#i’d be so happy to see that rep

[jaybirdscoffee]

honestly i really hope clementine and cole from meadowlark are a qpr

[sodacowboy]

so. the dolls of my original characters. for now I’m only planning for Sol and Lazul and I’ve run into the problem of wanting them to have outfits that fit with their respective home planet’s fashions and also wanting them to match.

[nagichi-boop]

Gerald’s Journal - Disability representation

I read scans of Gerald’s Journal and I have to talk about it. Not the lore or anything like that, but the disability rep. I didn’t expect to cry reading this.

Please don’t look at this post if you don’t want to be spoiled about what’s in this journal. If you do want to read it, you can find scans here. Credit to this Twitter/X thread for the images I’ll use.

I don’t have much to say about this image, but it is nice to see Maria using a mobility aid. It’s not often we get representation for an ambulatory wheelchair user.

I do wonder about Maria’s relationship with her parents. They weren’t happy with Gerald’s wish to bring her to the ARK so that he could research a cure for her, but they let her go anyways? Maybe Gerald got some sort of order to get her to go or Maria decided she wanted to go with him, but it seems a little odd to me. I’ll expand on this a little later.

Quote from right page: “[Maria] is growing into a lovely young woman. It breaks my heart that someone as bright and energetic as her is diminished by disease. There are no visible effects, and I’ve caught my fellow researchers muttering to each other, doubting her illness. It is infuriating. I find all my reason and restraint vanished when she’s slighted.”

Oh my days, I’ve never felt so seen by a piece of media and it just so happens to be my special interest video game. I am tearing up again thinking about this. Maybe that’s silly but to have a character express his frustrations about people doubting the invisible disability of his grandchild is so touching. I wish people in my life were more like Gerald. People with invisible illnesses get doubted so much because we “look fine”, but it’s so invalidating to have your struggles questioned just because the symptoms aren’t as visibly obvious.

Quote from left page: “[Maria] doesn’t know the full scope of what [Shadow] has been designed for, but she understands he will be under tremendous strain. She’s helped me conceptualize a number of accessories that will help focus his power and aid in his mobility.”

So we now have confirmation that Shadow’s air shoes and inhibitor rings are akin to mobility aids. I headcanoned this but I didn’t know they’d flat out confirm it like that. My favourite character is canonically disabled physically (and I’d argue mentally given his PTSD). I don’t have much to say about this besides being happy that my favourite character is now even more relatable.

It also makes a lot of sense for Maria to help create them because she has experience with her own disability and can offer a perspective that an able bodied person couldn’t. That and it makes Shadow’s connection so much stronger. His mobility aids were designed by Maria. He didn’t just help her with her disability - she helped with his. He wouldn’t be able to function without what she and Gerald created for him.

Quote from the right: “Back on Earth [Maria’s?] parents have been blessed with another little girl. They’re already run tech(?) and she has none of the genetic markers like to [Maria’s] condition. While this was welcomed news, the unspoken commentary was received loud and clear.”

(I am assuming they’re talking about Maria’s sister, but I guess they could also be talking about her cousin.)

So did Maria’s parents see their new daughter as a replacement? If I’m reading that correctly, it’s so sad. Do you think Gerald told Maria about her sister/cousin? If she did know about it, I bet she was excited to meet her. But I get the feeling that her parents back home didn’t really care about her anymore given what Gerald says in his journal. It hurts that much more when you consider how much Maria wanted to go home, perhaps even return to her family.

I feel like all of this makes Maria’s death more tragic for both Gerald and Shadow. For Gerald, he did so much reason and sacrificed so much in order to try and find a cure for Maria. He supported her when no one else did. And from his perspective, despite her illness and the judgement of others, including potentially her own family, she was still positive. And yet she was killed, and he only found out about her death because of a report that had her name on it (I think anyways?).

From Shadow’s perspective, she is the person who gave his name meaning. Despite most being distant and weary of her, she was immediately friendly to him and helped teach him about the world. She helped created the devices used to reduce his pain and control his powers. He quite literally carries part of him with her. She was his sole reason for existing for a long time. And despite being this super supportive, kind, loving person, she was killed. I can imagine him being mad at Gerald for messing with his memories, but I figure there’s a degree of understanding, even if he doesn’t fully agree with what Gerald did. The difference between them both is Shadow’s purpose shifted beyond Maria while Gerald’s did not. Anyways, I digress - this post is about disability rep, not Shadow lore.

I love this and Dark Beginnings for their direct and indirect disability rep. My love for Shadow and Maria has only grown and I have a deeper appreciation for Gerald. I wish more people were as understanding as he is towards people with invisible disabilities.

I don’t really have a conclusion. I just really wanted to yap about the journal entries.

[tevanbuckley]

Do you think it's fair to say that Bi Buck was completely ruined by the fandom assholish strike of hating on every LI he gets? Pls don't get me wrong I still smile every time I remember we got Bi Buck but I feel like whenever I want to be happy about it I remember the complete bs people pulled to the point of trying to get the actor who plays Tommy fired. I feel so guilty because now I kinda wish it didn't happen at all. I am sad that this peice of representation turned into something void of joy because of how the majority of the fandom act (let's be real yes the show is popular with gp but the fandom consists mostly of buddies)

I think at the end of the day the people they’re most ruining the show for is themselves 🤷‍♀️

they’re the ones who’ve become so parasocially intertwined with a ship that they can’t see the forest through the trees. All whilst we’re getting to enjoy a queer storyline that’s not only good in its own right but genuinely has the potential to widen the boundaries of queer rep more broadly.

like we moved past just how monumentally insane it was for a network tv show to make their reformed fuckboy main character canonically bisexual 7 seasons in way too quickly imo.

and idk if it’s that the fandom is (at this point) mostly hardcore buddie shippers or if they’re just very very loud. The amount of bucktommy fanfic produced since 7.04 alone is crazy and speaks to their popularity.

I’d also recommend staying away from twitter/tiktok with a 10 foot pole. idk how it happened but tumblr really has become the most sane fandom space. It’s also fine to just not engage with the fandom side of the show at all. 911 has been my comfort re-watch show for years and it’s only in s7 that I really got into the fandom. If this isn’t improving the viewing experience for you anymore then it’s okay to step back for a bit and just watch the show for yourself.

[candiiee]

Hi! How are you doing ☺️?

Can I request Bakugo and Iida with a female s/o who gets ovarian cysts?

Thank you have a good day 💜

This is an interesting request- I’ll try my best though :))

Not exactly sure if you wanted separate one shots for both of them, or something else, so I’ll just do 2 one shots for both of ‘em.

Warnings: just swearing in Bakugo’s

——————————

ᴛʜɪꜱ ɪꜱ ᴘᴀɪɴꜰᴜʟ (Katsuki Bakugo x female! Reader)

Katsuki headed for your dorm room, in a foul mood. He had got into a fight with some extra who talked shit about him, so he had gotten detention. He opened your door without even knocking, not even caring if you were changing or something. A quick glance around the room, and he saw you on the bed, curled and grumbling in pain.

He frowned, making his way over, worry ever so slightly evident in his eyes. “Y/N. You okay? Or is it just period pain?” You snorted, adjusting yourself to face him. “No. It’s an ovarian cyst.” He slightly flushed, not expecting that answer.

“A what?” You grumbled, “Basically a cyst in my ovaries. Usually ignorable, but hurts like shit every now and then.” You groaned, slamming your pillow on your face. He paused, “Oh. Does it go away? The cyst, I mean.”

You nodded, “Yeah. But I hate it so much.” He paused, “Anything I can do to make it better?”

“Nah. But I’d be happy to accept some cuddles.” He scoffed, but climbed into bed with you. “Mm, fine. If it’ll make you feel better.” You hummed, him the big spoon as you cuddled. Katsuki had originally been hoping for some reassurance from you, but the turns had tabled. He wasn’t gonna argue though.

—————————

ᴛʜɪꜱ ɪꜱ ᴘᴀɪɴꜰᴜʟ (Tenya Iida x female! Reader)

Tenya headed for your dorm room, homework in hand. You hadn’t been in class today, and as the class rep and your boyfriend, it was his responsibility to make sure you were kept up to speed. He knocked on the door, making sure you knew it was him. It wouldn’t be very plus ultra of him to walk in on you changing or doing anything not for his eyes.

After hearing your voice allow him access, he opened the door, covering his eyes for extra security. You were in your bed, smiling as he covered his eyes. “I’m decent, Iida.” He slowly uncovered his eyes. “Good. I have your homework.”

He paused, concern in his eyes. “May I ask why you are in bed, and in obvious pain?” You nodded, “Ovarian cysts.” He paused, putting your homework on the side table. “I see. Anything I can do in order to make you feel better?” You shifted in your bed. “Cuddles.” He went red. He had cuddled with you before, but not in your bed. “Cuddles.. are you sure? It is most inappropriate to cuddle in your bed.”

You giggled, “Calm down. I’m not gonna get pregnant cuddling in bed or anything. Come on.” He paused, then hesitatingly approached, climbing into bed. You wrapped your arms around him, as you could tell he was nervous. Finally he relaxed, and cuddled with you.

———————

Done! Sorry it took so long 😅

I’m currently on vacation.

[ironunderstands]

Not a question, just very happy it's not just me loving IP3 (or trans Ratio for that matter). Yap away on both

Ugh I love them both so much

Most of my headcanons are when I find something to be better and/or more interesting than it is in canon, or something that’s a great extension of canon, and that’s exactly what trans Ratio is to me.

It takes his already present insecurities and squares them, as now the doctor has to contend with not just being a SMART enough man, but being a smart enough MAN, and adding that extra layer of misery and complexity is just so delightful.

By taking a character racked by self doubt and adding another layer to it, like Ratio being trans, you complicate his current insecurities and give new perspectives to look at them from.

Like in canon Ratio exercises so much because he wants to be the most perfect, best version of himself and has been doing it since a very young age (middle school).

But then you add him being trans to that, and suddenly he’s not just combating being perceived as not good enough, he’s combating being perceived entirely, attempting to try and get others to view him the way he really is, and attempting to live up to whatever masculine ideal that would push away his dysphoria, something prominent within his life from a young age.

I’ve kinda dived into this within my fics about it, but I like the idea that Ratio keeps this a secret from everyone- and I mean everyone. He already doesn’t live up to his own expectations of himself, so to have the rest of the galaxy find out that he doesn’t live up to their expectations of him either (ie being a cis man I mean you cannot tell me there aren’t like hundreds of people in universe begging for his uh- yeah), it would crush him.

I mean considering how guarded he is already, adding another thing to hide behind that alabaster mask would be fun, even if I think Ratio is likely at least a decade post-op + post-transition, so it’s not like he has to bind or anything, but the threat is still there. Especially considering his well known love of baths- imagine if he avoided the public baths at his home planet (considering how heavily Greek/Roman inspired Ratio is), and how that might affected him growing up, or just the tendency of shirtlessness in general.

There’s just a lot of possibilities and intricacies to it that makes me really like this particular headcanon, and it will always be canon in my heart haha. I have some more silly things behind it, like me wanting to give Aventio and Ratiopaz biological kids because it would be cute, or just the inherent joy of the big buff guy actually being the trans one rather than who you would expect it to be/who it’s stereotypically made as- Aventurine, as I like when characters have traits you don’t expect them to possess.

I also tend to dislike Aventurine being made ftm because he’s implied to be an SA survivor and rep for amab victims is already kinda abysmal so I don’t like taking it away, also I just think it’s boring tbh, at least for me it just doesn’t interest me.

Trans Topaz is a whole other discussion, personally I think she’s mtnb, and more femme presenting (I’d make her use she/they in my fics it’s just pronoun swapping when writing polyamory is miserable and anybody who’s ever written it can attest to that 😭, it’s there in spirit I promise!)

I honestly don’t have deep reasons behind this one, it’s just pure vibes. Someone was like, “Topaz gives nonbinary” once on here and I’m like yeah, yeah she does 😭. She reminds me of Childe a lot and I also view him as nonbinary so she’s kinda in a similar boat.

I think she’s very motherly but like in the way Mother Nature is if that makes sense? Mother is mothering but she’s also a creature tm* and certified tax collecting humanity loving entity. Also I have a close friend who’s a trans woman and Topaz reminds me of her so like, bam ur trans now lol (hi Alice if ur seeing this).

As for Aventiopaz, I fear I’d need a whole other post dedicated to why I like them. You guys know why I like Aventio, Avenpaz also require a whole other yap session, and Ratiopaz is the best rarepair ever fight me. Generally I like it because it’s really sweet, the dynamic is hilarious, they are the power trio of all time, they have great gameplay synergy, and their designs complement each other a lot- being primary colors and all.

I also enjoy their individual unique relationships to the IPC and how that might affect their interactions with one another, both in canon and in my brain. Moreover the trio of coworkers who are well known around the office for a) getting the job done and b) being absolutely obnoxious around one another (in a good way) is incredibly fun and I enjoy the idea of all the shenanigans they would get up to.

Perhaps my next Aventiopaz fic would be them going on a mission together or something, as I definitely want to write another one, and also update my slideshow of the parents au, I’ve just been so busy and a bit unmotivated 😭 so hopefully I can get to that soon

[thatliftgirl]

Hey guys! So everyone wants me to make a tip post, and I will, but I think I may need it to be a few parts and then I’ll compile them.

Anyway, bo0sting update #5:

It has now been 23 days of bo0sting makeup on èbày. My last update I said I was putting it into vacation mode because it was too busy. Well at first, it slowed down but now I’m up to 32 orders I have to ship when I’m “back”, so that’s a lot.

My total is about $3,000 right now. Hard to say though because I forgot my bank account password lol.

Anyway, it’s been a ton of work. I tried higher prices this time around but realized people won’t really pay $29 most of the time for products, so today I lowered prices of things not selling. I have one buyer that buys everything and wants it really cheap, but she has very bad English so I allow it for the most part because she buys so much. I told a couple people I do requests but I didn’t realize how much work looking for specific stuff is. I already take too long in store and looking for stuff makes it even worse and much harder to get anything else. I guess I could ask reps about them and risk an empty basket idk 🤷‍♀️;-; she’s requested 30 items, so we’ll see how that goes- she better pay well lol. I also have a woman who resells right on her account for insane prices and somehow has sales- that made me angry for a bit and I declined all her offers but then I saw a really sweet review she left so I forgave her. Up to 115 orders now.

Anyone who wants to know more abt bo0sting or specifics can message me and I’d be happy to share. (:

[nnnyxie]

Feeling a lil down about myself, what would you think about Izu x chubby reader? Reader isn’t necessarily insecure but does have bad days, maybe some of Izu‘s fans were being extremely horrible to reader or something because of their weight (I live for protective!Izu) and reader just shuts themselves off and is rotting away in a pile of blankets in their apartment while Izu dosen’t get what’s going on at all- he adores reader and isn’t all like „oh but your boobs and ass and thighs“ he just adored READER you know??? Often when I read x chubby!reader they only mention their curves and thighs and what not but I don’t think reducing plus size people to curvy plus size people is very inclusive so idk if that makes sense but yeah kwnfksld

#𖢥 izuku anon

baby i am loving these requests and i’m happy to give you chubby rep!!

i sorta based it on how i get when i’m insecure about myself so i’m sorry if it isn’t what you were hoping for :(

some days it’s just hard yk?? people get mean and it can really fuck with your brain. it makes it hard to look at yourself sometimes.

especially when you’re with a pro hero. people think that you ‘don’t belong together’ just cause you two have different body types. and it’s sickening how people think that way.

it makes you feel awful— all of the hateful comments you get under your posts gets overwhelming and sometimes you have to archive them all together. sometimes you even have to deactivate your account because they get so overwhelming.

izuku always wonders why you do that— you never give him a real reason. just a ‘i don’t feel like being on social media right now’. he knows it’s not the truth but, he doesn’t want to pry. he doesn’t want to make you uncomfortable by hounding you for answers.

but tonight— tonight was awful. the first thing you saw while opening instagram was a picture of you and your lovely boyfriend, something a fan posted. the fan was nice!! their post was a cute edit and it was an appreciation post!! but the comments— the comments were sickening. they were filled with so much hate, it made you physically ill. and today you weren’t ‘feeling’ yourself so the comments didn’t exactly help.

you deactivated your account again. now you were thinking about just deleting it all together. it won’t stop the hate but it’ll stop you from seeing it. either way— you decided to try and push those awful comments away and read, maybe it could lighten your mood.

it didn’t. the thoughts kept coming back— you couldn’t even read a full paragraph. it felt awful. you felt awful. maybe a shower would help?

as soon as you stepped foot in the bathroom, you stepped right back out. it hurt to look at yourself. it made you cry. you weren’t particularly insecure but these comments were ruthless and they just really got to you this time.

when izuku got back home from patrol, he found you in your shared bed, you were curled up in a pile of blankets with nearly all the pillows surrounding you. he heard your crying— and was immediately concerned. why wouldn’t he be?

“love, what’s the matter? did you watch the neverending story again?” he sat beside you and pulled the blankets down so he could full see your face. this wasn’t your ‘sad movie’ cry. this was entirely different.

“hey, what’s going on?” “it’s nothing— i uhm just read something sad is all.” you were a very poor liar.

“be honest with me, please? is something going on?” he was now laying beside you, holding you from behind. “i just— do you really want to be with me? i’m not—” you choked, crying more at the thought of him leaving for someone ‘better’ (there is no one better). “of course i do. i love you. why wouldn’t i want to be with you?” “how aren’t you… how aren’t you disgusted by me?” “why would you ever think i’d feel that way towards you? i love all of you. and everyday i find more to love about you.”

then— it clicked. he remembered.

“is this about that post? bakugo sent it to me… he told me to look at the comments— baby if i knew this was happening sooner i would’ve done something about it. why didn’t you tell me?” he rubbed your arm in comfort, he knew all about being insecure— of course he couldn’t relate to where yours stemmed from but, he knew how awful it felt to feel like you aren’t enough for people. “i didn’t want you to be mad at them. they’re your supporters.” “they aren’t my supporters if they’re treating you this way.” he took a breath, he was upset. not by you— never. but, by the hateful people. “i love you, and every part of you. i’ll never be disgusted by you and i’ll never want anyone else. i only want you.” god you loved him.

“can you turn so i can see that pretty face?” you turned to face him. izuku had a smile but, his eyes welled when he saw the tear streaks that ran down your cheeks. he cupped your face, swiping his thumps to wipe away the stray tears that still fell. “you’re the most beautiful person i have ever met.” you cried again, not because you were upset— but, because, he was just so wonderful to you. izuku held you, letting you cry into him.

“i’ll address it.” “you don’t need to.” “i’m going to.”

don’t mind the neverending story part…. i just rewatched it today and cried abt the horse scene… artax :(

[shunin-gumis]

Designs of Happiness - Track B02

L4mps Main Story Translation

Title: Active Theory of Happiness

Characters: Nagi, Ryui, Toi, Netaro, Kafka

Summary: At the 4th Ward Mayor Appointment Ceremony, the cue card that Nagi prepared for his speech was completely drenched for some reason… 

Thank you aca @/463ce6, myun @/myuntachis and Niri @/Niri_riri for helping me with proofing!

Kafka: “...and I bet my life on revitalizing tourism in HAMA.”

Location: Ceremony Venue

Kafka: Does having no large-scale commercial facilities or redevelopment investment make our region less attractive? The answer is a firm “no.”

Kafka: Finding value in resources that are already available to us and putting them to use effectively to change our circumstances positively–That is what HAMA Tours is working towards. 

Kafka: I’m certain that most of you gathered here today are from Wards 15 through 18. Know that your wards are indispensable strategic zones in HAMA. 

Kafka: As you had all witnessed earlier, these five members have been newly assigned as Ward Mayors— 

Nagi: …*trembling*

Yodaka: Nagi, remember to breathe. 

Netaro: Psst, can I eat my popsicle now? 

Toi: Do you think it’s okay as long as he doesn’t make any noise, Ani-sama…?

Ryui: ‘Course not. Put it away. 

Momiji: (The Ward Mayor Appointment Ceremony… This is the fourth time I’m experiencing this, but I’m still as nervous as ever…)

HAMA Ward Member A: Well, I suppose we don’t have anything flashy like Chinatown here. But I like how peaceful it is instead. 

HAMA Ward Member B: Still, it’s sad that we didn’t have a single candidate after the very first Ward Mayor. 

HAMA Ward Member C: The other 14 Wards managed to have successful Tours thanks to them, don’t you think we have a chance too? 

HAMA Ward Member D: Right! Having twins act as Ward Mayors shows how novel they are at selecting fitting personnel. Not to mention, the two of them are super adorable!

Daniel: The seats aren’t all filled, but you can tell the folks present are all people who wanna see their own wards flourish. 

Momiji: That’s right… Do your best, Night Team…! Please try to put the peoples’ minds at ease! 

Kafka: With the addition of the Night Team, I hereby declare once more, as representative of all the Ward Mayors, that we shall perform our duties to the best of our abilities for the specially designated tourism wards.

*clapping*

Kafka: Now, Nagi Hachinoya, the Mayor of Ward 16 and leader of the Night Team: Please come forward.

Nagi: Yes.

*Nagi moves to the front, jumps back from the mic, before standing in front of it again*

Nagi: Um… Hello. I’m Nagi Hachino–

*thump*

HAMA Ward Member C: …He hit his head on the mic. 

Nagi: …Ouch… Oh. Um, Sorry. Right…

*Nagi completely freezes*

Nagi: ……

Nagi: ……

Nagi: ……

HAMA Ward Member B: …Did the mic bug out? Need to fix that… 

Momiji: N-Nagi-kun, calm down! Or wait, maybe he’s too calm right now…!?

Netaro: He’s come to a full stop~

Yodaka: Right… Just looking at him is making me anxious too. 

Ryui: Oi oi, are we seriously letting someone like that be the leader…!

Toi: C-Cue card! Nagi-kun, look for your cue card! In your pockets…! 

Nagi: Oh, right. I have those, um… 

HAMA Ward Member D: Oh! He’s moving again!

Nagi: …… 

HAMA Ward Member A: …And now he’s stuck again. 

Nagi: (The cue card… is completely drenched for some reason. I can’t read a single word.)

Nagi: (Oh, that’s right… I was thinking about what to write for my speech when someone called for me, so I left the room after tucking the card in my pocket and then I put the clothes for wash, not to mention I also got splashed by the fountain toda–)

Daniel:  …He’s been quiet for too long. The folks are getting restless. 

Momiji: Oh no, what if Nagi-kun gets a bad rep over this… 

Nagi: (Can’t be helped. I’ll have to give up on this.) 

Toi: Huh? He put the cue card back in his pocket… 

Nagi: I asked myself if I’d done everything I could until now. 

HAMA Ward Member C: …He started talking all of a sudden, but what’s he on about?

Ryui: Where’s the context, dumbass…! 

Nagi: All my life, nothing ever turned out right, so I always get cold feet when it comes to doing anything at all. 

Nagi: Life would always pass by me, just like a river… and I was someone who could only watch it from the side. 

Nagi: But then I tried running up a hill for someone else’s sake, and then I grabbed onto someone with all my might… Um, what I’m trying to say is, I jumped into the river and went against the flow, and the result was actually good for once.

Nagi: That’s why I decided I’ll try my best with everything. 

Momiji: …… 

HAMA Ward Member C: …He looks refreshed. Wait, is he done already? 

Nagi: Um.

HAMA Ward Member A: No, looks like he’s still got something to say…! 

Nagi: Our washing machines can erase both stains and cue cards. That’s all.

*silence*

Nagi: HAMA Nice Trip.

Location: Ten Nights of Dreams BAR

Nagi: I think I gave the best speech I could. 

*Ryui grabs Nagi*

Ryui: In what world!? Were you TRYING to kill me from secondhand embarrassment!? 

Nagi: Ugh… Please don’t shake me so much.

Sonia: Leave Nagi-shan alone~!

Mashiro: The two of you, please, do calm down! 

Laika: Down! 

Momiji: Um, good work at the ceremony today, everyone! Eat and drink as much as you want so you can have a fresh start tomorrow! 

Yodaka: Good work on your speech, Nagi. 

Chouun: It was very impressive. 

Toi: He did his best…! 

Netaro: It was hilarious! 

Nagi: Yeah. Though everyone left immediately after. 

Daniel: Oh yeah, I heard some gramps say it was over for us. Couldn’t help but laugh at that. 

Momiji: Wha- Manager…! 

Daniel: What? It’s not like I’m down in the dumps about it. 

Momiji: (Maybe not YOU, but what about the others!? What if this makes Nagi-kun depressed—) 

Nagi: Chief, the future looks bright. 

Momiji: Huh? 

Nagi: …I’ve always thought of myself as powerless. But then, I managed to stop Ryui with my own two hands— 

Ryui: Literally. 

Nagi: I got Toi to smile again. The happiness from that day still gives me strength, even after all this time. I’m brimming with sparkling energy.

Daniel: That the face of someone sparkling? 

Yodaka: Quiet, Danny. 

Nagi: …All this time, I let go of so many things because I was afraid that I’d fail to be happy 

Nagi: Now, it’s like there’s someone telling me it’s time to take them back. 

Netaro: Is this the work of a guardian spirit or some sort? 

Toi: Hm, I don’t think that’s— 

Ryui: A person with no confidence can’t do shit. 

Nagi: In that case, I’m sure I can do anything now. 

Momiji: (Nagi-kun’s never spoken so positively before…!)

Momiji: That’s right! As long as we’re alive, we have to find a way to be happy. 

Nagi: …! We have to be happy… You’re right. 

Netaro: Since happiness is a chemical reaction, anyone is capable of replicating it. Should I lend you some references? 

Nagi: Yes, please. I’ll read them all. And then–

Nagi: I WILL be happy. 

Momiji: Yep yep! 

Nagi: And after I become happy, I’ll put that energy into flowers and scatter them all across the world.

Momiji: That’s a great idea! 

Ryui: Scattering flowers everywhere…? Sounds disturbing for some reason. 

Daniel: Right, Ryui, about your shop… 

Ryui: I know. I need a shop to be a Ward Mayor, right? 

Momiji: That’s right. The criteria for selecting members of the Night Team is that  “they own a shop with roots in the local districts” after all. 

Ryui: I’ve already been looking into some properties with Toi. 

Toi: We managed to find a property with the perfect feng shui. Not only is it facing the right direction, it’s even well-balanced between yin and yang energies. But… 

Ryui: We’ve got a problem with the owner. 

Toi: The Master of the house… In other words, this person is an old friend of our grandfather. 

Ryui: Not sure if he’s pulling strings behind the scenes, but our negotiations are going nowhere. 

Toi: I’ve asked them personally too, but… 

Ryui: You don’t have to go through all that trouble. But, thank you. 

Momiji: (I remember Toi-kun mentioning that Ryui-kun doesn’t have good relations with their family…)

Ryui: If he wasn’t in the picture, this wouldn’t be a problem, fuck’s sake. 

Netaro: Is he a hindrance?

Ryui: Yeah. 

Netaro: In that case, how about I control him using brain waves? The human brain is surprisingly easy to— 

Nagi: -Easy to understand! He’s saying we should deepen our bonds by helping out our fellow men. 

Netaro: Or perhaps I could falsify the registry after making a clone–

Nagi: He’s offering to take out a loan to buy the property, yeah. 

Ryui: What the hell are you on? 

Netaro: Oyoyo? 

Toi: I’m sure he was just trying to help in his own way. Thank you as always, Netaro-san. 

Netaro: Toi is my precious human after all. 

Toi: Huh…! Um, you’re precious to me too, Netaro-san… 

Netaro: We have to watch the continuation of “Crash Landing on AI?” after all. 

Toi: Yeah! Let’s buy lots of popsicles on the way back home too!

Netaro and Toi: Yay~ 

Nagi: The two of them first bonded over Studio Ghizli. 

Ryui: …Hah? 

Momiji: (Ryui-kun’s in a terrible mood right now…!) 

Yodaka: So, have you decided on what kind of shop you’d like to run? 

Ryui: …Don’t feel like telling you. 

Yodaka: Oh my… Fufu, are you the type to hold secrets? Or perhaps you enjoy surprises? 

Ryui: …Tch. 

Toi: Wha~ It’s still a secret? I haven’t heard yet either… 

Ryui: …… 

Toi: Ani-sama, please tell me~?

Ryui: …Can’t be helped. I’ll tell you, and only you. 

Toi: Okay! 

Momiji: (They’re whispering to each other… How cute. They’re close as usual.) 

Yodaka: The young man with an eyepatch who hides the name of his castle… There’s a certain romance to it. 

Daniel: What’s the point when we’ll find out soon enough. 

Momiji: Let’s let him be until he decides to open up on his own, okay? 

Note:

I’m not 100% on this but I think AIの胴体着陸 (AI Belly Landing) is a parody of Crash Landing on You, a romantic Korean drama, which is localized in Japanese as 愛の不時着 (Love’s Crash Landing) where AI and Ai(meaning love) is the closest connection I have, since both Toi and Netaro enjoy watching romance and Netaro watches shows in other languages, including Korean.

Masterlist

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[daphwritesworld]

How do you think the girls would describe their significant other on media day questions ? “What made you fall in love with _” “Tell us about _” “What if something you wish she knew?”

Fluffy fluffy with our favorite girlies Leah x R x Keira all talking about each other 💗

this is such a cute question omg !! 🥺

Funnily enough i think Leah is the shyest one when it comes to media questions about all of them. she starts blushing and forgetting her words like a lovesick fool. Super nervous because she just loves them both so much and she’s worried about saying the wrong thing, but she always ends up saying the sweetest thing ever.

“What made you fall in love with not one, but two footballers?”

“If i’m being honest i didn’t mean for it to happen, it just did. i was none the wiser, until one day i realized it’s not normal for your breath to disappear every time you see your two best mates. or to always be thinking about them and wondering if they’re okay, how they’re feeling, if they ate and drank enough. its like i was already in love with them before my brain even realized it. so to answer your question: i don’t know what made me fall in love with them, but i know when i realized i did. when i noticed that all of their problems were my problems, their worries were my worries, their sadness was my sadness, their happiness was my happiness, and that their success gave me the ultimate feeling of joy. that’s when i knew i in love.”

Keira is a hell of a lot calmer than Leah. While Leah is sweating bullets and trying not to pass out, Keira is all smiles and heart eyes as she reminisces on the way all 3 of them made out in the hair & makeup room right before coming out. she’s use to being the calm in the middle of the storm (the storm being R and Leah😂)

“Tell us about your girlfriends. Is it hard to navigate a polyamorous relationship in the demanding word of football?”

“Y/N is the sweetest soul you could ever meet. She’s always taking care of me and Leah in so many ways. She’s also the best cook that i know— oh and baker. She’ll ring my neck if i forget to mention that those two are different. She’s very serious about not using those titles as interchangeable,” and she has a smile on her face the whole time too. “But as a teammate I couldn’t ask for someone better to be out on the pitch with. A lot of people assume me or Leah are the gymrats, but it’s really Y/N that stays the extra hour for a few extra reps. She pushes herself harder than anyone I know, and everyone can tell with the skills that come out when she plays.”

“Oh god I could say so much about Leah. I’ve known her for a majority of my life at this point, and it’s been a wild ride ever since. She’s one of the funniest but most dedicated people i know. She never gives up no matter what the odds are, and i’ve carried a piece of her passion inside me every since we met. She’s always been a driving force for me to do better and be better. And she’s actually the person who introduced me and Y/N at a Camp in 2019. In a way I think it was always destiny for us to all end up together,” and then her smile kind of falters as she thinks of the second question.

“It definitely gets to be a struggle sometimes when we’re away from each other, but facetime is our biggest helper in that department. I’d say the hardest part was at the beginning when it first came out to the media. The nasty comments and opinions from the public were a hot topic among our mangers and coaches for a while.”

and then we get to little ol R. Who everyone assumes is gonna be the nicest and sweetest little angel….and then they ask her “What is something you wish your girlfriends knew?”

and R had this sickly sweet smile on her face as she pretends to think, her eyes brightening up as she giggles a little at first, “I wish they knew that it was me whole stole all of Leah’s gnocchi at camp that one year. she was running around trying to kill whoever did it…well it was me babe, not Keira. it might be 5 years later, but that’s been weighing heavily on my mind. The guilt is killing me. It’s me. I’m the Gnoochie Bandit of ‘19. Sorry for letting you take the fall Kei, love you long time tho!”

the interviewer is literally just staring at R trying not to bust the fuck out laughing…because out of all the things she thought R could’ve said…that wasn’t even on her fucking bingo card.

[livwritesstuff]

uhhh so i finally watched the 3rd episode of The Last of Us. that shit was unpleasant. this is also…not happy.

I’d like to think that Steve and Eddie’s daughters watch The Last of Us as it comes out and spend the entire six weeks it runs begging their dads to watch it too.

Robbie is the one leading the crusade – the one who enjoys horror and sci-fi the most. Moe, Steve’s kid through and through, tolerates the genre, though she usually spends the duration of the movie or show questioning vague world-building elements. She does appreciate a good story though, and she likes hanging out with her sister, so she ends up enjoying it.

Hazel hates horror, slashers, all things scary, so she isn’t inclined to watch the show at all, which is mostly why the older two turn to their dads when they need an audience to channel their harassing towards.

Moe and Robbie pester them for weeks and eventually, about a month after the show’s final episode airs, Hazel approaches Steve and Eddie saying she wants to start watching it but doesn’t want to watch it alone, and Hazel is the baby of the family and they’ve got less than two years left with her until she’s off to college like her older sisters, so they’re usually inclined to give in to any and all requests she makes.

(And they never find out that Hazel only asked them because Moe and Robbie bribed her to do it).

The three of them watch the first episode, Hazel curled up in an armchair while Steve and Eddie share a blanket on the couch. Hazel covers her eyes during the more disturbing scenes and makes Eddie describe them shot-for-shot as they unfold. By the time the credits are rolling, they’ve all collectively decided they don’t hate the show (Eddie actually really enjoys it).

“That shit might be worse than what we went through,” Eddie acknowledges later that night while he and Steve are getting ready for bed.

“That’s...” Steve pauses, “Yeah, that’s fair. If I had to choose between the Upside Down and that, I’d choose the Upside Down.”

“It’s always nice to know things could’a been worse.”

“Shut up,” Steve nudges him.

They all watch the second episode the next night, and it goes pretty much the same.

The following evening, Hazel goes to a sleepover and tells her dads they don’t have to wait to watch the third episode if they want, and because Moe and Robbie had repeatedly said they had to see the third one, even if they don’t end up watching any further, they curl up on the couch under that same blanket (this time with one or two more glasses of wine than they would normally have if their kids were home) and settle in to watch it.

The episode starts out normal.

“Don’t we know that guy from something?”

“Which guy?”

“Ed – the only guy on the screen. Isn't he in that show Moe showed us an episode of – the one in the office with that one from SNL?”

“The Office?”

No, not The Office. Never mind.”

They quickly realize exactly why their daughters had been so insistent that they watch it.

“Is this the good kind of queer rep?”

“I never know anymore,” Steve shakes his head, “I just let Moe tell me that kind of stuff.”

The mood sobers quickly after that, and they don’t even make it to the end of the episode before Steve says he’s done. Eddie doesn’t respond, just turns the TV off.

They sit together for a while, Steve’s hand tight on Eddie’s thigh, Eddie running his nails over the nape of Steve’s neck, until Steve finishes his wine and lets Eddie pull him off the couch (at fifty-six, his knees aren’t what they used to be).

They get ready for bed together, like they almost always do, and Steve looks at the two of them in the bathroom mirror.

They’re older.

Obviously they’re older – it’s been thirty years since they first started dating (that particular anniversary is coming up, actually), and almost forty since they won the war against Vecna and the Mind Flayer.

Steve’s hair is very decidedly greying now, as is Eddie’s, though it’s harder to tell because his hair is lighter – and frankly, Eddie is more concerned about whether or not his hairline is going to start receding like Wayne’s (though it’s always been pretty clear that his hair is from his mom’s half of the genetic pool, so he might be in the clear).

They climb into bed, immediately reaching for each other.

“Eddie,” Steve says, his voice wet, and Eddie’s breath hitches.

Steve doesn’t call him Eddie very often, not like he did when they were young.

“Hey,” Eddie replies, pulling Steve into his arms, “Love you, Stevie.”

“Love you too,” Steve says, letting his husband hold him close, pressing his face into Ed’s neck so his nose rests on the spot that jumps with his ever-persisting heartbeat and trying to not let creep back into his brain the thirty-year-old memory of what Eddie looks like when he’s nearly dead.

He doesn’t think about that stuff too much anymore. He hasn’t had to, and after all these years, it sometimes doesn’t even seem real.

It was real though, and as he slips a hand under Eddie’s shirt to rest on the raised scars that still decorate his stomach and torso, Steve begins to kick himself for not considering sooner the possibility that it could still return, for not having a gameplan ready to execute to keep their daughters safe if it did.

And he would keep them safe. He would keep them safe the way no adult had done for him.

Steve and Eddie’s oldest daughter is twenty-one. Their oldest daughter is now older than both of them had been when Eddie had nearly died, when Steve had carried him out of hell and made sure he didn’t. All three of their daughters – even Hazel – are older than Steve had been when he got sucked into that horrible mess, and they’re still so damn young. He can’t imagine looking at any one of them and seeing someone equipped to take on what had been asked of Steve when he was their same age.

He remembers how grown up he'd felt back then at the big age of nineteen. In all fairness, it was the most grown up he'd been up to that point — he’s always the most grown up he’s ever been, but now, with the privilege of hindsight and two decades of parenting under his belt, he's able to recognize just how young they’d been.

They'd been kids. They’d all been kids, kids with body counts, kids who could look at an arsenal of weapons and know which one they wielded best, kids who'd lived double lives since their teens because, despite it all, they’d still had NDA’s they could barely comprehend shoved into their hands before they could even think to seek comfort from the adults in their lives who were supposed to have been there for them, but weren’t.

Steve lifts his head, still grazing his fingertips over Eddie’s scars..

“Hey, if...if all that stuff starts up again–”

“It won’t,” Eddie interrupts.

“I know.”

“It’s been forty years.”

“I know,” Steve repeats, “But if it did–”

“It won’t,” Eddie insists.

“Ed, humor me. Please.”

Eddie pauses.

“Fine,” he sighs, because he knows that the prospect of the Upside Down and all of its horrors returning is a fear for Steve in a way that it isn’t for him.

“If all that shows up again, just…don’t let me go back, okay? Don’t let me get involved again, because I...I’ll want to. I’ll have to, but I can’t...you–I, I mean, our–the girls–”

Steve is stammering and Ed silences him with a soft kiss.

“Steve,” Eddie says against his lips, “I know.”

He clutches Steve’s face in his hands, leaning back so their eyes can meet, so Steve can see the crow’s feet that have made a home on his face (Steve loves them, loves him, loves that their life together has been happy enough to put them there), “You’re my whole fucking world, baby. There’s no way I’d let you go. No fucking chance.”

Steve manages a nod.

“It’s not gonna come back, Steve, okay?”

“Ed,” Steve shakes his head.

“No – just say okay. Please?”

“Okay.”

[dom1re]

Hi 👋🏽 I so admire your arts too!! If it’s ok, I’d love to know more about your approach to shading and rendering. I always find your use of colour so calming and complementary. 💖💖

Whereas I tend to be over saturated and why I often draw in greyscale

When I read that you liked my arts too I died. I was down on the floor. Crying tears of joy. Then I realized I have a response to draft so I got up.

So here ya go!! I hope you find something interesting here. I organized it into 3 parts for easier reading:

Rendering Overview

Picking Colors

Shading (or winging it and hoping for the best)

Also if anyone has any tips I'm all ears!! I’m always trying to optimize my process, make it quicker + cleaner

Rendering Overview

My current rendering process on Procreate (click and swipe):

1. Rough sketches

This is where I try to get the anatomy and pose right. I can get up to 3 reps in here depending on how refined I want it to be. Yep I care a lot about my lines...

2. Clean line

... coz it's my favorite part!! I get such a dopamine rush seeing the sketches come together into a clean line lol. Here I use the Selection Tool and Liquify to resize and adjust the forms (gotta move away from doing this too much tho)

3. Color

First I create a flat base layer and color over it using Clipping Mask (pretty standard I think). Then I divvy my drawing into as many layers as possible - one each for skin, hair, shirt, waistcoat, trousers, etc - as I color them all. More on this below.

4. Shade

ewww shading... my least favorite part. I use Multiply layers and gray colors, again pretty standard. I usually have 1-3 layers here, stacked on one another, depending on the desired depth. More on this below.

5. Finishing touches

This stage involves a lot of small (but important imo) things, which vary depending on the drawing:

Tinting lines (Because shading makes the colors darker, lines need to get darker too)

Highlights on hair, face, clothes, eyes, etc. I can never make up my mind between Overlay/Hard Light/Soft Light layers for this

Little wisps of hair or lighting effects 

and voila I have something to share with the world. wooo

Picking Colors

Ok about my colors… I wish I had some fancy technique to show but tbh I just eyeball them and try them out a bunch. Now if I’m using a reference I could use the color picker, but I don't like to coz the results are way off for whatever reasons (ex. lighting in the img). Anyways it doesn’t have to be the same color as the reference; as long as the colors “make sense” to me I'm happy.

But what if the colors I chose are too saturated or too dark? I use the Adjustment Tools for this. I can just select the layer (or an area using the Selection Tool) and edit its darkness and saturation. I found this way easier than painting over or color-dropping repeatedly.

This is why I leverage as many layers as possible. It allows a modular control on my rendering - I can change the color of my character’s skin, eyes, or waistcoat patterns and keep all other components unaffected and clean. Sometimes I have like 100+ layers and it drives me batshit crazy but the pros still outweigh the cons. Or so I tell myself

( + I would love to understand grayscale and use it as freely as u do. I watched bunch of vids on it but something about it just hasn’t stuck with me yet 😔)

Shading I guess

Similar to coloring, I create several Multiply layers and stack them together for depth. For example:

This is again for that modular control but honestly I wouldn't be doing this if I was good at shading... I feel so lost every time, I just don't know how it works. But one ‘hack’ I’ve come up with is shading skins and clothes differently. I use reddish gray for skin (and brown/red hair), and just gray for everything else.

The character feels more lively and natural with a bit of red undertones in their skin. I don't think this is the best way to render skins though. Just a little shortcut til I get to study the topic more.

Something else I do to get over my fear of shading is using good references. I’m always lurking on Pinterest for them but alas, I can’t always find that perfect image with perfect lighting and poses. It’s kinda sad funny how the quality of my rendering depends so much on the reference:

(it's not a 'bad' reference per se - I chose it really for the pose, not for shading)

At the end of the day tho I’m just a learning artist so I try not to be too harsh on myself. Someday I'll render shiny shoes and shirt creases without refs. I yearn for that day 

Well on that cheerful note thanks for coming to my Ted Talk your interest in my rendering approach! I’ve been wanting to document it for my own records so this was great.

I picked up digital illustration just last year and self-learning it has been a fun but lonely process. If you have any tips or more questions talk to me ANYONE PLEASE I’m dying to talk about it if you can't tell by the sheer length of this post. For which I'm sorry but hopefully it wasn’t too dense a read ok I’m really done now bye!! 

[angeldrawsstuffs]

I want Dreamzzz to be more widespread and popular for a multitude of reasons, one of which being all the casual rep I just fucking LOVE. There’s so much diversity in the show and it’s never made a whole thing because people are just people and that’s SUCH a good lesson for the kiddos in the audience.

Examples I can think of:

- Mrs. Castillo, Jasmin, Astrid, and others having various kinds of accents

- Foods of various cultures

- Dental devices like Jayden’s headgear (this one makes me personally extra happy because the mockery of any and all dental gear in media made me so anxious when I got braces as a kid)

- Characters in the kids’ middle school having awkward, crack-y voices (like- yes!! This is a normal thing kids go through in puberty and they shouldn’t be ashamed!!)

- Gender roles being largely disregarded (people are who they are and like what they like. The closest the show gets to weird gender roles is stuff like it being surprising Logan enjoys K-Pop or Dallas knitting, though I’d argue that’s more because both were seen as stereotypical “jocks” until then)

- Characters having different hair types and textures

- Characters like Izzie and Mateo being (implied) bilingual

- Mobility aids like Astrid’s wheelchair (outside of that one comment from Logan which was both a one time thing and swiftly acknowledged as rude)

- Characters having explicit real-world ethnicities

- Various characters, main and side, being explicitly (Logan’s moms) or implicitly (Mateo) LGBTQIA+

- AuDHD symptoms. AuDHD symptoms everywhere.

And that’s all from the top of my head, there’s probably more I’m not thinking of. Overall: this show and theme absolutely delights me with its rep and I cannot wait to see what more its got in store for the future (Lego give me Mateo/Cooper canon and my life is your’s-).

[asordinaryppl]

A3! Main Story: Part 4 - Act 16: Crossing Paths - Episode 6: About Our Circumstances

this episode makes references to dance with butterfly (translation by jumukus here), twin kingdoms (translation by rainbowpacifiers here) and the mankai rangers seasonal event! (video by maybelle lace on youtube)

Tasuku: 1, 2, 3, 4…

Tsumugi: Tasuku, didn’t you just finish doing your push-ups?

Tasuku: I decided to add one more rep starting today, what with the filming and our performance coming up.

Tsumugi: If you go too far, Yuki-chan’s gonna get mad at you again.

Tasuku: I’ll find a balance and make it work.

[Door knocking]

Guy: Tsukioka, do you have a moment?

Tsumugi: Is something wrong?

[Door opening]

Guy: I spoke with my father yesterday…

-

Tsumugi: All this about me… What an honor.

Tsumugi: I’ve done one-off roles as part-time jobs before, but I have no experience with long-term filming. I would love to take on the challenge.

Guy: I was sure you’d say that, knowing you. I will let my father know.

Tsumugi: Please do.

Tasuku: What’re you gonna do about your tutoring jobs?

Tsumugi: The plan was to take a break to prepare for our upcoming performance.

Tsumugi: On top of taking on the role of Michael again, I also meant to look for a challenge that’d help my personal growth.

Tsumugi: I was just thinking I’d like to work in the film industry some day when I found out Tasuku got a drama offer, so the timing for this is perfect.

Guy: I’m glad to hear that. You also received an offer to work on a drama, Takato?

Tasuku: Yeah. After the meeting the other day…

-

[Flashback starts]

Tasuku: A drama…

Izumi: It’s the same director as the historical drama you worked on before. He really wanted to work with you again after seeing your performance during that filming.

Tasuku: So it’s a hero story this time? That’s quite the change of pace.

Izumi: What would you like to do?

Tasuku: … I did say that I’d dive into it with all my might before. Let’s accept it.

Izumi: I understand. I’ll let them know, then.

Izumi: A hero role is a perfect fit for you, Tasuku-san.

Tasuku: And I’ve got the experience from that Hero Show we did before.

Izumi: Oh, I just remembered… An offer was also extended to GOD-za’s Haruto-kun.

Izumi: Apparently, the director watched the collaboration play with GOD-za and really wanted both of you to appear together.

Tasuku: He’s probably more fired up than usual about this, then. I can’t slack off either.

Izumi: You must be looking forward to the filming.

[Flashback ends]

-

Tsumugi: You seem happy to get to work with Haruto-kun.

Tasuku: I guess I am. When we did the collab play, I realized that working with him is a great motivator.

Tasuku: I might take something back with me from the filming to use for the Winter Troupe’s performance. 

Tsumugi: I’ll also do my best to act in a new environment so I can further improve my acting.

Tasuku: How about leaving your schedule a bit more open, then? That way you can also arrange a few guest appearances.

Tsumugi: Right… I’ll be taking time off as a tutor for the movie, so I should be able to sneak a few in.

Tsumugi: But I don’t know about taking it up as a full-time job like you have…

Tasuku: Well, you can take your time thinking about it.

Tsumugi: … You’re right.

Guy: Preparing for our performance, huh… I hope I can find something the way you two have.

Tsumugi: We just happened to receive offers at a fitting time, I don’t think you have to force yourself to do anything different.

Tasuku: Minagi handed us the script early this time, so we have time to focus on our roles.

Tasuku: If you slow down and take your time, I’m certain you’ll be able to find something.

Tsumugi: Especially you, Guy-san, since your role is a new character.

Guy: You’re right. The rest of you have been performing since the debut performance, so I have to prepare for my role thoroughly as the least experienced member.

Tsumugi: And if you’d like to prepare for our performance, you can always do a Street ACT.

Tsumugi: I believe that we need to promote ourselves now more than ever before, given that Street ACTS are getting more popular in Veludo Way.

Guy: Right. There are a lot of ways to go about this.

Tsumugi: Let’s do our best.

Guy: Yes.

previous episode | masterpost | next episode

[pigglepiephi]

GMMTV 2025 Line Up P1

Ok I think I’ve recovered now from watching the whole thing live, and having rested and processed the first 10 trailers here’s what I’m most looking forward to:

1. Dare You To Death

With such a big cast and intriguing murder mystery, I wonder if the BL will end taking a bit of a back seat? Which would be fine for me as I’d be happy with a good plot and a just a little JoongDunk seasoning sprinkled on the top.

Anticipation rating: 7/10

2. Head 2 Head

I LOVED SeaKeen in Only Boo! and I’ve had a soft spot for Java since he was in ABAAB so I’m seated for this one. Fashion students who can see into the future better be gay as hell 🧵🏳️‍🌈🪡

Anticipation rating: 8/10

3. Burnout Syndrome

I’m here for The Pillars getting to be in a toxic love triangle. Nuchy and OffGun reunited! Emi and Thor also there!! Off naked!! Gun playing an emo twink!! So many reasons to sign me up!

Anticipation rating: 9/10

4. The Nanon One… yep I don’t care about that!

5. Whale Store xoxo

They had me as soon as Milk’s character talked about being a late 20-something! Thank you for letting them out of high school ! I really did not enjoy 23.5 so I’m happy to see MilkLove getting something more mature. Loved the period cramps rep too!

Anticipation rating: 7/10

6. Only Friends: Dream On

Look… I had a good time with Only Friends for the most part so I’m not hating on getting more messy gays (especially drama gays 🎭) fucking each other, and fucking each other over on my screen. I hope Boston gets to mess up a whole new friend group!

Anticipation rating: 8/10

7. That Summer

The first of the amnesia plots. I’ll watch WinnySatang in anything but I’m most excited about MondRyu as the side pair. A secret/closeted relationship sounds really interesting… if done well.

Anticipation rating: 7/10

8. My Romance Scammer

The noise I let out when I realised Ohm had been paired with Fluke!!! Look they created this one for me ok. Anyway as I initially screamed, this is what marriage equality is for!!!

Anticipation rating: 9/10

9. Melody of Secrets

This is everything I wanted for ForceBook! More memory loss here too.

Anticipation rating: 8/10

10. Love You Teacher

The third amnesia plot! Hopefully they handle this premise right. I will eat up watching an established couple navigating difficult situations though. Also this character looks perfect for Santa, so I’m sold.

Anticipation rating: 7/10

[kaija-rayne-author]

DA 4 Veilguard predictions

Okay so I wanted to get a whole ass post about what I think is likely to happen in DA 4 done before the reveals but I haven’t had the time between work and life.

There are MASSIVE spoilers for every Dragon Age game, book, comic, and most internet theories in this post. Proceed with caution.

Also I swear like the truckers I grew up around. So CW on language.

First and foremost, I’m going to warn you all that I’m a die-hard Solavellan. If you don’t like that? Don’t bother reading this. And for gods’ sake don’t bother arguing with me about it. Depending on my mood, I’ll either first roast your face off and then eat it with bbq sauce or if I’m feeling generous, I’ll just block your ass. You like what you like about games. I’ll like what I like. I don’t shit in your porridge, I ask you to not do it to me. As I’m writing this, I’m 47 years old and I’ve been gaming since I was 9. Which means I’ve been gaming longer than a lot of you have been alive. Stop yucking on people’s yum. There’s far too little joy in this world. Go find your own.

So, this is just a partial post (albeit, in true to me fashion, an incredibly LONG one XD). It will cover stuff I think we might see revealed in things this weekend at either SGF or Xbox whatever (I have no idea why they’d bother with the Xbox thing since they hold such a small share of the gaming market these days but whatever.) We’re seeing something between Friday and Monday. Hopefully, enough to give hope to the masses.

Depending on how much time I have before I have to serve dinner I might add some more of my theories.

It’s a bit silly of me to be so obsessed about this game because my computer definitely won’t be able to handle it, and because I’m a disabled, neurodivergent author with a family to support… well… the likelihood of me being able to buy both a computer able to handle it and the game itself any time in the near future isn’t good. So, I won’t be able to play it. I am going to add my links and a go fund me to the bottom of this post (which has taken me hours to research and write so if you would like to donate to the cause I would be so deeply appreciative. Dragon Age is one of my AuDHD special interests, and it’s killing part of my soul to know I can’t participate when it comes out. I promise I’ll write all sorts of interesting stuff about it!)

But I can’t help myself. Letting my research-oriented, lore-obsessed brain noodle about Dragon Age is one of my very favourite special interests. So, without further ado… here goes!

CLASSES

I think we have a good chance of seeing some of these as playable classes.

Knight-Templar ❌

Lord of Fortune ✅

Antivan Crow ✅

Mortalitasi (Nevarran necromancer) ✅

Grey Warden ✅

Shadow Dragon ✅

Shaper/Carta/Kal-Sharok/Sha-Brytol Dwarf ❌

Veil Jumper ✅

Fen’harel Fanatic (not his usual people, the fanatical ones detailed in Tevinter Nights) ❌

Companions

A lot of these ideas come from the supplementary material that I’ve read at least three times each. I’m obsessed. What can I say?

Qunari: ✅ Tal-Vashoth Sarrebas, maybe Qwydion? ❌

Rivani Lord of Fortune: ✅ ‘Hollix’ maybe? That would be fun, plus they are canonically non-binary! Please please please? With sugar on top? ❌

Tevinter Mage/Magister: ✅ Maevaris Tilani ❌ would be so cool, but I’d be equally as happy to see Neve Gallus. ✅ Honestly, they both have benefits for me. Mae is trans and Neve has a prosthetic leg. Alternatively, I liked Myrion ❌ well enough that he’d be a cool companion too. And he’s canonically bisexual from what I read between the lines.

Grey Warden: ✅ Please let it be Antoine! ❌ (Antoine absolutely has ADHD and I would love to see more of that rep in a AAA game.) Evke ❌ could be fun too.

Templar Knight-Commander: Rana Savras ❌

Spirit Companion: I really hope it’s not Audric. 1. He’s not really a spirit, he’s a higher undead, which is a Zombie by any other term. And all the poor guy wants is to organize his library. I’ll be quite disappointed with the writers if they go this route.

So, we’ve had Faith/Wynn, Justice/Anders, and Compassion/Cole. There are two other widely known benevolent spirits in Dragon Age canon. Valor and Hope. Given what I think is gonna happen in DA4, my money is on a Hope spirit. ❓

Antivan Crow: ✅ Illario Dellamorte. ❌ (I really really hope it’s not Lucanis Dellamorte. 💩 He’s so damned annoying and gods that is NOT how an assassin operates. Here's my professional editorial opinion of why Lucanis is an absolutely terrible character.

Veil Jumper/Dalish/City Elf: ✅ Strife. ❌ Please please please? He’d be so awesome as a companion character. He’s not young! I want an older companion character. (And it would let them get away with the white hair on a darker skinned character without it being racist as fuck.) I just really hope he looks better than he did in the comics. The art style in those was just fucking terrible.

I am hoping that we can somehow romance Lace Harding. ✅ But I just don’t see how she could fit in with the reported likely classes and things I’ve personally considered.

That gives me 8 even though reports say we only get 7. But did you notice in this picture that there are 8? So either we’re gonna get a ‘secret’ companion like Loghain Mac Tir. (Three guesses who that will be and the first two don’t count.) Or they have a surprise for us. Or the art is off.

I could also see Kieren ❌ as a companion. (Morrigan’s son) He’d be just about old enough if we get the time jump reports are saying we will. He was roughly 12 in DAI. + 2 for Trespasser puts him at 14. Ten years minimum between Trespasser and DA4 puts him at 24. So, it’s possible. I could also see Vaea as a companion. But I’m not exactly sure how she would fit with classes.

Potential Advisors

Some of these I’ve got as potential companions as well because I could see them fitting either.

Dorian Pavus for Tevinter Magisters (I think this is very likely given Tevinter Nights.)

Maevaris Tilani (Same as above.)

Charter (I think we’ll see Charter stepping into Leliana’s place as Spymaster given what we saw in Trespasser and Tevinter Nights.)

Myrna/Audric (Mortalitasi)

Ramesh (Grey Wardens)

Genetivi (Scholar) (given what happened in Tevinter Nights I have a feeling we’ll be seeing him again under a new name)

Viago De Riva (Antivan Crows)

Andarateia Cantori (Antivan Crows) I’d love to see Zevran again but considering what he was up to in DAI I think it’s unlikely. Although something did happen in Tevinter Nights that might make it possible.

Lavellan: With how the story in DAI ended and what we saw in the end scene of Trespasser, I think they’ll be important in some way.

Fenris: (Wandering Warrior)

Cameos we might see:

Fenris

Isabela

Arishok Sten

Antaam Rassan

Kieren (Morrigan’s son)

Zevran

Vaea

Sebastian Vael

Viago De Riva

Andarateia Cantori

Lavellan

People I don’t think we’ll see or if we do it won’t be for long.

Cassandra (thank gods)

Morrigan

Leliana (sads)

Most of the cast of DAI and the previous games.

Bosses we’re likely to fight.

Solas. He’ll be a mini-boss and maybe one you can talk out of a fight.

FleMythal

Elgar’nan ✅️

Ghilan'nain ✅️

Andruil. She and Ghilan’nain often go together.

Critters/bad guys we’re likely to see.

Bone creatures from the necropolis.

Changed darkspawn/humans from Ghilan'nain’s labs. ✅️

Tentacley sea creatures from Minrathous and other ‘experimented upon by mages’ monsters.

Werewolves may make a comeback.

Antaam.

Venatori. ✅

Fen’harel Fanatics (these are different from Fen’harel agents).

Whatever or whoever the people across the sea are.

Carta dwarves

Titans

Sha-Brytol dwarves

Antaam Rassan

Antaam

Things I think we’re likely to see.

We’re going to see trans/non-binary rep. ✅ I deeply believe this is happening. I will be so sad if I’m wrong.

Sad as I am to say it. Varric is gonna die. The writing has been on the wall in drippy red marker since they fired his writer. I hate this, personally. I grew up listening to Brian Bloom (Varric’s VA) and he’s just one of my absolute favourites. But I don’t think Varric is gonna make it.

The how? I think, narratively, they’ll do it in a way that hurts Solas a very great deal. In DAI, Varric is one of the few people that Solas listens to. Apologizes to and actually talks to with a sense of respect in his tone that he rarely does with anyone else. Given events in the comic The Missing where Solas saves Varric several times… yeah. ✅️

If I were writing it? It would be an angsty as fuck scene where either something Solas does accidentally kills Varric in a friendly fire isn’t friendly sort of situation or that Solas can’t get there in time to save one of the few people he actually probably considers a friend.

So, the pain of Varric’s death will be what in the writing/editing trade we call a pinch-point for Solas’s character arc. How the player decides what happens will likely be one of those crucial choices matters points that will turn Solas down a darker path or possibly toward a redemption arc.

Flemythal isn’t dead. I’ve talked before about how she is not the happy fluffy bunny version of a mother goddess. Sure, she might be a mother goddess. But she’s the type that reminds us that mother nature is often more red in tooth and claw than nurturing.

And the lady is bent. Bent on revenge. Bent on using people to get her revenge. Just… if she ever was the good and kind person that Solas remembers? She definitely isn’t anymore.

I have a feeling given one of the stories in Tevinter Nights that FleMythal has infected Solas (vs sharing her power in a simple power up to help him save people move) with the dragon soul. Which could have been part of Mythal's soul even before the dragon had it, if some theories are correct. There’s been a lot of imagery and description of a dreadwolf like creature that is half lupine, half dragon. So, something is going on there.

And honestly, I think that’s going to be Solas’s breaking point with mommy dearest. (Please, please don’t let them have been lovers, that will squick me out so fucking bad.)

“Betrayal is always worse.” Is one of Solas’s really heartfelt lines in DAI. If I’m right, and FleMythal somehow manipulated that dragon soul she got from Kieren (talk about fucked up action right there) so that it’s gonna change Solas into a half dragon half wolf demon thing… welp.

I think FleMythal will find that Solas has a bit more backbone than he ever had in the past. He’s not alone now. He knows he’s not alone. He’s got friends. He’s got someone who deeply loves him in a romanced Solavellan playthrough. I don’t think Solas is going to be very happy with his dearest ‘best of them’ Mythal.

Best of them? Yeah. It doesn’t mean she was actually good.

So Mythal isn’t dead. I think she’s likely to be one of if not the BBEG along with whoever that voice was at the end of the teaser. My money is on Troy Baker ❌️for the VA and I’m really curious if I’m right. I’m thinking that’s probably Elgar’nan. God of Vengeance. Perhaps Mythal and Elgar’nan patch up whatever divine argument they’ve been having via celestial couples therapy or something. Who knows.

I think we’re going to see a split path depending on the choices of the player for Solas. Depending on our choices, he could go really dark, or he could have a redemption arc. Patrick Weekes tweeted to me that ‘there’s a possibility of a happy ending for Solavellan’ so I still have hope. I trust Weekes to write a satisfying conclusion to the Solavellan Romance. (I just don’t trust Bioware as far as I can throw them.) Weekes was the lead writer on this game, so I think it’s a good possibility that that’s how it’s going to be structured.

I think the game will very possibly be a multi-act structure like DAI. The first act is possibly going to be like the Hinterlands leading up to Coryphyfish blowing the hell out of Haven. I think the veil coming down is going to either be what starts off the game ✅ (like the explosion of the conclave in DAI) or will be the final ending situation of Act 1. Again. Player choices will likely affect this to some extent.

But y’all? That veil is coming down. ✅ And yes. I’m aware of that silly new name for the game. I don’t like it. (That ‘the’ was a mistake. Veilguard by itself would’ve been much better linguistically.) But if you’ve been following my ramblings about Dragon Age for a while, y’all will know I have issues with their linguistic usage and editing already.

Dumped Drunk and Dalishious did a fantastic piece on her blog about the veil. It’s here if you haven’t read it. Firstly, the veil was never meant to exist in THEDAS in the first place. If you deep dive the lore (and trust me, I really have. A LOT.) It’s obvious that the veil has been the cause of more problems than it has fixed. It’s been slowly killing magic in THEDAS since its creation. It has to come down. It’s also as holey a granny’s doilies anyway. Solas taking it down in a controlled fashion is very likely going to prevent far more deaths than if it keeps just falling apart piecemeal like it’s been doing forever. It’s unfixable and it really really needs to go. ✅

So once that veil drops… I don’t think it’s going to be as horrific as everyone has been bellyaching about forever. Solas’s often misquoted and wildly overblown lines from Trespasser (seriously do y’all even know what the word genocide means? You make me doubt.) are very likely a red herring at best. People are being willingly misled. ✅ I can’t really blame y’all.

Weekes is an absolute Master at playing people’s expectations and assumptions off of their preconceived notions, then throwing a bomb of ‘oops you were all wrong and it was right in front of you the entire time’. They’ve even said they really love to write things like that. I want to write as well as Weekes does when I grow up.

Humans existed before the veil. Why wouldn’t they afterward? Given some of the lore, Qunari also existed before the veil. Why wouldn’t they continue to? Will there be chaos? Yup. ✅ But change is often painful. And if anything needs change it’s the world of THEDAS. (Both for story reasons and for gameplay reasons.)

One of the changes I think we’re likely to see is the implosion of the Chantry. (I am absolutely hoping for this. I’m not a fan of organized religion on a grand scale like that and the Chantry has soooooo damned many skeletons in its closets and atrocities under its belt that I will absolutely celebrate when it burns to the ground.)

Which will happen if it comes out that Solas put up the veil in the first place and took it down too. The Chantry either outright claims or strongly insinuates that the maker put up the veil. It’s the cornerstone of their entire faith. Also, in the story Genetivi Dies in the End in Tevinter Nights, Genetivi is absolutely wrecked by the discovery that everything he’s ever written as a travelling Chantry Scholar has been a lie. The Chantry is going down.

So, there’s gonna be some chaos there. And that’s not going to be Solas’s fault because that veil is coming down anyway.

And can you imagine the absolutely hilarious chaos that’s gonna happen when word leaks that an elven god-mage was the one who is technically the ‘maker’ by Chantry doctrine? With all the horrific racism and sheer awfulness the Chantry has done to elves over the centuries? I’m popping popcorn.

I think we’re gonna see Felassan again. ✅️ Cause that elf isn’t dead. And no, Solas didn’t kill him. Please trust me, I’ve combed through all the lore, I’ve read The Masked Empire where it supposedly happened several times, and there is not a shred of actual proof that Solas was the one who did the deed. It’s a Weekes misdirection again. They've got the nickname Tricksy Weekes for a reason.

The actual facts about the 'murder'.

It was someone Felassan worked for.

Someone he knew.

Someone who he knew wouldn't listen to his reasoning. (Solas has been shown to actually listen to his friends and let them change his mind.)

Someone who could very likely have been female because Felassan likens the murderer to Brialla.

It was someone who could fade-walk or move in the fade.

Mythal can do that.

A Somniari/Dreamer can also fade-walk.

Probably most of the still extant Elvhenan can do it (which there were quite a few of in Mythal’s temple).

And we know from DA2 that at least one modern born Somniari/Dreamer exists in the world.

Point being, there’s no actual ‘Solas killed Felassan’ spelled out anywhere. No, not even in Cole's lines in Trespasser. Those lines only indicate that Solas knows about Felassan’s ‘death’ and that he’s sad about it. Cole talks in riddles and references to modern TV shows all the time. I have no idea why people take him even remotely literally.

I have a few theories about this.

IF Felassan’s spirit actually was killed in the fade (possible) his body wasn’t. His body would’ve been just lying there in the woods breathing like any other Somniari. Possibly made tranquil (which we know can be reversed).

What if Solas lost his original body in putting up the Veil?

What if he had a deal with Felassan or maybe came to Felassan to help him get back to his body after the attack and Felassan decided he was done and wanted to move on?

They're said to be friends. Never said to be employer/employee.

If Solas was awake and in the fade and sensed an attack on Felassan, he'd certainly have gone to help.

What if he gave his body to Solas?

Felassan's 'death' chronologically lines up to when Solas 'woke up'.

Felassan has purple eyes. So does Solas.

Felassan has fade-green magic. So does Solas.

Felassan is incredibly powerful. Stares at Solas.

Felassan knows far more about Fen'harel than even a scholar would.

Felassan knew far more about Eluvians, ancient Elvhenan, and The Forgotten Ones (Imshael is a Forgotten One) than anyone would reasonably expect any elf to know.

Felassan let Imshael see into his head about what was coming in the future. Which Imshael almost got off on. Imshael loves destruction and chaos.

I can make a list as long as my arm on similarities there. So, either Solas didn’t kill Felassan and the old? Felassan will be in the game once the veil falls, or it will be revealed that Solas has actually been wearing a (voluntary because a soul cannot take a body involuntarily) Felassan suit the entire time.

Probably blew some minds there, huh?

So given that Weekes has said that if Felassan was a popular enough character they would consider bringing him back… I think it’s likely we’ll see something to do with him again.

Also? The sheer hilarity factor of elves who do not want magic (Fenris anyone?) getting magic returned to them is going to be sweet.

I think we’ll see blood magic as a much bigger mechanic than in previous games. (And I hope they did some work on it to make it make more sense this time.) The game is going to have a lot of Tevinter content. Blood magic is a big deal there. Ergo… it’s likely.

Given some of the things that happened in Tevinter Nights, which honestly really feels like a teaser book to DA4 (I really hate the Veilguard name) I think it’s likely that we’ll see the Templars again. They’ve been in every game and book so far. I doubt they’d get rid of the useless bastards in this one.

Given some of the things in Tevinter Nights, I think it’s possible we’ll see just as many puzzles as we did in DAI, if not more. I’m hoping for more. I do love puzzles in these kinds of games.

I believe it’s highly possible that whoever drank from the Well is going to be completely fucked. Especially, if they follow a ‘kill Solas’ route. Remember who the well binds you to in Trespasser? Bingo.

I think it’s very likely that someone close to the main character is going to be a dual agent of Fen’harel. And it will not be someone we expect. We’re all gonna be side eyeing the mages after the last three games. But what if it’s a warrior or rogue who hides their magic? There was at least one character that completely hid their magic in Tevinter Nights.

We’re going to see more of the Evanuris and The Nameless/Forgotten ones. I base that on Imshael being in DAI and in Masked Empire and some of the dialogue between Felassan and Imshael.

Titans. We’re going to see the titans waking up and being royally pissed off. This is going to cause so much chaos for the dwarves. Who will also regain magic and a kinda creepy hive-mind thing, too. Again. That’s not going to be Solas’s fault.

We’ll have at least one Gala event. Very possibly in Minrathous or Vyrantium. Hopefully with better clothing.

Finally, for things I think likely… The Grand Necropolis in Nevarra is gonna burn. People seem to forget that Solas doesn’t just fight for the freedom of the Elves. He fights for the freedom of spirits too.

In case you haven’t read it… the Nevarrans imprison spirits in the corpses of their dead using mages called the Mortalitasi. I really don’t think that is going to sit well with Solas. In fact, I know it doesn’t. It’s spelled out in Tevinter Nights.

I think it’s probably going to be a quest line for the main character to go and save the necropolis or let it burn to free the spirits. This, of course, will be one of the choices that matter and likely another pinch point on whether Solas goes dark or gets a redemption arc. It will also deeply affect Nevarran politics and the way the country is run. The Mortalitasi basically rule the monarchs of Nevarra sooooo. It’s gonna cause chaos there too.

We’ll obviously see a lot of chaos with the Qunari. Their culture is splintering already. The Antaam have decided to go off the rails and attack anything and everything. Maybe the Ben-Hassrath will be able to rein that in. Maybe not. I don’t have very many predictions on the Qunari to be honest. They’re at war with Tevinter at the end of Tevinter Nights so that war will figure heavily in the game, most likely. But how that’s going to play out I haven’t a clue.

Some mechanics I think we might see.

Fade-touched weaponry that can stop mages.

Elemental interactions. (IE: Magic lightning x water = lots of zap)

Magically treated arrows. ✅️

More magical bombs and poison effects. (I might be just wishfully dreaming there because one of the things I miss from DAO is the poisons and traps mechanics. They felt like an afterthought in DA2 and DAI. I want to be able to make cool traps and set up ambushes again.) But there was that story with Dorian in Tevinter Nights where several of those things were used, so maybe? It would be cool.

I think it’s likely that we’ll see the Despair Demon from Tevinter Nights. And I’m still so mad that they fired the writer of that story. It’s one of my favourites.

Some things that are very possible? But I’m not sure of and could just be wishful thinking.

I think we might see Abelas again. (Abelas romance? Pretty please? ❌😭) His story does have one of those endings that kills him so it’s possibly just wishful thinking. But they brought Leliana back for DAI, so I don’t see why they couldn’t with Abelas too. And also, I have a voice kink and love his VA Matthew Gravelle.

We might see non-linear storytelling. I kind of hope we do because I love non-linear storytelling. Perhaps one storyline will be Arlathan (through dreams or time travel perhaps?) and the fall of it so we finally get some answers to all of this lore. (Please let us get some answers!)

We may see some problems from a rather irrational faction of people who say they’re working for Solas but are using methods he would never approve of. They may be sort of like the Venatori in the last game. Though I do think it’s likely we might have to fight a few more of the Venatori too. ✅ They’re still out there having really messed up rituals and stuff to destroy things.

I think it’s possible given a few clues in the lore and in Tevinter Nights that we’re either going to see not just a double blight (regular darkspawn and red lyrium darkspawn) but a triple blight with the green/yellow lyrium found in Ghilan'nain’s labs. Remember that Ramesh only destroyed one of them. There are eleven more. I think that’s going to very possibly be a big part of this game.

Settings/Levels/Areas I think likely.

So, we already know that the game will be taking place in the north of THEDAS. That’s a no brainer after the map reveal in the teaser.

But where exactly will they take us?

In Tevinter, I think it’s very possible we’ll see Minrathous ✅ and Vyrantium. We may see the Black Divine’s/Archon’s palace.

We’ll see Arlathan Forest. ✅ That I’m almost certain of. We’ll probably also see ancient Arlathan somehow. (Dreams or barely used time-travel mechanic from DAI?)

We’re going to be spending a lot of time in the deep roads and even farther below the deep roads. And dear developers please let me have some answers to all this lore.

We may spend some time inside a Titan again.

Pre-veil drop, we may spend some time in the fade. I actually hope that with the veil dropping we get to rescue whoever got left behind in DAI. That would make my heart so happy.

We’re likely to see the crossroads at least a little bit.

Antiva! Gods I’m looking forward to seeing Antiva.

Anderfels/Weisshaupt. We have no idea at the end of DAI or Tevinter Nights or Last Flight what the hell is going on up there, so I think we’ll have to find out in the game. Also… more chaos that is most definitely not Solas’s fault.

Rivain?

I think we’ll see the Golden City. And the Black City. Which is likely the same place.

And I don’t think it’s up in the sky. I think it’s deep underground below the deep roads.

Ships! I think we’re going to see some more ships. That’s based on a story in Tevinter nights and some of the splash art. But gods I really want more ships. Especially in a place like Minrathous or Antiva for fuck’s sake!

I think we might see some underwater levels for various reasons. And I hope we do.

These next things are honestly my hopes and dreams that would make me so happy, but I have little to back them up with as far as lore or books/comics and supplementary materials.

Polyamory options. PLEASE give me polyam romance options. BG3 did it. It’s 2024 and only 30% of dating people are monogamous. Get with the times! ❌️

I want CC body sliders so bad. ✅ Give me the ability to make a fat player character please! Not just because a lot of gamers tend to be on the heavier side but honestly? Because a fat adventurer is going to be able to go farther than any skinny twig. Real strong men/women/enbies do not look like gym bunnies and models. They have a good layer of fat over that muscle for stability. Guess what fat is? It’s energy storage. A fat adventurer is going to be able to survive longer than a twig. I could go on… but come on Bioware. Be brave. Let me have a fat adventurer. ✅️

Decent. Fucking. Hair. ✅ Please let the CC have decent hair options. LONG hair options! Let me have my long haired elfy prince dude!

Isabela cameo. She’s one of my favourite DA2 characters and some of the early splash art makes me hopeful we’ll see her again. ✅️

I’m hoping for DAO origin style stories for the Main Player Character. But ideally? We’d have something like BG3 where we could play one of a number of origin stories or make our own blank slate character. ❌ Given the gossip going around the gaming community I’m thinking this is unlikely, but damn do I want it.

Useful. Mounts. Please let us have actually useful mounts. And GRIFFONS. ✅ Give me flying mounts you cowards!

Prosthetic using characters. ✅ Bioware has the worst track record when it comes to ableism, but gods please. They’ve got it set up perfectly with Inky losing their arm. There’s a prosthetic leg user in Tevinter Nights. PLEASE LET ME HAVE PROSTHETIC USING CHARACTERS.

Better Crafting Options. The crafting was okay in DAI. Especially if you mod it in so you can buy the stuff to do so easier (I really hate killing dragons but it’s the best crafting material!). But it also often felt more like an afterthought?

Better. Clothes. Seriously. Give me some razzle dazzle with the clothing. ESPECIALLY since we’re going to Tevinter where how you dress is absolutely important!

I know this is sniffing the genie smoke here, but could we have actually attractive armour options? With BRIGHT colours? Research shows that a lot of historical armour was 1. Gorgeous and well fitting. 2. Brightly painted! Let me have bright colours! (And please not the yellow plaid. Ugh.)

I hope for more gardening options in whatever base we end up using. I loved the gardening options in DAI, but they weren’t big enough for my plant loving heart.

I really want to see Solas in flying Wolfie form. We see him like that in Tevinter Nights. So, I really hope we get to see him like that in game.

Finally… and I know I’m high on my own hopes here… I really hope we get the gifting options back. Completely unattached to approval is fine. I just want to be able to find the perfect gift for my companions like I do in real life with my friends. It brings me so much joy.

Things they’re likely to fuck up.

Sadly, I think there’s some things Bioware is very likely to fuck up. This could just be me being too pessimistic, but they’ve screwed these things up throughout the entire series and to my knowledge they didn’t hire any diversity consultants in the making of DA4 sooooo…

Ableism. Bioware has a terrible record when it comes to ableism. ✅ (the demon design is going to cause visual strain and possibly bad effects for epileptic gamers).

White-washing. The North of THEDAS is like the South of Earth. If they make most of the people there have light skin I will probably boycott the fuck out of Bioware for the rest of my life. ✅️

No fat character ability in CC.

Really fucked up hair options. Seriously Bioware. It’s bad.

And I think they’re going to be in trouble when it comes to the Lords of Fortune. Look. I love the idea of the class and I even love how a lot of them are described in the books. But it’s absolutely glomming onto the stereotype of the Romani, and I don’t think that’s going to go over well at all. It won’t for me with my Romani heritage, and it really shouldn’t for anyone. Cause you know what that stereotypical usage is? It’s Racism. Bioware also doesn’t have the best track record regarding racism either.

As more thoughts come to me I’ll either append stuff to this post or do others (probably the latter.)

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As always, thanks for reading my rambles!