#on the one hand it feels like I'm not doing much beyond summarising some interesting bits of naval history

[thetruearchmagos]

You asked me a bit ago about my naval plans in my WIP, and the truth is I don't have much, so can I ask for your help in creating some? What sort of shenanigans could a semi-modern navy (think cruisers, battleships, a very few capital class battleships, submarines) get into with officially neutral ports, trade ships, and passenger ships?

I'm thinking most of the naval stuff will involve not the warring major nations, but them fighting over supplies and shipments from other nations. Help me friend!

Well, well, well! Now that is quite the conundrum you've got there, and certainly filled with opportunities for some very interesting scenarios. I'm going to search in my head for some IRL examples of interesting non-total-war uses of naval power in the period, and you can tell me if anything helps!

Here, I've compiled a short list of some interesting naval-related incidents in world history, mostly from the approximate era relevant to Mortal Sparks. I hope they might give some inspiration!

The Tangiers and Agadir Crises: Sea Power, Short Of War

These two incidents, taking place in 1905 and 1911 respectively, were among the defining incidents in European great power politics in the lead up to WW1, and are sometimes touted as possible alternative inciting incidents for what would become the Great War. Both principally concerned the political status of Morocco, but would become stages on which France and Germany would test the influence of themselves and their respective alliances against one another. The naval aspect of the affair was most obviously shown in the second crisis, which saw a German gunboat dispatched to Morocco as a sign of their willingness to back their position with force, soon followed by the gunboat's replacement with a cruiser.

While France, Germany, and the UK would end both crises at the negotiating table, Germany's Kaiser Wilhelm II in particular would feel particularly slighted at having come out on the losing end twice. Meanwhile, France and the UK would solidify their burgeoning entente with the signing of further naval treaties specifying either ally's role in the event of a full war with Germany.

South American Naval Arms Race: Ships For Sale?

This is less an example of great powers competing through the naval domain, and more an example of the shenanigans that great naval powers can be involved in even if they themselves have no intention of firing a shot in anger. Taking the form of a three way competition between Brazil, Chile, and Argentina from the late 19th century and into the 20th, it would see these countries massively expanding their respective navies. However, as none of the three regional powers possessed the industry and infrastructure to construct modern warships themselves, their fleets would be made up of dozens of ships built and designed by foreign, predominantly British, shipyards. The whole crisis would be considerably exacerbated by the creation of HMS Dreadnought, which single handedly rendered all existing battleships practically obsolete and spurred on demand for existing capital ships to be replaced rapidly across the board. In fact, Brazil's own exceptionally ambitious reaction to the affair would lead to it acquiring its own first dreadnoughts, of the Minas Geraes class, before Germany, France, Russia, or Japan would, built by the British companies Armstrong and Vickers, and in many ways superior to the first existing British and American dreadnoughts.

It's also notable that, despite the UK's own yards supplying the ships that manifested this crisis, the British government would repeatedly attempt to defuse tensions in order to preserve its valuable trade relations with the region. Interestingly enough, when WW1 did break out, many of these ordered dreadnoughts would still be under construction in their British yards, and either by seizure or purchase be acquired by the Royal Navy, alongside, interestingly enough, battleships under order for the Ottoman Empire.

Anglo-German Ocean Liner Race: Battles With Bling

An edge example, but I thought it'd be an interesting one since you did mention passenger ships! While the Anglo-German Naval Arms Race gets a lot of attention with its contributions to WW1, a similar competition in the sphere of commercial success and national prestige was playing out between the shipping lines and yards of the two great powers of the early 20th century. Size and luxury substituted firepower and protection when it came to key design features, but speed was of equal importance to both. If I were to make a larger point with this example, it would be that states which can raise and support large navies with the relevant infrastructure, technology, and skilled labour often have sizeable civilian maritime sectors as well. The usage of ocean liners as troop transports, on the other hand, shows how civilian assets in peacetime can be mustered for wartime service.

Beware, Arch deserts from his commitment to sticking to a specific era in the content below. Read at your own risk.

The Altmark Incident: Neutrality Not Withstanding

A touch past the scope of the designated era, and close to being an 'actual' war scenario of the sort I'm supposed to be avoiding, but it's honestly such a fascinating incident that I couldn't not include it. The crisis takes place during the so-called 'Phoney War', a period usually defined as spanning between invasions of Poland and of France and the Low Countries. A crucial point in the events of the crisis, and what ultimately made me decide to include it in this list, was the fact that Norway itself was still a neutral nation at this point, with ties to both Germany and the Western Allies.

The inciting event of the whole incident surrounds the German auxiliary vessel Altmark. Sailing back to Germany from the Atlantic down the coast of Norway, she carried three hundred POWs taken from British shipping by the 'pocket battleship' Graf Spee on her convoy raids. After the latter's destruction, she'd fled British and French naval forces, and at this stage relied on the neutrality of Norway and its territorial waters to safeguard herself and her cargo. A series of events I lack the ability to summarise would occur between the auxiliary and Norwegian authorities, which resulted in Altmark being allowed passage through a specially protected zone of Norwegian waters around Bergen to avoid an international incident.

The British government, finding about the matter via its embassy in Oslo, had other ideas. A force consisting of a light cruiser and five destroyers was immediately dispatched to intercept Altmark. The flotilla would make contact with the auxiliary while she was still under neutral Norwegian escort. The British would make increasingly brazen attempts to isolate Altmark as the collection of ships approached Germany, and when she finally ran out of space to manouevre the German vessel entered a fjord and ran aground on its ice, trapped. The British commander on the scene requested that their POWs be released, his Norwegian counterpart stated that he would refuse any British boarding attempt with force if he had to, and after seeking permission from the Admiralty HMS Cossack stormed into the fjord and, just avoiding a last ditch ramming attempt by the Altmark, boarded the auxiliary and freed the prisoners.

The sheer political fallout from the whole affair was immense. Norway, of course, protested the brazen breach of neutrality that had just taken place, while the UK criticised Norway for allowing a ship carrying POWs to pass through its waters. The applicability of any of these events to your worldbuilding is something I can't predict, but at least it might give you an example of the shit storms that can come about even with neutral states.

The S-363 Incident: Whiskey On The Rocks

If you thought the last example was a strange one, you ain't seen nothing yet! This affair, often referred to as the "Whisky On The Rocks" Incident, is probably one of the most personally fascinating Cold War events I can think of, and with some slight tweaking could fit in with any time period.

The incident centers on the Soviet diesel electric submarine S-363, of a type referred to under NATO terminology as the 'Whiskey' class. Whilst conducting a surveillance mission on a major Swedish naval exercise, the submarine ran aground in Swedish territorial waters. An unarmed Swedish officer was sent to board the boat and question her captain, who blamed serious failures in navigational equipment as reasons why his submarine had traversed numerous fjords and islands to come aground so close to the major Swedish naval base of Karlskrona.

The Soviet captain was removed from the boat for interrogation in the presence of Soviet officials, while Swedish authorities searched the submarine. In the meantime, a sizeable Soviet naval task force was assembled and put to sea in the Baltic, approaching Swedish waters. Using radiological equipment, traces of uranium were found in the boat's torpedo tubes, suggesting the presence of nuclear torpedoes aboard S-363.

A storm swept over the region, leading the grounded submarine to send out a distress signal. Soon afterwards, two unknown vessels were detected entering Sweden's territorial waters from the last known point of the Soviet flotilla, heading straight towards Karlskrona, and the crisis reached its height of tension. Swedish aircraft were armed and ready to strike, and coastal batteries were put on full alert. Finally, it would be revealed that the two vessels were actually a pair of German merchant ships.

The crisis would end ten days later with the return of the submarine to Soviet authorities, but marks one of the most tense periods of the Cold War, a 'conflict' which on the whole saw little open fighting between the major powers involved in it.

[brw]

omg the c*rebrocast thing bothered me SO MUCH when i listened to it, like, i get not wanting to read non-x comics on your free time, but if you're literally doing a character study, and on a podcast that's supposedly to help people who can't/don't want to read the whole x-men history, how on earth do you just skip decades of character history???? simon literally wasn't even mentioned once on the character files!!! imagine wanting to start reading x-men comics with the krakoan era, so you listen to a podcast that supposedly summarises and analyses the characters' histories so far in order to catch up. and then a character who was so far gone in their own ooc villainy that didn't seem to care about anyone else anymore. except for one dude. the one last sliver of good he had in himself was to sacrifice his life for that one dude. and you have no idea who that dude is. because said podcast didn't mention him at all when recapping the character's history. it's so embarrassing.

Yeah exactly. I genuinely wouldn't have a problem with it if it's someone on their personal time on their personal blog deciding to skip over that because they don't consider it interesting because hey, I don't think people should be held at gunpoint to read the series' they don't like! But if you are positioning yourself as an educator, as a way to learn lore and tidbits and get familiar with characters you don't know very well, skipping out a decade of core character appearances, and those of a character who is one of the original founders of the team, who was one of the main cast in the longest running series of the whole Krakoa era, I don't think it's a stretch to ask you actually be familiar with a decade of material! ESPECIALLY when that material includes core character relationships like his dynamics with Simon and Wanda and Tony and Steve that will pop up consistently in comics after he leaves in the Avengers. It is genuinely embarassing and it reflects poorly on the host himself, but also all the avid listeners who heard him say "I'm skipping a solid few years of appearances because I don't want to" and think that is someone who can give them an accurate account of a character.

Like I try not to get too "you HAVE to read some Avengers comics" because that's dumb and people should ultimately read what they want but it is genuinely embarassing how some people have conditioned themselves to be so against comics written by the same people who write X-books, who are part of the same company, who work in the same fucking building that they are willing to avoid such a massive chunk of appearances. There is just something deeply embarassing at seeing someone so dedicated to the principle of "Avengers stinky" that even reading a handful of issues just to know what his vibe was back then is beyond them. If you are positioning yourself as an educator, and if you're choosing a character for what, your sixth ever episode??? The least you can do is give a fucking Marvel Wiki level descriptor of what he was doing back then.

I remember the guest even mentioning Simon in passing and Connor just sort of laughed vaguely like he didn't know who that was and like, man, you're recording a comic Beast podcast specifically directed at newbies and people who fell off reading. Showing a surface level familiarity with his actual best friend where you can have something to offer or some context for that dynamic feels pretty basic requirement???

Anyway, not for the last time, thank g-d Krakoa is over so that those 10 billion X-Men podcasts can start to wind down and shut up.

[alastanor]

Thanks for tagging me @thalfox this took me a long time to finish, and I'm gonna be dog tired in the morning, but it was worth it. Lol. Hope you have as much fun reading it as I did writing it.

1 • What is your MC’s name? What is their name origin? What does it mean (if it ever has a meaning).

❄ Eirlys is Welsh for "Snowdrop" and it is pronounced as either Eye-r-liss, or Aye-r-liss. Depending on which part of Wales you hear the name.

2 • When is their birthday? How old are they? What about their zodiac sign? (bonus point if you give their rising or even their birth/natal chart)

♋ She was born March 10th, and she is a Pisces.

As for her age, this one has more to do with RAD. RAD stands for Royal Academy of Diavolo. An academy, if you search the definition, is typically a school of higher learning or secondary education. Like a college, if you will. But Academy doesn't always refer to a sort of college. In some cases, it can also apply to a High School. My theory is that RAD is a mixture of both. A sort of college, but with hints of High School-esque scheduling and culture. Or perhaps it can function as both. I tend to lean toward the latter, in which case I make Eirlys somewhere between 20 and 23 years old.

3 • What is your MC’s gender? And what are their sexual/romantic preferences?

Eirlys identifies primarily as female with she/her pronouns. She is demisexual, and considers herself panromantic. However, she puts a heavy emphasis on romance.

(Me personally, I don't mind they/them pronouns though I typically identify with she/her. I am also demisexual but biromantic.)

4 • What is your MC’s race? (human, demon, angel, other). If human, what are their nationality and origins?

💁‍♀️Eirlys is human. As for nationality, origins, heritage, etc... Eirlys grew up in Japan, though she herself is not ethnically Japanese.

5 • Before coming to Devildom, what was their occupation? (job, studies…)

📖 Eirlys worked part time in her school's library while attending classes full time at a college overseas.

6 • Height? Weight? Describe their body type.

Eirlys is 5'3" (160 cm) and roughly 110 lbs (49.8 kgs). Her body type would best be described as a triangle/pear shape (slim chest, breasts on the smaller side, while body widens out into voluptuous hips).

7 • Who is/are your MC’s love interest(s) (if they ever have one). Summarise their dynamic.

💛 Eirlys found Mammon irritating when she first met him, and became increasingly frustrated at how he looked down on her for being a human. But over time, as she got to know him, she came to enjoy his conversation and his company. He made her laugh, and despite being a demon he was so full of energy and life that Eirlys found not just refreshing but endearing. Before long, she realized she had fallen in love with him despite the protests of his brothers regarding her taste in men.

🧡 Leviathan was another of the brothers Eirlys found infuriating, not just in how he also looked down on her for being human, but how often he whined and complained about seemingly everything when they first met. But like Mammon, the more she got to know him, the more she found she had in common with Leviathan. Falling asleep on his shoulder watching anime with him in his room, or enjoying his company while playing games, has made it increasingly difficult not to love him in some capacity even if she loves Mammon more. Because of this, she allows Leviathan to believe she would never be interested in him. As cruel as that might be for both of them.

💜 Belphegor, on the other hand, she is fully aware of how he feels about her. She keeps it platonic between them, because even though she has forgiven him for his deceit and his attempt to kill her not once- but twice, she cannot forget it. The memory sours any thoughts of being more than just friends. Somewhere deep in his heart, she is sure Belphie knows this. And deeply regrets it.

8 • Does your MC have any specific appearance features? (Scars, marks, anything else)

She has skin pale as fresh snow, fluffy light pink hair like sweet cotton candy, and clear pale celeste blue/aquamarine colored eyes.

Beyond this, there is nothing remotely remarkable or striking about her.

9 • Does your MC have any disabilities? (physical, mental health, etc). How do they deal with it?

Eirlys has suffered some trauma in the past which has led to some issues. Don't want to give too much away as I am in the process of writing a fic.

10 • How do you imagine your MC’s voice? Describe it.

Her voice is gentle and light. Silvery, dulcet tones might be a good way to describe it. Her voice will get rather harsh and stentorian if she is angry enough.

11 • Does your MC have any tattoos or piercings? Just tell us more about it!

She has pierced ears on her lobes, she was never brave enough to get any in the cartilage as much as she wanted them. Her skin reacts badly to many kinds of metals, a kind of skin allergy, so she can never keep piercings in for very long.

12 • Describe their clothing style (if they have a favorite style). Do they have specific accessories Bonus question: how do they wear RAD uniform?

To sum it up, Eirlys dresses in typically classic chic style with a touch of hipster or grunge here and there.

For her uniform, Eirlys keeps it looking crisp and sleek. These would be good examples. Of fashion types and how she wears her uniform.

The RAD uniform images, the not quite RAD uniform one on the right, I thought the skirt may be more in line with what the uniform used. Versus the pencil skirt-esque look on the left. The boots on the right would also be more akin to what Eirlys would wear.

Is your MC able to use magic? If so, are they skilled? How do they learn? Were they able to use it before coming to Devildom?

🔮 Eirlys is still learning about her abilities, abilities that have not fully awoken though they had been stirred when Solomon allowed her to use his powers. Using his powers was like the catalyst to tapping into a yet untapped wellspring. Though the water from that wellspring has yet to fully come forward.

Before that, Eirlys fully believed she was just another unremarkable human with nothing special about her, as Lucifer often said.

14 • Describe your MC’s parents (names, jobs, personalities). Do they have any siblings? What is their relationship with their family?

🎀 From what Eirlys knows of her parents through stories, her parents loved one another very much. Her mother had been her father's first love in college, and years later they had her. However, when she was still very young her family had been killed by a reckless drunk driver while visiting other family. Eirlys was taken in by her aunt, who worked as a fashion consultant in Tokyo.

15 • How many languages do they speak? Which ones?

🀄 English and Japanese, though she is wanting to learn how to read Devilish and Celestial.

16 • What is their relationship with each brother?

I already mentioned Mammon, Levi, and Belphie above. So I will leave them out here.

🖤 Lucifer - When Eirlys first met Lucifer, she didn't know what to make of him. All she knew was that he was intimidating and likely very dangerous. It took a lot of time for her to not only come to trust Lucifer and feel safe around him, but to like him and understand his motives behind his methods. But Lucifer was never her type, and instead she looks to him now like a younger sister to a reliable older brother. Even if that older brother can be mildly sadistic in his teasing.

💚 Satan - After being introduced to Satan, Eirlys did find him attractive and was excited to find another bookworm even here among all the demons. However, after she was introduced to Satan and came to find Satan smiled when he was angry, she found communicating with him equally as intimidating as Lucifer's threats. Trying to figure out when he was angry and when he was genuinely happy really did a number on her anxiety, and eventually kept her from really communicating with him overmuch for an extended length of time. It wasn't until later that she tried getting to know him better, and coming to find the source of all his anger. That information became the catalyst and foundation to their continuously building and growing friendship.

❤ Beelzebub - Beel has ever been the sweet one, even if he was a bit more distant when they first met. Beel was never outright cold or condescending to Eirlys, and the closer they became the sweeter he became. Before long, she found just how considerate and gentle Beel truly was. Despite this, Beel never appealed to her romantically. Instead, much like Lucifer, she looks to Beel as a gentle and reliable brother of sorts.

💗 Asmodeus - His penchant for lechery always threw Eirlys off balance, being the non-sexual type. When she first met him and found he was the Avatar of Lust, her first instinct was to keep ten yards between them at all times. Asmodeus was the wild card in the deck of seven for Eirlys, because though he has tendencies toward the egotistical side, she can never fully peg him. Even after getting to know him and forming a bond with him. Asmodeus, she found, has ever been able to tell when something he did was making her uncomfortable. He never pushed cuddling beyond what Eirlys wanted it to be or was comfortable with, even if he joked occasionally about doing it naked.

17 • What is their relationship with each side characters?

🐕 Luke: She was rather bemused upon meeting Luke, and seeing him standing in contrast to Simeon lit an amused glint within her eyes. Perhaps it was because he was an angel, but Eirlys bonded with Luke rather quickly. Though she cannot say she likes everything about the child-like angel, as his anti-demon sentiment has grated on her the more she has bonded with the boys (it has grown more half-hearted recently), but she counts Luke among the few within the three realms she can fully rely on.

🕊 Simeon: He was always rather mesmerizing for Eirlys, in ways the demons weren't. Perhaps it was the mystery that surrounded him despite being such a beautiful angel. His eyes, so striking against his features, were particularly what drew her in. Whenever she speaks with Simeon, she cannot help but smile. Despite all this, she has closed her heart off to anything beyond friendship with Simeon. Perhaps because she already has feelings for Mammon and more complicated ones for Leviathan, or perhaps because she feels a relationship with an angel would be too out of bounds for a human like her. Maybe both. Either way, she considers Simeon a very dear friend.

🦋 Solomon: He was one Eirlys didn't think much of when she first met him, though she was rather jealous of his abilities. She did slowly think of him in more friendly terms, however there was always something about him she didn't fully trust. Solomon has ever been the Cheshire Cat to her Alice.

🏵 Diavolo: Eirlys doesn't really have a very strong opinion one way or the other about him. Though the mere fractions of a moment she has spent getting to know him, the more she finds her opinion shifting to the positive. He has demonstrated himself to be incredibly thoughtful, compassionate (for a demon), and mature each time. Even if he hides it behind a constantly smiling face.

🐉 Barbatos: A mysterious and handsome face. This was the first thought that entered Eirlys's mind when she first met Barbatos. But after learning of his abilities and seeing them in action, Barbatos has bypassed all other demons in the intimidation department and landed himself firmly on the "never piss off under any circumstances" list.

Not exactly an accurate graph, but it's the best I can do restricted to mobile.

18 • What is your MC’s main hobbies and passions?

♥️ Her hobbies include: reading, music, dancing (hip hop and the like), anime, manga, video games, dramas, and movies (except horror, because she is a little chicken shit and will be the first to admit it).

♠️ She has a passion for dancing and singing, though she isn't good enough by any means to be considered professional, and typically her singing and dancing has been in rooms alone, in the shower, or driving alone in her car (in the human world).

She also has a big love for stories, especially fantasy and romance. Be they in books, movies, anime/manga, or dramas.

19 • Why did they end up in Devildom in the first place? What happened to them?

An email went out to all the students of high school and college age, explaining the exchange program with a world long thought to be a mere myth stemmed from religion, and nothing more. Those interested in participating could apply and send in their application for consideration. Anyone not interested could simply disregard the email. It explained a deadline, details and requirements for application, along with signing an agreement form explaining the rules of conduct within the Devildom. It was surprisingly thorough and organized for a simple email.

Eirlys was intrigued, but a part of her thought it was just an elaborate prank. Over the next few weeks, she heard more and more about people who had put in an application and eventually she too relented and sent in an application. Though her application was sent right at the last minute. Almost literally.

20 • What is your MC’s MBTI type?

ENFJ

21 • Do they have a pact with each bro? Do they often use their pacts? In which situations?

Yes, she has a pact with each brother. And each pact has left it's mark on her. However, she refuses to use her pacts unless she absolutely has to. Though there are times when she has used them out of anger (think "sit, boy!" from Inuyasha).

22 • What is their favorite place in Devildom?

Her room, the music room, and the Royal Library. Though there is an odd beauty to the old Colliseum when it is empty.

23 • Which sin fits them the most?

This one is difficult, but if I had to pick one I would say Pride or Envy.

24 • Describe their personality.

Eirlys is a rather compassionate and kind person with a passion for life and a fierce loyalty to her select group of friends. She is a genuine, honest, and caring individual and a passionate altruist. Sometimes even to a fault, and she is unlikely to be afraid to take the slings and arrows while standing up for the people and ideas she believes in.

Eirlys won't turn down an opportunity to spend time with those she cares about, even if that means going to social gatherings she would otherwise not attend on her own.

Despite all this, Eirlys can sometime be too idealistic or even selfless to a fault. She is prone to fluctuating self-esteem and may ask for praise or criticism out of insecurity, more than anything else. What's more, some criticisms can be easy for Eirlys to take to heart. Allowing it to further chip away at her self-confidence.

25 • What is their moral alignment?

Neutral good.

26 • Does your MC possess an object/something especially dear to their heart?

No, not really...

27 • Which character(s) do they consider as their best friend(s)?

If Mammon doesn't count considering he is the love interest, then I would have to say Levi and Beel.

28 • Choose a song that fits your MC.

Fight Song by Rachel Platten

29 • What are your MC’s religious beliefs?

Eirlys considered herself Agnostic, with some leaning toward Earthy religions. She had no beliefs in Heaven or Hell, so when she received her invitation that was rather eye opening.

30 • Describe what is inside your MC’s school bag.

Text books, notebooks, mechanical pencils, pens, highlighters, a zip bag for those things, reading books, calculator, and other generic school necessities.

31 • Describe their appearance (pic refs are ofc allowed).

♣️ Eirlys generally has fluffy waves of light pink hair that falls in cascades to the middle of her back, clear celeste blue / aquamarine eyes (haven't fully decided which), and snowy pale skin. She is not very tall, and has a triangle-shaped figure. Her fashion sense typically aligns with classic chic with a touch of hipster and grunge or street punk depending on her mood. And how she wears her uniform typically reflects this fashion sense as well, as her uniform typically looks rather crisp and pristine compared to the demon she loves.

Otherwise the other best examples I have are these images, one from a webcomic on Tappytoons.

The top image is probably as close as I can get, with the changes being thicker hair and eyes that are more blue like the girl in the images below. There is also the matter of her bangs being what curls inward as opposed to the tufts of hair beside her ears. The girl below, her hair is a bit too curly, though and her bangs aren't right. Plus the tufts on the side of her face down curl against her cheeks enough like the images above. But beyond all that, this is as close to an example of what my MC looks like. How she wears her uniform is portrayed above.

Tagging || @mammon-chan @mammoron @obeymesideblog @obeyme-lumos @beelzebubisbestwaifu @slavetothemocha @mammon-squad @mambeelz

And anyone else who wants to join in.