conversation” won't work. I'm not gonna befriend a scammer and then get scammed later on.” the fashion designer argued, narrowing his eyes at the blue haired male. “Your way of talking is what makes you so suspicious, not to mention, your hands rubbing antics.”

“Sheesh. What happened to “customers are always right”, huh?” sampo inquired. [y] sassily place his hands on his hips, “Correction: “customers aren't always right”, that's being said: “I’m always right”. I don't serve disrespected customers nor scammers. They'll be thrown out immediately, I don't care if it damages my reputation.”

the blue haired male blinked owlishly, almost amazed, “Wow. Just wow. You're quite a callous one.”

“That's what everyone says. Listen, if you set foot in my shop, I'm reporting you to the silvermane guards for your illegal activities.” [y] warned the con artist before walking to his shop. “Toodles…”

“Hey! That's a false alarm!” sampo furrowed his eyebrows. the fashion designer brushes it off, “That's your problem, not mine.”

sampo groaned as he crossed his arms before letting out a smirk, “What a hunk~”

sampo obviously ignores the male's warning, but unexpectedly [y] doesn't seem to report him to the silvermane guards, he just lets him walk in cuz' he doesn't care unless that con artist tries to scam his customers.

the two make arguments about who's wrong or right, who's the best, who's the most handsome one. silly arguments, but that's what brings them close. they had to keep it a secret though to avoid the media’s attention.

the two males became super and developed feelings throughout the weeks, then something unexpected happened. sampo brought flowers. actually real flowers. the flowers that he brought…with someone's money.

“...? What's this? Are these fake?” [y] raised his eyebrows at the flowers that sampo is holding. sampo frowned, “Come now. These are real flowers from the shop that I've bought.”

“...With someone's money?” [y] deadpanned, cross his arms. sampo let out an anxious chuckle, “I just bought the flowers for you. No tricks.”

“Hm.” the fashion designer hummed before accepting the flowers, “Thanks.”

“Thanks is all I get? Where's the reward from you, [Y]~?” the blue haired male teased.

[y] headed to the back without a word, much to sampo’s concern and confusion. it didn't take long for the fashion designer to return with a large bouquet of flowers and an envelope in hand, “It's crazy that we're both planning on giving gifts on the same day.”

sampo gasped sarcastically, clasping his hands over his mouth, though he was surprised that he was given a gift, “Aw~ You shouldn't have.”

“Don't take it personally.” [y] deadpanned. sampo chuckled, “You know you adore me~”

“It hasn't been confirmed yet. Don't push your luck, Shampoo.” [y] said bluntly.

“Hey~ That's the worst name you've given to me.” the blue haired male whined. the fashion designer smirked, “I should've made shampoo products named after you. Anyway, back on topic. Take it.”

sampo accepted the bouquet of roses from the fashion designer. [y] then handed sampo the envelope. the blue haired male raised his eyebrows, “What's this?”

“Look inside and see.” [y] said. without hesitation, the blue haired male opened the envelope and to his surprise, it's a load of cash. the fashion designer hummed, “Paycheck, gold digger. That's enough to bring you into the relationship?”

“Hey. Don't try to bribe me to get in a relationship.” sampo frowned. [y] raised his eyebrows, “So, you don't want the money.”

“Come now. I may be a con artist, but I'm a tenderhearted guy, too, ya know?” sampo stated.

“So, you're saying that you want our relationship to be official, but not for the money, but for my love and acceptance?” [y] blinked bewilderingly.

“...Yes…” sampo scratches the back of his head with a burning face. [y] blink once, then twice, before bursting out laughing, “Hahahahaha! Why are you so red?!”

“Hey! Don't make fun of me! I'm being serious!” sampo argued. [y] pat the male on his back, “I know, I know! It's just cute to see Sampo Koski blushing and being genuine!”

“Are you accepting my love for you or not?!” sampo furrowed his eyebrows. the fashion designer softened his laughter and wiped away his tears, “Yeah, yeah. But we still had to keep this a secret to avoid attention.”

“Only in the Overworld. We can hangout freely in the Underworld~” sampo smirked.

“Fair point. I'll be having my week off next week. How does that sound?” [y] asked the con artist. sampo winked, “I'll be off next week as well. So, it'll work.”

╰┈➤ author note: honkai star rail and genshin are on hold and please note that this is a slow update. i will still accept your request, but it will take a while since i'll be working on my books on wattpad. if you wish to read those books, here's my wattpad account.

rules

honkai star rail masterlist

[fuxuannie]

I need to know that if you had done sampo and danheng's voice line hdc🤔 cause damn those are my daily dose

╭₊˚ ๑︰voicelines about their lover

:★: relationship : (seperate) sampo koski & dan heng x g-neutral reader

:★: warnings : none, fluff!

:★: a/n : huuhuu we BACK on the hsr grind ♡♡ i missed my faves from this franchisee ๑´ ³`)ﾉ

SAMPO

— About his Lover

☆☆ "My lover and I have been engaged for a while! Since day one, I would have never imagined that I would've fallen inlove for a customer of mine!"

— About Lover : History

☆☆ "Actually, (name) used to be a customer of mine from my old fake businesses! I.. chuckle admittedly betrayed them for the sake of money.. which wasn't exactly the smartest option, considering they were an undercover Silvermane guard.. but my charms were obviously irresistable hehe."

— Sampo's Troubles

☆☆ "I'm obviously greatful for everything (name) does for me, but I can tell that they're worried about losing their job if they keep bailing me out of jail.. I want to try a better lifestyle for them, you know?"

— Something To Share

☆☆ "(name) takes their job as a Silvermane guard very seriously, and my favorite thing is to flirt with them on duty and watch them melt. The best part is watching them try to hold themselves together with such a flustered expression."

— Interesting Things : Dates

☆☆ "Dates with (name) are very rare. Mostly because of our public statuses, and I can't really take them to a restaurant.. but one day I'll take them to the best restaurant in Belabog! I've been saving the funds for it since our first week of dating."

— Against his Lover

☆☆ "Hey! You haven't paid extra to betray you! I may be a scammer but not for you.."

DAN HENG

— About his Lover

☆☆ "(name) is so.. gentle with me. I don't think I'm ever going to be able to thank them for that. Many people think I hate being spoken to or even acknowledged, but they always have their full attention on me whenever I'm in the room.. it's admittedly very flustering.

— About Lover : Clingy

☆☆ "This is very embarassing to admit, but I really love whenever (name) clings onto me. Whether on my hand or just in general, I like it when they're around. It provides a sense of comfort that I can't seem to find with anyone else."

— Dan Heng's Troubles

☆☆ "I've been.. worried.. about our next trip to Xianzhou. I don't know why I'm so uneasy about (name) going with you guys but.. just.. take care of them, okay? Call me if anything happens."

— Something To Share

☆☆ "I have no idea how I ended up in a relationship in all honesty. One day I was on a mission with the new recruit, next I woke up next to the most amazing person in the galaxy. laugh I really am the luckiest man ever.."

— Interesting Things :

☆☆ "(name) usually does my eyeliner for me. It's always fun to chuckle at their focused expression as they sit on my lap and do whatever they do with those makeup supplies in hand. They're so cute.."

— Against his Lover

☆☆ "I put my spear down, and I refuse to dare harm the person I love with my whole heart.

[kaiijo]

THEIR LOVE LANGUAGES — [HONKAI: STAR RAIL]

characters: dan heng, gepard, sampo, welt, march 7th, himeko content: gn! reader, spoilers for the prologue notes: i’m in the middle (?) of the belabog arc so i’m still getting a feel for the characters (and feedback is appreciated!)

dan heng ✶

quality time! dan heng is someone who really values his private time, so it’s a big deal for him to invite someone into that little bubble. whether the two of you are doing some activity together like scouring the archives or just sitting in each others’ presence, reading your books, shoulder-to-shoulder on one of the astral express couches, dan heng is just happy to be there with you

whenever you finish trailblazing on whatever new world you landed on, you and dan heng make a conscious effort to take a walk somewhere or visit a local spot together. his favorite place was on some tropical planet where the two of you stood with your feet sinking in the sand and watched the sunset

gepard landau ✶

words of affirmation! while gepard hears praise from the citizens of belabog all day and night, it’s really most meaningful to him when it comes from you. he works hard to protect the city, and his favorite reward is you telling him that he did a good job, that you’re proud of him, and (most importantly to him) that you feel a little bit safer because of his efforts

it’s not just words of affirmation for his work as captain of the silvermane guards that he likes; he craves praise for more mundane things like cooking a good dinner for the two of you, helping clean the house, hanging a painting you bought. just thank him and tell him he did a good job and he’s melted into a puddle  

sampo koski ✶

physical touch! you would assume it’s gift giving and receiving at first, but i feel that, because sampo does a lot of “trading” on a regular basis to make money, he would associate that more with business. it’s not to say you two don’t give each other little baubles and trinkets and gifts, but sampo values the simple intimacy of physical touch: holding hands, a warm hug, a kiss. there’s nothing but trust in your embrace

sampo’s not shy to initiate physical touch but definitely get a little flustered when you do it first. probably tries to make some joke that falls way too flat but makes you giggle a little nonetheless. as smooth a talker as sampo is, he’s got something of soft heart under those many, many layers of deviousness  

welt yang ✶

acts of service! welt is probably one of the busiest people out there and he’s basically in charge of three children (one responsible one and two who share a brain cell between them) as well as with many other tasks and affairs relating to trailblazing, the astral express, and everything in between so anything you do to help him de-stress is appreciated, even if it’s just brewing him his favorite tea and bringing it over while he’s doing reports

you can also definitely try to help welt with the bigger administrative tasks he has but expect pushback. he doesn’t want to burden you with his work but if you press him just a little more, he’ll back down (slightly) and let you do the least labor-intensive job

march 7th ✶

physical touch! march likes to be in-contact with you whenever you’re together (which is admittedly a lot). her favorite things to do are hold your hand or slip her arm through yours as you walk and, when you’re just lounging around the astral express, she loves cuddling with you in her room or on one of the express’s nice couches

she’s a sucker for you playing with her hair too; her back against your chest, running your hands through it, braiding it, massaging her scalp. she’s bound to get drowsy and fall asleep, no matter how much she insists she won’t when you tease her about it. (dan heng also thanks you for putting march to sleep so he can, in his words, “have a moment of peace”)

himeko ✶

acts of service! like welt, himeko has a ton of responsibility navigating the express and taking care of all the passengers on the train. she’s a tad more relaxed than welt, but himeko still is often wrapped up in some new business or in making repairs and improvements to the train where she can. she really loves when you volunteer to help her with repairs, acting as her assistant and handing her all the tools and supplies she needs

she also appreciates when you just keep her company in the navigation room (lowkey her second love language is quality time) and has a fun time rattling off fun facts about planets and constellations and everything that you pass and watching your eyes light up in wonder and admiration

[feroluce]

Oh my gosh the way the Pop-Up Shop event ended and what it hinted at that's going on rn, and what it might imply about what's in store for the next time we see Sampo, I'm so excited AAAAAAA

Because it seems it really IS our Sampo, and whereas before I was absolutely delighted by the thought that he was possibly getting fucked with by some outside influence, and that was why he was saying such strange things... There's nothing quite like that going on here. There's no memetic virus messing with his head. There's no imposter, no possession, no nothing.

Just Sampo, and the ominous, all-consuming dread that hangs over his head like a guillotine, as he willingly walks right into what he is sure is a trap. ♡

Because this event was weird right off the bat, yeah? Sampo invites us in on a business deal that won't make him any money? The hell???

And I was just waiting on pins and needles for it to make sense, and oh, I was not disappointed at all. Because I've got a nice meta post about it over here, but Sampo actually DOESN'T make a lot of money most of the time- but he does always get something out of his dealings. He works for favors and good will and networking, but never for nothing. And it was the same here!

Sampo didn't make any money with this little business venture because that wasn't what he needed from it. That was never his goal to begin with. He just needed something entertaining.

Sampo has the key to get into the tavern's basement where Sparkle has been keeping his mask for him, but he still needs to be let into the front door of the tavern itself. The fun stories he got from this event were his entry fee. He leaves at the end because he's probably already on his way to Epsilon, where the World's End Tavern should be.

So that explains part of what was so strange this event. It's the rest of his ooc tendencies that have me like foaming at the mouth though because AAAAAAAAAA

There's long been hints of...some? kind of strain between Sampo and the rest of the Masked Fools. Like it starts all the way back in Belobog's main quest with the big infamous fourth-wall breaking sequence, where Sampo talks some shit.

And it continues in the Aetherium Wars event, where we finally get the confirmation that Sampo is a Masked Fool and even get to see him interact with Giovanni, one of his brethren! And where Sampo talks more shit. He also leaves the trailblazer a warning against Sparkle, who they hadn't met yet, and probably the Masked Fools in general.

And for some strange reason, it seems to be popular fanon that Sampo like. Talks a lot of shit? Or is rude in general? Like I feel like I see a lot of jokes about if Hook says a cuss word, it was probably his fault. But Sampo is actually pretty polite with everyone. I think the only time we really see him be harsh is when he has to set some hard boundaries in the museum event. Otherwise, he conducts himself like a model friendly businessman. Like he IS super shady and slimy, but he's still polite about it. I'm pretty sure the only time he actually talks any shit, and so bluntly, is about the Masked Fools or Epsilon as a whole. He really seems to have some sort of beef with them.

There's also his hilarious relationship with Sparkle, which I'm including for consideration because we don't know how common people like her are in the Masked Fools, so she might represent how Sampo interacts with a lot of them. ...But I'm pretty sure Sampo's grudge with her runs deeper than that anyway jdksajfdkljas

She's so funny I hope she fucks with him more FJDKSJAKD

Anyway, the point is, Sampo doesn't seem to see eye-to-eye with a lot of the rest of Aha's followers. And it was never hinted at before the pop-up shop event, but now I'm wondering if it might be like. An actual dangerous sort of situation.

Because during those brief packaging sequences, you get some. Pretty wild text dropped on you. There was actually a really cool explanation for it by another user already! But basically, all of the phrases are more fourth-wall breakage. They're mostly in-game achievements...except for one.

"This must be a trap create"

We never get to see the rest of the phrase. Just "This must be a trap create."

That is the only one we don't have an explanation for yet, at least as far as I know.

AN EDIT: Thank you to @/kittaykattz for this one, because it looks like someone DID find the source of this line. Unfortunately, it only came up in my search after I looked for the full phrase. I couldn't find it on the wiki before orz And yet this somehow does NOT make it any less ominous ajfdklsjkl The full phrase is "This must be a trap created by a Masked Fool!" and it comes from another in-game achievement, "Boxes and Ladders." Which is really cool, because I had figured the last line must be something from Penacony, since it was the only area not represented so far. So in that way, it fits perfectly with the rest of the text. Now we have one achievement from every area of the game, which fits with the theme that Sampo has been following the Astral Express, the trailblazer specifically. It's the way that it doesn't fit that's the weird part though. Because the rest of the lines that come from in-game achievements are all titles; that's why they were so much easier to find. For some reason, Hoyo saw fit to single this one out. They didn't use a title. They specifically chose the line about falling into a trap set by a Masked Fool, a trap with seemingly no way out, where one's only choice is to take a leap of faith and pray to make it out ok in the end.

Love that. Absolutely love that. That's so fucking tasty, I will be daydreaming for days on end now about Sampo finding himself in a horrible situation with no way out where all he can do is make a desperate attempt and pray to whatever might listen (probably not Aha fjaksljdk) that he'll survive it WHEEEEEE

Because Sampo talks so strangely throughout the whole event, but it gets worse day by day, morose and morbid and dreading and sometimes even almost like he's warning the trailblazer against something about to happen.

I've already lovingly discussed it in an analysis about Sampo's name (alias included) but like. There certainly are some fun connections there. The Sampo of myth was smashed and lost to the sea. Poisson was flooded. Brueghel died suddenly and left a final painting of a storm at sea unfinished.

The Masked Fools are referred to with imagery of water and the sea. And frequently so.

And so I do wonder what Sampo knows, and what he's expecting to happen when he gets to that tavern at the end of the world. If maybe he thinks he's walking right into a trap, and is doing it willingly, doing it anyway, because, well.

Belobog is on the line.

And Sampo has already proven he seems so ready to do whatever it takes to protect it.

[thesaart]

Guide to Laughter

You can find the artworks for Sampo and Sparkle here Guide to Fall Guide to Tears Brain rot - What if some of the mask fool characters have some form of puppet/clown design? You can guess what is currently on my mind I started with Giovanni simply because I love drawing him and I had an idea for this concept for him which I really wanted to work on. I know I wanted him to be some kind of puppet that looks quite "expensive" and special. Simply because when we meet him first in the game Giovanni sticks out so much in Belobog and I wanted to work with that and also with the stuff we know about him. He's rich, devoted to Aha and for him elation is others enjoying the games he puts on or that he sponsors. As I've written before in a different Giovani post I made, he creates playgrounds and likes to see how people play with what he can give. So my brain went with a porcelain puppet where he himself is also themed like a moth. Moths are drawn to light and I went with the idea that he gives "fuel" (money) to others to make them shine/create the light that he craves. I guess you can see this is some form of AU Giovanni is the Guide to laughter, creating paths for others so he can observe their journey from the sight lines while feasting on the light they give in return