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viviennevermillion · 1 year ago

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when they know you like them

⟡ notes: first time writing for record of ragnarok yayy! guys if you haven't seen this show you should watch it, we have tournament arc, pretty men and sad backstories. comments are appreciated.

⟡ contains: character x gn!reader, how they act when they know you like them but you haven't told them, varying lengths because i am inherently biased

⟡ characters: buddha, beelzebub, hades, nikola

⟡ warnings: all of these are fluff except for beel's which is full of soul-crushing angst i am sorry

He's such a tease and you can't even be mad at him because unlike Loki or Hermes he's genuinely sweet about it. He overheard Brunhilde talking about how you like him and he decided to have some fun with it first before he confesses.

You meet him by the tree he likes to relax under before his fight and he's happy to see you. "Hi fam! What a pleasant surprise!", he exclaims and waves at you when he sees you walking towards him from a distance, "to what do I owe the honor?"

When you tell him you just wanted to wish him luck before his battle, he grins and pats your head repeatedly before resorting to poking your cheek. "That's sweet of you, bud", he sits down under the tree again and pats the patch of grass by his side, gesturing for you to join him; an offer which you gladly accept.

"I know you don't like being told what to do", you start and let out a sigh, "but don't you die on me out there..."

He lets out a hearty laugh.

"I'll accept it this once, because it's you", he chuckles and leans closer, whispering in your ear with a tone of voice that sounds like it's laced with honey, "if I didn't know any better, I'd say you're worried about dear old me..."

You stay silent in response to this, which just seems to amuse him more. "You know…best not to lose yourself in worry and fear, it does not do you any good", he warns with a challenging tone, cupping your cheek gently to inspect the emotion that's showing on your face, "getting too attached can often be our demise..."

"I'm good, thank you", you reply dryly, not giving in to his teasing. You reach into your bag to pull out some candy you brought along. "Offer for my favorite god", you state nonchalantly and hand it to him. "So I'm your favorite, huh?", he chuckles, booping your nose, "that's interesting."

He eats some of the candy and remarks that it's tasty before his attention shifts to you again. "I found meditation can help with worries like yours", he explains but can't hide the smile that's tucking at the corner of his lips, as he's fully aware how easily your focus shifts when he's around, "I can show you some techniques if you'd like."

So he spends the next 10 minutes instructing you on meditation and you're trying, but at this point you're suspecting that with the way he keeps whispering instructions into your ear and leans close to you or holds your hand, he's setting you up to fail. "I'm starting this on heightened difficulty", you mumble dryly and he chuckles again. He's clearly having a blast with this.

He's leaning so close to you that you can feel his breath on your lips and he's like "do you feel enlightened yet?"

You open your eyes to glare at him. "You're the bane of my existence."

He forms two peace signs with his hands and sends you an innocent smile. "That's when I'm at my cutest!"

Before he leaves for his fight he gently pulls you into his arms. "Don't worry too much, buddy, I'll be fine", he has his arms wrapped around your shoulders in a comforting embrace. You close your eyes and take a deep breath, relaxing into the warmth of his chest. "I'll see you after the fight, pinky promise", he smiles and gently squeezes you before making his way to the arena.

When you join him again after the battle he's finishing up that bag of candy you gave to him. "I heard you bailed from the infirmary", you let out a sigh and sit down next to him in the grass. "Are you here to drag me back?", he sends you a questioning gaze. You shake your head. "I know better than to try that."

He lets out a satisfied hum and you hug him. "I'm glad you're okay", you whisper and he looks at you with a fond expression, way softer than what you're used to from him. "I told you not to worry too much", he keeps an arm wrapped around you and leans closer to you again until your lips are almost touching, "I think you need more meditation." He grins and plops a candy into his mouth.

You look at him through half-lidded eyes and sigh. "You know what- fuck this shit, next time I'll just bring pocky."

He lets out a laugh and presses a sweet kiss to your cheek. "That's one way to do it."

One word: Panic

He meets you after his round because you're one of the people who tend to his wounds. You're so sweet to him; you have no idea, not the faintest clue about the curse he is afflicted by.

He's darkness incarnate, at least in his mind; only ever leaving his secluded quarters these days to fight; like in the tournament. To fight, never to protect. His hands weren't made for protection; his heart wasn't made to be loved. But who can really help the things they long for in this life?

Meanwhile, you're like a ray of the sun that mistakenly fell into the depths of hell from which he crawled. He had been shunned; detested for what he was, yet you didn't seem to notice. He thought it was stupid. Or perhaps these were his defenses talking.

Or maybe you knew exactly who he was and simply chose to pay it no mind. Also stupid.

He acted cold around you in the infirmary. Brushed you off with quick responses. Yet you always smiled at him with this carefree, kind expression on your face. Just the way his friends had done once upon a time. Images flashed his mind of their dead bodies and the horror of what he had done. He didn't mean to, he knew he was cursed, yet he hated himself; hated that he was host to the monster that lived within him.

He left the infirmary early that day. Best not to spend too much time around people who were nice to him. It might just get them killed, he thought with bitterness clouding his mind.

But you weren't convinced when he had told you that he was fine upon leaving. So to make sure you didn't release him in bad condition, you sent him a letter, asking him how he was faring. To be honest, you didn't expect that he would actually respond, considering how closed off he was when he met you. But Beelzebub was a lonely man. Terribly lonely and suffering in silence without an ounce of company, just waiting for the day someone or something would be able to put an end to his existence. But that was a dream that felt far out of his reach. So he settled for the next best thing: easing the pain.

So for the next few weeks, the two of you changed letters and every time he opened up a little, you felt joyful and loved that you were getting to know him better.

When you ask him out one day, Beel's heart freezes. This was all too familiar... attachment. Something he couldn't allow himself to have. Something that would bring destruction upon the innocent.

He clutched the letter tightly in his hand, crumpling the paper in the process as he paced back and forth through his room, trying to calm his breathing; trying to make the thought of Lilith's dead body leave his mind. He couldn't allow anything to happen to you. He was a monster and you didn't deserve to become the next tragedy in his life. For weeks now since you had started exchanging letters he put extra locks on his doors at night; some of them with numbers only he knew; he'd freeze the keys and hide them throughout his room in the hopes that he would wake up before the monster could escape the confines it was in.

After receiving the letter where you had confessed that you had taken a liking to him and would like to go out with him; he woke up on the following morning with his room in shambles. Some of the furniture was torn apart, papers were scattered across the floor and the door showed signs of abuse and violence; large scratch marks and some broken locks.

He sent you a letter inquiring about your well-being this time. The wait for your response was spent in agony.

When he finally received a letter back; being informed that you weren't anywhere near his room that night, that you were safe and sound; relief washed over him.

But that was the last letter he ever sent. He deemed it too dangerous to keep you around. You deserved to live and to thrive. Nothing that should be cut short because of his selfish desire for companionship.

As the months went by, the letters got less and less. Until finally you stopped sending them. That was the first time he had cried since Lilith's death. The first time he had slumped down on the floor and sobbed helplessly. His room became silent again. He was alone once more with nothing but the shadow of what could have been.

The only one who is actually normal about the whole thing.

Hades is a gentleman and he doesn't have enough humor in his heart to tease you like some of his fellow gods would.

Once he has a hunch that you have feelings for him; he prepares to ask you out.

He's very classy with it. He buys you a bouquet of roses and brings them to you, greeting you with a soft smile that few actually get to see on his face. He appears confident and casual; the only sign of nervousness being that he keeps fidgeting with the collar of his shirt without noticing.

Of course you immediately notice the bouquet. But you don't bring it up until he does. "Hades! Good to see you", you greet him and give him a smile. He smiles back at you. "Y/n, I- was wondering if you'd like to have dinner sometime?", he stumbles over his words one time but overall delivers the question very professionally.

You're a little caught off-guard. After all; Hades is not someone where you notice he has feelings for you unless he decides to let you know. "Oh...", you take a moment to process, "I'd love to!"

Hades is glad to hear that answer. Whatever was he worried about anyway?

He takes you to a nice restaurant on your date, both of you dressed up in fine clothes and Hades can't keep his eyes off you. His expression softens every time he looks at you and he finally realizes how much you make him weak in the knees.

Despite everything, he keeps his confident demeanor, offering to pay for your meal and making conversation with you during the date so the atmosphere never turns awkward.

It's mostly him complaining about his job really.

"And it's not even like they don't know that trying to feed the Cerberus is forbidden; it's very clearly stated in the 'Welcome to Helheim' leaflet and yet every month someone loses an arm to that thing-", he pauses in his rant to look up at you, "I'm sorry if you don't want to hear about my work."

You shake your head. "It's fine, I think it's quite interesting", you reach for his hand and hold it on the table, "hold on- there's a leaflet?"

Hades chuckles and pulls said leaflet out of his pocket, handing it to you. "Rule Nr. 2: 'You cannot actually climb out of Helheim. Seriously, stop trying'", you read aloud and raise your eyebrows, "I feel like there's a story behind that one." Hades gives you a painful expression. "I wish there wasn't."

Hades likes holding your hand on the dinner table and he always makes sure that you have a comfortable and fun evening

Despite his calm and serious demeanor, the man is absolutely whipped for you, so the more chaotic you are, the more likely it is that he'll end up joining you in shenanigans that are unlike anything he'd do if you weren't a part of his life.

Loki once catches him dancing in the rain with you, absolutely drenched from the water and Hades just sends him a death glare. "Not a word." Meanwhile Loki is just trying to keep his wheezing in.

If he feels like you're up for it, Hades asks if he can kiss you after the date. For a man so stoic and serious, his kiss is very gentle.

You never have to worry about Hades knowing how you feel about him because your feelings are in good hands with him.

Is probably having a whole crisis about this.

He doesn't even notice you like him, he just sees you as "y/n, who listens to me talk about science" and that's what he appreciates you for. He has such tunnel vision when it comes to his work that he doesn't even stop to consider how he feels about you until Raiden of all people brings it up.

He's like "Wow you're so lucky that someone like y/n has their eyes on you!" and Nikola stops in his tracks like excuse me what-

"Don't tell me you didn't notice... they're down bad for you?!"

The shared human contestants lobby was a mistake, Nikola thinks

Other people have to spell out all the obvious signs to him that show that you're romantically interested in him for Nikola to "subscribe to the hypothesis"

That's when the panic starts.

"Like, what do I even do, I've never been on a date before!"

Raiden raises an eyebrow: "Seriously? Never?"

Nikola corrects himself as he paces from one side of the room to the other. "Well technically I have been on ONE date before but it was a disaster because I accidentally caused the misconception that I'm trying to build a nuclear bomb, which i wasn't-"

Basically, Nikola has no fucking idea how to approach romance

He ends up sending his pigeon to deliver a letter to you, asking you out on a date, which he describes as "a fun day full of scientific experiments" and he's ecstatic when your answer is yes.

"Don't worry, this'll be fine, I even got them a gift", Nikola says, excited about your date.

The "gift" turned out to be a giant laser he built specifically for you. He was confident in it at first but ever since people kept telling him that usually flowers or chocolate are appropriate first date gifts, he's been nervous. To everyone's surprise, you end up absolutely loving it.

"Oh my god I've always wanted a giant laser!"

"See? That's what I said too", Nikola gives you a fist-bump.

Nevermind you're going to fit together just fine.

Your date mostly consists of him guiding you through various science experiments and rambling about the scientific principles behind them.

"I understood nothing of what it was you just said but I think it's endearing how passionate you are about this", you chuckle.

His last experiment is one where he turns the lights in the room off and uses several lenses and light sources to make beautiful lights in all colors dance across the walls and the ceiling of the room. You're in awe about the beautiful sight.

"You see, this happens because the light reflects off the-" he can't finish his sentence because he's caught off-guard by the kiss you press to his cheek. You then lean your head on his shoulder. "Let's just watch them for a while", you whisper and reach for his hand. He supposes he can continue explaining later and smiles at you softly.

#shuumatsu no valkyrie #record of ragnarok #ror #snv #buddha x reader #beelzebub x reader #hades x reader #nikola tesla x reader #ror buddha #ror beelzebub #ror hades #ror nikola tesla #snv buddha #snv x reader #ror x reader #snv loki #snv hades #snv nikola tesla

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damianbugs · 3 months ago

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i love comics of bruce with children, any recs for batman stories involving him with children?

INDEED I DO. i have been building an entire thread of these comics for the last year on twitter. so i have a few:

Batman: War on Crime (1999) focuses on a boy called marcus who has a very similar backstory to bruce but goes down a different path, and his introspection on that. the art and writing make this one a must read!

Batman (1940) #423, the second story includes bruce's foster children, hank and jenny watkins.

The Brave & The Bold (1955) #93 is about bruce going on vacation and taking a break from batman (spoiler: that doesn't happen) and saving a boy called sean, twice!

at the end of Batman Gotham Knights (2000) #25 there's a short story called Last Call at McSurley's, which has a really sweet part about bruce saving a kidnapped little girl, but also some really fun gotham world building!

in Batman Secret Files (2018) #3 there's a story called Hunters, where bruce and oliver queen work together to save a little girl while being hunted down. one of my favourites!

in Bane: Conquest (2017) #12, bruce makes an appearance to save a baby. if you enjoy bane i'd suggest reading the whole comic for context, but for bruce it's just the last issue. the funniest part was the confirmation that every bat-vehicle seems to come with a built in bat-baby-car-seat!

Batman: The Dark Knight (2011) #26-27 features an entirely silent story of bruce saving a mother and daughter from human trafficking. it includes one of my favourite batman panels of all time.

trigger warnings for all violence against children in the next two:

Batman: The Ultimate Evil (1995) is about bruce, following in his mother's footsteps, dismantling a child prostitution ring as well as learning about gotham's rampant child abuse problem. there is also a really good novel about this story!

Batman: Night Cries (1992) is about bruce working on a series of murders where the common factor is the victims being child abusers.

Batman Adventures #26 is about bruce patrolling with a baby. my favourite part is where the criminals stopped doing crime and tried to offer advice on how to look after the baby. i love you gotham

in part 5 of batman legacy [Batman (1940) #534], bruce is in india trying to find a cure for a virus. while there, he meets a homeless boy who gets involved with their case. i don't particularly like the legacy storylines, so i would recommend reading this one on its own!

these are the ones that i can remember where bruce has important interactions with children, but i always say that the best batman stories have at least one panel of his saving children. so there are many more, but i hope you enjoy these!

#bruce wayne #saki comic talks

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fluffy-cloudz · 10 months ago

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One of my favorite parts about ACOWAR is the chapters where Feyre and Lucien make their way to the Night Court together while under the influence of fae bane.

Obviously, I enjoyed reading the first part of this book because I was able to read more of my favorite character (Lucien), but those scenes of them traveling together are super special to me.

1) I love the Feyre and Lucien friendship and really hope it continues/grows, because I was disappointed at how Feyre and him interacted in ACOFAS.

2) Those scenes of travel gave us a tiny glimpse of what a book with Lucien as the main male character could be like. He is SO resourceful - they were without their magic and traveling on foot, he was able to navigate them and find them shelter and safety (don’t get me started on the catching fish with his hands i’ll get feral). Also, the stories he told of his past while they traveled - he is SUCH an interesting character with so much knowledge, backstory, and valuable diverse perspective of the world of Prythian I am dying to hear more about. He has so many connections to other courts and can WIELD them! Bonus: Lucien covering Feyre up with his own cloak while she was asleep in the caves in Autumn - they absolutely still care for each other despite some of their more tense interactions recently.

All I’m trying to say is, I miss my man and regardless of what happens in the next book, I need more of him.

#pro lucien vanserra #lucien vanserra #acotar #acowar #feyre archeron #sjmaas #just please give my baby a lil more screen time in the next book i’m begging #elucien

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heyclickadee · 3 days ago

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Okay, but here’s why the next Tales of being about Ventress and Cad Bane makes me a little more hopeful that we’re getting a long form series announcement at Celebration (and hopefully a long form series centering on Rex and Echo in the early imperial era where Tech can come back):

One, it means they’re probably announcing something other than Tales of at Celebration itself. Hopefully another long-form series.

Second…I was actually kind of hoping that if we get a Tech return, it isn’t in a tales of anthology. The thing about Tales of is that it’s largely for stuff that wasn’t originally planned when the various writers were writing the larger story arcs. It’s mostly them having an idea either for background stories for characters who are tied up in more linear narratives in a way that makes it difficult to visit those background pieces (Ahsoka), or character who were killed off or disappeared a while ago and focus on whom doesn’t necessarily fit into that more linear narrative but would definitely enhance it. So, bits and pieces of Ahsoka’s life we won’t be visiting in any of the present day stuff, Dooku backstory, what happened to Barriss, Morgan Elsbeth, etc.

And the thing is, I’ll take a Tech return in a tales of anthology is that’s all I can get, but I would still be annoyed about it. Because that would mean the writers really did just throw him off a train without thinking about it or how to handle it, and I feel like a planned return as part of a more linear story is too well foreshadowed and set up.

So even though I’m not pinning my expectations on an announcement for a longform series set on the heels of The Bad Batch (and I’m definitely not expecting any confirmation on Tech, even if I would like that), I am a little hopeful for it.

#I’ll be honest part of it is #that I cannot possibly be crushed worse by a piece of fiction #than I was at the end of TBB #I’ve somewhat shifted my thinking on the finale #conditionally depending on the framework through which I’m looking at it #but at the time I was #uh #very upset in a way I don’t get about tv shows #and it had less to do with the show itself and more to do with life experience #so anyway since I don’t think I’m capable of being that crushed again #I am keeping my hopes a little bit up

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redhoodinternaldialectical · 1 month ago

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Hi! I saw your recent post about how Jason is perceived being from opposite world. (lovely meta commentary, btw) You mentioned that the other bats will joke about his death to his face. I was wondering if you happened to have examples? Or if it's easier, where to find examples. If not, no worries! Thanks!

I was afraid of this lmao xD cause like I know they're there, I can picture the panels in my head, but there is not a search engine on earth I could type "That one panel that's mostly blue that made me think 'holy shit that's just fucking MEAN'" into that would give me anything useful!

Let me go digging for a little bit though, I think I can find at least a few of them. In general it happens during the scenes where all of the Bats have been gathered together and are quip-ing at each other, and thus mostly in the Flashpoint onwards eras

To be clear, it's not like they're doing high school mean girls comedy routines here, more it's a pattern of Jason saying something and the snappy haha come-back being some version of "oh yeah? well you're the failure who died, moron, so who cares what you think?"

Batcat marriage reveal in Batman (2016) #33

Quick aside: we, the readers, can choose to assume Duke probably only knows about him stealing the Batmobile's tires in the vaguest outlines, but there's so many layers of fucked up classism lurking in that insult anyways...

Robin War #1

It should be noted that Jason doesn't say anything in his defense more than that 'Hey--'. Tim gets to shove back, Jason just has to take the L and move on.

Task Force Z #8

This one is by far the least nasty, frankly I'm chalking that up to Rosenberg just being a good writer. Like the man can write out a conflict that feels natural and like they do care about Jason while still feeling they need to fight him and are extremely pissed off with him right now. Also I'm including it cause it's great and I love Task Force Z and it almost feels like a call back to the Robin War insult??

Now, am I saying that the other Bats cruelly bringing up Jason's death purely to insult him is bad writing? Am I implying that there ought to be far better ways of showing Jason's backstory and his tension with the other Bats to new viewers than to have needlessly antagonistic conversations that go fucking no where?

Well I am definitely saying that the next example comes from Battle for the Cowl and you can just make of that what you will!

The demerits of BftC aside, I do love Timmy thwacking him with a crowbar - it's so... Extra

There's also an exchange in whatever the heck comic the Batburger 'no one goes after Bane but me' conversation happens in, but that one Jason does kinda bring up himself and it seems a lot more amicable than the rest and also I'm out of time for comic related pursuits for the night so these will have to do!

Bonus aside: I found the cute panel of Jason calling Damian 'Little man' as a nickname in issue #2 of DC vs Vampires, I wasn't sure if I'd been making that one up

#jason todd #damian's tomfoolery #also thank you very much for the compliment I appreciate it ^w^

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beansayshi · 1 month ago

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HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT TEAM.

WISTERIA LODGE SHERLOCK AND CO SPOILERS AHEAD

M IT WAS HECKING M. LITERALLY EVER SINCE WE MET BANES IN THE FIRST PART I WAS LIKE "wow a sherlock equal? boy do I hope we don't have moriarty in this chapter haha" and moriarty has literally been ALL MY MIND SAYS this entire case!! But i was like noooo, its only a 3 part case how would they start a big thing like that here? and so soon-ish after sign of 4?

BUT THERE IT IS, THERE IT IS CHAT. HOLY IRENE.

Not saying its banes but also it could so, be banes. And sherlocks response to the M! ohhh my gosh we're so getting some sherlock backstory such a response has to have history right??? Moriarty's return!!

I genuinely cannot wait for next week, I'm almost wishing I hadn't watched this episode day of cause i have the HYPE but NO CONTENT TO CONTINUE IT UNTIL NEXT WEEK.

I love sherlock & co y'all

#sherlock & co #sherlock holmes #wisteria lodge #s&co spoilers #spoilers #wisteria lodge spoilers #50 tags just to be safe. you must experience this moment as it happens hooolllyyyyyy #beans bs

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mortallyclearwonderland · 8 months ago

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My ''hot'' takes about DC

The reason the word "hot" appears in quotes is I'm not sure if what I'm about to say is truly controversial or if my opinions are one of the most lukewarm there could be.

Number 1. Scarecrow's character (or lack thereof)

I'm confident in saying that it's a fact at this point that if you're not part of the Bat Family, Gotham Sirens (Catwoman, Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn, and Suicide Squad by association with Harley), or the Joker, DC doesn't care about you. They might toss the Riddler a bone if you can call being a butt-monkey that.

Scarecrow is less of a character and more of a writing device when the creators want a character to face their fears but have no idea how to do it, so they'll just have Jonathan spray or inject them with his fear toxin.

On the surface, it's not a bad idea. It's not about the cliche, it's about how it's used. Many times we don't even get to see what the characters are afraid of personally but just some random scary imagery because the writers aren't smart enough to come up with a fear that would fit the character. Remember that one episode of Justice League where Flash has a scary dream that he's moving so fast no one can see him or Hawk Girl wings got tight up and she started falling to her death?

But probably the most frustrating thing is how he gets defeated. When Batman or some other character is done with overcoming their fear, Scarecrow just gets punched or defeated in a different humiliating way. My question is this. What was he doing the whole time his opponent was having their little episode? Was he doing some research and taking notes? Was he trying to get away? Was he getting himself off by watching? What?! And I know Scarecrow isn't as good of a fighter as Batman (although he does know violent dancing unless DC forgot about that) but is it too much to ask for them but up a bit of a fight before going down?

Which brings me to my next point.

2. Double standard in fighting.

I hate the ''Batman just goes around abusing mentally ill people.'' argument. You can like villains, villains can have sympathetic backstories but that doesn't give them a pass to do whatever the hell they want and hurt other people. But I can understand where people might get that idea from. When a comic never shows any people in danger or hurt from the actions of the bad guy, because the writers are pussies, it might look like Batman is overdoing. Especially when the most brutalized are humans with no powers like Joker, Scarecrow, and Riddler. But when Batman fights Bane or Killer Crock it's usually him who gets brutalized. Which makes sense. But don't get me started on a double standard between male villains and female villains. A female villain will never get as bad of a beating as a male villain even when she's done way worse things and has powers which make her a much more dangerous and allow her to tank more hits.

Which is similar to my next pet peeve.

3. ''Dating Catwoman''

Am I the only one who hates when a hero gets horny for a bad guy and lets them get away? As I said before it can be done nicely. It can show how love can change someone for the better. Or a hero going down the bad path. I especially hate it when it's done with the character this cliche was named after. Catwoman most of the time has no backstory explaining why she does what she does. Sometimes she stills from the rich to give to the poor. But most of the time she does it just for fun. In most stories she's in she's shown to be smart, pretty, fit, and all around girlboss. She could work and earn her own money to give to those in need, marry some rich guy, or be a gold digger.

#batwoman #batman #bruce wayne #catwoman #dc #dc scarecrow #dc joker

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necrotic-nephilim · 6 months ago

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any recommendations for where to start reading for jean-paul valley and luke fox? i rlly wanna know more abt them but i have no idea which comics to read first

hello anon! i have a ton of recommendations, i love Jean-Paul and Luke and they're both great characters to get into! Luke is pretty easy to get into, but Jean-Paul can be a little complicated so I'll start with him.

Jean-Paul Valley

so i'm going to start with this: *do not* start with *anything* to do with the New-52 when it comes to Azrael. though there are some plots where he plays a significant role, he's butchered to the point he's just not the character you actually want to read. also don't start with Azrael (2009), that is not Jean-Paul, it's a different guy entirely. the recs i would give are

Batman: Sword of Azrael - this is Jean-Paul's introduction and backstory, i would consider it required reading. it's a great sorry and pretty short!

Batman: Knightfall - so. this is what Jean-Paul is iconically known for, the arc where Bane breaks Bruce's back and Bruce gives the mantle of Jean-Paul for a bit. and because of the nature of Jean-Paul's psyche, he goes off the rails and is a brutally violent Batman who has to be rid of the mantle. this is a *long* event. there's Knightfall, Knightsend, and Knightquest. and tbh this isn't really the baseline for Jean-Paul's personality, this is him at his worst and most fragmented. so, if you *want* to skip it for now and come back to it, you can. while it's important for his development, it's not really his baseline and if the big storyline daunts you, just skip it.

Azrael (1995) - (note: at issue #47, the title changes to Azrael: Agent of the Bat. it is still the same ongoing, just switch over to that title) this is his main comic run that went on for about 100 issues. it's very good. because he's a main Batfamily character, his comic will crossover into any big Batman event like No Man's Land or Contagion. you *can* read those events when you get to them, but they're not required if you'd just like to stick to him for now.

Azrael Plus the Question - this is a one shot and tbh, you don't have to read it, it's really not necessary. but, i'm a fan of the Question so, this is my self-indulgent rec. it's a fun short story and i wish we got more of these two <3

Sword of Azrael (2022) - (note: if you are reading this as single issues, you should read Sword of Azrael: Dark Knight of the Soul, the one shot that leads up to this. if you pick this up as a trade, that one shot will be included) by *far* my favorite Azrael story. this is *such* a good mini-series, i cannot recommend it enough. it's the modern era/timeline, but it very beautiful handles Azrael's history as Batman and all of his guilt and builds the the next steps for his character. i wish i could recommend this as #1, but you should at least read Batman: Sword of Azrael before this. but do read this, it's everything.

Luke Fox

Luke is introduced in the New-52 and is one of the highlights of that era. but it is the New-52, so some of it isn't the greatest. he does go on to feature in a lot of Rebirth stories as well. he does appear here and there in Batman: Eternal, but he tends to be a side character who doesn't get much focus, so you can read that if you'd like, but expect a more ensemble cast.

Batwing (2011) - start from issue #19, that is where Luke picks up the mantle up until the series ends at #34. it's his introduction and a great run for him. (note this series is collected as a trade under the name Batwing: Luke Fox)

Batgirl (2011) - he appears beginning from issue #43 and is mostly present up until the end of the run. i don't really love this run, i hate what it does with Barbara, but it is some essential reading for Luke.

Detective Comics by James Tynion IV - this is where we cross over into Rebirth territory, Luke is an important player during Vol 2: the Victim Syndicate, Vol 3: The League of Shadows, Vol 4: Deus Ex Machina, and Vol 7: Batmen Eternal. and!! during Tynion's run, Luke and Jean-Paul have *significant* interactions because both appear heavily. they end up pretty close to the point in the Rebirth era, Luke is one of the people Jean-Paul is closest to in the Batfam. Tynion's run is pretty good so i would honestly recommend reading the whole thing, but you can skip around to just the issues where Jean-Paul and/or Luke are important players.

there is obviously more for both of these characters if you want to do a completionist run and read *everything*, but these are the places that are either most important or easiest to start with. happy reading anon, i hope this helped!

#necrotic answerings #comic recommendations #jean paul valley #luke fox #i hope you enjoy these two anon i love them dearly #and you get the bonus of them interacting heavily!!#there's actually some content for people who ship them as well!#personally i view it platonically but i definitely see the potential #also i didn't mention justice league odysessy for jpv bc i just don't like it.#like. eh wasted potential there.#sword of azrael (2022) rlly is my roman empire.#praying dan watters will include jean-paul in his nightwing run.#it is all i ask.#anyhow i'm always happy to give comic recs!#and if i don't know i will probably know what direction to point you in #so either way i will try my best to help!

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justawanderer · 3 months ago

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Ao3 wrapped [writers edition - 2024]

Tagged by @foodsies4me , thank you!😊

01. How many words have you written this year?

Published in 2024: 100,221

I didn’t even realize how many words until right now! Wow!

02. How many works did you publish this year?

I published 9 completed works in 2024 and added 10 chapters to my WIP started in 2023.

03. What work are you most proud of (regardless of kudos/hits)?

Contingencies my baby, part 1 of my MO for Malec.

But in terms of whole works for 2024:

Why don’t we go Somewhere only we know this was a beast in its own right.

Is was created for a bang and i appreciated the collab. Also there is a ton of world building.

04. What work of yours has the most hits?

Contingencies overall

For 2024 completed works:

Party Ready

05. What work of yours got more feedback than you expected?

A Visitor and Effort

They are season 3A reaction fixit fics and were written to appease my own wants from the show. I love both of them. I just didn’t realize others would as well.

06. Favourite title you used?

The Mage’s Keep: A Magical Sanctuary for those Burnt Out on Life

I love when stories have disproportionately long names, especially since this was a crack fic written in response to a post by Harry shum jr on ig.

07. If you use song lyrics, which artist’s songs did you pull from the most?

My collab partner and I decided on Keane’s some where only we know for our Bang fic. So by stats that’s the group and song used most.

08. Pairing you wrote the most for this year?

Malec 🥰

09. Favourite pairing you wrote for this year?

Malec!

Honorable mention to Jace/Simon which I wrote a gift fic for for Xmas. It was fun to step outside my Malec comfort zone.

10. What work was the quickest to write?

Party Ready

Is the first smut I’ve ever written. Whole thing was written and published in 45 minutes driving home from my birthday weekend. (Which is why it’s unedited.)

11. What work took you the longest to write?

Why don’t we go Somewhere only we know

I had 10k words written, realized it was 100% backstory and unnecessary so i scrapped it and then it was like pulling teeth to get the rest of it together.

12. How many WIP’s do you have in your docs for next year?

3+ finish contingencies write and complete one of the two companions and start the other. Also I just assume there will be more smaller fics, most likely more 3A argument fix it’s, because I can’t help myself.

13. What’s your longest work of the year?

I added more to Contingencies than everything else combined, but Somewhere only we know is longest completed work.

14. What’s your shortest work of the year?

Becoming Magnus Bane at 1,210 words. It’s more of the concept of a fic than a fic.

15. What WIP are you taking into next year with you?

Contingencies!

16. What’s your most common “Additional Tags” tag?

AU-Canon Divergence

In this house, we fix the continuity errors of the show and make it more Malec.

17. Your favourite character to write this year?

I love both Magnus and Alec, but I identify with Alec so much and his voice is so easy.

I also really enjoyed writing Simon this year.

18. The character that gave you the most trouble writing this year?

Jace- I just can’t get the hang of it. Which is bad because he has two big chapters coming

Izzy-there’s a reason I’ve never added her pov. I can’t get her voice right.

19. What’s one pairing you want to explore next year?

Malec! With maybe Simon/Jace added in!

20. Which work of yours have you reread the most?

Contingencies-i am writing this for myself. It’s the fic I’ve wanted to read since I got into the fandom so I reread it for enjoyment and also to keep up on plot threads I started.

21. How many kudos in total did you get this year?

I don’t keep track. I write for myself. It’s always lovely to see that people like my work. Also amusing to get notifications on random fics months after writing.

22. Which work has the most comments?

For 2024:

I would be the best boyfriend. Which is delightful because this was such an angst fest.

23. Did you do any collaborative work this year?

Yes.

Somewhere only you know was in collaboration with Better_than_Chocolate.

It’s a quest fic with enemies to lovers Malec that takes place in the UnSeelie realm.

24. Did you write any gifts this year?

I wrote 2!

Best laid Christmas plans for Cor321

This one is Jace/Simon Xmas fic

And I Dare You Pretty Boy for @just-add-butter

This one is instant marriage ooey-gooey Malec love

24. Did you write any gifts this year?

I did! I got

Santa Tell Me from @demy85

26. What’s your most common category?

M/M

27. What do you listen to while writing?

I am not the type to listen while actively writing, but while brainstorming in the car I usually have pop-punk on and flesh out fic ideas.

Muse, Marianas Trench, and the Punk goes Pop albums mostly

28. Favourite work you wrote this year?

I dare you pretty boy, which is my most favorite trope.

Effort because it’s the essence of what I think Malec is and will be.

29. Favourite line/passage you wrote this year?

I have a couple, but the singular line I’ve gotten the most feedback on is

“Magnus has just finished cleaning the kitchen, or well, the two burner stove, accompanying tiny oven and equally child-sized refrigerator and single square foot of counter space, when the door opens and God walks in. “ from I dare you pretty boy

30. Biggest surprise while writing this year?

How easy it was to maintain consistency while writing and updating. The more you do it!

I have seen so many of these. I believe im the last person. But if you see this and want to play, then feel free!

#Malec #malec fics #shadowhunters #shadowhunter fics

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shivering-isles-cryptid · 6 months ago

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Durgetash AU Oneshot

I need you all to know that this is a very short, very rough, outline of an AU backstory where Durge survives the attack by Orin

Gortash entered his office, a deep scowl on his face. He ripped his coat off, throwing it onto his desk before bringing a hand to his hair. “Hello, my Beloathed.” Gortash’s head snapped to the window, now open and with a Drow staring at him with a wide smile, twirling a dagger in his hands. “Belil, how may I help you?” Gortash asked, dropping his hand. The Bhaalspawns smile instantly dropped and he jumped off the window, approaching Gortash. “What’s wrong? Who do you need me to kill? I’m your blade, all you need to do is point.” Belil said, grabbing Gortash’s hand, his other resting on the Lord’s face. “That damned Faceless wench came to me today.” Gortash said, Belil retracting his hands. “She wore your face, told me you hated me, used me for amusement. Said it would be doing you a favor by killing me.” Gortash growled the words, sighing as Belil’s hand rested on his face again. “I’ll speak with her.” He said, Gortash’s eyes opening. “‘Speak’ with her? Belil, Dearest, Orin is unstable. Even for a Bhaalist. And she’s getting worse! She threatened me directly while wearing your face.” Gortash said, Belil stepping away from the man. “Belil, I know she is your sister, I know that you care for her. But she can not be allowed to get away with this!” Gortash followed Belil to the other side of the room. “Gortash, I know that Orin is… Orin, but she’s still my bloodkin. I get that you don’t see family the way I do, but I won’t kill her.” Belil said, standing in front of Gortash’s dresser. “For Bane’s sake, Belil! She doesn’t love you! She does not see you as her brother, she sees you as an obstacle.” Gortash said, Belil shook his head, stabbing a dagger into the dresser. “I don’t care! Gortash, you know my past. I’ve never been without family. I’m not throwing away the only one I have left!” Belil turned around, his red eyes burning brightly. “Dearest… I understand, but…” Gortash reached out to Belil, who pulled away, scowling at the man. “No, you don’t! You have no idea what it feels like!” He shouted, Gortash, pulling away and frowning at him. “Don't understand what? Having a family?” Gortash asked and Belil’s eyes widened. “Wait, no, Gortash… I didn’t…” Gortash scowled at the Drow. “No, you’re correct, Belil. I don’t know anything about families. But do you? You slaughtered your last family, why is this one so different?” Belil stepped back as if he were struck before growling and dashing forward. Gortash stumbled back as Belil grabbed his shirt. “Tough talk for a devil's pet.” He spat, His red eyes burning with an anger that Gortash has never seen aimed at him. “I won’t take criticism from a bloodthirsty beast.” Gortash spat back, Belil snarling again before throwing him at the wall and walking towards the window. “If I ever see you again before the next meeting, Bane will have to find a new Tyrant.” He said, before launching out of the window and disappearing into the night.

Belil stabbed into the flesh like wall of the Mind Flayer colony, slashing and carving the organic material, smirking as he heard the uncomfortable sounds of the Elder Brain. His head tilted to the side when he heard squishing sounds as someone approached him. Taking a deep breath, Belil tried to ignore the pit forming in his stomach as he turned to Gortash. “Hello, Enver.” He said, nervously pressing the tip of his dagger into his hand. “Belil, you asked to meet me?” Gortash said, stopping a few feet away. “I… I want to apologize. I said a lot of things that I shouldn’t have, and I’m sorry. There is no excuse. And… you were right about Orin, I wanted you to be wrong, by Bhaal I did, but you were right. I should’ve killed her the day she entered the temple.” Belil scowled, looking down at the ground, before his expression softened and he looked back up. Gortash stared at him with a blank expression before smirking, which then grew into a large grin that wasn’t his own. “Oh, Bloodkin, such sweet words for the Tyrants ears! Did you practice your speech? Reciting words as you carve out tongues?” Gortash asked, his head tilting to the side before his bones started to bend and break in every direction, before, finally, he snapped his own neck and revealed Orin the Red. “Orin? Where’s Gortash? What have you done?” Belil immediately took an offensive position, daggers at the ready as he glared at his sister. “Oh, nothing! The little Lordling remains untouched and unharmed in Baldur’s Gate, utterly unaware of your blashphemous meeting.” Orin giggled, stepping closer to Belil, who snarled at her. “Your little letter never reached the Tyrant's eyes. My Doppelgangers intercepted it before it even left the sewers.” Orin giggled again, before dashing forward, slashing at his throat. Belil moved to the side, the blade connecting with his arm instead. He made his own attack, but Orin was quick, quicker than him. It seems he barely blinked and he was on the ground, multiple wounds covering his arms and chest, Orins dagger held over his skull. “Gortash… was right… I should have killed you… years ago.” He spat out, Orins grin growing wider as she raised the dagger over her head. “Lord Bhaal, accept this offering and name me your Chos…” And then, his vision went dark.

Belil’s eyes snapped open, sitting up from where he was laying before wincing and falling back down. “Belil? Belil, you’re awake! Imp! He’s awake!” Belil blinked his eyes, looking over to see Gortash rushing to his side, grabbing his hand. “Gortash? What’s going on?” Belil tried to sit up again, but Gortash pushed him back down. “That bitch attacked you. She cornered you in the colony and tried to lobotomize you. What were you even doing down there, Dearest?” Gortash brushed hair off of Belil’s face, frowning down at him. “I… was waiting for you. I wanted to… apologize. I had… an entire speech planned too.” Belil laughed before wincing slightly. “Of course you did.” Gortash sighed, kissing Belil's fingers. “Oh, Milord! Happy day, happy day!” Belil looked over at Sceleritas Fel, smiling softly before laying back down on the bed. ‘Fel, where’s Orin?” He asked, closing his eyes and feeling as Gortash’s hand tensed. “That pretender is being kept in a cage where she belongs. Waiting for your preferred punishment.” Fel said, Belil humming. “Cut out her tongue while we wait for me to recover.” He said, Fel cheering before going silent, Belil assuming that he had teleported away. “What will you do?” Gortash asked, Belil sighing dreamily. “She wore your skin, so I’ll flay her own.” He said, peeking one eye open to see Gortash grinning down at him. “Good. I assume there is more, but we can go over the bloody details later.” Gortash said, going to stand, but Belil refused to let go of him and instead dragged him down to the bed. “No, you’re not leaving.” He said, pulling Gortash against his chest. “So demanding.” Gortash said, but his face and tone gave away his true feelings. Belil buried his face into Gortash’s chest, sighing heavily and holding him tighter while Gortash ran his fingers through his hair.

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divinityunleashed · 1 month ago

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Basic Information

Name: ???

Alias: The Enigma

Franchise/Series: Fandomless OC

Personality:

" See, the brilliant thing about being a Shapeshifter, is that I can do whatever I want as whoever I want~ Wearing multiple faces and identities lets me do whatever the hell I want. "

Not much is known about them. A common title is John Jane Doe, as not even their Gender is known. That's how often they have shape shifted. Their general personality is an enigma, whether they're polite, kind and friendly one day, then barbaric and evil the next.

" And it's so much fun. "

Likes / Dislikes:

Likes pranking and messing with people.

Likes chaos

Loves Chocolate

Loves to Dominate

Dislikes peace and quiet

Hates being submissive

Hates failing

Backstory

Not much is known about the Enigma, or their John Jane Doe nature. Their powers are also of unknown origins, or however they got them. What is known however, is that they were capable of becoming whomever they wished; male or female, and alter their appearances to their liking.

In their universe, everything was orchestrated by them. World Peace was created and destroyed by them, and History was always written by them in some shape or fashion.

When the Multiverse was put into question, into their vision, their motives were to cause as much chaos and mischief as possible. Whenever possible. However possible. As anyone and everyone.

The main question was.

Which universe... was first in their Line of SIght?

Powers and Abilities

Their main power is their innate ability to shapeshift into anyone and anything. Whilst the origin and how they obtain these bodies is of unknown origin, it is perfect in how it is portrayed, right down to their very DNA. Male or Female, Animal or Monster, anything can be turned into at whim.

Especially their powers and abilities. When Shapeshifted, they obtain the powers, special abilities, and quirks of the one they've become. Became Goku for instance? Access to everything Goku has ever done or is capable of doing. A highly trained Soldier in an army? Knowledge of their weaponry and arms, including the training required to wield such equipment is second nature.

However, they also possess their innate weaknesses. If the Enigma turned into Superman for instance, than Kryptonite is their bane.

They also can alternate between the various forms and bodies they've obtained at will, and can flex them in any situation that requires it, however they perform to remain in the same state when around others.

#[ Divine Profile ]#[ The Enigma ]

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salvagesmha · 25 days ago

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Ryukyu Squad: Fixing Their Overhaul Contributions

With the manga ending, and another wave of motivation hitting me, something that bugged me was how it felt like the Ryukyu Squad could have been developed further in the Overhaul arc than what has been shown, especially concerning Nejire and her backstory!

Honestly, for me, the best way to do this is to essentially just give Ochako and Tsu their own fights, while Nejire and Ryukyu handle Katsukame (Mosquito Bane Guy). But who should they fight? Well, that's also pretty easy to answer. Instead of Mirio taking on Nemoto and Sakaki, and nothing much really being done with either, it's the girls who strive to fight them instead while Mirio runs after Overhaul.

TsuChako vs Heart N Mind Yakuza

Okay, so with it being a two on two, what's the story to be told here? The theme here is Logic and Emotions against those that warp it.

For Tsu's case, she represents Logic and following protocol with her opponent being Sakaki, whose power messes with a person's equilibrium. Also helps that both can fight on the ceiling~ As for Ochaco, she represents Emotion and faces Nemoto, who uses others' secrets and feelings to stumble them and make it a close range against mid range fight…

However, both prove to be a troubling challenge. Tsu can't wrangle Sakaki due to his drunken style taking her down from the ceiling and it doesn't help he's spitting vitriol at her for trying to scold him for being a Villain. In this version, my story for Sakaki is that he did try to be an upstanding salary man. However, due to quirk discrimination, he was always considered to be a liability and couldn't find anywhere that would accept him beyond the Yakuza. Makes him match more with Nemoto whose own Quirk has him isolated and hardened his heart to become a con artist.

As for Nemoto, with his Quirk, he has Ochaco blurt out her crush on Deku, in addition to rattling out her insecurities concerning bottling up her feelings in order to become an effective Hero. Something that has Nemoto scorn her…and someway sympathize? After all, he was also doing this for someone he loves as well, but feels if one can't get even their own feelings in order for the greater picture, then what business do they have being by their special someone's side?

Ultimately, with their approaches not working, both girls opt to do the next best thing - switch opponents. If they can't make headway down a certain path just yet, then best to allow their friend, someone whose more experienced in that Style, to do so instead, right?

With Sakaki, Ochaco’s training allows her to resist Sloshed 's effects, and get in close to him for some Gunhead Martial Arts. In addition, she's able to empathize with his attempts at trying, at one point, to be good and, to help build on her thinking of a solution to Toga in the finale, she offers to put in a good word with Aizawa and law enforcement to see what can be done to get him some fairer employment - after he serves his sentence, that is.

As for Tsu, there's no real deep secrets that really rattle her like Ochaco or Mirio. Even under the effects of Sloshed, she's as cool headed as ever and is able to avoid Nemoto’s shots. All while rattling Nemoto himself by pointing out the obvious of Overhaul choosing to leave the Bullets behind rather than trying to leave with them. Something that clearly betrays Nemoto’s insistence that he was different - in truth, he was just as replaceable to Overhaul like the others. Which has Nemoto freak out enough to be so vulnerable, Tsu is able to restrain and knock him out.

(Up until he's needed for Overhaul’s fight, but we don't need to go there XD)

Both girls are more aware of their weaknesses as Heroes, but thanks to the other, has an idea on how to improve. This can lead to Ochaco adopting the coolheaded approach against Monoma to Tsu's plea to Toga to listen to Ochaco in the finale.

Katsukame vs Ryukyu, Nejire, Nighteye Staff

Now, for this rework, it's a bit more on the easier side since this is essentially a fleshing out of what the canon fight already set up. It'll be Nejire, Ryukyu, alongside Bubble Girl and Centipeder to take down Katsukame. I always felt that Nighteye’s staff deserved more in canon, so getting this for themselves would do just that.

The theme for this fight is that Katsukame kinda represents an aspect of Hero Society that the quartet detests.

For Centipeder, who tries to wrangle the brute with his arms, Katsukame is a bigot that mocks him for being a ‘creepy bug’. A title that stuck with Centi for a long while until Nighteye gave him a chance to prove his worth.

For Bubble Girl, whose trying to blind him with her bubbles, Katsukame represents Society's love for flashy, powerful, Quirks, and whose is very much looking down on Bubble Girl for being a ‘weak broad’. A stigma she had to ensure until Nighteye, whose on Quirk isn't flashy, saw utility in her powers and help refine her to be a Hero.

For Ryukyu, Katsukame represents the critics she had to endure as a member of the Top Ten Heroes. Belittling Ryukyu’s form as being ‘too unappealing’ ’for a heroine, and she was bound to only wreck her surroundings than be a proper help, in spite of her record saying otherwise. Doubts and scorn that she is still fighting to this day. Opinions that she's trying to prevent happen to Nejire, who she felt was a kindred spirit in having people judge her unfairly.

Lastly, we have Nejire, whose the main star of the fight since her Quirk gives her enough energy to last longer than the others. Katsukame annoys her since she detests him for being so ignorant and content with his biases. (Well, that and him being a perv doesn't help) On top of that, his arrogance over his Quirk, peeves her off even more since Nejire, in this version, has her backstory revealed early in this fight. Meaning, she would have serious beef against someone who was actually looking down on people due to how strong his power was, yet was thriving (heck even boasting about his ‘Big Bro Overhaul) - contrasting her lonely background over what people assumed her personality was.

As such, all of this together makes for a quartet who wants nothing more than to prove this loudmouth wrong. Something that they succeed in, which leads into Toga directing them to Overhaul’s fight and continuing the story per normal.

And that's basically it, I hope that these changes would have made more sense to have in-story, and maybe if I ever make another post on the Yakuza arc, I'd go into how Ryukyu Squad could have been handled in the first place? Either way, thanks for reading!

#my hero academia #shie hassaikai #eight bullets #overhaul #rikiya katsukame #shin nemoto #deidoro sakaki #ryukyu #nejire hado #bubble girl #centipeder #ochako uraraka #uraraka ochacho #tsuyu asui #class 1a #mha

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grailfinders · 2 years ago

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Grailfinders #318: Anastasia & Viy

I hope everyone’s enjoying their farming nodes! we’ve still got three more servants to crank out before we can join in on the fun, so let’s get to it! today on Grailfinders we’re building Anastasia & Viy, the chillest archer we’ve ever made for the summer- though Artoria does give her a run for her money, if only because D&D completely shafted water spells.

while Anastasia is still a Warlock, we had to shift some stuff around. now Viy is a Fathomless, because dear god we were hurting for sources of cold damage in this build. we also snuck in some levels of Creation Bard so she can summon literally any summery thing you can think of. that’s just. a skill she has now for some reason.

check out her build breakdown here, or her character sheet below the cut!

next up: Magic: The Blathering

Ancestry & Background

Viy might be something else, but Anastasia is still definitely a Human of some variation. that gives her +1 Intelligence & Charisma, as well as proficiency in any one skill like Sleight of Hand, and a feat- the Tavern Brawler feat gives her a +1 bonus to her Constitutiton, as well as proficiency with improvised weapons. I don’t care how densely you pack that snowball, it’s still not a dart. it also gives your punches a bit of a boost with a d4 damage die and you can grapple a creature you attack as a bonus action, but we were really just here for the snowballs. most of the snowballs you use are magic, but having the old-fashioned kind as backup might come in handy.

she’s also still a Noble, so that’s another round of proficiency in History and Persuasion. once again, changing your clothes won’t change your backstory.

Ability Scores

your highest score should, of course, be in Charisma. you need it to cast with both of your classes, plus you have to get whomever you just hit with a rock to laugh it off, or at the very least convince them you didn’t mean to put it in a snowball. of course, first you have to hit them with the snowball, so make sure your Dexterity is pretty high too. we don’t need Intelligence too much, but trust me, you do not want to fail those saves with Viy around. archers are at least slightly tougher than casters, so your Constitution should at least be higher than your caster self, right? your Strength was never going to be anything to write home about, but you can also use it to throw snow, so we’re dumping Wisdom. you’re a sheltered kid, and Viy normally takes care of noticing stuff anyway.

Class Levels

1. Bard 1: we could start with either class and not miss out on much, but starting as a bard gives us a lot more magic to work with, plus more freedom with proficiencies, so we’re starting there. the downside is we don’t get any cold spells until level five, and we don’t even get any good ones until we’re a warlock, so if your game’s starting at a low level, consider sprinkling some warlock in ahead of schedule.

that being said, as a bard you have proficiency with Dexterity and Charisma saves, plus any three skills of your choice like Arcana, Deception, and Performance, the first to summon Viy at all, and the others to be a little gremlin.

as a bard, your Bardic Inspiration is a bunch of d6s you can hand out to allies as a bonus action, granting them a boost to an attack, check, or save of their choosing in the next minute. you’re not really a support character this time, but maybe you just made them a nice sno-cone.

speaking of, you can cast Spells using your Charisma. to start off, Vicious Mockery is just you making fun of people. teenagers are mean, they can sense your greatest weaknesses. but of course you also make Friends easily, at least for long enough to take a selfie. you can make people chill out and get worse at stuff thanks to Bane, or dazzle them with snow-blindness as part of a Color Spray. hey, white’s a color. you can also summon Viy as an Unseen Servant to start things off, or use his eyes to make your enemies easier to hit with a bit of Faerie Fire.

2. Bard 2: as a second level bard, you’re a Jack of All Trades, adding half your proficiency bonus to every skill check that you wouldn’t normally put it in. as a noble of house romanov, you probably had a tutor for every subject.

you can also perform a Song of Rest, adding an extra d6 to the healing your party does over a short rest. it’s not much, but I don’t think a sno-cone can compare to open-heart surgery. while on the topic of barely useful features, your Magical Inspiration lets your allies add your inspiration die to the damage or healing their spell does, though if it’s a group spell it’ll only affect one person.

speaking of spells, you can cast Feather Fall now to slow down your fall and avoid damage. Viy’s pretty big, he can probably catch you.

3. Bard 3: at third level you final graduate from the college of Creation, which gives you a Note of Potential. with this, your three base inspirations come with additional effects- when added to an ability check, the user gets advantage; when added to an attack, they deal thunder damage around them; and when added to a save, they gain temporary HP.

more importantly, your Performance of Creation lets you spend an action to create any nonmagical item you wish, so long as it costs less than 20 times your level and is medium or smaller. you can make one item at a time, and while the first one’s free every use afterwards requires a second level spell slot or higher.

oh right, speaking of, you have second level spell slots now! Kinetic Jaunt will help you skate through your enemies and stay out of melee, upping your speed and preventing opportunity attacks for up to a minute.

one last thing, your Expertise this level doubles your proficiency in two skills like Deception and Persuasion.

4. Bard 4: use your first ASI to bump up your Charisma for stronger everything. easy pick. that being said, you still need spells, and even with the ability to summon everything summery, I admit these are a bit of a stretch.

Prestidigitation has a lot of uses, but the key one here is its ability to summon tiny objects for free- if only for a round. you can eat a lot of sno-cone in six seconds though! (why do I keep going back to sno-cones??)

as for your actual levelled spell… Nathair’s Mischief mostly works? every turn for up to a minute after casting, it’ll mess around with a 20’ cube with one of four randomly picked effects. snowblinding and difficult terrain are easy enough to imagine snow and ice doing, and even slipping around and incapacitating people, but I just don’t see how charming people would fit in here. still, 3 out of 4 ain’t bad, so it’s good enough to last us for now.

5. Bard 5: fifth level’s always a great time for bards- your inspiration dice grow up, and you become a Font of Inspiration, letting you use them more often, what with them recharging on short rests instead of long ones. plus, you get third level spells, like the first cold-based spell on the bard list, Glyph of Warding!

… okay, yeah, it’s not exactly great, but it does fit with your prankster aesthetic, doesn’t it? plus, that’s just your explosive rune- you can even throw other spells in the glyph too, and pick specific targets to trigger them. it can be great if used creatively- it’s just a shame it’s so expensive. good thing you’re the tsar’s daughter!

6. Warlock 1: okay, that’s enough goofing around. let’s get coldhearted. when you bounce over to warlock, you get access to Pact Magic no matter who you strike up a deal with- that means you can finally get an offensive cold spell like Frostbite! it’s a start! you can also Create Bonfire at will- nothing’s more summery than a camping trip!

for more ice, pick up Armor of Agathys- your swimsuit isn’t exactly armor, so any extra defense you can get will be super helpful. finally, Viy popping up can definitely Cause Fear in a target, making it harder for them to hit you!

oh speaking of Viy, we still have to talk about what they are, huh? this time around they’re a Fathomless, giving you a Gift of the Sea for free waterbreathing and a faster swim speed! that floaty in your final ascension’s just for show. you can also summon a Tentacle of the Deep as a bonus action. when you create it, and each bonus action afterward, you can make the Viytacle attack a nearby creature, dealing cold damage and slowing it down. you can summon Viy this way proficiency times per day. Fathomless warlocks also get an extended spell list to use, but we’ll bring that up when we actually use it.

7. Warlock 2: at second level, warlocks get Eldritch Invocations to help you make the most of your summer vacation! you get two this level, but since we’re swapping one out next level anyway feel free to use it as you like for now. as for the permanent option, Devil’s Sight grants you darkvision that can even cut through magical darkness! Viy really is cool, huh?

you can also cast Illusory Script, writing something that looks like something else to people you don’t want seeing it. this one’s more of like, a regular prank you could pull, giving an innocuous-looking message to someone that’s actually super embarrassing for them to hold onto, or something.

8. Warlock 3: at third level we can finally get Viy’s usual body by taking the Pact of the Chain to summon a cool familiar! we can make it even cooler with the Voice of the Chain Master giving us ways to see through Viy’s eyes. with this, you can see through Viy as long as you’re on the same plane, and you can speak through Viy as well! now Viy is a walky stalky talky!

you can also cast second level spells like Cloud of Daggers to… I guess make really sharp hail? yeah, the spell stretching didn’t stop just because we made it out of bard, sorry.

9. Warlock 4: use your second ASI to bump up your Dexterity for a higher AC and more accurate snowballs. you can also apply ice to the wings of flying enemies now with Earthbind, and Viy can Toll the Dead, dealing more necrotic damage to enemies who are already hurt. say what you will, but they’re great at taking advantage of an opening.

10. Warlock 5: fifth level warlocks get third level spells, and it’s time to turn up the AC again. with Hunger of Hadar, you can freeze your enemies in place, creating an area of pure darkness that is difficult terrain and deals damage to creatures starting and ending their turn inside.

if the heat’s getting to you, you can also stick yourself in the Tomb of Levistus, creating a big ice cube you can shield yourself with- be warned though, you won’t become unfrozen until your next turn, so if you’re fighting a red dragon, you’ll probably still end up taking more damage than you would by just standing there. this isn’t quite how your invincibility skill is supposed to work, but it’s pretty dang close, and it’s on theme.

11. Warlock 6: sixth level fathomless warlocks have an Oceanic Soul, giving you resistance to cold damage and the ability to speak with submerged creatures. your Viytacles are also now Guardian Coils. when a creature you wish to protect takes damage near Viy, you can use your reaction to reduce their incoming damage. he attacc, but he also protecc.

speaking of attacc, you can now summon a more direct version of Viy with Summon Shadowspawn. this one uses your concentration to maintain, but it frees up your bonus action, which might be helpful later.

12. Bard 6: congrats, later is now! Countercharm is whatever, but we’re here to put on an Animating Performance! now you can bring pretty much any inanimate object to life to fight on your behalf, using your bonus action to command the resulting creature, though you can also inspire using the same BA. you can do this once per day for free, then by spending a third level spell slot.

while that’s cool, it’s not why we’re still in bard. now you can create Leomund’s Tiny Hut! look, somebody had to be on tent duty, and it only made sense for you to do it since you can make them out of thin air.

13. Bard 7: the real reason we stuck here for so long was, of course, for the fourth level spell Phantasmal Killer. the tentacles and shadowspawn are nice, but they’re all… pretty mortal. Viy is not. when you summon a phantasmal killer, you force a creature to make a wisdom save- if they fail they’re frightened until they succeed, and also take plenty of psychic damage each turn they keep messing up.

14. Warlock 7: seventh level warlocks also get fourth level spells, so pick up Elemental Bane to further enhance your cold-slinging with a way to deal extra cold damage and make a target lose resistance to cold damage for up to a minute. if they fail a constitution save.

you can also use Viy’s Ghostly Gaze to see through solid objects for up to a minute once a short rest. vidi, vidi, vidi!

15. Warlock 8: we’re almost out of ASIs, but we have enough for a detour, I think. pick up the Crusher feat to round up your Constitution score as well as put a nice wallop in your snowballs. now when you hit a creature with a bludgeoning attack (while solid balls of ice are cold, they hurt more than they chill) you can knock the creature back five feet. plus, your critical hits give your allies advantage for a round! now that’s what I call a concussion!

we’re also falling back to level three for one of the extended spells, Sleet Storm! this one doesn’t do damage, but it will trip up your enemies something fierce. it’s also one of the tougher spells to concentrate through.

16. Warlock 9: ninth level warlocks get fifth level warlock spells, like Cone of Cold from your extended spell list. with this, you can blast plenty of people with a ton of cold damage in one sitting, freezing them into statues if you kill them this way. it’s probably the most direct analogue to your Noble Phantasm.

if you’re sick of getting hit, good news! we finally have enough free time to pick up the invocation Armor of Shadows, giving you free mage armor. as a bard you do have access to medium and light armors, but now you can show off your swimsuits!

17. Warlock 10: tenth level fathomlocks have some Grasping Tentacles- once per day you can cast Evard’s Black Tentacles for free, and it’s added to your spell list. on top of that, you get temporary HP whenever you cast it, and this spell’s concentration can’t be broken by damage. the spell in question is another big area denial effect, creating a bunch of tentacles that can bludgeon enemies and leave them restrained. it’s not super icy, but it’s a good option for freezing people still.

you also don’t get a regular leveled spell this time! that being said, I’d still check out your new cantrip Eldritch Blast. just because you’re not a caster any more doesn’t mean you can’t use caster balls.

18. Warlock 11: from here on out, instead of getting bigger spell slots you get Mystic Arcana, spells that you can only cast once per day like the regular plebians. your sixth level spell is, of course, Investiture of Ice. with this, you’re now immune to cold damage and resist fire, plus you make difficult terrain around you, which you can ignore if it’s snow and ice. you can also use your action to create a weaker cone of cold as part of the spell. in addition, it slows down any creature who fails their constitution save.

19. Warlock 12: use your last ASI to maximize your Charisma, and pick up your final invocation, Otherworldly Leap! there’s no real reason to have this, but the tripled jump distance gives you an excuse to cast feather fall, plus most servants have crazy physicality anyway.

20. Warlock 13: our final level gives you your final spell, the mystic arcanum Finger of Death. with this spell, Viy pokes someone for massive amounts of necrotic damage, and if they die they come back as a zombie under your control. as we learned last year, nothing’s more summery than horror movies, and you can make anything summery. have fun with your army!

Pros & Cons

Pros:

this build is another one that shines brightest through your own Creativity- with your performance of creation, combined with spells like Glyph of Warding and Illusory Script, you can pull of some absolutely bonkers stuff if you think outside of the box.

AoE effects usually have one weakness: people have to go into them. but thanks to your snowballs knocking people about, your spells become more effective, as well as a lot funnier. you’d have to be pretty cold to pull something like that off, but I’m sure you can do it.

even if your perception’s dogshite, you’ve still got some special eyes that make it a lot easier to see things coming. seeing through darkness and walls, as well as through your familiar, makes it a lot harder to hide from you, a great benefit to have in a snowball fight.

Cons:

you eat through spell slots pretty dang fast- glyph of warding can use two at a time, and you have multiple features that only work once a day unless you’re willing to spend slots. having so many warlock slots is nice, but it also gives you less to work with at any one time than you’d have normally as a bard. also, spending a fifth level spell slot to make a takoyaki cart is probably not the best use of your magic. just being honest.

again, while splitting your caster classes has its benefits, it also locks you out of high level spells and features completely. I don’t think Anastasia has a need to be able to teleport up to a mile away at any given time, but it would be cool to have, right?

you have too many friends. both tentacle of the deep and animating performance use your bonus action, so you can only have one up at a time. the redundancy can be nice, but if you’re running into that many fights in a single day the rest of your party probably won’t be able to keep up. and if you use a shadowspawn/animation combo to have both versions of Viy at once, then you have to deal with the fact that they’re both very mortal. the animated object only has 45 HP, while your shadowspawn has, at most, 65. add in their okay at best AC, and you’d probably be better off with just your tentacles and regular spells.

#fgo #fate grand order #D&D 5e #DND #Anastasia romanov #Viy #warlock #bard

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