#in the back of a silt strider

[aladaylessecondblog]

Severed Destiny possible future bs

Voryn being totally worried Vivec's trying to get under Haj-deek's skirt (forgetting entirely that Vivec likes men) and completely missing the friendship she strikes up with the idiot imperial.

Martin throws out her skooma supply like "get off the junk, here have some weed to help the pain"

and manages what Voryn has been trying to do for months

but before that is Helseth's wedding

The emperor sees Martin dancing with Haj-deek and he and Vivec have this little chat

"It's going swimmingly isn't it"

"Indeed it is. Her father's going to kill me."

"Good luck with that. I'll be dead before he finds out."

[warcrimesimulator]

First thing I do when waking up is open Morrowind to finish looting this fucking cave. The lack of fast travel in this game is an experience. lmao.

[da3drat]

transportation spells my absolute beloved

[ilona-art]

Silt Strider Migration. A piece I developed from a doodle made during the event in Amsterdam. For some reason I keep coming back to Morrowind...

[bluegekk0]

Thinking about possible transport options between different lands in the AU. Very tempting to design a Silt Strider like creature used as a means of travel. Although you know, there is this concept art.

Perhaps in a similar manner to Silt Striders from Morrowind, these gentle giants could be raised by caravaners for the purpose of travel and the shipment of goods. Their large size and long limbs would make them a very safe, though rather expensive form of travel across unwelcoming environments of the continent.

I picture them as one of the very few remaining species of giant creatures (not as large as the now extinct wyrms, though, they're far smaller than even the smallest of the ancient megafauna wyrms were once part of). They're very docile, they lack natural predators, and they're almost exclusively domesticated and bred for this specific purpose. I would definitely redesign these concept art creatures into something more suitable for carrying passengers and cargo on its back, but I think it's a very interesting idea that I want to explore.

I also just realized I probably need a better term differentiating the animals of the AU from the sapient bugs. So far I've called them creatures, critters or animals, but I think it would be easier with a single term. And I want to avoid using "bug" for them, since that's the term I use as their world's version of "people". I'd definitely appreciate suggestions!

---

It's definitely one of those worldbuilding things that stray very far from the canon, in which we don't even see the surface (if it's even possible to live there). But at this point, most of the AU is like that. I see it as a personal worldbuilding and character driven project with some of my favorites from a game I adore. Wouldn't want it any other way and it makes me so glad that people are interested in it, despite it being so different from the game ❤️

[kid-az]

Skyrim/Nords Headcanons (Very long)

Skyrim Headcanon 1: The coasts of the northern holds (Particularly Winterhold and Hjaalmarch) have a unique tradition in that clam and shellfish gatherers will strip most or all of their clothes and then smear themselves with the grease and oils of horkers and chub loons. By smearing themselves with horker grease, this not only traps heat within the gatherers bodies but also helps attract the small shellfish they harvest to feed their families or sell at the market.

Skyrim Headcanon 2: Those few farmers that live in Skyrim (Along with several Orsimer strongholds and Reachfolk tribes) have a complex trade system with the Giants, (Likewise for the Giants) with an equivalent exchange for whatever spiral-painted cows are sacrificed/gifted to the Giants. It is customary in Giant culture that the individual must grant the farmer that Cows weight in mammoth cheese or furs, that or they may stand guard and protect the farm during the night from wild animals.

Of course, this is just one example of the Giant and Nord trading system, and it is undeniably far more complex than that. For example, the Stormcloaks trade exchange with the Giants involves defending their mammoths from poachers. In exchange, several of the Giants are expected to help fight for the Stormcloak’s cause of an independent Skyrim. This exchange is kept so long as either party does what is expected of their duties.

Most small peoples/Giant relations often involve this trade and the duty of repaying that generosity, in whatever way they may be able to. Also, Giants do eat the Cows they are given.

Skyrim Headcanon 3: The Bards College within the Haafingar Hold actually had an extensive knowledge, history, and grasp in magic. Students learning from the college would learn spells that would allow them to pacify wildlife, boost the physical, mental, and spiritual abilities of friends & allies, and even counteract the effects of other spells and magic through their music. Indeed, even in the 4th Era where many Nords grew somewhat disgruntled by magic, the Bards College still continued on with its magical traditions, reasoning that the ability to counteract other magic with music would allow them to better fight the Thalmor.

As for instruments, members of the Bards College would use a large variety of them, whether it be the talharpa, the lyre, drums, the jaw’s harp, flutes, and musical horns. They’ve picked up a variety of other instruments and musical styles from around Tamriel as well, but they still mostly teach the traditional instruments used by the Nords. Folks from the Bards College also tattoo themselves with musical-themed tattoos, along with birds.

Skyrim Headcanon 4: Being a major hub for trade between Morrowind and Skyrim alike, the Rift has seen a small influx of creatures native to the former, in particular the Guar, (Due to their intellect, omnivorous diet, and the appeal of a giant lizard as a mount) a semi-giant (4 inch long) species of bee known as the Lightning Bees, (Make good honey for mead, but are aggressive and emit electric shocks through magic. Bards are needed to keep them docile) and the Kwama.

The Kwama in particular is a noted point of interest in the 4th era, as a third of all Kwama mining takes place within the Rift since the Red Mountain’s eruption, many members of House Hlaalu remaining in Skyrim after they lost their seat as a Great House. A breeding population of Silt Striders has also become established within the hold, snacking on the sweet leaves of the autumnal forests. They are a protected species within the Rift.

Although the members of House Hlaalu would become a house associated with the underworld and illegal dealings back in the home province, most of the members of the House in the Rift would be more honest Kwama miners and traders. Disturbed by their former compatriots openly and publicly turning to crime, these former House Hlaalu members would renounce their title, wishing to not be associated with the criminal underworld by proxy.

Skyrim Headcanon 5: Nords fucking love bees!!!

Okay, to be more specific they love bees due to their immense enjoyment of mead, so many of the southern holds would have many large bee farms. The northern holds (Or the rich) meanwhile create greenhouses to contain the bees and lots of flowers for them to pollinate and create honey out of. Riften is the unofficial capital of bee farming, as its pleasant environment compared to the rest of Skyrim allows for the largest and highest quality bee farms.

Of course, farming bees for honey isn’t their only use. For example, the Nords have quite a knack for snacking on the bees themselves, (Roasted) as they make a quick and energizing snack for both adults and children. The beeswax can be used to make candles and skin cream, the latter being of particular importance as Skyrim’s cold environment leads to dry skin. 

They’ll also use every part of a bee hive, such as bee pollen, propolis, and on occasion even royal jelly. The royal jelly is used to make particularly potent medications and can be distilled as a drink for the jarls and other high-status folk, even if it’s less sweet than honey.

Skyrim Headcanon 6: The Ice Tribes were strange, sapient constructs made of ice that suddenly appeared during the late 3rd Era, the only possible evidence to their appearance being several icebergs that drifted towards northern High Rock and Skyrim. Little is known about them other than the fact they wielded enchanted ice and snow in their battles against the peoples of Tamriel, and were also known to raise the dead as their personal servants in several different eyewitness reports.

They were invincible to all except for particularly strong soul-trapping spells, Daedric and Dwemer weapons, and certain glasses such as ebony, elven glass, and obsidian. Their undead servants meanwhile were extremely sensitive to heat, even among the fellow undead. Eventually, these strange beings would go extinct, unable to compete against the peoples of Tamriel and their superior magical knowledge.

In Skyrim, these beings were compared to the ancient ice demons that the Nord’s Atmoran ancestors historically fought against. Although notable for being called the Atmoran’s greatest opponents in the old tales, they were given no true name, only being nicknamed “The Others.”

Skyrim Headcanon 7: Eastmarch is a Hold famous for its extensive amounts of hot springs and geothermal activity, which the residents have made extensive use out of. Villagers would not take long, warm baths within the more modestly-heated springs, but they will also use these springs as a natural hotpot to steam/boil food, which saves on firewood and gives the food a rich taste. Minerals can also be harvested from the springs, though these are historically controlled harvests instituted by the Jarls in fear of the springs becoming destroyed or dried up.

Windhelm can credit its continued existence as one of Skyrim’s largest and oldest cities from these springs, as an extensive pipe system created during the 3rd Era allowed for the spring water to flow through, keeping the city warm and providing a constant and nearby supply of mineral-rich water for the inhabitants to use. Not all was well unfortunately, as the springs were historically used as a form of execution on criminals and Falmer slaves, their bodies boiled and then dissolved within the boiling pools of water. This practice has thankfully stopped.

Skyrim Headcanon 8: Historically, Nord culture emphasized the rite of adulthood through hunting. This came in the form of small groups of young Nordic men and women having to travel to the wilderness and work together to slaughter a large animal to bring back to their village/clan, either a bear or troll in most Holds. Usually, this small group of adolescent hunters is watched over by an adult warden, ready to jump in should the hunt end in disaster for them.

This practice waned during the 3rd Era, practiced only by Jarl successors or the High King’s inheritor. However, it would regrow in popularity due to the aftermath of the Great War and the nationalism of an Independent Skyrim, as well as the interest of the younger generation “going back to their roots” culturally. Ulfric’s commanders were chosen based on how well they led their comrades against bandits or Falmer.

Some of the Hold's adult rites involved hunting different animals, such as Hjaalmarch having the youth hunt a chaurus reaper or Winterhold’s rite of citizenship being given once a group managed to kill an ice wraith together. The Reach Once had its youth hunt Dwemer Anuminculi as an adult rite, which led to predictably disastrous results.

Skyrim Headcanon 9: Examples of Snow Elf architecture outside of the Chantry of Auri-El actually exist, but they are all underground! The Snow Elves alongside the Dwemer teleported most of their important buildings so that they wouldn’t get destroyed and repurposed by the Nords. As of today, these buildings are still utilized as places of worship or habitation by the modern Falmer, albeit the religion they worship is a little different, as they have included several Daedra (Most prominently Malacath) into their faith and sun worship has been abandoned entirely in favor of worshipping heat in general.

Skyrim Headcanon 10: Final and brief headcanon for Skyrim that being that Whiterun has a high werewolf population (Due to the Companions and the “lucky” few that got their specific strain of lycanthropy) but surprisingly few werewolf-related deaths. Because of this fact, Werewolves are given just a bit more respect and are given far less fear than in other regions, as many travelers and locals find themselves getting rescued from a wild animal or bandits by those blessed by Hircine.

[trickstarbrave]

Do you play modded Morrowind? And if so what mods would you recommend for a first time player?

I’ve been keen on playing for a while (I believe I mentioned Dagoth Ur visiting me in a dream and telling me to play Morrowind) but I’m not touching the unintuitive mess of polygons that is the base game with a thirty foot pole. I’ve beaten both Skyrim and Oblivion, vanilla and modded, and am curious about mods that would improve the graphics and gameplay specifically.

Honestly the gameplay of Morrowind is not that difficult. It gets a reputation for being impossible bc of ppl not rly looking up manuals and games not coming with them anymore. But I’ll give some tips:

You need to manage fatigue. Unlike in say, skyrim, your fatigue informs a lot of stuff and will be used up by anything from running to swinging your weapon. If you’re low on fatigue you won’t be able to hit anything (much like how if you have low magicka you can’t really use spells as well). Keeping stamina up will ensure you can hit things. Walk places and try not to jump everywhere (running around and jumping in cities is usually fine and will help you level up athletics and shit. Just don’t do that and break the law)

Do not spam attack. Trust me I also love doing this but it’s ineffective. Hold down the mouse button to charge attacks to increase damage, which will be more economical for stamina benefit. Done weapons have dif kinds of attacks, and with spears having a bit of distance will increase your damage.

If you’re playing a mage, get comfortable with spell making. Pretty much every spell merchant will have an option to make custom spells. Once you buy a spell to learn that effect you can make spells and enchantments with it.

There are no map markers sadly. Have the UESP up on your phone, they’ll provide guides and they have a map of Vvardenfell that’s rly good. Sometimes the directions in Morrowind suck but usually they’re bad on purpose. Because ppl in Morrowind can be assholes and they want you to fuck off and die. I have a god awful sense of direction but tbh I’ve gotten the hang of Vvardenfell. There’s also local maps that can be useful. The only place I can’t fucking find easily is this one ashlanders tomb you’re sent on to get the bow for the msq it’s insufferably annoying to find. Otherwise places are on some kind of path most of the time.

Pick a race that matches the skills you want and pick skills you plan to use. You can min max or make weird challenging builds like a nord wizard when you’ve gotten the hang of it. Dunmer are good overall builds that incorporate both magicka and melee. If you hate your build you can use console commands on pc to redo your race and skills. (Only once per session, if you wanna do it again save your game, quit, and reload)

Factions have skill requirements. You’ll have to be good at magic to be a mage and good at fighting in the fighter’s guild. Some factions are also mutually exclusive. Pick factions with skills you want to use

Stealing sucks in this game. I’m not gonna lie it really sucks imo

Npcs and enemies can’t go thru doors

There is no map based easy fast travel. However there are silt striders, boats, the mages guide, mark and recall spells, and intervention spells. ALMSIVI intervention takes you to the nearest tribunal temple, divine intervention takes you to the nearest imperial cult shrine, mark you set a location and recall you go back to it. The spells you can also get on amulets or other items. You can use these in combat to bail

Enchanted items recharge over time

Alteration is my favorite school of magic in Morrowind. You can levitate (needed for Telvanni towers and makes getting around vivec city easier) and walk on water and water breathe.

There’s no leveled loot or enemies really. If enemies are too hard in a location you either new dif gear or need to level up more.

You can soup trap your own summons. And summon multiple things at once. Conjugation can be really fun. Typically you can only have one summons of a type at a time but you can get multiples of you like cast a spell and also use an item

Containers have limits to how much they can hold. Dead bodies don’t

You should despawn corpses you don’t need or else they clutter up the game and make it run like ass. There’s a button for it called “dispose of corpse” when you check the inventory

Get creative there’s some rly funny ways to deal with things

Save often there’s way less auto saving

As for mods I have a few that I think make gameplay and graphics a bit better:

Personally I don’t use openmw I use graphics extender and a script extender. But YMMV

Stamina regen mod so I can run without worrying abt stamina management. And magicka regen bc I’m lazy, and a health regen one. But technically you can enchant items to continuously regen health, magicka, and stamina, it’s just annoying to get the soul gems for them and they’re expensive.

Beautiful cities of Morrowind is my fav city overhaul mod but it can be annoying to install ngl. Just don’t install it mid playthru it’ll get kinda weird.

I also use a grass mod bit that can also be annoying to set up. And an Ashlands tree mod.

Various retexture mods. I don’t think you need specific recommendations. I’d pick the ones you like the most. I think there’s dif categories so look at weapons, armor, enemies, static items. There’s a face and hair overhauls mod but it was REALLYYYYYYYYYY annoying to get working so. Good luck if you decide to use that one.

Tamriel rebuilt isn’t finished but it adds mainland Morrowind into the game and it’s fun if you want more Morrowind

Get the pet the damn scrib mod

Carryweight mod but that’s bc I’m a pack rat and hoarder

You can try to get a mod that removes hit chance. Other Morrowind fans will tell you absolutely don’t do that bc “it goes against the spirit of the game” but I’m not one of those. Idc about playing fair in single player games. I just have never seen any that work right. And also if you manage your fatigue and chose skills you intend to use it doesn’t rly matter

Otherwise get mods when you notice smth in the gameplay bugging you. I’ve also gotten one that increases the enchantment limit (oh right there’s like a value to each item that determines the strength of the enchantments you can put on it)

[the-elder-polls]

hi tcs fridays oc rambling beneath the cut. this time, specifically about my nerevarine, rildras, and his daughter, dagoth vedyra

rildras:

ril loves spicy food. the hotter the better. you could feed this man a bowl of literal magma full of the hottest peppers in existence and he'd eat it and say it was delicious.

ril considered giving vedyra to an orphanage immediately after her birth because he was really scared, and almost did, but changed his mind last second and kept her. he never told her this and intends to take this secret with him to the grave.

his gender is "weird saint incarnate corpse man thing"

he often forgets he's a demiprince until vedyra points it out to him. then he stands there, scratches his beard, shrugs, and forgets it again.

he did in fact marry dagoth ur. they consummated the marriage (which is where vedyra came from) and then IMMEDIATELY after started duking it out in a fight to the death. ril kept Life in the divorce

ril hates the daedra. he hates the aedra. he hates every divine being he can think of. this includes his motherfather azura, who he especially hates for creating him.

after the events of morrowind, he decided to "leave on an expedition to akavir", aka buy a farm in the middle of nowhere in morrowind and retire his public nerevarine persona entirely. he never shared his true name with anyone and never showed anyone his face during the events of morrowind, so common belief is that the nerevarine just disappeared after. but he didn't. he's just a mushroom farmer.

he has such bad resting bitch face. even in the happiest moments of his life, he just looks like 😑

he loves the ashlanders but struggles to accept their religious beliefs. he has such a complicated relationship with that. (much to his upset, after the events of morrowind, he never interacts with them as the nerevarine ever again.)

he has searched for his mother nedrala multiple times, but has never found her. he eventually felt he was too old to keep searching, concluded that she was likely dead anyway, and gave up. but he wonders about her and he misses her. he wishes he could hug her.

vedyra:

she keeps a small private shrine to voryn. she knows she will never hear from him, she knows his spirit is destroyed and gone, but it's the closest she'll ever get to getting to know him, so she does it anyway. she also has a small shrine for nedrala, rildras' mother, just in case.

rildras offered her the mask of dagoth ur as a memento, but she refused it, insisting that dagoth ur was not her father, voryn was. (he keeps it under his bed next to his indoril helm.)

she has a clear distinction in her head of "voryn" vs "ur". it would be an entire other post to explain how this works for her. it's complicated and intricate but the gist of it is the simple fact that she wishes she could have known him as the man he once was instead of the monster that he became.

she loves to learn. she always has. she is so deeply curious about everything. she drove rildras insane with "but why/how?" when she was a toddler. then she grew up and started to drive scholars insane with those questions instead of her father.

she loves flowers. she keeps a flower garden and loves to go sit in it whenever she gets the opportunity to.

she has a plethora of pet scribs and they are all named veloth. every single one of them. this started as a child with her first pet scrib, veloth the second, and then it just spiraled.

she loves silt striders. she is bound and determined to bring them back from practical extinction.

she referred to baby vedathyr (her son, the last dragonborn) as "my little dragon" from the moment she knew she was pregnant. she has never once elaborated on this and when asked, smiles and shrugs, saying "it must have been a mother's intuition."

she has adopted SO, so many people into the rebuilt house dagoth. if she finds someone down on their luck, in need of a home, and willing to learn? welcome to house dagoth, dyra is family now.

to elaborate on the rebuilt house dagoth, she is rebuilding the house dagoth with herself as its head. there have been so many attempts on her life because of this, but it's vedyra, so of course they failed.

she rescued a man named dralyn of house redoran after he was exiled from his house for publicly approving of vedyra's attempts to rebuild house dagoth. dralyn has been hopelessly in love with her ever since. she thinks it's cute but doesn't return his feelings. (he's fine with that. he is just happy to get to be around her.)

[catgirlredux]

thinking about how silt striders in morrowind are controlled by hollowing out their carapace and manipulating their exposed nerves and muscles and tendons. it'd be kinda hot to have a girl carve a space in the back of your head and run her fingers between the creases of your brain to make your drooly dead-eyed corpse twitch and spasm. right?

aofjahfhajchshfjajdjsksjakdhfh >///<

i mean uh, maybe i guess

[changelingsandothernonsense]

Wip whenever or whatever

I'm tired, had a hell of a (two) weeks and then I worded like...7000 words in a day then I drew the descriptions.... And throwing in some other art stuff I'm bouncing around XD That's it really XD tagged by @mareenavee and @saltymaplesyrup

~Art and Writing~

And that writing I was doing under the cut!

Jiub's POV

Your brow furrowed, the faded, violet tattoos that framed your face creasing with the movement. I had worried about covering this part in my memoirs. Talking about the last six years often upset you but I wanted your opinion on it. I wanted your thoughts on everything, really. It was you who had inspired me to take on the winged menace after all. On that one fateful day in the Ashlands. A raging ashstorm and a flock of the things had taken you down by the old Redoran estate at Bal Isra. I had heard your cries as I made my crossing on my silt strider, my destination, Ald’ruhn, where you had been travelling from. I had shot every last one of the things, though the fight was a difficult one. Then I offered you my hand…and a ride back to Maar Gan.

 It was out of my way, in the opposite direction to my destination but there was that look in your eye that I recognised from our first meeting on that prison ship. Fear. Fear made you combative, made you lash out. Though that time, you let me console you. You let me help. You even took that leftover lunch I had offered you. You had been so concerned over the loss of the gift you’d carefully prepared to give to that Velothi. The one your superior had charged with guiding you to that Ashland camp. I couldn’t just let you walk into that potential snake pit with nothing to show. I had grown fond of you during our brief interactions, though that was often a habit of mine. I always form attachments too quickly.

Though the truth was there was little to worry about. That Velothi would become more than a hired guide to you after all. He was your champion, your right hand through the ordeals to come. I supposed I had always been a little envious of your late husband. How you had taken to him, the stories I’d overhear in Vvadenfell’s corner clubs and tradehouses of the Nerevarine and his champion. The rumours of your exploits, as the two of you gathered armies and favours and… I wished I could have been a part of it, but fate would not have our paths cross again until four years later and my dear, you always knew how to make an entrance.

It was an evening, not unlike this. A storm crashing through Kvatch, winds raging and the loud, rambunctious jeering from a mer who had way too much to drink in the alley below. When the crashing came from the alley and not from the storm, I resolved to go check. It was not an uncommon occurrence, my apartment sat behind the local tavern after all. Drunks were a common sight but there was a certain, potent distress to the cries that had been coming from the alley that night. Odd, considering that night was meant to be one of celebration… well, amongst the Dunmeri diaspora anyway. The fourth anniversary of the defeat of Dagoth Ur and his minions. An end to the Blight that had decimated our homeland for centuries and counting. A festival to honour Morrowind’s great protector. I had chosen to stay in that night, to work on my memoirs, as I often did but the commotion from outside, the yelling the- I had come outside to tell you to piss off somewhere else. That you were disrupting my concentration! How could I tell the world of my own brilliant exploits when there was some drunken fetcher screaming profanities about the Nerevarine at the top of his lungs?

I always said you knew how to make an entrance, Sero and an entrance you made. I found you passed out alone in that alley. A large gash to your head where you had struck a barrel of gods know what and a curious, expensive dagger laying by your side. There was blood everywhere, I couldn’t make sense of it all. You were lying alone, crumpled and small, shivering half naked in soiled clothing. A bottle of Cyrodiilic brandy smashed into a thousand pieces against my wall.

It was sad, to see how far you had fallen in such a short time. I had seen the paintings of you throughout Morrowind and later, the reproductions in Cheydinhal. You always looked so regal in them. So strong, like the hero everyone expected you to be. The legend from the stories. The mer with a fire in his eyes. He who had stared death in the face and sent it screaming into the jaws of Oblivion.

It was a stark contrast to the mer who lay passed out cold from drink and grief in the alley beside my apartment in Kvatch. Small, shivering and horribly scared from all that had happened in these last few years. I felt a sense of compassion I supposed, you always showed up in the strangest of circumstances. I gathered you into my arms as you whispered a name that wasn’t mine and I chose not to correct you. I took you inside and placed you on the daybed in my study. It would be easiest to watch over you from there. I had cleaned you up, changed you out of those filthy trousers and left you to sleep off your bender in the warm quiet of my study. It was as I was cleaning you up that I found the source of the bleeding, a series of deep lacerations around a ring too small for your finger. The one that told everyone who had heard the tales exactly who you were.

You told me when you had awoken that you had tried to remove the ring. That you had resorted to trying to amputate the entire digit when the band wouldn’t budge. As it tightened around your finger. As His taunts swirled like a sickness in your head. You wanted to be rid of it all, to forget that the last few years had ever happened. That you always broke like this whenever this day came around.

[aladaylessecondblog]

Red Mountain Waffle House Pt. 1

A job, the skooma-head (or sugartooth around here) had said. But she'd have to come up with some cover by doing some favors for the Fighters' Guild and Mages' Guild. And collect some information from them, too...honestly, it was such a load of shit and the guy looked so crazy Sadara could only make quick excuses before rushing out the door.

A spymaster for the Blades? That guy was crazy, and obviously lying. And that package, who knew what was actually in it. Probably she was just made into some kind of drug mule, and she wasn't eager to get into THAT business, however profitable it might be. That business about the Emperor was obviously some kind of front.

Why the port at Seyda Neen had insisted on giving her those papers and what they meant - it wasn't going to be HER problem any longer. She'd find her own way just like she always had.

Emperor my ass, that was probably a smuggler taking a lofty title.

Guarshit. Absolute guarshit. She didn't feel the least bit bad about lifting a couple cigarettes from Caius's stash--not like he was using them anyway, not from how dusty they were and how blistered that spoon under his bed looked.

Jiub, she had to find Jiub. If that man was good at anything it was finding a way to land on his feet. Murder charges - what did that really matter, he'd been charged with murder before and gotten off every time.

Sadara found herself mainly hunting cliffracers for awhile, remembering Jiub saying now and then in a skooma-induced haze that he had a dream to eradicate them. Not that she would herself, but it was a profitable venture, even if it did result in a few new scars. Between Balmora and Ald'ruhn she'd trek, selling the plumes and anything else she might have found on the way there.

Not a glamorous living, but she'd see Jiub every now and then in Ald'ruhn and a friend she saw now and then was better than nothing. He was pursuing a similar course of action on a different track, though when she mentioned she'd like to have an actual job and not just live by freelancing, he promised to keep an ear out for something.

In this cycle did she live for several months before finding that, on a new visit to Ald'ruhn, Jiub wasn't where he'd usually be.

A letter waited for her instead.

Sadara,

Remember how you said you wanted a steady job that didn't involve freelancing? I've got something that might suit you. They just opened up a Waffle House in the Red Mountain region. Shithole neighborhood, but it's steady work and they'll take basically anyone, even if you've got priors. Lucky for me, huh?

Anyway, I told the manager I had someone in mind and they're willing to hold a job for you. Just show up, try not to be too drunk, and the job's yours. (I'll be honest, I'm looking for someone to split the rent on my new place with too, and it's not a good idea to live alone here anyway.)

P.S. I included some gold, buy me a pack of Balmora Lights before you head up here.

-----------------------------

There weren't that many houses and such on the outside of the Ghostfence...as if civilization just stopped at its border. The silt strider stop was covered in graffiti, and someone was asleep underneath the bench at the foot of the stairs.

"Has the tower fallen?" a male voice called out. He lifted his head. "The red tower! It burns!"

Oh, so not asleep just yet.

"Tower's fine, man, go back to sleep."

That seemed to satisfy the mer, and he went quiet again. Sadara headed on to the Ghostgate entrance itself, and after being warned about the blight winds for what had to be the millionth time so far since she arrived in Morrowind, she pulled her turtleneck up, tilted her hat down, and tried to keep her eyes on the directions on her phone screen.

It really is just like home.

Now she was on the road to it, though, she was at leisure to think about why the Empire would put a Waffle House in the Red Mountain region anyway. Sure there were other restaurants, but mainly hole-in-the-wall type places catering to the ebony miners and buoyant armigers. Local places. A Waffle House was an Imperial thing, and it seemed like this was the LAST place they'd want to have one. This wasn't exactly Hlaalu territory.

It was a Hlaalu kind of move, though, to put Imperial stuff where it wasn't--

The building appeared in her sight when she rounded a corner. The blight winds didn't ease up a bit, but it was hard to miss the glaring yellow of the sign overhead -

WAFFLE HOUSE

A lighthouse in the red fog of this absolute wasteland.

Sadara struggled forward, thinking only of getting out of the dusty wind, and--

--nearly fell on her ass.

Groaning, she looked down, noting a brief glitter among the red grit at her feet. She reached down and picked up...a ring? Pretty polished silver with a moon, a burned bronze star, and a small diamond (or a fake, it was hard to tell) set in the middle. It looked valuable and she couldn't figure why it would be out here. Maybe someone was stealing it and just happened to drop it here while on the rung?

It slipped so nicely onto the ring finger of her right hand, too.

She decided to consider it a gift from above, and headed on into the Waffle House before she wasted any more time out in the storm.

----------------------------------------------------------

Jiub was right. The manager, a thin elderly Dunmer woman, seemed fairly reasonable about her application.

"My name's Nibani Maesa, I'm the manager here. You didn't show up drunk or blasted out of your mind, that's already a point in your favor. Have you waited tables before?"

"Yeah, a few times. Once for a place in Bravil and then a couple different places in Leyawiin."

"Have you got priors?"

"A few bar fights." Sadara paused when the woman gave her a look. "Being drunk in public...possession."

"Can you handle yourself if you're attacked?"

"I lived on the Waterfront in the Imperial City for two years, I can handle anything with my fists."

That seemed to satisfy her and after a few questions more the woman gave a nod. "You've got the job. Whatever Jiub told you, though, we've got rules. Don't fuck in the freezer, don't sleep in the storage, and if you absolutely HAVE to smoke skooma, do it in the bathroom like a civilized mer. We clear?"

"Yeah, but...people fuck in the freezer?" Sadara's hands came up as she laughed.

"Don't ask. So long as..." Nibani's exasperated tone faded off rather suddenly, and her gaze was directed at Sadara's right hand. "That ring, where did you get it?"

"Huh? Oh, is it yours?" She held her right hand out. "I found it outside...looks nice, doesn't it?"

She started to take it off, but was surprised when Nibani stopped her.

"No, no, it's not mine, but you might want to be careful showing it off around here, especially if the buoyant armigers drop by."

The woman muttered something else under her breath, something Sadara was certain she wasn't intended to hear.

"Azura preserve me..."

"What about the corprus monsters everyone keeps saying are all over the place?"

"Oh no, the corprus monsters are easy by comparison. Lesson one - put something on the jukebox that's catchy with an easy repeating beat, and they'll forget what they were mad about."

"What about, uh...the smarter ones? I've heard there are..."

"Be polite and they're fine. And try to ignore the religious proselytizing they're doing, no matter how nice the pamphlets are or how much you might like the painting on the covers. Seems every year they get an artist to add another set of abs to the picture of their god on the front."

"They WHAT."

"Rule number two," Nibani lit up a cigarette, "Don't ask anyone that follows him about the devil of Dagoth. They'll keep you at their table half the night and do nothing but say how glorious you could be in his service and how we're all meant to serve a higher power. Some nonsense about dreams, that sort of thing. You understand."

"Suppose I accidentally get roped into the conversation?"

"Be polite...but noncommittal. And don't get your hands too close to their mouths - the ones that still have a mouth, anyway. They'll bite you and you'll catch corprus. We've got gloves for when we need to serve people that've got it."

"Why not just stop them coming in?"

"Because their gold spends just as well as anyone else's...and if they bring in one of their amulets, we take those too. They're symbols of that devil but they're valuable enough to pay your rent for a few months."

"So..." Sadara paused, a a little awkwardly. "When do I start?"

"Tomorrow," Nibani replied, "You're rooming with Jiub, right? How do you feel about the night shift? Would be safer for you to go back and forth in this neck of the woods if you've got someone to go with."

"Night shift's fine...and thanks. For thinking about my safety."

[humanteethmarksonhumanbone]

fictober prompt 16 “no, im not ok”

fandom: The Silt Verses

fanfiction/oc writing

characters: Pippa Strider (OC) & Lyra Christopher (OC)

“Are you ok?” Pippa took a second to evaluate her work of re-wrapping one of the travelers' many wounds.

“No, I'm not “ok”.” They said this with a dead annoyance that made sense considering this was the 3rd rewrap she had to do today and the pain medication was the only reason they were conscious.

They hadn't taken their eyes off Pippa for the entire time he had been there since waking up, save for when the sleeping medication took him. 

The traveler was doing better than they were before when they arrived, nearly comatose at the door of the parish, but still had a long way to recover and a long way to go before he trusted her. 

“You know sibling, if you keep glaring at me like that your neck is going to get stuck like that.” She said, sounding just like Oxbow when telling her to quit smoking “If you keep smoking you're going to dissolve into a pile of ash! Just wait”

“You try being held captive in a place you didn’t know with no idea how you got there.” The traveler didn’t move his gaze.

“First of all: not captive, you quite literally have a broken leg,” (amongst the several wounds that rendered him incapable of walking, let alone sitting up) “and two: how do you think I got here? Not like I remember either.” 

(Nothing like an allusion to a mysterious backstory to break the ice right?)

Even the traveler’s hardened gaze couldn’t hide his confusion.

“Yep, washed up on the bank when I was, oh I don’t know, 7? 8? Been here ever since.” 

“...oh.”

“Yep, no memories, nothing, well I guess some memories but nothing clear, so just the scars.” 

The traveler thought about this, taking a moment's pause before prying, tentatively,  

“..What about your family?” 

“No memories, remember? besides I have this place, and Cabbage of course.” 

“…Cabbage?” (Sure veggies were important but.. more than family??)

Pippa looked around the dingy room, searching for something, before settling her gaze on the table to her right, and pointed.

A big fluffy tabby cat, “Cabbage” apparently, stretched and yawned wide, showing off his claws and teeth, before curling back up. 

“Oh!” 

There was an awkward silence as Pippa turned around to get more bandages. But she no longer felt the travelers piercing stare at the back of her head, she took that as a good sign turning back to fact him,

“Let's get that bruise on your head shall we?” 

[mareenavee]

WIP Whenever~

Tagged by the lovely @thequeenofthewinter and @ladytanithia!

Tagging the phenomenal @paraparadigm, @changelingsandothernonsense, @thana-topsy, @wildhexe, @dirty-bosmer, @saltymaplesyrup, @miraakulous-cloud-district, @kookaburra1701, @polypolymorph, @gilgamish, @elfinismsarts, @archangelsunited and @friend-of-giants

I forgot what day it was! Winter always reminds me! Or perhaps it's not Wednesday until it's WIP WEDNESDAY ;>

Here we go with a chunk of chapter 29, fresh out the braincells. Below the cut. Just over 1100 words because I wrote more five minutes ago and have, as ya'll have gathered by now, absolutely no chill.

Dawn was beautiful when the ash storms weren’t brewing. The sun tinged the clouds a warm orange and, for a moment, everything seemed to glow gold in the light — even Nyenna. She was standing with her arms crossed over her chest, hair and cloak blowing in the slight breeze as she stared out across the ash wastes. She didn’t turn when he stepped out onto the landing, and instead just sighed behind her mask. There was a bit of an iciness to her pose — she was closed off, almost like she was trying to build a wall that kept collapsing with each attempt to stack the next stone.

“I — ” she started, words faltering on their way out. “I was going to leave, Teldryn.” She spoke with a kind of crumbling doubt that sent a shiver through his spine. Tugging her cloak around herself, she spoke again, voice soft and miserable. “Just like before. I was so tempted to just…run. To let myself believe I wasn’t enough for what comes next. I woke up and I was so sure. So sure. But then…”

Teldryn reached out and unfolded her hand from herself. She let him take it. The moonstone accents of her elven armor reflected the early rays right back into his eyes. He’d been here before, this same junction. He’d said it, perhaps not in as many words, the first time she talked about this. How before a certain point, it was so easy to believe all of it could fall to someone else. How the world quickly reminded you it wouldn’t.

“You stayed,” he said with a nod. “Or rather, didn’t exactly leave me and everything all behind.”

“I stopped frantically packing my things and tried to find somewhere to think.” She ran a hand over her hair. “It’s hard to come to terms with the person I’m supposed to be.”

Teldryn knew that feeling. It still itched in the back of his mind. How does one live up to the kind of expectations legendary heroes live under? Was there an answer that would actually suffice in the face of something like this?

“All you can do is your best,” Teldryn said. He squeezed her hand. “Not running a second time is you showing yourself how far you’ve come.”

She lowered her mask and let it fall over the collar of her cloak. The little red chitin lenses glinted as she tilted her head.

“Wise once again,” she said after a long moment. She turned her sharp citrine gaze on him. “You didn’t seem very wise when we met.” She seemed not to be able to hold the conversation without humor. It was one of the heavier topics, and he could relate. He cracked a grin.

“It’s an illusion,” he scoffed. “Wisdom, from me? Ha! Imagine.”

Nyenna laughed, and for a second the world seemed far less cold and chaotic. Another illusion, of course, but he’d take it. They were interrupted by the keening of the silt strider, the sound of it reverberating through their skulls and off the mushroom stalks of the settlement. It was still a tiny dot on the horizon, coming in from the direction of Raven Rock.

“Did you want to wish anyone farewell?” Nyenna asked. They’d be able to depart any moment now. “I’ve said all I can. I still feel too much like…well. Like an outlander.”

Teldryn scoffed. “Don’t let Neloth’s nonsense get to you.” He shifted and handed Nyenna her bag, then fished a spare leather strip from his pocket and handed that to her, too. She was always losing them, it seemed. She tied back her hair, expression going mildly melancholic.

“It’s not that he’s gotten to me. Well, not worse than already established. It’s just…it’s all wrapped up in my feeling like I should have never come here.”

Did she really believe that? That she shouldn’t have come here? That they shouldn’t have met? There was nothing that said they’d never have crossed paths otherwise. He couldn’t breathe. It was too much to be wrestling fate into shape in his head. There was a reason she came here. There was a reason they’d met. There was always a reason. He’d learned the hard way so many times over. Did she regret crossing paths? No. It wasn’t about him. This was her story. It’s not like he’d written himself into the spaces. This — the two of them? It was meant to be. It was. It had to be, or else —

She caught his eye then, and for a moment that seemed like it stretched into eras, all he could see what that perfect golden thread that connected them. Her gaze calmed him, and his pulse steadied. His ears were too full of the echo of Magicka. Or heartbeats. It mattered little at this point. That spark he’d felt back in the Netch was bright. It burnt, almost — the odd light of dawn adding to the notion of fire. She was right there, exactly where she was supposed to be. And so was he. And it wasn’t fair, not least because he could have easily kissed her now, damn the consequences. He shoved that particularly unkind realization down. S’wit. He took her other hand, though why he did, he couldn’t tell. He’d rarely been this overwhelmed.

“You — ” he started. She gave him a puzzled look. He cleared his throat. “We’re only ever where we’re supposed to be at any given time.”

She shook her head. “So I’m always in the wrong place at the wrong time, perpetually?” She waved her hand dismissively, and folded her arms over her chest again. Teldryn didn’t know what to do with his hands. His palms were sweating in his gauntlets. Damn it. She sighed. “Fate, or whatever such nonsense, is quite cruel in that case.”

“Is it, though?” he asked; none of the usual sarcasm laced his words. Shut up, Sero, what are you doing? “Not like we didn’t cross paths.” He walked closer to her and took her hand again. She looked him over and frowned.

“Well, alright. Perhaps not everything that happened was for the worst,” she said, but her tone was flippant. She sniffed and stepped back from him. Just like that, the moment crumbled. Because of course it would. Because what on Nirn was he really expecting? Idiot. Keep it together. He wanted to say something. Anything. Instead, he stayed silent as she finished her thought. “Most of it, maybe, was. Can’t quite deny that truth, can we?” She laughed. He shook his head. “At least we can suffer the consequences together.”

Well, there was that.

“Sure,” Teldryn answered. He laughed, hoping it didn’t sound as hollow as he felt. If he’d be able to manage, they could, anyway.

[siofra-river]

Ive been trying to play morrowind. But unfortunetly I grew up with Skyrim and I can tell it's effecting my gameplay descisions. (Just picking something up, but I couldnt see any indication that I was stealing) Any begginer tips?

I almost deleted this ask by accident gave myself a heart attack 😭 but um ok I’ve got a few tips.

So #1 would honestly be. Get openmw. It’s not hard to figure out how to download but it’s basically a new engine for the game and it’s super easy to mod for things like bug fixes(which you really want), new textures, better texture mapping etc. really useful stuff. You also need morrowind on steam to run it iirc so maybe snag it when it’s on sale. It might be on sale rn I think the winter sale on steam just started …

2. Find some kind of character making guide. Unlike Skyrim and a lesser extent oblivion. How you make your character like really really actually matters. You choose your race, your class, and a star to be born under. All of these have different stats that mesh w eachother differently . Like each race has stats they’re better in and so you want to choose a starting class that can actually mesh with those skills. Skills are separated into major,minor, and misc skills which determines your proficiency in them. The game is very very reliant on your skills and like th other games the more you do it the better you are but if your short or long blade skill is like 5, you’re not going to hit someone very often. ALSO, there’s a lot more skills than Skyrim, armor is divided into 3 class skills, heavy medium and light, swords are separated by long sword and short sword. There’s skills like armorer which will determine how much you can fix your own armor, and some skills will level up just as you run around like acrobatics. Also, just bcuz your skill levels up does not mean you leveled up, you have to level up a bunch of skills before you get a whole level up.

Which also gets me into 3. Which is like. Combat and dying. Combat is weird and a little clunky, you’re not guaranteed a hit every swing but neither is your enemy (again, dependent on skills) ,stamina really matters, and if you choose magic (which iirc is like one of the more first time player friendly paths) than you regain magic by resting, not passively overtime . Which is smth I wish I knew first time I got into a fight I was so confused 😭. And uh, you’re going to die a lot at first? It’s frustrating but like it’s part of the growing pains imo. If you can stick with it you’ll get a lot a lot better.

4. Would be , get used to a different way of questing. In morrowind you don’t have a quest marker, you don’t have a quest list, and you can’t fast travel outside a few select ways but even then not to everywhere. If you join the mages guild they can teleport you to a few other mages guilds, for a small fee, or you can ride a silt strider for a much bigger fee, but again they don’t take you everywhere. You may also run into a spell or scroll that can teleport you. It may sound intimidating but I swear it gets better, it’s not as bad after running around for a couple hours. You do get a map, but like it only fills out where you go, which I honestly really like, gives a good sense of your progression. But most importantly, you store all your quest info in a little booklet, which will automatically update as you progress thru a quest, so it’s important to remember and check it when you need directions .

5. A little cheesy but . Have fun? It’s a different style of game and can get a lot of getting used to, if it’s really frustrating, not fun at all. Don’t be afraid to step back and look at what might be frustrating you. If you don’t like one style of combat don’t be afraid to start another character and try another kind.

I know I have a few friends who know a lot more abt morrowind so if they wanna add on to this I don’t mind. But yeah, morrowind is a good game! With good(and crazy) writing!

[bluegekk0]

How does the troupe get around as a unit in your AU? People always have their own little interpretations of how they get to place to place so I was curious about yours

Sneaky little second question, what do the troupe members including the grimmkin do in between rituals when they are just chilling in dirtmouth? Do they also contribute and interact with the town or do most of them just stay in the main tent?

I think they move on foot, perhaps there is some magic involved to make them travel faster, but they don't teleport around or move through the Nightmare Realm, since it's inaccessible and Grimm isn't powerful enough to do anything like that. So they have their carts and their Grimmsteed, they might also take other forms of transport such as the large Silt Strider like beasts I was talking about a while back. These days they usually travel between Dirtmouth and the nearest countries/kingdoms on the continent, so their journeys can take from a few days to a week or two.

(As a side note, I definitely want to sit down and do some calculations for things like how long is Grimm absent from home, the lifespan of his physical body, that sort of stuff. Since to this point I think it was unrealistic at times, and it's clear I'm kinda making it up as I go. I want to do some worldbuilding about the length of the year, the seasons and all that, so it would be fitting to do that then)

As for the second question, yes, they do contribute. For a while they kept mostly to the Troupe area of Dirtmouth, but as time went on they started getting more involved in the everyday life of the town. A lot of them helped with the physical part of the town renovations, which included Grimmkin houses where they reside when away from their duties. They also contribute to the holiday celebrations, the music crew in particular, and other Grimmkin help with the preparations like decorations, preparing the tables, that sort of thing.

Their introduction to Dirtmouth had a very rough start, many of them were unhappy (and we know how that ended), but as the town expanded and developed, they found themselves enjoying it more, mostly because there was more to do. There is a diner, a tavern, there are shops and markets, and extra jobs to do for those who want it. Of course, it doesn't compare to the things they experience whenever they travel to large countries and kingdoms for rituals, so they were fully on board with the idea of leaving without Grimm whenever possible (which he ended up suggesting after the incident). But their stay in Dirtmouth is not that bad, so they can't complain.

As the rest of the town got used to their presence, the Grimmkin were able to get integrated into the community more. Many of them have friends within the town, some may have found even more. I could see one or two Grimmkin finding love and deciding to leave the Troupe to start a family, which Grimm ensured would go as smoothly as possible. They could still work at the actual Troupe tent with performances and such, but they would no longer be connected to the Nightmare King.

It would mean that they'd sacrifice any special abilities that connection granted them (including their immortality), and in some cases there could be some side effects like memory issues or general confusion, but it would pass. I mentioned it before, but in the AU, the Troupe has always been voluntary, bugs could leave and get the benefits of the connection to the Nightmare King, while also working for Grimm and his crew. Consequently, they could also choose to leave at any time, with some minor side effects that I mentioned (or sometimes without any at all). Those who get banished aren't as lucky, and I like to think it's because Grimm throws them out and severs that connection without any extra effort. I'm definitely going to share more details on the WorldAnvil page about how exactly this works at some point in the future.

I mention this because I quite like the idea of the Troupe becoming even more of a theatre/performance house in Dirtmouth. They put on performances for the town, and if anyone needs some extra geo, they could help with Troupe matters without joining the ranks of Grimmkin, or maybe even work for them full-time. And I can't see why some Grimmkin, who perhaps found a life outside of the Troupe, wouldn't want a similar arrangement made. Grimm definitely wouldn't be opposed to it as long as the Troupe is still able to function correctly. He always tried to treat them nicely, and if he's able to enjoy a family life, he wouldn't want to strip those who remained loyal to him of that opportunity either.

[wellthebardsdead]

Evalien: *trudging through the ash and sand with Wyrm on her back as they head towards Tel Mithryn* were almost there, I can hear a silt strider.

Wyrm: that’s what’s making that sound?! I heard they were extinct!

Sero: endangered but not extinct. *helps Taliesin down over a ledge as Kaidan helps Cary and Inigo Lucien* Dusty’s probably one of the only females left and she’s nearing the end of her l- *freezes hearing footsteps behind them*

Kaidan: heard em too yeah?… saw em eyeing us in the netch. Funny mask on them.

Evalien: funny mask? *turns and blinks seeing a hooded figure duck behind the scathecraw, the tip of a very familiar spear only just visible* … *sets Wyrm down and smiles as she opens her mask and approaches the plant* Hello, don’t be scared. I don’t bite.

Kaidan: Eva they could be after you or Wyrm what are you-

???: *peers out slowly from the plant* I-I’m not a th-threat I promise I just- I just heard you might be able to help me.

Evalien: I figured. Don’t be afraid. I know you’re not vivec.

???: …You know me? *steps out and stands up slowly before pulling off their mask showing gold and blue skin and a soft freckled face*

Evalien: I do. *smiles holding open her arms* Hello Vivienne.

Vivienne: *tearfully holds his mask tight as he steps forward and let’s her hug him* h-hi Alma…