#ooc again probably

[asterwinde]

Self indulgent stuff + study

[kyurochurro]

GOOD AFTERNOON!! TODAYS UNI SKETCH IS : a redraw/study/doodle/whateva you wanna call it of this very dapper image of Picard and Data!! first time drawing Picard so I struggled a lil but otherwise I had so much fun drawing Data! :Pc og pic under the cut!

picard you smoke too tough... your swag too different ...

[moeblob]

cute? D: (thank you so much!)

[dead-but-still-magic]

"Hey, Kid."

Jamie appears next to Jason, he hadn't heard her approach. She looks like she's been through Hell. Literally.

@jamie-todd-red-knight

((You can get to this when you want))

Blinking up at her it took a moment to realize what she looked like and he jumped up from his book to assess her medically. Freezing before touching her for a moment he went back into action by gently prodding around the worst of it. "Jamie!! We gotta get you treatment youre not bleeding out or anything? No broken bones this blood isnt yours is it? If its a mix then we gotta worry about blood born diseases... come on follow me we gotta get you checked out

[quackity1999]

[ quackity's wings are bleeding again. guess he yanked the feathers too hard. fuck, how many goddamn nightmares is he going to have? ]

[evie-doesnt-write]

Unsure if this is an unpopular opinion but I think Viktor’s writing in Arcane s2 is just all over the place

[ategods]

update: i finally got my nails done

[windsfavored]

good  evening  everyone!  if  any  mutuals  would  like  a  SMALL  STARTER,  please  feel  free  to  give  this  post  a  like!  multis  please  do  me  a  favor  and  specify  a  muse  or  a  handful  of  muses  to  choose  from.

[iustitians]

ooc; headcanons - on Neuvillette's abilities, power, combat ability and fighting style

Ah yes, hello, it’s me again. The person who can’t shut up about an old man with a jabot who's also a dragon.

So I’ve wanted to talk about Neuvillette’s combat ability and style as well as his power for a while now, both to chat about some of my headcanons and theories for some of them, and to just kind of sort them out for myself. This is going to be a whole lot of rambling (by which I mean 8 Google Doc pages), so proceed at your own risk. Fontaine and Natlan Archon Quest spoilers below.

Combat prowess

So here’s a fun thing for me to start with: I don’t think Neuvillette is that great in a fight. Which I feel like many don’t think about at first, but actually makes sense when you consider his life, or what we know of it at least. Dude’s essentially a divine judge. Mostly dwelling in the seas without a purpose for who knows how long, and then running human trials and doing paperwork for 500 years. Where would this guy have gained any substantial battle experience?

Throughout the Fontaine AQ, we see him in combat situations three times. The first time is at the end of Act II, where Childe is about to go bonkers in the Opera, only for Neuvillette to jump in and oneshot him. Which looked impressive and all – except we shouldn’t forget that Neuvillette caught Childe off-guard from above and behind while he was mid-transformation, and broke through his defenses with sheer power, not necessarily skill. I highly doubt it would have gone like this had Childe had a chance to prepare. Neuvillette didn’t walk out of that one unscathed either, receiving a scratch from Childe during the very brief struggle they had. And as an extra note, I can’t help but look back at the moment in the cutscene where he looked at his own blood with what looked like both anger and surprise - it very much gave off the vibe of someone who isn’t used to being hurt.

The second combat situation was his first encounter with the Narwhal, which… when you think back to it, he essentially lost that one, didn’t he? It shrugged off his attack, shattered his protective barrier like glass, and would have devoured the people he attempted to protect had it not been for Childe’s intervention. Neuvillette was only able to deliver a decisive hit after Childe attacked and distracted it, causing it to turn its back to him and allowing him to unleash a powerful blow when he was prepared, undisturbed, and at a safe distance. It wasn’t exactly his best showing.

And it really was the only time we’ve actually seen him straight up actively participating in combat, because the third time to mention is the Fontaine AQ’s final battle against the Narwhal. Except the thing is… Neuvillette doesn’t really fight in that battle. We do. He supports us from the sidelines, separating the Primordial Sea’s power from the whale and sharing his power with us.

So really, he’s been in an on-screen combat situation once and, arguably, lost. Great.

… Of course, I’m not saying he’s weak. The first two situations I mentioned were with his Authority shattered, and nowadays may have been a different story. And even before he was restored, his power was very formidable. It’s just that power doesn’t have to equal combat ability – and the latter I do believe he lacks.

In fact, we can even extend this logic to him as a playable unit. He’s a very powerful DPS, which is great and all, but when you look at it more closely, you realize that he really doesn’t do much. I’ll discuss his fighting style a bit later, but he has exactly one trick up his sleeve: the Hydro Pump. When people criticize Neuvillette as a unit, the main point brought up is that he is boring – and honestly, however much I love him, I can see some players feeling that way, because… yeah, that’s all he does. He floats in the air and waterboards his enemies from a distance, overwhelming them with sheer power, while requiring little skill to use. He is incapable of anything more fancy than that. He’s a gorgeous, majestic and powerful one-trick pony.

And again, it all makes sense when you consider who he is and what kind of life he has led. He’s not a warrior, he’s an official – whether a Fontaine one, or a divine draconic one – who only displays his power as a last resort, in a way meant to end whatever strife is threatening peace and stability once and for all. He is not meant to engage in long combat, he’s probably just about never done it, and in that sense it’s normal that he actually doesn’t really know how.

Power level

… But as I said, combat prowess and power level are two different things, which can make answering the question of how strong someone like Neuvillette complicated. Because on the other hand, for his lack of combat experience and skill, his sheer power level is through the damn roof. Which of course makes sense. This is a Dragon Sovereign, now with his full power reforged, that we’re talking about here. Possibly the most powerful being we’ve met in Teyvat so far, and for sure at least one of them. 

For those who are caught up with Natlan’s Archon Quest, you know how Mavuika destroyed the wacky Abyssal thing and also punched a hole in the sky in the process? Well, she said later that the power with which she did it came from the Divine Throne. And an Archon’s Divine Throne is where the stolen Dragon Sovereign Authority is held. So in other words, Mavuika did what she did using a fragment of the power Neuvillette now holds in its entirety. So yes, I do in fact believe he can also punch a hole in the sky. I don't think he can completely destroy it, because it seems to restore itself, but also I think he wouldn't want to even if he could, since he has grown to care about and appreciate humanity, and he knows that the firmament protects it. 

But in addition to that, let's not forget that this guy:

Turned an entire nation of unfinished Oceanid people into fully fledged humans with a single Super Duper Charged Attack – doing in the process what Egeria was literally incapable of – and wasn’t even slightly tired afterwards

Hands out Visions because he decided he wants to, and unlike the Archons, has full control over the process

Has full control over Pneumousia, which is essentially a latent type of life force. Not only is he using it to singlehandedly battery all of Fontaine now, but also I mean. Combining them can lead to an annihilation reaction, so… idk I guess he can also make an atomic bomb if he wants??

Doesn’t even need a constellation because he exists outside of the fate system but then decided “ah whatever why not” and got one, then proceeded to?? reshape it I think?? so his daughters can have fun with it?? Peak dad behavior right there but also what the fu

Of course, there’s the whole part about how the Hydro Sovereign has full control over the Primordial Sea, which makes him essentially Teyvat’s original “God of Life”. I attribute his ability to turn Oceanids into true humans to that connection, as well as his control over Pneumousia, as, again, from what we know of it so far (which is not much but that’s a rant for later) it seems to be a sort of latent type of life energy. Of course, I can only imagine that he could do a LOT more with it than what we’ve seen. And on the topic of Oceanids, I’ve also noticed that he seems to hold authority over them as well, considering how easily he made them back down during Navia’s “trial”.

Basically what I’m trying to say here is that he’s freakin’ powerful and writing him in a way that avoids turning him into an ultra strong Gary Stu sort of guy can be a hell of a challenge sometimes lmao. I try to get around it with the idea that he has to load up Fontaine on a sufficient amount of power before he leaves and surely that has to weaken him at least a bit.

Fighting style, symbolism and other funky tidbits

As I mentioned earlier, Neuvillette doesn’t fight much, and when he does, he doesn’t really do much either. In fact, he actually literally barely moves. This includes his Normal Attack chain – not only is it among the shortest in the game with only three strikes (in comparison to characters well-versed in combat such as Wriothesley and Zhongli, whose chains consist of 5 and 6 strikes respectively), but also he practically doesn’t move from the spot he was standing on while performing it. Many characters will charge forwards or move backwards while attacking; Neuvillette takes about half a step. That’s it.

Other than that, there are four main characteristic to him in combat:

Cane

Glowing and expanding his… let’s call it fins

Floating

Triquetra

Neuvillette’s cane is the most interesting element of those to me, because it seems to be his actual catalyst. It’s interesting when you notice that he only summons his in-game weapon for his Normal Attack chain – which is, by a long shot, the most worthless part of his kit. For all his other, much more useful moves, he does not manifest it at all. He does, however, use or at least hold his cane for all of them, and the gem and blue ornaments on it glow as he does.

This applies to cutscenes, as well. When using a Charged Attack during a cutscene, he also holds his cane, summoning it specifically for that moment. It’s especially interesting in the cutscene where he and Childe fight the Narwhal, and the exact frame where he uses Equitable Judgment is the only moment in that entire cutscene where he holds his cane. He doesn’t have it immediately before or immediately after, and yet he went out of his way to summon it specifically for that attack – which leads me to believe that this cane is his real catalyst.

At the moment my idea for it is that in his human form, the Hydro Dragon is something of a staff user, and this cane is how he adapted its appearance to fit into Fontaine’s setting, much as he did with his own.

Glowing is another commonly seen aspect for Neuvillette in combat. When he uses his power, he glows. As a playable unit, he lights up when using his Burst and Equitable Judgment, as well as when his passive ability is fully charged up (so basically when he’s at max power). Notably, and I actually only recently noticed it, not only do the light blue elements on his outfit glow, but so do his eyes.

And again, the glowing is something the animators went out of their way to include in the cutscenes. When he takes down Childe in Fontaine AQ Act II, he lights up before leaping from his seat. In the All-Devouring Narwhal cutscene he also glows and surrounds himself with blue aura while attacking, and in addition, if we look closely, we can see his eyes glowing as he charges for his first strike. It’s an interesting small detail that’s very easy to miss – I only saw it properly while watching that cutscene in slow motion. In general, all of his attacks have a natural glow to them as well. Overall it gives him a sort of divine feel, which I consider to be the point.

For certain attacks, in particular Charged Attack: Equitable Judgment and his Burst, Neuvillette also expands his horns (at least that’s what I call them because I hate that we are never given a word for the thingies on his head) and his… I guess tail?? Whatever the case may be, he displays them when unleashing his power and promptly hides them immediately afterwards, as a bit of a reminder that his true form remains hidden to our eyes.

Then there’s the floating. I kind of don’t have much to say about this one, the ability to levitate seems to be a common one among Teyvat’s deities and other powerful entities. Local man is too cool to walk like a normal person. My only observation to it is that floating seems to come very naturally to him, as during all his attacks (minus the Normal Attack chain which as I said no one cares about) his feet very quickly and easily separate from the ground, as opposed to some other characters who we know can float but who still remain firmly grounded in combat. Again, it ties back to how he is not at all expressive or aggressive in his movements during battle, but rather intends to simply overwhelm his enemies with his sheer power and authority.

And finally we have the triquetra, aka the emblem he commonly uses. It’s the mark he summons for Equitable Judgment, as well as during cutscenes. Its meaning is largely symbolic.

This one is both extremely interesting and very funny to me because, well… IRL, triquetra has major religious significance in multiple cultures. It can mean many things and is used in various belief systems, including christianity, where it symbolizes none other than the Holy Trinity. Which is actually pretty accurate for Neuvillette considering his role in the story – the original creator and guardian of life, and the judge of all who condemns or pardons everyone’s sins.

The triquetra also flashes above his head when you switch to him in your party, and the intensity of the flash as well as the sound effect it makes when appearing become more intense with each stack of his passive. The more stacks he has, the more the sound resembles a church bell – also heard during his Elemental Burst, as well as the music for his trailer video, which overall sounds almost like a religious hymn (well. once you take out the dubstep moments lmao), complete with the organs, bells and a choir singing in Latin. It all plays into his symbolism of a divine judge, and in a way, it also shows that he very much implements trials into combat. He fights for justice, by bringing justice.

… But it’s also kind of hilarious considering Neuvillette also references the biblical Leviathan of all things, with his constellation named after it and his character introduction (he who looks down on all that are haughty) literally quoting the Bible. And the symbolism of him looking down on sinners is also very much visible in his media, with how often he is seen literally glaring down on people – between his art, his Elemental Burst, his and Clorinde’s teasers and many moments in the game’s story, he is very often shown deliberately from an angle that has him looking at others and judging them from above. He himself also comments on that, saying that this is part of what keeps him separated from those around him and unable to bond with and understand them.

How tf they put Jesus and the Leviathan into the same person and made it work is beyond me but it’s kind of amazing and honestly I love it.

List of currently known abilities

This is page 6 of this damn Google Doc so I’m gonna try to be brief here, but I wanted to also compile for myself the things we’ve seen Neuvillette do.

Full control over Hydro

Well, duh. In short, now that his power is fully restored, Neuvillette has full and complete control over the Hydro element. In lore, anyway, as this is where we have to implement separation between lore and gameplay (such as his ability to drown outside of Fontaine or inability to casually OHKO enemies by stopping their blood from flowing, just to name a few). In lore, his control over both regular water would be near absolute. Under this power is also where he categorizes his ability to turn Oceanids into true humans by granting them proper “blood”, so this is also where we put his potential power to create life, as his power over water includes the Primordial Sea – his connection to which he is now fully aware of now that his Authority is back. (This may be demonstrated by how the pattern inside Sourcewater Droplets kind of resembles DNA strands, symbolism also used by the boss enemy inside the body of Apep, another Dragon Sovereign.) Of course it also means that he is a fantastic swimmer, and can breathe underwater, both in and outside of Fontaine in lore.

Hydro resonance

Neuvillette is known to have extreme sensitivity to the Hydro element and the movements of water. Sigewinne states that he knew of the crisis in the Fortress before we ever told him due to sensing the waves when the water level rose, and during “The Wild Fairy of Erinnyes” we also learn that he was able to sense trouble at Loch Urania by resonating with water there (yes, Neuvillette is the “visitor” Pahsiv speaks of). He appears to be able to read the memories and information contained within water at will, even from a distance, allowing him to learn about trouble within his territory in an instant. This is also where we’d categorize his ability to taste emotions and impurities in water, distinguishing the history of what it had gone through by coming in contact with or drinking it.

Emotional resonance

One of Fontaine’s plot points is that water carries emotions, especially particularly strong ones, and by resonating with water, Neuvillette can read them and search for extra information that way. This one gives him trouble, however, as between literally sensing the emotions of all of Fontaine at once, and his own limited understanding of emotions, it’s very overwhelming for him to do, leaving him rather shaken afterwards. For that reason he doesn’t do it more than necessary and deliberately suppresses it on a daily basis. He can also sense the emotions of others just in general, as mentioned in both his and Arlecchino’s character stories, but with emotions being fickle things that he doesn’t really understand, it’s more than possible to mislead him, as both Vautrin and Arlecchino successfully hide the truth of their emotional state from him.

Causing rain

Not gonna yap about this here because I already have.

Control over Pneumousia

This one makes me rage because of how woefully underdeveloped it is and the way it’s literally mentioned in one sentence just to go “oh yeah Fontaine’s energy crisis is solved now” and never brought up again, but. Yeah. I’ve mentioned it earlier already, but Neuvillette has control over Pneumousia now that his Authority is fully restored, allowing him to serve as Fontaine’s current power source. Again, lore and gameplay separation, because it should probably also technically mean that he could avoid fighting rogue Gardemeks by just turning them off, but it is what it is.

Distribution of Hydro Visions

I know some people (including characters in the game) have wondered whether Visions are distributed by the governor of a nation or of an element. With Neuvillette now granting Visions, I consider the latter to be officially the case, because I don’t see how he would hand out Visions other than Hydro. In any case, yeah. He is now the one giving out Hydro Visions, having chosen to do so out of respect for humans, with the first Vision we’ve seen him grant going to Furina – characterized by allowing her to control both Pneuma and Ousia, and by the little claws seen on it, proving that it was given by a dragon. I consider his criteria for granting someone a Vision to be fairly similar to the Archons, where someone’s wish or ambition has to reach his Throne in a way that inspires him to respond, with the main difference being that he is aware and in control of the process. I like that his character story compares this to a dragon’s treasure hoard, except you don’t need to steal anything from him – you receive a reward just for reaching him.

Creating seals and barriers

We’ve seen him do it twice, because in my personal headcanon, the seal he created at the bottom of the Fortress and the shield he attempted to use against the Narwhal are more or less the same type of power, and the ease with which the whale shattered his barrier is something of a display of just how powerful that thing had become by absorbing the power of the Primordial Sea. But yeah, not much more to say here, he knows Protect.

Teleportation

… And he also apparently knows Teleport. We’ve only seen him do it once, in the Narwhal cutscene, where really he could have just jumped off, but he warped to I guess look cool. We know nothing more about this ability of his, in my personal headcanon I imagine he only warps across short distances when necessary and on a daily basis prefers to swim or walk.

The part where he did Something to his own constellation

idk what to put here lmao. Look. He is a god who exists outside of the Heavenly Principles’ rules and basically does as he pleases because Screw Those Guys. He doesn’t even need a constellation, due to being free of Celestia’s system of fate, which the fake sky’s stars are being used to control. But since he found his calling, “the skies had left a special, ennobled place for him”, with his constellation actually being a reflection of his own image, the same as the Traveler and the Archons. And then the guy went and either reshaped it or made himself a fake one?? Because a constellation reflecting its owner’s visage can’t be used to read their fortune in astrological charts (something we know from Mona) and some Melusines are into that. Again, as I said earlier, peak dad behavior but also What.

—

I think – and sincerely hope – that I talked about everything I wanted to and didn’t forget anything. Surely 8 Google Doc pages are enough yapping.

If you made it to the end, congrats and I’m sorry (but also not really) for being insane.

[ficoandleo]

((i was looking up how taxes are paid in japan because i realized that leo is self-employed

Normally your employer would file your taxes for you but if you're self employed or make a certain amount or have a sidegig that makes a certain amount you have to fill them out yourself

Which means Leo is like one of the only people on campus who's going to be like 'everyone shut up i'm doing my taxes i'll talk to you in like a week when i've stopped dissociating and managed to get them done' in February

(Sho doesn't have to pay his taxes until the year after starting his business so he's off the hook this year but since Leo often pays him digitally along with cash he has to do Sho's taxes too as his employer just so no one gets suspicious)

(Sho joining Leo like 'yeah I'm gonna have to do these with the fiod truck and all so I guess I have to learn now?' and just watching Leo file their fucking taxes. And both of them hate being bored and they will spend the entire month they have to do it getting extremely distracted by literally anything else. You could check in on them like 'hey how're the taxes going' and they've made a thousand little origami stars and the taxes are not done. Like at first Sho was teasing Leo for having to do something so boring but he was trying to watch and learn and then he got bored too and he's like. I would rather do literally anything else right now can we take a break please)

I just think it's funny to realize that Leo has to pay taxes. Like out of all of them he's one of the only ones that knows how to do his own taxes. Ritsu's family are his employers, their accountants do his taxes. Jin's family's accountants do any taxes he owes. Darkwick does the taxes for most of the students I imagine particularly since I'm pretty sure it's implied they get paid to do missions. But Leo, as an influencer, is self-employed and does it himself and has been for a few years so Darkwick makes him handle it himself lmao

And you might think Leo would just get an accountant and I can absolutely see him getting someone to it for him. On the other hand since he probably has less-than-legal income he doesn't trust someone else to do it for him lmao.))

[right-there-ride-on]

Gyjo in the fandom

cw: light discussion of ableism

Gyjo… what am I thinking about gyjo…

I like them. I like them a lot, actually. They have paralleled narrative arcs, they complement each other nicely, the romantic subtext is incredibly obvious to the point that even the most homophobic fan you know will admit they understand why people ship it… so why do I also have a problem with it?

There’s a lot of good fanart. Hell, I’ve reblogged plenty. Maybe it’s just something that’s more pronounced in fic.

I’m trying to word this correctly. My issue with gyjo has nothing to do with the text itself. I think my problem is just how people portray it in the fandom.

Maybe it’s because it’s so popular, or maybe it’s the sheer prominence of applying ‘Character A’ and ‘Character B’ dynamics without considerable regard for the characters involved, but I feel gyjo is very prone to flanderization. I believe the intersection with how ableist people are toward Johnny (intentionally or not, subtly or not) and the old tropes these two get shoved into makes it so I have trouble enjoying fics in the fandom.

I’m not saying it’s bad to enjoy certain tropes. I’m not saying headcanons are bad either. What I am saying is that writing is hard, but if you’re going to write fanfiction please have consideration for the characters you’re writing. The arcs of these two are complex and multilayered, which is why I think they have such staying power, but I also think they also provide a good opportunity for us as writers and artists to examine our biases when it comes to the portrayal of certain groups, personality types, mental illnesses, queerness, disability, etc. and maybe come out better people for it.

[piningpercussionist]

Neil! (+ Lainey bc I Think She's Neat)

I'm gonna be inserting Lainey back into things because I feel she was a missed opportunity, honestly; not certain which design I want to go with, though- or if I wanna Frankenstein a Lainey together from the three. Input appreciated!

[toomanybrainrots]

RAAGGGGGHHH I’m having a mental breakdown asf rn 😘 but anygays I rlly need some fluff rn can I pwetty plwse have some Fortress Maximus x F!cybertroian reader?? Tysm pookie✨

The jumpscare I had when I saw this😭. I do hope you're okay right now, and here's the fluff you requested!

Warnings: a probably OOC Fort Max(real sorry for that)

Fortress Maximus with a Cybertronian Reader

Fortress Maximus Loved cycles like these. Where you and him could just spend the entire cycle lazing around in your berth, no work, nothing and no one else except the two of you.

He can feel the hum of your spark as you lay against him, your helm on his chassis, servo over his spark chamber. His optics were looking at you, admiring the peaceful look on your face, your optics offline and a content smile on your lips. He held a servo on your back, almost like he was afraid you were going to be gone if he took his optics off of you for one klik.

He couldn’t help but think — what did he do to deserve you of all bots? What did he do to be worthy in Primus’ optics of such a bot like you? A strong, beautiful and strong bot, liking him of all bots and bonding with him. It was almost unbelievable to him.

“Something on your processor, sweetspark?” You ask, looking up at him, those beautiful optics gazing back at him. Oh, how he loved those beautiful optics, optics that matched the beauty of its owner.

“Nothing. Just thinking, about you that is.” He said, his lips curving into a smile as he turned his helm to fully meet your gaze. You let out a laugh, and he hoped the energon rushing up to his face wasn’t visible. Was that too sappy? Maybe he should’ve dialled it back a bit—

His thoughts are interrupted as you capture his lips in a kiss, to his surprise. The kiss - which was far too short in his personal opinion - is broken as you let out a chuckle at, what he assumed was, the look on his face.

“You’re very easily flustered.” You said, that adorable smile on his face. He turned his helm slightly away in a poor attempt to hide the blush on his face. Before he could do that any further, your servos reach up to cradle his face, turning his helm to look at you. He could feel more energon rushing to his face now.

He’s not surprised when you capture his lips in another kiss, he lets out a hum as he felt your lips against his, savouring the feeling and moment. He loved cycles like these, and he loved you most of all.

[mercless]

[hostradio]

pov  i  am  looking  at  you  with  the  biggest,  most pathetic  eyes.  🥺 what  if  we  were  mutuals  and  you  LIKED  this  post  for  a  starter?  (  multis  please  specify  muse  or  give  me  a  handful  to  choose  from!  )

[madeimpact]

Hey rq like this to stay mutuals?