#im just posting them as individual art posts now haha

[wolfythewitch]

Another frame wahoo

[alicenpai]

hi! ive been a big fan of your work for a while now, and i was just wondering if you have any tips or anything for selling merch online? :>

hi anon! so you want to be a con artist huh 👁👁 ...

^ a real con artist..

i’m not sure if you wanted online specific tips or general merch tips, but i compiled a bit of both! (also not sure if you're a beginner to art in general, there's a difference between a more experienced artist doing merch for the first time + beginner artists trying merch for the first time bc the risks involved are different)

i wrote more on the subject but i cut some out because it seemed too long.. and i tend to ramble ^__T it's hard to answer questions like these because they're so generalized, but if you had any more specific questions feel free to send another ask!

^ random image for visual interest

general tips for beginners(?)

merch can be fun, and it is! but in the end always remind yourself you're running a business, and it's real money you're going to be spending. it's good to take risks (on things like, new product types if you think your art is ready for it, or less popular series/more experimental designs, etc.) as you learn a lot from them, but always think over financial decisions carefully at the same time.

what helped me grow a lot as both a merch artist (and as a general artist) over 10 years is - a lot of reflection. and i mean a LOT of it. in terms of art in general i don't personally do a lot of studies (which is probably my downfall and i need to get back to it) but i think im pretty observant and introspective which helps me improve a lot. i often write my silly little blog posts on tumblr, I'll write notes on my phone if i have a train of thought i need to get down quickly.

i also often discuss merch things with friends and it really helps to get varying perspectives. (though i admit i should really share wips more, i used to but not as much anymore. blame the working life haha, not as many people have time to discuss non-work art anymore ;_;). all of these things keep me on my toes and weigh my strengths and weaknesses. if anyone is interested i could write more on the specific topics i reflect on after every con/shop opening.

stick to the tried and true 5-10 copies per design for beginners! this range sounds too little, but don't forget the big picture as well... you'll likely also have multiple different designs, across different product types.

e.g. 5 copies x 4 characters/designs, and let's say you do this for every product type (e.g. postcards, stickers, charms), 5 x 4 x 3 = 60 individual pieces of merch. that's a pretty solid number for a first timer!

i also personally print 5-10 copies of designs im doing for a test print run, or for characters that don't seem particularly popular.

15 is the average amount for me for a short run product (1 con season)

i certainly reprint often + go higher sometimes if i dont mind the product being in my catalogue for years.

15 is not too many in case the design is unpopular and doesn't sell, and it's also not too little that it won't be enough sales to break even.

promo images & taking photos (online specific)

i'm not a professional photographer and these photos might be absolute ass to some people. i will accept that, and honestly id agree with you. this is just my advice for straightforward, simple photos.

good quality and clear photos are best. it's great fun to use props in photos, and they can certainly turn your photos from plain to impressive. but it's easy to get carried away with props and fancy scrapbook paper imo, and i prefer to let the artwork speak for itself. honestly keeping it simple can be the best option sometimes. i used to take a lot more photos back in 2022 when i had less new products, but nowadays i find that i have too many products to take photos of, so i prefer to just keep my photos simple with a white piece of paper as my backdrop. i just. shrimply cannot be bothered taking out all of the props anymore...

above: the backdrop in this photo is bad, it's distracting and takes away from the artwork. (fe charms from 2016)

this are photos taken on a sunny day.

if you don't have a good phone camera (mine is ~5 years old), ive found that taking photos on a sunny day, either inside or outside, work great for me, as it shows off the natural colour of your product best. i either take it to the garden or i like to find a patch of sunlight filtering through the window. be wary of glare or too much light reflecting on your merch in photos though, because it can be distracting and take away from visibility on the product. but i can understand if a bit of glare ends up on one's finalized merch photos.

this is an example of utilizing light at a certain angle to show off the holographic film on this charm.

sunny photo vs cloudy photo.

taking photos inside on a cloudy day during daylight hours is also a popular option, especially if you live in an area where there isn't much direct sunlight/cloudy season, but for me personally i find cloudy day photos come out a bit dull and do take a bit of colour correcting. all of my cloudy day photos are tweaked and i find the colours to be a bit off from the original products, but that's just how it is with taking photos i guess.

because i don't have a great phone camera, my personal alternative is to make graphics! i just think of it as a collage to use fun textures and PNGs! im obviously not a professional, and these probably look very bad in a professional's eye. but i think it's fun. i like to incorporate the aesthetic or visual style of the series into the graphic if i do make em. ^_^

store platform

each one has their pros and cons. many store platforms have trial periods/free plans for people to try out.

bigcartel is what i use and i'm familiar with, and i would honestly recommend it. (i'm too lazy to move or try another platform right now...) for big store openings ill pay for a month or two of the basic $15 plan. ill use the free gold plan on bigcartel if im only planning to open my store for a limited time and don't want to commit to a full monthly plan.

storenvy: i've used storenvy from about 2014-16. i moved from storenvy for issues such as charging customers fees for purchasing from storenvy's marketplace page (and not from your actual personalized storefront) and urging me to use stripe even though it wasn't supported in canada at that time. im not sure if theyve fixed these issues but they were pervasive issues at the time that honestly forced me to quit. it also has a kind of outdated UI (e.g. can't zoom into pics on mobile?).

i think storenvy is a very easy to use platform for beginners because it's very basic! but i wouldn't recommend it if you have a great number of products, or if you're looking for more advanced features.

tictail isn't available anymore, i couldn't recommend it for that reason. i used it from around 2016-18.

i don't have any experience on shopify or etsy. shopify i heard is great because of all of the neat features you can implement, which you can use to really make your store yours. etsy has a huge marketplace which helps discoverability, but i have also heard there are many fees, so a lot of artists unfortunately make their prices a bit higher on etsy.

ecwid is also one that i've heard pop up. some also host shops on weebly or squarespace.

shipping

if you don't already have a kitchen scale, it's a good idea to get one if you think you'll be using it a lot to weigh packages! a postage scale is probably better. i just have a kitchen scale because it's cheap. as long as the measurements are precise (don't use a bathroom scale with a dial like me when i started out lmao).

thermal labels are also a good investment if you think youll need em!! i actually don't personally use them, because i have way too much hand-me-down stacks of paper in my home, so i don't see the need to make an extra investment. the downside to printing shipping labels on paper is taking the time to cut and stick them on packages.

i'm from canada (surprising the amount of people who think im from the US T__T) so these tips will be canadian specific, but you can hopefully get the gist.

when i was starting out, i used canada post (usps is the american equivalent) to send out store orders. however shipping labels from your govt post office can be pricey. which is why it's a good option to join their small business program if they have one, where you'll receive discounts on shipping labels. i don't use canada post shipping anymore, but i will use them for countries that my shipping agent doesn't ship to.

also take advantage of their free shipping tuesdays for domestic packages in october!! i believe you can receive 2 free labels per tuesday, up to 4 or 5 tuesdays for the entire month = 8-10 free labels in october.

next step is shipping agents!! if you live close to a chitchats or stallion express facility, they're great, and they usually provide tracking on shipping by default. in my opinion, tracking on orders is a MUST, so customers can have peace of mind! (minus like sticker-only shipping because that could be sent with postage stamps)

they also do home pickup if you have a bunch of packages in bulk/can't get to a facility. i believe americans have pirate ship.

you print and stick on your shipping labels at home, then you just travel to the shipping facility and throw your packages in the right bins (e.g. domestic, US, international). that's it! easy as pie!

i personally use chitchats because that is closer to me. i had heard stallion provides better rates for international shipping, which i'll have to look at at a later date.

most of my orders come from the US and canada. (funnily enough it is unfortunately cheaper to send packages from canada to USA, than it is for me to send packages within canada.) international orders are a bit of a pain, and you will need to know tariff codes for your product types (e.g. prints have a diff code than buttons) while writing the customs form. people in some countries will get taxed on all imported packages (e.g. packages marked as "sold goods" and not "gifts"). an alternative to this is to use etsy, so that customers can pre-pay for the tariffs before the order is processed. this is something i'll also look into for the future.

posting

wow now you're now done organizing your shop and promo images and you're ready to post! a good strategy is to post across multiple platforms to see what sticks. it takes effort and time but it can have a solid turnout! (i forget sometimes, don't be like me)

i don't know if this is true, but a lot of keywords words such as "shop", "store", "link" and etc. are apparently suppressed on social media (particularly twitter). don't take my word for it however.

shop posts don't generally do as well as regular art posts for most artists. but disregarding censored words for a second, it can also be attributed to psychological reasons, generally people don't like to be advertised to. (e.g. tumblr doesn't have an algorithm and shop posts usually dont do as well here either. tumblr users are just not receptive to clicking on links apparently).

personally, writing alternate terms like "sh0p" just isn't for me, but no shade though, bc i do understand workarounds are hard and everyone needs to make a living somehow. ill instead use words like, "leftovers are in" or "new items are up!" something more vague, but with the accompaniment of merch images, will still be clear to people that it's a shop update.

sharing your shop promo posts in artist alley discord servers also help a lot, especially if you don't know too many artists when starting out. they're a great resource and community full of passionate individuals who will boost your art. if you're not familiar with them, you can find some public ones on google or maybe even artist communities on reddit. a big one is Artist Alley Network International.

if there are some topics you think i've missed, feel free to send em over to my inbox!! ill also think more about this in the coming days and edit this post as i see fit 🫡

[rippleap]

into the wild kitties! #1

HI GUYS MY FIRST ART POST

since i have no clue what kind of art to post on here yet i decided to do something fun!!!

I'll be designing and drawing every single cat in the into the wild allegiances, hopefully uploading each day! yeah im only doing into the wild (for now) cause i would like to stay alive and breathing thanks!

(way more text below)

also designing ISNT WHAT IM BEST AT, these are just for fun!

im gonna start explaining and babbling about the designs now,,

firepaw is TECHNICALLY not the first cat in the allegiances but come on i have to do him first he's FIREPAW. I didn't have much of a thought process for him other than mmmmm yes fire. I really wanted to add some blue to his eyes cause like, blue fire haha but i couldn't find a way to do that without making the whole design look weird.

Next is bluestar! bluestar with long hair my beloved. i tried to make her as BLUE as possible without making your eyes burn off, but she is VERY BLUE

Now for redtail! this one was a bit more tricky to be honest, i wasn't too sure of what to do because, i sorta forgot how i perceived redtail lmao?? most of what i was thinking while designing him was.....hmm spottedleaf brother...... of course he has his signature red tail, and i wanted to give him that sort of calico kinda hair color, like how people dye their hair to be calico yeah i was going for that. like he dyed his hair but it's actually just like that.

And lastly, spottedleaf! i think you all can clearly see the neapolitan inspiration here lol. I was thinking of how i was gonna design her, and a lightbulb lit up above my head and went ICE CREAM ICE CREAAMMM so here's neapolitan spottedleaf! i also this these colors make her look like she smells good which is a trait of hers i guess, like look at that cat and tell me she doesnt look like she smells like vanilla and strawberries and chocolate. I also made an effort to have spottedleaf and redtail to resemble or mirror eachother! that'll probably become a pattern with the siblings I'll be designing.

also side note, literally i drew these with a pencil on paper, lined it with black paint and a stiff paintbrush and THEN transferred the drawing into ibispaint. just wanted to put it out there...heh... probably one of my new favorite ways of drawing ever.

I'm gonna be using the #into the wild allegiances to tag all of these in case you wanna find them all later.

umm idk how to end this, bye guys!!!

if you have any questions about using these designs orrr whatever feel free to ask!

i posted the higher quality individual versions of the designs on my instagram! same user as here!!

[lambment]

FAQ & Important Info

About me:

bday: march 30th

lgbt?: im bi

What can we call you?

Lambment is fine, its supposed to be a play on of Lament or Lambent you can also call me Pepaw!

What pronouns do you use?

I'd prefer They/Them, but you can use She/Her.

Whats your Main blog?

Syrva!

Art Related:

What art program(s) do you use?

Procreate and Clip studio Paint. Brushes: Shiyoon Kims Wet Brush pack (X) and several Max Packs (X) for procreate in CSP I use the defaults + these two lineart brushes (X) (X)

How long have you been drawing?

I've always drawn, but I started getting really serious at 14, around the same time I first made my main blog. I was self taught up until I got into animation school.

What do you do as a career?

I'm currently doing Freelance work for companies and individuals. I was previously an animator, I'm moving over to storyboarding now.

Do you have a store for your art?

Inprnt store

Do you take requests/commissions?

I do have commissions. all the slots are currently filled, but you can message me and request an inquiry for wait times/prices.  for the time being small requests are open, they may close soon, and there’s no real guarantee I’d do anything with them.

Asks and Messaging:

Rules for asks/tagging?

Anyone can send me a message, Mutuals, Anons or not!

Dont send discourse or anything explicitly NSFW. you'll be blocked lol. suggestive I dont mind, also artistic nudity is oki doki, but if theres two people tangoing I dont want to see it. if you send me triggering content I’ll mind blast you into dust. (block).

Do not send and DNI's?

Transphobia, Homophobia, Acephobia. All the obvious bigot contenders.

SA, pdfilia and incest are absolute no goes.

***very important to note to be aware of when you’re making sexual comments on someones posts, are you actually being ‘funny haha’ or are u just being explicit.

are you okay with me direct messaging you?

only if we have spoken before/ you're giving me a headsup about something/ I've prompted you to send me one. Mutuals are free to DM though. willy nilly even.

***minors: please refrain from dming me to chit chat, im not down to and it will probably end with me lecturing you about internet safety.***

Why don’t you answer my asks/dms?

my main blog has +1000 unanswered asks... I’m tiored. (I also hoard the nice ones sometimes like its a pile of treasure, dont ask me why) as for DM's, unprompted messages from strangers will not always get answered sorry. I also sometimes just dont see it because im an old man w ADHD thats logged off the internet.

Misc

Can you reblog my donation posts?

no. too many scams.

[baphomimi]

tell me about your demon ocs... ime interested

HIII omg sorry it took me a hot min to reply to this i didnt have access to my pc with all my old art lol.... thank u for blessing my inbox ur a lil cutie (:

me n my friends have a hell-themed worldbuild and i made so many funny friends to populate it that i honestly couldnt talk about them all haha so i will pick 1 guy that i dont think ive posted art of yet question mark?

his name is FITZIE. and hes an ARSEHOLE. well hes more just annoying lmao. in personality but also annoying to draw :)

he actually used to be a human, he was studying 2 become a doctor but then he got caught up in the club scene in berlin lol n became a raver and also may have accidentally started a satanic cult bc he accidentally found a record that came from hell and playing it makes humans trip tf out and see visions of hell lolll

eventually he fucked around and found out and became a demon. and a furry. so now he PARTIES 24/7 hes a club promoter lol but he will occasionally dabble in the medical profession for shady individuals that dont wanna go to hospital (but do u really want a clown operating on u)

he has like cartoon physics lol so u can beat him up and stretch him out and he just stretches back lol. also the candies that grow on his fur (ew) grant monkeys paw ass wishes if u eat them lol

[faaarawayyy]

hai!!

i’m bea/benrey! either name is good!

my pronouns include but r not limited to hey/hem/heir, she/her, and he/him. you can find all my pronouns and how to use them here!

i label myself nonbinary and dolphinygender but im rly just a creature ^_^ also aroace and platonically objectum! i’m taken in a queerplatonic relationship <33 also im otherkin/nonhuman!! (oceankin + robotkin)

i am a minor, and i have autism and adhd, so please keep these in mind when interacting with me! nsfw/18+ blogs please dni for both our comforts

i have tons of interests but i am especially fixated currently on dungeons and dragons, spore, kirby, rain world, and all my own ocs!! my biggest spinterest will always be in marine life/the ocean, i have my #marautism tag for all that stuff

i also post my own art here! most of it is of my ocs but maybe sometimes ill post misc fandom stuff if i ever feel like making fanart!

i don’t have a strict dni rly cuz i just block n move on casually but just, i feel it should be fairly obvious that youre not welcome here if youre a bigot or a proshipper or a zionist or just super nasty!! stay far away from me tyyy

anyway. beside that. tags and other blogs beneath cut and have fun here!! feel free to interact in any way i dont bite!! peace n love

@bluelightovermurder | my dnd/dunmeshi/ttrpg posting blog. lots of character related rbs

@starryseastims | my stimboard blog! feel free to send requests!

@tmd-clangen | my (as of now inactive) clangen story blog! post-apoc horror and challenge-based, be aware it contains lots of dark themes

@delfinxxia | currently inactive artblog lol. i may repurpose it someday? idk but it’s there

@recoveryranger | also inactive pokeblr blog. idk when ill get back into it haha

misc. notes

my content warnings are formatted like the following example: #cws #blood #death (etc). common ones likely will be: blood, gore, death/animal death, eyestrain. if you need anything more specifically tagged, feel free to send in an ask stating what you’d like tagged, anon or not!

my oc art is not free use but any of my fandom art may be used for noncommercial and/or personal reasons with credit! (ex. using my art as pfp)

i don’t usually do requests, art trades, or commissions, but i’ll post if this is something that happens at any point

tag guide

#clicksnsqueaks - just me saying stuff

#textbubbles - misc. textposts not said by me

#reblog - self-explanatory

#ask - asks i’ve received and answered! i’ll tag your username too but you can also request me not to

#ask game and #tag game - if i rb ask games or get tagged in something

#others’ art - self-explanatory, art that other people have made

#friend art - also self-explantatory, art from my friends/mutuals :>

#important - things that are. well. important. serious posts only

#4me - stuff that was made for me, gifts/commissions/etc.!

#4later - resources and compilation posts usually, might tag them specifically with #art resources or #life stuff as well

#fav - stuff i REALLY like

#mecore - things that r just. mecore. yknow

#me-tagged - stuff my friends/mutuals tagged for me YAAAY

#inspiration - awesome stuff that makes me feel inspired

#silly - stuff i think is funny

#wholesome - stuff i think is cute or nice or uplifting

art-specific tags

#my art - self-explanatory!

#srb - occasional reblogs of my own work

#my ocs - also self-explanatory! contains all original characters of mine, fandom or not. #oc: [oc name] tags will also be added for specific characters, and fandom tags if they apply

#others’ ocs - for other peoples’ characters that i’ve drawn

#fanart - art i make of characters from any media! fandoms and individual characters will be tagged

[sharkuraa]

hihi, when did you start drawing and how did you manage to find your style?? a gal (who has been in an art block for YEARSSS) needs help. please and thank you :3

hello! I'm honored to be asked this and also I feel a little unqualified but I'll do my best haha!!

I've been drawing for as long as I can remember and I still feel like my style is in a constant state of metamorphosis. I was literally on this site maybe 6 years ago drawing exclusively jacksepticeye fanart and my style is unrecognizable from what its become now 😂 it still feels rather incomplete to me, like there's aspects I want to change or skills I want to learn or new styles I want to emulate no matter how much I practice. all things considered, I'm still very young and I know it'll probably change countless more times in the future.

all that to say, I think the best advice I can give for finding style is just remembering that drawing is an exercise in creativity and exploration, not homework you're getting graded on. for every drawing I post, there are 15 others that are objectively worse or incomplete or purely for practice rather than a finished product. I'm constantly drawing from things I like--the styles of artists I admire, color palettes I enjoy, references online, anything. but all those things are useless until I actually apply them to my own experience and just... DRAW. even if I delete it after. everything I love about my style currently was discovered and honed through trial and error. some of my best work has been done when im not even trying and just fcking around on a blank canvas with every intention to delete it immediately 💀

I'm willing to bet that your art is better than you think, but even more importantly, it reflects your individuality. don't be scared of taking inspiration, of purposefully drawing things you're bad at (me with hands...) and trust yourself when you're creating. remember why you love it! and along the way, bit by bit, it'll evolve and flourish and become truly yours. 💗💗

[powwuten]

might i ask what a globetrotter is?

Its a collection of music and art that contribute to a project that mostly exists in my head okay bye haha!

Oohhhh i got you there

ahem

“What is globetrotter?”

Globetrotter is a hypothetical maybe happening rpg that currently is having its story told through art, music, and possibly writing or a few comics in the future. It follows three silly little guys that I designed (and have been iterating on because I'm kinda inconsistent) for years now, named Ceridwen, Riice, and Mollam! If you didn’t notice, the first two have misspelled welsh names. What's the significance of them being welsh? There is none! For now! That's the nature of this whole project, really. A lot of the time things exist to be cool, though by the time they leave my head they’ve usually formed enough connective tissue to be a part of a wider story. I had the main protagonists, I had the main antagonists, and I had the themes I wanted to use…then bam! Three cursed individuals trying to defeat a group of time demons to release themselves from being born anew for eternity! Funny how that works!

“Wait so who are those guys in orange?”

in what

“sorry i meant orange”

oh! right!

Ceridwen and Riice are both coworkers at…!! Well honestly I haven’t deliberated on that fact much, but hey, the fact of the matter is they do science 👍👍. Work’s been a little harder after one of their labs got attacked though. Poor thangs. Wonder who did that.

In a world of demons and humans and angels sometimes, how would you categorize a man with a head made of teeth? Perhaps the best description is “cowboy”. Mollam’s the third party member of this trio, but he isn’t exactly enthusiastic about joining them. Strange premonitions are driving Mollam away from Ceridwen and Riice. Poor thangs. Wonder why that is.

“What do these guys look like!!” I hear you ask…and my answer?!?!

I don’t have reference sheets yet. oops. I’ll do it. 👍. I will also say that I didn’t cover their personalities in detail much, but applications speak louder than descriptions! I’ll start writing eventually and in that same vein i’ll start drawing eventually et cetera et cetera…!

“Why is globetrotter?”

Well, to be perfectly honest, to get right to the point, to be quick, to make things simple, in my experience, in the end, it all boils down to the fact that it's fun! It's fun and it’s good practice and I enjoy this world in my head and want to share it with people! plain and simple. im honestly not sure if this section even needed to be here tbh like yeah i like thing im making it i think thats how most things are made.

“Where is globetrotter?”

Primarily boiling in my mind

Secondarily sitting in dms with @marismoments39

Thirdarily out and about on soundcloud

Fourtharily on tumblr

Tumblr? What tumblr? Globetrotter tumblr! https://www.tumblr.com/globetrotterer to be exact! I kinda just made it recently so there isn't much there but hey keep your eyes on it. Seeing as I’ve approached this project across years and grown so much alongside it, it’ll take a bit for some concrete stuff to show up. I’ll do my best to even things out!

“How is globetrotter?”

awww you’re too nice. globetrotter is doing well, and you?

“Is this it?”

No!!!! Unless I die the moment I post this. Feel free to ask me whatever!!!!!

[halfusek]

Imma be honest with you, before BATDR came out, you literally held this fandom together with bandaids and stick glue. 2019-2022 was basically the dry age of Bendy content

haha thanks i tried my best

i Do enjoy being in a fandom, i've always looked up to the danny phantom phandom a lot cause the vibes there are just fantastic, there's a lot of things going on, people have many interactions with each other, so i wanted to try to introduce that to the batim fandom and i'd like to think that i sorta did

i know that it is a popular opinion to not engage with a large portion of the fandom but instead just grab a few friends and sit in a corner with them but like

engaging with a bigger portion of the fandom every now and then can be SO fun and give people an opportunity to meet other people and idk

fandoms are communities of people just united by liking A Thing so it can be challenging to make a space for many people to get along but i dont recall any super serious only fandom related dramas in batim?? weirdos are in every fandom and you just blast their asses into oblivion with a block button

and there have been cases when i felt kinda bad for blocking someone because that meant i'd exclude them from something i wanted to think of as a fandom-wide event for everyone who would obey it's rules but that's where this outlook on curating your experience into a smaller circle is very much the way to go lol

wait what am i talking about

aha yea 2019-2022 everything fucking DIED here but i was having a blast drawing my comic and also a lot of people who were into the sides of batim i was into mainly (the human characters) stayed around more than everyone else and it was really chill, i've met a lot of people and made many friendships :)

as the fandom was getting smaller there was a noticable drop in the amount of notes batim related posts were getting which is a very big symptom of a fandom dying but i think at some point it sorta stabilized who stayed there after batdr was delayed and delayed

i reblog and tag more than an usual tumblr user (when im active cuz sometimes i can not reblog anything for months because im busy lol) and that didnt start without a reason, it sure is a habit now and i really enjoy doing it, letting people know what i think about their stuff and putting nice things on display for others to see

reblogs are not just crucial for singular artists but also for fandoms as a whole, thats how you keep that train rollin

though here is a sad thing that many many artists dont reblog a lot, or reblog to their sideblogs that arent followed by nearly as many people as their main blogs

and thats like understandable, im the weirdo who puts a whole mess of many posts on my main but i think thats also the most effective way to help other people get traction and i never see this mentioned when people complain that tumblr users dont reblog as much stuff as they like

its even kinda funny to me when people complain about their stuff not getting reblogged when they dont reblog others stuff themselves at all xD though there is a bit of cyanide in that thought heheh

on the other hand reblogging doesnt work on stuff that i could see from other people: the stuff i reblog i get from browsing the bendy and the ink machine tag sorted by new + sometimes when i bored i scroll through my dash and reblog some random things but i follow 2k people so i dont really see any individuals art specifically, just a collection of random posts that i am able to scroll through in a few minutes (and every minute theres a bunch of new posts posted/reblogged by those i follow)

and that can take a long time! if ive been busy for months then scrolling through a few months worth of stuff people around the world made for bendy is so bad even on a beefy computer that it just pushes tumblr to its limits and takes HOURS to reblog and tag for me, and then i might even hit the daily post limit and have to continue tomorrow

but i enjoy doing this, bendy is my fixation after all and i fucking love art and what people can create for this thing that i like i soooooo desire to see it all

and i try to reblog as much as possible, though i dont obviously reblog *everything* from the tag, sometimes i just give a like or i just dont like the thing cuz its not in my liking and thats it

but i did make it a thing that during ink demonth i reblog all entries for the event no matter what my opinion of them is just to give some of that Exposure TM because hey maybe some of my followers Will like it

i dont run a super duper popular blog but there is a bunch of yall there and i think me reblogging something in this fandom at least may give a litol boost to the notes on a post

and its always fun to see peoples reactions that dont expect me to reblog from them but then i do and they freak out a little, i think i love it on the same level as getting comments on my own art :) its super wholesome

man by writing this post im procrastinating on something but fdnjkfdfd

but anyway thank you!! and im glad you think so because i did try to accomplish that :D

[ackalice]

@mono-chrono (curiosity i hear?? alrighty)

I present to you my very first original characters and original story!

heads up, that description was heavily generalized and, as the post indicated, a very poor way of explaining it- SO

In present day Minnesota, local 17 year old "weird kid" Vivian is living life as usual. She's bubbly, extroverted as all hell, and as her title suggests is the town weirdo. It isn't her fault, but her interests and her attitude have given her a reputation as someone no one else wishes to interact with. Harsh, but it is what it is.

Viv is makin' her way through highschool, a part-time job, and is juggling all her other hobbies as well (Ballet, theater, knitting, scrap booking, flute...among others). She even plans on going to a near-by art college when she graduates!

Heres some scribbles:

One afternoon, while she is relaxing at home after some of her after-school activities, someone decides to pay her a visit. Not the normal way like a normal person, oh no. It's a fucking shadow in her hallway staring at her laying on the couch.

One second she's staring at this shadowy motherfucker and the next its right in her face and shes screaming to high heaven until she blacks out.

Vivian wakes up in a emo-black manor. When I was emo-black I mean the only colors in this damn house are black, deep red, and the occasional silver. It's also dark. Really dark. The only light comes from old fashioned candles scattered about.

So like any other completely sane and totally not mentally challenged individual Viv decides to go slinking around the house and stick her nose into everything. On her way, she finds that same bitch that jumped in her face. Just kinda standing their awkwardly with a pasty deer mask and dark cloak. Like a weirdo.

When faced with an entity that presumably transported her to this very dark and eerie place and consequently kidnapped her, what do you think she does? She chases this asshole and actually catches them off guard for a minute. Its a minute long enough for her to be able to tackle them hard enough to send them both down the very long staircase to the first floor. Ow.

Somewhere along this bumpy and painful fall the deer mask gets taken off. And thus reveals Vivian's kidnapper. A skinny dark haired kid.

Enter Finn Blanchard! The resident try hard underdog who is also, haha you guessed it, a demon! Not a very high ranked one, but a demon no less. He attempts to put on a bad-boy face, which works if you dont know him, but if you do you'll read right though it and know that hes secretly freaking out

his backstory is uh. hhhhhh. stupid traumatizing- but thats another story for another time- NOW WHERE WAS I

So Viv ends up getting freaked and jumping off of him. But only briefly before she noticed the DAMN BOY HAD HOOVES AND LITTLE ITTY BITTY HORNS AWWWW

Finn sat there in shock and flusterment while Vivian fawned over his features.

Then the story continues as Viv figures out why Finn brought her there and her finding out that "there" is actually HELL. With satan and all that crap. And also maybe Viv and Finn finding feelings for each other-

I DONT WRITE THE RULES-

but again thats just the beginning of the story and there is much MUCH more to it that im not sure i should dump all on tumblr. but this is fun so m a y b e...

also heres a height chart for fun

[donnyclaws]

I wanna know facts abt uhh. Sable and Acorn (the Grimm and tiger :])!! I've seen old art of them clashing but one of your vids show them in love, what's up w their story :0

YES! they're from an older story called Paper tiger! About 4 characters in a therapy/support group. I didn't have a massive story for it it was just about them all clashing and dealing with individual issues, before it all works out and ends <3 But I still like it and I'd love to get back to it. I actually redesigned some of the characters for it recently (which I'll post separately) but for now here's them

They're just an average wolf now but story wise they've had quite a difficult life, ran away from home at a young age, has two obnoxious god parents who occasionally step in to help. They dropped out of college and out of pursuing small music gigs and eventually tried to take their own life before the story. / I made a scripted video abt some of the world set up but the city has a lot of resources for taking care of people, and Sable was pretty much taken into the main facility to live there permanently till they could get their life back together.

They have 2 snails <3 They kinda lost their teeny apartment but also not really, cause their best friend impromptu moved out into it. They seem cool and stand offish but purely in a you had to mature very fast and your world weary way.

Acorn's been living in the facility since his younger teens. His family are some kinda tycoon/business men whatever, all you need to know is it became the center point of attention after a funeral for someone he knew resulted in several deaths. I'm vauge about it on purpose but it's a popular true crime mystery within the world. When his family tried to save face and restart their public image, he was left out of the picture, sent off to the facility and kept on watch by them to ensure he stays. She's often considered odd by others cause she's quite loud and out there, classic self defense if u think im a freak i will be a freak harder mechanism. Doesn't expect to leave (even though he's an adult and can) doesnt expect to be cared for other than by his main counselor.

Sustained an eye injury during the Event tm that left her with light sensitivity, ignore the mask note she's just gonna have cool prescription glasses now haha. Very gnc <3 Also autistic

Her and Sable butt heads at first, half cause of Acorn's difficulty reading others but also feeling like she'll be hated anyway, so she's entitled to poking fun. And half cause Sable is not keen on the group and is frustrated about being made to restart their life again from such a low point (Something they've already done a few times). They both have a bit of a trail of ex's and failed relationships. They get closer over the story cause Sable's very ambivalent to Acorn's "weirdness", which isn't what she expected and kind of led her to bothering them more for that final Bad reaction, really it just turned into them both hanging out and eventually dating <3 Obviously he stops being as mean to others when he realizes he can have close friends and a caring partner. They have fun they're both pretty fashion minded (sable more casually). Eventually they'd move out, and at a later date, gently push Acorn into moving in with them for the first time.

Oh hi Acorn's also like a 6ft savannah cat

[carpisuns]

do you ever get discouraged by social media? like the fact that a lot of interactions can never go beyond the surface level since you won't get to meet a lot of people irl or the fact that numbers seem to matter so much to how others perceive you? hope this isn't too heavy, just curious to hear your thoughts

hey, sorry it's taken me so long to get back to this! but yes, i definitely know what you mean. social media can be a strange and disheartening space to be in because it's all about perception and not often about truly knowing someone. we all kind of have a version of ourselves that we put out there for the world to see, and it's not necessarily a completely false image, but it's also not the full picture, you know? and in a fandom space like this one, it's mostly built around a single interest or group of interest, which is great for surface-level bonding with people but not necessarily for a deeper relationship. so it can feel hard to build truly meaningful friendships sometimes.

i've been fortunate tho to meet some amazing people online that i now consider some of my dearest friends and closest confidants. it started with bonding over a shared interest, but then we found that we had more in common and started sharing things outside of that one interest and talking about our lives and supporting each other in both our hard times and good times. i feel really blessed and lucky to have these friends in my life, whether we ever get the chance to meet in person or not.

i'm not sure if you're actually looking for advice about this, but if you are, mine would be to just be kind and positive and enjoy interacting with people, and that may naturally lead to deeper friendship. that's how it's worked for me, at least. kinda depends on what your vibe is and how you prefer to interact online but i've made friends by sending asks/messages to people to let them know how much I enjoy their work and by hanging out in discord servers to chat about fandom stuff as well as general-interest stuff. might be a good place to start!

and as for numbers, yeah, that can be frustrating too! i'll be totally honest—i used to care way too much about numbers. at one point it lowkey became an obsession for me 😩 i'd be constantly checking to see how many followers i had and how much attention my posts were getting and i got too invested in watching the numbers go up and too frustrated when they would stagnate and most of all just too focused on comparing my following with other people's. it was especially bad on instagram bc everyone's follower count is on public display and art tends to get a lot more attention there, so i grew way faster and i also watched other people grow at like breakneck speed and leave me in the dust and i would get jealous,,,woof.

but there came a point when i realized that my focus on numbers was not healthy or enjoyable for me and it was making my fandom experience stressful and bitter rather than fun and chill. so i took a little break for a few weeks and really tried to gain some perspective with it all and it helped loads!! i mean i won't say i don't care about numbers at all anymore haha but they definitely don't have the same hold on me. my growth both here and on instagram has slowed down a lot but i honestly don't mind at all and actually may find that preferable haha. idk im just satisfied and comfortable where i am and what i find most fulfilling in fandom is my friendships and my interactions with other fans, not really the individual attention that I get. it's been nice to take the pressure off myself and not worry about performance and instead just kinda vibe lol. like i used to stress when I didn't post new art for a week, but now i just make stuff when i want to and let myself take my time and post when i'm ready instead of rushing out of some self-imposed sense of obligation.

i totally get people's desire to grow a bigger platform, especially creators who have professional ambitions, and it's awesome to celebrate with them when they hit milestones. but i hope that no matter where any of us are, we remember that our worth is not determined by our online following. and also that we are all just regular people with blogs! I think there's a tendency to treat bigger names in the fandom as like pseudo-celebrities or something (i've definitely been guilty of that ), but at the end of the day we're all just big nerds who like talking about a cartoon lol. it's nice when we can all just support each other and share content and discuss ideas and stuff without making people feel unduly pressured bc their following (like putting them on a pedestal, demanding a greater output of content, etc.) or making them feel lesser because of their lack of one. fandom is about community, not competition, and your contributions are valuable even if they get less attention that someone else's!

ok i feel like i've just rambled a lot, sorry lol idk if any of this was actually meaningful/helpful to you but i wish you the best and hope you feel less discouraged about this! 💜

[la5t-res0rt]

fun fact fucko no one cares that he’s trans, gnc, or autistic. all they care about is that he said someone wasn’t bisexual all because they hate them. thats fucked up no matter who you are. being austistic isn’t an excuse to be an utter dick hole.

alrighty folks strap in because we are in for a long one today

to start off i will begin by saying that i care about the identities of people i like and call friends i care enough to listen and learn from them because they have different perspectives on issues that i as a person who is none of the things that this person is will ever understand

it is important to listen to people and learn from them not just shine a light out of your ass for someone out of a weird place of blind worship thats honestly so cringey but that isnt what this is about this about you and likely others harassing ad sending death threats my friend and comrade betel bitches

i will now be going under a readmore to spare the dashboard

so lets recap what exactly is he being harassed for

as you all are no doubt aware there is a blog called nether receipts where a certain user we shall not name catalogs instances where members of the beetlejuice fandom are harassed correction its a blog where this person catalogs instances where flaws in their character as well as the characters of the people around her are highlighted and critiqued with the occaisional off color remark and threat which i obviously do not approve of who would

anyway following reading some ill-informed and not-so-well-phrased comments from a certain narcissistic user about their sexuality my friend had this to say

this was the post that got them put on this receipts blog which really exists as a source of people for a certain cluster of the beetlebabe fandom to harass and try to drag or cancel 

this is the post that has made people call him biphobic and here is why thats wrong and stupid

you said in your ask that he only is saying that this icky person is not bisexual because there is malice between them and while yes its true that there is malice orion never once said that this person wasnt bisexual

i took the liberty of sifting through the harassment asks he received yesterday because you all love receipts so much i took the liberty of grabbing a few and adding some highlights so you dont miss the important bits

orion never once said this person isnt bisexual he stated that equating doing femme on femme  pornography to bisexuality is a biphobic statement and is in fact a problematic thing to say

there may be crossover between bisexual people and people who do femme on femme but they are far from the same thing doing pornography is a choice you actively make and you do it for compensation however being bisexual is simply part of who you are it is something you dont choose 

although this person would perhaps disagree

and before you come for me this person posted these for the world to see and obviously i have as many receipts as my drive can carry furthermore how does this argument make sense why would you care so much about heterophobia if youre not heterosexual why are you so pressed oh wait is it perhaps

because this person is using the split attraction model for woke points like this screams that this person sees women as sex objects or perhaps this person is comphet and is denying themselves because heteronormativity is so deeply ingrained in their being that they wish to cling to heterosexuality to keep up their squeaky clean white feminist woman persona or maybe theyre just not well informed on lgbt+ issues

editors note the editor is an ace person who considers using the split attraction model is situations like this isnt exactly helpful like i cant stop you from doing it but you shouldnt have to say im a bisexual heteromantic person you can just be a  bisexual woman and keep dating men you dating men doesnt erase your bisexuality saying that you would have sex with a woman but not romantically be involved with them makes the editor think woman = sex object and as a feminist the editor has to say thats fucked up

i will reiterate implying that doing pronography of any kind is equitable to a human sexualty is harmful to bisexual people and if youre like uhhh im bi and i think its okay guess what you do not speak for every single bi person so you should try harder to be compassionate for other peoples level of comfort

in any case statements like these are hurtful to bi people equating voluntary sex work to a sexuality isnt okay and its something that person should maybe address and consider apologizing for but since this person only listens to people in their inner circle and they dont even really listen to them its unlikely that this person will ever make amends for past biphobic tendencies because as everyone has been so quick to point out being bi doesnt excuse biphobia or homophobia or anything of the sort editors note heterophobia is not a legitimate issue im sorry if you feel oppressed for your straightness but really thats a you issue 

here is one more screenshot where my friend basically covers what i have just said as well as reminding the world that the owner of nether receipts is a narcissist 

being a bisexual person does not excuse you from saying biphobic things and there is literally no identifier you can use for yourself that exempts you from criticism for your actions and it doesnt mean that people cant demand that you address the wrongs youve done or said

you dont have to listen you dont have to do anything but dont be surprised if you say something shitty to a group of people and they get mad at you

also all that being said what orion said was not biphobic if anything he is raephobic but lets be honest who isnt ok there thats my one funny haha for you

we have every right to criticize someone who creates simulated cp and shares it with minors in 18+ servers or someone who equated bisexuality to voluntary sex work or someone who accuses people who disagree with them of being fascists or nazis or someone who goes out of their way to repost and edit art in a mocking manner or someone who actively claims to own a fandom like these are all critique worthy behaviors that all come from the same person who never explains their actions never holds themselves accountable for the shit they cause like we as people who share the same space as this person have every write to call bull roar when we see it

it is no secret that i dislike his person and it is also no secret that i will not hesitate to the the opportunity to drag them for being a shitty person whenever the opportunity arises and since their most recent beef with me was about how i was a bad friend i guess i figured this would be a good time to come forward for one of my friends who received dozens of harassment messages and several death threats over his commentary on the actions of this one vile individual

and i am addressing them now if they ever end up reading this or when it is inevitably sent to this person 

if youve got a problem with the way he and i or other antis critique you maybe come out from behind your wall of dipshit cronies and talk to us your damn self i am very sick of having to deal with nasti or morgan or that one minor or suz or that person that runs the rp blog or any of the others in your little hoard im tired of them trying to be slick like we see you we see all of you

all of your simulated cp aside youve said some really shitty things that you could easily amend since youve likely learned more about what it means to be lgbt+ since it is now a community you see yourself being a part of 

part of being human is learning from your past and making a better version of yourself for tomorrow and although i think you are a really awful person i dont think youre above self betterment and self reflection and self awareness 

also you dont seem to care at all when threats are being tossed around by your buddies but no matter how much me or orion or any of the others dislike what you do no person in their right mind would be okay with sending death threats and you shouldnt either you should at the very least extend that courtesy 

anyway

fuck you asker youre full of trash garbage and i hope you have a not so good day like i hope it rains or something invalidate my friends identity and ill yell at clouds

[tangerinegod]

Hello! I am sorry to bother you but I am a senior getting ready for college this year. I am in the US and I wanted to major in the same thing you did, do you have any possible tips for me? I still haven't even looked for colleges that would be best for animation majors so I figured if you were up to giving out any tips/saying any basic ideas if you wanted to/if you had the time to then maybe I'll have a better idea! I apologise for if I sound weird! I'm tried to word it correctly but I can't 😿

hi!! i’m totally down to share my experiences! someone else also had some questions so i’m going to put them all together in this post haha, hopefully this helps! it’ll get pretty long so apologies ahead of time but art school is a lot to think about so i wanna be as helpful as i can around it, its a lot of time and money. I’m gonna put it all under a read more cus it is really really long!

i wanna start off with the fact that I had the privilege of attending school in a financially stable environment, my parents were/are really supportive so w merit scholarship i only came out with around 20-30k in debt and i also had housing support my entire time in school. they were ok with me focusing on academics so i didn’t hold a retail job unless i was out of school like summer/winter break. Ofc though i regularly take commissions/do merch/cons to try and pay for all bills that arent rent cus i did want to be financially independent where it was possible. I also did try and work during the semester but everytime i did my body would deff start to breakdown from the fact that i didnt wanna compromise schoolwork with jobs.. so just read ahead know this experience is from a student who was able to attend focusing only on school work for most of the time!

the biggest thing is knowing art school is not required to become a professional in either freelancing or industry! there are a huuuge amount of online tools and classes these days that provide the exact same education and for cheaper too. i think it depends on what experience you prefer/can handle/want but it’s definitely possible to make art/animation art your living without higher education. the thing that college will for sure give you though is the ability to meet deadlines, work even when you dont want to, and connections with peers+teachers. i think the connections part is invaluable because you’re basically coming out with a network of people you already know and who know you! 

also its good to know if you want to attend/can handle art school! it’s a lot of time and energy and students get burned out really fast. the best piece of advice i got before going was ‘if you draw every single day, even if its for only like 5-10 minutes or a doodle for a whole year you should be fine’ consistency is super key because you’re attending school to draw, and you’ll have to create work for stuff you aren’t excited for at some point or another. burnout is extremely real and the only reason i didn’t experience it was probably because i got super into drawing naruto fanart again inbetween sophomore and junior year! it helped give me something to draw seperated from school which is the only thing i was drawing for since i had entered rip. a heads up id also consider myself a workaholic so i fit in ok with the ‘art school’ environment but it is suuper unhealthy. if you are fantastic at managing your schedule then it’s definitely possible to take care of yourself! freshman year i got 8 hours a sleep a night and only pulled all nighters for some second semester finals at the end. sophomore year + up though i ended up prioritizing hw over sleep and like for sure, definitely shortened my life span. there’s another q down below where i’ll go more into detail but ya, be careful w ur work balance!

another tip especially for animation is knowing for a fact what type of animation you’re looking to go into, and what the school is offering. I didn’t think i’d get into art school at the time so i only applied to two places + decided if i didnt get into either id attend community to get credits out of the way while building portfolio. honestly? i did not do a lot of research LOL but like i did end up having the chance to tour and stuff! just know that each school will have a very different curriculum. The main differences are schools that prioritize 3D (cg animation, cg modeling, ect) and 2D/traditional (hand drawn, ‘oldschool’, digital or traditional based) this is a huge difference so make sure you do research for it! in most cases a 2D/traditional program will also offer 3D since it’s at the forefront of the industry animation wise rn. My school taught 2D but like hand drawn on physical paper 2D, frame by frame. while it was a good experience it’s super outdated because digital tools make it way faster + easier! i’d recommend looking for a program that is digital 2D over traditional 2D. 

if after your senior year covid is still affecting campuses in the US to keep them shut down i’d recommend attending a community college to get credits and then transferring into school. one of the negatives is paying money for gened classes when ur not there for them; if you can get them out of the way sooner and cheaper there is absolutely no negative + you could graduate earlier or use the extra time for better work or to work a job! 

these are all the general tips i think i’d give on like a broad basis of attending or not to think about? let me know if u have more q’s! someone asked q’s im answering below that go more into personal experiences + work culture so heres those:

- how many hours a week do u spend studying, in class, otherwise making art? like how much of ur life does it consume?

I was basically working on art.... 24/7! since i wasnt working a job at the same time i crammed as many credits as possible into my schedule so on avg i did 18 credit semesters (around 6 classes) art classes go for 6 hours and non art go for 3, so i’d spent around 30-35 hours in class a week! hw wise it varied on the class but combined it would be around 35-50 hours a week... im guessing? on average studio classes would have 8-10 hours of hw, maybe 5 for a light week, and gened classes 5 hours w them all combined. or this was probably how things were before junior year? junior+senior year i had thesis + everything else ontop.. i’d spend around 30-40 hours on thesis a week with other classes ontop of that bc my film was super long cus im a dummy! 

- is it hard going to art school n realising that altho u were probably quite talented… so is everyone else? Like. all of a sudden. ur not special and everyone seems as good as u, you know? More generally, how do u deal with comparison?

kinda?? i think instead of the idea of like you vs others it feels more of like a competition at first to be the best. this varies hugely on school culture though; my animation year was really friendly with each other and get along extremely well, so my answer to this is v different than some others who attended different schools. i think that the idea of ‘comparison’ only lasts a portion of the first year because at some point you realize that it’s not a who’s better as much as its a ‘these are my coworkers’ type thing? like healthy competition 100% because we’re all working to improve but i think most of us learned pretty early on that viewing each other as peers going into the same workforce helped a lot. also at some point everyone develops their own style/starts to develop their artistic preferences so there isn’t a way to compare whos 'better’ anymore? i dont think there ever is tbh because style is appealing based off of an individuals preferences. If anything realizing everyone else is also amazing makes you wanna work harder ig? or thats how i felt! it’s inspiring to be surrounded by so many people who create such amazing work. 

- is there a lot of workaholic culture? all nighter culture?

100000% there can be a workaholic and all nighter culture. i know people who avoided it and thats honestly fantastic because i fall super easily into that pit. sometimes i’ll pull all nighters on a personal project just because i really want to finish it... i am definitely considered a workaholic all the way through and its not healthy rip... i’d estimate at the worst i was pulling 2-3 all nighters a week and only 4-5 hours of sleep on the nights i didn’t? that was only for one year tho, after that i was like yeah ok this is really bad for my health in the long run LOL so i tried to cut it down to one all nighter a week and around 5-6 hours of sleep the rest of the week! by senior year my decision to cram in full semesters paid off and i was able to consistently get around 7 hours of sleep a night + no all nighters minus finals since my schedule was lighter despite thesis 😭 while there is that culture i don’t think people view it as like a badge of honor or something to be proud of anymore which is good, we mostly view it as a flaw of the art school system and something that needs to be fixed!!

- are you glad u did it? how did u know it was what u wanted?

i am glad i did it! i’m definitely in a limbo right now of if it was worth both my time, money, and my parents money rip but i think with what i got out of it i definitely wouldn’t be as far skill wise or knowledge wise when it comes to the art industry. i would say it was only worth it for be because i had so much support going in though so i was able to focus so much on improving. if i had only been able to put in part of the effort and not make full use of the resources provided i would honestly have a different answer.. 

i knew it was what i wanted when i realized i really couldn’t see myself pursuing a different profession happily! despite all the bumps and stuff im fully in love with drawing still and feel honored that it’s a field that can provide a living. my second profession choice was to go into culinary school? and third option i think going was into music cus i was also a band kid hehe.  

- how do u cope with ur hobby becoming ur job? how do u deal with art going from something u do for fun to something u do on command constantly?

i think seperating work art from personal art is important! in my case im doubling naruto into being personal work so i have something to fall back onto that isn’t work related. its been a hyperfixation for 12+ years? so drawing it at this point is just like personal art imo. some people have hobbies outside of art and only draw for their job! i think after attending classes for so long the idea of hobby turning into job feels extremely natural? also i enjoy doing it so thats a huge plus! 

sorry this is SO long but i hope i answered your guys’ questions! if you have more just lmk!

[zeravmeta]

Hey so i was inspired by some of those fanservant posts and made one for Optimus Prime since im on a TF kick lmao

Servant: Optimus Prime / Servant Class: Ruler

Origin: Transformers Universe / Region: Cybertron, Earth

Alignment: Chaotic Good

Aliases: Leader of the Autobots, Orion Pax, Last of the Primes, The Thirteenth

Parameters: STR (A+++++) / END (EX) / AGL (B) / MP (E) / LUK (E) / NP (EX)

Class Skills: Magic Resistance (EX) / Rank of Prime (EX)

Character Info: In a far-off universe, on a far-off planet, a race of sentient machines were born from the planet’s own life, an ancient being named Primus who had transformed himself into the planet Cybertron. A Golden Age of peace had emerged, but eventually the corrupt politics that had developed over time ended up splitting the population between the Autobots and the Decepticons. The Great War was one so brutal that it had poisoned the planet itself, forcing both factions off-world in search of resources. In these dark times, a Prime would weild the Matrix of Leadership and ensure a peaceful future for all Cybertronians…

…Orion Pax was once just a clerk who worked in the Iacon Hall of Records, unaware of the great destiny that would await him.

Skills:

Matrix of Leadership A+: The very life of Primus shared with any bot who wields it, this skill works like a unique combination of Golden Rule, Imperial Privilege and Tactics. The Matrix chooses someone with natural leadership abilities and greatly boosts their parameters, and the affected bot can in turn inspire their allies even in their darkest hour. Such a connection to an ancient otherworldly being would mean that the chosen individual would qualify as Foreigner class (within the Fate Universe), but Optimus’ sheer willpower and belief in justice means he isn’t overtaken by Primus, not that the benevolent Primus would do so even if given the chance. Optimus’ own self-sacrifical nature, however, puts him in danger more often than not, having him take the blows intended for his allies.

[8->6 Turns][Increase NP Gain (20%-30%)(3 Turns), Increase Atk(20%-30%)(3 Turns) and Def(20%-30%)(3 Turns) and Restore HP(1500-2500), and Increase NP Strength (20%-30%)(3 Turns) for All Allies. After 3 turns, decreases Def(20%-30%)(3 Turns) and grants Taunt (1 Turn)(Demerit)]

Battle Continuation EX: Optimus is no stranger to death, unfortunately. His variable existence across the multiverse due to his status as Prime means he has died many times before, yet he always finds a way back to help his fellow Autobots.

[10->8 Turns][Grants Guts status (3 Times, 5 Turns, restores 1000-2000 HP)]

Cybertronian Warfare C+: Optimus has millions of years of military experience, and is equipped with an Ion Blaster and his trademark Energon Axe. However, his original status as a civilian bot lowers the rank. 

[7->5][(60%->90%) Chance to grant Evasion(1 Turn) and (60%->90%) Chance to Increase Atk(30%->50%)(1 Turn) for All Allies and (60%->90%) Change to decrease NP Strength(20%->30%)(3 Turns) for All Enemies]

Noble Phantasm:

Will Of the Primes - Optimus’ Resolve / Rank(EX)

Optimus Prime has an unyielding resolve that can never be shattered. With the Matrix of Leadership, Optimus can release an extremely powerful burst of Primus’ power that can eradicate any enemy. However, the true power of this pseudo Noble Phantasm is the large inspiration boost to his allies that can carry them through millions of years of warfare.

[Type: Arts][Increases Arts Card Effectiveness (40%->60%)(1 Turn) for All Allies and deals massive damage (800%->1200%) to All Enemies and (Overcharge Effect) Restores HP (1000->2000) for All Allies]

Bond Lines: 

Bond 1: ”Hmm…This world is certainly strange, however I do look forward to working with you.”

Bond 2: “I am…saddened. One as young as you working towards saving your universe, despite being so unprepared…Well, at your side you have many dependable allies. I can power down in peace knowing they have your back.”

Bond 3: “Hmm….’Master’ is such a weird thing to call you. How about I just call you by your name instead? [name]? A fine name. I’ve worked with humans before….What? No, my head doesn’t have a cockpit for you to ride.”

Bond 4: “…Did you know I used to work with Megatron? He and I used to be allies, before he succumbed to his own lust for power. We are arch enemies now…yet I can’t help but hope he changes for the better. Any living being has the capacity for change, even…even if they them self don’t believe it.”

Bond 5: “Ha! You can certainly hold your own. I can see I’m gonna be needed here for awhile, so I swear to you on my spark that I’ll stay as long as I’m needed. You are the hope for this universe, and trust me when I tell you I can understand the weight of that burden, especially on one so young. So…if you’re ever feel sad or lonely [name]…I’ll make sure to take you on a peaceful drive.”

Voice Lines:

(1): “A catchphrase? Well, I do have a battle cry…you wanna hear it? Well then, ahem: ‘Autobots! Transform and Roll Out!’…How was that?”

(2): “Is there any natural energon in this universe?…What? Magic? Well, wouldn’t be the first time I’ve dealt with it…”

(3): “You wish to know about my people? Well…Let’s just say the list goes on and on…Though I do hope you can meet the other Autobots I’ve worked with one day.”

Likes: “What I like? Easy. Peace. I would wish that this world enters it’s own Golden Age similar to my own.”

Dislikes: “…Violence. I’ve had far too much fighting for one spark, much less all the other times I’ve needed to come back.”

Event: “[name], I’m sensing a distress signal. Let’s go!”

About The Holy Grail: “A wish granting device? Be careful with those, they only lead to trouble.”

Summon Quote: “My name is Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots. I recieved a distress beacon….A human? Um, where am I, exactly? This doesn’t look like my Earth…”

Happy Birthday: “Happy birthday, [name]. Cybertronians live for a very long time, so we make sure to celebrate the lives of smaller organics.” 

(Mash Kyrielite(Pre-LB1)): “Hello there, young warrior. Do you wish to train today?…Haha, perfect! We’ll make sure you can leave a bigger dent in me than last time!”

(Mash Kyrielite(Post-LB1)): “Don’t lose heart, young one. I’m sure your powers will come back in time….Hm? A robot suit that lets you fight? You’re sounding more and more like an Autobot every day.”

(Babbage/Danzou/Mecha Eli-chan/Xiang Yu/Qin Shi Huang):”Ha! You’re Autobot material, all right!”

(Emiya/Emiya(Assasin)): “Sacrificing yourself for the cause is noble…but you’ve let yourself be consumed. I hope you can one day let yourself feel hope again. No matter the past, anyone can change.”

(Artoria Pendragon(Any Alt)): “I’m not sure why…but I feel a strange affinity with them….Hm? King Arthur? Excalibur? Wait, you can’t be serious…”

(Leonardo DaVinci/Nikola Tesla/Thomas Edison): “[name]…Please help me. They seem intent on…studying me.”

(Sherlock Holmes/James Moriarty): “[name], be careful. That shady individual has been following you for awhile now…Hm? A friend? If you say so…”

(Hijikata Toshizo): “…You are sick. I don’t think I’ve ever been as disgusted by an organic being as you.”

(Kiara Sessyoin/BB(Any Alt)): “[name], I advise caution. She feels…strange. I’m feeling a signature similar to Unicron from her.”

(Avenger Class Servants): “…You’ve been consumed by your righteous anger and grief…I just have this to say: Any living being has the capacity for change. I hope you can find peace with yourself.”

[sparring-spirals]

ep 98 belated lb, for the sake of not flooding dashes betw this and hopefully catching up on posts after i finish. Don’t be fooled, I will probably still make individual posts for the parts of the ep I still want to yell about. this goes up until the battle, for the sake of length.

- making note of the cad/nott convo about justice and vengeance. fascinating. fascinating.

- THE HAT. all the hat convos. absolutely hilarious. “Someone just up and snatched it in the middle of the party.”

- Marion: “I can get you a new one”. Fjord, with the most pained expression known to man: “s...ure “

- Jester: “Let what you want be known to the world.” Fjord, confused and emotionally turbulent after the back and forth: “Fuckin pick one. which one is it.”

- everyone other than jester is fucking awful at messages, apparently. And lbr jester is her own brand of chaotic with messages. We give them shit for never giving heads up but tbh sometimes its a miracle the M9 communicates info at all. :D

- Case and point, Jester: “he was just going, caleb kissed me caleb kissed me”. The M9, completely unphased by jester-interpretation of messages and/or shadowgast shippers: “...yeah that checks out.”

- fjord caleb interaction re: the argument at the start. damn. what a fascinating callback.

- these dumbasses. encounter a magical storage artifact and their first question is “can WE go in it???” i love them.

- yasha having a self care day!!! :’) good. she deserves it. <3

- “i have no idea whats in it but i’ll sell it to you for 200 gold” is this??? a gacha machine?

- oh man yeza is trying so hard to support her and veth is trying so hard to look at everything pragmatically while doing her duty to her husband. This is simultaneously already resolved and also painfully not. aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah.

-”You are like the greatest husband ever, can I just say.” :’) <3 <3 <3 

- also pshhh what do you mean luc should learn things other than how to use a crossbow. nonsense.

- “Please don’t get in too much danger.”

“I can’t promise that but I can promise my friends will do their best to protect me.” AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH.

“I want my wife. I don’t want a poem.” CHRIST MATT NO PULLING PUNCHES HUH.

- ... beau giving off mild camp counselor vibes. this is the best sign of growth: she no longer effortlessly exudes the delinquent vibes she used to. 

- ngl im surprised that immediately after exploding a bird with wind beau didn’t just gloat at professor thaddeus, wherever he is.

- idk if the gift is related to the whole “got beau high by accident” thing but its a very sweet gift nonetheless.

- Fashion Show Beau :D please tell me there’s art of this. i love the m9 for shit like this. they all got on board (haha) so fast. Shouting suggestions, compliments. Caleb casts dancing lights. these 

- a 26 on a natural 1. what. what.

- Arts and craft on a boat. :D

- I am reminded that i missed so much of the last pirate arc. is “fighting a random storm guy” when the stormlord sent down angels to kick yashas ass?

- Ongoing course, “Getting Ass Kicked By Lightning Beasts”, 3 credit hours, participation required. 

- BEAUYASHSTER CRAFT NIGHT. and Jester opening up about her feelings! aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah. *makes more notes* 

- (tbh this conversation makes me feel a lot better about the Traveller. :D)

- I’m so glad that they’re all having this conversation, oh my god. Its very good and very open and it makes me very happy. ot3. sorry who said that. 

- i looked away for thirty seconds and it turns from craft night into clay-tasting, wh-

- yasha someone just chucked you into the water until you learned huh.

- also: major green team (i have to rename them maybe) vibes with: “no i won’t do what you ask. but. i will help.”

- oh fuck im gonna have to rewatch this fjord caleb conversation. its so good.

- “I don’t know if I’m more comfortable or if I just care less.” AAAAAAAAAAAAH FJORD. 

- “This is more life than I ever thought I would see.” brjeaus out here bein like “damn weird how life is going okay” aaaaaaaah.

- I CANNOT FUCKING BELIEVE THAT THEY WOULD LET THIS CONVERSATION HAPPEN AND THEN *redacted redacted redacted* >:((((

- caleb having all these emotions giving me all these emotions talking about how he killed a family and now has this one.

- CALEB AND FJORD SHARING FAMILY FEELINGS? IM? WOW YALL WHAT. “You’re a good person.” “no U” (this whole convo in a nutshell)

- fuck tbh this deserves its own post. 

“If your eyes are on them, our eyes are on you.” GODDAMN. 

- “STORMS A BREWIN-” “why does your voice change-” I adore these two ribbing each other and beau as an overenthusiastic pirate. captain and his first mate <3

--- I took a day long break to handle some shit. Alright. Fine. Lets do this. Lets do the battle. ---

- oh just kidding its not the battle its yasha Goin Thru Some Dream Shit. 

-there is Something Incredibly Poignant about yasha, falling through the air, reaching a hand out at her god, asking for help-ohfuckshegothitbylightning.

- i dont like stormlord taking after ukatoa with the ominous 1 word statements. that is NOT a good role model, stormlord. you dont want to stab yasha in the chest do you. .... DO YOU.

- SCREAMS TRIUMPHANTLY FOREVER ABOUT YASHA OPENING HER WINGS AND FLYING OUT OF THE CHASM GOD HOW MUCH SHIT HAPPENED THIS EPISODE AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.

- wow no one is getting rest 2nite.

- i am confused if this is happening happening or a dream and also wow he got stabbed real early in

- okay but also i love the cast for how they always collectively scream whenever a battle map comes out. also WOW WHAT A BADASS SHIP/MAP.

- CAN YOU IMAGINE JUST WAKING UP TO BEING FUCKING STABBED AND THEN CHOMPED. GOD. POOR FJORD. MY BOY.

- the psychic damage just sprinkled in there because he is having a Bad Time.

- do you think that initially the crew was like “huh guess our captain accidentally sleep-teleported off the ship, damn- OH FUCK ENEMIES”

- okay yeah i’m gonna make a separate post for the battle just because this is getting unreasonably long

- c h r i s t this battle.