#benefit event

[albiongraves]

Hello, friends!

My name is Thom and in organizing an event called Megan's Saving Throw, an RPG Benefit day the proceeds of which go to my dear friend @nebulous-lalochezia as they battle Hodgkin's Lymphoma.

Our first event is THIS SATURDAY at Pandemonium Books in Cambridge, Mass. We'll be there from open to close running a variety of RPGs. As well, we're running a silent auction, with prizes from such fantastic partners as Talon & Claw, Magpie Games, Buried Without Ceremony, and more!

You can check the event website for more details: http://meganssavingthrow.carrd.co

You can register at:

https://pandemoniumbooks.com/apps/bookthatapp/calendar

Hope to see some of you there!

[philanthropicpeople]

American Airlines Skis for Cystic Fibrosis

American Airlines Skis for Cystic Fibrosis

American Airlines is donating $1.1 million to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, after their successful Celebrity Ski event early this month. AA has had a long relationship with CFF, which works to raise awareness and fund research into the disease. “For nearly four decades, we’ve gathered on the ski slopes with a group of generous team members, sponsors and supporters of the foundation to rally for…

[tizeline]

Who becomes the closest with splinter after they decide “hey maybe we shouldn’t kill humanity?”

I'm not sure, honestly. I guess Leo? He's already on the Lou Jitsu hypetrain, something he feels a lot of guilt about considering he views Splinter as evil. So when he figures out that Splinter isn't actually a terrrible person he'd be pretty excited to get to know him better. And while Leo isn't exactly neglected by Draxum, he still doesn't usually get quite all attention he needs from his dad (middle child lol) so he might be quicker to seek out an extra father figure.

Raph and Mikey would eventually get closer to Splinter as well, though!

[unexpectedbrickattack]

panel from a comic i am NOT going to finish u.u

Bonus close up of Peppino (bc i love how he came out heehee) and a face from another scrapped panel ^^

[catgirlcrisis]

[creakysocks]

I was thinking abt piccolo and gohan talking after the events of superhero and wound up with this interaction between them

[superhell]

if i had to summarize house md in one photo

[alienssstufff]

Q!Mariana died?? He said he wasn't going to return to the server orrrr??

[ clip 1 ] [ clip 2 ]

Canonically Osvaldo says she’s with JuanaFlippa (dead) :[

meta wise he’s stated on different occasions one reasons he doesn’t go on is cuz he’s overwhelmed there a lot of people which is fair

I delusional unfortunately, I don’t want to say q!Mari is FULLY gone she got her impact and I love her so much. Osvaldo has all the time in the world to log back on if ever he wants to - don’t pressure him or ANYONE to make choices they don’t want to‼️

And as much as I love how much they cater to making the newer CCs on the island feel at home - I also wish they would focus on making it so the older ones STILL feel likes it’s their home without needing to feel to have X amount of lore or jump through Y amount of hoops to feel a part of the island yknow? Unless QSMP decides to revive the dead eggs properly, WHWHWH they should at least (like Osvaldo said) Something that the streamers who lost/don’t have eggs can look after/do- something they they can call theirs

Sorry I do miss the og q!spanish streamers loads u_u,,,,

[azulock]

Day eleven, almost at the end, now all that's left is to check up on the oh so flammable Gävle Goat! Yall know I'm very much in the give Reo therapy club, so here we are, come on, he deserves love and support. Also, yes, I have a very casual relationship with my father, why you ask?

summary. when take the holiday to finally bring Reo to meet your father, he is overjoyed - but at the same time, he is just as anxious. A part of him insists that your father won't like him, despite your assurance that everything will be just fine. Still, he worries, but maybe he just has to accept that some things are worse in his head than they are in reality.

pairing. Reo Mikage x Fem!Reader

wordcount. 739 words

11. Family Christmas Dinner - Reo Mikage

"But what if he doesn't like me?" Reo whined as you pulled him down the snowy street. "I mean, I'm sure he knows you c-"

"Reo," you cut him off, turning to him and taking his hands in yours, "love, you are getting caught up in your thoughts. What did your therapist say about that?"

"Ah," he paused, sighing before looking up at you. "That I should focus on what is real."

"Right," you assured him, squeezing his hand in support, "and in this moment, what is real?"

"The birds in that tree, the snow on the ground, you," Reo looked around, counting the things surrounding him until his eyes met yours again, his hands returning your gentle squeeze.

"Good, good," you soothed him, taking one step closer so your faces almost touched. "Besides, if my father decides he doesn't like you, he can take that up with me. This is my life, he doesn't get to make the choices, and I love you."

You were right, he knew it, and despite doubts still swimming in his mind, Reo felt safer by your side. When you'd first brought up the idea of spending Christmas with your father - since this year his wife would be spending the holiday with her daughters - he was equal amounts excited and terrified.

Since you lived far from your father, and you were always so busy, he hadn't had the chance to reach this milestone in your relationship yet. So he was happy, overjoyed, but he still couldn't help the fear that he would cause a bad impression.

"I know, but," he grumbled, biting his lip as you came to the front door, "you should have let me buy a better gift at least."

"Reo," you laughed, shaking your head as you pushed the key in the door, "that would make my dad think you believe you can buy people with money. That wouldn't have helped your case. Now, we are going in."

You waited for him to nod before opening the door, calling out for your father once safely inside. From the stairs to your side came your father, poking fun at the both of you for dressing so nicely when you'd just be spending the day indoors with him.

You rolled your eyes and snapped back, telling him he should dress a bit better for the holiday, before coming up to him for a hug. It was shocking to see the casualty of your relationship, but at the same time it was soothing, the type of easy affection Reo had never known in his family.

But before the thoughts of his family could dominate his mind, Reo felt himself being pulled back to earth, pulled by your father into a hug that he awkwardly tried to reciprocate as you scolded the old man for not respecting people's spaces. When your father pulled back and rolled his eyes, Reo could clearly see how you two resembled each other in more than just appearances. Quickly, you stepped in, getting the introductions out of the way.

In all truth, Reo had come ready to have to try his best to impress your father, he'd come ready to try and charm his way out of a judgmental stare. What he didn't expect - despite your how you'd told him before - was to find a laid back man who poked fun at Reo whenever he'd be at a loss for words and who acted as if he was of as little importance as any other person on the street. In a way, that made him feel more at home than he could ever have imagined.

"And here I thought she was ashamed of me or something, 'cause she never brought you around," your father laughed as you shook your head with a groan.

There was a moment of pause, as the words spoken as a joke resonated deep within Reo. But quickly he laughed along, a genuine, true laugh. He could still remember the difficult nights, where he sat alone thinking the same thing - that he hadn't met your family yet, because you felt ashamed of him.

But now he could see it wasn't true. Where he'd come anxious, expecting a protective father who knew Reo wasn't good enough, he found a man who trusted his daughter's choices, and welcomed him like family. Yeah, maybe you - and his therapist - were right, some disasters really only exist in his mind.

shout out to: @fivenightsatwhoreville @minarinnn @loser-vxbez @pinksodacan

[kelocitta]

Worth noting with the current information coming out about Artfight and staff treatment that former moderators have not asked for a strike, boycott, or to cease event participation in support. I fully understand if people do not want to continue with the event due to the issues, but please don't wrongly state that they (Former staff) want people to halt participation.

Although it would be best to cease donations to the site until full clarity is given on the use of funds, along with changes made to staff treatment and workload. I do also want to say that having unpaid volunteer staff is not an issue in itself as long as full clarity is given on that position, and as long as the workload stays reasonable for the limited time and effort a volunteer position should hold. The issue is that artfight volunteer teams were small, overworked and uncompensated for the sheer amount of effort called on them. Larger teams and compensation would both be great, but merely having volunteer moderators is not an issue.

[vvitchering]

I think maybe everyone should cool it with the “weird cult” comments regarding the covert, honestly. It wasn’t that funny to begin with but now that it’s the popular describer it’s starting to become a little uncomfy. No one is forced to join, no one is forced to stay. There’s a ton of parallels between them and real world cultures and religions and I just think MAYBE we need to be a little more aware of what message we’re sending when we say “haha that group of people who are in hiding because their lives were/are at stake and who practice anonymity to survive and follow certain rules that I don’t personally understand or like are a weird cult”.

[thecryptkeeper]

ik art history is a completely different trajectory but the school of art is two steps from just locking us in a basement to hide us from being actual school of art students … ive seen the benefits and amenities available to the MFAs and i try to swallow my jealousy while in the small windowless room appointed to my whole department

[distressed-bird]

Kalina is the most interesting character to me because of all she has going on…

she is Cassandra’s familiar, she is simultaneously a pet and a friend and a servant and a family to a goddexx that is simultaneously her owner and friend and creator and parent and her god and reason to be—Kalina’s relationship to Cassandra is hard to put a name or label on (since what does being a familiar even mean?) but the bottomline is that this cat loves her deity enough to put everything and everyone on the line for her…

And adding in that she is a child of divorce. So to speak. I am extremely normal and haven’t been driven mad by the detail that baby itty bitty kitty Kalina was at Cassandra’s wedding to Ankarna and is remembered to have been toddling after her as she walked down the aisle…

Kalina will be the death of me /lh

[another-goblin]

SPOILERS for 2.2 and Aventurine's message

So his stone was completely destroyed, and the IPC knows about it. I've also got the feeling that he wanted to free himself from the IPC. So why, at the end of 2.2, does he act as if most of 2.1 didn't happen? I mean, why would he expect a rise from Diamond? He clearly still has full support of the IPC too.

Can you even be Aventurine the Stoneheart without aventurine the stone? Is Diamond going to give him a new one? 

I hope he's up to something. Otherwise, it doesn't make much sense.

I'm also a bit confused about this. Didn't it all happen exactly according to his plan? How was it foiled?

[markantonys]

i have spilled so much ink about gawyn but really i only need 2 passages to explain why he is Like That

1. My blood shed before hers; my life given before hers...That was the oath he had taken when barely tall enough to peer into Elayne's cradle. ... Gareth Bryne had had to explain to him what it meant, but even then he had known he had to keep that oath if he failed at everything else in his life. (LOC prologue)

2. From Morgase, Queen of Andor, to her beloved son, Gawyn. May he be a living sword for his sister and Andor. (ACOS prologue)

like yeah, no wonder he does what he does in AMOL. people will be like "gawyn is so stupid for not thinking about the fact that his death would hurt egwene" as if he's being maliciously stupid and careless, when in fact, he has such little self-worth that he genuinely does not consider himself a valuable human being whose loss would impact anyone or anything. his life given before hers. a living sword. this has been his mindset since toddlerhood and nobody ever noticed it enough to try and counteract it. gawyn is exactly what rand would have been like at the last battle if he hadn't had a mental health intervention.

[hilariousrabbit]

Critic of Stage in Playful Land - The Worst Event in Twisted Wonderland

I'm not gonna lie, I had high hopes for this event. The cards were gorgeous, I loved the new outfits, and we even got new characters! I'm quite a huge fan of the gothic circus aesthetic, so I was even more hyped for what's to come. Of course the stakes would be high for something like this, but unfortunately...the execution of this event has completely brought it down.

This is gonna be a very long and angry critic, so beware! I might be mean too!

The translation screenshots provided are from Ekala on YouTube. TW: Insensitive portrayal of human trafficking

The first part of the event felt SUPER stretched out. I understand, the main cast may have been overwhelmed with homework and losing the basketball match against NRC. But I also feel like they could have summarized this quicker? Plus, Fellow Honest also talks A LOT. I know it was supposed to be extended flattery to the point where it became suspicious, but it was taking so long to get to the main point that I quickly became bored.

The character's reasons for going were also very strange...but let's focus on the Octavinelle twins for a second. Floyd and Jade wanted to visit the amusement park specifically because it seemed suspicious. The twins are seen as a very shady duo, and having conflict with an even shadier duo (Fellow Honest and Gidel) is bound to be something that would be super interesting to watch.

Similarly as to how Idia played a crucial part in the Masquerade event, I thought they would have a larger role in this story, and I was disappointed when they just frolicked around the amusement park. They're not the type to just walk right into a dangerous territory without a plan/strategy, and it felt really weird seeing that happen. With them doing no preparations for this situation whatsoever, it feels like a waste to even state that detail in the first place. Speaking of that...I had heard some other fan theories on the role Ortho would play in this event. Some speculated that he would be representing the puppet in this event, as he isn't human. But then again, none of that ends up happening in the event because there was no thought as to how these characters would be used. My friend made an interesting point about the character choice in this event. They speculated it was just the company gathering up characters that haven't been in many events before book 7 ended, and I honestly wouldn't be surprised if this was the case.

When the main cast was exploring the park, it was just filler content. Nothing interesting happened, at all. They explored the park that was filled with references from the Pinocchio movie. Now if this was any other Disney film, I would be like "Yeah alright, that's from the movie. That's cool". But if you know what happens in the movie, then it might be a different story. I was deadass filled with dread when they put the references in, and I was so uncomfortable. Especially during this scene:

Also this was uncomfortable to see. Like okay...I didn't need to know that.

Anyone who watched the Pinocchio movie must have known that something bad was bound to happen (most likely some form of human trafficking). So when Fellow Honest's intentions for selling guests as wooden dolls was finally revealed, the entire story went from 0 to 100 real quick. And not in a good way. I know the previous filler was supposed to put us in their shoes, and how we as the viewer could also get distracted from the carnival's attractions. However, there should have been a better way to transition these two contrasting moods of the story. Plus, I can't help but feel like this is an unnecessarily cruel twist compared to the original movie. When it comes to more darker/sensitive topics such as human trafficking, there should be some sort of caution as to how they portray these kinds of things. I felt like this was solely added for shock value to make up for the slow pacing in the first parts of the event, and I can't help but feel really uncomfortable about this. I also REALLY don't like the possible implications of this line:

The insensitivity of the topic of human trafficking is further fueled by how the chase is played out. They needed a reason for characters to be kidnapped one by one, and I know that's usually how these types of events play out. But considering the severity of their situation, I feel very weird about it. Also, the characters are unusually calm about being sold as a literal slave? And the topic is just not dealt with seriously at all.

Important Detail: The Playful Land theme park functions as a ship, which sails away from land as soon enough guests are lured into the park. This is literally a human trafficking ship, there's no sugarcoating this.

Another part I'm upset about is how Kalim dealt with the entire situation. I'm unfortunately used to Twisted Wonderland dumbing down his character for cheap laughs but this has really gone off the rails. Ace gave him a clear reality check. They were at risk of being sold as dolls to whatever rich freak paid money for them. It was clear that Fellow Honest wouldn't converse on the subject over a fancy dinner. Honestly...I need you guys to read this for yourself.

So when Ortho came back, why in the world did Ace apologize to Kalim? Sure, what he said was harsh but it was completely true! There was a real threat to these characters and it wasn't being taken seriously.

For some reason, every time there's a chance for Kalim to develop, all of that is just completely reversed. Even if this was an issue before the event was released, I also feel like the writers forgot one very important thing...

Kalim has literally been kidnapped before! SEVERAL TIMES TOO!

He was targeted several times because he's from a rich family, they were planning to do malicious things to him for the sake of MONEY. Literally, just like Fellow Honest! He should know better than anyone else how horrifying it is to be taken away from the ones you love, and having no idea what will happen to you. But noooo instead he went full on Steven Universe on Fellow Honest! I'm not even taking the excuse that he's desensitized to it because he was putting the lives of his classmates at risk by giving this human trafficker a fucking chance. While he's not the smartest in the group, his character IS compassionate. How did he give more compassion towards this stranger he met a day ago instead of his own classmates?! How did they botch his character this badly?!

Lastly, when Fellow Honest's reasoning is stated in the story...I really have no words. He engaged in human trafficking, because his former teachers told him that he wasn't a good mage? ...I'm sorry? What the fuck kinda reasoning is that?!

He's literally committing a random act of malice because of his own personal issues. I can't even say that he was merely projecting his hatred onto students alone, as there were other guests attending the park too! I don't know how old they are, or if they're even in school anymore, so these are literally just random victims to me! It looks like the writers attempted to add a tragic backstory for this character in order to get the audience to have some sort of sympathy for him, but this just makes him look fucking stupid.

During this event, he talks about school being worthless and about how he and Gidel had a hard time surviving because they didn't get an education. Like...he chose to drop out of school. Of course that would happen! What was he expecting?

This event made an attempt to go into class dynamics and it's just...oh my god. Let's do a character comparison for a second. Ruggie grew up in a poor area, but because of that he was always on that grindset. Instead of bitching about how educated people are entitled and snobby, he takes advantage of every opportunity around him. And this includes the education at Night Raven College! He even takes financial advantage of others if necessary! He doesn't mind working for others as long as he can get something out of it.

Now let's talk about Fellow Honest's unique magic. I'm not gonna lie, I do think that concept is pretty cool! However, let's take a look at how it's implemented in the event. Now this is where I get critical of this. Having an increased amount of optimism doesn't mean being dumbed down. I'm still confused on how none of the characters were at least a little bit skeptical when walking through the park. There were red flags all across the park, free food, surprise gifts, a whole ass outfit for free, and a freaking 10 minute roller coaster! It was clearly too good to be true, so I can't understand how nobody among the main cast doubted it even for a second?

Also the reasoning why a magic-sensitive creature like Lilia didn't sense his magic before is so bullshit. I'm sorry, they just needed a reason for him to not notice this in order to make this event work.

And then when the cast started talking about how great school was for them, and even offering him admission to Night Raven College... Sorry just a moment, I just need to...

He is a literal human trafficker, and they decided to sympathize with him because of his bad school past?! WHAT???

I'm not even taking the excuse that the main cast are based off villains. HOW CAN YOU JUSTIFY THAT AT ALL?!?!?! HOW???

We don't know how many people he has done this to. It's clear that this isn't the first time this amusement park has hosted customers. If this was merely his first attempt by means of survival then it might have been a different story, but he's experienced at this. There's a good chance that he has turned people into dolls before.

And then after a super prolonged chase scene and even more battles, we get to Kalim going full-on Steven Universe on Fellow Honest. Then his employer deducts his pay because of the damages in the park...and he finally had enough. He frees everyone, asks them to destroy the park, and now he's a good guy and he's gonna open a school!

...

Now I'm confused about this for a couple of reasons. So first of all, how did his opinion of schools completely do a complete 180 after talking with them for a few moments??? Change in a character doesn't occur this quickly, and we've seen this be the case with multiple characters in this game. Even if this was meant to be rushed for the sake of this being an event story, not even Rollo had a change in opinions after his event! So what was up with this?

The second reason is that Jack specifically stated in this event that his brother can't use magic but is still attending school. Magicless people DO get educated, and there's many pathways for them to choose from.

They aren't barren from society like Fellow Honest thinks they are. Take a look at the people in Epel's hometown and in Fleur city, they're pretty happy! I don't think the concept of schools for lower magic users/non-magic users is as revolutionary as they're making it out to be, and I feel like this is a super last-minute decision on the writers behalf.

Another thing is that...

Fellow Honest has NO REMORSE AT ALL for what he did.

He wanted to quit because he just didn't wanna work for the higher-ups anymore, not because he actually realized what he was doing was fucked up! Yeah sure, he might be focused on his new goal to open up a school. But is he just gonna ignore the fact that he fucking SOLD PEOPLE AS DOLLS? HUH? How am I supposed to wish him well on his newfound journey when this entire thing is just left unaddressed!

I'm also confused about another thing. Fellow Honest asked the cast to destroy the amusement park after he freed them, promising to turn the park boat around to Sage Island if they did so. This caused the boat to sink, and Ortho had to push the entire park back to shore.

They were able to get back to shore before any serious damage was done, so can anyone tell me why Fellow Honest and Gidel decided to ride off into the sunset WITH the park? It's literally sinking as they speak! So...huh? Where will they even sail to? It's pretty hard to not notice a huge ass amusement park sinking like this in the middle of the Sage Island, especially when it's right beside the port! What is going on?!

Who the hell even wrote this? I can't with this event man...

I know the lesson of this event is to realize the importance of going to school and being a good kid like in the movie. However...let's step back for a bit. The target audience for Twisted Wonderland is young adults and teenagers, and the fanbase DOES consist of these people. I don't think they need reminding of why education is a privilege...? Pinocchio was specifically made to scare little kids, so it just does not translate well to their target audience AT ALL. While I do love Twisted Wonderland, I really do feel like this is their worst event yet. I hate how almost all the characters were dumbed down to make this story work, and I don't care if it was because of Fellow Honest's unique magic. When it comes to sensitive topics, Twisted Wonderland is usually good at portraying them appropriately. So I really have no idea what happened with this event.

I think the company saw the positive reception with Rollo Flamme, and decided that this type of new character was something to be implemented yearly. Surprisingly, Fellow Honest and Gideon seem to have a large fanbase in Japan...so they probably took the popularity of these characters as their next material to work with. This could have worked out wonderfully if they were to treat this like its own story rather than a remake of the movie, but unfortunately that's not the path they decided to go with.

I have never felt this way about any other event, and the urge to write this critic was STRONG. I have no idea whether Yana wrote this, or if another employee just decided to pull some last-minute shit with this entire event. Regardless, I'm praying to god that this is merely a one-time occurrence and that the next event will be better. I think for the sake of my sanity, I need to pretend this event doesn't exist.

Thank you for reading my thoughts on this.