#need to analyze it more since my au is kinda about losing oneself innn something idk

[harpyface]

more volta do mar thoughts,,, as i develop a kim pov au fic with skills

so got some feedback on my thoughts of what the in-game Volta do Mar method was, and so this post is mainly about what I think the Volta do Mar *skill* is.

We can see Kim's skills through the ZA/UM merch of his jackets, and interestingly enough his VdM stat is boosted through both aerostatic jackets, the orange (pilot) and the black (crew).

"It’s a sentimentality, but Kim feels centred when wearing this jacket. He leaves it on when he sits down for Volta."

The pilot jacket desc. establishes that Kim does perform Volta do Mars, and cements the fact that he's wearing revolutionary cosplay. He gets a +1 bonus from the orange jacket, the description of which seems to imply feelings of freedom. I don't think it's exactly the *opposite* of being grounded, but more like Kim is meditating and temporarily forgetting about his problems and turmoil, which we can expect from the ritual as something to rid the mind of chaotic pale-radiation.

Now, what I find more interesting is not only the VdM boost on the crew jacket, but the fact that it's +2, more than the pilot jacket. It's also a revolutionary cosplay, but the description makes a point of saying "Originally worn by mechanics and engineers during the Revolution, most of whom went down with the aerostatics they served on."(something to think about) It also "reminds Kim of Seol, though he’s never been there. For special occasions only." (also interestingly this jacket has the thought cabinet print on the inside)

The combination of the VdM and the mention of Seol is interesting to me, because Kim is not, well. He hasn't accepted his status of being half-Seolite, and because of the racist society he grew up in, is what I call internally racist (though probably also just racist). He takes pride in not being connected to Seolite culture.

(Disclaimer that I'm not saying that mixed individuals are obligated to interact with their race's culture - I'm half Asian and part Mexican but don't really interact with Mexican culture - just that Kim specifically makes a point about it. Kim may not be connected to Seolite culture but he still faces the racism for it.)

So to combine VdM, a concept that seems to be about freedom and calm, with Kim's racial identity seems like an oxymoron to me. I think this conflict *is* what the description is referring to, "Distant enemy of himself." The in-game use of the crew jacket honestly doesn't seem to have any connection to this description (if you didn't get it, kim wears it if you complete a hardcore run and start another game in hardcore, but there's no difference in the text.) The extra boost may be building on the pilot jacket's one, so that for some reason Kim gets a second VdM boost for being reminded of Seol, despite the internal conflict.

I don't have a solid idea for what Kim's Volta do Mar skill could be used for. One option is that the skill is about being connected to oneself, because he's fascinated by the revolution and aerostatics (+1) and then his heritage (another +1?), because if he doesn't usually like the fact that he's half-Seolite, he would only wear it when he wants to be reminded of it. And then another fact that takes some thinking is that it's a physique skill and not a psyche skill (as long as you believe that he and harry have the same skill categories) I think some interpretations have been VdM being used as the voice of restraint (sometimes to a detriment) or direction, or sometimes emulating the Volta do Mar poetic ritual with the same intent. I've been working on my Kim skills for months, and they've changed a lot overtime, and I still expect at least VdM to change course.