#give people the option to turn this on or off if they want to

[rancidslime]

This is a really interesting exercise! So, I would argue that an equal execution for maids simply isn't possible in the same way that it is for, say, knights. The way I see it, there are two big reasons wizards lend themselves so well to extreme stylisation, to the point of not needing to show any part of an actual human form.

A) Let's talk about first instincts. The word "wizard" has by now referred to characters of basically ever gender and appearance, but when you hear the word "wizard", the mental image most often conjured up by the word is actually pretty concrete. Long beard, robe, pointed hat. If there's a face, it's nearly always an old white man with a long beard. (I could list the reasons why this image developed, but this is a website full of nerds. I'm sure I don't have to go through a whole genealogy of how the trappings of the modern wizard became codified into pop culture through art and literature.) If someone asked you to "draw a wizard" on a post-it note, you'd probably draw someone who looked basically like Gandalf, plus or minus a few stars on his robe. We all know what a wizard looks like.

B) The traditional trappings of a wizard all heavily obscure the human form; hats, robes, and beards (where included) cover up a lot of the body and face! This means that a stylized wizard can be easily turned into a featureless, genderless collection of symbols with minimal tweaking of the style or design, while remaining self-evidently wizardlike. You can even hide the hands, feet, and face completely - Final Fantasy's black mages are famously one of the best examples of this approach in pop culture.

The maid, by contrast, runs into a two main problems here. So like, yes, we're talking about the meido as cosplay evolution of the figure of the french maid. But one of the issues here is, the meido archetype doesn't have the raw recognition, the crossover appeal, of the wizard. If someone's really into period pieces, they might think of a period-accurate ladies' maid. If they're like, a normie straight dude, they might think of Spirit Halloween lingerie. Someone who has hired a modern maid might think of a person in scrubs, carrying a bucket. The kind of maid we're talking about is a subgenre of what "maids" mean to people, whereas the default image we have of wizards is seen as the progenitor everything else is playing off of. I hope I'm still making sense.

So the meido does have a few necessary signifiers (dress, often but not always black, with white petticoats and an apron, sometimes with a headband). Have you noticed the problem? That's right - the only headgear we recognize as maidlike doesn't obfuscate the head! We talked about how one of the biggest strengths of the classic wizard is that you don't need to show the face if you don't want to - with maids, you don't have that option. There will always be a recognizable human form, even if you opt for the longest skirt possible and give your maid big ole leg-of-mutton sleeves!

Now, that's not to say I don't think you could take it pretty far - you could hide the face with a bonnet large enough to completely conceal the head and face, but between the change in headgear to something rarely actually employed by maid cosplay to the fact that maids of this stripe are usually shown with their hair down, I think that's a little bit of a cheat.

I just saw a wizard-as-fantastical-species shitpost and a maid-as-fantastical-species shitpost on my dash back to back, and now I'm kind of wondering what the maid equivalent of the classic "just a robe, a hat, and a pair of eyes" interpretation of the wizard-as-species would be.

[its-your-mind]

the m9 are so FUCKING good at being irreverent and threatening and disrespectful and rude and insolent WHILE SOMEHOW ALSO maintaining a certain degree of plausible deniability?? and most of the time they’re not even necessarily trying to be like. manipulative??? that’s just how they are???? most of them hold things close to the chest as a default position, they obfuscate, they’re all hesitant to commit the group to a course of action, they keep their options open and their paths for retreat clear At All Times, and they give NO SHITS about how they’re perceived beyond wanting to give the impression to possible threats that they are Not To Be Fucked With.

which leads to cool shit like the fact that they made essek feel safe and not-lonely because he saw them as kindred spirits and knew their affection was genuine, or when all of them kept sitting in eadwulf’s chair before he could, or when they all grouped tight around Caleb and projected Pure Concentrated Righteous Anger when Trent saw him again for the first time, or when they got banned from Pirate Island by the Pirate King within 24 hours of landing there NOT because they DIDN’T fuck up and blow up a bunch of shit but because someone ELSE fucked up WORSE and so they got to live and leave while Avantika got her head smooshed.

and it is so *chef’s kiss* when they’re with people like trent or obann or whatever noble they’ve pissed off this week, but it’s WAY FUNNIER when they’re with Lucien who is in fact trying to be demeaning and manipulative to them on purpose and they’re just… not acknowledging it. and they’re meeting him volley for volley. but he’s being very intentional in trying to dance the right steps, finding the right buttons to push, and the Nein one time stole a whole-ass pirate ship and sailed into the ocean by… accident. they wouldn’t know intentionality if it bumped into them in the sewers and dropped an ancient religious relic into their bag of holding.

so lucien is trying to unnerve him by being there when cad wakes up, and cad responds by being 100% genuine when he asks Lucien to watch the sunrise and tells him that he needs perspective. jester really does probably want to domesticate unicorns? Caleb did let them sleep in his warm cat tower in exchange for seeing the fucked up book. Veth tried to kill Otis and they’re just. Not talking about it. Either of them. Lucien is scrying on them all the time. They know it. He knows they know. The scrying continues. the Nein throw up middle fingers until the scry orb vanishes so they can have like. ten minutes to plot before another pops up. Lucien knows they’re probably plotting. They know he knows. The plotting continues. Jester turns herself and Lucien into cats so they can slide through the cat tunnels. She reads his Tarot. He pulls Death. She tells him it’s an omen of Rebirth. Caleb surrounds him with the trappings and memories of Mollymauk. Lucien continues to act as though Molly was some meaningless scrap of floating consciousness. The Nein don’t believe that. He knows. He’s not interested in re-examining his opinions on the matter. The Nein keep pushing the Molly buttons. They keep going north together. Beau tells him about the cults they’ve destroyed. Lucien dispels their Polymorphs to force them to face the fire elementals down on the lava beside him. Caleb and Cad can emergency-teleport them out. Eiselcross doesn’t like teleportation energy. They’re the only ones who can stop the Somnovum. Lucien proves his mortality by getting them lost two days in a row. An old enemy finds them. They reach out to Essek. He’s waiting. Aeor. North. Caleb and Beau dream. They could be compromised. They can’t tell if Lucien knows. He’s always acting like he knows everything, and of course none of them would risk asking and giving him more information.

So they dance. But Lucien learned this dance by choice. His movements are quick and smooth, but they don’t flow naturally, not like the Nein’s. They first learned this dance out of necessity, and perfected it under threat of punishment, pain, and death. They’ve spent the last year learning how each other move, learning how to adjust and make room. It’s easy to let Fjord take the lead in negotiation, and to back off when he steps in to mediate. Beau and Caleb don’t have to talk to know each others’ priorities, and when Caleb marches over with clear intent, Beau follows quickly behind to provide silent support, and to step in to take some of the heat in case Caleb needs it. Cad and Jester are so effortlessly effective, offen without even realizing it, but it’s second-nature now to jump ship to whatever new tone or topic one of the clerics brings to the conversation. Veth is similar, though her skill lies more in her ability to aggressively redirect. She can cannonball into any smoothly flowing river of conversation, disrupting things significantly enough that whatever conversation had been happening, it’s at least going to be a very different one than what’s happening now. Yasha is the opposite - she always steps lightly, gently making comments or asking quiet questions, and if Veth is good at making waves, Yasha has a gift for settling things back down, bringing everyone’s energy levels down closer to her own.

and so Lucien is left on the outskirts of an intricate social dance that he can't hope to penetrate, because he refuses to allow himself to know the Nein. He refuses to accept that the part of him that is Molly used to flit and spin and flourish amongst them as though he belonged. Because he did. He does.

and so they keep walking north, with full knowledge that none of them trust each other even a little bit, and that both groups are waiting for one moment of weakness, one stumble, one missed step in the dance to give them a moment to strike. but the tentative peace is dependent on none of them acknowledging that the "peace" is simply the silence of a forest when an apex predator is stalking its prey. at this point, they're all just waiting to see who'll be the hunter, and who will be the hunted.

[artbyblastweave]

After three chapters, one of my big takeaways is that Seek seems really conceptually interested in parents and parenting.

You've got A, raised by parents whose superficial commitment to A's self-determination and self-identification are completely undercut by the invasive dystopian cyberware they use to control them, coupled with the (what I believe to be the) implication that the double edged sword of the post-scarcity future is that A's only reason to exist is that their parents wanted a child- spending their entire childhood being shot down any time they express interest in a career path that could give their life meaning outside of that. All of which feels like the logical terminal point of parenting as a vanity thing. Then you've got Winnifred, whose parents are vastly more involved, attentive, and invested- but in a way that goes hand in hand with a sometimes-uncomfortable spiritual and ideological investment, which in turn manifests as a regiment of full-body invasive modifications so that their child can perpetuate and participate in their culture and lifestyle.

Then you've got Orion, whose "birth" is his much more metaphorical escape from the cryopod (complete with associated womb imagery); out of the three he's arguably the most "liberated" from the context of the people who chose to create him or put him in this situation- popping out of his "womb" with imprinted skills and knowledge and only vague memories- but given the overall survival-horror nature of his situation that's not actually any kind of improvement. (It would frankly dovetail incredibly well with the theory I've seen that it's actually an Onboard who's taken control of a braindead human- total hands off parenting, he was put in this situation by entities that don't even realize he's alive.)

All of which is circling and circling around the central reality of parenting, which is that it's not just something that happens, it's a choice, any way you choose to go about it's a choice. And in our current context there's only really a couple ways to make that choice and they're all a few degrees off from each other anyway, so it fades into the background. But in a society with advanced enough technology that you've really got options, the fact that you're making any choice at all- and the resultant horrible consequences every possible choice will have for your kid- becomes way way more visible. Truly, a web serial aligned with my heartfelt belief that We Are Never Getting Out Of Here

[lostintransist]

Fallen Angel | Really? You'll Wear It?

Sitting at the kitchen table to do your makeup had turned out to be the easiest option. Johnny had popped by earlier in the day while Simon ran some of his errands. He would follow you from room to room as he chatted at you. You could almost bet that his words got trapped when he was on a job and he needed to let them all out.

Johnny had flopped onto your bed, messing with your neatly placed stuffies and made bed, while you changed into the dress hanging on your door. Gary had asked you to dinner and sent a gorgeous velvety dress. They had started doing that, asking you on dates. You wondered, as you stepped into the dress, if they talked about it. No one ever asked you out when you already had a date planned. The dress hit your thighs and stalled. Cursing you stepped out of it and pulled it on over your head.

Johnny had started to toss one of your small stuffies above his head.

"My mam has started to try and set me up with a local girl and won't listen when I tell her that no woman in her right mind would put up with my schedule. When she tries to argue and when I point out that a woman out of her mind would be a worse option than no woman at all she just shakes her finger at me and sends me off to deliver her sweets to whoever she is trying to see me up with."

"Next time tell her you're into men and that might shut her up. Now can you come zip me up?"

He popped up, a body shaped dent in your previously flat blanket. He notices the face you pull at it.

"Ah, sorry bonnie. I'll fix it. Now give us a spin," he spins a finger in a circle. "Though you might be onto something about me mam."

He pulls the zipper with expert ease.

"You might have to bring a man home to truly sell it though," you muse. Matriarch MacTavish had a hankering for all her children to be wed, fed, and steady on in producing her grandchildren.

Dress situation handled, you start gathering your mirror and makeup.

"I could take you home?" He joked as he fixed your bed to look just as good as before.

"I don't dare risk your mam's ire when we "break up" because you found someone you actually want," you roll your eyes and head to the kitchen. "Why not ask Simon? I doubt your mam will question him if you're actually dating."

"You don't know that she won't," he mutters as he follows.

Johnny is uncharacteristically quiet as he settles in next to you at the table. He slumps forward, head resting on his upper arm as he plays with the earring dangling from your ear.

Noticing the silence from your constant motion friend you let it ride. His hand stays where it could reach the earring even as you turn your head to and fro in the mirror.

When his question comes it is quiet, contemplative. "What makes you think I don't want you?"

You study your eyelashes instead of looking at him. "You're one of the most sexual people I know Johnny, I would never be able to satisfy that need for you."

He hums deep in his throat in response, letting the topic die. His eyes scratch lines in your skin. He speaks again when you are adding the final touches to your lips.

"Why do you wear these earrings so often?"

"They were a gift from Gary." The question in his tone clicked in your brain. "If you gifted me jewelry I would wear it too."

He sat up now, eyes bright as a pup who heard the word walk.

"Really? And if I made it?"

You glance at him with a smile, "Even better."

Eyes bright he leans in for a kiss, ruining your lipstick, before bouncing up and out the front door.

You call after him, angry that you need to fix your face again. He simply laughs and shuts the door behind him.

Two weeks later a small package is delivered to the cafe when you are on shift. You sign for it and offer the delivery man a drink at half price. He accepts and waves as he leaves.

Grabbing a pair of scissors you open the small box. Inside is a jewelry box, the velvety texture reminding you of the last time you saw Johnny.

Opening it you let out a gasp as you see a delicate piece that reminds you of chainmail. Small, interlocking circles form a diamond that hangs from a long chain as you pull it free. Setting the box on the work counter you put it on. Grabbing up your phone you send a picture to Johnny telling him you owe him an extra kiss for such a wonderful gift.

Setting your phone down you see a note in the shipping box you missed before.

Every good heart needs protection from time to time. - Johnny

Fallen Angel Masterlist | Masterlist

[crazysodomite]

just got a call from work and they told me i will have to work 1 24 hour shift per 2 days of rest which is literally illegal. its 'only' gonna be 4 shifts but thats still insane. they pay me a pittance and pull this shit? kill yourselves. im so upset i cry.

idk what to do rn. if i refuse they're probably gonna just fire me. or not since then they will need to hire 2 new peopl lmfao 🤣

my options:

work the shifts then quit at the end of november

keep working until mid december

quit RN

just tell them i dont wanna ❤ and see what happens

idk man. this stupid ass job is by no means hard. and it pays very little. but its better than nothing or a very physically demanding job (which i cant do anyways). but A 24 HOUR SHIFT every 2 days is a suicide inducing thought.

i think im gonna quit anyways but i just need to decide how. bc i dont really want to work my shifts while everybody gives me the side eye and my supervisor is constantly on my ass. and i kinda want the money too if im planning to quit lol.

i need to decide if im gonna warn them beforehand that im gonna quit or just tell them during my days off and turn off my phone 🤣

[m00nkissedlover]

・｡fair day, fun day 🎡

"you're making me feel brand new, you're more than the sunshine in my eyes~"

modern au! choso kamo x reader | word count: 831 words

summary: amusement park date with choso 🎡

warnings: none! not proofread

note: little self indulgent fic cause i literally could find little to no fluff for this man on here 😭 if anyone knows any jjk fluff or angst writers, pls let me know!

the sounds of delightful screams and laughter as people rode various rides. the smells of delicious food and snack options in the air. the fun game stands with cute prizes hanging from their ceilings. all of if made the amusement park atmosphere what it was. today, you were here with your boyfriend, choso.

you were shocked when he told you he'd never been to an amusement park, wanting him to experience the same excitement and fun. you two held hands as you walked around, holding churros and debating on what ride to go on next.

"what do you wanna go on next, cho?" you asked, gently squeezing his hand as you two looked around.

"hmm...nothing too fast, we don't want to throw up-" choso mumbled, remembering the last ride you two went on.

while you two walked around, one of the game stalls caught your eye. it was one of those games where you had to knock down cups stacked in a pyramid with a baseball. the prizes ranged from little plastic keychains to giant teddy bears.

you tugged on choso's hand, motioning to the stall. "you think you can win me one of the teddy bears?" you asked, a cute smile on your lips.

choso glanced the game over, arriving at the counter. "you get 3 tries. no leaning against the stand, no putting your elbows on the counter. please stand behind the tape line." the person running the stand said.

choso nodded, taking one of the baseballs and standing behind the line. "choso, remember. it's okay if you don't win. i won't be upset." you told him, giving him a pat on the shoulder.

but you could see that he was determined to win you a teddy bear. the biggest one at that. he squinted his eyes a little, taking his aim, and throwing the baseball.

CLANK! the guy running the stand was more shocked than you, standing there with his jaw hanging open as every single cup fell off on the stand.

"we'll take the biggest teddy bear you have." choso requested nonchalantly, the guy still in shock as he got on a ladder to reach the biggest stuffed bear and handing it to you. you gladly took it, giddy laughter leaving you as you spun around with the bear.choso couldn't fight the smile creeping up onto his lips, finding the sight heartwarming.

"what would you like to do now?" choso asked, giving you a gentle pat on the head as you two walked away from the game stands. the sun was starting to set and the perfect idea popped into your head. "hmm...let's go on the ferris wheel!" you exclaimed, pointing to the giant wheel.

you two were now in one of the ferris wheel boxes, the ride slowly starting to lift you two up above the fair grounds. you sat near the window, your nose practically pressed up against it as you gasped in excitement.

"everything's getting so small! choso, look!" you exclaimed, urging your boyfriend to have a look.

"yeah...the view's beautiful..." he murmured, resting his chin on your teddy bear that sat between you two.

"i know, rig-?" you turned back to choso, your cheeks heating up a bit. choso hadn't been looking out the window. he was looking at you.

"you're staring, cho..." you mumbled. now it was his turn to blush, his head burying into the plush softness of the teddy bear. you couldn't help but laugh, a slight grumble leaving him as he looked back up at you.

"it's okay. i like it when you stare at me." you stated, scooting closer to him and taking the bear plush in your hands. you moved its head out of the way, before setting it on the floor of the car.

choso's heart skipped a beat as he noticed you leaning in closer to him, his breath hitching. he let his eyes flutter shut and you stared at him for a moment. he looked so at peace, but also so nervous, obviously expecting a kiss. you decided to mess with him a little, picking up the teddy bear and moving its head closer to him until his lips met faux fur.

choso opened his eyes and sputtered, his cheeks coloring as you burst into a fit of laughter. "y/n..." choso grumbled, fighting the smile that threatened to form on his lips. he looked so cute, sitting there, sulking about not getting a real kiss from you.

you couldn't help it and when he least expected it, you cupped his cheeks and planted a soft and gentle kiss on his lips. a rush of warmth ran through his body as he sighed into it, placing his hands over your own.

"thanks for coming with me today, choso." you hummed, resting your forehead on his as you pulled away from the kiss.

"any time. let's come again tomorrow. i'll win you an even bigger prize."

and to your surprise, that's exactly what he did.🎡

© m00nkissedlover, 2024

[totallyjustabunchofhocuspocus]

I know "fuck canon" is always an option and generally the more sensible thing to do, but with last night's episode I had two smidgens of HOPE and now with Tim's apparent new interview I just want to crawl back into my cave again 🫥

Hi nonnie!

TLDR (cause I'm having THOUGHTS): I don't think anything is off the table, if I had to bet money I'd lay somewhat decent odds that Buck and Tommy get back together, and I don't think either side of the ship war has anything in particular that indicates victory.

I'll preface this by saying yes, 'fuck canon'is usually the more sensible option. 'Fuck canon' is where no one ever dies, people do not make stupid decisions, and couples never break up.

And I'll also preface this by saying that Buck is my favorite character (honestly one of my favorite characters of all time, not just this show) and my ultimate OTP is Buck/Happiness in this show, however he gets it and whoever gives it to him. I am quite happy being a multishipper and I started out in fandom spaces back in the mid-nineties, where the etiquette and relationship to the content were vastly, vastly different than today and that really colors the lense I view fandom through. In the ship war, I'm mostly Switzerland.

Still with me? Okay.

My main source of optimism re: Buck/Tommy is the simple fact that guys...911 is Not That Deep. It's a fun show (usually), predicated on ridiculous Situations (increasingly), and in movie terms is a cash-grab popcorn flick. Have they hit something with the characters and actors that often elevates it above its station? Absolutely. Are there parts that make you go, "whoa, this came from the shark on a highway weewoo show?" Of course! But 911 isn't fucking Inception. There's no hidden messages and jaw-dropping plot twists that No One Saw Coming.

Like...all the cries about "learn some media literacy you cretins!" really have me scratching my head because, uh, taking everything solely at face value--this absolutely is the Third Act Miscommunication in the relationship. Both parties expressed a desire for the relationship to be more. They broke up on the tried and true "I'm doing this for both our sakes'even though it hurts" and not a dealbreaker schism which they ABSOLUTELY could have done. Literally, one scene of "wow I can't wait to be a dad/oh, uh that's not something I want" and we have a reason to break up that has the exact same "no villains just circumstance" vibe.

On the other hand, it absolutely is a stopping point that is believably permanent.

They went out of their way to show how desperately much Buck wants to talk to Tommy (like we turned it into a meme, but they didn't really have to show him baking That Much) and how he's spiraling in a way we haven't really seen since Abby. In a Hallmark romcom this would be where the audience is reassured that our plucky protagonist has Real Feelings for the LI.

On the other hand, the show often uses Buck as comic relief and the keep away with the phone could absolutely be the indicator that this breakup isn't as serious as Buck thinks it is and he should move on.

The interviews are pretty disheartening, but the interviews for this show really honestly have always had a kind of weird monkey's paw quality to them. Like, they don't lie exactly, but there's a lot of misdirect.

As it stands now, the relationship 100% reads like a Hallmark romcom that is being written by people who Had a Gay Friend In College Guys, So of COURSE We Know What We're Doing...wait why are you discoursing?

On the other hand, as it stands now, it also wouldn't be surprising if this was the end. I honestly don't think they have 100% decided how it's going to go and the writing and especially the pacing this season has been so uneven that it's not hiding the flaws in the storytelling as well as it usually does.

But, if canon goes in a direction I don't like, I have no problem saying 'fuck canon' ;)

[anim-ttrpgs]

Mage Player Character Rules in Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy

Eureka has six playable "monster" types, and about ten total supernatural character options all together. Each supernatural trait is taken basically as if it is a normal trait like the ones you have been seeing us post. You cannot give a character more than one supernatural trait--and from what you are about to read, you probably wouldn't want to. Playing monsters is recommended for "advanced" players only, people who like a lot of "crunch" in their games, as require you to keep track of a lot more mechanics than playing a normal human.

Here is the Mage Trait. Mage aren't actually classified as Monsters, they're classified as "Misc. Supernatural," but even then their mechanics can be crunchy. This is going under a Read More because it's long as hell but we really hope that you will check it out and comment. This is, like, the whole entire ruleset for playing a mage in Eureka.

You may also have read about "mage powers" in the Changeling, Fairy, and Fairytale Witch rulesets. Well, this is where those come from.

Mage (Misc. Supernatural Trait) 

A “mage”[2] in Eureka is an otherwise normal person with one or more inexplicable powers.[1] Unlike the Fairytale Witch, a Mage’s powers are always innate. They may or may not know where this supernatural ability came from, and having it may or may not have indirectly influenced the direction their life has taken, but it is easy enough to hide without structuring any of their day-to-day life around actively hiding it.

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] Though it is usually only one.

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] Though they are more likely to call themselves “something-kinetic,” “mutant,” or “freak.”

A mage has one or more Mage Powers [change mage traits to mage abilities], with their body under more strain the more of them they were born with. This strain is represented by the Composure roll they make when putting a non-skill supernatural ability to use. They cannot have more than six. [make it clear in the witch section that witches can only have one Mage ability at once.]

One Mage Power: +3

Two Mage Powers: +1

Three Mage Powers: +0

Four Mage Powers: -1

Five Mage Powers: -2

Six Mage Powers: -3

[snoop: A Genevya snoopette hovering while machetes are floating around her. Ask blue for more details]

Mage Power List

Glamor (Mage Power)

This character can make themselves appear supernaturally attractive for the duration of one scene. Turning on this power counts as using a supernatural ability and takes one Movement. While this power is active, apply a +2 Base bonus to this character’s Charm and Seduce skills. This investigator can also spend 1 Eureka! Point to completely alter their outward appearance and voice to look like someone else, so long as their general body frame and height are not altered significantly. This investigator can spend 2 Eureka! Points to completely alter their appearance, including height, apparent weight, and sex. In order to match a specific person’s look, the investigator must either have a reference to study, such as the person themself or a high-quality photograph, to make their disguise match a specific person’s appearance. Either way, this counts as use of a non-skill supernatural ability and only lasts for the duration of one Scene. 

Healing Touch (Mage Power)

This character’s touch has the power to restore and revitalize living flesh. Add +2 to the number of HP restored by any Medicine roll, even a Failure. Does not heal undead.

Incredible Strength (Mage Power) 

This character’s physical prowess far exceeds their apparent musculature. This character is considered to have superhuman strength, as well as a +2 Base bonus to Athletics and +1 Base bonus Close Combat. 

[snoop: A snoop lifting a barbell meant for two hands with only one “hand”.]

Invisibility (Mage Power) 

The character in question can make themselves impossible to see with the naked eye. There are a number of ways to interpret this, and it is important to decide in no uncertain terms how it works beforehand. Does it include the character’s clothes, or do they have to strip naked to avoid looking like a floating outfit? Do they have to leave their own eyes visible to catch light, or do they not need to worry about that? Is this true invisibility, or are they merely changing the color of their skin to match the environment, and does it work while they are moving? Make sure to consider all of these things before the first session. Regardless, this character may turn invisible or turn visible again at any time, each of which count as use of a supernatural ability, and takes 1 Movement if in combat. While invisible, apply a +10 Base bonus to their Stealth skill.

[off to the side in the final formatting] Our recommended drawback for this ability is that the user must be naked in order to not be given away by their clothes floating in the air.

[Snoop: One snoop looking around confused while an invisible snoop represented by nothing but a pair of eyes sneaks past. ]

Lightning Powers (Mage Power) 

This investigator can generate high-voltage shocks in their body. It takes a short amount of time, or one Turn, counting as an action, to build up a charge, and also counts as use of a supernatural ability. After building up a charge, they can power, or short out, an electronic device that they touch, within reason.[1] In order to power an electronic device, they must actually touch the wires or other components that would normally touch the power supply.[2] For each minute or Round of combat that the investigator powers a device, they must make the supernatural ability Composure roll.

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] They could not take the place of a nuclear power plant and power an entire city, for instance, but jumping a car, keeping the lights of a house on, etc. would be within their limits.

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] For instance, they could not power a flashlight just by holding it by the handle, they must actually touch the components that the battery would touch. The investigator is essentially acting as the battery, and if they stop touching the device, it will be as if the battery was removed.

This investigator ability can use this ability in combat as well. After charging up, the next person to touch this investigator either with their own body or any kind of highly conductive weapon will be dealt a powerful electric shock for 4 Superficial Damage if the incoming attack is a Full Success and 2 Superficial Damage if the incoming attack is a Partial Success. This can be used offensively by combining it with any unarmed melee attack, or with a weapon made of a highly conductive material.[1] When attacking like this, only one roll is made, counting for both damage sources.[2]

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] The investigator must be actually touching the same conductive material that is impacting the target for this to work. For instance, a knife with a metal blade but a rubber handle would not deliver a charge.

[2 off to the side in the final formatting] Full Success = Full regular attack damage + 4 Superficial Damage from electricity.

Partial Success = Half regular attack damage + 2 Superficial Damage from electricity.

Failure = No damage, as usual.

Once an electric charge has been discharged, it must be built up again.

For 1 Eureka! Point, this investigator can build up a massive charge.[1] This massive charge can be unleashed in a direction of the investigator’s choice where it will jump up to 15 feet towards the nearest conductive thing in that direction. This lightning will jump 1D6 times, alway jumping to the next nearest point of conduction starting from the investigator. It does not discriminate between friend and foe.

[1 off to the side in the final formatting] This takes the same amount of time to generate as a normal charge, and takes an action.

Manifest Weaponry (Mage Power) 

This character is able to produce 2 short semi-transparent hovering blades about the size of machetes at will, which they can control without touching them. This counts as one Movement. At the cost of one Eureka! Point, 4 blades can be summoned instead. For combat purposes, each pair of blades counts as a separate single dual-wielding combatant independent of the character who summoned them, with their own actions and place in the turn-order. A pair of blades can only make Basic Melee Attacks, but cannot be attacked themselves, and uses their owner’s Close Combat skill. They can also benefit from the Ambidextrous trait if their owner has this trait.

Their Speed will always be twice the Speed of their owner, however, they will vanish when out of the owner’s line of sight, and suffer an attack penalty of -1 for every 15 feet they travel away from their owner.

0-14 feet: -0

15-29 feet: -1

30-44 feet: -2

45-59 feet: -3

60-74 feet: -4

75-89 feet: -5

90-104 feet: -6

105-120 feet: -7

etc.

[snoop: A snoopette with four hovering machetes around her shoulders.]

Psychic Detective (Mage Power)

When this investigator is about to make an Investigative Roll with any skill they can, as a supernatural ability, instead replace the skill they were going to use to investigate with the Blacked Out skill, and it is otherwise treated like a regular Investigative Roll and gives the same information as the skill it is replacing. If one of these Investigative Rolls is made towards either a weapon the use of which is relevant to the investigation, or a wound that is relevant to the investigation, then regardless of the roll’s outcome this investigator will take Superficial Damage equivalent to half of the weapon’s regular damage, and must make a Composure Check as if they had been hit by this weapon. However, the Narrator does not tell the player exactly what the weapon is, just its damage and its category for the purpose of Composure Checks. The Narrator will also tell the player whether the damage dealt was Superficial or Penetrative, though the actual damage taken to this investigator will always be Superficial.

[off to the side in the final formatting] For example, if the investigator uses this ability to make an Investigative Roll towards a murder victim’s body to determine the cause of death, and the cause of death was a gunshot wound, the Narrator would tell his player that this investigator takes 2 Superficial Damage (Bullets normally deal 4 Penetrative Damage, but this Trait converts that to Superficial Damage and cuts it in half.) and must make a Gunfight Composure Check.

[off to the side in the final formatting] Wearing armor does not reduce this damage.

Pyrokinesis (Mage Power) 

This character can start small fires with their mind. In order to do this, the target must be reasonably flammable, such that it would ignite if a match was held to it, and also be visible to the character. If time is measured in Turns this counts as a Movement. “Visible” usually means that it is in the character’s immediate vicinity. The Narrator should be very careful if allowing this power to target things seen in video feeds or photographs. We generally do not recommend this interpretation. If attempted in combat or any other situation where time is being measured in rounds, this takes one action. Anything highly flammable, such as paper, flammable gas, or kindling will catch fire guaranteed. For anything marginally flammable, such as hair, most clothing, and thicker wood, roll 1D6. On a 1-3, the targeted object will not catch fire; on a 4-6, it will catch fire. Subtract -1 for each factor present that would make it harder for something to catch fire, such as if the object is wet or if there is high wind speed. If fire is set to someone’s hair or clothes in this way, they will have 1 round to extinguish it before it starts to cause damage. After the first round, it will deal 1 Superficial Damage on the burning character’s turn until extinguished.

In addition, rather than just starting a small fire, this investigator can spend a Eureka! Point to instantly set something ablaze in a burning inferno, so long as it is at all reasonably flammable. If this is done to a character, the burning character will take 2 Superficial Damage each time it is their own turn until extinguished. See: Splash Explosions for more rules regarding burning damage.

[off to the side in the final formatting] Unlike a true Splash Explosion, however, this ability can only target one character or object at a time.

[Snoop: One snoop shooting ‘mind beams’ at another snoop’s butt who is running around with their butt on fire.]

Telekinesis (Mage Power)

This character can affect, push, pull, lift, etc. objects without physically touching them. Anything a character could do with their hand, this character can do with telekinesis, unless the action somehow requires a hand specifically, such as using a thumbprint recognition scanner. For any usage of this ability that would require an Athletics check if it were to be done with the physical body, use an Athletics modifier of +2, regardless of the investigator’s actual Athletics stat. This investigator can use this ability to lift themselves and/or others into the air, though their speed while hovering cannot exceed a walking pace. This investigator can use their telekinesis to make a Grab attack against another character from a distance. All Grabbing and Holding rules apply, including Submission, except that the Grabber and the Target do not have to be touching. This investigator can spend 1 Eureka! Point to exert up to 500 pounds of pressure on an object for 1 round. This takes an action. This pressure could be used for a variety of purposes, such as lifting, crushing, etc. If used to crush a character, this deals 4 Penetrative Damage and ignores Armor. 

[off to the side in the final formatting] When Grabbing with the telekinesis, this does not use the investigator’s own Athletics, it will always be a total modifier of +1; +2 from the telekinesis, -1 from the Grab action.

[off to the side in the final formatting] If this is being done from outside the range of the target’s weapon, the target cannot make a Counter-Attack. Additionally, the target must know who is attempting to Grab them in order to make a Counter-Attack.

[Snoop: A snoopette hovering in a lazy/smug relaxed position looking at another snoop who is significantly more distressed about being lifted into the air.]

Teleportation (Mage Power) 

This character can teleport, instantly transporting themselves to their destination. They can teleport to any location they can clearly see within 100 yards. If done in combat, this takes an action. At the cost of 3 flat composure points per additional person, this investigator can teleport with other people so long as they are touching them.

At the cost of 1 Eureka! Point, this investigator can teleport to anywhere in the world that they have been before and can clearly picture in their mind. This costs 1 additional Eureka! Point per additional person they are bringing with, in addition to the Composure cost.

Superhuman Speed (Mage Power) 

When this ability is activated, this investigator’s body is capable of moving faster than regular physics dictate it should, but not faster than the human eye can track. This ability must be activated on a per-Scene basis, and doing so confers a +3 Composure check. This takes a Movement. While this ability is active, add a +3 Base to this investigator’s Reflexes skill, a +3 Base bonus to any melee attack roll, and a -3 penalty to any other character’s melee attack roll targeting this character, and a -1 to any other character’s firearm or projectile attack roll targeting this character if this character is ducking or running perpendicular to the shooter. While this ability is active this investigator also has an Acceleration of +8. 

Werewolf (Mage Power)

The character may transform into a large, tailless wolf. This takes 1 Action if done in combat. In this form, they can only attack with their jaws. To attack with jaws, make a Grab attack. So long as the target is Grabbed, all other aspects of Grabbing apply, but they also take 2 Penetrative damage each time it is the character’s turn with no roll needed. This damage can be reduced by armor or by any other damage reduction such as that of the Unkillable trait. They gain a +4 Contextual bonus to Senses rolls involving hearing and smell. They also gain a +1 Base bonus to Close Combat, and a +4 Base bonus to Stealth. +4 Acceleration.

While in wolf form, werewolves are capable of Scent Tracking. (See p.xx “Scent Tracking”.) 

[Snoop: An image of a tree with a wolf tail sticking out from one side and a snoop ‘skin’ hanging from a coat hanger right next to it.]

Note: ‘Werewolves’ as they appear in most historical folklore do not really fit into the Monster category. They don’t have any particular weaknesses besides the weaknesses that regular humans have, nor are they really even that dangerous compared to other Monster types. For this reason, this Trait is considered a Mage Power. For a more ‘hollywood’ take on werewolves, see Wolfman. 

[wind-up-thancred]

i actually decided katsu doesn't have any real sineater or final days-related bad ends, but the one bad end AU he does have happens in mid- to late stormblood, where he is tempered by lakshmi. STB spoilers under the cut

STB is kind of a dogshit time for katsu's mental health because he kinda gets hit with a triple whammy: -actively working to support a rebellion is exhausting and makes you witness some awful, truly heinous shit from the oppressors

-going back to his hometown kugane again when he didn't feel like he was ready stressed him out big time, and

-his fights with zenos are the first time in his stint as the WOL that he begins to be actually aware of, and fear, his own mortality

and of course he misses his bf. seeing a glimpse of thancred when he returns to the fringes is nice and all but that glimpse is fleeting and it just reminds him that he does not get the comfort he wants; his job is more important. there is no time for comfort for a tool, its job is to be used.

and if he was, like, 5% more mentally unstable when lakshmi attempts to temper him and the twins, her influence would've wormed its way past the blessing of light and began to infect his head, using his deep inner desire for comfort and fear of mortality as a conduit. she can utilize that, she is the lady of bliss.

it happens slowly, over the next few days, and katsu realizes he can still hear lakshmi calling in his head, slowly growing louder. he knows right away that he fucked up big time, and because of his awful avoidant streak, his first instinct is to hide himself away and fuck off into the mountains of gyr abania. he failed the scions; he could not be their rock. he cannot face them like this.

of course, they'd organize a search party for him after he'd disappeared for a few days, and they'd find him eventually. and that would probably exacerbate the situation more, because he'd be directly confronted by his failure. he never wanted them to see him in this abysmal state.

it would probably wear at katsu's psyche enough to prompt a full tempering transformation to katsu's body, and of course there would be a silly little boss fight, where lakshmi bids katsu to protect himself from "the people who put you into this whole mess, who set you upon this painful path." even though katsu does not truly see them that way, he must oblige.

he even manages a very weak form of tempering on his own, which isn't enough to actually fully convert any of the scions beating the shit out of him (out of necessity of course), but still messes with their heads. and it's not antagonistic— he wants to extend lakshmi's comfort and bliss to them as well, so they don't have to hurt either.

i may be biased but i think it gets to thancred worst of all. katsu probably calls directly to him. he knows it hurts. he knows thancred is still wracked with grief. he knows sometimes he wishes to rid himself of everything at once, that he feels like he can't handle all of it even though he tries, by the gods does he try. and katsu wants to free him from that as well. but thancred knows better than that, and i think he uses minfilia as his motivation to avoid giving in.

he's like, yes gods fuck it hurts that i failed her, and everyone else, so bad, but i'd be failing her even more if i just ran away. i can't. you can't, either. if we had any idea it had gotten this bad for you we would've tried to help, we can give you support, anything, but you can't just run away. anything but giving up. that is not an option.

i think the tempering actually helps the scions recognize katsu's plight that he's been hiding from them, and they manage to pull him out of the transformation with some very strong words and, uh, knocking him senseless afterwards. he's deeply, deeply ashamed once he wakes but turns his shame into motivation to do better instead of using it as an excuse to run away this time.

i also like to think that in this AU, maybe later in MSQ once he's gotten stronger, he's able to channel lakshmi by drawing upon that desire for comfort and use her powers in some niche situations. but none of that is canon in my default verse, just a little side thing i came up with for fun :]

Bad endings? Bad endings anyone?

What if they got consumed by the light? What if they became a primal? Any and all bad endings!

I think mine most likely would've become a lightwarden because she didn't get to Emet-Selch fast enough. "Obsession" would be its name, due to the fact it would be obsessed with the idea of saving others and changing the world, probably leading to either the Scions killing her or to her consuming the First in Light.

.

[ashtonisvibing]

i'm gonna need youtube to give me an option to change the layout back to smaller thumbnails real quick because what is this-

[moongothic]

Seen a few people too many discuss the concept of Dragodile Baby 2 and my hot take is that there's no way in hell Crocodile would ever detransition just to go through nine months of horrible dysphoria again, let alone go through pregnancy ever again (or allow Ivankov to even touch him, what if they died and weren't able to trans Croc's gender again afterwards? Hell naw, ain't worth the risk)

But this leaves an opportunity for a Funnier Option:

Dragon wants another baby? Sure, but it's his turn to carry it >:)

[sunspinecity]

50$ to print 10 of the same skin has always been so insane to me. you're telling me it's 50$ to print....only 10.....of a single skin....and that's normal. And not only is that normal, that's what's required for a skin shop. where ppl may not even sign up for 10 runs. and then you're left in the shitter with at minimum 1-4 skins nobody wanted (not to mention if some people decide not to pay afterward) that you have to just pray someone finds & buys on the auction house. And it's 50$. Uhuh. And then that's just the artist's issue and fault and we're gonna blame them instead of the fact that a 10 print run costs as much as groceries.

[elegyofthemoon]

well. i finished ch 17 of hi3. but at what cost

[seilon]

kinda wild that i know people who work at like. half the popular bars/clubs in town at this point. it makes me feel powerful

[skaluli]

"this wulf fellow has choice language"

[confinesofmy]

me and my cousin i'm barely on speaking terms with (but in a relatively casual way) repotted her deceased grandmother's pothos today. this was our first time actually properly repotting it bc last summer it was in such a fragile state and we were so scared to hurt it that we just lifted it out of its pot and placed it in a bigger one but this go round we basically dismantled it entirely. we got eight discrete plants and placed it into four different pots!! in nine months it went from the edge of death to that many plants and like ninety leaves altogether. so if you're bad with plants but still wanna fool with them, i guess you should get a pothos.