#i too like hot dragon spellcasters

[bluerose5]

I was thinking about how in the Love is a Legendary Action one shot, Astarion was flirting with the hot dragon wizard. Now, in my AU, he's with Wyll who is a hot dragon sorcerer. I'm starting to sense a pattern here.

[underdark-dreams]

Hello my dear! Prompt for you, what Rolan and Dammon are like drunk, what kind of night they had at the tiefling party on their own, how they are with an interested Tav that night (Rolan x Tav, Dammon x Tav, how they are with an interested each other (dammon x rolan), and how they are with a poly for the celebration (dammon x Tav x rolan) long one I know but damn you feed us well

[bangs metal pots together] Rolan x Dammon polycule lovers, come collect your horny boys!

Please be aware this turned to shameless filth at the end. I cannot be trusted with either of them, and especially not both. 👀 Credits to @turquoiseoverthesea for the lap sitting mischief!

Rolan & Dammon drunk at the Tiefling party: solo + poly HCs with Tav

(Tav is gender-neutral) - (NSFW under the cut)

Rolan solo:

Rolan wasn’t even sure he wanted to come tonight…but he found himself in a generous mood and decided to bestow his company on these rubes

Plus he doesn’t trust Cal to moderate himself or Lia to keep Cal reined in (oldest siblings have to do everything around here)

Ends up tipsier than either of them, though he’s decent at hiding it

You can tell by the way his hand gestures get more and more animated throughout the night

When he’s drunk: actually loosens up a lot in general, smiles and laughs more freely

Drunk Rolan is somehow even more self-assured and cocky than usual, yet simultaneously much more charming about it

Doesn’t realize how handsome he looks when he’s genuinely enjoying himself

Also gets more free with his spellwork once you get a few glasses of wine in him

Fends off Cal and Lia’s requests for him to conjure a whole menagerie of animal illusions, but if Tav asks, he won’t be able to say no

Conjures an owlbear and a tiger and maybe even a dragon if he feels like really showing off to impress Tav, much to the delight of any Tiefling kids who might be sneaking around the party

Even if he spends the night on his own, Rolan ends up having a much nicer time than he wants to admit. He’s a pessimistic worrywort at heart—taking an evening to unwind is honestly good for this poor guy’s stress levels

Cal and Lia are having a great time, too, and that makes Rolan truly happy. Just to see them both enjoying themselves for a change

If Rolan can work up the courage to approach Gale, he’d talk to him for hours about the Weave and spellcasting over a bottle of wine

Takes delight in finding such a highly educated magical mind here in the middle of this godforsaken nowhere (tries to play it cool for the sake of his ego though)

Dammon solo:

Dammon didn’t plan to go but changed his mind at the last minute when it sank in that Tav would be there

Before the party, he definitely sneaks off to wash up in the nearby river. The smell of smoke and iron dust in his clothes is pretty permanent at this point, but he’d rather make a tidy impression tonight if possible

Arrives with his hair still damp but pulled back into its neat topknot

A bit like Zevlor, Dammon tends to hover around the edges holding his drink at first, just taking in everyone else’s good mood tonight

His drinks of choice are at the opposite ends of the spectrum: prefers a very fine brandy or a common ale, nothing in between

Would politely accept a glass of wine if it’s offered but only sips it

When he’s drunk: gets very sincere and kind of intense

He’s the type to sit down to share a bottle and have a long, intimate conversation with someone for several hours, preferably Tav or Rolan. Both is ideal

You can tell Dammon has had a few when he makes really sustained eye contact while you’re talking. Sits a bit closer than usual to show you’re his sole focus right now. Combined with his striking eyes, it’s kinda hot

Also when he’s drunk the tips of Dammon’s ears flush a bright, ruddy pink

Dammon spending the night on his own—I can imagine it going a few ways, depending on his mood

If he’s feeling more cheery and sociable, Dammon might sit near the campfire to hear Alfira’s music and listen to his fellow Tieflings talk about their plans when they reach the city, adding encouraging comments here and there

I could also see him taking his drink and heading out for a quieter spot near the water

Dammon’s a bit of a loner with this group, always seems to keep himself apart from the rest of his fellow travelers. Maybe he enjoys working with infernal iron a little too much to mention in mixed company

Rolan x Tav:

Maybe if Rolan was sober he’d pick up on Tav’s flirting faster

Then again, maybe he’s so wrapped up in trying to impress them with his accomplishments that he doesn’t realize how well it’s actually working

Rolan’s probably out of practice with romance, or pretty inexperienced, or some combination of the two

Dropping hints is just not enough for this guy. He enjoys the banter with Tav a lot more than he wants to admit, but he’s got a mental block against taking it further

It will definitely take something physical from Tav

Making an excuse to touch his hands, or “accidentally” bumping hips or shoulders several times

Then there’s the direct route of “is this seat taken?” 

Rolan will look up in surprise but gesture to the bench next to him. Then Tav plops down directly on his lap, and Rolan’s surprise turns into actual panic

Kind of holds his hands hovering frozen out to either side for a second, not sure where to put them even though Tav’s hips are currently snuggled up on his thighs

Torn between everyone here including his siblings seeing this blatant display of public flirtation, and the feeling of how nice Tav’s weight in on top of his legs

When Tav leans in to curl an arm around his shoulders, Rolan’s done for. Any thoughts of shifting them off his lap go out the window and he clasps his hands politely around the side of their leg

Rolan will try to maintain the conversation, but his responses get short and distracted. All he can concentrate on is Tav’s scent and voice and their face so close to his

He’ll accept a few kisses while Tav’s on his lap, but only the shortest, softest lip touches

If they introduce the slightest hint of tongue, Rolan will pull them away and clear his throat maroon-faced and ask which tent is Tav’s, and demand that they both please go there right now

Rolan follows them while studiously avoiding eye contact with anyone he knows

If he realizes Tav is instead leading him farther away from camp, the implication makes his tail flick with excitement

He’d love nothing more than to find a nice soft patch of grass and make out with Tav for an hour

Rolan’s kisses are eager and a bit sloppy at first. But he’s very teachable, both a devoted student and a quick learner

With a little guidance, before long Rolan’s got Tav making some soft and breathless sounds of their own

Tav sitting with their legs straddling Rolan’s thighs would really test his patience—if Rolan wasn’t hard from them on his lap before, he’s definitely hard now

Might get so excited he doesn’t ask before sliding his tail up their hips or wrapping it around their waist

Once he realizes Tav’s equally worked up, Rolan would encourage them to grind down on his thigh however makes them feel good

Adores getting to see the hero of the night pleasuring themself on his leg while his tail squeezes and caresses around their middle

Dammon x Tav:

Dammon is difficult to pin down for a conversation at first, let alone anything more

He keeps circling along the perimeter of the party, chatting politely here and there but never settling for long

He catches Tav’s eye several times but needs some time to work up the courage to approach them—the last thing he wants to do is monopolize someone so popular (even though that’s exactly what he wants to do)

But after Tav returns his looks enough times across the campfire, Dammon has no problem making the first move

He’ll probably lead with a question (enjoying the evening, need another drink, etc)

It’s a polite move but also to gauge Tav’s interest. Dammon knows he’s into them at this point, but he’s still trying to suss out their exact feelings

Once Tav starts dropping a flirtatious remark here or there in conversation, sparks are flying

Dammon can be so smooth when he puts his mind to it, and it’s not long before he and Tav are touching in some way

When he rests a hand on the small of Tav’s back and asks if they’d like to get some air, it’s fucking on

Dammon knows the area pretty well by this point—leads them to a nice secluded clearing that he stumbled on last week and mentally filed away for this exact purpose

Once they’re alone, calloused hands on Tav’s hips are guiding them gently back against the nearest tree trunk and Dammon’s lips are on theirs

He’s a very deliberate kisser, slow and tender but hot at the same time

If it seems like Dammon’s lips are following a predetermined roadmap down Tav’s jaw and neck, that’s because they are

Man has a notoriously healthy imagination and has been thinking about where he’d like to kiss them for a while

He waits for Tav to do anything below the belt first, but once Dammon feels their hands graze there he’s pinning Tav into the tree behind them with his hips

Grinds into them while he sucks on Tav’s neck, drawing as many delicious sounds from their lips as he can

All the kissing and heavy petting is perfectly delightful on its own, but if Tav asked him to take them up against that tree, Dammon would in a heartbeat

Dammon x Rolan

It’s no coincidence that Rolan and his siblings end up lingering near Dammon’s tent back at the Grove

Dammon comes across as the strong silent type, and as the loud not-so-strong type, Rolan finds that very attractive

But Rolan’s also trying hard to keep to himself and not stare. He only stares maybe once every few minutes, and only because Dammon’s toned forearms flexing and the way he grunts with each hammer blow are very difficult to ignore

For Dammon’s part, he’s fascinated and a little impressed by Rolan. Sure he’s got a lot of bluster, but Dammon’s seen what he can do with the Weave, and it’s definitely made an impression

At the party—Dammon will 100% be the one who approaches first

Not afraid of making his intentions known, Dammon gets Lia’s advice on what wine to bring and takes a bottle with him to break the ice

If there’s one thing Rolan’s good at, it’s conversation

But he keeps talking around things—though Dammon appreciates the clever whirrings of Rolan’s mind, right now he’s more interested in his mouth for other reasons

Dammon shoots his shot by brushing a “hair” from Rolan’s cheekbone with his thumb

There’s nothing there, but Rolan is too dumbstruck at the contact to realize. It actually shuts him up for a moment as they both stare at each other

To Dammon’s surprise, maybe spurred on by the liquid courage, Rolan is the one who suggests they take a walk along the river

They’re both buzzing with too much anticipation to say more than a few short words to each other as they walk. When they settle near the river bank, they’re stretched out side by side with hands braced on the ground just inches from each other

Unable to bear the awkward silence, Rolan opens lips to say something just as Dammon tilts his head over to kiss him

The result is that they’re tongue kissing almost immediately

Rolan groans and shivers so hard Dammon has to gently grip his jaw with a hand, keeping Rolan’s mouth where he can explore it

Before long their tails are tangled up behind them, twining and tugging back and forth in a way that has them both panting into the kiss

Dammon x Rolan x Tav

At some point in the night, Rolan and Tav got into a debate about one of those little things that seems so goddamn important when you’re tipsy. Dammon walked past and was immediately dragged in as a neutral party

But Dammon had a separate third opinion, which only made Rolan turn his arguments on the other man with much wild gesticulating of his free hand

Tav burst into laughter between them, and Rolan and Dammon both found themselves too charmed by the sight to care about anything else

From there the wine and conversation both flowed freely

Little, casual touches followed: fingers brushing together over a passed bottle, Dammon clapping Rolan’s back with a friendly comment—a move that turned more than friendly as Dammon’s hand trailed down slightly, causing Rolan to glance his direction with a flush in his cheeks

Eventually Rolan got bold and tried his own luck, sliding an arm around Tav’s waist while they were grinning at something he said. Dammon’s eyes flicked to the gesture immediately

After a trio of shared glances, Dammon broke the rather excited silence by announcing that he knows a place where they could find a little privacy

As the three of them enter the forest clearing, any remaining hesitance melts when Dammon grabs the collar of Rolan’s robes to pull him into a kiss that traps Tav firmly in the middle

Being abruptly sandwiched between their chests pushes a gasp from Tav’s throat, which turns to an approving hum at the sight and sounds of Rolan and Dammon devouring each others’ mouths over their shoulder

Tav’s arms snake around the wizard in front, while behind they feel Dammon’s palms smoothing over the curves of their waist and hips

Dammon breaks the kiss before guiding Rolan’s chin gently toward Tav, and Rolan needs no more encouragement to capture their lips eagerly

Meanwhile, Dammon bends to place soft kisses at the juncture where Tav’s neck meets their shoulder. Dextrous fingers pull their shirt laces looser to expose more kissable skin

Periodically he’ll surface behind their ear to praise how lovely Tav looks between him and Rolan like this, and how good they’re going to make Tav feel. It sets off a chorus of moans passing from Tav to Rolan and back again as their lips slide together 

Once Tav decides the wizard’s had more than his share, they break the wet kiss and tilt their head back to meet Dammon’s mouth. Rolan is panting and wiping saliva from his chin, instantly greedy for more

Dammon chuckles against Tav’s lips and suggests there are other ways Rolan can put his mouth to use—and doesn’t Tav deserve some gratitude after everything they’ve done for the two of them?

It wouldn’t work coming from anyone else, but at Dammon’s sultry baritone, Rolan doesn’t hesitate as he slips to place a trail of kisses down Tav’s belly to their waist and lands on his knees in front of them

He impatiently works off Tav’s shoes and pants, tugging with such enthusiasm that only Dammon’s firm grip over their torso keeps Tav balanced. Then Rolan’s mouth abruptly closes between Tav’s legs, licking and sucking as if he intends to make up for every thank you left unspoken

Thankfully Dammon’s mouth stops up their moans, or Tav might worry about the sounds carrying back to camp. Instead only the filthy, wet sounds of Rolan’s mouth against their sex fills the clearing 

Dammon’s hands guide Tav’s to each of Rolan’s curving horns, encouraging Tav to ride his face. Rolan moans between their legs at the new sensation of Tav’s grip tugging him, the vibration sending a shudder up their spine

At that Dammon pulls out of the kiss with a groan. One of his hands leaves their hip to tug the linen shirt up and over Tav’s head, leaving them standing completely bare in the dark woods between the two Tieflings. There’s another rustling movement before Dammon’s hard length unfurls against the small of Tav’s back 

He’s hot and ridged, and before Tav can release one of Rolan’s horns to reach back for him, Dammon is grinding with a low grunt into the bare skin of their back

Each rhythmic roll of his hips pushes Tav harder against Rolan’s mouth. As if the increased pressure wasn't enough, a tail Tav suspects belongs to Dammon coils firmly up their leg to force their stance plenty open for Rolan’s mouth

As pleasure rapidly coils in their belly, Tav manages to glance down to see Rolan frantically palming himself through his trousers, his other hand joining his lips at working Tav’s orgasm from between their legs

The sight pushes Tav over the edge—just in time, a calloused hand closes over their mouth to catch the loud, keening sounds of their climax

Tav grinds out the waves against Rolan’s mouth, gripping his horns desperately, feeling him whimper and shake between their legs as he himself releases against his own hand

Just a few seconds later, Dammon’s teeth close bluntly over Tav’s shoulder—and in the next moment, hot liquid spurts in trailing paths over the skin of their back

Dammon goes down first on wobbling legs; the tail still wrapped around Tav’s own leg drags them down after him

The three of them lie in a panting pile on the mossy forest floor. Tav’s clothes are somewhere around here, but in the meantime two sets of limbs lay sprawled from either side across Tav’s body, with two ridged tails caressing over Tav’s bare skin as if in loving praise

And that’s just the beginning of the night

[inkblackorchid]

I feel weird asking this because I 100% expect the answer to be “spoilers”

But do you have any plans to show further variants of the signer dragons in your stories?

We’ve seen Aki and Yusei both have the attitude towards Black Rose Moonlight and Stardust Spark being “I’m happy they exist but they’re not for me” and I think it would be funny if Jack gets irrationally angry at “inferior copies of my soul being available to the public” and then Carly summons Hot Red Dragon Archfiend and he just goes “Of course it’s okay for HER to use it which is why I gave it to her but the point still stands”

And yes, this may have partially been inspired by me wondering if Jack could summon Fortune Lady Every like Aki and Yusei summon each other’s dragons and realizing there aren’t any good spellcasters that synergize with Jack’s deck but the RDAs are generic enough Carly could use them

Hmmmmmmmmmmm without confirming or denying anything that might be in my drafts or idea backlog, I do enjoy thinking about scenarios where other members of the cast could get to use the signature cards of each other. Jack and Carly would certainly be the most obvious candidates, given the way I write them haha.

Jack, I could certainly see being pissed off about Hot Red Dragon Achrfiend's existence. After all, nothing compares to the real thing, and for someone who literally refers to his ace monster as "his soul", any attempt at a copy of it would be nothing short of an offence. (That said, any joyful child with big enough puppy eyes could probably still get him to begrudgingly sign a copy of Hot Red Dragon Archfiend.) That said, would Carly buy Hot Red Dragon Archfiend with a justification along the lines of "now we're a team" or would she eschew it to let him keep his pride? I think there's potential in both scenarios.

And you're unfortunately right insofar as that Fortune Lady Every sadly doesn't work with Jack's deck or tactics nearly as well as Stardust does with Aki's or Black Rose with Yusei's. She's a little too spellcaster-bound and Jack a little too stuck in his own, very spellcaster-removed tactics. So a different method to let them summon each other's monsters or let them reference each other in duels would need to be found.

I can think of two. As for whether you'll see them........ stay tuned?

[thessalian]

Thess vs That Gameplay Trailer

So ... given how my Tumblr dash is blowing up, I don't feel like I have to be particularly careful about spoilers. You've seen it or you haven't. So ... here comes my opinion about the Dragon Age: Veilguard trailer:

It looks fun. I think. It also looks like I might not be able to play it. Like, at all.

And it's not because I'm hating on it, by the way. It looks ... interesting, for sure. My problem is actually accessibility, because there is a lot that gameplay trailers don't show you in games like this.

They're using a controller for input. I cannot use a controller, so I have no idea what the keybinds are going to look like. I don't know if you can lock on to your desired target, I don't know if you have to keep hitting the Attack button just to keep hitting something until it actually dies.

They used the flashiest-looking class, I imagine, so there was Rogue. A lot of dodge-rolling. That plus the "HEY LOOK AT THE WEAK SPOT" targeting spot on larger creatures (and probably the whole "darkness and demons" look to what we saw, honestly, but more on that later) basically put me in mind of Baby's First Dark Souls. Like, Souls-Ultra-Lite. I know that's The Hotness right now, and I'm not hating on that. Honestly, I'm not hating on any of it in and of itself. They went in a direction. Was it a good one? Depends on where you're standing.

Again, my issue is accessibility. Because I came away from that gameplay demonstration with the following:

A collosal migraine

A horrible feeling that the controls are going to be a nightmare for me personally

The migraine was a combination of the heavy contrast between the dark setting and the Big Glowing Demons, with the added fun of the flashy things indicating which direction magic blasts are going to come at you and all of the other artefacts, aaaaaaaaand the way combat moved. Because that much dodge-roll just had the camera going fucking everywhere. I struggle with that a lot. Not as much when I play it as when I'm watching it, because I'm at least nominally controlling it, but ... see, that's the problem. I can choose to not move the camera so much in most of my games. This one ... just the way basic mooks that you hit at level 1 involves so much bouncing around the area that ... yeah, migraine. And that wouldn't be much better if it was me causing all the bouncing around; not with those lighting effects, anyway.

(Also wondering how that's going to work for a mage. The last game I saw that did this kind of thing that I could actually play was Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, and I couldn't play a mage in that because spellcasting took forever and I kept getting interrupted either by being hit or by having to dodge before I could finish casting. But anyway.)

So there's the migraine issue ... and then there's the fibro issue. I can't say for sure without seeing how the UI works when using keyboard and mouse, but this looks like it's going to be torture on bad pain days. I imagine it's going to limit the hell out of what classes I can play, at minimum. (Hell, Inquisition already did that; having to follow enemies around and keep pressing R to stab them repeatedly wasn't something I could do, so I had to leave melee-rogue and warrior alone, sticking entirely with ranged-rogue and mage). I'm reliably informed that you can change playstyle as well as difficulty on this one, but I don't exactly know what that means or how that might be helpful.

All I can really comment on is what I've seen. And what I have seen indicates to me that aside from anything else, Bioware seems to have put the New Hotness of the current style of action RPG ahead of accessibility. That makes me sad and disinclined to discuss the thing, or to get too attached to any of the characters, because it's entirely possible that I may be entirely unable to play it for health reasons anyway, so why bother getting hyped?

Also I am grumpy because, again, migraine. I'm hoping that it's just that one was building anyway and that just tipped me over the edge. Not that that's much better, since sometimes migraines sneak up and I sometimes don't see the edge until it's agony and aphasia, but at least if it was that, I could pretend that there might be some days I could play that game without crippling myself.

[sapphim]

please tell us about the kirkwall campaign and warden hexcrawl too!

the warden hexcrawl is this massive game that's been running in vigil's keep for over a decade now. with a west marches campaign you don't need to get a consistent group together, you can just collect anyone who's available to play at a given time and throw together an adventuring party. at this point the map is enormous, spanning multiple planes of existence. they've cleared entire megadungeons. everyone ends up collecting a stable of characters they can choose from based on party comp and desired level of play. dm-ing your first session is something of a rite of passage. it spun off from whatever informal game they played around the campfire during the blight but since then it's evolved into what is essentially an institution.

the kirkwall campaign is. something else entirely lmfao. varric's a really well-practiced and flexible dm now but booooy did they get off to a rough start because he built an entire campaign around the party behaving essentially as he expected them to, and that plan was ruined the moment they rolled their characters.

I’m cutting this for length here bc christ it’s so much. if it’s too much then blame @sandayuoda

anders. ruins everything immediately because varric was expecting him to play a healer and instead he turns up with this extremely chaotic revenge-motivated edgelord of a character. he's tired of being nice and sometimes he just wants to go apeshit, you know? this is the only outlet he has for stress release these days. he shows up to session one and shows varric his character sheet and varric's like "what the fuck" and then he hands varric his 20 pages of tragic character backstory (he read the campaign document and tied his character's backstory into the setting) and varric's like "what the everloving fuck blondie." varric had littered that thing with red herring villains and clever misdirection (he thought) and anders immediately pinpointed the intended bbeg of the campaign (not!Meredith) and made his tragic backstory revolve heavily around her. who actually reads the campaign document??? well that was lucky for him, since eventually leaning on this backstory becomes one of the only ways he can keep the campaign moving forward. also, anders outs himself as a closet furry by playing catfolk, to the surprise of absolutely no one.

aveline. predictable human paladin type. claims to be LG but ultimately plays more like LN. at the start she's one of the only things keeping the party on the rails but eventually just ends up following them around and tutting disapproval (much like in real life). she's that player who writes a completely normal character with a completely normal backstory and family waiting for them back home so the dm has to continually jump through hoops to provide them with character motivation to continue adventuring.

bethany. absolutely does not want to play a spellcaster. plays instead a sort of martial ranger/hunter build and dumps everything into animal handling. essentially plays a pretty disney princess except everywhere she goes she’s followed by a small army of feral animals she's befriended and trained to fight.

carver. plays some sort of magus/gish type, because yeah ok magic is cool, but swords are cooler. crossplays as a female character and it's no big deal but it's also really, really hard for the party to keep the pronouns straight because she's a hot-headed veteran so he's essentially just playing himself.

fenris. just a fighter guy. (varric: "really, broody? an elf with a big sword?" fenris: "I was told I could be what I want. is that not allowed.") his character has no backstory and needs no backstory. he is here to roll dice and his character is a single child and an orphan with no ties to anyone or anything so stop asking. deals the highest dpr in the party as he eventually gets sucked into reading charop guides and thus becomes the only one among them who is even a little bit optimized.

isabela. every party needs a chaotic neutral rogue and she is happy to oblige. something fun and sexy and chaotic like a tiefling. (isabela: "what? I'm optimized. I put all my skill ranks into seduce and fuck" varric: "those aren't things and you haven't found a single trap since the game started") on a mission to get loot, start bar fights, and flirt with every npc she encounters. (she always asks to touch their chest hair. she may just be flirting with varric. it becomes a running gag that every barmaid in varric's world has a lustrous carpet of chest hair.) tbh isabela is one of the only players behaving exactly as chaotically as varric expected, he just hoped she'd be outvoted.

merrill. plays a chaotic good barbarian type, some massive dude. she does the best deep growly voice she can manage. she just wants to try something fun and different! her barbarian is also a real sweetheart and probably the most unoptimized character, with the highest intelligence of anyone in the party.

sebastian. also ruins everything immediately with his character. (varric: "choir boy, you can't play a fiendpact warlock, you're... you know... you!" seb: "...but this is a roleplaying game, right? I was told this was a roleplaying game.") also plays a tiefling, which is his repressed slutty side coming out. he and isabela didn’t plan this out but she finds it hilarious and they get together after the session and plot out a joint backstory in which they do crimes. after he makes one too many off-handed jokes about his dark patron being "basically [his] evil grandmother" varric starts playing her like elthina but he'll never admit it.

eventually the party's rolling up into town followed by a pack of wolves, an owlbear, an alligator, and a murder of ravens

isabela and hawke ask simultaneously where the nearest tavern is

seb's like "oh varric remember it's getting time I need to appease my dark patron again"

aveline sighs and says "I'll be making donations at the temple I guess"

varric just holds up his stack of notes for the town and tears them into pieces in front of them

"I may as well just rip these up right now and get it out of the way because we all know how this is going to end"

"how is it going to--"

"in disaster, merrill, that's how it's going to end. that's how it always ends."

anyway that was then. they've been playing the same characters for years (as varric has pulled increasingly absurd threats for them to face off against out of his ass) so now they're prestige classed epic level abominations of characters. hawke highkey prestiged into dragon disciple and later found a way to permanently polymorph into a full dragon at some point, I'm sure.

[tigerkirby215]

5e Ezreal, the Prodigal Explorer build (League of Legends)

(Artwork by Suke “hugehugesword” Su. Made for Riot Games.)

In my constant and continued effort to deny Ezreal’s existence I finally had to get around to building him. Again it’s not that I don’t like him... I mean I don’t. But I kinda forgot what I was going to build him as. Lol.

Dorans & Dragons also made a build for Ezreal back in like... early 2020. Christ that’s before the world went to shit, ain’t it? Well regardless they also made their build before Tasha’s Cauldron came out and I think I can make a build that is different enough to warrant my build existing alongside theirs.

In short: this is an elaborate excuse for me to make another Artificer build.

GOALS

Gawk at this! - We need many a glowing projectile to spam at foes before blowing them up. Ezreal isn’t the type to just autoattack.

I always know a shortcut - Flash on a 15 second cooldown is nice. We’ll need to be able to blink around constantly throughout the entire fight.

Time to show 'em who's best - Nothing’s more dangerous than a well-placed Trueshot Barrage sniping through the entire enemy team.

RACE

Back to good ol’ Variant Human. As a Variant Human you can increase two of your ability scores by 1: increase your Intelligence and your Charisma, to be the hot smart twink you are. You also learn a Language of your choice along with a Skill of choice. You spent plenty of time studying The Void so Abyssal would make sense as a language, and for your skill Perception would help you spot traps or incoming ganks... as long as you remember to ward.

For your feat we’re going to be grabbing Arcane Shift as fast as possible with Fey Touched so you can start Flashing. (Not like that!) You can increase your Intelligence score by 1 and also learn the Misty Step spell. You can also add a Divination or Enchantment spell to your list and a little Heroism never hurt anyone. You can cast both of these spells once without spending a spell slot, and can then spend spell slots on them after the fact.

ABILITY SCORES

15; INTELLIGENCE - Archeology is a lot of history and facts... If you do it the boring way, that is!

14; DEXTERITY - Repeat it after me: “something something Medium armor.”

13; CHARISMA - You’re a pretty boy twink who got at least two girls on the Rift to fall for you.

12; WISDOM - Traveling through ancient temples and traps takes a degree of common sense. Not necessarily common sense you have, but a bit of boost never hurt.

10; CONSTITUTION - You’re an ADC, which means you’re squishy.

8; STRENGTH - Twink.

Feel free to swap Constitution around with another stat for better health but worse roleplay.

BACKGROUND

“Archaeologist” is just the nice way of saying Tomb Raider, which is the mean way of saying Adventurer! You get proficiency with History and Survival (hey you’ve gotta tough it out in the desert sometimes!) You also get proficiency in a language of your choice (I went for Dwarvish because Dwarves seem to have built most ruins) and proficiency in either Navigator’s Tools or Cartographer’s Tools... “Who needs a map?”

You spent enough time in ruins to pick up some Historical Knowledge on ancient dungeons and temples to know who made them. And if you find anything that belongs in a museum you know how much it’s worth to the museum!

(Artwork by Sangsoo Jeong. Made for Riot Games.)

THE BUILD

LEVEL 1 - ARTIFICER 1

Starting off as Artificer to “borrow” a few inventions. But also because you get training in Arcana to know your magical artifacts, Investigation to find said magical artifacts, and Calligrapher’s Tools to slay Ascended and Darkin alike in one blow. You also get Magical Tinkering to wave that gauntlet of yours around on some Tiny objects, making them glow or play sounds or do all sorts of things that Prestidigitation would probably do better. But at least you can play your own theme music too!

But of course the main appeal of being an Artificer is the Spellcasting. You can learn two cantrips from the Artificer list like Message to coordinate with your support and Guidance to help yourself find treasure! (Or help others I guess.) You can prepare a number of spells equal to your Intelligence modifier plus your Artificer level (rounded down.) Cure Wounds will let you summoner spell Heal yourself or your Support. Faerie Fire will serve as a more basic version of your Essence Flux, making an enemy easier to hit (therefor making them take more damage!) And Feather Fall is always useful in a pinch!

Also yes you don’t have your gauntlet yet so you’re going to have to use a Light Crossbow for now. Feel free to take a combat cantrip if you want but you don’t really need it.

LEVEL 2 - ARTIFICER 2

Second level Artificers can make Infusions, special definitely-not-stolen magical treasures that make them more awesome than everyone else. For a little more AD an Enhanced Weapon is useful to have. You can also put those goggles on your head to use by making Goggles of Night to see with your dumb human eyes. A Mind Sharpener may feel like a cheat, but I’m not going to say no to keeping Concentration in check. And for your final infusion? A Rope of Climbing might be useful? Honestly the more impressive stuff comes after you’ve done a bit more exploring.

You can also prepare another spell like Alarm, just in case someone’s planning to steal your... legitimately earned treasure.

LEVEL 3 - ARTIFICER 3

Third level Artificers get to choose their specialty and Armorers don’t have to wear an entire suit of armor; just a gauntlet! Along with proficiency in Smith’s Tools you can turn any suit of armor you find into Arcane Armor. The armor has a variety of benefits: no Strength requirement, the inability to have your armor removed against your will, the ability to take it off or put it on as an action, and some replacement limbs. But notably it works as an Artificer spell focus!

There’s two different Armor Models and we’ll be going for the Infiltrator variant for a Lightning Launcher. This makes your Gauntlet a weapon that deals a d6 of lightning damage, with a regular range of 90 and a long range of 300 in case you want to go for long ranged snipes. Additionally once per turn you can pop Essence Flux to do an extra d6 of damage on hit! And I didn’t even mention the best part: this works off your Intelligence! So no more need for the crossbow.

You also get your boots for Powered Steps, increasing your movement speed by 5 feet. And thanks to your Dampening Field you can hide in bushes with free Stealth advantage! I’d recommend trying to get a Breastplate because that’s the best armor you can get that doesn’t also impose stealth disadvantage, but even with Half Plate you can still be sneaky! Heck, you can even wear Platemail if you want! "And my boots are not waterproof. Fantastic."

Oh and you get some Armorer Spells! Magic Missile will autoaim for you like your Arcane Shift projectile, and Thunderwave is helpful for some self-peel.

LEVEL 4 - ARTIFICER 4

4th level Artificers get an Ability Score Improvement: seeing as we have uneven Intelligence take the Observant feat for +1 Intelligence and a boost to your passive Perception and Investigation to watch the minimap for people to snipe! Additionally you can spy on the bad guys if you want and read their lips to gain knowledge of all their secret plans!

More Intelligence does also usually mean more spells prepared but I’m going to wait for...

(Artwork by Xu “Crow God” Cheng. Made for Riot Games.)

LEVEL 5 - ARTIFICER 5

5th level Armorers up their Attack Speed with Rising Spell Force, gaining an Extra Attack with the attack action!

You also get Mirror Image and Shatter added to your list of Armorer Spells, and can prepare spells like Rope Trick for a safe place to rest for awhile, and Heat Metal to really lay in that Essence Flux.

LEVEL 6 - ARTIFICER 6

6th level Artificers get more Infusions which is what I was waiting for! A Radiant Weapon is all the fun of an Enhanced Weapon but it also doubles as a flashlight for your dumb human eyes! And Boots of the Winding Path will let you Arcane Shift back to safety in case you accidentally run into danger.

Feel free to swap some of your old infusions around too. A Lantern of Revealing or Cloak of Elvenkind would be helpful... and Gloves of Thievery never hurt anyone.

And finally you can prepare Aid, as your natural awesomeness rubs off on your allies. "Oh, please, don't die. I can't lose a sidekick. Not again."

LEVEL 7 - WIZARD 1

You didn’t think this would just be a pure Artificer build, did you? Even if that would’ve been stronger I’m legally obligated to needlessly stick multiclass levels into all my builds. And Wizard is definitely a good multiclass for more slots to do Spellcasting! You learn 3 cantrips and six leveled spells as a first level Wizard:

CANTRIPS

To help your allies land their shots take Mind Sliver to weaken an enemy’s saving throws.

Prestidigitation will let you do a bunch of simple magic, and if you want you can have your own hero music too!

Finally Friends is good to make friends you don’t mind losing after they tell you where the ancient ruins are.

SPELLS

I basically just took everything with the Ritual tag. Alarm (yes you have it as an Artificer spell but you can swap that out), Comprehend Languages, Detect Magic, Identify, Tenser’s Floating Disk... and sure why not Find Familiar too? Seeing as you can ritual cast at will most of your early level stuff is going to be reserved for Ritual Casting, as you’re probably going to be spending most of your first level slots on Magic Missile and Faerie Fire anyways.

You also get Arcane Recovery, letting you recover spell slots equal to half your Wizard level (rounded up.) So right now you can get a first level spell slot back at the end of a Short Rest! And later on you can get more!

LEVEL 8 - WIZARD 2

Second level Wizards get to choose the school that their parents left them in before disappearing in the jungle, and the School of Evocation has a surprise tool that will help us later. Along with being an Evocation Savant (allowing you to copy Evocation spells into your spell book with half the time and cost) you can Sculpt Spells so that they only hit the bad guys: when you cast an Evocation spell (from any class, not just Wizard!) you can choose a number creatures equal to the spell’s level + 1. The chosen creatures automatically succeed on their saving throws against the spell, and they take no damage if they would normally take half damage on a successful save. This will be really useful when we get our (pseudo-)Global ultimate; wouldn’t want to fry your pals now would you?

We may as well grab some of those Evocation spells, right? Earth Tremor will let you hit an AoE Mystic Shot because Riot decided that Tiamat should have a cleave I guess, and I mean... Shield is never a bad thing to have?

(Artwork made for Riot Games.)

LEVEL 9 - ARTIFICER 7

Back to the big brain plays: 7th level Artificers can make the biggest brain plays thanks to Flash of Genius, letting you boost an ally’s skill check or saving throw with your own natural perfection. The boost is equal to your Intelligence modifier and you can use this reaction a number of times equal to double your Intelligence modifier.

LEVEL 10 - ARTIFICER 8

8th level Artificers get another Ability Score Improvement? Well seeing as Intelligence still controls just about everything we do it would do good to increase that by 2! That does mean you can prepare more spells (both as a Wizard and as an Artificer) but I’m going to wait for...

LEVEL 11 - ARTIFICER 9

Every ADC dreams of being six-slotted; now you can be with Armor Modifications! Your Armorer armor counts as 4 separate items for the sake of your Infusions: the chest piece, boots, helmet, and the armor’s special weapon can all be infused. Far more importantly however you can have two extra infusions! Those infusions have to be on your armor, but you can put the Radiant Weapon (weapon) and Goggles of Night (helmet) onto your armor and save your other infusions for your allies! Or for yourself; yourself works too.

And we can’t forget the third level spells! You get Hypnotic Pattern from your Armorer Spells for an AoE stun, but far more importantly you get Lightning Bolt which will serve as Trueshot Barrage! And since you’re an Evocation Wizard you can shoot past your friends without blowing them to bits. "Oh, a plan. Yeah, I totally have one of those."

You can also prepare spells like Haste for more DPS (just don’t get stunned), Blink for some Duskblade invisibility, and replace Alarm with Revifify... Ya know: just in case.

LEVEL 12 - ARTIFICER 10

As an ADC it would be good to get six-slotted, and Magic Item Adept lets you get your 4th Legendary item! That’s because you can now attune to 4 magic items at once! (And can also craft Common and Uncommon magic items more easily.)

Speaking of Infusions, we can make more of them, such as a Cloak of Protection or Winged Boots! These are just generally useful but not really Ezreal specific; they’re mostly for your allies. "The gauntlet's for show... the talent's all me."

You can also prepare another spell like Fly which is just universally useful, and holy shit you get another cantrip. Take Mage Hand and maybe try to be a little more cautious when tomb raiding?

(Artwork by Bo “chenbowow” Chen. Made for Riot Games.)

LEVEL 13 - ARTIFICER 11

Do you want a lot more Mystic Shots? 11th level Artificers can make a Spell Storing Item and put an Artificer spell of first or second level inside. What’s cool about this is that anyone can use it, allowing them to cast the spell as if they were you!

My recommendation? Give them Mirror Image. It’s an amazing buff that doesn’t require Concentration. Even a low DEX Paladin will appreciate the chance to not be hit, and a high DEX ally can really get value out of Mirror Image. Yeah the Barbarian technically can’t cast while raging, but they can use this before going into a Rage to be very hard to hit!

And speaking of spells you can prepare another one, so how about you grab Create Food and Water to keep yourself sated on longer archeological trips. "Why didn't I eat before I got here...? Ezreal, why?!”

LEVEL 14 - ARITIFCER 12

12th level Artificers get another Ability Score Improvement... we got all we need in terms of stats (Intelligence lol) so now it’s time to really make some impressive trick shots: the Sharpshooter feat will let you attack at long range without disadvantage and ignore cover bonuses, but most importantly you can take a -5 to your attack roll for a whopping +10 to damage! Don’t use this on high AC targets obviously but if you think you’ll hit why not go for the one-shot? "No applause, please. ...Okay, maybe just a bit of thunderous acclaim. ...A little?"

LEVEL 15 - WIZARD 3

I do still want more spell slots, as well as more spells known! Truthfully there isn’t too much I want from second level, so take Locate Object to find hidden treasure and Augry (added to the Wizard spell list thanks to Tasha’s!) to know what to expect in the next dungeon... sorta. "No plan survives first contact with me."

LEVEL 16 - WIZARD 4

4th level Wizards get an Ability Score Improvement: we got all the abilities we wanted really, so why not Get Lucky? The Lucky Feat will give you a bit of anime protagonist power to guarantee that you make the perfect daring escape. Feel free to take Warcaster or just increase your Constitution however; by this point Ability Scores don’t matter too much.

You can also learn two more spells like Melf’s Acid Arrow for another Essence Flux-esque DoT ability and See Invisibility, in case you need a Sweeper Lense to deal with any clowns.

LEVEL 17 - WIZARD 5

Ima be honest I kinda just wanted third level for Thunder Step to get an Arcane Shift that does damage. Artificer 18 / Wizard 2 (or even just Artificer 20) would’ve been a fine build for Ezeal too, if you don’t think this one spell is worth a 5 level class dip.

Anyways you also learn another cantrip and I mean... you may as well take Shocking Grasp for some defense up close? You also get one other spell and I’m gonna suggest Galder’s Tower this time which is like Tiny Hut... but awesome. And really small. This is mostly just a way for me to talk about a fun spell and also recommend my homebrew fix for it.

(Artwork by Alvin Lee. Made for Riot Games.)

LEVEL 18 - ARTIFICER 13

You got third level spells as a Wizard, you can now prepare 4th level spells as an Artificer! Fire Shield and Greater Invisibility are both available as Armorer Spells, one of which is far more useful for you than the other one. Bro imagine how crazy Evelynn would be with Evelynn’s passive. But yeah feel free to swap around your prepared spells a bit for more 4th level spells, since you definitely have the slots to do so.

LEVEL 19 - ARTIFICER 14

14th level Artificers are Magic Item Savants who can attune to 5 magic items at once, meaning that along with your boots which are technically magical but whatever you can finally be properly six-slotted! But far more importantly you can attune to any item, regardless of any class or race restrictions tied to the item!  "I can't get hauled into wizard court again. Technically I don't have a permit for the gauntlet."

Speaking of more attunement: more Infusions. An Amulet of Health will let you boost your bad Constitution from a 10 to a 19, giving you a solid 76 health boost near max level! Other than that more movement speed is never a bad thing, and Boots of Speed may give you more value than your other magic boots.

But holy shit forget all that because you finally get your 4th Artificer cantrip! Grab Mending because somehow we don’t have that yet; gotta keep your outfit in check! Oh and you can get around to preparing another 4th level spell! Truth be told though the 4th level spells for Artificer are kinda... bad? But at least Tasha’s gave us Summon Construct which is a surprisingly strong summon!

"Last time I was in Shurima, I decoded some glyphs. Something about a jackal head... End of times... The usual. All I wanted was this ruby scarab. It looks great on my mantle."

LEVEL 20 - ARTIFICER 15

Our final level is the 15th level of Artificer for the Perfected Armor Armorer capstone. When you shoot an enemy you mark them with Essence Flux, giving them disadvantage to hit you. In addition the next attack (including your own I’m pretty sure!) has Advantage against the enemy while they’re marked with  Essence Flux, and if they’re hit they’ll take an extra d6 of Lightning damage!

FINAL BUILD

PROS

Blast 'em, gauntlet! - With your capstone ability you do 4d6 + 10 damage with your Lightning Launcher, and that’s before using Sharpshooter. Even without your capstone 3d6 + 10 is still really good damage output, especially when you can cast spells for big bursts of damage.

See if you can handle this! - Speaking of spells your slots go all the way up to 7th level, and while you’ll mostly just be upcasting a 12d6 Lightning Bolt is nothing to sneeze at! Not to mention other options like a 7d8 Fire damage Heat Metal or +30 HP Aid.

If anyone asks, I didn't see any of these priceless artifacts for sale - It goes without saying that having two more attunement slots than the average character is massive, especially when you can stick infusions onto your armor to maximize the amount of treasures on your person.

CONS

I wasn't strong enough? - Investing fully in INT gives us maxed out combat stats but it leaves a lot of our other abilities lacking. We’re nowhere near Charismatic enough to sell (somewhat) illegitimately gotten gains, and while Infusions can help augment our health (and even our Strength if you grab a Belt of Giant’s Strength) your Wisdom and even your Dexterity are rather mediocre, which is bad for both skill checks and saving throws.

Impossible comebacks are sorta my specialty - Most of your coolest stuff is tied to spell slots and other Long Rest dependent mechanics, and while you have a lot of spell slots (as well as Arcane Recovery to get some of them back) they are still quite limited. You’re perfectly viable as just an auto-attack and Q spammer, but who doesn’t want to shoot lasers and explosions, ya know?

Never met a problem that I couldn't blast away with magic... that I don't even understand - 5 levels in Wizard give us big spell slots but that’s about it, and yeah a 7d6 Lightning Bolt (that won’t hit your allies) is nothing to sneeze at but for the most part you are more of a Martial character. Just saying that level 18 of Artificer would’ve given you Magic Item Master for a whole 6 attunement slots! And level 20 of Artificer would’ve given you Soul of Artifice, essentially operating as a +6 to all saving throws and a 6 time use Guardian Angel.

But if a teamfight breaks out you’re more than a capable ADC. Artificers are the masters of magic items and it doesn’t matter if you make them yourself or “borrow” them from an ancient tomb; you can be the hero mom and dad always wanted you to be! Just concentrate on your farm in the early game and don’t take unnecessary risks. You may be the perfect man of magic but you’re not immortal, despite what the ADCs I’m forced to support always seem to think.

(Artwork by Jennifer Wuesting. Made for Riot Games.)

[edward-little]

If dnd miraculously existed in the 19th century which characters from the terror do you think would genuinely enjoy playing it? I think Fitzjames would enjoy it because it would let him self aggrandize, I also think Gore, Hodgson, and Goodsir would enjoy playing. Sir John and Irving would probably consider it blasphemous, Crozier would be to depressed to play I don't think little would have to much fun either, he'd overthink every possible action and it'd make him nervous.

eyyyy!!!!

hard agree on the fitzjames front-- he'd love playing characters, but i think he would have a good mix of obvious self-inserts made to gain approval by proxy and like, funny characters that he can play totally seriously but everyone else at the table cannot possibly keep a straight face with. high CHA characters across the board, though. lots of bards and sorcerers (my build for a fitzjames character is a variant human wild magic sorcerer with the lucky feat btw.)

fitz + gore + goodsir would be the dream party tbh. i get the feeling hodge would be a fun DM.

little would be too nervous to roleplay and would freeze up a lot but i think he'd be alright at combat if he picked a full martial character. fortunately i think he'd try to make a character with simple mechanics-- champion fighter is my guess. low CHA, decent WIS and INT, and then put more points into the physical stats. he'd be too nervous to enjoy the game but he'd want to be 1) included and 2) useful.

here's the thing: crozier would be too depressed to play. however. i think if a group mentioned needing a DM he'd be like "oh good luck finding one" and then let slip that he'd played a couple of campaigns back in the 80s (i know you said 19th century and i'm sorry i physically can't stop crozier from being a Dad) and it turns out "a couple of campaigns" means he was DM'ing on the regular and had a campaign that lasted five years AND that sir john had been in it for about three sessions before his character chomped it. his old group was him, sir john (for three sessions, playing a paladin), blanky, mcdonald, and jcr.

blanky definitely plays. he's played every class there is in every edition he's played, which is all of them except 4e. when he's approached to join a game he's already like a decade into a pathfinder campaign. he tends towards characters who are high WIS + one high physical stat-- rangers, monks, fighters, rogues, etc. he's the player who's always making the DM go "well i fucking guess you can."

mcdonald is usually up for a game, but due to his schedule he shows up every few sessions to play a character who sort of exists parallel to the party and intersects intermittently with them rather than a regular party member. he plays healers, because like yeah ofc. his longest-running character was a life cleric, and he likes to keep his character concepts simple and give them their depth and personality through roleplay.

dundy plays one of those backstory icebergs-- you know, like they're only ever a horny bard and sometimes they casually mention like "oh does this remind me of the sight of my destroyed village" and the players are like PARDON and he's like "anyway i'd like to roll performance to wink saucily." he could take or leave the mechanical aspects but lives for social encounters. hit him up if you've got a court intrigue campaign.

bridgens is another one of those used-to-play-back-in-the-80s types who's easily roped into a campaign (probably by peglar, maybe by goodsir though if he mentions they need another person at the table?) since he hasn't played in a hot minute and he's learning a new edition as he plays, he's a bit shaky on the rules (he's still on THACO, bless the guy) but he also pulls the most gamebreaking shit with no warning. he plays high INT characters and prefers spellcasting over hack-and-slash so he plays a lot of wizards, but my build for him is a lore bard.

collins is also new to the game, but joins because he's always up for communal fun-having. like little, he starts out with simpler martial characters, and opts for high STR builds because he likes to have the option to pick things (and people) up. he's the kind who likes grappling the level 20 necromancer so they can't cast spells with somatic components. as time goes on and he becomes more confident in his understanding of the game, he starts getting creative with multiclassing. he gets like 14 levels deep into his banneret fighter before multiclassing into shepherd druid. (my build for him is also a pretty neat multiclass if i do say so myself-- berserker barbarian/great old one warlock.)

i know we both mentioned hodge earlier, and i have a whole separate post about his character, but i think he'd enjoy the roleplay parts of dnd-- like dundy, call him if you're running waterdeep dragon heist or something-- but he'd freeze up during combat. it would be marginally better if he's playing a bard, because they know rather than prepare their spells and it saves him from having to read the entire class spell list at each long rest. he gets real creative with his bardic inspiration though, and enjoys picking songs to sing/play based on the character receiving the inspiration.

[mahvaladara]

For the OC questions (Sorry for being so late, been a busy.. gaming wise, weekend!) 90-100 for Mal 1-10 for Annika 20-30 for Maeve 40-50 for a teenage Syra perhaps?

[Ga]Mal[l] Sullyvan

90. What is their occupation?

Gamall is a full-time Wanderer, which is a type of Valasyr who specializes in wandering between cities, countries, planets, and even universes seeking to harness as much knowledge and power as possible. They are also often called knowledge and power devourers.

Currently, Gamall is a full-time Biologist and freelance Gardener.

91. Do other characters respect your OC, if so, is it out of fear? Or do they respect your OC because they like them?

Depends. His family respects him dearly. From where he came he was respected out of utter fear. But those days are in the past and he is living a new life and earning respect by hard labor.

92. If they were given minutes to live, what would they do? Who would they want to see and say?

Gamall once was in this position, and he had wanted back then to see his former wife Caitlyn and former son Seimei before disappearing. He went and got a few last minutes with them, but he didn't die. He wished he did. For time came to claim Caitlyn eventually, and as for Seimei, he killed the boy when he came seeking "revenge" for the death of his father.

He now has come to the conclusion that if death ever comes for him, it's not like he can prepare for it. So he lives every day as if he only had minutes to live, seeking to amass as much fulfillment as he can, rather by the form of material goods, personal knowledge, spiritual power, hedonistic pleasure, or life experiences.

93. How do they deal with stress?

Gamall is already quite the shittalker and blabbermouth, but when under stress that becomes worse. But he is paradoxal and it mostly depends on the type of stress, it can either be met with agression or silence and either of the two are always foreboding.

94. Do they have a more submissive or dominate personality type?

Versatile personality. Gamall adapts well to the people around him, but he is not a pushover and he despises whoever tries to dominate him by force. He does enjoys playing the sub as much as the dom and though Gamall can actually be very manipulative, it is not on his interests to dominate or command others, usually his manipulation only working to make sure people don't bother him.

95. Do they have a pet?

Currently no. But they'll have a lot of chickens and a lot of cows.

Gamall used to have a horse called Eggplant, but there's a running gag that if he gets a horse it'll die, so... yea, that happened.

96. Do they have a stash of weapons?

Pffft. They don't exactly need too, they can kill you with their mind alone, but this is the type of asshole who will kill you with a duck if you tell him he can't.

97. Where do they live? Who do they live with?

The farmlands. Gamall isn't keen on big cities or places with a lot of people around because it usually means trouble and pain for him and he'd rather not.

98. How do they calm themselves down?

Depends. He has found out that addressing a fireball to whom it may concern is a great way to calm down, but he can't exactly commit capital murder everytime someone annoys him. Gardening currently has been providing him a lot of calm and quiet he needs.

99. Are they co-dependent?

No.

100. Are they a day, or night person?

Night person, it helps that he doesn't need sleep.

1. How do they present themselves to others?

Anika comes off as a smart, kind and fun girl, your level-headed rich girl who's always had everything she needed.

To her dad however, she's a rebelious teenager finally breaking free from a sheltered and controled life. She is finally learning magic rather he wants her to or not and continuing on his footsteps trying to find a way to return Apollo's heart and find a way to save Arlo.

2. Do they like animals?

Yes. Anika had a cat as a child, but due to her mother's illness she had to give away the cat. After her mother passed away, Anika and Apollo adopted a dog. Anika ended up being the one to keep the dog, since Arlo hurt their dog when they tried to take it to Apollo's home.

3. How do they dress?

Anika dresses in a very sporty rich way. She prefers wearing high end sports clothes, leggings, crop tops and track suits, anything she can move well in and exercise in. Sometimes she pairs them with fishnets and accessories that give her a more sporty witch feel.

4. How many languages do they know?

Anika speaks english and spanish.

5. How big is their family?

Currently it's just her and her father. Her mother used to be around but she was killed by an unknown dragon who her father refuses to name.

6. What is their purpose in the story?

Anika is Apollo's best friend and girlfriend, she is also a witch and a dragon hunter, who is currently aiding Apollo in finding a cure for Arlo's rot the same way her father before sought her mothers. After her mother's death, Anika decided she had a duty to Apollo to help him save her brother, as it was Anika who lured Arlo to the trap.

7. Do they know how to fight?

Anika is petite, but Anika can kick your ass. Her father taught her kickboxing.

8. What is their back story?

Anika is the only daughter of Isaiah and Melantha Lorenn, she moved with her father to Windenburg when he was offered a position as a principle at the school. She lived a pretty uneventful life despite her father's side work as a dragon hunter and spellcaster. Anika herself was a powerful spellcaster but her father kept her away from the major things he was doing. Eventually, Anika fell to a trick to capture the two child dragons, her best friend Apollo and Arlo.

9. Why is their name, their name?

I really liked the sound of Anika, and since Isaiah and Melantha also had unique names, I wanted Anika to have a name that would feel like she's a girl born into the 1%.

10. Do they have any nick names?

Ani, by Apollo, Queen B(itch) by Arlo. Princess by many of her school peers.

20. What do they look like?

See thee above.

21. What are their hobbies?

Maeve's hobbies include watching football and baseball games, writting research law papers, cooking and working out.

22. What are their ticks?

Their what?

23. Do they like children?

Maeve has five children, her eldest twins Arlo and Apollo, her middle daughter, Syracusia, and her youngest twins Talia and Dimitri.

24. How do they react to being around wild animals?

Maeve is pretty brave and adventurous but as most people she tends to avoid wild foxes and other animals.

25. If they were given the task to prank someone, who would it be, what would they do, and would the prank work?

It would be Mal and it would be the yelling "I feel good!" prank when he was busy spraying bugs, doing the laundry or when he's vacumming.

26. Do they have any survival skills?

Yes, she can pitch a tent, filter water and cook most wilderness food. She also knows how to hunt, since her father enjoyed hunting pigeons, ducks and rabbits. She knows how to make a snare trap.

27. Are they more book smart or street smart?

50/50. She's very book smart when it comes to education and law, but has a lot of street smart when dealing with her clients, and the cases she has. She knows what the jury are more likely to simpathise with and usually builds her case defense around this.

28. How do they get out of a difficult situation?

Usually by trying to solve it. If she can't solve it, she asks for help, but she is not one to run away from a situation.

29. Do they use their body, mind, personality or force to get what they want?

Personality and smarts.

30. What music do they enjoy?

Maeve enjoys rock, old school rock and roll.

40. How do they become who they are?

Syra is the lucky three. She has a very calm and uneventfull life despite what luck befalls are siblings, and she is lucky to get two younger siblings, so she never got very cotroling parents breathing over her shoulder, so she was allowed to be herself. She has a very supporting father in Mal, who supports her every decision, and a big brother who loves her and whenever he is well, Arlo will go with her to do whatever she wants.

41. How was their childhood?

She had a happy childhood. Though they moved when she was a kid, she was young enough for it to not cause a negative impact on her growing up. At the contrary of her older siblings, Syra wasn't forced to go to a private school, and being in public school allowed her to be a regular girl without the pressure of being examplar.

42. Are they close with anyone who is going to screw them over?

One of her friends is a mooch, who's only around her to get good grades and to steal her stuff, she doesn't know this yet.

43.How do they adapt to different situations? Do they adapt at all?

Syra adapts pretty well to her surroundings and situations. She's a versatile girl who knows she has parents and siblings who will help her if she needs.

44. How do they speak? Examples - Are they soft spoken, hot heated, vulgar

Syra is soft spoken, quiet and calm.

45. Are they opposed to violence?

Very much. Syra grew up watching her two older brothers getting into very violent altercations, especially when Arlo was feeling well. She usually would get in the middle of the two. She now knows why they'd fight.

46. When is their birthday?

Syra was born in Autumn, I think.

47. Are they quick to judge?

Not really. Syra is very empathetic.

48. Do they have anything they are trying to hide from others?

No.

49. Do they act different around different people?

No.

50.Do they enjoy the arts?

Syra enjoys theater, film and music.

[writings-of-a-daphodil]

Fire Keeper: Chapter 18

Douxie x fem reader

Masterlist in Bio!

Series Summary: You are Jim’s older sister who is taking a break from college and has moved back home to Arcadia. You end up joining Jim and his friends on their adventures.

Chapter 18 summary: You take the trip to the past!

A/n: So it’s a really long chapter 6,336 words, I don’t know whether to say sorry or your welcome. Also I have no clue how shops were in twelfth century Englad so...yeah. Anyways, enjoy!

“Sorry, this is a lot to process! Pets can talk? The world is ending? Again?” Toby asked as you and Douxie met up with him at the book shop.

“Not the best timing, I know, but we need your help all the same,” Douxie said.

Toby looked at Douxie confusedly. “Douxie? Y/n?”

“Toby!” You hugged him tightly.

“Wai- hold up! I thought you worked at the cafe, or were, like, a model or something,” Steve questioned Douxie.  

Douxie chuckled. “There's a lot about me you don't know.”

“Whoa!” Toby gasped as Douxie used his cuff to show off some magic. “You’re like Y/n.”

“What?” Steve asked incredulously.

“Come on, then. The answers to all your questions are within.” Douxie gestured for them to go inside.

Steve scoffed. “Yeah, right. In a bookstore?”

You all walked in to see Merlin levitating some of his books. “Ah! There's flying books!” Toby exclaimed.

“Whoa!” Steve gasped.

“Oh, my gosh! Oh, my gosh! Oh, my gosh! Oh, my gosh! Oh, my gosh! Oh, my gosh! Oh, my gosh! Oh, my gosh! So cool! So cool! So cool! Ooh, what's that?” Toby fanboyed, admiring the cool displays of Magic.

Merlin scowled at Toby when he picked up something. “Put that down! Thank the ether you're here! We haven't a moment to waste.”

“Whoa! Crusty, creepy dude!” Steve exclaimed.

Merlin ignored Steve. “Though, I had hoped for more, Hisirdoux.”

“I tried. I couldn't find the changelings or the aliens. I'm pretty sure most left the planet,” Douxie explained.

Toby waved at Merlin. “Merlin, it's me-- Toby Domzalski! You know, War Hammer, Guardian of Arcadia, Geology Club president.”

Merlin sighed. “No one could forget you, chatty.”

“And Steve Palchuk, Creepslayer!” Steve announced.

“I have no idea who you are,” Merlin dismissed. “But we're desperate. Thankfully, we have the brute.”

“Yum!” Aaarrrgghh grunted, admiring Archie.

Archie swatted at Aaarrrgghh. “I'm not anybody's lunch. Got it?”

“Wait, where's Jimbo and Claire? I thought they were with you,” Toby asked.

You opened your mouth to answer, but Merlin beat you to it. “Answers forthcoming. Make preparations. We've a journey ahead. And don't-”

“-but, Master-”

“-'but, Master' me,” Merlin finished.

Douxie sighed. “But... are you sure you want to count on these children? They're clearly not ready for this.”

Steve scoffed. “Excuse me, college dude, these children fought off a 50-foot extraterrestrial!” Steve hit the helmet off of one of the knights. You were surprised to see that the knight reacted.

“Dude, let go of its head!” Toby ordered, trying to help Steve.

“It's got my head, too, man!” Steve cried.

“Just put it back!” Toby yelled and Douxie sighed, exasperated.

“Master, I'm ready for this,” Douxie promised.

“Doubtful,” Merlin said.

“I've spent years preparing, centuries-“ Douxie started.

Merlin cut him off. “Silence!”

Douxie frowned and you gently patted his back with your good hand.

Merlin sighed. “I mean, silence, all of you. Can you not hear that? Something wicked this way comes.”

You went to the window with Douxie to investigate when you heard a shadow mephit growl. It pounced on the window, only to be thrown back by a shield.

“Shadow mephits? Hisirdoux, did you lead them here?” Merlin asked.

“No, no! I mean, I don't think so?” Douxie chuckled nervously.

“Yes, we did,” Archie answered.

“He found us. The barrier won't hold for long. We must make egress! Tobias, take my things!” Merlin ordered, levitating Toby and up to the roof. “All of you, to the roof!”

You quickly ran up to the roof, fully aware that you would need to protect Toby and Steve if any climbed the building.

You used your good hand to blast a few of the mephits off the roof before Douxie, Merlin, and Archie arrived.

“Stand back!” Merlin ordered, throwing the ship out onto the roof. Glass shattered and the green mist exploded out and then condensed.

“Whoa! Ship just got real!” Steve marveled.

“Everyone on!” Aaarrrgghh called, throwing Steve and Toby on. You levitated on, blasting mephits as you flew.

Eventually you were all on the ship and Aaarrrgghh was trying to get on while the shadow mephits attacked. You and Douxie blasted a few, finally helping Aaarrrgghh up. Steve fell onto Merlin and the ship stopped moving.

You looked over the edge to see the Green Knight standing in the street. “Boy...” he rasped. Suddenly he sent the shards at all of you and you shoved Douxie to the ground.

“Look out!” Merlin grunted, finally getting the ship to move away.

You slipped a bit at the sudden speed, almost falling. Thankfully Douxie caught you, but he grabbed you by your hurt arm. You hissed in pain.

“Oh! Y/n, I’m so sorry,” he apologized.

You brushed it off despite the tears in your eyes, “It’s alright.”

“No, here, let me heal it.” He looked so eager to help so you slowly extended your arm to him. He held it gently as he began to perform a healing spell. Your arm was surrounded in a blue glow as Douxie healed it. You immediately felt the pain fade away. It felt like aloe had just been put on a bad sunburn.

Unfortunately Douxie pulled away. “Alright, good as new.”

You gave a small smile. “Thanks.”

He nodded and opened his mouth to say something else when Merlin slowed the ship down.  

“Awesome sauce!” Toby exclaimed as he and Steve whooped. You grinned at them, it was nice to see them happy.

“This is so cool!” Toby called as you watched Arcadia grow smaller.

“What the heck is that?” Steve asked as Camelot came into view.

“Welcome, young squires, to Camelot,” Merlin said.

“Camelot? As in anceint-old-people-times Camelot?” Toby asked.

“Excuse me, I have a question. How is this castle flying right now?” Steve asked.

“The Heart of Avalon. Its magic keeps Camelot aloft, powered by time itself,” Merlin explained.

“You get used to it,” you called to Steve.

Merlin flew the ship past one of the towers and he waved at an old knight standing there. “Sir Galahad, how look the skies?”

“All quiet, my old friend!” Galahad replied.

“Keep your eyes on the horizon,” Merlin called, turning the ship to enter the castle.

You screamed a little as Merlin sped up. “I say, coming in a little hot, don't you think?” Archie asked.

“Rubbish!” Merlin yelled. The ship entered the castle skipping on the floor and you were glad you held on.

Douxie helped you off and you honestly didn’t want him to let go. You were just so tired, you needed the extra support. Thankfully, Douxie didn’t let go of your hand and you were grateful he was there with you.

“Whoo-hoo-hoo-hoo!” Steve yelled.

Toby gasped, admiring the grand castle. “Whoa!”

“It's been 900 years since I was last here. Hasn't changed a bit. Except for the flying part,” Douxie said.

Steve laughed. “'Nine hundred years'? Yeah, right. You're like, what? Like, 19?”

“Give or take a few centuries,” Archie said, jumping off Douxie’s shoulder and turning into a dragon.

“So, how many things can your cat turn into?” Steve asked.

Douxie smiled. “That depends. How many things are there?”

“Uh, cool, floating castle ship, but what's the grave danger you keep talking about?” Toby asked, trying to get to the point.

Right after he said that Claire, Blinky and Mao walked in. “Ah, there you are,” Merlin said.

“Claire!” Toby exclaimed.

Claire rushed to hug him. “Toby!”

“Arghumont!” Blinky called, running to hug his own friend.

“Blinky!” Aaarrrgghh called back. Aaarrrgghh pulled all of them into a group hug.

Claire gasped in pain. “Not so tight.”

“Oh, sorry,” Aaarrrgghh apologized, letting go.

“Whoa, hey, Steve's here, too! How 'bout, how 'bout some love for Steve?”

“Oh. Hi, Steve,” Claire said, unimpressed.

“What happened to you guys? Wait, where's Jim?” Toby asked, finallly noticing that your brother was missing. You felt a tear slip.

“This way,” Claire said, gesturing back the way they came.

“Jim... What happened to him?” Toby asked, observing the gem Jim was encased in.

“We were ambushed. Some ancient, dark warrior. An unstoppable knight clad in green who struck down Master Jim,” Blinky explained.

Douxie turned to Merlin. “Master, is that the same knight we saw at the bookstore?”

Merlin nodded. “One and the same. That onyx shard is working its way towards his heart. I placed the boy in stasis, stalling its progress... for now.”

“If I had my Shadow Staff, I could've saved him,” CLaire said.

You let go of Douxie’s hand to hug her. “Don’t blame yourself, I should have done something, but I didn’t.”

Toby glared. “Who is this Green Knight? How do I get my hands on him?”

“I do not know. The Green Knight said but one name, which chilled me to the bone, Morgana.” Merlin explained.

“Oh, I hate that lady. Wait, I thought we kicked her bewitched butt to the Shadow Realm?” Toby asked and you could see the poor kid shaking with anger.

“Which he appeared not to know, but he bore the emblem of Camelot. Come with me, quickly. I fear the answer lies in the past. A dark menace is coming, one even I cannot face alone.” Merlin gestured for all of you to follow him and you took hold of Douxie’s hand again.

Once you were all. Inside the new room Merlin spoke again. “You are all now soldiers in a war started centuries ago for the world of magic. Once, the realms of Magic and Man clashed in endless bloodshed. King Arthur sought to wipe out magic that ravaged the lands in his war against Gunmar. I brought what few spellcasters I could under my protection to spare them from the sword.”

“Including myself. Oh, and Morgana le Fay,” Douxie added.

“She was the finest student I ever taught... until she tried to kill me.” Merlin looked down. “Thankfully, in my all-seeing wisdom, I created a secret weapon-- the Trollhunter Amulet. The war came to a standstill and I imprisoned Morgana at the Battle of Killahead Bridge. This Green Knight that assailed us was clearly born of dark magicks but I have no memory of him, nor what connection he could have to Morgana. We know not what he is nor why he pursues us. Though, his presence is a dire omen of things to come.”

Right as Merlin finished his speech a bell began ringin frantically. You all looked away from what Merlin was showing you and gasped. Suddenly the castle was struck by something and you fell to the ground.

“What's happening?” Claire asked.

“Have you never been under attack before? To the battlements!” Merlin ordered and you immediately complied.  

You got outside and saw another giant floating castle. It was all dark and creepy.

Archie gasped. “Oh, no! I think we have something of a problem.”

“Oh, fuzz buckets,” Douxie cursed.

“No... the Arcane Order... they found us!” Merlin said and for the first time ever, you heard pure fear in his voice. “Everyone, get to safety, now!”

You moved to put Mao inside and you heard Merlin shout a spell. “Fulgur praeca!”

The castle shook again and you fell. It suddenly got a lot colder so you sped up. The castle shook and you ran into Nari.

“I need to go help. Can you take Mao?” You asked.

“Of course.” You placed your familiar in her hands and took off running back to Merlin and Douxie.

You arrived outside to see a bridge of ice spanning the gap between the two castles.

“They're boarding us! We must break free! Steer us clear at my command!” Merlin ordered and you summoned your fire spell.

“I'm on it!” Douxie called back.

“All of a sudden, flying castles aren't so cool!” Steve screamed.

“These foes' powers are beyond us!” Merlin grunted as a blast of fire came at the two of you. You sent your own fireball back at the black castle.

“Merlin!” You heard Nari yell.

“No! Nari!” Merlin protested, running towards her as you continued to blast fire at your enemies.

“Archie, find the staff or we are all dead meat!” You heard Douxie yell.

“What do you people think I'm doing?” Archie retorted.

“Archie, I'm running out of time, here!” Merlin yelled, trying to cut the ice bridge with his sword while you did your best to melt it.

Finally Archie called, “Got it!”

You and Merlin jumped onto a tower that rose past you.

“Surrender, Merlin,” some creepy thing ordered.crof

“Never!” Merlin growled.

“Merlin! Merlin! Get everyone to safety!” Galahad called.

“No, Galahad! What are you doing?!” Merlin protested.

Merlin and you watched sadly as Galahad used his tower and his life to cut through the ice bridges. You and Merlin ran back to the castle as the bridge you were on was destroyed.

“Farewell, my old friend,” Merlin whispered. “Hisirdoux, now!”

You watched as a green portal opened up to show a completely different forest beneath you. You didn’t have much time to admire it though, you had to keep fighting.

Ice rained around you as you tried to send more blasts of magical fire at the black castle. Suddenly one of those ice shards hit you, sending you over the edge of the castle.

From there you pretty much just straight up tumbled into the portal. You screamed as you fell through the portal. You did your best to slow down your fall, but the landing still hurt.

You slowly got up from the ground and looked up at the portal in the sky. That was when the panic set in, the portal back to your time was slowly closing.

You were about to do something about it when you heard voices. They didn’t sound familiar so you hid behind a tree. Fear coursed through your veins as you waited for whatever was making the noise to come into view.

Men and women dressed in shiny metal armor eventually appeared and you crouched down. You didn't know where you were, or when for that matter. You were lost and alone.

Suddenly you heard screams from above you and you looked up. You watched as Douxie’s magic lit up the bright sky, slowing his descent. Unfortunately he crashed to the ground ahead of the group of knights.

This was bad, you needed to warn them about the knights. You did your best to run through the trees, but by the time you arrived to see Steve, Claire, Douxie and Jim, the knights were already there.

“Advance!” A knight called and suddenly a ton of knights were surrounding your friends. You got ready to attack, but you held back for a second. You would wait for Douxie to make the first move.

“Got them,” a knight replied as Steve screamed.

Douxie sighed. “It means... we are lost in time.”

One knight got off of his horse. “What manner of sorcery is this?” He asked. Weirdly enough, he looked like an older version of Steve.

“Sir Lancelot, um-“ Douxie started and you relaxed a little, Douxie recognized this guy.

“He's so handsome,” you heard Steve whisper.

“I- We-“ Douxie stuttered.

Lancelot seemed to realize something. “Wait! Aren't you Merlin's errand boy?”

“Apprentice,” Douxie corrected.

“He's like an angel-man. Whoa!” Steve whispered. Suddenly you heard a large crack and the green gem that was holding your brother broke.

Lancelot gasped. “The devil-?”

Jim groaned. “What? How did I-“

Claire rushed to hug him. “Jim! Are you okay?”

“Troll! Troll! To arms!” Lancelot called and you got ready to defend your brother and friends.

“Wait! Chill out, lads!” Douxie called in an attempt to calm everyone down.

Lancelot didn’t seem to understand. “Chill? Out?”

Douxie sighed. “Take a breath, all right? He's one of the good ones.”

“There are no good ones,” Lancelot growled. “Monsters are forbidden in Arthur's lands. You'll hang before the king for your insolence.”

You were unable to hear anymore as your friends were arrested. You watched as Jim was unfairly imprisoned in a wooden cage and the rest of your friends were herded away.

You carefully followed them from a distance, but when they got to Camelot you realized that you wouldn’t be able to just waltz in through the front gates with them.

You sighed in frustration. You didn’t understand why everything had to be so difficult. You just wanted to relax for a little while.

But, you had work to do, so you snuck into Camelot. You made your way to an area without many guards and used your magic to get over the wall.

By the time you got in, your friends were nowhere to be seen. You did your best to inconspicuously search the city, but as time passed you didn’t have any luck. With every second you grew more and more frustrated. You were in an unfamiliar place, your brother was injured and possibly dying, and you couldn’t find your friends.

You weren’t going to cry though, you had to stay strong. Sinking to the ground just to cry wouldn’t solve your problems.

You took a deep breath and began to think. You needed a plan, a plan would help you calm down.

First, you needed to blend in more. You had been getting many odd looks from those you passed. You didn’t blame the people. You were covered in dirt from your fall and you had dried blood all over your face from your fight with the shadow mephits back in your time.

Eventually you found a well and you took a clean looking rag from a woman. Using it you did your best to tidy up. Once that was done, you went to go get something better to wear.

You felt bad shoplifting, but you needed to fit in and if you thought about it, you hadn’t a doubt in your mind that your brother and friends had been taken to the castle.

You were obviously in the wealthier part of Camelot, so it wasn’t hard finding a dress shop. If you were gonna be stuck in ancient Camelot, you might as well have fun and dress fancy. You could always find something simpler later.

You stood up straight and did your best to make it look as if you had a purpose. Thankfully no one paid you any attention as you walked in, but you didn’t expect that to last long. While you were cleaner, you weren’t dressed for the time.

You would need a distraction and thankfully magic would give you one. You mice in your head did the hand movements. In seconds you heard squeals come from the back of the shop. You hoped that would keep whoever was here busy for a while so you went and looked for a dress.

Eventually you found a dress that you liked. It was an orangish peach color made of silk with silver embroidered swirls on the bodice. You also grabbed a sweater made of tulle, the same color as the dress. You finished off the look with a silver belt.

It was remarkably easy to take with a little help from your magic and you were able to get away without ringing any alarms or whatever they had in Camelot.

You used your magic to put the dress on and began to make your way towards the castle.

The second step you had come up with was finding a way into the castle. You felt you would be able to get in with the way you looked. Your hair was an absolute mess, but with a little magic it would be easy to hide.

You were able to find a side entrance and you were able to get in. It gave you confidence that your plan was working so well. Now that you were in the castle, it was time for step three.

Step three was the part where you would look for your friends auras, but that quickly became complicated. There were a lot of auras buzzing about the castle and you couldn’t identify exactly where your friends were.

So you would have to modify your plan. You’d wander the castle until you were able to find them. You’d be able to identify their auras if you were closer.  

You started by making your way through the first floor. You’d make your way through the castle one level at a time.

While this was supposed to help eliminate any possible frustration, by the time you made it to the third floor tears were pooling in your eyes. You couldn’t find their auras and it was difficult to be sensing so many at once.

You were crossing a bridge, wishing you had stolen a handkerchief for your tears when you came across Douxie’s aura.

You were immediately relieved. Though you were still worried about your other friends and Jim, you had at least found Douxie.

Oddly, you heard Merlin scolding him. “Hisirdoux, do you have feet for hands? All the Slorr juice? You know how long it takes to milk one of those?”

“Sorry, sir. I was just trying to save time,” Douxie said and you got confused. Why was Douxie talking to Merlin like that? Maybe he was trying to cover up that he wasn’t from this time period?

“Your cutting corners has only cost me time,” Merlin said, continuing to scold Douxie. “It's hard enough creating Arthur's new weapon without your mucking about. I need you in the workshop, and you're milking the Slorr.”

As Merlin walked away you ran over to Douxie and hugged him. “Douxie! I’m so glad you’re okay!”

“Um?” Douxie mumbled and you realized that he wasn’t hugging you back.

“What’s wrong?” You asked, pulling away from him.

“I don’t mean any offense, but who are you?” With that you moved away from him, finally noticing that this wasn’t your Douxie.

You chuckled nervously. “I’m so sorry! Um, would you believe that I, uh, that I have a friend named Douxie that looks exactly like you. I mean what a coincidence. You know I’m, um, looking for him right now and I’m gonna go continue to look for him, seeing as you aren’t my Douxie. Haha, Bye.”

You were about to turn and leave when you sensed another aura. This other aura just so happened to also be like Douxie’s.

You turned back, just in time to see a Douxie who looked like the one you knew grab the other Douxie.

“Hey! Aah!” Archie protested and Douxie held his hands up in defense.

“Um, hey, me,” your Douxie said, chuckling nervously.

Past Douxie yelped. “Doppelgänger! You-you're me. I'm me!”

“No need to panic,” your Douxie soothed.

You stepped over to them. “Now, this is the Douxie I was looking for,” you explained.

“Well, how-- how... Wait, this can only mean one thing-” Past Douxie started.

“Time travel paradox!” Both Douxies yelled and you chuckled.

Archie sighed. “Double Douxies? This is a disaster!”

Both Douxies glared at him. “Give me a break, Arch!” They said in unison. “Oh, wow. This is wild!”

“Let's focus on the here and now. Where having two of us will be-“ Douxie started.

“-will be a logistical nightmare,” Archie cut in.

“I agree, uh, so the easiest solution...” Past Douxie trailed off.

“Is for one of us to go away till I return to my time,” Douxie informed.

Past Douxie nodded. “Great idea! But which one of us-?”

Your Douxie cut him off. “Interminus nocti sluumberso!”

Past Douxie suddenly fell asleep and your Douxie put him in a closet.

“I know this looks bad,” Douxie told you and Archie, “but I swear I've got this under control.”

“If that were true, things in the future have really changed,” Archie said.

Douxie laughed sarcastically. “Just don't go blabbing to Merlin, okay? I need to stay incognito. Aah!”

The cabinet burst open and past Douxie fell on Douxie.

“I’ve got it,” you promised, already levitating him back into the closet.

Archie chuckled. “This should be fun to watch.”

Suddenly you heard Merlin yell, “Hisirdoux, what is taking so long?”

“Just cleaning up another mess,” Douxie called back.

Douxie sighed and put his hair up into a bun. “Swore I'd never do this again,” he muttered, and you laughed.

“You look fine,” you soothed, taking his arm.

“So, I see you’ve got yourself a dress,” Douxie said. “I was looking for you, but I couldn’t find you. I was worried something bad had happened.

“I’m fine,” you promised when you felt Douxie’s aura spark with guilt.

“Good, I’m glad.”

“How’s Jim and everyone?” You asked.

“Oh, uh, Jim’s been arrested, but right now everyone else is fine. Steve is being trained by Lancelot and Claire is now Morgana’s handmaiden.”

“Morgana!” You hissed, worry for Claire suddenly overwhelming you.

“Don’t worry,” Douxie soothed. “She hasn’t gone bad yet.”

You hesitated. “What’s the plan then?”

“I’m gonna take you to where I used to live and then we can all meet up later to figure everything out. I’m gonna try and steal the time map to get us out of here.”

“Alright, but if you need any help don’t hesitate to ask.”

“I won’t,” Douxie said, leading you into a room. “Here you are, home sweet home.”

You looked around the room, it was off a decent size, but it was awfully drafty. “Nice place,” you said, taking a seat on a window bench.

“Thanks.” Douxie smiled. “Be careful if you go outside. You look like royalty, but people will question where you’re from.”

“Aw, thanks. You be careful out there too,” you called. “Will do.” He gave a little wave as he closed the door.

You gazed around the room, trying to think of something to do when you yawned. Suddenly you were very aware of how tired you were. If you thought about it you hadn’t slept in over twenty four hours.

You lied down on the bench and closed your eyes, easily drifting off into much needed sleep.

~~~~

You immediately sat up when you heard the door open. You looked around, confused at the sudden noise. Douxie was standing there frozen in the middle of the room.

“Sorry, Y/n. I didn’t mean to wake you,” he apologized.

You yawned. “It’s fine.” You looked over and saw Steve sitting in a chair. “How long have you been here?”

“Not long, I didn’t want to wake you.”

You nodded, grateful, but soon your kind smile turned into one of disgust. “What is that smell?” You asked.

“I, uh- I forgot how much I hate milking the Slorr,” Douxie muttered gagging at the smell he had trailed in. You mimicked him, plugging your nose.

Archie recoiled away from Douxie. “Ugh! Please!”

You looked over to Steve. “How was your guy’s days?”

Steve groaned. “I think Lancelot broke my everything.”

“And I still don't have the Time Map. One wrong move, and we will screw up history without even knowing it,” Douxie grumbled.

You were about to try and sooth the both of them when Claire burst in through the door. “We have to change history! Arthur's had enough. The trolls are gonna die at sunrise!”

“Oh, blimey Balroths! How are we supposed to stop this and stay inconspicuous?” Douxie asked and you could see the panic in his eyes. You felt bad about all the stress that was on him.

Claire sighed. “It wouldn't be a problem if I just had my Shadow Staff. I know you said to lay low, but we can't let Jim die.”

“No we can’t,” you asserted. “Douxie, I’m sorry, but we will have to change history.”

“Yes. Let's see what this future Douxie is capable of!” Archie cheered.

Douxie nodded. “You're right, sod the rules. It's time for a dungeon break.”

~~~~

The four of you snuck down to the dungeon and you watched from behind a post as Lancelot and Galahad laughed.

“No way!” Galahad grinned. The two of them were focused on their conversation so you decided to make a run for it.

“Ah! Oy! Young gentleman of Palchukia, join us in our nocturnal libations,” Lancelot called.

“We are looking for the Holy Grail!” Galahad took a drink. “Oh, well, it's not in that one either!”

Steve chuckled and began to saunter over to the knights. “Steve, no!” You whisper-shouted at him.

“Where do you think you're going, buddy boy?” Archie asked.

“Dude, I'm keeping the guards busy,” he whispered, “while having a righteous time! Ha! Yeah-eah! Drinking with knights! I'm so stoked for my first brew...uh, today.”

“I don’t condone this.” You glared at Steve before going after Douxie and Claire.

Archie sighed. “This is going to end badly. Ohh, I can’t wait.”

“This is going to end badly,” you muttered. The four of you continued to run, eventually coming across the section of the dungeon Jim was in.

“Jim! We're breaking you out,” Claire announced.

“Your stay in Terror Tower is over, mate,” Douxie said, conjuring magic knives for himself and Claire. Douxie cut open Jim’s cell.

“And presto, one liberated troll,” Archie announced.

“Hahaha! Take that, death! I elude you once again-“ a troll shouted as Jim freed her.

You hugged Jim tightly. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, no need to worry.”

“A big sister always worries,” you said before going to free more trolls.

As you freed the last one you heard Steve shouting/rapping. “My lord Arthur's in the building. Watch out, y'all, he's here to do some creep-killing. Get out of here.”

“Now, now, everyone just stay calm,” Douxie said in an attempt to sooth the trolls. Unfortunately his attempt completely failed.

All of the newly liberated trolls panicked and began to stampede out of the dungeon.

You were pushed up against the wall as the trolls left. You looked over to Douxie. “What now?”

“We do our best to help them.” You all ran out of the dungeon and into Camelot. When you got outside you say that the sky was fading from a light purple to a blue. You heard the metal armor of guards clanking after you.

“Is this part of your plan?” Archie asked.

“I'm improvising!” Douxie yelled, fiddling with his cuff.

“Quick, through the alleys! They can't catch all of us!” Jim’s friend called. You followed Douxie as Claire helped Jim.

You turned down a path, but stopped when you heard more clanking.

You looked to Jim one last time. “Stay safe!” You called.

“I will!” He promised.

“Did you see where they went?” A man you assumed was King Arthur asked.

“Quick! In here! This way, sir! Don't worry, sire, I'll freeze them on the spot,” Douxie offered, he messed with his cuff.

“Then do it! This way, men! Charge!” Arthur ordered. Douxie spun his cuff as Arthur and his men went to run after Jim, but at the last moment he cast a spell, opening two blue portals. Arthur and his men charged into them, only to appear out the other one. “What trickery is this now?”

Douxie sighed. Oh, fuzz buckets! I must have cast an Infinite Hallway by accident. You know how frustrating magic is. Uh, let me-let me just find the right spell.”

“Wizard, remove this enchantment or I'll remove your head!” Arthur threatened. “You! Girl! What are you doing?”

“Uh, me?” You asked.

“Yes, you!”

“Well, I’m-I’m terrified,” you cried. “This kind young man has been helping me.” You put the back of your hand to your forehead and pretended to look feint.

You leaned on Douxie and whispered. “Their auras are gone, you can let the king go now.”

Douxie did as you asked and Arthur and his men ran off. “Come on, we can’t let them get to the gate,” Douxie said, grabbing your hand and pulling you to a nearby house.

“Up we go,” you mumbled, using your magic to help you climb the house. You, Douxie, and Archie made it to the top of the house just as Arthur was about to reach the gates. Thankfully Douxie slammed them down just in time.

“Men, after them! Get this open at once!” Arthur commanded. You watched as Jim and his friend tried to run away, but they stopped when the sun hit the bridge.

The sun slowly spread, forcing the trolls to retreat closer to the gate Douxie was struggling to keep closed. You added your magic to his, and the gate glowed both blue and orange.

Unable to get the gate open, the knights put their swords and spears through the opening, trying to stab the poor trolls. You and Douxie gasped for breath as it became a struggle to keep the gate shut.  Soon it became too much and you had to let go.

Suddenly, the day began to get darker and shadows spread across the bridge, paving a path for the trolls to get to the forest. You turned around, looking for the aura that was casting the incredible display of dark magic only to find Claire. You pulled Douxie towards her.

The two of you jumped from roof to roof till you managed to get to the bridge she was on. You could see the strain she was under and you raced over to her. Douxie caught her just as she collapsed.

“By the seven rings, how did you manage that?” He asked and Claire groaned. “Whoa, whoa, whoa! Easy!”

“It’s gonna be okay, Claire. Jim and the trolls are safe.” You soothed.

“Are you sure?” She asked.

“I’ll check.” You closed your eyes and focused on Jim’s aura. You felt a shift and opened your eyes. Your projection was standing behind a tree.

You looked around, trying to get the gist of what was happening when you saw Gunmar and Bular standing in front of Jim. “Little king, these Wild Woods are my domain. I command the souls of all under its shade, and I decide who lives or dies!”

You saw shuffling and looked over to see one of the gumm-gumms kill a knight. You gasped at the horrific sight and Jim looked over to you. His friend helped him over to you.

“Y/n!” He whispered.

“Stay safe Jim. I’ll send more messages later okay?”

“Okay, I love you.”

“I love you too.” You gave a little wave to Jim as he left and you continued to watch the rest of the encounter play out.

“You can only push us so far, human,” Gunmar growled.

“This isn't over!” Arthur yelled, retreating.

“War is coming!” Gunmar retorted and you stopped projecting before he could see you.

You felt the shift and you were once again standing with Claire, Douxie and Archie. “He’s gonna be okay. All we need to do is figure out a way to get home.”

Douxie nodded. “Let’s go. Arthur is going to be furious when he gets back.

Claire took a step away from the two of you. “I want to go thank Morgana. I’ll meet up with you.” She went off and Douxie offered you his arm.

~~~~

“I was right, Arthur is furious. He's locked down the castle,” Douxie said, pacing.

“Luckily, he thinks you're so incompetent, you can't be a suspect,” Archie pointed out.

“At least we got Jim and the prisoners away safe,” Claire added optimistically.

“Yeah,” you agreed. “It’s not all a loss.”

Douxie turned to walk out the door. “Where are you going?” Archie and you asked in unison.

“To get that TIme Map. Hopefully with Arthur on the hunt, I've got a chance to finally snatch that thing,” Douxie answered and you grabbed his arm.

“I’m coming too.” Douxie nodded and you and Archie followed him to Merlin’s tower. You unlocked the door and the three of you snuck over to the vault. Douxie opened in only to find an old gnome skeleton in it. Douxie closed it again and tried to open it, only to find an old horn. He continued trying to no avail.

The both of you sighed when he opened it to a bird’s nest full of eggs.

“Looking for this?” The three of you jumped and turned to see Merlin holding the time map. “Or perhaps this?”

Merlin took the sleeping Past Douxie out of a cabinet and you noticed he had given him a pillow.

“Oh, fuzz buckets!” Douxie cursed.

“Have you any idea what you've done?” Merlin asked. “I knew my apprentice was an ignoramus, but traveling through time? Time!”

“Hey now!” You yelled, defending Douxie. Merlin ignored you.

“I think we handled ourselves just fine, all things considered. And, technically, it was your idea,” Douxie explained.

Merlin pointed his finger in Douxie’s face. “Well, then, you must have botched it up! My planning is flawless.”

Past Douxie spoke up, “For the record, Master, I had nothing to do with this. He did, which is he, and... ugh! Time travel, so confusing!”

Merlin went over to the time map and winced as it flashed red. “Aah! The timelines are in complete disarray!”

“Look, I can fix this, I swear!” Douxie promised.

Merlin shook his head. “Ah-ah, your meddling has already wreaked enough havoc on history.”

“Then surely we can use the Time Map to change things back, and then it'll all be as it was,” Archie suggested and you nodded along to his plan.

“It doesn't work that way. The map only offers glimpses of possible futures. There are no detailed instructions,” Merlin countered.

“Oh, come on, it's not that bad,” Douxie said optimistically. He tried to grab the time map, but Merlin swatted at his hand.

The timeline flashed to show Arthur's death and all of you gasped. “Aah! By my beard! Not that bad, eh?” Merlin asked.

“Oh, fuzz buckets,” Past Douxie cursed.

“Fuzz buckets,” your Douxie agreed.

Merlin walked over to the door. “Your little dungeon break must have changed fate. Now, unless I stop it, the king will die!”

****

So, tada, thanks for reading all of that. Honestly there’s a very high possibility that the next chapter will be even longer. He-he. The next chapter is gonna be really great and I’m so excited to write it. Anyways, I hope that y’all have a fantastically wonderful weekend.

~~~~

Also the scene where Douxie heals Y/n’s arm was inspired by @furblrwurblrrequest:

i! I'm curious to see one where doux kinda cares for her wounds? like a quick little fluffy one while they're on the ship after they get away from arthur? idk aaaa

~~~~

P.S. if you want to be on the taglist feel free to ask. I hope it works and please message me if it doesn’t.

[ravnicaforgoblins]

Ravnica for Goblins

More Awesome NPCs of Ravnica

NPCs are one of the most important tools in a DM’s campaign. Your assorted guards, informants, bartenders, hench-persons, random civilians, and, of course, your quest-givers. Optimistically, you hope to have certain NPCs stick around for a while to have the party build a relationship with them, as opposed to getting murder-hobo-ed because your party doesn’t like their attitude. Which is why it’s so great that Ravnica is filled with cool NPCs who are definitely stronger than your party (for a while)!

A couple notes; I already did a list of Awesome NPCs, focusing on the Ladies of Ravnica, so this time I thought I’d try and give the boys (and Melek) some spotlight. Secondly, as I’ve by now made annoyingly apparent, I’m focusing on characters in the modern era of Ravnica, i.e. after the Decamillennial, because everything before the Decamillennial is a nightmare to figure out and you don’t need that headache.

Tajic, Blade of the Legion

You can’t have the Boros without Tajic. Well, you can, but you don’t want to. Tajic is the Legion’s Champion as well as their Mazerunner, and embodies all the ideals the Legion stands for. Unity, strength, passion; an unbreakable shield against all who would threaten Ravnica’s citizens. He is technically considered a Firefist, but special considerations should be made to give him the flavor he really deserves. Both of Tajic’s MTG cards have had some manner of protection against damage when involving other creatures. In addition, Firefists are actually primarily spellcasters, whereas Tajic is never seen without a blade in his hand or his name. So, to sum up, take a Firefist, add in some manner of damage resistance or even immunity contingent upon having allies present, throw in a weapon trick or two for his big wavy sword, and ta-da! You’ve got Tajic!

Momir Vig, Simic Visionary

I know I said no pre-Decamillennial, but Momir Vig is a special case. Technically, the former Guildmaster is dead, but the shadow of his reign still lingers over the Simic Combine. Momir Vig symbolizes everything Ravnica fears about the Combine; progress without restraint. Vig’s cytoplasts were oozes designed for personalized evolution in subjects to correct flaws and deficiencies (regrowing lost limbs, bolstering weakened immune systems, extra brain cells, etc). The only problem is that the project worked so well that Vig stopped seeing the need for consent, creating a new form of cytoplast that only needs to touch a host to bond with it. This raised some understandable concerns among Ravnican citizens, as well as the other Guilds. These concerns went to 11 when Vig’s Project Kraj, a gargantuan organism composed of thousands of cytoplasts, was activated to purge Ravnica and start over with a fresh slate. They went to a further 12 when Vig was killed, Project Kraj summoned every cytoplasm back to it (maiming, crippling, or killing a large number of hosts), and proceeded to go on a rampage that only ended after it ate Rakdos and went into a coma.

Momir Vig is exactly the kind of mad scientist to escape the grave, go underground, and continue his research unimpeded until it’s ready. A Rogue Guildmaster with no boundaries, or as we like to call it, a ready-made Big Bad.

Melek, Izzet Paragon

As with Vig, Melek is canonically dead, but that sort of “dead” that could conceivably be temporary if the story requires it. Melek is a Weird designed by Niv-Mizzet himself to be the Izzet Mazerunner. A certain sparkmage had other ideas however, so he absorbed the sentient being of pure elemental energy into himself at the start of the Maze and took its place, then tried to shock the other runners to death because, you know, winning. But following the physics principle that energy cannot be created or destroyed, only changed into a different form, it’s believable that Melek could return someday. Probably with a grudge against said sparkmage. Melek is a fascinating build, combining high-level spellcasting with complete elemental resistance or possibly even immunity. Basically, a wizard who can tank. Even more intriguing, any lab run by a being composed of pure energy would be calibrated to channel said energy, possibly allowing short-range teleportation within said lab. This is a brilliant exercise in lair mechanics, so don’t hold back. Lest we forget Melek is a personal project of the Firemind, aka, the single most brilliant, powerful, and egocentric fire-breathing ancient dragon wizard in Ravnican history.

Tomik Vrona, Distinguished Advokist

Given the Orzhov Syndicate’s seeming fascination with being a faceless hierarchy of priests, lawmages, ghosts, tax collectors, etc; it’s nice to have another face with a name. Tomik Vrona is a lawmage who apprenticed under Teysa Karlov herself, making him a master of Ravnican law. It also makes him uncharacteristically open to relationships with other Guilds, as he is effectively Teysa’s link to the outside world during her imprisonment. Tomik carries a strong respect for the law, but is a passionate lover of interesting & creative loopholes. In short, he’s not inherently evil/greedy like most of the Syndicate, but still has ambition in spades. He prefers to use gargoyles for transportation, treasures every book he owns, and is canonically dating/living with that hot-tempered sparkmage mentioned previously. Whether the relationship is public or not is up to you. I personally see it as a measure of trust between the NPCs and the party; it’s a pretty controversial pairing of Guilds. It could even be a Romeo & Juliet (Julio?) kind of affair, just putting that out there.

Vorel of Hull Clade

If Momir Vig represents the dark side of the Simic Combine’s experiments, Vorel represents the infinite possibility they can offer. A former Gruul shaman, he made the decision to give up a piece of his clan’s territory to a Boros Legion garrison to better fortify their home turf, and was nearly killed when they turned on him for perceived cowardice. Vorel escaped and joined the Combine, where he was given Merfolk traits and an environment that embraced his ideas & strategic thinking. Vorel is extremely grateful to his new Guild, and believes himself to be an example of how anything is possible through the Simic, no matter one’s origins. His strong passion & drive have led to great breakthroughs, but he’s definitely more emotionally-driven than most Simic researchers. Here is a Biomancer that isn’t afraid to get dirty or bloody in combat. This could be a fun experiment in crafting a Simic Melee Weapon.

Tolsimir Wolfblood, Ledev Guardian

You know that one leader elf in fantasy stories who everyone else takes orders from but never fights themselves? Yeah, this isn’t that elf. This is what you wish that elf was, a warrior archer who leads his soldiers into battle atop a giant dire wolf and kicks some serious ass. The Ledev are Selesnya’s elite mounted force, skilled fighters, archers, swordsmen, and even spellcasters. They are the cavalry, the breaking dawn on Hornburg, the “oh shit” in an enemy’s mouth. Please don’t make the mistakes of countless fantasy novels by being on bad terms with such badass warriors. Having any member of the Ledev behind you should be a boost to the party’s courage & resolve. Having Tolsimir fight alongside you should be one of the greatest honors of your life. The chance to finally recreate that “besties” relationship between Legolas & Gimli as you see who can kill the most enemies in battle.

Domri Rade, City Smasher

I hesitate to include Domri, I genuinely do. He’s a scraggly little punk who nearly brought about the destruction of the Gruul (and all of Ravnica) ultimately because he was too weak and too stupid. I include him here out of respect for the lore, but you can honestly do better. Domri Rade was considered too small & weak for any Gruul clan, so he instead bonded with the savage animals of the Rubblebelt, eventually discovering he could incite them into stampedes at will. This new power finally granted him admission into Borborygmos’ own Burning Tree Clan, but he panicked during the burial rite of passage and planeswalked away for the first time. Eventually he learned to control his powers, returned to the Rubblebelt, challenged Borborygmos for leadership of the Burning Tree clan, and won by sending wave after wave of stampeding boars to trample the cyclops Guildmaster. He was enlisted by Nicol Bolas to help destroy Ravnica, and failed to realize that meant him too as an eternal ripped out his Planeswalker Spark, killing him. Domri Rade is basically a cheap knockoff of Garruk Wildspeaker, only smaller and weaker and dumber and infinitely less dangerous. He is, however, considered by many to be an omen of the End-Raze, heralding the return of the Boar God Ilharg and the burning down of Ravnica by the Gruul who follow the Old Ways. So maybe play up that angle if you include him in your campaign.

Ral Zarek, Izzet Viceroy

If you only include one NPC from any of my lists in your Ravnica campaign, you must include Ral Zarek. Failing to do so is denying your players the opportunity to interact with the single coolest character in Ravnica. He beats out Vraska for the sole reason that he’s a much more public & accessible figure than the Gorgon Assassin, and an unexpected encounter with him is significantly less likely to end in your death/petrification. Between his good looks, cocky grin, brilliant mind, and lightning powers that put Thor to shame; Ral is certain to make any situation more interesting. He’s a great contact to have within the Izzet, a brilliant researcher, extremely talented with designing gadgets or magic items, an astonishingly powerful magic user, and a fun guy to hang around with. He can definitely have a temper on him, so understand when to back away. Hint: His hair turns from black to white when his electromancy powers are activating. You’ll also probably notice the sounds of static discharge building up around him, perhaps a faint smell of ozone, crackling energy coming from his gauntlet, and, oh yeah, his eyes glow and his smile turns into a growling grimace of death as he fills you with lightning. Whether by design or accident, Ral is basically the mascot for Ravnica, and it’s almost unthinkable for him to be absent from a campaign set there.

[radramblog]

Ultimate^2

Super Smash Brothers Ultimate has finally unveiled its final DLC character, with reactions ranging fully across the spectrum. Hot takes abound.

I mean, statistically, just about every possible opinion is going to be represented. There were at least 500,000 people watching the reveal stream, and that’s not including those viewing through restreams. That’s insane for a trailer of any kind, let alone for a console-exclusive video game DLC.

Now that it’s been like… a day and a bit, I think most of the spciest takes have probably been made, which is the perfect time for me to chip in with my own milder opinion. More of a butter chicken, really.

(no images in this one i’m lazy tonight)

I figure I’m this late already, might as well drop some notes on the other ones first.

Piranha Plant was kind of the definition of an unexpected pick. Not only was it from an already well-represented franchise, being fucking Mario, it’s also just…not a character. As such it makes an odd choice for a DLC fighter…except for the part where it was free. If you owned the game in its first month. And frankly, I don’t think people would have been happy if it wasn’t. As it is, though, it’s a perfectly fine character- surprisingly cute, actually.

I’m unsurprised about Joker’s inclusion. With how huge Persona 5 became in both Japan and the west, capitalizing on it to make a shitload of money makes perfect sense. The character plays well enough, though the meter gimmick was kind of a daunting sign of things to come. All that in mind, though, the most surprising thing about Joker being in the game is that they still haven’t put P5 on the Switch. Atlus please.

Hero and Banjo/Kazooie were announced on the same night, and I distinctly recall someone saying that this was one for the Japanese audience and one for the Americans. I mean, I’ve never played Dragon Quest, so I guess I fell into the latter? Both series have a long, well-regarded pedigree (Banjo’s lack of recent offerings notwithstanding), so both arguably deserve their respective positions. Hero is the much more notable character gameplaywise, though, with the incredibly complex mana and spellcasting mechanics. Complaints about RNG in Smash aren’t completely unfounded- though it has existed in the past in the form of, say, Luigi’s misfiring side-B- but I know a lot of people think Hero took it too far. If I’m honest, though, the weirdest thing is just having Akira Toriyama-ass 3D models in the game. Banjo’s gameplay is…awkward. The kit is kind of a mess, but at least the gimmicks weren’t going too hard, you know?

Next was Terry, perhaps the most obscure character on the entire list in 2021. I actually really like Terry in this game- while he’s still trying to emulate a similar feel to Ryu/Ken, the difference feels more natural, if that makes sense. Maybe it’s because I’ve never really devoted significant time to them, but Terry’s kit feels easier to work within than the Shotos when going between characters.

Finally for the first Pass, we had Byleth. I think it’s for the best that they announced the second Fighter’s Pass before this released, because if both 4 and Ultimate had ended their run on Fire Emblem DLCs then people would have been pissed. I mean, people were already pissed, but like…moreso. As someone who has played Three Houses, I do think the game is worth celebrating, but having yet another Fire Emblem Protagonist (read: basically a blank slate) in the game over all the substantially more interesting characters 3H has to offer is just really frustrating. Also the final smash looks like dogshit, like FE3H has overall worse animations than Smash for obvious reasons but I’m pretty sure this attack looked better the first time around.

FP2 opened with Min Min, which brings ARMS to the table. ARMS. The only first-party fighting game Nintendo has outside of Smash, so it looks a bit less weird next to everything else but…come on, man. I think this was the most confusing pick of all of them- the game came out in 2017, and having Min Min in Smash would serve as promotion for a sequel…which hasn’t been announced. There was a graphic novel in the works, but it was cancelled earlier this year. Oops? At least the stage was fun.

As much as playing them is awkward and complex, the Minecraft addition was fitting. Only the best-selling game around. I think people weren’t sure if Microsoft would go for it, but they let us have Banjo, so sure. I’m mostly just annoyed that they couldn’t get any of the songs from the actual game in there- like, you got one in from the fucking mobile game, but you couldn’t just get C418 on the phone?

Sephiroth is definitely one of the hype-ier releases from this pass. The character is iconic, as is his theme and his home game. I’ve never played any Final Fantasy game, but I can still respect the name. Once I remember how to spell it. The whole bossfight aspect to his release was also quite cool, while it lasted.

On the other hand, I have no love for Pyra nor Mythra. There’s so much wrong with these ones, frankly. They’re another swordy character, immediately following Sephiroth too, and they go back on Smash’s very deliberate decision to split characters like Zelda/Sheik and Samus/ZSS up (Yes I know Pokemon Trainer does the same thing but I have a lot more leniency for them). Add in their being from a JRPG much less well-known or remembered than the previous couple characters and the designs being…questionable, I have a big issue with the whole thing. This was also around when I kinda stopped playing the game in general, and they definitely didn’t help pull me back in.

Kazuya might have, though. With the exception of him and Sephiroth, all the characters from the Fighter’s Passes were pretty much protagonist-types, but this motherfucker pulses with the essence of bad guy. What I’m saying is that he’s fucking cool, and while he’s ludicrously complex, that makes perfect sense since…I mean just look at the combo lists from Tekken 7. His inclusion also kinda rounds out the list of biggest fighting game franchises out there being rep’d in the game, though I imagine now I’m going to have stans from Mortal Kombat or whatever on my back. They’re not going to put a fatality-capable character in Smash, guys!

Finally, this rounds us around to the original point of this article. Let’s talk about Sora. And by that I mean…I don’t really have a huge amount to say about him. Kingdom Hearts is a franchise that completely passed me by growing up, and I don’t think I have the time or energy to devote to it now. I’m sure it’s good, people seemed really excited for him to be in the game so they have to have gotten that love from somewhere, but I don’t share that feeling.

That’s not to say that I don’t think he deserves a slot. The idea of “deserving a slot” in Smash Bros is kind of an odd concept, even though it’s come up a lot so far this post. But a slot in this roster isn’t just a place in a popular fighting game, because at this point, Smash is kind of a museum of (mostly Nintendo) games- and so having representation is a forever acknowledgment that the franchise is, or has been, an icon to so many. Kingdom Hearts, to my knowledge, has 100% earned that position, and so Sora getting to be playable here makes perfect sense. He wasn’t my pick (Touhou representation never I guess), but I’m happy for those who wanted him.

As far as the actual gameplay looks, he reads like a character that kept in mind what people didn’t like about Hero when he released. It’s another sword-based character, which I think at this point speaks more about the demographic of video game characters than it does about Smash. But I appreciate that the Magic Bullshit is toned down, and that it’s also his only real gimmick (The 3-hit combo feature is A Thing, but other characters e.g. Bayonetta have already done that, so whatever). His recovery potential looks patently absurd- like he just gets Pikachu/Pichu’s Up-B as a Side-B that can also be chained with his actual Up-B? This guy better be light as hell or he’s going to be super hard to take out. I dunno, I think he looks solidly fun enough- more dynamic and aerial than the other swordfighters, at least- and that’s good enough for me.

And I guess that marks the end of Smash Ultimate. Not with a bang, but with a key…dude. It’s been a very solid run, the game managing to keep itself fresh across several years of development, even as other games have risen and fallen. Smash is kind of forever at this point, I think, though the finality of Ultimate’s ultimate character implies that this particular iteration may be coming to its end. And seeing as it is always one Smash per console, I wouldn’t be shocked if the Switch itself was nearing its endgame as well.

Okay but also it’s pretty funny how they heavily censored everything Disney out of Sora’s DLC except for that little Mickey charm on the trailer, like how much must that one shot have cost them, was it even remotely worth it, I don’t know but I kinda want to

[chemicalmagecraft]

Taiyuu OCT Round 3

@taiyuu-oct

Character Nicknames: Keikei-sensei: Unbreakable Fuwa-chan: Zuruko Kayaki Boron: Nerva Rekka Akai-chan: Naishin-Sunomu Seisho Yuu-chan: Mochizuki Tofu

x x x

Yukino tapped her claws against her notebook as she sat in Keikei-sensei's "classroom." She scoffed. It wasn't so much a classroom as it was a field with a packed dirt stage. But hey, that was pretty much Taiyuu's brand at this point, wasn't it? Dirt-cheap, in both their construction and their ability to actually act like a real hero school, fang'si! Honestly the only reasons Yukino hadn't left yet was that Niichan assured her it'd be less complicated to just wait it out until break and Fuwa-chan finally figured out that her Quirk had an off button. Though... Yukino was still skeptical of how abrupt it was after about ten years of supposedly having no control over it at all and how close it was to Yukino complaining about the whole "hey, I'd like to not have my mind fucked with without my permission on a daily basis" thing, but apparently she HaD aN ePipHaNy so it was all good and should not be looked into further.

All the same, Yukino was still keeping her notes on the sheep girl. And Taiyuu was on thin ice with Yukino. If she felt like they weren't properly ensuring the safety of all of their students again, she would not be happy. And she'd probably involve her family in her discomfort with Taiyuu more than she already had. And if that happened- Yukino sighed and took a few deep breaths. At some point the cover of her notebook had frosted over a little under her claws. Ugh. She was better than just letting her Quirk slip out like that. It didn't look like the frost had bled through to the other side, thankfully. Yukino wiped off a bit of frost, then opened up her notebook. She was actually really looking forward to today's assignment... or maybe activity would be a better description? Today they were going to be showing off their hero names and costumes! Yukino had been looking forward to this for years, and even the recent events hadn't been enough to put a damper on that.

Though... Yukino thought that maybe the timing wasn't the best. They were tasked with getting their costume sketches together about when midterms were announced, with the due date being after midterms were over. Supposedly it was to take everyone's mind off the midterms, but really it was just piling up more work on top of the midterms. Of course, Yukino did pretty well on her midterms, she'd made sure to keep on top of her studies. And she'd finalized her costume design like a year ago, after getting feedback from her pro hero relatives on it too. But she could see her classmates having some trouble balancing the workload. Yukino didn't think it was malicious, of course, but just like everything about Taiyuu it was haphazard and a little mismanaged.

Yukino shook her head and slapped her cheeks. If she kept thinking like that she'd probably get herself worked up again... She took another deep breath, then looked at her design notes again, giving herself a bit of a reminder. She'd practiced what she wanted to do to show off her costume since she had the idea for it, but it was a little complex so she still wanted to refresh her memory. She quickly made a little ice statue, just as practice. Then she ground it down to diamond dust before anyone could get a sneak peek. After she was done with that she turned her attention back to the presentations. Okay, maybe she should've been paying more attention to her classmates, but in her defense she was kinda in the back of the "classroom" and almost everyone only had drawings or rough sketches of their costumes that they were describing for the class. Yukino's eyes were good, but not that good.

Ooh, Boron was going up next. They announced that their hero name was The Flaming Hero: Supernova, pretty nice. Their costume seemed to be some kinda light robe, with a mask and leg wrappings instead of shoes. Plenty of bare skin, to help vent heat. It sounded pretty cool, so Yukino couldn't wait to see them wearing it. Next up was Akai-chan, and wow she already had her outfit somehow. How did Yukino miss that? Akai-chan was wearing a red han'fu and a mask, with her hair done all fancy. Yukino certainly liked it. She took the stage and explained her costume choice. Apparently there was armor under that han'fu, which Yukino thought was... kinda neat, actually. "I have chosen Blood Lightning as my hero name," Akai-chan finished with, accentuating it by brandishing a hand covered in red lightning.

Hot.

Next up was Yuu-chan! Yukino was kinda excited to see her roommate's hero costume, to be honest. "I want to make my hero name... Tofu," he said when he got to the stage. "I've been using Yuu as a name more now, and I want my hero name to be something nice and friendly." Yukino nodded. That was probably a good reason for a hero name, and Tofu was nice and simple. It kinda reminded her of Deku, to be honest. He described his costume, which he said he hoped would make him look friendly and comforting. There was a light robe with a ginkgo leaf pattern, a little tail thingy, and a black turtleneck with black leggings underneath it. And finally, he had his usual box mask, except the hero costume one had a cute smile drawn on. Yukino smiled at the mental image of it.

After Yuu-chan sat back down, Yukino decided to get up. "Can I go next?" she asked.

"Of course!" Keikei-sensei declared.

Yukino nodded and walked over to the stage. She took a deep breath as she did, calming her emotions and collecting her thoughts. She grinned as she jumped onto the stage. The nice thing about constantly having to keep an iron grip on her emotions at all times was that somewhere along the line Yukino had become pretty decent at putting on a cheerful face. "Alrighty!" she turned to face the class with a grin. She raised her hand to the sky, white vapor rolling off of it. "For my hero name, I've decided on The Diamond Dust Hero: Kuraokami!" As she said that, she made tiny shards of ice from her raised hand, causing them to swirl around her hand in a vaguely dragon-shaped cloud that glittered in the Summer sun. "A dragon god of snow is pretty fitting for me, right?"

The dragon coiled down her arm, then she stretched her other arm out to the side as the dragon flew around it. Yukino grinned. "As for my costume..." She activated her Quirk again with her outstretched hand. She formed the sculpture she wanted in her mind, ice crystalizing from moisture in the air under her palm. The dragon made of diamond dust swirled around the sculpture as it formed, slowly melting into water droplets that fell as her telekinesis failed. She didn't even plan it, but the last of the diamond dust melted away as the ice sculpture, a double-scale statue herself in her hero costume making a cute pose, was finished forming. Her grin widened a little. The class oohed and ahhed from the display.

Keikei-sensei clapped. "That was amazing! You certainly know how to show off your Quirk. Though I should warn you, due to how not everyone can make giant ice statues of themselves, your grade is going to be based more on utility and how you sell your costume than what the visual presentation is."

Yukino nodded and gave a thumbs-up. "That's reasonable. Don't worry, I didn't expect to just win with that alone. So, the costume!" Yukino pointed to the statue's frilly dress. "If you can't tell, those ridges are supposed to look like dragon scales, for the dragon theme. I figure it should have a kinda arctic color scheme, whites and light blues and stuff." Yukino cleared her throat, feeling her cheeks heat up slightly. "I... took inspiration from magical girl anime for the general design of the dress. Figured that'd be pretty cool-looking, plus it fits with my Quirk name, Cryomancy, and how it can look like spellcasting. And again, gave it a bit of an arctic feel." She patted her giant, icy skirt. "Plus, those frills will also add insulation to help keep my body heat in. I pretty much can't overheat and my Quirk makes me colder, so no sense not keeping warm. On top of that, I'd like to have a heating element similar to what of a lot of other heroes with cold-based Quirk drawbacks have. And the material the costume is made of should be flame-retardant. I can basically absorb fire, yes, but it's best to err on the side of caution, y'know? Also there are modesty shorts in case I have to kick something and heated pockets hidden in the skirt so I can warm my hands up."

Yukino switched to pointing at the staff her statue was holding in one hand. "Onto the equipment. I'm trained in fighting with a staff and can channel my Quirk through it, so that's a no-brainer. I'd prefer to have it made of metal, maybe aluminum or something, because I can channel my Quirk through conductive materials a little easier, but I can see why a metal staff might not be something you'd be comfortable giving a hero student in the first year." She pointed to the bow slung across her statue's back. "Again, I can use a bow with my Quirk." She held out her hand with a toothy grin and formed a few ice arrows, which she floated around her arm. "I can make my heatseeker arrows pretty quickly, then shoot them faster than normal arrows. And as the name suggests, I can alter the flight path in midair with my telekinesis." She disintegrated the arrows into diamond dust. "Next, it's a little hard to see with the frills in the way, which is kinda the point, but there are wrist-mounted grappling hooks hidden in the sleeves. Made specially so I can conduct my Quirk through 'em. Can use them to trip someone, take their weapons, restrain them, or hopefully a mobility boost. Plus I think they look pretty cool."

Yukino snapped her fingers, causing the statue to turn around. She'd made the statue with a bit of a raised base that was separated to form a moving part so she could turn it with minimal effort. The statue turned all the way around, revealing two raised bits in the bottom of the boot that it was kicking back as part of the pose it was doing. "It might be a little hard to see without any color, but there are bits on the bottom of the boots. On the real deal these would be made of metal and extend to bits touching my feet. My Quirk is basically touch-ranged, so if I wanna use my Quirk through my boots it'll make my boots colder either way. Having small, conductive bits at the bottom should make it efficient enough that if the boots are also heated it won't freeze my toes. And I imagine being able to use my Quirk from my feet as well as my hands is gonna be useful."

And now for the big finisher. Yukino turned the statue back around and hopped onto the base. She took a deep breath, then slowly raised the statue a little. The other purpose of the base was that the raised bit that kept the two halves from misaligning when she turned it around also let her raise the statue up slightly without making the statue wobble, which would probably make Yukino slip up and fall. This was already stressful enough without that. But Yukino had already decided she'd raise the platform with her on it for the end of the presentation, so there was no turning back. She just barely managed to keep from shaking as she felt the platform she was standing on be supported only by her telekinesis. Now the worst part. Yukino jumped, kicking her leg back to copy the pose her statue was making. She lost her balance a little when she landed on one leg, but managed to rebalance with only a bit of wobbling. Yukino sighed in relief, then copied the cute pose and expression of her statue. "And that's The Diamond Dust Hero: Kuraokami!"

Yukino slowly put the statue down, then stepped off. She snapped her fingers, then started to disintegrate her statue. She lifted it upwards, making the powdered ice swirl around it as the statue was quickly chipped away. Soon it was a cloud of diamond dust swirling in the air above the stage, then Yukino made the cloud explode. The tiny bits of ice scattered through the air, most of it melting into raindrops before they could hit her classmates. Yukino grinned as Keikei-sensei and some of her classmates clapped. "Thank you, thank you." She strutted back to where she was sitting. That was fun, but the end was a little tiring... Still, she'd paced herself enough that she wasn't that tired. "Right," she said, "who's next?"

[grailfinders]

Fate and Phantasms #56: Kiyohime

Today on Fate and Phantasms, we’re building everyone’s most persistent stalker, Kiyohime! She’s a pure, 100% Draconic Bloodline Sorcerer, with the power of fire, fire, and more fire to... “protect” those she holds dear.

Check out the build summary here, or the level-by-level breakdown below the cut!

Race and Background

You were a human right up until you turned into a dragon and killed your boyfriend, so we’ll split the difference and call you a Dragonborn. I’m using a White dragonborn here, but you change colors on ascension, so black or blue are also options, or you could go with whatever color you want, it’s not a huge deal. Dragonborn get +2 Strength and +1 Charisma, a Breath Weapon based on their color (white is a 15′ cone of cold with a constitution save) that you can use once per short rest. It has a save DC of 8 plus your constitution modifier plus your proficiency, and starts by dealing 2d6 damage and growing as you level up. You also resist your own damage type, so you can chill out even in your lancer form.

Kiyohime’s backstory is... really nondescript, actually. She’s the daughter of someone rich enough to entertain company. Since there isn’t much flavor to work with here, we’ll instead shoot for a mechanical match. The Urban Bounty Hunter background gives you proficiency with Insight and Stealth, so you can make sure your beloved isn’t lying to you, and follow him around without troubling him. The Bounty Hunter’s background feature also lets you track people in populated areas- great for when your beloved gets “lost”.

Stats

Your highest stat is your Charisma. You have a very... forceful personality. Your Dexterity is second, you’re good at sneaking around and chasing people down. Third is Constitution, dragons are pretty tough, and it’s the only other physical stat we really need. Your Strength isn’t bad, and your racial bonus bumps it up to slightly more berserker-ish levels. Your Intelligence isn’t great-you're not dumb, but we need other things more-and you’re dumping Wisdom. You're good at tracking your Anchin, but other annoyances like “how Anchin feels about me” and “reality” just get in the way.

Class Levels

1. As I said above, you’re a Draconic Bloodline Sorcerer. You’re not technically related to any dragons, but that just means your bloodline starts with you. When you start as a sorcerer, you have proficiency in Constitution and Charisma saves as well as two sorcerer skills. Intimidation and Persuasion will help impose your delusions onto the rest of the party without having to barbeque them, and the DM will thank you for avoiding that.

First level sorcerers can cast Spells, using your Charisma as your casting ability. Your Dragon Ancestor gives you a preferred damage type based on their color (we’re going with Red here, this build’s obviously fire based). You also double your proficiency in charisma checks related to dragons. You also get Draconic Resilience, adding an extra 1 HP for each level you take in this class, and giving you an unarmored AC of 13 + your dexterity modifier.

For cantrips, Control Flames is prestidigitation, but for fire. Get creative, and it will serve you well. Mending will help you become the perfect housewife so Anchin will stop running away. Create Bonfire can also help here, with the added benefit of letting you roast that silly-billy alive if he keeps rejecting you. Fire Bolt also fits into our secret theme (hint: it’s fire).

For first level spells, Burning Hands lets you breathe even more fire over an area, and Silent Image will let you turn into a dragon, or at least make it look like you can.

2. Second level sorcerers become a Font of Magic, gaining sorcery points equal to their level. Currently, you can use these points to regain spell slots, or burn spell slots for more points.

For your spell, Disguise Self is a slightly better transformation that follows your movements, though like Silent Image, it’s still immaterial. It will make it easier to tail Anchin without him noticing though, so it’s not a complete loss.

3. Your Metamagic options let you customize spells to better suit your needs. Empowered Spell lets you reroll a number of damage dice to get higher numbers. Your fire breath needs to be able to melt metal, it’s going to be hot. Twinned Spell lets you double cast a single target spell. Most fire spells are AoE, but you’ll be able to force Anchin to turn into a snake with you, and that’s... kinda romantic? I guess?

Grab Mind Spike this level. It deals a bit of psychic damage, but if the target fails their wisdom save you’ll know where they are no matter where they go on this plane-as long as you keep concentration. Sometimes your love requires a bit of pain. Or a lot of pain.

4. Use your first ASI to become an Elemental Adept. Now, your fire spells ignore resistance, and all 1s on damage rolls count as 2s. Again: Fire. Hot. Not sure how many times I can say this.

For spells, Dragon’s Breath lets you correct WoTC’s embarrassing mistake of giving you cold breath as a racial feat. Now you can give yourself (or another creature) Acid, Cold, Fire, Lightning, or Poison Breath that it can use as an action for as long as you keep concentration, up to a minute.

While you’re breathing all that fire, you can use Message to keep in contact with Anchin so he knows how much you love him. (You actually can’t, they both use your action, but talking’s a free action anyway.)

5. Fifth level spellcasters get third level spells, including the most iconic spell in the game, Fireball. I’m going to stop bringing up my reasoning for fire now; I’ll only pipe up when a spell isn’t fire related.

6. Sixth level draconic sorcerers get an Elemental Affinity for their ancestor’s damage type. Whenever you cast a spell that deals Fire damage, you add your Charisma to the damage. Also when casting that kind of spell, you can spend 1 Sorcery Point to gain resistance to fire damage for an hour.

For your spell this level, you need to be able to detect when someone’s lying to you, and sorcerers don’t get zone of truth. Detect Thoughts can be even better though-Anchin has nothing to hide, so he shouldn’t mind too much. No point in even asking, really.

7. For your first fourth level spell, Polymorph lets you or another creature transform into a beast with a CR equal to or less than your class level or CR. Sadly, dragons and hydras don’t fit that description, but you can still turn into a Giant Constrictor Snake.

8. Use your next ASI to bump up your Charisma for more fire power. Grab Aganazzar’s Scorcher for the same reason.

9. Ninth level sorcerer, meet fifth level spells. Grab Immolation for self-explanatory reasons.

10. You get another Metamagic option at this level. Distant Spell lets you double a spell’s range, so you can stalk your prey from afar.

For spells, Prestidigitation is like Control Flames but for everything, and Far Step will help speed you along. Anchin’s a monk, and none of your features so far speed you up, so if you want to keep up with him you’ll have to teleport.

11. For your Sixth level spell, Investiture of Flame turns you into a firebreathing powerhouse, and makes you immune to fire damage as well.

12. Use your next ASI to gain the Dragon Fear feature, bumping up your Constitution to an even number to gain 12 extra health. This also lets you use your breath weapon without breaking canon, so everyone wins.

13. For your Seventh level spell, Fire Storm is fire.

14. Fourteenth level draconic sorcerers gain Dragon Wings. As a bonus action, you can grow a pair of wings, giving you a flying speed equal to your normal movement speed. I’d argue you can bring this with you into polymorphs, if solely so you can become a true flying snake.

15. For your Eighth level spell, grab Incendiary Cloud.

16. Max out your Charisma with another ASI for the most powerful fire you can get.

17. For your last Metamagic option, grab Heightened Spell to weaken one creature’s resistances to your magic. This is useful for some extra fire damage or, y’know, *cough*ifyouwantamonktofailawisdomsave*cough*. 

For your final spell, grab Wish. We’re not entirely sure how you keep following Guda into events, but this is the only explanation we’ve got that makes sense.

18. Your Draconic Presence lets you create a 60′ aura of fear or awe for up to a minute with concentration. Hostiles who start their turn within the aura must make a wisdom save or become frightened of or charmed by you respectively until the aura ends. Creatures who succeed on this save can’t be affected by it again for 24 hours.

19. Use your last ASI to bump up your Constitution for better concentration and more health.

20. Your capstone ability, Sorcerous Restoration, lets you regain 4 sorcery points on short rests. You could’ve taken three levels of warlock and gotten the same effect way earlier, but let’s not tell WoTC that.

Pros

You have high constitution for a spellcaster, making you very tough for a ranged fighter, and your concentration saves are also pretty solid.

Your firepower is immense, with the ability to reroll dice you don’t like, add your charisma modifier, and never roll less than a 2 on each die, your fire spells are always pretty strong no matter how bad your luck is.

Flight is good. Flight on a ranged attacker is really good. Concentration free flight on a spellcaster is amazing. 

Cons

A vast majority of your damage comes only from fire, so if something immune to fire shows up (which, if your DM is playing to your character, it will), you’ll be completely useless.

Most of your non-fire spells require concentration, so you’ll have to pick and choose what you want, and when you want it. For example, turning into a flying, fire-breathing snake would be super flavorful for this build, but that would require Dragon’s Breath and Polymorph at the same time, so you can’t do it.

Once again, your Wisdom is terrible, and your Dexterity is only okay. Don’t get cornered, and don’t fight bards.

Just remember the loved ones you’re fighting for, and you’ll be able to pull through and finish your glorious quest to murder them.

Next up: Gunnhild! (And her husband, I guess)

[theredhairedmonkey]

in your last meta you mentioned how much rayla has influenced callum, and i was wondering how callum also influenced rayla in these 3 seasons?

Ooh, I do have thoughts about this! In fact, I’ve had thoughts on this question before here.

Before I begin, I should point out that the reason that Rayla had such a strong impact on Callum is because she is, in many ways, his mentor. She instructs him on magic, explaining to him the Primal Sources, the Primal Stone, and just the basics of spellcasting. But more importantly, as befitting a mentor for our hero, she guides Callum’s moral compass and leads him to develop from a sheltered child into a powerful mage.

In fact, as I was writing this, I found that Adrian Petriw (Gren’s, and by extension Amaya’s, voice actor) on @kuno-chan​‘s Hot Brown Morning Potion semi-suggested not only that Rayla is indeed a mentor to Callum, but that this relationship will continue in the future (speaking on behalf of Amaya, of course):

“Then I realized [Rayla’s] heart is in the right place, and actually Callum could learn quite a lot from her, in fact he badly needs to.”

(As a side note, I wonder if Rayla will get to say to Runaan something to the effect of “See, now I have a protégé too!”)

So, it makes sense that she has a stronger impact on him than the other way around. But a mentor relationship doesn’t have to be one way; often a mentor will end up learning something new from the person they’re mentoring. And in Rayla’s case, while she helps teach Callum to believe in himself, he teaches Rayla to believe in others.

To understand why this is so important, we have to understand what is the Lie that Rayla Believes. As I’ve written before, a “Lie” is some falsehood that the character believes about themselves, the world, or both, and which the character will spend their entire arc trying to overcome.

While Rayla’s Lie is never stated as clearly as Callum’s, we get a sense as to what it is just from her actions and relationships to her people. She has to face her first attempted assassination entirely by herself. No one watches to help her if she falters, or consoles her when the job is done.

She has to face this task alone. And when she fails, she has to face the consequences by herself. Rayla is thrown off the mission (and in the book, she’s damn near executed!), and the Silvergrove banishes her without so much as a modicum of an investigation into what happened.

These facts help explain why Rayla acts the way she does—why she has a hard time being vulnerable, seeking help, or showing fear. Why most tasks she insists on shouldering by herself.

Rayla’s Lie is that her self-worth is measured by whether she can get the job done herself. If she can’t, then she’s not good enough, or a failure, or weak.

“The solider took his chance and crawled backward in the mud. Then he ran. Rayla dropped her arms to her sides and hung her head, her will melted in the storm. Why was she so weak?”

Chapter 1: Echoes of Thunder

Rayla tries to handle most things by herself. Early on in the story, if there’s something that needs to be done, she will be the one who does it. She’ll sneak into the Banther Lodge, even if she’s the most at risk. She’ll go and examine something dangerous on the Cursed Caldera. She’ll be the one to peel off and handle things while Callum and Ezran remain behind with Zym.

And in the meantime, Rayla will bristle against any possibility that there’s something that’s more than she can handle. She agrees to travel by boat…basically just because there’s some rumor floating around that she’s afraid of water. She refuses to let Callum see her cry, because doing so would admit she can’t shoulder her feelings alone anymore.

But eventually, this guy, and his way of looking at things, rub off on her.

Callum may have very little confidence in himself, but he absolutely has confidence in the people around him. At the foot of the Caldera, Callum quickly organizes a plan of attack based on everyone’s mutual strengths. No one is left out because, in his mind, everyone can contribute.

Callum celebrates other people’s strength, he cherishes their value. It’s not that Rayla doesn’t see or appreciate how other people are strong--she absolutely does-- but she can’t see that working in tandem with others makes her stronger.

Until Callum, that is. She relies on him more than she ever has with anyone. Rayla knows it’s safe to be vulnerable around him, that he’ll prevent harm from coming to her. Through him, she eventually realizes that she never has to face anything alone again.

Because of that, she goes from this:

To this:

Because of that, she begins to see things differently, and value the contributions of others the same way Callum does. And rather than jump into the middle of the battle in 3x09 like Callum and Ezran do, she decides to stay with Zym—a reversal of the role she typically plays.

And she’s rewarded for it by being named “The Last Dragonguard.” Not because of her value as a solitary fighter, but by her willingness to do the important task of watching over the Dragon Prince.

This Rayla knows how to rely on others. That doing so makes her stronger, more capable to carry the task that feels right to her.

Because the people she trusts the most will never let her down.

[syntheticsoulmates]

Day 19: Finch

Today is a Trip, bbs! Tom has a really horrible, no good, bad day!

***

When Tom woke up, Harry’s side of the bed was cold. His hand shot out immediately anyway, reaching for his husband, not curled up to his chest where he was supposed to be.

Then he smiled. Harry must be doing what he called ‘being spontaneous, Tom, you should try it’, and trying to be romantic. Perhaps he was making Tom breakfast in bed. Tom resettled in the sheets, and stretched out his legs to his toes. He loved when Harry got in this kind of mood. Harry was so affectionate, his heart so big, and Tom wanted to suck up as much of it for himself as he possibly could, Harry’s attention entirely on him.

Then Tom paused, disconcerted. Harry still liked to make things the Muggle way, despite how Tom teased him for it. And the Muggle way was loud, pans clanging, grease popping, faucet running, and above all, Harry singing, terribly and off-tune. The flat was silent.

Tom got up. It took a half minute to case the flat, despite its size, but Tom knew as soon as he focused that Harry wasn’t here. They’d been married so long that Tom could feel Harry’s magic like a little warm buzz against his skin when he focused and they were in close proximity. Tom was cold. Tom checked the usual places that Harry would leave a note if he was called away. Harry taught DADA at Hogwarts, but he often consulted with the Aurors when they needed an expert opinion. Or had Hermione asked him for help? Harry was a magical powerhouse, but he rarely used it for himself in his own day to day spellcasting. Hermione would borrow him from time to time, a huge mystical battery for some of the more complex spells she was working in the Unspeakable department.

Either way, Harry would have left him a note, even as he rolled his eyes over it. Tom had worked Harry into it through the years. Harry was impulsive and he would get excited and be raring off to go, but Harry also was exceptionally empathetic. He knew just how much Tom liked to know where he was, that he was safe, when he would be back.

There was nothing. Tom was beginning to get pissed, working himself up into the strop he would set on Harry for not leaving a note, and greedily considering how he would capitalize on Harry’s guilt;  maybe get Harry to rub his feet or go to a terribly boring state dinner in robes that Tom hand-picked.

Then Tom came to a crashing halt in the middle of their living room. Their wedding pictures were gone from the mantle. Tom suddenly burst into white hot rage. Had someone stolen Harry, stolen their wedding photos too?

Except the other photos were wrong too. There was Tom at graduation, but Harry wasn’t under his arm, pressing a kiss to his cheek and knocking his graduation tassel askew in his fervor. There was Tom getting his dual Mastery, and Harry wasn’t there, whistling obnoxiously and clapping fit to burst. His first address as Minister was there, but Harry wasn’t standing behind him, looking like the most awkward and adorable but incredibly proud First Lord.

The photo of Harry receiving his Order of Merlin was gone too. Harry’s stag party with a drunk Ron and Hermione was nowhere to be seen. First anniversary with Harry’s adorably flushed cheeks and swollen lips had Vanished. Most damning, was the lack of his own wedding ring, glaring at him from his bare finger. 

Had Harry...left him? Taken his ring? And pulled himself from all their shared photo frames?

Tom shook that thought off. Harry would never be so petty. Harry would have never been so stealthy and sly. Tom would have had some inkling. Harry couldn’t lie to save his life, much less pretend everything was wonderful and then slip away without a trace in the night.

Tom looked around. None of Harry’s jumpers were discarded over the back of their sofas. Harry’s huge cast iron skillet was gone from the kitchen. Harry’s mauled (squeezed from the center) tube of toothpaste and muggle vibrating toothbrush (Hermione’s influence) were gone from the bathroom. Harry’s separate closet Tom had folded into the wall with an Extendable Charm was gone without even a tingle of residual magic. His drawers in the armoire were filled with Tom’s own clothes.

Tom did a quick spell, to summon anything of Harry’s, trying to catch a forgotten sock or a fallen follicle of hair. Nothing came.

Harry was gone from his life, like he’d never been.

***

Tom’s admin was the same, which he found out when a panicking Draco came through the Floo, without even a by your leave. He never did that, normally, after the first time he’d spotted Tom fucking Harry over their kitchen table. Just another mark against this terrible, terrible world.

Draco did a double take when he saw him, then blurted. “Minister Riddle! You’ve a meeting in ten minutes with the Budgetary Committee! You’re not even dressed!”

Tom didn’t even look over where he was carefully measuring exactly ten drops of rose oil into the solid gold cauldron in front of him. True enough. He was still wearing his pajamas and his silk dressing gown (embroidered TMR, no trailing P), but he’d transfigured a pair of his own respectable slippers into the fluffy monstrosities that Harry preferred to cover his feet for potion’s safety. Really.  

“Draco, I find I am terribly unwell and I won’t be able to make it into the office this morning. I wouldn’t expect me in for the rest of the day, and perhaps the remainder of the week.” He put the rose oil dropper down, stirred the potion three times widdershins, then crumbled in some powdered bicorn horn. At least his potions laboratory was exactly the same and he could find what he needed.

“Minister!” Draco protested. “The meeting discussing Dragon Pox vaccination distribution is at three--.”

Tom finally looked away from the potion with a snarl. “Draco. You will tend to my affairs today. I will not be in, even if the Minister for France shows up on our doorstep and wishes to officially declare Magical Britain’s complete and utter superiority. For all intents and purposes I am grievously ill and will be completely unreachable for today. I will give you three seconds to get through my Floo before I ensure you will never be able to Floo anywhere ever again. Am. I. Perfectly. Clear?”

Draco bolted for the Floo. At least that was the same. Tom turned back to his potion and raised his wand. He carefully bent over and pulled a short but beautiful silver glimmer of memory with his wand. He had nothing of Harry’s hair, of his blood or skin or nails, no object he had ever touched, no object he had ever owned. All he had was this, his memory, Harry imprinted into Tom’s mind. The breathy sound of Harry’s giggle hit Tom’s ears like a cuff as he laid the memory in the cauldron. As soon as it hit, the potion turned to beautiful white smoke.

Tom took a deep breath, and tipped the cauldron over, spilling the mass on the ground. Out bounded the familiar silvery sight of Harry’s Patronus, lighting the room with it’s ethereal glow. The magnificent creature pranced for a brief moment, before it caught sight of Tom and stilled, head cocked and absolutely stationary. Tom paused. Was he to be denied this too?

Then the great creature jumped forward and knocked him with its massive head. Tom rocked back on his feet, let loose a breath he didn’t know he was holding. His hands reached out to its muzzle.

“Prongs,” he breathed out, and stroked the great beast down its beautiful silver snout.

***

Prongs was as good as a bloodhound, gamboling beside Tom as he led Tom and his stolen broomstick (really, the neighbors should really lock their shed) all the way to Hogsmeade. He hated flying, as much as he could and still be Harry’s husband, but it wasn’t like he could just Apparate.

The great beast was almost as soothing to his nerves as Harry. He couldn’t even mind when it paused ever so often to lip at Tom’s hair.

Prongs led him to a bright and cheery cottage on the edge of the town. Tom made a sigh of relief when he noticed Harry’s special brand of pruning on the roses in the window box.

Prongs melted into nothing at the cottage’s bright red door, that same breathy giggle as before tingling down his spine and pulling up the hairs all the way down his arms.

Tom straightened his robes, ran a hand through his hair. Harry always liked it a little disheveled, so Tom didn’t draw his wand on it. He took a deep breath, stepped up to the warm little door, and knocked.

The door swung open after a minute that lasted an entire eternity, and there, finally was Harry. Tousle headed, eyes dancing with happiness and still laughing back at something somebody had said inside the house, his attention caught inside. Harry turned with his happy smile to Tom. Tom sucked down the sight of Harry like he was the last three drops of moisture in a great salt desert.

Harry sobered and straightened up immediately at the sight of him. “Er, hullo. Minister Riddle? Er,” he scratched his nose, looking surprised. He glanced behind Tom on both sides. “Can I help you? Or, er, are you here for Justin?”

“Harry, who is it?” called a male voice from inside. Footsteps. Then a man--Tom vaguely remembered him from their year at Hogwarts, Justin Finch Fletchley or something--came down the cottage’s narrow hallway and wrapped his arms around the waist of Tom’s husband.

Harry let him, leaning back into the weight of Justin, tilting his neck just so that the man could slide his face to the side of Harry’s neck and reveal the bright purple bruising of suck-marks just barely peeking out from underneath the over-stretched neckline of his jumper.

“Well, er, it’s the Minister of Magic,” Harry said, sounding confused. His left hand came up to pat Justin’s arm around the waist, metal glinting on his ring finger. “He came to give us a house call?” The ring was a terrible plain thing, some dim low carat gold, nothing Tom would ever choose. It absolutely was not the ring that Tom had already chosen.

Tom saw red.

***

Tom shot up, as best he could from his hospital bed, absolutely filled with rage. The phantom feel of his wand was still heavy and hot in his hand. He could feel black magic roiling in his blood, see the slumped figure of Justin Fucking Finch-Fletchley hitting the floor in the corridor of the cottage burned like the sun’s after image on his retinas.

“Whoa! Tom!” Harry shouted from the chair beside him. “You’re okay! We’re at St. Mungos! You’re safe! Breathe!”

Tom’s gaze snapped to Harry. Harry looked sleep-deprived and worried, the left side of his face still sporting a crease where he’d fallen asleep on his crumpled up jumper tucked to the arm of the chair.

Harry’s hands were splayed open, and Tom spotted the gleam of his ring winking at him from Harry’s finger. Tom shuddered. He couldn’t breathe properly until Harry reached out, running his small hands down Tom’s back, and then his breath came in juddering gasps. He could feel the slight tug on his nightclothes as the calluses on Harry’s hands caught on every stroke. “Where’s my wand?” Tom clipped. He couldn’t look away from Harry, his face.

“Right here,” Harry offered, drawing the length of yew out of the wand holster on his own arm, beside his own. He pressed it into Tom’s hand with steady fingers. “You’re alright. The Aurors got there after you wiped the floor with the arseholes responsible, scraped them up and took them to Azkaban for you.”

Tom gripped his wand with white-knuckled fingers, and then he reached out with a rough hand and seized Harry’s hand just as tight. He could tell it hurt Harry a little, but he couldn’t bear to loosen the grip even a bit. He brought Harry’s hand to his mouth. He took deep breaths through the scent of Harry’s skin, savored the buzz of Harry’s magic against his skin. He still felt volcanic, seething. He knew Harry could tell. He ran his thumb over Harry’s ring to reassure himself, reveled in the comforting weight of his own. 

“If you ever even touch Justin Finch-Fletchley again I will kill him.” Tom said, pretty evenly, considering the circumstances.

Harry blinked at him, looking adorably worried and confused. “Wot? The new Muggle Studies professor? Why would I even...” Harry looked at Tom’s face, trailed off.

Tom nodded, ultimatum laid down, and finally fell back into the sheets. He kept Harry’s hand captive to his face and just breathed in the scent of his husband.

[koalaaquabear]

The 5 hour finale live stream just concluded and y’all, it was crazy. It has been a wonderful several months with all you guys and I am so excited for April 8th and Junior Year. 

MASSIVE SPOILERS UNDER THE FOLD IF YOU HAVE NOT WATCHED THE STREAM YET. Here is my clusterfuck of a commentary. Enjoy!

Fantasy High: Sophomore Year Live Reaction -HOOT GROWL BABY it's time. I didn't react to part one but wOW that one was crazy. Get ready for EMOTIONS :'(( -SIG FIG RESCUE MISSION lol #ontour -well ok brennan that canopy shit is scary as fuck -murph is still looking like riz -Zaphriel and Ayda!!!!!!! -"HOLD ME BACK GORGUG" i love u emily -Brennan I stg -Ayda is Gorgug's dad lol -oh shIT they're totally in the cottage -heLL YEAH AYDA!! -oh GOD figayda kiss? exceptional. -if ayda dies i WILL throw dice at Brennan -ok brennan make me cry then -GET THE VAN GORGUG -gorgug truly is the greatest wizard of this age -#hugeblueguy -aww zac oyama i love you -"semi-fallen" oH dEar -gorgug texts zelda IMMEDIATELY i love him -amaZING thank you zelda -"ew, creepy, hate that" -zaphriel is the best character you guys, what a homie -i keep forgetting ayda can fly. like she has wings. i know that. -AELWYN! -nOPE someone is coming through the forest and if it's arianwen i will kill cry -HANGMAN???? -HANGMAN!!!! HIS DOG!!!!! -HANGMAN NO I LOVE YOU YOU'RE THE CUTEST DOGGY -adaine i love you baby -"the weak yogurt man" -what high ranking devil??? -fabian you're adorable -aww fabian has a puppy!! (i get that the hangman is eight feet long don't @ me) -that's the first "the ball" -lou can never have the highest roll -BARDY BOYS -oop kristen and riz time -tracker? i barely even know her -chills, brennan. chills -someone in the chat just said "so did skrank fuck zelda?" -intense muSIC -nononononononono -ragh, tracker, and sandralynn better be all right -ooo a sTICK -HELL YEAH RETURN OF THE RIBBON DANCE -"riz weeps" holy shit i love him -"something bad always happens when we go off together" -#RIZTEN -awwoOOOOOOO -ayda can fly too! -absolutely FUCK this bridge ABOUT 30 MINUTES -poor ayda -please say they're ok brennan -"put your tongue baCK in your mouth" -sANDRA LYNN NO -"what kind of arrows" "you know what kind" fuCK OFF BRENNAN -if baxter dies i will cry -wait faerie fire is a cleric spell..? absolutely fuck me -ok aelwyn let's fuck shit up -calling the bank in the middle of this nightmare forest lol -heLL YEAH ZAPHRIEL -luck check luck check luck check -"y'all are going to turn into dragons" -fabian straight up cries? what a fucking rich kid -NO WAY HE HAD T H E COIN??? -REMOVE CURSE BABY -"nnOOO!" lmao -ally and brennan are in the chat -kristen's religion is REALLY coming in handy -the name was turned into the night yorb lol -"how's that axe feeling?" "..pretty light ;)" i love him -ayda can lift the axe??? exceptional -FIG IS KALINA? ABSOLUTELY RAD -brennan has created a place where illusions are real and emily is holding him TO IT -"do you have a dongle?" incredible -EMILY I LOVE YOU! KALINA IS A YOUTUBER BABY -wretchrot is baCK baby -aelwyn i love that -"i am a low quality child" "yeah ayda you're a bad kid" -"hey bitch" emily axford is a goddess -im sorry cOURT OF ELDERS? -NO I WILL CRY -ROLL INITIATIVE TIME -go OFF hangman -ooo some high initiatives babyyy -zac oyama is my favorite ever -"trackerrr" -brian as soon as emily was threatened said "how dare you" -brennan you FUCK "i'm awake for all of this" FUCK YOU -fig and her mommy issues: an album -absolutely FUCK THE TREE GUY -kick that wood elf BITCH ABOUT ONE HOUR -fuck him UP fabian, shit in his gODDAMN mOUTh -"SPRING BREAK YOU STUPID MOTHERFUCKER" -pleASE BRENNAN LET HIM SHOOT HER WITH THE TINCTURE -spRING break this is for the corn god -okay nevermind riz is holding his action -i love the intrepid heroes they're adorable -"ice feast" fucking love them so much -yES the ball thank GOD -brennan..? -"her rage ends" tracker = barbarian -FIRST NAT 20 BABY -"IT 100% WORKS BUT IT 50% WORKED" -that's the second "the ball" -bOOOOOOO BRENNAN -mad plans for the tree guy -sorry, is his name crAFTME ROOTDRINKER? -oh ok it's aelwyn we're fine -cone of cOLD baby i love aelwyn what a babe -you absolutely hate to see it -ragh my baby i love you -SPRING BREAK -tracker nO PLEASE -TRACKER JUST CRIT OH NO -brennan is really good at acting this btw -wait 14 on a crit??? i mean oH NO kRISTEN, bOO -disPEL MAGIC BABY -ALLY BEARDSLEY YOU ABSOLUTE GOD -aww kristennn is babyyy -tracker nooo don't cryyyy -you've sAVED your GIRLFRIEND -"some of us have already done that today" fig the sHADE -ally simply musT get new dex -absolutely fuck that brennan i don't need that vampire pixie -FUCK IT UP AYDA -FIGHT ME IN THE SKY! -"does a 29 hit?" daMN zac that absolute SHADE -53 DAMAGE?? CHEJ IS SO FUCKING STRONG -"goddamn paper lantern" -absolutely fuck you brennan -nevermind gorgug and adaine both passed the con saving throw -"i don't like you" lou really gets personally upset about this and i love that -nO NO NONONONO aelwyn and tracker are down -FUCK IT UP ADAINE -gdi brennan don't do this to us -ABSOLUTELY FUCK THE TREE -fig is straight up gonna kill her mom -this is scary as fuck -HANGMAN HAS A BREATH WEAPON AND YOU DIDN'T SAY SHIT??? CHOKE ON GRAPES BRENNAN -FUCK EM UP HANGMAN ABOUT 1 HOUR AND A HALF -wood elf is DOWN baby hoot growl -kristen thinks the elf is gak lol -23 DAMAGE??? AC OF 25??? ABSOLUTELY FUCK IT UP FABIAN -SHENANIGANS TIME FOR MURPH -HELL SECRET AGENT TIME -27??? RIZ YOU'RE THE HOTTEST -third the ball -imagine the ball is secretly SO HOT without the hat -YES BRENNAN GOT A NAT 1 EAT YOUR GODDAMN DICE -sweEET -fourth the ball (they've all been Lou cuz of course) -incredible turn murph -kalina is SO GOOD at skateboarding -#bloodphoto -KALINA HAS 23 WISDOM? absolutely fuck me -oh hELL YEAH FIG COUNTER THE COUNTER -emily is doing some SHIT right now you guys (fear spell) -DAMMIT that high as fuck wisdom -sorry WHAT she rips open sPACE??? -BABY BETTER SAVE THE GODDAMN DAY -let's go BABY -"mMMHHHHnnN leET ME tOUCh ItT" baby is fucking weird -"baby vs mommy" i love you siobhan -aelwyn better not DIE brennan -riz baby let's get it -trACKEr -nAT 1??? kristen is unCONSCIOUS?? -HUMAN DETERMINATION!!! THE GRIT BABY] -wait aura of life is badass!! they can't lose damage?? -okay scrap that we're gonna TURN UNDEAD and then MASS HEALING WORD? absolutely incredible -gorgug has so much goddamn health -FUCK THIS TREE DUDE -KILL IT AYDA LET'S GO -"her girl's side" *in lou voice* okAY bRENNNAn -second nat 1 but both of them re-rolled -GEM!!!! -LET'S GET GORTHALAX BABYYYY -"BIG DADDY" -ayda is so turned on lol -KILL IT CHEJ OKAYYYY -fuck this centaur -i'm so nervous -puT THOSE DICE DOWN BRENNAN -"you're gonna drop." shuT UP -riz is fULLY DEAD???? -i hate this. i hate this. i hate this. i hate this. i hate this. i hate this. -sHUT UP BRENNAN -baby is DEAD oh my GOD you absolutely hate to see it ABOUT 2 HOURS -nO NO NO NO NO NO NO PUT THAT CROWN AWAY BITCH -absolutely fuck me, the nightmare king is totally fucking back i hate myself -aww fabian is baby -hELL YEAH FABIAN SPRING BREAK -"i've lost one friend, that's too many" fabian is adorable -"that's a full ass miss, my guy" -sandra lynn just crit on chej :(((((( -14 damage is not very spring break of her (she did 28 but it was halved because gorgug is such a strong boyyy) -LET'S GO LOU -almost all of them are spellcasters wtf (only one who isn't is riz but he has a daily misty step) -fuck em up hangman -fUCK EM UP HANGMAN! d8 + 2d6 +8 i think -figaroth the unfaethable baby -THOSE ARE SOME SHENANIGANS FIG I LOVE IT (she's shattering the rubies to get a revivify diamond) -casts teleport??? aelwyn came here to FUCK -"i would love to teach you this spell" aww the abernant sisters liking each other is my new aesthetic -fuck em up adaine -you can hit the tree on a 12 babyyyyy -heLL YEAH 44 DAMAGE ADAINE IS STRONG NOW -kalina is not even that cool she just said "that's enough of that" in the most uncool way -2 down 3 to go! -omg wait it would be so badass if they could just remove curse on kalina -"Mr. The Insatiable" -ayda is such a sweetheart "i don't care if you want me to date your daughter but i do hope you love me" -"I LOVE THIS SONG" yes siobhan me too -on a DC 20 she got a 31!!!! consider my jeans creamed -SHRED BABY GIRL!!! -KILLIAN IS DEAD! RIZ IS ALIVE! -ayda is so turned on AHHH -I LOVE RIZ SO MUCH "am i interrupting something???" -fuck him UP chej! 3 hits, no crits -hell yeah mr. march!! oh sorry wrong series -a gROUP PROJECT i'm DEAD -someone in the chat called him "snac oyama" and you're rigHT -siobhan's straight fucking this tree UP -the spellcasters are like all out of spells at this point -fuck OFF arianwen. KILL YOUR MOM -"where's your father, aelwyn?" "last i saw, adaine killed him so *shrug*" i lOVE HER -FUCK THEM UP GORTHALAX -abolutely fuck the nightmare king -waIT GORTHALAX IS GONNA KILL THE NIGHTMARE KING -sidenote: fig calls gorthalax pops -dO IT BRENNAN kILL YOUR OWN BIG BAD -this treeant has GOT to be dead -NAT 1 on that attack?? SPRING BREAK BABY -no we haven't seen kalina in action brennan, and we do not want to -OH SHIT THE TIE! YOu just got FUCKed bRENnan eaT youR DICE -yeS AYDA ROAST HER -"GOTTEM!" -i'm sorry i just hallucinated, did you say 6 ATTACKS? -time to go VIRAL BABY -19 intelligence, 23 wisdom, 20 charisma for kalina? absolutely fuck me -riz just got kICKed! you absolutely hate to see it -GODDAMMIT -KALINA IS HOMOPHOBIC CONFIRMED ABOUT 2 AND A HALF HOURS -brennan be like "im about to kill this bird" -absolutely fuck me i hate this -let's go FIG -time to caTCH the bALL -murph has the same thinking face as riz and it's adorable -this is not very spring break brennan -DC 25 acrobatics check? c'mon faBIAN -29????? -fifth the ball (from the hangman) -"there's just something endearing about him" fabian loving his friends is adorable -absolutely fuck me that fire elemental is adorable -absolutely swaddle the ball -well hot take but fuck the nightmare king you guys -absolutely NOT brennan do NOT kill adaine you PSYCHO BITCH -PLEASE ADAINE LIVE -STRAIGHT DEAD? FULLY DEAD? FUCK OFF WITH THIS INSTAKILL SHIT BRENNAN -hell yeah ayda is back and kristen has the revivify diamond -aelwyn FULLY banished that unicorn -it's good to know ragh really doesn't want them to die -YES RAGH IS BACK BABY -fuck em up kristen -s/o to DND Beyond btw absolutely banger website -hell yeah mass healing word is awesome -clerics are GOOD you guys i should play more clerics -FUCK IT UP AYDA -SANDRA LYNN IS BACK BABY -skater chej is my favorite thing -aBSOLUTEly fuck the tree -i have no idea wHAT is happening ABOUT 3 HOURS -fuCK YOU nightmare king -i absolutely hate this battle but at least gorthalax is still standing -gorgug better split this gd tree -"what if we just kill kalina?" yeah zac it's that goddamn easy -brennan almost just fucked everyone -"does she want to borrow my teddy bear?" the SHADE -"MAKEOVERRR" i love you siobhan -this tree SUCKS -battlemaster is cool as fUCK SPRING BREAK -BARDY BOYS also i think that was a nat 20 -i can't imagine the thistlesprings watching the battle livestream and like worrying if gorgug is going to die -FUCK HER UP THE BALL -ABSOLUTE SHENANIGANS FROM MURPH! -with ADVANTAGE BABY -"has anyone seen my hat!?" keep it off baby you're HOT now -"mirrors negate mirrors" "i think oscar wilde said that" i love them -#hotrizweek? -holy shit fig is FUCKING THIS BATTLE UP -HELL YEAH KALINA ROLLS A NATURAL 2!!!! -hell yeah adaine is back and SO MUCH is happening that i'm like forgetting to write down my reactions -kill this woody motherfucker baby -the music is too lOUD -ok it's normal now -fuck em up gorgug -i'm sorry the chat is saying he did 90 DAMAGE?!?!?!? -KILL IT CHEJ ILY -fuck off brennan, absolutely fuck off -ABSOLUTELY FUCK OFF BRENNAN -gorthalax is FULLY DEAD? absolUTELY FUCK YOU -SAINT KRISTEN APPLEBEES -adaine has SOLVED THIS SHIT -god all the abernant names are confusing -fuck you kalina ABOUT 3 AND A HALF HOURS -BRENNAN I STG IF RAGH ENDS UP DEAD -hellish rebuke that bitch -c'MON faBIAN HIT that BITCH -wait is kalina a rogue and a druid? absolutely incredible -FUCK IT UP FABIAN -OMG THE HANGMAN BETTER FUCK THIS UP -YES THE BALL 31 DAMAGE -so the stream just ended. i'll say it again: absolutely fuck me -ok so we're back and kalina got fucked up -WHAT THE FUCK A NAT 20???????? YOU ABSOLUTELY LOVE TO SEE IT -ALLY WHAT THE FUCK IS UP WITH THIS -I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS AND NEITHER CAN BRENNAN -MAGIC IS REAL AND SO IS MY ALLY -i can't believe this. eat your GOD damn DICE brennan! -OMG ARE THE NIGHTMARE KING AND THE GODDESS ONE AND THE SAME? -THEY ARE! THE NIGHTMARE KING IS THE NIGHTMARE QUEEN -brennan is CRAZY AHHHHH -brennan absolutely stop this tension -28 insight. brennan is fucked -GO TOWARDS HIM KRISTEN -YES!!!! PLEASE SAY THIS IS A GOOD THING -ALLY GOT A NAT 20 THEY BETTER BE RIGHT -fear. is. not. real. -this is just like the ending of moana -NO WAY BRENNAN I LOVE YOU (you wouldn't believe it from what i have said but it's true) -this is intense i'm about to cry -you're meeting god and you say "is it too early for this?" -LMAO 5'9" -Moral of the story: IDK and that's OK -ok ally make me cRy -HELL YEAH NEW SHIRT BABY -i'm so emotional -"well oBVIouslY cASsAndRa" i wish every deity had names as normal and human as cassandra -fuck them UP cassie -i love that tracker's just like "uh... babe?" -love having god in your corner -no more hangman puppy :((( -RIZTEN are the CUTEST i love them "i love all of them, riz the most, we know this" -"we still need the crown for our grade" FABIAN I LOVE YOU -"counselo- former counsel- i'm an assistant :(" why do y'all think this man is hot -KILL ARIANWEN -"she tried to hurt me in my shattered state?" "that's her MO" aww adaine my baby -HOLY SHIT PLEASE GIVE GILEAR ALL OF ARIANWEN'S MAGIC -GORGUG YOU SWEETHEART I LOVE YOU -cassandra throwing SHADE -ThE vANdS -aelwyn throwing SHADE -AWW RAGH I LOVE YOU BABY brennan lives another day -"a big bug gave me a riddle" that is NOT what happened -aww the hirelings are all crying and i DO NOT stan -hell YEAH cassandra OH I STOPPED KEEPING TRACK OF TIME IT'S BEEN OVER 4 HOURS -hELL YES HANGVAN -i love you fabian -nO IS CHUNGLE DOWN BIM REAL? -maybe the real chungle down bim is the friends we made along the way -GARTHY i love them -arthuR aGUEFORT - absolutely wild -ayda and arthur is crazy -"snOGGING THE HEADMASTER'S DAUGHTER ARE WE?" -awww that is so smooth fig "you don't need to make me the most magnificent creature because it seems you already have" -ARTHUR PULLS THROUGH -garthy is a cutie i love how they care so much for ayda -oH FUCK ME garthy is ayda's child from her previous life -"your girlfriend's daughter fucked your mom!" goddammit siobhan i can't handle this -if they fail i will cry -CHRONOMANCY!? absolutely fuck me -"professor principal headmaster aguefort" -hell yeah arthur you're killing it -faelwyn? absolutely can't handle it -aww kristen is baby -jawbone and sandra lynn are ok? amazing -jawbone is the best character -"our parents are great" kill me why don't you siobhan -AWWW FUCKING STOP BRENNAN WITH THESE GIFTS -i just cried he wants to adopt her -"you're easy to love" jawbone is fUCKING me up -LYDIA BARKROCK what a badass i love her already -"a pheonix whom everyone she touches is reborn better" fuck off emily -gorgug is a cutie <3 <3 -ABSOLUTELY KICK SKRANKS BIRD ASS -GORGUG CONFIRMED FUCKS -riz is a dork i love him -who knew "you're so much like your father" could make me feel like that -GILEAR IS MOVING THE FUCK IN BABY -GILEAR WITH SELF CONFIDENCE IS MY AESTHETIC -aww jawbone gave ayda autism books? jawbone is the sweetest to ayda cuz OF COURSE HE IS -AYDA GETS HER SPELL!!! -Ayda's Comprehend Subtext is the cutest spell ever -adaine and fig's friendship is too cute -craig has always been down for everything. i don't know craig but i love him -YES HOOT GROWL HOOT GROWL I'M SO PROUD OF RAGH -"BAD KIDS FOR LIFE" RAGH IS A CUTIE -NO FAELWYN IS REALLY HAPPENING I CAN'T -fabian's laugh is so cute -i love how nervous fabian is -WAIT FABIAN AND AELWYN ABSOLUTELY WILL FUCK? -fabian's gonna get his KISSES IN -aww i get how hyped figayda is but they are truly so adorable -weLL EMILY AXFORD I WILL LET YOU HURT ME LIKE THAT -they said i love you :((( -tracker only deserves the best -TRACKER'S GOING TO FALLINEL? I LOVE HER -ragh is going too? gay road trip! -that's adorable -ABSOLUTELY NOT BRENNAN FUCK OFF DO NOT SAY THE NIGHT YORB IS GONNA BE THE NEXT VILLAIN -BRENNAN NO YOU BITCH I HATE YOU THE NIGHT YORB IS THE VILLAIN OF JUNIOR YEAR? -that was crazy. i cried, i laughed. i am fuCKING HYPED FOR CROWN OF CANDY AND JUNIOR YEAR GANG!