#change in script tari

[michaelscorneroftheinternet]

Curious how everyone reacts to this:

EGG JUMPSCARE 🥚

Michael: To say Tari is devastated would be an understatement.

[utilitycaster]

anyway. the short review, before I go off and do a bunch of stuff, is that glintshore and a bard's lament are both, genuinely, some of my favorite parts of Campaign 1, and I also think they really do not adapt well out of a D&D context (or rely on other plot elements that don't adapt well out of a D&D context). I talked about Glintshore last week (and the pirate ship fight was fucking great; I got what I wanted from Ripley's death) but A Bard's Lament (and Tary) is one of those things where...I guess I wish I could see it animated, but I also don't quite know how they'd get to that scene without a lot of changes that require either much more time than an animated series can give them, or the meta knowledge of D&D rules and the fact that Sam has to play a character. That doesn't mean I love the lack of it, but it does mean I have to take a hard look and say "yeah, this does make sense, and while it isn't as satisfying to me...that is kind of why I have been a fan of Actual Play for the past 7 years, because it can achieve things most scripted narratives are not given the space to do."

My main complaint really is that I wish some of Vax's stuff (noticing Orthax; all the swooping in to help Keyleth or Vex out of a Situation) had been more evenly distributed. I get that the narrative itself, and the fact that he gives his life in the end would point to him as the main character had this been scripted from the start, and they need to foreshadow this, but he was a flawed person and those flaws feel muted as opposed to everyone else's.

[screams-in-writing]

Fluff snippets again *yeets pillows at Mr. Puzzles with aggressive affection*

I’ve found I really like to write these, so here’s three more of them (1st is more of a one-shot):

16- needing their cuddles even though they have something else to do (1st pov)

I was about to break my promise to not drag Smg4 (or his crew) into another wonderfully wacky Puzzlevision adventure.

But oh, was I so very, very tempted to do it and face the consequences, but I held back such urges, knowing that such actions would more than likely ruin any progress I had made thus far. Any non-consenting participants in a show in my mind would surely not only upset you a great deal but would also destroy the tentative peace I’d made with Smg4 in particular. 

I knew I was on thin ice, and that everything I did was scrutinized with great prejudice. 

It chaffed, but I knew that such over the top precautions were a direct result of my previous actions, direct or by proxy. 

But one thing that I did not take well to was being told my ideas or plans were terrible and/or unoriginal. It took a lot of self-control I didn’t always have to be able to prevent myself from instantly lashing out in return. 

Calm. 

I had to be calm. 

I couldn’t let this latest…disagreement force me to break my promises. 

With great reluctance, I tuned back in to Smg4’s words as he lambasted me for the changes I’d made late last night to an episode script that, in my opinion, desperately needed it. 

Smg4 should be thanking me!

Why, I took time out of my day to help him when I didn’t have to! 

I was an expert on moving pictures! 

Why wouldn’t he value such feedback from one such as me, to help his ‘funny’ reach a wider audience!

…perhaps it shouldn’t have been made so last minute but I’d not heard of it being made until last night!

“I never told you that you could just change my episode plans!”

“Smg4?” At that, I finally cut in as smooth as could be. Seeing the unamused glare, I straighten by bow tie, acting as if I hadn’t just been practically scolded for the past ten minutes. “I believe that I made your episode’s script flow better for everyone involved. If it hadn’t been clear that those changes were needed, I wouldn’t have even bothered.”

“I also never gave you permission to even look at my episode scripts!” Smg4 shot back in exasperation. “What made to think you could just go on my office to snoop around in the first place?”

I was again distracted from listening to Smg4 when I saw that you, Boopkins and Tari gad just entered the castle. 

There. 

My possible escape from making another mistake that would more than likely ruin any credibility I had left, as well as completely shatter the minimal trust I’d since gained with Smg4 and his crew. 

With a swift motion, I ran away from Smg4 and  swooped in on you for a hug the moment the castle doors shut. 

“Whoa!” You laughed at my sudden, rather desperate need for a hug from you, and laughed even more as I was quick to bring you down to the floor with me. “Hello to you too.”

I wrapped my arms around you and even tangled our legs together, making my intention to begin an impromptu snuggling session right here on the floor in full view of anyone clear.

“Oh no you don’t!” Smg4 stomped over, waving the papers in his hand, exasperated. “Fix this script right now! Put it back to the way it was.”

“No.” I said simply in return, pressing my face into your shoulder to enjoy the static buildup from your clothing. “I refuse to get rid of an obvious improvement that you just refuse to see! It’s art! How can you not see that?”

Smg4 began to toss random items at me while Boopkins and Tari made themselves scarce to avoid getting drawn into the drama. 

How rude. 

Smg4 had to have seen that you were down on the floor with me, but seemed focused on getting me to ‘unfix’ his episode script. 

I covered you with my body to prevent anything from hitting you. In return, things bounced off the back of my head and upper back, to which I grumbled crossly at. It didn’t so much hurt as it was an irritant (and the flying projectiles did mean possible harm to you if I allowed anything to pass.

However, it had merely been a distraction as the arisen assault of pillows and other items gave way to Smg4 speaking in an eerily calm tone. 

“Mario, Mr. Puzzles took out the plate of spaghetti in an upcoming script and won’t change it back.”

The words made me freeze in place while you paused, then gave me what felt like a ‘sympathetic’ pat on the back.

Oh no.

“Give me back my spaghetti tv man!” Mario came out of nowhere to seize me by the ankles. 

I automatically clung to you in an effort to avoid being taken from you. But it was a useless endeavor with Mario involved, and you picking up on what was going on, which led you to letting go of me after patiently prying my arms off from the panicked hug I’d had you in. There was a brief look of betrayal on my face before it flickered into one of pleading desperation as I scrabbled my fingers into the floor beneath me uselessly. 

“Did Smg4 ask you to make changes to my script?” You asked, making some gesture at Mario to (somehow) make him pause his efforts in dragging me backward. 

“It needed the changes.” I said stiffly. Seeing your expectant expression, my digital eyes looked off to the side, technicolor smile a frown. “No, he didn’t ask.”

“Puzzles? Do you remember what we talked about last week?” You questioned curiously. 

“I…yes.” There wasn’t any way to defend myself in this situation because I did recall what you were hinting at. “Yes, I do.”

“You promised that you’d not make any changes to other people’s scripts without running it by that person first.” You told me, clarifying the specific conversation we’d had, as there had been more than one important one held.

“I recall.” I agreed, though I didn’t say aloud that I believed I could have gotten away with such an action in this case. If only Smg4 could just be made to see that I was very good at what I did, and that he could benefit from me collaborating with him. Or at the very least, allowed me to make tiny changes here and there to make things flow better, in order to offset the stupidity that might end up happening. Not seeing any way out, I fixed you with the most pathetic, despairing digital face I could manage.

“Oh, such cruel fate.” I mournfully began before I said your name. “How can you sit there and allow this to happen to me? I thought you said you loved me.” I lamented as dramatically as I could, while I clung to the open door to prolong my exit. “Farewell, my dear. I forgive you for leaving me to a fate I brought upon myself. Remember me fondly when you watch television or a movie, as I fear I may not survive this terrible soon-to-be act of being forced into undoing all my beautifully done and very much necessary handiwork.” 

I made certain to keep my screen facing you in order to let you knew I was merely teasing, and not attempting to make you feel guilty in any way, shape or form. 

It seemed you understood when I peeked over to you. 

“It’s not going to take all day, Mr. Puzzles. It’s just an episode script. Not a movie.” Smg4 shoved one of Puzzles’ gloved hands off of the open office door. That would be a much bigger problem and-“ 

“About that…” I shoot a guilty look your way, and drop my gaze at your disappointment. “I may have…done an overhaul to the entire thing?” I shrink behind the open door, forgetting Mario still held me by the ankles. I partially closed the door myself at the blank look on Smg4’s expression as he slowly took out his phone and made a call while continuing to stare at me. 

Before I knew it, I had Mario dragging me back across the floor of the main area of the castle to its front doors, which had just opened. 

Smg3 was waiting there, looking disgruntled at being called away from his cafe, until he laid eyes on me and my pathetic attempts to scramble away. 

“What’s this all about, scrub?” Smg3 asked, somewhat dismissively, despite the eager look in his red eyes. “You finally kicking out the tv freak?”

Smg4 emerged from his office to wordlessly hold out a larger stack of papers.   

“What?” Smg3 scoffed at the lack of words but took the paper to look it over anyway. Then a little quicker as his expression went from feigned disinterest to exasperation as he glanced down at me. “Are you stupid?”

“Maybe more misguided.” You called from where you’d moved to peer out the doors as Mario just tugged me outside. 

I eagerly perked up at your defense of me, until you spoke again. 

“But if that’s a movie script and he made a lot of changes? Maybe foolish optimism.”

“Why do you betray me so?” I said your name in a dramatic fashion as I dug my fingers into the ground to try to prevent the inevitable. 

“You asked me for advice and you decided to not follow it.” You rightfully pointed out. 

I hung my head, unable to argue the point while I was dragged across the showgrounds to 3’s cafe to ‘fix’ my own changes to an episode script and a whole movie.

17- resting head in their lap (2nd pov)

After an exciting day, you were ready to wind down for the night. 

With a tired groan, you crashed hard on the sofa in the house you shared with Mr. Puzzles at the edge of the showgrounds. 

It wasn’t an hour later that Puzzles returned home too, presumably done with his own work for the day. 

The tv headed man paused alongside the sofa to lean over, a soft smile on his screen. He lightly ran his fingers through your hair with a barely audible greeting, before he reluctantly stepped away for a short time. 

The bedroom, most likely. 

When Mr. Puzzles reentered the living room, you find that your guess is right. The man had come back with a change of clothes; soft, rather sleek and elegant pants and an even softer-looking sweater.

You stared at him, then sleepily reached out with your arms, making grabby-hands at the tv headed man, whose face flickered to an amused, if still soft, expression.

You only realized Mr. Puzzles’ plan when he approached the sofa and held your stretched out arms by forearms to help you to sit upright. When you stared in a confused manner, Puzzles’ technicolor smile grew. Humming softly, he sat down on the sofa before he lowered you carefully down to settle your head on his lap. 

You were a-okay with this plan, sighing happily  as Mr. Puzzles as he began to gently thread his fingers through your hair and along your scalp. 

The sensation of his fingers felt different today. 

You belatedly realize that Puzzles had taken his gloves off at some point, likely when he’s gone to change clothes. 

It was nice. 

You liked the touch of his robotic fingers scritching along your head and through hair with soft metallic-sounding clicks. 

Maybe he needed to oil up the joints? Could Mr. Puzzles even do that with the covering he had over those robotic fingers? Had you just never heard the sound his fingers made with the gloves off?

Or maybe you were sleepier than you realized. 

You definitely were quick to snuggle closer to wrap your right arm around Mr Puzzles’ lower back. This way, you could press your face into the tv headed man’s belly, feeling it quiver with silent mirth.

But Mr. Puzzles didn’t say anything. He only chuckled lowly in presumable endearment of the sight of you as he resumed to pet  through your hair. After a time, he moved on to your shoulders, slid his fingers down your upper back to middle, then repeated the gesture, each gentle motion of his hand drawing you closer to slumber. 

“Pleasant dreams, my dear.” Mr. Puzzles’ petting eventually slowed to a halt to lightly rest his hand against the back of your neck. “I’ll be here when you wake.”

18- leaning against them (2nd pov)

You were very pleased to be able to be able to have a whole entire week of vacation time, and Mr. Puzzles had been beyond delighted .that you were going to spend six of the seven days in his word. 

But the delight finished a little, as you’d had to make certain Puzzles understood that, while you planned to spend the majority of that time with him, you did have other plans in mind. 

Namely, exploring more of the world than just the showgrounds. 

This meant that, for some of the time you spent here, you’d be traveling with Smg1 and 2, for safety reasons. 

Smg3 & 4 could have helped, but, to put it politely, those two butt heads with one another at poor times, and it wouldn’t do for you to be in sudden danger and they didn’t notice until it was too late. 

Which was why, even if you weren’t exactly ‘spending time’ with. Mr Puzzles, you knew that he was going to more than likely follow at a distance. 

You don’t blame him for the worry. 

There was a reason you chose 1 and 2 as help, as once, a while back, you’d been hurt in this world before, and it had been clearly traumatic for him; you…actually didn’t recall to much of it, since it seemed your memory of the incident cut out when the accident occurred until you woke up and wondered why Puzzles was beside himself (almost hysterical) while a few others of Smg4’s group looked terribly upset. You felt that you’d have to ask at some point what exactly had happened…

“Hello.” Mr. Puzzles voice called out to you, breaking you out of your musings. The tv headed man joined you on the patio, and stood before where you were seated on the patio swing he’d found some time ago. “Fancy seeing you here, my delightful partner.” The tv headed man’s voice held a happy lilt as Puzzles leaned over, grasping one of your hands to hold up as he pressed the lower part of his screen to it. After leaving a lingering static zap of a kiss, Mr. Puzzles let go of your hand to sit down alongside you, his right leg bumping into your left. “Does this visit of yours perhaps include staying with me overnight a few times?”

“Hi.” You press into his side, feeling him happily wrap his right arm around your shoulders, while he to traced a few fingers down your arm to your elbow.  “I don’t know, what did I tell you over the phone?” A low chuckle, but no response, so you continued on. “Do you want to join me and Mario on an adventure in the middle of the night? Maybe we can go look for the watermelon man?” You asked in a joking manner, seizing Mr. Puzzles’ left hand with yours as his right twitched on your upper arm overthe plumber’s name.

“My dear…” Puzzles began, a low guttural dip in his voice as he leaned his head over to your level. But whatever he was about to say was cut off when you suddenly pressed the side of your head affectionately to his casing.

“Of course I’m going to stay overnight with my boyfriend.” You told him, sholding Mr. Puzzles’ hand tight while he turned his tv head to enthusiastically nuzzle you in return. 

“No leaving the window open.” Puzzles sighed, briefly halting his affections to let out a theatrical shudder, no doubt thinking of past incidents.

“No open windows.” You emphasize in agreement, giving his gloved hand a sympathetic squeeze as Mr. Puzzles resumed nuzzling your head. 

Neither of you wanted to wake up to Mario just…standing there again in your shared bedroom, just staring at the two of you sleeping, only for the Italian to BLJ out of there to avoid Mr. Puzzles lunging after him with incensed and scandalized noise. 

It had happened before. 

You secretly happened to have a short video sent to you by Mario of said incident, and saved it so that you could relieve it. 

Mario was weird, but he seemed to be invested in helping you compile photos and video clips of Mr. Puzzles (and yourself), which you were actually really happy to have with you when you couldn’t see the tv headed man for a longer period of time. 

[superstarz9]

Please make more hcs of my boy(the tv man), I need them I beg

Y’all ready to fw some MORE Mr. Puzzles headcanons?

Cause I got some.

Mr Puzzles collects vintage items and trinkets. However, he keeps them as organized as possible. Clutter stresses him out.

He probably loved those I Spy books and it’s half of the reason why he loves trinkets

Father issues to the max. A part of what he does is fuelled by the determination to prove his dad wrong and that he does have “creative vision.”

That’s what he tells himself, at least. In reality, he wants approval from his dad. Approval that never came.

How messed up would it be if his dad passed when Puzzles made his first short film? So excited to show it to his family and finally get the approval he so deserved, only for his father to shoot him down immediately, causing a fight between them. A few months after this, his father passed. I feel like smth like this would kick off Puzzles’ technical replacements.

Puzzles studied business and engineering, partially due to his mother’s request. He did take some film courses and tried to get a film degree as well, but his teachers found his work to be lacklustre and mediocre. This caused one hell of a freakout in class which caused Puzzles to get kicked out of the course. His father had to convince the dean not to remove him from the school. This would end up being more fuel for their fight later on.

Okay I think I’m just writing bullshit lore cause idk what else to write lol.

Thanks to his technical enhancements, he can connect to anything (yeah duh we’ve seen him do this already). However, this process is incredibly painful and tiring, causing him major fatigue after. That headache he gets when transferring tvs is another major side effect. He gets similar headaches when he’s been inside his own head for too long, and ibuprofen is one of the few things he misses during these moments.

Also can he really just straight up teleport? Does he channel-surf in his head and chose one to pop out of? Does that always destroy the original tv?

And he has regeneration powers, since his screen just… Regrows…

Well whatever demonic power is connected to the keyboard SMG4 uses in IGTBP, he’s probably directly tied to it. Now, I feel like this is also tied to whatever was going on with Axol but since I haven’t properly watched that arc yet I have no idea what that is or if it’s actually connected to anything. However, I don’t think he’s the direct cause of this demonic stuff, just connected to it enough to utilize it.

With that being said, a lot of his abilities was from painful experimentation and random chance. It also hurts him immensely to connect and disconnect to things. As a part of the didney worl engine and controlling the entire theme park, he probably feels like his entire body is being stretched out like those medieval torture devices. Judging by how he looks in the wotfi teaser, his organs are practically falling out.

If they do keep him alive, I would love to see an episode where SMG4 takes Puzzles on as a meme apprentice to study real creativity and makes him a co-director for a video. As they film memes n stuff, Puzzles gives unwanted opinions like “oh, you’re framing everything wrong! And WHAT is this FILTH for writing? Here, I’ve taken the liberty to fix the script for you, since we’re friends and all!” As he strains the word ‘friends.’ The entire episode is the gang tired of his shit and arguing with him, causing him to get sad and walk away. However, someone reviews the changes and re-evaluates how to film it (this could be meggy, smg4, or mario even), and they go back to finalize the script with him. At the end, when they publish the episode, Bob starts a bet to see how much it’s gonna suck but it actually does decent. Smg4 gives Puzzles credit which causes him to start bawling.

This is wishful thinking ofc bro’s gonna die lol

Another idea if they keep him alive is to try and help Tari with the Clutch situation. I don’t think that’s been dealt with correctly, and it would be interesting to have dialogue with each other.

I’d also love a convo between him and Smg4 about their similarities. Actually, I have a theory that a part of wotfi will be a reflection of IGTBP with Smg4 seeing himself through Puzzles and wanting to help him.

Another theory is that something with happen to leggy, whether she wants Puzzles to stop hurting everyone or she gets hurt, and Puzzles will stop, causing him to shut down, whether that means being defeated or having to deactivate himself.

And to end this off on a positive note, Puzzles and Leggy definitely play dress-up, trying on a bunch of different hats before settling on the tophat. Goofy walks in half-way, stunned at the door while Puzzles and Leggy are mid-tea party break, ending with Puzzles threatening him to leave. Leggy gets a good laugh out of it.

These aren’t as neat or coherent as I would’ve liked but I’m too tired to edit the right now lol. I can’t think of any more right now but I’ll hopefully think of some after wotfi (literally praying they keep Mr.Puzzles alive rn like there’s so much potential).

Also if you guys have any prompts or requests please let me know! Depending on midterms and school work, I might come up with a few halloween ones. Til then, thanks for reading and have a great day!

[purpdrawsthings]

What’s up with those static eyes? And what jobs do each of you do for the most part?

Also, to Mr. Puzzles, why have them work like this instead of as brainwashed actors?

WARNING : THIS IS NOT FINISHED! This is merely a wip I posted on accident. So some stuff may come off as weird.

My apologies ^^'

SMG4 : We uh...

SMG3 : We don't really know.

SMG4 : It just appeared right after we signed the contract I think?... Maybe it's a side effect? A mark? Who knows...

SMG4 : Now about that job part, I usually take lead in script writing cuz... I'm just the lead script writer. Other than that, my other main job is just being an actor. Other than those, I help 3 in taking care of the pets, I'm basically the mascot of the studio [ besides Mr. Puzzles ] and just an assistant.

SMG3 : looks off to him, still concerned on why tf he still has that many jobs Uuuuuuh, anyways, I help 4 with the scripts, I'm basically the person who mostly takes care of the pets, I'm also the cameraman and... Just an actor. But mostly the taking care of the pets thing and cameraman.

SMG4 : I think Meggy is a choreography teacher or something... Tari is a bug finder because of her abilities... Boopkins is is just a postman guy... Bob just guards the weapons room. Mario... Doesn't even do anything, besides acting.

SMG3 : Makes sense.

Mr. Puzzles : Why? Well... Why should I tell you folks that? Just because you all get to ask me questions doesn't mean you can sometimes pry into some secretive and personal stuff. So don't bother asking!

[ ok, time for context part!

Yeah so, everytime an ask gets answered, I'll leave a context part if necessary for those who don't understand or need more info.

So for the first one, the eyes were just some design choice at first but I decided to add some stuff about it. These static like eyes were some sign that "hey, these guys are owned =D". Maybe some sort of trademark, well, that's the thought I had to mind. Tho, other characters besides 4 and 3 have different ways of showing this. Tari from example, hides her left eye cuz it was dripping a lot and also, she just didn't really like showing it. Other than that, it was a coolio design choice.

For the second one, I'll just put it in some format here. Oh and btw, I'm not afraid to change these if necessary.

SMG4 : Puzzles assistant/Lead Script Writer/Main mascot/Part time-pet caretaker/actor

SMG3 : Assistant script writer/Lead pet caretaker/cameraman/actor

Meggy : Choreography teacher/law assistant [ incase of legal action ofc ]/Prop setup helper/actor

Tari : Bug finder/Assistant for visuals/actor

Boopkins : Prop setup helper/sender [ aka postman or something ]/Guard assistant/actor

Bob : Lead guard for the weapons room [ yes that exists lmao ]/Part time cameraman/Actor

Mario : Actor

Mario doesn't even get to do much considering with Puzzles giving him some freedom over his actions, he can do some random ass shit. Mario just spends his time in his room, memorizing scripts and probably just eating spaghetti so that he would calm down. [ this is subjected to change... ]

Puzzles just felt a lil lonely. Imagine you control everyone but all of them are just mindless and emotionless people? Yeah, that's gonna be boring sooner or later.

Fun fact : Puzzles actually has some empathy for them after a few months of working with them. But to maintain his image, he never told anyone about this. ]

[askthesmg4apprenticeshipau]

(from @asksmg4avatarpeachau)

Apricot: Well Mr Puzzles, I have a lot of reasons to not like you. For starters, you hurt and tortured the SMG4 crew by forcing them to be your pawns in that silly little 'Puzzlevision' or whatever arc.

Apricot: You were involved in Meggy's trauma involving One Shot Wren in 'Western Spaghetti' (and also Tari's trauma from that incident too I guess).

Apricot: You also were involved with the Perfect Incident in which you tortured Four with the idea of 'perfection'

Apricot: So basically your a horrible corrupt person and no matter what you do, you can never be forgiven for your actions. Well maybe by your fangirls or whatever but they're just weird so ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯

Apricot: Luckily you aren't canonical Mr Puzzles so I don't hate you really, you just are a bad person who should be punished for you actions. No hard feelings though 😉 :D. It's just the truth.

Puzzles: The truth? Heh...

Puzzles: Alright. You want to hear my side of the truth here?

Puzzles: I am haunted by what I did to my friends every single day! I am constantly worried that they'll just decided to leave me behind because of what I did! And I wouldn't blame them for it!

Puzzles: If I could go back and change how things were I would.

Puzzles: Because the whole Puzzlevision thing was horrible! And yes, SMG4 was right to despise me when he first found out I was living in SMG5 and SMG6's clubhouse! I was just unaware of it at the time!

Puzzles: But I have changed from that. My friends help me of their own accord. I write actual scripts, and you know the best part? They ad lib parts of the script. Sometimes the bloopers are better than what was originally planned to happen.

Puzzles: As for Western Spaghetti, I am very aware of the affect it had on Meggy. How she too forgave me, I'll never know. I aapologized profusely for what happened! And I still feel bad about it! She's stopped wearing her gear she received from him recently. We all pitched in and made her a beanie to replace it for her birthday, as well as new goggles and headphones. She... really liked it. We all hugged her and she cried about how happy she was with the gift.

Puzzles: And... that... how do you think I feel about what I did then? Especially knowing that it had lasting effects that not only affects both SMG4s, but also SMG6. And to think I ever tried to shift the blame to 4...

Puzzles: Seeing those scars is a painful reminder of what I did and how I affected my family...

Puzzles: And I have nightmares of relapsing... turning on them again in hope of overpowering them, and... I wake up feeling so guilty... because that part of me... it's still there... deep down...

Puzzles: Is that what you wanted to hear Apricot? Is this what you wanted? My despair? Because I have enough of it to go around! Why not have a piece, right?!

[mxxnlightwriting]

🎹 One Last Show Cover Reveal 🎹

Click the image to see it in better quality!

A massive thank you to @.catarinabookdesigns for her incredible work on this cover. She's super talented and amazing, and I couldn't have asked for a better book cover or a better way to introduce you (visually) to Emma and Dylan.

It's my first time getting an illustrated cover with people on it, and let me tell you, what an incredible feeling. There's nothing like your characters coming to life in this manner. I look at this cover and can't stop smiling at how these are my characters and this is their story.

This cover has a lot of easter eggs that tell you a little bit about the book and the story at first glance. You have Dylan with his bleached hair holding a baseball (he plays baseball), Emma with her dark purple hair holding a paper sheet (is it song lyrics? You decide). There's the stage, the piano in the background (which is a character in its own right), and the atmosphere and colours bring it all together.

I love this cover. I hope you love it, too.

I can't wait to properly introduce you to Emma and Dylan and to share more about this book with all of you. I can't believe we're already less than a month away from release.

A quick note: I'm still looking for ARC readers, so if this cover makes you want to read the book, you can find the link to apply in my pinned post!

🎹 One Last Show Blurb 🎹

Emma and Dylan used to be best friends. Now, they barely talk to each other.

Emma Hoffmann knows what she wants: to get selected for the local newspaper internship. Emma also knows what she doesn’t want: to join the school musical organisation as a songwriter. That’s in the past, much like her friendship with Dylan.

Dylan Williams needs a sense of direction in his life. After dedicating his entire life to baseball, he’s starting to question all of his choices. When he comes across the school musical audition call, he decides to give it a try for old-time’s sake. This might be his last chance to step on a stage, and he doesn't want to miss out on it.

Against Emma’s better judgement, she joins the school musical organisation committee. Against Dylan’s expectations, he gets cast as the male lead. Now, three years later, the two ex-best friends find themselves in close proximity again, but they never felt more distant from one another.

Is it time to close the curtains on their friendship for good? Or are Emma and Dylan only in need of a change of script?

One Last Show is a YA coming of age novel about two ex-best friends who find themselves working alongside each other to bring their school musical to life. Will they rekindle their friendship or call it quits for good? If you enjoy High School Musical and Heartstopper, then this book is for you! It'll be released on December 19, 2024. Follow me if you don't want to miss any updates regarding this release!

Until next time, Tari 🌙

[sanvirtheobserver]

Taking Flight, Volume 5

Nothing quirky to say this time.

ENJOY

Chapter 21: The Next Step

We begin in the Castle with Tari and Aybel in the main hall. Tari cautiously holds the orb in her right hand as Aybel hovers beside her.

Aybel: Are you ready, Miss Tari?

Tari: There were times I would be too terrified to even THINK about doing something like this, especially with no idea as to what could happen. Well, times have changed.......

She stares down at the orb she's been holding onto for a week now.

Tari: ..........and so have I.

Aybel: You'll be stepping into uncharted territory. There may be no turning back after this.

Tari: If this is the next step I need to take....... then so be it.

She takes a deep breath as she lightly places her robotic hand on the orb. It begins to glow as the silvery shell peels away to reveal a radiant core. Her metallic fingers close around the core, and the floating remnants of the shell expand and weave across her arm until it forms an armored gauntlet that goes up to her shoulder. The symbol of a blue wing is emblazoned on the pauldron, and the polished flat crystals on the back of her hand and arm dance with a tapestry of sigils and scripts. She admires her new upgrade in astonishment.

Clench: WOO! Now THIS is an upgrade! ........ now what?

Aybel: Now?.......... We get to work.

Later on we see the two gathered with all four SMGs outside. SMG4 and SMG3 are seen dragging in a large crate.

SMG4: Alright, one fresh batch of extra spicy memes at the ready!

The crate opens to reveal an assortment of memes such as Pingas Heads, Dancing Pepes, Wojacks, and.......uh.........Singing Fruit. Whatever, we'll roll with it.

SMG1: Shall we begin?

SMG1 nods and joins hands with SMG2. SMG3 and SMG4 also join hands, and the four proceed to draw the memes out of the box before converting them into golden motes of Meme Energy.

SMG2: In its raw form, Meme Energy can only be properly utilized by beings such as SMGs and Avatars.

A few motes flow into Mario, giving him the Power Star Power-up. He then proceeds to abuse this power by flying after an Ice Cream Truck. The Ice Cream man is shocked at the opalescent Italian plummer flying at him at Mach 2 and hits the gas as Mario gives chase. They both speed off into the distance, much to the amusement of Three and the bemusement of Four.

SMG1: But Meme Energy can take many forms, some of which can be drawn upon by those who are "attuned" to how the universe works. Aybel, would you care to demonstrate?

Aybel: With pleasure.

He raises his hand as a mote floats in his palm. He jestures with his other hand and currents of energy flow from the mote and weave around his fingers.

Aybel: Through methods of conduction, channeling, and communion, a soul can manipulate the flow of energy around them. Even in a diluted ambient state, the applications of such energies are practically endless.

The energy flows into his palm and creates a burning butterfly-like creature. It flutters into the distance before exploding in a brilliant display of crackling sparks and flames. He then lets the energy mote float over to Tari. She reaches for the mote with her new gauntlet. Its crystallic facets giving off a vivid azure glow as she clenches the mote.

SMG1: The Metarunners had the ability to condense this ambient energy into something more refined and concentrated.

She opens her hand to see that the mote is glowing brighter and has turned a bright blue.

SMG1: This is what we call "Meta." It is a force that not only holds great power, but memories as well. And it is through those memories that this power is realized.

Tari allows the mote to phase into her hand. Crackling energy courses through her body as her irises begin to glow blue.

SMG2: Now that you've joined with the artifact, you can now more efficiently draw from both ambient AND raw Meme Energy by refining it into Meta.

Aybel: How are you feeling, Miss Tari?

Tari: It's a bit much, to me honest....... but it's fine! I can handle it.

She transforms her arm into a railgun as the SMGs convert some of the motes into floating targets. With pinpoint precision, she fells each target with each thunderous crack.

Clench: WOOOOOO! WHO WANTS SOME!? COME RIGHT UP!

Aybel: Let's start her off with something simple.

The SMGs then condense the remaining motes into HIVE DARKBLADE KELGORATH, RISEN FROM BONES, TAKEN BY WAR, CHISELED BY LOSS, KNIGHT CHAMPION OF DEATH as a boss for Tari to fight. She draws her glaive and speeds towards the knight. Kelgorath raises his axe and attempts to bring it down upon her, but she easily dodges and cleaves a chunk of chitin from his bicep. He turns to retaliate with another swing only for his axe to shatter against an iridescent barrier. He tosses the broken axe aside and resorts to hurling balls of Arc energy. But she still manages to evade getting burned, even batting one of the balls right into Kelgorath's face and breaking his helm to reveal a bulbous growth overtaking his head. The frenzied Knight lets out a gutteral roar that echoes across the Showgrounds.

Clench: Oh, now he's pissed.

Seething with rage, Kelgorath's fists crackle with electricity as he charges in. Tari flings a blink blade past Kelgorath before he brings down his fists and shatters the earth beneath him. When the dust settles, he scans the area for any remnants of his target. A sudden pain shoots up his leg, and he looks down to see his ankle completely severed with a swing of Tari's blink blades.

Aybel: Clever girl.

Tari climbs up the Knight's back before plunging her glaive into the back of his head. The blade's glow rapidly intensifies before she unleashes an earth shattering blast, leaving nothing but a smoldering stump. She then makes her way down as the Knight's body collapses to the ground before evaporating in a cloud of Soulfire.

Tari: WOOOOOO! THAT'S how you get it done!

SMG4: How ya feeling, Tari?

Tari: Like a million quid! Slightly tingly, though.

SMG1 notices that her scars are glowing. He and SMG2 share glances of concern.

SMG1: Tari, I think you should take it easy. Your body may still need time to acclimate to channeling this kind of energy.

Tari twirls her glaive like a baton, not really heeding SMG1's advice as she notices Ragatha and Jax walking by. In a blink she rushes right up to the group and stops right in front of Ragatha.

Ragatha: Oh, uh, hi Tari.

Tari: Hey guys, whatcha doin'?

Ragatha: Not much.......uh.......

Jax: You're a lot more chipper than usual.

Tari: Oh, sorry. I'm just really really REALLY full of energy right now and I've been practicing for a bit.

Jax: Does that explain the fact that you're literally glowing right now.

Aybel floats over to the three. He carefully analyzes Tari before turning to Ragatha.

Aybel: Miss Ragatha, please forgive the intrusion, but could you perhaps assist us with Tari's training for today? We weren't expecting her to dispatch the boss we had planned so quickly.

Ragatha: It's no problem at all. I'd be glad to help.

Tari: YAAAAAAAY!

Tari immediately grabs Ragatha's hand and hauls her back to the others. The two take their starting positions as they get ready to spar. Tari makes the first move, drawing her glaive and rushing in tip first. Ragatha swiftly draws her cleavers and parries a flurry of thrusting attacks with near perfect precision. Tari steps back and switches to her blink blades. She throws one forward and Ragatha sidesteps, the blade whizzing by her head. Tari teleports to the flying blade and attempts to land a double sword strike, but Ragatha once again dodges with uncanny ease. Try as she might, Tari can't land a single blow on Ragatha. That's when she gets an idea. With a wave of her hand she summons 5 square shaped barriers and combines them into a cube around Ragatha. Now she has no room left to dodge.

Ragatha: Well, she's certainly getting more creative with her barriers.

With her quarry trapped, Tari transforms her arm into a massive fusion cannon and takes aim at the cube. The machine hums with escalating intensity as the tip of the barrel glows blue with energy. But Ragatha has another trick up her sleeve. She pricks her finger up, and a transparent thread around Tari's wrist tugs the cannon upwards right as it fires. A brilliant blue beam erupts from its barrel and streaks into the sky with a thunderous boom. A flock of birds fall out of the sky, fully cooked, basted, and seasoned for some reason.

SMG3: Oh sweet, lunch.

Tari falls onto her back, her arm reverting back to its previous form as the blue glow fades from her eyes and scars. The prism trap flickers away, allowing Ragatha to go check on her now drowsy and barely conscious sparring partner.

Ragatha: You still up for more?

Tari: Yeah, just........give me a minute to.......

Aaaaaand she's out, her snoring now audible as Ragatha picks her up in her arms.

Ragatha: Take all the time you need, kid.

Jax: whistles Well that was a show and a half. One second too late and Dollface would've been in pretty bad shape.

SMG2: And so would Tari if she hadn't expended all that excess energy.

SMG1: Indeed. It'll be some time before her body can properly handle that much energy, but her progress is still coming along swimmingly. We should probably focus more on channeling.

Ragatha makes her way back to the Castle with Tari resting peacefully in her arms.

Ragatha: Yeah, let's save that for tomorrow.

 Chapter 22: Bug Hunt

We begin with an broadcast from MKBC News with your host, Kermit D. Frog.

Kermit: This just in. The Category 5 Resonance Cascade , designated "Matilda," is making its final stretch across the Mushroom Kingdom. On to Cell with the forecast.

The camera switches over to Cell with the latest forecast.

Cell: Matilda is currently expected to continue its path across the Kingdom. The cascade is expected to lose steam as it passes over the Acorn Plains before hopefully dissipating completely upon reaching Mushroom Gulf. The surrounding area is to expect the risk of small portal storms and void fissures over the next week or so. Back to you, Kermit.

We cut to a scene of the Showgrounds under an Aurora-lit night sky. Inside we see the gang making preparations in the Castle. Melony and Saiko ready some mattresses as they listen to the news broadcast on a small radio.

Kermit: The Department of Security has advised that all residents secure their homes and avoid going outside unless ABSOLUTELY necessary. If you see any Xen creatures or Void entities, refrain from making contact and alert your local police department immediately.

Saiko: Talk about a rainy day on paradise, huh.

Melony: Yeah. I was hoping Kaizo and I could hang out at the aquarium later.

Saiko: chuckles

Melony: What?

Saiko: It's just........... You two have been hanging out a lot since we got back from Swiper's Pass. If I didn't know better, I'd say he's taken an interest in you.

Melony: Well, Karen said I should have someone monitor my recovery, and he volunteered. After that we started hanging out some more, and he even comes by my place on the weekends to help with.......other things.

We briefly flash back to the other day. Kaizo was stopping by Melony's place when he sees her curled up and trembling on the floor beside her bed. It looks like she had another panic attack.

Melony: I know he's a bit of a jerk, but he can still be really sweet when he wants to be.......

The flashback ends with Melony holding Kaizo tightly as he does his best to comfort her.

Melony: .......and a big help when he needs to be.

Outside the Castle we have Karen, Whisk, Cory, Katie, and Zack standing out front as Tari answers the door.

Whisk: Hey Tari.

Tari: Glad you could all make it. And I see you brought company.

Karen: C'mon, why don't you guys introduce yourselves?

Katie: Uh.......hi.......I'm Katie.

Zack: Sup. I'm Zack, and that's Corey.

Corey just waves.

Whisk: Thanks again for letting us stay here until the Cascade passes.

Tari: Anytime! We'll see about getting you some rooms in the Guest House once they've dealt with the..........intruders.

A quick cutaway gag shows Jax humming a little tune as he makes a sandwich, completely unbothered by Zooble and Ragatha fighting off a horde of Murmur in the lounge.

Whisk: Now, can you guys tell us the rules we have to follow while we're here?

Katie: Be courteous and don't stay up past 10.

Whisk: Good job, Katie! Anyone else?

Corey: Licking doorknobs is illegal on other planets.

Whisk: Uh....... not really applicable in this case, but good to know, I guess.

Zack: Don't kill anybody unless you have a plan to get rid of the body.

Whisk: ........... Let's just head inside.

Karen: Don't mind Zack. He gets his attitude from his father.

The family comes inside and gets comfortable. But right as Tari is about to close the door, she hears something coming from the woods. It sounds like shrieking and gunfire. Tari spreads her wings and heads up high before making her way west. She hovers over a nearby clearing and finds a pack of Antlions circling a young woman gunning them down with a shotgun pistol.

Uzi: Alright, who's next?

As Tari flies in for a closer look, one of the Antlions lunges at her, snagging onto her foot and pulling her down to the ground. She summons her glaive just in time to skewer it in the head, but is then pinned under the body as the others shift their focus away from Uzi. The horde surrounds Tari as she struggles to get out from under the dead beast.

Tari: Oh no.....

One lunges at her, but is quickly dispatched by Uzi with a shotgun blast to the abdomen. She swiftly loads another rack of shells and disarms another before finishing it off with a shot to the head. One attempts to lunge at her from behind, but she swiftly ducks and sends it flying back with a point blank shot to the thorax. Tari manages to free herself from beneath the dead Antlion and manages to blast another one going for Uzi. The two then proceed to decimate the oncoming horde. Every swing of a blade and every pull of the trigger is another Antlion down, yet with every bug that gets squished several others take its place.

Uzi: Ugh! We're getting nowhere with this!

She pulls Tari behind her, holsters her gun, and raises her hand to the horde. The whites of her eyes turn black as a bright purple sigil appears on her palm. A searing wave of energy bursts from the sigil and across the clearing, and the horde stops dead in its tracks. Black ooze begins seeping from her eyes as she clenches her fist. A cacophony of cracks and splatters fill the air as each and every Antlion - from the meek workers to the towering guards - is crushed by an invisible force. An eerie silence falls and the shrieks of the horde are no more. All that's left is an unrecognizable mass of pale green slime and shattered chitin. Uzi's eyes return to normal as the sigil fades from her palm. Tari just sits there in shock at what she had just witnessed.

Tari: What........ did you......

Uzi: None of your business, thats-

Uzi winces in pain as she drops to her knees. Tari hops back to her feet and rushes to Uzi's side.

Uzi: Back off! G-get away from me or I'll- NGH!

Tari: Wait! It's okay. I just wanna help.

Uzi begins to vomit a caustic black bile. Tari swears she sees something writhing in the puddle. Tari lays Uzi on her side for a moment and checks her vitals. She's cold and clammy to the touch, and the veins on her neck are turning black.

Tari: Hold on tight. I'm gonna take you back to the Castle, okay? It's not safe out here.

Uzi: Mh....... You tell anyone about what you saw...... and you're dead......

Tari: I can accept those terms.

Uzi begins to slip in and out of consciousness as Tari picks her up and carries her to safety. Back at the Castle, we see our little "Cascade Party" is coming along nicely. Pomni is entertaining Katie and Zack witn her prisms, Mario and Corey are just spinning around, Kinger is once again hiding away in his impenetrable pillow fortress, and Meggy is having a little chat with Saiko, Gangle, and Melony.

Gangle: I have SO MANY IDEAS for some fics I'm writing, but I try and try every night and don't know where to go.

Melony: It's still important to stay active when making Manga, but it's also important to figure out a good pace to take. That helps ensure higher writing quality.

Meggy: It'll also help prevent burnout and maintain your motivation. A hobby you love can easily become a chore you hate if you don't know when to take a break. You can't surpass your limits without first learning what those limits are.

Gangle: But what if I take a break and something distracts me from getting back to writing?

Saiko: Try leaving yourself something to pick up on. I usually don't like leaving things unfinished, so I usually start the first line of the next thing after finishing up the previous thing. That tricks my head into reminding myself to finish what I started.

Gangle: Huh...... I guess that could-

Their conversation is interrupted by someone barging in through the front door. Everybody present is shocked to see Tari covered in Antlion guts and carrying a sick barely conscious teenager in her arms.

Tari: Excuse, me! Coming through!

Saiko: What the hell happened? And why do you smell like vomit and bug guts?

Tari: Oh, I just fought off a horde of Antlions. I also made a new friend.

Saiko: And you did that all on your own?!

Tari: It wasn't easy but, uh, yeah.

Meggy: Wow, um...... do you need a little help? Are you hurt?

Tari: I'm fine, but I'm gonna need a medkit for....... um......

Uzi: ........Uzi.........

Tari: Right. Uzi. Now if you'll excuse me......

Tari makes her way to the Guest Room without another word, leaving everybody present in a brief state of shock.

Kinger: Sorry, I dosed off for a minute there. What did I miss?

Chapter 23: A Helping Hand

It's all quiet through the Castle as the residents have turned in for the night. SMG4 is fast asleep in his Office Room, Saiko is asleep on the Game Room couch as Pomni and Gangle are snuggled up in their sleeping bags, and Kinger is nice and cozy in his pillow fortress in the main hall. We see Tari quietly walk by the fortress and take a look in the Guest Room, where we see the whole Felin family resting soundly with Karen snoring up a storm in her chair and Whisk cuddling up with her little siblings on one of the extra mattresses. Meggy and Melony are also fast asleep on the Playroom Bed. That's when she notices the Casino Bed is empty. Tari then hears the front door close beside her. She goes outside to find Uzi making her way into one of the tents outside. Once inside, Uzi lays down on her own mattress and stares blankly into the roof, waiting to fall asleep. That is, until Tari takes a peek into the tent.

Uzi: sigh Let's me guess. You ratted me out to the landlord and I need to leave by morning.

Tari: What? No. I just wanted to make sure you were okay.

Uzi: Oh really? How am I not sure you yapped to everyone about the witch in the woods?

Tari: I haven't told a soul about that. You have my word.

Clench: Well, there's also me, but I'm less of a person and more of uh...... let's go with "extension." TLDR, we're the only ones who know about your whole magic shtick.

There's a tense silence for a moment as Uzi moves her hand away from the shotgun pistol stowed under her pillow. Tari enters the tent and takes a seat on the foot of the mattress.

Tari: So....... how long have you been here?

Uzi: About a week. I've been traveling for a few months and needed somewhere secure to hunker down for Cascade Season.

Tari: You couldn't stay home?

Uzi: Yeah....... I never really belonged there to begin with. And that was LONG before....... well, you saw.

She stares into the glyph shaped scar on her palm.

Uzi: I'm not exactly the safest to be around.

Tari: And all this time you've been on your own?

Uzi: Yep. I drift from place to place, staying out of people's hair whenever possible. I'll probably head out once the whole cascade thing settles down.

Tari: Where will you go?

Uzi: Eh....... I'll cross that bridge when I get there.

There's a moment of silence as Tari contemplates what to say next.

Tari:.......... You know, the Guest House should be open again by tomorrow. Maybe you can stay there until we figure things out.

Uzi's eyes widened in shock.

Uzi: You're joking.

Tari: Of course not.

Uzi: You really want someone....... someTHING.....like me staying around other people?

Tari: Yeah! It's the least we can do.

Uzi: Look. I appreciate the offer, but the last person I tried staying with ended up plastered on a tree just because I sneezed. You saw what I was capable of back in the woods. Hell I don't even KNOW what this is or WHY I'm like this. I'm not stable. I'm not normal, or friendly, or safe. And don't give me any of that bullshit about being "special." I'm just.........

She takes a moment to catch her breath, staring into her scar once again.

Uzi: I'm just.......wrong.

Tari scoots closer to Uzi.

Tari: You know, I was in a similar situation myself once. I felt like a burden because I wasn't able to defend myself like many of my friends could. Even when I did help in battling giant eldrich monsters or anime character clones, I felt like I didn't have much use outside of kindness, gaming, and the occasional simulation. I couldn't even look people in the eye without having a heart attack. I felt........ useless. But I was lucky enough to have people there for me. They didn't just protect me, they helped me grow as a person and become stronger than I could ever realize. And that was all before I unlocked my powers last month. I still have a ways to go, but I also know I'm blessed to have people who can help me along the way....... and so can you.

Tari gently holds Uzi's hand and offers a reassuring smile.

Tari: If you so choose.

Uzi is taken back. Even before all this "stuff" happened to her, no one besides her father ever really offered her that kind of kindness. There's just so much to process.

Uzi: I........... I've had way too long of a day to worry about this.

Tari let's out a sigh as she gets up to her feat and makes her way out of the tent.

Tari: Alright....... My offer still stands so...... let me know if you're interested.

And so she heads back to the Castle, leaving Uzi to her contemplation. The following morning we Tari along with Meggy and the Mario Bros meeting up with Pomni and Ragatha at the Café.

Ragatha: Hey guys! You ready for the trip?

Meggy: You betcha! I've been aching for some action.

Tari: Take it easy. We don't want you breaking any more ribs.

Pomni: Are you guys sure we should bring Mario to Sugar Canyon?

Ragatha: Yeah. Didn't you say he goes all wackadoo around food?

Luigi: Oh don't worry. He's more into fried foods than sweets.

While the others are talking, Tari notices Caine entering the Café......... along with someone familiar.

Caine: HELLO my disgustingly adorable pancakes!

Meggy: Hey, isn't that the girl you brought in last night?

Tari spins around and is surprised to see Uzi coming in behind Caine.

Tari: Oh that's Uzi! You probably remember her from last night.

Uzi: Hey.

Meggy: Well, it's nice to meet you. Name's Meggy, and this is Mario and Luigi.

Luigi: Hello!

Mario: Have you got any food?

Tari: So, what brings you here so early?

Uzi: Well, I was planning on going for a walk when I bumped into Mister Bombastic over here. He said you guys had some kind of "adventure job" planned and asked if I wanted to tag along.

Tari: Wait....... you're coming with us?

Uzi: Not at first, but I figured it would be worth a look since I'm gonna be staying here a while. It's not like I have anything else planned.

Tari gives a warm smile.

Tari: That's great! So, when are we all heading out?

Caine: Well, I have good news and bad news. The bad news is that SMG3's ship was damaged last night by a Void Angel attack and is in need of repairs, so we won't be able to take it this time. BUT, the good news is that Saturday herself has managed to pull some strings and get us another means of getting to the Sweetlands.

Just then, what sounds like a god awful impression of an elephant can be heard outside. The group heads our and sees Saiko, Kinger, and Jax (who now has a straw hat because it's cool) admiring a massive Palanquin pulled by an equally massive Gummy Elephant. Saturday herself can be seen on top of the Palanquin.

Jax: whistles That's one helluva ride you got there princess.

Tari: WOAH. I've never seen a beast that big. Well, not one that wasn't some kind of eldrich abomination, anyway.

Kinger: AH! Oh hi, you seem new around here. Lord Kinger, at your service.

Uzi: You're an odd old man, aren't you.

Jax: So who's the grape girl?

Uzi: Bite me, Carrot Breath!

Saiko: Heh, I like her already.

Ragatha: Sorry about him. He can be a bit..... abrasive at times.

Caine flies above the Palanquin so he and Saturday can address the group.

Caine: Alright, Loo! Give us the lowdown!

Saturday: I told you not to call me that.........Alright, listen up! By the end of the day we will be entering the kingdom of Sugar Canyon, domain of House Bonbon. You will be in the presence of royalty, and are expected to be on your absolute best behavior. Have I made myself clear?

Meggy: Transparently, ma'am!

Uzi: Whatever.

Tari: You can count on us!

The group makes their way on board the Palanquin.

Caine: Alright, my hardshelled hamburgers! Next stop: SUGAR CANYON KINGDOM!

Chapter 24: Where The Water Tastes Like Soda

The Palanquin rolls across the rocky planes of the Sweetlands as a gorgeous sunset lights the sky. Caine is currently giving our crew a bit of lore exposition as they make their way to the Kingdom of Sugar Canyon.

Caine: The Sweetlands owes its BLOOMING biodiversity to the Sterling Arbors and their life giving syrup. While the trees are dormant during the summer and winter months, the Capitol of Sugar Canyon has figured out how to grow their own orchards that give them a steady supply year round. This has made them a beacon of hope during the dry seasons, but also a major target for various bandit groups. As such, the Baroness has promised HANDSOME rewards for those willing to bring such miscreants to SWEET BUTTERY JUSTICE.

Meggy: Sounds like quite the sweet deal for such a sticky situation.

Caine: INDEED, my dear Meggy!

Luigi: I wonder how many candy stores they have.

Caine: Too many to even THINK of counting, Luigi!

Bubble pops out of his hat.

Bubble: Y'know, if I was a dentist, I'd pull out all of a kid's teeth so they can't have candy. That way I get to keep the candy AND the teeth!

There is a VERY awkward silence from the group.

Caine: Why are you like this?

The Palanquin soon arrives at the gate of the Sugar Canyon Capitol. The group disembarks, crowds of candied citizens cheering them on as they make their way towards the Town Hall.

Ragatha: Quite the welcome wagon, huh.

Kinger: Oh, if only Gangle and Zooble were here. I think they'd love this place.

Saiko: If I had known we'd draw a crowd, I would've brought Kaizo. We could've had a concert.

Tari: So, how's your first adventure?

Uzi: It's a bit much, to be honest. Usually people just scream at me to leave.

Luigi: The people here must not get visitors often, huh Mario?

Mario: Yeah! Mario is Number 1! Kiss the ring, babies!

Ragatha: So Loo, you excited?

Saturday: First, I told you not to call me that. Second.........sigh....... just promise me you'll behave yourselves until we depart. Alright?

Ragatha: Your wish is my command, heiress.

They soon arrive at the Town Hall, where a procession of Gingerbread Knights line the stairs. At the top is none other than Baroness Vanillia von Bonbon, the head of the Sugar Canyon High Council. She looks kinda like Saturday, but her colors are more pink and red and she has a cute spiral hat encircled by a crown.

Vanillia: LULU MY BABY!!!!!

She's also Saturday's mom. The Baroness excitedly makes her way down the stairs and takes her daughter's hands.

Vanillia: It's been so long, honey! I trust that Aybel fellow has been treating you well.

Saturday gives an uncharacteristically warm smile.

Saturday: Yes, Mother. All is going well.

Vanillia: And you've even made some new friends.

Kinger: Your presence honors us, M'lady.

She heads over to Meggy and picks her right up like a toddler.

Vanillia: And look at you! You look so sweet I could just EAT YOU RIGHT UP, hehe.

Meggy: Uh....... I'm flattered, Miss.

Tari: Look at that, Uzi! We're already friends with the Baroness.

Saturday is just standing silently as she internally dies of second hand embarrassment. Uzi cracks a smile and chuckles.

Uzi: Yeah, I feel your pain. My dad is EXACTLY like this when it comes to Open House.

Saturday: Um, Mother? They're actually here to help with the bandit problem.

Vanillia drops Meggy in sudden realization.

Vanillia: Oh that's right! Usually, the individual gangs aren't much of an issue, but that was before that no good Warlord Chewmaw started rounding up bandit gangs from across the Sweetlands under his banner. He even has some of those Darkfudge Cultists under his thumb. They have never been this organized, or this bold, before Chewmaw took over. There are even reports of bandits near the outer gates. We're afraid they may be plotting an attack against the capital itself.

Tari: Is there really no way to settle this peacefully?

Saturday: With the individual clans, perhaps. But that won't happen so long as Chewmaw is at the helm. He's had it out for Sugar Canyon since he was a gumdrop. That's why we need to find him, bring him to justice, and dismantle this Cabal of his before its too late.

Vanillia: The bandits make good use of modified syrup tankers and rocky road bikes, so you'll need a war rig of your own to keep up.

Right on cue, a massive ornate War Rig adorned with various candy paraphernalia rolls into view. It's hooked up to an armed trailer in the back and crushes a bystander beneath its treads. Don't worry, he's fine.

Jax: Ooooh, now we're cooking.

Pomni: It looks like something out of John Carter.

Mario: Mario calls shotgun!

Mario swiftly makes his way into the driver's seat and tests out the horn, which is just the airborne from Lethal Company. Y'know, the one that sounds like something OTHER than a horn. Yeah, Mario is suddenly not so eager to drive anymore, which is a good thing considering how he treats his own cart. Jax excitedly pushes Mario aside and revs up the engine.

Jax: ALL ABOARD, GOING ABOARD.

The rest of the crew makes their way aboard the rig. The engine roars to life and the rig chugs along towards the exit, running over several bystanders in the process. Don't worry, they're fine.

Vanillia: Safe travels! And don't forget to wear your seat belts!

Caine slowly floats over to her side and offers a puff of his pipe.

Vanillia: Oh, no thanks. I'm trying to quit.

Out in the Rocky Roads, there is a camp of gummy gators in bushman's wear taking a rest for the night. A red and yellow gator named Chad is carving some eggs while a purple and red gator named Max is tending to their syrup tanker.

Chad: You think we'll get a decent cut of the haul when we get back? I heard Chewmaw is getting rather greedy.

Standing on lookout is the head of this little pack, a yellow and green gator named Gummigoo. You know he's the leader because his hat has teeth on it.

Gummigoo: We won't know until we get to the hideout. I made sure to stow some bottles back at the farm for Mum.

Max: You still think she'll pull through? She was in quite the state last I checked.

Gummigoo: Mum may be a bit past her prime, but she's still a fighter. She taught us everything we know, didn't she?

He goes back on the lookout and sees a mysterious figure making their way towards their camp. He's clad in black robes adorned with the image of a gaping maw, with a carved jawbreaker mask held in place with strands of licorice. In his bandaged hands he holds a staff carved from Maplewood, with a green hard candy eye in its head. The figure makes his way into the camp and examines the tanker as Gummigoo brandishes his rifle.

Cultist: Greetings, friends.

His voice was raspy and weak.

Cultist: I see you have secured your bounty.

Gummigoo: State your business.

Cultist: Lord Chewmaw's scouts have reported a War Rig exiting the Capitol. Exceptionally armed, and manned by the heiress Loolilalu herself.

Max: Wow, it's been a while since we heard about her.

Chad: Wasn't she off to college or something like that?

Cultist: She's not alone, either. There were others spotted with her. Outsiders from the Mushroom Kingdom.

Gummigoo: Hm.......I've heard about that place. All sorts of jonky business going on over there.

Max: Yeah. I heard they let these fluffy things run amok once a year to keep them peaceful. Absolute anarchy would reign and the guard wouldn't even raise a finger.

Chad: There were also some outbreaks a few years back. People would go dead silent and stiffen up into crosses because they ate some kind of bad mushrooms, or get turned into lanky green Italians with hats.

Max: I've even heard tales of some blokes from there fighting off eldrich gods to cancel the apocalypse. That one seems a bit too far fetched, though.

Chad: Yeah, a bit silly innit?

Cultist: It is crucial that they do not interfere with the plan. If you see that War Rig, it is within all our best interests to eliminate it.

Gummigoo takes a moment to run through all this. He may not be familiar with anyone from the Mushroom Kingdom, but he's DEFINITELY had a history with Loolilalu.

Gummigoo: This is gonna be fun.

He pulls out Max from beneath the tanker. A toothy grin creeps across his snout as he adjusts his hat.

Gummigoo: C'mon boys, let's kick up some sugar.

The trio crawls their way into the tanker and drive off under the moonlight, leaving the cultist to sit by the campfire as the night goes on.

Flight, Chapter 25: Meanwhile.........

Over at the Guest House, Zooble carries some trash bags outside and hurls them into the dumpster. One of them opens and reveals a silvery hand protruding from inside. Looks like they're still cleaning up after last night's "infestation." She comes back inside as Gangle finishes sweeping up some remaining Murmur bits while Bob is also lazing about in the lounge.

Bob: Nice job, team.

Gangle: But you didn't even do anything.

Bob: I'm giving off positive vibes. It's important to spread positivity and promote a positive environment.

Zooble: Yeah, nothing more inspiring than a snoring trashbag on the couch.

Bob: Damn straight! And you guys did a pretty good job! Five stars all around.

Mr. Puzzles: distant OH COME ON!!!!

Don't worry, that was just a cameo.

Gangle: Why not just hang out in the Castle?

Bob: Usually I would, but Boopkins is busy with family stuff, and the rest are either over at Omnia or off to the Sweetlands. I'm also pretty much barred from the Castle because Karen hates me.

Gangle: Why is that?

Bob: She says I'm a "bad influence" on her kids or something. I was just teaching them some cool life hacks.

One of them was how to siphon gas from a car, by the way.

Zooble: So you only like being lazy around others, is that it?

Bob: Can you blame a man who just wants some company?

Gangle: What about Melony and Kaizo?

Bob: They're already dealing with the hole.

The two carnies exchange glances of confusion and concern.

Zooble: What hole?

The three meet with Kaizo and Melony behind the Castle. Gangle and Zooble are understandably concerned about the circular opening hanging in the air. The inside shimmers with mysterious colors that have never been seen before.

Zooble: I'm sorry, what the hell is this?

Bob: A hole.

Zooble: Yeah, I see that. Where did it come from?

Kaizo: It appeared last night. A Void Angel had come through and attacked SMG3's ship.

Zooble: And WHAT has been done about this?

Melony: We tried boarding it up, but the planks just fell in. Then we called E. Gadd over and he took a look inside.

Zooble: Hm.........

Zooble sticks their head into the hole to take a look. A tumultuous sea of quantum foam lights the omnidirectional sky. Small visages of vessels and islands dot the horizon as massive wormlike creatures slither through the surrounding void. Zooble pulls their head back and takes a moment to process what they just saw.

Zooble: pop Yeah, this is gonna be a problem.

Bob: Hey guys I brought snacks.

They all just give him the stink eye as he stands there with a bag of chips.

Gangle: Shouldn't you be taking this a bit more seriously?

A shadowy ghoul suddenly pops out of the portal. Gangle shrieks as it lunges towards her, but Bob swiftly uses his special technique and blows it full of holes. The visage of the creature collapses to the ground before vanishing.

Gangle: W-w-what was that?

Kaizo: Liminus. Nasty little things.

Zooble: Where the hell did it come from!?

Bob eyes the hole.

Zooble: Right, right, the hole. How the hell are you all so calm about this!?

Melony: I'm more worried about what's going on in the city.

And for good reason. Over in Mushroom City, shit is most certainly fucked. Duviri Dax soldiers, Corrupted units, and Murmur creatures flood the streets, laying waste to all in their path. In the sky, a mechanical roar echoes through the sky as the massive Orowyrm Lodun slithers across the skyline. The military has already mobilized, gunning down any and all hostiles with extreme prejudice. Chris and Swag leading the offensive against the Void Invaders as they regroup with Hal Monitor and the Police.

Chris: Whats the situation, Mr. Monitor?

Hal: We just lost the town hall to Dominus Thrax's forces, and those neural sentries are picking us off like flies.

Swag: Is the coffee machine still working?

Hal: Yes, but we don't know how much our coffee stores will last. My question is how the hell we're gonna deal with that dragon?

Chris: Don't worry, we found someone who can deal with that.

Galloping through the streets on a majestic Kaithe, a lone Drifter guns down Dax and Murmur alike with their trusty Sirocco pistol. They jump from their mount and draw their dual nikanas, cutting down any and all aggressors with ease. The Drifter looks up as Lodun slithers between the skyscrapers and they lock eyes.

Lodun: YOU PARASITE, I WILL GRIND YOUR BONES UNTIL THE VERY SPARKS CRY FOR MERCY.

Unfazed, the Drifter mounts their Kaithe. It's wings unfold as it flies towards the Orowyrm, the Drifter readying their blades..... right before we come back to the showgrounds.

Zooble: Huh.

Kaizo: Yeah. It's getting bad.

Gangle: Now what? There has to be SOMETHING we can do.

Just then, we see something digging it's way to the surface right next to the group.

Zooble: Oh God dammit.

Zooble transforms their arms into blades, readying themselves for another Murmur attack, but it turns out to be......... someone familiar.

Bob: Oh, hi Steve!

Yep. Our blocky lord and savior Steve has returned.

Gangle: You know this guy?

Bob: Yeah! Steve is an old friend of Mario's. He's also a business partner of mine but that's not important.

Melony: Hey Steve, we're having some trouble figuring out what to do about this Void hole. You think you could help us out?

Steve makes his way over to the group and notices the portal. You can practically hear the gears in his head turning as he aggressively focuses on what to do next.

Steve: Yeah I got time.

And just like that, he starts building. He starts off with a ring of cobblestone around the portal, followed by another ring with some dispensers and sensors sprinkled in there. Then he starts digging out tge ground inside, placing multiple cauldrons and some trapdoors on the bottom. Finally, he gets to wiring some Redstone contraptions and placing some chests until his latest project is complete.

Steve: All done.

Another Dax Gladius exits through the hole.

Gladius: Surrender or di-

Steve flicks a switch and the Gladius is immediately feathered with arrows from all directions, dropping his items upon death into the receptacles below. Ladies and gentlemen, we have ourselves a mob spawner farm. And just as quickly as he arrived, Steve departs by digging below and hiding his path.

Melony: Huh.......problem solved, I guess.

Kaizo: Well, if anybody needs me I'll be taking a nap. Wake me up if somebody starts dying, okay?

Bob: I'm gonna go hit up Baro and see if he's interested. We may even get some relics outta this.

And so they head off, leaving a very confused Zooble and Gangle.

Gangle: I can't help but feel like this violates some kind of convention.

The two head back to the Guest House and settle down in the lounge.

Zooble: All's well that ends well, I suppose.

Gangle: Yeah.........

Gangle seems to be in a bit of a daze.

Zooble: You alright?

Gangle: Yeah, I'm fine........ it's just.......

Zooble knows what's on her mind, but she still gives Gangle the chance to speak hers.

Gangle: I think Kaufmo would've liked it here.

Zooble: Yeah.......

They scoot over to Gangle and place their arm around her shoulder.

Zooble: I think so, too.

[loquaciousquark]

4-Sided Dive Highlights - Critical Role C3 up to E38 (Nov. 1, 2022)

Good afternoon, all! It's rainy and lovely here and this accursed week is finally over, so let's join Marisha, Sam, Matt, and Taliesin on this week's episode. Matt wins host & intros us from a Laudna-dark-dimension-themed spiel. "Taliesin Jaffe's current character, Ashton, got to argue with Taliesin Jaffe's old character, Percy, giving form to the internal strife between our old egos and the audacity of the now." Omar arrives to be held in the last segment and he remains adorable.

What the Fuck is Up With That? Matt got to be most of VM except for Scanlan, Grog, and Vax. Sam: "Percy is a dick!" Matt says him being in charge of the only source of residuum in the world and watching his weapons stretch across the world has stressed him out. Taliesin was very impressed with Matt's portrayal of both Percy and Delilah and agrees that with Delilah present and Percy as paranoid as he is, it all felt true to form. Matt says with all his trauma Percy would have let Laudna "go" (I think he means "stay dead" in this context). Sam: "Whitestone is a paranoid place."

Matt knew when Orym & Laudna were created that he might have to play C1 characters. He was nervous about it and hoped it wouldn't happen, but as the story leaned that way he knew he'd need to be ready. When they ended the episode going through the Sun Tree, Matt emailed Taliesin and asked him about where Percy would be in the world, his relationship with Keyleth & Whitestone, etc. All the players agreed they did NOT want to play their old characters alongside their new ones: "That would have been SO confusing." Matt knew they were excited about the mystery as well.

Keyleth and Percy are okay. She was distracted and had places to be. "When you're friends for a long time, you can agree a lot of the time and occasionally not agree." Sam: "Are they having an affair?" Everyone else, repulsed: "No!" Marisha: "They wouldn't be having an affair. Vex would be totally in on it, let's be real." Tal: That's true, yeah. She would instigate it, to be honest."

Matt wanted Keyleth to stick around longer, but it was juggling too many characters. Sam says the longer she's onscreen, the higher the likelihood she turns into a fish and dies.

Matt wanted the old characters to be able to help, but wants the new ones to understand they are still small fries & need to find their own solutions.

As son as Vex realized the connection, she was eager to help. Tal likes that Laudna never put it together who Vex was; it makes it almost more cruel.

Percy is very close to Gwendolyn because he sees a lot of his bad qualities in her and is trying to guide them in a better direction.

The Matilda/Laudna confabulation was Matt showing Delilah was having a hard time keeping the illusions together.

She was born Matilda Bradbury and changed her name to Laudna after dying and living alone in the woods for a long time. She was losing touch with who she was. She doesn't hate the name Matilda, but had just become something else.

All three of Marisha's characters have Timeless Body by complete accident. Sam: "Seems like a cry for help." Marisha, aggrieved: "It's really hard being a woman in Hollywood, slowly aging! Let me have this!"

Sam loved the moving buildings. Marisha thought it was crazy seeing them experience her backstory without her being there.

Marisha had a small living room set up in the area where she was watching offscreen. Dani tells us everyone at the table at the end were the same people who were either taken by the Iron Shepherds or who passed away. Fascinating! Scripted!!!!

Sam talks about having never died and left the table as a player. Scanlan was only dead very briefly, and Tary came on right away after Scanlan left the party.

If FCG dies, they'll just put him in neutral and roll him down a hill until he kickstarts again.

The creature Matt created was the Shade of Delilah Briarwood and she was a creature rather than a full PC/NPC.

When Pike said there was a chance Delilah was gone forever, Matt rolled behind the screen and knows himself whether she is dead forever. He refuses to say to preserve the mystery. Tal suggests throwing Laudna in an acid pit to be sure.

Travis is the worst at trying to catch Matt off-guard in revealing secrets. Matt has deliberately "woven an aura of confusion" around what he's told Travis and others to keep from revealing too much.

Pate is a reflavored imp from the Pact of the Chain warlock ability.

If you had to do a one-man show of a piece of media, what would it be? Sam: Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure. He doesn't love the movie, but he's seen it so many times; Sam reveals he worked on a cruise ship when he was a teenager (!) and saw the same eight movies a thousand times. Bill & Ted, Memphis Belle, Adventures in Babysitting, Glengarry Glen Ross...incredible! Taliesin: SpaceCamp or Young Frankenstein. Marisha: Popeye movie.

Tower of Inquiry! Where did your character's names come from? We've had this question before, huh. "Matilda" came from a rabbit hole in Marisha's research, where she read about young girls who made silk flowers in the late 1800s in factories. They used a popular bright green paint (apparently a difficult color to manufacture) called Scheele's green which turned out to have arsenic in it, and one of the girls who died was called Matilda. FCG's name did in fact come from the article about how freshly cut grass screams. Ashton came from one of Taliesin's friend's names. Greymoore came from Tal's love of Dickensian slightly off-kilter names: Cratchet, Bumble, Greymoore.

Sam & Tal had a 2:1 with Matt prior to the first session, and Tal liked seeing Sam find the voice for FCG. Matt wondered if he should say something to Laura when she came up with the same voice later, but decided not to.

The EXU crew & Travis didn't have 1:1s because they already knew their characters from EXU & C1.

Favorite RP moments so far? Sam loved the dream journey with Imogen & giving couples' advice to the Green Seekers. Taliesin: loves his moments with Laudna & messing with Percy. Matt thought it was so fun to have such a mutual disdain & respect. Marisha: breaking the rock on the airship & all of the one on one conversations with everyone giving advice afterwards.

The Deep Dive! Laudna's mind was an extended skill check. Anything that fit with a heroic moment applied. If Orym hadn't found the tunnel under the house, they would have had to keep going through the forest with more Laudna memories, which would have drained them.

Tal really loved every moment of the Percy interactions & thought Matt did an amazing job. He loves playing Percy & would do it again anytime, but playing against him was satisfying too. He would have kept going for twenty more minutes if he could.

Scanlan would be okay with Laudna: she's weird & he likes weird. "He has a weird kink, but I don't know about the dead thing... You know, I've spent so much time with Scanlan at this point, I'd like to think no, but if I'm being honest..." Scanlan is probably splitting his time between Whitestone & Marquet.

Marisha didn't put any stipulations on Matt in terms of the resurrection ritual: "Whatever happens happens." She was willing to accept it if it went wrong, and Matt reminds us it got real close. She didn't want him to pad rolls. "Natural one..."

Eshteross knew the end was coming for him eventually. He got his affairs in order early & knew BH would be best suited for airship travel in the short term.

Ashton has worked really hard not to think about his parents until the Hishari helm made him face it. "You would be a coward and an idiot to not start figuring it out." He's only consciously & deliberately touched another member of the group for the first time in this last episode because everything hurts.

FCG was shocked by the discovery that he has a soul because suddenly he has a responsibility to it. It's easy to take care of other people when that's your designated role, but when you're forced to take care of yourself too, that's way harder. That FCG dying would be a loss for the world is more pressure. "It's a hard thing for them to swallow especially since they can't digest things."

Block break! Thanks a lot, tumblr. This didn't used to be a thing!

Having her friends fight Delilah for her felt like having your friends take care of you when you're way too drunk: "I didn't want anybody to have to do that."

Tower of Inquiry, Redux: Moments of greatest character impact so far? FCG: the flapping wings of the night. Laudna: dying. Ashton: getting out of the contract & everything that came with it. FCG: getting hooked up with the Changebringer.

Describe two characters stuck in an elevator. Hazel Copperpot & Keyleth are trapped; Hazel refuses to allow the doors to open for 15 minutes while she gets an interview. Nott & Taryon: Nott would think he's very handsome & then become instantly annoyed. Percy & Molly would have a terrible first 30 minutes but then be good friends. Gilmore & Essek: Matt does a little one-man-show where they appreciate each other's styles & comment on Essek's floating.

Sam approaches the Jenga tower with "the energy of a three-year-old." It's truly terrifying. Matt does still have pictures of key rolls on his phone. FCG has a new feature called Shared Exuberance that lets him get a little boost on a friend's natural 20. Cute name!

Post-Break Shenanigans: Hand to Hand Wombat! Our post-break game is a one I've never heard of. Players build a small tower of blocks while covering their eyes. One player is a secret tower saboteur. It's a good thing these rounds are 90 seconds long because this is CHAOTIC. Taliesin is the saboteur and is hilariously obvious about it. Votes are split between Tal & Sam and they all answer three questions at the same time as each other???? Why would you do this to me!!

Laudna is excited and happy to be back & is feeling a bit like a fever dream that she doesn't believe is real.

No way Eshteross could have survived alone. The BH could have maybe helped, but it still would have been close. He was doomed.

Ashton has kept the pain to himself for a long time and didn't know how to share it. Having it reveal in game the way it did was nice.

DON'T AT ME IF ANY OF THESE ARE WRONG, I DID MY BEST.

Game one, round two: wicked wombat wins again! This time Taliesin is clearly identified and eliminated. Victory to the others.

FCG likes that he's gotten to see other people's trauma, but it's been traumatic. He needs to bond with Laudna but is sad it will be so straightforward: "It'll just be like a waiting room. It'll be chips and snacks..."

Game two: Matt is a hideous liar, good Lord. Hilariously, he still wins the game despite being correctly eliminated in the first round.

Delilah was manipulating the shades of Laudna's parents.

FCG likes the Changebringer a lot, but Sam wonders if FCG needs something with more clarity and direction, like Catholicism.

Game three, round one: they get worse as this game goes on with no towers built. Tal is eliminated; I think the saboteur was Sam?

Marisha picked Pact of the Chain solely because she wanted to bring Pate to life.

Sam: "We can't play this game. It's killing me. I haven't touched this many humans in so long." Matt: "Building calluses already?" Sam: "My hand can't take this kind of strain."

Game three, round two: one tower built, no eliminations. Matt is convinced it's Marisha but Sam insists it was Tal.

FINALLY, I WANTED THIS QUESTION HOURS AGO: The thought process behind casting Compulsion on Laudna! Sam: "It was not a very good thought process, though, as Laura instantly shamed me. She was like, 'You know her history and you would do that to Laudna?' and I was like, 'Oh fuck, she's right. That's so stupid!'" Ashton seriously thought about cutting FCG off in the moment but didn't. Sam was just looking for spells that would help physically bring the soul back, and all of his healing spells were worthless. He was trying to avoid using Persuasion since they all know Imogen would be trying that one, and the DC increases every time the same skill is used. Matt talks about other ways to creatively use certain strengths in rituals like this, like Intimidating someone to return, or using Strength to help wake them up.

Taliesin loved Percy's office & would spend as much time there as he could. He wanted to see the streetlamps at night.

Game three, round three. Matt: "I told you it's Marisha!" Sam, desperately: "It is Marisha!!" All pretense is abandoned as she destroys their carefully built towers piece by piece. She was by far the best liar of the bunch! Amazing.

And that's a wrap! Is it Thursday yet?

[sophistopheles]

Leaked DGS Localised Names

Most of you will remember that a little while ago, there was a significant leak from Capcom which included documents about an upcoming DGS and DGS2 English translated duology. This leak also contained script boxes and emails which show the “localised” names of some DGS characters- tweaked to look better to English speakers, make puns work in English, or avoid infringing on the Doyle estate’s strict copyright rules. This is a mostly-complete list of how the names are changing, as well as explanation of the puns. Names will be sorted by the case they debuted in, so it should be easy to avoid spoilers, but heads up that some puns may contain hints to certain characters’ fates and roles, etc.

This list won’t include characters who debuted in DGS2. A separate post for them is in the works- as always, remember these are leaks and not necessarily to be trusted.

The Adventure of the Great Departure

No Changes: Taketsuchi Auchi Satoru Hosonaga Susato Mikotoba

Minor Changes: Ryuunosuke Naruhodou -> Ryunosuke Naruhodo (accents removed) Kazuma Asougi -> Kazuma Asogi (accents removed) Yuujin Mikotoba -> Yujin Mikotoba (accents removed) Jezail Brett -> Jezaille Brett (changed to make name more natural) John Watson -> John Wilson (changed to avoid copyright issues)

Major Changes:

Sanmon Sonohigurashi -> Kyurio Korekuta “Sanmon” means “three pennies”, while Sonohigurashi means “to make a living day-by-day”. “Kyurio Korekuta” is a pun on “curio collector”.

Taizou Uzukumaru -> Iyesa Nosa “Uzukumaru” comes from the word for “to crouch”, referring to his identity as a soldier; “Iyesa Nosa” is a pun on “yes sir, no sir”. (His son Koroumaru is now called “Aido Nosa”- “I don’t know, sir”.)

(characters from the other four cases are under the cut)

The Adventure of the Unbreakable Speckled Band

No Changes: Grimesby Roylott

Minor Changes: Sherlock Holmes -> Herlock Sholmes (changed to avoid copyright issues)

Major Changes: Mitrov Stroganov -> Bif Strongenov “Mitrov” is a pun on “meatloaf”, and beef stroganoff is a Russian dish. “Bif Strongenov” keeps the beef stroganoff pun, but adds “strong” into the mix.

Nikomina Borschevic -> Nikolina Pavlova “Nikomina” is a Slavic-sounding name, and “Borschevic” is a pun on “borscht”, another Russian dish. “Nikolina” is an actual Slavic name, and “pavlova” is both a dessert and a reference to the Russian ballerina it was named for.

Dmitri Demiglaski -> Vilen Bolshevic “Dmitri” is a Russian name, and “demi-glace” is a type of sauce. “Vilen” is a pun on “villain”, and “Bolshevic” is a pun on “Bolsheviks”, the political faction which ruled Soviet Russia.

The Adventure of the Runaway Room

No Changes:  Barok van Zieks Gina Lestrade Beppo

Minor Changes: Mortar Milverton -> Mason Milverton (changed to make name more natural) Oscar Fairplay -> Bruce Fairplay (...I have no idea why this changed) Adam Ladyfirst -> Lay D. Furst (changed to make name... less natural??)

Major Changes: Hart Vortex -> Mael Stronghart “Hart” sounds like “heart”, and a “vortex” is... well, a vortex, a centre around which fluid revolves in a spiral. “Mael-strong” sounds like “maelstrom”, another word for a vortex/whirlpool, and his surname is a pun on “strong heart”.

Cosney Megundal -> Magnus McGilded His Japanese name is a pun on “kozeni megundaru”, meaning “I’ll spare you some change”. “Magnus” is a Latin word meaning “big” or “great”, “gilded” refers to something covered in gold, and the “Mc” is because the localisation is going to make him Irish, supposedly.

The Adventure of the Clouded Kokoro

No Changes: Tobias Gregson John Garrideb Joan Garrideb

Minor Changes: Iris Watson -> Iris Wilson (changed to avoid copyright issues) Souseki Natsume -> Soseki Natsume (accents removed) Viridian Green -> Olive Green (changed to make name more natural)

Major Changes: Patrick & Rola O’Malley -> Roly & Patricia Beate “Pat” and “Rola” sounds like “patroller”; “Patricia” and “Roly” keeps the pun, although it reverses the names. “Beate” is a play on “beat”, the area which a policeman patrols.

The Adventure of the Unspeakable Story

Minor Changes: Egg Benedict -> Eggert Benedict (changed to make name more natural) Hatch Windibank -> Pop Windibank (changed to make pun work- “pop in the bank”)

Major Changes: Robert Crogley -> Ashley Graydon “Crogley” sounds similar to “kuro-gure” meaning “black-grey”, and the pun is preserved with “ash gray”. Incidentally, Ashley was a man’s name in the UK at the time DGS is set.

Nemmy & Tully Tinpillar -> Nash & Ringo Skulkin “Nemmy” sounds like “nemui”, meaning “tired”; “Tully” sounds like “tari”, meaning “happy”. “Tinpillar” comes from “chinpira” meaning “hoodlum”. “Skulkin” sounds both like “skull” (a motif in the brothers’ designs) and “skulking” (ie. keeping suspiciously out of sight), although I can’t find any obvious pun in “Nash” and “Ringo”.

Let me know if I missed anyone, and I’ll tell you if I have their names or not. Happy New Year, everyone! ^-^

[ultimate-marysue]

So, about Bi Caleb

Warning: very long post, discussing bi representation and biphobia.

*Sorry for spelling errors, English ain’t my firts language.

I can’t believe I have to tell you guys, but anyways: Caleb is bi whether he ends with a male character, a female character on a non binary character. That’s what bi people do, you know? they experience atraction for all genders. Saying that a bi character that ends with someone of the opposite gender is straight and queerbaiting is incredibly biphobic.

Yes, Vax was bisexual. Yes, he ended up with Kiki. Get fucking over it.

Now, I can understand why LGBT+ fans may feel disappointed when they tease a “gay couple” but the “straigth” couple ends up being endgame. Notice the quotation marks because there’s not such thing as a straight or gay couple for a bi person. They are bisexual in both situations, but I can see where the problem comes from. I’ve been queerbaited to hell and back by a lot of shows and it really hurts. It feels like they are laughting at you for caring. But I want those fans (whose feelings are totally valid, don’t get me wrong) to consider a few things when it comes to Critical Role, the first one being: it’s a D&D game.

Let me explain, because I know a lot of CR fans haven’t experienced what D&D is like in real life (and that’s absolutely valid, you don’t need to play D&D to enjoy CR). This is an improvisation game, not an scripted TV show. In a Tv show you can plan ahead of time what ship is going to be endgame, what themes are gonna come up for each character and it’s easier to deeply explore sexuality and gender as different planned arcs. In D&D you character’s sexuality may or may not come up depending on how you play it. Take for instance how other CR character’s have stated their sexuality:

Beau: overtly. Very *In your face* kind of lesbian. Marisha said “fuck it, I really just want to romance girls and be bad ass”

Yasha: openly, but not as in your face. Ashley Jhonson wanted to drink from that WLW cup while also being a shy disaster. Seafood market is her favored terrain.

Caduceus: Our Ace king has never hidden his sexuality, and yet he didn’t mention anything about it until chapter 114. He didn’t had the need to either hide it or state it. He was simply vibing.

I think Liam is going that route with Caleb. He’s flustered by Essek and Edwulf (Come on you guys, he always asks Matthew if he’s still hot). He also had/has a thing for Astrid and a think he might have feels for our favorite Tiefling gal. I know we are all too used to characters being teased as gay/bi only to have execs pull a “haha jk they be straight”. But this is not Sherlock or Supernatural. This is a show that not only has queer rep, but also supports queer organizations and creators. Hell, I’m sure some of the cast members are LGBT (but I’m not here to speculate on real people’s sexuality). If Caleb shows attraction to men he is not just queerbaiting, doing it for fanservicing or tricking the fans in any way shape or form: he’s just portraying a bi character. The thing is, since this is not a TV show, he is not doing it por woke points or to send a message. He’s doing it because he wants to play a bi wizard with depression.

So maybe there will be a point in which he can explores his sexuality more deeply, but remember he is playing a game. And his character is one that has a lot of trouble opening up to his feelings. Caleb is not someone that makes sexual jokes or flirty remarks. He is shy, awkward and has developed a really fucked up sense of love that he is now slowly fixing. Hell, in the same Talks episode Liam explained that Caleb was trained on Honey-pot tactics. Which, for those of you who can’t stand Bond films, means seducing your enemy/target to get information, manipulate them or assassinate them. WHICH IS A REALLY FUCKED UP THING! Let’s remember how he was the one to push Fjord to sleep with Advantica so they could spy on her. That boy has Issues when it comes to relationships. So if we don’t see him being as overtly gay as Beau, Molly or Yasha, well maybe it’s because that’s the way Caleb is. Bi people don’t owe you flamboyance, or dating both guys and gals for your approval. I wouldn’t make a post if it was only that, because I do feel the people who are aching for good bi rep and would love some more explicit confirmation. But Vax exists, so I know we can’t have good things down here.

VAX EXPLICITELY SHOWED ATTRACTION TO GILMORE. AS EXPLICIT AS IT GETS. HE FUCKING KISSED HIM. THEY WERE PRACTICALLY DATING. AND YET SOME OF YOU FUCKERS CALL HIM QUEERBAITING. AND I SAY: NOT ON MY WATCH! NOT ON MY FUCKING WATCH!!

How come a character can have canonically kissed another character in a romantic/sensual context and still be called straight? I know fucking Sherlock traumaticed y’all into having trust issues but believe me when I tell you: I’ts not that deep. This is not a “Haha I love u but in a no homo way bro”. It’s a “full homo darling, but also we’re gonna break up because I like someone else”. This is the opposite of queerbaiting. Instead of keeping a charade he was honest with Gilmore because he valued his feelings and realized that he couldn’t reciprocate them at that moment. And if you try to tell me that Vaxleth was forced and didn’t have a reason to exist except queerbaiting, let me tell you: you are wrong.

Vax saw Gilmore once or twice monthly while he spent a heck ton of time with Kiki. Sure, they didn’t had the kind of camera chemistry Gilmore and Vax had because Keyleth is not charismatic. She’s really awkward, and her relationship with Vax was more on the adorable and dorky side of things. I bring this up because I’m predicting something similar may happen to Shadowgast.

Trust me, I ship the hot wizards as much as any other critter (even though I’m a multishipper). But they haven’t talked to Essek in centuries. I think it may have been almost a month in rol and quite a few outside. And you have to take into account out-rol time to because they are humans (except Tal) playing a game and they forget about stuff (except Marisha and Matt). So Shadowgast may not happen because sure, they had really good chemistry for a month a month ago. People have crushes that die down over time All The Time. So maybe don’t be so butthurt about your ship not being canon that you accuse an ally of homophobia. 

The cast of CR put forward such an amazing representation for the LGBT+ community and it really hurts me that you gets stuck on the one thing that isn’t canon. Matt has created a world in which coming out is not necessary because no one assumes your sexuality. A world in which people respect pronouns and orientations (except Tary’s father, who is a villain). A world in which Cad or Caleb don’t need to explicitly say “I’m ace/bi” unless it comes up in conversation. A world in which his friends can be whatever they want to be without pressure or reprecusions. A world in which they get to explore different gender identities and sexual orientations with full freedom. Let’s not interfere with that (unless there’s missrepresentation), and let them play their game. If you really need mlm or wlw canon couples or more outwardly LGBT+ people you have plenty examples among NPCs and other cast members (Allura and kima, Yasha, Beau, Dairon, Keg, Reani, Tary, Molly and Vax among others).

There’s way worst shows taking LGBT+ cred for barely doing nothing. Fucking Supernatural is the most recent example! Critical Role works towards showing an honest portrayal of LGBT+ folk and accepts valid criticism from their fans on the subject (when they changed J’Mon Sa Ord pronouns from it to they/them). They don’t owe you making your ship canon or portraying their characters the way you want them to (again, unless when it’s constructive criticism). Stop being so Fucking entitled and enjoy the show for what it is

,Respectfully~

*Edit: I´m tagging Caleb’s ships into the post because most hate comes from shipping wars. Most Shadowgast fans are respectful of the cast’s decisions, even if it disappoints them. But since I’ve already seen people accusing Liam of biphobia in that tag and since I’ve already seen this shit with Vaxmore I’m tagging the ship. If you want to read my long ass post do it, if not, ignore it. I’m not forcing you to read it. I’ve also tagged it with biphobia so people can avoid it if it’s triggering. I’m sorry if it makes you mad that your ship is not canon, but that’s not an excuse to be toxic to the cast. Those of you getting mad are the ones that need to read this the most. Like I’ve said in the post: you’re allowed to be disappointed, you are allowed to want more, but you can’t force the cast to give you exactly what you want. And most certainly, you can’t accuse them of  some very serious stuff like biphobia and queerbaiting when it’s not the case..  

[michaelscorneroftheinternet]

To SMG4, I know you want to tell a certain “someone” about how you truly feel about them (something I call “shy love”) and I just want to know; what was the moment that you realized that you have feelings for this “som3one”? And if so, you better tell them how you truly feel whenever you are with them the next time you see th3m.

SMG4: I don't think I could bear that kind of loss...

Michael: Ha ha more angst!

[ 5 lovely episode references in this ask! Wonder if you can name each one! Does not include PuzzleVision! >;) ]

[utilitycaster]

I'm at a similar place than you, I think, regarding Scanlan's departure in the campaign vs the show.

Do you think, however, that Pike's presence throughout the show is possibly why they didn't go for the more violent Lament that people were expecting? Her support with regards to Kaylie was, I think, a big difference from where Scanlan was in the game.

(Also kinda sad that we're probably not getting Taryon, though cutting him makes sense especially if season 4 is the last one)

So, if I recall correctly, Scanlan's departure was much more motivated by the fact that he'd died in the Thordak fight, again in the Raishan fight, and everyone mocked him in Ank'Harel for the whole spice situation (and more generally that he was genuinely terrified throughout the entire conclave arc). It also, out of game, was partly inspired by Sam wanting to play another character for a while! I believe Sam at one point said that Scanlan's intention was not originally to spend time with Kaylie but just to leave; he brought that up while lashing out at everyone because he brought up anything he could because he was hurt and angry and scared and full of self-loathing, and when Percy said "then GO SPEND TIME WITH HER YOU FUCKHEAD" it changed what he was going to do. So I don't think that changed it.

I think what changed it is that, to be blunt, a lot of things that work in actual play don't work well in scripted narratives, and this is really one of the first cases we've seen of an adaptation where the original is fully available as well (I never watched Adventure Time but I know it's based in part off the creators' D&D games). Like...Scanlan messing around with suude works in-game, but it's kind of underbaked if you look at it. It's the same thing with Glintshore, and D&D combat in general. It's the same with Scanlan dying multiple times, which was a factor in him leaving, and frankly that kind of was an issue in-game: the amount of resurrections Vox Machina had was fucking bonkers, and everything CR has done since has made it clear they want to tell stories where character death is much more possible, likely, and permanent, from Candela to Daggerheart to the choices made in C2 and C3. Like, I don't think "oh it's an adaptation" is an answer to everything and I don't think that's how you should address people who are disappointed, but I do think that the changes made are in service of adaptation. It is really hard to write a S3 TLOVM script where a Bard's Lament makes sense, especially since my guess is S4 will be the last season.

Perhaps an unpopular opinion but while I adore Tary, the stretch of episodes he is in is the weakest part of the campaign since the pre-Briarwood arc days and as mentioned it's hard to write him in in a way that makes sense. The Vecna arc in-game is narratively great, but Vax's death comes quite early and it's GRIM. It's essentially an extended dungeon crawl where no one really thinks they'll make it out. I think the cast, to be clear, was still having fun! But Campaign 1 ends where it should have ended; Vox Machina's exhaustion by the end is palpable, and I think the improv nature and slow pace (not a bad thing, usually) of Actual Play lets the audience tolerate things far longer than they will in a scripted narrative and S3 of TLOVM seems to be thinking ahead in a very smart way, despite some of my personal critiques of Vax in particular.

[rainofaugustsith]

SWTOR: Full list of future predictions

I am writing up a post with my predictions for future storylines (I’m right sometimes!).

SPOILERS FOR EVERYTHING INCLUDING SPIRIT OF VENGEANCE AND ECHOES OF OBLIVION

The Mandalorian storyline

We're going to be placed in the position of supporting Shae Vizla or not, and our actions will determine who the Mandalorians side with overall and who they attack - which will have additional consequences for the larger war.

At the end of the Spirit of Vengeance story, Heta Kol takes off her helmet, looks at the Clan Caldera banner and says mando'ad draar digu, which translates to "A Mandalorian never forgets."  Personally I think we're going to find out she is related to Torian in some way. Mother. Sister. Old friend. There's a reason she stole the Clan Cadera banner specifically. I don't think she's there to avenge Torian, because her actions are the same regardless if Torian is alive or dead. But I think that may factor into how she views the Commander.

What do we know about Torian's clan? Clan Cadera, along with Ordo's clan, broke with Mandalore and the others to support the Republic instead of the Empire. This brought great shame on the clan - although from what we see of Jicoln Cadera on Taris, I have a feeling there were numerous other things that he did to cause shame. Regardless, Kol and her allies may view Clan Cadera as a symbol of resistance. I don't have a feeling that her group has any special love for the Republic, just the mindset of rebelling against the other factions.

The second ship in the flashpoint belongs to the Darmanda - we met them on Mek-Sha. We were able to extract a favor from Indigo if we did one for him, but he may have his own agenda apart from Kol's. His group seemed to want to splinter away from the Mandalorians altogether. There's also some measure of dissent shown amongst Kol's allies. I think it's therefore possible we will have two battles going on - we may have to choose to ally with someone against Kol, and decide to support Shae as Mandalore or someone else. Vaylin Strikes Back.

Yep, we've got another Dead Person Who Isn't Actually Dead. This one's pretty obvious given the clues in Echoes of Oblivion. Vaylin 'borrowed' the corpse of one of Satele Shan's students and now she's hanging out on Coruscant. Shhhh. Don't tell anyone.

I think that Vaylin may show up as a very obvious foe if Senya and Arcann are still alive. You helped two people who participated in her subjugation and did nothing to stop it. In Echoes of Oblivion she is pissed at all of you, has words for you, and says she’s there because she’s being dragged along. You've now had two letters from Senya who is worried that Vaylin's spirit won't rest. She's going to come back, she's going to be pissed off and she's likely going to want revenge.

On the other hand, if you killed Senya and Arcann, I think Vaylin may be far more amiable to the PC. After all, in KOTET, she's not angry you killed them. She's only angry you got to kill Senya before she did, and you can still talk her through that. She actually says that the PC is "fun" if they give her the right answer.  And in Echoes of Oblivion, if you killed Arcann and Senya, Vaylin does not show any animosity toward you - even when the rest of her family does. She doesn't even look at her family. Instead, she turns to zap Tenebrae with lightning when he advances toward you.  

In the former scenario I think it's going to be Stop Vaylin Again or Convert her to the Jedi!! as the storyline. In the latter I think you may have a chance to gain her allegiance and let her live her life.

Task Force Nova

If you are Republic, Daerunn and Gnost-Dural let you know that they are developing Task Force Nova to bring Jedi back into the fold. There are also at least two conversations where it's pointed out that some Jedi really do not want to return to war, and others are still in hiding or working strictly in non-combat roles. Gnost-Dural repeatedly says that it is the Jedis' "duty" to fight for the Republic and that doesn't seem to have an endpoint.

Arn Peralun supports all of the above. He's clearly dealing with some very deep trauma but is being forced to remain on the front lines.

I think this is an issue that is going to have an impact on characters from both factions, and loyalists and saboteurs alike. Do you help Gnost-Dural recruit and conscript Jedi who may not wish to fight in a war again? Do you protect Jedi who are fleeing Task Force Nova? What about the Jedi on the Alliance base?

I also think that if scripted right, this can be a nuanced issue. IMHO OCs from both factions may want to protect Jedi from being forced to return to the battlefield if that is not their wish. Let's hope the devs don't make that one of their famous "either you're singing Sound of Music on the mountainside or you kick puppies for fun" choices.

Malgus

By now we've had lots of evidence that Malgus was subjected to some pretty hardcore conditioning when he was pulled from carbonite or otherwise brought back from the dead. There's also evidence that Malgus is on his way to Dantooine to try to shake his conditioning. It's the Imperial Agent Chapter 2 story, but amplified.

My personal hypothesis is this: There's scrapped footage showing the Zakuul twins bringing Malgus - in carbonite - as a present to their father. There are rumors that Arcann and Acina were chummy for a time. So...part of the deal with Acina and the Eternal Empire was to return Malgus, complete with awful Nathema-style conditioning, so Acina could have an enforcer. Along with putting down her opponents, she put down those who would have looked for the Empire's fighters.

That could have been the Outlander. Acina surely would have loved to use them as a tool. But why wasn't it? Because Valkorion was in the Outlander's head, Arcann knew that, and he sure as hell wasn't about to let Daddy run around freely in the Empire again. Valkorion's presence also may have made it impossible to condition the Outlander.

But I do think that both Acina AND Saresh knew damned well where the Outlander was, they just were not about to free them.

This supports Quinn being thrown in jail for searching for the Sith Warrior and also supports Lana Beniko being forced to flee...she was digging too deep and asking too many questions, and she also was a powerful Sith who very much had the ability to counter Acina. Elara Dorne suffered a similar fate; she kept asking and asking and the Republic military censured her. Kira and Scourge and the Bounty Hunter companions did go look, but they very clearly broke from their factions to do so.

When does the Sith Empire officially ally with the Alliance? When Arcann is deposed. Before that, as per Ranken, the Sith Empire cannot openly support the Alliance. Vaylin's in charge, and for whatever reason, they're not about to deal with her. They see an opening to overthrow the Eternal Empire and they grab for that chance with all their might. I actually do believe Acina when she says she wants to protect her people and also that she has changed the Empire for the better. But I also believe that like other leaders in both factions, she will slaughter as needed.

And here's a fun twist - Arcann also knew about Malgus's programming and could turn him on Acina if the Empire crossed him or tried to fight back. The complication to this hypothesis is that if Arcann is still alive he still could do that, but he's not currently the Emperor of Zakuul in charge of a scary fleet so his power may be limited. But this would explain why Acina's so much more willing to deal when Arcann's out of the picture as a ruler.

I think that we're going to have to help or hinder Malgus's deconditioning, and then perhaps we're also going to be faced with a difficult choice: do we align with Malgus or with the Sith Empress/Emperor? For me, this would be a far easier choice if the ruler is Acina vs. Vowrawn, but it may mean the difference between the Empire adopting a more progressive bent or going back to being more totalitarian. This is something that could affect both sides, and thus I think both sides will have some impact.

[vecna]

There is only one (1) criticism from the past 24 hours that I really feel like entertaining, and then it’s the last I’ll comment on this whole thing. It’s the fact that Critical Role really fails at MLM representation.

Behind a cut so I don’t flood the dash.

Now yes, I think it’s come a long way with WLW representation since campaign 2 stated. We’ve seen a whooooole lot of very visible female NPCs in relationships with each other, many in positions of power. We have two actual party members who are lesbians, with a third possibly bi (tbd). Matt’s even pretty good about occasionally offhandedly having random female townsfolk mention a wife, now and then. Could it be better? Sure. But it’s really obvious they’ve all taken strides to show that WLW are present and normalized in Exandria.

Buuuuut only WLW.

By comparison, MLM representation has been hilariously lacking. We had Tary and Lawrence as a couple in campaign 1. Gilmore was gay. Vax and Scanlan were both bi, and I’d argue Percy was too -- and ending up in m/f relationships doesn’t change their sexuality. But that’s... that’s it really. Campaign 2 has been neglecting MLM all together. I can’t think of any queer dude NPCs at all -- folks are welcome to correct me, but the fact I can’t remember any obvious ones is telling enough. Molly was queer in multiple ways, but, well. The rest of the party members are debatable, but there’s only one who’s even hinted at not being 100% straight. Otherwise it’s just... nothing.

And then there’s, you know, Vaxilm*re and Shadowg*st. Disclaimer: I love Liam, I love Vaxl*th, and I love Widoj*st. But yeah, it does get a little exhausting to have potential MLM ships dangled out there and teased for long enough we think they might have a shot, only for there to be a swerve into a m/f ship. Especially since, in both cases, it was really our only hope at seeing a male party member not end up in a m/f relationship. (Yeah, Liam did drop some more Shadowg*st scraps in that same convo last night, and I am ecstatic for that, but I also have 0 expectations.)

Anyway, the disparity continues to be disappointing.

But I’m in a weird spot with it because, as much as people like to say otherwise, this is not a scripted TV show. Should they be more aware of this and make a bigger effort to fix it? Absolutely. Should we hold them to the same standards we would some show on like HBO? Unpopular opinion, but no. I get this is a show in front of hundreds of thousands of people, but idk. I’d feel weird if someone walked up to my D&D table that I’m playing with my very personal OCs and basically went, “You’re playing your characters wrong.” So I’m a little on the fence about it, regardless of my personal feelings on the unequality.

And that’s that on that, back to shitposting.

[coin-news-blog]

How Merge Mining and Anchored Blockchain Projects Capitalize on Bitcoin’s Security Model

New Post has been published on https://coinmakers.tech/news/how-merge-mining-and-anchored-blockchain-projects-capitalize-on-bitcoin-s-security-model

How Merge Mining and Anchored Blockchain Projects Capitalize on Bitcoin’s Security Model

How Merge Mining and Anchored Blockchain Projects Capitalize on Bitcoin’s Security Model

Since 2011, just after Satoshi Nakamoto left the Bitcoin project for good, networks have emerged that leverage the BTC chain in some way. A variety of projects over the last nine years have found value in anchoring some sort of feature set to BTC in order to bolster the satellite’s underlying network. The following article examines when these anchor-style projects started, where they are today, and how these concepts have been perceived by the crypto community.

Blockchain Projects That Leverage BTC

Satoshi’s cryptocurrency invention is almost 11 years old and a lot has changed since the early days. One thing that has remained a constant, however, is projects using the BTC chain in some form for leverage. Protocols that harness the network include projects like Namecoin, Counterparty, Rootstock, Blockstack, Omni Layer, Factom, and Veriblock.

Namecoin

Namecoin is a project that started in 2010 when a few early blockchain developers including Gavin Andresen and Satoshi talked about using the BTC chain for a domain name system (DNS). That December, developers offered a reward for a DNS system and Namecoin (NMC) was born from these discussions and ideas. After months of DNS and Bitcoin discussions, Namecoin was officially announced on April 18, 2011. The NMC network is a separate blockchain that creates a domain naming system and the NMC code is based on the BTC codebase releases of that timeframe. Namecoin uses a system called merged mining and on block 19,200 the NMC network allowed users to mine both BTC and NMC at the same time. This move made it so NMC miners didn’t jump from one chain to another when profitability changed.

NMC trading and mining is still quite active today and it’s one of the oldest cryptocurrencies in existence. Just like BTC, the NMC supply is limited to 21 million, and currently there’s a circulating supply of 14,736,400 NMC in existence. Essentially, domain name value pairs are stored on the chain and attached to coins. After 12,000 blocks, names expire unless the owners renew the domain. Initially, the project was fairly popular and attracted other projects like Onename which has since rebranded to Blockstack.

An example of BTC and NMC merge mining by Tari Labs.

However, in 2015, Harry Kalodner, Miles Carlsten, Paul Ellenbogen, Joseph Bonneau, and Arvind Narayanan from Princeton University released a dreary empirical study of Namecoin. The study noted that only 28 of 120,000 domain names tethered to Namecoin were used. That year, Blockstack founder Muneeb Ali explained that his project would move to to the BTC chain due to the mining pool Discus Fish dominating 60-70% of the NMC hashrate. NMC touched an all-time high (ATH) in 2013, jumping to over $10 a coin, but it never saw those heights again. During the bull run of 2017, NMC spiked to $5 and today the coins trade for $0.55. Namecoin is the first major project to leverage the BTC chain.

Omni Layer

Another coin that uses the BTC chain to benefit is Omni Layer, a project that originally stemmed from Mastercoin. Omni is well known for issuing the stablecoin tether (USDT) and every Omni and tether transaction utilizes the same transaction hash on the BTC chain. Omni Layer also has other tokens such as maidsafe, synereo, and the native omni tokens, but tether (USDT) which started in 2014 has been the chain’s dominant output.

Omni is a protocol built as a layer over the BTC chain. The idea lets anyone generate tokens, send, trade, redeem, and pay token dividends as well. Omni developers consider the protocol to be an HTTP layer that works on top of the BTC network’s TCP/IP. The Omni blockchain uses the BTC chain’s scripting feature and the OP_Return opcode that initiated during version 0.9 of the Bitcoin reference client release.

Throughout the cryptocurrency community, discussions rarely talk about Omni as the project is not very well known. However, the tether stablecoin issued on the Omni Layer chain is very well known and USDT accounts for the majority of trades against nearly every cryptocurrency trading pair. For instance, on September 21, tether USDT represents 70% of all global BTC trades.

Counterparty

The Counterparty platform is another project that makes use of the BTC chain in order to issue financial tools, token assets, and a decentralized trading platform. Similarly to the Omni project, Counterparty uses another chain as a layer built on top of the BTC network and OP_Return opcode transactions tie the assets to the BTC chain. In order to create the Counterparty (XCP), the original team burned 2,140 BTC by sending the coins to a provably unspendable Bitcoin address. The proof-of-burn (PoB) system bootstrapped the cryptocurrency XCP which is used within the system to create new tokens, bets, and callback callable assets.

Currently, there are 2,615,428 XCP in existence and on September 21, each coin is trading for $1.79. Counterparty was once a popular digital currency system and people referred to the project as part of the “Bitcoin 2.0” era. The project made headlines in November 2014 when the development team bragged that it implemented the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) into the protocol. In January 2018, XCP touched an all-time high of $99 per coin and has lost most of its value since. The Counterparty project is well known for extensible blockchain game tokens and cards like the game Spells of Genesis. Other Counterparty projects like Mafia Wars and the Rare Pepe trading card series have also gathered a following.

Factom

Factom (FCT) is a digital currency and separate blockchain that uses the BTC network as an anchor. The people who created Factom explain that the blockchain manages and secures data, documents, and systems on an autonomous blockchain protocol. Basically, Factom allows users to create hashes of digitized assets through the Factom blockchain API and the hashes are combined into a single hash.

The finished product is then anchored to the BTC chain and Bitcoin miners record entries for order finality and audit entries for validity. Factom was first announced in 2014 and launched the genesis block on September 1, 2015. Four years later, on September 21, a single FCT is worth $3. At one time FCT touched a high of $78 on January 2018. Similar to Counterparty, Factom was considered a Bitcoin 2.0 project, but is far less popular today as it was in its heyday. Factom has managed to record data for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation as well as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Blockstack

The blockchain-based domain name service (DNS), app ecosystem, and decentralized computing network Blockstack, formally known as Onename, also has plans to use the BTC chain in the Stacks network. In January 2019, Stacks lead developer Jude Nelson described how the protocol leverages the hash power from the BTC network. Essentially Stacks is secured by 90 exahash of distributed hashrate in its initial stages and it aims to harness this security to bootstrap the system and eventually transition away from BTC.

Stacks also uses proof-of-burn by allowing participants to provably destroy or burn bitcoins. “Every participant competing for the opportunity to write the next block must burn a certain amount of proof-of-work token (bitcoin) to enter the competition,” Nelson details in a video demonstration of the Stacks protocol. Since Onename rebranded to Blockstack and transitioned to using the BTC chain in 2015, the protocol has been a popular project amongst bitcoiners. In July 2019, the cofounder of Blockstack, Muneeb Ali, told the public that the firm’s token sale was “qualified by the SEC under Regulation A+.”

Rootstock

The Rootstock (RSK) project is an open source Turing-complete smart contract sidechain that uses the BTC chain via merge-mining. The chain adds multi-chain interoperability through the two-way peg to BTC and allows for smart contracts built on top of the network. The project had been in the works for three years before it mined the RSK genesis block on January 4, 2018. Developers of RSK consider it to be “the first open source smart contract platform secured by the Bitcoin network.” In May of 2018, RSK creators revealed that the system’s smart contracts were secured by 10% of the BTC hashrate.

By February 2019 RSK was secured by more than 45% of the BTC hashrate and at the time attacking RSK contracts would have cost approximately $112,000 per hour. Rootstock is a well known project and has enticed believers in smart contracts for years now, although some people take issue with merge mining techniques and believe the method could be insecure. However, RSK increased its security in an upgrade and developers claim: “RSK merge-mining security could reach a level of security comparable to Bitcoin mining, for users that wait for at least a hundred block confirmations.”

Veriblock

The last project on the list, Veriblock, has been a hot topic of conversation over the last year for using a significant portion of BTC transactions. Veriblock is a blockchain that uses a consensus system called proof-of-proof (PoP) and the ‘proof’ is tied to the BTC chain via OP_ Return transactions and other methods of interoperability. These ‘SP blockchain transactions’ essentially store an alternative blockchain’s state data in order to benefit from the anchor of BTC’s security. Veriblock made headlines last February when the chain was consuming around 30% of BTC’s daily transactions.

Veriblock only recently appeared on the scene.

Nowadays, Veriblock captures between 15-20% and bitcoiners have noticed the project is now using Segregated Witness (Segwit) transactions. With a large number of transactions in February through March and the recent use of Segwit transactions, Veriblock’s operations have caused some Bitcoin proponents to complain about the project. After finding out that Veriblock was using a sizeable portion of all Segwit transactions, BTC developer Luke Jr begged the community to reduce the block size to lower than the current 1MB limit. Veriblock (VBK) also has its own native currency called VBK and each coin is worth $0.01 on September 21.

Veriblock recently told the crypto community it was using Segwit/Bech 32 addresses.

Networks That Use BTC for Leverage Have Always Been Controversial

So far, all of these projects have been either welcomed or hated on for the type of services they provide and it’s been this way since the beginning. The Namecoin project was originally going to be hosted on the BTC chain and called BitDNS, but bitcoiners took issue with that type of data being hosted on the network. The argument has been tied to all of these projects in some form or another as skeptics don’t like arbitrary data being stored onchain and they believe that these practices could lead to higher fees, blockchain bloat, and congestion.

A few people also think that merge-mined chains could be dangerous. Even Satoshi stated that merge mining parties could be “a danger to each other if the available CPU power gangs up on one.” The Namecoin blockchain itself has served as a real world experiment for merge mining examples as well as other blockchains. Merged mining was first used on Namecoin but was also introduced to coins like huntercoin (2014), dogecoin (2014) and myriadcoin (2015). The problems associated with merge-mined coins include possible impacts on mining power distribution, mining power centralization issues, effects on proof-of-work (PoW) difficulty, and validation disincentives.

Any project that decides to leverage the BTC chain in some form or another going forward will be scrutinized and disliked just like all these other projects. However, the permissionless nature of these protocols has given any person or organization the ability to start such projects and no one can stop them. As long as the underlying security of the BTC hashrate continues to grow, projects like Veriblock will exist no matter what people think about them.

Bitcoin’s inability to scale could contribute to these projects leaving the BTC chain for something more affordable, however. This can be seen with the Tether project and how millions of Omni Layer tethers have been swapped for ERC20 equivalents. When Tether Limited told the public it was doing this, it cited cheaper network fees and faster transactions. All of these projects that utilize the BTC chain right now could find themselves in the same boat if BTC scaling remains limited to 1MB blocks and Segwit transactions. If congestion and high fees price out such projects, it’s likely many protocols could flow into blockchains like Ethereum (ETH), and for even cheaper fees and more block space to Bitcoin Cash.

Source: news.bitcoin