#maid analysis

[mageofmindfr]

Maid of heart? And can a maid of heart put her splinterself into toys, plushies and any inanimate object?

I don't usually delve into the theoretical powers one would have during a game session unless it's relevant to personality things or is just something I haven't seen mentioned anywhere... but I can definitely try?

We're starting with personality analysis though, I'm still a mage of mind after all.

SO! Starting with the class, maids are a creation class. I believe I've mentioned that before briefly, but now I get to expand that. So, maids are a class that can make more of their aspect out of thin air, pretty much. Aradia seems to be so far the only player we meet that I can think of that therefore uses her classpect in a creative way; when dog-Jack attacks their session right before they win, she stalls him, giving her session... more time. Porrim puzzles me because I can't understand so much of the alpha trolls' session so bear in mind if her actions in their session completely contradict me it's because I actually really dislike most of the alpha trolls and therefore skipped most of their dialogue, apologies in advance.

So, what are maids actually like, then, as a creation class and as people?

Well, for one, maids are pretty goal-oriented people, but in a rather big-picture way. They want an ideal life for themselves and everyone around them, if they can swing it, and aren't afraid to fight for it if that's what it takes; however, in pursuit of a picture where there's nothing apparently wrong, they miss details. They're idealistic enough to think some problems are "less important" for the moment, and can be returned to when everything is "fixed" so to say. It's hard to get a maid to leave the theoretical perfect world behind, because they really want to make just that much of a change; and I'm not saying it's impossible, but Rome wasn't built in a day and the world can't be fixed by one person. I hear a lot of people say sylphs are healers, but it's actually the maids that want to change everything for the better.

Maids aren't afraid to take action, but also tend to turn a blind eye to problems they don't know how to fix. Procrastinators at heart, they want the change to be immediate and are intimidated by lengthy processes; but they're definitely determined. With people at their side telling them to keep going, a maid on a mission can make waves. They're people of very distinct opinions who voice said opinions to anyone willing to listen. They talk with a passion about the change they want to see and can be charismatic about it. Like sylphs, they're great friends to the people around them, but they also tend to be polarizing; you either love hanging out with a maid, or you can't be in the same room as them. And the maid won't change for you, because if their loud exclamations at the world are too much for you, whether you disagree or are simply intimidated by the maid's pure fiery passion for the topic... well, the maid probably wouldn't much like having you around, either.

So, maids are an acquired taste, and are fierce and passionate and very loud about their opinions. What about that aspect, then?

I'll be honest, last time I wrote anything for the heart aspect was my second post here and I was too nervous and tired to go the whole way and write the many paragraphs heart players deserve, so, here we go.

Heart is an aspect that regards the self first and foremost. It's about having a sense of self and experiencing emotions to the fullest. They're usually very emotionally intelligent people (Dirk Strider notwithstanding, but he's a prince so I suppose that makes sense enough) and should be willing enough to listen and give advice if they sense something is wrong. I think the heart-bound are very animated people; they're bright and tend to gesture wildly, and people notice when they're not in the room. Heart players are also very sensitive, and their emotional range is so wide I almost made a shrimp colors metaphor. They're really unique people and would probably wear that adjective with pride; they likely wear a lot of adjectives with pride, actually.

Heart players are explorers, they like to see and experience the world, but they also like to explore their own selves. They're not very good when it comes to understanding other people's thought process, and can thus be a bit awkward to converse with for the first time, but they are anything but shy about it. Heart players can be considered very impulsive, mostly because their emotions can sometimes overcome their logic; even those of them who pride themselves for being incredibly logical can sometimes let the world in too deep and interfere and get hurt, the moment something becomes personal.

Heart players are entirely the center of their own world, but not anyone else's; to their knowledge, everyone's center is themselves, and it kind of makes sense. You are made by the things you like and the people you know, and not those of any other person. They expect people around them to be just as driven towards self-achievement and understanding, which makes their first impressions be either intimidating or standoffish, depending on the mood and whether they expected to meet a new person or not; they just want to get to know you, and are surprised when you hesitate and not know some obscure thing about yourself that they know about themselves, like your favorite movie studio or dog breed or whether or not you like an obscure music genre. Obviously when such questions arise you have to explore both yourself and the world around you and form such views, who doesn't? (I'll tell you who, it's people who aren't heart players, that's who). As such, they're also very decisive people, who form an opinion and hold onto it like it's their defining characteristic; because every characteristic is defining to a heart player, and all those traits can only make up one person who cares so deeply about things like the name of a childhood plush or how many teaspoons of sugar you put in their tea, and that knowledge can make heart players very detail-oriented, in the way where they want to know everything about you that you'd be willing to tell them- it also makes them great at understanding interpersonal relationships between any two people; because this person is a cat person, while this other person actually does have a favorite dog breed, so they're going to have disagreements in a work scenario but be good friends if they aren't (I'm very much extrapolating; I'm no heart player, I could be completely wrong and hyper dog fans can entirely get along with cat people, who am I to know?)

... So, now that we've done both class and aspect justice, let's see how well they combine, yes?

Well, let's start with things the class and aspect have in common, the things most likely to be describing a maid of heart; they'd be a passionate person, who cares a lot about the world around them, but they might also get scared off if they don't know how to help a friend in need. They're idealistic yet charming in their awkward and sincere conversations with their peers. A maid of heart is true to who they are as a person and isn't afraid to yell it from the rooftops, which can be either mesmerizing or terrifying, depending on who you are. They're creative thinkers and explorers who aren't afraid to try something new and try to make everything better, though they might find troubles that would make picking themselves up harder once they fall, which makes them also dependent on the unspoken support of the people dear to them, as they are very in tune with both their own emotions and those of the people around them. A maid of heart with a good support system is unafraid of challenges and is energetic to meet new people. Find your true friends who let themselves feel to the fullest around you, and you will thrive.

... Now, that the analysis is all over, I do want to try my hand at theorizing about the powers a maid of heart might have, so, let's give this a shot after the cut;

Here's an obligatory disclaimer because the fun thing with classpect powers is that, depending on how you interpret your aspect and how creatively you think of it, your game powers can be incredibly diverse, and this is just my take on the powers of a maid of heart; if you have a different interpretation and can justify it well enough, who am I to say it won't work?

Well, as I've said in the personality analysis, maids are creators; they make more of their aspect where there is none. Heart players have a strong sense of self, which can result in splintering and making multiple versions of oneself, and are also in-tune with the emotions of themselves and the people around them. So, a maid of heart can make... more of themselves? I'm imagining either Aradia-bot style duplicates or some version of time-shenanigans, or maybe they're just actually multiple different people in a trench coat, what do I know. Alternatively, a maid of heart can intensify emotions, or bring new emotions to a person; imagine you're angry and suddenly that anger is being overshadowed by overwhelming love for your enemy, that would be a possible power for a maid of heart.

To answer the question of whether a maid of heart can put their splinterselves into dolls, I imagine not? Taking a preexisting thing and inserting part of your soul into it feels more aspect-manipulation-class, like knights or witches, than an aspect-creation-class, like the maid. However, you might be able to make more of yourself inside the dolls to begin with, or make the dolls when you make more of yourself automatically.

Again, this is entirely my personal interpretation of how those powers should work; the only things limiting your powers are your imagination and your interpretation of your classpect.

Hope this helps! ^^"

[caligvlasaqvarivm]

Actual Ultimate Classpecting Guide

For real this time.

Buckle up, this is a really long one. For everything that's posited, I can provide textual evidence; that being said, I'm not going to be including the textual evidence within the essay itself, because it's already long enough as-is. As such, please feel free to ask for clarification or sources on any assertion, and I'll do my best to provide.

Before we begin, there's some things to discuss about how we're going to be approaching classpect in the following essay. In numbered list form for our short attention spans:

1. There is a concept Hussie talks about multiple times in his book commentary, "personality alchemy" - the idea that there are these "platonic ideals" of certain characters, which can be mixed and matched with others, in order to create new characters. The examples he gives are of how Eridan was a proto-Caliborn, how Kanaya has shades of Jade, how Nepeta was a proto-Calliope, and how Sollux and Eridan have shades of Dave in them. Classpecting is fundamentally a form of this personality alchemy:

2. Class describes the character's arc and emotional hurdles, while Aspect describes the character's base personality traits by which this arc is experienced.

3. For example, all three Seers struggle with hubris: Rose's need to be the smartest person in the room led to her being manipulated by Doc Scratch, Terezi's obsession with meting justice led to her engineering a situation where the only option was to kill Vriska, and Kankri's desire to be seen as a spiritual leader amongst his friends led to him furthering their divisions and harming them.

Then, when their pride is shattered, they cope by inflicting willful self-blindness: Rose turns to drinking herself stupid (the opposite of Light's sway over knowledge), Terezi gets down with the clown (the opposite of meting out Mind's justice, as it's a Gamzee W), Kankri goes celibate (Blood L) despite his clear romantic feelings for certain teammates.

4. As for Aspect: note how all three Life players share the personality traits of optimism, stubbornness, and obstinacy. All three Breath players share an immaturity and naïvety, and are quite frankly irresistible to people for some reason. All three Light players share a need for the spotlight and a tendency toward long-windedness and persnicketiness. So on and so forth.

What's interesting is, if you start analyzing characters that share Classes and Aspects, these specific types of similarity crop up over and over - all our Knights struggle with insecurities and facades, both our Bards have a crisis of faith. All three Breath players have an aspect of immaturity and childishness to their characters, and all three Light players are deeply concerned with appearing intelligent and feeling important.

5. As a result, this guide is NOT intended for classpecting real life people, because we are complicated, we contain multitudes, and we don't have arcs. This is primarily an analysis of what Class and Aspect mean in Homestuck based on textual evidence, because I genuinely believe that you can basically figure it out if you read carefully.

6. Duality, and the idea of "equal and opposite," are major themes within Homestuck - Prospit and Derse, Skaia (described as a crucible of birth and creativity) and the Furthest Ring (the literal afterlife). Which classes are involved in an Active/Passive split, and opposing Aspects, are the same way. This is the primary method I used to determine the Active/Passive pairings and opposing Aspects. After all, as Callie describes, both Thieves and Rogues are classes "who steal" - so, too, do I try to unify Classes by a common theme, even if they diverge wildly in how that theme is expressed (as Thieves and Rogues do). In the same way as the opposite of "up" is not "apple," but "down", because "up" and "down" are both fundamentally concerned with relative vertical position, so too can be defined concepts like Breath and Blood, Hope and Rage, Light and Void - as well as the reasoning behind Class pairings like Heir and Page, Maid and Knight, and Seer and Mage.

7. Descriptions for both Class and Aspect are left deliberately vague and up to interpretation within the comic itself, and this is by design: the actual manifestations of an Aspect can vary wildly given the Class, and even individual person, that it's tied to. Calliope even makes note of the fact that, under the right circumstances, someone can manifest effects that appear to be the opposite of their aspect. She's also careful to couch her language in "may" and "can" - because these concepts are intentionally somewhat nebulous and malleable. As such, while this guide certainly lays down what can be gleaned and inferred from the text, do note that Homestuck runs on a soft magic system, and as such, nothing stated is firm, 100%, must-always-be-this-way - just an overview of what we've seen.

8. There is often great overlap between Aspects, Classes, and Classpects - which Calliope herself notes. Heart and Blood are one of the most salient, as they both have a fixation on relationships, and Calliope mentions that under the right circumstances, a Classpect may even be able to manifest what appears to be the opposite of their Aspect. Again, Homestuck operates on a soft magic system, so this is a feature, not a bug.

ASPECT

There's a little less to say about Aspect, not because it's less complicated, but because "base personality traits" are much more nebulous compared to Class's sway over character arc. Still, Aspect represents the fundamental way a character is, and thus, color every interaction that character has. There's a reason Ultimate Selfhood is sought through Aspect, not Class - Aspect is the core of the character's being, what makes that person that person.

That all being said, Class has major sway over how an Aspect manifests, and certain classes can even invert the Aspect and even the character's role in the party. As such, these descriptions must be parsed carefully in relation to Class. Moreover, due to the soft magic system, there is at times overlap between unrelated Aspects, which can also be exacerbated by Class - Heart and Blood being the most obvious in this regard. Still, overall, you'll find the Aspects to be fairly distinct from one another.

Please also note that every Aspect can deal with its literal counterpart by default - Light players can wield lasers, Breath players can wield the breeze, et cetera. Because this kind of goes without saying, and because the non-literal stuff is more interesting to discuss, I'm not really going to go into too much detail about the literal qualities.

Finally, something interesting to note is that nearly every Aspect follows its own Hero's Journey cycle - full actualization for each one usually means reaching around to its opposite Aspect, and taking lessons from them - for example, Breath players need to learn maturity and responsibility, while Blood players need to learn relaxation and whimsy. Thus, an Aspect at its worst manifests in two ways - either a toxic overabundance of the Aspect's worst traits, or such a dearth of the aspect that it begins to resemble its opposite. Only by reaching into the opposite, however, can the player be tempered and reach full maturity - can they become more of who they are.

SPACE / TIME

Space and Time are both concerned with physical reality, goals, and the way one approaches them.

Space is associated with "the big picture" - with recycling, reproduction, and the interconnectivity of all things. The aspect also presides over the enjoyment of the journey over the destination - Space players serve as reminders that the present moment is as important as the end goal. Space is often a more passive Aspect, being the stage upon which the story is set. They're the hosts of the party, and the one who marks the ending.

Its players reflect these tendencies, often being feminine, with penchants for life-giving acts such as gardening. Their personalities tend towards frivolity and silliness, finding it difficult to stay on-topic or bring full gravitas to serious situations. Perhaps a better word would be "distractable;" when the aspect is so concerned with all things in connection with each other, it's easy to lose track of details, and it's easy to enjoy things simply as they come. Space players tend to be kind, patient, and forgiving, which is a strength as much as it is a flaw; it's easy for malicious actors to take advantage of this compassion, or for the Space player to find themselves in a poor situation by being overly permissive. They can easily be painted over by stronger personalities, and tend to struggle with romantic relationships, as they attract many with their kind and giving natures, and few are naturally so considerate of the Space player in turn.

"Passive" is a good word to use; at a toxic overabundance of their Aspect, Space players are trampled underfoot. They become enablers, servants to dark forces, or so lost in their own worlds that they neglect the one they live in. With their Aspect "inverted," a Space player becomes a demon of poor prioritization. Distracting not just themselves from their true purpose, but others, too, the Space player will wreak havoc by overemphasizing unimportant topics and ignoring important tasks. This superficially resembles Time, in that the Space player will become fanatically dedicated to their task, but note that the poor prioritization is still Space-esque at its core.

Still, within this nadir is a valuable lesson: the strength of self-assertion, and the determination to see a goal through. These will allow the Space player to weed their garden, separating good from bad, allowing it to flourish like never before.

Time, in contrast, is associated with "the little things" - with details, minutiae, and processes. Time presides over the struggle toward something greater, the endurance of hardship with an eye on the prize - the destination over the journey. Time players are the ones keeping track of the tasklist, marking off each item as it reaches completion; they are the tireless workers keeping the whole engine running.

Time players, thus, are ones whose lives are marked by struggle. They are highly goal-oriented; in contrast to how Space players can easily move from goal to goal, task to task, Time players feel bound to see things through to the end, finding satisfaction only when they've achieved their desired result - and only until they come across the next goal in their journey. A Time player isn't happy without a goal to work towards, a craft to polish, a prize to win - but this driven nature can easily be its own downfall, as it leaves little room for the player to admit to their own shortcomings, or ask for help from others. Moreover, their focus on minutiae can leave them blinded to the bigger picture, and it's easy for a time player to fall to despair, able to do nothing more but spin their wheels. They're prone to directionless anguish, frustration, and resentment towards the seeming futility of their actions, becoming destructive and defiant even when it doesn't serve them to do so.

At a toxic overabundance of their Aspect, Time players become explosively destructive. The ultimate "goal" of all things is death, with which Time is associated, and accordingly, Time players have a penchant for aligning themselves with futility and entropy, struggling so hard that their thrashing leaves a trail of annihilation in their wake. With their Aspect "inverted," Time players detach entirely - they can become so fed up with struggle that they simply opt to lay their weapons down and let the end take them. It's very easy for them to come to the conclusions that either everything matters, or nothing matters. This superficially resembles Space and its big picture thinking, but note that its framework of struggle, and whether or not a goal needs to be pursued, makes it a Time concern.

But the inherent meaninglessness of existence is, in itself, an important realization to make - that whether or not anything "matters" in the grand scheme, things can still be worth doing, worth caring about, and worth investing in. This realization allows the Time player to attack their goals with renewed vigor and greater clarity, which in turn means that the party becomes an efficient, well-oiled machine.

BREATH / BLOOD

Breath and Blood are both concerned with directionality, interpersonal relationships, and autonomy.

Breath is the Aspect governing freedom, liberty, and independence; it is a force that breaks shackles, clears out social norms, and refutes "the rules," whatever those rules may be. Breath players can't be tied down, whether by physical bonds, societal rules, or even the ineffable forces of the narrative itself. They are leaders of example, pioneers, and trailblazers, opening new paths for their teammates to follow.

Breath players are goofy and gullible, often with hearts full of childlike whimsy, naivety, and even immaturity. They are friendly and well-meaning, fond of simpler things, and easily swayed by others. They approach the world with a sincere and innocent good-naturedness, like a baby animal before it learns to be fearful of danger. Something about this sincerity seems to make Breath players irresistible to others, and they often find themselves the subject of romantic attraction. However, in this childishness is also the great pitfall of many Breath players - their natures are naturally conflict-averse, and egotistical the way a child can be, failing to see beyond themselves. They can be incredibly callous when not considering the consequences of their actions, or the viewpoints of others.

At their worst, Breath players are irresponsible and callous. They'll shirk the consequences of their actions, blaming anybody but themselves, or simply choose not to care who they hurt in order to get what they want. They may even choose to stop making choices for themselves, leading to the "inversion" of their Aspect - a voluntary loss of freedom and independence, derived from an Breath-like aversion to responsibility, which superficially resembles the bondage of Blood.

But if they are able to overcome these tendencies, a Breath player will learn what true responsibility looks like - responsibility for themselves, their choices, and the effect they have on others. Armed with this, a Breath player's ability to break bonds can be focused into a clear force for good, clearing away all obstacles and harmful societal standards, leading the charge into something new and beautiful.

Blood, in sharp contrast, is the aspect that governs bondage, contracts, and interdependence. It is a force that binds. Under Blood's sway are not only romantic entanglements, but familial, friendly, and societal ones as well. This aspect sees overlap with Heart, but the division is this: Heart concerns itself with feelings, and Blood concerns itself with compatibility. Blood players are diplomats, forces that remind us all that we are more similar than we are different, and that that similarity should bring us together when we are on the verge of pulling apart.

Blood players, reflective of their Aspect's association with bonds, tend to be neurotic and obsessive. They have a tendency to over-examine and overthink, constantly fretting over the infinite and infinitesimal variables that influence the shape of society and interpersonal relationships. However, this judgmental nature stems from a deep well of idealism and empathy; Blood players can't help but care about others and wish for the best for them. In a way, this makes them one of the most mature members of the team, being concerned with its overall well-being. Unfortunately, their prowess does not extend inwards, and their assessment of themselves is usually direly incorrect - all the worse because Blood players always feel responsible for those around them. Blood, being the Aspect concerned with interdependence, is the weakest one when all alone.

Thus, it's easy for the Blood player to wind up controlling - desperate to make sure everyone is moving according to their vision, they'll become iron-fisted dictators, with a "my way or the highway" approach to social interactions. It's easy for them to wind up pariahs of their own making, becoming so critical of others, or so adamant about enforcing their own will, that they inadvertantly sever their ties - something that superficially resembles Breath's independence, but is truly a result of Blood's neuroticism.

But with that space and separation can come great clarity. Blood players must learn to relax their grip, and allow people room to breathe - including themselves. Once able to grasp that sometimes bonds must be forged with a soft touch, Blood players' natural empathy shines through, allowing them to build something so much kinder and greater than the sum of its parts.

LIGHT / VOID

Light and Void are both concerned with knowledge, ontology, and "narrative relevance".

Light (as well as its counterpart) are perhaps best understood through the lens of "narrative" - this idea that, of all things that do and don't exist, and all events that do and don't happen, only the ones put to page are "relevant". Thus, Light is associated with knowledge and luck - that is to say, it's associated with the knowable, the objective, and the concrete, and the ability to determine "important" events. Light players have read the book they're participating in, and able to serve as luminary guides from one plot point to another, lighting the lampposts for others to follow.

Light players, naturally, are erudite and educated, possessing keen intellects and cunning minds. They are fond of knowledge itself, of markers of status and prestige - whether that's wealth, the adulation of the masses, or a massive library. They harbor a desire to be important, to be seen, to be acknowledged, and are happiest when they are looked up to. Conversely, they deal poorly with being looked down upon. Their confidence transmutes easily into hubris, and they struggle with having that pride challenged. As such, they tend to be volatile and unpredictable, quick to retaliate against those who threaten their egos, or obsequious to those whose acknowledgement they desire.

Their desire for the limelight can quickly spell disaster - they can become incredibly cruel, harsh, and egotistical in their pursuit of narrative significance. They forget, in their obsession, that they, too, are fallible and flawed, and the inevitable reminder can come very harshly. Light players struggle with moderation, and as such, when they feel shame, they'll often take drastic measures to cope with it - deliberately darkening their own influence or intellects, removing themselves from the "story" entirely - something which superficially resembles Void's penchant for the background, but which is firmly rooted in Light's obsessive need for drama.

But in experimenting with narrative insignificance, Light players can reach an epiphany - in their absence, others may shine, and that can be a wonderful thing. Light players, then, can learn to shine not just for their own sakes, but for the sake of others, allowing them to weave a story even more brilliant than any that can be weaved alone.

Void, in contrast, is the blank spaces between the words. That which is secret, subjective, unknowable - these are Void's domain. It's associated with taboos and hidden things, sexuality and pleasure. It's also associated with the empty canvas - the blank space before creation, and the oblivion to which creation is eventually destined for. Thus, it stands for infinite possibility, though the collapse of those possibilities into a reality removes that reality from Void's domain.

Thus are Void players ever cosigned to the background, though this generally suits them fine. Void players are very self-possessed. Where Light players tend to exaggerate and complicate, Void players are honest and simple, preferring straightforward solutions. They don't tend to think very hard, instead letting intuition and emotion guide them to where they want to be - which makes them one of the more stable personalities on a team. However, this simplistic, feelings-driven approach often leads to pleasure-seeking behavior, poor impulse control, and overindulgence in vice, and from there, to irrelevance, with which Void is so closely interlinked.

Void players are especially prone to vice, and at their worst, will become so drunk on pleasurable activities that they pursue them to the active detriment of the party's goals or the Void player's self-improvement - making them the ultimate irrelevant character. They can also very easily drag others into their mélange, with a forcefulness that resembles Light's illuminating guidance, but which is ultimately rooted in Void's pursuit of personal pleasure.

But there's a lesson to be learned in Light's domain: how to bring themselves into relevance and greatness. A Void player, once they learn to pursue not just personal pleasure, but a greater satisfaction for the collective whole, can drag the Void behind them, kicking and screaming, to where it'll be of use.

MIND / HEART

Mind and Heart are concerned with what it means to be a sentient being, with identity, and with why we do what we do.

Mind is the Aspect associated with logic, rationality, karma, ethics, and justice. To a Mind player, they "are" because they "think". They are keenly aware of the consequences of every action, and well-versed in cognition and behavior, such to the point of manipulating others with ease. Deeply concerned with the "effect" of cause-and-effect, Mind players are always cognizant of debts and credits, where justice is owed and where it has been over-meted, and their subtle machinations culminate, like well-placed dominoes, in grand and explosive finales.

Mind players are schemers - it's in their nature. They have a tendency to view the world as a puzzle or game, with themselves and the people around them as pieces on a board, and set as their standard rules the laws of ethics and karma - owed debts and overhanging credit - guilty and innocent. Mind players are wickedly cunning, and have an high success rate with every scheme they commit themselves to, but the grand downfall of all these tendencies is that they tend to lack in a sense of identity, and have a poor grasp on their own emotions or desires. While they may know how to provoke a desired reaction, they don't know how to change someone's mind. They often find themselves grappling very painfully with their own selfhood, with feelings of emptiness, inadequacy, or uncertainty.

Thus, a Mind player at the worst zenith of their Aspect is heartless and cruel. Leaving no space for empathy or even personal feelings in their plans, the Mind player will plot for an ending as heartless as they are. But a Mind player is never truly without emotion, and ignoring their own feelings causes them to manifest in terrible ways - Mind players have a tendency to seek toxic, codependent relationships, hoping to find external validation, subjecting themselves to the wishes of others, which can appear like Heart's fixation on feelings and desire.

But in recognizing their own need for emotional validation, and the importance of their own feelings, a Mind player can realize that there's an entire dimension to the game they've been playing that they've been ignorant of. When a Mind player learns to temper their schemes with empathy, compassion, and kindness, how much more success they'll see - and how much happier that grand finale will be!

Heart, then, is associated with feelings, motivations, intuition, the soul, and the self. To a Heart player, they "are" because they "feel" like they are - and they're keenly aware of the multitudes that are contained within themselves. Deeply concerned with the "cause" of cause-and-effect, they're drawn to desires, those of themselves and of others, especially where strong feelings are concerned. Heart players are gifted with an intuitive understanding of those around them, both their good and bad qualities, and are tasked with the grand task of bringing out the best.

It stands to reason, then, that Heart players have a firm grasp on who they are and what they want. For the same reasons, it's difficult for a Heart player to truly hate or condemn another person, because they are so adept at understanding them. However, this understanding comes with a price - because the Heart player is so aware of themselves, they can't escape their own worst traits - nobody self-loathes as accurately as a Heart player can. Nor can they ever truly be untruthful with another, making them poor manipulators. Capable of presenting a different facet of themselves as the situation calls for it, certainly, but just as it's impossible to lie to a Heart player, who always knows how someone really feels, it's impossible for a Heart player to lie to themselves.

With this sincerity comes vulnerability. Heart players wear theirs on their sleeves, and at their worst, this can make them demanding, needy, and sensitive - so eager to connect with others emotionally that they'll cramp themselves to fit others' desires. But they can't ever keep this up for long; Heart players have a tendency to withdraw from others after being hurt too often, finding it easier to be alone and silent about their feelings than to deal with the pain of rejection. They may even work to manipulate others, preying on their emotions and desires to force them to act in their worst interests. This superficially resembles Mind's cold logic, but unlike Mind's cool rationality, Heart's aloofness is a mask, an attempt to avoid pain by pulling away.

But this isn't purely a negative, because a Heart player can learn a healthier form of detachment, and separate out healthy and helpful desires from harmful and detrimental ones. Given this clarity, the Heart player becomes the team's emotional core, able to raise up each teammate's best qualities, while helping them deal with their worst, enabling everyone to be the best possible version of themselves - which the Heart player knew them to be all along.

LIFE / DOOM

Life and Doom are concerned with outlook, with journeys, and with trials and tribulations.

Life is an aspect concerned with healing, growing, and improving. It is associated with beginnings, optimism, and positive emotions. The very essence of Life lies in its healing abilities, in this idea of overcoming the odds and triumphing over hardship and difficulty. Life is action, movement, and motion, and its players can scarcely hold still. Life will find a way - and Life players harbor the same immutable belief; they are the most stubborn weeds in the garden, the cockroach that survives the apocalypse, and the beating heart that refuses to stop.

Life players tend to be optimistic and confident. They are self-assured individuals, with a stubborn belief that good things are on their way, and any hardship they face is not only temporary, but something that can be overcome. They can find the silver lining in any cloud, and enjoy themselves under any circumstance. They love to nurture, to care for others, though this love has a tendency to be one-sided. Indeed, Life's stubborn nature is its players' greatest pitfall; their persistence easily becomes obstinacy, and their confidence can become condescension. Their self-assured nature easily becomes egotism, and they can have great difficulty grappling with those who don't share their views - even coming to oppose those who bring emotional pain and suffering that can't be easily fixed.

It's very easy for a Life player to decide another person isn't worth their attention, and opt to leave them behind - after all, Life has to move forward, no matter what it tramples in the process. At their worst, they're stubborn to the point of not listening to anyone but themselves, confidence becoming blockheadedness. This focus on forward progress without looking back can even cause Life players to become harmful to others, so focused they are on their own growth that they don't notice that they're choking everyone else out. This may resemble Doom's death in its worst case - arresting everything else, eventually blocking even their own path with unruly, out-of-control fecundity.

Thus, a Life player needs to learn to more gracefully accept Doom's influence - to pause, slow down, and consider viewpoints that are negative, unpleasant, or difficult. A Life player, endowed with moderation, will be able to cultivate a bountiful garden, rather than an unruly jungle - a place for all to flourish and live in plenty, never wanting for anything.

Doom, then, is the aspect concerned with death, with rest, and with endings. Doom is associated with suffering and with negative emotions, with peace, with sleep, and with dreams. Doom players have a natural penchant for prophecy, and are often dual dreamers, able to take advantage of both Skaia's oracular clouds and the Horrorterrors' voices over Derse. All things must eventually come to an end, and not all times will be good; in these troubling times, Doom players shine, as they are the guides who call the murk home, and know best how to navigate rough waters, course-correcting until the storm passes.

Doom players tend to be deeply pessimistic. They experience, to a much more magnified degree than others, negative feelings and impulses, and it's difficult for them to see the world without seeing its flaws, first and foremost. They are not healers, but commiserators, those who understand greatest that sometimes there's no way to deal with tragedy but to simply sit with it and wait for it to pass. The counterpoint to Life's insistence on breathless positivity, Doom is a reminder that pain, grief, sadness, shame, and guilt are not unnecessary things - in fact, excising them can lead to terrible consequences. Doom players are the universe's martyrs, often taking it upon themselves to course-correct, to sacrifice themselves in order to give others a chance to continue on, to avert a terrible fate.

Unfortunately, this tendency also brings with it a tendency for Doom players to wallow in misfortune, or worse, to take themselves out of the picture, giving up entirely on seeing a better ending. As if energized by their own sense of futility, a Doom player at the "inverse" of their aspect may seem to echo a Life player's focus on forward progress and motion, actively spurring their team on towards an untimely demise.

A Doom player must learn to harness this sense of progress for good, rather than harm. A Doom player, once able to grasp the joy of life even in the greatest depths of despair, will be able to fill even the darkest hours with peace, meaning, and hope.

HOPE / RAGE

Hope and Rage are concerned with permission, and are the lens by which we define reality.

Hope is described by Hussie in the book commentary as being "framed as the most powerful aspect" because it is, literally, an aspect that defines reality. Its specific ability is lies in reducing the "fakeness attribute" of something, thus making it "real". Hope is associated with convictions, with idealism, with faith, order, holiness, and, of course, with magic - which Hope turns real. Hope is permission itself - a reality-breaking ability to look at the world and decree that it must be another way, a way in which the Hope player believes it ought to be.

Thus, Hope players tend to be hard-headed zealots, with no self-awareness whatsoever. Their inclination towards powerful beliefs makes them very difficult to dissuade from a path they've set their minds to, and their specific suite of abilities makes them terrifyingly likely to make their vision come true. Hope players are usually not particularly cunning, nor particularly intelligent, nor even particularly empathetic. Given the Aspect's focus on conviction and faith, it's usually very difficult for Hope players to notice anything occurring beyond their own minds and feelings. Thus are Hope players hopeless optimists, hopeless romantics, and hopeless in general - often great sources of embarrassment to their teams, as their naked sincerity is painful to witness. However, their ability to define reality does not leave them when their beliefs are faulty (which they often are, given Hope players are not particularly introspective, either), which is what makes a Hope player so dangerous.

A Hope player can easily be set on the wrong path - as convicted as they are, and as difficult to shake from that conviction as they can be, Hope players can easily march down a path of destruction, if not persuaded with a deft touch and gentle guidance. In the event that their faith is broken, Hope players easily become despondent and lost, floundering and wishy-washy, which superficially resembles Rage's self-consciousness, but is truly just a lack of direction.

But Rage has a powerful lesson to teach Hope players - that of questioning themselves, interrogating their own beliefs. Once their convictions have gone through rigorous scrutiny, revised into the best, brightest versions of themselves they can be, a Hope player is a worker of miracles - speaking into existence a beautiful future on faith alone, proclaiming that how they see the world is how the world shall be.

Rage, then, is the power of denial. If Hope reduces the "fakness" of a thing, then Rage reduces its "realness". Rage, too, is a means of defining reality, in this case taking a torch to the aspects of reality that it rejects. In more passive Classes, this works in subtler ways, stoking others towards destructive fury. Rage is associated with anarchy, chaos, revolution, destruction, anger, and nihilism. A Rage player will not suffer a world that does not satisfy them, breaking it to pieces, such that something new can take its place.

Therefore, Rage players are prone to harboring anger and resentment, discontentment with the status quo, and faith only in that what currently exists must somehow be dismantled. However, unlike Hope players, who can't help but be pathetically sincere, Rage players are incredibly self-conscious, and often try to mask and hide their embitterment and anger. This, ironically, leads to further ostracization, as others can tell they're being inauthentic. This only further compounds their sense of alienation, and drives them further into smoldering resentment. This makes Rage players sound volatile and dangerous, and they are - but the same fury that moves them is the fury that ignites revolts and tears down oppressive regimes, a necessary and vital well of energy and momentum. It takes careful handling to ensure that the team's Rage player can channel this energy towards righteous causes, rather than marking all as a target for their destructive ire.

In the worst-case scenario, the Rage player turns that rage out indiscriminately, deciding that there is nothing worth fighting for - only unpleasant things to be brought to ruin. This is Rage at its toxic overabundance. Conversely, a Rage player can retreat so harshly into their mask that they allow others to dictate their beliefs, taking them to heart - an action motivated by Rage's destruction (this time, turned inwards) that superficially resembles Hope's convictions and faith.

The true path for a Rage player is a healthy balance - to allow themselves some of Hope's sincerity, and by doing so, to become more sincere and true. This will let them release the pressure of their mounting ire, such that it can be converted into productive, rather than destructive, energy - the heralds of a revolution, razing away the faulty, corrupt old systems such that something better and new can take their place.

CLASS

As previously stated, Class governs a character's character arc - the character's starting circumstances, whether their conflict is primarily internal or external, and what major aspect of their Aspect becomes a hurdle for them to overcome.

In the same way an Aspect's sways tie into the character's base personality, the character's Class abilities tie into the kinds of struggles they face, and have great influence on how their Aspects manifest.

That being said, a character - and their Class - are always subject to their Aspect, as their Aspect is tied fundamentally into who they are. Thus, it can be said that a Light player will always have an affinity for knowledge and provide Seer-esque guidance even when not in a Seer role, a Doom player will always have prophetic abilities even with a non-prophetic class (note that Mituna, an Heir, still had prophetic visions, despite those generally being the realm of Mages and Seers), and a Life player will always have a penchant for healing, even paired with a destructive Class like Prince or Thief (the Condesce, after all, could still extend life; a Prince of Life would likely manifest not as one who causes plants to wither and die (this would actually suit a Prince of Doom), but one who destroys in the way of nature overtaking an abandoned shack, or a forest breaking down a body).

This means that when a character's Classpect inverts their Aspect, it doesn't mean that they suddenly become a hero of the opposing Aspect - rather, it means that, at their very worst - at the nadirs of their character arcs - they will lean so much into their Aspect's worst traits that it will superficially appear as the opposite, when all it really is is an absence of themselves. Dave, a Time player, usually so attentive to detail (despite his disaffected facade, he's always paying rapt attention to Karkat's rants, and noticing all the clues pointing to his destiny of defeating LE), at his lowest emotional point (arguing with Grimbark Jade after sobbing about his lost childhood whimsy), states that he doesn't think Lord English is that big a deal, and never even did anything directly bad to him or his friends - when he was literally directly haunted by LE via Cal his entire childhood. Similarly, Rose drinks herself stupid in order to cope with her mother's death.

Note how, superficially, this almost appears to be an invocation of Space's "big picture thinking," its passivity and permissibility, or how Rose's case appears to be Void's tendency to indulge in vices and pleasure - but they're not. Time's worst traits superficially resemble Space, Light's resemble Void, and vice versa - Grimbark Jade is the Condesce's taskmaster, and Porrim at her worst was as much of a nag as Kankri, trying to do a Time player's managerial job. Horuss and Equius at their worst won't shut up and won't stop talking over their partners. So on and so forth.

Finally, Calliope tells us a couple things about Active/Passive pairings. The first is that Calliope introduces the idea of paired classes with the idea that both Rogues and Thieves "steal" (and later, that both Princes and Bards "destroy"). This presents the idea that both classes can be roughly summed up with the idea that every pairing can be summed up with a common theme.

The second is her description of what makes a Class Active versus Passive - that Active Classes move their Aspect to benefit themselves, whereas Passive Classes allow their Aspect to be moved in order for others to benefit. In a way, they're like active and passive voice in grammar (to tie in with the way Classes and Aspects are so tied to ideas of narrative and character arc) - an Active Class performs their Aspect, and a Passive Class allows the Aspect to be performed "by others" (the famous piece of advice regarding telling the two apart being that a sentence written in passive voice can have "by zombies" tacked to the end of it - eg, John is attacked "by zombies", as compared to active voice - John attacks).

Thus, the Class pairings, along with their basic themes, are as follows:

KNIGHT - / MAID +

"One who controls."

Knights and Maids are paired together through two key factors: the first is that they both hold leadership or managerial roles; the second is that both classes carry the connotation of serving a Lord. Fittingly, they are both struggle with the control of malicious forces - Knights with prophecies indicating their role as heroes, Maids with direct usurpation by malicious forces.

PAGE - / HEIR +

"One who inherits."

Pages and Heirs are paired together because they both fundamentally deal with the great inheritances placed before them. Pages can come into incredible, limitless power - but they must struggle and work hard for it; Heirs begin the game in societal comfort and wealth, and must learn to defect from their decadence.

THIEF - / ROGUE +

"One who steals."

Thieves and Rogues are highly adaptable, as Thieves are capable of fantastic on-the-fly adaptation, whereas Rogues have an infinite toolbox at their disposal. They are both provocateurs, shakers of the status quo, though the Thief does so for personal gain, while the Rogue does so to right injustice.

MAGE - / SEER +

"One who guides."

Mages and Seers are tied together by the gift of prophecy and future sight. Seers are privy to the endless branching paths that the future may take, while Mages are gifted with the ability to outright determine a future that will certainly happen, appearing to be prophecy.

WITCH - / SYLPH +

"One who changes."

Witches and Sylphs are individuals blessed with great magic, but poor judgement. Sylphs heal and nurture, but are drawn to those with strong desires, and enable them to cause great harm; Witches, meanwhile, possess strong emotions, which they often use as moral guidance, for better or worse.

PRINCE - / BARD +

"One who destroys."

Princes and Bards are representatives of society - the one who determines its course, and the one who recounts its passing. Princes suffer from a toxic overabundance of Aspect, and are prone to spectacular meltdowns, whereas Bards are always poised for a crisis of faith. Both are responsible for catastrophic failures - but also breathless victories.

INDIVIDUAL CLASSES

KNIGHT

"One who controls [Aspect] or controls using [Aspect]."

Knights are frontline warriors, rallying points behind which the party falls into line. Although they are often leaders, just as often, they are logistical planners, strategists, or simply the team's beating heart. They are almost always thrust into positions of narrative significance, often carrying grand destinies or even outright heroic prophecies on their shoulders. The are the party's rallying force, its center, and a guiding light - the one to lead the charge, behind which the party will follow.

The primary character struggle a Knight will have is with crippling insecurity. Knights are prone to self-loathing and imposter syndrome, and will often adopt a façade in direct opposition to their aspect (ie, their fundamental personality) in order to cope with their feelings of inadequacy. Thus, their relationship with their aspect becomes love/hate - though they're naturally drawn to their aspect, and even naturally skilled at utilizing it, they have a tendency to become their own worst enemy, as their insecurities make them push their façades, and their façades distance them from their aspect.

"Controlling their Aspect" means that the Knight has easy access to their Aspect, wielding it like a tool or weapon - for good or for ill; "controlling using their Aspect" is what grants Knights their leadership abilities, able to dictate how others ought to act in accordance with the Knight's Aspect - whether their understanding of their Aspect is high or low, whether their advice is good or bad.

Therefore, at their worst, a Knight will fall prey to their insecurities, retreating into their facades, rejecting their Aspect, which will allow disharmony or misuse of it to proliferate throughout the team. They may even wind up deliberately twisting their Aspect's presence within the team so that they never have to be confronted by it; these distortions ripple outwards and eventually culminate in major catastrophes, all on account of the Knight's negligence.

But at their best, a Knight is a shining beacon and guiding light; when they come to terms with themselves, and allow themselves to be comfortable in their own skin - when they no longer allow themselves to be ruled by their insecurities and anxieties - they ensure that their aspect is harmonious wherever it appears throughout their party, and can wield it expertly as a weapon, as if it were their own flesh and blood.

MAID

"One who allows control through [Aspect] or allows [Aspect] to be controlled."

Unlike Knights, which take positions of frontline prominence, a Maid is a managerial presence in the backlines, though no less crucial for the smooth functioning of a party. Just as the invisible hands of the hired help keep a household running, the Maid will be called upon to provide vital services to keep the game stable, even if those services are more noticeable by their absence than their presence. Maids are often the party's unsung heroes or even shadow leaders, tugging at invisible strings, fingers on the pulse.

A Maid's primary character struggle will be that of escaping oppression. Maids tend to start the game in positions of subjugation or subservience, especially to malicious forces, and their abilities often end up being exploited to serve their masters' ends. Therefore, one may even have the impression that a Maid is ruled by their aspect, held prisoner and slave - at least until they're able turn the tables.

"Allowing their Aspect to be controlled" means that Maids are capable of directly dispensing their aspect unto others - a Maid of Time can dispense time unto foes, pausing them in their tracks; a Maid of Life can grant so much life that they can revive the dead. Their boons are great and direct, straightforward in a similar manner to Knights. "Allowing control through their Aspect" grants them their uncanny managerial abilities, as their aspect dictates the realm in which nothing occurs without the Maid's knowledge or permission, a realm made available to whomever the Maid's allegiance lies with.

Thus, at their worst, the Maid becomes a saboteur. Exploited by malign forces, their abilities to allow control over others through their aspect, or control of their aspect, makes them perfect vehicles by which their aspect can be hijacked or usurped, and made to turn against the party, and they often find themselves placed into these positions through no fault of their own. It takes the party banding together to shake off the forces that would keep a Maid in bondage.

However, at their best, Maids ensure that the party can never go too far off the rails. There is a place for everything, and everything will be in its place; a Maid is a supply line, a safe haven, and a promise that everything will be neat and tidy when the party returns from war. When the Maid belongs to themselves, their homestead becomes a fortress, and nothing occurs under the Maid's watchful eye without their express permission.

PAGE

"One who works to inherit [Aspect] or inherits [Aspect] for themselves."

Pages are a class defined by promise. As the name suggests, a Page begins weak, but has the great potential to develop into one of the most powerful players in the game. The exact nature of a Page's powers are vague, not because they are insignificant, but because they are so great that it's difficult to encompass them all. At the apex of their arcs, Pages are capable of miraculous feats, overpowering even Lords and Muses - if only they could reach that point and stay there.

A Page begins the game weakest of all, reflective of their long journey of growth. Where most classes only fall into deficit of their Aspect at their lowest emotional points, Pages begin their arcs in deficit - exhibiting character traits opposite to those their Aspect normally encompasses. Moreso than any other class, a Page must learn to grow into their Aspect. Weak-willed, naive, and easily hurt, Pages require careful nurturing if they're to come into their own.

"Working to inherit their Aspect" describes the endless journey of growth the Page must undertake - one with many missteps, backslides, and setbacks along the way. Still, they "inherit their aspect," meaning that their full potential, when realized, is overwhelmingly great - practically becoming their Aspect in humanoid form, capable of utilizing it to its glorious full potential.

However, their nature defeats them, and even if they can attain this state, the Page usually can't stay there for long. At their very worst, the Page's deficit of their Aspect's better qualities can turn the Page into a gravitic well of misfortune - an albatross about the party's neck, the centerpoint, if not inciting incident, of a massive disaster, as their team is sucked in by the Page's natural weakness.

But this is only true as it contrasts to a Page at their best - having grappled and won with the greatest of all weakness, a Page is poised to come into the greatest of all strength. Shown kindness, compassion, and support, a Page at full power reflects a party at their best. A Page at full strength is breathtaking to behold, an unstoppable force of nature, their Aspect made manifest.

HEIR

"One whom [Aspect] grants inheritance or inherits [Aspect] for others."

Heirs, in contrast to Pages, start the game strong. They usually belong to the upper echelons of their respective societies, a position of great wealth, leisure, and comfort, and are set to be inheritors of even greater wealth. Similarly, their Aspect comes to them as if of its own will - it is powerful, but difficult for the Heir to control, reflecting the wealth and status they've enjoyed as birthright.

An Heir's main challenge is that of examining their privilege, and learning where they wish to spread the gift they've been given. Because of their positions of sheltered comfort, Heirs are not particularly world-wise, and often harbor massive blind spots to the suffering of others and the ills of society. As such, they tend to be fairly aimless, given great power but no strong motivations, and have a tendency to simply indulge in their Aspect without contributing great help or hindrance to their team at all.

The Heir's Aspect is practically an independent entity. Being one whom "their Aspect grants them inheritance" refers to how the Heir starts powerful, able to summon their Aspect to perform great, miraculous acts. However, it is highly intuitive and difficult to control. The Heir's challenge lies not in attaining great power, but in attaining control over, and the ability to direct, their existing abilities. Once they do, they can "inherit their Aspect for others" - Heirs become a conduit through which their party can experience their Aspect, making it a usable pool of wealth for them all to draw from. However, because of their comfortable positions, many Heirs end up dallying, finding no pressing need to do so.

But this dallying hides a ticking clock. An Heir's inheritance will come to them, one way or another, and if they aren't ready to receive the great responsibilities that come with such great power, then the power will eventually consume them. An Heir with no clear direction will eventually become lost to their Aspect, entirely removing both from play. Like how wealthy inheritors simply become part of the status quo, so, too, does an Heir disappear into their Aspect, fixing it in place.

Thus, Heirs must learn where they have been blind, where they have been foolish, and what it means to be underprivileged. Then, once they turn their energies towards addressing those injustices - to taking responsibility for building a better future - when their wealth comes to them, they'll be able to distribute it where it's needed most. An Heir, fully-realized, brings their Aspect to heel, and makes it a resource available to their entire team, as if welcoming them all into the family.

THIEF

"One who steals [Aspect] or steals using [Aspect]."

Thieves are, as the name suggests, greedy - much of their arc revolves around a desire to amass wealth, though what's considered "wealth" varies based on the Thief and especially their Aspect. They tend to be callous people by nature, capable of ignoring or trampling over the feelings of others in order to take what they want, in the hopes of filling an emotional void the Thief may not even be fully aware of.

The Thief's playstyle is one of careful resource management. Reflecting a natural tendency to take "wealth" from others, Thieves are unable to use their Aspect without first "stealing" it - a subtractive act which leaves the victim bereft of the Aspect, weakening them in the process. Because of the finicky nature of these abilities, it takes great cunning to be a Thief, and the Class both demands and requires the player to be adaptable, flexible, and quick on their feet, able to effect complicated schemes and engineer the perfect situations for their powers to have the greatest effect. Thieves aren't necessarily strong, but they have a very high victory ratio, because they're experts at turning a situation to their own advantage.

"Stealing their Aspect" refers to the fundamental way in which the Thief class is played, this resource management game; "stealing using their Aspect" reflects how the Thief often becomes a malignant force within the party, viewing their own teammates as caches of wealth to plunder. Thieves are naturally prone to hurting others for their own purposes, craving drama and attention, and being of such callous dispositions that they're able to perform extreme acts of cruelty given the right motivations.

Thieves often become a target of ire within the party, disruptive forces whose quest for personal wealth and fulfillment comes at the cost of those around them. At their worst, they can bring so much heat down upon their own shoulders that the party feels the need to treat them like an enemy, which is disastrous for party harmony. Moreover, it's disastrous for the Thieves themselves, as Thieves seek wealth to compensate for some emotional emptiness, and making enemies of their friends only serves to deepen their ennui.

Thus, a Thief must be taught that true happiness and fulfillment doesn't come from the struggle for wealth, but from the building of something better with those they care about. A Thief, thus turned to heroic purposes, becomes the party's pinch hitter - an adaptable spy, an unpredictable maverick, an element of surprise - and above all, a reliable ally, capable of turning any tide in the party's favor.

ROGUE

"One who steals from [Aspect] or steals [Aspect] for others."

Rogues, on the other hand, call to mind such figures as Robin Hood, stealing from the rich to distribute to the poor. Rogues are at their best when they're agents of a well-planned heist, as they possess an unlimited toolbox - their own Aspect - to play with. Their Aspect is a treasure trove, just waiting for the Rogue to plunder it and share its riches - if only the Rogue can figure out how.

Rogues are forces of revolution. They naturally carry a rebellious spirit, one which bristles at injustice, takes a stand against authority, and questions the status quo. Their ideas are unfocused, however; they know they must rebel, but usually don't start with a clear idea of against who or what. They know that their society is injust, but they don't know how to address that injustice. They know there are villains, and may even know these villains' identity, but they don't know how best to defy them. In a similar way, they're often lost as to how to utilize their Aspect beyond its most basic applications, and usually require external assistance in order to bring out its full potential.

Rogues' true potential lies in "stealing from their Aspect" - an additive act, rather than a subtractive one, as a Thief's stealing is. Rogues are capable of removing their own Aspect's sway over another entity, allowing it to exhibit the characteristics of the opposite Aspect; a Rogue of Void can create things out of nothing, a Rogue of Heart can tease out behaviors and actions. They can also "steal their Aspect for others," allowing them access to their own Aspect's suite of abilities as well. This allows the Rogue incomparable flexibility, their abilities - like their dispositions - rebellious and subversive.

But their rebellious spirit, coupled with their lack of understanding as to who their real enemies are, is dangerous when left unchecked. Rogues often suffer from a failure to start, giving up on trying to understand the deeper implications of their abilities, and of the society they can't seem to find contentment in - but they can also suffer from a worse fate: rebellion without a cause. Rogues' free spirits can lead to them bucking the status quo in ways that actively harm others, performing acts of taboo or poor taste just because that rebellious energy needs to be put to use somewhere. These can have disastrous knock-on consequences, as some things are taboo for good reason.

Thus, Rogues need to be guided - to make connections with others, and come to a greater understanding of the world at large. Once they know their target, and what needs to be done, the Rogue makes sure there are no obstacles along the way - no safe is uncrackable, no prison inescapable, and no problem unsolvable, so long as the Rogue is there to work their magic.

MAGE

"One who guides [Aspect] or guides [Aspect] for themselves."

Mages are prophets, of the "always correct" variety - or so it seems. In actuality, Mages don't "predict" the future, they "choose" it - in a setting where the future is mutable, the Mage's ability is to speak into existence a future they desire, to tip the scales of causality and collapse possibilities into a single definite course. Their Aspect is the lens through which their "prophecy" occurs, a realm in which they command the fabric of reality itself.

As if to karmically balance this incredible power, Mages are afflicted by deep and terrible sadness. They start the game miserable, having been subjected to the greatest injustices their Aspect can offer, tormented by guilt, shame, and self-loathing. Their worldview has been shadowed with a lens of suffering and anguish, and so, too, is their view of the future. Mages usually begin the game having already set several prophecies into motion, and these early prophecies are usually obstacles that the party must overcome.

Mages "guide their Aspect" - this refers to the way their prophecies, that is, their chosen futures, always come true. Their visions may be limited to the sway of their Aspect, but it remains a powerful ability nonetheless. "Guiding their Aspect for themselves," then, outlines the Class's Active nature - the futures the Mage picks must be ones the Mage believes will come to pass.

Unfortunately, Mages have a tendency to pick ugly futures. This isn't out of malice or anger; this is because Mages start the game sad, and without intervention, grow sadder. They're prone to spirals of negativity, self-loathing, and depression, and as their outlook dims, so, too, do their forecasts. Mages suffer, but even suffering can grow familiar - can even appear comfortable or desirable, if the Mage suffers long enough. It's easy for them to grow so accustomed to misery that misery is the only outcome they can see - spelling doom for the rest of the party, one prediction at a time.

But a Mage whose party shows them kindness and forgiveness, compassion and empathy, can pull them out of their misery. How beautiful, then, the future appears! A Mage who believes in a brighter future is a force to be reckoned with. When a Mage can bring themselves to say, "and everyone lived happily ever after," you had better believe they did.

SEER

"One who who is guided by [Aspect] or guides [Aspect] for others."

Seers, meanwhile, are the true future-sighted, able to see the myriad paths the future could take. Like Mages, their Aspect serves as the lens by which their vision is colored; the Seer can sense, with fine accuracy, which paths are closest to the sway of their aspect, and which paths will take them further away. As if gifted with a guide to the game, their intuition is tied directly to the mechanics of SBURB, and they serve as the party's guides, a role indispensable in a game with so many moving parts.

Seers will struggle with blindness, first by hubris and ego, and then by self-harm. Seers begin the game quite full of themselves, proud of their prowess in their Aspect - usually arrogantly so. When this pride is inevitably shattered, Seers have a tendency to deal with their feelings of shame and guilt with willful, self-induced blindness - as if flipping a switch, they become ashamed of the pride they once placed in their Aspect, and seek to place as much distance between it and themselves as possible. There's comfort in ignorance, even if it renders the Seer useless.

Seers are "guided by their Aspect" - able to sense its presence, they gravitate toward it, and towards futures with it in abundance. And, in the same way, they "guide their Aspect for others," lighting the way for others down the path of greatest reward. Seers truly love their Aspect, no matter how much they may misplace their faith in it, and seeking it out is a great joy for them.

This is why a Seer at their worst is so tragic. By inducing intentional blindness within themselves, they are functionally deadening the strongest part of their soul. No matter the temporary relief this brings to the sharp, jagged pain of shame, it invariably deepens the Seer's suffering, as they deny themselves not only their own joy, but their ability to help others - another act which inherently delights them.

Thus, a Seer needs to be made to deal with their shattered ego head-on, to accept their own shortcomings, to become at ease with the idea that they don't have all the answers. Once their vision becomes clear, and their view becomes honest, the party nevermore has to fear becoming lost or straying from the path - the Seer will see to that.

WITCH

"One who changes [Aspect] or changes [Aspect] in others."

Witches are the winds of change, tweaking reality all around them until it suits their desires. A Witch is presence that commands both fear and respect, and their Aspect bows down before them, reduced to a mere minion in the Witch's presence, ready to attend to all their needs. In a way, the Witch's powers are straightforward - they can manipulate their Aspect as they desire, changing its qualities as they see fit. "How they see fit," then, is where the issue lies.

Witches are usually of "outsider" status, never truly being part of the society from which the rest of the party descends. Free from the same rules and common sense that govern the others on their team, Witches instead operate on a value system heavily reliant on their own emotions. What a Witch deems to be correct, to be true, or to be righteous, are often based not in any objective measure, but in subjective, emotional bias - and they're emotional creatures, indeed. Prone to fits of great anger, Witches can be benevolent one second and malicious the next, and their abilities let them imprint, to a greater degree than any other Class, their desires onto the world that comes after them.

Witches "change their Aspect," as in, the crux of their abilities lies in manipulating the qualities of their Aspect in their surroundings - extending, shortening, magnifying, shrinking, growing, removing… so on and so forth. It's a fearsome power. They also "change their Aspect for themselves" - their Aspect is hapless but to obey their desires; Witches change the world to suit themselves, and their feelings of how things "should" be often become how things "are" in short order.

Thus, a Witch who has been swayed toward evil entities and nefarious ends is a truly dangerous opponent - and it is unfortunately easy for this to happen. Witches' social isolation means they tend to trust their emotions, and a force that flatters these emotions can easily win a Witch's trust. By the same token, those that fail to flatter the Witch are often considered enemies, even if they're benevolent forces. A Witch's morality can thus become warped and topsy-turvy, which has grave consequences for the world that the Witch then shapes.

Therefore, a Witch's struggle lies in learning to see beyond their own emotions, to take in the opinions and assistance of others even when it seems superficially unpleasant, to move beyond the childlike rejection of that which is uncomfortable. Once able to see a more nuanced form of right and wrong, once able to tell evil from good, Witches can build even utopia.

SYLPH

"One who allows [Aspect] to change others or changes [Aspect] for others."

Sylphs are nurturers and healers; they bring to mind fey folk whose very footsteps cause plants to grow. Wherever they go, whatever they touch, all becomes suffused with the Sylph's Aspect, which flourishes under their careful cultivation. Sylphs adore their Aspect, and their Aspect adores them; Sylphs generally feel at peace with themselves, surrounding themselves with what they like.

A Sylph's main challenge - or rather, the main challenge that Sylphs wind up posing the rest of the party - is that Sylphs are enablers. They're attracted to those with strong wills and extreme dispositions, amused by the havoc they wreak and pleased by their attention. Sylphs love to pick out favorites and lavish them with care and attention, excusing any wrongdoing on their behalf and shielding them from consequences. At the same time, those who don't strike the Sylph's capricious fancy find themselves discarded in the Sylph's mind, shut out from the boons the Sylph can provide.

A Sylph is "one who allows their Aspect to change others" - this almost always manifests as healing, as it's an additive ability (that is to say, the Sylph can grant more of their Aspect to someone). "Changing their Aspect for others," on the other hand, explains this enabling nature of theirs - the Sylph will intervene to make the world into a playground for their favored individuals, even to the point of turning other, less "interesting" teammates into playthings for the Sylph's beloved.

Thus, while the Sylph themself isn't particularly prone to wild mood swings and acts of malice, their influence can still cause disaster by allowing unscrupulous individuals to flourish - even encouraging their worst tendencies. A Sylph's touch is subtle, but that subtlety only lends it an insidious quality, as the Sylph quietly works against the good of the many for the cruel, selfish pleasures of the few. At their very worst, the Sylph can deem themselves their only favorite, and render everyone else a minor character in their one-man show.

Thus, Sylphs must be challenged. They must be made to reckon with the fact that favorable treatment is not necessarily kindness, and that bias can easily become harm. When a Sylph is able to grasp the difference between bias and doing good, and tune their approach toward that greater good, uncolored by bias and personal preference, then there is no place safer, kinder, and more conducive to growth than the Sylph's embrace.

PRINCE

"One who destroys [Aspect] or destroys using [Aspect]."

Princes are the most anxious, psychologically anguished members of a party. They suffer from a toxic overabundance of their Aspect - its traits are taken to an extreme, and not only the Prince, but those around them, are made to suffer for it. Princes are naturally set on a path of self-destruction, the culmination of their uncontrolled accumulation of their Aspect, and their meltdowns are spectacular, taking their Aspect - and whoever is unlucky enough to be in the same room - with them.

A Prince's challenge, therefore, is as simple to understand as it is difficult to overcome. The Prince needs to learn how to calm down, relax, and find inner peace. Princes are terribly prone to circular thinking and downward spirals. Their natural inclination is to feel anxious and responsible, like they carry the weight of the world, and this causes them to act out in extreme and aggressive ways. Eventually, others pull away, put off by the Prince's intensity. This only deepens the Prince's malaise, and Princes are - pushed by this hovering sense of urgency and catastrophe - willing to employ drastic, desperate measures to enforce compliance with their wills. They wake on their moons early, reflective of their driven natures. They're determined to a frightful degree, and no sacrifice is too great, no work too dirty, if it means achieving what they see as the greater good.

Princes "destroy their Aspect" in this way - by presenting their Aspect at its worst, they make others take distance, ruining it for everyone else. Their hard wills, intense emotions, and unshakeable drive to do what (they feel) needs to be done - at any cost - is their source of power. Thus, Princes "destroy using their Aspect" - their toxic overabundance of Aspect lets them channel it into a pure, annihilatory force; what they lack in the delicate utility of the other classes, they make up for in raw, ruinous power. Princes can easily deal the greatest damage in a combat scenario, their ability to destroy overriding nearly everything that would stand against it.

Thus is the problem with Princes. They're ticking time-bombs of anxiety and frustration; when they finally go off, they carve a path of destruction, before ultimately self-destructing, leaving no trace of their Aspect behind. Not only that, but it's very difficult to defuse the bomb early; Princes have finicky, aggressive, and complicated personalities, and tend to react poorly to straightforward attempts to calm them down and reason with them. They often appear to be their own worst enemies, marching inexorably toward their own destruction.

But Princes not only can be saved, but must be saved. They must be saved because kindness and compassion must exist for their own sake, and a Prince rescued from their own worst tendencies is living proof of the truth of that sentiment. A Prince, given the peace they need to reorient their priorities, will not rest until they see a brighter future realized. They will be the first to rise, and the last man standing, banishing - as if by royal decree - all obstacles, all enemies, all misfortune, and all ills.

BARD

"One who invites destruction through [Aspect] or allows [Aspect] to be destroyed."

Bards are the wild cards of a party, responsible for both improbable victories and catastrophic defeats - sometimes both in a single session. The methods by which a Bard works are a mystery to even the Bard themselves, which make it easy for the party to dismiss their powers - and, by extension, the Bard themselves. After all, who would expect there to be consequences for something so ridiculous as a Bard?

Bards are usually targets of abject ridicule by their teams. They can't help it - they're religious types, or at least types that hold great, lofty, ridiculous beliefs near and dear to their hearts. A Bard's primary struggle invariably winds up being a crisis of faith. Bards begin the game with a positive, "correct" faith in their Aspect; however, something will inevitably occur that shakes the Bard's faith in this viewpoint to its core. In this state, Bards are incredibly fragile, and it's very easy for them to succumb to whispers of cruelty and destruction, for their beliefs to warp, and for the Bard to come to serve the worst aspects of the society they represent.

A Bard "invites destruction through their Aspect" - their powers are subtle, but have catastrophic effects. Bards are instinctively drawn towards causing the first flap of a butterfly's wing, which cascades into a grand, impossible karmic backlash. They "allow their Aspect to be destroyed" by being the conduits for the forces of their faith - whatever faith they hold - to wreak unimaginable consequences across the game.

Thus, a Bard must not be allowed to fall into darkness. The cost is too great. They must be treated with kindness, patience, and sincerity, and given a chance to re-establish their faith in a better, brighter future. If this can be done, then at the party's direst moment - in their darkest hour - they will find that kindness paid back a thousandfold, as an innocuous act by the Bard that no one remembers balloons into a miracle.

[starlit1daydream]

Introduction to my Classpecting Ideas

This felt like a good idea for something to put out before I put my Knight & Page analysis out there, since I plan on making this a 6 part series. (Potentially 7 if demand for a Lord/Muse addendum is high enough).

So, I'll be laying out my most important philosophies on the subject here for future reference.

Classpecting is...

Point A. Classpecting is malleable.

There is not one rigid, set definition for any Class pair, or any Aspect pairing. The freedom of the author is that they may assign any symbolism to a concept that they may like.

What I mean by this is that people often seem to think that manifestations of an Aspect within Homestuck's narrative paint that object or idea as a concept inherently tied to that Aspect.

Example: Pumpkins & Void. You would not believe the amount of people in the early fandom who swore by the idea that pumpkins were inherently just Void constructs because of their role in Homestuck's narrative.

No? Pumpkins symbolise Void in Homestuck itself and Homestuck itself only only due to a running gag inherent to Homestuck itself.

Anything, with enough narrative basis and existing thematic ties, can serve to symbolise an Aspect. Furthermore, two different authors may have different ideas of what Aspect something represents.

Some authors may see alcohol, for example, as a Void-bound concept owing to its obfuscation of fair judgement. Some may see it as a Light-bound concept owing to the idea of 'in vino veritas' and the tendency of drunkenness to induce truthful confessions. Some may see it as a Life-bound concept owing to its associations with hedonism and impulsive behaviour.

With enough narrative consistence, anything is possible. Homestuck's narrative is not as rigid of a point of reference as some people would swear by it being. This is deeply important.

Point B. Classpecting is not the whole of a character.

I can't exactly phrase this in a satisfactory manner, but... a Classpect is not a personality type in of itself. An individual being a Prince of Heart does not instantly make them Dirk Strider. It merely means that their core value is identity & selfhood, and they interact with it by destroying it. It is that simple!

I see, time and time again, Classpecting blogs acting as if a Classpect is indicative of a character's whole personality and giving guides as to the exact behaviours & quirks a character with that Classpect should have.

I am imploring you to explore wider possibilities when it comes to this. Even if it means sharing a title with a canon character! It doesn't mean you have to just rewrite that canon character because that's not how Classpecting works.

I've seen fanventure characters share titles with canon characters. (Sovereignstuck's Annomi Errata & Dynama Zarrow sharing titles with Dirk & Porrim respectively, and Porrim herself is also a player in that narrative, mind you!)

I've seen fanventure characters share titles with eachother. (Vast Error's Dismas Mersiv is a Rogue of Mind. One of my fantrolls is also a Rogue of Mind!)

In every instance, they are fundamentally different people. I cannot put it any simpler than this.

Point C. Classpecting is always applicable.

That is the perfection of the Classpecting system. You can give a title to any character, from anything ever made. It's not even that difficult if you're half-decent at media analysis!

Quite literally all you need to do is ask yourself two questions.

"What's this character's core value?" and "How do they interact with that?" Do that, and you've got yourself a Classpect.

That's the beauty of it! It's obviously not going to be as airtight as a story that has the Classpecting system baked directly into the narrative, but it's still going to work out!

Hell, do it to yourself! Do it to your friends! The world's your oyster. You can do anything you want, forever, for the rest of time. I'm a Seer of Life! My best friend is a Page of Blood! My mother is a Witch of Hope! Go wild.

Post formatting

For my Classpecting posts, I'll aim to give two related definitions for every Class.

Definition A is the narrative function, what the Class says about the person and how they interact with their Aspect as an abstract concept.

Definition B is the practical function, what the Class says about their role in the session and how they interact with their Aspect as a SBURB construct.

Therefore, we get an idea of both the abstract, personal definition of a Classpect, and the functional, game application of a Classpect.

I'll also aim to give about two or three examples for each individual title about how you could write a character with them, since there are always going to be multiple directions you can take with a Classpect.

Conclusion

tl;dr - what I'm trying to say is this. Classpecting is malleable, easily applicable & capable of saying any number of things, and my posts will aim to give two concise definitions of both narrative and practical function for every title.

I'll get the Knight:Page analysis done either today or tomorrow, and the rest of the Class posts will be staggered releases in order of poll results. Thus, the order is going to be:

Knights & Pages, Deficiency and Exploitation.

Mages & Seers, Experience and Comprehension.

Witches & Heirs, Adherence and Manipulation.

Princes & Bards, Instability and Destruction.

Thieves & Rogues, Inundation and Redistribution.

Maids & Sylphs, Maintenance and Generation.

And, potentially...

7. Lords & Muses, Absolution and Dominion.

And then, subsequently, the order for the Aspect posts, which I've decided based on relevance to the canon, roughly speaking anyways...

Space & Time, Genesis and Terminus.

Breath & Blood, Fluidity and Stability.

Light & Void, Potential and Simplicity.

Heart & Mind, Instinct and Dialectics.

Life & Doom, Progress and Stagnation.

Hope & Rage, Conviction and Iconoclasm.

I look forward to the next post. Until then, take care.

[friendly-peep]

basic: menswear requires less BRV to wear cus it's default, and it is a way to differenciate between Shiki and Neku's clothes.

moderate: feminine clothes tend to offer better base stats and bonuses, so it makes sense that feminine clothes take more BRV to wear, they're for later in the game.

analyzed: the game reflects the boys' mindsets by making feminine clothes require more bravery to wear, showcasing how they are not confident enough to wear clothes that are more explicitly coded for a gender not their own. (further reading)

internalized: feminine clothes are better

[aortaobservatory]

Classes of Light - AO Classpecting

Chosen Keywords: Knowledge, Evaluation, Insight, Meaning

TEZ Keywords: Knowledge-seekers, students, problem-solvers, precision, scholars, researchers, resourceful, driven, (fussy, pedantic, insensitive)

CANON: Those bound to the aspect of Light are the universe's knowledge-seekers. They are, above all, driven to learn and understand. They are great alchemists, able to take multiple sources of information and synthesize them into something useful. They are scholars and researchers, absolutely dedicated to knowledge for knowledge's sake. They are the ultimate students, and although that might conjure up the image of people sitting around peacefully waiting for knowledge to be brought to them, that couldn't be further from the truth. The Light-bound will go after knowledge with a fierce intensity that others may find distasteful. They aren't overly concerned with laws or norms, either. They often take rules as simple suggestions, instead searching for loopholes or work-arounds. At their best, the Light-bound are resourceful and driven. At their worst they can be fussy, pedantic, and insensitive.

All of the analysis written below is my own writing, analysis, and thoughts as based on the sources I consulted. The statements are my own analysis, but they may function as a "fill in the blank" statement for you to create your own interpretation of the classpect as you please by replacing the aspect word with any of the provided keywords above.

Sources consulted: (dahniwitchoflight), (rosespecting), (godtier-haven), (TEZ), (MSPA Wiki)

LINK: (Classpecting Analysis Masterpost)

TAGS: [Mage], [Seer], [Witch], [Heir]

TAGS: [Knight], [Page], [Thief], [Rogue]

TAGS: [Sylph], [Maid], [Prince], [Bard]

-aortaObservatory

Knowers/Changers

Mage (Active): Know - Too Much Experience with Light

A Mage of Light is almost constantly experiencing knowledge and evaluation from the people around them and their surroundings, which gives them a unique understanding of how insight and the meaning of something can help a situation... or hurt a situation.

A Mage of Light is flooded with Light (Knowledge, Evaluation, Insight, Meaning), uniquely experiencing both the good and the bad of it. As a result, they gain a unique understanding of what Light is and does, often resenting it or becoming jaded and frustrated with it, but never rejecting it. Their challenge is to become open to new insight or different perspectives than their own.

Heir of Void (Inverse): As the Mage of Light knows Light in a flood of both good and bad, they end up embodying Void, whether on purpose or accidental. They have an indirect relationship with Void; because they know and experience Light (that which is knowledge, evaluation, insight, and meaning), they fully embody and thus must change Void (that which is secrecy, unknown, potential, and possibilities). Because the inverse classpect is a ghost of the true classpect, the Mage of Light does not undergo the Heir of Void's challenge; their relationship with the Heir class and the Void aspect is purely surface level.

~

Seer (Passive): Know - Too Little Experience with Light

A Seer of Light is surrounded by secrecy and many potential unknowns, and lacks knowledge and insight in their life, and as a result are driven to learn everything they can about meaningful evaluation in order to understand what they previously lacked.

A Seer of Light studies Light (Knowledge, Evaluation, Insight, Meaning), craving knowledge of it from their previous lack of it. They seek knowledge of Light with a fierce intensity in order to gain more understanding of it, acknowledging the potential consequences of doing so and dealing with them later. Their challenge is to learn how to translate their insight and knowledge into action and decision, as well as learn how to manage their engagement with Light so as to not overwhelm themself or others.

Witch of Void (Inverse): As the Seer of Light attempts to gain experience with Light from their previous lack of it, they end up changing Void, whether on purpose or accidental. They have a direct relationship with Void; because they change and thus half embody Void (that which is secrecy, unknown, potential, and possibilities), they gain experience with and thus know Light (that which is knowledge, evaluation, insight, and meaning). Because the inverse classpect is a ghost of the true classpect, the Seer of Light does not undergo the Witch of Void's challenge; their relationship with the Witch class and the Void aspect is purely surface level.

~

Witch (Active): Change - Too Little Embodiment of Light

A) A Witch of Light embodies knowledge and the insight it gives them, in order to change their own and others evaluation of what something means.

B) A Witch of Light embodies the evaluation of what something means, in order to change their own and others knowledge and the insight it gives them.

Witches are self-assured and conclusive individualists. They pick and choose which parts and pieces of Light (Knowledge, Evaluation, Insight, Meaning) fit into their own already determined desires, making Light embody themself and changing it to suit their own wants and needs. Their challenge is to achieve a stable balance in themself without losing themself to Light or their own changing whims.

Seer of Void (Inverse): As the Witch of Light changes the pieces of Light within themself, they end up experiencing Void, whether on purpose or accidental. They have an indirect relationship with Void; because they change and half embody Light (that which is knowledge, evaluation, insight, and meaning), they gain experience with and thus know Void (that which is secrecy, unknown, potential, and possibilities). Because the inverse classpect is a ghost of the true classpect, the Witch of Light does not undergo the Seer of Void's challenge; their relationship with the Seer class and the Void aspect is purely surface level.

~

Heir (Passive): Change - Too Much Embodiment of Light

An Heir of Light embodies the ability of evaluation, meaning they are knowledgable; however, only by changing themself can they change the insight they gain and the meaning of it.

An Heir of Light inherits and embodies Light (Knowledge, Evaluation, Insight, Meaning), allowing Light to change themself or itself. They have huge amounts of Light related strengths, allowing themself to be surrounded by Light or naturally gravitating towards it. Their challenge is to not get stuck on Light, to know when to move on and change themself to keep themself balanced.

Mage of Void (Inverse): As the Heir of Light embodies Light within themself, they end up knowing Void, whether on purpose or accidental. They have a direct relationship with Void; because they fully embody and thus must change Light (that which is knowledge, evaluation, insight, and meaning), they know and experience Void (that which is secrecy, unknown, potential, and possibilities). Because the inverse classpect is a ghost of the true classpect, the Heir of Light does not undergo the Mage of Void's challenge; their relationship with the Mage class and the Void aspect is purely surface level.

-

Utilizers/Allocators

Knight (Active): Utilize - Too Much Skill with Light

A Knight of Light would be very skilled in using the knowledge they possess and the insight it gives them, to protect and defend the evaluation of others and the meaning given to them.

A Knight of Light is extremely adept with their Light (Knowledge, Evaluation, Insight, Meaning), their driving effort to protect it and others through it. They are loyal to Light's cause and naturally gifted with it, using it as a tool to achieve whatever they set themself to. Their challenge is to learn how to be less harsh on themself, to accept and learn from failure, and to accept the assistance of others when they need it.

Rogue of Void (Inverse): As the Knight of Light utilizes Light from their loyalty to it, they end up valuing Void, whether on purpose or accidental. They have an indirect relationship with Void; because they utilize and are skilled with Light (that which is knowledge, evaluation, insight, and meaning), they value and thus give/allocate Void (that which is secrecy, unknown, potential, and possibilities). Because the inverse classpect is a ghost of the true classpect, the Knight of Light does not undergo the Rogue of Void's challenge; their relationship with the Rogue class and the Void aspect is purely surface level.

~

Page (Passive): Utilize - Too Little Skill with Light

A Page of Light is a beginner when it comes to learning and evaluating the knowledge they gain, but they repeatedly strive to master it using the insight they've acquired and the meaning they've ascribed to it.

A Page of Light starts unskilled in Light (Knowledge, Evaluation, Insight, Meaning), learning how it works and how to use it to its full potential over time. In their many attempts to master Light, they teach others the value of Light, becoming an unintentional source of inspiration. Their challenge is to keep at it, learn from failure, and eventually master Light, being able to confidently provide Light to others.

Thief of Void (Inverse): As the Page of Light attempts to gain skill with Light from their previous lack of it, they end up allocating Void, whether on purpose or accidental. They have a direct relationship with Void; because they take/allocate and thus do not value Void (that which is secrecy, unknown, potential, and possibilities), they gain skill with and thus utilize Light (that which is knowledge, evaluation, insight, and meaning). Because the inverse classpect is a ghost of the true classpect, the Page of Light does not undergo the Thief of Void's challenge; their relationship with the Thief class and the Void aspect is purely surface level.

~

Thief (Active): Allocate - Too Little Value towards Light

A Thief of Light lacks knowledge and evaluation in their life, resulting in a fierce desire to possess such things for themself and leading to them not understanding the value of the insights they gain and what that means, as they take knowledge and the evaluations of others from others and hoard it all to themself for their own benefit.

A Thief of Light takes Light (Knowledge, Evaluation, Insight, Meaning), either craving it fiercely from their lack of it in their lives or simply because they like it, stealing and hoarding it all for themself and their own personal benefit. Despite their outward confidence with Light, they often take it at face-value without learning of its true value, being unsatisfied with how much Light they hoard and craving more and more. Their challenge is to focus less on attaining and more on learning about the value their aspect, as well as to let others have their aspect and learning why it is important to others.

Page of Void (Inverse): As the Thief of Light allocates pieces of Light to themself, they end up gaining skill with Void, whether on purpose or accidental. They have an indirect relationship with Void; because they take/allocate and do not value Light (that which is knowledge, evaluation, insight, and meaning), they gain skill with and thus utilize Void (that which is secrecy, unknown, potential, and possibilities). Because the inverse classpect is a ghost of the true classpect, the Thief of Light does not undergo the Page of Void's challenge; their relationship with the Page class and the Void aspect is purely surface level.

~

Rogue (Passive): Allocate - Too Much Value towards Light

A Rogue of Light would redistribute, allow others to take, and/or give knowledge and insight to others in the name of balancing the meanings born of evaluation.

A Rogue of Light gives Light (Knowledge, Evaluation, Insight, Meaning) away, either because they have a lot of it already, or are able to get it so easily they don't know what to do with so much of it. They often know the true value of Light, and are able to see where there is too much or too little of Light and redistribute it in a balanced way around themself. Their challenge is to not let Light run dry within themself, and to learn how to healthily balance Light in themself.

Knight of Void (Inverse): As the Rogue of Light values Light within themself, they end up utilizing Void, whether on purpose or accidental. They have a direct relationship with Void; because they value and thus give/allocate Light (that which is knowledge, evaluation, insight, and meaning), they utilize and are skilled with Void (that which is secrecy, unknown, potential, and possibilities). Because the inverse classpect is a ghost of the true classpect, the Rogue of Light does not undergo the Knight of Void's challenge; their relationship with the Knight class and the Void aspect is purely surface level.

-

Enhancers/Destroyers

Sylph (Active): Enhance - Too Much Reliance on Light

A Sylph of Light is a pure source of insight and the meaning behind it, and driven by knowledge and evaluation, attempt to restore/purify the meaning behind others insights.

A Sylph of Light starts off relying on themself for Light (Knowledge, Evaluation, Insight, Meaning), attempting to heal, restore, and enhance Light in others. They are a pure source of Light for others, and though this can cause frustration and irritation in themself and others, they can see ways for Light to help and heal the struggling of others. Their challenge is to learn how to listen to the needs of others instead of assuming they know best, and to balance themself by learning that it's okay to rely on others for Light sometimes.

Bard of Void (Inverse): As the Sylph of Light enhances Light from their love of it, they end up fearing control of Void, whether on purpose or accidental. They have an indirect relationship with Void; because they enhance and rely on Light (that which is knowledge, evaluation, insight, and meaning), they fear control of and thus destroy Void (that which is secrecy, unknown, potential, and possibilities). Because the inverse classpect is a ghost of the true classpect, the Sylph of Light does not undergo the Bard of Void's challenge; their relationship with the Bard class and the Void aspect is purely surface level.

~

Maid (Passive) - Too Little Reliance on Light

A Maid of Light relies on anyone or anything but themself to tell them knowledge and information as well as what it means, before learning how to rely on themself, restoring and purifying their knowledge and what it means for themself through precise evaluation and insight.

A Maid of Light starts off pushed around by others' view of Light (Knowledge, Evaluation, Insight, Meaning), but eventually allow Light to heal, restore, and enhance themself, making them into an entirely new person and purifying their aspect to themself. They start out relying on others for Light or being told by others how to interact with Light. Their challenge is to listen to themself instead of others, and to not let others opinions dilute their aspect as they restore it for themself and allow it to make them into a new person.

Prince of Void (Inverse): As the Maid of Light attempts to gain reliance on Light from their previous lack of it, they end up destroying Void, whether on purpose or accidental. They have a direct relationship with Void; because they destroy and thus cannot control Void (that which is secrecy, unknown, potential, and possibilities), they gain reliance on and thus enhance Light (that which is knowledge, evaluation, insight, and meaning). Because the inverse classpect is a ghost of the true classpect, the Maid of Light does not undergo the Prince of Void's challenge; their relationship with the Prince class and the Void aspect is purely surface level.

~

Prince (Active): Destroy - Too Little Control of Light

A Prince of Light is surrounded by knowledge and the evaluative demeanor they crave, but they can't control it or have no means of reaching it, so they lash out because of their own insight and meaning, to destroy the evaluated knowledge that others have, in the name of their own insight and meaning.

A Prince of Light destroys Light (Knowledge, Evaluation, Insight, Meaning) with Light or in the name of Light, and as a result, often end up appearing as Void (Secrecy, Unknown, Potential, Possibilities) at first glance. Princes start off with disdain or hate for Light, likely because of its overwhelming presence in their lives, and because despite its abundance, they can never seem to grasp or control it for themself. Their challenge is to be able to recognize Light's presence in themself before they destroy themself beyond repair, and learn that they do not need to control or bend Light to their will.

Maid of Void (Inverse): As the Prince of Light destroys pieces of Light in themself and others, they end up gaining reliance on Void, whether on purpose or accidental. They have an indirect relationship with Void; because they destroy and cannot control Light (that which is knowledge, evaluation, insight, and meaning), they gain reliance on and thus enhance Void (that which is secrecy, unknown, potential, and possibilities). Because the inverse classpect is a ghost of the true classpect, the Prince of Light does not undergo the Maid of Void's challenge; their relationship with the Maid class and the Void aspect is purely surface level.

~

Bard (Passive): Destroy - Too Much Control of Light

A Bard of Light is surrounded by a lot of evaluated knowledge, but fears being controlled by it or fears the control such things have over them, and as such ignores the evaluated knowledge and allows it to deteriorate via keeping it unknown and letting it wonder into possibilities; only by embracing meaningful insight can they begin to destroy the secrecy that destroyed them.

A Bard of Light allows Light (Knowledge, Evaluation, Insight, Meaning) to be destroyed via simply not reaching out for it, and ignoring its presence in their lives, leading to them appearing as Void (Secrecy, Unknown, Potential, Possibilities) at first glance. This is typically due to a fear of being controlled by Light; while they may see benefits to what it could offer them, they can also see all the downsides to it simply because of their fear of what could go wrong. Their challenge is to be able to embrace Light and not be ruled by its whims, learning to control the way it impacts themself without letting it be destroyed.

Sylph of Void (Inverse): As the Bard of Light fears control of Light within themself and others, they end up enhancing Void, whether on purpose or accidental. They have a direct relationship with Void; because they fear control of and destroy Light (that which is knowledge, evaluation, insight, and meaning), they enhance and rely on Void (that which is secrecy, unknown, potential, and possibilities). Because the inverse classpect is a ghost of the true classpect, the Bard of Light does not undergo the Sylph of Void's challenge; their relationship with the Sylph class and the Void aspect is purely surface level.

[artistotel]

a ych commission for a beloved decade-lasting mutual <3 plus a doodle of us hehe as a little extra

got some ychs still open! (its $15 per character so - a bargain deal!)

[wifegideonnav]

not people on instagram calling paris paloma’s labour “female rage.” like don’t get me wrong it’s a good song, it’s catchy, but it is feminine displeasure at most. girlies if you saw the type of feminine rage i support you’d call it problematic.

[highoncatfood]

Rainstuck part 2.

(more notes under the cut ^_^)

maid of doom yakou is probs my 2nd fav classpect out of all the characters ive done (right after knight of void makoto)

an additional note for yomi: to add more to the 'ghosting heart' part im thinking sth like brainwashing/manipulation of thought to erase rational thinking and instead leave strong emotion/emotional attachment?? in their place would be fitting when it comes to his relationship with martina. though it would probably make more sense if he was a witch of mind but as mentioned before i was considering making him one soooooo

pt 1 here

[tavtiers]

have you done a maid of heart analysis yet? would love to see your take on it :D

The Maid of Heart [symbols: flower, heart]

The Maid class has its basis in the handmaiden or lady-in-waiting. An example would be Joan of Arc.

The Heart aspect’s main theme is instinct. You can find its official description here.

A Maid of Heart is among those who alter the individual's impact. This is the “classpect group” they belong to. Members include: the Sylph, Maid, Bard, and Prince of Heart/Mind. These classes are all opposites or inverses of each other that alter the Heart/Mind dichotomy (the individual's impact). A description of classpect groupings can be found here.

The Maid of Heart actively assists the Heart aspect. Active classes tell themselves what to do and do so for their own benefit. They are more likely to stand up for themselves, but more likely to be cruel. Sylphs and Maids aid their aspect and everything it symbolizes or use it as a form of aid. Simplified, the Maid of Heart is motivated by themselves to assist instinct.

In personality, the Maid of Heart feels like something is holding them back and is invested in self discovery. Personality descriptions can be found here.

Their archetype is the Escapee Free Spirit, defined by freedom and instinct. Archetypes are explained here.

Their opposite is the Sylph of Mind, who passively assists intuition.

Their inverse is the Bard of Mind, who passively destroys intuition.

A classpect or “god tier” is an individual’s best self. All classpects go through a journey from unrealized, to struggle, to realized. When a character is unrealized, they neutrally exist as their inverse. On their struggle, they will wildly flip back and forth between their inverse and true classpect. In their worst moments they will act as their inverse, in their best their true classpect. When realized, they will stabilize as their true classpect. They will still have room to grow, but will become happier, more successful people.

This means that the Maid of Heart begins life motivated by others to destroy intuition. When their struggle arrives and they are at their worst, they will continue this behavior in negative extremes. However, when at their best, they will find purpose in instead assisting instinct for themselves. When realized, they will stabilize and continue to assist the Heart aspect actively, in a positive way.

They share their archetype with the Rogue of Breath, the Free Spirit Escapee.

The Maid of Heart would quest on a planet similar to the Land of Underground [Maid] and Heart [Aspect]. An example would be the Land of Rabbit Holes and Roses. An explanation of planet naming conventions can be found here.

Two possible gods, or denizens, to reign over their planet would be Aphrodite (Goddess of Love) or Yaldabaoth (Trapper of Souls). Other Heart aspect denizens can be found here.

When the Maid of Heart completes their planet quests and dies on their quest bed, they would rise to ascension on the wings of ladybugs (symbols of love). A list of soul animals can be found here.

The characters that I have currently classpected as Maids of Heart are: Snow White from Once Upon a Time, Laurie Jupiter from Watchmen, Maryden Halewell from Dragon Age, Aubrey Little from The Adventure Zone: Amnesty, Lucy Brennan from Twin Peaks, Stephanie Splitz from LazyTown, Alice from Alice in Wonderland, and Pearl Krabs from SpongeBob SquarePants.

If any of the links not connected to my blog break, the content can be found on my Google Drive.

Official Aspect Descriptions Personality Descriptions Aspect Denizens

[mageofmercy]

Maid of Void

Maid of Void: someone who actively creates with void or creates through void.

Maids have very close relationship with their aspect, this can be a sharp, double-edged sword. As their strong ties with their aspect can over time cause immense strain upon the individual. Until finally? They tear themselves away, rejecting it ((like aradia Bot) and Jane's relationship troubles) its coming back. Coming back to their aspect with a new defined sense of boundaries. That truly makes a Maid.

The aspect of void, the archetype of enigma, ignorance, unfortunate, hiding, blindness. But also mystery, wisdom, unconventional kindness, Contentment, and well kept secrets.

The Maid of Void is someone who begins their life full of kindness, but in a way that isn't very conventional. When people displease them, they're not much one's to fight for what they believe. Creating the positive qualities in void within themselves, but not quite as much in others. Creating in them unfortunate ignorance for how the Maid actually feels about anything. Or even sometimes, anything and everything in particular. The maids of void are not people who would step on any toes. But it's actually hurting others more not to. And as they begin to see that? These kind individuals will begin to change.

For it's when they get tired of all the lying about the true nature of things in order to heal and protect others. That you know that the MoV is truly on their way toward maturity. They stop the white lies. How much depends entirely on how much they hated being locked in the void, with a million secrets, unsaid things, maybe even unprofessed love. Because eventually? They create for themselves a void of mystery without the allure, a true enigma, ignorance without meaning, nobody knows who the maid of Void truly and actually is. And they actually begin to hate this. They begin to hate their own aspect. They begin telling everyone how they feel. The Maid inverse into the bard of light when they come to this phase. Both aradia and Jane had to go through it too. But don't worry, the pain doesn't last forever.

They eventually begin to learn that telling everyone the blunt honesty of how everything is, every last little scrape of knowledge. From you smell really bad, to I don't like how your voice sounds, to its too hot today, and just on and on telling people what they truly think. An unexhaustive list of the things. Because they've been thinking and holding it all in for too long. But they begin to realize that creating their aspect this way isn't who they actually are. They were creating void by destroying and corrupting light as bards do. Bards can be kind, loving, genuine individuals. But cave under enough pressure. So please be kind to bards everyone, okay sidenote over let's get back to it.

A fully realized maid of Void would come back to void with a newfound appreciation of void and would actively create void within all the things where they had said too much. They would heal people with their lies, telling them they actually do look good today, or they would pull strings to create alluring mystery about someone. How? Beats me. I'm not a Maid. But they would create within people void by actually creating with all the archetypal values of void. Somehow. Just know that it's possible, I'm not a Maid. But as a void player? I know for a dang fact that it's possible.

[dukeofbenrebay]

Been watching thomas tumblr through the window for a while and figured it'd be cool to jump over a bit more :3

Thought a good place would be with a fav, Emily~

Became more fond of her as I got older, eventually becoming basically my favorite^^

Model's made from card, cardboard and painter card. Do quite like her, very much :3

My fav autistic Scottish sapphic queen, a force to be reckoned with and will absolutely chase down a bitch in 8 inch platform heels to hit someone with a bat.

[fumifooms]

Howl’s moving castle dunmeshi AU

I’ve cracked the code I know why I love Marcille x Chilchuck so much. They’re literally just like Howl’s Moving Castle Howl and Sophie. Okok indulge me for a sec I’m about to dump so many pics and ramble for a bit. I want you to see my marchil vision. It’s fabulous extra cringefail hopeless romantic drama queen x grumpy old sad angry caring hardworking person cursed to be here & cursing fate and giving tough love to everything in a miles radius. No one is safe. From either of them. Calcifer or Micheal is Izutsumi. Wait wait no Calcifer is Senshi and Michael is Izutsumi. Senshi as Calcifer works bc Calcifer is just chained to Howl and is there reminding Howl to not die and take care of himself, giving hints about how to break the curse to Sophie, also the fire demon cooks the eggs and bacon checkmate. And then LAIOS IS TURNIP HEAD OH MY GOD THAT WORKS OUT PERFECTLY. Chilchuck & Marcille, screaming terrified of the weird scarecrow chasing after them, meanwhile the weird scarecrow that’s harmless: :(. Wizard Suliman is Falin and the second fire demon is Winged Lion, so bam everything comes full circle.

I’m assuming most people who’ll see this post maybe saw the movie but not the book, and what you need to know is that the movie makes Howl so much dreamier and collected and cool, whereas in the book he’s just a drama queen 24/7 that’s it. He’s a wet cat dressed in expensive sparkly glittery gowns that needs to be yelled at to do anything he needs to do. He complains. He bemoans. Meanwhile Sophie is, honestly pretty like in the movie? Less contrarian and anger issues but will grumble and yells while cleaning nonetheless. Hardworking but will pathetically sit down on a chair in a dark corner to cry about her aching bones and OHH this is ALL because she’s the eldest child and she was doomed for unhappiness and no one can ever love her… So she’ll whack everyone into order and purge her feelings through aggressive cleaning and using weed killer. IS THIS NOT GIVING MARCILLE & CHIL TO YOU?!

There’s this funny widespread take from the fandom:

And it couldn’t be more true in a marchil context either. Like come on. For all of this post just swap the names of Howl for Marcille and Sophie for Chilchuck.

(Last one with the art by Cookiekappa on Tumblr)

Tell me this isn’t so Marcille. Tell me Chil wouldn’t run away from home thinking he’s failed life and is no longer in shape to work and now has to waddle in self-pity, seeking out wizards which he hates and finds shady bc it’s his last option, and then end up a maid & cleans everything out of spite and also worry for the person living there. Tell me Marcille wouldn’t throw a depressed slime tantrum so bad that it causes a partial town evacuation because her wails summon unknown horrors, over her HAIR. Forget slime she’d blow up the house instantly. She would breakdance as refusal to go see the king. Chilchuck would call her a slitherer-outer and she would gasp in offense and they’d have a fight.

Marcille having full on poems laying around and then Chil & Izu seeing them and being like "Ah yes, this must be a spell, it makes no sense and is so extra, just like how silly our resident witch and her magic is". Izutsumi going "Okay peepaw I’ll teach you how to use a magical bucket just take one step forward-" and they immediately fuck it up and they’re left stranded in far unknown lands. Chilchuck complaining that HIS BACK HURTS. And at every turn or something mildly inconveniencing him "NOTHING GOOD EVER HAPPENS TO THE MIDDLE CHILD".

And can we talk about the aging motif, the curse… Marcille never letting herself grow close to someone even though she does all these grand gestures for them at first. Meanwhile her fear of loss stares at her straight in the eye whenever she looks at 90 years old Chilchuck, and her deciding to not run away from their relationship is what ends up healing both of them. She gets over her fear of intimacy and he grows over feeling like a terribly dull unlovable failure. Me sobbing when I remember how Sophie’s curse of being old is a self-inflicted manifestation of herself thinking she’s romantically unlovable and weak…….

This is it for now but rest assured that I want to make art of this, have these memes for now

[scrapcheese]

Fafnir and his "foes"

NO OK BECAUSE HELLO?? I NEED TO TALK ABOUT THIS CHAPTER???????? I NEED TO TALK ABOUT HIM PLEASE

Here are my ramblings about what Fafnir means in chapter 129 of miss kobayashi's dragon maid when he says that Kobayashi is his "worst enemy" !!!!!!

===========

BACKGROUND CONTEXT (that i think is important)

​Throughout the series we can observe how aggresive Fafnir can get when it comes to things that are important to him, like his treasures or video games. The fact that he left his cave behind to stay in this world shows just how much he's come to regard his life in this world to be important, so why wouldn't that extend to his friend group too? 

Also did you see how he reacted to the rare video game in chapter 120 where he fought Ilulu? HE LITERALLY ALMOST DESTROYS HER AND THE SURROUNDINGS

He saw someone else holding the thing that he was told is a treasure and reacted like it was a threat, and was about to go in for the kill. He's usually pretty listless, and apathetic about things going on around him, so for there to be that strong of a reaction shows that he definitely cares. A lot. He can care about things.

/////// REBLOG ADDITION ////////

update: reread chapter 120, and i think his reaction to ilulu was not just his reaction to the game, but also like his gut punch reaction to almost getting attacked because he let his guard down BECAUSE of the game. like i think that is very telling of how much he's grown accustomed to the human world and how much less guarded he's become.

this ties into the conversation he has with Lucoa in ch136 about changing values for something you really want (WHICH I WILL EVENTUALLY TALK ABOUT.. MAYBE)

===========

Does he actually dislike them?

Ok so in this chapter Fafnir definitely doesn't mean "worst enemy" in the sense of genuine dislike, because he literally messages Kobayashi about the game and is smiling at the end of the chapter??

also if you look at chapter 33, the hot springs one, Takiya talks about how he's found a group of friends that he enjoys spending time with and wants to maintain that group of friends, and that Fafnir should understand because he does the same. 

In this chapter he says that Takiya says things sometimes that make him think he can see right through him, and i want to assume that the hot spring conversation is one of those times. which probably means that Fafnir does care about this friend group in his own way! 

===========

So what is he saying?

To put it simply, he's just absolutely wack and interprets all his relationships through the lens of enemies because thats what he's used to. 

In the chapter, we can see that how he labels someone as an enemy in this context probably depends on how much he regards them to be a threat or to be equal with him in some way:

Takiya is a gaming foe, so someone who he finds to be his equal when it comes to gaming, and probably enjoys spending time with

Tohru used to be a foreign enemy (aka someone he isn't close with) and has now become a formidable foe, someone he regards to be at the same level as him and as a friends.

Lucoa is a strong enemy, probably referring to how she's about as strong if not stronger than him.

He doesn't consider ilulu or kanna to be threats and isn't very close to them, so he doesn't consider them to be "foes"

And Elma is an enemy by the nature that she is a threat to his beliefs because she's in the harmony faction. 

But Kobayashi? She's the worst enemy because she holds the most power, not only with the dragon slayer sword but also the fact that she is sort of the reason the whole friend group came together in the first place. If there is anyone can greatly affect the group dynamics, it would be Kobayashi. So it's fair to assume that Fafnir would see that as some sort of threat to something he considers important.

/////// REBLOG ADDITION ////////

ALSO ADDITIONALLY, Fafnir is part of the chaos faction but doesn't really do much fighting, he's kind of just a shut in. Kind of like Lucoa being in the spectator faction.

Kobayashi on the other hand? She is a human and a non-believer in the gods, but regularly does miracles and clashes/argues with other dragons to protect their little group, AND IT WORKS. She fought Damocles (Tohru's dad) alongside Tohru, she fought Kanna's dad and literally stopped a whole faction war from breaking out, and that whole arc of saving Elma and fighting Telne? That was her too, she's a pretty big part of all that happening and being resolved.

SHE HAS A GOD DAMN HOLY SWORD AS A PART OF HER

Kobayashi is fucking terrifying.

====

TLDR; my interpretation of this line is that Fafnir cares about his friends, is unable to call them friends so he says enemies, is worried about Kobayashi's role in the friend group and how her actions could affect all of them negatively because he does actually care about all of them and the relationships he's built with these people.

[ya-kiri]

Just a random thought but, I am so glad they left out Claire slapping Lene in the manga and anime adaptations. I read the light novel before the anime was even announced/greenlit, and I was worried about that scene (amongst other things). I really didn't like it. Putting aside what we find out about Lene later 😬, it was really uncalled for, came out of nowhere and reflected poorly upon Claire. Lene was basically Claire's sister figure, they grew up together, she helped Claire with the grief over her mother's death, Claire defended Lene from mistreatment.

Furthermore, it was established from the beginning that Claire pulls her punches when bullying Rae, not wanting to do any lasting physical harm despite her distaste for commoners, which makes it all the more jarring that she doesn't lay her hands on Rae, whom she has only known for awhile and is constantly annoyed at her, yet she would, without any hesitation, slap her sister/childhood friend that's she known, cared for, and depended on for her entire life? Just, no! Went on a bit of tangent there, I'm sure no one else cares about this but I wanted to put my thoughts into words.

[starlit1daydream]

reassessed classpects just as a little thing whilst i work on the maid:sylph essay! not sure how many of my followers will know what i'm on about here, but i think this probably works

Bojack F. Horseman is a Bard of Life - the passive destroyer of growth. A man who throws himself back into stagnation time and time again, trapped in a cycle of decaying his own capacity to develop beyond his greatest flaws & worst sins.

Diane Nguyen is a Seer of Light - the passive student of knowledge. A woman whose hollow soul and depressive self is disguised through a relentless pursuit of truth and recognition, desperate to leave something tangible and real in the world behind her; hoping to fill the emptiness with everythingness.

Princess Carolyn is a Maid of Blood - the active creator of connection. A woman who places such great value on family and obligation; worked to the brink of exhaustion by the ceaseless amount of loyalties and false promises in her life, working in a business where making connections is key.

Mr. Peanutbutter is a Heir of Breath - the passive manipulator of freedom. A man whose nilihistic attitude and free spirit motivates him to wander aimlessly through the world, ignorant of anything stable and true in favour of a simple and naive existence; merely moving wherever the wind pushes him.

Todd Chavez is a Page of Heart - the passive steward of selfhood. A man whose insecurity with himself and deep-seated fear of intimacy for reasons he can't pin down leads him to feel loveless; only to learn on his long and arduous journey that he is far from alone in the world, and he is but who he is.

Sarah Lynn I'm not too sure on, but I'm actually inclined to make her a Prince of Void; I'll think more on that one later.

[aortaobservatory]

Maid of Rage

A Maid of Rage relies on authenticity of others and things around them, and gets frustrated when this doesn't end up working out easily for them. They attempt to control their beliefs by relying on the truth; but because they cannot control the ideals of others, their reliance on the truth of others is soured. This means they can often fall into a habit of attempting to force what they believe to be true onto others, often without checking to see what they believe is true or not.