#it is the biggest problem i've encountered in this game and i know it's not going to change any time soon but jesus christ

[yloiseconeillants]

healing becomes much less stressful when you realize you can just actually let people die and then rez them and it's almost never a big deal like let go of your fear you're not gonna wipe if a bard falls off the platform i promise

[paper-mario-wiki]

since you play Fallout 4 without fast travel and with an emphasis on immersion, have you played or considered playing on survival mode? because like, I'm someone who doesn't care for survival mechanics in games much at all, but I love Fallout 4's it's honestly really well implemented and honestly feels like it could be the intended experience, everything is just that much more immersive and surviving the Commonwealth feels that much more rewarding as a result. i'd say, maybe at least give it a chance if you haven't, it really is a game changer

I spent most of yesterday doing all the Institute quests and finishing the main campaign since Dana had been trying to do something without confronting them directly, but eventually she decided there was no other way. I did a BUNCH of quests in a short amount of time, and it took a few months of in-game time that went by in a few hours, which I decided the canon reason for was Dana knowingly putting herself in the most dangerous position in the entire Commonwealth, working as a Railroad double agent in the institute while under heavy scrutiny, and so a lot of it was happening all at once and pretty impossible to process. For this time she had to leave Piper behind for a few months, as she didn't want her getting hurt, and all of this pressure and responsibility was an extreme toll on her, resulting in her memory of her time working for the Institute being a blur.

There was a really powerful character moment while Dana was in power-armor, walking out to capture a synth for the institute, very rainy and dark on an overcast night walking through a field way out of town, and a couple of raiders tried to ambush her. And as she stood still there, watching through her rain-covered visor, letting them strike her with their pool cues and having their .38 bullets ricochet off of her advanced stolen military hardware suit of armor, she reflected on how a year ago, when she came-to, these guys were the biggest of her problems. She used to get a kick out of scheming around these guys and outsmarting them. But now, after caving in the skull of one of these two with a single swing of her baseball bat and looking at his terrified partner, still frantically swinging his crude weapon as before, but now with a much deeper desperation and fear, perhaps knowing that he's going to die over what he thought was going to be an easy score, Dana has a lot to think about. About how her heart is that of a Wanderer, but how sad and scared it made her that she may never be able to walk through the Commonwealth as an equal again. She wasn't scared of being famous, she knew word didn't travel like that for just anyone in the wasteland. She was just scared that she may never encounter anything that surprised her again, and that prospect was terrifying to her. The idea of being too complete in her understanding of the world.

Anyway, all that is to say: I think I'm nearing the end of Dana's story in the Commonwealth, and if I play again I've got an idea for a new character (a piece of shit) who is gonna be on survival difficulty!

[2af-afterdark]

What in Hell is Bad?: First impressions the day after launch

It is the day after launch now. It has not been a full 24 hours as of when I have started writing this post, but I want to give my first impressions of the game; the good, the bad, the ugly.

I will not be holding the server overload against PrettyBusy, especially since that is a common launch day problem with games and they have been doing their best to fix it. Instead, I want to look at the actual content and gameplay.

The Good

There are a ton of Day 1 goodies that make it easy to jump into the game and get going as soon as possible.

Duplicates are automatically converted into an item called tealeaves that you can use to boost/evolve a unit. The unit is not automatically strengthened, but you are not required to go digging through all your units to merge the duplicates manually. There is also no additional cost to evolving a unit, so you can merge them immediately with little worry.

The comics between the loading screens really are a blessing. They are so charming and funny and give a little more insight into some of the characters.

You can, like any decent gatcha, put character's you've obtained on the homescreen and tap them for dialogue that gives insight into who they are. Find my slightly troubling first encounter below.

The combat is smooth. I personally have never played a tower defense type gatcha before, but I find this combat easy to understand, plan, and utilize. I do have an issue with it, but I will list that later.

The Bad

The biggest thing I noticed, the thing that leaves me feeling disappointed, is that the male MC is not implemented well. The male MC options appears to only change the MC's pronouns, but nothing about the actual descriptions of the MC. The game still describes MC having breasts and wetness between the legs, which are the traits of a female MC. If you want to play a trans!MC (like my Dallas), that may please you. Or it may not. It depends how your MC/you view your gender and what terms you choose to use for your anatomy. My point is that the male MC is simply a pronoun change and not much more. Even then, the game sometimes uses the wrong pronouns. I have had multiple moments where the game referred to Dallas (my he/him MC) as she/her, daughter of Solomon, said he and Minhyeok were opposite genders (when they both identify as men).

I love the rainbow bar giving me bonus goodies in the Adore function but... It is legitimately hard to see the bars when those items go flying everywhere. I have to be extra careful because I don't know when the left bar is getting too high.

You cannot replay a story section without using AP. Honestly, this is a real let down. Having to use your limited AP to reread a story is sad. I want to go back and reread sections I've already done without worry. It's for memories and fun. I don't mind paying AP to unlock them, but rereading them is a different matter. Especially given how far apart each story section is. It will be hard to refresh my memory if I take a break from the game for any reason.

Do you know where to find the friends menu? Because I do not. I found it, but I had to go through a series of convoluted pathways. Even then, I don't have a friend code or codes to add my friends. Which is strange considering there is a mission about adding friends and sending presents.

The Ugly (quality of life)

The actual battle maps are... Repetitive. There are often multiple battles in a row and they will have the same layout as the one before them. This often makes it so you can use the same units and arrangement you did on the previous map for the current one. This makes the battles easy to plan, but tedious to do.

The comics between loading screens will vanish automatically when the game is ready. I personally wish the game would prompt me to click to continue because my game loads so quickly that I rarely get to read them. If not a click to continue, then a separate menu where I can read them without worrying they will vanish before I get the chance to enjoy them.

Not sure if my game glitched during the overload, but my first Hell-oh! Talk vanished without a trace. The second one I received is still there, so I want to say it was a glitch, but I cannot be certain so I am putting it here.

It appears that tealeaves (the evolution item) can only be used 5 times. After you use it for the fifth time, you seem to be unable to do anything. Yet I am still gathering tealeaves, so I am unsure what to do with all these extras I am acquiring.

A personal gripe of mine, is that it take 5 greater keys of Solomon to draw once (50 for a 10x). You need 3 lesser keys of Solomon for 1 draw (30 for a 10x). I have always preferred a 1:1 ratio when it comes to drawing because it makes it straight forward and easy to plan what I will need.

There is no way to raise a character's level more than one at a time. If you want to level up a character 10 times, you have to hit the level up button 10 times. It would be nice if they gave us a faster way to do multiple level ups quickly.

Sometimes my chats will have these random empty boxes and I feel that is missing dialogue that I really want to see.

When I go back to check my previous messages to reread them, I notice that the options are sometimes not what I actually chose. This picture is the same section as above, but you'll notice Leviathan's dialogue changed. That's because, for some reason, the game saved my answer as being the other one. Notably, I think it always defaults to whatever option 1 is.

(this one is from 🪰 anon because I haven't seen it yet) In that same vein... you cannot control the speed of messages. That is detrimental when you are play one of the plot relevant text conversations. If it progresses faster than you can read you will simply miss it. A function to change the speed of the texts would be a nice addition.

You have to open boxes one. at. a. time. It is a very slow process when you have upwards of 10+ boxes.

Random Stuff I Noticed:

Ppyong refer to class five angels as Vultures. Not sure if this is a mistranslation of Virtues (the actual fifth highest rank of angel) or if PB decided to use unique names for their game.

[cloudbells]

some of your posts actually got me thinking about these questions! i'm very curious how people feel about this sort of stuff, since my own fandom opinions are relatively mild and it got me wondering how other people's experiences compare...

so how about #'s 2 (for stony), #9 and #27 (other than frostshield??😉)

Thank you for the ask (and for creating the game)! Lol, I'm glad me and my inability to keep an opinion to myself was a part of the inspo <3 And sorry for the long wait!!!

2) What's your biggest stony pet peeve?

BIGGEST? Oh man, I'm not sure...Teenification of Tony Stark. He's written so...infantile and emotionally weak (I love vulnerability, but my word choice of him being written as weak is my gripe) in many Stony fics. It genuinely gets on my last nerve. He's damn near 40 in AV1. And he only gets older. And sure, maybe there's some arrested development there, but he isn't a damn child. He knows this. And actually conducts himself well enough in canon (in a way that matches his issues) but it's the fanon portrayal I don't like.

WAIT...I think I have something that's popular for the ship itself. Not very fan of the lengths that misunderstandings go for Steve and Tony...Like, I understand they aren't great at communication, but sometimes it gets to the point where I'm like, "It's passed dense and shot straight into pure asshole territory". I know a lot of people write like this because of CACW, but hot take, I don't think CW was so much of a communication or misunderstandings problem. I'll elaborate on this in a separate post, maybe. But the way misunderstandings are drawn out with seemingly no reason gets on my nerves, but it really depends. I can love misunderstandings, but it can't be something that's contrived for drama's sake.

Oh! Another one is in AUs where Steve was still Captain America, and Tony is still Iron Man, and Howard was still lovesick after Steve died and Tony knew all about Steve as a child....and then the AU has Steve undercover or something and Tony doesn't recognize Steve's face. LOL. This sounds specific, but this exact set up has happened enough to where it bothers me. Like, it's kind of funny though, how annoyed I get over it lmao.

9) What's something that bugs you in fanfiction that you encounter often but isn't necessarily a dealbreaker for you as a reader?

I have a lot of not-dealbreakers. Primarily because if I were to strictly stick to my vision of every possible portrayal, I'd have like 3 fics to read. I'm picky in theory, not so much in practice because I'm also extremely greedy. I'll give one each for Stucky and Stony.

Stucky: That Steve crashed the Valkyrie because he was so sad about Bucky dying. I talk a little about how much I generally dislike this trope here. I think it's a huge disservice to this character, I will never take it seriously, and I will never write it. But, it's not a dealbreaker as long as it's not repeatedly more than....let's say 3 times in a fic. Looking back, I already gave this answer, so an additional one - Bucky being community dick and then getting upset that Steve doesn't realize that Bucky wants him and the tone of the fic also supporting that Bucky has a right to be mad lol. It's a weirdly common narrative point in a lot of fics and I just don't care for it. It's actually one of the reasons I tend to stay away from pre-CATFA fics. This trope also happens in Stony too, now that I'm thinking about it. What's up with that?

Stony: I (unsurprisingly) have a few to choose from, but I'll say - when it's written like Steve was horrifically out of line or the aggressor in AV1. It's super common (from throwaway lines to paragraphs about how Steve was an asshole) and there is a fine line that this has to walk for me not to dip. Usually, it's a couple of line about it, which I can ignore.

27) What's something that you think [insert fandom/pairing] doesn't have nearly enough of that you're starving for?

I have an embarrassing amount of rare pairs that I ship and I've been itching for a chance to let them out (/ = romantic or sexual, & = platonic).

Steve & Wanda. Oh my goodness, I am absolutely starving for more fics that show their growing bond from AOU to CACW. I would eat it up. Even in AUs, honestly. I said in another ask that I dislike kidfics, but guess what I'm outlining right now involving kid!Wanda...I just think there is something to explore there with Steve's care towards Wanda in canon. I feel like he understands her, to an extent, and anything he doesn't understand, he tries to sympathize with. He reaches out to her and that's so, so important to me. Because I adore Wanda. So much.

Rumlow/Steve. I want to clarify, not so much as a romance pairing (though I have read a couple like that), but more so as a one-sided creepfest on Rumlow's end. Something about him feeling an erotized violence/hatred towards Steve is so delicious to me. In my mind, it's not even love/hate - it's obsession. Maybe even coupled with a childhood admiration morphing into a disturbed/twisted fixation on Steve. I think this Rumlow likes to see Steve hurt. I also think he hates to be kept away from him. He's not deluded enough to think that Steve loves him back, he in fact, probably loves how much Steve hates him after the Hydra reveal. Yum.

Carol & Steve. Nothing much to say here, but I'm sure it's not too surprising. Captain Marvel is my 2nd most-watched MCU movie after CATFA. And I think their stories and journeys and experiences are so, so amazingly similar that I cannot resist the temptation of wanting them to be in every scene together. The squeal I let out when she first met Steve probably broke a few records.

Can I get a little more obscure? I have Steve-ships with characters who aren't in the MCU. Here's a speedrun, no elaboration:

Din Djarin (The Mandalorian)/Steve Rogers

Kushina (Naruto) & Steve Rogers

Sesshomaru (Inuyasha) /Steve Rogers

Ginko (Mushishi) & Steve Rogers

Epsilon (Pluto) & Steve Rogers

Kurenai/Steve/Asuma (Naruto).

Izaya Orihara (Durarara) & Steve....or Izaya/Steve...Izaya would hate him so much haha.

[devsgames]

One of the biggest things I value when picking a game engine iffor my projects is how plentiful - and how accessible - the documentation and community support is for it. It's probably the biggest reason why I have stuck with Unity for years over Godot or Unreal; when I encounter an issue I know throughout its ~15 year lifetime someone has probably encountered my issue before and posted online (whether that be substack or Unity Answers/Forums) about how they were banging their head against it too, and some smart people have not only explained why some things work the way they do but also how to fix it. As part of my process it's pretty integral to troubleshooting when I encounter problems and can seriously save bacon when working on shipping projects that aren't just tiny prototypes or experiments.

When I played with Godot I found there wasn't a ton of information available when I started to run into hyperspecific issuesand I've generally found Unreal's forums are typically useless at the best of times and straight up broken at the worst of times, so I've never been eager to jump there either (I suspect this is due to it primarily being used by larger studios who keep a lot of that stuff internal and under wraps).

It might not matter for some people but I think this element is key for my workflow for shipping something, since a blocker on a project - especially later in development - can easily cause some real intense problems, and sometime you don't want to have to figure out how to reinvent the wheel.

[rederiswrites]

I got Baldur's Gate because everyone was excited about the characters and story, and I thought it would be like Dragon Age or the Witcher or other video game RPGs I've loved.

It's not.

It's something quite different, and I'm still not sure how I feel about it.

(spoilers, sort of)

It definitely does have an engaging story and great characters. And it is the most mind-bogglingly flexible video game I've ever seen. The number of ways to handle any situation, and the number of situations to encounter, are so great that the three playthroughs in this house are entirely different from each other. I love knowing that there really will be many ways of dealing with any situation, and that talking (and lying) my way through encounters is very rewarding.

That does lead to some glaring continuity problems. Wyll just plain was nowhere to be found until suddenly he was on the main path, ready to jump right into his personal story without so much as an introduction, because I'd already done the burning inn. When my son showed up to the windmill, there was no gnome strapped to it, and we have no idea why.

I do 100% hate the way that the view jumps around and upper landscape elements block my view during combat. There's no upside to that. It's infuriating.

But the biggest thing is well--it's DND. And I have mixed feelings about DND. Specifically, though both of my kids love the nitty gritty mechanics of the game, I consider them a necessary evil at best. I cannot remember them, I do not enjoy them, and I always play a ranger so that I can understand things like, "shoot them with my bow. Give goodberry." Things like movement distance and spell slots are, to me, painfully artificial annoyances. So making it into a video game and KEEPING all of those elements, including the turn based combat that usually has me wandering off to find a snack in actual DND games--that would be kinda the exact opposite of the point for me personally. I would be very happy to have 80% of that running invisibly in the background. I have to make three steps just to shoot something.

Now, both of my kids and my bestie, they fucking love it. This is not about the objective quality of the game. My son keeps the monster manual next to him as he plays. My bestie sends me long pinned texts about how to respec companions and create synergistic team builds that uh... That I can't follow at all. My daughter knows every spell.

Me? To be totally blunt, it's not what I wanted. But now I'm interested to see if it can be something entirely separate and also good.

[sarahowritesostucky]

It's honestly gross how much I love your writing style🤗🤮😁. You always come up with the most incredible AUs and make it feel so real no matter the topic or theme.

I was wondering do you have a favorite fic that you've written?

Author's Fic Game:

1. Answer the questions about a completed fic that you've written.

2. Then add one extra question to the list.

3. Tag some friends

What is the title of your fic?

When did you start and/or complete it?

How many words is it? How many chapters?

Who are the main characters?

Who is the narrator or protagonist?

Is there a central problem they encounter in the story?

What are some of the main tropes or themes in the story?

What was the steamiest scene in the fic?

What was the hardest part of the fic to write?

What is a favorite line of dialogue that you love in the fic?

What is a small, unimportant detail that you love from the story?

Were there any plot twists or big reveals in the story?

Did the story have a happy ending?

Is there anything looking back that you'd like to change about the fic?

Would you ever want to write a sequel/prequel to this story?

Oh wow, that is THE BEST compliment to hear that it always feels real (because it can get pretty crazy in my AUs! lol). Thank you!!

I really had to not think too hard to choose a fic for this: it's like choosing between my children!

What is the title of your fic? A: I decided to go with Swaddle you so good (You'll never want anything else). It is a fringe story because of the subject matter, but I've gotten A LOT of normies messaging me saying that they tried it anyway and were shocked how much they liked it. Plus I just am super fond of it.

When did you start/complete it? A: Started 8.03.2021, finished 7.12.2022

How many words is it? How many chapters? A: It is 71,916 words, 20 chapters

Who are the main characters? A: The main characters are Steve and Bucky

Who is the narrator or protagonist? A: The narrator and protagonist is Steve

Is there a central problem they encounter in the story? A: Central problem is that Steve is kidnapped by slightly-psycho but mostly-sweet Bucky, and has to figure out how to escape while being confronted with his own suppressed desires

What are some of the main tropes or themes in the story? A: Main tropes are falling in love with the kidnapper, forced to admit you like it, diapers/omarashi kink

What was the steamiest scene in the fic? A: Steamiest?? This fic is full of filthy depraved smut, take your pick of anything, lol. The most emotionally steamy scene, IMO, is the first time they have sex in ch 12/13

What was the hardest part of the fic to write? A: The hardest part to write was chapter 17, where they have the big physical confrontation. I really had to think about how I wanted to coordinate that fight. For some reason it was hard to see it clearly in my head and decide how to make it a serious fight without making either Steve or Bucky's actions irredeemable.

What is a favorite line of dialogue that you love in the fic? A: I don't remember one specific thing, but in general I always kind of cackle at the creepy fucking things Bucky says, especially in the beginning, like: “I’m just taking care of you the way you always wanted, Steve. And you know that.” There’s a bit of firmness to Bucky’s tone that wasn’t there before. “You know what you admitted to me over the chats. And deep down it wasn’t just fantasy. You were yearning for this, to have all your worries taken away.” He kisses Steve’s hair. “And I was always yearning to take them.” And whenever Steve has his little comedic thoughts like: Give a psycho an inch. Those are fun.

What is a small, unimportant detail that you love from the story? A: I love that there's a little wood stove in Bucky's house that Steve snuggles up by all the time. I'm a whore for a good lil' wood stove.

Were there any plot twists or big reveals in the story? A: YES! The biggest moment to me was in the bathtub, when Bucky revealed the truth to Steve about the drugs at the very end of Ch13. Also there was when Steve found out the truth about Bucky's late husband.

Did the story have a happy ending? A: Yes indeedy! I don't really write stories without happy endings, lol.

Is there anything looking back that you'd like to change about the fic? A: Chapters 2,3 and 4 were very short and clipped. I kind of like that, as I intended it to make it feel like time was passing that the reader didn't necessarily see, and I feel like it achieved that, but even still it was kind of strange to have such short chapters (especially ch 2). I don't know if I'd change it though. I did have rando pictures in there throughout the fic and I decided I disliked most of those so I removed a lot of them.

Would you ever want to write a sequel/prequel to this story? A: Prequel, no. Sequel ... eh. I really like the hopeful but open ended ending it has. I don't think I'll ever come back to this one because I want to leave the possibilities open for the reader as-is.

My extra question: what was "the scene," quote, trope, or event that inspired the entire fic? (you know there was something!) A: for me, it was the idea of a scene with Steve sitting in Bucky's lap, being forced to wet himself (😳🫣)

NPTs (from a Tumblr stucky fanfiction search): @holylulusworldlylulu, @veltana, @metalbvcky, @myexplosion, @espinosaurusrexex, @buckyalpine, @moonvis, @bossbtch1, @literaryavenger, @1800jjbarnes, @imyourbratzdoll, @georgiapeach30513

[ikamigami]

Regarding Sun's mental issues.

TW/CW: serious topic regarding mental health, depressive psychosis, mentions of various self-destructive behaviours which are symptoms of depressive psychosis.

Please, remember to be compassionate and understanding because it's really delicate and serious topic. I don't want to bring hate. I'm here to bring some awereness.

I know that I've talked about this already but I wanted to state all of my thoughts on Sun's mental issues in one post.

More specifically I wanted to talk about the fact that people were too harsh towards Sun during his "going solo after Eclipse" arc.

I believe that Sun was not only on a verge of mental breakdown but he also had psychotic episode. I don't know how many of you know what psychosis is that's why I wanted to make this post to bring awereness to this type of problems.

I also believe that killing Bloodmoon triggered Sun and he ended having a psychotic episode. But let me explain firstly that I believe that when Sun was killing Bloodmoon, he most definitely had PTSD and he relived that moment when he banished Eclipse from his head. I think Sun had PTSD during that moment with BM because of how similar were things BM said to Sun to the things Eclipse told him then. That's why Sun aimed straight for the head because it's something he's doing without thinking like we could see in many gaming episodes.

Some time after Sun killed BM psychotic episode started. And now you need to understand that when someone has psychotic episode it's not their fault and it's not like they can stop it. There wasn't anything Sun could do to stop having psychotic episode. The true problem is that no one helped Sun. Or to be more accurate "the help" of others wasn't exactly the help Sun needed at such hard time he had.

I also think that it wasn't the first time Sun had psychotic episode but this one was definitely the major one, maybe even the biggest one he had. And I understand that others don't have to know what exactly they should do during situations like that if they encountered it for the first time (the first time when they could realise that there is truly a serious problem here with Sun).

That's why I'm not that mad at Lunar or Moon (but Moon could do better than he did). I'm more angry at people who kept saying that Sun should've known better or should've listen to Moon or shouldn't have been angry at Lunar. Because Sun didn't know better at that time, Sun couldn't listen to Moon at that time, Sun couldn't do anything about being angry and agitated which he expressed it all on Lunar at that time. He couldn't do anything about all of this during psychotic episode and definitely during such a major one. Because it doesn't work like that.

You may think that saying that Sun had psychotic episode is a stretch but he had Bloodmoon's hallucination among many others symptoms of psychosis. And I strongly believe that Sun has a depressive psychosis. Many symptoms are there, such as:

agitation

anxiety

persistent low mood (in Sun's case he's more irritated than sad as we could see in many episodes)

lost of interest and pleasure in activities you used to enjoy (we could see that Sun isn't as happy with his daycare attendant duties as he used to, sometimes we could see that he wasn't enjoying playing games even the ones he really likes (it's important to remember that Sun is hiding his depression so it's not always easy to tell that he has depression)

sleeping difficulties (we know that hallucinations keep Sun awake at night and we know that he has nightmares very often if not daily)

having less energy than usual or being more fatigued

changes in movement, such as increased restlessness or a sense of being slowed down

difficulty concentrating or making decisions

frequent feelings of worthlessness, helplessness, self-hatred, or guilt

frequent thoughts of death, dying, or suicide (the last one is only implied for now)

hallucinations (Bloodmoon; I also believe that Sun has hallucinations related to July 16th incident)

delusions or believing things that aren't true (mostly I think that Sun truly believes that everything is his fault and he's evil; it's also implied for now but it isn't a far fetched statement).

I also think that Sun has a Major Depressive Disorder with mood-congruent psychotic features because it's stated that in this type of Depressive Psychosis hallucinations and delusions reflect feelings and emotions that often show up with depression, including feelings of personal inadequacy, worthlessness, guilt, and fears about illness or death which fits Sun's current state of mind perfectly.

It's also worth to mention that psychotic episode usually is developing over a period of 2 weeks and we know (more or less, mostly we can assume) that it wasn't a long time between Sun killing Bloodmoon and him going after Eclipse. And also usually person fully recovers from psychotic episode within few months, weeks or days and we know that it is only slightly more than a month after Sun's mental breakdown which he had during psychotic episode.

I also believe that Sun didn't gain depressive psychosis because he killed Bloodmoon, I think he suffered from it since July 16th incident for sure. It was very traumatic event in Sun's life which may lead to developing psychosis among with depression. Because I think that Sun's untreated PTSD after that incident (and also after what was happening with Moon and kill code when they still shared a body) further worsened his mental issues which could led to developing psychosis. But if Sun mental issues still will be left untreated it may lead to developing bipolar disorder. Because untreated psychosis may cause Sun to have worse episodes each time. It doesn't always end up with one having a bipolar disorder but it may end up like that.

Situation is already bad but it can be worse and the worst case scenario is that Sun may end up taking his own life. Many people with untreated depressive psychosis end up taking their own life or with attempting suicide. The risk is very high on such cases.

That's why I'm so scared and worried for Sun. Because the only one who somewhat helped Sun (to some extent) is Earth. But it's definitely not enough. Sun still suffer from depressive psychosis which we know from the lore episode with Amanda the adventurer. Bloodmoon's hallucination still haunts Sun. Sun needs a professional help in my opinion.

It's also worth mentioning that it's not that weird or surprising that Sun never told anyone about any of this because people with depressive psychosis often don't open up about their issues. It's truly on others to help a person with such problem. That's why I hope that with my explanations people will stop blaming Sun for acting like he was during his "going solo after Eclipse" arc because it isn't his fault. He had psychotic episode and that's it. Others such as Moon or Lunar were the ones that should help Sun then but they didn't or they help wasn't actually helpful. I'm not totally blaming them for that because like I said it was the first time Sun had such a major psychotic episode which let them realise that there was something wrong happening with Sun.

I hope that this post will bring more awereness to such issues in general and that people will stop being so harsh towards Sun.

Lastly, I'll say that I appreciate the work both Davis and Reed are putting into depiction of various mental issues in S.A.M.S. and that they're treating it seriously. Also the depiction of Sun having depressive psychosis is very accurate to the point that the symptoms are visible and during Sun's "going solo after Eclipse" arc I could easily see and assume without being afraid it's a stretch that Sun had psychotic episode then.

[ideas-on-paper]

Lies of P - No Specter Challenge Results

It's been a while since I finished Lies of P, and I'm already on my first NG+ right now, but I thought it would be fun to take a retrospective look at the results of the No Specter Challenge I had running during my live playthrough of it.

Since I streamed my complete first playthrough of Lies of P, I still have the recordings of the boss fights I did live on camera. The breaks during my streams have been subtracted from the times, however, since I had to take those from the edited episodes (the breaks were usually about 10 - 15 minutes).

More information and backstory under the cut 🔽

My Lies of P No Specter Challenge was something that I originally started out of a whimsy. When I got to the Scrapped Watchman (who really gave me a hard time during the demo), I did a voting on my Mastodon account, saying "Hey, would anyone like to see me trying myself at the Scrapped Watchman without Specter? Y'know, for the extra challenge?"

Of course, everybody voted "yes" (probably expecting to see me gloriously fail), and I said "You know what? I'm going to set 2 hours as a limit, so let's see if I can beat him in that time."

It was, as I expected, a fierce struggle, but about an hour into the stream, I actually managed to beat him - with one millimeter of health left, three perfect blocks just at the right moment, and a final blow just before the lightning got me. Needless to say, I was beyond myself with happiness and relief.

Later, when I was about to fight Fuoco, I did the same voting again, this time (curiously) with the result that I should fight him with Specter. However, my stream crashed at some point without my knowledge, so I not only had to re-do the boss fight, but all my game progress up until this point. (I made a habit of regularly copying my saves on a USB stick since then.)

Nevertheless, despite winning the battle against Fuoco, it almost felt too easy with Specter support. So when I re-recorded the fight, I said "You know what, I feel like I can do this without Specter, so let's give it a try." And I succeeded, at my second attempt even! (I almost got him the first time, just took a bit of an unlucky hit at the end.)

From there on, I decided I would try myself at all the bosses without Specter for my own fun (and kind of regretted it when encountering Andreus). I'm pretty proud that I managed to do almost every boss solo, with the exception of Romeo. (Unfortunately, it seems I blew all of my luck on the White Lady beforehand, whom I defeated first try - weapon break included!)

After Romeo, I also introduced a rule allowing me to use a guide after one hour if I can't beat the boss for whatever reason (frankly, the biggest problem for me was how to deal with Romeo's inferno combo). This rule really helped me out later with Laxasia, who also has what I call "bullshit combos" you can only counter with very specific tactics or items.

Other than that, I actually did all of the boss fights in the game with one and the same weapon: the Wintry Rapier handle + various upgraded versions of the Greatsword of Fate blade. (I started out with the Rapier and a Technique build, and I've been using the combo with the Greatsword blade ever since the Scrapped Watchman.) It may not be the fanciest weapon combo skill-wise, but it does really good raw damage. I did briefly use special weapons during some battles - like Etiquette for my first few tries against Andreus and the Puppet Ripper for the Green Monster - but these didn't really do much to help me (in fact, it almost ended up losing me the fight against Andreus, since the raw damage of Etiquette is really lackluster).

So, I essentially took on all bosses in the game solo, with no special weapons, no special amulets (since these were always too heavy for me to wear), just with my good old trusty standard weapon and my more or less fixed combination of amulets. (Life/Blue Guardianship Amulet, Patience/Leaping Amulet, Recharged Amulet and an amulet for bonus damage depending on the type of enemy.) And from my experience, it's absolutely doable.

As far as explanations go, I think this should suffice for now. However, if there's anything else you'd like to know, like tips for a specific boss, feel free to leave me a comment. I'm open for Q&A. :-)

[not-so-rosyyy]

Your post the other day got me thinking and sparked my interest - I haven’t bought a manga in years. Do you have any recommendations, especially more current?

OMG! I love this topic.

okay, so i actually don’t know what genre you’re into with regards to manga, but judging from your other interests, i’d say you’re into Shonen/ Fantasy/ Action/ Historical

some of these you might have already heard about, but these really are my favorite from recent years, and they're all excellent:

1. Attack on Titan - set in a post-apocalyptic world where the last of humanity are stuck inside a gated community surrounded by what they call The Walls because there are man-eating giants outside to get them. this is like the Game of Thrones of manga, in that it's like super dark, gritty and harrowing. lots of mysteries and conspiracies and real-world parallels with social issues that plague us today. the early volumes are especially top-notch. everytime i read this, i'm like "humanity is shit" but also somehow i still want to root for us lol. i cried a lot here.

2. One Punch Man - about a depressed and bored superhero facing an existential crisis because he's become so strong he can defeat any (and i mean ANY) monster and villain with just one punch. lmao sounds ridiculous but that's the point because it's really a satirical look into the superhero genre. it subverts a lot of your expectations into that kind of narrative because it directly exposes tropes. really funny (like, the main character treats average things like budgeting and groceries as his biggest problems like the rest of us), but also action-packed and the main plot and mystery just gets better and better over time.

3. Akatsuki No Yona - well, this one isn't a shonen because the main character here is a woman and romance is a huge part of the story. BUT it is not the driving force of the plot. it's really more about politics, leadership, adventure, etc. the lore is really rich, too, imo. and Yona (the MC) is one of the most inspiring female characters i've ever encountered in manga. this is the story of how she, a once sheltered princess in a once "peaceful" kingdom, had to escape the palace after the emperor got murdered during a mutiny. on the run from her enemies, she soon learned that the world outside the palace is far from the idyllic place she once thought, and from her dealings with the common people, found her strength and grew to be a great leader in her own right all while trying to stop the ongoing war and take back the kingdom from her foes. (it's a very I JUST LOVE WHEN WOMEN! type of story)

4. My Hero Academia - this one I think is the most typical shonen story in this list (you know, the very untalented and weak protagonist who grew to be the most powerful one by sheer willpower coupled with a heart of gold). but it executes the genre's tropes and cliches really well, me thinks, and that's why it's wildly popular today. it's set in a world where having "quirks" or superpowers are common, and yet Midoriya (the MC) doesn't have one...even though his dream is to be the greatest superhero like his idol All Might. long story short, they meet and All Might, after seeing how Midoriya possesses the most important quality of a hero, passes his quirk onto him. and thus starts Midoriya's journey of proving that he deserves that power and living up to his idol's name. also cried a lot reading this. (lmao notice the pattern)

5. Kingdom - this is like...one of my most favorite mangas i've ever read. i'd say it's up there with One Piece as one of the best in the shonen genre. the main story is a fictionalized account of the Warring States period of China and it's told mainly from the POV of a young and poor war orphan who joined the military and rose to be one of its greatest generals. if you're into history, philosophy, politics, battlefield strategies and tactics--i couldn't recommend this manga enough. the characterization and story progression are A++. lots of epic moments and speeches that made me shiver and cry buckets. and it constantly ups the stakes and introduces allies you'll love and enemies you'll come to respect. (also...i love the female characters here.)

***sorry for this long ass answer you didn't ask for btw lmao***

[kdval]

Let's talk about villains

And their connection with protagonists. And some related topics.

I finally finished it. This would be a loooong post. I'll provide reddit link below just in case.

Spoilers ahead!

A little preface

I've played Requiem 3 times – 3rd playthrough was mostly for hunting for good screenshots and finding anything I've overlooked in the first two. And it turned out it was good idea – at least bc some interesting details, especially about side characters, are simply "hidden" in the most dynamic scenes. Like, you're in a middle of a fight and characters start talking about the past while trying beat the shit out of each other. Given the fact that everyone wants you dead, it's a bit difficult to focus on dialogue (or subtitles). Or you can accidently interrupt character's line while approaching certain area too quick (I ran into it when Sophia was explaining that big tree prayer and then place for people who can't have children – I just didn't hear the whole 1st line and she switched to the next; sure, I could stay there for a while and then proceed, but still, I didn't expect new encounter so soon).

So, my main idea is: Asobo improved their character development compared to the previous game, especially ofc I mean antagonists. At the same time this little problem with dialogues and some plot decisions leaved me in, well, frustration? I love this game, but it broke my heart.

About Innocence

Innocence's antagonists look much more plain and simple imho. For me the rats were more terrifying – every time you meet them you feel desperate. Though they never were real villains, just mindless power. Like Lucas said – Macula cares neither for good or evil. Same for rats.

So you basically bump into horrors of war, decease, human cruelty and somewhere on the background the Inquisition looms. Vitalis and Nicholas are just another human beings driven by greed.

We know that Vitalis is grand inquisitor who tries to hunt down De Rune family and take the boy, use his blood in his own experiments with rats. A bit weird how he can send dozens of people to take down just one family and then just two kids (Hugo didn't even have "powers" back then) – and fail. Ofc it's for game's sake – otherwise it could end in the first chapter, but still. What do we know about him except that he's old (maybe even unnaturally old), rich and powerful enough for heaving the full stuff of alchemists working on Macula for him and soldiers hunting people he orders to hunt? I can't recall any specific details.

Same for Nicholas. He has really cool outfit and voice, can't argue with that. He's extremely loyal to Vitalis, he's ruthless fanatic and terrifying warrior. Maybe he has unnatural powers too? Like, Vitalis almost certainly experimented on something other than just rats. Arthur throws at Nicholas bunch of big-ass rocks – and he didn't die! Rats tried to devour him twice – he didn't die! He lit his sword and then whole armor – like not a big deal. Maybe he was alchemist too? We don't really know. Nothing about his or Vitalis' background.

So I personally didn't feel anything about Nicholas' death. Same for Vitalis. Both boss fights are bit annoying, but ok-ish. I was much more worried about the main characters relationship, I loved Hugo from the very beginning and was ready to kill anyone for this precious boy. Amicia grows as a character throughout the game, she becomes strong and carrying, real big sis for Hugo, and still has her own doubts.

Anyway, Asobo did a great job with Innocence and they really improved in storytelling in Requiem.

About Requiem

So, in this chapter we have antagonists who has quite good, interesting backstory. I wouldn't assume the Count and the Countess as main villains though – first, we confront with Vaudin (who's not really remarkable character, but I loved his voice and design anyway), then with Arnaud, then with the Count and his wife, and eventually… with ourselves. And the biggest power here is actually Macula. We can see at some point that Macula has some kind of… its own will? Especially when Amicia shout in a rat's nest that she won't give Hugo up – and shit immediately happens, we run from thousands of rats once again.

In this sense Requiem's more complex than previous game.

So, we hear little details about the Count here and there from almost very beginning. It's very easy to miss these details, but when I approach La Cuna, I remembered that little talks and thought "Ah, this is the Count everyone were talking about, alright".

In Innocence we meet the Inquisition in 1st chapter, they're after us the whole game. Here – whole districts are shutdown, plague's everywhere, some local conflicts happen here and there (wtf was all that mess with beekeepers anyway?). Everything feels more global than us. As soon as our - world's and Amicia and Hugo's – paths cross – boom, some shit happens.

Would eventually the Count and the Countess know about our existence if not for Arnaud's dumb revenge plan? Maybe not. Well, would we have ever met our antagonists, if we hadn’t gone to the island, to start with? Damn, our little family was surviving for half-year somehow, if not for that castle and beekeepers, they still could live peacefully as they wanted to. But the game constantly remind us: we can't live among people and be free from them, their vices, their greed, etc.

Returning to our antagonists.

We know the Count is very rich and powerful man. With one hand he can grant favors to people, with other – close districts, leaving people there to rot and die from a disease. Ofc when Amicia asks Arnaud if they should worry about count's army here, on the island, he says – different captain, different land. And we hear how soldiers speak about new captain – the Beast – so I guess arbitrariness is definitely possible. But again, the Count lives on the island and seems not very concerned about the rats and everything else… If we listen closely to his and Arnaud's dialogue during their duel, we can learn that leaving people behind is quite normal for the Count. Costs of war, so to speak. We can learn his "war veteran philosophy" from that "duel" with Amicia as well. Asobo scattered a lot of details everywhere actually.

At the same time the Count loves his wife so much that he found a whole goddamn cult just to fill her head with this Child of Embers legend, so she wouldn't try to hurt herself mentally and physically again.

We know the Countess can't bare the child, she had conflict with her parents (because of that?) and tried to commit suicide (if I understood correctly). Though she's quite charismatic cult leader, not gonna lie. And she has great influence over her husband. "She showed him another way" as he says himself.

So I fell into a trap. I actually felt sorry for our villains. Or pity. When we arrived to La Cuna, I hoped, like Hugo, that everything will be fine. More or less. Even though it was obvious that everything will go to hell.

What I personally didn't like about 12 chapter – villains turned to typical dumbass villains again. Instead of finish everything quick they start that pretentious bla-bla-bla and guess what? Shit happened. It reminds me Innocence, when Arthur should check out if Nicholas was dead. Wtf he was doing all that time? Right – nothing. And got wrecked because of it. Wtf the Count was doing while Hugo was killing his men? Well...

It feels like some plot events were made that way to lead us to finale we got. Though I wouldn't argue with this finale, it's sad and heartbreaking, but very meaningful. But some characters simply suffered for plot's sake. Like Beatrice, for example. I feel like she was more of an instrument for plot than a character. Firstly – to confront Amicia, secondly – to push Hugo into Macula. Even though they all reconciled, she actually understood her daughter, supported her, and then we almost immediately lose her. Well, thanks.

About parallels

But what else I like about the Count and the Countess backstory – aside from details Asobo added to these characters – is connection with protagonists.

Just think about it. We have two mentally ill people. They can't cure each other obviously, but they care for one another and prefer to live in a "wonderful dream", being delusional and deceived. And until they live there, on that island, disconnected from other world... well, they handle just fine.

Same for Amicia and Hugo. They can't find any cure for Hugo. Except for very fragile hope for calm life. But Amicia clung to Hugo's dream, even though it's a lie. Even Hugo in 9 chapter says that they (the Count and the Countess) are so wrong – "just like me". Like making a parallel. But when our siblings stay out of trouble, when the war, the plague, the slavers, the marauders don't concern them – they're fine.

And as soon as Amicia/Hugo and the Count/the Countess run into each other – they start annihilating everything around them. And eventually annihilate each other.

The only difference is the Count's fully aware of his own lies, while Amicia truly believes in her dream.

In Innocence Amicia comes a long way from "leave me alone, you little…" to "I'm going to kill everything and everyone for my brother". In Requiem she gets angry several times, but she stops herself from being rude with Hugo. Like when they wanted to change a bandage, and Hugo asks what color she wants: she clearly wants to say "I don't care", but immediately corrects herself. With Hugo she becomes more patient, calm, reasonable and protective. At the same time Amicia is quite obsessed with Hugo's dream and the whole idea of saving him, which causes harm not only to Hugo, but to all people around.

Same for Emilie. She's a calming presence for the Count, he becomes peaceful and nice, when she's around. As a composer, Olivier Deriviere, says in his walkthrough, she contains his anger and madness. And you can say the Count is obsessed with his wife as well: "everything in this world is rotten except for her" line, his wish for destroying the world after she's gone, all that.

They both – Amicia and the Count – are convinced that what they're doing for their loved ones is for good. But Hugo constantly sees bad things around him, fall more into Macula, become more frustrated during their journey. And Emilie's just falling into madness. She doesn't try to hurt herself anymore, yes, but now she's whole into that crazy idea of becoming a Mother for a God…

I can't find much parallels between Emilie and Hugo … except, maybe, for their way of dealing with things. When Hugo's angry, he calls the rats and tries to "eat them all". And he believes that's the right way to deal with cruelty he sees (even though Amicia tells he can't just kill people like this, but honestly, not that a 6yo kid can defend himself in any other way). Emilie's doing whatever she's doing and she's sure that's the right way.

(Only we keep in mind that Hugo's just a little innocent boy, and Emilie is in her early 30's (I believe?) and her psyche is broken).

And I noticed one interesting thing. When we play that hide-and-seek game with the Count, and he speaks his lines about Emilie and all that, Amicia says that he's lived in this lie for so long, that he can't tell it from the truth. The irony is it's exactly what she's doing – living in a dream, a lie she created.

Hugo's going to die? No, it can't be, we will find a solution. Hugo doesn't want to go to the tomb? No, you must, it's for your own good. Hugo thinks he's responsible for all deaths? No, it's rats/Macula/the Count/whatever.

Another topic I constantly see in the game is revenge. And how an obsession with revenge gets people into big trouble.

Amicia. I would assume this as a kind of revenge, when she starts killing soldiers at herbalist's hut. Like, "the world hurts", and she wants to respond to it the same way. But the most important moment is Beatrice's death and following Hugo's anger. Amicia wants to "spoil their blood", she wants revenge so badly, that she basically pushes Hugo into more anger. As a result, we have:

Hugo's almost dead (even though he "wakes up" later, that massacre certainly affected him badly);

Emilie's dead which causes the Count's fall into complete madness followed by events of 15-16 chapters;

Arnaud. He wants the Count dead, so he will do whatever it takes to reach his goal. He doesn't care if lots of people will die once Hugo release the rats. And eventually he got our siblings into trouble along with himself.

The Count. Thinks he can take control over the boy with such disastrous powers and make the whole world burn.

Conclusion

In one of his walkthroughs Olivier Deriviere said they didn't want to make villains plainly bad. Like, bad people are bad in every aspect. But instead they developed more complex characters, and I believe, they did an excellent job. You may hate these characters, you may care little for their motifs or background, but the devs created amazing story.

And main characters' problems, conflict aren't based only on confrontation with villains, but on their decisions and mistakes.

So, as you understand – it's just my interpretation (maybe a bit chaotic, and my English is complete disaster, sorry for that), but I'm open for any discussion.

[usedpidemo]

Radical Red v3.1 Random Encounters (Route 1 only).

Yeah, this randomizer was cracked. Four legendary Pokémon and they're all insanely powerful. For reference, this was on scaled, so the species were randomized to match equal strength (I don't know why the game won't acknowledge it though), but it's insane that I got both Kubfu and Cosmog, albeit Kubfu was a day time exclusive only. It's insane you can get Urshifu-Rapid Strike as early as before Mt. Moon because of a lone Water Stone, and he was doing most of the carrying while the Cosmogs took nearly halfway to fully evolve. Lunala is absolutely cracked, to no one's surprise, being able to survive any one hit even facing down +2 enemies from full and inducing burns or paralysis back—depending on what the situation requires. Most of the lategame was heavily dependent on wearing down physical attackers with Wisp + Roost until they were in range to a boosted Hex or inducing paralysis as one of the very few speed control users. MVP easily. Solgaleo has the bulk to abuse Weakness Policy and slam enemies down with +2 Sunsteel Strike. I just wish it had access to something like Rock Polish or Autotomize because it had so much potential to sweep, but was held back by it's lackluster speed. Scarfed Urshifu-Rapid did a lot of the late game cleaning, picking off sashed leads with Surging Strikes. Not a lot of Rocky Helmet/Rough Skin abusers around really benefitted him and Urshifu-Dark. Cradily and Zebstrika were only there for the Lorelei rain matchup, but otherwise, the legendary quartet did most of the heavy lifting. At points I wanted to use the other mons and box the Legendaries because it was getting too easy, but I ultimately crutched on them for most of the run, heh. Never look a gift horse in the mouth. I still don't know if the randomizer is consistent; I've heard the encounter pool changes every day, but once I caught all the available mons with DexNav, I never really bothered to look back.

29 losses—2 to the Ariana & Archer tag battle, 2 to Silph Giovanni, 1 to May, 1 to Blaine, 3 to Cerulean Cave Giovanni, 1 to Lorelei, 5 to Bruno, 7 to Agatha, 2 to Lance, and 5 to Blue. I absolutely despise Agatha's Marshadow, being basically a perfect counter to my whole team with Ghost/Fighting dual STAB and being generally faster than my whole team. Spectrier, despite having the most one dimensional movepool ever and Scarf, two shotted Urshifu-Single even resisted. I found the Urshifu-Rapid lead to be more favorable for my team against Bruno than the Infernape lead. As for Blue, the faster matchups were just really annoying, and the AI clearly is smarter than at times—even my Scarf Urshifu-Rapid couldn't outrun Pheromosa. Crazy. Whenever I used Surging Strikes, it would U-turn out, but if I went for U-turn, it would go for Close Combat. Primal Groudon was arguably the biggest problem, being incapable of being statused by paralysis or burn and paralyzing the whole team outside of Zebstrika, who gets oneshot by any of its moves anyway. The goal was not for rocks to get up on my side on the field, which really hampered Lunala's Shadow Shield ability, even with Roost. It came down to Lunala being able to survive a Dark Hole from Yveltal on a damage roll, even at full, then chipping with Moonblast + Thunder from Zebstrika, otherwise it would get destroyed by Sucker Punch if Rocks are up. Mega Metagross is a strange one; it would go for Bullet Punch at times to fail Urshifu-Single's Sucker Punch even when the latter was healthy and Urshifu-Rapid wouldn't be able to take it out.

Anyway, this is kind of a way for me to practice a little but of writing between fics XD I get to tear my brain out because of bad RNG have fun playing Pokémon while getting my word count up by a bit. I'm not sure what kind of themed runs I wanna do. Monotype is overdone, Mono-region seems the most promising but the pool is extremely vast, but whichever way the wind blows for me, I guess.

[psianabel]

I wish Pokemon didn't release a big game every year, I don't know how they managed to ship Scarlet Violet like that, I feel so sorry for the QA testers because im so sure they ... they addressed all this? They had to right ?? There is no way they didn't. And thinking about that, just. Man.

This game now goes viral because, yeah it's Pokemon, but mostly because of its bugs and because it is Pokemon. It's never a good look if a game gets attention because of bugs of all things.

And it's not that it's unplayable, you can ... normally play it and maybe encounter some graphics bugs, but I for myself have to say you just cannot go through this game without encountering any, and that is the problem itself. It just ... dampens the mood, the fun. I'm tired of seeing all these shadow bugs, it just doesn't look good, I don't want to stay in this place because my game is just glitching left and right. I don’t know why a shadow disappears when I open the attack menu in a battle, after seeing so many shadow bugs I'm just tired.

And I don't even want to address the performance issues, I for myself am so easy to please and don't care if NPCs walk with like 5 fps in the background, or disappear from sight in some distance, I literally just don't care. What I do care about though is that I myself can walk freely without slowdowns. Or not see random NPCs walk through my battle screen.

But honestly the biggest gripe I have with this game is the camera. Yeah free flow camera in the battle screen is nice and all, but if i cant find an angle where I can see my and the enemy Pokemon in a traditional style and just see the hint of my Mon somewhere at the edge of the screen - battles just aren’t enjoyable for me like that. And this is mostly because I think the game doesn’t really know what to do when you initiate a battle in a non flat surface - which this game has a lot, with beaches, mountains, hills everywhere. The instant transition between overworld and putting the battlefield just right there and now is so ... wonky, if you're too close to the wild Pokemon you get ported Somewhere further away, and when the battle ends you are standing Right There where the game put you and not where you were, which can have you randomly fall down a slope, or right into the next wild Pokemon, or has you bug into a wall.

All of these things have happened to me, hence I can't address the issues the multiplayer has apparently. Which, from the things I've seen, is another can of worms.

This game can be so beautiful. It's so full of life with all these neat details - Pokemon animations, them running around in the wild, group of Pokemon staying together, the interactions with them depending on the weather. I absolutely adore the characters, the story, the final part.

But I just cannot enjoy so many things in this game because I'm just so tired of these bugs.

[flareonfoxy]

Ambush spawns is Fire Emblem are the worst things that was ever conceived. I was just playing through Awakening and chapter 17 hit which before this I've encountered ambush spawns in this game already so I know they're a thing in this game because I did some of the paralouges to get some characters, but this is one of the worst showings.of them I've seen, basically I'm playing on the middle difficulty for my first playthrough since I've never played this game before and I swept through the entire level pretty easily because my units are higher level due to the paralouges, but then they say "I hear footsteps" so I'm like thank gosh they told me about the ambush spawns this time around and put some units on stairs to block them, nothing spawns so I'm like oh I guess I blocked them but then nope out of nowhere like 4 or 5 turns later a bunch of units start to appear out of the stairwells and I'm like what the fudge?

Tldr one of my flyers got sniped so I have to reset the level.

This level is just an example of warning the player of ambush spawns done wrong because they tell you about the ambush spawns way to many turns beforehand so you may have forgotten about them by the time they show up due to turns taking about 5 minutes because you have to carefully make sure you check ranges or damage values or making sure you don't accidentally put a flyer in range of some random archer or a mage who has like exacliber or something and can one shot your Pegasus Knight. And then you need to go through the enemy phase which you can skip but I like to watch them move around so I can study the ai behavior and priority system at work.

I like Awakening, the characters are fun but ambush spawns suck, that was one of my biggest problems in three houses maddening were the ambush spawns. Ambush spawns make it where the strategy gets thrown out the window in favor of basically checking online or remembering if this chapter has ambush spawns and if you have to worry about them that turn. It bogs down first playthroughs making it so you have to reset chapters a few time so that you don't lose your dancer to a Hero or something else that decided to just randomly spawn right next to them.

If anybody actually likes ambush spawns and you see this post please tell me why because I for the life of me can't see the reason for liking them.

[greypetrel]

For the kiss and tell, do I name just the OC(s) or the prompt to go along with it as well?

Just a few (too many) ideas:

Dionysos / Luke: a kiss shared during a game 

Dionysos / Apollo: kissing them to shut them up

Seren's parents (maybe when they first met? It's Ireland after all 😜) sharing a kiss in a heavy downpour of rain

Orestes / Dylan, the OTP: kiss to resolve suppressed romantic/sexual tension

Shahra / Winnie / Mr Darcy (or any combination thereof): a kiss after joining your lover in the shower

Pick the one you wanna do the most 💜

Love, Aimée

Hello! <3

Thank you for the lots of prompts! I did one, may return to do some others… And in writing. I've not been so inspired with TLB, but this may be the way to kick me back in again!

For all the others who don’t know what this is about: These are characters from the webcomic I’ve been writing and drawing (the colours are made by one of my dearest friends, who’s not on Tumblr actively for me to tag) in the last years: @thelastbacchae. It’s Greek Mythology set in the modern day. Seren is a Classic enthusiast who went on a school trip and had a too close encounter with Dionysos, who now lives with her as the house cat. It turned out that Seren’s parents… Already knew Dionysos, and Circe as well.)

I wanted to post a couple, but this was something I had in mind since LONG and… My hand slipped. And I’m wordy.

Seren's parents (maybe when they first met? It's Ireland after all 😜) sharing a kiss in a heavy downpour of rain

There really was no point, then. The refusal stung bitterly at him, as much as one big part of his brain told him he has been overly lucky to get out of that room with just a bloody nose, not broken, a black eye and bruises all over. And two gods walking behind him, quarrelling fiercely amongst them, as they never seemed to stop doing.

The last three weeks had been a blur of events, and he felt his life turned upside down, in the worst possible way. He celebrated his first year in Dublin, his Diploma in Old Irish for his PhD, and acceptance on the second year of Early Irish. The exam session was oncoming, but he wasn’t worried about that. That was, indeed, the least of his problems.

The biggest one, now, was how ever he was going to explain to professor Byrne the poor state of his appearance. He watched himself in the reflection of a car, and he looked like he ran face first against a double decker. Very unbecoming for a Trinner assistant, he knew. He just hoped that Trinity had a more lenient environment than Oxford. Or he was fucked.

The second problem, was the fact that he apparently had made friends with none other than Circe. Sorceress, daughter of Helios, the very same. She was nice company, normal enough or striving to be so. They met when they both were new at university, and he caught on pretty quickly that there was something weird with her. For once, she enrolled in a post-graduate course and had no idea on how universities worked. He had been told many times that he was “Born an old man”, his social life was close to zero, outside books and old ruins, but she beated him in stride. They clicked, he helped her out, she told him who he was. It was as good as it could get, being underdogs together.

And then, her friend came by in town. Her friend who was Dionysos. Her friend who was suddenly VERY interested in him, because a friend of his -Tom didn’t understand if it was a boy or a girl, they called them John and Ariadne interchangeably- had to… Reincarnate. And he was supposed to be the father. Apollo told them so.

What Tom didn’t know, beside the fact that he should really have paid more attention to Plato’s theory, apparently, was that ancient deities are apparently terrible matchmakers.

Because the supposed mother was none other than Johanna Connelly. The most beautiful girl in the camp, a brilliant name in the Microbiology Faculty, so much so that her name was known even in Humanities. And, an activist.

Tom knew her. Tom knew her on sight, and it would be a lie saying that when they told him, his heart didn’t skip a beat at the idea and suddenly fell like the main character of a fairy tale.

Except, gods are real, but fairy tales aren’t, and Johanna and him lived on different planets. She was popular, fashionable, had lots of friends she went out with, she was Irish and could be found on campus distributing fliers and informative leaflets about this and that social cause. Once she tied herself to the doors to protest for equal rights. Tom never saw anything so beautiful, like Queen Medb facing the ire of Conchobar and kicking him out of her palace, powerful and unstoppable. And it was rumoured her brothers were activists up in Belfast, fighting for the reunification. Some said IRA, whispered as a secret. But Tom heard. And he was but an English bookworm, with a penchant for ancient Celtic history that always made him too enthusiast in speaking, a heavy Hampshire accent on his own, socially awkward, knew nothing about fashion, and too shy and timid to enter some social protest.

It was impossible, as three weeks of setting ups showed. And there’s really a long way two gods can go to set you up with another mortal. A long way. But it wasn’t enough if none of them was Aphrodite or Eros, and one of the pair refused to call them, refused to force her into something she may not want. It didn’t feel right.

He tried to talk to her, tried to bring her flowers -but he chose Orchids for their meaning of beauty and charm… And she protested that he spent money on flowers that were imported from so much south, releasing pollution into the air with who knew how many consequences, the planet wouldn’t survive so long if we keep wasting fuel for orchids. She was right, and he was mortified. He should have thought it. Diotima -Circe- had grumbled that there was no need to be so bitchy about it. But he stopped her. They tried again. And again. Going to a party she was at didn’t work, he didn’t find an excuse to greet her and she started dancing with one of her friend. Or was it a girlfriend?. Same pub? He got caught to drink by a group of friendly people, and by the time he could look up she was gone. They had no lesson in common, couldn’t study together.

Desperate, he listened to the rumours. He sought a group of young militants for Ulster Independency. Not the IRA, of course. Baby steps.

Diotima had told him it was a terrible idea. Dionysos scrunched his nose at the methods, grumbled it was his brother’s territory and he could help little… But admitted it could have worked. Just show up, see what they’re talking about, we’ll bring you out if it escalates.

The situation didn’t escalate so quickly. He entered a cell of young people, found by the two gods, and for the first time it was nice. He used his mother’s surname, O’Sullivan, instead of his father’s, told them he was Irish, but his family had to move to England. Gained sympathies. He had brains to him, which was appreciated, he could talk about philosophy and the reunions he attended were just that. Talking.

For a minute, Diotima and his conscience telling him that it was wrong, he should lose them and get out while he still could, it was all right. It was fun, it was nice, he felt part of something bigger and he felt amidst friends.

So much that, this evening, he told them.

Told them his surname was Calvert, just his maternal grandfather was Irish, that he grew up in Southampton, was English, but loved Ireland more than he could say, and felt so welcome.

They didn’t take it well.

By the time Diotima flashed them, becoming incandescent as the sun for a moment, and Dionysos flicked his fingers a purple haze -Dionysos hummed Jimi Hendrix’s song as it did- rose up in the room, rendering everyone too stunned to do much but flop on the ground and laugh in an alcoholic stupor, he was spitting blood, his nose bleed profusely, one of his eyes was so swelled he couldn’t see, and he was so sore that breathing hurt.

The two brought him out, Circe fed him a very bitter plant that made his bleeding stop, and here they were, returning home under a sky that promised rain, dark and cloudy as his mood. He left his umbrella in the flat, and someone took his wallet. He had no money to go back home -gods tend to forget of the practicality of life, at least Circe apologized- and so he was walking, all the way to Rathmines, feeling hopeless and stupid.

“This was the stupidest idea ever! How could you think it would work?”

“Oh sure, because the orchids were so effective!”

“Orchids to an environmentalist! What a great idea!”

“I grew them myself, they didn’t pollute anything!”

“Sure, cow-head, because mortals contemplate the fact that flowers grow when you step!”

“Said the one who made one friend and spat everything out!”

“At least my mortal friend doesn’t hate me! When was the last time you even saw John? Eh? When the Beatles split?”

“You’re insufferable!”

“Said the god of ritual madness!”

Tom couldn’t take it one minute more. He had enough. So, he took the situation in his hands, and for once in his life gave in to anger, turning on his heels and yelling right back.

“Would you please stop it?!”

They did, both snapping their heads toward him, surprised. Tom straightened his eyeglasses on his nose, broken but better than not having them. He could see through the cracks.

“It won’t work, no matter how hard you try. I let myself hope miracles could happen and look at me. I’m hurting all over, I will be kicked out tomorrow because I was stupid about this whole story, and without this PhD, I have nothing! I’ll end up digging some place random, never publish my own research, and for what? For running after a fairy tale?”

He leashed out, clenching his fist at his sides and swallowing some more blood that trickled down his throat from his nose, the agitation opening wounds up again.

“I am sorry I made you lose so much time, it was fun spending time with you and Circe, you’re my best friend and I love you. But sincerely, I’m out. I give up. Find another guy.”

If Circe looked down at the pavement, with real sorrow, Dionysos just glared at him with some threat. Like a panther stalking its prey, golden eyes closing down at him, lips contracting in a thin line.

“There’s a prophecy.” He hissed, gravely.

“I don’t care.” Tom debated, shrugging. “It’ll come true whether I’m trying or not. Or it was another Thomas Calvert, or another Historian. I… I’m sorry. I can’t do this, not anymore.”

Tom was, indeed, sorry. He turned on his heels, leaving them. Remotely, he could hear the noise of a step, some breath taken too quickly, before Circe spoke. “No. Let him go.”. He was grateful for her, really. She was company when he was alone, and he was sad to have disappointed her in helping with her family. He would have bought her some baklava from the place she liked most. If she ever showed up on Campus again.

He turned a corner and he was alone, none following him. That was good. Now if the sky, or Zeus at this point, would just start raining, he would have been satisfied and allowed himself to cry. As childish as it would be, he needed crying. He really like Johanna, he admired her strength, her willingness to fight so fiercely for others, for people she didn’t even know. He wasn’t like that, and would never be. His place was in the back of a library, submerging in another world, another time when things were, apparently, easier. Or at least, certain in their ending. The present had not the certainty of history, if you didn’t know the future. Or if the future you knew clearly didn’t talk about you.

Vaguely he could hear faint steps behind him, of a person who was running. A person with heels, from the concitated click-clack of heels. He couldn’t care less. The streetlight was red anyway, he just stepped on the side to let the runner pass easily.

But, to his surprise, he felt someone grabbing at his elbow, strongly, and try to turn him around.

The panic from the afternoon he just spent rose up again instinctively, and his first reaction was to resist the movement and crouch down again, to protect himself. Not another time, please. Not today.

Nonetheless, the hand of his elbow resisted, and it became two hands, one on the opposite shoulder, clenching down.

“Hey! Hey, it’s me! I’m not gonna hurt you!”

He froze on his spot, not daring to open his eyes. Or well, the one eye that was functional at the moment.

“I’m so sorry, I heard… I came as fast as I could. Did they…” The hands shifted. “Oh, feck, what did they do to you…”

There was a sad rage in the voice that was speaking to him. A feminine voice he knew, even if he never heard them with that tone of voice. It was a voice fit for indignation, for speaking up, for denouncing and for justice. The tenderness was… Weird. In a nice way that poked directly at his heart and at some budding feeling. He opened his eye, tentatively, and…

… And Johanna Connelly was staring at him, frowning in disapproval, but with a weird turn of her lips. Something that, again, spoke of tenderness.

“I-I’m sorry.” He told her, instinctively, trying to retract from her.

“Of what?” She snorted, shaking her head in a wave of loose curls. “I am sorry for you. I was there to pick my brother up… And he told me what happened. He recognised you in that room. I was close by.”

She confessed, calmly. It didn’t seem like she hated him.

“There was…?”

“Yes, Oisin. That idiot. Tall, red leather jacket. Tell me he didn’t…”

He remembered him. So Circe and Dionysos DID got him in the right group after all. He hadn’t bothered to ask for everyone’s surnames.

“He didn’t.”

“He didn’t even stop them tho. Oh, I’m going to punch him.” She groaned, furrow deepening on her face.

Tom could not make out heads from tail about why exactly she was there. Sure, by his many trials to approach her, she must remember him… But running after him after he was beaten?

“I- There’s no need to. I was stupid about it, and… Johanna, right?” He cleared his throat, embarrassed and dying to change the subject.

“Yes. And you’re Thomas. From Celtic Studies.”

“I-… Do you know me?”

“Orchid lad? How could I forget!” She laughs, briefly and clear, patting his shoulder and offering her arm to take. “Genius English that can take every Irishmen on Gaelic and even speaks some Welsh? You’re not so invisible as you think you are.”

The way she said it, with a warm smile on her face, it really seemed like a compliment. He smiled back, taking her arm with his and letting her lead him across the street. They exchanged small talk, topic going to something lighter and less consequential. He told her he was going to Rathmines, and that he forgot his wallet in the jacket back there, with his umbrella. She promises to bring everything back to him, should she kick every one of the idiots in the group herself. She assured him he would not have been fired, no matter what those pompous stuck-ups at Oxford would have said. This was no England anymore, luckily.

She brought him to a bus stop and put some coins in his hand, telling him he would have given them back later, it was not a problem.

“It’s really the least I could do, after my brother just… Watched as a bunch of eejits beated you because you happened to be English.” She snorted.

“It is not a problem, for you? You seem very active and… Well…”

“The rumours?” She sighed, heavily, crossing her arms before her chest. “Don’t tell me you believe them, please. Some people just see anyone standing up for civil rights and shout at the IRA. I hate this situation. I hate this country.”

It broke his heart a little, in compassion. He could relate wanting to get away from a country you don’t like. He already ran from England, after all.

“It’s not so bad. You have no Margaret Thatcher running for PM, at least…”

She laughed at that, turning towards him with a bigger smile.

“But living in London would be so fun.”

“Tell me after you look at the rental prices.”

He laughed as well, joining her. For a minute, they laughed together, and she leaned her hand on his arm again. Tom’s heart beated fast. She wasn’t so difficult to talk to, after all. Quite the contrary. She looked up again, smiling.

“I’m sorry about what happened, really. You didn’t deserve it.”

“Don’t mention it. You shouldn’t have run after me like that. I appreciate it! But I… I must not have made a good impression to you.”

Johanna’s smile faltered, head leaning on the side.

“Why so? You’ve been around for some time, yes, but what did you do wrong?”

“The orchids. And… Well.” He indicates himself.

“You’re pointing at the whole of you.” She noted, amused.

“Bookworm, human disaster, I’ll show up tomorrow with the ugliest pair of extra eyeglasses ever. I actually like tweed.”

She laughed again, loud and boisterously. Very little feminine, but Tom couldn’t care less. She was even more beautiful.

“It’s not that bad, and come on. It could be worse.”

“… It could be raining?” He couldn’t help the quotation, a dope smile creeping on his face. Crooked and ugly, but happy. She didn’t seem to mind that he wass beaten up, and smiled back, the same glint in her eyes.

“Want to dig up some cemeteries? I could do some studies over corpses and skeletons…”

And then, as on clue, a first drop of rain fell down, hitting Johanna’s hand. Big and fat. A second followed, on Tom’s nose. A third, a fourth, a fifth… And suddenly, it was heavily pouring over them, on their own with no umbrella, Tom didn’t even have a jacket to be gallant and cover her up. They laughed, madly and furiously, Tom made a bold move and circled her shoulder under his arm, dragging her against the wall of the closest building for the small repair of the roof up above. It wasn’t much, but it was better than nothing. Johanna patted on his chest, clearing her throat.

“Your bus is coming.”

“Oh.”

A pause, both looking at the double decker slowly approaching. With disappointment.

“Would you like to lunch together, tomorrow?” He asked, abruptly, averting his eyes suddenly as he realised that he was still hugging her shoulders and now asking her to lunch together. “Ah… So I can give you back your money, that is.” He corrected.

“I’d like that. Very much. Even if you don’t have the money. 12:30 at the Campanile?”

“Y-yes.”

“Good.”

And with that, and all of a sudden, as the bus was getting closer and closer, she pushed up on her toes, grabbed his pullover on his chest to bring him down and meet his lips in a soft, sweet kiss, slick with rain, but very careful not to hurt him. Delicate, but not casual. He kissed her back, closing his eyes and sighing into it, heart beating a crazy rhythm in his ears.

“Now, Orchid lad, go home and get some rest.”

“Yes, ma’am.” He couldn’t but smile at her, at the faint blush on her high cheekbones.

She snorted again, shaking her head and bringing him to the bus again, by his arm. She got assured he had enough for the ticket, and waved a goodbye as he stood to watch her.

“I’m sorry for the orchids. They were pretty.”

“You were right about them. I’d find you better flowers. If you’d like.”

She laughed again. Masculine and unapologetic.

“You’re so English, asking please and thank you even for flowers!”

“Shouldn’t I do it?”

“Stop it! But no. It’s cute.”

Tom couldn’t reply with anything in time, as the doors of the bus closed between them. All that was left was wave each other goodbye with their end, equally blissful smiles on both faces.

Maybe, after all, Tom shouldn’t give up.

He would have brought a double dose of baklava to Circe. And maybe some tartare to Dionysos. He said he favoured raw meat, after all. He would have apologised to both of them. Maybe fairy tales did come true, after all.

[gryith]

Breath of the Wild: 'great game! Bad Zelda...'

Really frustrates me when people use the phrase 'great game, bad Zelda game' to describe Breath of the Wild, because to me that's just categorically wrong. I'm not even doing the 'Zelda has always had drastically different gameplay and atmosphere' take, in fact I'm taking that further and all the way back around.

Breath of the Wild is closer to games like the original Legend of Zelda and Ocarina of Time, the cornerstones of different eras of the franchise, both in game design and feel/atmosphere, than any other game in the series. You're seriously, with a straight face, going to tell me that Twilight Princess or Skyward Sword feel more like the original 1986 game than Breath of the Wild?

I'm saying this from a relative position of knowledge, too, I've played every single game in the series and I genuinely hold firm that BOTW is more true to the franchise's roots than Spirit Tracks and The Minish Cap, and I genuinely can't understand how you can think otherwise.

The first thing that comes to mind is that it's a full open world game, as opposed to the 'open level' design of previous titles, mostly relegated to the odd side area or breif backtrack. But even then surely it's impossible to feel like going open world is anything more than a natural evolution of a series that's clearly been aching to let you explore it's world for multiple decades?

Let's look at the arguments often used, then, shall we? The biggest being the changing from the typical structure of having you go to four temples to amass enough power to defeat Ganon. Instead, this game has you... Go to four temples to amass enough power to defeat Ganon.

Now, to be fair, these temples, or divine beast, as they're called here, do all suffer from a major case of aesthetic monotony. Whereas previous games all featured temples that would always feel hugely different from one and other, here they all look basically the same at a glance, this is a major problem, however it is purely and only a problem with the aesthetics of the temples. Beyond a breif glance, each temple has their own unique mechanics and systems that divide them, they all have unique puzzles and bosses, and they even take the same ammount of time to beat as a temple from one of the previous games, though with the aid of a smoother gaming experience thanks to some more modern controls and design.

The idea that the divine beasts 'dont cut it' as temples ends up feeling like a shallow scapegoat in lieu of any real criticism of the game itself, so let's look at other criticisms often levied against the game...

Firstly, the weapon segregation system. I get this one, some people just don't like having to think in their games, they like to press the buttons when they're told to press them on screen and not have to think critically about combat scenarios. Sometimes I like to lay back and take it easy when I'm gaming, too. However, not only does this system force you to expand your options and try new ways of approaching combat and weapons you can use, but the entire world, enemy health and AI, and the structure and layout of encounters is built around this system. Without it, the combat would be boring, it'd be the same 3-hit combo plus jump (with a dodge) the series has been coasting off since the last time the game returned to its roots and did something new built off them (Ocarina).

So this, too, is an empty criticism, and at this point I start to wonder if the people saying this ever even liked Zelda to begin with.

One criticism I've heard just one time was that the story in this game isn't as engaging as in previous games. I don't know if I can even comment on this because it is a comment the bewilders me; Zelda is a series that famously is light on story, it's a frequently made joke about the series that the story is just an excuse for a save-the-princess adventure. Were you really playing Ocarina or Wind Waker and getting invested in the story? If so, good for you, but I just can't imagine it... Even in one of my favourites, Majora's Mask, the story is only interesting when it's actually happening, which is for about 10% of the game, when skull kid is on screen, the rest of the game is just 'interesting enough' busywork to get to that point, as with basically every other game in the series. Admittedly, the series got better with time, Skyward Sword had entertaining character dialogue, and there were plenty of points in Twilight Princess where I became extremely engaged with the story itself and the characterisations of certain characters, but to say that Breath of the Wild; which consistently gives you more story and builds the characters more than almost every other game in the series, is somehow lighter on story than its predecessors is frankly laughable.

And now I'm out of points, I've not heard any other major or salient arguments as to why this is a 'bad Zelda game', it's just nonsense, but seems to be an opinion held by a large majority of terminally online gamers with a tendancy towards elitism. A lot of people I know personally even hold this belief, and it just doesn't hold water no matter how I've had it spun for me.

It's strange, in a year when Mario Odyssey took the modern Mario formula and built upon it, moving even further away from the original vision for the series, BOTW made a shift back towards the cornerstones of the entire franchise, deconstructed the whole formula and rebuilt it from the ground up, better and truer than ever. Yet somehow people still say, every time the game is brought up, a sad line made up by YouTubers and video essayists; 'great game, bad Zelda game'