#i had fun mixing book and show lore with this one

[necrocrafter]

MCD Episode 1 Transcript

I apologize for the wait and for how long this post is. I was honestly jumping back and forth on what was too much or what wasn't enough because I wanted to ensure everyone was able to find what they were looking for. Whether it was only lore bits, details on the setting or just fun observations. I just said fuck it so you guys get everything. If you find or have any critiques on how to make this more organized, then by all means go for it! Without further ado, I hope you like this transcript.

() - side notes 

(( )) - my commentary

[] - Timestamps

{} - MCCA Villager dialogue

Introduction [0:00]

Jess starts off by introducing the 2nd season of diaries

Shows us a signed book in her inventory that is titled "Diaries". It holds entries of all her adventures (in days) of each episode of the previous season (which I think is now non-canon and unconnected to Diaries). 

"I did a ton of crazy stuff. I had a family, I raised a village, I got a Pegasus and a unicorn! It was crazy, I even became the Avatar at some point. But like all good adventures, they come to an end. However, a new one is beginning right here, right now." [0:20-0:40]

The diary ends in, "My journey has ended, but a new one is just beginning…”

Jess shows us the little "headspace" room she's in with her cat, Johnny Cat. She puts the previous diary away on a shelf before heading towards a desk to begin a new saga of adventures.

Episode Starts [1:05]

The opening scene starts at the edge of the village of Phoenix Drop, where the forest (a mix of birch and oak) line meets the last pathway around a farm plot. A man in chainmail outlined with a golden colored metal with a helmet that only allows to see his brown eyes and the barest hint of brown hair peeks through (Zenix) is speaking with another man in distinct armor, white garbs with a long black cross-like symbol on the front and chainmail; his face completely covered by his helm (Garroth)

"What are we gonna do? Since our last lord passed away, the people have been going crazy. Not to mention, we're running low on local resources. And we have no connection to the other villages." -Zenix

"Zenix, do not worry. I have a plan." -Garroth 

As they speak with each other, Zenix turns around sharply, his head whipping around before his body turns towards a perceived disturbance.

"Wait, did you hear that?" - Zenix 

The frame zooms out to a man cloaked in black and green who is hiding behind an oak tree a few paces away. A single green eye peeks out from behind a curtain of brown hair, his face carefully hidden away in a black hooded cowl outlined in grey with an equally grey neck gaiter. He's wearing a long-sleeved green top with a brown leather waist belt (?) with a gold buckle. His hands are covered in elbow length (?) brown fingerless arm gloves (Vylad)

The mysterious man turns and takes off into the forest

Cutscene Ends - Gameplay/RP begins [1:28]

Aphmau has spawned into the world, with the typical Minecraft starting day cycle beginning. She's wearing a purple crop top, grey half gloves, short purple daisy duke's (?) and black knee-high boots with purple laces-outline. She's in the middle of an oak forest in a small clearing in front of a water hole.

She's addressing the viewers, "Day 1, and now it is time to, of course, find some shelter before the night falls."

Looking towards the sky above the treetops, she sees the sun just rising above. "As you can see, the day has just begun, so I've got plenty of time." Grassy oak-birch forest with alliums, orange tulips, and azure bluets. The sky is clear with faint wisp of clouds.

She begins to head through the forest, "There's a lot of trees around here, so I should be good in terms of getting like a crafting bench going and all that kind of stuff but let's just go ahead and try to find like a nice little hole." ((Real)) 

Aphmau continues to climb up hills, past birch trees, and through short grass sprinkled with roses (poppy’s), red & orange tulips.

She stops to examine small craters in the ground, displaying dissatisfaction at not hiding a deep hole

"That...that's not a-that's a terrible hole! I'm not going to go in there, but let's try to find, like a nice little hole or something I can-" 

She continues to wander past the hole and up to the crest of the hill. Only to stop at seeing a person in the distance.

Aphmau sees a mysterious hooded man in green and black (player username, Vylad) in the distance, punching a birch tree, gathering logs, and she runs in his direction, running down the hill and past the thick, low hanging, tree branches.

"Hey, there's a guy over there. Come here, I need to talk to you! I need to find a nice little hole. If you happen to know like" 

She stops as she comes upon his previous location, he has disappeared 

"Wh-where'd he go?- Oh my god, he did..." 

She comes upon the birch tree he'd been punching and finds that he left it floating. She gazes at it in disdain and takes a quick peeved inhale before looking around. 

"...that really upsets me. The fact that-" [1:50-2:05]

While she's distracted by the floating logs of the tree, he waits in the background for her attention to once again find him. She continues chasing after him, to which he flees; seemingly leading her somewhere

Through clearings, flower patches (peonies, rose bush patches, dandelions), past a rather large watering hole.

"Come here! Hey! Come here, I need to talk to you-You just left that tree...you just really left that tree undone. You just literally were-" she keeps running after him, not stopping even when he runs past two men at the edge of a farm plot of wheat. 

"Oh my god, that guy is getting attacked by that guard."

The man leads her straight to two guards, nametags reading Zenix and Garroth. He runs past Garroth, who gives chase and attacks him whilst doing so. (Garroth hits him once (?))

Aphmau continues past them, even as Garroth walks past her to return to his spot. She looks around but sees he's disappeared.

"Where-Where'd he go? Where'd he go?...um alright. But...he's gone, but ya know what? He led me to a village. And there's some awesome guards here. This guard is pretty cool. What are you doing?" She turns back towards the two men before her and turns to speak with Garroth first. [2:30]

"I don't think anyone in the village will listen to any of the guards. Not after how terrible the last Lord was..." -Garroth

"Now that the Lord is gone, the village is in chaos. What are we going to do?" -Zenix

"Oh...oh! What kind of chaos is the village going through?" She travels around the wheat farm edge heading into the village onto the wooden plank pathway, past small huts, and a village library. 'Cause I could help out. I mean, I just spawned in the world so I could absolutely like take over this village and become the new terrible lord... I mean, awesome lord."

She stops at a tight intersection with a well in the middle. "...oh my god. OH MY GOD, there are so many people in here! Literally in this water!" ((The Well has claimed its victims))

She takes a horrified yet stunned look at how many people are trapped in the village well whilst also being greeted by the other town citizens like it's a normal occurrence. ((You know that one The Hole meme? Yeah, it feels like that)) [2:56]

The first person to greet her is Emmalyn the Librarian {"Greetings.}, followed by Dale the Guard {"Oh, hello. Aphmau, was it"}, Stephanie the Farmer {"Hey, what's up?"}, Jeremy the Guard {"Oh, hello there"}, Aidan the Farmer {Good day to you, Aphmau"}

She tries to go past The Well as she contemplates

"I don't know where that other guy went, but I-oh crap."

Not watching where she was walking, she falls into a hole. ((LMAO))

"Oh hey, here's my hole. Look at that." It's a small cave tunnel filled with stone, gravel, dirt, and large veins of coal. "This is a nice hole to begin in."

She begins to climb her way out the hole through a small gap to the surface next to another hut

"All right, so really, let's go ahead and see what's going on in this village”

Gets greeted by more villagers; Arthur the Farmer {"You must be new around here"}, Brendan the Farmer {"Oh, hello. Aphmau, was it?"}

She wanders back towards The Well, trying to get a vantage point of where to go next.

"So I got a lot of people here, and there's a lot of people literally taking a little nice bubble bath."

She gets greeted by a woman named Molly, the farmer, who is also trapped in The Well {"Hi, stranger."}

"And, um, I don't see that-"

She's cut off as she falls into the same hole she fell into moments ago ((Bruh, LMAO))

"Gosh darn it, I did the same thing again."

She climbs out and glares at The Well

"That is really going to hurt somebody, and uh, that's not going to be a good thing, and there's-"

She climbs the rooftop of a small hut and then looks down and sees a man with green eyes, black hair, in pale-bright green clothes, staring at her (Brendan). She stares back.

"Hey, look, there's like a bolin skin there, and who is that-?" [3:28]

She hops off the roof but is cut off as she, once again, falls back into the same hole. ((LMFAO and she teases Laurance for falling into holes when she's just as bad))

"Oh my goodness, that's the third time!"

She stands next to The Well, looking at Brendan, who hasn't stopped watching her.

"All right, first time shame on you, second time shame on me third time I don't know what's going on."

She turns her attention forward, down a long pathway, past two large farms. The one on the left has 4 plots; 3 of the 4 plots are in rows of 2, which contain wheat all next to each other, while the last row are carrots.

"But all right, so we got Brendan the farmer, and we have a bunch of stuff to work with."

The one on the right has the same setup principle as the left one, but a plot of carrots is set in between that separates the 3 plots of wheat. (Left: Wheat, Wheat, Wheat, Carrots | Right: Wheat, Carrots, Wheat, Wheat) [3:42]

She takes a look at the crops while slowly walking down the pathway

"We also have a lot of food here, which is something that was about to be a problem, but now that I'm actually here in this village, I don't have to worry about that anymore."

She gets atop the right farm's edge and begins to punch the carrots without, initially, replanting them

"All right, so let's go ahead and get settled in here. I don't think that they're going to mind if I'm here."

She proceeds out the farm, climbing up the hill towards a woman and a man who was watching her in the farm. The man happens to be Brendan, once again, watching her, but from inside a patch of lilacs ((omfg, he scared the HECK out of me. I didn't realize he was there until I looked at the paused screen)) [3:56]

“I mean Lilith the farmer. L-Lili-Lili-sorry. Lin-Linda-Lil-Lydia the farmer!”

She continues on past them up the hill until she hits the wood pathway, turning left, quickly looking around at a medium sized house with a chicken yard in the back and another farm of wheat before turning right back towards the center of the village back to The Well.

“All right so there's a lot of stuff that needs to go on here, but I think I'm going to go ahead and settle in this village. Um, I know I was looking for a hole but I kind of already found it down below, especially inside of the nice little well.”

She proceeds to run back towards the beginning edges of town, zeroing in on an oak tree.

“Um so first things first let's go ahead and start with the crafting bench. The basics of Minecraft. Literally visit-visiting the basics of Minecraft.”

She then proceeds to choose a tree near where Garroth and Zenix are still standing watch, and proceeds to punch the middle log, circling it whilst delivering precise precision jabs, collecting the logs from bottom to top. ((I just KNOW Zenix and Garroth are losing their minds LMAO)) [4:25]

“Um I think what I'm going to do is, I'm going to stay in this village now and uh, ooh! First achievement.”

“Aww I always love getting that first achievement because it's just like you're building your way up and I might even try to keep track of like, the achievements that I have. So that way I can try to get them all but I'm sure that will happen in due time. But let's go ahead get this village started.”

“Um, first let's start by fixing that stupid hole that's-that's incredibly annoying.”

She stops to look at The Well and the people stuck bobbing inside [4:50]

“Um and saving those poor people down in The Well. All right um, uh let's see this is nice-”

She stops and whirls around as she hears and sees the distinct sound of a burning zombie lumbering from the hole as it climbs to attack the vulnerable people in The Well.

“Oh, oh my god! there that zombie is about to destroy those people and I just realized that I spawned in with a bunch of really cool stuff!” [5:00] (Hotbar: 6 ½ health, 5 ½ hunger. Pet wand 1st slot, Doggy charm 2nd slot, Command Emblem 3rd slot, 33 Carrots 4th slot, 5 oak wood 5th slot)

All while she casually jumps from her perch above on the path down in front of the zombie. Punching it with the oak wood logs in hand.

She goes to show off her hotbar items, focused on them whilst also acknowledging the 2 other zombies that come burning and lumbering past her, focused on the helpless villagers in The Well.

“Um right here I have a Doggy charm, a Command Elm, and a Pet Wand which I'm going to use to destroy-!!”

She goes to try and hit them with the wand, but it does not work, retreating back before becoming determined (This type of creature must be under the effect of a potion of weakness to be tamed) [5:08]

“Oh okay…I can't use that okay. I'm just going to destroy them with my own bare hands!! I'll show these villagers how hardcore I can be.”

Knocking them back into the hole, kills both of them without taking damage

“There we go I saved you guys from the zombies.”

She earns and collects the XP and 2 zombie brains in slot 6 before climbing out the hole back to the surface.

“Awesome all right so you know we're going to have like a little rocky start here not as Rocky as these people because they're just they're just they're just terribly terribly doomed and hey there's a crafting bench here, so I don't even have to worry and why did I-”

Aphmau explores a large house next to The Well and finds it to be a Library, with books, a table + benches, and a crafting bench. She goes to use it but instead of interacting with it, she ends up in Brendans NPC interface which causes her to eat a zombie brain. She gets the hunger effect (Last for 30 seconds)

“Brenden you made me eat a zombie brain I…don't want to see you again! Just, just-just follow me, please follow me here. You need a…you need a since you're a farmer, I'm going to take you all the way over here because you could, this could be like, your little farmhouse Brendan yeah. Or Bolin since his skin is actually like a Bolin kind of skin.”

She leads him down the pathway past the farms and sets him up in a large house across from a very tiny house ((BABE HOUSE))

“So I'm going to put you right in here since I-I have some-some stuff to spare. You can come in here. See come on you, can do it. Aww man, I just housed one person-”

He then proceeds to run out the house ((me too buddy))

“Hey, hey! Where are you going!?!”

He proceeds to turn right back around to her ((he’s so real for this cause I’d be scared of this random scary woman too))

“Stay right here this is your house now Brendan it's nobody else's house but yours you have your nice little place.”

She leaves and heads back up the path

“I'm already being a better to-be-Lord than the other person was.”

She walks past 3 people but only one says anything {Adian the Farmer: Hi, stranger} [6:25]

“Hello, Aiden the farmer!”

“All right, Aiden is doing his thing, uh wow so now that we have Aiden, we have a lot of farmers here. I'm going to have to see what I can do as far as helping them all out.”

She goes back into the Library where she interacts with the crafting bench (taking a single plank, making wood to make sticks, and making a wooden sword and placing everything in her hotbar but the sword in her inventory) [6:38]

She crafts a sword, wooden axe and pickaxe

She heads outside and is greeted by 2 people: Stephanie the Farmer {Are you new around here?} and Jeremy the Guard {I haven’t seen you around before.} [7:13]

“Plus, we have a bunch of carrots, we have some zombie brains, um and we're going to free these people right here because they are just utterly dying.”

She observes while eating 3 carrots and 2 more people call out to her: Kent the Guard {Oh, hello there.} and Molly the Farmer {Greetings.}

She takes her pickaxe and destroys 2 cobblestone walls

“So let's see, I would at least like to have like, a nice little place settled into-”

“There we go, your free people run!” she watches as they all practically stay stuck only a few guards rushing out “Get out of there…” Dale the Guard free’s himself only to immediately fall back in just as Molly pulls herself out, turning to watch him fall only to turn towards Aphmau.

“Don't-don't okay…Molly just like, ‘hey I was in my bath, this is what this how I-this is how I get clean every now and then’”.

She looks to Stephanie, Emmalyn, and Molly, telling them to follow her. Stephanie { Where are you taking me?} Emmalyn {Where are we going?} Molly {Okay. I’ll come along} ((Molly, love, where are your survival instincts)) [7:43]

“All right follow me how about, you follow me. You follow me. I'm going to save the babes first. Come on babes, let's go let's go.” They follow and she takes them down the path to the tiny house across from where she put brenden.

“I'm going to-I'm going to move all the babes out this way! Oh look! They're all following me. They-they are all babes holy crap. All right so this is going to be the Babe House right here. Come on-come on in ladies. So you stay right here. Um or follow me”

The ladies then proceed to repeatedly open and close the door rapidly

“Actually if you guys-if you guys could stop opening the door that would be fantastic. It's kind of just slamming in my ear. Um, alright so you guys just stay outside of the Babe House, how-how about that? You stay there and then you stay there. There we go. Alright, so this is the Babe House right now.

She walks back to The Well

“Um I saved them, they are now in depth-depth, not they're not in depth, they're in debt to me.” [8:22-8:29]

She looks at the guards and people still stuck in The Well

“...and the guards, well the guards are really dumb. No wonder nobody's gonna listen to them!”

Acting- “I say villagers it's time we take a bath together, a bath we can't get out of!”

“All right so I don't think…I think the guards are pretty much doomed…um yeah they're doomed”, she says as she puts the cobblestone back, trapping those inside

She chops some oak trees nearby using her wooden axe

“Least try to upgrade my weapons, try to get some um..maybe a nice bed inside of my place? Um I don't even know if I'm allowed to have like the big house. I'm assuming that it's, I mean, I haven't seen like a Lord's house or anything around here, so I'm assuming that all these houses are up for grabs since the village is really kind of in like, quite literally, in chaos.” [8:57-9:18]

Walking back past The Well both Derek and Emma the guard both say, {“You must be new around here.”} [9:18]

“I-I actually am new around here and I actually haven't properly introduced myself.”

She looks into The Well and see’s everyone still in there Derek the Guard, Emma the Guard, Dale the Guard, and Kent the Guard. With Dale asking, {“Are you new around here?”} while Kent says, {“Hi, stranger.”} ((omg I did NOT remember Dale being in The Well THIS much-))

Aphmau goes to interact (chat) with Kent, laughing at seeing all the guards bobbing in the water

“Um Kent the guard..all the..nobody's going to listen to you guys if you keep acting like that.” [9:24-9:30]

He replies back with, {“You heard this from where?”}

Aphmau responds with, “I've heard things from everywhere, actually.” ((That sounds mad spooky ngl))

She goes to walk away but sees another guard trying to pass her fall into The Well [9:35]

“Yeah, see the guards just keep, they just keep going inside! they are so bad-”

She then falls into The Hole ((LMAO))

“-I got to fix all of this!”

She decides to take the opportunity to mine some stone (gathers 7 cobblestone)

“As I continue this series, I'm definitely going to have to make sure that I do a lot of farming.” [9:50-9:56]

She collects some coal from a nearby vein (collects 8 pieces)

Gets distracted by a name tag through the cobblestone (probably a villager in The Well) and then hears a cave noise

“What is that? What is that..what is that noise, that was creepy. That was like, really creepy!”

She goes back to mining stone as she notices that the sun is beginning to set (gathers 6 more cobblestone, making 13 in total)

She heads out The Hole [10:50]

She’s greeted by Cameron the Baker{“Oh, hello there.”}

She cheerfully chirps back, “Hello there, Cameron the baker! It's good to see you.”

She spies Lydia the Farmer on an adjacent rooftop [10:58]

“We have a lot of farmers here.”

She goes into the library just as Derek and Emma the guards call out to her again Derek {Oh, hello. Aphmau, was it?} and Emma{Are you new around here?} [11:01]

Aphmau heads to the crafting bench and begins to craft a stone sword

Adian the farmer pops in {You must be new around here} before going to stand on the crafting bench, looking at her [11:08-11:10]

“Why do people keep coming and Stan-why do people keep coming and-!” he suddenly disappears

Flabbergasted and slightly panicked, Aphmau looks around the library, calling out, “where did you go!?... What is going on? Where did he go? Where did he-”, outside the glass windows shows that it’s almost night time and she then heads back to the crafting bench to then finish up

“I'm assuming he went to bed but that was just creepy as heck! I mean, come on! You don't just stand on somebody's crafting table, look at them, and then disappear! It's completely rude!”

Aphmau quickly makes a stone shovel, stone pickaxe, and axe

“Okay, I'll go with it, if that's how this village wants to play. This is a little weird.” [11:34]

Aphmau then proceeds to make some torches, stating, “Of course, I need some torches, and I think we're going to set down some torches here in the village, if there aren't some there already. I don't think there are, uh, because just traveling around, I haven't seen anything crazy, but I'm going to go ahead and just..you know, kind of light up my area.” (Made 16 torches, placing 2 in the library before heading out; 14 left)

Looking around, night has completely fallen. She spies the guards nearby, still in The Well.

“I feel so bad for those guards. Okay, um so… I can't help but laugh at them because they're just being silly now.” (Placing 2 more torches on either side of the libraries door; 12 left)

Almost falling into The Hole again, she takes the rest of her cobblestone and covers the top half up

“Now- Oh god, I hear zombies.”

Going down into The Hole and places a few torches as she travels through it (5 torches; only 7 left)

“Let's just start to get the mine going, um, so I can start digging down deep and finding out feelings and stuff like that-” as she walks past another opening, placing another torch, she sees two mobs (creeper and skeleton) in the entrance but only the creeper goes to attack her, “oh God there's a creeper, oh god there's a skeleton.”

Drawing her stone sword, Aphmau fights the creeper off. Hitting, retreating, repeat.

“Go away Creeper! Shoo shoo shoo!”

She successfully kills it as it drops XP (3?) and two gunpowder. She runs to collect it, turns the corner and see’s the skeleton right there

She kills it, only losing 1 heart of damage and getting 1 arrow and XP

Taking a breath and telling herself, “she’s fine, she’s good.”

“I hear zombies and I don't like it. I don’t like it at all.”

She goes and mines a nearby wall, thinking the zombies are behind the stone (collects 12 cobblestone; 13 cobblestone in hotbar slot 6) before turning back to the coal vein from earlier (collects 8 coal)

Still seeing the nametag, she digs towards them to see if she can get them out (collects 19 cobble; 32 cobblestone in total)

“I still see more like, little health bar thingies, down that way, so let me go take a look in here, see if I can find something. ‘Cuz these guards-are they drowning? Like are they legit drowning?”

She mines a block and The Well water rushes past her

“Oh God! See I have a feeling that this would be a wonderful idea if-if-”

She places the block back and realizes the name tag is gone [13:58]

“Oh my God! Are they dead!? Did they die, did they drown!? WHAT! They're gone…”

Aphmau goes and mines some stone + coal (12 cobble and 2 coal; 44 cobblestone in total)

“I'm a little sad, but at least we know why the village isn't going to listen to the guards anymore, because they're just going to get themselves murtalized and stuff ((The little sniffle jess makes ;-;))

She leaves the small cave through the furthest exit, leading into the woods by the farms [14:32]

Collecting flowers along the way as goes back towards the housing area, she thinks about her next move, contemplating how she hasn’t properly interacted with anyone (collects 2 white tulips and lilacs)

Going towards The Well, she sees a group of 5 zombies (3 being attacked by the guards in The Well, and 2 she kills herself) [14:57]

“Oh gosh. Oh gosh! There they are, there's a zombies! They were trying to attack the guards”

Noticing the guards hitting the zombies from The Well

“Oh, the guards are smart, they're hiding themselves…you cowards don't do that. You got to come out and fight. Fight for your right… to party.” ((lol))

Aphmau breaks the barriers once more, with Dale immediately rushing out only to turn around ((with the speed)), knocking both he and Emma the Guard, who was almost out The Well, right back in ((LMFAO))

Seeing this, Aphmau gives up and walks away leaving The Well sides open

“I'm going to leave that open just in case the guards decide that they're going to stop being so flaky.”

Looking around curiously, she checks the small hut next to The Well and see’s Aiden sleeping

“Oh, this is where Aiden the farmer lives”

Closing the door, she goes past the farms towards the Babe House and Brendan’s home. As she approaches, she sees zombies going after them

“Then we got the-BABES! Oh, they need, they need help! They need help, they need help, they need help!”

Rushing forward, she slays the zombie at the door while a sleeping Emmalyn and Emma remain unaware of the chaos

“These babes are lucky that these monsters didn't go after them.”

Turning, she sees 3 more zombies trying to get to Brendan

“Oh gosh, oh gosh. Why are-oh my gosh! The zombies are trying to get my babes” ((Is Brendan being counted as a Babe lmao??)) [15:35-15:46]

She tries to get Emmalyn and Stephanie inside but they won’t budge so Aphmau hit’s Stephanie {Ow! Why did you hit me?} (losing 1 point of health; 19/20.0)

She apologizes to Stephanie but asks her to go inside, which she does, before turning to Emmalyn and hitting her too {Ow! Why did you hit me? Before quickly saying Oh, hello. Aphmau was it?} [16:09]

Tries to get her to follow her (clicking move instead of follow me), trying to explain and apologize for hitting her

“I'm sorry I had to hit you, I didn't mean to-...I really didn't mean to, but I'm trying to save your life here! I'm trying to save your life, I'm thinking of you. Come here-!”

Seeing that Emmalyn hasn’t come through the open door, she panics

“Hurry before the zombies and the spiders get in! Where'd you go!?” [16:24]

Going outside, she sees that Emmalyn has completely disappeared

“She does doesn't like me anymore, and I completely-”

Just like she predicted, a spider jumps from the babe house to Brendans roof and goes to attack her ((LMAO)) [16:30]

She kills it gaining XP and 2 string (losing 1 health point; at 5 health and 5 hunger)

Going back to the library, she goes past Dale and Gary the Guard, with Gary saying {Hey, what’s up?} [16:43]

“I’m going to go into my house (the library) and retreat for the night”

Aphmau proceeds to eat 3 carrots to fully restore her hunger and health (27 carrots left)

She turns seeing Emmalyn run in [16:55]

“Oh hey, look she made it! You made it! I'm so happy you're here.”

She commands Emmalyn to stay (Emmalyn likes her at 1 heart, her mood: agitated, trait irritable)

“You can stay with me tonight, all right? You can-I'm sorry. I'm sorry about having to wake you up with such a rude manner, but you know, I really just…I really was looking out for your safety Emmalyn the Librarian.” ((Insane since that’s her own house and omg I didn’t see Dale patrolling (looking up inside) outside the house)) [17:03-17:13]

Aphmau proceeds to look around the library, realizing something

“You know, this is actually a nice place for you. So you can hang out here, because I got lots of books! You can read books and have like, a great time!” ((LMFAO this is insane within canon lore. Is this considered gaslighting??))

Aphmau tries to reassure her and make her stay

“Here you, you'll be, we'll be fine. We-you'll be fine, don't worry. I got you baby.” [17:20]

Aphmau does her begins her outro, turning and looking outside the large library window before going outside to talk to herself

Dale greets her with {I haven’t seen you around before} [17:27]

“We still have a lot of questions that need to be answered like, where did that guy go in the beginning and how am I going to actually fix up this village? Because it seems like a lot more problems than I had originally anticipated!”

Standing on the rooftop of the house in front of the library, she looks out around her, spotting a creeper wandering at a cave entrance above the Babe house

“We got a creeper infestation problem over there,” going to The Well she begins to pull out her cobblestone [17:41]

“We got our guards, which are making like, a huge guard soup here...I might have to like just cover this thing up”

Seeing no one in The Well ((a surprise tbh)), she uses her cobblestone to remake the barrier and then places 6 cobblestone overtop so no one can fall in ((I thought she was gonna accidentally get rid of the water for a second))

She goes back into the Library, Emmalyn greeting her {How can I help you?}

“And I will see you all, in the next episode. Until then, hopefully Emmalyn won’t be mad at us anymore. Take care! Bye-Bye!” [18:01-18:10]

Episode Ends Cue Nostalgic Outro Music

Not sure if you all wanted to be tagged, so I hope you this is okay! @hetaverseshit @cloverrae @shuublebunny @mcdgarroth @faenemy @shadowknightapologist @will-do-anything-for-a-dollar @biscuits-spooky-diner @lyraofthestarsss @its-dark-girl @bluepenstemon @mina919 @woetothepeople

[lady-of-the-citadel]

a mother is a very special thing. . .

my take on Lady Alyrie Florent, mother of Queen Alicent Hightower and Ser Gwayne Hightower, wife to Ser Otto Hightower, Hand of the King.

In F&B, we don't get enough knowledge about many (any) of the female characters and I was pleased that hotd gave a name to Alicent's mother. However, I wanted to mix Alyrie's depiction of what we know about House Florent from the books (which is big ears), their house colors, and my own thoughts on a woman left from the narrative but must have made an impact. <3

[bunabi]

You don't have to respond to this, I just don't have anyone irl who likes DA as much as me, but as a big fan of Origins I keep hoping for the next game to scratch an itch for me and with each game I get further and further from what I'm looking for. The in depth character backgrounds (that had real impact on the game!), the combat (it turns out I lothe RTS unless it's DAO but for some reason I love DAO's combat so much), and the impact of your choices are all things that seem to diminish with each game. I also agree with your frustration at not being able to be mean, I'm usually a goodie two shoes in games but my favorite Warden was one I made pragmatic and comfortable with authority to a dangerous degree because the brutal choices in Awakening result in the best outcomes for Ferelden. Plus even if you prefer the kind choices, you can't make choices unless you're given them. Luckily there's BG3 and Avowed coming out but it still feels like such a loss every time a new DA is released.

I wanna respond because you raise good points. 😔👍🏿

I feel the same way. I'm ride-or-die for Thedas as a world — the lore is easy to jump into and the amount of half-truths makes speculation really fun — but the games have strayed further and further from my personal tastes.

No DA entry is the same in its approach or execution, so I think having mixed opinions is completely natural.

Compared to Mass Effect which sticks to it's formula pretty closely from ME1 to Andromeda, DA is constantly changing. I think it could have benefited from more consistency. I understand why that wasn't always possible.

You're allowed to be disappointed or wistful or critical without it being construed as like...giving ammunition to bozos or tearing the developers down.

If we can't discuss those things what are we supposed to do? Sit in a circle pretending those features never mattered lol? That I never liked having more roleplay freedom, never liked companion relationships having more tension, never cared about tactics? No I don't think I will.

And I say this while fully accepting DAV for what it is. Even if I wasn't blessed with a code from EA I had every intention of playing it myself. I bought the art book. I've done two zines this year and contributed to two more. My career revolves around making art directly inspired by Inquisition's. Haven't read all the comics & books but I'm as 'hardcore' as it gets.

Me, of all people, being called a fake fan for wanting blood magic or not feeling the character model proportions shows how emotionally charged and unhinged things have gotten

All that to say: I think the best way to be a fan of anything is to acknowledge the good and the bad and let others do the same. So long as those conversations are in good faith there's nothing to lose and everything to gain fr.

[isaacarellanesismyhusband]

mind if I sit?

pair: Walker Scobell x reader

requested by anonymous

so maybe reader is in Vancouver for something, and she runs into Walker at a restaurant and knows he's in pjo so they start talking about pjo lore and he randomly invites her to join his table with the cast? maybe she ends up getting an offer for a role on the show by somebody sitting at the table, so they become friends/start dating, idk it was just a total dream idea lol

masterlist | navigation

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You walked through the vibrant streets of Vancouver, feeling a mix of nerves and excitement. You’d booked an acting class here a few months ago, trying to push yourself further into the acting world. The online reviews were glowing, and the idea of learning from a professional in the heart of such a bustling city seemed like the perfect opportunity to grow. You had always been passionate about performing, and maybe this class would be a stepping stone to something bigger.

After your session, you decided to grab a bite to eat at a local restaurant. The place wasn’t overly fancy but had a warm, cozy atmosphere, and you were craving something comforting after the long day. You stepped inside, the scent of garlic and herbs filling the air, making your stomach growl.

As you waited for your food at a small table near the window, you casually scrolled through your phone. You had some downtime before your next class, and it was nice to unwind for a bit. Out of the corner of your eye, you noticed a familiar face walk in. You couldn’t place it right away, but something about him seemed recognizable. Then it clicked.

Walker Scobell.

He was the lead in the upcoming Percy Jackson series. You’d been following the show closely since you’d always been a huge fan of the books. Seeing him in person was a bit surreal, but you didn’t want to act like some star-struck fan. He was just a regular person grabbing lunch, right?

Still, you couldn’t help but glance in his direction now and then. To your surprise, he caught your gaze, and instead of looking away, he smiled warmly and walked over to your table.

“Hey, are you a Percy Jackson fan?” he asked casually, his voice friendly but curious.

You blinked in surprise for a moment before nodding. “Yeah, actually. I love the books, and I’ve been keeping up with the show news.”

Walker’s smile widened. “That’s awesome! It’s always cool to meet people who are excited about the series. Mind if I sit?”

“Of course, go ahead,” you said, trying to keep your composure. It wasn’t every day you had a conversation with someone in a major TV show, after all.

Walker sat down across from you, and the two of you started talking. The conversation flowed easily, jumping between Percy Jackson lore, favorite moments from the books, and how excited you both were for the upcoming show. You couldn’t help but feel a bit giddy inside—this was a dream scenario for any fan of the series.

After a while, Walker glanced over at a nearby table. “Hey, so, I’m actually here with some of the cast. Do you want to come join us?”

You blinked, momentarily stunned by the offer. “Wait, really? I don’t want to intrude…”

“You wouldn’t be intruding at all! We’re all fans of the series too, so we’d love to chat with someone who gets it,” he said with a grin.

Not wanting to pass up the opportunity, you nodded, and Walker led you over to a larger table where a few other familiar faces sat. They greeted you warmly, introducing themselves as you took a seat. The energy at the table was casual and fun—despite their fame, everyone seemed grounded and easy to talk to.

You found yourself falling into conversation naturally, your initial nerves fading as you realized that they were just like any other group of friends hanging out. The topic shifted between acting, life on set, and your shared love for the Percy Jackson universe. You mentioned that you were in Vancouver for an acting class, and that’s when one of the adults sitting at the table perked up.

“Wait, which class are you taking?” a woman in her early forties asked, looking intrigued. You recognized her as one of the directors of the series, though you didn’t want to come off too intense by pointing it out.

You told her the name of the class, and she smiled. “That’s actually one of the programs I recommend to newer actors. How are you finding it?”

“It’s been amazing so far,” you replied, grateful that the conversation had steered away from fan topics. “I’ve been learning a lot, and the instructors have been really encouraging. I feel like I’m pushing myself in ways I haven’t before.”

The woman nodded thoughtfully, exchanging a glance with another adult at the table. “That’s great to hear. You know, we’re always looking for new talent, especially people who are passionate about the source material. Have you thought about auditioning for something bigger?”

Your heart skipped a beat. “I mean, I’ve thought about it, but I don’t have a ton of professional experience yet. I’m hoping to get there one day, though.”

She leaned back in her chair, a slight smile on her face. “You know, we’ve been casting some smaller roles for the series, and since you already seem to click with the cast… How about coming in for an audition? It wouldn’t hurt to try.”

You stared at her in disbelief, unsure if you’d heard correctly. Was she really offering you a chance to audition for Percy Jackson?

“Wait, are you serious?” you asked, your voice barely above a whisper.

“Absolutely,” she said with a nod. “No guarantees, of course, but from what I’ve seen and heard tonight, I think you could be a good fit. If you’re interested, I can set something up.”

Your mind raced, trying to process what was happening. You’d come to Vancouver for a class, hoping to improve your acting skills, and now you were being offered a chance to audition for one of your favorite series. It felt too good to be true, but the sincerity in her voice made you believe it was real.

“I… I would love that,” you managed to say, trying to keep your voice steady despite the excitement bubbling inside you.

“Great,” she said, pulling out her phone to exchange contact information with you. “I’ll get in touch with you in the next few days to set something up. In the meantime, just keep doing what you’re doing. You’re already off to a great start.”

The rest of the night passed in a blur. You continued chatting with the cast and crew, your heart racing with a mix of excitement and disbelief. You couldn’t believe what had just happened, but as you walked back to your hotel later that evening, you couldn’t stop smiling.

This could be the start of something big, and you couldn’t wait to see where it led.

[cinnamonroll-anon]

Hi! If it's okay to ask/request, could you do TFA Decepticons and Autobots, of your choice with Human Reader? Can be romantic/platonic

Reader's a fan of fnaf-related, from games, books, lores, movie, etc…

A/n: Absolutely Anon, thank you for the request! Sorry for any grammatical errors or making the characters to OOC. Sorry for any misinterpretation of the prompt anon, these can be seen as platonic or romantic (sorry for not including the fnaf movie, i haven't seen it and it wouldn't do justice to write about it, but I'll definitely go back and write the headcanon after i watch it)

TFA Autobots/Decepticons x GN!Fnaf Fan Reader (Platonic/Romantic)

Optimus

At first he would think it was based off of real events, in which you've had to remind him they're not. It's just a videogame

I think he'll find it odd how you could be so interested in something entirely fictional (he's not judging tho, man is a history nerd and he knows it) he may be just a bit concerned in the beginning

But it all shifted when you mentioned the books

That peaked his interest and you give some recommendations on the first ones to read. Obviously reminding him that what happens in the books doesn't happen in the games

I feel like he's a night owl and will definitely be reading them late at night. Sometimes you even join in and it becomes a fun little geeking out session, especially when he has so many questions and you're happy to answer

Ironically more into the horror aspect of fnaf (especially in some of the books because damn, messed up shit do be happening) and he's eating it all up fr (rip matpat mpreg that he read because, you little shit, you'd definitely tell him about it. Man was beyond flabbergasted and also learned about the theory side of fnaf) (definitely one was to make an impression 💀)

I think he's definitely more of a casual fan of fnaf

Bumblebee

Probably the most open to learning about your interests, especially fnaf

He thought it would be something simple like the video games he's played while on earth, boy was he wrong

You've got him hooked on the lore, it confused him at first but you guided him through the most confusing bits, like not canon works like the books, security breach, the peak of the fandom etc.

You guy's definitely watched "An Undeniably Canon Five Nights at Freddy's Timeline" and he was definitely hollering while watching it with you and it helped him understand the lore just a bit better (bonus that y'all watched it like a movie night!)

In absolute awe of the Fnaf songs, each one is a banger

He'll definitely ramble about it with you if it's your hyperfixation and he's always happy to learn more about what makes you happy

Bulkhead

More reluctant on it especially because it's in the horror genre and i don't think he takes it too well

He understands the idea and how it can be interesting but you might need to leave out agony and renment, might frighten him too much

Please don't show him the VHS tapes, that'll certainly scare the color off of him

He listens to the songs and thinks the community is very creative

Definatly likes the more cute and wholesome side of fnaf

Overall he's open to you but be mindful of his heart, he's a softie

Prowl

I feel like he may be the hardest one to introduce to but it's not your fault, it's bumblebee's (He's bothered prowl with videogames and stuff before)

But i think he'd give you a chance, seeing that he cares alot about you and this means alot to you

I think he'd be more intrigued with the horror mechanics of the game, learning how a mix of jumbled sounds and scenes could scare someone

He'd be down to play it/ watch you play it/ watch gameplays

He definitely jumps ip from the jumpscares. In his defense he was caught off guard

Overall he'd be supportive, listening to you explain the convoluted story and all the details

He'd remember just about everything you tell him. It's how he shows he cares, actively listening and remembering things you like

He'd find it cute how you like fnaf so much, reminds him of how focused and happy nature makes him

Ratchet

He at first waves you off, saying that he's to busy or tired to care

But this guy's got a soft spot for you

So he might not take the deep dive into fnaf, but he definitely listens to you

He'll let you ramble while he's working on something. Sometimes you feel like you're being overbearing and stop talking, he notices of course, "I'm still listening, this William guy sure is a piece of work"

He remembers everything you tell him, so you find yourself over the moon when he remembers some reference you said like a month ago

Finds himself pleasantly surprised that it's more interesting than just a horror game, but i feel like he'll deny that (but watch him ask what else happened)

Blurr

He probably is taking this more seriously than what he needs to, but you appreciate it

"So you're telling me that the sorrow he felt for losing his youngest son led him down a desperate path that ended up killing his own daughter on accident, but by then he was so broken he killed Henry's daughter, while also pushing away his eldest son, which would lead up into Micheal vengefully chasing down his father until Henry managed to trap everyone and put an end to Williams torment on all his victims and family?" He'd practically babble almost incoherently fast

Yeah that's practically it

He'd definitely like the more theoretical parts of Fnaf like how William had gotten away with it that long, why they didn't find the body's, etc.(he's practically a police officer as well, this is all up in his alley)

He's a quick learner and basically devours everything you show him, both invested and interested to learn why you love it so much

He found his answer and a hyperfixation!

Megatron

Being on earth for as long as he has, just collecting dust and not being able to go anywhere is pretty crushing... And boring

He'd listen to you ramble on the premise that he's so utterly bored that he'd listen to just about anything

He'd be on the edge of his seat waiting to hear what happens next, he'd be interested if you also showed him just about everything

He'd grow used to it and doesn't sincerely care what anyone else thinks, letting you ramble and just enjoy yourself

He'd be lying if he didn't say he enjoyed that time together

He'll let you sit on his shoulder and just go off

He's basically unfazed by it but enjoying it

Starscream

Probably freaks him out ngl but he'd shake it off under the impression that he couldn't be afraid of such a silly human story

Oh boy wait until he hears about the spring lock failure

But as much as it would freak him out man is invested to know everything

He'd jump up and scream at the jump scares when watching the gameplay. Every. Time.

He'd be in a love-hate relationship with fnaf, loving the complexity but hating the horror aspects

Honestly you rambling about it helps ease him into it, you're calming and so happy when you talk about it

Black Arachnia

Might not be as interested in the beginning, halfheartedly listening until you mention Springtrap

He reminds her of herself, an abomination both organic and technology. Both painful experiences and the agony of never being what they once were

She ends up enjoying listening to you explain how agony and remnant works. It's reminds her of her experiments to return herself to normal

She'd listen to you as she works, using your voice as a way to ground herself as she works

Definitely shocked at the family drama, but she loves the tea

Overall happy to be able to have one more thing to talk to you about.

Blitzwing

He's having a field day

"Such interesting methods of disposing the bodies- Yeah, what a cold hearted killer- Oh! Killer like the music!"

His three sides are all equally interested in it, job well done!

One is analyzing the crime aspects, one is taking the story at face value, and of course the other one is just as/ if not more ecstatic about it

He loves it and loves learning more about it and rambling with you

Will listen to a Fnaf playlist with you happily, especially because it reminds him of you

Idk but something tells me he'd laugh at the jumpscares, thinks the suspense is funny

Lugnut

He's surprised you fan remember so much about Fnaf. Like theres just so much

I feel like he'd boast about how much you know. "Look at the genius before you, they know more about this subject than anyone!"

He's super supportive

He'd drop just about anything he's doing to give you his full undivided attention

If you sometimes forget that you've already told him something and say it again you're doing him a solid. He doesn't have the best memory but hes enthusiastic!

He's proud of you and isn't afraid to show it, as you shouldn't be afraid to share of what you like with him

Shockwave

Man has been working on the clock for ages. I feel like when he'd listen to you introduce him to fnaf he was honestly so overworked and stressed that he just needed a distraction

And indeed it was a distraction

If you're the type to go into long rants for hours, sign him up

Definitely asking questions and just actively indulging with you

It's honestly adorable

If anyone asks what you're doing at his desk, he'll just shoo them off saying that you're a key part of his work

He's interested, hooked and loving it

Show him the music and that's a new guilty pleasure for him. He listens to them while he works quietly, never thought he'd enjoy it so much

Definitely eager to learn about everything; books, games, you name it, he wants to know

Loves spending more time with you, especially bonding over your interest!

Back to Nav

[adamnablelittledevil]

Only Blood Communion and Interview With the Vampire to go now. I'll make more elaborated posts about my thoughts once I'm done with everything, but here are some of my opinions:

TVA is absolutely my favorite (I've said it before and will say it again: the most purifying cry I had in my life, it destroyed and restored me in the best possible way), TVL, TQOTD and Prince Lestat are also on my top 4, though I don't know where to place the latter on my personal ranking. The others are sort of tied and the order changes according to specific aspects. Like, Blood and Gold covers a lot of eras and places of the world, has multiple interesting characters, so it's fun in the sense there's a lot of stuff to see, even if I'm not a Marius's fan and he isn't the best narrator imo. On the other hand, something like Merrick is more packed, just her, Louis and David (and some Lestat), but I just love her as a character and the whole story of her family. I can't really choose.

Memnoch would be the last because it was the one I struggled with (tho I loved Armand on it), I thought the concept was great and I could've loved it with a more active, intense and eventful execution. Prince Lestat and the Realms of Atlantis is second-to-last because most of the plot was dumb to me, the part that made sense was solved in an unconvincing way, I had to do a lot of suspending disbelief even for a supernatural/sci-fi story... But it was nice to have so many characters I love reunited, even if some didn't have lines, it's nice to know they're around and I enjoy the vampires having sort of a healthy little community.

Favorite character is definitely Armand, then Lestat, then Pandora, Maharet, Mekare, Flavius, Merrick, Bianca, Gabrielle, Mona, Benji, Avicus and Petronia (they didn't appear much and did awful brutal stuff, yes, but having an intersex/gender-fluid character was great and they had so much baggage I could empathize with them). Most after Armand and Lestat are tied. I don't know if I'd call Benedict a fave, but I'm somewhat attached to him (and I KNOW about those spoilers). I LOVE Vittorio and Ursula too and I hope they can appear in some shape or form on the show. I don't looooove Antoine, but he's alright to me. He just seems to be a poor/broke dude who wants to live, have friends and dedicate his existence to his hyperfixations and I can relate because same lol. I get him.

Favorite pairings (either as an OTP or brotp): Lesmand (👑👑👑), Pandora and Flavius (👑👑), Maharet and Mekare (👑, they just don't get more crowns because they don't appear as much as I wanted 😔), Armand and Benji and Sybelle (as duos and a trio), Armand and Riccardo, Armand and Bianca (pretty much Armand and everyone that isn't Marius lol), Lestat and Mona (their childish siblings-coded beef entertains me), Maharet and Jesse and Vittorio and Ursula (👑👑). I wish I had seen more of some characters/dynamics, tho.

MAYBE I could tolerate Marius and even love Magnus (he seems to have a sad and interesting story) if all I'd seen of them had been the content of the last trilogy, but given the previous books, I'm not sure I can enjoy Anne's decisions. I have a lot of mixed feelings about Magnus apologizing and Marius's behavior not even being seen as something to apologize for in the first place, but that's for another post.

Some of the books I would've been able to read and love with or without the show, some I only read to get information, but I'm mostly glad I'm equipped with so much of the lore now. That's not to say there aren't problematic things even for the genre that I need to compartmentalize and ignore (to some extent and not completely) for my enjoyment, because there is a lot of that, but it hasn't been a waste of time. And I'm glad I know what can happen in the future, make silly little fancasts and have events to look forward to seeing on the series. Obviously, opinions can change with the next books, when I re-read the novels or even with conversations and discussions... And that makes me excited as well.

[brainrotbabe24]

OMG can you write about Thorins company and reader who has like a tongue piercing, nose piercing, snake bites/lip piercing, etc, and a few tattoos at a pretty young age and theyre like How tf did this kid get all of those🤨😦

(Like not literally a kid but yk, younger than most of the company)

Ilyyyyy btw take care of yourself💞💞

Hi! Thank you for your request!

I had so much fun writing this one...it's kind of a mix of how they would react and if they had piercings and tattoos too! I kinda got carried away, lol 💖🎉

Gandalf:  Omg, how cool would it be if he used his wizard powers to make your tattoos move?! I feel like he would do that just for shits and giggles. Like one minute, you had a cat on your calf, and now it’s up by your collarbone.

Balin: He would rather get to know you than pry into why you got piercings and tattoos. If you feel comfortable telling him, he will listen without judgment. It would bring back memories of his young adult life with Dwalin. I think Balin and Dawlin have matching tattoos. I could also see Balin having a nose or eyebrow ring when he was younger, but it got ripped out during battle.

Dwalin: Dwalin would love that you had so many tattoos and piercings. He would ask to get matching tattoos. You guys will talk for hours about tattoos, future tattoo ideas, and any horror stories. I think out of everyone, he knows why you have so many tattoos/piercings but would keep that secret forever.

Óin: “You got a booger in your nose.” he would joke about your septum ring. Oin doesn't understand the idea of piercings, thinking they will get caught on things and be distracting. But he loves tattoos. I could see him having a lower back tattoo from when he was young and wild. His secret would be revealed on the journey to Erebor when they stopped to bathe in the fountain at Rivendell. “Nice tramp stamp, Oin; what’s it say?” Nori jokes. "Why not ask your mother? I'm sure she would know." Oin laughs!

Glóin: He thinks you're lying about your age. How could the youngest member of the company have more tattoos than all of them combined?! Gloin loves your nose ring though. You are trying to convince him to get one, and it's slowly working!!

Bifur: Would sneakily show you his one tattoo proudly. It’s a heart with a dwarf's name written in it...secret lover??? Would he consider his ax a piercing? Yes. He won't ask why you are so young with so many tattoos, but every so often, when you drop some lore, he will listen intently, ensuring he gets every bit of it.

Bofur: Gives each tattoo a name. If you guys were sleeping next to each other, he would trace them. If Gandalf did his magic to move them, he would make little stories for them to preform.

Bombur: Asks how you eat with a tongue piercing. He is a little confused about the hype of piercings and tattoos. But Bofur and he would write down all the lore you told, trying to piece together the story.

Ori: Ori would ask to doodle on your tattoos. He would add to them, like drawing squiggles or coloring them in. He would also ask you to pose so he could do drawing studies of your tattoos. By the end of the trip, he should ask you to pierce his ears! 

Dori: I have to admit, he would actually like your look. He would think it’s a very dwarf thing to do and find it incredibly fashionable.

Nori: Nori will bond with you over piercings and remind you to clean them. He will also tell Ori he should follow in his footsteps and get some piercings. "It would be a Ri family tradition!" Nori will say.

Side note: Nori definitely has nipple piercings and a tongue ring lol

Thorin: He would be a little hesitant. With your age, the tattoos, and the piercing, he would be super weary. Thinking you were a bad influence! Balin would have to tell him not to judge a book by its cover.  

Omg idea: So you know how the dragon sickness kinda made him obsessed about gold and jewels. Well, what if he started to act like Smaug and he would sleep on the gold…and it got so bad that now he has like little bits of gold and gems stuck in him. They would be littered over his body…the more I talk about it, the more I keep thinking of Edward from Twilight..so think Thorin but with a sparkly body. 😂😂

Fíli: He loves your look!!! I could also see him trying to get you into some dwarf fashion and would gift you cool earrings he made. He would be down to hear your stories about your tattoos, but he would be too nervous to show you his...gotta keep that princely image lol

Kíli: Would want to get snake bites because of you. He thinks they are so cool and totally badass. “y/n could you do it for me. Here use this knife and give me some snake bites!”.

Side notes: I couldn't find a GIF of snake bites, but this one kinda matches the idea I had for him lol

Bilbo: Bilbo would disapprove. He would be scared the first time he met you, thinking you were a criminal….and once he realized your age, he would faint.  How could someone so young have so many tattoos!!

[spopsalt]

Just gonna drop this one off here. We can all agree Hazbin and Helluva are dropping balls and fumbling bags left and right.

So, I’m gonna recommend a few GOOD series that discuss life, death, and religion.

1. Dead Like Me. It’s an early 2000s show about George Lass, an 18 year old woman who’s life was cut short when she died on her first day of the job. No longer a part of the living, George gets a new job, reaping souls before they die and helping them pass on. It’s admittedly dated, but much better at handling it’s more progressive themes than Vivziepop. The soundtrack and fashion is pleasing aesthetically. And as for writing, there are some things left to be desired, but its still incredibly ambitious with an amazing cast of characters. Lots of nuance. DO NOT WATCH THE MOVIE. Also, if you like Hannibal, this was created by the same guy.

2. Good Omens. You’re on Tumblr, you’ve probably heard of it, so I’ll keep it short. It’s essentially The Omen, with a twist to it. Due to a series is mix-em-ups on the day he was born, the AntiChrist was mistakingly raised by a normal, loving family. Having had a rather not-so-complicated friendship since the creation of man, a demon and angel must team up to stop the end of the world as we know it. Taking the well know Omen story, and adding its own humorous twist to it alone makes the story fun. But it’s also fascinating seeing the representations of angels, demons, and horsemen alike. The overall take on religion was fun in and of itself. It was also a book.

3. Hellboy. During WWII, the Nazis opened a portal. A baby came from that portal. That baby was Hellboy (yes, that’s his name.) Hellboy was raised by the US government organization BPRD (The Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense). He’s supposed to bring about the end of days, but HB is a brawler with a heart of gold and a hand of rock. And maybe a taste for alcohol. The series hosts a ton of fascinating characters, with all sorts of different backgrounds, lore, and species. There are many cues takes from world mythology, Abrahamic religion, and even H.P. Lovecraft. It’s mainly a comic franchise. The first two movies were great. There’s also a mini comic series called ‘Itty Bitty Hellboy’ that’s cute.

Never watched those before, but I'm sure those did them better than Hazbin Hotel and Helluva Boss (It's not hard) I might check those out!

[kitzatara]

My full Zatanna Bring Down The House Review!

(spoiler filled, you have been warned!)

First of all I really enjoyed it, it is a very good characterization of Zatanna. We see her heroism and her innate desire to help people, even strangers, and people she doesn’t trust. Helping the magic users, and seeing her desire to do what’s right. She was determined and doesn’t hesitate to help, just like the hero she is.

She had a dry sense of humor, a showman personality and love of performing, her stubborn will and her temper as well. These are all traits that I have seen and consider to be consistent in Zee over the years. So seeing them be core to her in this book was very much appreciated.

I do have a couple narrative nitpicks, 1) she’s never killed anyone, ever. So the decision to have her accidentally kill a kid in the story was a shame to me. I don’t like the breaking of that 60 year record. My only comfort is that it technically isn’t canon. So technically her record is still intact.

2) is the casters doing logomancy. I think that should be something only Zataras can do. It’s such a unique style of spellcasting, and having other magic users be able to do it sort’ve undermines this unique concept. The original reason the Zataras spoke backwards was because they were descendants of Da Vinci. So others should find it extremely difficult to do if they can do it at all.

I’ve mixed opinions about the casters & bunnies in general. They remind me of the Homo Magi, And I couldn’t help but feel that making Zatara part of a secret magic group was just taking from Sindella’s origin. Which has already happened by making Zatara a Homo Magi, I think the casters easily could’ve been swapped for the Homo Magi. But they were interesting, warring factions of magic is always a fun concept.

One problem I have, that isn’t exclusive to this book, was having her not use magic much until the end. It’s very common for magic users to have this trope of powerlessness. Especially at the start of a hero’s journey. So, I recognize the story format but I’m tired of seeing it.

We’ve now have had 6 stories follow a similar route (7 soldiers, come together, Mystik U, Jewel of gravesend, mystery of the meanest teacher) also absolute power, and technically both JLD runs also begin similarly. Seeing Zatanna constantly at square one no longer serves her character, her story, and discards her history. We should move past stories centered on her not using magic and start moving on to stories of her being a fully realized sorceress.

My final big problem with the story is constantine’s inclusion. I’ve made posts on other platforms about how poorly he treats her and will eventually post one here. But in Bring Down The House he is once again made a part of her origin and revealed to be manipulating things behind the scenes, keeping secrets from her, and even lying to her because he knows better and is trying to “keep her safe.” It’s just an example of sexist tropes like him manipulating and infantilizing her. Which I am also sick of seeing.

That all being said the conclusion is the crown jewel of the story. It’s immensely satisfying. We got to see her transfiguring an army of demons easily. A powerful ability in her tool kit that I feel isn’t utilized as much as it used to be. The bunnies as allies was also fun, and having magical bunnies as allies and a part of her show is a fun and whimsical addition to her lore that I’ve wanted to see.

It was dare I say almost worth the typical and repetitive hero’s journey. While the decision to make Zatara the villain of this story was interesting, albeit not one I would have made. His defeat was wonderful and spectacular. It was emotional, impactful and bad ass. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Finally, it must be said and cannot be understated how beautiful the art was. It was colorful, whimsical, and just perfect for her story. It wove with the narrative seamlessly. I loved the artwork in this book. Truly blew me away.

So even though I have my criticisms and nitpicks, it was still a really fun and beautiful read, with a perfect ending. I wish the series was an ongoing, or led to a solo title for her because reading this showed how fun her story could be. All in all to me it was a 4/5.

Thank you for reading

Eht dne!

[gaybichon]

I do not plan on watching Wicked in theaters, so I will need your complete thoughts/review/rant about it, please ❤️

okay here we go (under a cut for rambling)

the stans were not even slightly exaggerating about ariana's performance... the e•mo•tion she conveyed in "no one mourns the wicked" had me crying before the title card even dropped

i say this with all the love in my heart but like. wicked is not a perfect show. there are things that could be improved about the story and pacing and i think jon is doing a great job with that (though i'm curious about part 2 because. there's a lot to improve there) so while there were no major changes (yet) i do like the changes so far

speaking of pacing-- i was curious (suspicious) about the runtime being so long but it genuinely didn't feel like it. it's not like he added a bunch of new stuff i think he just left more breathing room in the scenes between songs

i can't even say anything about cynthia like obviously she's amazingly talented and her performance was incredible. the dynamic btwn glinda and elphaba is insane. the ozdust ballroom scene will make you want to set yourself on fire it is so heartbreaking and beautiful like when elphaba is crying and glinda gently reassures her like what if we all just kill ourselves!!!

i don't know why everyone was so agitated about the color or whatever i think it was visually stunning and the costumes are gorgeous, i cannot wait to see how they develop in part 2

i have mixed thoughts about the idina and kristin moment for very nitpicky reasons (could have been a great opportunity to incorporate some of the book lore) but i don't really care i love them and it was very silly and fun

also i'm pretty sure that was a stephen schwartz cameo at the end of "one short day" can anyone confirm or deny that

other nitpicks: i don't care for the cgi animals and jeff goldblum can't sing. oh also i think it's silly that they're like "we invented cages" idk the movie doesn't draw a distinction btwn animals and Animals so maybe they're operating in a world where all animals have the capacity for sapience or whatever if given the opportunity. but like i think they'd have figured out cages by now

these are just the thoughts off the top of my head but i'm sure i'll come back with more 🩷💚

[yumeka36]

Black Myth Wukong

I finally finished my (mostly) all-bosses playthrough of Black Myth Wukong. Since a lot of my favorite streamers were playing it, and it looked intriguing from the trailer, I wanted to give it a try once I had my fill of the Elden Ring DLC. It took me a month to beat the game (I only had time to play about 2-3 hours a day).

Overall, I enjoyed the game immensely. Give me a game with really cool and creative monster designs, plus pretty, scenic areas to explore, and I'm happy! The combat is really fun too - the mix of spells, melee attacks, transformations, stance styles, etc, gives you such a variety of ways to play. Plus the fact that you can respec anytime removes the pressure of committing to one build. But honestly, I kinda stuck with the same build the whole game, lol. I focused most of my skill points on health, defense, attack, Immobilize, and Pluck of Many, as well as putting all my Mind Cores into the same, plus mana. This got me through basically all of the game with relative ease. Actually, either I got overpowered or the game wasn't that difficult for me, since by mid-chapter 2, almost every boss was a first or second try victory for me. Only exceptions were the Loongs and few chapter finale bosses and secret area bosses who took a few tries more. Then there was Erlang, who took me at least 30+ tries over 3 hours and was one of the hardest bosses I've fought in any game (coming from someone who's fought every boss in Elden Ring, Sekiro, Bloodborne, and the Dark Souls trilogy). So yeah, don't want to see that guy again anytime soon.

The only time I respeced a bit was to put more points into four banes resistance against Erlang. But I was also dumb and didn't realize there was a Drink to restore Qi, which was what I really needed to get rid of his shields with the fan vessel. But I still died a few times even after figuring this out, so I think he's just a really difficult boss.

While I enjoyed the heck out of the gameplay, unfortunately I couldn't follow the story/lore well at all. Obviously this is because I know close to nothing about Journey to the West or Chinese mythology. So while I understood the basic premise of finding Wukong's relics throughout the land, everything else as far as who the characters were, what their relationship is to Wukong and each other, and why they're doing what they're doing, was totally lost to me. Even after watching a "story explained" video, it's very clear that the game is a true sequel to Journey to the West, and you're guaranteed to be lost about most things if you haven't read the book. But the fact that I still enjoyed the game despite this just shows how fun it is. If I enjoy the gameplay mechanics, not being able to follow the story isn't that big a deal to me. Also, the animated music videos between each chapter were amazing. My favorite is the one for chapter 3, which was so well choreographed but also deliciously horrifying.

Like I do with most games, I wanted to make sure I beat every boss and explored every area the game had to offer. But I also didn't want to follow a walkthrough religiously either (which is something I did in my early days of gaming with the Dark Souls games). Other than look up a boss list and where to find them, I played the game mostly blind until around chapter 4. I was upset when I realized I had missed key things in chapter 3, which was being able to fight the Apramana Bat and Rat Captain bosses, as well as attain the Auspicious Lantern curio from the Lantern Wardens (I did fight a couple of them, but then decided to avoid them once I got yeeted off the cliff, lol). So from that point on I carefully checked IGN's walkthrough as I explored each area. Thankfully those were the only two bosses I missed during the rest of my playthrough. But damn, does this game have so many hidden secrets! I can't imagine anyone finding all the bosses/secret areas without looking it up online.

I guess that's one complaint I have about the game...maybe the secrets are too secret? Like I said, I don't know how a player is expected to figure some of these things out if playing normally. Maybe some more hinting about how to access the secret bosses and areas would have been nice, even if it's just some NPC dialogue or more elaborate item descriptions. I also don't like that they hid an essential thing like armor upgrades behind a questline that's so easily missable. A couple other minor issues I had were forcing cutscenes in the middle of fights and your character being way too prone to stagger with few ways to increase Tenacity, resulting in many wasted mana and focus point attacks (why is Tenacity not part of the skill tree?) But again, these were just minor issues and took little away from my overall enjoyment.

So yeah, I highly recommend Black Myth Wukong if you like fantasy adventure games focused on boss battles and various combat styles.

[felassan]

its that time again! 🍵 Thoughts/wonderings on Dragon Age: The Missing #3, under a cut due to spoilers for The Missing (not just #3):

Thoughts on Issue 1

Thoughts on Issue 2 (note: this post also contains spoilers from DA:D leaks)

Thoughts on the first 4 pages of issue 3 (which came out via preview)

Overall I enjoyed the issue a lot and it's my favorite of the 3 so far! Issue 2 was more fun and punchy/had more oomph (as Teia and Viago are amazing and simply showstealers tbh⭐), but this issue has been my fav so far because i] I'm hyped that after three (3) years we got to see Strife's design, and more importantly ii] the issue advanced the DA:D [pre-]plot a bit and dropped inchrestingggg new lore stuff. (The pacing wasn't great, it was kind of rushed in places and it was a lot to try to fit in to just a few pages. I also would have liked it if the the Veil Jumpers could have been given a bit more depth/been fleshed out a bit more, but again there's limited pages in these comics)

I like what they're doing with a different color palette version of the picture on page 2 in every issue :>

On page one, are those icebergs floating in the sea? would there be icebergs in the Nocen Sea or Ventus Straits? it seems like the climate around there is warm.

On the map, I like the little representation of the Imperial Highway.

^ one example of the triangle motifs incorporated into the Veil Jumpers' outfits.

^ the face on Tist's shoulderpad reminded me of Sentinel armor.

Tist looks like a Greek statue of a youth hh

I liked the designs and hairstyles of all 4 Veil Jumpers. Irelin's fur collar is a nice touch to have remembered, in TN she was described as wearing supple leather trimmed with fur.

Strife is tall and stacked. this didnt surprise me, after reading the first story in TN I came away with that impression of him. in TN he was specifically described as being tall and strong, square-shouldered and straight-backed with calloused hands, lean with long ropey muscle. also I'm simply biased and a tall buff elf enthusiast hh. (in terms of build and stuff he reminds me of my Lavellan)

^ I wonder if the book at Strife's belt here is the leatherbound journal from Ruins of Reality, the relic of the Morlyn clan?

I wasn't sure about some of Strife's dialogue, he seemed to be missing the sort of snarky or lighter-hearted manner he had at times in TN? dialogue in general was a bit stilted in this issue tho, not bad so much as just quite info-dump-y.

Veil Jumpers faction details: they are an alliance between the best Dalish mages and hunters (not an all-elf and/or all-mage group) and other non-elves who were wiling and able to help contain the threat of timespace warping hijinks and chaos that's reigning in Arlathan Forest. presumably a fair few of the Dalish elves in the group are from Clan Morlyn. the mixed nature of the faction and Binde's presence in Strife's group feels like a natural progression of Strife at the end of his story in TN: [said to Myrion] "You're right, shem. This [Arlathan forest] isn't your place. But then, once upon a time, it wasn't mine, either."

also their base or HQ is a "sanctum". about that.. remember this? from this concept art? maybe that piece of concept art was showing the Veil Jumper sanctum? some of the concept art of Veil Jumpers shows them in a similar location with floating rocks and orange vegetation/foliage. [one, two]

in a previous posted I wondered,

last time we got a look in [Arlathan forest], Strife had noticed something had gone wrong in the forest. time and space was stretching and folding weirdly, reality warping, and he and Irelin saw echoes or mirages of themselves running around. mysterious entries had begun appearing in the relic journal of the Morlyn clan describing sacred ruins in there guarding a powerful fabled artifact, a halla figurine that Irelin grabs during that story. when Varric&Harding arrive, will they also be facing this sort of thing (mad sylvans, reality& time/space warping)? is the crucious stone similarly guarded by sacred ruins? could it have something to do with what’s gone wrong in the Forest? even when Irelin succeeds in grabbing the figurine, Strife still feels that something has gone wrong in there.

fun to see that this speculation was also correct ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝ as in this issue Arlathan is still timespace warping, Varric&Harding have to run a gauntlet facing these dangers, the crucious stone was contained in the ruins of an ancient temple, and Irelin posits that someone walking around using the crucious stone could explain the timespace warping in Arlathan.

Harding continues to eyeroll at Varric's bad jokes. he's basically an old man with dad/grandpa jokes at this point.

"Deep inside the Veil"? I found this to be kind of odd phrasing. we've long known that the Veil is thin in Arlathan forest, indeed thinner in such a way as to be different than how it is in other places where it is also known to be thin, somehow. inside the Fade is a place one can go. is that what's meant by this line? or is it meant to mean more like "deep in the forest, where the Veil is very thin" / "inside a place where reality and the Fade are mushing together" sorta thing? or is inside the Veil itself a place in which one can go? 🤔

that aside, these "Ruins of Reality", this "world turned upside down", this "place where chaos reigns", this "threat".. it reminds me bigtime of when Solas says in Trespasser "as the world burns in the raw chaos".. and indeed, Harding infers as much at the end of this issue, saying "[this] is going to be happening everywhere unless we find [Solas]", and Solas refers to the damage himself in his letter, "I will limit the damage as best I can". and I wonder.. in TN Solas talks about a few years of peace before his ritual is complete. it made it sound like the ritual would take a few years to prepare for or a few years to carry out (in ancient Elvhenan some spells and stuff would take years to cast). if his ritual/plans along these lines have already begun, it would make sense that places in the waking world which are "weakest" (i.e. places where the Veil is thin) would be the ones which are affected first.

the trials and gauntlet gave me nostalgia for the Urn of Sacred Ashes questline in DA:O

the map from page one of Varric and Harding's voyage contrasted with the map of the forest.. hhh

Spirits trading places with the living, literally ripping you out your own body and stealing it.. (by this point Strife, Irelin and the other Veil Jumpers are old hats at the Arlathan forest timespace shenanigans hh.) this is neat and interesting new lore, and it reminded me of the Nevarran belief that when a dead soul crosses to the Fade it displaces a Fade spirit. I wonder if it's related to that. also I thought it was represented in a cool way, with the reflection world and the muted grayscaleish color palette swap when their souls had been displaced and they were in the 'spirit world'.

the panels when Varric and Irelin are conversing from random upside down angles reminded me a lot of when the party enters the Fade physically with Hawke and goes "wtf" in Inquisition :)

Varric is having such a terrible time. again

Does Harding have the Inquisition hairy eyeball on her kneeguard?

Varric's reaction to the sky being the wrong way around reminded me of how it must feel to be a dwarf from Orzammar going to the surface and seeing sky above for the first time, dizzying, weird, disorienting

I like that while a mage, Irelin still has an alternative weapon (knife/dagger) just in case ^^

Varric seeming to sort've push Harding ahead of him while they fled the animals was a nice touch

is this the first time leopards were confirmed in Thedas? :D tho they look more like cougars or maybe lionesses or sabretooth tigers or something, and leopards are typically solitary. also lmao first the deepstalkers attack and now this. Varric's like "bloodthirsty wildlife omg" like they didnt already have that problem in issue 1 hh.

RIP Gilf Varric fans

hh, does Varric not know that he's been graying lately anyway, time shenanigans aside?

the time warping reminds me of In Hushed Whispers 👁️ very interesting in terms of implications. you can see why creating the Veil (which is connected to timespaceywarpy happenings) caused the ancient elves to begin aging.

^ check this out, the glowing green light on Strife's shoulder in his golden armor. seems like the green-glowing aspect of some Veil Jumper gear is still a thing [one, two, three]. it got more open, triangley and brighter in the second panel, like he was powering it up and gearing up for the fight. if they hadn't decided to run, would he have started to use it like the Veil Jumpers in those pictures? curious to find out more about the Veil Jumper gear - how it works and where they got it from.

^ what's happening in this panel? they seem to be straight-up disintegrating? not aging, disintegrating.

^ the presence of and focus on this satchel on the 'assassin', with its bright red fastener (draws the eye), seems sus. Varric says later in the issue that the 'assassin' saved him. it's hard to tell whether "I don't think this was the Venatori. I think it was Solas" means he thinks it was Solas who already entered the vault and took the stone OR if he means that and that the 'assassin' who saved him was Solas in disguise and that he's the one that's been tailing them this entire time. if the 'assassin' was Solas in disguise, I sus that the stone - which he had clearly already gotten at that point - is inside the lil pouch and that's what this panel is trying to convey. also it wouldnt be Solas' first time dressing up in disguise (Bard in TN).

the twisting pathway reminds me of the yellow brick road in Wizard of Oz

The Varterral. it looks nothing like the ones we've seen in-game or like the one described in Masked Empire (or depicted in the illustration in the Deluxe edition). is this an art/design oversight, or new lore showing that varterrals come in multiple forms? in fairness, in Dalish lore the first varterral was created by Dirthamen, fashioned of the "fallen trees of the forest" into a deadly guardian. this ent-like varterral looks like that. maybe "varterral" is actually just a name for any created creature that's been magically created and is guarding an ancient elven site, golem-like?

Irelin's staff-less magic and the spell distraction she did was cool. was she doing Stinging Swarm? ^^

And ofc the final pages are the motherlode, especially the new painting! Look here. I think the green figure (the one with the crescent moon headpiece) is the monster figure with the crescent moon head from that mural and from that concept art piece. and I think that's Ghilan'nain (Horror of Hormak and all that). BUT I don't think the red figure is the other monster figure from that mural (the one with pointy, crab-like shoulders, who I think is Elgar'nan). the headpieces don't match, the red figure's headpiece better matches with one of the other sigils from the hemispheres. I think the red figure is someone else. the question is who, and my guess is they're Andruil. the two figures could be read as feminine, and the feel of the painting could be read as romantic - definitely close. Ghil was Andruil's chosen, and her beloved. Andruil was the one who offered Ghil ascendance.

the painting also bears a resemblance to the red lyrium idol, which has been variously and interestingly described - a couple hugging, two lovers, one comforting the other, or a god mourning her sacrifice. does the painting depict the same moment from the idol, or not long before it at least? the main figure on the idol's headpiece is different, but coincidentally Andruil was also known as the Goddess of Sacrifice. wouldn't it be interesting and ironic if there was a time in the distant past when Ghil had to sacrifice the goddess of sacrifice? if this painting is depicting a moment before such a thing, that would help explain why the other monster figure from the mural has a different headpiece. if "the Evil Gods" are returning, Andruil couldn't be one of them, if she was killed. Ruins of Reality and Three Trees to Midnight are also full of references to both Ghil and Andruil..

Strife was looking at it now. On the other side, so was his double. Both transfixed by a statue of elven goddess Ghilan'nain holding a crystal halla figurine, exactly as the journal described.   - As the Strifes drew the attention of the merciless trees, Irelin swooped in and snagged the figurine with her talons, tearing it from Ghilan'nain's grip. The statue didn't let go easily, but neither did Irelin. With an angry squawk, she yanked the prize free and disappeared into the sky.

-- Ruins of Reality

in TN, the story title "Three Trees to Midnight" refers to the Way of Three Trees/Vir Tanadhal, which Dalish lore holds were teachings of Andruil given to the People. Strife thinks of the Ways during his escape, using them to escape, and invoke's Andruil's name multiple times. Strife also refers to Arlathan Forest as belonging to the Lady of the Hunt/Andruil. He also calls on Ghilan'nain, and Irelin shapeshifts into a halla (Ghil's sacred animal, being Mother of the Halla and the first halla), as well as a falcon and an owl (hawks are sacred to Andruil and the Dalish believe owls are Andruil's messengers). meanwhile Strife has turned up in this comic with Andruil vallaslin, after not having them in TN. very inch... resting... indeed.

why Ghil and Andruil in the painting? presumably this ancient temple, deep in Arlathan Forest, was a temple either to Andruil (whose forest it is) or Ghil (her beloved). why next to a painting of the Dread Wolf doing something to the Veil? in the story of Ghil's ascension, there is a reference to Pride -

On the second day she drowned the giants of the sea, except those in deep waters, for they were too well-wrought, and Pride stopped her hand.

On the third day she killed the beasts of the land, except the halla, whose grace she loved above all else.

This is how Ghilan'nain was made youngest of the gods.

there is also a story in which Andruil wanted to punish Fen'Harel. it could also simply be (or both could be true) that Solas painted the Dread Wolf mural when he stopped by earlier before Varric and Harding to obtain the crucious stone. what if in this comic panel we're looking at the same location as here, just with the comic version of the mural compacted down due to limited panel space:

and what's the relevance to Solas' plans, what happened the past, and the idol? I am guessing it is something to do with how Andruil went mad and hunted in the Abyss, putting on armor made of the Void and making weapons of darkness, to the extent that she brought "plague" to her lands and howled things meant to be forgotten. it's often theorized that Andruil accidentally brought the Blight/Taint back from the Void, and of course that links to red lyrium (Blighted blue lyrium, the red lyrium idol) and is reminiscent of the Evanuris digging deep, mining the bodies of Titans for "something else" and unleashing something terrible by doing so by mistake (we read of elves frantically collapsing tunnels, "let this place be forgotten, let no one wake its anger"). also I'm obsessed with the Balrog Theory so

Solas being kinda extra with his dramatic fursona red seal

he is always one step ahead of them isn't he

"You're joking. You've got to be" Strife +50 Headache

"Interfering in matters you do not understand can only make things worse" explain them then pls Solas. if you're cryptic and don't explain things in full all the time, then ofc people are going to be Concerned

the Orb of Fen'Harel, the red lyrium idol and the crucious stone.. Solas' list of Maguffins I Need For My Plans keeps getting longer.

As for the crucious stone itself.. whatever it does, it sounds like it weakens the Veil. makes sense why Solas would want it, then. there was this line in Ruins of Reality: "Mysterious entries appeared of their own accord, describing sacred ruins in Arlathan Forest that guarded an artifact of fabled power." In Ruins of Reality it referred to a crystal halla figurine. maybe the journal has since produced more entries of its own accord, telling of other ruins and artifacts - Strife and Irelin in this comic had heard of the crucious stone and had a map to where it was located after all.

Also the final question is who is the person on the final page, which is the cover for issue 4? Presumably the trusted informant from the issue 4 synopsis, "Varric connects with a trusted informant who might help them." I've seen speculation that they are the person from this concept art and I like that idea and could see it :] I love their outfit and the design of it makes me think of snakes, so again I'm wondering about the Viper. their oufits are similar, and so far we've had Wardens-Crows-Veil Jumpers in 1-3. perhaps issue 4 will introduce (in advance of DA:D) the Viper's faction. in the 2020 trailer you have the pair of boots (speculated to be a Warden) character, a character on the roof (speculated to be a Crow) and a Veil Jumper stalking through the woods. there's also the character in an alley of Minrathous with the knife. the pattern on their hood -

is like reptile scales, like the pattern on the Viper here and the pattern on the character on the final page's shoulders (as well as the scaley reptile on the person in that concept art's staff).

[andmaybegayer]

Last Monday of the Week 2024-09-23

I have a normal number of tabs open

Listening: Went to a metal show I knew nothing about because my partner was going and I figured it would be a good way to hear what they're into.

Nest of Plagues is a Hungarian outfit, which I liked a fair amount. Bad mix from their sound engineer but otherwise fun. I have no idea what any of the songs they played are so here's a random one:

Next up, Lone Survivors, a French prog metal group. Really fun, great bass

Then Science of Decay, Swiss group. Probably the most consistently good.

And the headliners who were Orphaned Land, an Israeli pan-religious peace themed band? Bizzare on many levels. What is the point of non-blasphemous metal.

Pretty good show all around, I'm not a huge metalhead so other than like "pretty good, some of this is nice" I have very little to say.

Reading: A Desolation Called Peace which is a delicious little thing. A really different book from Memory, and makes very efficient use of its scenes to handle a lot of information very deftly.

It's a bold move to do the like, barest intimations of a relationship in book one, ends with a single kiss. Book two: starts with them deeply estranged on the other side of the galaxy from each other, midpoint fucking, endpoint ???????.

The Eight Antidote scenes are clever! The sanitized self-concept of the empire in this one kid. There's a bit about the "Atrocities Teixcalaan had smartly given up committing" it's such a great line

Watching: Finished Mobile Suit Gundam. which was interesting and educational for multiple things, for one just as a reference for a bunch of other media I've consumed.

I want to compare it a little to Avatar, which is good but suffers heavily from the constraints of being a Western Children's Show, Gundam is a toy advert like Transformers but it doesn't feel the need to lean into "here is your moral lesson of the week" stuff so it can do some really thoughtful storytelling about war and duty.

The instrumentalization of the whole White Base Crew where they're just taken on as an expendable force by Earth is so great because it keeps them at a distance from both sides while still putting them on A Side.

The Newtype stuff towards the end both focuses the story and sort of weakens it? It moves you away from the drama and struggle of the crew into building this universe lore.

I'm probably going to jump ahead to Witch from Mercury and then maybe watch some of the past seasons.

Making: Some abortive microscope stuff, ran into weird power issues, need to fix that. Fiddling with VR projects but nothing meaningful, I wanted to try and work on some 3D curve visualization stuff but I mostly got bogged down remembering how VR on Linux works again.

Playing: Fell off Tactical Breach Wizards but I'm back, pushing through the final act. It's going well and I'm getting Rion under me, he's pretty finicky at times but very powerful.

Tools and Equipment: A consideration for you: if you have weird neck pain check your pillow. Ever since my partner spent a few nights at my place they found their neck pain gone because I use good normal pillows made of firm foam rather than bullshit sad feather sacks that compress down to one centimeter thick and do fuck-all for your neck. I do not know who thought down pillows was a good idea, stop doing that. You need to keep your neck supported!

[athetos]

Just finished Blasphemous and wow what a good game. After Isidora and getting all the upgrades the final boss was pretty easy, but very fun. I think the difficulty level of the game while challenging is kind of over-emphasized; while it’s very much punishing to the unprepared player, I felt it was overall fair. The deaths felt less “goddammit what did I do WRONG!” And more “so close, I parried half a second too late, I’ll get it next time!”

The story and lore were impeccable. This was a really intriguing world and I can’t wait to have a look through the art book, this game was really unique aesthetically and I’m excited to learn more about the Spanish culture that inspired it. It is truly Catholicism But Dark Souls. I would love to do some writing about the Grievous Miracle and those afflicted by it, or maybe even how the rest of the world feels about Cvstodia, since they’re apparently the only ones dealing with this shit, considering they conjured up the Wills in the first place.

I got as close to 100% completion as possible on a non-ascended file. I could not get the “perfect” ending as that is virtually impossible without a guide (and maybe isn’t doable on a first playthrough at all?) but I did collect every available item and beat every boss… except I did not finish Miriam’s fifth challenge, because after spending an hour on it then looking up a YouTube video showing the rest of the course I decided “actually fuck that I don’t have time for this.” The Miriam challenges were brutal and while I didn’t think the first 3, and portions of the 4th, were unfair, the 5th was out of control. Not for me. Also Miriam why the fuck are you here anyway girl go home you have your own game.

I’ve heard mixed but mostly good things about Blasphemous 2; namely, that while it apparently isn’t as good as 1 and has some performance issues, it seems to address the biggest gripes people had about it, so… that’s interesting? I have a lot of games I want to get through that I already own, though, so I’ll probably snag it when it goes on sale.

[hbyrde36]

Self rec! When you get this, reply with your favorite five fics that you've written, then pass on to at least five other writers. Let’s spread the self-love 🖤

oh! so fun, thanks anon!

In no particular order because they are all precious to me:

Steve Harrington: Vampire Hunter

Vampire Eddie Munson, Vampire Hunter Steve Harrington, P.I. Robin Buckley, bad-ass gun toting Nancy Wheeler, VAMPIRE DUSTIN!, Stripper Chrissy Cunningham, and so much more.

My ‘steddie as Anita and Jean-Claude from the Anita Blake novels’ fic. I fucking love this thing. It’s SO FUN. The book series it’s pulled from start out in the 90’s (yes I’m old and I read them when they were originally published🙈) and as much as I love the idea of Vampire Hunter Steve having a beeper, I decided to bring things up to present day (along with quite a few other changes to make it my own, and to fit the steddie vibe). It’s weird and a little challenging writing a fic intermingling two different pieces of media, but I love weaving in and combing elements of each universe's lore, while still maintaining the main beats of the story. If nothing else, read this one for the dream sequences!

2. Caught in the Undertow

Post season 4, Canon Divergent – Eddie lives and Vecna has been defeated.

AKA the sad Eddie fic, or, as i used to call it in my head, 'the passively suicidal Eddie fic'. This was my first foray into the ‘giving my own issues to my blorbos’ thing, although it still seems to be in character for them, I think. Don’t worry, I spread it out between both Eddie and Steve, so they’re both a little fucked up. I loved and hated writing every word of this fic. It was so hard sometimes and I made myself cry more than once, but it was incredibly cathartic. This is the fic I go back to and read parts of more than anything else I’ve written.

3. Times Like These

Time loop, Eddie POV

TLT was my first brain worm, my first ever fanfic, and the first thing I’d written period in a very long time. I had no idea what I was doing, but I was so intrigued by the idea and there weren’t many (any?) Eddie POV time loops on ao3 at that point so it was definitely a little bit of a “fine I’ll do it myself” moment. I was just so curious how it would play out if Eddie, the new guy who knew so little about the upside down, who got thrown into the mix and died all within a single week, were to be the one stuck in a loop. What would he think was happening to him? Would he trust the party enough to tell them? What would he do or change to try and fix things? I think I’ve improved quite a bit as a writer since I finished this, just through sheer practice, but I’m still so very proud of my first baby and think about it often.

4. Life is a Game (and True Love is a Trophy)

Canon was just a crazy homebrew D&D game, sort of.

My second brain worm, this fic lived in my head for 8 months before I had written a single word of it. It all started with the idea that, 'what if all of the events from the show had just been a D&D game played by the boys in Mike’s basement?', and then I ran with it from there. It’s a work in progress and we have still have a ways to go (I’m not sure we’re even at the halfway point yet) but I love how it’s turning out. The response from readers, in comments on ao3 and tumblr, to this one has been very kind and encouraging. It makes it SO easy to work on knowing others love it as much as I do.

5. Thank God we didn’t peak in High School

Friends-with-Benefits to Lovers, Modern Au, life after high school au, no upside down

I wrote this series at the last minute for Steddie Week. Last minute, as in I didn’t even start until several days into the event. I’ve never put out so many words so fast. This fic is loosely based on my own marriage’s origin story, although our beginnings were even more dramatic than this (I felt like I had to tone it down to make it believable). This is the first project that made me realize how fun writing from prompts could be! It’s definitely not my best writing, but the story is fun and cute, a little dramatic and angsty, and as always the boys get their happy ending!

[adelle-ein]

part of me wants to watch good omens, just from the perspective of a practhett fan/gaiman mixed-feelingser who read the book eighty billion years ago (age 13) and then reread it when the show was first out bc she didn't remember aziraphale/crowley being much of a thing (and she was right it wasn't)

like i'm curious for a number of reasons, not least of which is that good omens the book suffers terribly from being written by two fundamentally different writers. superficially practhett and gaiman's main bodies of work are very similar -- putting spins on myths and legends and lore, general cynical/jokey tone -- but like. their actual worldviews and styles of writing are SO different on just a fundamental level, they have such different priorities when writing. pratchett romance and gaiman romance could be opposite ends of a writing scale lbr. pratchett fucking hates sex scenes and gaiman can't stop (badly) writing them in. pratchett firmly refuses to make any of his characters conventionally attractive, neil gaiman is very much a "all my characters are pretty." pratchett's writing is generally more optimistic and gentle then gaiman's (if a child dies in a pratchett book it's a Big Fucking Deal, for gaiman it's a tuesday.) pratchett likes a smaller scale and more character-focused narrative in general, et cetera. there's a reason everyone has always struggled to adapt pratchett works to the screen, because he was not a big screen writer by any stretch of the imagination. none of this means that gaiman's writing is BAD it's just very, very different

good omens just reeks of several different manuscripts mushed together, the end result being that no character or theme is very well fleshed out and the enjoyable bits are over very quickly as we jump from author to author and pov to pov. also show of hands, who thinks that gaiman put a full on sex scene in there originally instead of fading to black and pratchett just ctrl-shift-backspaced the whole thing lmao. so i'm not surprised the tv show has gone a wildly different direction from the book, because the book simply isn't very good. plus several parts of the book i suspect had nothing to do with gaiman at all and would be difficult for him to retell (either bc he doesn't have the information to do so or just because he's rewriting a late friend's story and that can't be fun, this isn't a judgement of gaiman.) also gaiman's writing and character have changed a LOT since the 90s, GO the original book was laced with homophobia and i know some of of his old graphic novels have bad transphobia issues (haven't read those.) i don't have any issues with the show taking a different direction basically. i think that's a good call for many reasons. but i'm also just like how??? can you adapt this book to screen??? well rewrite the whole dang thing and pick some side characters (aziraphale and crowley) to actually become main characters and lead the narrative so there actually IS a central narrative instead of a general "here's what eleven billion different characters did during the apocalypse." it's a smart call. it also means the show is predominantly about two white men, AND you can actually do something with all those nasty gay jokes and make them a real couple instead which....ratings! attention! media sensation! blah blah. though this season doesn't seem to be catching on like the last one

but anyway the rest of me...doesn't really like watching tv shows very much and doesn't actually want to watch a show by an author i don't particularly like, about a premise i'm not super interested in, with a target audience i am Less Than Fond Of (superwholocks) lmao