#holiday yunaka

[thewisemankey]

SPECIAL DELIVERY.

Yunaka🎁

[juliakeyoto]

[dcggersedge]

“ Hey, Yunaka! Happy Holidays! ”  Lapis greets Yunaka the day of. In her hands is a wrapped present box that she then holds out to her.  “ I made you something to celebrate it! Here. ”

Upon opening the box, what lies inside is a necklace with a star-shaped pendant and an ear cuff depicting a string of tiny stars.

“ I noticed sometimes you go back after a battle to pick up stars that might've fallen out of your hair, so I figured you must really like them. I tried to think of ways you could wear starry things that would be harder to fall off and came up with these! ”  she explains.  “ The ear cuff is for the days you change your hair and you show off your ears. You can adjust it to make sure it stays securely on your ear but not so much that it starts hurting. And the pendant is actually a secret compartment! If you open it, you can stick something really small in there. Stylish but still useful, and it goes with your other accessories too. And something that wouldn't take away from the stars you already wear, cause I'm not trying to replace them. Just complement them, y'know? ”

Though maybe if all of them were worn at once, it'd be too much? Though nobody could deny that Yunaka would be as dazzling as a star-filled night sky!

“ In any case, I hope they're to your liking and that you have a good Winter Festival, Yunaka! I'm really, really glad we became friends, so I wanted to show you a bit of that through making you something you could keep with you, mmhm. ”

She should have seen this coming. All the signs were there. Others were giving gifts. Others had planned things in advance. Of course Lapis would be right in there in the gift giving trenches, good and sweet person that she is.

She really needed to prep better for this next year.

"Aw, Lapis, you really didn't have to make me anything!" Not only get but make. That was a whole new level of preparedness for this unknown exchange that Yunaka hadn't even considered. And, as always, Lapis never fails to impress as she explains in great detail just what she's made and what Yunaka can do with it. Seriously...could she be anymore amazing?

"I'll definitely be nailing the theme with these little add-ons, I think." She jokes. A necklace and an ear cuff...they're not the same as the stars she wears. They don't carry the same weight as those do, or the same promise that she'd made to herself. Maybe that was a good thing.

New year. Something new. There was more thoughts there that she didn't have the brain or time to wrangle into proper words. Whatever. Not like anyone besides her needs to know.

She smiles and pulls the necklace out by the chain, allowing the star to sway in the air like the world's smallest falling star. It looks decently made...she'd have to test the locket Lapis promised her later.

"I appreciate you taking the time to make me something. I'll be sure to come running right over as soon as I do put them on." Should she save them for something important, or would that be a waste? Much to think about.

With a laugh and an accusatory finger pointed Lapis's way, Yunaka winks. "You just wait for next year, and I'll get you something even more dazzling, Pebbles."

[owainbradys]

Yall can't do this to me I have NO ORBS

[toa-secretsanta]

Happy holidays Vivi from Kiki! :] Getting to draw Yunaka with different hairstyles felt like such a treat to be able to do. I hope you enjoy your gift!

[real-fire-emblem-takes]

I keep seeing people suggest that Yunaka should get a ninja alt, and I feel like I need to send out a PSA that ninja are literally assassins. If she got a ninja alt, that would literally be regression and depression: the holiday for her. She should have silly fun alts instead!! Just like her Christmas one :)

!

[crimsonretainer]

🎄 THE POWER OF CHRIST COMPELS YOU🎄🏌️ (THROWIN🌲G MISTLE TOE🎄🏌️S AT HIM) 🎄🎄🏌️🌲🎄 THE POWER OF CHRIST COMPWLS YOU (doesn't believe in god)🎄🎄🏌️🎄(knees rattling defending professor yunaka's honor while dhaking and crying and heaving) THE POWER OF

HUBERT IS AWARE OF THE EFFECT HIS PRESENCE has on the Lavender haired young woman, a consequence of his unnatural demeanour, and yet no matter how hard he tried to tone it down it never seemed to work. It's not purposeful on his part, not when she had one of the brightest strategic minds he's had the pleasure of interacting with. Perhaps that's why he's both thankful and cursing the Deer he suspects to have hung the magically enchanted mistletoe above the entrance to their classroom.

He does not let his irritation show, mindful that it can be easily misconstrued as anger towards the archer beside him. Instead, his hand raises slowly and methodically, ensuring she can track it from his side to where it comes to rest upon the crown of her head, ever so gently brushing the hair from side to side like he's done for his siblings again and again.

"Happy holidays Bernadetta..." It's a cheerful tone from him, one he's been practising at night in hopes of making himself a bit easier for the skittish woman to be around. "Some of us will be staying here for the holidays, and a rumour suggests that the kitchen will be stocked with Cocoa if you'd like to join us one night." A metaphorical outstretched hand, one he hopes will not invite a repeat of the last time they met in the cafeteria.

[mamaluigi2018-commsopen]

Etienaka: Holiday Cheers

Etie's giving her ever crush some gifts for the holidays. Yunaka really seemed to enjoy it! And Etie seems to really enjoy her thank you hug :3

[amitieos]

toa anniversary munday!

Celebrating TOA and the people who contribute to make our group what it is.

Repost, don't reblog. Only fill in what you feel comfortable sharing!

Happy anniversary, TOA! Here's to many more years spent together.

Name: Nic

Pronouns: they/them

Birthday (no year): 14th July

Where are you from? What is your time zone? UK, GMT (or BST but don't get me started on daylight savings I'll explode)

How long is your roleplay experience? Does playing A Bug's Life on the playground when I was 5 count? If not, I started with rping HP characters with my friends when I was like 11-12 over MSN after school and whilst there have been breaks it's something I've always found myself coming back to.

How were you introduced to roleplaying as a whole? As above, I made a couple of friends on (unrelated) forums and we all just thought it'd be fun.

How were you introduced to TOA? I thought I missed rp and looked for an FE based rp.

Do you have any pets? Yes, all hail Catcat the Great.

What is your favorite time of year and why? (Season, holiday, general period) Summer. I hate the heat and humiditiy but once there's no daylight the seasonal affective disorder bass boosts my chronic mental health issues and it's just a bad time really.

What is your IRL occupation? I've gone back to uni to study Law :)

Some interests and things you like/enjoy? I love reading, I'm fascinated by linguistics and astrophysics, enjoy DnD and playing video games in my spare time. I'm a particular sucker for the Sims franchise.

What non-Fire Emblem games do you play? Recently I've been playing BG3, Stardew Valley, The Sims & Fields of Mistria but I'm a big fan of the Persona series and really, really excited about Dragon Age The Veilguard

Favorite Pokemon type & Pokemon: I don't really play Pokemon much anymore but I'll just say Sylveon I guess

Tell us some funfacts and trivia about yourself! I met the fourth Doctor when I was 11 and he complemented my vocabulary lmao. I once got published in a poetry anthology with a poem about Shadow the Hedgehog and my parents we so proud of me.

How did you get into Fire Emblem? I think I saw a review on TV

What Fire Emblem games have you played? I've attempted to play every game except 1/2/3/5/11, although I've really wanted to play Thracia I just *need* some QoL updates and controls. I haven't finished every single one because of lost/deleted saves and stuff but I've watched playthroughs and read up on scripts on everything I haven't actually played myself.

First & Favorite Fire Emblem games: My first was Fates but Jugdral, Magvel and 3 Houses are my favourite

List your 5 favorite Fire Emblem characters across the series! Elincia, Mercedes, Franz, Myrrh and ughhhh I can't choose between Chole/Yunaka/Sylvain so I'm cheating

Who was the first character ever to make you go “ooh I like this one in particular” and why? Can be any context and reason! I saw Ryoma in all that red armour and it grabbed my attention.

Any Fire Emblem crushes? 😳 Miss Mercedes if you're free Thursday night

If you’ve played (or are familiar with) the following games, who was your first S support? Who would you S support nowadays? - Awakening: Chrom, originally be accident but now on purpose :D - Fates: My first was Takumi and I didn't know what an S support was and was very confused. Nowadays usually Kaze or Laslow if playing F!Corrin and Orochi, Nyx or Charlotte if playing M!Corrin. Niles for either. - Three Houses: Mercedes. She's still my go to ofc but I'm also fond of Dorothea, Dimitri and Sylvain. If I'm playing M!Byleth Yuri or Ingrid - Engage: Yunaka was my first and now it's either Yunaka, Diamant or Chloe. Or Mauvier maybe hahfsdgfsd

Favorite Fire Emblem class? I love Pegasus Knights!!!!!!!

If you were a Fire Emblem character, what would be your class and stats? Would you be playable? Probably a reluctant recruit who accidentally gets involved. Weirdly magic based armoured character.

If you were a Three Houses character, what would be your affiliation? (Black Eagles, Blue Lions, Golden Deer, Church of Seiros, Those Who Slither in the Dark, unaffiliated civilian, other - for example Almyran) Either unaffiliated civilian or Blue Lions probably

If you were an Officers Academy student, what would be your boons, banes and potential budding talent? Boons: Lance, Reason, Heavy Armour Banes: Bow, Faith Budding Talent: idk Axes or Flying?

If you were an Engage character, which nation would you originate from? (Firene, the Kingdom of Abundance; Brodia, the Kingdom of Might; Elusia, the Kingdom of Knowledge; Solm, the Queendom of Freedom; Lythos, the holy land of the Divine Dragon; Gradlon, the desolate land of the Fell Dragon) No idea! Probably Elusia or Firene. The Solm heat would literally kill me.

How do you pronounce TOA? 🤔(separate letters, to-ah, other?) TOA ;) (like Noah)

Current TOA muses: Elincia & Mercedes

Past TOA muses? A lot but most memorable to me are Sylvain and Julia, though I'm so excited to see Sylvain in good hands <3

Who was your first TOA muse? If you no longer have them, can you see yourself picking them up again? Elincia and I still have her.

Do you believe you have a type of character you gravitate towards writing? White magic girlies though I'm trying to change things up.

Do you have characters or types of characters you don’t think you can handle writing, but wish you could? Hm, I wish I felt I could write more of the male characters I enjoy effectively. In most other fandoms I've written in most of my muses have been men but it's just not so in FE. I'd also love to write a villain okay I once genuinely considered Hilda FE4 lmao

What kind of scenes, situations etc do you believe you enjoy writing the most? (If you filled this out last year, has this changed in any way?) I like writing dialogue and characters bonding but I'm starting to like more action oriented scenes too.

Do you have any scenario in mind for your muse(s) that gets you thinking “man I hope I get to write this one day”? For Mercedes in particular I get excited to write her steel and strength, especially when it's combined with her gentleness rather than opposed to it.

Favorite TOA-related memories? Every thread I've writen with Elincia and Rua's Byleth <3

Present or past tense? I tend to default to present in TOA but usually past tense. I'm flexible though and will try and match my partner.

Normal size text, small text, no preference? I actually find small text easier to focus in on and read (I can find normal a bit too cluttered and it can send my eyes wandering lmao) but I'm perfectly happy to use normal text, it just takes me a bit longer to comb through.

Got any potential muse delusions to share? 😉 I can't see a shake up happening soon but... Zephia or Chloe are probably forerunners. I've thought about Palla and Astrid too but I'm not sure if I can see the longevity. Also Neimi, Myrrh and Rodrigue have sparked.... ideas. For muses I've written before, Julia is the most likely but I think she's having a nice break right now :)

[verseandrhyme]

TOA Anniversary Munday

Thanks Neffi!

Name: Vivi

Pronouns: They/Them

Birthday (no year): December 22nd

Where are you from? What is your time zone? Canada, TOA Standard Time.

How long is your roleplay experience? I've been roleplaying on Tumblr specifically for about 9 years now, but on the internet as a whole since I was first let on here unsupervised so who knows. If I had friends to play with as a kid, probably a lot sooner irl too.

How were you introduced to roleplaying as a whole? I think it was first through Gaia Online roleplay forums for Kingdom Hearts, then later I moved to Quizilla where I was actually kinda semi-popular.

How were you introduced to TOA? Ree showed up in my dms and said "quit modding FERP. Join my new server." and then later that month I was there.

Do you have any pets? No, but I have two cats back home with my parents.

What is your favorite time of year and why? (Season, holiday, general period) Fall and early Spring, because most of my wardrobe is geared towards then.

What is your IRL occupation? Customer Support Specialist for a video game company, but I just transferred out of Quality Assurance.

Some interests and things you like/enjoy? Video games in general, musical theatre, mythology, fairy tales.

What non-Fire Emblem games do you play? Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy, Suikoden, Persona, Planet Zoo/Zoo Tycoon, Eiyuden Chronicles, In Stars and Time, I can go on forever.

Favorite Pokemon type & Pokemon: Fire and Vulpix.

Tell us some funfacts and trivia about yourself! (Optional bonus challenge: if you filled this out last year, try not to repeat what you said back then!)

I trained in theatre and studied sword fighting/stage combat.

I'm allergic to peanuts.

The doctor told my mom to avoid all nuts as a result, and aside from the Nutella they made me eat during my latest test, I have yet to eat any nuts willingly.

I have multiple scars on my right knee.

My mom lost me on a cruise ship when I was 4.

How did you get into Fire Emblem? My friend was playing Awakening and would let me try it, but not let me make any save files, so I played the first few maps over and over until I was able to eventually get my own copy and make it past the first three chapters.

What Fire Emblem games have you played? Tellius games, Awakening, Fates games, Shadows of Valentia, Warriors Games, Three Houses/Hopes, and Engage.

First & Favorite Fire Emblem games: First: Awakening! Favorite: Fates!

List your 5 favorite Fire Emblem characters across the series! Setsuna, Mitama, Saber, Reyson, Yunaka.

Who was the first character ever to make you go “ooh I like this one in particular” and why? Can be any context and reason! Gaius! It was on sight I completely abandoned my plans to S-rank Frederick for him. It's the VA, he keeps getting me like this.

Any Fire Emblem crushes? 😳 Crushes, no.

If you’ve played (or are familiar with) the following games, who was your first S support? Who would you S support nowadays? - Awakening: Gaius / probably still Gaius - Fates: Kaden/Laslow/Silas / Ryoma/Kaze/Setsuna - Three Houses: Ferdinand/Seteth/Sylvain(?)/Claude / idk probably the same - Engage: Pandreo / Still Pandreo but also Yunaka, Gregory, Diamant, Rafal, [...]

Favorite Fire Emblem class? Thief!

If you were a Fire Emblem character, what would be your class and stats? Would you be playable? I want to be one of those incredibly stupid villager units that you have to keep alive but keep running towards the enemy.

If you were a Three Houses character, what would be your affiliation? (Black Eagles, Blue Lions, Golden Deer, Church of Seiros, Those Who Slither in the Dark, unaffiliated civilian, other - for example Almyran) Black Eagles.

If you were an Officers Academy student, what would be your boons, banes and potential budding talent? Boons: Swords, Gauntlets. Bane: Heavy Armor, Flying.

If you were an Engage character, which nation would you originate from? (Firene, the Kingdom of Abundance; Brodia, the Kingdom of Might; Elusia, the Kingdom of Knowledge; Solm, the Queendom of Freedom; Lythos, the holy land of the Divine Dragon; Gradlon, the desolate land of the Fell Dragon) uuuuh Firene.

How do you pronounce TOA? 🤔(separate letters, to-ah, other?) Separate letters.

Current TOA muses: Mitama, Yunaka.

Past TOA muses? Bernadetta, Saber, Setsuna, Charlotte, Sylvain. I'm probably forgetting someone.

Who was your first TOA muse? If you no longer have them, can you see yourself picking them up again? Bernadetta! I think I'm satisfied with what I did with her, she can rest.

Do you believe you have a type of character you gravitate towards writing? (If you filled this out last year, has this changed in any way?) People who say one thing but mean another and won't communicate their feelings clearly. This doesn't say anything about me as a person.

Do you have characters or types of characters you don’t think you can handle writing, but wish you could? I want to try an antagonist at some point but I lack the emotional willpower to go up to three muses for long. I also don't think I could handle writing a lord or someone important, I like my guys who don't matter.

What kind of scenes, situations etc do you believe you enjoy writing the most? (If you filled this out last year, has this changed in any way?) I don't know how to explain this because it's v vibe base. I like when there's emotional tension. I like seeing interactions between other characters weave together. I like building towards something bigger. Scenes where someone breaks and finally talks about something they've been holding back.

Do you have any scenario in mind for your muse(s) that gets you thinking “man I hope I get to write this one day”? I want to force Yunaka to talk about her past with people I want that shit to get dragged out to the open I want that shell cracked open to the meat baby.

Favorite TOA-related memories? Happyland2024 was a lot of fun and I'm glad that was my first lore event back, I had a great time with everyone. Team Justice will always be dear to me, as that was the moment that really got me hooked on TOA. Getting Nat's Innes' name in babe hunt just to beat Lilly's Cynthia and Lilly's reaction always makes me laugh.

Present or past tense? Lately I've been doing present more but the thing about me is that if I stop thinking for two seconds I change tense without noticing.

Normal size text, small text, no preference? Normal text, but lately I've just been matching whatever other people cook.

Got any potential muse delusions to share? 😉 Saber quieted back down, sorry guys. I still think about trying Peri one day, and I would like to try and see if Setsuna vibes again because I miss her. I thought about Louis out of nowhere the other day, that was weird.

[frauleindermorgen]

Whatever that noise is, it definitely is a human one, and it definitely has the same amount of syllables as Mi-ca-iah, rendering it about a hiar away from truly unintelligible. Source of it, of course, is one Edward of Nevassa running up to said maiden, a truly unholy quantity of biscuit sticks with various flavors of glazing stuffed into his mouth.

He's obviously about to say something, and then obviously realises in that moment that this is a very bad state to attempt to say much of anything in.

"Ouaouueeeaheoupheh!" Comes a profoundly muffled but profoundly triumphant... What is that noise, anyways?

At any rate, goddess knows what that means. Judging by the enthusiastic pointing at the mass of pocky, probably something like 'look at how many i can fit'? Hard to tell for sure, though.

... Maybe that's the right idea, though, because he's produced a box of them with a flourish...

And is now gently finagling more into the stack...

(This situation aside, he also brought a box of strawberry-flavored ones for her, too.)

She has procured a box of the pocky candy just as her classmates have but despite the help of Yunaka she still is not quite sure how the meaning of the food combines into the meaning for this holiday; still, the biscuits are pleasant enough and they go well with her tea so she certainly does not mind keeping them on her.It has been a good day spent with friends, and perhaps next year she will find out —

Alright, she is certain that is not the way one should be celebrating!!

“Edward!” She calls back, attempting to hiding her worry and probably failing horribly; her healing magic, seidr or not, was decidedly not made for incidents of choking.

Oh, why had she decided on a Fire focus rather than Ice? She was better with Anima magic generally now so if she could just freeze the entire monstrosity Edward was currently trying to go through before…

Oh, he… he certainly wasn’t making sense with words but he was in fact eating through them. Micaiah can hardly look away.

“No, absolutely not! I am confiscating these!” Micaiah decides once the box comes out (strawberry, her favorite; the betrayal was twice the pain). “Please sit down and drink something. How on earth did you get all – agh, nevermind, drink drink!”

[nagaficat]

🎄 if no one got me for a silly little ask meme I know Deirdre got me

"We meet again," Deirdre laughs. It is a blessing, she thinks. It is a magical time of year and she loves how much the tradition of mistletoe is embraced here. It feels as though it decorates every doorway! She is not surprised to find Yunaka like this again and she is quite glad for it.

"You were so nervous before but, I assure you, I do not bite!" She takes a tentative step forward and leans in before quickly realizing the cheek she is about to kiss is the one with the star. She would hate to smear it or mess it up somehow! Instead, she laughs and moves to the other cheek giving the other woman a gentle press of her lips.

"I hope your holiday is as lovely as you!"

[dimiclaudeblaigan]

i have very mixed feelings abt the holiday banner

oh god another houses banner

oh god another houses lords banner

they ACTUALLY just booted claude from a houses lords banner to randomly stick yunaka on it. they really just stuck yunaka on a houses lords banner and booted claude from it instead of making yunaka the free unit to make the banner make sense because sweet baby jesus oh no how could we have THREE men on a single banner (even if one is a duo, it doesn't count since the lead is male!!!)!!!

as i have said, intsys does not deserve claude and i will continue retaining custody of him

i am contractually obligated to pull for dimitri bc claude is free and i am sworn to gather all dimitris and claudes and s support them

i am contractually obligated to pull for dimitri anyway

no but they actually just booted claude from a houses lord banner bc they wanted another pair of tits and a nice giant crotch outline

they still have not given us yuletide's eyes and yuletide's ears. where are our santas, janaff and ulki? when will intsys realize what fools they've been and atone for their sins?

felix can be doubly grumpy now while he has to sit in that outfit miserable (i would be too) while dimitri sits in that outfit not miserable

i said dimitri, halloween, giving out candy to children, but this is technically the same idea but with gifts

dimitri and claude will once again be kissing as they always do when they get alts

dimitri and claude will be a happy gift giving couple

shinon will sit with felix in harmonic misery bc intsys said it's been seven years since launch and we still won't put janaff in this game

they actually seriously really truly honestly just booted claude from the houses lord banner to put a non houses character on it

intsys is not allowed to have claude they do not treat him kindly

are we ever getting matthias btw intsys (we don't even have miklan...)

just realized my 2023 heroes bingo aged terribly and i expected that wholeheartedly but i am still disappointed

very sick of houses lords banners but will always take new a mitri so internal conflict ensues

new year's ranulf??? please im begging you he needs an alt

new year's ranulf/ike duo??? please im begging you radiant dawn was the ranulf/ike game

but if not i'll take a janaff/shinon duo ANY FUCKING TIME INTSYS... hey... that was a lil hint u kno??? a nudge...??? yeah...??? hey... intsys...??? um... are u listening...?

gift giving happy mitri living his best life

they seriously really honestly and truly fucking kicked claude off the-

[dcggersedge]

As the festivities sweep across Garreg Mach, one member of the Black Eagles House finds herself partaking in a time-honored tradition—one that celebrates the warmth of camaraderie and the strengthening of bonds. A time to forget about the barriers of status that divide, and to embrace all that brings people together. 

(record scratch) 

“professor yunaka!!!” like a notched arrow, dorothea is suddenly in motion, propelled toward the woman with a swift, almost alarming force that might have been unsettling—if not for the wide, irrepressible grin stretching across her face. “i’ve just heard the news! is it true? i hope it is. otherwise, i just might cry.” a feigned sniffle, before she extends a gift bag triumphantly, its deep crimson coloring reminiscent of their banner. “you’re just in time for our gift exchange. this is for you!”

inside, she will find a small box of marzipan candies—delicately molded into whimsical shapes. nestled beside them is a snow globe ornament; a fragile, dainty thing containing miniature snow-dusted trees. “welcome to the black eagles, and may you have a lovely holiday~!”

An unexpected shout makes Yunaka flinch, hands suddenly grabbing a tight hold of the papers she was reading and wrinkling them. "Aw, man..." She mumbles to herself, frowning at them before placing them back on her desk. She'll try and smooth those out later.

Clearly, whatever was being yelled about was way more important if the rapid pace at which Dorothea was approaching her was any indication. At least...she thinks? The smile makes it a bit confusing.

"The news?" What news? Was something happening? Just in time for...oh! She was the news! Yunaka blinks before laughing sheepishly. "Aw, it's not really news! I just thought-"

Wait. Hold on. Pause. Gift exchange?

Yunaka lets out a mangled noise that is maybe (?) a squawk. "Wait, there's a gift exchange? Nobody told me there was a gift exchange! I haven't prepared anything to exchange!"

Dorothea hands her a bunch of little candies and a cute little ornament - geez! They had one ready for her, and she just got here? She quickly turns to put the gift down on her desk before Dorothea can see how wonky her smile looks.

"Hang on, don't leave! It's not an exchange if you're the only one giving a gift." She carefully plucks out a few of the candies and holds them out for Dorothea to take. "Please? I promise next time I'll definitely have something ready, but I'll feel awful if I don't give something back!"

[owainbradys]

SHE'S HERE

[gascon-en-exil]

Anon says as if FEH isn't using the few Male OCS to sell muscle. Bruno literaly became a meme and then there is the deer men of book VIII

Those are not remotely equivalent. Bruno hasn't been consistently relevant for years, and despite having been in the game since 2017 has all of two alts - neither of which are particularly sexy. The new deer guy is currently just background art; the internet only started thirsting after him so hard because we've been so starved of male OCs, especially after Book VII.

Further, the attempt to deflect from how female characters are objectified in FEH and similar properties by pointing out overly muscled male designs has always been a deeply flawed one. One exists for straight male titillation; the other exists as a straight male power fantasy. There is absolutely a point to be made about how hypermuscular bodies in media promote unhealthy ideas about what men should look like, but that's an entirely separate conversation from the one that frames characters as sex objects. Gay/bi men are best in a position to appreciate the issue from both sides, and the solution we most often pose when discussing such things is to show a wider variety of male bodies in states of (potentially eroticized) undress - a solution that I imagine would not go over well with the sorts of straight men who like to bring up muscular male characters as a gotcha.

The shirtless muscular guys of most media are never framed or positioned in the same way that even more modestly-dressed female characters often are when they're being marketed based on some kind of sex appeal. Gay porn games are the only type of animated media I've seen that treats male characters at all in the same way as female characters are handled on most of FEH's seasonal banners. As an example, let me revisit a point I made about a week ago, in reference to the new winter banner.

Here is Claude, wearing a reindeer-themed holiday outfit.

Now here is another character wearing a reindeer-themed holiday outfit, this time from the gay dating sim Camp Buddy: Scoutmaster Season.

A bit excessive? Yes, but I've got a point to make here. Let's talk about the differences. We've got

a crotch bulge, as well as a small treasure trail. Contrast summer Lorenz and his speedo with Ken doll anatomy.

extensive muscle definition, including pronounced tits pecs. Contrast summer Ephraim, summer Dimitri, and others.

visible nipples, something the internet also went crazy over when they randomly appeared on Fargus back in November. This isn't merely about being anatomically correct; nipples are an erogenous zone for some men, and to include them in a bare-chested design indicates that this character is not just a slab of muscle (as the power fantasy angle would prefer) but has potential erotic vulnerabilities.

a harness that greatly resembles bondage gear, and is in fact used in that way later on.

most obviously, about as much skin on display as the average female unit on summer banners

and while not apparent here, a willingness to commit to the inherent silliness of the bit in the subsequent sex scenes, which employ a flurry of intentionally bad holiday-themed puns and have the characters act out a reindeer-flavored variety of pony play.

But that's far too horny for a winter banner, you say? Don't tell that to Edelgard's thigh-highs and upskirt. Isn't that specific combination a fetish in its own right?

Or Yunaka with her cleavage and camel toe and strategically-placed bits of bare skin.

Or just look at the Byleths side-by-side. Only the female version is baring her shoulders and midriff in a form-fitting top...surely that's for entirely innocent reasons.

And again, check out any given summer banner and see just how far FEH will push its rating with its female cast.

Of course this is all from a gay male perspective; I can't speak to what women find attractive in animated male characters. Anecdotally the most popular options are characters who are already prominent and popular (so...not Bruno or the unnamed deer guy). Also, there are times when women in the fandom pick up on stuff about these guys' bodies that I wouldn't have even thought to eroticize at first, like Dimitri's proportionally small waist. Others can feel free to add onto this if they like.

TL;DR, if FEH truly wants to sell itself on sleaze (which of course it does, and already is), it seriously needs to step up its game with its male cast.