#gunslinger’s paean

[scalefeathers]

…Just a moment more… Look directly up, and the sky would subtly thin at its zenith, the muggy teal starting to let space peek through: darkness infinite. [...]Above, the clouds drifted and shimmered… they almost seemed to stretch into long, thin storybook-ships… when he was really little, he thought that if he wished hard enough, perhaps they’d stop for him…

(@ashcroft-writes has been posting new fic and that means I’m back on my bullshit)

[asexualreptile]

Hey @ashcroft-writes, I finally managed to finish Rokthur :D

Drawing this was really fun and I learned a lot. For drawing reference I googled 'werewolf wallpapers' because I wanted this kinda in-your-face masculine and animalistic feel ':)

I imagine him on a bounty hunt, perching on thick branches with the moon to light the way.

[weirdlet]

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Heehee guess who's probably posting ~40k words of fic over the next five Fridays

[eeveequ33n]

"Then, without warning, the illusion died. The sun gave way to night.

Endless, fathomless starry night.

Space. The universe just beyond here -- a little obscured by wires and panels, but the galaxy infinite nonetheless. And there, looming fragile and giant and ash-gray and brown, hung Duro -- the Titan these cities still clung to, embracing them all in her gravity."

--from chapter 11 of Homeworld Elegy by @ashcroft-writes on ao3

Most of this series is constantly in my thoughts, but this scene gave me goosebumps. There's a duros woman in this scene, standing on a balcony, leading an entire crowd in singing an old funeral song to mourn their home, and every time i read this part I swear I can hear her. I tried to draw her, but it wasn't coming out right, so I focused on what she was seeing. Maybe she wasn't born on the actual planet, but at one point it was home to her family, she probably has stories passed down to her, only to finally see that the home she was told about through generations has been gone a long time.

This got long and rambley, needless to say Gunslinger's Paean brain rot is still going strong & is still my favorite clone wars story to date

[texasdreamer01]

End of year fic asks: 14, 25

14.) a fic you didn’t expect to write

Of published fics… about any of them, actually, since I haven't done a gift exchange this year and I find writing at all a generally difficult task. Of unpublished fics, definitely all of them, though I'm happy to write for the SGA fandom because of all the new things to play with.

25.) a fic you read this year you would recommend everyone read

Many reams of reading later, I've managed to find the fics I've read from this year that I'd recommend the most:

Pilgrim's Progress by sardonicsmiley

Stargate Atlantis, Teyla & Rodney, Teen, 43k, Whump, Religion, Artificial Intelligence, Mind Control, Action/Adventure

Summary: ""You're not God, Sheppard's not your messiah, and I'm not the anti-Christ. But I am going to kill you.""

Mad respect for the author making an enormous fic just to use one line, and also an exceptionally strong argument for why Rodney and Teyla are such well-bonded friends (also a strong argument for Teyla/Rodney, as some other readers have commented, even if not an intended focus of the fic), because canon does not... articulate that. It does a great job on the particularities of living in a different galaxy, and how one thing on the "what problem are we having this week" scale can snowball and have a very narrow possibility of being fixed. In that respect, it's a very Stargate fic, and worth settling in for a long read.

Immanence by orphan_account

SGA, Rodney McKay/John Sheppard, Mature, 3.5k

Summary: "For a time there were two of them: a blood-and-bone Rodney and one made of data and light."

This fic is so sad. Gotta read it, though. This follows the Last Man!Rodney through his entire decision-making process to get John back home, and the author has done such an excellent job at following and developing Rodney's thought process - and even how it differs when he becomes a hologram - that it stuck with me to the point that I started writing Theorems of a Ghost and, a little bit, also Interface.

The Idiot's Array by @ashcroft-writes

Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008), Cad Bane/Obi-Wan Kenobi, mentioned Obi Wan Kenobi/Satine Kryze, Explicit, 161k, Enemies to Lovers, Slow Burn, a lot of other tags I'm too lazy to write out but played a major factor in me deciding to read this fic

Summary: "Obi-Wan Kenobi is a Jedi with countless regrets. However, forging a shameful secret with the notorious Cad Bane while undercover… it actually wasn’t one of them.

He wishes it was. What sort of man does that make him now?

After all, something inside has started to crack. Perhaps that’s why he isn’t even surprised when a certain bounty hunter surges back into his life, dead set on turning his calamitous fall into fortune… and on making the Jedi suffer that did him wrong."

Part 1 of Gunslinger's Paean (and how cool is that name for a series??), I think I was initially intrigued by this one because of some fanart? Or maybe I just saw it in so many bookmarks that I went "fuck it" and clicked the link. Either way, great decision on my part - if I hadn't already liked Bane/Kenobi, this would have convinced me. It's always been a bit of a what-if question in the SW fandom of "what if Obi-Wan was a bounty hunter?", and this answers the question with its own interpretation very, very well. I haven't read the other two fics in the series but I should probably get on that whenever my fandom brain swings back to Star Wars.

To the gloaming and the dusk by fictional_hr_department

The Hobbit, Bard the Bowman/Thranduil, Teen, 11k, Canon-Typical Violence, Canon-Compliant Battle of Five Armies, Pre-Relationship, other tags that also made me click the link

Summary: "“It is because of love that I have spent centuries, millennia even, fighting against the evils of this world.” Thranduil could hear the hints of tremor in his voice but found that he could not steady himself. “Love for my people, love for the forest that is our home, love for Arda herself. Just because it is not the love you have read about in your storybooks does not make it any less real and it, like the Greenwood, like our kingdom, like our people, will endure. Now. Get out of my way.”

Or, how the events leading up through the Battle of Five Armies might have gone differently."

#i just shoved book canon and movie canon in a blender to see what came out <- tag that made me click on the link. This is probably a cornerstone fic in how I headcanon Thranduil, and the author does a fantastic job of taking the tatters of canon Tolkien left in the book(s) and propped up the inconsistencies in movie canon to make Thranduil a solid character. Load-bearing work in the fandom, really. I love the fact that it both does and does not happen in Thranduil's point of view, and that the author does a great job a differentiating how the differences in lifespan and experiences shape a character's perspective on the same events.

safer places to wander by pomgore

The Hobbit, Thranduil & Tilda, Bard the Bowman & the Bardlings, Pre-Bard the Bowman/Thranduil, Gen, 5k, Post-Battle of Five Armies, Fluff without Plot, Aftermath of Violence, Being Lost, thranduil has to relearn how to interact with children, Digital Art

Summary: "Of course, Thranduil is not on high alert for children when the battle in Erebor rages because battlefields are no place for children. Indeed, even a lofty being like a Doriath elf feels faint among all the death - darkness is dwelling strong here, and Thranduil feels dim and alone as he walks the war-torn streets of Dale.He is untethered as he drifts among his fallen soldiers like a ghost. So, when a child turns a corner and runs directly into his leg, Thranduil almost doesn’t notice. ~~~ Bard's youngest, a talkative creature named Tilda, is separated from her family. Thranduil knows something must be done, but it is a challenge to figure out exactly what."

I quibbled on whether to include this, but, genuinely, aww. This is a Thranduil who's not great at something, knows it, and does his best anyway. I love how the author convey humor with their verbiage and pacing, and Thranduil's sincerity come across very clearly. He's a little awkward, means well, and can admit to himself when - and that! - he likes Bard. Short, sweet, worth reading.

[ashcroft-writes]

@trashfaun

AND IT'S STILL HILARIOUS TO ME A YEAR LATER TOO JFKSDJFDSKL

Thank you so much <3 You absolutely make my week, not just with your comic but knowing you're still all about this story while I write the next bit!!! Welcome back to the Tumblr, you fab artist you.

Kenobi going for that caf because he knows he’s the one needing to deal with this.

I’ve wanted to do this since I made my first lil fanart over a year ago for @ashcroft-writes, but life happened until now when, once again, reading Gunslinger’s Paean over and over again. So… have this old joke reference!

Now to just… try and take care of this backlog of sketches-

[scalefeathers]

The picture reminded him of one he himself had taken long ago. He’d never been much for pictures, nor for publicly broadcasting any… affection… but his youthful companion had talked him into it at some point, wrapping their fingers tight through gloves, insisting they should have one snapshot, just one, so they could look on their little secret when they were apart.

Bodies wound up, clothes rumpled, sitting on a bedroom floor. Faces buried in the other’s.

- Homeworld Elegy, chapter 6 by @ashcroft-writes

[eeveequ33n]

The Idiot's Array by @ashcroft-writes lives rent free in my head, stg I think about it once a day. Was going to ink and paint but I think I like it better all sketchy

[kitewithfish]

Wednesday Reading Meme and a note about Storygraph for fanfic readers

I'm traveling this week so I'm going to be out of ambit tomorrow (aka actual Wednesday) so I figured I would write out this week's reading in advance and add to it if I finish anything on the plane.

Also, useful little note for Storygraph users- they now have a way to log things as Not A Book! This was specifically added so that people could use Storygraph to track their fanfic without having to clog the Storygraph databases with non-book items. Since it does not add the fanfic to the larger catalog of books, it also doesn't put fic authors in the awkward position of having to ask people not to link their fanfic to a non-fanfic audience. Full details here: https://roadmap.thestorygraph.com/features/posts/-not-a-book-status

What I've Read Homeworld Elegy by Ashcroft_Writes - part 2 of Gunslinger's Paean ( sprawling and wonderful AU from Epsiode 4:07 of The Clone Wars) - Technically an unfinished series but existing works each are complete. I found this to be just... solidly one of the best books I've read. Any genre, but in particular for sci fi. And it's about CAD BANE from the fucking Clone Wars cartoon. After the events of the first fic, which lead to Cad maybe sort of kind of sidling sideways towards considering maybe his current way of life is not working for him exactly as it is, he has to return to the space station he grew up on. This fic takes its original characters and just soaks them with meaning and builds metaphor and culture into everything - it feels incredibly sci fi and incredibly real. Highly recommend both works in the series.

Honorable mention for a shorter fic - On the Side by spicedrobot - Maul/Cad Bane, sex work, mind sex - just a great take on an interesting concept!

What I'm Reading Thrawn: Treason - Timothy Zahn - book three - I skipped book two because it did not have Eli Vanto, and I'm a simple creature.

What I'll Read Next

Darth Maul: Lockdown Whale Rider Thrawn -Heir to the Empire Maybe Spinning Silver Tiger's Daughter

Things I own: Might re-read City of Lies in order to get back on the page for the sequel book. Hunting Towards Heartstill -blackkat Think of England - KJ charles True Colors - Karen traviss

[ashcroft-writes]

I'm so very, very honored to reblog this artwork you've spent so much love and energy in crafting. I've been in such suspense to see which scene you picked since you first teased that you wanted to cook up a bit of artwork based on my words (<3!), and you wound up snagging one of my absolute faves, as Obi-Wan dove too deep, oxygen running out, falling into a vision from the Force.

Onward, Obi-Wan trudged. His boots were soft and flexible, but the heat from the sand radiated into his feet as it twisted tricky and loose beneath. He never grew tired, though. Never thirsted, even as his skin burned, as his mind evaporated slow.

The trail stretched before him, and he followed.

He walked until he forgot what it was to stop.

He walked until he no longer remembered another sky or another earth.

He walked until he had no thoughts and no past and no self, and then, he kept walking, breathing, putting one foot in front of the next… doggedly cresting each new hill, just like the wanderer who had come before.

By the way—it's such a joy to see that the title also as a mirror of The Traveler's Steps?? The poem at the end of the story whose illustration mirrors this sequence??? I SEE WHAT YOU DID THERE!!!

Truly, I don't even have words for how much FUN I had reading this. How much care I could see you put into your craft! Obi-Wan's harrowed and vibrant expressions, that flashes of grief as he remembers his master, the attention to detail (the bright ember of Bane's cigarette in the night like a star to follow!)... I just... ahhhhh!!!!!

I can't even imagine how long this took, and am beyond honored you chose to chase such an elaborate and well-done undertaking inspired by my work.

If any of my followers love The Idiot's Array... you should definitely click through and send a talented artist some love here. <3 @tony-artx you can COUNT on me gushing more at you more later also hahaha. It is well-deserved!!!

After several months, it's finally done!

You can read it on DeviantArt, here:

https://www.deviantart.com/bones-and-stars/art/Gunslinger-s-Paean-The-Traveller-s-Trail-Cover-1070271234

@ashcroft-writes thank you so much for letting me to mess with your story!

[agoddamn]

A bunch of SW recs in no particular order. Mostly Obi-Wan-centric because I have an awful bias, but a variety of ships. No porn.

chasing the light by skycatcher

Happy endings were never meant for clones; or perhaps clones were not meant for happy endings. But nothing has ever come easy for Rex and Cody — and it’s not going to stop them now.

I will stan this fic on the basis of Cody explicitly saying that he's not Mandalorian in the second part ALONE but the rest of it is also exceptional. Post-war fixit-ish.

Open up the Promise of the Day by dharmaavocado

Or five times Rex defended Obi-Wan's honor and one time Obi-Wan returned the favor.

Very cute. I love the slime mold bit.

Perception by ???

Master and apprentice are held captive. Obi-Wan is drugged, and unable to differentiate the past, present and future. Qui-Gon is a little shocked when rescue comes in the form of a figure from his own past: Dooku. The trip back to Coruscant is full of unexpected moments and emotions.

I have a weakness for getting all these assholes in the same room. Also points for flawed but sympathetic Qui-Gon.

A Duel with Fate by psocoptera

The re-lived day is one of the strangest mysteries of the Jedi: a passage in a Jedi's life when the Force knots Time itself around their individual consciousness, allowing them to revise and repeat their actions until harmony with the Force is achieved.

VERY fun take on the Groundhog Day trope, reimagining it as a known Force phenomenon.

Hope by lilyconrad

The Clone Wars are the backdrop to a quiet and fragile love between a general and a clone commander.

I am a sucker for getting-together stories.

Armored Oasis by spectersticks

The enigmatic clan of Kajain'sa'Nikto known as the "Sand Wraiths of Florrum" attacks the Jedi outpost on the desert planet without warning. Several nights of bombardment later, the Council sends Obi-Wan Kenobi with Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano to uncover the reason behind these consistent attacks, while defending the outpost from the Nikto clan's ranged assaults. Ahsoka teams up with local Twi'lek allies from Florrum's northern capital to gather information, while Anakin and Obi-Wan stand by at the outpost to prevent further damage. The Sand Wraiths, however, don't let things go quite as smoothly as planned.

Missionfic! Fun action. This person also has some other good missionfic.

It Was Another Time and I Another Man by pell_binterhol

Master Jinn and Padawan Kenobi find themselves thrown decades into the future and into the midst of a civil war. Ahsoka is delighted for an opportunity to know her unflappable grand-master when he was her age, but as their differences mount, she comes to learn just how much the order has changed. Meanwhile, Obi-wan and Qui-gon aren't the only ones to find themselves out of time, and old Ben Kenobi is scrambling to find Luke Skywalker and pull him out of a tragedy he has no heart to relive.

Obi-Wan stir-fry.

Living Memory, My Fate to Follow by elsa3beth

Ben Kenobi expected his tutelage on Tatooine under the force spirit of Qui-Gon Jinn to yield a new perspective on the galaxy and his place within it. He just did not expect his last lesson to be so…literal. Finding himself back in the early days of the Clone Wars, Ben, now once again General Obi-Wan Kenobi, must struggle with the failures of a past he has long suppressed, while others conspire to give him hope for a future that might yet be.

God-tier time travel fic.

Gunslinger's Paean by ashcroft_writes

Cad Bane has always been alone—only death beside him, destruction in his wake. It's his choice. His safety. His creed.

But connection is a dangerous temptation.

I actually just reblogged a rec for this! Good shit.

Of Queens, Knights, and Pawns by chancecraz

I went to sleep on the worst day of my life and woke to find myself in the past on the second worst day of my life. As experiences go, I don’t recommend it.

TFA Leia time travel to ANH. Leia is the viewpoint character here but by god, the Obi-Wan suffering is next-level.

Tell Me No Tales by seastruck

Cody survived the war. And he'll survive the Empire, even if it kills him.

Or: Years after Order-66 destroyed everything he'd fought for, Cody finds himself as an inside agent for the rebellion after his chip malfunctioned. Along with a small group of of clones, he navigates dealing with a merciless Admiral, saving people he thought were long dead, dealing with his ghosts and - maybe - his ghosts coming back for him.

Slowburn that will send you to the ER for an emotional erection lasting longer than four hours

Atlas of our Ruin by ripki

Both the past and the future casts long shadows. Obi-Wan and Anakin learn that the hard way, when a mysterious holocron flings them backwards and forwards in time, forcing them to confront painful truths. But the time-travel is only the beginning…

Excellent Obi-Wan and Anakin characterization.

i'll orbit your flickering star by sunskippa

All Cody wanted from the Jedi was a competent, fair general; one who would allow him to focus on keeping his men safe, and maybe trying to live up to the name Jango Fett bestowed on him.

Nothing could have prepared him for Kenobi save for the experience itself: crashing across the galaxy, from insane caf-and-stims-fueled battlefield highs, to heady fluorescent ship-side lows.

But then, he supposes, this war had a habit of exceeding his expectations, in all the best and worst ways. This is that story through Cody's eyes.

Really solid Cody characterization.

There Goes the Atmosphere by missmollyetc

The most dangerous space in the galaxy is the distance between a clone and his general.

I am also a sucker for post-O66 drama.

[tribeca]

“It takes real, born-with-it charisma to eclipse Channing Tatum in a film in which he tap dances. But “eclipse” is somewhat misleading. Alden Ehrenreich emerges as the clear MVP of the Coen brothers’ recent hooray-for-Hollywood spectacle Hail, Caesar! in a performance that doesn’t have a spotlight-stealing urge to be found. As Hobie Doyle, the gunslinging studio sweetheart who receives an uncomfortable transformation into debonair leading man, Ehrenreich is the only actor in this blue-ribbon ensemble to fully delineate a complete character within a series of diffuse screwball set-pieces. His timing is impeccable, never more so than in that killer “Would that it were so simple” tête-à-tête with Ralph Fiennes. But it’s the soft and adorably unassuming quality that Ehrenreich lends Hobie that lets the Coens’ moviemaking paean achieve actual movie magic.” — Matthew Eng

11 Underrated Male Film Performances from 2016

(source: tribecafilm.com)

[sweetzerlandia]

And in case you don't know Korean: Pasting one of the comments that translated. Updated on 12/31

Chanter: Protective Ward : For 10 sec, creates a shield that has 100% chance to block damage each time an individual and up to 6 group members within 20m, and increases knock back resistance by 500, silence resistance by 300, magic suppression by 1000, and hp recovery effect by 50%.

Assassin : Slayer Form: For 1 minute, transforms into a slayer. The transform increases your magic resist by 250, magical accuracy by 1000, maximum hp by 5000, and increases attack range by 2 m. Also, for 15 sec, performs critical strike up to 1 time.

Cleric: Summon Light Spirit: Summons a spirit which inflicts 3149 fire damage on target and within 25 m and enemies near of the target. Creates a shield for itself which reflects damage back to an enemy.

Songweaver: Purifying Paean: Removes all abnormal conditions cast on individual and up to 6 allies within 25 m radius, and recovers 1000 mp.

Templar : Blood Pact: Consumes your hp to inflict 3171 - 3207 physical damage on a target and up to 3 enemies of the target within 7 m. Repeat Activation 3 times.

Spirit Master : Fear Shrink: Transforms enemies within 15m into fire spirits for 11 sec - 18 sec, fearing them and reducing movement speed. ★(ATM, in Korean test server, cannot dispel w/ cleric’s ripple of purification, acquittal, splendor of purification. Only SW’s new purifying paean can dispel this fear currently.)★

Ranger: Mau Form: Spends DP to transform into a Mau Warrior for 2 m, increasing Physical Attack by 30%, Attack Speed by 26%, and Speed by 39%. Also, the transform increase your magical accuracy by 300, pulling resistance by 300, paralysis resist by 300. Your DP is drained while this skill is active. Usage Cost : 50 DP / Cost: 50 DP(4 sec)

Aethertech: Overdrive Trigger: Increases movement and flight speed by 15%, attack speed by 15%, magic boost by 500, and magical accuracy by 400. Your DP is drained while this skill is active. Usage Cost : 100 DP / Cost: 100 DP(4 sec).

Gladiator: Armor of Attrition: For 15 sec, Increase Fear and Sleep resist 800. Also, reflects 500 of the damage received back to the enemy 10 m or more far from individual, and absorbs 300 of hp of the target, at the same time your movement speed is increased that all attack you for 15 sec.

Sorcerer : Flaming Meteor: Inflicts 1800 magical fire damage on enemies within 10 m from a selected spot within 25 m, and stuns them for 3 sec at a certain rate, and make the target as "blazing condition – inflicts dot damage.”

Gunslinger: Bullet Resistance: Recovers 25% of your HP, and increases your max HP by 25% for 30s. Also, increases Binding resistance by 500, and Silence Resistance by 300.

[ashcroft-writes]

@fat-tasty-krogan Nyeheheh, you have already provided a spark! Keep on being fabulous and I'll see what I can do >:-)

I just need to get through the next big entry of Gunslinger's Paean first... for many reasons... >:-)

[trashfaun]

Kenobi going for that caf because he knows he’s the one needing to deal with this.

I’ve wanted to do this since I made my first lil fanart over a year ago for @ashcroft-writes, but life happened until now when, once again, reading Gunslinger’s Paean over and over again. So... have this old joke reference!

Now to just... try and take care of this backlog of sketches-

[scalefeathers]

Hang on. There was something else in the box… a little… holo-disc…?

He pressed it, summoning a picture. It was a bit of sentimentality spirited into his things, like he might have refused it any other way—and he might have! But there were him and Nuni as kids. Wrapped up in each other. Content.

--Homeworld Elegy, chapter 11

(For @ashcroft-writes​, and anyone else who enjoyed this drawing, here’s the holo-version. I would have posted it with the original, but I kind of forgot I had made it)