#but we'll see how it all pans out after this campaign

[gobs-o-dice]

Dice Set #288: Ceanothus

[frantic-fuck]

Hey there!

You can call me Frantic. In my 20's, they/them pronouns.

Ever since I was a young child, I ~mysteriously~ loved torturing my characters. I've recently discovered that there's a whole community of people into the same things as me, so I thought it'd be fun to join in!

I like to draw and write, but I'm a bit out of practice with both, so I'm probably gonna start with just writing for now. I'm going to be trying to use August of Whump as a starting point, but we'll see how consistent I am, lmao.

~

A few examples of whump things I like, just off the top of my head:

Restraints

Capture

Dehumanization

Manipulation

Torture (physical, psychological, etc.)

Lab whump

NSFWhump

Carewhumper

Intimate whumpers

Hurt/comfort (eventually)

Giant/tiny (fairies my beloved)

Nonhuman whumpee (especially mashing creatures together apparently)

Fantasy/magical settings in general

Not a whole lot of squicks, but I do avoid needles and extreme realistic body horror.

~

The characters I'm most obsessed with writing about are from one of my ttrpg campaigns, so that's mainly who you'll be seeing on this page.

Whumpee: Ziri Kai (true name: Koios Pan)

A winged snampire (snake vampire) satyr who just wanted to make the world a better place.

Caretaker: Zop

Ziri's siblings Zip and Zap, a sea elf and a lightning drake, fused together after trying to save him, and later imprisoned with him to keep him happy-ish and obedient.

Whumper/Carewhumper: Janessa Vurbone

The heartless empress of Canafillion and inventor of denim; absolutely obsessed with Ziri, to his utter dismay.

Other Whumpers: Nerium and Co.

A pixie who's fallen into poor company after tragedy, who decides "Ziri hasn't been kidnapped enough" and makes it his problem

~

Snakelet Masterpost

~

Also, if you send prompts or requests for my blorbos I will love you forever.

That's all! See you around! :D

[pstelwitchcraft]

Listen, I am happy to see Brennan take the DM seat, and I hope I've understood this incorrectly and we'll still get the main cast, but after seeing that guest list I believe there is simply no way they could fit all 8 main campaign characters + all of these people (amazing ppl by the way, truly nothing but love for them) at the table. And idk... I've started to get disappointed. Bc the thing is I love these characters, I love the Bells Hells, I love Sam's new character he JUST introduced, I love having Dorian with us again and cannot wait to see him deal with the repercussions of Cyrus' death. I love the Imogen and Laudna drama. I love whatever Fearne and Ashton got going on, I love Orym and his weird fey pact. I LOVE them.

And just... recently, I cannot shake the feeling that this is not their campaign. We JUST got them back from the Crownkeepers special episode. Before that, they've gotten separated for a pretty extensive period of time on opposite sides of Exandria. FCG just DIED. Yes, they have communication issues but I feel like that has to do, also, with the fact that every time it seems like they're finding some sort of groove, something like this happens. I get wanting to do something different and a trip to the past before Aeor collapsed IS really exciting, but it straight up feels lame and like they're trying to shove as many people into the table as possible when a major arc like this doesn't have the presence of the LITERAL main characters without them at least being separated again.

Also, don't think I don't see the bias from ya'll. Aabria had ONE episode that was significantly more important and related to the actual plot of the campaign and ya'll were clawing at her neck saying "this should have been a one shot!!!". If Brennan gets 3 freaking special calamity episodes only slightly related to the main plot and ya'll don't let out a peep I am literally fighting you in a parking lot. If this pans out the way I think it will then this absolutely should not be in the main campaign and could stand alone just like Calamity. I could totally be wrong, and I hope I am and they somehow found a way to fit 15 people at the table, but right now it's not looking too good and I cannot understate how sad I am. We just got them back! I want to meet Braius! 😫 Please, PLEASE, let them have their proper moment for us to know him 🙏

[shenanigans-and-imagines]

AB, Mogwix and Co.

This was a piece of art did by one of the other amazing players at my D&D table for The Wild Beyond the Witchlight campaign and I love it! The robot with the hat is my PC, Environmental Analysis Automaton A-B4 or AB for short. They're a Circle of the Shepherd Druid trying to find their creator who went missing at the Witchlight Carnival under mysterious circumstances.

The other member of our party include Buttercup, the minotaur college of lore bard, Pan, the half elf college of eloquence bard/fey pact warlock, Mogwix, the goblin wizard, and Goramorn, the dragonborn way of the dragon monk.

I've been playing them for a while now and thought I'd share some of what I wrote about their creation.

Also, after this campaign wraps up we'll be starting a Curse of Strahd campaign which we will be streaming on twitch! Let me know if any of you are interested in watching or at the very least would like to hear about my PC for that campaign.

Memory Banks: 00.00.00.00.001

Visual data: 

Environment: enclosed, wood interior, man made 

Danger rating: Yellow; tripping and magical hazards  

Lifeforms: 1 Humanoid, Designation: Human Male

Audio data:

Human Male:

…there was light. Ah! Yes! Third time’s the charm, or eleventh in this case. 

 Alright Environmental Analysis Automotom Prototype A-B4, let’s see if you’re the one. Oh, that really is mouthful isn’t it? We’ll have to come up with something different. Of course, if all goes well you’ll be able to do that yourself some day, eh?

Why anyone would want to scrap you is beyond me. Well you know what they say, man’s trash is another man’s treasure.

 Oh, well…I suppose I shouldn’t say that. Readings look like you’re picking up everything audio and visual. Excellent. Was a bit worried about your memory banks. Obviously for an analysis unit all you’d really be worried about are the plants and the like pertaining to your programming. Admittedly it was a spotty job. But the storage is just about perfect. Probably will need to work on expanding it. Wouldn’t want you to have to erase memories to keep new ones. 

Oh well, details to be sorted later. Made a bit of a mess myself. 

Welcome to the world A-B4. I’ve got a feeling you’re going to be spectacular. 

Analysis:

Environment: Moderately hazardous

Humanoid: Mostly harmless

Memory Banks: 00.00.00.00.102

New Program: Designation: Speech 

Audio Data: 

Julian:

Sorry AB. Seems as though I might have crossed the wrong wires. Your visual input is temporarily down, but let’s test out this new feature. 

Oh there have been so many things I’ve been wanting to ask you. Your vocabulary should be up to snuff. I took special care in your speech pattern recognition. Best way to learn is through doing, after all. Doing in this case having been listening to my rambling for the last few months. Hopefully it did us both some good. 

I think it did. It’s how children learn at any rate. 

Alright, first question: what is your name? 

Searching…

Statement: Designation: Environmental Analysis Automotom Prototype A-B4

Julian:

No, not your designation. What is your name?

Statement: Request unclear. Specify. 

Julian:

What do you want to be called? 

Statement: Request unclear. Specify. 

Julian:

Well, I do suppose it’s still a bit early for you to have proper wants now isn’t it? Still got a lot of programming to get through. We’ll save your name for later. Hopefully you won’t resent me calling you AB in the future. 

I hate to ask what your thoughts on me now are.

Statement: Answer. Analysis of Human Male, Designation: Julian. Wizard. Middle Age. Diet: Tea. Sleep pattern: Inconsistent. Communication: Heavily Verbal. Danger level: Yellow. 

Julian: 

Now that’s a shining endorsement, I must say. 

Statement: Understood. Analysis confirmed. 

Julian:

Alright, next on the list, fine tune your audio input to recognize irony. 

And I’m hardly middle aged. I don’t plan to die at seventy. Well, seventy-two if you’re getting technical, but I’m nowhere near the top of the hill let alone going down it. 

Statement: Understood. 

Julian:

Let’s just get your eyes working properly again. 

Memory Bank: 00.00.00.200

New Visual Data: Still Image: Tiefling Female. Expression: Unknown. 

Audio Data:

Julian:

Happy. See the smile? She’s happy. 

Facial Expression: Happy. 

Statement: Understood. Smile means happy. 

Julian:

Alright. Now let’s go back to this one. 

New Visual Data: Still Image: Dragonborn Male. Expression: Happy. 

Julian:

Understandable confusion. See how his brow creases. That’s anger. 

Question: Showing teeth indicates happiness and anger?

Julian:

I’d say it’s usually either or, but yes. The subtleties are in the eyes. Mouths may lie, but the eyes always tell the truth. We’ll get more into the nuances once you get the basics down. 

Question: What is lie?

Julian:

Deception. It’s when a person says one thing but means another. 

Question: Like irony? 

Julian:

Ah no…well, sort of. It comes down to intent really. It’s when somebody makes a false statement and indends for another to believe them. 

Question: Why lie? 

Julian: 

Any number of reasons. Some people lie in order to trick somebody into doing something they want. Other times people lie in order to comfort another. 

Statement: Definition unclear. 

Julian:

Fair enough. I think this is just something you’ll have to wait to figure out when you’re older. 

Statement: Understood. Question will remain unanswered. 

Memory Bank: 00.00.01.002

Julian:

I do hope you don’t find these memories too boring once you properly wake up. I mean, most days are boring, but from what I understand you’ll be able to remember everything that’s ever happened to you, this included. 

I can only imagine what you’ll think of me. Try to be charitable. I’d argue no parent in the world has put this much effort into the actual creation process. 

Oh Gods, me a father? That doesn’t sound right. I’m not old enough– Well, I am plenty old enough, but I never saw myself as the fatherly type. 

Forget I said anything. Or, no, don’t forget. That’s not an order. Just an expression.

I’m really not giving you much of a leg up if I’m your example am I?  We’re going to have to make sure you get out more.

Memory Bank: 00.00.01.095

Visual Data:

Environment: Lab

Danger Rating: Yellow, tripping and magical hazards

Lifeforms: 1 Humanoid, Designation: Elf Male

Facial Expression: Surprised, subcategory: Unknown

Audio Data:

Unknown Elf: 

What in the nine hells? 

New Visual Data:

Lifeform: 1 Humanoid, Designation: Julian

Facial Expression: Surprised, subcategory: Put-out

Julian:

What are you doing back here?

Elf Male:

I should be asking you the same thing. You’re not seriously considering this. 

New Visual Data:

New Facial Expression: Elf Male

Facial Expression: Angry, subcategory: Very

Julian:

There is a reason why I keep my work private. 

Elf Male:

It’s one thing to work with automatons, maybe dabble in trying to awaken one for a period of time, but this? Do you realize what magic you’re tampering with?

Julian:

What I’m doing is just taking the awaken spell and to its most logical conclusion. Where exactly am I going too far? 

Elf Male:

To create a sentient creature they require a soul. You think you can just create a soul out of whole cloth?

Julian:

Last I checked quite a number of creatures create new souls every day, oftentimes by accident. 

Elf Male:

You know what I mean. Those are living, breathing, biological beings touched by the divine. This is a machine. Whatever programs or even magic you put into it, all it will ever be able to do is pantomime mortal emotions. It will forever be soulless unless you give it one or somehow deluded yourself into thinking you could create one. 

Julian:

I am making no claims to my personal ability to isolate the soul. My only claim is that something doesn’t require biological parts to have one. 

AB has no baseline instincts, not even survival. They were initially programmed for cold, calculated analysis of raw environmental data. All I’m doing is attempting to give them the ability to ask why and the choice to find the answer. 

Curiosity, in its purest form. That’s where it all starts. I give them the baseline ability to recognize emotions in others and the rest writes itself. How they decide to react will ultimately be up to them as they grow to understand and empathize with the world around them. Now look me in the eye and tell me that’s not any child you’ve ever met in your life. 

Elf Male: 

All without a soul to guide them. 

Julian:

You really haven’t met many children, have you?

Elf Male:

This isn’t a joke, Julian. Gods, do you not hear yourself?

Julian:

What exactly am I doing wrong? I’m not hurting anyone. No bodies are being exhumed. No souls have been stolen. No deals have been struck. All I am doing is what every wizard has done which is explore the full extent of our reality. 

Now either you’re right and what I end up making will merely pantomime mortals. Or I’m right, and I will have proven that souls are not given to us by some divine entity. What we call a soul is created within ourselves for each other. No gods required. 

Elf Male:

I can only hope I’m right.

Julian:

And I can only feel sorry for you. 

Visual Data:

Elf Male: Out of range

Analysis:

Elf Male: Potentially harmful

New Visual Data:

Lifeform: Julian

Facial expression: Sad, subcategory: unknown

Question: Are you sad?

Julian:

Not sad, AB. Disappointed perhaps.

Statement: Understood. Expression is disappointment.

Question: What is disappointment?

Julian:

It’s when you hoped something would be different from what it actually is. 

I wish I could tell you people like him are a minority. I wish I could say that others will see you and fully accept you as the person you will become. 

Some of them will. I think most people will want to. It’s hard to say. There is a great deal of ignorance and fear in the world, and a lot of people are content to leave it that way. 

Do try to be patient with us though. We’re only mortal. 

Statement: Request unclear. Specify. 

Julian:

I guess what I mean to say is, go into the world assuming people want to be kind.

Statement: Understood.

Question: And this can cause disappointment? 

Julian:

More often than not, but you’ve got to do it anyway. 

Statement: Understood. 

Memory Bank: 00.00.00.01.269

Audio Data:

Julian: 

I really do hate to admit it AB, but perhaps Dustain was right. Arcane magic will only get us so far. You’ve progressed nicely, but something is missing. Just that last little umph. 

Don’t worry, I’m not about to ask a god for help. Bastards would just rub in our faces. 

The awaken spell is the baseline of all of this. Perhaps that’s the best place to start. The magic innate in nature is separate from the divine. You’re not so different. Metal is merely refined elements found in nature. Just because you’re man made shouldn’t exclude you. 

Hmm, perhaps I shouldn’t have wiped all that analysis programming. 

Memory Bank: 00.00.00.02.154

Julian:

Now this is silly, isn’t it. I’m not even sure if this is going to work. But, I think I’ve got a lead on something that might finally wake you up. Not sure when I’ll be coming back, if I will. Of course, if I don’t come back, you’ll hardly care, now, will you? But, you might care, someday. Depends if this works. Memories are funny like that. They change the more you remember them. That was the point of all my ramblings anyway. 

What am I trying to say here? Wish me luck? Wish us luck? 

I can’t wait to meet you.

[castlebyersafterdark]

who from the main cast do you think will have the most successful post ST career?

Very interesting!! Now, I don't know all of the cast's careers equally as thorough, but these are my thoughts from what I do know. Would love to hear other's takes as well to fill in where I might not know the cast as well! I'm going to do the older teens and the party. In no particular order:

Finn - Already a huge star. I think he'll continue to be successful if he stays acting, but I do see him stepping more into directing/writing maybe. And working on his lil indie music hobby. If he acts more, maybe he'll take a role here or there, and I hope he takes more interesting things as he gets older (not that he's been in a string of duds, but I'd hope he branches out into something fresh and not another IP style franchise media immediately). A while ago I remember talking about him maybe doing a cool period piece or a retro comedy movie. I wish he was a lead in the SNL movie, I think that's his sweet spot. I think he's going to be very successful and remain publicly in the industry. I will be following his career the most out of everyone here so, admitted bias.

Noah - very difficult to say at this point. I think it depends on if he decides to continue school, lean into his entrepreneurship and business ventures. He's a very good actor, but I really don't know what kind of roles he's actually looking to take. I think he's said he's more interested in drama movies and I know this is a little type-casty, but I would adore if he becomes a new scream king. Dramatic horror/thrillers but quality, smaller films. I'd love for him to lead an era of queer horror films but I honestly don't really think that's what he'd be into, as much as I personally would love that. He has the range though! It's really hard to say how good of an acting career he'll have because I have to be honest - if he curates his craft he could find a lot of success but I can also see him fading a bit in the acting world and please don't get upset with me for that!! It's just an analysis of the career he's had so far and the crossroads he'll face once the series is over if his role choices are off. An honest read.

Millie - She's gonna have kids with baby Jovi and sell her skincare and ghostwrite shitty books. JK JK sorry for the shade, I'm just not a Millie fan haha oops. But I'm super not sure about her. She's a huge celebrity with a huge fanbase, but now that her Netflix contract is up, right?? Is she marketable and good enough of an actress to land lead roles in things? I think she's going to have a few big roles and those movies will be critically panned and she'll fade away for a bit, and then a decade or so later after a huge flop she'll land something surprising and fall into the spotlight again, but only for a little while. I could be wrong and misunderstand the Millie effect, bit that's how I feel.

Caleb - I feel like he's got talent, he's going to get a steady stream of work in film and other campaigns. He has the makings of being a really good dramatic actor when he's a little older, we'll have to wait and see. But he has the low-key acting chops and needs a little more meat on his resume. He's got promise.

Gaten - I don't know much about him and I love him but I also share the same worries that he himself has expressed in interviews I believe. Nerves about the future after the show. I see him more in television over movies. I don't actually know much about broadway so I'm not sure what his career there was like or if he could break back in. Big difference between child actors on bway and adult acting if I would guess correctly.

Sadie - Promising career, I feel like she could be up for the awards show circuit if she lands decent roles in the future. She could have an Emma Stone type career. Depends on the right roles. But I think she'll have longevity in the industry. Interesting, pretty redheads with dramatic acting chops and high fashion leanings tend to have the potential to go really far.

Charlie and Natalia - I'm putting them on the same page because I equally don't know much about them and I think they'll equally get the same amount of work. I think they're just kinda fucking around and traipsing lazily through Hollywood. Unsure. They're so weird. But, good for them?

Joe Keery - I don't know much about this man and I always refer to him by his full name for some reason. He's a singer? No idea the popularity level there, wasn't my type of music so I never looked too deep into it. No idea what he does outside of Stranger Things. He is an enigma but not one that captivates me. (I have nothing against him I just never really felt an interest in him as an actor even if I really do like Steve).

Maya - Well, she's industry famous already, she'll have a career as long as she wants it. She'll have steady work, unsure how big she'll be. But I think it's as big as she wants it to be personally, what type of projects she wants to work on. I think she's one of the better young actors in the cast. She's probably the one with the most choice in terms of future career.

[lucius-the-sinful]

3. What is your OC's financial status? Are they just scraping by, making enough to live comfortably, or wealthy? Has there ever been a drastic change in their status? If so, what happened?

4. Does your OC have a failed friendship or relationship they still think about? What happened? Is it an unresolved regret or is there a chance for reconciliation?

5. Does your OC have a signature weapon and/or attack? How long did they train to master it?

6. Does your OC know magic? Were they born with magical ability or did they train to acquire it? What is their favorite type of magic? Least favorite?

14. How important is friendship to your OC? Do they prefer to have one or two close friends or a large group of casual friends? Or do they prefer their own company over that of others?

15. What places hold significant meaning or memories for your OC? Do they have a positive or negative association with those places?

for either or all Galethor, Zafir and Balthazar

ty for the lovely ask <3

3. What is your OC's financial status? Are they just scraping by, making enough to live comfortably, or wealthy? Has there ever been a drastic change in their status? If so, what happened?

In our current campaign, it appears Gale lives a life of luxury and wealth. He is the son of a prominent figure in the adult entertainment industry named Ace, and Gale himself is famed for his echoes (the equivalent of porn videos in this setting) and his sex work. This is a complete lie. Galethor, since birth, has been nothing more but a way for his father to turn profit. Galethor doesn't own any money he earns, and anything valuable he comes across is usually taken by Ace if he can't hide it. This being said, he's still provided with an adequate diet (moreso to keep appearances) and lives in a decent sized apartment.

Zafir's wealth is dependent on whether or not he is under oath at any given time. Without one, he is surviving on contracts while he travels. With an oath, he is the equivalent of a lord's personal advisor. This doesn't always equate to wealth, but it does usually mean he is always properly fed and housed.

Balthazar's a weird one to talk about because he's had highs and lows in his financial situation. He was born to lower middle class farmers near Balmora. Before he had an affinity to killing, he would work long hours on the farm. Once he was old enough to leave, he became a mercenary for hire, then later assassin for hire. Then, of course, he would eventually become an assassin for the Dark Brotherhood. He is one of the prime witnesses to the Dark Brotherhood's deterioration at the end of the third era and beginning of the fourth era. While he struggled to find a sanctuary that would stay alive for more than a few years, he hit some pretty deep lows. When he was discovered to be the Listener in the fourth era, and he ultimately shouldered leadership of the Dark Brotherhood, this drastically changed. In my head cannons, he ushers in a new, prosperous era for the Dark Brotherhood. (We'll see how this pans out when new cannon is introduced beyond the fourth era, lol)

4. Does your OC have a failed friendship or relationship they still think about? What happened? Is it an unresolved regret or is there a chance for reconciliation?

As you can imagine, Gale's friendships were always shallow and, if they weren't, ended in tragedy. In his backstory, there was one blaring exception--a guard for Ace named Mitch. Mitch was another tiefling, and always a lot kinder to Gale than anyone else. He never asked Gale of anything, never objectified him like the others would. Without getting too deep into backstory, Gale and Mitch were together for about five or six years before Mitch was killed by Ace for interfering with Gale's work. There's a lot of regret for Gale here, as the last conversation they had was a pretty heated argument. It's pretty safe to say Gale has a very difficult time connecting with people after that.

I don't really have a solid answer for Zafir on this one. He tends to move on pretty quickly or masks his grief with ambition. He's often too focused on the present and future to dwell too much on the past--whether that's with relationships or people he's lost.

Balthazar doesn't think too much on past relationships until the consequences show up at his doorstep (usually in the form of a bastard child, lol). The two most prominent examples of this were with my partner's altmer OC Ingra and a Cammona Tong member named Valna. Ingra hid their daughter, Almythra, from Balthazar, whereas Balthazar left Valna before their son, Lazarus, was born. Both of these children would later find and confront Balthazar individually. If I ever get the energy I'll write how all this went down asdkflsa;

5. Does your OC have a signature weapon and/or attack? How long did they train to master it?

Galethor's weapons are the newfound powers he gains at the beginning of the campaign. He willfully became a vampire, and is testing the boundaries of his new power. So far, his signature power seems to be the domination ability, which he has used once so far to lure a man to his death. When it comes time to actually kill people, he lures them close and then poisons them. (Something I keep kinda forgetting is that he can craft poisons in our campaign asdfkjl). He is also trained to use firearms but this isn't his most effective way of killing or fighting. Gale only trained for a few short days when he was a child, but has a knack for picking up new skills.

Zafir favors large, two handed weapons. In a fantasy setting he uses a combination of melee (usually a greatsword or glaive) and magic. Self buffing spells are his go to, but he is known to use short range spells to engage multiple targets. In a sci fi setting, Zafir is proficient with large sniper rifles (something equivalent to a 50 cal) and usually uses some sort of cloaking technology. Zafir usually has a pretty harsh training regimen to keep in shape and his mind sharp.

Balthazar fully relies on his stealth, sometimes amplified through spells like muffle or invisibility. He prefers daggers, and is the character in my headcannons that tracked all the pieces of Mehrune's Razor down and put it back together. In an upfront confrontation, he will dual wield Mehrune's Razor and the Blade of Woe. Balthazar never really had formal training because he grew up in House Hlaalu, which is why he depends mostly on his stealth.

6. Does your OC know magic? Were they born with magical ability or did they train to acquire it? What is their favorite type of magic? Least favorite?

I don't think this ability is considered "magic" by D&D standards (mind you, my group plays 3.5 and uses a lot of homebrew) but one special trick Gale learned was the ability to hide objects in his shadow as if it were a bag of holding (he can only store things 3 times his class level in pounds--currently level 3). He learned this at around sixteen from a dragonborn man simply called the Butler, who is a servant of Gale's father. Gale hasn't experienced too much magic besides things provided by magic items or from healers, so he doesn't exactly have an opinion on it at the moment, lol.

As mentioned, Zafir is at least decently knowledgeable about magic and uses it as a secondary way of fighting. He usually acquires both his knowledge and ability through training as a child from a mentor. Sometimes his blood (such as being half elven in the Witcher) amplifies his magical capabilities. His favorite spells to use are protective abilities (such as the Quen sign) or spells that enhance his physical ability (in BG3 he is an eldritch knight fighter and I like using spells like enhance jump or longstride). His least favorite magic usually have to do with illusions, he really hates being tricked lol.

Balthazar can only cast a few spells, he's not well researched and never really paid too much mind to magic, at least until he became a vampire. He started taking an interest in necromancy, but it's more of a hobby he does in his free time than a dedicated practice. Any fire destruction magic is his least favorite as a vampire, before that he found alarm spells to be particularly tricky to navigate as someone who trespasses to kill his targets. :).

14. How important is friendship to your OC? Do they prefer to have one or two close friends or a large group of casual friends? Or do they prefer their own company over that of others?

Okay so... this is where it starts to get pretty sad for Gale. As I mentioned in one of the earlier questions, any close relationship he's ever had (whether it is romantic or platonic) has never ended well. Because he is terrified of Ace and what Ace has done to the people Gale cares about, he tends to keep everyone at an arms length... emotionally speaking. It is much easier for him to be physically intimate with people, but he can't afford to get truly attached to anyone in fear Ace will kill them. Because of this, he tends to come off really catty or outright mean or annoying. If he had this choice, I think he would enjoy any level of friendship. He does end up spending most of his time alone, however, and he doesn't particularly mind it.

Friends aren't so much as important to Zafir as are alliances. He has issues with being emotionally intimate, and physical intimacy isn't something he is particularly interested in. Zafir does highly value the people who have grown to know and trust him and who he could call friends. I imagine he definitely prefers his own company most of the time.

Godspeed anyone who thinks Balthazar is their friend. That being said, I think he would have a few very funny friendships with some of my other TES OC's and some cannon characters. Cicero, for example. Balthazar puts a really peculiar amount of trust into Cicero, simply because Cicero, out of everyone who survived the attack on the Falkreath sanctuary, always remained true to the Old Ways of the Dark Brotherhood--something Balthazar pushed for with Astrid but was never successful! If I ever get around to fully writing out Balthazar's story I'd be very delighted to show that dynamic but just know, in my head Balthazar--oddly enough--respects fucking Cicero more than most people. Anyways this one got way off the rails but Balthazar typically doesn't have friends, which honestly is probably for the best.

15. What places hold significant meaning or memories for your OC? Do they have a positive or negative association with those places?

I'm so sorry everyone about Gale is sad. This is no different. One of the places Gale and Mitch would go to drink and be dumb kids was an abandoned department store on a side of the city that wasn't patrolled very often. Gale often painted on the walls and they once stole a camera to take pictures of themselves and each other there. When Mitch was killed, Gale returned to this building and burned it to the ground. He was caught and arrested for arson, he hasn't been back since.

There aren't many places Zafir is sentimental about, but as a traveler wherever he was trained at he typically refers to as his home.

Balthazar hated the entirety of Vvardenfell, where he grew up. He associates pretty much all of Morrowind with his lineage (in my headcannons he is an unofficial descendant of Queen Barenziah), and how King Hlaalu Heleseth and his associates hunted Balthazar until House Hlaalu dissolved. On the flip side, Balthazar actually loves Dawnstar, despite its cold and unforgiving climate. He's also spent a lot of time in and around Riften, and enjoys that area as well.

[dinoracha]

40+ hours into Persona 5 Royal, and I have a few thoughts

I think I'm nearing the endgame for Persona 5 Royal (we'll shorten it to P5R for brevity's sake) and despite how much I've been enjoying it, there's been a handful of design decisions that have been real head-scratchers. My biggest issue with the game so far has been the major boss fights. Don't get me wrong; I like the Paper Mario games and having gimmicked boss fights, but for an Atlus JRPG to have multiple gimmicked boss fights feels bizarre. It comes across like the game is testing the player to see if they've learned the combat mechanics in terms of baton passing and weakness exploits for example, but this is a JRPG; unless you're speedrunning or focusing just on the campaign, you're going to have more than enough opportunities to put these mechanics into practice. Compare that to mini-bosses that are more of a knockdown, drag-out fight instead of solving a puzzle? Understandably the mini-bosses aren't the finale of the palace so they can't be as long or as involved, but with how said finales pan out*, doing a puzzle fight instead of a 'fight' fight loses the effect for me.

This ties into my next issue of the game's script really, really, REALLY wanting you to hate most* of the targets you're meant to go after. The first chapter is especially egregious, hammering it home that the target is all sorts of horrible while not letting you actively do anything about it - Not until the game gives you the green light to hop into the palace and get started. While I can imagine the writers want you to get emotionally charged and full of rebellious vengeance, it gets dragged out to the point of being uncomfortable(*1). For there to be all this set up that the target is scum and needs to have a change of heart, having the big battle with their shadowy self boil down to a glamorous puzzle doesn't tie up the chapter in as neat of a bow of closure as I would've hoped.

Nextly, MAN. THE SCRIPT REALLY ENJOYS SEXUALIZING YOUNGER CHARACTERS. WHAT THE HELL, ATLUS? The problem, before you jump at me, with trying to play that kind of stuff 'for laughs' is that there needs to be funny punchlines and payoffs for it to work. A lot of it comes across as seedy which is a sentiment I shared with similar gags in Persona 4 (Rise's whole chapter comes to mind). Considering how this series is more or less a playable anime, I can sort of concede that these are story-telling/writing elements (I hesitate to use the word 'tropes') that are to be expected, but… Yeesh.

Ho'boy. Heaven help me if I ever plan to sit down and write a full review for this one. Any place where there's an asterisk (*) means there are spoilers if I were to elaborate any further.

I think I'm nearing the endgame for Persona 5 Royal (we'll shorten it to P5R for brevity's sake), and despite how much I've been enjoying it, there's been a handful of design decisions that have been real head-scratchers. My biggest issue with the game so far has been the major boss fights. Don't get me wrong; I like the Paper Mario games and having gimmicked boss fights, but for an Atlus JRPG to have multiple gimmicked boss fights feels bizarre. It comes across like the game is testing the player to see if they've learned the combat mechanics in terms of baton passing and weakness exploits for example, but this is a JRPG; unless you're speedrunning or focusing just on the campaign, you're going to have more than enough opportunities to put these mechanics into practice. Compare that to mini-bosses that are more of a knockdown, drag-out fight instead of solving a puzzle? Understandably the mini-bosses aren't the finale of the palace so they can't be as long or as involved, but with how said finales pan out*, doing a puzzle fight instead of a 'fight' fight loses the effect for me.

This ties into my next issue of the game's script, really, REALLY wanting you to hate most* of the targets you're meant to go after. The first chapter is especially egregious, hammering it home that the target is all sorts of horrible while not letting you actively do anything about it - Not until the game gives you the green light to hop into the palace and get started. While I can imagine the writers want you to get emotionally charged and full of rebellious vengeance, it gets dragged out to the point of being uncomfortable(*1). For there to be all this set up that the target is scum and needs to have a change of heart, having the big battle with their shadowy self boil down to a glamorous puzzle doesn't tie up the chapter in as neat of a bow of closure as I would've hoped.

Nextly, MAN. THE SCRIPT REALLY ENJOYS SEXUALIZING YOUNGER CHARACTERS. WHAT THE HELL, ATLUS? Before you jump at me, the problem with trying to play that kind of stuff 'for laughs' is that there needs to be funny punchlines and payoffs for it to work. Unfortunately, much of it comes across as seedy, a sentiment I shared with similar gags in Persona 4 (Rise's whole chapter comes to mind). Considering how this series is more or less a playable anime, I can sort of concede that these are story-telling/writing elements (I hesitate to use the word 'tropes') that are to be expected, but… Yeesh.

These nagging issues aside, I'm still going to see the game through to the end. It's a JRPG-ass JRPG, to be certain, and while seeing instant-kill spells return makes me roll my eyes out of my head, it took what I liked from Persona 4 and polished it brightly: Palaces are places to explore compared to repeating hallways, having shadows morph into familiar Shin Megami Tensei demons is fun, more tactical/team-building options available through social links… After burning out with Soul Hackers 2, hopping into P5R revitalized my desire to binge a JRPG for multiple hours-long sessions that I hadn't desired since - Well, my binging of Persona 4. A review of this game will probably do my head in. There's so much to talk about, and I can only write so much until carpal tunnel sends my wrists into oblivion.

(*1) There are implied sexual relations between an adult and teenagers that, combined with a self-harm scene, made the first chapter miserable for me. It's a dreadful note to start on.

(*1) There are implied sexual relations between an adult and teenagers that, when combined with a self-harm scene, made the first chapter just miserable for me. It's a dreadful note to start on.

Ho'boy. Heaven help me if I ever plan to sit down and write a full review for this one. Any place where there's an asterisk (*) means there are spoilers if I were to elaborate any further.

I think I'm nearing the endgame for Persona 5 Royal (we'll shorten it to P5R for brevity's sake), and despite how much I've been enjoying it, there's been a handful of design decisions that have been real head-scratchers. My biggest issue with the game so far has been the major boss fights. Don't get me wrong; I like the Paper Mario games and having gimmicked boss fights, but for an Atlus JRPG to have multiple gimmicked boss fights feels bizarre. It comes across like the game is testing the player to see if they've learned the combat mechanics in terms of baton passing and weakness exploits for example, but this is a JRPG; unless you're speedrunning or focusing just on the campaign, you're going to have more than enough opportunities to put these mechanics into practice. Compare that to mini-bosses that are more of a knockdown, drag-out fight instead of solving a puzzle? Understandably the mini-bosses aren't the finale of the palace so they can't be as long or as involved, but with how said finales pan out*, doing a puzzle fight instead of a 'fight' fight loses the effect for me.

This ties into my next issue of the game's script, really, REALLY wanting you to hate most* of the targets you're meant to go after. The first chapter is especially egregious, hammering it home that the target is all sorts of horrible while not letting you actively do anything about it - Not until the game gives you the green light to hop into the palace and get started. While I can imagine the writers want you to get emotionally charged and full of rebellious vengeance, it gets dragged out to the point of being uncomfortable(*1). For there to be all this set up that the target is scum and needs to have a change of heart, having the big battle with their shadowy self boil down to a glamorous puzzle doesn't tie up the chapter in as neat of a bow of closure as I would've hoped.

Nextly, MAN. THE SCRIPT REALLY ENJOYS SEXUALIZING YOUNGER CHARACTERS. WHAT THE HELL, ATLUS? Before you jump at me, the problem with trying to play that kind of stuff 'for laughs' is that there needs to be funny punchlines and payoffs for it to work. Unfortunately, much of it comes across as seedy, a sentiment I shared with similar gags in Persona 4 (Rise's whole chapter comes to mind). Considering how this series is more or less a playable anime, I can sort of concede that these are story-telling/writing elements (I hesitate to use the word 'tropes') that are to be expected, but… Yeesh.

These nagging issues aside, I'm still going to see the game through to the end. It's a JRPG-ass JRPG, to be certain, and while seeing instant-kill spells return makes me roll my eyes out of my head, it took what I liked from Persona 4 and polished it brightly: Palaces are places to explore compared to repeating hallways, having shadows morph into familiar Shin Megami Tensei demons is fun, more tactical/team-building options available through social links… After burning out with Soul Hackers 2, hopping into P5R revitalized my desire to binge a JRPG for multiple hours-long sessions that I hadn't desired since - Well, my binging of Persona 4. A review of this game will probably do my head in. There's so much to talk about, and I can only write so much until carpal tunnel sends my wrists into oblivion.

(*1) There are implied sexual relations between an adult and teenagers that, combined with a self-harm scene, made the first chapter miserable for me. It's a dreadful note to start on.

[sleeplessandstubborn]

Emily in Paris, season 2, episode 4. A tale of two scenes.

It was the best of episodes, it was the worst of episodes, the one with the probably funniest scene in the whole series so far, the one with the cringiest stereotype, and so forth and so on, and we stop paraphrasing Dickens here because in this blog we always preferred Galdós.

Emily and Mindy are sitting at a café, the former trying to rehearse why she's going to tell Camille when she has the moment to talk to her. To which Mindy objects that with every single word she keeps on digging and that Camille won't forgive her easily... because she's French. So much for Mindy's past comments about how everyone in France has lovers and infidelity is widely accepted! The problem would be the same in other countries too, in my opinion, but anyway, not the time to discuss about me or how many times I would yell at Emily for doing what she did if I was in Camille's place. Mindy invites her to drink at the drag club, she answers she hasn't time because she must go to French class.

But, before, she drops by Gabriel's restaurant to give him back the frying pan which, she argues, only brought her bad luck. I've discovered I don't really care about Gabriel's restaurant and, I'm about to say, Gabriel himself (sorry Lucas Bravo, I still like you, it's just your character sucks). He didn't talk to Camille yet and Emily accuses him of hiding. Probably, but maybe it's not the time for him to bother his ex girlfriend with his presence? In any case Emily has little options. Camille is coming to Savoir that same morning for the Champére campaign.

Camille arrives, suggesting the meeting should be held in French. Emily is still incapable of holding a whole conversation in said language so Luc takes over the presentation. At the end Camille tells Emily that she won't believe her anymore, no matter the language. Well, actually Emily needs Sylvie's translation in order to understand that last phrase, that Camille dramatically pronounces just before taking the elevator. What should I do, she asks to Sylvie, looking defenceless. Well, start by learning French, the divinely dressed Mme. Grateau answers.

And thus, Emily goes back to that class we hadn't seen since Season 1. To her (but not the watcher's) shock, she's the only student in her class that won't upgrade to French 2. Since they have to pick a partner with whom she's supposed to talk only in French, we meet two new characters. The first one is Alfie, from London, who looks gorgeous and will become a new love interest for Emily. And the second one, and that Emily chooses to be her partner for the moment, is Petra, from Kyiv. And... yes, that's when things become cringeworthy.

How can I define that stereotype on two legs that the writers introduced with Petra? It seems this series plans to insult more and more countries and this time was Ukraine's turn. Our Eastern European character who wears a ton of make up, wears tacky clothes (but so does Emily) and has an entire stationery set on her desk and who is... a shoplifter. Yes, even if that thing we'll discover it later. No suprise everyone found this character insulting.

At the drag club, Mindy is confronted with a pair of guys who claim to be part of a band that plays at very cool places and are interested in her. After all, being the soloist of this group whose existence she just learnt - and that won't ask for her papers - is way better that eating candies next to the toilets door and waiting for the few minutes during which she's allowed to perform, isn't it? You can see some things coming from hundred of kilometres as far as where and when this band performs, but anyway, good for Mindy that she's (supposedly) going to earn more than candies and tips.

At Savoir, Emily is confronted with something way healthier than candies, but a downgrade from her previous clients: leeks. She's out not only from Rimowa's account, but also from Champére's one, and Camille won't allow her to take part in the phone calls the team exchange with her. With a reason: they're in French. So leek, Sylvie say, are her opportunity for redemption. And apparently their lobby is very powerful in France. Wait until the series tackles the hunter one (yikes, I'm kidding, series, never talk about these guys, ok?). Her new clients are a quite agreeable pair, except the man is strongly prejudiced against potatoes.

Our heroine is out of inspiration as far as leeks go, so she turns to Gabriel for help (who else?). A cooking scene ensues, full of subtext and innuendos until Emily argues she's not a leek, which is a quaint thing to say. Meanwhile she receives a message from Petra, who invites her to the cafe, even if, actually, she needs to receive a second one with emojis to really get that. I don't blame her, but who came with the idea of writing Gabriel's reply "I think it's cyrillic script?". We saw that, thank you Monsieur le Chef.

So Emily and Petra go for their coffees and seem to go along at first, with an incursion in the recenty restored La Samaritaine, which will appear later in the season again. All goes well until the shoplifting incident happens. Both ladies end fighting next to the Seine. Of course Emily recovers the items Petra had taken because of her love of free things. Not commenting more on this scene because I am getting more and more furious. Argh.

Camille and Gabriel have a conversation I really didn't care about at the art gallery. She looks jaded at his attempts to charm her back into a... threesome, maybe? She's not the Camille from five years ago and she won't agree with his "please don't blame Emily, blame only me". After all, she replies, it's not like she tripped and fell on his dick. Drag him, Camille. Drag everyone in this show, especially the writers that did you so dirty this season.

Luc, who seems to be very invested in bringing Emily to the bright side of culture, takes her to see Truffaut's Jules et Jim (hence the title of the episode, Jules et Em). She ends liking the movie, even if she claims to be puzzled at it. Anyway, it brings her inspiration; she'll write a letter in French to Camille in order to ask forgiveness for having, to use her expression, tripped and fell on her boyfriend's dick. Everyone tells her: Emily, no! From Mindy, who puts her in front of the evidence (she's been using dog shampoo the whole time because she can't read, and even if labels in several languages are a thing in Europe). She asks Julien and Sylvie about her grammatical woes. "Well, it's in your voice", it's her boss opinion about her letter. Without further thought or reread, she sends her letter to Camille.

Leek couple is back and they're a bit skeptical about the ideas that are suggested for their campaign, until Sylvie argues it would sell well in the US if it was part of a "magic diet" soup. Emily doesn't like it that much, and I don't think she likes the generalization about "Americans wanting quick and easy fixes" or "liking shortcuts", but you don't get any compassion points after what you did to Petra, series.

Speaking about stereotypes, what's about mimes and France in American series & movies? They do think there are mimes everywhere in France? Why? Well, one of these appear during Mindy's performance at the street, because, as everyone could figure, that's where her bandmates play. They pull a good show.

But this episode contains, as I said, the best scene so far in the two seasons. Previously we have seen Emily reading her letter written in a completely impossible French, all this against the black-and white background of a spinning Tour Eiffel. Camille's reply comes in the same style, except it has to be kindly translated by Sylvie, including the final line, Leave me alone, you illiterate sociopath. At that moment I almost gave her a standing ovation. Please give us more of this if you want to be redeemed at some point, series.

The last scene in the episode includes Emily going back to the language school and Petra giving her a death stare. It's evident she can't be her partner anymore, so she ends sitting next to Alfie from London. Self-conscious, maybe, of his own hotness, he comments he knew she would come back. And thus the episode ends.