#but i doesnt have the soul i expect from dragon age.

[biowaresucks]

I will save my full review for when I've finished the game but I just finished the first act of veilguard and I'm more disappointed than anything else, and I'm the woke mob that is being pandered to, or whatever the haters are saying

[ganondoodle]

you know, as if it wasnt already boring enough that both link and zelda got back to their 'perfect' physical selves without any consquences from all that happened, the fact that zelda doesnt even remember anything either is just adding insult to injury

although it was also a lil disappointing at the end of botw that zelda didnt age even a little bit or had any other physical change at least she was conscious during the time she sealed calamity ganon in the castle and it overall feels less illogical

when you get the mastersword back in totk you get a cutscene of zelda with it after she had already transformed which kinda .... is weird? she seemed pretty awake there, and it being right after transforming is strange since the mastersword was already restored in that cutscene, i would expect it to be a slow progress- that said .. it also seemed like her soul was doing pretty fine, unlike how mineru said that you lose your soul when you do the dragon thingy; i guess it could be that that was jsut a thing that was believed without knowing if its true but ... why even mention it then, just to dangle some consequence in front of us only to reveal there wasnt any danger actually?

also someone (i think) commented once that zelda being turned back in that weird way was meant to be that she got time reversed .. which ... okay??? the teleport to that weird nakey floating dimension is still a weird choice to me (yes i know its probably the spirit realm or soemthing and thats why the ghosts that went poff already were there but it still feels off to me) .. aynway, i guess it was meant that ghost sonia + rauru did the give power to link thing that sonia and zelda did to rauru when he magic laser blasted all those poor moldoras (and never does it again ... why not magic laser blast away gan instead he was pretty openly standing on that rock problem solved hfldshnflsnjlfs) and that time reversed the dragon thing .... but aside from the symbol for the time thingy lighting up theres no indication for it if i remember right? its just some awkward looking magic beam blast save zelda edition (tm) why not at least include the clear tök sound that goes off when you use time reversal in game? would it have been both more clear AND cool if link was still standing on her head, the world gets that spirit realm filter like it did in skyward sword to indicate that theres a shift, then have the ghosties appear and let you as the player select time thingy and then her, ghosties give you their energy and the sound of time reversal goes off, the schemes of the world below goes black and white and start to shift; you dont need to literally show the path zelda had been flying over those thousands of years, but make the world a blurry mess and let the music speed up so you feel like you are actually doing something and then she turns back maybe near the temple of time (zonau edition) so its near the place where she was last human, the filters and ghosts disappear and whoop you got your epic falling scene ... but i would like to have zelda still remember it, otherwise it just feels .. weirdly manipulative? like lets reverse your brain and memory zelda no dont worry i meant good lmao trust me

that is if it was meant to be read as a time reversal on her .... but then i question why it wasnt used beforehand? couldnt you have done that to ganondorf even? if sonia and rauru can give you enough energy as ghosts then why couldnt sonia reappear after getting one-punche-mand-to-death or when you fight gan in the present time? is the excuse that he was so miasmafied or deep below the earth that the spirit world thing isnt in reach? couldnt you have done it after he did the dragon thing then? or is it a one time thing so they saved it for zelda? but then why didnt sonia get her ghost ass back there immediately after she died and time revrsed gan getting the enigma stone? ALSO if it was a time reversal on zelda where did the stone go??? shouldnt it be time reversaled out of her in some way to undo the dragon thing? where it go?? also to time reversal a body gotta be different to getting her soul back?? or was it just never gone so what mineru said about the risk was literally jsut so it seemed more tragic when it really wasnt??? like the apparent possibilty that the time reversal CAN be used on living things and not just objects makes me question it all even more?

(also was it meant to imply that rauru somehow through his arm got them both into the ghosty dimension?? bc how did they get there, and why cant they do it again? if spirits are fine over there even if they already went poof then why act so sad about mineru fking off like that? just go back there and say hi? njfkdnjkdj)

like im sorry i cant help but overthink all of this, with every supposedly explanation i just question it more?? i dont want to sound like one of those guys that go -OoHoh there was no clear text explanation for it so i dont knooooOOOOoOw i dont know how to use ma braiiin it makes no seeeensee- or maybe i am? i dont need an explanation for everything, in fact i LIKE when there are unexplained things, but it still has to feel .. whole? there are unexplained things that make a world and story feel more mystical without taking you out of it, but theres also a way to leave things both over AND underexplained with it seemingly contradicting itself or it just trusting that you take it all at face value and never think about it that it just feels off, the the first big moment where i felt SO taken out of the game i felt actually stunned was when i was at the shrine of life and it wasnt there anymore, at all, the cave shaped like a vague imitation of it, i felt like the game was laughing at me for being so distraught about it, like what you remember and care about the game this new one was supposed to be a sequel to? lmao, anyway theres a puddle of healing water :)))

idk i just ... if its not obvious already zelda is my special thingy so of course i overthink and criticize it in ways that may seem insane to the average person, but thats just how i work i guess :/

(i am still too thinking so much about how it all feels like such an afterthought, like especially with the weird time bubbles that literally NEVER COME UP AGAIN???? WHAT WAS THE POINT??? AND WHERE DID THEY COME FROM??? and why youd choose to suddendly give zelda time powers out of nowhere and then basically not do anything with it?? zelda astral projecting to the temple of time somehow even tho her soul was lost but is also fine just to give you the time reversal gimmick is so ?? oh wow look at that zelda gave you her sage oath before you even knew about them look how coool ok but how? and why? it wasnt the actual engima stone you touch to go into ghosty world either just like a .. a weird ghost of it, it just feels off man, ok you got zelda out the way and have your neat gimmicks and uuuh dang we need to find a way to give them to you idk lol listen, i KNOW you are not supposed to question it, i KNOW they always go gameplay over story but goddamn the story ruined the gameplay for me bc everytime i think about playing it again i just get reminded of the things that dont make sense or are just so .. lackluster in ways that even botws worst parts didnt)

[an-excellent-choice]

I was recently gushing at a friend about bg3 but didn't want to spoil her in the romance and the characters backstory.

So, I started comparing everybody with Dragon Age companions to give her an idea on everybody's personality.

Now I need to complete this list just for the sake of it.

Astarion: Zevran, Isabela, Morrigan

I know a lot of people compare Astarion and Fenris but honestly, I personally don't see them being similar enough( yes even with the slavery and white hair) they are just two different flavors especially in personality. They are similar in broad strokes but in the details not really.

Now with Zevran and Isabela, I can see. These two very sexual characters both use their sexualities and their daggers to manipulate those around them.

They both cope with their trauma with putting a mask of light heartedness and sexual freedom. The main difference of between Zevran and Isabela to Astarion is that Astarion is more upfront with his trauma.

The Morrigan aspect is his pragmatism. Astarion's killed or killed is similar to Morrigan. They both hate helping people as they don't see anything beneficial it. They are so used to the absence of kindness that any they see from the protag is seen as naivety or even fakeness because if there truly kindness in the world why did they never experienced themselves.

Gale: Anders, Merril, Solas

So the common trait I established from these characters that I see in Gale is them being blinded by their goals. These 3 all kind and mean well but they think their way is the only way to fix things. All these three are self serving to their selfish desires to the point it overwrites any kindness they have. They want to do something drastic to help others. Solas with elves, Merril her missing friends and Anders with mages but in the price of themselves.

Personality wise,Merril is also similar to Gale with her akwardness and naivety. Gale has a tendency to do akward moments in his enthusiasm and lackk experience in socializing. While the Solas is love information and informing others, he's very welcoming in sharing experiences.

Now, Anders. Specifically Anders dao and da2 Act 1-2 because Gale would never justify the means justifies the end mentality in act3 of da2. The basics commonalities: cat dad, mage, time bomb but the most damning similarity is that both Gale and Anders thought that they know better even though they were already warned. Gale with the piece of weave and Anders with Justice. They both essentially shot themselves in the foot by ignoring the warning signs.

(I'm not including Merril in the shooting of foot because her ritual was tampered she knew her risks and had actually prepared a kill switch just in case)

Wyll: Cassandra, Merril, Varric

The main thing I focused on this trio is responsibility. All these 3 has certain responsibility or expectations set upon them with a main conflict of whether they should just follow expectations or do their own will even at the price of losing support or their people

Wyll has heavy expectations on him and he himself always tries to put the well being of others before him even at the price of his soul.

Now personality-wise, Cassandra is an old romantic. Just like Wyll they both enjoy poetry and wooing. They both live for the romance even though they try hard to focus on only their duty they cant hide their soft squishy hearts.

Merril is kind and is always torn with her abandoning her duty to do what she thinks is needed to be done. She loves her people so much she will bear being seen as a monster to try to help them. *cough* wyll is the same*cough

Varric is charming as fuck but he also is kindaa running away from his responsibility until finally he was forced to take a stand. He accidentally helped start aspects of the mess but he will be damned if he doesnt try to help.

Okay, I'm running out of steam now. I'll do a part 2 for the ladies as this is also too long now.

[tsunderedoctor]

Hii! So, let me introduce you to not ye properly named crew (i call it the Pirate's Princess Crew but eh).

1)Captain

Ookami D. Mariss. 24 y/o (also her "present" is before the 2 years time skip) She is under heavy redoing rn, so i dont have her pic or i dunno if her surname will stay. But she was born as Kersley D. Mariss, to a Pirate Princess - which is basically a.. well smt like "Pirate King" in The Pirates of Carribean franchise. She has the power to lead all 4 of the Yonkos, and even tho is "born" with the title, the 4 Emperors needs to acknowledge her and swear her loyalty before she is "official". She was 15 when she got appointed as such, only 3 Emperors were present (which is minimum.) Kaido missing. And two out of three voted yes, Big Mom being the only against out of the three. She is cursed by a wolf god-like creature - tho by accident. So she can shapeshift into wolf. She wields the power of Voice (goes w/ being Pirate Princess). Also has dragon Zeyra and best wolf friend, Kasumi.

Her fav pastime is meditating.

2)Firstmate; Navigator

Then there is Ren, pic also in redoing. He is 29, nicknamed "The Knight" and wields buster sword. He honestly should get raise for all the bullshit he has to deal with in daily basis. Childhood friend of Mariss, but didnt see each other between 6 - well teen years.

He is the artist of the crew and his fav pastime is tattoing.

3)Chef, occasional healer

(Vinsmoke) Trixie. Okay she is second ever made OP OC, and i made her like.. ages ago.. before the Vinsmoke ordeal was shown but holy shit she fits right in! She doesnt uses her surname. And she is older sister to Sanji (now i say she is twin to Reiju). She is 21 y/o but was born 24 years ago. TLDR: born, got experimented on, no result - Judges accidentally "kills her" and let her drifts on sea, so it would seem like horrible accident. She then gets find by The Great Calamity - chinese dragon-like sea spirit, known to feast on souls. And spents 3 irl lives in vacuum, her soul too weak to return to her body, but cant be consumed by the spirit due to Germa testing. Here finds here Mariss, driftinh in a sea and asks the Wolf god-like thing to save her. Which happens, cursing Mariss with shapeshifting powers in the process.

Trixie wields the cursed water powers and is skilled in close comba and bo-jutsu. Beside the whole soul eating problem, the only way the Germa's experiment can be seen is cuz she usually lacks empathy towards enemies and is very prone to anger. She is nicknamed "The Water Empress".

Also cant hold her liquor. Its bad. No tolerance at all. And she loses all of her sense when drunk, it got so bad that Mariss banned her from drinking, unless there is Ren or Mariss to take care of her.

Her fav pastime is bubblegum blowing, while thinking of new recepies. Loves ice cream. And similarly to liquor, she cant handle coffee. She gets even crazier after a cup, and gets migraines.

Oh and despite her being the less stable one out of the crew, everone ways expect Rita to be the psycho of the crew. Its not. Its Trixie.

4)Gunner/Sharp Shooter

Akane Rita, 21 y/o ex-thief/killer-on-hire. Wields the power of God of Fire (based on Kagutsuchi mythology) and is skilled in firearms (Ekan still thinks its horrible idea to have the emodiment of fire dragon handle gunpowder 😂). Rita's fire actually has no shape, but to provoke Trixie she usually makes fire dragons. She has pair of pistols (Kagu and Chi) on her all the time, but also has rifle named Star, but can use huge variety of fire arms. Also has twin daggers named Sun and Moon from her thief days.

Due to her powers and Trixie powers.. the fight a lot. Usually just with snarky remarks, but sometime also with powers. Ren is on babysitting duty all the time.

Her fav pastime is cleaning guns and yes, she csn handle the spice (and is addicted to coffee)

5) Doctor

Zaviria, 18 y/o - the youngest member and only DF user. She is quiet, but touch her plants and you are dead. Her parents are surgeon and chemic with aunt as herbalist, and she got smt from all of them. Cant find notes on her DF, but basically she could manipulate plants and flowers. She is the one who supplies Alix with poison. She prefers to breed her plants into using it as sleep/poison powders, so she wouldnt have to do the dirty work. Also, can throw needles with scaring precision and for some reason is WAY too good with alcohol. Likes horror and unsolved murders podcasts.

6) Scout/Assasin/Ninja-like

Alix. Boyfriend of Ren. 24 y/o. He is pretty new so i dont know much. Is stealthy, can kill variety of weapons and is skilled in posion usage etc. Has a hawk he can ride on. No pic yet. Only that he looks lanky and boyish, kinda like Luffy...but is older. Bestie with Zaviria and thinks of her as her younger sister. They listens to unsolved murders together. Also has immpecable sense of stability. Like man can SIT while standing on pole/string.

7) Shipwright and Helmsman

Ekan, 20 y/o. They're 1/4 fishman. Grew up in grandfather's martial arts dojo and mum's shipwright company. Trained in fishman karate, can breath underwater and has weapon, but not sure what yet.

P.s. Rita/Trixie/Mariss are cold the "The Cursed Sisters". Rita has the most epiteph out of all: ^ that; "The Fire Empress" due to her powers and "The Red Death" when she briefly worked as bounty hunter when the crew was disbanded for a year.

((👉👈🥺 thats VERY brief introduction to my chaotic crew.. yet i still it might have been a bit too much. Pls dont bother to react if you would feel overloaded or smt. Have lovely dad!)) ((Also if you want to gush about your MCs, go on!)) ((Maybe.. can they handle alcohol? Are they like Trixie and absolitely not, or suprisingly well like Zaviria?))

Sorry this took so long to respond!! I wanted to wait when I got off!!

But they all sound amazing!! I think Roese and Zaviria could be friends!! Roese is a green witch so she makes medicines and talks to plants, she can also manipulate them at will, but isn't that strong yet haha!! So I think being doctors and plant lovers they would get along 💜💜💜

[oc-and-art-review-reblog]

name: wildheart specise: fire element draco-morphiad (explained below) pronouns: she/her

specise info: draco-morphiads are, basically, a specise of sexless magic cat furries. each one of them controls one of twelve elements (although two of them are special); fire (fire elements are also able to control one type of igneous rock, differing depending on the individual), water, earth, air, plant, plague, void (this void being concentrated everythingness and named for its pitch black color, there may only be one void element at a time and only two have ever been recorded), quantum strings (this has been proven to be possible, but never recorded), gemstone, metal, sound and light. draco-morphiads have a unique internal anatomy, their body cavity is filled entirely with liquid magic. this magic contains their consiousness and, when needed, forms organs to keep the draco-morphiad alive. draco-morphiads also have whats known as elemental bits, an extra part of their body made from their element or regular body part modified by it. draco eye color is also generally dictated by their element. just a draco-morphiad generation (they live tens of thousands of years) ago, they had an expansive interdimensional (this takes place in a multiverse) empire. but for reasons now lost to time, it fell. the specise took heavy casualties, although it was nowhere close to extinction. theyre rarer now, and... scattered, to say the least. their natural ability to create interdimensional portals doesnt help that. given that draco-morphiads are sexless, their native language's pronouns were dependant on element, but wildheart was raised by a sexed specise tens of thousands of years after the near extinction of the language (plus draco-morphiads were invented to explain her so i think she should get to keep her pronouns).

apperance: wildheart has brown fur, which turns abruptly black (like, theres a straight, non-gradiant divide between the back and brown) at the waist, so approximately half of her is black and half is brown . she has blood red eyes. fire element eyes are usually orange, but this is explained. she has a pair of half-crescent obsidian wings coming out of her shoulderblades, each one flanked by three floating obsidian triangles. embedded in her chest is a peice of obsidian shaped like a broken heart, and her claws are obsidian as well. she has a couple notches in each ear and a scar over her eye.

story: wildheart is born on a remote planet in a remote universe. save for her and her littermate, their parents and their older sibling squirreltail. soon after the two's birth, their parents die of reasons. unprepared to take care of them, squirreltail opens two portals to random inhabited parts of the multiverse and sends them through, hoping each will be picked up by someone responsible and more able than him.wildheart ends up being adopted by a family of goatlike skeleton monsters, where she stays for the first 13 years of her life (draco-mophiads age like humans up until about their 20th birthday). during this time she becomes incredibly close with her adopted brother, [edit with name later, i forgot it]. shortly after her 13th birthday, wildheart discovered her ability to make portals. with their parents permission, she and her brother went out to explore the multiverse a little.on their little jaunt, the two encountered a creature totally alien to them, and wildheart dared her brother to go poke it with a stick. unfortunately, the creature turned out to be a bear-esque superpreadator and ripped wildheart's brother to shreds while she watched.wildheart opened a portal to nowhere in particular, landing her at a market in the interdimensional void (my imagining of the multiverse is, like space, mostly empty. universes take the shape of enormous white orbs with the texture of frosted lightbulbs. their glow is soft, yet can be seen from light centuries away). scared to go back home, she wandered.and wildheart never stopped wandering. she quickly exanded her scope to universe hopping, trying her best to repress the memories and emotions from her brother's death.during the next eleven years, wildheart developed a routine. explore and universe hop, break gear, plunder something ancient for rare stuff, sell it at the interdimensional market, get new gear, repeat. in ancient tombs and temples, wildheart saw one thing over and over again. carvings of things that looked like her, had the same powers as her. naturally, she assumed she was the last.on the eve of her 24th birthday, wildheart was traveling through the market, looking for something special to get herself. wherever she went, the vendors all talked about one thing. the nearby combat arena had a new champion, a catlike (cats are p much a multiversal constant) calling herself reaper. knowing wildheart, many suggested she challenge her.wildheart was confident in her abilities, both physical and magical, so she decided that a championship would be the perfect gift to herself.

she actually proved a pretty even match for reaper, but in the end the champion won. though wildheart's energy seemed boundless, reapers patience and tactical skill were ultimately able to exhaust her.

after the fight, the two met by chance somewhere in/around the market. they got to talking, reaper asking what wildheart does for a living. finding the prospect of universe-hopping more interesting than beating the shit out of people, reaper asked to join wildheart.

reaper was a tall (for a draco) draco-morphiad with black fur, white patterns outlining the shape of her skeleton (or what it would be if draco-morphiads had those). she wore a grey hoodie. her wings, skeletal things composed entirely of ice, marked her as a water element, though her eyes seemed to contradict that (although wildheart didnt really know that). instead of the slightly desaturated off-teal you would expect from a water element, reapers eyes were pich black with pupils colored a deep, beautiful blue.

anyway, after a few weeks of traveling the multiverse together, the two encountered something strange. a universe with no glow, just a dull grey orb.

portaling inside (and quickly leaving), the two found that the universe was empty. it had experienced a heat death, something totally unnatural in this setting.

wildheart and reaper agreed that they had to find and kill whoever did this.

idk how, exactly, they found him, but that person turned out to be a being calling himself entropy, the incarnation of the void, the nothingness that came before the multiverse. while he was monolouging about a pair of beings called 'chaos' and 'order',  wildheart and reaper tried to jump entropy. entropy did not like this. he used some sort of attack that sent the pair into a strange voidspace.

sat in this voidspace was a pair of beings. a scribbled dragon, with eyes of wildheart's blood red, and a hyperrealistic marble statue of a woman with a buzzcut in a dress, with gemstone eyes of reapers deep, beautiful blue. the two were enormous, the tip of the dragons talon bigger than wildheart's entire body. they were playing chess on a table of equal proportions.

"you're back early." remarked the dragon "did something happen?"

after a bit of confusion, it became understood that wildheart and reaper had no idea who these people were or where they were.

the two giants explained that they were chaos (the scribbled dragon) and order, demiurges of the multiverse.

many googols (a number with a hundred zeroes) of googols of eons ago, there was nothing. out of that nothing arose chaos, pure unbridled creation. but without filter, chaos could not create or take any definite form. and so, it (chaos is they/it) sat as a sort of existance soup for not even they know how long. until, at some point, order arose from the void. order was filter, what chaos needed to truly create. she (order is she/it) could not create by itself either, each dependant on the other to do something they instinctually longed for. order's form was also much different from her current day form, either a ball of quantum strings or a colorless cube of indeterminate material (i havent decided). so, the two came together and created. one of the first things the two created was a pair of souls, one blood red and the other a deep, beautiful blue. each one carved their true name into the corresponding soul in the first language, marking them as the incarnations of chaos and order.t hey were to be sent out into the multiverse together every once in a while, when the multiverse needed saving or just spicing up. of course the current incarnations were wildheart, incarnation of chaos and reaper, incarnation of order. they had been sent out this time for the purpose of killing entropy, whose trail of destruction included countless universes. but for reasons i dont know yet but were probably a mistake on chaos and orders part, they couldnt do it by themselves. they needed two more of their kind (chaos was vague about what 'their kind' was because i want it to be revealed in the narrative later). idk if its the two specific dracos they meet later or just any.

theyre currently in the place behind existance, chaos and order's personal voidspace.

chaos also reveals when talking to order that wildheart and reaper are siblings, before promptly sending them back out into the multiverse. entropy has long moved on, assuming he killed the two siblings.

the story isnt too well planned from here but

after some freaking out/contemplating/whatever over the fact that theyre siblings, wildheart and reaper continue on.

eventually, they encounter Six Of Spades, child of the last draco-morphiad monarch. saen (six of spades uses saen/trah pronouns, the traditional draco neutral/no-element pronouns) is a no-element, a semi-rare mutant with, you guessed it, no element. six of spades percives this as a fault of some sort, and overcompensates for it by playing up the ‘last heir to the draco-morphiad throne’ thing. Technically, saens cousin would have inherited the throne, but saen has no cousins saens aware of. six of spades would actually make a good monarch, if not for saens general neurosis and feeling of being (mostly) superior to those around trah.

six of spades watched saens parent die in front of saen to poachers, who wanted monarch eris (six of spades's parent)'s teeth. the teeth are the only part of a draco-morphiads pure magic core that doesnt simply dissipate after death. theyre an extremely potent source of magic, thus why draco-morphiads were killed for them shortly after the fall of the empire.

apperance wise, six of spades is an average sized (about 4 feet tall) grey draco-morphiad. saen has medium-grey fur down to saens waist, where its abruptly replaced by light grey scales. saen has ear fins like a dragon, and spikes going down saens back that may or may not start with the scales. six of spades has a lizard like tail and long, angular talons. save for color scheme (monarch eris was green), the spitting image of saens parent. six of spades also wears a worn gold crown and carries a worn gold staff with a magic gemstone orb, both posessions of monarch eris

wldheart and reaper convince six of spades to come with them.

eventually, they encounter a young (about 13 year old)

[moltensmusings]

Inquisition was the first dragon age I played an finished. I remember meeting morrigan in the game and being unsure how to feel about her. I knew she was from origins since her and Leliana mention the hero of Ferelden but I knew next to nothing about her. Which makes it pretty surprising that she turned into my favorite companion from origins, I was expecting that spot to be held by alistair or maybe leliana, but morrigan won me over.

Now this isn't to say I hate any companion from origins, I like them all and think their dynamic is great, but I honestly feel like the strongest relationship you get in game is between the hero and Morrigan. Alistair comes in close second.

Her growth from an untrusting, unwillingly ally who hates helping people and laughs at misfortune into one of the heroes closest friends is still one of the most emotional things to me from the game. If you have enough approval from her she will say you're like a sibling and she begins to trust you. Something that is even more impactful if you're a circle mage because she seems to hate the circle the most.

Every gift you get her is met with suspicion and you can hear the emotion in her voice when she thanks you if you tell her it's what friends do. She never expects anything without a price and getting something without strings attached is so surprising and unexpected. In the final battle she'll even admit that she doesnt want the warden to die and is willing to sleep with Alistiar or (amazingly) loghain to ensure you live and the archedemon is locked away even if only for a short while. And her farewell to the hero in witch hunt is so gentle and loving.

After playing origins it just makes it more heart wrenching when flemmeth comes for Kieran in inquisition because it's clear he's the one thing in Morrigans life that she can hold close that's uncorrupted and good. She loves her son with every part of her soul and she'd give her body away to flemmeth just to keep him safe.

Morrigan is a wonderful character and I genuinely hope that she and the hero can reunite in DA4.

[hayleysstark]

I NEED TO SLEEP MORE FREAKING HTTYD

lmao it’s not a big deal! i just didn’t think i could narrow it all down without a fandom to stick to, lol. thank you for asking! 💖💖💖

send me a fandom and i’ll tell you…

the first character i ever fell in love with: Gobber, actually!!! don’t get me wrong, Hiccup was my die-hard fave by the end, but Gobber made me laugh so hard in the first ten minutes, and he stuck with me all throughout the film

a character that i used to love/like, but now do not: ahhhh i really like ‘em all, so i guess Astrid??? don’t get me wrong, i still like her, but in comparison to Hiccup, Toothless, Stoick, Snotlout, etc. she experienced very minimal growth. her character simply can’t stand up to the demands of the franchise without depth. real depth. she’s meant to be one of the main players, but she doesn’t feel like it at all, and it makes any scene with her feel frustrating, unnecessary, and unsatisfactory.

a ship that i used to love/like, but now do not: Hiccstrid. don’t get me wrong, the two of them are fantastic as friends!! Astrid could still be General Hofferson, Astrid could still be the chief’s right-hand Viking, that doesn’t have to change!! Astrid could still be one of Hiccup’s biggest supporters, and Hiccup could still be there for Astrid to fall back on when she’s been strong too long. but the entire ship, as a romantic concept, is just a massive, unforgivable disservice to Hiccup’s character. dragons are his passion. dragons are his whole life. hell, we see his relationship with Astrid suffer, numerous times, because of his obsession with dragons, and it’s not played for laughs, it’s not written off as a harmless joke. he genuinely does not love Astrid as much as he loves dragons. why are we supposed to believe he does?? and why should he have to?? why did he need a romantic partner?? 

my ultimate favorite character™: Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, babes!!!! the man loves dragons, books AND blacksmithing, i’m honestly not sure what more you want. oh, also, he’s got a tough relationship with his dad and i love that because who doesnt in this day and age

prettiest character: Toothless, of course!! his design is just so sleek and gorgeous !!! also, Hiccup from HTTYD1, but like, in terms of pure aesthetic appeal ???? red hair + green eyes + freckles is my favorite Look, just in a visual sense, not a sexual one. and we ALL know one (1) Hiccup the Third wore the Look best. 

my most hated character: Valka. 

my OTP: Hiccup + happiness

my NOTP: Hiccup/Toothless,,,,,,,,,,,, one,,,,,,,, is a dragon,,,,,,,,,,,, one,,,,,,,,, is a man,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, please,,,,,,,,,,, not again,,,,,,,,,,, i’m not,,,,,,,,,, strong enough,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

favorite episode: there were all those television and Netflix spin-offs, weren’t there,,,,,,,,, let me think,,,,,,,, oh Portrait of Hiccup as a Buff Man !!! Hiccup & Stoick centric episodes are,,,,,,,, how do you say,,,,,,,,, good shit,,,,,,, also Thawfest was really funny, and When Lightning Strikes was GOOD !!!! oh my god and The Zippleback Experience was hilarious, any episode where Hiccup is Stressed are just so funny. OH and Enemy of My Enemy!!! y’all have no idea how long ya girl emrys was WAITING for a Dagur redemption arc. ((spoiler, the first second i laid eyes on him in Twinsanity, i wanted him to be Hiccup’s friend and i held out hope for literal YEARS. good things come to those who wait!!!))

saddest death: Y’ALL 😭😭😭 ALREADY 😭😭😭 KNOW 😭😭😭 

favorite season: can i,,,,,,, just say How To Train Your Dragon tbh ???? i honestly haven’t watched the television series in ages, but iirc, S4 of Race to the Edge was pretty good

least favorite season: mmmm can i say httyd2. can i. can i please. can i say it.

character that everyone else in the fandom loves, but i hate: Valka ofc. and i don’t care for Heather. at all. 

my ‘you’re piece of trash, but you’re still a fave’ fave: SNOTLOUT lmao also Viggo Grimborn !!!! he was such a good villain oof what a SNAKE 

my ‘beautiful cinnamon roll who deserves better than this’ fave: TOOTHLESS 💖💖💖

my ‘this ship is wrong, nasty, and makes me want to cleanse my soul, but i still love it’ ship: mmmm i dunno actually ? i don’t typically ship “nasty” ships lmao i typically either ignore canon ships or passively ship them. 

my ‘they’re kind of cute, and i lowkey ship them, but i’m not too invested’ ship: ahh, Toothless and the Light Fury weren’t nearly as cringe as i expected lmao. oh oh hang on a hot sec can i throw in a platonic ship here too because,,,,,,,,,,, Hiccup & Mala,,,,,,,,,,,,,, think abt it, they both love dragons so fiercely, they’d just work wonderfully as partners ????? i want to see them go on an adventure to like,,,,,, help free a captured dragon or something really basic like that, i would give literally my right arm for a Hiccup & Mala friendship episode. they’re so similar, they’d just really play off each other beautifully.

thanks again for asking!!  💖💖💖

[mintyrosemary]

Rivaini Seer Ability Tree

so, i'm really upset at b//oware for, well, many reasons in general. but do not be misguided, i love dragon age too fucking much to quit.

so, please have this rivaini seer ability tree, because b//oware doesnt give rivain enough attention. or lore. or love. i'll probably make more ability trees like that, like a magister one, or a tamassran one. but for now, enjoy this!

Seer - Mastering the ability of the Rivaini seers isn't something one does over the night. Seers can be willingly possessed, channeling spirits and communicating with them, with a certain passion no other mage has. They're also often seen as parental figures for their community, being protective by nature.

Natural Order; passive - Fueled by the love and the force of the Order, you influence those around you. Spiritual forces, good and bad, notice you and follow you around.

-5 defense for yourself, + 10 defense for your party members. if you have another mage in the party, this ability's power is doubled.

Clarity; active - As a role figure for your friends, your strength helps them unlock potential in themselves that they did not know they had.

You stun an enemy, and for 10 seconds, your party's attack is boosted by 15%. Rogues benefit the most from this, and instead, their chance of getting a critical hit is boosted by 15%.

Friends of the Qun; active/focus - Being raised around people and friends who were part of the Qun, (born and converts), has taught you a thing or two about their training.

The more damage you take, the faster this ability unlocks. You can only use this ability after your health has dropped below 50%.

Once unlocked, you tense up your muscles, and like a dragon, your body burns with fire. Enemies who attack you will feel 50% of the damage they give you, as well as the damage from your own attacks.

Medium; active - Seers are not only friends with spirits, they're friends with themselves. This allows them to reach an inner peace and control that not many mages can, and their body is way more receptive to being possessed.

You call upon a spirit of Compassion, who gladly uses your vessel as a tool of work. It heals your whole party, and ressurrects any party members who were knocked down.

It has a cost, however. You stay stunned for 10 seconds, while your mana refills to the max. During this period, you cannot cast spells or drink lyrium potions, as your body is re-adjusting to your soul again.

Familiars; passive - Seer of Rivain have friends on the other side. Some of them have buddies from birth, some of the have had them from past lives, sometimes they only halfway through this life. But they're bound to find each other, always.

By having a friend following you, be it human or animal, you dont feel very lonely. Not to mention, they are natural protective barriers. When you unlock this ability, you get an extra ability point for your magic and strength.

Afterwards, you have a cool litle ghost following you around. +15 defense for your party, cause ghosts make you cool at parties.

Riot; passive - You are a Seer, and you will not give that up. You do not submit to the forces of the chantry, just like your community and ancestors resisted against them. You always look out for others.

If at least one person in your party approve of you, or are friends with you, your attack is boosted by 7% per person. If you are rivals with someone or they dont approve of you, your strength is boosted by 7% per person.

FRIENDSHIP VS RIVALRY

(because i miss dragon age 2)

Friendship with [SEER CHARACTER].

[NAME]'s got your back. And front. And sides. And spirit. You got it. Well, they got it. Yeah.

Being friends with [SEER CHARACTER] gives you an extra slot for potions and poisons. It also gives you an extra point in Herbalism.

Rivalry with [SEER CHARACTER]

[NAME]'s got your back. Lucky for you, they're not an assassin. Or maybe you're just not ready yet!

Being rivals with [SEER CHARACTER] gives you more focus everytime you get hit. Being hit by demons and abominations gives even more focus.

✫　✧  ˚      . 　* 　✷   ˚   ✫ •̤ᴗ•̤ ✫　✧  ˚      . 　* 　✷   ˚   ✫

yeah, thats it! i love writing stuff like this so definitely expect more. also feel free to send me suggestions in my asks! id love to do requests!

DONT repost without credit. it takes a lot of time to write these. repost ONLY with credit!!

[armaxlucis]

🖊🖊🖊

Send me a “🖊+an OC“ and I will talk about that OC! It can be a headcanon, a fun fact, a small paragraph of backstory- anything!

//I’m not sure which of my muses you don’t know yet aaa let me just talk about my recent ones

This is Alstromeria. Nobody ever knows whether they’re a man or a woman except for the seven great sages that raised them. Truthfully, they’re agender as they don’t have reproductive organs. They’re an envoy of God sent to keep the balance of the world. They’re the original master and also the best friend of Kiamat (the dragon). 

As the supposed to be Messiah, Alstromeria always lived without freedom, and live to fulfil people’s expectations for them. When they saves people, they’re seen as God’s blessing. When they failed to save people, they’re blamed, cursed. And it has went on for more than a hundred years. 

Alstromeria was born with human parents, but never saw their parents as they were immediately sent to the great temple where the seven great sage raised him as the messiah. They were able to befriend children of the sages, but then as time passes, they realize that their growth stopped after their age reach 20, and they have to watch their friends grow up older than them, watch them becoming the new sages, watch them die too. And since then, Alstromeria did not befriend anyone else. Only Kiamat stayed by their side. 

Alstromeria journeyed through the world, helping the people that needs them. However humans are selfish, even if they help the humans, ask them to stop war, humans did not learn from their mistake. 

Seeing its best friend suffer through hundreds of years, Kiamat cursed the world, offering its flesh, and gave birth to the monsters called Noro. Alstromeria saw the apocalypse happening, but refused to give up on humanity. And so, Alstromeria sealed Kiamat in the deep abyss, and blessed humanity with the power called Arte Soul to fight back the Noros. Alstromeria used up all their power, and died in the deep abyss. 

---

I don’t want to write too long lmao but I’ll just talk a bit about Saya, the researched that saves Haguma and then adopt him to be her little brother. Saya initially joined the research because her mother died from the same illness that took Eugene’s sister’s life. Samsara project was known to public as the research project to find a cure of that illness. However, when she realized the truth about the project, and when she saw the Kiamat vassals that are experimented on, she couldn’t take it and planned an escape plan with Clovis and Faiv. In the end, she could only take Haguma with her.  She died several years later when Eugene’s men found her.

---

Karis, Chess’ roommate who claims to be homosexual. His brother used to work as Chess’ father’s assistant. He’s very good when it comes to obtaining and analyzing information. He doesn’t join any guild, but he likes hanging out with Arma Lucis. He also help them a lot when it comes to information gathering. He knows Rashe’s love interest towards Chess and helps her a lot.

[orangememory]

Nirvana in Fire 2, Episode 6 Recap

First, A MERRY CHRISTMAS/ HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO EVERYONE!

With that short transmission, lets get back! Though the release has sped ahead to Episode 12, with subs I am confined to Episode 6. This episode brings us some more court politics, more sweet family moments, some open secrets, some secondhand embarrassment for Pingjing and the mention of an old LYB fave and the introduction of a new hottie!

Last Episode:

In Episode 5, Pingjing and Co. faced a betrayal, snuck their way out of an evil plot, and the wonderful Da Sao, Meng Qianxue blew us all away. The Minister behind all this evil was arrested, but there seem to be so many loose ends. It will be an interesting ride to see the hidden motivations of these people. Last Episode, we ended with Minister Song’s confession and a list of collaborators, with Grand Secretary Xun turning paler and paler at the thought.

Episode 6 Recap:

- The Emperor reads the list of people who have colluded with Song Fu and remarks derisively that Song Fu is just stalling for time, that he cannot trust the names on the list. He hands this task over to Grand Secretary Xun (Who I will be now abbreviating as Sec Xun for ease) as the Head Minister. You may miss if you dont look for it, but the reporting Minister of Justice looks ever so slightly alarmed and turns his head to Sec Xun. Hmmm.

- The Emperor also bids Cai Quan junior to interrogate PA Qin/Duan Tongzhou and report the results to his brother, because even if his brother doesnt show it outwardly, he is very curious about the case. Its nice how well the Emperor understands Tingsheng, but really bby, dont show it in front of this bunch of connivers? The Emperor definitely has a bit of the buffalo genes, both in good ways and bad ways - he cannot hide the favour of the people he cares for.

- Our two adorabros are now chatting over tea. (Let me just take a detour to mention how much I like the way they have done the tea with the elegant ladles and stuff, quite different from NIF where they had pretty jade teapots and MCS would pour it so delicately aah yes. It looks so normal but so cool at the same time?) Little Diving Dragon mentions that Song Fu, the ex-central secretary and main plotter of the supply line cut, has denied any involvement with General Ji of the Shanliu Army, while General Ji has just said the opposite. Like his uncle, Pingjing thinks one of them is lying. Pingzhang, however, smells a rat and says its possible they both speak the truth, because PA Qin/Firemaster Duan was the go-between for these deals, and he isnt an ordinary man - possibly has his own agenda. Pingzhang asks younger bro to report it to Justice Minister Wu.

- We then have a moment with our flawless Da Sao, who cannot get any prettier in blue and white. They have definitely retained a bit of Nihuang’s aesthetic there. Da Sao visits ice doctor extraordinaire Lin Xi, and thanks her and invites her to Changlin Manor for a follow-up. She also asks Lin Xi to call her jie-jie, looking at her very curiously like she is either interested in her or wants to totally ship Pingjing with her. I prefer the first! (Goddamnit now I want to write Da Sao/Lin Xi/Pingzhang fic YAAAAS)

- The Empress Xun receives her older brother, none other than Sec Xun (Phone please stop correcting this to Sex cunt like what even). From the tip-off last episode from Ancient Chinese Rasputin Pu, she knows something is up in court - and enquires of her brother’s involvement - who declines any role in it, considering he must protect the Empress and the Crown Prince’s place.

- In the meantime, Duan Tongzhou escapes from the Celestial prison. Not really difficult cause he can melt through shit- but it looks like a clean getaway, possibly some help on the inside? Hmm.

- An introduction of a new hottie! On their way back to Changlin Manor, Da Sao and Lin Xi’s carriage runs into Head Priest Pu’s, who comes out in all snakey glory and apologises. This exchange is interrupted by the second broad-chested and upright piece of deliciousness (with Xie Bi’s unfortunate centre part hairstyle) Xun Feizhan, the current Commander of the Imperial Guards (Jinjun). I don’t know who this actor is but wow, does he match our darling Meng-dage in bearing, who used to hold the same position in nIF. He request Da Sao to take another route, citing Duan Tongzhou was seen in this area. When Rasputin Pu also seeks to scurry away, Commander Xun asks him where he was planning to go. Now Feizhan has an ice face but it is clear to hell and back he disapproves of Pu, and thinks he is suspicious. And since Firemaster Duan has escaped in this very area….hmmm….

- Time for a little backstory! And we learn more about Meng Da-ge’s future life! (BAWLS LOUDLY) We already know Qianxue is his grandniece, and Xun Feizhan is her shi-xiong (senior apprentice brother), both having trained under Meng Zhi personally! Meng Zhi had reached the top of the Langya Charts, and Qianxue remembers him being biased, and teaching Feizhan a lot more than her. She thinks of Feizhan fondly, but they rarely see each other.

- I interrupt this recap to bawl a little about Meng Zhi. When Lin Xi called him ‘Lao Daren’ I felt so sad because our funny, goofy, loyal to a fault Meng Da-ge retired as a famous old minister. Meng Da-ge is gone, he isnt around. :’( I always had this headcanon that Meng Zhi adopted Fei Liu as a son. And it would have been so cool if others like Xia Dong were around, giving Meng Zhi a knock and teaching Qianxue how to be badass. There must be fic of this, there must.

- Sec Xun returns to his humble abode, where our escapee Duan Tongzhou makes an appearance. Sec Xun asks him to get lost, while Duan tells Sec Xun he is here to serve him - now that Song Fu has fallen, only Sec Xun understands their common goal. Sec Xun denies any involvement as before, but puh-leez, you’re letting a major criminal escape. You be far from innocent old man. Duan Tongzhou says he will return later to him, and doesn’t want to cause Sec Xun trouble - but then he does juuuuust that by leaving a burned handprint on the furniture which doesn’t help with the decor. Just as Duan leaves, our Commander Xun, Feizhan steps in. Ah, Sec Xun is his uncle! And the Empress is def his aunt then. In the middle of these horrid schemers, Feizhan looks like an upright soul. He does notice the odd handprint though, but he says nothing.

- Pingjing gets schooled by papa and big bro as he rants against the poor Justice Minister for losing Duan ‘deliberately.’ Papa Tingsheng is furious with him, reminding him he has no place to accuse a man like that - while big bro settles papa’s anger. I swear, this series is adorable where they teach Pingjing life lessons. He is unbridled, and needs to learn to be cautious.

- Sec Xun and Feizhan present their parts of the case to the Emperor, where Sec Xun has possibly exonerated some of his own people, saying many officials had been tricked, and implicating 5 officials. Feizhan looks a little askance, suspecting something - but the Emperor is furious that such treacherous subjects exist, and he bursts out coughing badly in his fury. Later, Snakey-man and his golden yo-yo make an appearance, trying to calm the Emperor’s cough - and the Empress entrusts her husband’s health to her head priest. The Emperor looks very unimpressed though - like he doesn’t care about this hocus-pocus.

- Lin Xi attends to her patient Pingzhang, who very casually asks her for her age/birthdate, saying how her bearing is steady unlike boys of the same age like Pingjing. Lin Xi betrays no reaction - but she does do something else that piques my interest. Da Sao talks to her for a bit, while she notices some beautiful boxes, possibly for jewelry or makeup, and again, smells something (literally I mean). While leaving, Lin Xi tells Da Sao how beautiful her hands are, feeling her wrist. I suspect she took a sneaky pulse. But why? We will be soon to find out! (Also Lin Xi completely reminds me of Consort Jing in these situations, sniffing out possible poisons, being generally badass. I love this girl)

- Da Sao asks Pingzhang about the birthdate business, where he mentions that the Old Master Li, Lin Xi’s shifu, had specifically mentioned her age - when it wasnt required or even casually stated during a conversation. Pingzhang also must have a clue about Lin Xi’s identity. 

- Next, Pingzhang and Pingjing head to the Palace to offer their Greetings to their uncle, the Emperor - whom Pingzhang could not report to because of his illness, and Pingjing is plain afraid of being scolded by his uncle. :D On the way, they meet Feizhan, who is on first name terms with the Changlin boys, they must be good friends. (Also, Feizhan and Pingzhang look so suited together as friends). Then follows a most adorable exchange, where it is clear how much the Emperor indulges his nephews. He quickly helps raise Pingzhang from his bow, offers him a seat even, and scolds Pingjing for being away from home. He also ribs Pingjing about the whole prisoner incident, and how he never expected TS to train his boys like that. Pingjing even talks back, saying the Emperor always favours his dad, and wont take his side. 

- WHY MUST THIS FAMILY BE SO HAPPY AND CUTE? As I have said in earlier episodes, it is a major credit to all the actors that they have this natural, easy bond. In NIF1, it was mostly that the Xiao family was fighting in an ugly manner, and most of the friendships were between found families (and sorry but MCS and Jingyan’s bond is a bit too outside familial boundaries for me if you know what I mean ;P). Here it is good to see all these loving uncles and nephews. 

- However, this adorableness is followed by what smells like a third birth secret in this show. (We’re counting Lin Xi and Papa Tingsheng, of course) Pingjing is sent off to visit the Crown Prince, and the Emperor now scolds Pingzhang - referring to that trip he took to Langya Hall and the secret answer he burned away. The Emperor doesn’t explicitly state anything, but that Pingzhang should have asked his father directly for the answers - and that he has a few truths to share with his nephew. 

- When Pingzhang was officially declared the Changlin heir, the Emperor was against it - but soon he accepted Tingsheng’s decision, because Pingzhang is smart as hell and the perfect child for the elders, whereas Pingjing is a free bird. Pingzhang still wishes for Pingjing to inherit, but the Emperor says that he loves Pingjing a lot - and would rather see him happily protected by his brother and dad rather than have responsibilities. Also, he cannot imagine leaving his son to anyone else other than Pingzhang. He then orders a litter chair brought for his nephew for him to travel to the Eastern Palace. Now this is a big, big deal, because only senior royals were allowed such liberties in the Palace. It just warms my heart how NICE this Emperor is. He also says that as long as he and Tingsheng are around, nothing will happen. That foreboding is so so bad.

- So we do not get any clarity about what Pingzhang asked, but suffice to say our boy is possibly adopted, and I think from some objectionable or strange origins, such as TS himself in NIF. My money is on him being some enemy foundling.

- In the meantime, our Toothy Little Dragon has already bumped into Head Priest Pu and rudely shaken him off in a bid to quickly go meet his cousin. Pingjing starts flying across the Palace rooftops because he has forgotten where the Eastern Palace is, when Pingzhang spots and severely reprimands his brother. This is going to become a theme, isn’t it - Pingjing’s lack of finesse and older bro teaching him how to operate? I think maybe this part is shown too often where Pingjing is scolded for his naivete and sometimes flagrant disregard for etiquette. We get it Hai Yan, he is supposed to be carefree and childish - dont drill it into us again and again please. It becomes repetitive after a point. 

 - The cute Crown Prince Yuanshi is every class’ nightmare or the kid who does Algebra on Christmas eve, he has been given a day off yet he insists on practicing calligraphy while Tiger mom looks on and snarks how late Changlin bros are. I swear the Empress is my mom, because my mom at least owns that amount of gold hair jewelry and she does the same snarking whenever I invite my friends over.

- Delinquent cousin (at least in the Empress’ eyes) Pingjing saunters along with a loud ‘Yuanshi!’ lifting his cousin up to make him fly. Both cousins are lost to the world, while Pingzhang looks on them with dawning horror and the Empress burns with barely controlled rage at having been outright ignored and her son just called by name. Pingzhang manages to break them up, bowing several times despite his injury, to apologise to the Empress and the Crown Prince on Pingjing’s behalf. 

-The Empress snarks a bit, and doesnt want to allow Yuanshi to run off from algebra, the secret of ruling an empire - but Pingjing counters it again by saying that Grandpa Jingyan used to ask the boys to train in the inside and outside, so Yuanshi should get some fresh air. The daggers in the Empress’ eyes are also reminiscent of my mum, but really, Pingjing should know how to comport himself better in front of his elders and the royal family. Just because his uncle gives him leeway he should not be running so wild, it gave me a lot of secondhand embarrassment for one. 

- We end with Da Sao and Lin Xi building their womance (yaaaaaas) where Lin Xi uses it to obtain Da Sao’s cosmetics box for a few days, which we learn is gifted from the Empress in Da Sao’s dowry. She’s still doing her sniffing thing - and I have watched too many Inner Palace dramas with tainted boxes so forgive me for being jaded when i realise exactly what intrigue is going on. But for that, we need to go to the next episode.

Thoughts:

Aaaaah why are my recaps getting so long? I think it’s mainly because in NIF, there were so many little things and details that I missed the first 2-3 times I watched, and only learnt to appreciate much, much later when I saw this. I am caught up till Episode 10 of the subs, but recapping makes me remember a lot of things that I tend to appreciate.

I think in this episode I was just looking at all the aesthetics everywhere - so much white and blue in everyone’s clothes, the interesting new uniforms of the Palace maids which are much more opulent. NIF2 seems to have the same care with little details as NIF1, the way things are arranged, the way people move and interact with each other is lovely. It definitely deserves praise for this.

I also really enjoyed the introduction of Xun Feizhan, and from the future episodes we know he will be a key player in our game, and he may have a few heartbreaking decisions to make.

The plot is again, a little sedate with the intrigue currently - but from what I have seen in the future - there are lots of new developments, new revelations and a few crisscrossing lines.Will be back with Episode 7 soon!

[wrath-and-regret-blog]

VERY LONG CHARACTER SURVEY.

RULES. repost; do not reblog! tag 10! good luck!

TAGGED BY: tagged by @luck-crowned who requested Velkyn and/or Kaladin, and my dumb ass went for both XD

TAGGING: I haven’t got anyone to tag yet RIP

(( 1. Velkyn ))

BASICS.

FULL NAME: Velkyn Kilana

NICKNAME/S: ‘Vel’ (previously only used by his foster father, but then the nickname was adopted and used by the leader of the Assassin’s Guild, causing the rest of the guild to quickly follow suit. Now it can be used by just about anyone who decides that those extra three letters are just too much.)

AGE: 45 (In human years, but looks closer to mid-20s physically. Pretty young, by elven standards.)

BIRTHDAY: Sometime in Winter (Earth month equivalent: Mid-January)

ETHNIC GROUP: Drow Elf

NATIONALITY: Underdark (in D&D verse), Rivaini (in Dragon Age verse)

LANGUAGE/S: Common, Undercommon, Thieves’ Cant, Elvish (In both D&D and DA verses)

SEXUAL ORIENTATION: Bisexual AF, buddy pal, and a total disaster.

ROMANTIC ORIENTATION: Same as above, but with like twice as big of a disaster on the horizon. He doesn’t know how to express his emotions in any healthy fashion and would most likely struggle forever with just admitting he cared about someone.

RELATIONSHIP STATUS: Currently single in all verses

CLASS: Basically lower than dirt in most circles. Pretty high up in the assassin’s guild though, so there’s that.

HOMETOWN / AREA: The city inside Mount Wryoz in the Underdark.

CURRENT HOME: He no longer has anywhere that he thinks of as home, spending his current life wandering and taking contracts where he can find them. At the moment though, he is attempting to bring down a cult and rescue his foster father, despite the rift he’s wedged between them.

PROFESSION: He is a skilled assassin, in both ability and mindset, showing no mercy towards his targets or enemies and making sure that the killing strike does it’s job without any room for doubt. There are times when it actually gives him a sense of enjoyment to have such control over life and death, since he has such little control of his own.

PHYSICAL.

HAIR: A bright halo of soft white curls, worn long and tied back into a tail with bangs that commonly fall into his face. Though often matted with blood and gore, it can be washed and brushed to near perfection with the right amount of care.

EYES: Pale pink in color with a blood red burst in the center. Giving off a bright glow in the dark, his eyes are sharp and focused and burn like fire when turned towards the source of his anger. His eyes are large and expressive, almond shaped and angled, bordered by long pale eyelashes.

NOSE: Slender, with a sharp, slightly upturned tip, A large scar stretches horizontally across the bridge, from one cheek to the other. He has a habit of scrunching it when he thinks.

FACE: An oval-shaped face with delicated elven features. Or, at least, they would be delicate, if he didn’t make such vicious expressions. 

LIPS: Full, slightly marked by splits and bite marks, as he tends to chew at his bottom lip when he’s stressed. Often curled in a snarl or twisted in a deep frown. Perhaps his smile might be beautiful, but he doesn’t give a damn.

COMPLEXION: A deep dark brown, nearly true black, creating a striking contrast between his skin and his icy locks of hair. 

BLEMISHES: Scarred from head to toe, thanks to his years or struggling and painful lessons. Most notably, the scar across his nose, a slice taken out of his right ear, near it’s pointed tip, and a scar on his left shoulder from where he was stabbed just below his collarbone. That particular wound was recieved on his first assassination contract, but his recklessness doesnt seem to have lessened.

TATTOOS: No tattoos, but there is the brand of his guild on the heel of his left foot.

HEIGHT: 5′1″. He is...so small.

WEIGHT: 105 lbs. Just about anyone could lift him, so long as he wasn’t resisting.

BUILD: Slender, acrobatic, with wiry whipchord muscle throughout his body. His arms and shoulders are especially strong, despite his small frame. Though he is athletic, he isn’t especially bulky. He could even be seen as graceful at times, though it is a brutal, powerful grace. 

ALLERGIES: None

USUAL HAIRSTYLE: Long and usually tied back in a tail with a blue chord. it is only down while he sleeps or occassionally weaved into a braid if he has the time.

USUAL EXPRESSION: More often than not, Vel’s expression is grim, only shifting when he’s feeling particularly sarcastic or when he’s hit by some intensely strong emotion. Lips set in a firm line, eyes narrowed and focused, brows furrowed, staring down a brick wall would be easier.

USUAL CLOTHING: Dark colors, loose fits, things that are easy to move in, easy to fight in and don’t draw too much attention. He wears a few pieces of leather armor alongside his clothing and his gauntlets are a constant piece of equipment. Wickedly spiked at the knuckles and often bloodstained, his gauntlets are his weapons of choice, lending his punches a deadly touch.

PSYCHOLOGY.

FEAR/S: Helplessness, weakness, the trust of others (and failing them), having his heart broken, getting close to people, heights

ASPIRATION/S: For the most part, Velkyn has always aspired to be strong. Unbreakable, even. He wants to carve a place for himself in the world than no one and nothing can touch. A place that no one can take from him. Though he’d never admit, he just wants somewhere or something to call home.

POSITIVE TRAITS: Dedicated, determined, strong-willed, protective (though he won’t admit it.), clever, justice-oriented.

NEGATIVE TRAITS: A liar, especially to himself and especially about feelings. Violent, quick-tempered, hostile, extreme aversion to unwarrented touching, sarcastic, cynical, emotionally unstable, merciless

MBTI: ISTP

ENNEAGRAM: Type 5 - The Investigator (With some tones of Type 8 in there but mostly Type 5)

ZODIAC: Capricorn

TAROT: 10 of Swords, The Tower (some pretty negative cards tbh)

TEMPERAMENT: Melancholic

SOUL TYPE/S: Hunter and Leader are nearly tied.

ANIMAL: Tested as a Badger, which was pretty accurate by the description, but I’ve always assosciated him with a wolf or an especially cranky house cat.

VICE/S: Wrath, above all else, he is wrath. He’s brimming with rage and pain and vengeance. His temper could burn a hole through any adversary. As for physical vices, he’s a bit of a gambler, but not really to excess.

FAITH: Atheistic. He never really developed an interest in any form of faith or religion. I anything matters the least to him, it’s that.

GHOSTS?: Yes. Very much so.

AFTERLIFE?: Not particularly. He finds the idea that people expect there to be a place for them to live after they’re done living a bit...entitled?

REINCARNATION?: He’s considered it, but it’s not really a strong belief of his.

ALIENS?: None of that concerns him much. He’s not in the habit of believing in anything intangible. It just doesn’t matter to him, since it doesn’t effect him.

POLITICAL ALIGNMENT: complete lawlessness and disregard for authority. Anarchy is best, as far he’s concerned. The only reason he’d pay attention to politics is if he was hired to kill a political figure.

ECONOMIC PREFERENCE: He has been dirt poor for the majority of his life until he started taking on contracts. Money is nice to have, but he knows how to survive without it. Budgeting is something his foster father taught him to do well, but, if left without money, he has other ways to get what he needs.

SOCIOPOLITICAL POSITION: Despite his cutthroat ruthlessness, he despises descrimination and opression, fully believing that no person should own another. Chains are meant to be broken, as are those who would use them. In his lower class position, he has faced things like abuse, distrust and the threat of slavery all his life. He isn’t able to just stand by and watch those things happen to others.

EDUCATION LEVEL: Very low in terms of academics. Has only a basic understanding of math and cannot read very well at all. His foster father only taught him as much as he could. His practical education has been quite extensive, however, as has his criminal education.

FAMILY.

FATHER: (Biological) Evard’rian, a Drow blacksmith, cruel, domineering, controlling. (Adoptive) Kilan, a Drow assassin, intelligent, witty, a master of stern-but-affectionate parenting. Never thought he would have children, but couldn’t bring himself to leave Vel to die as a child.

MOTHER: Maevaria, a Drow midwife, killed in a murder-suicide by Velkyn’s biological father. volitile emotions, but extremely loyal and protective of her son. To the extent where she steps in between Velkyn and the killing blow delivered by his father.

EXTENDED FAMILY: To his knowledge, no blood relations that he’s ever met, though I suppose the whole of the Assassin’s Guild qualifies.

SIGNIFICANT OTHER(S): Currently none.

NAME MEANING/S: Unknown. ‘Vel’ is apparently a Hindu name, meaning the divine javelin spear associated with War God Karthikeya. “Kyn’ is a Vietnamese name, meaning ‘the golden one’.

HISTORICAL CONNECTION: There really isn’t much. His gauntlets have a short but bloody history and he himself has quite the reputation in...certain circles.

FAVORITES.

BOOK: He doesn’t really have any. He’s never read a full book on his own and no one has ever read him one.

MOVIE: He’s the sort to like horror movies and psychological thrillers, though, outside those genre confines, his favorites would be things like V for Vendetta, Sin City, Seven, Blade Runner, etc.

DEITY: He got Hades on the test. Accurate

MONTH: No specific preference, just not anywhere from June through August, the weather is way too hot for him.

SEASON: Winter, as his body retains heat too easily. Summer heat is too much for him and he’s miserable all throughout it.

PLACE: He hasn’t really got one.

WEATHER: Storms. Rain, wind, thunder, lightning, all of it is thrilling for him and the feeling of rain on his skin is one of his favorites.

SOUND: His favorite sound is likely the wind throught the trees or the crackling of fire or the distant roll of thunder. Natural sounds that aren’t grating or too distracting.

SCENT/S: Even though he can’t read, he’s always liked the smell of ink on parchment. Also the smell of the ocean.

TASTE/S: He enjoys strong spices and salty foods. He likes some alcohols, particularly ale and rum. Tastes that hit hard and have a bit of kick to them are his preference. He doesn’t like most sweets but he does enjoy chocolate at times. He also enjoys the taste of rare meat.

FEEL/S: coarse fabrics as well as soft fabrics. cold glass or smooth-cut gems. The edge of a blade, good quality leather, gthe feeling of fingers or a brush through his hair. The feeling of raindrops on his skin.

ANIMAL/S: He likes most animals, particularly felines. He’s most definitely a cat-person, but horses are also some of his favorite creatures. Both animals are very intelligent and good company for him.

NUMBER: He doesn’t like numbers. Math is his least favorite thing.

COLOR: Dark colors, such as wine reds, black, deep blues, etc. as well as earthy colors like reddish-browns and greens and burnt oranges. He also likes seafoam green, though he is unsure why it appeals to him.

EXTRA.

TALENTS: He’s excellent at hand-to-hand combat, and ‘interrogation’. He’s delightfully efficient at killing people, if that counts? And making poisons. And singing, strangely enough. He has a very good voice.

BAD AT: Reading, math, keeping in control of his emotions, using ranged weapons of any kind (very nearsighted and doesn’t have/know he needs glasses), FEELING THINGS????? ADMITING FEELING????, Expressing any tenderness at all.

TURN-ONS: Trust, competence, a certain degree of cynicism, understanding, the willingness to see him as a person and not a weapon, honesty, experience, a healthy disregard for the law.

TURN-OFFS: Being looked down upon, being treated like he’s less than someone else, blind idealism, ‘white-knight syndrome’, disrespect of his abilities/being percieved as weak, sugar coating things.

HOBBIES: Taking walks, exploring, occassional gambling, BEING COMPLETELY RECKLESS, DESTROYING THE ESTABLISHMENT, getting into street/bar fights, stargazing

TROPES: Professional Killer, Combat Parkour, Close-Range Combatant, Hair-Trigger Temper, Insult of Endearment, Anti-hero, Hitman With A Heart, Street Smart, Rebellious Spirit

AESTHETIC TAGS: ;Aesthetic ( VELKYN ) Real simple tbh 

I will be making a seperate post for Kaladin’s since this is hella long!

[chipsahoyforyaboi]

My first guild application at 13..

1. Name/Character name "Example" Brian, aka Nudist

 Taylor, aka Tyrrlin

2. Age

 13

3. Sex

 Female, im a girl

4. Current/Home Servers

 Eredar

5. Do you have any alts? If so, list them here.

A  Tyrlinne 85 frost dk

A Drizzie 85 survival hunter

A Tialii 85 disc priest

 H Nazuglo 85 fire mage

A Kixaria 78 prot warrior

A Zeldinkara 62 sub rogue

A Supercute 30 ret pally

6. When did you start playing?

 bc, i played on your account lol

7. Do you PvP/like to do so?

 Yes, I pvp all the time, i suck though, its fun when you win <333

8. What content have you experienced?

 Dragon Soul 6/8 heroic

9. What can you bring to Game Over?

 Boss ass dps

10. What is your overall philosophy on raiding?

Raiding is fun, but not when people are derps

11.Please acknowledge that we dont tolerate babies loot whores drama queens or any other varied attention whore within guild.

 Im an attention whore

12. What do you do in order to prepare for a raid/raid night?

 I SOMETIMES look up the fight, but i always have pots, and a back up flask

13. What are your feelings on reforging/enchanting/regemming/respecing for raid benefit half-way through a run? ( please acknowledge the fact you might need to do so depending on class/needs )

 If its for the raid, im down

14. Do you have any real life/ In-game friends on wow?

 Alot of guildies are my friends, no none of my friends play WoW that im aware of

15. Tell us a little about yourself that this application hasn't covered.

 Im super duper annoying

16. What are your plans for leveling/raiding in MOP?

 I will probably play, but not as much as i am playing now during cata

17. What is your exact current DS experience?

 6/8 heroic :D

18. Is the character your applying to your main? If not currently list previous alt-main swaps.

 Yes Tyrrlin is my main

19. Do you do RBG'S in any form? Do you do arenas ( serperate from general pvp )

 I would like to but no one wants a 13 year old girl to pvp

20. What kind of raid attendence do you keep? (With a more casual raiding schedule, we expect good attendence, however acknowledge the fact that real life happens, and unexplained weeks away from the game do as well, all that is asked is to be let known in some way shape or form if you're going to be on hiatis, or late/missing to a raid or raids ).   I have shown up late a few times, but never missed a raid 

21. Do you have Ventrilo?

 Yep

22. What are your computers specs?

 idk its your computer silly

23. Our raid times are Tue/Thurs 7:30-12:00 EST, please acknowledge your capability to make times, as well as the fact you're aware due to our casual schedule higher attendence is a must.

 I can attend, you could break my legs irl if i didn't show xD

24. If your computer was to break mid-raid night during progression, what would your reaction/solution be?

 I'd be like OMG WTF, then i'd let you know its broke, and try to get it fixed that night or before next raid

25. What methods of contacting you are available?

 I live with you, ummm yeah...

26. Do you play any other games aside from WoW?

 Xbox and Gamecube, no other online games, i would like to play LoL again

27. What is your view on hardcore progression nights?

 We get down 1 or more bosses we didn't have down before,

28. If needed or asked to prepare to a higher degree on a raid night, What is your solution?

 Go over numbers, get my flasks/pots ready, and try my best :)

29. What forms of theorycrafting do you use? ( Where and how do you determine what your top spec, geming, reforging, and overall class perspectives are? )

 I confer with my officer "Minilok" and i also know alot of my base stats, Spec i did what seemed best, and i seem to know a bit about my class :)

30. Please Understand, all the crying and whining from people gkicked from Game Over aside, we're a family and like to keep it that way, and the mentality of this being your home is as important for anyone coming in, as it is to feel welcome and wanted after being invited.

There are assholes where ever you go, and some people don't understand that, but most people i get along well with

31. Our trial period in-game is 2 weeks. What are you used to?

 I've never raided with anyone else ;)

32. Do you have any leadership experience?

 I lead some 5 man regular pvp bgs sometimes

33. Do you stand in fire?

 Not going to lie, i have in the past. Its down to about 1/10 times now though :D

34. If asked to sit on a progression fight due to one reason or another ( generally being lack of dps or a required certain spec/class to ease a situation ) what is your reaction?

 Okay, thats fine, shit happens ^.^

35. How do you take criticism?

 I don't take it well, but i know its needed so i get over it

36. Are you thin skinned? our vent is comprised of cock and fart jokes often, and can have the competitive feel, its not uncommon to be direct when talking to someone having a hard time on content to figure out what the issue might be, while it doesnt go as far as generally insulting the person, it definately will question a significant issue if the content is destroying said persons capability to do the fight.

I can take a joke and im not too thin skinned anymore

37. Nudist does yell if someone dies repeatedly to something stupid, how do you feel about this?

 They shouldn't die to the same thing over and over, 1 time oh okay it happens, 2 times umm okay?, 3 wtf

38. Do you use keybinds?

 Not really

39. What do you keybind?

 Just have the normal spells that are dots and incinerate for my rotation

40. Give us a screenshot of your UI.

 You can lean over and look at my screen lol

41. What key mods do you use to your game?

 idk what that means ^

42. With everything said and done with this application, is there anything you'd like to add?

 Im already in the guild but i feel we should have an archive of guild apps, so i'd like to be the first to submit

43. Angedechu is NOT a jedi, although mentally he could possibly be one. Are you a jedi?

L M F A O  Angedechu can do anything if he says "I CAN DO EEEET" <3 lmfao love you ange, and yes im a super jedi, no im not i've never see the start wars movies

[nakedfullmonty-fr]

by the way when i say temahae isnt in ogygia anymore i dont mean shes like Gone. and not in more lore any more

im not 100% on where i want her story going but im working on it bcos i love her very much (been working on a design for her so ill probbaly draw her soon too)

for now the basics of her lore is that shes a magical prodigy. the way i have my lore all mis-match means that basically people can have 2 kinds of magic, a major and a minor. ones magic major is their flight magic that theyre naturally predisposed to, but with study and training its possible for a dragon to gain a magic minor, which is just the magic of another flight. an example of this would be one of my other dragons, locket, whos major magic is ice bcos hes an ice dragon, but is minor magic is arcane bcos thats what he studies (he actually puts more study into his arcane magic more than his ice magic but thats a story for another day)

of course, being a magical prodigy means that tem isnt confined to the natural magical limits of two-magics like most dragons. theoretically she could learn all 11 elemental magics and possibly beastclan magic (which i headcanon is different from dragon magic). it would take her almost a lifetime of travel, study and training to do so but theorically she could do it. this journey is how she came upon ogygia to begin with, and her magical prowess is what allowed her to survive travelling alone from a very young age

she laments staying so long with her found family on ogygia studying water magic as she originally intended to spread her years within each flight more evenly to achieve her goal of studying all magics (her major magic is ice, and shes proficient in water magic from living in ogygia, and knows a little wind magic from when she passed through on her way over, and a little light magic as ogygias culture is mixed with light culture)

she follows @astrotheology / @astrotheology-fr ‘s ice lore in that while only ice dragons were granted eternal souls (and the first progens immortality), she also knows that progenitors are heavily infused with their god’s magic and their own element, and thus while not entirely immortal, they are very difficult to kill. knowing that both her adoptive parents yastrebok and niet are progentiors, she chose to leave her home and her siblings behind and migrate north once the civil war broke out

to most who ask she’ll say its because she didnt want to stay and watch her home and her family rip each other to pieces until theres nothing left because her parents wont die, but there is a deeper reason thats a secret.

tem is the only person niet has ever confided to about the shade’s curse, since they have a very close kinda mom-daughter relationship. niet doesnt expect anything from her once she tells her, but asks her to keep it a secret from everyone else, not wanting to force the bleak outlook of “ogygia will be in torment forever until it is destroyed and niet dies” upon the citizens of their home.

temahae, however, seeing herself as the responsible older sister type, and also being a bit arrogant, decides to re-take up her journey across sornieth to study magic, to better herself but also because she believes that if theres anyone who can find a way to dispel a shade curse, its her.

so now she currently resides on the edge of nature territory, seeing nature as the next logical step in her magic as nature and water, while different magics, are connected naturally. she resides in the abandoned home of a shade-mancer, an area logically left untouched by most nearby clans. she studies the smaller shade creatures left nearby in the hopes of finding the solution to dispelling them, but theres a certain pressure to be quick about it so she can find the cure and get home before theres no home left to go to

[amyddaniels]

6 Ways to Lead With Your Heart—Both On and Off Your Mat

The best part? All of these tactics can help you breathe new life into everything you do, and help you connect more deeply with everyone in your world.

Here are seven ways leading this teacher training in China helped show me how to lead with my heart.

Most communication and connection in today’s age of speed, screens, and memes is done through technology. In many ways, our devices have replaced human interaction. As a result, I believe it is getting easier to live mechanical lives and harder to have meaningful connections and relationships.

One of the reasons why I love yoga—and why I became a yoga teacher—was the opportunity to have meaningful connections, build relationships with like-minded people, and to live my life in service. As a student, I love having a place where I can go to connect to myself while also strengthening my body, slowing my mind, and releasing my emotions. As a teacher, I love to be able to share what I know about the practice and the yogic principles in hopes to empower people to feel strong and connected in their lives.

How Teaching Yoga in China Changed Me

I had been teaching yoga daily since I began 15 years ago and what started out as a couple of weeks off turned into a 6-month hiatus from teaching group classes. In fact, I was considering quitting teaching yoga altogether until I was asked to facilitate a 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training in Shanghai, China, where it turned out my heart was in for a jumpstart and my yoga teacher trainees were the jumper cables.

Because of my small, minimal, Americanized view of China, I expected the students would have strong physical practices and they would be very smart, reserved, and strict. Wow, was I wrong! I was blown away by the thoughtful actions and words of gratitude by my kind and expressive group of students that it got me thinking about how a burnt-out yoga teacher is no match for thoughtful and meaningful forms of connection.

What I realized after my experience teaching in China is that now, more than ever, thoughtful and authentic connections may take more effort than their high-tech counterparts, but they are imperative for our health and wellbeing—and the rewards are limitless.

Here are seven ways leading this teacher training in China helped show me how to lead with my heart. Here’s hoping they’ll help you do the same.

See also 10 Spots Every Yogi Needs to Check Out in Tel Aviv

1. Focus on gratitude. 

Research shows that cultivating a daily practice of gratitude can make us happier in our lives by training your mind to see the world through different eyes. It only takes a couple of minutes a day but has long-lasting neural effects on our brain, our happiness, and our overall well-being.

Writing down what you are grateful for strengthens a part of the brain so you will start to see the world differently, looking for positive instead of negative.

2. Think something nice, say something nice. 

An unfortunate side effect of social media is that it has created an “All about Me” culture. To me, there’s nothing better than supporting someone, praising someone, and telling them how amazing, beautiful, supportive, gifted, and awesome they are—with nothing in return.

When Eddie, one of my Shanghai trainees, started sharing his experience on our group chat boards, he had beautiful things to say about me, the training, the other students in the training, and the company that put on the training. His share had a positive chain reaction and inspired the others to share their experience that made us all feel connected, valued and loved.

3. Remind yourself of your strengths. 

Teacher trainings can be tough on the ego. It brings up a lot of our “stuff” and it makes us face the things we are not good at—yet! One of the things we always do in my Teacher Trainings is a practice called “Circle Card Love.” Every trainee goes in the middle of the circle and we all write down on index cards all the qualities we love about that person, all the things they are good at, and then we share what we’ve all written down. It’s a sweet love-fest that always involves lots of laughter and happy tears. Identifying and honoring our strengths rather than focusing on our weaknesses is one of the best ways to practice self-love and build a sense well-being, confidence, and trust—and reduces feelings of jealousy, envy, and judgment.

See also Want to Be More Mindful at Work? These 9 Tactics Actually Work

4. Perform one little act of kindness. 

Two of my trainees, Sara and Claire, insisted that I come to dinner with them—even though neither spoke English very well and I don’t speak Mandarin—so they could help me find Chinese food that I liked. Zhang and Dragon, a married couple in the training, found out that I liked tea, so Dragon set out to the streets of Shanghai to look for famous green tea from their hometown of Huangshan. Thoughtful gestures, whether small or out of the way, make us feel special and cared for. So, keep your eyes open for ways to practice random acts of kindness. Do whatever feels right to you in whatever way you are willing to give. Just make sure it comes from your heart.

5. Give someone a hug. 

At the start of yoga class, I ask my students to close their eyes and measure from 1-10, 10 being the worst, how they are feeling overall. Then, I have them open their eyes, walk around the room, and hug each other. It is so awkward at first. Then, it just feels good. By the time everyone sits down, their faces are brighter, their energy is lighter, and when asked about their 1-10 numbers again, everyone’s numbers lowered. Hugs just make you feel better. If your yoga teacher doesn’t ask you to do a practice like this, simply try staying a little longer when you hug someone you love. You can also try leaning to the right when you hug someone, so your hearts touch.

6. Play some music. 

Studies have found that the comforting effects of music can lower blood pressure, ease stress, and calm the nervous system. On our last day of yoga teacher training, the trainees surprised me by bringing me into a candlelit room, placed me in front of a big heart-shaped alter made with multi-colored rose petals, and while Eddie played his harmonium, the whole group chanted The Gayatri Mantra. The chant, which they had no idea, has special significance to me that brought me back to another time when I had another beautiful soul connection. As they sang and I looked down at this beautiful offering, my heart expanded and I rocked, sang, and cried happy, connecting tears. That’s what music can do. It crosses language barriers, evokes feelings, brings back memories, and connects us to our bodies and to our emotions by bypassing the mind and syncing to our innate rhythm. 

[remedialmassage]

6 Ways to Lead With Your Heart—Both On and Off Your Mat

The best part? All of these tactics can help you breathe new life into everything you do, and help you connect more deeply with everyone in your world.

Here are seven ways leading this teacher training in China helped show me how to lead with my heart.

Most communication and connection in today’s age of speed, screens, and memes is done through technology. In many ways, our devices have replaced human interaction. As a result, I believe it is getting easier to live mechanical lives and harder to have meaningful connections and relationships.

One of the reasons why I love yoga—and why I became a yoga teacher—was the opportunity to have meaningful connections, build relationships with like-minded people, and to live my life in service. As a student, I love having a place where I can go to connect to myself while also strengthening my body, slowing my mind, and releasing my emotions. As a teacher, I love to be able to share what I know about the practice and the yogic principles in hopes to empower people to feel strong and connected in their lives.

How Teaching Yoga in China Changed Me

I had been teaching yoga daily since I began 15 years ago and what started out as a couple of weeks off turned into a 6-month hiatus from teaching group classes. In fact, I was considering quitting teaching yoga altogether until I was asked to facilitate a 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training in Shanghai, China, where it turned out my heart was in for a jumpstart and my yoga teacher trainees were the jumper cables.

Because of my small, minimal, Americanized view of China, I expected the students would have strong physical practices and they would be very smart, reserved, and strict. Wow, was I wrong! I was blown away by the thoughtful actions and words of gratitude by my kind and expressive group of students that it got me thinking about how a burnt-out yoga teacher is no match for thoughtful and meaningful forms of connection.

What I realized after my experience teaching in China is that now, more than ever, thoughtful and authentic connections may take more effort than their high-tech counterparts, but they are imperative for our health and wellbeing—and the rewards are limitless.

Here are seven ways leading this teacher training in China helped show me how to lead with my heart. Here’s hoping they’ll help you do the same.

See also 10 Spots Every Yogi Needs to Check Out in Tel Aviv

1. Focus on gratitude. 

Research shows that cultivating a daily practice of gratitude can make us happier in our lives by training your mind to see the world through different eyes. It only takes a couple of minutes a day but has long-lasting neural effects on our brain, our happiness, and our overall well-being.

Writing down what you are grateful for strengthens a part of the brain so you will start to see the world differently, looking for positive instead of negative.

2. Think something nice, say something nice. 

An unfortunate side effect of social media is that it has created an “All about Me” culture. To me, there’s nothing better than supporting someone, praising someone, and telling them how amazing, beautiful, supportive, gifted, and awesome they are—with nothing in return.

When Eddie, one of my Shanghai trainees, started sharing his experience on our group chat boards, he had beautiful things to say about me, the training, the other students in the training, and the company that put on the training. His share had a positive chain reaction and inspired the others to share their experience that made us all feel connected, valued and loved.

3. Remind yourself of your strengths. 

Teacher trainings can be tough on the ego. It brings up a lot of our “stuff” and it makes us face the things we are not good at—yet! One of the things we always do in my Teacher Trainings is a practice called “Circle Card Love.” Every trainee goes in the middle of the circle and we all write down on index cards all the qualities we love about that person, all the things they are good at, and then we share what we’ve all written down. It’s a sweet love-fest that always involves lots of laughter and happy tears. Identifying and honoring our strengths rather than focusing on our weaknesses is one of the best ways to practice self-love and build a sense well-being, confidence, and trust—and reduces feelings of jealousy, envy, and judgment.

See also Want to Be More Mindful at Work? These 9 Tactics Actually Work

4. Perform one little act of kindness. 

Two of my trainees, Sara and Claire, insisted that I come to dinner with them—even though neither spoke English very well and I don’t speak Mandarin—so they could help me find Chinese food that I liked. Zhang and Dragon, a married couple in the training, found out that I liked tea, so Dragon set out to the streets of Shanghai to look for famous green tea from their hometown of Huangshan. Thoughtful gestures, whether small or out of the way, make us feel special and cared for. So, keep your eyes open for ways to practice random acts of kindness. Do whatever feels right to you in whatever way you are willing to give. Just make sure it comes from your heart.

5. Give someone a hug. 

At the start of yoga class, I ask my students to close their eyes and measure from 1-10, 10 being the worst, how they are feeling overall. Then, I have them open their eyes, walk around the room, and hug each other. It is so awkward at first. Then, it just feels good. By the time everyone sits down, their faces are brighter, their energy is lighter, and when asked about their 1-10 numbers again, everyone’s numbers lowered. Hugs just make you feel better. If your yoga teacher doesn’t ask you to do a practice like this, simply try staying a little longer when you hug someone you love. You can also try leaning to the right when you hug someone, so your hearts touch.

6. Play some music. 

Studies have found that the comforting effects of music can lower blood pressure, ease stress, and calm the nervous system. On our last day of yoga teacher training, the trainees surprised me by bringing me into a candlelit room, placed me in front of a big heart-shaped alter made with multi-colored rose petals, and while Eddie played his harmonium, the whole group chanted The Gayatri Mantra. The chant, which they had no idea, has special significance to me that brought me back to another time when I had another beautiful soul connection. As they sang and I looked down at this beautiful offering, my heart expanded and I rocked, sang, and cried happy, connecting tears. That’s what music can do. It crosses language barriers, evokes feelings, brings back memories, and connects us to our bodies and to our emotions by bypassing the mind and syncing to our innate rhythm. 

from Yoga Journal https://ift.tt/2TgrAgd

[comicteaparty]

October 18th, 2018 CTP Archive

The archive for the Comic Tea Party chat that occurred on October 18th, 2018, from 5PM - 7PM PDT.  The chat focused on The Origin Story by Carolin Reich.

Featured Comment:

Chat:

RebelVampire

COMIC TEA PARTY- THURSDAY BOOK CLUB START!

Good evening, everyone~! This week’s Thursday Book Club is officially beginning! Today we are discussing The Origin Story by Carolin Reich~! (https://tapas.io/series/The-Origin-Story)

Remember that Thursday discussions are completely freeform! However, every 30 minutes I will drop in OPTIONAL discussion questions in case you’d like a bit of a prompt. If you miss out on one of these prompts, you can find them pinned for the chat’s duration. Additionally, remember that while constructive criticism is allowed, our focus is fun and respectfully appreciating the comic. All that said, let’s begin!

QUESTION 1. What is your favorite scene in the comic so far and why?

one of my favorite scenes is actually really depressing XD but i really like the small part of a scene after cosima beats joreal and velver passes by her looking for her. https://tapas.io/episode/974705 something about the illustration on this page is so expertly crafted. like, you can just take one look and see cosima is in shock and kind of dead instead, and the fact its conveyed in such a brief and brillaint way amazes me.

Superjustinbros

Hi there!

RebelVampire

hey SJ

Superjustinbros

Glad to be here

RebelVampire

feel free to share any scenes that you were found of.

Superjustinbros

https://tapas.io/episode/1182515

Here's a pretty silly one

RebelVampire

yes! i really liked the relationship between chaze and his brother. theyre so different in personality. and you kind of have to wonder what happened in the past that caused his brother to leave home and essentially leave chaze in charge. cause chaze is not exactly whod i was as a king necessarily XD

Superjustinbros

Heehee X3

Pretty much

RebelVampire

did you just like it for the silliness or was there something else?

Superjustinbros

the silliness

RebelVampire

any part of the silliness that particularly entertained you or just the whole package?

Superjustinbros

I'd say the "head shake" bit

RebelVampire

yeah thats definitely a great illustration right there~!

Superjustinbros

Indeed

And giant draco daddy

RebelVampire

yeah i liked how the dragon was treated more like a pest than as a dragon XD

Superjustinbros

Dragon jsut wants his pumpkins for Halloween

RebelVampire

in the meantime, another scene i liked was in the elven court where velver did manipulative mumbo jumbo towards nocturne by playing to her fears on being the proxy for chaos. that was just some beautiful a-ok emotional stake driving right there. though i do wonder how much of it was on purpose or if velver was being a jerk. but i like the fact that i dont know for sure because it keeps velver as a bit enigmatic

Superjustinbros

https://tapas.io/episode/1152958 Ooh, so there's some type of modern tech in this world too?

RebelVampire

ummm, well in that part of the world its just cause cosima brought her phone

Superjustinbros

lol right

RebelVampire

another scene im fond of is when nocturne she tells Chaze "nope you gotta figure out how to get yourself out" after freeing him. Chaze has some really great expressions. But i also like the story itself turns my expectations on their head by having Chaze really actually mostly figure out how to escape himself.

Superjustinbros

XD

Yeah that's a good scene

RebelVampire

speaking of head turns, and not so much a scene, but i like that cosima orchestrated her own escape from the brothel and noped out. like im used to stories where the protagonist misbehaves only a fraction (like explore the brothel after being told no dont do that). but cosima just nopes out of there and heads for home, which is a fitting reaction for someone her age.

Superjustinbros

Yeah.

At least it's appropriate for Cosima's age.

Since I see lots of story make the young characters far more intelligent/capable for someone their age

RebelVampire

yes, so i like that she decided to try and nope after all. granted it backfired as it should have, but still the attempt was made

mathtans

I will be another... 15-20 minutes. FYI.

RebelVampire

kay take your time. well be here but i hope you can make it.

mathtans

I liked the rattling off of "chosen one" artifacts like mascots and silver crystals and then be all, if I don't get those, then nevermind.

Superjustinbros

Oh hey Math(edited)

RebelVampire

oh yeah i forgot about that moment in the larger scheme. but that was a really great moment. and again, kind of a more realistic reaction in a sense. cause i think those sorts of things are what ppl expect if they get told theyre the chosen one.

QUESTION 2. Throughout the comic, Velver seems to be up to his own sorts of goals. What do you think Velver’s goals even are? Are they personal, or is this the will of the supposed Church? What do these goals have to do with manipulating the elves to war with the merpeople? What outcome do you think people are hoping to achieve by starting it? Who is Kader, and what’s their intent with Cosima/Riga? Do you feel Velver is loyal to Kader, or is Velver playing the field to achieve his own ends? Lastly, how does Velver know Jorel, and why did Jorel call Velver a traitor?

i will try and tackle the last one first. i feel as if velver must not have always been part of the church by the fact hes a traitor. instead, he joined the church later when he saw the people he was with were "evil." though personally i feel like jorel's group wants to stop the prophecy a different way versus what the church is up to? but this is mostly based on the fact i cant necessarily picture jorel as part of this so-called church

i could be wrong and its totally opposite and the hunters dont realize velver is a double agent who hates the church

im gonna go out on the limb and say i think velver is playing both fields and trying to decide for himself what the best outcome is. and that while he's doing kader's bidding for now, he ultimately is after something else that makes following kader necessary.

Superjustinbros

I second the "prophecy a different way" part, seems like a possible reason.

RebelVampire

i definitely also feel that kader is definitely for sure evil. cause something about the breaking of strings and velver's reactions makes me pretty sure they're a tyrant. XD which makes me pretty sure that they actually dont care about light beating the dark. they just want cosima's powers to do cool power things. maybe take over a kingdom

actually thatd make sense for why they want the elves and the merpeople to war

let the elves and the merpeople tire themselves out

then swoop in with cosima/riga saying "were here to take over"

insta win

Superjustinbros

I mean who doesn't want to rule over a kingdom

mathtans

Okaaaay, hiiii. Busy week, didn't get all the way through "Destiny", but very impressed by the German origins here. Gonna scroll up and make random remarks now.

Re: The scene after the dead parents, yeah, that whole section somehow rang really true, the whole "my parents will be so annoyed I don't want to have to deal" morphing into the "what is even my life now". Also, kudos on illustrations in general.

RebelVampire

yeah. i like that it continues as well to when cosima got caught by the hunters. and she just sits there like "what is life what do i do"

mathtans

I'm not at the brother scene yet. ^.^ Did not expect the dragon thing. I wonder how people who do the swimming/water thing end up with dragons, that we associate with the air.

Yeah. I mean, not only are your parents dead, you come face to face with their killer. Yipes.

Yeah, Cosima's portrayed well as a teenager.

RebelVampire

i did wonder that too. we havent seen the merpeople yet in the sense of their city, so maybe they actually live above water unlike all past precedent merpeople or something

i did think it was ironic

but i also thought it was ironic anyway cause how does chaze of all ppl have a dragon XD

mathtans

Velver's an interesting cookie. Joining up later makes sense, particularly if that made him a "traitor" to some. I feel like he's his own agent, rather than working for anyone else... not necessarily that he's trying to engineer the best outcome either, just that he thinks he has some role to play, prophecy wise.

Superjustinbros

I wonder what the merpeople even look like

unless they already appeared and I jsut missed it

mathtans

Seahorses are called dragons of the sea, right? Maybe that's how they hatch.

RebelVampire

chaze is a mer person

Superjustinbros

ooh

RebelVampire

as is his brother XD

Superjustinbros

Okay then X3

RebelVampire

and i guess thats possible if the dragons are secretly just sea horses

mathtans

I think Velver's been reading the ancient runes. I also have my own crazy theory...

Namely that which one of them is good/order or evil/chaos hasn't necessarily been decided yet. Velver's pegging Cosima for the former, but it could be the other girl, so he's goading her too.

RebelVampire

oh thats a really good theory. that either one is capable. cause i mean tbf chaos doesnt have to be evil nor does order have to be good

mathtans

It's like, "I'm going to start a war, and let's see which of them handles it better".

Superjustinbros

lel

mathtans

It also might explain why Jorel wanted Cosima dead, he (or others of his kind) have pegged her as the chaotic one.

RebelVampire

could be

tbf maybe jorel wasnt even ordered to kill cosima

maybe hes just like velver and think he has his own role to play

Superjustinbros

Maybe so

RebelVampire

and he chose the psycho role

mathtans

Could be. I'm not sure I totally buy he's a psycho though... he's strangely ordered in his thinking. It's like, I gotta do this, and this, and tie up loose ends. He just, I dunno, has no soul?

(Maybe that's the same thing.)

RebelVampire

i mostly label him psycho cause he heartlessly killed her parents XD

mathtans

OH, hmmmm... what if Velver and Jorel were originally the rebirth of order and chaos, and they messed it up, so now it's up to the women? How old are they anyway?

Rebel: Fair.

RebelVampire

QUESTION 3. Many of the events of the comic come about for one reason: Cosima and Nocturne are destined to fight according to a prophecy and past precedence of their past selves. Do you think The Origin Story about Riga and her sister is true, or do you think there’s some critical information missing from it? Do you believe the prophecy is destined to come to pass, or are Cosima and Nocturne going to find a way to avoid fighting each other? Why do you think Cosima was kidnapped as a child but not Nocturne? In present times, what do you think will happen when Cosima catches up with Nocturne? Do you think Cosima will learn to control her powers inherited from Riga better, or will they ultimately be her undoing? What about Nocturne? Will she overcome her own issues regarding the prophecy?

i dont think that old. but i mean i guess its possible. though they must of messed up real bad cause neither velver or jorel killed each other.

so im saying it now cause of that flashback cosima had at some point (which i dont remember where). i think this is one of those situations where what ppl believe is a lie. someone else hurt riga and someone kept turning the new incarnations against each other. and eventually it devolved into a myth and such, as myths tend to do

mathtans

Well, the killing each other is just how things are now, once it's all escalated. ^.^

There's probably key missing information... maybe they're actually TRIPLETS.

RebelVampire

dun dun dun without the 3rd sister there are no negotians. jsut blind filled rage

mathtans

Yeah, there has been some interesting flashback/imagery stuff. Like when she reached for someone, and the image shattered and it was Velver (if memory serves).

I wonder if Cosima's friends have a role to play too. Maybe in a big twist, it was really one of them.

RebelVampire

they definitely have a role to play. they are suspicious af, though idk if you got to that part yet

mathtans

Ahh, if they appear in "Destiny" then no. I only got to the bit after Velver and Jorel talked. (I feel like they're related, incidentally.)

Speaking of though, the plot has been very clever in rolling out it's cast. Gradual enough to come to terms with each new character, but teasing others that end up with bigger roles later on. I'm reminded of an early scene when Velver was spying on Cosima - and Nocturne was spying on him. Layers.

RebelVampire

yeah i really like the pacing on it too. i dont have to spend an immense time memorizing a billion names at once.

Superjustinbros

At least the names aren't too hard to memorize.

mathtans

I'm still horrible with names. It's a gift.

I imagine it scans differently too when you're seeing it as it comes out versus binging, but I felt like the pacing was done well for the cast.

Superjustinbros

i feel ya Math (edited)

RebelVampire

on the side topic of nocturne, i feel like left to their own devices she and cosima wouldn't fight it out to the death. instead theyd be all sister bondy bond, have some tea, etc. so i think for sure its not they themselves who bring the prophecy to pass, its the plans of others who try to grab at the power and turn them on each other. but i also think cosima and nocturne will be obstinate and keep hugging each other screaming no

mathtans

I'm not so sure about that. Mainly because they might not always have control over their bodies. Like when Cosima went crazy on Jorel for self preservation. Could happen again with unintended consequences.

Nocturne probably also resents Cosima for growing up without so much responsibility, maybe also for having actual parents who aren't apparently trapped in crystals.

(...is reading a bit further in the background btw...)

RebelVampire

idk if nocturne would resent cosima for it. cause i mean, at least nocturne's parents are still probably alive in their crystals and werent viciously murdered. though youre right that riga may have other ideas about their bonding and just take over. but then again riga seems to know what velver is up to so riga might not act either.

the bigger danger on seeing nocturne i think is seeing the queen of elves

cause shes the one who might not take kindly to cosima XD

mathtans

Well, yeah, once Nocturne learns of the murdering that might change things. ^.^ There's a lot of variables in play I suppose.

That said, I will willingly ship Nocturne with Cosima's friends.

RebelVampire

LOL i dont think i can get behind that ship. mostly cause i expect cosima's friends to die. :"D

mathtans

That light haired girl is kind of precious though, with her theories.

I wonder what she'd make of seeing the town.... ... and now I'm picturing her at the brothel, I shouldn't do that.

Also, shipping all the girls in the brothel.

RebelVampire

yes those are more acceptable ships. the brothel girls are probably safe. and head brothel girl has a whip.

also i found it, that scene with cosima's friends being super suspicious. it was actually in puppeter

https://tapas.io/episode/915705

mathtans

Right, the fact that they knew Jorel. I thought that was weird.

It's fine though, I'll still ship them with each other! All the ships!

RebelVampire

yeah. whatever organization jorel is from theyre clearly from

QUESTION 4. Among the larger threads rests a plethora of other possible curiosities to be solved. Who exactly were Cosima’s parents? Were they working for someone from the beginning, or did they somehow get wrapped up in everything? Who are Cosima’s friends considering they lament that their comfortable lives have changed since Cosima left? Who is Jorel, and why are his orders to kill Cosima? What is the deal with the elves trapped in crystals? As far as the plot goes, how might the Hunters affect what’s going on in general? What about Chaze? Will he be able to stop the war, or is his destiny meant to be something greater than that? In general, what are your theories for the future? What do you think or want to see happen?

mathtans

Are they from that organization though? Because if so, they know where Cosima is. Why bother sending Jorel.

RebelVampire

i think jorel is more firmly acting on his own

since the friends didnt know of any death order

mathtans

He was saying he couldn't go back without being sure she was dead though, or someone would be upset.

I think.

RebelVampire

so maybe the friends didnt get the message? and theyre going to show up going wtf guys

mathtans

Holy Hannah! Kader's more psychotic than Jorel, she doesn't even kill directly. (Just got caught up.) Like geeeeeez.

Rebel: Maybe. There was the implication that they could return as well.

I suspects events will prevent that, but they thought it was an option.

RebelVampire

maybe. idk. i need more data in this case. i still think jorel is working more on his own though. cause maybe the person who was gonna be upset is actually gonna be upset regardless. and be like wtf jorel why did you kill riga you dolt

but yeah kader is psychotic, or at the very least tyrannical

velver did not necessarily make a good switch

i really want to know whats up with the elves in the crystals. like was there a spell that backfired and the queen just doesnt care O_O

mathtans

Maybe, yeah... also that mention of having the same problem in another 10 years makes me think once again that if the battle doesn't happen the spirits move on again. Or something.

Yeah, maybe the elves in the crystals had a disease? So it's like suspended animation? Because it was mentioned that there were fewer elves than merfolk.

Or maybe they just couldn't make enough food for the city, so this means fewer mouths to feed. Swords apparently grow in the crystals, but I guess vegetables don't.

RebelVampire

maybe it is a disease. or maybe this is actually why riga was kidnapped. cause riga caused it and jorel's group was like "welp we found riga. did you see that giant crystal explosion?"

im not sure what mention youre talking about with the 10 years thing tho

i must of missed it

mathtans

The most recent update. Third panel from the end.

Riga likes making crystals. Everyone needs a hobby.

RebelVampire

hmmm from the phrasing i feel like the implication is more that nocturne will kill riga? and kader will have to wait a decade for riga to be reborn again so they have to restart the kidnapping process. but i could be wrong.

mathtans

As to the future, I really don't think I can call it. Too many moving pieces. I also wonder a bit if maybe the Circle's hiding elements of the prophecy, accidentally or otherwise.

Ahh, I see... no, that's possible. Doesn't necessarily negate the Velver/Jorel reincarnation issue though, maybe the host doesn't need to die.

(Yes, I'm back to that theory.)

RebelVampire

its a possible theory. though like i say theyd really have to mess it up for this to be a thing. i do think parts of the prophecy are hidden

though maybe its a bit of both

in that theyre purposefully hiding some of it

but then theres parts that they just missed

and are gonna go through their archives and go "oops"

mathtans

It was censored by the clerics.

Incidentally, just want to shout-out here too for the translator. I noticed the comic's originally in German, and gets translated. Can't be simple coming up with the terms like for the "virtual loop" forest.

(Maybe the original German prophecy got translated so many times it's being misinterpreted. )

RebelVampire

i am curious what the original german says now XD

mathtans

I can't speak German. They have neat words for things though.

Okay, final theory. In a massive plot twist, Cosima's cat app saves the day. All the outside world needed was technologies to unify the different groups.

Oh! And shout-out to some of the fun cartoony poses. I feel like those would be fun to draw. (Or maybe not draw, but see once drawn?)

RebelVampire

haha i did kind of hope it would go that way tbh. that by the end the worlds recombine and they figure out that technology is awesome and puts less pressure on the whole magic business.

so i mean if cosima's cat app requires this to happen, so be it

mathtans

I wonder if there's anywhere for her phone to charge. Or if she can use magic for that.

RebelVampire

i wonder if vampire guy we saw briefly who seemed to be from cosima's world has the cat app

that would be hilarious. has all these great goddess powers, uses them to recharge her phone

mathtans

It's the simple things in life sometimes.

RebelVampire

well if cosima visits the brothel again, she cant disappoint. theyll want to see that cat app again

mathtans

Yis. That will be after the Origin Story... the Sequel Story.

RebelVampire

COMIC TEA PARTY- THURSDAY BOOK CLUB END!

Sadly, this wraps up this week’s Thursday Book Club chat for now. Thank you so much to everyone for reading and joining us! We want to give a special thank you to Carolin Reich, as well, for making The Origin Story. If you liked the comic, make sure to support Carolin Reich’s efforts however you’re able to~!

Read and Comment: https://tapas.io/series/The-Origin-Story

Carolin Reich’s Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/CarolinReich

Carolin Reich’s Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/A212D0X

Carolin Reich’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/Ensyis

Comic Tea Party- Thursday Book Club

Next week’s Thursday Book Club will be about A Drift of Souls by Davpow. For participants, you have the next week to read as much of the comic as you would like~! We hope to see you on Thursday, October 25th, from 5PM to 7PM PDT for the chat in #thursday_bookclub!

Comic’s Main Site: https://adriftofsouls.com/