#not like she wants to bc she doesn't want to rehash her entire life story and get diagnosed with stuff. which. ??

[cidnangarlond]

he pisses me the fuck off I hate living here

[eros-vigilante]

octopath stories favorite to least favorite? !! including both 1 & 2 if u want!!!

hey. hi. hwat's up. i'm the #1 apologist/defender of the ot1 stories so it's more like tiers than ranking OK. this includes my biases.

mild spoilers for ot1

tier 1: cyrus & therion this one is obvious. biggest parts i like are how strongly cyrus' story indirectly characterizes him through how he makes very scary situations feel lower stakes bc he doesn't treat them very heavily (even if he should) / and how well written i think therion's thought process + Brain Problems are. specifically in the area where his healing is not linear. in fact with how he acts in cotc (summarized as: about as "friendly" as his early ch3 but not as much as ch4) it makes me think the events in ravus manor was a big push back for him and it wasn't only wellspring that gave him a kind of relapse or obstacle...

tier 2: primrose, h'aanit, alfyn. primrose is carried by her backstory imo. disclaimer i hate her visual (outfit) design but this is stories. and it's soo cool that the game does not dance (eheh.) around her being a sex worker nor does it imply she hates it or was forced into it. she chose to work in sunshade knowing what she was getting into because she decided it was her best chance at getting the information she needed. the job itself is neutral to her and its helgenish that's negative. i love h'aanit's story so much because it puts such a focus on her love for her adoptive father. she's super nonchalant about every incredible thing she does in her journey because "master has done jobs like these all the time." until she gets to the monster her father hasn't killed and even then she's like OK i need to go reunite with my fath- i mean mentor now. alfyn's is really good in theming & using foil characters to the fullest with vanessa, miguel, and ogen. really good at the nuance of the medical field and such.

tier 3: tressa, ophilia, olberic. to me no tier is that far below the above one i love them all so so much. so instead of rehashing the usual criticisms i'm gunna keep saying what i like about em. tressa's is well-suited to the coming-of-age theme while still keeping her in the context and stakes of the world. i think putting her in a port town was a great way to have her already be very well-versed in how to handle herself and conflict. ophilia's makes sense in her being 'bland' or her early chapters being too calm because like. that's kinda how she's been her entire life after joining the church. i think people just ignore lianna's part of the story beyond [major spoiler ahead] her being morally grey/temporarily antagonist because their dynamic is incredibly important to the story. lianna was always the one participating more directly in the church, delivering the sermons, and she was the one who was supposed to do the kindling. its their fathers illness that forces ophilia into that role that wasn't 'suited' to her because shes 'just' adopted, 'just' an orphan, 'just' a nice girl. also lianna's half of the story is about how people get coerced into joining cults so i dislike when she's reduced to a villain for being actively and intentionally manipulated (one of my friends didn't know, but mattias poisoned their father. he killed him, specifically to have power over his daugher/s. lianna wasn't decidedly turning to him for answers, he was pulling her along.) OK. i will be the first to admit that olberic's story is super weirdly paced but its a fun story. it escalates a little bit each chapter and ends with finality and closure. also ERHARDT ! !!!!!!! ERHARDT ERHARDT IS IN THIS ONE. we love that guy. i love that guy. olberic loves that guy.