#evil magnae

[sinank0606]

(TW for slight blood)

I swear, when I started watching this show, I was expecting it to be mainly a silly comedy about a girl joining the villains organisation so she can help her favourite magical girl be more popular...while no one involved has any idea what they are actually doing and just stumbling from one silly situation into the next.

I didn't expect there to be an episode with quite an interesting backstory. And with such a reveal involving the stereotypical magical animal.

Plus its sad for everyone involved. Chroma knows he's not a bad guy and not cut out to be a villain even though that is his dream. But just giving it to Mashima feels like an insult to him and like he only got it because Chroma was bored of his dream. Not to mention its clear that Mashima never intended to hurt his rival like that...

Honestly at this point I am now even more curious, where the show will actually go with this in the remaining episodes.

[magnacrystalliauroralights]

Trassa, The Dark Hunter

By Artemis-Polara

Deviantart   Twitter   Blogspot   Newgrounds   Pixiv    Discord

My Original Comic:

https://magnacrystalliauroralights.com/aurora-lights/aurora-lights-page-1/

[jackgoodfellow]

Breaking News: Another horrible man is horrible to literally everybody and is then shocked when people are not nice to him. England once again totally fucked. But I hear the monarchy is good for tourism, so

"Doomed by the narrative? Too easy! No... it is the narrative that is doomed by US! (And also, we are so so horny for each other.)"

So it turns out The Lion in Winter (1968) slaps. Katherine Hepburn somehow manages to capture the feeling of watching someone tear out a person's jugular with smiling teeth. She and Peter O'Toole in this movie are basically performing the cinematic equivalent of the song "No Children" by The Mountain Goats and it is wild.

Tagging @thirdsisfics because I associate the term "doomed by the narrative" with the positive feelings I get from talking to you about the trope!

[oofscadoof]

[theeverchangingoverseer]

"And so the first vestiges of evil was born, from the goodness that was never shown any kindness" - The Foreign Crimson Bloom

[makutaservaela]

Makuta Servaela is a Makuta who specializes in intelligent Rahi, especially ones who can speak Matoran. It was she who created Keetongu's species, a species who could remove Hordika venom (whom she created for the sole purpose of getting vengeance on Chirox due to Chirox's relentless bullying Servaela).

She was also known for considering herself smarter than her brothers and repeatedly defying orders passive aggressively if she considered them illogical. When the Makuta were called to destroy her Hagah, she decided that ridding herself of guardians was a stupid idea, and instead trapped them in the crystals she wears around her neck, to be awoken at a later time. The other Makuta didn't realise her Hagah were still alive in the crystals, and presumed this was just dark humour on her part of wearing her guardians' corpses as an accessory as a threat to any future servants who dare disobey her. Teridax mostly just put up with her shit because her Rahi were useful enough to him, and because her defiance of him was never direct.

When the Plan was announced, her first course of action began to gain as much information about the Mata Nui from Mutran as she could (a feat not difficult, as he had a soft spot for her). She used this to create a plan of her own, and obeyed Teridax until the Great Cataclysm, in which she carried out her plan: She left the Mata Nui, residing on Aqua Magna as an aquatic creature with plans to wait out Teridax's "immature power-grab".

When the planets were reunited, she migrated to the Bota Magna portion and released her Hagah, who knew nothing except that they had gone to sleep in their Makuta's lab and woken up in a cave somewhere else. They are completely oblivious to even the concept that Makuta had turned evil.

She continues to this day ignoring/avoiding everyone and performing her research.

[wjbs-bonkle-au]

I love that the alternate universes in Bionicle are like

"What if Mata Nui was successful in his mission?" (the confusingly-named Spherus Magna Alternate Universe)

"What if the Great Beings had a different solution to The Shattering, and also Toa and Matoran have their heights swapped around and the Makuta are light-themed I guess?" (The Melding)

"What if Matoro failed in his mission and was exiled or whatever?" (The Kingdom)

And then the Toa Empire Alternate Universe strides into the room, slams its hands on the table, and asks "What if, right, one of the most morally-reprehensible characters in all of Bionicle became a fascist dictator, was girlfriends with the main antagonist of the 2005 arc, and almost every character who was a hero in the main timeline was evil instead, to the point that several Makuta are part of the heroic resistance movement? Oh also basically everyone dies, and main!Takanuva ends up indirectly killing Empress!Tuyet by slicing her in half with a dimensional portal."

[cha5otic]

Being Ackar must be Wack at One Point

Imagine being Ackar, fighting battles on a regular basis for hundred of thousands of years (even moreso after Malum left to become a sand hippie), wasting away as he collects trophies as to not turn insane from the looming hopelessness of Bara Magna and being the only reliable fire Glatorian that Vulcanus has to offer. He'd prolly accepted his fate of being struck down by Strakk and finally relieved from his duties as it would mean the Agori would further lost faith in him, when a stranger with golden-yellow paint, with a beetle (basically unusual color scheme and idt it exists in any other tribes) intervenes and performs what can only be described as magic. The stranger then refuses their victory and sticks with him until he gets home.

Further down the line the stranger transforms your rusty sword to imbue it with powers that only the Elements Lords has wielded as of yet. The stranger then also proposes to link up all the villages and then do reckless quests, speaking of legends such as The Great Beings and Great Spirit Robots. Also spoke of how something akin to an evil god will make its way to the land. Then they brought a cube and transforms into a giant freaking robot.

Another freaking bigger giant robot arrives. With minions pouring out of its toes. What.

Another stranger with your color scheme wearing golden armor, possibly with nonsensical alien biology arrives and then blasts the yellow minions away into their empty shells. Your first stranger, now a friend, smashes one of the freaking moon (or a very big flying rock, depending on your preferred canon) into the second giant robot. Then they start to bring life into your barren world, plants that you don't even know of, water that both the Agori and Glatorian fights for bursts in unthinkable quantity, creatures chirping and making noises its deafening compared to the deathly silence that everyone is used to.

Also your yellow friend is now a talking mask and decided to be comatose.

[satoshi-mochida]

Baten Kaitos I & II HD Remaster now available for PC

From Gematsu

Publisher Bandai Namco and developer logicalbeat have released Baten Kaitos I & II HD Remaster for PC via Steam for $49.99.

All purchases made by July 17 will be automatically upgraded to the “Month 1 Edition,” which includes a digital art book featuring concept art, character designs, historical documents, and the latest visuals for both games included in the collection.

Baten Kaitos I & II HD Remaster first launched for Switch on September 14, 2023. It includes remastered versions of Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean and Baten Kaitos Origins, which were originally released for GameCube.

Here is an overview of the collection, via its Steam page:

About

Baten Kaitos: Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean and Baten Kaitos Origins are now on Steam with improved graphics and new features to aid game progression, making them even easier to play! Delve into the world of Baten Kaitos as you strategize with the unique card-based battle system in these two immersive RPG masterpieces. Play as a guardian spirit who guides the colorful cast as they struggle against destiny itself. A long time ago, there was a great conflict between the evil god and the people. After a fierce battle, the people managed to seal off the evil god, but what was left behind was only a desolate land. The people thus chose to abandon the land and live in the sky. Such fairy tales were passed down as legends. At this time, people had wings called Wings of the Heart and lived a peaceful life. It was an era of long-lasting tranquility… But the collapse had quietly begun. When a young man calls your name, the name of the spirit, the story begins to unfold. A story set on a floating continent in the sky, where thoughts and prayers intersect.

Unique Magnus Battle System

In the world of Baten Kaitos, the true essences of all manner of things, including equipment and items, can be extracted and stored inside cards called magnus. A magnus’ contents can be released at any time, returning the magna essence sealed inside to its original form. These magnus form the basis of the Baten Kaitos battle system. Battles run in real time, so you’ll need to employ quick thinking to select the right magnus for the situation. Strategize against enemies of various elements using elemental magnus of your own, and experiment with mixing and matching different magnus to discover and unlock powerful combo attacks!

Vivid Graphics Remastered in High-Definition

The two titles have been fully remastered in high-definition, including retouched battle backgrounds, character graphics, and user interface. Enjoy Baten Kaitos with even more vibrant visuals.

Aspect ratio expanded from 4:3 to 16:9 for play on wider screens!

Main character and boss graphics have been completely renewed in vivid detail!

All-new menu screens! Enjoy smoother gameplay with refreshed menu layouts, newly added sorting features, and more.

Pre-existing graphics have been used for in-game maps as well as some screens and character models.

New Features for Better Gameplay

Along with improved graphics, the features below have been added to make game progression much smoother!

Auto-save feature

Help menu containing terminology and hints for progressing through the game

New Game+ mode, unlocked after clearing the game once, which starts a new game while retaining all magnus, levels, and ranks

 New Game- mode, a mode with level restrictions for an extra thrilling challenge

Six new game system options have now been added, including adjustable game speeds and no-encounter mode.

Save your settings as a Custom Set and turn them on or off at any time.

Watch a new trailer below.

PC Launch Trailer

[anim-ttrpgs]

Songs for Eureka Sessions: Deadly/Armed Melee Combat

Masterpost of Eureka song lists & how to choose good music for any TTRPG session.

1 vs 100 - Hardcore Henry

Shut Me Down - Godflesh

Cursed Zone - Okami

Turf – El Huervo

Hydrogen – Hotline Miami

Paris – Hotline Miami

She Swallowed Burning Coals – Hotline Miami 2

Fahkeet – Light Club

Divide – Magna

Final Battle – Resident Evil 1 Remake

Ending – Resident Evil 2 Remake

Another End – Resident Evil 2 Remake

Vengeance – The Guest

Boss 2 – Nightmare Creatures

Piercing Lazer – Castle Crashers

Boss 4 – Nightmare Creatures

Spybreak – The Matrix

Elegantly designed and thoroughly playtested, Eureka represents the culmination of three years of near-daily work from our team, as well as a lot of our own money. If you’re just now reading this and learning about Eureka for the first time, you missed the crowdfunding window unfortunately, but you can still check out the public beta on itch.io to learn more about what Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy actually is, as that is where we have all the fancy art assets, the animated trailer, links to video reviews by podcasts and youtubers, etc.!

You can also follow updates on our Kickstarter page where we post regular updates on the status of our progress finishing the game and getting it ready for final release.

Beta Copies through the Patreon

If you want more, you can download regularly updated playable beta versions of Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy earlier, plus extra content such as adventure modules by subscribing to our Patreon at the $5 tier or higher. Subscribing to our patreon also grants you access to our patreon discord server where you can talk to us directly and offer valuable feedback on our progress and projects.

The A.N.I.M. TTRPG Book Club

If you would like to meet the A.N.I.M. team and even have a chance to play Eureka with us, you can join the A.N.I.M. TTRPG Book Club discord server. It’s also just a great place to talk and discuss TTRPGs, so there is no schedule obligation, but the main purpose of it is to nominate, vote on, then read, discuss, and play different indie TTRPGs. We put playgroups together based on scheduling compatibility, so it’s all extremely flexible. This is a free discord server, separate from our patreon exclusive one. https://discord.gg/7jdP8FBPes

Other Stuff

We also have a ko-fi and merchandise if you just wanna give us more money for any reason.

We hope to see you there, and that you will help our dreams come true and launch our careers as indie TTRPG developers with a bang by getting us to our base goal and blowing those stretch goals out of the water, and fight back against WotC's monopoly on the entire hobby. Wish us luck.

[blueikeproductions]

An update on the Transformers CyberWorld situation.

Without a shadow of a doubt, it’s the next cartoon as a new copyright notice on Hasbro’s part includes animated series.

So we’re moving on from EarthSpark. A well intentioned successor to Rescue Bots aimed older that … just didn’t stick the landing for many reasons (no Nightshade being Enby isn’t one of them, but among certain groups it didn’t exactly help either…).

So what can we expect going forward.

Honestly I think we’re in the middle of a shift, creatively.

Cyberverse & EarthSpark clung to a lot of IDW centric ideas about how the Autobots are shady & the Decepticons are the actual heroes.

Skybound and TFONE are to be returning to traditional Heroic Autobots and Evil Decepticons. Starscream & Shockwave are absolutely psychotic, Soundwave is more professional in an ends justify the means capacity, and Skybound Optimus being praised for a much needed return to the strong enough to be gentle vs the introverted millenial/Gen Z kid most stuff lately has cast him in. And just by official trailers and snippets alone, ONE’s fixed a huge problem with the cast system thing started by Aligned, by making future Autobots into the oppressed miners and from what we can tell, the future Decepticons being among those who either benefited from the system or joined Starscream’s splinter faction, a faction that likely has no benefits to Cybertron as a whole.

It does feel like there’s a bit of course correcting to go with a more traditional route most casuals expect. Even a recent toyetic promo for ONE where the actors play with the toys with some football players, among them is the one who calls himself Megatron, & the players express mild skepticism on an origin story, when they all know Optimus & Megatron are mortal enemies so why bother having them be friends previously or some such. I can always appreciate when a studio expresses self awareness and happily pokes fun at itself.

It also feels like they’ve realized they’ve both overexposed certain characters and also realized certain characters don’t work.

I think RotB and Skybound’s willingness to kill off Bumblebee shows even Hasbro might be sick of him now. His absence so far in early CyberWorld leaks seem to point in this direction too. A recent promotion and opening animation with Squad Busters doesn’t have Bee, but instead uses Elita. It also keeps Megatron and the Decepticons as the villains.

I don’t think Bee is going away, since he’s a major component of TFONE, Reactivate (whenever that sucker comes out), and that separate racing (?) game thing, but outside of EarthSpark, it does feels like they’re trying to move away from him a little. Cyberverse also sticks out as it’s pretty clear the writers wanted nothing to do with Bee after S1, but Hasbro marketing and rebranding made Bumblebee a huge focus, confusing matters, as despite the rebranding, Bee’s role had greatly diminished. (Like realistically, it should’ve been Bumblebee leading the Autobots during the Quint occupation, not Hot Rod if Hasbro was that insistent about it.)

Elita is also an interesting change. For years, Hasbro seemed content to ignore her (and her squad) in favor of Arcee, with Hasbro & IDW trying to beef up female presence with “OCs” Windblade & Pyra Magna among others to little fanfare. Indeed, Windy appears to be benched in favor of Elita-One who has gotten more attention post Netflix WFC (that god awful show did one thing right and it was bring back a Female Autobot people actually like to complement Arcee).

I stand by the series still has a villain problem, and EarthSpark didn’t help by trying to make the Decepticons sympathetic moody Autobots, but also not properly taking advantage of Mandroid, Croft and (so far) the Quintessons. This has been an issue for the bulk of IDW, Cyberverse, & RotB as well, by either omitting Megatron, trying to redeem Megatron into a good guy and/or his replacements not being up to snuff/killed off too quickly. Scourge & Mandroid were steps in the right direction but alas. The Quintessons are also a step in the right direction but Hasbro seems semi hesitant to do much with them, despite their increased presence. (I’m leaning towards it being most toys related to them don’t sell, which is what will make a future Void Rivals toy line interesting…)

So now we’re at CyberWorld.

The lack of Bee in favor of Mirage due to his popularity from RotB seems telling among the Autobots, though we don’t have Elita so far in this series curiously.

All we have to go on Decepticon wise is Galvatron, Scorponok, and Sky-Byte, but that’s still a pretty big change up.

While they still have relevance in TFONE, Screamer & The Waves’ roles in EarthSpark are mostly minor, with Starscream as the standout (in a bad fan fic kind of way). Skybound mostly has ignored Megatron, slowly building up to him in stuff like Cobra Commander, with Starscream getting the crap beaten out of him, and as of the recent issue, Shockwave’s fate isn’t looking too good, leaving Soundwave. It does feel like Hasbro is willing to experiment more outside of Screamer & The Waves, given their absence this far in CyberWorld. Galvatron is also a surprise, given the “Let’s make Megatron an Antihero!” phase started in IDW, that carried over to stuff like Prime Wars, WFC, CV & ES.

I feel like using Galvatron is an attempt to both move away from Megatron for a bit, but to also still technically use him (as a villain) as usually Galvatron IS Megatron. Scorponok, at least in comics and the Headmasters anime, is typically a main villain, but how that works here we don’t know yet. He’s either G1 Marvel Scorponok or BW Scorponok, there’s very little inbetween.

So I think what we have is a big change that is going back to basics like Skybound did, but is willing to still experiment with other characters to add variety. Plus let’s be honest, having multiple Megatron toys from three different things with little visual difference is a sign of stagnation. Shaking it up with Galvatron is an improvement post TFONE.

[magnacrystalliauroralights]

Aurora Lights

Page 122-126

By Artemis-Polara

Deviantart   Twitter   Blogspot   Newgrounds   Pixiv    Discord

My Comic Website:

https://magnacrystalliauroralights.com/

[triviallytrue]

I'm moving different. This shit ain't nothing to me man. I'm a dog. I'm biting the fart bubbles in the bath. We smoking symbiotes. Smoking that Whoopi Goldberg South Egyptian Furburger Deluxe Mega Million Scratcher Skunk Bubba Kush. We smoking dung beetle. I'm on twelve Vicodins smoking on Scooby Doo dick. We smoking Sequoia banshee boogers? We snorting that good buffalo soldier tamarind Jordanian Jibbies. They must have amnesia, they forgot that I'm Him. That Burberry backwoods pack kitten that pussy smell, like a Hellcat VH. We smoking shit in a glass pipe blowing the Lord's bubbles. I'm sick in the head. I'm on them Broward County tic tacs. I'm on them Georgetown geronimos. I'm on them Nashville nibblers. I left my Margielas in the Benz truck, I'll have to stunt on them next time. I don't give a fuck if I go blind. I don't need to see the price tag anyway. We s- I'm high on twelve Jason Bournes looking to beat the cum out of a thick fresh hoe. We smoking filtered crack you stupid piece of shit. I'll fucking kill you. Call that pussy The Matrix cuz I'm in this bitch, and I can't get out. Last guy who ran off on the pack got choked out by some Givenchy gloves. The last thing he ever saw was the price tag on them. Slowly faded into darkness, and I let the archangels take him. I need more Sequoia banshee boogers! Don't be shy girl, I love me some, pastrami mud flaps. I'm moving like French Montana. Hæh? Welcome to the cream kingdom bitch, open up! Blac Chyna, I drink her piss out of another man's balls. My shooter a crackhead, he look like Woody Herrelson. You ain't seen ten bands in your life, chit! Reach for my neck you'll get turned into an example. Y'all gotta stop playing with me man. I threw diamonds at the strip clubs under the Great Pyramids. I pushed a camel through the eye of a needle. This shit ain't nothing to me man. Tied the opps to the back of a track hog. And dragged him around the block for twenty four hours. Motherfucker! Looked like a Resident Evil 5 campaign extra after we was done with him. Opps wanted some initiative, blew up their entire quadrant. I'm moving like Oppenheimer. She drop that ass on me from an egregarious angle, they thought I was Steven Wallace. Top shelf zaza, disrupted my circadian rhythm. I have seen the Magna Carta, I have seen the eye of Horuh. I was flipping bricks for Mansa Musa before you all even became a type 1 civilization. This shit ain't nothing to me you stupid piece of shit. Step the wrong way and you will perish. That pussy feel like Biscoff butter. You think I care about this shit? Ask me if I care about this shit, cuz I don't give a shit. If I had a dollar for every time they said I gave a shit, I'd be broke, cuz I don't give a shit. My bitch look like David Hasselhoff. I balled so hard they thought I was a fucking nutsack. This shit ain't nothing to me man I'll kill you you stupid piece of shit

dracula flow is the spiritual complement to the northern boys

[sepublic]

Tbh I wonder if it's even necessary to make the distinction between Glatorian and Agori as separate species, and for that matter, the Skrall and Bone Hunters. I do appreciate the idea of retroactively having the Matoran and Toa be recreations of the society that created them, but on the other hand, making it all one species within the lore would also help to differentiate the setting as more grounded, especially with the removal of elemental powers and Kanohi;

In general, Bara Magna's stories feel more human with how the cast struggles with human problems like getting enough food and water, poor working conditions, wages, etc. It's what helps differentiate the setting from the Matoran Universe, and leaning into that helps Bara Magna stand out in its own compelling way. Come to think of it, one could easily imagine everyone as human in these stories, and it wouldn't really change a thing nor contradict lore, minus the Glatorian and Agori being ridiculously long-lived; But that can be explained via cybernetic enhancements and the Great Beings' experiments.

But that gets me back to my main point; It'd be easy to explain the height difference with Glatorian as just genetic, species variation as one can see in humans themselves. And of course the bigger Agori gravitate towards the Glatorian profession, because it's one where their physique gives them a natural leg up over their peers; And it's not as if anyone has the privilege to choose jobs they enjoy vs ones that put food on the table.

In the first half of 2009, we're introduced to Berix, who wants to participate in the arena someday. Now we do have the Glatorian game, both its in-universe and real life counterparts, to justify this; Agori function as a separate game piece in the rules. But if Agori can fight alongside Glatorian in the ring, why not have Agori vs Agori matches, especially when the dilemma of tribes not having enough Glatorian is a thing?

Plus, this brings us to the second wave of 2009, which introduces a lot of Agori who can fight in the arena (even against Glatorian such as Perditus) via the great equalizer of vehicles; And then there's Telluris, who's a perfect middle-ground between Agori and Glatorian in terms of stature. Body types don't have to be canonized as a separate species, because sure the Skrall are built different, but so are Kiina and Strakk, who are nevertheless Glatorian. It avoids falling into the trope of the Evil Race, and again, humanizes the story even more by making it all one species. By the end of the day, the term Glatorian canonically only refers to the occupation, and not the larger species, which is technically still unnamed.

[spanktony]

request rules

what/ who i write:

overwatch - d.va & ashe

resident evil - jill valentine & ada wong

euphoria - maddy perez

the walking dead - maggie greene, rosita espinosa, magna

—

> i write fluff, angst, smut, but please be specific with your requests!

> reader g!p (never characters), reader gn, fem, or male if requested

> i do not write bottom!reader, incest, age play, self harm, and certain kinks.

> if i do not write your request please do not take offence, and please be patient with me!

[herora-nuva]

"These machines were never built to make things right.

"These machines were never built to BURN ALIVE!"

Ok but can we talk about how fucking hard these lyrics go?! "As Above, So Below", the new song by @essengermusic and Cryoshell, is a masterpiece and dripping with thematic references to Bionicle, and in particular these two lines from the pre-choruses stick out too me because they feel so filled with meaning to the series. Like obviously I'm not Essenger, so I don't know everything that went into these lyrics, but I have to talk about what they make me feel because I can't stop thinking about them. So, here's my attempt at a lyrical analysis! :D

"Don't you feel that its too late to turn the tide. These machines were never built to make things right."

This line feels so interesting, because it feels like an acknowledgement that the characters were never really meant to be heroes. The Toa and Matoran were just meant to be the worker drones to keep the Mata Nui Robot functioning. Things were never meant to go this wrong, these beings who were just machines were never built to face evils and right wrongs of this magnitude. And yet they did, they rose to take on more than they were ever meant to.

"Don't you feel that its too late to turn the tide. These machines were never built BURN ALIIIIIIVEEEEE."

And then this line hits even harder! At the same time as calling them just machines, it calls them alive, and that they were never meant to burn, never meant to experience this pain. It calls them machines but evokes a pity of them, they were never meant to pay the price for these mistakes.

Just the contrast between these two lines (and I gotta say, I LOVE me some slight changes in repeating lyrics that give new context and meaning) captures what in my view is one of the most poignant themes in Bionicle, that they were never meant to be more than machines, and yet they became a people on their own, burdened with the weight of their creators' mistakes.

"Our sanctuary burns while you play god."

Who this refers to is also very interesting. It works for Mata Nui, Makuta, and the Great Beings, and I'd say most of all the Great Beings, who played god while their world burned.

"The world outside is dying as we slowly drown."

This line comes a little earlier than the previous one I mention, and I while it evokes the overarching theme in the song of the world in peril while the subjects are dormant, locked away in a paradise. It makes you think about the Great Beings off who knows where while their creation struggles. Though the drowning metaphor also makes me think of Mata Nui, also a dormant god who made mistakes, drowning from the waters of Aqua Magna literally filling his heart with the waterfall of Karda Nui. Love me some lyrics that have multiple potential meanings and interpretations.

GOD, this song is so sorrowful, and yet feels brimming with a determined rage to make things right, though wondering if ti may be too late. That feeling was so palpable in Bionicle, especially late Bionicle in the Ignition and Bara Magna Sagas. Ahhh, I love it so much, thank you Essenger, I know this was your dream, but to the rest of us, this was a gift beyond measure.