#i did this for a req but i thought it would be a good resource for anyone who doesnt want to spend 40+ minutes uncrusting it

[tunas-spriting]

uncrusted rosemary kiss for my fellow ms paint heads out there to use

[feinv]

can i kindly req for a arthur morgan x hyperfem reader.... pov he is just so so so in live with her...

arthur morgan x hyperfem!reader.

a/n. introducing my other hyperfixation on this blog. hope this won’t flop. if you don’t wanna see this you can block these tags! hope you like this dolly <3

arthur morgan is a romantic.

spending the majority of his life being without a significant other, he kept repressing all those emotions. and repressing just made them stronger.

but lucky for him he has you!

he doesn’t understand why a sweet thing like you would even look at his direction. but you did. and he wasn’t a fool to let you go after that. he absolutely gives you princess treatment. will do like. literally anything just to see you smile.

arthur loves taking you to beautiful places he encountered while riding around. seeing your eyes sparkle and that pretty smile you flush him is enough for him to die a happy man right there next to you.

he is absolutely feral at how adorable you look. like all the time. we all know 1800s underwears were like just a plain white fabric. but you still managed to stitch them up in a certain way and add a few small bows to make them look cuter! he is honestly so amazed that nothing ever stops you from doing your girly things, and he is always there to tell you that you did a good job and it looks perfect <3

he loves showing you off, especially when he knows he has the pleasure of calling you his. he will do any dirty job and hard labor just to get money and buy you anything you want.

he knows it's hard feeling beautiful when you have limited resources in a camp. so he would buy you whatever clothes you want, whatever jewelry and accessories you look at for more than five seconds when he takes you to a town. (he might even steal some really expensive ones and tell you he traded for those)

of course he would think you look gorgeous even if your entire face was covered in dirt and mud. but it matters to him that you feel happy and confident in yourself. and it's his mission to fulfill that goal for as long as he alive.

every time he would bring back a little something that reminded him of you — a book, a small painting, perfumes that smell just like you, and everything else in between.

he would help you with chores however he can just to ease some of your work and have more alone time together. the boys would tease him for being "a housewife," but he wouldn't give a shit. he might as well do every single of your chores if it meant he would have you all to himself in the confines of his tent.

showers you in compliments. all day 24/7. he knows the words will eventually fail him because he physically cannot tell u how infatuated he is with you and how flawless you are to him. but he will try either way.

“you are so beautiful, darlin'. my pretty girl,” while his fingers gently tuck hair away from your face, his thumb soothing your soft skin. and you would blush and avert his gaze because like :< but he would simply pepper feather light kisses all over your face before connecting your lips in such a tender kiss you would forget that’s a 6 feet tall ripped cowboy.

his side bag and some of his clothes in general would have small hearts or bows engraved in them with pink thread. every time he looks at them he gets reminded there is someone waiting for him to come back. and his heart just swells at that thought.

would also sneak you away from the camp to a pretty field where the two of you could just stargaze together or lay on the grass for hours. you would ramble about your day while he sketches you, your sweet voice literally making him float in the clouds.

arthur morgan loves being around you, being with you. you don't even have to be doing anything together, he just loves having you near him, close and safe :3

©️feinv, 2024.

[canthelpit0]

American

Pairing: matt x poc!reader

Wordcount: 2.2K +

Summary: reader is a third culture kid. Her parents are immigrants, and she hates it. She wants to be everything she is not.

Warnings: angst, crying, hating your own culture, racism, internalized racism, middle eastern!reader, reader discerned as average, established relationship, pet names, hurt/comfort, no use of y/n, no oc; reader described to have curly hair, brown eyes and hair.

(A/N: not me reflecting lmao. asks and req are open <3 feedback is appreciated! Ps: I am Türkisch, and this isn’t meant to be racist, it’s just thoughts about myself that I used to have portrayed by y/n. This is for awareness abt internalized racism)

I hate my culture. I hate my frizzy hair, I hate the fact that my eyes are a plain brown. I hate the fact that I’m not white. I hate that when someone asks me where I’m from and I say America, they go “no where are you actually from?”. I hate my brain. I hate the way I think. I hate the way I wish I was someone else. I hate myself, and I hate the way I hate myself.

I was never considerably pretty. Well not really. Sure the facial harmony, the potential is there. But I’m just not good enough.

I wish my hair was straight.

I hate the way I hate my own culture. I really do. But I literally can’t fit into the American beauty Standards , but I can’t fit into the middle eastern ones either.

My home country is America. I was born and raised here. But both of my parents are immigrants from turkey. -Wich means we’re not very wealthy.

I hate it when people ask me where I’m from because I look ‘exotic’.

I wouldn’t consider turkey my home country. I hate it there. And I don’t know if it’s just my internalized hatred or whatever, but I do.

Even in the country itself I’m not considered Turkish enough. In the US I’m not American enough���

I’m never enough.

Not to my parents, not to my siblings, not to my boyfriend. Not to myself. I’m not good enough.

we go to turkey for vacation every year and I’m sick of it.

I speak the language enough to communicate. I hate half the food because I’m a picky eater. It hurts even more because I’m not even considered properly Turkish.

I hate the way all my cousins, except for one, live In turkey. I hate the way they’re so close to each other. And despite being in the cousins group chat, they’ll always send in pictures of them all together. Pictures that I’ll never be in, simply because I’m halfway across the world.

Years ago, whenever we visited, it didn’t matter, the fact that I live so far away, but now they were judgy.

Besides I don’t trust anything there. Sure the stuff there is cheaper, but you could literally put me in an official Nike store and I would still tell you the shoes are fake, even tho they obviously aren’t.

I did an internship at a disposition and shipping company. I know that those shoes come from the same warehouse. I just don’t trust anything Turkish.

Growing up with so many myths that my parents taught me to live by, until I realized it’s just a bunch of bullshit, made me believe that nothing purchased in turkey is of any quality.

And it’s not even to hate on the nation or anything, it’s probably my own fault.

I hate the way all the other middle easternerns are so confident in where they’re from, flexing the fact that they naturally know more languages than Americans.

But I just wish I was one of those stupid Americans. Oblivious to the rest of the world and all the flaws in human nature. I wish I was a skinny white woman born into an upper middle class American family.

But instead I have to be what I am.

I hate it when I hear people talk in my ‘native’ language. Even tho that’s the only language we speak at home.

Sometimes I feel great knowing that I have culture and just naturally great genetics, and potential and resources to be better than those stuck in a village in my ‘home’ town.

But then it dawns on me that I’m not American, even if I was born and raised here it’s not my home country. And as much as I feel like it should be and is, it’s not.

It dawns on me that I’m not white. I’m not one of them. And I never will be.

And that makes me question why Matt is even dating me.

There is so much internal self hatred and racism going on in me, yet still he chose me over those white girls.

And I don’t get it.

Every time I look at myself in the mirror I sigh. Let’s ignore the fact that I’m not white like that and will never be. Even being middle eastern, or whatever the hell turks are considered, I don’t look like that either.

I fit literally nowhere. Sure I have dark brown hair and brown eyes, I look pretty average. But I still don’t look Turkish, I don’t have that straight hair or painfully skinny body.

I let out a heavy sigh without even noticing. These thoughts were getting loud again.

I hate how strict and conservative my parents are. I hate the painful lack of empathy they show, because I always have to be perfect, when I’m oh so confused of what type of perfect.

I don’t know if they want me to be a cheerleader and prom queen and top of my class like they never could. Or if they want me to be conservative or something.

Probably the latter, but-

“What are you thinking about?” Matt’s voice suddenly snaps me out of my daze. We literally had laid down to sleep and all I could do is pity myself.

I feel a lump in my throat and only now realize how i feel like I’m going to break into sobs.

Matt must’ve heard my uneven, shaky breaths.

Matt was spooning me, his arms wrapped around my waist, holding me close to him. He rubs my sides gently, tracing shapes on my skin.

I sigh in response. I feel like I haven’t used my voice in so long. I feel like if I speak now, I’ll break into sobs.

“Baby?” He whispers softly. I feel him pull away slightly until he turns me around to face him.

“Talk to me sweetheart.”

Matt is such a kind soul. I literally didn’t tell my parents we were dating until we were already dating for 7 months, just because I was that scared. I wasn’t allowed to date or do anything intimate. As if it wasn’t normal for a teenager to want to.

“Why do you like me Matt?” I blurt out before I can think.

“First off, I don’t like you, I love you. And second where is this coming from?” He asks sweetly his eyes having a tinge of concern to them. He looks so sweet and caring.

“Why tho?” I inquire. My voice low. I know my eyes are glassy, I’m quite literally holding back tears.

Matt licks his lips and sits up. He turns the bedside table lamp on. The dim yellow light aluminates the room slightly, just enough so that I can see his prominent features even better.

“What do you mean?” He asks again now sitting up fully. He has his legs Chris-cross, looking down at me while I still lay on my side.

I sigh trying to gather my thoughts. I purse my lips lying back on my back. I stare at the ceiling for a moment.

“Why do you love me?” I purse my lips. I blink furiously trying to hold back tears.

The way he looks at me is sweet and caring. I sit up just like him. Both of us now sitting across each other, Chris-cross.

Matt and I have been together for a long while, so he knows me. But I never openly talked about it.

“I love you because you’re kind, and caring. I love you because you could talk for hours about things you are passionate about. I love your voice, I love your face, I love the way you’re so delicate with everything. I love the way you touch me. I love you because even when we were just friends you were so kind to me and everyone around. I love you because you’re you.”

By the end of his rant I was crying. Tears streaming down my face while i try to hold in gut wrenching sobs.

Matt’s eyes soften even further. He shifts again so his back is against the head-bored. He grabs me gently and sets me down on his lap facing him.

I cry. Feeling vulnerable I burry my face in the side of his neck. I try not to sob too loud, but I can’t hold it in. With my sobs my body shakes as I try to breathe through it.

“Shh you’re okay baby.” He comforts, gently rubbing circles into my back.

I let out shaky breaths and sobs as I try to calm down. I feel like I’m overreacting. Sure I feel shitty about myself, but then again I can’t do anything to change who I am, so what’s the point in crying about it.

I don’t know for how long I cry, I just know that after a while I couldn’t anymore. I cried so much I ran out of tears.

“You want to talk about it?” Matt asks softly under his breath.

I let out a shaky sigh and shift slightly. I look him in the eyes for a second before letting my head fall forward closing my eyes. I know my eyes are probably red and puffy.

“I just..” I trail off, thinking of a way to describe this to Matt.

“I hate being an immigrant’s daughter..” I say slowly trying to figure out a way to understandably say this without sounding crazy or overly sensitive.

I feel Matt’s hand ghost over my cheek caressing my face gently. He picks up my head slowly so I’m looking at him. My eyes meet his as I try not to cry anymore.

“Talk to me, honey.” He says oh so sweetly.

“I just wish I was American.” I sob. Without even realizing tears were rolling down my face again.

Matt doesn’t say anything waiting for me to continue. He wipes away my tears gently, his eyes full of concern.

“I hate myself and everything I stand for.” I breathe out under my breath as if I’m terrified by that fact. And I am. I hate that I hate myself.

“Baby..” Matt whispers softly. He looks at me like I am everything. He looks at me like I’m the only thing that matters and me saying that I hate myself tears him apart.

“I don’t have a culture. I mean I do, but I’m a third culture kid, I’m not enough for either culture.” I sob. I can physically feel my bottom lip trembling.

“Baby, I love you for you.” Matt says again softly. He wipes away my tears.

“But I hate myself Matt. I hate the fact that I exist.” I breathe out. I close my eyes tightly, because after all, I could barely see anything through my tears anyway.

Matt, being the empath he is, was on the verge of crying too.

No American ever pronounces my name right, but the actual right way just sounds wrong at this point.

I will never find my name on those keychains. And while today, I don’t care about it, back when I was younger and everyone had those, I just couldn’t find one.

“Don’t say that” Matt breaths out. He was still actively wiping away my tears while trying not to cry himself.

“You don’t get it Matt. I’m the problem.” I breathe out harshly. “I feel like I always act like such a brat about it. But my parents had dreams too.” I breathe out.

I see a tear roll down Matt’s cheek and it feels like a slap across my face. I feel my stomach drop. I hurriedly put my hands on his face wiping away the tear while crying myself. Matt’s hands go to my waist holding me.

“Don’t say that.” He breathes out. “You’re allowed to feel things.”

Another wave of sadness washes over me. But before I can break out into sobs again he pulls me into him.

Matt cradles my head into his chest hugging me tightly. I feel safe in his arms. I know Matt loves me for me, but sometimes it still felt like a cruel joke.

Like when I was asked out in middle school as a joke. But we’ve been dating for almost a year now.

“I love your hair, I love your eyes, I love your face, I love your culture, I love your humor. I love you.” Matt assures me. He rubs my scalp gently as I continues to let out small sobs that shake my body.

“I love everything about you. I love you the way you are, and you know that.” He uses his other hand to rub my back comfortingly.

I continue to cry in his arms listening to the sweet nothings and the praises Matt whispers to me.

It hurts knowing I hurt him. And I really want to believe him, and I do. But I don’t agree.

After a while of crying I calm down again.

This is a topic I’ll never be able to talk about without crying. It’s a deep rooted pain.

Being how I am, I hate it.

After a while we move back to a laying down position. “We’ll talk about this later.” Matt assures firmly yet he was still looking at me kindly.

I simply nod. Matt turns the bedside lamp off. He pulls me closer to him. He cradles my head to his chest and I hug him back. I cling to him like my life depends on it.

I know it’s not going to be easy, but it’s exhausting to hate myself this much. I wish I didn’t. I really do.

Masterlist

A/N: All of us third culture kids have probably at some point have experienced some type of internalized racism. I wrote this in a fit of sadness after realising that my dreams are just dreams. I cried so many times while writing this. I hope you guys liked it 💕

‼️please don’t copy my work/idea‼️

Taglist: @muwapsturniolo , @sturnad , @iluvm4ttsturni0l0 , @evie-sturns , @me09love , @fratbrochrisgf , @spideylovin , @chrissgirlsstuff , @stunza , @whicked-hazlatwhore , @sturniooolos , @ecliphttlunar , @orangeypepsi , @klaus223492 , @char112244 , @sst7niolo , @slut4chriss , @mattsturniololoverr , @th3-3d3n-g4rd3n , @st7rnioioss , @t1llysblogs , @nonat-111 , @blahbel668 , @rockstarchr1s , @sturnsintrouble , @nayveetbhh , @tillies33ssss , @sturncakez , @strnilo , @somegirlfromasgard , @mattslovelygf , @sturnsmaeve , @sturnstvr , @lucianastrun , @jnkvivi , @jamiesturniolo

[suguwuus]

Could you write a connor x daughter of Athena. Where she has been at camp for a year, but they have known each other for about two weeks and he flirts a little too much in training and she thinks he is being mean. but in the end they make up.

★ nice

oh em gee my first req i feel like spongebob on his first day with his shiny lil spatula and squeaky shoes

p.s. so sorry this took so long i was so very sick when you sent it in and then exam week left me bruised and broken and so sleepy 😭

wc: 2.4k words

Who the Hades is this guy? Or more like, who the hell does this guy think he is?

You stared at the hunched-over figure wiping your bronze weapon down with a cloth, whistling as he went. It was too casual for someone like him to be doing something like that, especially with your weapon.

You recognized him as one of those Stoll brothers. They had been at camp for almost as long as you had, yet it seems that he's been popping up and about into your business these past few days. And he had been doing it a lot. Offering to carry your things, greeting you good morning and good night, even going so far as to try and make your bed for you. It was strange. Suspiciously strange. And you didn't trust him. From what you've heard and seen around camp, he was a prankster, an awfully resourceful two-faced troublemaker who could ruin your day with two paperclips and a cup of orange juice.

You thought he was no match for you, though. After all, you were equally crafty and clever as well, if not more than him. You thanked your mother, Athena, for both those skills and the grace to notice the signs this early on.

Gods, what was the purpose of all of this? You couldn't figure him out. You had some ideas, some guesses, but you couldn't pinpoint anything exactly. You needed direct contact with him; you needed to observe him up close so you could finally see his true intentions. Did he get bored and were you his new target? Was he doing this for a bet? Did you do something recently to catch his attention?

So, it was strange. Strange that you two have been skirting around each other for the past few years, not talking unless forced to and if you did, you only exchanged small talk. Why was he now all up in your business? Was he plotting something? You remembered when he put a tarantula in your half-sister Annabeth's bunk. You thought that was the last time you'd see those two boys.

"You look like you're plotting to kill him."

You jumped. Said Annabeth stood behind you, holding a plastic bag full of something you could only guess was your cabin's deposit of trash. Every other morning someone would do this to keep the cabin clean—and every morning Connor would greet you. Today, he added an offer to wipe your weapon down. You reluctantly agreed, vulnerable at 7 in the morning.

You knew you shouldn't be driven by rumors and gossip, shouldn't judge a book by its cover. But your overly paranoid self just refused to try and get to know the boy.

You pursed your lips and turned to Annabeth, sucking in a breath. "What's he like?" You asked.

"A little shit," Annabeth replied, and your heart sank. "But," she continued. "He's a reliable little shit. He's not evil or anything like that. He just has a talent for getting on people's nerves, him and Travis. It's a Hermes kid thing. Why?"

You glanced nervously to the side. "He's been doing the absolute most for me recently. Asking if I need help with anything, greeting me every time we see each other. We're not close. We're not even close to being close."

Annabeth took a few moments looking over at him as well, a small smile on her face. "Hmm. Well, I can't say anything for sure. But there's a very low chance he's doing this out of malice."

You cringed. "So..."

"Just wait and see where this goes," She advised, swinging the plastic bag. "If he hurts you, beat him up." Then she went away.

You scratched your head, starting to walk away from your cabin. That was...sort of helpful? No worries. You could handle this. It wasn't everyday you dealt with someone with the first name Connor and last name Stoll, but it wasn't everyday that you climbed the lava tower, either, no? And you survived that. So how hard could a boy be?

Quite hard, as it turned out to be.

You watched him stand up, stuffing the dirty cloth in his pocket. He then looked around the camp, walking in circles as if searching for someone. You knew he was looking for you, so when he turned in your direction you reluctantly waved a hand, but not enough to be obvious or easily noticed in the bustle of the camp.

When he spotted you, he jogged up to you like an excited dog, haphazardly swinging your weapon. He held it out with calloused hands. "Here!"

"Thanks. Erm, Connor." You added his name for good measure and took your weapon back. You inspected it quickly. No tampering, as far as you could see. It was clean, too. You looked back up at him and nodded. He had done a decent job. An honest, decent job?

"Did you just wake up?" He blurted out, sporting a smile that made you feel...what, self conscious? His words didn't help.

"No, I've been doing errands while waiting for you." You kept your answer plain and simple. "Why?" Without realizing it, you smoothed out your shirt.

He saw where your hands were going and chuckled, his eyes crinkling as if you just cracked a joke that amused him twice as much as the average pun did. "Don't worry, sunshine, you're not the ugliest thing I've seen in my life."

And the he walked away whistling, probably going off to tie someone's shoelaces together to trip them up. What the fuck? You thought, still processing what had just happened. What was that all about? Don't worry, sunshine?

You bet Apollo was laughing at you from Mount Olympus with the way the sunlight was shining right onto your face as Connor walked away, blinding you as you stood there in confusion.

You eyes searched the assortment of campers for Annabeth, some tiny bit of support you could anchor yourself to. She wasn't there. No striking grey eyes of hers among the orange shirts. You grit your teeth, accepting your defeat.

Well, not exactly your defeat. Not yet, at least. Hopefully not.

You gave Connor your best glare as he walked up to you in the middle of the arena. He swung his sword in his hand back and forth as if this was a game to him. Luckily for you, you also saw it as a game. A fun game to try and get to learn a thing or two about him. You wanted to observe him, close up? Here was your chance.

Sword practice. Sparring. Percy as the instructor overseeing the match. Perfect.

"Shake hands, guys," He said, standing between you and Connor. He then nodded at the boy. "No cheating, alright? No extra tricks."

"Yeah, yeah," He said, tapping his foot. You saw how he seemed almost giddy, but when he met your eyes, his smile melted and he cleared his throat.

You held a hand out. He shook it, not taking his eyes off you. He had a serious expression on, devoid of all humor or teases. "Nice shirt," he mumbled. And then he was off, stepping backwards until he was a reasonable distance away from you.

Shaking the confusion out of your head, you got into position, holding your weapon as you adjusted your stance.

Percy gave the signal and you two were off, celestial bronze clashing against one another. Your ears rung and you tried to not let the sun blind you.

Frustratingly enough, you couldn't observe much except for his physical traits (a light spray of freckles across his nose bridge, a nasty looking scar on his knee and a bruise on the other one, a hand with only one fingernail painted cherry red; unsurprisingly enough for a son of Hermes, he seemed to be ambidextrous) and that he was awfully talkative.

"I might have trouble focusing, but I'm multitasking right now, see? Your face is distracting, but I can handle it." "You're nice to look at when you're cornered like this, you know? Cute and mad, I should piss you off more!" "I really like your lack of enthusiasm all the time!"

Parry. Strike. Slash. Clang! The tip of his sword grazed your jaw and you swiped at his shins. Contrary to his blabber, you stayed silent except for grunts and the like, determined to finish him off.

Someone in the audience of campers yelled for Connor to focus. Instead he laughed. Soon you ended up with your weapons pressed against each other, screeching as the material of each grinded against one another. You were face to face with him now.

"You seem a little rusty, maybe you should consider practicing with me—"

That was your last straw. You pushed him back, so hard that you ended a few feet away from him, and charged, but at the last second swung to disarm him from his waiting sword instead of striking. With your momentum, you wrapped an arm around his neck, pushing his head upward, and stepped behind him, holding your weapon to his throat.

Victory.

"You know, I'd say something, but I don't think it's very audience friendly, I think it should be reserved for someplace without overbearing coordinators or nine year olds," He giggled.

You released him after Percy gave you the signal. Of course, you had to be somewhat polite. So you maneuvered his body so he was facing you, standing properly now. You took his clammy hand and shook it, looking him straight in the eye.

"Good duel," You said, nodding, chest still rising and falling from the intense practice match.

"Yeah, yeah, good duel," Connor replied, stumbling over his words. "Percy didn't...didn't have any comments for us, y-yeah, that's...that's good, right?"

You nodded again, and he let go of your hand, swallowing and glancing at the floor. He wet his lips, as if there was something he was itching to say, something stuck in his throat.

"You...you have nice eyes." He walked away with something you might have called a scurry.

Tilting your head in utter confusion, you heard a voice and felt a hand tap your shoulder. You turned around to see a little girl of about 12 years old. Strands of her dark hair stuck to her chubby cheeks from sweat. "Return the compliment. That's pamahiin, you know." She shot a cautious glance at Connor's turned back.

"It's what?"

"Superstition where someone curses you in the form of a compliment. He's been saying all kinds of things since the start of your match!"

"That doesn't sound like a Greek superstition to me. Where'd you hear that?" The girl left before you could finish. You shook your head. Silly kids.

You decided you had some business to attend to, so you jogged after Connor, following him down the path to the archery range.

"Hey," you called. "Connor!"

He slowly turned around, looking anxious. "...Yes?"

"What was that?"

"What was what?"

"You're being strange. You kept talking during sword practice—you never do it that much, and you keep offering to do things for me. Are you following me around? Why did you compliment my shirt out of the blue right before we started?"

His brain seemed to load. And then he smiled. "You watch me during sword practice?"

"Sometimes, when there's nothing else to watch. The point is, you're acting off!"

He cleared his throat. "Well, erm, you know, I've just been seeing you around and I wanted to get to know you more. Wait, I complimented your shirt? We're all wearing the same ones."

You stepped closer. "No, are you up to something? Trying to get under my skin? Everything you say is somewhat backhanded and it feels like you're planning to get me in trouble, or both of us in trouble. If you don't like me, just say it straight to my face." You clenched your fists as you finished.

His expression morphed and looked horrified. "Oh, my Gods. No, I'm sorry."

You stared hard, waiting for him to explain himself.

"Shit, Y/N. That, uh...that wasn't...oh man, I didn't mean for it to come out like that. I mean, I am mouthy all the time, but I didn't want you to think of it like that! I do, I'm complimenting you, I guess we just don't match up in terms of what's a 'nice' gesture or not.

"I'll say it straight, then. I'm being nice to you, trying to say nice things. Because I think you're nice."

You raised a brow. "...Nice?"

"Yes, nice. And I really liked practicing with you. And greeting you in the morning and at night. And you. I like being nice to you even if you don't understand my little pickup lines sometimes."

"So you weren't trying to be mean?"

"No, absolutely not."

"Ah...okay. I see. That's...fair. I guess I was just paranoid." You slowly nodded, understanding his defense. You could see him nervously putting his thumbs through his belt loops.

"Mhm." He looked to the side. "Oh, and by the way, maybe the thing I said this morning was confusing, you're not ugly at all, I think you—everything about you, is very, pleasing to the eye."

You chuckled. "—Is nice."

He let out a relieved laugh at how you had caught on. "Yes, exactly that. Oh," He perked up, looking behind your shoulder. When you followed his gaze you saw some campers walking towards him, and they did not look very happy. He put his sword back into his scabbard and tied his shoelaces, which had come undone.

So he was a prankster. Obviously. But he wasn't as bad as you thought. Not mean, just a little mischievous at times. You definitely were just paranoid. It's not everyday you got that many compliments. Puzzling ones that needed comprehension, yet still compliments. And he was easy to talk to. Not mean at all. Come to think of it, you hadn't fallen victim to his or Travis's pranks lately, not in a long while—

"That's my cue," he reached over and awkwardly patted your shoulder, averting your gaze. Despite that, he was smiling ear-to-ear. "See you sometime, okay? Bye!"

"Bye...!" And he dashed away, leaving you beaming in amusement. Wait, pickup lines? Those were pickup lines to him?

Nice? Nice as in flirting?

[ninlilwinds]

hey, sorry if you aren't taking reqs rn, but can i request some baizhu comfort with an anemic!partner ? i'm showing a lot of symptoms but i can't afford a blood test, and since i'm at risk of haemochromatosis ("reverse anemia" - too much iron in your system) i can't risk taking iron supplements. i'm kinda terrified.

thank you, i hope you have a good day/night !

Hello! No need to apologize! I am not very adept in this subject, but I did some surface research and will be referring to the symptoms of this condition, so I don't mess anything up. But if I do get anything wrong, please let me know and I will review my work and research.

Also stay safe! I know it must be hard not having the resources to do the necessary test ect. Stay strong and I hope everything works out well!!

Plot: Reader with a special condition being comforted by Baizhu (Reader will be gn, but if i do happen to put pronouns in place, please let me know and I will fix it!)

You'd been a bit scared lately. Everything had been overwhelming. Your ability to do every day simply tasks was diminishing, and you found that particularly disheartening. Baizhu noticed these changes in you and at first decided not to pry. You hadn't mentioned anything, and he didn't really notice anything out of the ordinary. At least not at first.

You'd been helping him at the clinic, organizing and moving and Baizhu had to step away for a moment and take care of a particularly agitated customer. Him not being there to help with the heavier things, and the discomfort and pain that had been building up these past few hours had been so much, so you decided to sit down and take a break.

What you didn't anticipate was for this break to bring about dark thoughts that made your mind race with fear. This could gradually get worse, but up till when would your body not take anymore?

Tears fell from your eyes. The hurt, the fear, your constant tiredness, it was all getting to you. No one was around so it was ok to mourn for a bit before getting back to work.

You didn't hear when Baizhu had stepped back inside and saw you. He stayed by the doorway silently for a bit, thinking about whether it would be wise to approach you or not.

"(Y/n)." he said in a low voice. He didn't want to startle you too much, "What seems to be the problem?" he asked, eyebrows pressed together in concern.

He studied you and during work had noticed your slower movements and how you seemed to be straining yourself. You simply shook your head and hugged yourself, trying to will the lies of 'im ok' out of your lips, but the words refused to come out.

He approached you and kneeled before you, gently taking your hands, "Why don't we both take the rest of the day off?" he asked.

You nodded and he helped you up. On the way out he wrote a list of things Qiqi had to do then left with you.

He led you home and then helped you to your rooms. Afterwards he helped you find some comfortable clothes, then stepped out of the room for you to change privately and he started to cook something for you.

He came in a while later with some food and water. As you began to mostly play with your food but also eat a bite here and there, he finally reached out and stroked your hair.

After looking at you with a loving gaze for a bit, his hand stopped behind your head, and he brought you in for a tender hug.

"We'll get through this together, ok? I'll be here no matter what." He kissed the top of your head.

The rest of the day and a few days following he took the days off to help you relax a bit and such, but when you did return to work, he kept an extra close eye on you.

(I hope this helped you feel a bit better!)

[star-trekkin-across-theuniverse]

Worthy (pt4)

Author’s note: I am crappy at tagging people. Inbox me if you want to be added, and just keep poking me if I keep forgetting to add you. <3  @rampant-salamander @bolontiku​

I had to wonder if the powers from Thor’s hammer included allowing me to disappear into the floor so I would not have to face the source of my embarrassment again. I wanted to slam the bathroom door and lock it and hide until Thor left. But I somehow guessed his sense of chivalry would be too great to just leave me to die of embarrassment and he would do something stupid, like breaking down the door, to ensure I was okay, instead of just understanding I needed to lick my wounds in private. Particularly when he thought humans were prudish about nudity. Did they walk around in Thor-land buck naked all the time? I mean, if they all looked like Thor that might not be a bad thing. I was far too conscious of my lumps and cellulite and stretch marks to be okay with joining them in the nude party though. 

I dropped the towel and looked at myself in the floor to ceiling mirror, trying to guess what he must have thought when he hauled me off the floor. I was pale. I’d been far too busy finishing my thesis to be out in the sun in the spring, and it was obvious by the way my arms were the same fish belly white as my stomach. The time spent in the lab showed on my tummy and hips and thighs, all of which were broader than they’d ever been before. My roommate had said curvier was a nicer word, but I knew exactly how many slices of pizza had contributed to each new curve, and the fact that none of that skin had seen the sun in months made me feel bigger. I couldn’t lie and say I was completely unsatisfied with my body. I was just bigger than I’d been, and more uncomfortable in my skin. I’d promised myself I’d find some sort of activity to balance with my work life, for no other reason than for my health. I just didn’t buy into hating myself because I didn’t belong on the pages of a magazine. My body housed my brain, and my brain was pretty awesome. The rest was just packaging and resources for keeping my brain safe and at optimal function. But that was what I thought. I cast a critical eye on myself trying to figure out what Thor would have thought seeing me bare-assed on the floor. Given his impatience with my modesty, he probably hadn’t thought much at all.

I pulled my pyjamas on, and had to laugh at myself. The spaghetti strapped tank-top and boxer shorts didn’t cover much more than my towel had. But I couldn’t cross the living room again to find something else if I ever wanted to get rid of the man-god sitting in my living room.

I steeled my courage and opened the bathroom door. He’d figured out how to turn on my television, and had stopped on what appeared to be a documentary about the Avengers Initiative. He laughed at the television and shook his head, then clicked it off when he realized I’d come into the room. 

“Do you want something to drink?” I offered.

“I rather think you do not wish for me to stay that long, Ella Carmichael.” He pushed himself off the couch and walked into the kitchen where I was refilling my wine glass.

“You know, you can just call me Ella. It’s weird to use someone’s first and last name,” I commented. “Are you sure you don’t want a drink? I hate to drink alone.” I held the bottle up in offering. I could see him hesitate for a moment, probably contemplating the honour involved in drinking wine or something.

“If you insist,” he smirked. I poured him a glass and came around the kitchen island to hand it to him. When he took the glass from me, he narrowed his eyes and took my wrist into his hand. He turned it over, palm facing up and ran his thumb across it. I’m not ashamed to admit I got goosebumps; it was more intimate than I’d been touched in recent memory. 

“Have you always had that mark?” I realized he was running his thumb around my left hand in a pattern. I looked down, but couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary.

“I can’t see any mark.” I pulled my hand away and held it under the bright light over the island. Nothing. Thor took my hand again and looked closer, and traced the design out again on my palm. He was seeing something that I was not. He dropped my hand and picked up the hammer from where he’d placed it on the floor by my front door. He put it carefully down on the granite countertop of the island, and pointed at a big fancy three pointed knot on the face of the hammer.

“This is called a triquetra. It is also on your hand. I would know how long it has been there,” he explained. I shrugged.

“Well, I can’t see anything at all. But that’s the hand I picked up myewlnor with. Maybe it left a mark?” I knew I was completely butchering the name of the hammer, but god knows I couldn’t remember how to say it.

“Mjolnir.” Of course he would correct me.

“Mee-owl-neer?” I tried again.

“Mjolnir.”

“M-yol-neer.” I was reasonably sure I had it right that time. He nodded, and took my right hand in his, flipping the palm up. He traced his thumb around in the same pattern.

“It’s on this hand as well. This is a mystery. I do not know you well, Ella, but Tony seems to think you quite intelligent. Intelligence is not all there is to worth. But it is perhaps somewhere to start,” He pondered. I bit my lip.

“I don’t know how you judge worthiness where you’re from, but I’m not anything special. I don’t run around rescuing kittens from trees, or saving maidens from dragons, or curing cancer. I can’t even donate blood. I have some weird antibody.” I protested. Thor’s mouth cocked to one side in a grin.

“I have never done those things myself, and yet I am worthy. I will speak to my father,” he determined. He finished his glass of wine.

“You appear well. Your colour has come back, and you no longer show the signs of shock. I bid you good rest, Ella Carmichael. Thank you for sharing your libation with me, and for indulging my concern,” he bowed his head a little, hefted the hammer and turned. I followed him to the door. He turned as he crossed the threshold and placed a hand on my shoulder. “I will bring news once I have more understanding of what has happened.”

XXX 

“So Thor saw me naked last night.” It was quite possibly the best first-line I’ve ever had. And I got to drop it on Angela as we walked through the build-a-Belgian-waffle line. She dropped her fork on the floor with a loud clatter.

“What? Naked? How?”

“Well, it all started when I had no clothes on,” I began.

“Seriously, Ella. What happened?” She demanded.

“Seriously. I was taking a bath and he knocked on the door. I figured it was you with the passcard, even though I’d said it could wait. So I wrapped my uber-skimpy-Stark-Industries-micro-towel around me, figuring I’d be opening the door a crack and accepting a passcard from you. He was at the door. And he just invited himself in, plain as you like. Said he was concerned about me,” I started. Angela shook her head, and as we walked through the waffle decorating station, I finished filling in all the details. 

Once we were seated at a table, she took one of my hands and looked at it.

“I don’t see it either,” she sighed. “Do you suppose he has weird powers that let him see through things? Maybe that’s why he didn’t care that you were naked. Maybe he sees all of us as naked all the time.”

“You’re confusing him with Superman,” I laughed. “He has x-ray vision.”

“Superman is a comic book character! Thor is real! Who knows what all his powers are.” She cut her waffle up and started in on it. I pushed my waffle around the plate a little and drank my coffee. I didn’t like waffles. At all. I ate the mountain of fruit I’d piled on top of it, but couldn’t bring myself to get into the waffle itself.

“Well, not making a big deal about naked women is one of them. He made it clear he thought my prudishness was weird.”

“He’s weird. Most men would be hard pressed to not scope you out, regardless of how cool they tried to appear,” she stated, and then made a gesture that looked a little like jazz-hands. “Oh-em-gee! Boobies! Play it cool, dude. Play it cool, and she won’t cover up and then?  More Boobies!” Her fake-guy voice was hilarious.

I snorted on my coffee. “I’m hardly in peak physical condition. He probably was just horrified by the wiggly bits and stretch marks.”

“I don’t think they see past the boobies, to be completely honest,” she laughed. I shook my head and finished my fruit. I’d effectively smushed up the waffle until it looked like I’d eaten some of it. 

“What is on the agenda for me today, boss?” I changed the topic and drank my coffee. Angela pulled out a tablet and flicked through it.

“More orientation stuff. We’re going to go to distribution, and learn how to requisition things for your project. And how to req for your apartment too. And how different the two forms are and how important it is to make sure you use the right form,” she started. “Here’s a hint. The importance of using the correct form is inversely proportional to how similar the forms are to one another. You won’t believe that will take most of the morning, but it will. Then you’re seeing Markus after lunch.”

“Can I order bigger towels from distribution? Because the towels in my apartment are ridiculously small.”

“I don’t think so. But you can also requisition outside items from your in-suite purchasing app. Or I can just take you to Macy’s after work,” she suggested. “Are you not going to eat the waffle?”

“Confession?” I made a face. She nodded. “I hate waffles. They’re like a pancake with a skin disease. Disgusting.”

“I take back every nice thing I said about you. Waffles are amazing. Those are flavour pouches.” The look on her face was enough to make me bite my lip to prevent the laughter from slipping free. She was gripping her table knife like she might actually stab me. It would be a sticky ignominious death by maple syrup.

“Flavour pustules, maybe. So gross. I’m more of a bacon and eggs girl,” I admitted. Angela shook her head, her eyes cast downward in disappointment. She finally cracked the tiniest grin.

“Damn good thing you’re funny. Because that might be a deal-breaker otherwise. Come on. Bus your table. Let’s get you off to distribution so you can learn about the pedantry of requisitions.” She winked and grabbed her tray, leading the way over to the kitchen cart before directing us back to the elevator.

Distribution might not have been mired down in red tape, bureaucracy and shenanigans if they’d had a single window. But they were located in a sub-level of the building, below the parkade, completely walled in. There was a single door in, and it was right beside the loading bay. The staff kind of looked like they were a lost race of mole people. They were pale, suspicious of visitors and seemed a little paranoid that the rest of the company was out to make their lives miserable on purpose. The main stock clerk all but hissed at us when we came in. 

Angela made quick work of running through the requisition forms. There was a single line that delineated personal requisitions from project reqs, and it was required for payroll deduction where appropriate. It was fair enough, but wouldn’t it have been simpler just to colour code the forms? I asked Angela as much and she clamped her hand over my mouth.

“Do you want to be barred from ordering things? Don’t rock the boat!” She hissed. “If you can control yourself, I want to show you heaven. This is the one thing that distribution does right.” She led me over to a table that had a pile of different catalogues on it. “This is the only part of Stark Industries that is still analogue because catalogues are so much easier than websites. And here’s where your colour coding idea comes into play. Blue catalogues are filled with workplace supplies, divided by shade of blue. The light blue cover is office supplies; the dark blue cover is electrical doodads, etc. You’ll learn them as you need to. The yellow covers are personal items. Light yellow is Stark Industries branded stuff. I do most of my Christmas shopping in the light yellow. My dad has a thing for polo shirts and golf balls. Goldenrod is household items that are covered by your living allowance. Stuff like bedding, kitchen utensils, towels. I think there’s a surround sound upgrade in there.” She handed me a pencil and flipped the Goldenrod covered catalogue open to bathroom stuff. The towel page was dog-eared. Apparently I wasn’t the only one who hated the mini-towels that came standard in the room. I filled in a requisition for towels and a plush bathrobe. 

Angela brought me back to the stock clerk’s desk and walked me through the process for submitting the order. It was complicated. I almost expected to need to know a secret handshake to complete the transaction.

“So that should all be delivered before the day is over.” She led me back out of the department. True to her word, the distribution department and requisition in-service had taken us almost to lunch. We stepped off the elevator on the floor for my research division. “I figured I’d show you your desk before we eat lunch.”

We rounded a corner into the lab area. The space was wide open, from window to window. There were workstations at the periphery of the room. I assumed the conspicuously empty one was mine, but Angela walked right past it to a desk that was covered in stuff. There was a pile of paperwork on one corner that at first glance I thought was probably the information relating to my proposals. The desk itself was one of the Stark Industries touch responsive computers that I’d been desperate to try since the first time I saw one. The monitor was carefully suspended from the ceiling, keeping the desk as clear as possible. On the far side of the desk was a small cactus with a little plastic welcome stick pressed into the dirt, and a box of office supplies.

Angela made quick work of logging me into the computer. The log in sequence unlocked the desk drawers, so I was able to clear my desktop with one sweep of my arm into the top drawer. Angela sucked in her breath in response to the action.

“I will organize myself later. For now, that desk needs to be clear, if I’m ever going to work at it,” I explained. She grabbed the cactus protectively and held it away from my reach. 

“Promise you won’t hurt the plant,” she demanded. 

“Sure,” I agreed. She put the plant back down and disappeared across the lab, quickly returning with what looked like a shelf. While I watched, she mounted it to the window behind my desk. How she did it was a mystery, it looked like it was just hanging there. Some sort of mysterious Stark Tech, I suppose. She took the cactus and placed it on the corner of the shelf, her shoulders square in defiance of my otherwise blasé organizational skills. As though she already knew that I wasn’t going to organize my desk drawers later. I looked over at the desk beside me and saw that all the way down the bank of windows, there were shelves mounted against the windows, holding the various personal treasures of the employees assigned to each desk. My shelf looked kind of boring with just the cactus on it.

“Okay, let’s get lunch. You’ve got your meeting with Markus in 45 minutes.” Angela steered me back out of the lab and over to the elevator.

[mc-slowwalker]

shipping to australia is a nightmare. anytime I go to do any online shopping I’m instantly stopped by the thought of shipping. hahahahahahaha at least that’d be a funny way to go out tho

yeah true!! every time I’m watching a vod I’ll get so startled cause they always pop up when you’re least expecting them too. I’ve only got my prime sub and I haven’t tested it but I have a feeling that twitch would still give you ads. they seem like the type

so true I’m not paying hundreds of dollars for textbooks I’m barely gonna use for half a year. oof that sucks. if I didn’t google my way through those exams I guarantee I would have failed though😅😅 then one subject that was ungoogleable, I did fail. god now I feel bad about how terrible a student I am

it’s so nice to see dream being on streams and having fun and interacting with other people !! it sucks cause I would absolutely LOVE to see dream on ppsat but I hate the idea of toxic people that would find reasons to shit on them :// like with gartic phone the other day. I felt like so toxic when the twitter updates account tweeted that dream was there cause I knew the “twitter stans” were coming. and I don’t even have a terribly negative view of stans as a whole. and then turns out it was justified and then I felt even worse. the gumi stuff pissed me off too. feeling a bit bad for dream tho. mans can’t even play with his friends without them getting attacked. I clicked on the links in your subtitle/heading/whatever it’s called when I first followed you like 6 or so months ago. was pretty funny

damnnn you’re doing all of those?? that’s tough. I dropped language (french) in yr 10 and decided to never touch maths again after I finished highschool and I loweky like maths too. oh I will 100% be telling people to touch grass that is so funny. I also can’t say anything about the nerd thing cause I just fully had the thought “what if I write an essay on the internet and it’s effect on language development”

Yes!! please tales!! where is it!! my weekly dose of happiness. I remember the last tales stream I watched like it was yesterday😪 I miss the ____ my beloved gifs that would be everywhere everytime a new character was introduced. I may have very little clue about any of the in between/the other side lore but damn were the builds insanely good. I was watching tubbo’s stream too and he said there wasn’t anything to do on the dream smp and like true ig but🥲🥲 he also said he’s been thinking about lore on twitter tho!!! so there is that !! hmm yeah I do wonder what they’re waiting for actually cause it’s been genuinely so long that c!dream’s been in the prison for. I wanna why it’s so important cause cc!dream and cc!sam put a lot of emphasis on it. and I just really really want to see what c!dream will be like out of the prison. for so many reasons

oh nooo ripppp. that’s kinda funny tho. the video was so short that was funny too. sapnap and george 2000iq moment nice. it was a nice vid tho, chill and enjoyable. so much dream content recently I feel like he’s about to drop off the face of the earth or miraculously stream something (highly unlikely but I can hope)

When streamers runs ads you gey a warning! But when vods do it it’s just a hey haha fuck you! You’re 100% right about twitch jeff bezo wouldn’t let any thing go to waste. He’s not the ceo right now but I hate him anyways. I’ve never actually used prime sub because I don’t have amazon prime, but I’ve been gifted subs a couple of times which was neat!

You know I may not be the best student but as someone who has cried a lot because of school I think it’s morally correct to be a bad student Cheat!! You’re paying then money they owe your ass so fucking much!! Abuse their resources stick it to the man. No time in life for guilt especially considering that universities are just corporations anyways they made hide behind the guise of learning but I’m calling them out no way knowledge gotta cost this much

I also love seeing dream stream with his other friends! To badly quote scott smajor, the dream team is made up of anti social sweaty fucks (affectionate). He’s always so awkward at first and ngl? Huge confidence booster /j/j. Logically I understand that twitter update accounts are useful, but I think they should all collectively take a break for a minute. Would it change anything? No. But it would make a lot of people very unhappy. I don’t even know what to do about toxic twitter stans because like, content creators and us can call them out and not at all condone their actions but we can’f actually do anything about it? It’s super frustrating. And I feel like a hypocrite too because if dream does stuff with a cc I hate I bitch about it too I just don’t have as far a reach. Like I for sure threw a whole fit when dream went on to kaceytron’s stream. Actually I tend to get upset when he goes onto streams with people who actively hate him. So I struggle with that because despite feeling like I’m justified in doing that, twitter stans feel justified in their stuff too. You could argue that it’s different because the chance that the ccs will see it is near 0 but it’s still the same behavior isn’t it? For sure not saying twitter stans are right, they piss me off how dare they say shit about gumi, but also I worry that I act similar you know?

I’m glad is was amusing I haven’t gotten any angry anons so I can never tell if the links are working or not

Listen listen it’s less that I chose this and more that they’re requirements. Spanish is a req, but I’ve always really liked spanish? I’ve found with learning languages I have to be interested in the lanrguage’s history/culture. So french makes me mad but spanish makes me feel cozy and I like it! I pick up spanish pretty fast too and I’d like to be actually fluent in it some day. Language as a whole is super interesting. Also the internet has made language even more interesting with widespread similarities and what not

Listen I would agree more with tubbo but instead Imm going to lighheartedly call him a coward who’s afraid of surprise lore! He said he would be there more often if other people logged on more often but I know for a fact other people feel the same and by him not regularly logging on he’s adding to it! I think foolish, ponk, puffy, and bbh have really upped my standards for lore. They log on at least once a week and make their own plot. Like bro if you’re bored start some shit tommy style! Personally I would make enemies with all the beets people. Tubbo has such cool lore I just wish he was willing to be a little more spontaneous. He was tired last night though so I can see his boredom beinf effected by that. I really really enjoyed bear smp those guys were so fucking funny and I will be watching more of them. Need to catch up on hermitcraft too

Who’s to say he can’t drop off the face of the planet and stream? He can multitask. Also hems been big on reddit recently so we’ll see where that leads ajddj

[nitewrighter]

are fic reqs open? if so do you think you could supply and bless us with some more gency and bb/small reí? when mercy and genji call her sunshine it’s the cutest thing... if not it’s okay! i love your work sm, keep it up bruh!!

This fic takes place after Reaper Meeting Rei and Other Sides and Aftermaths

----

It was a late afternoon in the office above Winston’s lab. Dust motes hung in the air and Mercy was staring out the window at the distant freighters on the horizon. Rei was in her arms, muted by a pacifier, dark gray eyes flicking between Winston and the holo-monitor just behind him with its slow scroll of Overwatch agents and their statuses. Genji’s knee was bobbing with some anxiety as he studied his wife and daughter. Rei seemed pretty unfazed by the encounter with Reaper, and there was a good chance she wouldn’t even remember it, but it still turned his stomach to think about it.

“Before we begin, is there anything I can get either of you?” said Winston, sitting across the desk from them, “Water? Or...?” Winston trailed off, not really sure how to actually begin. Mercy looked exhausted and haunted, and while Genji’s expression was hidden beneath his visor and faceplate, there was a slight caving to his shoulders that betrayed his own distress and fatigue. “I can’t tell you how sorry I am,” said Winston, “And I understand completely if you decide to leave Overwatch for the safety of your family.”

 Both Mercy and Genji perked up with some alarm at this.

“What? No---” Mercy said on reflex, “I can’t just leave everyone here...”

“And we want to stop Talon like everyone else,” said Genji.

“But, in light of recent events, is this the kind of life you can see raising a child in, is my question,” said Winston.

Mercy and Genji exchanged glances and then looked down at Rei. The four month old met their gazes with an expectant brightness in her eyes.

“Talon has no problem targeting civilian family members,” said Winston, “We are all more aware of that fact than we’d like to be.”

“But the Watchpoint is the most fortified and prepared against a Talon or Null Sector attack,” said Mercy, bringing Rei up against her shoulder, “There’s no guarantee Talon wouldn’t just hunt us down if we left.”

“And we know the Shimada clan still has enough resources to go after Hanzo, if they find out about Rei...” Genji trailed off, then he sighed and extended a finger of his prosthetic over to Rei, who wrapped her own tiny hand around it, “Well... we don’t know if she has the dragon, yet. So I suppose we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.

Winston took off his glasses and rubbed at his eyes. “I don’t want you to feel trapped here. And if your priorities have shifted...”

“Rei’s safety is our priority,” said Mercy, “But the world’s not going to get any safer if we drop out of this fight.”

“I can respect that,” said Winston, “And we will be doing a major overhaul on Watchpoint security to make sure this doesn’t happen again.”

“...if I could stick with the Watchpoint-based duties for another month, though...” said Genji, watching as Rei shook his finger up and down.

“I’ll do my best,” said Winston, “Thankfully we haven’t had a mission requiring your level of infiltrating skill, but... there are no guarantees.” Winston looked between them, “So you’re sure about this? Even with her? Even after Reaper came into your home? You’re sure you want to stay in this fight?”

Genji looked down at Rei, then looked up into Mercy’s eyes. She looked so tired, but that steely will sparked a light in her eyes as she stared right back at him and gave a determined nod. Rei’s hand was still wrapped around his finger and he studied her face. He wasn’t sure if the look in Rei’s eyes was “I can take everything this world can throw at me” or “I have no idea what’s going on” (almost certainly the latter, considering she was only four months old), but he took a deep breath before turning to Winston, “Yes. I’m sure.”

“So am I,” said Mercy, readjusting Rei in her arms.

“I trust both your judgment,” said Winston, he chuckled a bit nervously, “And anyway, Pharah and Brigitte grew up with Overwatch, and they turned out fine!”

“...Pharah was estranged from her mother for well over a decade,” the words fell out of Mercy blankly.

“...Brigitte turned out fine,” said Winston, awkwardly adjusting his glasses.

----

Between reviewing debriefs of the incident, checking out and fortifying potential sites of the security breach, and taking care of Rei, the rest of the day seemed to pass all too quickly. It didn’t occur to Mercy that the setting sun would fill her with dread, but she felt her stomach tense up all the same as the sun dipped into the sea. They put Rei to bed together that night, but hung around in the nursery, both a bit afraid to leave, but both looking down into the crib.

“You know, eventually, we have to stop staring,” said Genji.

“In theory,” said Mercy. The nursery lights were dimmed, with barn swallows from Rei’s rotating night light slowly drifting across the walls. Rei herself was zipped up into her sleep sack, pacifier in her mouth, her soft dark hair sticking out in feathery little tufts, her chubby little hands balled into fists.

“Have you thought about what Winston said?” said Genji, “Do you think this is unfair to her?”

“We knew this was going to be complicated just because of who we are,” said Mercy, “And we keep saying we should have a life outside of the fight...” she sighed and her shoulders slumped, “But this fight just seems to consume everything... Even when we tried to get out of it after Overwatch collapsed, it still found its way to us.”

“...so this has to be what we’re fighting for,” said Genji, cupping his prosthetic hand to Mercy’s cheek. Mercy leaned into his touch, “A little bit of light in a dark world. ”

“A ray of sunshine,” Mercy smiled, closing her eyes.

“...did we plan that?” said Genji.

Mercy just snorted and wrapped her arms around him. He stroked a hand over her hair as the nightlight’s projections drifted across the wall.

[nolan-sims]

>>> Computer Help, Requests, General Q’s, Top 3 Packs, etc. 

Anon: Do you know if sims users who use a MacBook experience lagging issues? Is it a good computer for a lag free sims 4 experience?

Hey there! I’m a PC user so I can’t really speak on behalf of Mac players, but from what I've heard, if you’re planning on mostly playing games it may be better to go with a PC over a Mac. 

Anon: Hey! I’m saving for a gaming PC. And I wanted to know what pc you have? Or where to get good PCs. It doesn’t have to specifically be a gaming one, just a good enough one to play The Sims 4 on higher settings. My pc isn’t bad but it can’t handle sims on higher settings ( which I like )! I probably sound so selfish because I want a gaming PC to have sims have good settings without lag but I do lol my game lags on lower settings too, So I guess I ain’t too selfish :P I hope you help, thank you ❤️❤️

Hey, there’s nothing wrong with wanting a nice piece of equipment! Especially one that’s as useful as a computer. They’re a necessity, really-- it doesn’t make you selfish in the slightest. As for my computer, this is what I use. It’s a few years old now but it’s been fantastic & never has a problem running almost every game I’ve played on it on Ultra (i.e. Skyrim, Subnautica, Dragon Age: Inquisition, etc.)! MSI makes some pretty solid machines 👍

Anon: Hey! I was wondering if you could make a longer version of your new dress? It’s so beautiful but I only put long dresses on my sims since I’m modest IRL and I like my sims to be too. It’s not a request or anything. I hope I don’t come across as rude, I do love the dress. 😍😍

Anon: hi nolan!! super sorry to bother you but i was just curious if you had any interest in making a version of reticulates' daydreamin eyes for mermaids? or if you've seen anyone make some around!! thank you 

Anon: hi honey, would you try to make a mermaids reticulates default eyes?

Hey there~ To answer both questions, I don’t actually take requests. As for the mermaids eyes, because they aren’t my CC to edit or post, I probably won’t. When I made the edits for pets, I got permission to do so. But because reticulates has been gone for quite some time, it’d be a bit rude of me if I did without asking first. I hope you’ll understand-- Sorry!

Anon: hi there! do you have a psd for the pinafore your thoughts dress? tysm!

I don’t have it uploaded at the moment, but i’ll add it to the folder sometime this weekend! In the meantime, feel free to check out all of the other ones I currently have >>> PSD Folder.

Anon: hi hi! i was wondering how you got the short version of the yuletide hair to shorten so smoothly? like there are no jagged parts? thank u in advance

There, unfortunately, isn’t much I can say besides I really took my time & was super careful about making things stay proportionate/smooth throughout the entirety of editing. 

Anon: What are the worst expansion packs in your opinion?

I’ve actually enjoyed all of them so far! But if I really had to choose, probably Get To Work. It’s mainly due to the fact that I can’t be bothered to actually follow my Sims to their jobs 😂 (I’m just too lazy for all of that).

Anon: Hi! How do you clean the background of your Cas for your full body pictures?

Hello! My editing process is on my FAQ & Resources page 😊

Anon: I'm fairly new to sims, i was wondering why some CC items require certain expansions? I'm not complaining, just curious

Most CC creators do this if the CC they made is only a minor edit or recolor of an item from a pack, that way, it won’t just be a direct port-- therefore making a paid item free (which is a no-no).

Anon: hey, do you take sim reqs? even if not a soft-faced ya female named Noelle would be adorable in your game i think. just a suggestion, no need to follow up!

I don’t take requests, but I have a Sim that sort of fits that description!

Anon: Do you know of any good Sims 4 teen mods that’ll allow them to quit high school without affecting the responsibility manner gauge?

I wanna say MCCC does this, but I don’t use any mods so I honestly have no idea 😅 If anyone knows, let me know in the replies!

Anon: Is there anyway for sims to buy multiple housing properties in Sulani like the sims in the Sims 3? I know you can make property “generic”, but I want it to be a house that my sims can own while having other houses if that makes sense lol

No, unfortunately. That’d be really cool though! I think the only/closest way a Sim can do this is if they own a retail store?

Anon: i wish i could donate to your patreon but i'm a broke student sadly, i really do appreciate you not using paywalls for your cc as i have had some problems with it before. thank you and have a nice day :)

Hey there! That’s really sweet of you to say, but don’t feel bad! I’m honestly just glad to be making CC in general 😊💕 +I hope you’ll have a nice day as well!

Anon: Do you know what ever happened to femmeonamission? She just disappeared one day I feel like. Is she taking a hiatus?

She’s out living her best life 😭💖 (probably)

Anon: i absolutely love you and your cc! i think my first ever cc i downloaded was from you

Thank you so much for the sweet message~ 💖

Anon: Hi I love your stuff btw! But I was wondering if you could tell me what your top 3 game packs and stuff packs are. I’m just trying to see which ones I should buy.

Hmm, that’s a tough one (seeing as I don’t get a whole lot of free time to actually play my game 😅), but here goes: +I’m throwing in my favorites EPs because why not!

Top 3 Expansions Packs

Seasons

Island Living

Get Together

Top 3 Game Packs:

Vampires

StrangerVille

Jungle Adventure

Top 3 Stuff Packs:

Laundry Day

Movie Hangout

Romantic Garden

[anodyne-sunflower]

Maledictus-Theseus ScamanderxReader (Req.)

A/N: Requested by @brittanymcsharry 💕 I hope you like it!

MOOD MUSIC: Revolution by Unsecret

***

His footsteps came to a halt at the end of the cobbled street, the next beat of them hesitant to go any further. What oddities awaited him inside that tent? Where one man promised none would leave the circus the same after having witnessed his prized collection. A string of words Theseus hadn’t quite agreed with, but his biased nature would have to remain his for the time being. No Auror, a good one that is, would be so foolish as to scare their targets off.

“One ticket.” Theseus stood tall at the entrance, eyes staring up at the sign proudly boasting the endless attractions here. Even when he was a child, he held no interest in these traveling forms of entertainment. They were for those who could not fathom the real world, and only used it as an excuse to escape their own misgivings. “Thank you.”

He tore the ticket from the elf servicing the counter, not even caring for introductions as he ignored the man handing out programs for the night’s performances. Theseus had no interest in any of them, save for one. You. At least, he had hoped in his heart that the rumors would prove to be true and his travels hadn’t led him astray once more. He was fatigued by the endless circle of disappointment he had found himself in. When Travers had officially allowed him the head of this investigation, he was more than eager to start. He had already took it upon himself to locate you, but with all the resources of the ministry at his back, it should’ve made this task easier. Only that was an arrogant assumption on his part. Instead he had concluded that your disappearance was not forceful, but of your own volition. It wasn’t often a fellow Auror went missing, but when they did it left the Ministry with a supply of never ending questions. Theseus could only hope, he would be the capable one and find those answers. If not for the Ministry, then for himself.

“Welcome, ladies and gents! To Circus Arcanus!”

He took that one as Skender. A man as exploitative as he was depraved. He had seen and read his file numerous times before this investigation, but it had never occurred to him he’d ever witness his activities firsthand. It didn’t take long for him to announce his first few victims, half-elves and half-goblins, both weary and rage filled from their ringmaster’s brutality. Theseus couldn’t fathom how these other guests could stomach such abuse, and if not for his job to collect a certain individual, he’d of revealed himself then.

“And now, look upon the infamous water demon that hails from Japan.” Skender ran his cane along the iron bars, the curtains inside retreating as a lone figure sat melancholy in a tub of water. “I present to you...a live Kappa!” This seemed to draw the crowds attention, a collection of gasps and sounds of disgust reverberating off the tent’s structure. It only made Theseus grimace, anger being held in as he composed himself to the missions purpose. He had promised he’d be back for them all, and make sure this ogre of a person never saw the light of day again.

“Focus.” He told himself, sitting silently in the stands while others crawled along the seats to get better views of the Circus wonders. He could just clasp his hands together, eyes studying the center of the ring in anticipation of his findings. It was no wonder the other Aurors found no trace of you, because he was all too certain they fell victim to the stodgy entertainment presented to them. Without question, he believed they had left before even trying to appropriately locate you. The thought left a bad taste in his mouth, and he couldn’t imagine how they’d leave you to the wolves in this place. Of course, your attendance at these shows was merely speculation. Brought on by other shady characters who wished to reduce their own punishments. Nothing spelled deal quite like helping an auror locate a friend. Theseus was the only one not to give in to such demands, but it would be remiss of him not to follow through with the gossip.

If he was honest with himself, a part of him believed it. That somehow in your haste to get away from the Ministry, you fell into a much darker void of the Wizarding world. It wasn’t a far fetched idea, and all looking to leave their former life behind could easily do so here. Where your true identity could be masked behind theatrics. “Where have you gone?”

Theseus considered all the variables, but the deeper he dug the harder it was to explain away your behavior in the past year. Every day seemed difficult for you, with your demeanor becoming erratic and distressed. He tried to speak to you, to get to know your troubles and perhaps, even fix them for you. Some would call that arrogance, but he would not watch you suffer on your own. Yet, every time he tried to corner you, to speak to you, you fought him. Sometimes ignoring his words, and other times berating him for placing himself in your personal affairs. It drove him mad to be sure, but he held a high respect for you and would not pursue the topic further. He wasn’t even sure of what caused your stress, but seeing you fight it alone...it angered him.

The entire string of events left him hopeless at the start, and he often found himself walking by your flat on his way to and from work. A foolish hope, but he pleaded with the fates that one day you’d be back there. That moment never came for him, and he could only sit back and let the days slip by and by until months had passed...and you were officially considered endangered and missing.

“There is but one more mystery I have to share with you tonight, my friends.” Skender smiled maliciously, looking to the cage once more in that twisted way Theseus has come to despise. “She’s human, beautiful...every man’s desire.” His cane dotted into the floor, adding a beat that could trigger a crowd in captivation. “But, in her she holds a dark secret.” He moved suddenly, adding a shadow of fear over the guests as he whispered loudly. “A curse. So vile and treacherous, that it will one day consume her and turn her into a beast forever. Ladies and gentlemen...I give you...” He tapped the iron bars. “A Maledictus!”

Theseus rose in his seat, one boot stepping to the higher stand as he stretched for a better look. It was intrigue that made him stare, but in his heart he knew there was more to this moment than his fascination. He felt it. Deep and bold in his instinct, that in mere seconds...he’d be seeing you again.

The curtains slowly drew open, an ominous shadow playing along the floor until the faint sounds of heels came into the room. There was a momentary silence, only the soft flow of breaths and gasps being heard down below. Theseus didn’t care for any of them, his full attention now focused on the sway of hips and the flood of green that came in the form of a long gown.

“Merlin.” He gritted his teeth in anger, the listless way you moved not being lost on him. It was so unlike you, he believed. To be so worn in your behavior that the very fire he knew in you, was now gone. The only part that remained was that same beauty he fell in love with the first day he laid eyes on you. No man could ignore that, and he was no better, but you had a elegance to you that enchanted anyone around. It seems, in some sick way, that power still held.

The crowd fell silent again, feet shuffling forward as they clearly gained interest in the goddess before them. What dangers did she pose, they all questioned. What secrets does she hide, they wondered. It made Theseus grow irritable, his fingers resting over his wand in his pocket while he considered all possible outcomes. Should Skender lay a hand on you, he could not promise he’d be civil.

“She changes at will, my friends. By day, a beauty to behold and by night, here at Circus Arcanus...she becomes a monster.” He tapped the cage harshly, signaling your cue to perform the act. But, his actions only emboldened you. Your stubborn nature still sparking up inside with every hit of his precious cane. Oh, how terribly you wanted to rip it from his hands, to truly become the beast he wanted you to be if only to rip his very throat out. However, that just settled the unkind theories others believed of you and it was an end you did not want.

“She becomes a beast!” Skender yelled again, his look warning you of the consequences you could face if you did not comply. So, you caved, eyes downcast as you reached your arms forward, eyes burning black as you curled your hands around you, ready to accept the curses whim.

Theseus’ eyes widened, body now moving forward as he pushed people out of his way to look closer. “Y/N...”

Your heart stopped, body frozen in place when the soft syllables of your name came out in a hushed tone. It was a voice you had let go of so long ago, now a mere whisper of the past in your dreams. Somewhere deep inside you believed it couldn’t be him, but that deep inflection of your name was unmistakable.

You gazed up this time, lips closing as you swallowed your shame hard. And there he was. Blue eyes bearing down at you in relief and indignation. You couldn’t fault him his anger towards you, but it was the warmth in his stare that gave you some hope of his forgiveness.

It would be their laughs that brought you back from Theseus’ gaze, and you could feel the anger in Skender’s cane as he hit the cage harder again. Your lack of cooperation left the crowd in fits of giggles, thinking this entire performance was some type of mockery. Even through Skender’s fury, you decided the only person that mattered was Theseus. The Auror stood tall above them all, eyes never leaving yours in a show of dedication. There was nothing more to hide from him, and you believed it was time to be honest.

You bent backwards, baring your teeth momentarily as your arms and legs began to melt into each other. Coils replaced your feminine figure, gracefully tangling along the floor until you slithered back in show. The crowd fearfully retreated away, children crying and adults gasping in disgust of you. It was nothing new, for you had spent months earning every reaction possible. Truthfully, their opinions mattered little now, and the only one you cared for was his.

Your eyes traveled to Theseus on the stands, his lips parted in astonishment when he released a breath. But, the Auror never looked away from you, nor did he seem sickened by your appearance. He simply held your gaze the entire time, even as you felt your conscience battling that of a beast. You could have stayed entranced by him and his persistent stare, but the crowd grew restless in front of you. They began coming closer, daring each other to brave the creature tucked behind the bars. It caused you to slither back, tongue flicking out before you unhinged your jaw and struck the cage. The iron rattled harshly, guests screaming and running off in fear of you. The crowd began to disperse wildly, a man striking Skender and causing the ringmaster to fall over on the ground in his haste to get away.

You struck again, a mix of the beast within and your own anger this time. It frightened Skender behind the bars, his legs scrambling back as he attempted to run off. He was stopped by Theseus, so casually descending the steps and moving over the ringmaster below to get to you.

“Hey, who-!”

Theseus cut him off, presenting his badge to Skender with a stern expression. “My quarrel isn’t with you just yet. Leave. Our paths will cross again.” He wanted to hurt him, to deliver the pain he had so clearly given you for so long. However, you were his intended target and his concern. He could worry about justice later, if it meant your safety now.

Skender glanced to the identification, skin growing pale when he realized the Ministry was here. “Y-Yes, Sir!” He awkwardly ran off to the other workers, motioning for them to pick up and scramble out of here before the entire Department came raiding his work. For a brief second he laid his eyes on you, knowing he was about to lose his greatest asset. You were certain the only thing that saved you, was the glare Theseus sent his way.

The Auror sighed in relief, knowing the Ministry would bring this entire circus down in days after he reported back. He only wished he could have saved you earlier. “Y/N...” He locked eyes with you once again, brows furrowing sympathetically when he discovered you coiled up in the back of the cage, tongue flicking out. Beast or not...Theseus would only ever see you there.

He gripped the bars tightly in his hands, no fear on his features, even when you hissed his way. “Can you change back?” He asked, hoping it wasn’t too late and you were still in there.

There was caution in your gaze, your eyes studying his every movement as the beast inside considered what to make of him. Theseus would never harm you, but there was a sliver of natural uncertainty that any man would do so out of fear. Yet, there was no hint of it in him, only a concern for a dear companion. So, you allowed him your former self, the helix of your body bending back and revealing a woman. The scales slowly faded back into the material of your dress, a soft welcome to your supple skin. You still laid there in the center of the cage, curled up much like your beast form would do in reservation. In the background of your melancholy, you could hear Theseus utter a spell. The hinge of the gate screeching as he pushed it open and walked in. The tops of his boots came into your view, and you tried to focus on the smooth polish of them until he kneeled down to your level.

“So,” He offered a lighthearted smile, soothing the chaos running untamed in your heart. “This is where you’ve run off to.”

You turned away from him, rubbing gently at your arm to comfort yourself. “What else was I supposed to do?” It was natural to become defensive of your decision, but it was mainly at the shame you felt within yourself for leaving him with no explanation. If anyone deserved to know, it was him. But, how could you have possibly confessed such a curse to him? To spill out a truth that would disappoint the only man you had come to care for. A mistake you never intended to make, but here you were. You should count yourself grateful you had come to your senses before anything could have blossomed further between you two.

“You could have trusted me.” Theseus leaned towards you, eyes rigid in their stance against your reasoning. Were you so naive as to conclude his tenderness towards you was only skin-deep? The thought made him turn away, his brief flicker of anger towards you dissipating when you dared to take his hand.

“Theseus,” Your fingers swept along his knuckles, a wistful smile playing on your lips as you remembered every detail of him. It had indeed been far too long since you last spoke, let alone saw one another. You couldn’t believe you managed to go so long without him. “You’re no fool...you know what happens to those afflicted with this curse.” It pained you to say aloud, but it was the unbearable truth you had suffered with since the beginning of your time. The season of willful change would come to an end and you would find yourself entangled in the mind of a beast.

“Why did you run? You could have told me, I could have helped you.” Theseus’ words became stressed, the pierce of his blue eyes causing you to shift and turn away in shame.

“Would it have changed anything? I’m no use like this. Before it was manageable, but now, I’m slowly losing whatever sense of control I had over it. I’m a liability this way, Theseus. The Ministry would not have me-“

“No.” He abruptly cut you off, shaking his head as he denied that nothing could be done for your predicament. He wouldn’t forgive himself if he gave up on you, this should’ve been a reunion to celebrate, and the more you appealed to him, the more dismal the situation became. “Y/N, we can speak of this later. We need to leave here, I’ll take you back and we’ll work through the details-“

“Theseus, listen to me.” You brought his hand to your lips, kissing it softly as you held back the desire to cry. Leaving him once was painful enough, and you had slipped out without so much as a farewell. This time you didn’t have that chance, and it was as horrible as you imagined it would be. “There is no happy ending in this. Whatever you believe can work, it won’t.”

“I’m not leaving you here.”

“You have to. I can’t go back.”

“An Auror can’t go missing, Y/N. What did you expect would happen? That the Ministry would count you a runaway and you could live out life as some bloody circus performer?” He knew his words were harsh, but you needed to realize that whether they willed him or not, he’d of come after you regardless. “I don’t care about the curse. I don’t care if you wish to spend your days hiding from the world, but do not hide from me.”

You stared up at him, feeling his hand tightening around yours as he begged you to see reason. Of course, you wanted to, but Theseus could never comprehend the dangers or the misgivings your affliction could bring. “I love you.” It was the only thing left to say, and his shock only made you stiffen in despair at your life. How fitting that fate should give you just enough time to confess, only to quickly pull him away from you again. “But, I can’t go back.” You felt the tears stinging your eyes, falling freely now as you released his hand and watched him consider you carefully.

“Y/N-“

“Promise me you won’t say anything.”

“Don’t do this.” He shook his head, agonized gaze settled sorely on you. He tried to keep you still, but as hard as his grip on your hand was, you flinched back, eyes growing dark, as the pools of the snake came through.

“Promise me!” You held on a bit longer, knowing leaving him like this was a cruelty he would never forget. “Don’t let them come after me.” You both knew the Ministry wouldn’t look kindly upon a deserter, whether good reason was there or not.

Your body twisted in front of him, scales once again replacing the smooth exterior of your skin. Theseus felt the anger again, married in a mixture of mourning and hopelessness he could not break. Of all the outcomes of his mission, he would never have believed it would lead him here. He was not the sort to lie, no matter the cost, but for you...

He gazed towards you, standing up again with a solemn expression you still felt through your mind. You slithered back, arching up with a flick of your tongue and baring your fangs to him. If you were attempting to frighten him, it didn’t work, and he merely breathed out a sullen laugh. “Have it your way then.” He took a hesitant step back, knowing he could force you to come but that you’d fight him every step of the way. He almost wished he had never found you, but he would rather endure the loss of you again if it meant seeing you one last time.

He walked back to the cage door, looking over his shoulder as you hissed defiantly at him. “I have loved you,” he nodded, finally giving in and saying exactly what he had planned to say upon your reunion. He only wished it had been under more gentle circumstances. “For as long as I can remember.”

Theseus’ hands gripped the bars, his willingness to let you go battling with his more selfish desires. He was torn between letting you leave freely, or to have the entire Ministry bring you back and convince you there was more to this life than running. But, in the end, it wasn’t his choice to make, was it?

“I promise.”

***

A/N: That came out more angsty than I wanted lol I hope you enjoyed though!

Taglist: @brittanymcsharry @marvelous-revengers @jinx4karma @preppy-by-the-c @marsbars101 @ariminiria @jackdawsonsgrl @emily12x @november-ash @dasha-tardis @lunadiilios @tamanamohain @ghoulishbergara @blackrose-92 @siren-lamented-vampire @theonlyparadox @unexpectedlyromantic @newtstarmander @dreacantsleep

[thegeneralsnotebook]

November Feature: Set 11 Design Review + CiM Q & A

I have this memory of at some point writing somewhere, whether it was here on The General’s Notebook or in a TIA post, that once Leaders & Legends came out, I was going to be diving into its structure in the hope of figuring out how it was designed when compared with prior sets. I can’t find that quote now, but just in case I did say it, this is that article. As the first set designed entirely by Commentary is Magic instead of Enterplay, it bears asking if the new developers are going to be using a different philosophy with regard to their design.

Now, in addition to merely looking at the cards and running the numbers, this month I also had the privilege of literally asking the new developers about their design philosophy with regard to LL. I’ll include the full Q & A at the conclusion of the article, but first, let’s look at what my investigation uncovered.

Requirements

I’ve had a lot of exposure to Set 11 over the course of the past few weeks, not only in diving into the set to try building new Core decks, but also in creating the slides and figuring out ratings for the Meticulous Talks review stream. And over the course of that work, a couple of things leaped out to me right away. Number one, the requirement numbers in this set seemed high. I noticed a lot of 4’s, and enough 4/4’s to be relevant as well. In the past, cards with a 4/4 req were exceedingly rare, with only four of them before LL. Set 11 brings three more of them, in addition to what feels like a lot of 4’s and 3’s. But appearances and impressions can sometimes be deceiving. How does the set actually stack up against the others?

Requirement curves for every set in the modern era (post-EO). Note that multicolour cards are included in the count for their respective numbers, so 1/1 cards are in the 1-req count, 2/2’s in the 2-req count and so on. 4/4 cards are counted separately, though.

Stacked up against the others sets of the modern era, LL isn’t quite an outlier. In fact, in its construction it bears a strong resemblance to Defenders of Equestria. Yet even with that similarity, there are some noteworthy points about the new set that make it stand out. As can be seen, LL has the most 4 requirement cards of any set in the modern era (save EO, but as a huge set generally, the comparison there is a little harder to make). As discussed already, it also has the most 4/4’s. And, indeed, it has the most 3 requirement cards as well. It is in fact the only set in the modern era which has more cards at 3-req and above than it has at 2-req and below.

It seems like most of this shift to higher req’s has come at the expense of cards in the 2-req spot, and if we think about some of the changes that have come in Core after the rotation, a clear effect emerges. With the rotation of Singing Barrel and Trading Traditions, suddenly getting to 3-req in a third or fourth colour has gotten a lot harder. The primary replacements (Fire of Friendship, Infilitrating the Hive, Rainbow Generator) all work in two Power increments. Thus we should expect that getting to 3 Power in an off colour will be a lot harder in new Core, which we might expect will make running multicolour decks harder.

As CiM explained to me in our interview, this was very much intentional: 

CC: My analysis indicates that LL in general has cards with higher reqs than most sets since DE. Was there a conscious decision to design more impactful cards that needed higher reqs?

CIM: We felt that the ease of which a deck has historically been able to get into 3+ colors and get the capstone cards from those colors is a serious problem. With Trading Traditions and Singing Barrel no longer in core, our intent is that players should need to commit more resources to get the capstone cards from any color, and an increase in play requirements would be one result of this.

Instinctively, this feels correct to me. An eyeball look at what you got at the 2-req level in past sets reveals a lot of great cards there, and in the past decks absolutely have exploited this. While in LL obviously we don’t know what the great cards are yet, a look through the list leads to the idea that most of the really good stuff only unlocks at 3-req and above. Going by the CiM Individual Card Value Ratings (as announced on their stream, and they would hopefully be the authoritative source) the 2-req cards in LL have an average individual value of about 2.67, while the 3-req cards are about 2.96. Keeping in mind their rating system, this means that the average 2-req card in LL is in between minimal and moderate game impact, while the average 3-req card is squarely in moderate territory. (Note that for that calculation I ignored the three-colour cards. I don’t think they really count as having just 2-req, after all.)

It should go without saying, by the way, that shooting for higher reqs on the more impactful cards in the set isn’t necessarily a good or a bad design decision; it’s simply evidence of the philosophy that CiM is implementing, and we’ll have to see what effect it has on the metagame that develops. On the one hand it’s somewhat obvious that the higher requirement cards should be the ones with the more impactful effects. But in LL it seems this will be even more true than it was before.

Game Text & Abilities

The second thing that leaped out to me upon first inspection of the set was there seemed to be a lot of text to read. Game text, that is. It just didn’t seem like there were that many “simple” cards in the set, and it actually kind of gave me the impression of a Magic set, just a little. One of the things that I’ve always found interesting about Magic sets is that so few of the cards are simple. Almost all of them have some extra ability or piece of text attached to them, and most of these abilities are unique pieces of text which are only found on that one card.. Whereas in MLP there are usually a few cards with no text at all, and a few more with only a single keyword. So again, let’s have a look. In this chart, we’ll use War of the Spark as our comparison Magic set.

For the purposes of this analysis, a “simple” card is one with either no game text, or else just a single keyword ability. We can see that Leaders & Legends is absolutely the set with the most complex ability design out of any modern era MLP set, even being the only one to edge out WotS. That means more unique pieces of text, and more cards that do interesting things and can be built into new sorts of decks. Again, this was quite intentional:

CC: Was there a conscious decision to make the set more complex in terms of the number of distinct abilities on cards?

CiM: [...] Cards we design will tend to have richer possibilities for interaction with other cards. To put it in Magic terms, there’s going to be a bit more of a Johnny flavor: cards that reward people sitting down and thinking about the myriad of different things they can do, how they can interact with other cards, and those One Weird Tricks that they are capable of in niche situations.

This is a consequence of us innovating and exploring new bits of design space, looking for new things that we think players might be fun, of finding ways to spice things up, of trying not to print more 4/0/4 vanilla Orange Friends. The points-matter theme of the entry cycle is an example of this: entry cards being useful late game is (hopefully) new and interesting.

And again, this makes intuitive sense to me. What’s most impressive is that CiM has managed to keep up the amount of abilities on their cards without actually increasing the number of abilities in the set. That is to say, there are more cards with text on them, but if you count the number of paragraph breaks in the OCR, we actually end up with a smaller number as compared to other modern sets:

Not smaller by that much, of course, but still notable. So again, what this means that while LL has about the same number of distinct abilities spread among its cards, it gets far more of its abilities from unique bits of text, rather than from new keywords or from reusing old keywords. It even has less usage of what I call “natural” triggers, which are things like enters-play triggers on Friends. They’re natural because they’re guaranteed to fire as long as you play the Friend, as opposed to triggers that require something else to happen. So there may in fact be more reading to do with this set than with any other, but I have to applaud the designers for their creativity, and in not falling back on old keywords to fill out the structure of the set. (Not, of course, that using old keywords is bad. It’s absolutely worth it to explore the spaces that they create. But there’s also a commendable ambition in forging something so novel in their first crack at designing a whole set.)

The Rotation

As we go, I’d like to show two more pretty pictures. With some help from Hithroc, I ran some more queries about the structure of Core, both as it was before the rotation, and as it is now. Specifically, especially given the requirement structure of LL, I wanted to know how the general requirement and cost curves of the format had changed with the rotation. Given that LL is quite heavy on the requirements, I had thought that Core as a whole might now be heavier with the EO Block gone. Turns out, not so much:

Actually, the proportion of 3-requirement cards has grown smaller in New Core, as the sets remaining in general have significantly more 2’s than 3’s. But the proportionate amount of entry has shrunk, which is something that again may give pause to those wanting to run 3 or more colours. The more interesting comparison I think is the one for cost:

Here, there was proportionate growth in every category except 1-cost cards, and the drop for 1-cost cards was quite significant, down 7.4% from where it was in Old Core. So the cards in the format are in general more expensive than they were before. My instinct is to guess that this might slow down the game a bit, but of course it’s not so simple as that. It does mean that AT is likely to be more precious moving forward though, which may provide a boost to those colours capable of making more of it. It certainly means that in New Core AT efficiency is a very important concept. But every colour has its own way of making that concept work. And, this is after all just the first set that we’ve seen from CiM. Set 12 may or may not follow the same philosophy. That will all depend on how this one works out.

Q & A

As promised, I’ll close out this article with the full Q & A that I had with CiM. It wasn’t super long, only eight questions and not all particularly-related to their design philosophy. But there were still some interesting tidbits here. As for me, I’ll be back in the New Year. Happy Holidays!

CC: How satisfied are you with the final product of Leaders & Legends?

CiM: Ultimately, this will depend a lot on how satisfied players are with the set.

It’s hard to speak objectively about this. Building a set is a lot of work - design from the ground up, test it in concert with a bunch of people, pick all the flavor (names, finding art, writing flavor text), arranging all of the art and text, proofing all that art, whargarbling over how to make the rules support all the new cards, and producing all of the documents.

There are cards that we aren’t happy with, ideas that didn’t pan out, lost flavor opportunities, but all in all, it worked out fairly well. Only time and the meta will tell if it truly is good.

CC: To what extent was designing the set simply a matter of making the cards that you guys, as players, would have wanted to play with yourselves? (To each designer) What kind of cards do you like? CiM: To say that we would completely remove ourselves from the equation when designing cards wouldn’t be accurate; after all, we are still players just like everyone else, and we’ll have our own personal tastes and preferences.

That being said, there was rarely a point where a card was designed for L&L with the thought process being “Bigcheese will love this card” or “Oh man, Grand Pause is totally going to break this thing.” In fact, those sorts of thoughts are red flags for deeper consideration of the design, and it was more common for a card to be designed with other players in the community in mind, knowing what sorts of decks players have tried to make work in the past and we felt would be fun to provide additional support for. 

CC: (To each designer) What kind of cards do you like? 

GP: I enjoy cards that increase my options or allow for new or interesting lines of play. Cards that are efficient and powerful are obviously great inclusions in many decks, but often times aren’t the most exciting; they just might do something that others cards do cheaper or faster. When a card or cards help to create a more unique play experience or open up deck strategies that might not have existed or been properly supported before, that’s where I start getting excited.

Bigcheese: I enjoy cards that have interesting and useful interactions. Cards that can have a high impact, and are usable in lots of different situations or types of decks.

Ara: I want to say stuff that can be played in the moment and doesn’t require a lot of thought to execute with, but then I go and play Pink/Purple which is 100% about setup and shenanigans. So maybe I’ll answer cards that are good answers to a need - going fast, removal, etc, and are generally high impact.

Ivory: I like cards that are immediately useful and don’t require multiple turns to return value. A card that I know will make an impact on its own while also helping me get closer to winning are what, in my opinion, have the highest value.

CC: In the past, it's been understood that Block boundaries are placed on points of design change in the game. To what extent is the design of LL a departure from the DE block?

CiM: We’re designing it instead of Enter-Play! Merely because a new set of designers are behind the wheel for Leaders and Legends, there are going to be design philosophy differences despite our efforts to maintain the spirit of the game.

The next two questions, we feel, are investigating the differences in spirit in more detail so it makes sense to answer them first.

CC: My analysis indicates that LL in general has cards with higher reqs than most sets since DE. Was there a conscious decision to design more impactful cards that needed higher reqs? Or was this perhaps a rethink of how cards had been placed on the req curve before?

CiM: We felt that the ease of which a deck has historically been able to get into 3+ colors and get the capstone cards from those colors is a serious problem.

With Trading Traditions and Singing Barrel no longer in core, our intent is that players should need to commit more resources to get the capstone cards from any color, and an increase in play requirements would be one result of this.

CC: I've also noticed that compared to the sets that came before, LL has fewer "simple" card designs (cards with either no game text or just one keyword), and does it with unique bits of text rather than new keywords. Was there a conscious decision to make the set more complex in terms of the number of distinct abilities on cards?

CiM: There’s only so much room in the card pool for 2/0/2 vanilla Friends, and the expectation of players at this point is that cards do more interesting things than just be vanilla entry. Granted making entry more interesting than vanilla does cause some power creep; this isn’t great but some power creep is a necessity to keep the game interesting.

Cards we design will tend to have richer possibilities for interaction with other cards. To put it in Magic terms, there’s going to be a bit more of a Johnny flavor: cards that reward people sitting down and thinking about the myriad of different things they can do, how they can interact with other cards, and those One Weird Tricks that they are capable of in niche situations.

This is a consequence of us innovating and exploring new bits of design space, looking for new things that we think players might be fun, of finding ways to spice things up, of trying not to print more 4/0/4 vanilla Orange Friends. The points-matter theme of the entry cycle is an example of this: entry cards being useful late game is (hopefully) new and interesting. CC: We all hear the legends of cards that had an initial design which was incredibly overpowered. Is the reverse ever true? Which happens more often in testing?

CiM: We will do a stream at some point about stuff that died in L&L playtesting, and there are more than a few things that were over the top and got whacked with the nerf bat. Broken cards tend to leave a larger impression in a tester’s thoughts of playtesting than offhand comments about “this is kinda crummy, can we buff it?”, and even with the buffs, the crummy cards may not be good enough to really show up in the competitive scene and leave an impression.

But yes, just like there’s stuff that’s absolutely busted and gets nerfed, there are cards that start underwhelming and end up getting buffed later. As mentioned previously, we’re going to be biased towards thinking about the overpowered cards, but underpowered cards that get buffed are far more common.

When coming up with the card initially, we have a pretty good idea of what constitutes an acceptable maximum power level for a card, and a lot of the time the initial design for a card will intentionally fall short of that. That said, sometimes there are things that were considered underpowered during playtesting that turned out to be ringers once they got out into the wild. Salina Blue is one of the examples that comes to mind.

One of the reasons for this is cards may not be good outside of the context of a larger meta - there’s usually not enough time for one to really develop during playtesting. There’s no such thing as too much testing, but an eternal testing cycle gets in the way of releasing cards. CC: (To each designer) Which cards in LL are you most fond of?

GP: I previously mentioned that Pegasus Royal Guard is one of my favorite cards from the set; it’s a great aggressive card that becomes more difficult to deal with the longer your opponent leaves any copy of it alone, and can allow for some truly silly burst turns. Cozy Glow, Heel Turn is a card that has a lot of potential to shift momentum in the mid- to late-game, turning your earlier removal into even more added value. Crown of the Sibling Supreme is probably my favorite card flavor-wise; it was 100% a top-down design, and I think it really shines in that sense.

Bigcheese: Zecora, Curative Cach has unique and interesting wording, and was a fun card to get the wording right on. I additionally really like Pinkie Sense because of the way it's abilities work together and with other cards like Same Day Delivery.

Ara: My favorites are going to be heavily influenced by flavor and art since that was my major contribution to the set. Of them, Silverstream, Abstract Artist is probably one of my most favorite. It has Silverstream on it and is just a great early game card against confront to flip manes. It extols Silverstream’s, uh, virtue?, of just wanting to see what you’re doing and getting in the way for the next four hours.

Ivory: That’s a tough one! Grogar, Legion of Doom and Pinkie Sense are the two cards I see myself playing with a lot. Both are scary, high impact cards and there are a lot of fun shenanigans you can do with both.

[academicsapphic]

University classes are a monster you can��t prepare for until you’re in them. I have been through every up and down with schoolwork possible in the past year, so here are some tips that can hopefully help you avoid those downs:

Choosing and Registering for Your Classes

Make sure to thoroughly check both your major requirements and your gen ed requirements. Normally, you’ll have an advisor to help you make sure you’re on track, but Vandy doesn’t assign first-year engineering students one until after registration when school starts, and I didn’t have an advisor for this year’s registration either due to my major change, so I’ve spent hours and hours doing this on my own. There’s often recommended courses and example schedules in the course catalog that tell you what classes you should be taking at this point in time. Pay attention to that and you should be fine. For example, you have to have taken a first-level writing class to qualify for junior standing here. Those are the little things you have to look out for. To keep track of it all, I have a spreadsheet I use for planning my sophomore - senior years that lists all the requirements I need to meet in terms of hours and courses in order to graduate on time. I plug in possible courses and see which requirement they would fulfill and when. You can check it out here to see what I mean, it’s very helpful.

Find at least one fun elective to take if at all possible. It gets very tiring when all you have on your schedule are really difficult classes that you don’t enjoy. Try to find at least one class that you’re genuinely interested in to help get you excited for the day. Each of my last semesters, my schedule consisted of a calculus class, a lab science, a comp sci class, and Italian. Italian was the only fun one that I enjoyed going to. It really helps you out. You’re not just in college to get your degree, you’re there to discover what you really want to do, so feel free to explore your catalog and take something completely out of character just because you want to. Bonus if it fills some kind of requirement (Italian filled my Foreign Language Proficiency and one of my International Cultures reqs.).

Have multiple versions of your schedule based on which classes you may or may not get into. I don’t know about your school, but at Vanderbilt, class registration is literally like the Hunger Games. You’re assigned an enrollment date based on your year (seniors get to go first, then juniors, etc.) and at 8 am on that day, you refresh the website and either enroll in your classes or get placed on the wait list for it. If you’re a freshman, you’re basically screwed because you go last, and so you could have planned out your perfect schedule only to find they’ve all filled up the day before your enrollment period starts. To avoid having to scramble, have multiple versions of your schedule, with back ups and substitutions for every class. This way, you won’t be surprised when you go to enroll and all but one of your classes are filled, then you have to search for other classes, but at that point, all that’s left are scraps that don’t fit your requirements. Plan plan plan and practice clicking the enroll button on all your classes as fast as you can for when the clock strikes 8.

You have freedom over your schedule now; take advantage of that! No more 8-3 Monday through Friday; you can take classes whenever you want. I prefer to have all my classes on MWF in a block of a few hours and only one or no class on TR. Of course, sometimes you’re going to have to take classes at less optimal times, but do try to accommodate yourself and take classes at times you know will be good for you. Lots of people prefer to start early and finish early, while I like to start no earlier than 11, even if I don’t finish until 5. The best part of college is you can do what you want.

Don’t take 8 ams. I’m repeating this cause it’s important. I swear, you’ll regret it. In high school, I woke up every morning early as hell to catch my bus at 6:30, but in college, it was nearly impossible for me to get up for my 11 am only three times a week. Don’t ever take an 8 am by choice. And if you have no choice, good luck lol.

Don’t be afraid to drop a class. If you’re doing terribly in a class or you absolutely can’t stand it, drop the class. There’s a very little chance that if you’re failing during the first half of the semester, you’ll be able to change your grade dramatically in the second half. Maybe you decided to be an overzealous freshman and signed up for the maximum number of hours possible and now you’re drowning. Drop a class! Sometimes, a course is going to do more harm to you than good, so it’s best to get rid of it than have an F or a W on your transcript.

Use RateMyProfessor! I totally forgot about this when I originally posted this and it’s already got almost 1,000 notes but hopefully people see this. RateMyProfessor is so fucking useful. It’s IMPERATIVE that you check this website before you enroll in classes. Someone at Vandy actually made a Chrome extension for our enrollment website that automatically shows a professor’s ranking while you’re looking for classes. Obviously, take it with a grain of salt, and make sure the reviews actually make valid points about the workload and class and isn’t just someone bitter about failing. I took calc with a professor who taught at my high school just cause she taught at my high school even though her reviews said she was insanely difficult and the class was near impossible to pass. Guess what? They were right and I failed as did a big chunk of everyone else in her class. You don’t have to let RMP dictate your schedule, but definitely check it out, and if everyone says the professor is awful, don’t fucking take them. 

Attending Your Classes

Establish a connection with your professor early. I recommended introducing yourself on the first day of class just so they know your name and face in another post. It’d be even better to attend an office hour or review session or something. Just make sure they know you. It’ll be easier to communicate when you need something later in the semester if it isn’t their first time seeing you.

Actually use this connection with your professors. In my experience, they can be pretty understanding and when you’re in a bad place, they’ll likely help you out. If something is preventing you from doing your best in class, go to them for help (I didn’t go to many office hours but I wish I did! Who better to explain to you something you don’t understand than the person who grades you on it?) or explain to them your situation. I had professors let me take tests late and redo assignments due to my mental health after I explained to them I wasn’t just a terrible student; if it wasn’t for this, I would’ve failed all of their classes. Maybe at the end of the semester they’ll drop one of your wonky grades or bump you up that extra half point you need. Your professors are a resource, and it’s up to you to use it.

Take notes however you want. I used my laptop in some, paper in others, and even my iPad and a stylus for calculus. In all of your classes will be a mixture of different techniques and no one cares what you do. Whatever works best for you and helps you get down the most information is what you should do. Also, you don’t have to write down everything. If your professor uses slides and posts them for you to download, you don’t really have to write down anything at all unless they add extra points, so that’s really convenient. 

You don’t have to sit in the front. As long as you can see and hear, which you’ll likely be able to due to large projection screens and microphones, it literally doesn’t matter where you sit. In my experience, the professors call on people from every part of the lecture hall, so everyone gets an equal chance at participation. It’s up to yourself to make sure you can pay attention, not your seat.

Do your best to attend every single class meeting. It’s inevitable that you’re going to miss class at some point; you will get sick, you won’t have finished an assignment, you’ll need a mental health day, something will happen. Missing class can too easily become a habit if you do it often, so try to never do it. Don’t force yourself to go if you can’t handle it, obviously your health always comes first, but I mean don’t skip cause you want to sleep in or cause you just don’t feel like going. If you do have to miss class and 1) you have a good reason for it (i.e. sickness) and 2) it’s a class small enough that your professor will notice you’re not there, email them and let them know why, just so they’re aware you’re not just skipping to skip.  

Try to make friends in your classes. A little study group would be even better. It’ll be really useful to have someone who can help you with a homework question you don’t understand or send you their notes when you miss a class. It can also be great to study with other people, depending on how you study best. I’ve had friends in all my classes so far and it’s been a great help, even if we just complained about the test we just failed then went to get pizza.

Tackling the Coursework

Make a REALISTIC study schedule. The key word here is realistic. During winter break I made a study schedule that started with me waking up at 8 am every morning to go work out and ended with me going to sleep promptly at 11 or midnight after spending literally the entire day studying with breaks only for meals. No breaks on weekends, no room to socialize, and I thought this would be perfectly fine for me to follow. Of course, I didn’t last a week because that was fucking ridiculous. You don’t need to schedule every hour of your day; college doesn’t work like that. Just do something simple, an hour for a class or maybe less depending on how hard it is and if you have a test coming up. Trust your instincts. There’s no need to go overboard, and you don’t need to spend six hours a day working, just dedicate a time to studying and stick with that.

Explore study techniques until you find one that works for you. Everyone doesn’t study the same, so if you do what everyone else is doing you might not get the results you want. Even if you had a great system in high school, it might not be fitting for college, so check out a bunch of different methods and see how you do with them. Once you find the best way you study, you’ll be unstoppable when exam time comes.

Start your assignments early, as soon as you can after they’re assigned. There’s nothing worse than having a bunch of assignments/tests/papers due on the same day and you haven’t finished any of them. Trust me, it is so much less stressful to complete an assignment as soon as you can after it’s been assigned so you don’t have to worry about it anymore. Putting things off has much more severe consequences than it did in high school and you will regret procrastinating. If you have a weekly assignment due every Friday, try to complete them by Wednesday every week. At the very least, start an assignment the day you get it even if you can’t finish it that day. It’s a lot easier to do something after you’ve already begun working on it, and that one thing you do is progress.

The name of the college game is prioritization. If college teaches you anything, it’s how to prioritize your duties. You need to create a hierarchy of importance for your classes and types of assignments. For me, calculus assignments were always done first because that was the most difficult class and the one I absolutely needed to pass, and Italian was always done last cause it was my easiest class and I could complete even our biggest assignments in one day. You’re going to have a very large amount of work and sometimes you have to sacrifice finishing a small homework assignment to finish a huge paper or study for an exam. I liked to complete my hardest/longest assignments right when I got back from class to get them over with and leave my easier ones for later. Prioritizing is essential if you want to succeed in university, so learn how to do it immediately! 

Remember that uni is really difficult and your grades don’t define you. Something I learned the hard way is that sometimes you can try really really hard, do the best you can, and still fail. That’s just life. Sometimes you have to do something a million times before you get it right, or before you discover that it just isn’t right for you at all. I worked harder than I ever had this past year, and what I got in return was two failed classes, two D’s, academic probation, and a 2.3 GPA. Actually, my current GPA isn’t even a 2.3, it’s a 2.295, which is probably blasphemy to the studyblr community, but this shit happens. It happens to all of us and it sucks. It can be really shitty to feel like your effort wasn’t reflected in your result. What you need to do is adjust your expectations and keep working hard. After you hit your stride, your grades could be great in no time. Or you could discover that math or science or english just isn’t for you. Maybe you’ll discover university as a whole isn’t right for you, and that’s okay! Bad grades, whether you define that as a B or an F, don’t mean you’re a bad student or a bad person. You do what you can, and then let go of what you can’t control. The sooner you grasp this idea, and the sooner you learn to be gentle with yourself, the easier a time you’ll have.

So I feel like I forgot a lot of things but also this is pretty long so I’m going to end the post here. If you have any further questions or topics for a post you’d like to see, my inbox is always open. I don’t know which post is coming next, but I’ll keep you posted. Thanks for reading and I hope this helped you out!

Previous Posts:

Application Process

Choosing/Changing Majors

Orientation/Move-In/First Day of Classes

Roommates

[cloudchaserandflitterexplain]

Cloudchaser and Flitter Explain: Their top 10 Defenders of Equestria cards

You guess? Did something go wrong?

No…

Then what’s wrong, Cloudchaser?

It’s just that...

There are so many good cards in this set! Cutting them down to just ten meant I wouldn’t be able to mention a lot of my favorites and even ordering the ten I do have was really hard and I’m still not sure it’s the order I want them to be in and—

Boop.

Feel better now?

Did… did you just boop my nose?

Hi everypony! Have you been enjoying Defenders of Equestria so far? I know I have!

And considering how hard it is to get Cloudchaser to stop talking about the set, I’m pretty sure she’s been enjoying it too.

You can’t just boop someone’s nose like that…

In fact, you might even say we’ve been enjoying the set a bit too much! It’s about time for us to make our traditional top 10 favourite card lists after all.

And Defenders is so full of awesome, it was really hard for me to pick only ten cards to talk about. And something tells me Cici had just as much trouble as I did! Didn’t you, Cloudchaser?

I mean, what would Equestria be like if ponies just walked up to each other willy-nilly and just… boop.

Okay... I seem to have completely shattered my best friend’s brain. Give me a moment to try and fix this.

Gah!

You booped my nose again…

Well I needed to do something! We’ve got top 10 lists to share with every pony.

Care to do the honors by sharing your first card with everypony?

Oh, uh, sure.

So to start things off, I’m putting Maud Pie: Counteroffer at number 10.

Now this card may surprise a few people. As, well, she has most of the qualifications for a card that I’d be inclined to say is not good at all for competitive play. She costs 5 for one thing, which is a huge investment for a card unless it gives you a massive advantage.

Which brings us to her ability set. Which, if you ask me, is not at all worth that 5 AT pricetag. Exhausting an opposing character during your Main Phase is pretty underwhelming at the best of times, and there are typically better ways to get +1 counters than when you flip a card.

So yeah, I’d say she’s pretty bad in a vacuum. Close to unplayable outside of a casual environment.

But if you add one other card to the equation, namely Big Mac: Princess for a Night, she becomes ridiculously good. So good, ponies have already been building around the combo.

Ponies like Gyro, which should tell you something.

Oh, so you’ve seen the deck?

Yup! I really liked the idea!

Though I’d probably hate to actually play against it.

Anyway, if you haven’t caught the combo yet, these two friends let you flip your entire deck. Start a Faceoff involving Big Mac and flip a card. Maud will then a put a +1 power counter on him, which lets him spend it to flip another card which lets Maud put a counter on him and so on.

Now, you might be thinking “okay, so this lets you flip your deck and win a faceoff by a lot. So what?” Which is a fair question to ask. Well, two things.

First off, it lets you stack the order of your deck. So you know exactly what you’re going to draw and flip for the rest of the game. And you can even restack the deck in a future faceoff, if you need to.

The other thing is you get to flip every Chaos card in your deck!

Yup. And that’s where her true power lies. There are a lot of powerful chaos abilities right now. And with the right selection of chaos abilities, as well as the correct other cards, you can basically win the game right then and there. Hence why ponies are building around her.

So yeah, she might not look like much at first glance, but she’s actually pretty strong.

Just like a rock.

Well, my number ten pick is nothing like Cici’s, but what else is new, hehe. I went ahead and chose Ravers: Glowsticks Optional!

Just look at those happy ponies! Makes me wish I was there with them. They’re having so much fun!

Almost as much fun as I have making millions of Earth Pony tokens with their ability!

...Have you actually literally made millions?

Don’t be silly, Cici. That’d take forever to put them all into play.

I just stop at the first couple thousand or so.

Of course. How silly of me.

Oh, and because some ponies miss this when they first see the card, but Ravers actually make tokens when you play them. They trigger themselves!

Which just makes sense, cause you can’t have a rave without lots and lots of ponies participating! So naturally they’d bring friends with them when they first arrive.

And the party keeps going with new friends coming and going all the time. Everypony on the dance floor!

I’ll, um. I’ll stay home, thanks.

That’s okay. Ravers work wherever they are! Even from home!

So they can bring the party to you.

...I’m going to move on to the next card.

So I just got done talking about a 5 cost, 3 req, 5 power Orange Earth Pony. And, well, I guess I’m not done doing that since my next pick is Applejack: Captain of the Seven Seas.

Yar har har. Shiver me timbers, be that an ultra rare I see? Yar har har.

Uh… sure.

Again, normally I wouldn’t really want to pay 5 AT for just one friend. You can usually do more with your AT than just that. But, in this case? The effect is absolutely worth it.

Basically this is a mono-Orange Party of One.

Sure, there are a few differences. like the fact that this affects resources and Troublemakers too, or the fact that both players get to keep things instead of just one player, but the principle is pretty similar. And a single colour Party of One is pretty nuts.

Now, yes. There are times you won’t want to play this. Like if your opponent has fewer friends than you, or you just can’t afford to get rid of your board state, or whatever. But that was true of Party of One too. And the times that you do want to play her? Well, it’s proven to be very effective.

Very, very effective… I may have been on the receiving end of Captain AJ a few times now.

Plus whenever you play her, you have an excuse to talk like a pirate for the rest of the game. Yar har har! Avast! Dead ponies tell no tales!

Okay, you are having way too much fun with this.

Silence, scurvy dog! Or else I be making ye sleep with the fishes.

Heh, you’d have to catch me first.

Oh, I’ll catch you, don’t worry about that.

But I should probably continue with my next card. Which is Pinkie’s Present!

Which is the first Song card I’ve put on these lists! What’s wrong with me, I love the song cards!

Ah well, problem solved now, hehe.

So this is on the list mostly just because I like the song. It’s just fun! Who doesn’t love presents or spending time with friends, hehe.

Though it also has a friend borrowing mode, and that’s one of my favourite things to do in this game. And the other options aren’t bad either!

It’s just a fun card with fun art based on a fun song!

Bit of a shame I couldn’t find room on the list for more songs, though, since they’re all pretty fun somehow. But oh well.

Eh, I would have gone with It’s Gonna Work myself if I was going to put a song on today’s list, but yeah, that’s a fine card too.

Anyway, my number eight card is Tri-Horned Bunyip: Elusive Myth.

Three Super or Ultra Rare cards in a row, huh Cici? Is every card on your list going to be shiny?

What? No!

...It’s just a coincidence.

I’m just giving you a hard time, Cici. Go on with your list.

Anyway it’s no secret that I love aggro. And a key part of aggro decks is point acceleration. Something basically only Blue and White had before Defenders. Which basically meant to be competitive and also be playing aggro, you had to be playing Blue, White, or both.

But with the introduction of Bunyip, Yellow’s got it now too! And this is actually pretty good point acceleration at that. 1 AT for 1 point is pretty fantastic. And it’s much easier to get that point than, say, Night Glider: Overpowering’s points.

Now sure, you do frighten Bunyip to do it. But that’s pretty minor.

Let’s compare to Rarity: Truly Outrageous, who does something pretty similar and is more or less universally considered to be a good card. With RTO, you move her home to score points. It then normally takes you 2 AT to move her back. Similarly, it costs you 2 AT to rally Bunyip. Same cost.

Yeah, there are other differences. RTO has less req, so can be used more easily if White is your off colour, and cares about higher bonus problems, for example. Plus she has 2 power, and it costs you to same amount to score points off her next turn even if you started a faceoff, while it’d take 3 AT to get Bunyip to a problem and unfrightened. And so on.

But Bunyip has advantages too. 1 initial cost is pretty cheap, and there are a few cards that care about 1 cost friends, like Find the Music In You or Pinkie Pie: One Filly Party. Plus, being a critter plays nicely with several of Yellow’s other strategies.

And most importantly, it’s in Yellow, a colour that otherwise has no point acceleration at all. That’s really the most important part.

It’s just a good card. And shouldn’t be underestimated.

My number eight pick is an Ultra Rare too! And let me tell you something…

Evil doers better run and hide because the protectors of a great nation are here to fight.

The Defenders of Spiketopia: Magic and Might!

...Not the nation I thought you were talking about, I admit.

Hey, imaginary nations can be great nations too!

Defenders of Spiketopia is great! Not only does it have my favourite art in the entire set, with everypony striking a cool pose, but it’s also got a whopping five different traits!

With trait icons to match, hehe. I bet they had to bust out something special to handle that!

Honestly it just annoys me that the trait icons aren’t in the same order as they are listed.

Huh? They aren’t?

They aren’t!

Yeah, I noticed it right away. It’s super minor, but man does it bug me for some reason.

Oh well. It’s still a super fun card with cool art!

...Aren’t you forgetting something?

Hrm? No, don’t think so.

What about their abilities?

Oh, I don’t care about that at all, honestly. Farming’s not my style. I just like the art and the traits, hehe. And I guess also the fact that their name references the actual set name, which is cute.

Though a bit confusing since we also have a Defenders of Equestria card… Ah well.

What’s next, Cici?

That would be my number seven pick, Changeling Mimics: Unreasonable Facsimiles.

I have the sneaking suspicion I should put this card higher on my list… but I dunno, this just seems to be the place for it.

Which says something about the rest of the cards on the list, because Mimics is really good.

Paying +3 AT to play any cards of the chosen type is pretty huge. You may as well not be able to play them at all, that’s such a huge tax. And unlike Octavia: Harsh Judge, you don’t need to know exactly what the opponent has in their hand, just what they’re likely to have in their hand.

Now, most of the time, you’re going to choose event with this card. Events are the cards that can be played on both players’ turns, and are far more common than either resources or troublemakers. But don’t discount the other options either.

Dilemmas are resources while not in play, for example, and players aren’t going to want to play them at +3 AT. Similarly, Singing Barrel, one of the most common forms of entry in the game, is really difficult to use if it suddenly costs 4.

And of course, making Troublemakers cost 4 makes it a bit more painful to play an epic to get rid of the Mimics due to uniqueness. Not impossible, of course, just expensive.

But let’s face it, that’s just a bonus. You’re almost always going to name event because it’s generally going to be the most useful. The other options are just icing on the cake.

Oh, and don’t forget the 6 power. They even do a decent job of protecting themselves against Friends due to being big. Though not so large they’re insurmountable.

I’m just glad they have a bonus higher than 0 so if you defeat them, you get something out of it.

Oh yeah, good point. It does have a drawback.

But then again, it’d have to. It’d be pretty insane without a drawback of some kind.

And even with the drawback, I think it’s the best non-epic Troublemaker we’ve seen in awhile.

What about Tantabus?

That doesn't count. It wasn’t good because it was a Troublemaker, it was good because of its chaos.

Well, speaking of Tantabus, I hope you’re ready to have nightmares…

Because my number seven pick, Zomponies: Terrifying Infestation, is coming to town!

OOOooOoOOoooOoOOoooO!

It kind of spoils the spooky factor when you smile like that.

These horrifying ponies have eaten so many cookies, it did something terrifying to them. Muzzles eternally stained by the objects of their undying desire, they roam all of Ponyville in search of even more tasty cookies to devour. But no matter how many they eat, their cursed hunger never diminishes.

Or maybe it was just one giant prank at Rainbow Dash’s expense, hehe. One of the two!

Yeah, it was that second one. Everypony was in on it, Flits, it’s not like you’re telling anypony anything they don’t already know.

Not everypony! Only those of us here in Ponyville.

Shouldn’t you be talking about the card?

I am, silly! The card comes with the story!

Plus it’s kind of fun just frightening everything over and over. Sure, there are better ways, but none that are so ripe with the ability to tell ghost stories while you do so.

Well, uh, besides Spooky Scary Story, I guess. Or Rainbow Dash: Goosebump Giver.

But hey, why not run them all? The perfect deck to play against somepony if you’re going camping and need an excuse to tell scary stories!

Do ponies really bring card games with them when they go camping?

Probably not. But hey, now that we gave everypony the idea, maybe somepony will!

You are one weird pony, Flitter.

Guilty as charged.

Well, let’s move on. My number six pick is Turning Point.

Now I know what some of you are going to say.

“Turning Point isn’t as good as Cracking the Case.”

And yeah, you’re right. It’s not. Immediate timing is insanely good, and banishing is always better than just dismissing. If you have the option of running one or the other, you should definitely pick Cracking the Case.

That being said, I still absolutely nove this card.

1 AT to dismiss a TM during the Main Phase by itself would be already the second best TM buster in the game right now, after Cracking the Case. Yes, even better than Epic Win, in my opinion.

Not only does being 3 req make it substantially easier to cast than Epic Win’s 4, but Main Phase timing is way better than Troublemaker Phase.

Having Main Phase timing means that if you pay AT to draw it, you can play it immediately to confront that turn without the opponent being able to mess with it somehow on their turn. Also, 1AT is about as cheap as you can get for this kind of effect.

And this card does more than that! The optional ability to discard a card to borrow a TM permanently is huge!

Especially if you borrow the card CIci was just talking about, hehe.

Yup. Suddenly it’s not you who has to pay +3 to play cards, but your opponent!

And that’s not the only good TM to borrow. Yellow Parasprite, Rarity: Hoarder, and so on are pretty solid candidates since now you’re getting the benefit instead of them.

Really, borrowing any non-epic TM can be worth it. So long as it prevents the opponent from confronting for a turn or two while letting you confront.

Sadly, there are no epic TMs that benefit you for borrowing them, really. You’re probably just better off dismissing them.

Good thing the card can do that too.

Heh, yeah. Good thing.

Anyway, I’m really pleased with this card and feel its utility is great. I look forward to using it in all my Yellow aggro decks.

Well, I look forward to making super big friends with my number six pick, Trixie: Smoke and Mirrors!

Playing events is fun and making big friends is fun, and this card lets you do both! She can get super big super fast.

One event makes her 4 power. Two events means 8 power. And ten events? A whopping 2,048 power! Twenty events? Over a million. A hundred events?

Two nonillion, five hundred thirty-five octillion, three hundred one septillion, two hundred sextillion, four hundred fifty-six quintillion, four hundred fifty-eight quadrillion, eight hundred two trillion, nine hundred ninety-three billion, four hundred six million, four hundred ten thousand, seven hundred fifty-two power!

Which is good enough to win most faceoffs, let me tell you, hehe.

...How do you even know that?

What do you think Rainbowshine and I have been doing these past few weeks?

Making stupidly large Trixies?

Amongst other things, yes!

Why?

To see if we could!

To be honest, we could have gone higher if we wanted to! But a hundred and one events just seemed excessive.

Whatever makes you happy, I guess?

Now maybe working together with your opponent to make nonillion plus power Trixies isn’t your cup of tea, much like it isn’t Cloudchaser’s. But it’s still pretty fun to see just how big you can make her when playing a normal game.

Plus she’s a unicorn and a changeling, despite being one pony! You gotta love fun flavour like that.

So wait…

Trixie is actually a changeling?

No, silly! The other Trixie is Thorax.

Oh. Right. I knew that.

Your turn!

Well my fifth pick doesn’t have the ability to breach a million power…

Nonillion.

...But I think it’s still pretty awesome.

In fact, it can easily stop that giant friend with ease. I’m talking about Belly Flop.

SPLOOSH!

So Belly Flop is probably the best removal card in the game right now. For 1 AT, you can dismiss just about every friend in the game at Immediate timing. That’s insane.

Sure, you do have to retire a friend to play it…

But Pink has no shortage of ways to make friends. Whether it’s an Earth Pony Token, someone you want to retire like Party Favor: Balloon Master, or simply a friend at home you’re no longer using, chances are you’ll have somepony you don’t mind retiring.

Of course, the best way to use it is to combine it with borrowing effects like Pinkie’s Present, which lets you retire your opponent’s friend to dismiss another opponent’s friend. This is ridiculously strong.

And fun! Well, for you. Your opponent might grumble a bit.

Not really much else to say. Just super solid removal that I expect to see an awful lot of in the immediate future, if not forever.

Well, I won’t let your dive bombing Trixies ruin my plans to make the biggest friends ever. Because my number five pick is Cheerilee: Cheerileeder!

Uhh, how does she stop me from ruining your plans?

Well, she doesn’t.

I just wanted to emphasize I like making the biggest friends ever!

Oooookay, then.

Anyway, Cheerilee is great! If you’ve got a giant friend at home, you can use that giant friend to make another giant friend even gianter!

Why have one friend at nonillion plus power when you could have two?

With one of them at home…

I just played a hundred events, you think I can’t spare a couple AT to move my Trixie at home?

Fair point.

Even without silly plans to make giant friends, it’s just fun moving power around! It’s like your friends are all working together to help each other confront those problems! How fun is that?

Not to mention Cheerilee looks amazing in her cheerleader outfit. And she’s so happy!

You just put this card on here for the art, didn’t you?

Maaaaybe. I’ll never tell!

Moving on to my number four pick, we have Gabby: Lending a Claw.

Getting into the really good cards now.

Oh, I like Gabby! She’s so helpful and cheerful!

Well, her card is definitely helpful, that’s for sure. The longer a game goes on, the more likely it is you’re going to run out of cards in hand. But Gabby here helps with that pretty amazingly.

More cards in hand means more options, after all. And Gabby ensures you always end your turn with at least four. Which is great for aggro decks that try to play a lot of cards in any given turn.

Not that you’d know anything about that.

Huh? I play aggro all the time.

That’s the joke, silly.

Oh… right.

Anyway, Gabby’s potential to keep you going in the mid to late game without resorting to having to pay to draw is pretty great. Four cards is a lot. You won’t usually get to draw a full four, since you’ll have five on your next turn, but even drawing just two cards off of her is fantastic.

She is basically worth running in any Pink deck that plays lots of cards.

Unless, of course, you’re using Vinyl. She can keep your hand full all on her own, so Gabby’s not needed.

Which kinda puts her in this weird space where she’s best as an off colour friend since if you’re playing a competitive deck with a Pink Mane, you’re almost certainly using Vinyl.

Good thing she’s only got 2 req then, huh?

Definitely.

By the way, Cici…

Have you happened to hear the new hit song that’s been the rage all across Equestria lately?

Oh, you mean Coloratura’s latest hit? Yeah, it’s great! I love everything she does!

Nope, not Coloratura!

Uhh…. Sapphire Shores then? She’s okay, but she’s got nothing on Coloratura.

I’m so pleased I got to actually help out with the preparations when she came to Ponyville! Seeing her in concert was great.

I’m not talking about a Coloratura song, Cici!

Sheesh.

Well, who’s it by, then?

Ponyville’s very own princess!

Huh. I didn’t know that Twilight—

Wait.

I see where this is going.

Sweep Sweep Sweep!

My number four pick.

How did I not see this coming sooner?

You were too busy fangirling all over Coloratura, hehe.

I wasn’t fangirling...

Anyway, I really don’t have much to say about the card. It’s just got a fun name referencing a silly little bit in Princess Twilight’s history, hehe.

And it never fails to make me laugh! I just love it.

Not sure why they didn’t just actually make it a Song, though. I mean, it even says it’s a song right there in the title!

Maybe because it’s not a song?

Sure it is!

Sweep sweep sweep sweep sweep.

Repeating one word over and over doesn’t make it a song.

Sweep sweep sweep sweep sweep.

Knock it off already.

Sweep sweep sweep sweep sweep!

Anyway, moving on to my number three pick…

Once again, I had some trouble organizing the top 3. They’re all really powerful cards, and picking which one was the best was pretty hard.

But after careful consideration, I came up with this particular list. And I’m pretty pleased with the outcome.

Enough Buildup, Cici! Which card is number three?

Heh, alright then. Sweetie Belle: Most Traditional gets the slot.

I was very close to putting her in the number one slot too. Just because of how versatile she is.

She does so many things. She can get rid of cards you don’t want to draw or flip. She can help you with faceoff math by knowing what you or your opponent is going to flip next, and if there’s any chaos on those cards. She can even get rid of the opponent’s chaos cards to ensure they don’t flip them!

Though, truth be told, the best way to use her is to control what the opponent draws. Pitch all the stuff you don’t want them to have and give them the stuff you’re okay with them having.

If you’re really confident, you can even let them draw good cards just so you know what they have. Sometimes knowing exactly what’s in their hand can be stronger than getting rid of the good cards. Just because hand knowledge is important.

Don’t forget she’s Stubborn too!

Yeah! You get to do all that and still have her help you confront in the process! She’s pretty nuts.

I’ve seen her take control of games almost single hoofed. The opponent has a much harder time drawing cards they actually want, and almost never gets to draw a way to actually deal with the situation ever again. She is seriously a huge threat.

And don’t even get me started on multiple copies of her. Now you can use one to control their draws while also using the second to control their flips, or help smooth out your draws, or just super ensure the opponent doesn’t get what they want.

It can get kind of gross.

Mostly I just use her to discard the opponent’s entire deck.

Yeah, that’s actually an option too. If you’re getting close to the end game, you may want to switch to just discarding cards from their deck to ensure they run out of tools, be they ones you hoof picked for them or not. Which makes her a huge control tool and also a win condition rolled into one.

Well, sorta. You still need to actually score points after the opponent has no deck, but they’ll have very little way to stop you at that point.

Anyway, that’s more of a secondary function, though. And only when the opponent is down to like fifteen or so cards left in their deck.

If you just use her that way to start off, you’re unlikely to do much unless your deck is entirely dedicated to discarding the opponent’s deck, which is difficult to pull off.

Psh, says you. I do it all the time!

Yeah, well, we have different playstyles.

Anyway, that’s about it for Sweetie Belle.

Though I guess it’s also worth mentioning she’s useful if you’re trying to get specific cards into your discard pile. White is good at playing cards directly from the discard pile, after all. Orange White especially.

There’s probably a deck idea in there somewhere, though I haven’t found it yet myself.

Hehehe.

What?

You’ll see!

Well, let’s move on to my top three! And we get to start with Baby Flurry Heart: Newborn Nightmare.

Ugh, not this card.

Rules Nightmare is more like it, if you ask me.

As you can see, Cici hates this card. But I absolutely love it!

Randomness is fun! Not knowing what’s going to happen can be exciting sometimes. Will your friend move? Or will they stay still? Who knows!

Yeah, but she doesn’t work like anypony expects her to.

See, assuming there are no dilemmas, there are four total locations in the game. Your home, your problem, the opponent’s home, and the opponent’s problem. And Flurry looks at all four as a possible area to move the character to.

And if she picks an invalid location, like the opponent’s home or the place the character already is, the friend stays still. Meaning you tried to move a friend for absolutely no benefit.

Exactly! She causes chaos! And that’s fun!

It’s frustrating.

Sometimes frustrating is fun, though.

Wah?

Don’t think about it too hard, hehe. Just go into you number two!

Heh, that I can do. My second favourite card is definitely Spitfire: Drilling It In.

Talk about a card that does it all, she’s got a whopping four abilities, and they’re all great.

You all probably already know how good Prince Rutherford is, which is to say phenomenal. The ability to frighten at immediate speed and also get power in play is pretty great. He even bypasses event hate like The Vote.

And Spitfire does that too.

Of course, she does cost an extra AT, and you have to discard a card to do it.

But the effect is still worth it. Especially since you’re not losing anything for the extra AT cost. She’s still 3 AT for 3 power. Or more, thanks to her Experienced. And she’s in two colours, which is always a plus.

And that’s not even all she does! She also lets you draw a card when she’s put into the discard from anywhere. So if you discard Spitfire to another copy of her, you get a 4 power friend in play and still the same number of cards in hand!

Her ability also works if she’s put into the discard from your deck. Like say, from Sweetie Belle.

Yeah. She’s just an incredibly versatile card with a ton of applications, all of which are really great.

And Cloudchaser’s totally not just saying that cause she’s trying to suck up to Spitfire to get pulled from the reserves and become a Wonderbolt proper.

Huh? Of course not. Spitfire doesn’t even play the game.

Soarin does, though. Oh, and Surprise. Few others too.

Are they any good?

Eh. Surprise seems to have a knack for it, but only ever plays mono Pink. And Soarin is…

Well, he tries.

Well, maybe you should give him some pointers, huh?

Yeah, I help out where I can.

Anyway, enough about Wonderbolts! Let’s focus on my second favourite card from the set: Starlight Glimmer: Taking Charge.

Of course you’d pick a Redeem card.

Starlight is super fun, since she lets you play a Friend for free every single turn, provided you meet its requirement. This lets you play all sorts of expensive Friends you wouldn’t be able to otherwise!

Sure. Just as soon as you pay her 8 AT cost.

Oh, wait a second, you can reduce that to 5 by retiring another Starlight which cost you a card and at least one more AT, such a good deal.

Your sarcasm is noted.

Look, Redeem is just a bad mechanic, okay? 3 AT is barely worth the initial investment and the cards are nigh unplayable without the discount. Even with the discount, they’re still pretty obnoxious to play since you need your cards to line up just so, and you can’t really count on it..

I’m pretty sure they’re the worst Ultra Rares printed. Period.

Oh hush. I like them.

They may not be competitive at all, but it’s a neat little flavor thing! And their effects are huge, which is cool!

Plus, who says I pay 8 or even 5 AT to play her? I only pay 3!

Huh? How?

Redeeming Qualities, silly!

Or a similar effect. But usually Redeeming Qualities.

Just get her into the discard using the Sweetie Belle Cici mentioned earlier, or Apple Bloom: Re-Markable, and you’re in a great position to redeem her without actually using Redeem!

Okay, that sounds a little fun, yeah.

And then you get to play free friends forever!

Or until the opponent dismisses her. Which happens a lot for some strange reason, hehe.

And since her ability specifically says you’re playing the Friend, she even lets the other Redeem Friends do their thing! So you can totally re-enact their daring trip through the Changeling Hive!

I’ll stick to my decks, thanks.

But I guess there’s a little bit more there than I thought. Still not a fan, though.

Well, that’s it for my number two! All that’s left are our absolute favourites.

The bestest cards in the set!

At least, in our opinions, anyway.

What’s yours, Cici?

Oh, it’s a good one.

Now, when I first saw this card, I instantly knew she was going to be good. She just has value written all over her.

That being said, I never would have guessed she’d have topped my list at the time. But the more I played with her, the more I realized she wasn’t just good, she was deceptively powerful in what she allowed me to do.

So without any further buildup, my absolute favourite card of the set is Angel Wings: Friendly Fan.

A wonderbolt in both your top two spots?

Are you sure you’re not playing favourites, hehe.

It’s a coincidence, I swear!

She’s just a really good card…

Well, tell everypony why you think so!

Well, it’s pretty simply, really. She accelerates your gameplan to crazy degrees.

Being 1/1 req lets you play her off of any Pink or Blue Mane with either Trading Traditions or any entry friend of the other colour. Meaning it’s incredibly easy to play her turn 2. And since makes your next friend cost 2 less, she’s effectively 2 free power. Which is just amazing for an aggro deck.

With just a single copy of Angel Wings, it’s not too hard to DFO on turn 2 without even setting yourself back at all! I see it all the time with both Pink and Blue Manes. Assuming the opponent’s problem is easy to confront, anyway.

And occasionally, even if you don’t want to DFO or can’t DFO that early, she can be useful just getting out your high req friends a turn earlier.

I’ve seen both Rainbow Dash: On Even Ground and Snips & Snails: Problem Solvers played turn 1 off of an Angelwings. Both of which can disrupt the opponent’s early game strategies pretty hard if they’re not expecting it.

But it’s not just amazing early game plays that makes her so good. 2 free power is good no matter when in the game you are, provided you’re trying to DFO. She makes it so easy.

Heh. I can’t even recall the number of times my opponent has said to me something like “You can only win if you can DFO this turn, but I don’t think you have the power" only for me to surprise them by playing an Angel Wings or two to create huge amounts of power for almost no AT.

She is just that fast!

And of course, providing power in two different colours means she’s great at confronting any problems you’re likely to throw into your Blue/Pink deck. Not to mention she helps unlocking the req for your other friends since her own requirement is so low.

And don’t even get me started on chaining her. Playing two or even all three of her in one turn is just gross.

So what you’re trying to say is she’s a good card.

What I’m trying to say is she is an amazing card! And alongside Spitfire and a slew of other great Pink and Blue cards from this set, I am absolutely looking forward to playing Pink/Blue aggro this year.

It’s going to be an absolute blast!

I’ll bet!

I also appreciate that your list has 2 cards of each rarity, hehe. Kinda wish my list was like that!

Huh, is it? Just a coincidence, really.

But it kinda goes to show the power level of the set when there’s strong stuff across all rarities. And I thought Marks in time was an insane set.

Well, we’ve seen 19 cards so far, and all that’s left is my number one pick. Can anypony guess what it is?

Us?

Nope! As amazing as it is to see us on cards, it’s happened a million times by now so it’s kind of lost it’s novelty.

Which isn’t to say I don’t like seeing us on cards or anything. In fact, I hope they continue that trend! It’s just not my favourite card this time. Not even to the point where I’m going to ban it from the list preemptively.

Besides, this time it doesn’t have adorable pictures of you as a filly with flavour text explaining your deep dark past!

Flitterrrrr. Stop bringing that up!

Anyway, no, my actual favourite card of Defenders of Equestria is Sunset Festival!

Oh, hrm, yeah. That makes sense. It combines randomness with borrowing. Two of your favourite things.

Sure does!

I never know which Friend I’ll wind up borrowing, but it’s gonna be somepony! And that’s just fun!

Maybe it’ll be entry and not help me at all. Or maybe it’ll be the best Friend in my opponent’s deck. or maybe it’ll be Captain AJ and I’ll have to end the Sunset Festival early because everypony was dismissed.

Who knows what chaos will be unleashed!

Yeah, that’s exactly why I don’t want to use it myself. But I definitely get why you’d like it.

One time I hit an opponent’s Coco Pommel: Refurbisher. So of course I chose Sunset Festival with her ability and played it again. Only to hit another Refurbisher! And I still had AT, so I played it again. And hit the third Refurbisher!

Wanna guess who I hit the fourth time?

Let me guess, a fourth Refurbisher.

Exactly!

Wha? But that’s cheating!

Not really! It was a Queen Chrysalis: Identity Theft.

Oh. Right. That makes sense.

It was still a pretty silly turn, though.

I was out of AT then, but oh well!

And with that, we’re done with our top 10 lists! Hope you enjoyed them as much as we enjoyed making them!

This was a tough one this time around. I had so many cards to cut…

But yeah, making it was a blast. So much great stuff to talk about.

When we started this you were freaking out about it. Feeling better now then?

Yeah, guess so.

Although…

You don’t think I put too many Pink cards on the list, do you? I had 4 counting the multi-coloured cards.

I wouldn’t worry about it. Your list is your list! As long as you’re honest, nothing wrong with what’s on it.

Fair enough.

Although, come to think of it, I had a lot of Pink on my list too…

Guess Pink was an impactful colour for both of us, this time around hehe.

Anyway, that’s all for today. Thanks for taking the time to let us share our favourite cards with you all. Bye everypony! See you all soon!

Later.

[diamond-song42]

Card Shark 97: Hummingway, Fine Feathered Friend

Hello, internet! Welcome back to Card Shark! I’m getting ready for Store Championships this weekend by returning to Premiere to focus on a Fixed Friend that might be one of the cutest Friends in the set. (If you don’t believe me, you might want to get your eyes checked.) Here’s my take on “Hummingway, Fine Feathered Friend!”

He’s a very helpful bird. This is a cheap Critter AT-wise, only costing 1 for 1 power. You do, however, need 4 Yellow req to play him, which may sound a bit steep. Is he worth it? You may want to start a Troublemaker Faceoff to find out. During a Troublemaker Faceoff involving Hummingway and at least two other Critter Friends (three Critter Friends in all), you flip an additional card! That’s it! This is a nifty little trick that can help you plow down your opponents’ Troublemakers or maybe farm your own. I will admit that before High Magic, I did not see much value in this card. You’ve gotta get that many Critters into play in the first place (which, if you’re newer to the game, was a lot more expensive in earlier sets) and it may only be for a handful of points. But High Magic brought the wonderful feature known as the Critter Token. Critter Tokens are so easy to play, you guys! Play an Event like Rise and Shine or Friends Are Always There, utilize Friends like Trapeze Star, Acrobatic Magic or Zipporwhill, Pet Collector, or take advantage of a combination of both with cards like Princess Luna, Fowl Play or Yona, Friend of Spiders. Problems like Anxious Animals can even net you Critter Tokens! It’s not only a fast way to get more Critter Tokens into play, but also a cheap and AT-efficient way. Cards like Trapeze Star that have loftier costs make up for them with their own power. And he’s super cute! I just want to give his little birdy noggin some pats. You can’t not give noggin pats to a face like that.

What’s so bad about that smile? Actually, not much at all. In fact, it could be a lot more dangerous. Hummingway is restricted to gaining you additional flips only during Troublemaker Faceoffs, so you ain’t getting that extra flip during Problem Faceoffs. This is a bit disappointing if you’re only playing Yellow and want to get a bunch of extra flips out there. Yellow typically features cards that force fewer flips - Hummingway is one of the oddities. Flipping additional cards is normally associated with Orange, and there are a couple Orange/Yellow cards that grant that additional flip (Applejack, Protective Big Sis and Seapony Duo, Flipper Floppers). But if you want to stick to mono-Yellow farming (which I’ve heard is an emerging strategy), you might have a harder time. The 4 Yellow req to play him feels less frightening since there are so many ways to get color req into play, even in decks with four or five colors. Same with the Critter requirement, which I will always have a soft spot for. I guess this little guy can be rather useful against Troublemakers, but I have to ask: is he really necessary? Queen Novo, Benevolent Ruler is the card typically used for Yellow farming purposes, and extra flips would likely not be warranted with her in play (you know, with the whole power reversal thing). Sorry, Hummingway, I love your smile and you can be helpful in a pinch, but it’s not gonna get you far.

Here’s a few more cards that have fallen victim to Hummingway’s special talent:

*Fluttershy, Reformer. Wait, am I seriously recommending a Mane for this?! Yes, I thought of this combo and it was too good not to share. One way to help you overpower Troublemakers is to rob those Troublemakers of their abilities that may hinder you in the first place. Reformer takes the abilities of the Troublemakers at her Problem and chucks them out the window. This ability can be useful for Troublemakers that activate something upon being uncovered or turned over (such as Nightmare Moon or Grubber, Minion) and Troublemakers with potentially recurring abilities (such as Yellow Parasprite or Nightmare Star, Solar Flare). It’s one of my favorite Manes, to be honest, and it can only give you more opportunity to set up more card flips during Faceoffs. (Yes, I’m well aware that the new Applejack and Apple Bloom, Seedling Stakeout can do the same thing, but I include Reformer over Seedling Stakeout to keep a mono-Yellow theme and because you’re gonna be playing Harmony if you run Hummingway anyway.)

*Princess Celestia, Raptor Raiser. This Super Rare, depending on the Troublemaker you choose, can bring a massive critter cavalry. When Raptor Raiser enters play, you can choose a Troublemaker and put a number of Critter Tokens into play matching that Troublemaker’s power. Troublemaker got 4 power? That’s 4 Critter Tokens. Troublemaker got 7 power? That’s 7 Critter Tokens! Raptor Raiser also doesn’t dictate printed power specifically, so if there’s a Troublemaker that has received some kind of power boost, that additional power can be stacked onto your Critter Token count. No fooling around by a certain mischievous raptor here!

*Tree Hugger, Animal Magnetism. Here’s an Ultra Rare I think may be a bit underappreciated. Treezie Immediately allows you to move up to two of your Critters for 2 AT. If you have two Critters stationed at home, you can move them right up to a Troublemaker as you’re about to challenge it. Triggered at the right time, she can help bypass Troublemakers with pesky abilities like Lord Tirek or Cozy Glow, Seeds of Doubt. If there are Troublemakers stationed at each Problem, Tree Hugger can even help you challenge both in one turn! She doesn’t even have to be exhausted to go with the 2 AT cost! THAT is nice. Just watch out for the usual frightening/dismissal/banishment threats - chances are Tree Hugger would be a big target for them.

*Fast Food. In case you want even more power on top of your additional flipped card! Fast Food is one of my favorite Resources in the entire game, giving all your Critters +1 power. Hummingway gets +1, the two Critters battling alongside him get +1, and any other Critters you control get +1 power. Consider this my petition to include Fast Food in future Core blocks. Pwease set developers 🥺

Thanks for reading another Card Shark! Got another themed Shark coming up next, this one for Derpy Day. I may have even selected an Ultra Rare this time around... stay tuned! Diamond out!

[amountblessings-blog]

Omnipotent in God (in October)-Day 4

Tomorrow (specifically in a few hours), I find out if I pass or did not pass on my second attempt with board exam.  When I took it again, by the grace of God, I was much more calm and did not panic as much.  I was quite thankful that God answered my (and other’s) prayers for a clear and calm disposition and to do my best.  I did find the exam to be easier this time however, I felt that I did make some mistakes.  It makes me nervous whenever I find a exam to be on a easier side because usually that means I do worse than I thought I did.  

I’m grateful and blessed that God has blessed me with support and care from others around me like a close classmate, my mom, bf, etc.  I’ve asked for peace regardless of what my score results are....but as the score day drew closer, I felt anxiety increasing within me.  I guess I’m worried about being depressed and losing motivation/steam if I need to take it again.  I feel like a spoiled ungrateful fool when these thoughts occur.  Does this mean that I lack faith...due to fear perhaps?

Reflecting back,  God has done many miracles and answered many of my prayers.  I would not be where I am if it was not for Him.  Finding the OT aide job, being able to complete my pre-reqs, giving me the support and motivation when I was going through personal hard times that involved family troubles, relationship troubles, and financial issues, providing my family and I a place to live and resources, support in CA, passing anatomy, passing various finals, helping me to succeed with all of my fieldworks, graduating with honors, and etc.  Despite all these and more, I find that I still tend to allow fear to disturb me and that makes me wonder how much more stronger my relationship with Christ.  In some sad way, I think its been weakened.  I need to strengthen it and if it takes a undesirable score, then so be it.  I admit I’m scared....very scared of the things that might happen but I also am aware that God only has what is best for me in mind. He is the giver of all GOOD things and He has helped me everyday (some which I realize and others which I am not as aware of).  And as much as it pains me to say, it is in the hardest times that I realize that I grow in Christ the most. <--I do wish and it is my desire that I grow in Him in ALL situations and not just one type.  

So tonight, I claim Jeremiah 29:11, that God knows whats best for my future and has GOOD plans for me.  Lord I am grateful for your reminders, assurances, and that you hear my prayers despite being far from the perfect Christian daughter that I can and should be.  Thank you for your mercy and grace, for your patience and wisdom.  I ask for your guidance and help with my inner struggles for You alone know me best and what can help me, especially in times of stress.  Father,I humbly ask for your help to understand and more importantly, to praise you in spite of all that happens. Not just with the exam but in ALL life situations, both great and small. Thank you, in Christ name I pray, Amen!  <3

[computersystemsdesign]

My Certification Journey

Recently, Head Geek Destiny Bertucci ( Dez ) and I talked about certifications on an episode of SolarWinds Lab. For almost an hour we dug into the whys and hows of certifications. But, of course, the topic is too big to cover in just one episode.

 Which is why I wanted to dig in a little deeper today. This conversation is one that you can expect I'll be coming back to at various points through the year. This dialogue will be informed by my experiences both past and present, as well as the feedback you provide as we go on. I want this to be a roundtable discussion, so at the end we'll all have something closer to a 360-degree view. My goal is to help IT professionals of all experience levels make an informed choice about certs: which ones to pursue, how to go about studying, where to set expectations about the benefits of certifying, and even tricks for preparing for and taking the exams.

 For today's installment, I thought it might make sense to start at the beginning, meaning a bit of a walk down Certification Lane to look at the certs I already have, when I got them, and why.

 To be clear, I don't mean this to be a #humblebrag in any way. Let's face it. If you watched the episode, you know that there are other Geeks with WAY more certifications than me. My point in recounting this is to offer a window into my decision-making process and, as I said, to get the conversation started.

 My first tech certification was required by my boss. I was working at a training company that specialized (as many did at the time) in helping people move from the typing pool where they used sturdy IBM selectrics to the data processing center where WordPerfect was king. My boss advised me that getting my WPCE (WordPerfect Certified Resource) cert would accomplish two things:

 it would establish my credibility as a trainer

if I didn't know a feature before the test, I sure as heck would after.

 This was not your typical certification test. WordPerfect shipped you out a disk (A 5.25" floppy, no less) and the test was on it. You had up to 80 hours to complete it and it was 100% open book. That's right, tou could use any resources you had to finish the test. Because at the end of the day, the test measured execution. Instead of just asking "what 3-keystroke combination takes you to the bottom of the document" the exam would open a document and ask that you DO it. A keylogger ensured the proper keystrokes were performed.

 (For those who are scratching their heads, it's "Home-Home-DownArrow", by the way. I can also still perfectly recall the 4-color F-key template that was nearly ubiquitous at the time.

  And my boss was right. I knew precious little about things like macros before I cracked open the seal on that exam disk. But I sure knew a ton about them (and much more) when I mailed it back in. Looking back, the WPCE was like a kinder, gentler version of the CCIE practical exam. And I'm grateful that was my first foray into the world of IT certs.

 My second certification didn't come until 7 years later. By that time I had worked my way up the IT food chain, from classroom instructor to desktop support, but I wanted to break into server administration. The manager of that department was open to the idea, but needed some proof that I had the aptitude. The company was willing to pay for the classes and the exams, so I began a months-long journey into the world of Novell networking.

 At the time, I had my own ideas about how to do things (ah, life in your 20's when you are omnicient!). I decided I would take ALL the classes and once I had a complete overview of Novell, I'd start taking exams.

 A year later, the classes were a distant dot in the rear view mirror of life but I still hadn't screwed up my courage to start taking the test. What I did have, however, was a lot more experience with servers (by then the desktop support was asked to do rotations in the helpdesk, where we administered almost everything anyway). In the end, I spend many, many nights after work and late into the night reviewing the class books and ended up taking the tests almost 18 months after the classes.

 I ended up passing, but I also discovered the horrific nightmare landscape that is "adaptive exams" - tests that give you a medium level question on a topic and if you pass it, you get a harder question. This continues until you miss a question, at which point the level of difficulty drops down. And that pattern continues until you complete all the questions for that topic. On a multi-topic exam like the Certified Novell Engineer track, that means several categories of questions that come at you like a game of whack-a-mole where the mole's are armed and trying to whack you back. And the exam ends NOT when you answer all the questions, but when it is mathematically impossible to fail (or pass). Which led to a heart-stopping moment on question 46 (out of 90) when the test abruptly stopped and said "Please wait for results".

 But it turns out I had passed.

 Of course, I was prepared for this on the second test. Which is why the fact that it WASN'T adaptive caused yet more heart palpatations. On question 46 I waited for the message. Nothing. So I figured I had a few more questions to answer. Question 50 passed me by and I started to sweat. By question 60 I was in panic mode. At question 77 (out of 77), I was on the verge of tears.

 But it turns out I passed that one, as well.

 And 2 more exams later (where I knew to ASK the testing center what kind of test it would be before sitting down) I was the owner of a shiny new CNE (4.0, no less!).

 And, as things often turn out, I changed jobs about 3 months later. It turns out that in addition to showing aptitude, the manager also needed an open req. My option was to wait for someone on the team to leave, or take a job which fell out of the sky. A local headhunter cold-called my house and the job he had was for a server administration job at a significant amount more than what I was making.

 It also involved Windows servers.

 By this time I'd been using Windows since it came for free on 12 5.25" floppies with Excel 1.0. For a large part of my career, "NT" was short for "Not There (yet)". But in 1998 when I switched jobs, NT 4.0 had been out for a while and proven itself a capable alternative.

 Which is why, in 1999, I found myself NOT as chief engineer of the moon as it traveled through space but instead spending a few months of my evening hours studying for and taking the 5 exams that made up the MCSE along with the rest of my small team of server admins.

 Getting our MCSE wasn't required, but the company once again offered to pay for both the class and the exam as a perk of the job (ah, those pre-bubble glory days!) so we all took advantage of it. This time I wasn't taking the test because I was told to, or to meet someone else's standard. I was doing it purely for me. It felt different, and not in a bad way.

 By that point, taking tests had become old hat. I hadn't passed every single one, but my batting average was good enough that I was comfortable when I sat down and clicked "begin exam".

 Ironically, it would be another 5 years before I needed to take a certification test.

 In 2004, I was part of a company that was renewing their Cisco Gold Partner status, when the powers-that-be discovered they needed a few more certified employees. They asked for volunteers and I readily raised my hand, figuring this would be the same deal as the last time - night study for a few weeks, take a test, and everybody is happy.

 It turns out that my company needed 5 certifications - CCNA (1 exam), MCSE (6 exams), MCSE+Messaging (add one more exam to the 6 for MCSE), Cisco Unity (1 exam), and Cisco Interactive Voice Response (1 exam). Oh, and they needed it by the end of the quarter. "I'm good," I told them, "but I'm not THAT good".

 After a little digging, I discovered a unique option: Go away to a 3 week "boot camp" where they would cover all the MCSE material *and* administer the exams. Go straight from that boot camp to a 1 week boot camp for the CCNA. Then come home and finish up on my own.

 It is a testament to my wife's strength of character that not only did she not kill me outright for the idea but supported the idea. And so off I went.

 The weeks passed in a blur of training material, independent study, exams passed, exams failed, and the ticking of the clock. And then it was home and back to the "regular" work day, but with the added pressure of passing two more exams on my own. In the end, it was the IVR exam (of all things) that gave me the most trouble. After two stupendous failed attempts, I passed.

 Looking back, I know it was all a very paper tiger-y thing to do. A lot of the material - like the MCSE - were things I knew well and used daily. But some (like the IVR) were technologies I had never used and never really intended to use. But that wasn't the point and I wasn't planning to go out and promote those certifications in any case.

 But taking all those tests in such short order was also - and please don't judge me for this - fun. As much as some people experience test anxiety, but the rush of adrenaline and the sense of accomplishment at the end is hard to beat. In the end I found the whole experience rewarding.

 And that, believe it or not, as it (well, if you don't count my SCP, but that's a post for another day) - at least it WAS it until this year when Destiny and I double-dog-dared each other to go on this certification marathon.

 This time out, I think I'm able to merge the best of all those experiences. It is a lot of tests in a short period, but I'm only taking exams that prove the skills I've built up over my 30 a career. I'm not doing it to get a promotion or satisfy my boss or meet a deadline. It's all for me this time.

 And it's also refreshingly simple. The idea that there is ONE correct answer to every question is a wonderful fiction, when compared to the average day of an IT professional.

 So that's where things stand right now. Tell me where you are in your own certification journey in the comments below. Also let me know if there are topics or areas of the certification process that you want me to explore deeper in future posts.

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