#formerly known as dio

[vtribbean]

A little fanlore blurb for JJBA verse...

I remembered this earlier today and figured Tumblr and the JJBA RP community might enjoy this! Let me know what you guys think :v 💙

...

Following the fall of DIO in Egypt, his influence still seeps into the world he touched. Whether stand users or ordinary folk; whether alive or undead; even some cases of whether human or animal: the remnants of DIO still linger in the Mediterranean. From the Middle East to the UK... some say, his reach has even travelled to the Americas, as well as the East.

The Minor Arcana:

CUPS - Emotionally driven. These members were led into temptation by DIO, either believing in his false prophecy and promise, or smitten by his charm and driven by envy, admiration, or even lust.

(Known members: Enrico Pucci, Vanilla Ice [deceased])

SWORDS - Power driven. These members saw DIO's strength and would do anything just for a taste. A constant power crawl to prove oneself, to defeat former enemies, or perhaps even to stake a claim in what remains of this interloper's empire.

(Known members: Hol Horse [formerly])

PENTACLES - Financially driven. These members saw a chance to fill their pockets by serving DIO, who gave hearty rewards to those able to prove their loyalty. They are the hardest to spot - most are just ordinary men, and in some cases, they may not even realize just what system they're working within.

(Known members: Father Nijimura [formerly])

WANDS - Intellectually driven. These members witnessed the potential around DIO and wished to tap into it. While many did this for their own personal goals, others saw the big picture - the power of vampirism, the power of stands... they seek more knowledge about these ancient arrows and stone masks, and will stop at nothing to get their hands on these artifacts.

(Known members: Polnareff [formerly], Enya [deceased])

[kpopmylive]

Kpop Boy Groups:

#

1/N (Rock band)

24K

2AM

2PM

2Z (Rock band)

3RACHA (Stray Kids sub-unit)

5TION

828 (Rock band)

9 and the Numbers (Rock band)

9001 (Ninety O One) (Rock band)

A

ATBO

A.C.E

A.Cian

AB6IX

ABLUE

About U (Rock band)

Achtung (Rock band)

AfterMoon (Rock band)

AIMERS

Alary Kansion (Rock band)

Aliven (Producers group)

ALLART BOYZ * pre-debut

AlphaBAT

AMBITION * pre-debut

ambitious ambition (Crew)

ANTARES

Ants (One-man band)

APL

APR PROJECT * pre-debut

ASTRO

ATEEZ

AWEEK

B

B1A4

B3o1z (formerly known as 1st Aimers) * pre-debut

BADCUPID (Rock band)

BAE173

Band Nah (Rock band)

Bandage (Rock band)

BDC

BeaverTown (Rock band)

BenchWeLeo (Rock band)

BF (Formerly known as BOYFRIEND)

BgA

B.I.G

Big Bang

Big Dipper * pre-debut

Bigflo *currently on hiatus

Black A * pre-debut

Black Level

Blank2y

BLITZERS

Block B

Block B Bastarz (Block B sub-unit)

BOM * pre-debut

Brown Eyed Soul

BSS (Seventeen sub-unit)

BTOB

BTOB 4U (BTOB sub-unit)

BTOB Blue (BTOB sub-unit)

BTS (Bangtan Boys)

Bursters

BUZZ (Rock band)

Bye my mood

BZ BOYS

C

C on H * pre-debut

Catch The Young (Rock band)

Cheek Touch Boys *(Stray Kids X NCT Dream Collab)

CIIPHER

CIX

Classmate

Click B

CN19

CNBLUE (Rock band)

CNEMA (Rock band)

Confined White (Rock band)

Cotoba (Rock band)

Crack Shot (Rock band)

CRAVITY

Cross Gene

Crying Nut (Rock band)

D

D1CE

D82 (Rock band)

D.COY

Daily Note * pre-debut

Dance Racha (Stray Kids sub-unit)

Dandelion (Rock band)

Dasutt (Rock band)

Day6 (Rock band)

Day6 (Even of Day) (Day6 sub-unit/ Rock band)

Dayangsung (Rock band)

Daybreak (Rock band)

Daydream (2022 group) * pre-debut

Danggisio (Rock band)

DICKPUNKS (Rock band)

DIGNITY

DIOS * pre-debut

DKB

DKZ

DMTN *currently on hiatus

Dreamer * pre-debut

DRIPPIN

Dustin

E

E’LAST

E’LAST U (E’LAST sub-unit)

East Shine * pre-debut

EASTONE (inactive)

ENHYPEN

EPEX

Epik High

EXO

EXO-CBX (EXO sub-unit)

EXO Main Vocal Line (EXO sub-unit)

F

F’Club

FABLE

Fallanc

FISTBUMP (Rock band)

Fl1x

FLAG (Rock band)

FT Island (Rock band)

Fool in the Pool (Rock band)

Forestella (Crossover group)

FREE PASS

G

G-EGG * pre-debut Japan-Korea joint boys group

G-EGG Team A (G-EGG sub-unit)

G-EGG Team B (G-EGG sub-unit)

G-EGG Team C (G-EGG sub-unit)

G-EGG Team D (G-EGG sub-unit)

G-MOST

GHOST9

GIFT (Rock band)

g.o.d

Golden Child

GOMAK BOYS * pre-debut

GOT7

GreatGuys

Ggumnamu (WM Boys) * pre-debut (WM male trainees)

Guckkasten (Rock band)

H

H Boyz (Formerly known as Ex9) * pre-debut

HAWW * pre-debut

Hey Men (Rock band)

HID&GEM

HIDDEN FOLDER

Highlight

HippoPotamic (Rock band)

HOA (Rock band)

Hoppipolla (Rock band)

HÜ (Rock band)

Hyukoh (Rock band)

I

I1IT (Korean-Japanese boy group)

iKON

IDIOTAPE (Rock band)

IN2IT

Infinite

Infinite F (Infinite sub-unit)

IZ

J

JaeHyun’s (NCT x N.Flying x The Boyz x Golden Child collab)

Jang Deokcheol (Ballad group)

JJCC

Just B

JWiiver

JYJ

JYP Loud * pre-debut

K

KAIROS

Kingdom

Kisnue (Rock band)

KKD * pre-debut

KNK

KOKOON

L

Lacuna

Lanalogue (Rock band)

LA POEM (Crossover group)

LETTEAMOR (Crossover group)

Like A Movie

Limitless

Lionesses

Lose My Memory (Emo and Post-Hardcore band)

Loude (Rock band)

LST

LU:KUS

LUCY (Rock band)

LUAMEL (Rock band)

LUMINOUS

Luna

Lunch (Rock band)

M

MAP6

MAXIMUM * pre-debut

MCND

M.C the Max (Rock band)

Megamax

M.I.C * pre-debut

MIRAE

Monday Off With Bluesy (Rock band)

MONSTA X

M.O.N.T Arena

M.O.N.T Original (M.O.N.T Arena sub-unit)

Mountain * pre-debut in Korea

M.Pire

Mr. T (Trot group)

MSG Wannabe (Rock band)

MustB

MUZIGAE

MVP

MYNAME

MYORI

N

N.CUS

N.Flying (Rock band)

N.ssign * pre-debut

N.TIC

NCT

NCT 127 (NCT sub-unit)

NCT Dream (NCT sub-unit)

NCT U (NCT sub-unit)

NELL (Rock band)

Nerd Connection (Rock band)

NEUL

New Kidd

New Town Boyz

NIK (Japanese-Korean group)

NINE.i

Noel

NOIR

Nokdu Team (Rock band)

N.O.M (Nature of Man)

NTX

O

OFF Team (ONF sub-unit)

OG School Project

OMEGA X

ON AiR

ON Team (ONF sub-unit)

ONEUS

ONEWE (Rock band)

ONF

OnlyOneOf

O.O.O (Rock band)

Owalloil (Rock band)

P

P1Harmony

Pattern

PATZ (Rock band)

Pentagon

PossibleDong Band/GaneungDong Band (Rock band)

R

RabidAnce (Crossover group)

Re:Kids Dream (Kid group)

Re:Kids Glory (Kid group)

Re:Kids Hero (Kid group)

Rhythm Power (Hip-hop group)

RoaD-B

Romeo

rooftop patio (Band)

Royal Rirates (Rock band)

S

SANGJARU (Traditional music group)

Sea Park

Sechskies

SEMA (Rock band)

Seventeen

Hip-Hop Team (Seventeen sub-unit)

Vocal Team (Seventeen sub-unit)

Performance Team (Seventeen sub-unit)

SEVEN STARS * pre-debut

SF9

SG Wannabe

SHAX (Drama)

SHINee

Shinhwa

Shooter-X * pre-debut

SILICA GEL (Rock band)

SIGMA (South Korean-Japanese boy group)

SIDECAR (Rock band)

SMNBG (SM Trainees) * pre-debut

SNUPER*currently on hiatus

SoonSoonHee (Ballad trio)

SORAN (Rock band)

South Club (Rock band)

SS501 *currently on hiatus

Standing Egg (Rock band)

Stray Kids

Sultan of the Disco (Rock band)

Super Five (Trot project group)

Super Junior

Super Junior-H (Super Junior sub-unit)

Super Junior-K.R.Y. (Super Junior sub-unit)

Super Junior-T (Super Junior sub-unit; Trot group)

Super Kids (Kid group)

SUPERKIND (Formerly known as YOURS)

SuperM

SUPRISE U

SVT Leaders (Seventeen sub-unit)

Sweaters (Rock band)

T

TAN

TARGET

Teen Top

TENOCLK (Rock band)

TEMPEST

TFN (Formerly T1419)

The Boss (DGNA)

The Boyz

The Credit

The King

The Man BLK

THE MIDNIGHT ROMANCE (Rock band)

The Poles (Rock band)

The Rose

The Solutions (Rock band)

The T-Bird

The Vipers (Rock band)

The Vish (Rock band)

The Whales (Rock band)

THORNAPPLE (Rock band)

TimeZ (Chinese-Korean boy group)

TNX

TO1

Trainee A * pre-debut

TREASURE

TRENDZ

Triger

Tritops

TST

Turbo

TVXQ

TXT

U

U-Kiss

UNIQ

UNVS

UP10TION

UpStar (Rock band)

V

VALO (Rock band)

Vanner

VAV

VERIVERY

VICTON

Viral Affair (Rock Band)

VIXX

VL Boys * pre-debut

Vocal Racha (Stray Kids sub-unit)

Volkno (Treasure Sub-unit)

V.O.S

Vromance

W

W24 (Rock Band)

WAO

Wave To Earth (Rock band)

We Are The Night (Rock band)

WE:A * pre-debut

WEi

WETTER (Rock band) *currently on hiatus

WEUS (Unofficial project group)

WINNER

Withus

WOW

woogotsa (Rock band)

X

Xdinary Heroes (Rock band)

XEED

XENEX

Xodiac * pre-debut

XST

Y

Y&W

YDPP

Yo:zum (Rock band)

YOUNITE

Z

ZE:A

[noblexcelestemorningstar]

Reverse Unpopular Opinion: Morrowind

I'm going to do a self-imposed Ultrahardmode and *not* talk about the Tribunal, The Bethesda Softworks Weird Ideas Guy, or related topics. That's too easy and I want to be fair here.

So I'm going to repeat a bit of a common take on Morrowind. Or at least a take I think is common???

One of the best things about Morrowind is that it tries to convey that its people are, yknow, people. It's very much a game about the land and the country and people of Morrowind as much as it's a game of about the main plots and quests. You're basically forced to get to know the place before you go and save it like the big, sexy Nerevarine you are, and that's Good Actually. I'm going to chatter below about some of the ways the game does this because I have not the Executive Function to make this an organized essay.

Before we start, most of this is buoyed through writing that varies from "Skyrim Good" to "This is the best damn writing I've ever seen". Some of this stuff would be horrible if done bad, but since it's done well, it's done REALLY well. Also the game is from 2002 so I'm probably going easy on it.

Evidence and examples under the cut

"Sign on with the Fighters Guild, or Mages Guild, or Imperial cult, or Imperial legion, advance in the ranks, gain skill and experience. Or go out on your own, look for freelance work, or trouble. Then, when you're ready, come back, and I'll have orders for you." -Caius Cosades

So you can't really just.... barge through the game like you can with most Bethesda properties. Fallout 3/4? Oblivion? Skyrim? You really can just fucking waltz on through the main quests like you don't give a fuck and beat the game in a few hours. Game isn't going to stop you. Game damn well expects you to do so. Morrowind forces you to slow the fuck down, get some levels, and involve yourself in some clubs and afterschool activities adventuring.

I mean it doesn't force you, persay, the game is notoriously relatively laid back. However among the first things the first main quest-giver tells you to do is

In your time in whatever factions you choose to join, be that Imperial, Dunmer, Religious, Local Murderhobos, Vampires, Bloodmoon Factions or whatever combination thereof you join, you immediately start helping people. Most of the time you're going to be going out into the world to do talk to people who send you to do questing things. A lot of the time, who you are and what you have on you can affect how you can talk to them. If you're talking to an alcoholic, if you have booze, you can offer them a drink to get them to talk. When you're doing a playthrough of the Tribunal Temple questline, a copy of Sayori's Sermons is your best damn friend in the whole world. You're consistently forced to interact with people and get to know them to do what you need to do.

While this is signposting of the least subtle kind, it does serve a purpose here, and that purpose is to introduce you to the world you're going to save. And if you rush ahead, the game sets you up against an enemy and a dungeon that act as a rude awakening to your impatient ass.

What this does is it forces you to interact with the next parts of these.

You also get to see how the communities function as communities. Who knows who and who needs what, and who does what. In the course of most quests, along with interacting with the quest giver and the person who needs help, it often behooves you if you're not forced to ask around to learn more about those involved. Heck, if you're not using a guide like I am, you might have to ask the locals where the person you need to find even is. Even outside this, just talking to the locals you see what they think of certain people, what their role in society is, and who does what in their town. it's an option for damn near every person.

While yeah, a lot of the dialogue is generic and shared between many characters, most if not all non-guard NPCs have at least a line or two of unique dialogue, and what generic dialogue they do have is varied, with most towns having no two NPCs with the same exact sets of lines (or maybe I've been lucky, idk). You also unlock more and different dialogue as your character progresses. You wear some fancy threads? NPCs will commend on your drip outfit. They have new lines if you join a faction they're a part of or dislike. Gaining reputation makes some NPCs change both text dialogue and voice acted greetings. Some NPCs even react to specific quests. It ends up telling you a bit about the person you're talking to and I for one think it's amazing.

The Devs put real effort into making sure the way people acted made sense both in-character and in-universe, even at the player's expense. If a character's too damn poor (or inconveienced) to pay you in money for a quest reward, you'll probably be paid in goods or even just thanks. Some quests, especially Redoran and TT, only pay you in reputation, information, or introducing you to an NPC. If you're collecting on debt, you might be forced to sell something the debtor gives you for the debt money, or you have to pony up the money yourself (You can also do this if you feel nice). People stop paying attention to you if they think you're annoying. It's a nice contrast to other games, even other Bethesda Games, where everyone magically has money to give you, you're never asked to sacrifice a reward, and non-material rewards are a unique rarity. Oh and they always like you.

My personal favorite thing they did is actually unique to Morrowind. Outside of the town guards or the Ordinators salivating for your blood, everyone (who is still a person) is named. Everyone. Every bandit, every farmer, every egg miner, every merchant, every traveler has a name. It's such a small thing, but it really ads so much to the feeling of the NPCs being actual people that I'm grateful that they made that choice. Most other games, even other Bethesda games, will have unimportant NPCs have labels such as "farmer", "bandit", "prisoner" instead of names. I didn't realize how weird that is until I played Morrowind, and I really appreciate how everyone has something as basic as a name.

You yourself suffer along with the people of Morrowind. You face the hellish ash storms, you face the frustrating local corruption, you have to fight for your life against bandits, you deal with a strict TT deciding that you've overstayed your welcome, you get fucking Corpus, the literal fucking plague making so many suffer, and I get fucking lost in the Ashlands too. It's said that suffering forges a bond, and a bond has been forged. I feel like in Skyrim the suffering common people face is separate from what you have to face and this lessens the experience. I never face the petty issues that farmers in Skyrim face, and outside of pre-scripted events the farmers don't deal with dragons. When I do it's wooden quests that don't feel at all organic, and I come away feeling like I did a quest and not like I helped someone. In Morrowind I go "yeah fucken mudcrabs, if you need help again just ask"

There's a thematic point to all of this, and the point is something like "the Nerevarine is connected to the land and it's people, even if the prophecy the game centers around is only myth" or "Your connection to the people of Morrowind is why you are the Nerevarine, not some damn Prophecy". Or even "The Real Nerevarine Qualifications Were The Friends We Made Along The Way". I get that this isn't just to pander to the player and that for Bethesda to do this again, they'd need an exceptional reason. One so exceptional that it's never going to fucking happen again. And I get that this is a *me* thing too, that it's my overinvestment and misinterpretation.

But goddamn it, this is why I really fell in love with that damn game. I like the Backstory Lore, and I'm going to play around with the Backstory Lore because it's fun and tragic, and really, I can't do much worse than c0da, but the reason I like and keep playing the game and don't just like the lore on the sidelines is that the damn game made its world feel real through humanizing it's NPCs and it scratched an itch I didn't even know I had!

In conclusion?

..... Ok, one thing about the Tribunal.

I'm 90% sure Almalexia banned levitation as a direct slight against Vivec. Every time I look at the available evidence, I'm even more convinced, and even though I don't think it's ever addressed in lore, I can't convince myself otherwise. I know on a doyalist level it's just to make sure you don't go over the city walls and ruin the illusion in a 2002 game, but it's a headcanon I can't shake. I just find it utterly hilarious, and a tragic sign of how the Tribunal have fallen and grown distant, but mostly utterly hilarious.

[classicrockblog1]

James Kottak (born December 26, 1962) is an American drummer. Kottak is best known for his work with the German hard rock band Scorpions, which he joined in 1996. At the time of his firing from the band in 2016, he was their all-time longest-serving drummer, surpassing Herman Rarebell, who spent 18 years in the band.

Prior to joining Scorpions, Kottak was a drummer for the Bob Brickley Band, Nut House, Mister Charlie, Buster Brown, Montrose, Kingdom Come, Wild Horses, the McAuley Schenker Group, Warrant, and Ashba. He gained early mainstream exposure during his time with Kingdom Come, appearing on the band's first two studio albums, the first of which included their biggest hit, "Get it On." This track prominently features Kottak's drumming, culminating in a drum solo just before the song's conclusion.

In February 1997, he helped Dio on their US tour by replacing Vinny Appice for four or five shows when Vinny Appice had pneumonia. He also gave drum lessons at Far-Out Music in Jeffersonville, Indiana, once having as students former Bride drummer, Jerry McBroom. He also played with guitarist Michael Lee Firkins.

Kottak also plays in his own band Kottak, formerly known as KrunK.

On April 28, 2016, it was announced that Kottak would be replaced by Mikkey Dee on 12 North American headlining dates, including a run of shows at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas dubbed "Scorpions blacked out in Las Vegas".[1][2] On September 12, 2016, it was announced that Kottak was no longer in the band.[3]

Kottak endorses Ddrum and Yamaha drums, Aquarian drumheads, Zildjian Cymbals, Ahead drumsticks and accessories and Danmar percussion.

[ghosts0ap]

JJBA SI intro: Mina (Part 3 and 4)

Mina Mazzini

Art by Cosm1chacker on Instagram

Namesake: Mina Mazzini (Italian singer)

Stand: Hathor

Age: 25 [SDC] 36 [DIU]

Birthday: April 26th, 1963

Gender: Agender (they/she)

Height: 166 cm

Hair color: Blond, dyed red

Eye color: Amber

Occupation: Agent of Dio (part 3)

Relationship: Married to Steely Dan

Mina, formerly an orchestra violinist, on tour with the best of the best. Was quickly snatched away from her position by Dio. Dio saw that she was by far the best musician, and was outraged that she didn’t have the first violin position where she belonged.

Mina was charmed by his words, and seeing as she had always known that she was the best and should be first violin, she decided to join his cause when he asked. She now wreaks havoc throughout Egypt on Dio’s command with the help of her stand ‘Hathor’

Hathor is a bound stand in the form of a violin capo. When attached to their violin, it will warp the sound of the violin on a wavelength level and mess with the emotions, hormones and neurotransmitters of anyone who can hear it in the way Mina sees fit. They can make you sad or angry, they can mess up your hormones, and even make your central nervous system sluggish if so desired.

The first night at Dio’s mansion, she bumped into Steely Dan, there was a long silence and then disbelief. Mina and Dan already knew each other, they had dated for about three years when they were back in high school, seven years ago.

Mina refused to talk to him and Dan accepted the silence gratefully. Dio however, thought it was hilarious and decided to mess with them. Assigning them on stupid little tasks together, making them babysit Mannish Boy together, even book a hotel for them with only one bed.

The constant being around each other got to them, and Dan thought Mina was using her stand on him because there’s no way he would fall for her again without it, right? and confronted her about it. Accidentally confessing his feelings in the process.

About two months later they eloped. (They stole the rings) and a month after that they decided they’d adopt mannish boy, if the baby wanted to or not.

During part 3, Mina attacks the crusaders twice. The first time is right before the crusaders meet D’Arby the gambler. She hadn’t thought out her attack well and was almost seen by Kakyoin’s Hierophant green, but managed to sent out a wave of sadness towards him before running.

She changed tactics quickly. Waiting until everyone was asleep in a nearby hotel, she woke up Polnareff by throwing pebbles at his window and was ready when he opened the window to check what was going on. Mina started playing her violin and messed with his hormones.

Polnareff’s brain released an absurd amount of Dopamine and he instantly fell in love with her. She continued manipulating him out of sight of the crusaders, telling him how Dio was keeping her family hostage and that she had simply no choice if she didn’t want her family to get hurt. Polnareff blindly believed her, and swore that he would defeat Dio just for her.

At the time of the actual battle with Dio. When polnareff planned the pincer attack with Jotaro, he actually went to get Mina. As she could be a powerful ally. But Mina was counting on this, and was waiting for them. Revealing her true colors to Polnareff and breaking his heart by attacking him. She was eventually defeated by Jotaro.

During part 4, when baby Shizuka turns invisible, Josuke stops to call someone. His former babysitter who has a stand and is really good with dealing with children with stands (he assumes)

Mina comes running to help, and helps getting baby Shizuka out of the water.

It turns out, that after the events of SDC, Mina and Dan moved to Morioh with Mannish boy who now goes by Manny and is eleven. They’ve been living well with the money Dio paid them with in advance. Mina is a babysitter and Dan pretends to be writing a book. They’re determined to try and forget about the past and just focus on domesticity.

There’s no hard feelings between them and Jotaro. Although Dan is still pretty scared of him.

Art by Varulvenarts

[conandaily2022]

Dios album 'CASTLE' includes 'Virtual Castle', 'Darkroom', 'Paper Plane', 'Bloom’

Dios album ‘CASTLE’ includes ‘Virtual Castle’, ‘Darkroom’, ‘Paper Plane’, ‘Bloom’

On June 29, 2022, Dios will release its debut album “CASTLE” on all major digital streaming platforms. The accompanying focus single “Virtual Castle” was released on June 1, 2022. Dios is a Japanese Pop-R&B influenced band made up of rapper, vocalist and lyricist Tanaka, guitarist Ichika Nito and beatmaker and gaming music composer Sasanomaly. Tanaka is formerly known as Boku no Lyric no Bōyomi…

[musicallisto]

Hiii you’re from Spain right? Could you recommend me some pop singers who sing in Castilian Spanish plsss?? <3

Hi to both of you! First of all, I'm super happy you're learning Spanish, and I wish you the best of luck in your learning journey!

Second, you came to the right person, lol. I have a spotify playlist with Hispanic songs that I update regularly and listen to very often! It has a lot of pop, reggaetón, rock, and some ballads, by both Spanish and Latin american artists, so you're sure to find something you like in there! And I'll continuously add more as I discover them.

As for specifically Spanish (from Spain) pop artists, here are a few that are making music right now and are pretty big names (at least from what I know?)

Rosalía. my favorites are Que no salga la luna, Malamente, Di Mi Nombre, Pienso en tu Mirá, A Ningún Hombre and Juro Que

Dvicio. my favorites are 5 Sentidos, Capítulos, Qué Tienes Tú, Valería, and Paraíso

Amaral. my favorites are Alerta, Biarritz, Las Puertas del Infierno, Marta Sebas Guille y los demás, and Estrella de Mar

Álvaro Soler. my favorites are Animal, La Cintura, Sofia and El Mismo Sol

Pablo Alborán. my favorites are Si hubieras querido, No vaya a ser, Tabú and Pasos de cero

Dani Martín (formerly in the band El Canto del Loco). my favorites are La mentira and Los Huesos (with the love of my life Juanes)

Blas Cantó (our beloved eurovision representative, ily Blas you're too good for Europe) my favorites are Él no soy yo and Voy a quedarme

Enrique Iglesias (of course). My favorites are Bailando, Duele El Corazón and El Baño

And here are a few random songs I haven't mentioned that I really really love, and that I think are culturally relevant/pretty well-known in the hispanic community (mostly Spanish bc that's what I know best but some latin american in there as well!):

Bésame Mucho

La Llorona (both songs are old Mexican songs so there's many different versions, but they're all so good)

Shakira ft. Alejandro Sanz - La Tortura

Shakira - Suerte

Shakira - Te Aviso, Te Anuncio (anything Shakira ever did tbh??)

Juanes - A Dios Le Pido

Juanes - La Camisa Negra (literally anything by Juanes)

Pimpinela - Olvídame y Pega La Vuelta

Tequila - Salta!!!

Radio Futura - Veneno en la Piel

Carlos Gardel - Volver

Jarabe de Palo - La Flaca

Joaquín Sabina - Peces de Ciudad (one of my favorite songs of all time)

Alaska Y Dinarama - Cómo pudiste hacerme esto a mí

Héroes del Silencio - Entre dos Tierras

Daddy Yankee - Gasolina

Chayanne - Torero

Mecano - Hijo de la Luna

Fito y Fitipaldis - Soldadito marinero

El Canto del Loco - Una Foto En Blanco Y Negro

Maldita Nerea - No Pide Tanto, Idiota

Lola Flores - A Tu Vera

Álex Y Christina - Chas! Y aparezco a tu lado

Taburete - Sirenas

If you like listening to the radio, you'll find a lot of Spanish /Hispanic pop on it, Los40 is my guilty pleasure when traveling to Spain and the only thing I listen to because it gives me vacation vibes.

If you're looking for older artists and bands, I'd definitely recommend checking out artists from La Movida (a cultural movement that happened in the 80s in Spain) like Alaska y Dinarama (my personal favorite lol I love Alaska she's so much fun), Héroes del Silencio, Hombres G, Jarabe de Palo, Mecano, and many others. That area of music is not as familiar so I can't give you a thorough list but that's a starting point at least!

And lastly, here's a link to a masterpost of Spanish songs I reblogged a while back - they're all super famous in Spain and you'll be sure to find something you like!

Hope this is helpful at all, and good luck on your Spanish learning journey!

[jjba-fragmented-star]

A Part 5 OC who is a member of the Mafia La Nuova Costa. In the background Information there is a different timeline where he doesn't work for the Mafia.

La Nuova Costa, Giancarlo Castiglier, Domenico Castiglier and Salvatore Castiglier belongs to @cesca-untoldstories

Basic Information 

Name: Michalis Zannos

Namesake: Michalis Hatzigiannis(Cypriot Singer)

Aliases: Mike, Mickey, Mik, Zan

Stand: Lost Treasure(song by Onirama band)

Nationality: Greek

Age: 19(Part 5), 29(Part 6)

Gender: Male

Birthday: 23 March 1982

Zodiac/Chinese Zodiac: Aries/Dog

Height: 1,86 cm

Weight: 65 kg

Blood Type: A+

Occupation: Member of La Nuova Costa, Singer, formerly: Student in Ionian University/Department of Music Studies

Affiliations: La Nuova Costa

Relatives:

Stelios Zannos/Impostor Captain Tennille(Father)

Ariadni Lekka/Zannos(Mother)

Personality:

Optimistic, Honest, Loyal, Passionate, Responsible, Prideful, Self-centered, Short-tempered, Impatient, Sensitive 

Likes:

Crab Salad, Music, walks in the beach, Helping his Mother, Children, Surfing, Swimming

Dislikes:

His mother and children being hurt, Cigarettes/Smoking, Pollution of Oceans and Marine life, Alcohol, Pineapple

Background Information: 

La Nuova Costa Timeline:

- Michalis was born in 23 March of 1982 in Kerkyra, Greece. He had a good relationship with his parents.

-His father, Stelios(Impostor Captain Tennille), worked originally as a lifeguard in a beach of Kerkyra and made sure the people where safe when they where swimming. He taught Michalis how to swim when he was 5.

-His mother, Ariadni, worked as music teacher in a primary school and teached him how to play piano and guitar. From then on his passion for music grew and dreamed to become a singer.

-In August of 1988, Michalis and his parents went in a vacation in Cairo, Egypt. One night the family was returning in their hotel when a tall blonde muscular man(DIO) came for Stelios and shot him with an arrow in his chest, Michali's father told his wife and son to run to save their lifes and the blond man takes him away. Stelios was never seen or found after this encounter.

-After the disappearance of his father Michalis hides his sadness under an optimistic and arrogant mask and in the age of 10(1992) his stand, Lost Treasure, manifests after an encounter with some bullies in his school.

-In 2000 he enters the Ionian University to study Music in order to make his dream reality of becoming a singer, but he stops his studies after he mother becomes seriously ill and tries to find jobs to earn money to get her into a hospital.

-He doesn't find any jobs in Kerkyra and goes in Italy to find while his mother stays in the care of some relatives. When he arrives in Italy in a town close to Puglia he finds a broken car and some masked people pointing their guns to a silver haired man, without thinking Michalis uses his stand, Lost Treasure, by spitting a thick sticky substance by trapping the masked people and saving the silver haired man. 

-The man, who Michalis saved, introduces himself as Giancarlo who is a Gangster working in La Nuova Costa and he knows about his stand, as a thank you he invites Michalis to join the Mafia. He brings him infront of Domenico Castiglier, boss of La Nuova Costa, who sends him to a mission to prove his worth and loyalty by killing/catching a traitor of La Nuova Costa which Michalis accepts willing.

-Michalis joins La Nuova Costa, earns money to help his sick mother and make his dream into reality to become a singer.

Fragmented Star AU/EOH game Timeline

-Michali's father doesn't die on the ship and he is saved by Jotaro Kujo who realized he had a flesh bud in his forehead and destroyed it. Stelios returns to his family and works for the Speedwagon Foundation as a thank you for saving him.

-Michalis graduates the Ionian University in music instead of joining the Mafia, he still goes in Italy by becoming a singer in a well known restaurant in Rome. He helps Viktoria Erikson and Chemaya Alley to defeat a cult who wants to rule the world by using a Stone Mask which gets destroyed.

EXTRA:

-He knows three languages Greek(native), English and Italian.

-He can play almost any music genre(favourite is Pop Rock, Classical, Nisiotika and Rebetiko)

-He is (slightly) Prideful of his abilities and looks and if someone says something negative he will become angry. His opponents can take this as an advantage to attack him when Michalis looses his cool.

-He is loyal to La Nuova Costa and he is willing to kill a person but he draws the line of killing kids or poor and elderly people.

-He respects and admires Salvatore Castiglier and he reminds him in a way of his father.

STAND:

Name: Lost Treasure 

Namesake: Χαμένος Θυσαυρός/Hamenos Thisauros/Lost Treasure(song by Onirama, Greek Pop Rock band)

User: Michalis Zannos 

Type: Natural Non-Humanoid Stands, Long Range Stands

Stats:

Destructive Power: C

Speed: C -> A (On land -> Under water)

Range: A

Persistence: C

Precision: B

Development Potential: C

Appearance:

Lost Treasure has the appearance of a sea monster with a dragonic head, its "mask" has three horns and purple jeweled eyes, it's face and teeth resembles that of a prehistoric fish(Dunkleosteus), it's hair looks like seaweed and moves like one when under water, two spikes in each elbow and webbed hands. It has green crystals in its stomach and tail, yellow oval pearls in its chest and a dirty yellow/silver belt in its tail.

Abilities:

Hydro-blades: Between the two spikes in each elbow it can form blades made from water and cut his opponents.

Viscous Trap: It spits a thick goop like substance from its mouth to trap its opponents. It takes two hours before it dissolves.

Watery Replica: It can make clones of itself from water to confuse its opponents. It can make only up to 6 replicas.

EXTRA:

-Lost Treasure is the soundtrack of the greek movie Nisos 2

-The stand's colour palette is based from here:

-Lost Treasure's head is based from Wargreymon from the Digimon series. Its overall design is based from some old concept arts I made for an aquatic theme Digimon and a stand of the main villain from my JoJo Fanpart "Temple of Amber".

[gingerreggg]

Written in Stone (Jonawagon AU)

(hey gingerreggg it’s desiree237, i found your tumblr! i commented on your post on AO3 about a jonawagon fic that your Hands of Life AU reminded me of, but as i don’t have a working AO3 as of the moment i searched for your account so you can see it as i found it. enjoy :D )

**resending this cause i think tumblr ate it the first time T_T**

▪▪▪▪▪▪▪▪▪▪▪▪▪▪▪

“Isn’t he magnificent?” said Speedwagon with a sigh, as he overlooked the plot of land that was once the Joestar Mansion. This old, hallowed ground had seen greater days, long since forgotten, as times had changed in the fifty years that had passed, and, formerly the site of a desperate struggle of good against evil, was now but an unassuming public park– a park where children played blissfully unaware of the drama that had played out here many decades ago.

Speedwagon’s tired old eyes, however, focused on the park’s centerpiece: a towering monument of none other than the truest friend and noblest soul Speedwagon had ever known: Jonathan Joestar. Carved of polished white marble by Speedwagon himself and standing over eight feet in height– far taller than Jonathan had been in life– the monument was sculpted in his perfect likeness, his noble, handsome face gazing bravely into the distance as he brandished a sword, a chrome-tinted replica of the one Jonathan bore, silently posed in a stance of fearless combat.

It took years, many years, of hard labor from Speedwagon’s part. But he felt it was all worth it. Carefully, lovingly, he had chipped away at the marble block bit by miniscule bit, slowly but surely recreating the figure, the face, of a man so worthy of admiration.

Of a man who, by his own selflessness, was gone forever– but deserved to be remembered by those who were not fortunate enough to have known him as closely as Speedwagon had.

A tear streamed from Speedwagon’s eye as eight-year old Joseph, Jonathan’s grandson, tugged at Speedwagon’s sleeve. “Uncle Speedy? Who is that statue, anyway?”

His query broke Speedwagon’s heart a little. Poor Joseph never knew his grandfather. And Jonathan…he perished on the day of his honeymoon: never to hear his child’s voice, see his face, or partake in the joy of his son becoming a father himself. A family who had to grow in his absence.

So much had been lost that day.

Speedwagon wiped away a tear with a sniffle. “That, Joseph, is your grandpa, Jonathan. He was the strongest, bravest, gentlest man I ever knew. He would have loved to have met you,” he said to Joseph, lovingly ruffling the little boy’s messy brown hair.

“I wish I’d met him too,” little Joseph piped up.

“I wish…” Speedwagon sighed, gazing at the gorgeous, but lifeless, face that stared blankly into nothingness. “I wish he was still here.”

The sun was setting, and Speedwagon knew Joseph had to go home soon, as at his age he was still going to school, and thus needed to go to bed early.

“Jorge?” Speedwagon called out to his companion at the park. “Would you mind taking Joseph home with you? I just…need to stay a little longer,” he sighed, sadly.

“Sure thing, Uncle Robbie,” grinned Jorge. “Joseph? Jojo! It’s time for us to come home!” he hollered, calling his son back to return home for the night, after a long day at the park.

And soon, Speedwagon was all alone, as night began to fall.

Fifty years. It had been fifty years since he had lost Jonathan. He had left that fateful day, on what had been meant to be the happiest day of his life, with Erina, and Speedwagon couldn’t have been more proud to see him off. But then came the tragic news: that the ship had gone down in flames– and that Jonathan was dead. Speedwagon felt a heavy guilt in his heart. That he had been absent when Jonathan needed him. And now, he would never see his face again, only in stone, and in his memories.

It was so long ago, but his heart still hurt. He loved Jonathan more than anyone else. Perhaps as a true friend. And perhaps…even more.

Sitting sadly by the statue’s pedestal, he gazed up at his marble creation. He marveled at its perfection, and reveled in Jonathan’s memory, so fresh and bright in his mind, that had allowed him to shape such a facsimile of his fallen friend. How could someone forget somebody like Jonathan? So beautiful in both body and heart, forever etched as a tantalizing, bittersweet memory in Speedwagon’s soul.

“If only you could see us now, Jojo,” he whispered to the statue, running his hand mournfully over its smooth, marble fingers. “If only you could talk, and tell me how you feel about all I’d done in your honor.” He began to weep, his tears landing on the statue’s polished feet. “I miss you, old chap.”

“I wish you were still with us.”

Unknown to Speedwagon, a brilliant streak of light arced across the heavens above, flashing for a moment and vanishing in the darkness. Some called them meteors. But to others, they were known by a more hopeful moniker: wishing stars.

“I wish I had you back, Jojo.”

Suddenly, to Speedwagon’s surprise, the ground began to shake, rumbling beneath him and rustling the trees of the park, which swayed ominously as the terrified old man glanced around in a panic.

“An earthquake…” Speedwagon gasped. He had to get to safety, somehow. Seeking shelter beneath a sturdy bench, Speedwagon dashed for cover, crouching down in terror under the bench as the entire park was rocked by tremors of the earth itself. He hoped Jorge and Joseph were somewhere safe.

And then, he heard a loud cracking noise, and his heart sank like a stone at sea.

Before his horrified eyes, the feet of Jonathan’s statue broke loose from the pedestal. For a moment the statue remained upright, as defiant and proud as Jonathan had been– and then slowly, it began to tilt and fall, and Speedwagon could only watch in grief and horror as his magnum opus, his tribute to a lost beloved, came crashing down to the ground with a colossal thud.

“No,” Speedwagon tried to say, but no sound came out of his lips.

As the shaking came to a halt Speedwagon scrambled out of his hiding spot and rushed to the pedestal, his heart pounding, his chest heaving. Years of work, destroyed in moments. Just like Jonathan had been. Gone in an instant.

But as he bent over to assess the damage, he saw something that he couldn’t have forseen. The statue was intact, save for the sword that had fallen from its grasp, but it seemed to have changed its position. He had carved his figure in noble repose, but now it lay sprawled pitifully upon the ground. Speedwagon blinked. Perhaps he was just imagining things. Perhaps he was hallucinating from his emotional pain.

And right at that moment, he heard a voice– a voice he never thought he would ever hear again.

“W-where…am I?” came a deep, rich voice that seemed to emanate from the statue itself.

Jonathan’s voice.

And before his eyes, as his jaw dropped in a mixture of fear and amazement, he beheld something that should have been impossible, by all rational means: the statue began to move on its own.

Massive marble hands gripped onto the ground while powerful stony arms heaved his bulk upward. His feet, once fixed to the pedestal, had come off clean at the soles, and with two stumbling strides the statue found its footing and rose to its full height: towering above Speedwagon as its head turned to face Speedwagon, a magical, ethereal blue glow illuminating the figure’s eyes. 

Speedwagon froze in fright as the stony colossus towered over him. Was the statue possessed by some dark magic, strange wizardry, a demon perhaps? Speedwagon knew, after having witnessed things like a mask that transformed men into vampires, that supernatural happenings were certainly not out of the question. This could be something bad.

And yet, as the statue spoke again, with a familiar, oddly comforting voice, he began to doubt that to be the case.

“S-Speedwagon?” came the voice, as tender and soothing as he’d always remembered it. “Is that…you?” it, or rather, he, asked with hesitant confusion. “Why are you…so small? And…old?”

The statue gazed at his own hands in bewilderment. “What…am I?” he cried out with a note of concern.

Speedwagon glanced up at the towering stony giant, tears welling up in his eyes. “J-Jonathan? Is that you? Is that really you? Please, tell me! Say something only Jonathan would say. Only something he would know! Prove it!” Speedwagon yelled with imcreasing desperation choking up his voice.

“Ogre Street…the mansion…the ship…” mumbled the statue incoherently. “Erina…Dio…the fire…”

Speedwagon began to heave heavy sobs of grief and joy as he listened to the statue listing in confusion, who had sat down onto the pedestal in a state of shock.

“Jonathan…” he wept. “It…it is you…”

He rushed to the statue at once without hesitation and embraced him tightly. His body was hard, and cold, unlike the soft, warm flesh that he knew from Jonathan’s loving embrace, and yet, deep within his heart, in his soul, in the reassuring warmth that rushed through his body upon feeling its touch, that this ponderous being that was before him truly was Jonathan all the same.

“Jojo…Jojo…”, Speedwagon gasped between uncontrollable sobs. “It’s you. You’re back. I don’t know why, or how this is even happening…but you’re back, Jonathan. You’re here.”

Jonathan, still seated on his marble pedestal, shifted one massive marble arm and held Speedwagon close by. His stone grip was hard and strong, and yet Speedwagon felt the same gentle tenderness that he had yearned for for many long decades.

“Where am I?” Jonathan asked again. “My body…it feels like stone. And I am…alive? But…but I died��”

Speedwagon looked up at the living stone figure and met his gaze. His eyes burned bright like a dull azure flame, but even in their ethereal otherworldiness, there was no mistaking the same noble spirit behind the flickering glow.

“I don’t know how to explain this to you, Jonathan, but you indeed are…dead. And it has been fifty years hence since that day. Things have changed, times have passed. I know it’s a lot to take in, Jojo. It surely is for me. Perhaps I can explain later.”

“I…I remember nothing after the fire,” Jonathan replied. “But Erina is safe? And Dio…gone?”

“Yes, Jonathan. Everything is well and good. And we have you to thank.”

As Jonathan sat in silence in the middle of the nighttime park, trying to process his sudden, unusual newfound existence, Speedwagon tightly gripped his hard marble hand and rested his head on his shoulder, closing his eyes in a strange relief.

“Welcome back to this world, Jonathan,” he sighed with a dreamy smile.

“Welcome home.”

°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°

[alphabetmafiaadventures]

Passione's Bizarre Adventure

It is an AU that I've been writing for a while. Unfortunately, I lost all the chapters I had written, but I found my old notebook with all of my thoughts about this fanfic. So I could do some incorrect quotes that fits the story or write bits of it as fake chat prints.

I had a lot of fun when writing this back in the days. I'm planning on re-write it one day.

You must read the settings of this AU so you won't be confused afterward:

Phantom Blood: [138 years ago (part written 5 years ago)]

- Jonathan survived but was turned into a vampire. Unfortunately, Dio took his body and left our dear sweet Joestar as a flying severed head. Because of it, he decided to stay hidden in the shadows since he didn't want to scare his friend and wife.

Battle Tendency: [64 years ago (part written 5 years ago)]

- Caesar lives.

- The four (4) pillar men lives.

- Joseph still loses his hand tho.

- Jonathan reappeared only to Robert E. O. Speedwagon. After some talk, he turns his friend into a vampire who helps him deal with Dio later.

- The Speedwagon Foundation is the only one who knows about them. The organization also helped Robert fakes his death.

Stardust Crusaders: [24 years ago (part written 5 years ago)]

- The crusaders' crew lives, with some scars and injuries but still alive.

- Jonathan appears to save the day. He manages to get his body back.

- Dio still lives, and now he's under SPW's care.

- Most of the foes are now under SPW's care.

Diamond's Unbreakable: [5 years ago]

- Everyone lives but Josuke's grandpa.

- Kira lives. He manages to convince everyone that he isn't a serial killer and that he only has a realist silicon hand for his pleasure. Still, he's under SPW's watchful eyes.

- Kishibe Rohan became interested in the Joestars' history. After some talk with the SPW and the Joestars, he gets permission to write a manga about them called: "JoJo's Bizarre Adventure."

- Rohan changed some things for artistic and aesthetic purposes.

- Posteriorly, the manga would become a series, and most of them would be interpreting themselves.

- The pillar men are now members of the SPW.

Vento Aureo: [3 years ago]

- Everyone lives but Polpo.

- Diavolo was underage when he became a father (14-15 years old).

- Donatella Una was 19 years old. She didn't know her one-night stand partner's age.

- After roughly ten (10) months after the baby was born, Donatella found Diavolo and gave him his daughter, claiming that she couldn't raise the baby. Posteriorly, Diavolo would erase everything about his past and disappear with the baby, now named Trish.

- At 14 years old, Trish got curious about who her mother was. Diavolo ordered Periculo to take his daughter to Donatella. Trish wasn't allowed to tell her about him.

- Almost a year after, a rival gang tries to kidnap Trish. Donatella's sent to the hospital for recovery.

- Diavolo ordered Bucciarati's team to escort Trish back to him.

- Giorno Giovanna did a deal with the Boss and became a Capo.

- Almost a year after, the SPW got in touch with Passione. Diavolo surprisingly agreed to be a public world-known figure.

- At the end of the Vento Aureo's part, Giorno become Passione's Underboss.

Stone Ocean: [1 year and 11 months ago]

- Everyone lives.

- Jotaro married Kakyoin a couple of years after divorcing Jolyne's mother.

- Dio stopped Pucci and convinced him to become a member of the Speedwagon Foundation.

- Dio manages to get a new body.

- The criminal crew plus Emporio lives with Jotaro and Kakyoin.

- Jotaro adopted Foo Fighters.

- Annasui's just 1 year older than Jolyne.

- Annasui and Jolyne are dating. Jotaro doesn't know how to deal with it.

- The info about Annasui's criminal record is a mystery. Everyone knows he killed someone but, who, how and why he did it is unclear. Besides some agents from SPW, Jolyne, Weather and Emporio, no one really knows the context behind his actions.

Steel Ball Run: [1 year ago]

- Everyone lives since the entire story of this part was created by Kishibe Rohan.

- SPW found them individually.

- Diego Brando's a distant relative of Dio. He's a famous English jockey.

- Johnny Joestar's a distant relative of Jonathan. He's a famous American jockey.

- Gyro Zeppeli's a distant relative of Caesar. He's a doctor who occasionally participates in races as a jockey.

- Lucy Pendleton is 18 years old.

- Funny Valentine's an ex-soldier who's still psychologically recovering from when he was held captive by guerrillas.

- Valentine's the same age as Diavolo and Kira. 33 years old.

- Valentine's reserved, keeping himself distant from everyone, and seems to be unapproachable. The majority of the SBR crew is unfamiliar with his past, Scarlet is the only one who knows about.

Jojolion: [currently]

- As SBR, it's an mostly original creation of Rohan. So everyone lives.

- Yoshikage Kira and Josefumi Kujo aren't Josuke Higashikata.

- Yoshikage isn't related to his namesake.

- Josefumi's a distant relative of the Kujo, he isn't from the Joestar bloodline.

- Josuke's a distant relative of both Higashikata and Joestar bloodline. Since he and part 4 Josuke has the exact same name, he's called Gappy or just Josu.

- The Higashikata family are close relatives of Tomoko.

OCs - Squadra del Drago captains:

- Rodrigo Castro Alves (33 years old), also known as Rodie. Formerly an elite soldier from Comandos (1° BAC - Brazil). He's one of the roughly 150 militarily trained stand users from Passione's Boss' security team "Squadra del Drago" (dragon team), known as "I Diavoli" (the devils). He is responsible for the security of the base they are on, he also acts as an infiltrated agent, easily blending in rival gangs to obtain information for his boss Diavolo.

- Vikhrov Viktor Zakharovich (36 years old), also known as Vitya, Vik, Vitcho, or Vitty. Formerly an elite soldier from Vympel (Spetsgruppa Vympel - Russia). He's mostly responsible for elite covers as an sniper but can also be a infiltrated agent on rival gangs as Rodie, thanks to his unexpected KGB training. Also a stand user.

- Heiner Kohlhase Wernz (37 years old), also known as Hei. Formerly an elite soldier from KSK (Kommando Spezialkräfte - Germany). They're mostly responsible for rescuing important targets in rival gang areas but they're mainly focused on planing strategies and collecting information through digital equipments. Also a Stand user.

- Heiner, Viktor and Rodie are the Squadra del Drago's leaders. They are always close to Diavolo.

OCs - Non criminal ocs... Yet:

- Yngvar Pris (20 years old), also known as Sir Sickness, is a childhood friend of Narciso Annasui. He works as a bartender at nigh clubs and sometimes as a freelancer writer and translator. Recently he gained Passione's attention through Annasui since his stand abilities could be well used and developed on la Squadra di Esecuzione.

- Myra d'Imperio (23 years old), also known as Imp or Myr, is a close friend and roommate of Yngvar. She's a freelancer stylist and makeup artist. She became Annasui and Jolyne's friend since they share some common aesthetic opinions. She's also a Stand user.

Notes:

- The villains are the main characters.

- JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is Rohan's masterpiece, the series and manga is the same we all know from Araki but on this AU the “true story” is mostly different.

- Besides Diavolo, Dio and Kars, no one knows that Kira's a actual serial killer.

- Diavolo has a thing for blond guys.

- Diavolo, Kira and Funny are close friends even if FV doesn't know much about Kira.

- The ocs' infos and stand details will be added later.

[germanicseidr]

Batavii

I have made a previous post on the Batavi over a year ago. However I wanted to rewrite my piece on this tribe to include more information about them, also I gained about 3000 new members since last year so the post might have been completely missed by most in this group. The Batavi were an ancient Germanic tribe located in the lower Rhine area, modern day Netherlands. They are however not native to the Netherlands. The Batavi people actually were once Chatti tribesmen/women. Somewhere around 100BC-50BC a conflict broke out inside the Chatti tribe which caused the tribe to split. A small part of the Chatti decided to move away and they settled themselves in the lower Rhine area, those were the first of the Batavi.

The lower Rhine area was actually inhabited by another tribe, the Celto-Germanic tribe of the Eburones. Unfortunately the entire tribe was massacred by Julius Caesar which left the Rhine area open for resettling. The Batavi people would use the same locations as the Eburones used, to worship their Gods. Whether they did this because these sacred places of worship were known to all in the Germanic world is unknown.

Their new neighbours to the north/west were the Cannanefates, a tribe incredibly similar to the Batavi. There are theories that the Cannanefates might have also been a splinter group of the Chatti who broke off during the same internal conflict. Unfortunately since there is no written evidence about this, we will never know what exactly happened during this Chatti conflict. Up further in the North they had the Frisii as neighbours. The Batavi would continue to have a good relationship with the Frisii and both tribes helped each other during their famous revolts.

To the east they were neighboured by the Bructeri tribe. The Batavi and the Bructeri however do not have any notable relationship with each other except for one event. The Bructeri sent their warriors to the Batavi in 69AD to help them with their revolt against the Roman empire. The Bructeri also sent troops to Arminius for the famous Teutoburgerwald battle. To the south they were neighboured by the Celtic-Belgae tribe of the Menapii who were famous for resisting Julius Caesar’s invasion of modern day Belgium.

The name Batavi is derived from the Proto-Germanic language and basically means the people of the good island. A part of the former Batavi territory is still named after this tribe, the Betuwe. Whether the Batavi named themselves after the land or gave their name to the land is still up for debate. The name Batavi is also incredibly well known amongst the modern Dutch people, compared with some other Dutch tribes that have nearly been forgotten. This is all thanks to a propaganda campaign which started during the 80 years war for Dutch independence. This campaign started in the 16th century with the story that the Batavi were the original ancestors of all Dutch people, this was spread in order to create a sense of nationalism amongst the Dutch in order to join the rebellion against Spain. Later in 1795, when the French conquered the Netherlands, they renamed the country into the Bataafse republic after the Batavi tribe. This lasted until 1806 when Louise Bonaparte became king of the Netherlands.

One of the people who has written quite a lot about this tribe, is Tacitus. In his work Germania, he describes the tribe as following:

“Of all these people, the most famed for valor are the Batavi; whose territories comprise but a small part of the banks of the Rhine, but consist chiefly of an island within it. These were formerly a tribe of the Catti, who, on account of an intestine division, removed to their present settlements. They still retain this honor, together with a memorial of their ancient alliance to Rome; for they are neither insulted by taxes, nor oppressed by farmers of the revenue. Exempt from fiscal burthens and extraordinary contributions, and kept apart for military use alone, they are reserved, like a magazine of arms, for the purposes of war. – Tacitus”

The Batavi were very appreciated by the Romans for their skills in battle and their bravery. They gave Rome excellent auxiliary forces well regarded for their horsemanship. They were also one of the very few units who were able to swim while wearing full armour. This has been described by Dio Cassius, a Roman historian. He described how the Batavi adopted this tactic during a battle against the British Celts:

“ The barbarians thought that Romans would not be able to cross it without a bridge, and consequently bivouacked in rather careless fashion on the opposite bank; but he sent across a detachment of Batavi tribesmen, who were accustomed to swim easily in full armour across the most turbulent streams. Thence the Britons retired to the river Thames at a point near where it empties into the ocean and at flood-tide forms a lake. This they easily crossed because they knew where the firm ground and the easy passages in this region were to be found; but the Romans in attempting to follow them were not so successful. However, the Germans swam across again and some others got over by a bridge a little way up-stream, after which they assailed the barbarians from several sides at once and cut down many of them." – Dio Cassius

One unit of Batavi auxiliary was even recruited to guard the Roman emperor, the Numerus Batavorum. (I have written a post about this unit if you are interested. The Batavi units were deployed all over the Roman empire, from Britannia to north Africa.

Over time, the Batavi became quite Romanized. They even adopted some of the Roman Gods in their pantheon and the famous God of thunder, Donar/Thor, became Latinized as well, Hercules Magusanus. The Batavi people wore amulets in the shape of a club, Donar keule, in a similar fashion how the vikings wore Mjolnirs to honour to the God of thunder.

Even though it appears that the Batavi and the Romans enjoyed a good alliance, tensions rose between the two because of corrupt centurions who tried to conscript more and more Batavi into the Roman army and unreasonable taxes. In 69AD the Batavi revolted against the Roman empire, making use of Rome’s weakness since the year 69AD was an extremely unstable year for the Romans. The rebellion was led by Gaius Julius Civilis who, like Arminius, served in the Roman army. Therefore he was gifted with the knowledge of Roman military tactics.

“"Let Syria, Asia Minor, and the East, habituated as it is to despotism, submit to slavery... Freedom is a gift bestowed by nature even on the dumb animals. Courage is the peculiar excellence of man, and the Gods help the braver side." - Gaius Julius Civilis

The revolt has been described quite detailed by Tacitus in his work ‘the annals’ if you are interested in the full story. I have also written a post about this uprising, it is impossible to write out the full revolt in this post because there is just too much information. There were several Germanic tribes who joined the Batavi in their revolt: the Frisii, Cananefates, Treverii, Bructeri and the Celtic Lingones.

Initially the revolt was quite succesfull. The Batavi managed to capture and destroy several Roman fortifications and destroyed two full Roman legions. The Romans sent a massive army to the Batavi in order to put down the revolt which ended in the following year in 70AD. Even though officially the Batavi failed at their revolt, their military losses were relatively very light. The Romans however lost about 20,000 soldiers. The Numerus Batavorum unit was disbanded after the revolt because the Romans lost their trust in the Batavi.

After this event, the Batavi seem a bit forgotten in history. There were no more noticable events or recorded history on them with the exception of the Batavi auxiliary units which continued to serve in the Roman army after the revolt. During the late third and early fourth century, the Batavi were absorbed into the Salian Franks and so their existence as an independent tribe ended. The name of the Batavi however still lives on strongly in the Netherlands, greatly thanks to the 80 years war for independence.

Here are images of: A small map showing their location, Painting of the Batavi revolt by Barend Wijnveld, 1835. Batavi auxiliary units, The burial stone of Indus, who was a Batavi bodyguard of emperor Nero,

[ivyprayed]

LOOKING FOR CONTACT - Di’onaya

✶ general information ✶

FULL NAME: Di’onaya

NICKNAME(S): Di, Dio, Di’o

TITLE(S): Shadow Hunter Aspirant, The Dreamer

AGE: 19

BIRTHDAY: October 2nd

RACE: Zandalari Troll

GENDER: Agender

ORIENTATION: Lesbian

MARITAL STATUS: Single, never married.

✶ physical appearance ✶

HAIR: Raven Black, Hair is unkempt and trails below waistline

EYES: Cyan

HEIGHT: 2.5 Meters

BUILD: Muscular, Sturdy Build

DISTINGUISHING MARKS:

Constant usage of a facial covering of some sort, commonly involving a mask

TATTOOS:

Two insignias of her Clan, one for each bicep.

PIERCINGS:

None.

✶ personal information ✶

PROFESSION(S): Gunsmith in Training, formerly Fishmonger

HOBBIES & INTERESTS: Alchemy, Reading, Drawing and Brainstorming Weapon Ideas

SKILL(S): Brute force and Damage Mitigation. Di is well known for lugging about a large shield and has shown capability in avoiding or minimizing damage to fellow Clan-members

LANGUAGE(S): Zandali, Orcish, Darnassian (fragments)

RESIDENCE: Zul’Gurub

BIRTHPLACE: Zuldazar, Zandalar

RELIGION: No specific Loa, soon to change to the Six.

✶ relationships ✶

SPOUSE:

None.

CHILDREN:

None.

PARENTS:

Di’vre, Father. Deceased.

Xul’eh, Mother. Deceased

SIBLINGS:

None.

OTHER RELATIVES:

None.

PETS:

None.

✶ traits ✶

•extroverted / introverted / in between.

•disorganized / organized / in between.

•close minded / open-minded / in between.

•easygoing / intolerant / in between.

•disagreeable / agreeable / in between.

•cautious / reckless / in between.

•patient / impatient / in between.

•outspoken / reserved / in between.

•leader / follower / in between.

•empathetic / indifferent / in between.

•optimistic / pessimistic / in between.

•traditional / modern / in between.

•hard-working / lazy / in between.

•cultured / uncultured / in between.

•loyal / disloyal / unknown / in between.

•assertive / timid / in between

✶ habits & vices ✶

SMOKING:  never / sometimes / frequently / to excess.

DRUGS: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess.

ALCOHOL: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess.

✶ other ✶

FACECLAIM(S): None.

VOICE CLAIM(S): Pa’ku, Warcraft (Battle For Azeroth)

ALIGNMENT: Chaotic Good

NAME PRONUNCIATION: Dee-Oh-Nai-Uh

IN GAME NAME: Dionaya - WrA Horde

ALT CODES: N/A

RP HOOKS:

Fishmonger: If you bought fish in Dazar’alor before its sacking, you may have bought from Di!

Stranglethorn Explorer: If you frequent the jungles of Stranglethorn, you are sure to have encountered Di at least once

Orgimmar: Di’onaya’s iconic dress often stands out in a more drab city- you are bound to have seen her in some way or another

Oshu’Amon: A more naive Di attended this festival and learned of the Shadowtusk Clan there! Perhaps you saw her?

OTHER:

Cross-faction and cross server RPs are welcome!

Darker themes advisory/warning.

[yurenadedios]

Ho Chi Min, formerly known as Saigon December 2018

Saigon in one image (c) Yurena De Dios

[twatd]

Getting TWATD at the Wake, ii: The Eulogies

Every month, two writers returned to this blog. They did an essay each. For five years. And now it’s all over.

The Wicked + The Divine #45 came out a month ago, and we’re still at the metaphorical wake. In this part, we pick out two characters we haven’t written much about, consider the paths their lives ended up taking, and write their obituaries. It could get emotional.

Spoilers for... well, for the entirety of WicDiv, I guess, below the cut.

Tim: Endings are bittersweet things at the best of times, and for a series as preoccupied with death and heartbreak as The Wicked + The Divine, we were never going to reach a conclusion without shedding a few tears. Still, there are many ways in which #45 is a happy ending for several of the characters – and that’s truer for Aruna, the god formerly known as Tara, than possibly anyone else.

Looking across the span of the series as a whole, she is a character who has suffered abuse, indignity and manipulation. But here at the end, Aruna is free from many of the troubles that plagued her life both before and during her time as a god. I don’t know if the Aruna we see in 2055 is living her best life, but it seems infinitely better than we could have expected after #13, the issue which gave us a painful glimpse into a character who had remained a mystery up to that point.

Pre-Godhood, Aruna had been made to feel uncomfortable in her own body by sexism and misogyny. That feeling was amplified by her divine transformation and the increased celebrity that came with it, culminating in her begging Ananke for the mercy of death. But Ananke’s manipulation accidentally set up Aruna to transcend the cruelties inflicted upon her. As a miraculously preserved head, she was free from the burden of her body, and free to reinvent herself.

With the help of Jon, Aruna she was able to reject a new form when she wasn’t ready for one – and, once she was, to create one that existed beyond the constraints of traditional biology. Her story touches on themes of transhumanism, not an area that WicDiv has traditionally dabbled in, but one that has some interesting connections with the themes of people seeking immortality. As you might expect given the ideas of gender and bodily autonomy at play, it’s also easy to read through a queer lens.

I’m glad that, while it’s clear Jon and Aruna have developed a close partnership over the years, Gillen and McKelvie chose to leave the exact nature of their relationship open to interpretation.

Aruna’s previous discomfort with the spotlight, and Ananke’s subsequent exploitation of that fact, also ended up benefitting her in other ways. Her distance from the rest of the Pantheon meant she avoided jail time after the events of #44 (it probably helped that it’s hard to handcuff someone when they’re just a head).

You could also maybe draw a line between the sudden outpouring of appreciation following Tara’s death and the way she was able to successfully campaign for the Pantheon’s early release, performing benefit concerts and raising awareness. This goes some way to colouring the previously devastating ending of #13 in a new light, as the insincere chorus of Twitter observers become a platform Aruna is able to use for good.

There’s an important distinction, though – this time around, she was able to approach a musical career and fame on her own terms, as Aruna rather than Tara. Also, the fact that her ‘death’ wasn’t a permanent one doesn’t take away from the tragedy of it, or how the comic made us complicit in the culture that led to it.

Aruna’s story following her ‘death’ could be called WicDiv’s ultimate triumph. The old truism about suicide being a permanent solution to a temporary problem feels especially apt here. Ananke took someone who was miserable and vulnerable, and proceeded to place them in a situation that they couldn’t cope with. Ananke became Aruna’s sole source of ‘support’, isolating her from the other gods, amplifying her insecurities until Aruna felt the only solution was to take her own life.

Strip away some of the details, and the story starts to take on some truly dark parallels, but unlike so many real-life stories, there is a second act to Aruna’s tale.

Once the true nature of Ananke’s plans are revealed, Aruna is eventually able to escape her role in them, retake control of her life, and eventually thrive on her own terms. WicDiv may be a story that largely approaches death as a firm reality, but by giving Aruna a reprieve from her seeming demise, it allows us a glimpse of a real happy ending, in amongst the more complex feelings the final issue evokes.

Alex: Aruna’s story is a happy one because she escapes the cycles that life locked her into. But the god I want to talk about, I’m not sure they ever did. Which might not be a terrible thing – it was always a little different, with Dionysus.

We don’t get much time with Umar before he goes all Olympian, but the moments we do get suggest there’s less of a gap between his two identities than there is for most of the other gods. He’s the guy who drives his friends down to London so they can get wasted on the way, who asks sensitive questions of strangers.

When he becomes Dionysus, the difference is mainly a question of scale. The group of people he’s trying to do right by gets bigger and bigger, and that makes this behaviour unsustainable. That first time we meet him, in issue #8, we get pretty much the whole Dionysus story. Dude takes on everyone else’s troubles, exerts himself to make them feel better, and makes it look breezy – only occasionally cracking and showing the weight of it all.

I’m not sure that ever really changes for Umar. He keeps using his powers to make people happy for a night, even as it starts to take a toll. He waits in the darkness, lets The Morrigan attack him, just to be there for Baphomet. He has faith in the power of the crowd, even as they crush him. He just keeps giving and giving, and it lands him in a coma.

This is Dionysus’ hamartia – the fatal flaw built into every one of WicDiv’s gods, the thing that ensures their downfall. As these things go, it’s not a bad flaw to have.

It marks him apart from the other gods. Gillen has talked about the Pantheon all being aspects of himself, his own flaws built out into characters, people he’s trying not to be anymore. But Dionysus’ flaw actually makes him someone to aspire to.

A spare Gillen quote from my Polygon interview that didn’t make it into the final article: “Umar is someone I'd love to be now… But Umar's a fictional character. Therefore, it's easier for him to be Umar than for Kieron to not be a shithead.” Even in the comic, we see how Dio’s behaviour is unsustainable – but to try and live that way, all of the time, in real life? It’s impossible.

I say this with authority, because in many ways I spent my twenties trying to be a Dionsysus. I’m an Inanna by nature – a pleasure seeker who tries to be kind but can sometimes forget that having the best possible time can have consequences on the people around them. (And, sidenote, it’s a fascinating twist on the archetypes that the god with these traits isn’t the one who, y’know, gave us the word bacchanalian.)

But, to be uncharacteristically nice about myself for a second, my idea of having a good time does tend to include bringing as many people along with me as possible. The version of me I like is the one who always opens up the circle on the dancefloor to sweep up strangers and stragglers. Or spot someone who seems left out and work to change that. Or pour hours into a project that’ll be seen by just a handful of friends, or just one.

I kind of buried that person this year.

This wasn’t an active choice, or something I was even conscious of doing at the time, but looking back I can see the reasons behind it. Firstly, because it’s not always clear whether people actually want these things done for them, or if it’s an unwelcome overreach, and that thought makes me to want up curl into myself and just die. And second, because I’m not good at knowing how to apportion effort, meaning it can involve frankly life-damaging amounts of preparation for very little payoff.

It’s not a sustainable way to live. Dio might be the best possible version of the WicDiv god, but he’s still someone sacrificing his self to become an idea. It kills him, eventually, and #37 shows how he’s remembered for it by the public, the people he gave everything he had to: ‘that guy on drugs’.

But eventually he is repaid by one of the recipients of his kindness, as a little bit of that selflessness rubs off on Baphomet. And Umar joins the rest of the Pantheon as they step back from their defining flaw, allow themselves to become more than an archetype. “I thought it was my job to save everyone,” Dionysus says, and I cry my little eyes out.

Maybe that was the moment I started to realise I’d been stepping back from that version of myself. Or maybe it was talking with Tim (my other, non-fictional model for the sort of person I want to be) about issue #45, when he explained how he read the older Umar: someone in whom all that kindness turned a little bitter. Aged like vinegar, not wine.

My reading is more hopeful than that, I think. The final issue trades in hints and suggestions of lives, but with Umar more than most. And personally, I fill in that blank with a different story: someone who has tempered his need to always put others first, and become more judicious about when and how and to whom he gives himself. And that? That is someone I’d really like to be.

[shunned-diabolical]

Hello there!! I stumbled across your blog and I was wondering, what band is this? And are they actually satanic? I hope you don’t mind me asking but can you give me some information about them?

@livstaahlkloo

Hi my dear! I hope you don’t mind that this is long, and if any of the information is incorrect I’m sorry and anyone can feel free to correct me and I’ll fix my mistake.  

My blog is based off of a Swedish metal band named Ghost (formerly known as Ghost B.C. in the US) My URL comes from the song Faith off of the album Prequelle. The lyric I got it from is “The Luddites shun the diabolical” 

Fronted by a man named Tobias Forge, who, when on stage and performing, is known as Cardinal Copia. However, he has not always been the Cardinal. He started off as Papa Emeritus (the first, second, and third) and then when the newest album, Prequelle, came out, he became Cardinal Copia.

Papas and Copia:

All of the Papas wore skull makeup and dressed as an anti-Christ pope. They had all been frontmen corresponding to the latest album that had been released. They were never fronting at the same time. Cardinal Copia, similar to the paps, is also “anti-Christ” (not THE anti-Christ but they were the opposite of holy). Instead of Copia being a Pope, he’s a Cardinal.

Albums:

The first album that Ghost ever debuted was Opus Eponymous (released in 2010). That was when Papa Emeritus The First was fronting.I don’t know a lot about Papa I except that he’s ancient. 

It has songs including: Elizabeth, Con Clavi Con Dio, and Satan Prayer.

The second album that was released was Infestissumam (2013). Then came Papa Emeritus the Second.Papa II is the grouchiest of the Papas and the most assholeish.

This album has songs including: Year Zero, Depth of Satans Eyes, and Monstrance clock.

The third album, Meliora, was released in 2015. And then the fan favourite, Papa Emeritus the Third was created. Papa III is very extravagant, and brings a lot of humor into the shows (often called rituals). He is also well known for playing the kazoo. 

It has songs including: Cirice, Square Hammer, and Mummy Dust

Finally, the most recent album, Prequelle, was released in 2018. Then came Cardinal Copia. The Cardinal is known for having the plague, loving rats and being THICC. Copia is a very awkward man and is often seen with a cane, and a Biretta, with a few altercations on it.

It has songs including: Rats, Faith and Life Eternal.  

Ghouls:

I have another post about them on my blog, I’ll try to add a link to it. But as far as I know of their actual identities, I don’t know anything lol. They’re good at keeping their anonymity.  

As for them being Satanic: 

While they very obviously have very satanic themes, its mostly just theatrics. It’s all very tongue-in-cheek and should be taken with a grain of salt. A lot of their songs DO have very important messages in them though. Take Mummy Dust for example, this song is about greed and corruptness.

Here is an interview that Tobias Forge did on the Satanic accusations. 

[happycoincidences]

about me!

I was tagged by @youngmutants Dank je! ♥

Nicknames: /

Zodiac: Aquarius

Last movie I saw: Some horror movie, forgot the name.

Height: 170 cm

Last thing I googled: “ Traumatic insemination “ (I was reading about the mating rituals of the fruitfly)

Favorite Musicians: Good god, so many!

Björk, Kate Bush, Mylène Farmer, The Cure, Garbage, Type o Negative, No Doubt, Falco, Gorki, Max Barskih, Kylie Minogue, Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, Madonna, Pink, Nine Inch Nails, Laibach, Hooverphonic, Lords of Acid, Praga Khan, Trevor Something, Oscar and the Wolf, Wumpscut, Sisters of Mercy, Dio, and so much more... Also last but certainly not least Rammstein.

kpop: Highlight (formerly known as Beast), B.A.P, Big Bang, TVXQ, JYJ, Wonder Girls, 2ne1, f(x), Brown Eyed Girls, H.O.T, SHINee, Vixx, iKON, Lee Junghyun, N.Flying, Super Junior, Orange Caramel, Monsta X etc...

Song stuck in my head:  К черту любовь by Loboda

Do I get asks?: No

Following:  1600+

Amount of sleep: 6h - 7.5h

Lucky number: I don’t have one but I like the thought of the number 4 for some reason I cannot explain lol

What I’m wearing: Sport attire (I’m planning to do some stretching/ballet exercises and go for a jog after this is done and posted)

Dream trip: Exploring the entire world, but my top 5 destinations since I was a child that I still haven’t visited are New Zealand, Iceland, Ireland, Hong Kong and North Korea (yes, North. I also want to go to South Korea, but I was extremely fascinated by North Korea as a 12-13yo, how can a country like that still exist??)

Dream job: I prefer something like taking care of little children or something where I can be ‘on the road’ a lot, preferably travelling abroad. So either like day care / kindergarten, a flight attendant, or something that involves the deceased... I actually am doing that last one already (funeral directing).

Do I play any instruments?: No, but I’ve always wanted to play the harp.

Languages: From native to well enough: (Belgian) Dutch, English, German, French and Swedish. I also have basic knowledge of many other languages 

Favorite songs: uh so difficult! Most of the songs of my favourite artists that I listed but I want to go for some other favourite songs, in this moment I’m feeling these songs:

Bloodsport - Sneaker Pimps (electronic/trip hoppy song)

Honey Vanity - Közi (He was inspired by one of my absolute favourite artists, Mylène Farmer. It’s in Japanese @youngmutants maybe you know the song already)

Colonial Discharge - A Split Second (I LOVE 80s & 90s Belgian industrial/EBM, this one is from 1988 and still fresh imo)

Timekiller - Project Pitchfork (dark wave/industrial/electronic rock song  from Germany)

와 (Wa)  - Lee JungHyun (Ok, I listed her as one of my favourite artists, but I just want to include this one, it is one of my absolute favourite kpop songs, the link leads to my favourite performance of the song; I love her style, I love her dancing, I love that she uses her little finger as her mic and I love the angry rap at the end)

Random fact about me: My mother is Belgian, my father is Dutch, and I was conceived in a tent in Luxembourg lol (BeNeLux), but I was born and raised in Belgium so I really only consider myself Belgian. 

Describe yourself as aesthetic things: macabre iconoclasm, man and machine, life and death, brutalist architecture, neon lights, nail polish, distortion, velvet, sweet perfume, gold, red, black tea with milk no sugar, walking everywhere, public transportation, futuristic dystopian worlds, hearts, observing people, dreamy music, ballet, etc. I have a tag “mijn esthetiek” for it.

I’m going to tag a few new(ish) mutuals who I like to know better: @kritsanaratree @punkranger @fantasyworldbb @larktrash ♥