#dependent on rito to get around

[b3ar-arts]

so pizza tower ocs, huh

no name for these two yet, but i'm considering tilla (tortilla) and rito (quesarito)

[imababblekat]

Botw Characters W/ A Crush; HC’s

@xxrainmxx​ ,” Hello, can I request headcanon of the corjection methods that Sidon, Mipha, and Revali would use to let their crush know their intentions? (gender neutral if possible)”

Anon Request, “ Hello, can I request headcanon of Mipha, Revali and Sidon trying to flirt with their crush?”

~xXx~

Sidon:

when Sidon has a crush on someone it goes one of two ways depending on how deeply he feels for that lucky person

if it’s in the beginning stages of him realizing that he likes them, he actually becomes a bit timid whenever they’re around

it’s not that he’s scared of these new found feelings, he’s just new to the concept of actually liking someone as opposed to being the object of affection like he is to so many others

once he gets past figuring things out and really starts having it hard for his crush, he’s back to his extravagant self

will absolutely boast about great qualities he sees in them, not just in private but to others as well

was already a huge supporter to begin with, but becomes even more so and always finds ways to be there for his crush

absolutely takes no shit from others talking about his crush behind their back

overall Sidon’s way of flirting or letting his feelings be known to his crush is grand action and devotion; he wants them to know how much they mean to him and how much he’s willing to do for them should they except him

Revali:

this feathered butt head is such a pain when he first realizes he has a crush on someone

absolute tsundere if you will

he’s just not used to the idea of being that fond of someone, that someone could hold such a power over him to make his heart feel like it’s falling from the sky by just walking into the same vicinity

once he gets past his complicated feelings about the ordeal, Revali starts to accept the ideas of why he developed feelings for this person and it turns into honorable admiration

he isn’t going to just fall for anyone of course

the Rito takes note in impressionable skills his crush possesses, such as how swift they are with a bow or how they’re able to finely put ingredients together to cook the perfect meal

if you don’t know Revali very well you probably wouldn’t be able to notice when he’s coming on to his crush; it’s all subtle compliments that could be mistaken as ire for the other

the closer he gets to his crush, he’ll actually start giving them small gifts as he finds it easier than trying to express how he feels with words, which is a shock to not just his crush but him as well, since the Rito Champion is known for having a colorful vocabulary

Mipha:

Mipha’s had crushes before, so depending on how close she is with the person she’s crushing on will determine whether or not she pursues those feelings

if she does, her crush can expect to be spending a lot more time with her

she’ll go out of her way to spend time with them when not swamped by her duties as not just the Zora Princess but also their Champion

much like her brother, she’s very supportive of her crush, just not in such an extravagant manner

she’s much more subtle with making her feelings known, almost in a shy kind of way

is always making sure her crush is safe and protected, and much like she had with Link in the game, she promises to always be there to heal them if they need

the further things pass on, she might start to also gift her crush small trinkets

gifts that remind her of them, such as shells that match their eyes, or some jewelry that accentuates their lovely smile

~xXx~

[tally-ace]

So one of my all-time favorite ways to play through botw is without teleporting. I adore the additional challenge it brings and it adds a certain level of planning ahead and requires you to become familiar with the layout of the world and locations of things.

I've been upset to find out through testing that a TRUE teleport-less run of totk is impossible thanks to the tutorial island. So I have yet to try a "partial" one to see if it's still as fun as in botw.

(EDIT: I've heard conflicting things saying it's possible to get to the fourth tutorial shrine without teleporting? I haven't tried it myself but when I say true run I also mean without exploits. If you need to do some precise exploit of the game to make a run like that work, it isn't really that fun for me anymore. I'll attempt a teleport-less tutorial island one day so we'll see)

I have, however, found a fun way to play totk through accident on my second playthrough.

In botw, it is impossible to finish all 120 shrines without completing each of the four divine beasts. That's because there are exactly 4 shrines (1 in each region) that only become available after completing a shrine quest that does not unlock until after the respected divine beast is cleared.

(EDIT: Correction, there are exactly 2 shrines that are inaccessible without the completion of their respected divine beast. So all the shrines in the game can be completed with the minimum completion of 2 divine beasts. These shrines are the warbler's nest shrine in rito and the sand seal race shrine in gerudo. I mistakenly believed an npc for a shrine in goron did not spawn until after rudania and that the ceremonial trident did not spawn until after ruta (my searching skills are abyssmal and I missed both those things on my playthroughs prior to the beasts lol))

In totk, NONE of the shrines are dependent on the completion of a dungeon to access. All save for ONE SINGLE QUEST in Eldin that requires Yunobo's sage ability to access the shrine.

AND through the heart container granted after completing the tutorial, the heart containers granted after completion of the rito, gerudo, zora, and goron dungeons, and choosing the heart container granted by the bargainer statue beneath the great plateau... You can unlock the door to the underground dungeon without spending a single spirit orb.

Meaning that the only required story progression beats in totk to witness 80% of the (non-flashback) cutscenes with link as a silly little fucked up beast is getting the paraglider and getting up to the point in the goron story line to have Yunobo as a companion. Also meaning that every dungeon in totk can be completed without spending spirit orbs beyond the tutorial.

Playing through totk on a mission to get every shrine without upgrading health or stamina ONCE is more fun than I ever thought it would be. I had a BLAST. As someone who thinks the building mechanic is neat, but not really made for me, it made me interact with a mechanic that I never really enjoyed and find something to appreciate about it.

I also added the challenge of NOT upgrading my battery charge at all, which I would recommend if you're really wanting to make the game a bit harder.

AND it has the added bonus of Ancient Link staring into everyone's soul in every single cutscene.

So get out there and run around as a little beastie.

[deepseaorcapt]

Hi, saw you mention missing writing for Revali. Was curious how would you envision (HCs) a Revali that survived Calamity (AoC) but a time skip passes and the events of Totk begin?

Hello! Thanks for your suggestion, I honestly have been thinking and debating on this for quite some time. It seems like it's time that I finally put my ideas out in the world! My first time doing HCs but I hope you enjoy it!

Revali surviving the Calamity and his life with his spouse:

I like to think Revali gained some sort of scar from the fight with Windblight Ganon.

A long scar in the form of a beam that goes across his chest and the side of his neck when he got hit.

From an outsider’s perspective, it didn’t seem that deep, but the medics concluded it was much of an injury to tell him he shouldn’t exert much into physical activities.

Unfortunately, he still does overtrain from time-to-time to the dismay of his, now, spouse.

On top of that, he still leads the rito warriors, organizing the operations and their duties to protect Rito Village. Sometimes, he takes hours just training and planning with the village elder.

It takes a lot of convincing to get him to rest, but the moment he sees the desperation in your eyes, he sighs and heads home with your arm wrapped in his.

"Revali." 

"I know, I… I’m sorry"

Since the calamity, Revali has been trying to be better at depending on others, especially since he’s chosen to have you in his life, not wanting to hurt you more by shutting you out.

Still, bad habits die hard. At the very least, he tries.

Getting home, it became a habit to lightly caress the scar on his chest as you both lie in your shared hammock.

The sensation bothered him for the first couple of months, but eventually, he couldn't sleep without it.

It's like a comforting feeling that he's alive, lucky enough to survive and live with you. Fortunate enough to see Hyrule again in its glory; For that, he's extremely grateful to Goddess Hylia.

There are a lot of days where he wakes up in the middle of the night.

Throat dry and eyes wide, awakened by the nightmare that haunts him in the form of Windblight Ganon. 

It’s only when he feels your body lean towards him in the hammock when he relaxes.

On most days, you wake up feeling his panic, consoling and letting him find comfort in your embrace.

But in the rare instance you stay asleep, he takes a walk or a flight just around the village.

There is just this one time where you woke in the middle of the night, looking for his warm blanket of wings in your shared hammock. 

In a panic, you ran around the village. It was only when you noticed a string of smoke from the flight range that you finally let go of the breath you didn’t know you were holding.

Still a bit sleepy, you make your way to him. Finding him, staring at his bow once more with paranoia in his eyes.

Your embrace wakes him up from the thoughts that plagued his mind, his tears made yours water in response.

Since then, he has been trying his best to wake you up on those nights; Trying to actually ask for help, knowing that he doesn’t have to be alone anymore.

[liminevator]

IMPORTANT MESSAGE TO ALL ARCHIVE STAFF: Please stop using our funding for these trivial "experiments" on anomalies, fellow denizens, or floors themselves, specifically the ones that are not requested for important documentation purposes, this explicitly includes but is not limited to:

- Trying to teach Skreepers how to speak, or any anomalies for that matter, please, its getting scary, I saw one in the wild the other day and it said my name.

- Attempting to find a piece of headwear that is immune to ID #0032 's hair, we still need to fix that hole in the ceiling.

- Any and all attempts to find a convoluted "exploit" around known dangers on certain floors UNLESS I have SPECIFICALLY ordered for it, and the necessary equipment to test it has been given to you. ESPECIALLY THE GIANT ACID PIT, NO WE CAN'T GET AROUND THAT ONE, PLEASE STOP IT.

- Documenting how much fur I shed depending on where I am in our facilities to see if it goes hand in hand with higher stress levels. What even makes you think of this???

And many more of course.

Please, if you guys get bored you know I can always find something helpful and fun for you to do, this is getting ridiculous.

Sincerely,

Doctor Rito Kusatta

[whatcha-reading-today]

Fanfic Spotlight: Beating Around the Bush | Umbreonix

Revali is a grumpy pilot who's life greatly improves (gets worse? depends on who you ask) when Link, an unhinged researcher needs to be flown all over for research purposes. This is such a cute and fun story and I love how Revali and Link work through building a relationship while trying to navigate not trying to strangle each other.

Read it here:

Author: Umbreonix

Author's Note:

Revali, an arrogant and sassy city man, moves to the small sub-artic village of Rito to set up his business as a bush pilot who transports scientists and mountaineers through the dangerous Hebra wilds in the furthest northern reaches of the country.

Life is pretty simple (AKA boring) until he starts working with a quiet researcher sent from the University of Central Hyrule who is seemingly insane enough to brace the rough tundra alone.

Revali spends his time now caught between worrying about the idiot and being utterly floored at his nonsensical (and sometimes feral) antics.

Words: 36,352

Complete?: No

[yarpharp]

So because I am strange and always fascinated by posing cultural questions when it comes to creating crossover fanfiction, I had this wild thought worm recently for no reason: If you dumped Link (Legend of Zelda) into Thedas (Dragon Age), how the fuck would everyone in Thedas react to him?

I mean, depending on how you interpret Link's character, he doesn't talk. At all. I've always been of the opinion he speaks via some form of generalized Sign Language, but Why Would Thedas Share Any Common Signs? And who's to say there IS a formalized sign language in Thedas? Maybe there is, but it's technically a dead language now. The Elvhenan were fucked up but extremely modernized, so maybe they did have a Sign Language. Maybe the Dalish still have a lot of it, because Sign is a great way to silently communicate and Not Alert The Asshole Shemlen.

Either way, Link doesn't talk. And even if he can communicate via Sign Language, I highly doubt Hylian sign is gonna be understood. So there's one issue.

Secondly: Hylians don't look exactly like Theodosian elves. Modern elves of Thedas are scrawny and small but not too small; eyes bigger than a human and with cat-like night vision. Link? Link is canonically 5'2" and quite fit. Not skinny built and quite healthy, generally soft nonbinary features, bright eyes (at least in recent games; Link's got big fucking blues that almost glow for a nice contrast in TotK/BotW), pointy but not super pointy ears. Compared to Theodosian elves which are designed to look "distinctly fantastically different" in comparison to humans, Link just looks like a very short human with elf ears. So people might get a bit baffled at his looks; he's elfy but to the left.

Third: Hyrule isn't anti-magic. Magic is so inherently tied into everything in all the Legend of Zelda games, we the players just accept it. Link can wield magic rods and staves with no issue. Gerudo can use fire magic or summon lightning storms. Link can use magical items to summon winds, or devices that can magically transport him far distances. Rito can summon gales instinctually. Zora have water/ice magic and healing powers. If Link dodges correctly, he can seemingly slow time for a moment to deal a flurry attack. He uses Rauru's arm's magical abilities without blinking. The Master Sword is literally the ultimate magical item with a spirit inside of it.

Can you imagine Link losing his weapon in battle and just picking up a staff without thinking, but WHOOPS Thedas is kinda religiously anti-magic and someone is watching him just SUDDENLY THROWING ICE SPELLS (thinking about those magic staffs in BotW/TotK with the default AoE ice spell) without any hesitation? That is Not Normal for them like it is for Link. And Link himself like... Serves a powerful princess with the bloodline of a goddess. She literally tosses around light magic and time magic and shit. He probably can't begin to fathom a society that shuns something that so integral to Hyrule/Hyrule's safety in the face of Ganondorf's machinations.

Idk this was a bizarre thought worm I had. Maybe I will write a fanfic. Maybe I won't. It's interesting to think about in an extremely nerdy way, lol.

(also Link would HATE Solas but LOVE The Iron Bull and The Chargers. Prove me wrong, I dare you.)

[hotcheetohatredwastaken]

7 & 10 or perish

7. Share a line/paragraph/snippet that you were especially proud of.

Okay so I love this chapter just for the fact that everything I've been setting up for 200,000+ words culminates in here (but this section I've chosen also should reveal nothing heu heu heu). Also @needfantasticstories complemented the wording of one of the sentences, and I seeing my work through another's eyes really makes me appreciate it? If you know what I'm saying? But yeah, I wrote this during the poetry section of my AP Literature class in high school, if you couldn't tell by my gratuitous use of alliteration, semicolons, and parallel sentence structure.

[Have I posted this before? I hope I haven't DX I am very proud of it. If I have let me know and I'll try to find something else]

Wild stepped into the ornate church. High stone ceilings flew overhead, lined with stained glass windows—depictions of their Golden Goddess—that sent shattered slivers of light dancing along the cold stone floor. Rows upon rows of lowly stone pews stood in ordered procession on either side of the walkway, stretching all the way to the raised platform at the front of the cathedral. A great statue, so unlike the one that he knew, loomed over it all. The Hylia he knew had hair of flowering vine, and robes of majestic moss; this one's every strand was spun of gold, this one's every fold formed of ivory. His Hylia’s face was of cracked calcite, worn down and rounded out over years of exposure to the elements; this one’s was of sharp, shining porcelain. Little gray wings he’d only ever seen tucked to her sides, like those of a Rito fledgling, were now golden and stretched out in their full glory. She did not lower her head over clasped hands in constant thought of her people, as said by her now-extinct priests; instead, her gaze was cast victoriously outwards, her hand thrust forwards like that of a sovereign, conquering queen. White rose petals drifted and fluttered gently down to lay scattered across the stone pews. They trailed after Wild, swirling around his ankles with every step, as he walked forwards in a dreamlike state to the foot of the statue. It only grew larger, more imposing, as he approached, and himself so much smaller.

10. What are your writing goals for the upcoming year?

Okay okay okay okay. Just because you asked, I'm going to end up having to write out my entire planned chapter by chapter schedule and pin it to the top of my blog, aren't I?

But for a summary, basically--right now I'm trying to finish up my Noble's Warning chapters, which will get me to through February and some of March, so that I can participate in FebWhump without juggling two projects. The Differences chapters, which are pretty much done besides a few select bits that actually need to be written, should carry me all the way to Spring Break and through. During Spring Break (cuz I'm a cringe college student) I will try to finalize enough to make it close to the Heal Chapters, which should free me up until finals are over in May/June-ish.

Summer is when things get real. That's when I'll evaluate how much of Arc 2 I have done and how much time I think I need to finish it. If I'm ahead of schedule, I'll make sure I've hit all the finishing touches for Arc 1 and start releasing chapters twice a week. If not, I'll give myself more time with the once a week updates. Plus, I want to take a break between Arc 1 and 2 just to let ya'll squirm, so that gives me at least a month, I think, depending how hard ya'll cry at me to continue. There's also a whole timeline thing there of whether I want to do flashbacks of a section or if I just wanna say F it we ball, but that's beside the point.

If I do once a week releases, I already have enough planned content for Arc 1 + the occasional Prologue pieces to get me through the entire year and then some. So yeah, that's the plan for the year :D

[aikoiya]

LoZ - Hyrulean Cultural Aesthetics

Important to note, Hylians, Sheikah, Gerudo, & Lupáns are all considered human.

Those with pointed ears are referred to as Cuspan & those without are called Ovelian.

Overall Cultural Influences:

Central Hyrule & Hylians specifically = Medieval Germanic & Arthurian English with some variation depending on location. All Hylian towns will likely have a little bit of this in them.

Ovelians = Rural, small town, down home, farmer, tough as nails, survivor, rough around the edges, traditional, conservative, but still rebellious, & generally very good-hearted. That means they are the rednecks, the cowboys, the military men, the American Southerners, the Vikings, & the Celts kind of characters. You're salt of the earth types. At least in feel, though not necessarily in culture. It's because of this that humans generally get along well with Gorons. Either way, humans stick mostly to the agricultural & ranching settlements for the most part.

Zora = Hard to tell as they generally don't wear clothing, but they do wear a lot of jewelry. If I had to give them clothes, I'd definitely say they'd be something flowy. Possibly Roman or Greek in fashion to go with the water theme? As for sensibilities, maybe a bit of French Rococo. I also get the impression that the Zora's Domain is actually divided into 2 levels: the Upper Domain & the Lower Domain. The Upper Domain is what we see in the games & consists of the commercial district & palace. The Lower Domain is entirely underwater & is where the Zora actually live. The reason we don't see it is because Link can't dive.

Rito = Northern Native American. Aldean specifically. Maybe a bit of Latin American.

Goron = A mix of Maori (Polynesian), African, Dwarven, & maybe a bit of Old West mining town, though it's hard to tell for certain as they generally don't wear clothing. At the same time, their general architecture seems to have a Town of Bedrock-type feel to it. Definitely something with a decent source of friendly machismo (not what is considered "toxic masculinity;" actual machismo). Something masculine & tribal, but also community oriented & friendly.

Gerudo = Egyptian/Middle Eastern Amazons with some Orc influence. Possibly with some hints of Hindu too. At least as far as fashion goes.

Korok/Kokiri = If Peter Pan & the Lost Boys were Hobbits.

Twili = Possibly Scandanavian? Also Chinese with some Japanese influences.

Mogma = They seem to be Brooklyn-ish. Maybe even a bit of an Italian-American Mob feel, but more so in the "friendly gangster" way. So, I'm seeing some Bensonhurst influences, which is a specifically Italian-American borough within Brooklyn, I believe. Maybe even a bit of New York Jewish? Like, they come across as being Italian mafia adjacent, but only in so much as the accent, the attitude, & family-oriented organization. Sort of an "it takes a village" & "we take care of our own" type of mentality. Not in any way actually mafia though & certainly not in the romanticized view of gangsters as I don't actually see the Mogmas being the types to actually commit crimes on the reg. And despite being avid treasure-hunters, they seem to have a general culture of altruistic generosity. By that, I mean that their love language is gift-giving.

Yeti = Norse Viking.

Minish = Borrowers.

Anouki = Inuit.

Lokomo = Possibly Greek?

Zonai = Mesoamerican.

*Búralupán = Gaelic, Celtic, & Nordic. (This is a race I made up, if you wanna know more, go to Wolf Link & the Lupán Race.)

Smaller Settlements:

Hateno = I'm getting Gaelic Scottish farming town. Also maybe a bit of Spain, Italy, & Greece. Mostly inhabited by humans, both Cuspan & Ovelian.

Kakariko = Japanese with maybe a touch of American Old West. While primarily Japanese, there's also some definite South Korean influences. Especially in their cooking.

Mabe = Rustic dairy ranching town vibes because I'm putting Lon Lon Ranch there. Based on how AoC & LA's Mabe was designed, their roofing is colorful terracotta tile & generally has ivy & such growing on their homes, so maybe Colonial Spanish. Mostly inhabited by humans.

Goponga = I'm getting rural Luisiana Bayou vibes, most likely due to it being located in a swamp. So, primarily Cajun, French, & Colonial Spanish with some Zora inspiration maybe. Mostly inhabited by humans & Zora.

Deya = Not sure yet, but I'm giving them a vineyard, peach orchard, & making them use them to make moscato, so maybe an old Tuscany winery & fishing village? Mostly inhabited by humans. From what we see in the games, it was actually the biggest settlement in Hyrule besides Castle Town, so it could've been a full-on town or city.

Ordon = Has a rural ranching feel & might be inspired by a southern agricultural town in Italy called Ordona. So, maybe rural Italy with American South mannerisms & sensibilities. Culturally, though, I get Gaelic Irish vibes. It might be the smials… Also, maybe a little bit of Welsh too. Either way, it's mostly inhabited by Ovelians & Lupáns (more Ovelian than Lupáns) with the occasional Hylian, Sheikah, & 1 or 2 Gerudo. (For more of their overall culture, go to Ordonian Culture & Ordon Cooking Culture.)

Lurelin = Rural Hawaiian fishing village. Maybe a little bit of Caribbean & Okinawan? With a little bit of Mesoamerican mixed in due to Zonai influence from the nearby ruins.

Ealiyah = Tibetan-flavored Gerudo farming & brewing town. Maybe a little bit of Russian & hints of Norse too? Also, interior decoration is eclectic & cluttered but cozy & colorful in a vibrant, rustic Bohemian sort of way. There are also some influences from humans, including Ovelians, Hylians, Lupàns, & even Sheikah to a degree as several of each race lives there too (all men), but overall, the culture remains mostly that Tibetan-Gerudo sort of style. They do a lot of weaving & sewing as well as dying. (This is a town I made up, for more on its culture & history, go to Ealiyah Town & the Highlands Gerudo.)

- Hànmalàn Hamlet = A small majority Upper Middle Eastern/Southeast Asian-flavored Gerudo settlement in the Faron Jungle with some Lurelinites & a number of Sheikah living there as well. Located in Damel Forest.

Tabantha Village = Norse with Rito, Yeti, & Lupán inspiration. So, old Norse Viking, Aldean, Celtic, & Gaelic with a Russian & Welsh accent. They use a lot of furs in their clothing. Mostly inhabited by Ovelians, Hylians, Rito, Yeti, & Lupán.

Shadow Hamlet = Dwarven possibly, with Goron inspiration. So, very masculine. Maybe a bit of Old Western Mining Town. A mix of Gorons, Hylians, & Ovelians tend to live here.

Koholint Domain = This is on the Koholina Archipelago, which Eventide Island is the smallest island of & will eventually become a fishing & port town. In-world, it has influence from Zora, Rito, & Lurelin. But, from a real world perspective, it's mostly Polynesian, coastal Native American, & coastal Hindu with some ancient coastal Greco-Roman (even Atlantis-like) influence for the underwater sections of the settlement. As well as in their formal fashion. There would likely be a tiny bit of Carribean & Okinawan influence in there too. The population is made up of Euryhaline Zora (able to survive in both salt & fresh water), Coastal Rito, & Lurelin humans. And, much like with how I think the Zora's Domain is built, the settlement's commercial district is on land, while the Zora residential area is underwater. The Rito & human residences, as well as the Cheiftain's home, are also on land. (For more on the specifics of this, go to Euryhaline Zora & Coastal Rito Port Town.)

Gatepost, Outpost, & East Post = These are all a package deal. These are mostly military towns, so that'll definitely factor in. They are positioned in such a way as to protect Oldcastle. Mostly inhabited by Hyrulean Humans, but with smatterings of the other races too.

Oldcastle = The site of OoT's Castle Town, a.k.a. the Great Plateau, so there'll be some DEEP historical significance going on. As such, it's mostly Medieval Germanic & Arthurian English. Mostly inhabited by Hyrulean Humans.

LoZ Cultural Masterlist

[kaolincrush]

as above so below, somewhere in the darkest depths beyond the sea there's a really, really deep pit. at the bottom of that pit is a sage and she's been there for a really, really long time.

there's absolutely no timeline/lore basis or excuse here, i just wanted to make a vaguely redesigned wind waker era rito oc insert for totk 🙈 idk she grants gloom immunity or something

the grand sum of her story is that she was left behind in a temple in ancient times as a guardian for something important, then both her and the location were struck from record and forgotten on purpose so ganondorf couldn't find her and destroy/take what she protects for the hero the next time he came around, which is........ some stock legend of zelda Key Item, you know how it is. problem is, she never got found. lost to time but the heart and spirit endure 💖 maybe a predecessor or descendant of medli depending on how silly and wacky you want to get with the timeline lmao

also she's not a juvenile rito, her wings are mourning dove patterned 😌

[arkon-z]

A very interesting thing I just realized about Tears of the Kingdom vs Breath of the Wild (yes, I'm on about this again):

They're both open world games, but I think BOTW does it better than TOTK. Or, more accurately, TOTK wanted/tried to be a lot more linear, but didn't quite pull it off. The game doesn't lock you on a specific path, but it definitely has one and things can get awkward if you don't follow it. Like, if you've played it, you know it really pushes you to go to Rito Village first, even though you can go anywhere you want. You don't need Tulin's Gust to do everything else, but since a third of the game is in the sky, it's hard to get around without it.

It's more obvious with the Dragon Tear memories. You're obviously supposed to get them in a specific order so that the story they're telling makes sense. But if you just find one randomly while exploring, you'll get a scene that's way out of context and you might get spoiled for later events. That happened to me, actually. I saw the blood moon memory before the betrayal scene. Easy enough to figure out from context what was happening, but it was kind of disappointing to see it in the wrong order. Not that I didn't know what was coming - if you've ever played a Zelda game, you know what Ganondorf is about.

In BOTW, it didn't matter that you could get the memories out of order, because they weren't building off of each other the way the Dragon Tears were. The BOTW memories are telling a story, but they're disjointed and only loosely connected to each other. And because you are playing as an amnesiac trying to put his memory back together, the fact that they feel so disjointed is part of the experience. They're clearly missing a ton of context (which you as the player can easily infer as you find more memories), but aren't dependent on each other to convey the message contained in each one.

As i've said before, TOTK's script would have benefited from another pass or two before release. I think it tried too hard to please all the fans and the story (and other parts) suffered as a result. Trying to introduce some strong linear elements in a game and setting not known for its linearity is a choice for sure, and might have worked if they'd tried a little harder.

[caraetdeul]

Saan Ka? | Ikadalawampu't Tatlong Kabanata

Choi Seungcheol x reader filo!smau

Paano kung sa paghahanap mo ng true love, ang makakatuluyan mo pala ay hindi ang kasama mong kumain sa date kundi ang naglilista ng order niyong pagkain?

A/N: probably by the next few chapters, try kong mas bilisan yung pagupdate since patapos na klase ko for this sem. It all depends din sa kung gaano ako kasipag sa pagasikaso ng writer's block ko HAHA

Main Masterlist | Saan Ka? Masterlist

Seungcheol didn’t know what to do with his hands at all.

It had only been 5 minutes since he got to the coffee shop and he had never felt more anxious in his life than right now. He can’t help but to glance at the door everytime the door chimes, wishing that Jane would enter through it any time now. Seungcheol only hoped that everything goes well. He wouldn’t know what to do if it didn’t. Dapat ata nag-order na ako bago ako umupo rito para naman may ginagawa ako habang naghihintay. Mukha na siguro akong tanga rito na walang kape sa kamay. I mean this is a coffee shop for pete’s sake. Bakit wala akong kape na hawak. Bilis na Seungcheol mag-order ka na habang wala pa si Jane—

As if being summoned by him, Jane sat right in front of him, snapping him out of his rapid train of thoughts. She had a comforting smile on her face, as if she knew what was going through his mind at the moment.

“Hi Cheol! Sorry na late ako nang kaunti. May inasikaso pa kasi akong project bago ako makaalis ng bahay. Nag-order na rin pala ako bago ako umupo rito kasi alam kong makakalimutan mo na naman.” Jane laughed, remembering how Seungcheol kept on forgetting to order food every single time the both of them had a date.

Seungcheol chuckled slightly, already feeling a bit more relaxed. He knew what she was trying to do. Jane may not be a psychologist but she was one heck of an empath. She knew that by initiating the conversation and starting it off with a light tone, Seungcheol wouldn’t feel too pressured when trying to talk about whatever he’s got on his mind. He also knew that too which is why he’s so thankful for her right now.

“Thank you Jane.” Seungcheol said, “‘Di ko talaga alam kung paano ako makakasurvive nang dahil sa’yo.”

“Probably starve to death.” She joked.

Seungcheol laughed once again, knowing she’s probably right in some sense.

It was only a few seconds after when the conversation fell silent. Seungcheol glanced around the room if the awkward silence was emanating from everyone or is it just him. 

He was about to open his mouth when they heard the barista behind the counter call out Jane’s name. Jane smiled at Seungcheol before she stood up to retrieve their order.

Seungcheol watched her get their drinks and walk back to their table. She place his drink before him as she sat back on her seat. When Jane smiled at him again, he realized that this was his cue to say whatever he wanted to say in the first place.

“Jane,” Seungcheol started, sipping his drink before continuing on, “please don’t take this the wrong way.”

Jane was about to respond when Seungcheol stopped her.

“Wait, wag ka muna magsalita. Patapusin mo muna ako before ka magreact.” Jane closed her mouth, nodding for Seungcheol to continue.

Seungcheol took a deep breath before telling her what he had wanted to tell since yesterday evening, “I want to end things between us.”

A beat of silence.

Two beats.

Three beats.

Seungcheol maintained his gaze on his drink, never looking up to see Jane’s facial expression. It was when the silence went on for a few more minutes that he finally decided to glance at Jane, confused at her lack of reaction.

Shock would be a true understatement when trying to describe what he felt when he saw Jane smiling.

Jane laughed at his perplexed expression which only confused him even more.

“Bakit ganyan mukha mo?”

“What do you mean bakit? I'm telling you that I'm ending things tapos nakangiti ka. Sinong matinong taong ngumingiti sa ganitong sitwasyon?”

“Well totoo naman. Except for the fact na expected ko na na mangyayari ‘to.”

“...what?”

Jane fiddled with her drink for a bit, a bittersweet smile now plastered on her face. She took a moment before replying to him.

“I’ve known since that day sa resto.”

Seungcheol didn’t know what to say. He expected a lot of ways how this could’ve panned out but not one of those predicted this.

Jane waited for a bit, trying to gauge his reaction. When he didn’t reply immediately, she continued to explain everything.

“I kinda knew na the moment na pumasok tayo sa resto. Alam mo naman na very observant ako and talagang alam ko na mga mannerisms mo. Well one of those is your habit to panic muna hangga’t di tayo nakakahanap ng mauupuan. But when we arrived sa resto, I was so shocked nung kalmado ka lang na naglakad papunta sa inupuan natin at the time. Add to that yung gulat at pagiging dismayado mo nung hindi yung girl na waitress ang lumapit sa atin noon which I assume is yung friend mong girl na lagi mong binabanggit sa akin. It wasn’t hard to put the pieces together after that.”

Seungcheol tried to find any malice or even jealousy in her words all throughout her explanation but he found none. That’s when he realized that she truly understood his situation and she was just waiting for him to admit it, not just to her, but to himself as well.

“I’m sorry, Jane. ‘Di ko intensyon na ganito mangyari sa atin. You are one of the best people I have ever met and ‘di mo deserve na mangyari ‘to sa’yo. So I’m really sorry for everything.” Seungcheol tried to keep eye contact with her, doing his best to let her know how sincere he is with his words.

Jane held his hand on top of the table, squeezing it to reassure him, “I know, Cheol. Don’t worry kasi gets ko naman. I’m just grateful na naging honest ka sa akin and didn’t resort to cheating like other people would.”

“Thank you for understanding, Jane.” Seungcheol smiled at her.

“Wait Cheol, may kailangan pa kasi akong ipasa na requirement bukas and di ko pa siya tapos.” Jane said, checking her watch.

“Okay lang. Hatid na kita pauwi sa inyo?”

“Hindi na. I think I need to be alone muna. Don’t worry, I just really need time to think.”

Jane stood up while fixing her things. Seungcheol followed right after, the both of them walking towards the exit.

“Okay. Ingat ka sa pag-uwi, Jane. Text ka kapag nakauwi ka na ah.” Seungcheol opened the door for her. Jane thanked him and agreed to his conditions.

Bidding farewell, they parted ways with a light heart. Jane towards her apartment and Seungcheol towards his car parked at the front of the coffee shop. Seungcheol may not have expected this outcome but he sure wouldn’t complain even for a bit.

Taglist: @moonwonuu @belladaises

[tnc-n3cl]

A Guide to Rito Village er... Torikirika

Torikirika (Toe-re-key-re-ka) is the Rito name for their settlement on Lake Totori known by non-Rito as "Rito Village." While it is the only Rito settlement accessible to non-Rito after the Great Calamity, it is far from the only Rito settlement in existence.

The term Torikirika most accurately translates into "Home of the Rito People," or more literally "Home of Our People." The word was poorly translated into "Rito Village" eons ago and the Rito themselves don't seem to bother correcting anyone, perhaps because their geographical isolation makes interaction with non-Rito so rare.

... Okay, that's enough in-universe stuff... So in my fanfic, "The Realm Walker," most Rito fled Hyrule after the Great Calamity and I put a world map that shows where their new settlements are at up on DA. (I will warn that it is a huge image though...) Also this is going to be a bit long and rambly, but there's visual aids using in game screen shots...

So, as "The Ballad of Kass" is moving towards events happening in Rito Village, I've decided to do a little expanding of the place because quite frankly Nintendo didn't give these poor birds enough space/didn't properly utilize the space that was given.

This pillar is located at the end of a lone bridge to the left of the entrance (when approaching from Rito Stable). This is where the Village Archives are, all sorts of historical documents and artifacts are stored in there. Kass is the Loresinger so he's in charge of keeping this stuff secure and preserved and Amali takes over that while he's flying around Hyrule helping Link out. Super secret stuff is in there so it's probably one of only two places the Rito would have actual doors.

This is one of those lone pillars on the lake, just south of the previous image. This is where the blacksmith shop is located, her name is Vertis (based on Harth's name in the German version) and her roost is on that pillar where the Archive entrance is. (Yes, there's a Korok there, so depending on how you get him, he's either hiding on top of the roost or moved somewhere else.)

A map view, the red pin is Frita's workshop/roost, she's the town jeweler, though she lets Huck & Nekk sell her wares rather than run her own shop. The Blue pin is Misa & Fyson's roost (at least until he moves to Tarrey Town...) The Yellow pin is Guy's roost, where he lives with his wife and kid. (Yes, I know, he's got a kid that never shows up in game, very suspicious that...) The green pin is Kisli's house, she's an OC I made cause there's not enough guards and Gesane needs to sleep! She's a Bubo Tribe (Owl) Rito loosely based on the red morph of the eastern screech owl. And the pink pin is Gesane's roost.

Gesane's roost is basically right under Kass and Amali's roost.

This is more or less where Kisli's roost is, there's some stairs leading down to the area below that bridge cause that's where the Rito food storage area is (next to the three ore deposits in game.)

And here's where the food stores are. Filled with preserved meat, grains, fruits, etc. I was thinking about a mine or catacombs... but it seems really dumb to be weakening the pillar with mining activity... So there's some caves along the rim of Lake Totori, though they really don't do much in the way of mining after the Great Calamity. Vertis probably gets most of her metal from melted down scrap.

A couple screen shots of the lower area, the second one is right under the Slippery Falcon.

So this map shows some spots on the lower area of the pillar with the shrine. Originally I was going to have Huck and Nekk (they're brothers), live and do their sewing on the lower level but... The yellow pin is right next to the back landing of their shop! So that's where they live. The blue pin is Harth's bow shop, cause I don't think his roost is big enough for him and his daughter to live in and make bows and sell bows.

Right next to the armor shop, there's a new bridge that leads to Harth's shop. Just pretend it's there okay! :P

This is by the entrance to the village, there's an armory here cause weapons aren't allowed in the village proper. (Except for Harth's bow shop, and all the catches of bows and bomb arrows Teba's hidden around the pillar, out of the reach of fledglings of course!)

So if you go to the right when approaching the village, you see this pillar...

...which I marked on the map. That's where Revali's roost used to be, huh, fun coincidence that the pin is blue isn't it? Anywhoo, this doesn't relate to "The Ballad of Kass" but in other stories I focus on Revali and this will be relevant then. Also back before the Great Calamity, there was an open market on the third island (counting from Rito Stable, or if you'd rather it's where the salmon pond is). It was called the Eagle's Bazaar and was something of a tourist trap with Rito merchants selling all sorts of goods to visitors. I had a map image showing Link standing there, but it didn't transfer, and you can see it here so, whateves...

And so in these last couple images, I show the emblem for Torikirika. The little boxy G with the wings/E's. Every Rito settlement has a symbol like this, and it is usually found on the cloth "skirt" on Rito armor (or on the chest plate if you're a bigshot Warrior like Teba).

[galestrings]

So the other races have chiefs, kings, or patriarchs. What do rito have? Do you trust your leaders?

"Ah -- have you come to negotiate with the Rito? Smart: in your time of need, you'll want to be standing behind our spears, make no mistake. Fear not: Master Revali is here to ensure your audience goes perfectly.

My people determine the authority of a person, not by blood, property, or wealth, but by his demonstrable knowledge. These are the Amou -- "Elders" in your tongue, although it is a bit of a misnomer: far too many Elders are dustier than the oldest fossils known to man, yes, but it's not a title reserved for the old.

No, regardless of the gray in your eyes, it's your lived experience that makes you an Elder. And at any given time, we may have one or, Spirits forbid, several, all bickering with each other over alliances and history and trade and other such esoteric nonsense.

No Elder is omnipotent, of course, nor are their rulings absolute on their own: each has his own brand of so-called wisdom, and the rest of us get the privilege of squabbling over it like agitated hens every time our neighbors sneeze. We may look more to one Elder over the others for guidance depending on the circumstances -- assuming we all agree on our priorities.

Tch. If only.

We've a few Elders at the moment, but I think I'm right to say Awka has the most weight to throw about right now; if you're looking for something passing for a representative of our interests, you'll want to speak to her. I expect she'll be sulking around somewhere near the village summit."

[spoonyglitteraunt]

Me when building stuff to solve problems: OSHA is weeping so hard right now, but if I try hard enough it may stick together juuuuuuust long enough to finagle myself through this mess.

Look, it may not be pretty nor functional but… no, yeah, that’s all I got.

Link is a swordsman, not an architect.

I said my fear of heights does not translate to the game. But it seems rackety bridges over a ravine did not get that memo. Might have something to do with my shaky hands and me being chronically unable to not sway around like a drunk elf who wouldn’t pass a sobriety walk the line test if his life depended on it (and it does).

I hear enemy music but see no enemy. I’m not sure if the game is confused or I’m just that blind.

Answer: I was semi blind. I forgot land octorocs were a thing.

Okay, the rocket shields are legit very fun and terrifying at the same time.

You are now tasked to travel all over to investigate Zelda’s appearances for the paper. I mean, I was already kinda doing— There’s clothes in it for you. Call me Jimmy Olsen and get me kidnapped, for I’m getting you ALL the news.

Remember what I said about my builds being about ten different OSHA violations in one go? Yeah now imagine me having to make a very long and thin bridge over an icy ravine. Hey there random NPC complaining about the lack of bridge, do I got a life threatening dangerous construction new way to cross to try out just for you.

It genuinely hurts to see the Rito village like this. This was one of my favourite places from botw and to see it nearly empty and in this state just is all the feels. Well done devs on setting the mood I guess, but can I fix it already?

Tulin look at your adorable face! You’ve grown so much my little man.

Wait Teba is the new elder? That explains why he isn’t the one coming along, but uh what happened to the owl dude? Again I ask, how long did I nap???

“He’s having trouble hearing no.” Teba, my man. I remember a birdie who wouldn’t listen to being told no and it being impossible to go up to vah medoh. That’s your kid alright.

[timegears-moved]

totk rant anon again! elated to be getting a good grade in infodumping about my fave, something that is both normal to want and possible to achieve.

revali's part in the true ending credits is absolutely another of my many favorite revali moments! one detail i really like is that he actually watches terrako the entire time it's climbing up to where he is (his head tilts very subtly to follow its movements) but he turns his back as soon as it gets close. is he being tsundere? playing along and letting it boop him first? hard to say, but it feels like a very revali thing to do regardless.

(in part just because he tends to turn his back on people a lot for... varying reasons! i have an entire analysis about it in my head that i've never gotten around to writing out. but it's a lot.)

fun aoc revali fact: he's the only champion who's 100% guaranteed a rematch with his blight! with most other blight battles in later missions it really depends on who you put in your party, but since windblight flees at the end of its initial fight (incidentally proving botw revali right when he says that it plays dirty) and revali (+ teba) have to fight it off in the vah medoh battle immediately afterward, there's no way to continue the story without letting revali have a victory of his own against windblight. just goes to show that he CAN win against it under the right circumstances! (the right circumstances being in daylight. though being armed with a huge laser cannon probably helps too.)

and one other thing about the sidequests that i think is interesting: most characters' sidequests for getting extra hearts involve something happening around them that makes them happy. the one notable exception is link, who gets his through goddess statues, same as in botw/totk. however, not counting the quests that boost all characters' hearts (which also involve statues), there are two and only two characters other than link who get hearts from a goddess statue-related sidequest: mipha and revali. mipha gets one extra hp and revali gets two.

there are two possible explanations i can think of for this. the first is that link goes up to the goddess statue the same way he would in botw and is like 'okay so i want some more hp. but not for me, for my friend.' but he only does this for mipha and revali. the other possibility is that the Goddess Hylia Herself (or whatever other force might be powering the statues) personally concludes that those two specifically are worthy of being granted heart containers despite not being link. either way, the implications are interesting!

also, the rito village goddess statue is the only one that gets two sidequests based around it (one is for link himself), validating my personal gameplay choice to use that particular statue most of the time when i'm playing the other games. link really does seem to like it!

WHWHWHWHHW i haven't actually gotten to the true ending on my own playthrough but you can bet i'm gonna be keeping a watchful eye on that when i get there. i need to study him under a microscope.

ALSO VERY TRUE that's something i've taken note of as well!! he really does it a lot (most notably at the end of revali's flap, in his champion's ballad memory and when he's thanking link for aiding in defeating windblight). his body language is so interesting here as he's hiding his face and doesn't want to look at who he's talking to, and all three of these examples show him being vulnerable to an extent, even though he tries to hide it.

NOTICED THAT AS WELL!! i know you do get to fight the other blights again in optional missions, the fort hateno mission and the siege on hyrule castle but you're not forced to use the champions in any of those fights, unlike this vah medoh battle. there's even the option to do a second medoh fight with windblight appearing after the credits. glad he gets to tear the bitch apart like he deserves.

WAUGHGGHGGGGHH i. gotta admit i've only really been reading the text for revali's missions but i went back and looked at all of the link and mipha missions as well and omg. i like also that revali gets two specifically while link and mipha only get one. there's probably something to analyze there too but honestly i'm just comparing it to how my brain works whenever i get a botw kick. like yes i adore link and mipha but my love for that stupid bird is on another level. also true i've always found the garland for her rito village statue to be really adorable. and i think with totk implying that farore, din and nayru are in the spring statues then it's safe to say that you can communicate with hylia directly with the statues.