#datc critical

[bharv]

thank you for your commentary on veilguard. you've given me multiple things that would have made me drop the game so far, and you don't even appear to be close to the spoiler that killed most of my interest in the game. i'm so disappointed that bioware just totally abandoned so many of the literal core themes of the game, it's so grim.

testing to see if my inbox is finally letting me reply... I'm sorry that it's done so though, I really, really love dragon age and I want to love it very badly.

I've started again, abandoning my 20ish hours as a Qunari because the game just has no interest in engaging with the Qun, but I will say as a dwarf guy being a dwarf does seem to make the most sense immersion wise (I'm sure a human mourn watcher raised away from the chantry would also work, but the game is so divorced from Andrastrianism from what I've seen so far! Which is really a wild thing to think.)

Essentially if you're into the lore and the roleplay I do think there's diminishing returns here, and that's very sad to me. But other people like games for the gameplay, or the aesthetics, and I do think there's more to like in both those areas!

I wish they'd had fewer factions with more defined origins (like... uh... origins) or just fully defined a rook early on (it seems even the name Rook is a holdover from it being a very defined character who had a heist code name in the old Tevinter version of the game) but alas. Here we are.

[witchofreveries]

Nyth’s List of Witchy Podcasts

So, anyone who knows me knows that I’m pretty big into podcasts. Being a professional dog walker, I have a lot of time to be able to listen to all the crazy stuff I want while I work. Since this is my witch blog, I wanted to post of list of my favorite witchy/pagan/spiritual podcasts so other practitioners out there can enjoy. So here they are! These are podcasts that I have listened to all the way through, or at the very least, completed large enough chunks of them to trust that they are well researched and well made. I plan to add to this as I listen to more shows as time goes on...

Like with anything, take what you hear with a grain of salt and ALWAYS do your own research, follow your own beliefs, think hard, and decide for yourself before following any advice or info given in these shows.

The Podcasts

Across the Hedge  A new podcast about living Heathenry, the first few episodes of this are rather rough, as it appears that the hostess is still finding her groove, but by episode four, each episode pleasing and interesting to listen to, packed with information regarding culture and society, house hold witchy tips, herbs and oils, and a nice roundabout description of what it means to be a practicing Heathen in a modern world. 

Ariel’s Druidic Craft of the Wise Lectures While the background of the DCW is still debated to be sketchy or not, Ariel comes from a very loving and understanding place in his lectures and provides insight on how to better manifest positivity and effectiveness into our daily lives. Based around the Seven Hermetic Principals, they are insightful and plentiful, as there is a lecture for just about any life problem. 

A Witch’s Primer Also created by Ariel comes this list of episodes geared towards teaching witchcraft to anyone wishing to learn in a nondenominational structure. While the style he teaches still feels rather Golden Dawn/Wicca, he gives a nice rundown of everything from the very basics like tools and colors, to thought-form creation and mental manifestation. He even includes meditations to help teach grounding, centering, meeting spirit guides, and trance states. 

Chasing Foxfire Some of you may know the infamous Cory Hutcheson from the podcast New World Witchery (if not, see below). In this brand new podcast, Cory displays his deep Doctoral knowledge of folklore and mythology. Even with only three episodes so far, this podcast is wonderfully done, and packed with information and interviews with experts on lore from across America. It is also soothing to listen to!

Down at the Crossroads My favorite podcast, hosted by Chris Orapello, a guy from my area with whom I share mutual friends! DatC has sadly moved away from it’s earlier format and now consists of long interviews with pagan and witchy folk from around the nation, all stuffed with phenomenal information between tracks of excellent pagan music. However, his first 32 episodes are amazingly well done, and are filled with information from historical lessons of the occult, hermetics, the essence of magic, interviews, and his well written and deep personal thoughts regarding the magical life. 

Inciting a Brewhaha The loud mouths and introspective minds of Fire Lyte and Velma Nightshade come together in a completely unedited, fun, and very debate filled crossover-podcast, in which the host and hostess deeply discuss magical ethics and practice. While the show is sometimes a little crazy because of there being no script and no editing, their conversations are always hilarious and thought provoking, even when I don’t necessarily agree with them.

Inciting a Riot Fire Lyte hosts his own controversial show in which he conducts well researched and well thought out news casts of news from across the world and in paganism. He also holds interviews with great minds from the pagan/witchy community, debates with friends, and reads poetry relevant to recent events. While energetic and loud, he has great insight and is very well read, and I get a lot of my more accurate news from him. 

Lore Alan Mahnke hosts a beautifully written and well directed podcast full of amazing, historical stories regarding strange and eery occurrences across the world. From spooky tales about ghost ships, to nail biting tales of serial murderers, each episode is about true events and how their details have have gradually changed over time to make them sound like modern day horror stories. With a great voice and an exceptional music score, this podcast is a must listen, even if you’re not a witch or pagan. 

Magic and the Law of Attraction Madame Pamita of the Parlour of Wonders and “Hoodoo How-to” hosts her very own show that is perfect for magical practitioners of any phase in their learning. Whether you’re brand new to practical magic or a weathered old crone of the craft, Madame Pamita makes this show easy to understand and filled with great information, spells, and witchy tips. With a fun and catchy 1920′s style theme song, and a voice like butter, it’s a good place to start if you’re interested in great sounding witchy podcasts. 

Myths and Legends  This show is great for anyone who loves mythology and folklore, not just pagans and practitioners. It covers mythology from all over the world, including Greek/Roman, Norse, Celtic, Russian, Native American, and Asian myths, the original tales of familiar stories like Cinderella, and even modern stories that stem from ancient tales that few know about. There is also a “Creature of the Week” segment that talks about one interesting creature from the folklore of the many cultures across the globe, which is always a hoot. All told in the quirky and fun style that Jason, the host, puts together himself. 

New World Witchery Around since the the early 2000′s, Cory and Lane are two magical partners that discuss everything you could want to know about American Magical traditions such as Hoodoo, Powwow, Appalachian Folk magic, and the few other traditions born in the early days of the USA. With a laid back, light-editing structure, this podcast is experimental an full of interesting discussions about spellwork, ethics, and folklore. With yearly Samhain, Yule, and Beltane specials, full episodes of professional folklorist, Cory, telling American folk tales, and each episode covering a new and interesting topic, this podcast is packed with thought-provoking information. 

Reiki Nomad A wonderful little podcast for those interested in learning about and practicing Reiki, this short series goes deep into the history, lineages, styles, and modern uses for Reiki, as well as discusses it’s diversity in both the spiritual and non spiritual worlds. Perfect for beginners and/or Masters looking for new ways to approach the Japanese healing art. 

The Wiccan Read-Along Podcast Though I’m not Wiccan, I have to say I really enjoy listening to this podcast, if not simply to travel back to my days of beginning with Scott Cunningham. Still somewhat new, this podcast acts much like an audiobook for three (and more to come) books based around Wicca, though the reader, Phoenix, often has great insight and her own blurbs and helpful criticisms regarding the books she reads from. 

The Wigglian Way A very full podcast of music, magic, news, and spirituality from two Wiccan’s living in Canada. Their show is full of interviews with authors and artists within the pagan community, news within the pagan and witchcraft world, and hilarious conversations between themselves and their friends. A long time podcast this show has hundreds of episodes to pick and choose from on any subject you might want to explore. 

Witches BrewHaha The second of my two favorite podcasts, hosted by the magnanimous Velma Nightshade. With a perfect radio voice, Velma takes to the air with a show full of great segments on crystals, herbs, practical magic, book recommendations from her enormous library, and thoughts about news and articles in within the pagan community. She is sassy and smart, fun and fabulous, and she and her coven mates who join her on episodes are all full of wonderful advice and personality. 

There we have it! Feel free to add your own in the reblogs!