#otherworldly fantasy

[periodcostumefantasylover]

Guinevere's wedding dress and chainmail veil in Excalibur 1981

[euphorictruths]

The World Beyond- Sergey Kuznetsov

[joncronshawauthor]

Epic Fantasy vs. High Fantasy: What's the Difference?

Have you ever found yourself in the midst of a squabble at your local book club, arguing whether a certain tale belongs in the realm of high fantasy or epic fantasy? Well, worry not, because by the end of this post, you’ll wield the power of knowledge like a mighty sword, or a mighty axe, or whatever else happens to be to hand, ready to cut through any confusion. High Fantasy: Not Just a Tale of…

[anim-ttrpgs]

A quickly doodled fan comic from @umbraldame featuring a thing from beyond A.K.A. "The Blanket" and her ability to absorb not only nutrition but information from the people she digests! That would be pretty handy for investigating a mystery, if you could get past the question of morality.

This is one of the five playable monster types in Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy, and a fan favorite around here!

Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy is still crowdfunding on kickstarter from now until 2:00 PM CST on Friday, May 10th! Back it before it's too late!

If you want to try before you buy, you can download a free demo of the prerelease version from our website or our itch.io page!

If you’re interested in a more updated and improved version of Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy than the free demo you got from our website, subscribe to our Patreon where we frequently roll our new updates for the prerelease version!

You can also support us on Ko-fi, or by checking out our merchandise!

Join our TTRPG Book Club At the time of writng this, Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy is the current game being played in the book club, and anyone who wants to participate in discussion, but can’t afford to make a contribution, will be given the most updated prerelease version for free! Plus it’s just a great place to discuss and play new TTRPGs you might not be able to otherwise!

We hope to see you there, and that you will help our dreams come true and launch our careers as indie TTRPG developers with a bang by getting us to our base goal and blowing those stretch goals out of the water, and fight back against WotC's monopoly on the entire hobby. Wish us luck.

[witchofthesouls]

I'm going to follow up on the fantasy-horror thoughts to be expanded Transformers, so-

Medical/Biological Horror

I haven't really seen takes about established Cybertronian medical biology and the complications with the "humans into Cybertronians" trope.

Like we see the heavy emphasis on T-cogs across the iterations and how it's deeply connected to independence, identity, and person-hood, so how about an ex-human that lacks a T-cog?

Ironically, T-cogs have a lot of emphasis on that particular organ is similar to human hearts in terms of emotional, cultural, physical, and physical capabilities and significance. Similar to how humans are capable of donating hearts to others, Cybertronians can perform an equivalent procedure with T-cogs. (On a related side note, the phenomenon of 'cellular memory' has to be extremely appalling to the mechanical species. Not in the sense of upcycling parts, but in the sense that the organs, frame, and equipment still retain the echos of the last person to the point that it influences the new body.)

Imagine that once human inside a medbay as the medics tutted and sadly inscribe their new medical file about their new monoformer status. What a shame, they said. They could have been an excellent addition to (insert whatever frame kibble visible that correlates to a function), they said. Poor thing! With that kind of extrasensory equipment, they'll be a walking target, they said.

So that monoformer with no kibble or those visible beastformer traits without the means to completely escape... What. A. Shame.

Until a random Cybertronian sees that monoformer casually wheeling around with heelies. It's easy to wave away as a reinvention of training wheels, but then they notice those heelies disappear back into the monoformer's frame. The ex-human still has no T-cog. Sweat breaks out because said ex-human had done the fucking impossible.

They're paying closer attention now. They're seeing little micro-transformations happening. The subtle signs of a frame shifting to accommodate an area or space, the way fingertips would sharpen too easily with a file or with a raw cut as a tip is used to scrape away at something, the seams expanding and contracting, so something is happening, they just can't tell...

While this can overlap with the body/psychological horror aspect, I say we should take it more extreme. There had been takes with dysphoria, particularly with the play between mechanical parts and human organs, the differences in senses, and if 'sticky sexual interfacing' is part of it, then sexual hardware of both sets.

However, what about acceptance? The exploration of feeling truly at home in your own new skin? Even if it's high-tech and something out of a sci-fi film/video game with a platform that's incomprehensible because you don't understand the language it uses, but guess what? You can download a packet to fully comprehend a new language. You may not be fluent or comfortably at ease with speaking, but you can read and understand what's being said. A possibility of delving into human disabilities that translate into something easily curable or nonexistent or have well-established accommodations in a Cybertronian framework. Something like hormonal disorders or gastrointestinal issues due to upset gut biome would be wiped clean. Poor/limited eyesight can be compensated with a visor that can't be easily removed or taken away or the additional sensors that provide environmental data. Cybertron has a form of sign language with chirolinguistics where communication is done "by stimulating the nervecircuits in the fingers, wrist and palm of their conversational partner. It seems to be fairly common to know at least a little hand." TFWiki page And it pairs well with internal comms that double as cell phones or an unique user on platform where a Cybertronian can live chat or text another.

A massive tradeoff for this kind of comfort? You now have a visible soul.

Think about it, your soul can be directly handled, as in someone can physically go mess with your most distilled sense of self.

Humanity had long debated the existence of it via philosophy, spiritually, scientifically as well. The heart is the most recent popular choice, but major historical contenders had been the stomach and the mind as well as arguments of the soul isn't found in one specific organ but rather the bridge between them.

People swear by souls and the afterlife. There are many myths and legends that involve souls. Even the most doubtful had been deeply raised in a cultural framework of the concept via media usage, figurative speech, religious imagery, and depictions in art.

That has to be the most mind-blowing and deeply unsettling reality a former human must accept.

I see the comparisons of sparkeaters to vampires as they both prey on the living, but the more apt description should be the product of Harry Potter with Dementors as those Dark creatures eat souls.

So this touches on another genre-

Supernatural Horror

Human adaptability combined with the Earth transformation myths/magic would deeply terrify modern Cybertronians as those new cybered beings don't fit the established medical reality they function with.

This can easily tie very well with expanding Cybertronian folklore of otherworldly beings of their version of fae, demons, spirits, or yōkai. Beautiful, terrible beings that mimick Cybertronians too well... unless to look closer: the shadow missing or not matching (can be tied to Unicron), conflicting kibble, EM fields too wild with a chaotic rhythm no one else can match, colors that change to suddenly, a strange wardrobe (made of deaf creatures) that ripples and warps without a breeze, an mechanimal with too much intelligence glittering in its optics...

I'm not even fully delving into the rampant chaos of ex-humans having a host of adaptations suited for tolerating far more ranges of environmental stress and disease-resistance due to the rapid evolution by organic life compared to Cybertronian fauna. Remember, humans are animals. Highly intelligent apex predators that specialize in endurance/persistent pursuit with strong social and communal behaviors, and the cleverness to suit the environment from aquatic to deserts to wetlands to forests to grasslands to tundra. Humanity found ways to not just survive but to thrive in those biomes.

This opens a potential storyline where cybered humans become Cybertron's extremophiles, so that can easily translate into those beings capable of manipulating their own selves to a multitude of frames and shapes.

The example above with the human to monoformer was a show in how transformation mechanisms could be different between the species. If T-cogs are an inherently modern Cybertronian biological trait, then cybered!Earth natives should be either throwbacks or have another approach to it.

And that's the more muted fuckery, but what about straight-up transformations that were deemed unthinkable? Where unnatural formations keep twisting upon themselves, collapsing just to rise higher and higher? The sudden appearance of not one or two extra limbs, but dozens, even hundreds without a sequence as they try to compute how the hell they pull all that mass from nowhere? Armor plating, sure and steady, then turning into a substance that swallows everything and anything as a solid becomes a liquid.

The repression technology may or may not even work as it targets the frame's T-cog. What can it do to a mecha that doesn't have one?

Another aspect overlooked is the animal-human relationship in domestication of wild animals or how communities form symbiotic relationships with different kinds of wild fauna. Combined humanity's collective love for highly dangerous creatures... Wouldn't it be absolutely sick as hell if cyber!human got a sparkeater as their companion? It's still a wild 'animal,' not a fully tame one like a domesticated animal, so they're trying to tedtalk on a human's approach to curating a stable relationship with a predatory species while the rest of the Cybertronians are basically dead-white from sheer fright.

Or on the opposite yet equally delightful spectrum of said exhuman caring for orphaned creatures that reminds them of human pets (like a bunny or a mouse), but those 'cute babies' usually cause massive structural damage to city-states and a known mech-killer. Something like a Scraplet (because, let's be real, deep in your heart, you know a person that would try to keep it as a pet and succeed at it), so their tedtalk about behavioral training, 'reasonable precautions,' and emotional/physical fulfillment is filled with scientists who's curiosity (slightly to completely) overtakes any sense of self-preservation.

[meerabanerjee]

Auraline the First Heir

[blowjob-horseguy]

In all the mermaid aus I can find for steddie people make steve the mermaid and thats just not what I was expecting. Because does the image of long curly brown hair floating like seaweed in the water halo-ing a jet black gnarly tail not deeply intrigue you?

Pale webbed hands that are just a little too soft to be human covered in the found jewelry of fallen ships, holding a jagged shell to the neck of land baron's son turned sailor Steve?? I did not think I was the only one who saw this vision.

[pink-alchemy]

[whereserpentswalk]

There's a hotel somewhere out there. It appears in places where people wander. Desert roads, lonely cities streets at night, forests that could swallow a person whole. And it shows its neon sign to let you in.

And you can rest there. It is nice inside. They are as many rooms as there are grains of sand upon the earth, and to walk from one end to the other would take longer than any mortal beings life. Within it there are countless architectural styles, rooms of every flavor, there are activities, singers, games, pools, theaters. And it will seem wonderful. It is a place where you can rest, without what was otherwise worrying you, a place that is safe from the horrors of the world. A place where you can be comfortable, and where the sweltering are cooled and the frigid are warmed.

There will be guests there if you visit. Some from other realms, some from other times. You may see folk from places that were never born in your world, places long gone, or that might be, or places that could never have existed. And if you talk to the right guest you may find one who is not fully human at all, and perhaps your body will not be fully human to them.

The hotel staff are bound to the hotel, never to leave. They are never free of their uniforms, not even when they sleep. They need no food or water, and know no god or country. But they serve the hotel's founder. Nobody has seen the founder, nobody knows who he is, but they serve him well.

But do not venture too deep in. There are rooms and hallways that do not make sense to the human mind deep in the hotel, twisting and turning and bending the laws of reality. And there are things deep inside there that have no names, creatures no human eye was ever meant to gaze upon.

And don't stay too long. Though payment is nonexistent for those who stay a short time, it is dire for those who stay too long. And for those who do not find their exit with haste, they may find no good exits at all.

[angryphilosophercat-blog]

Riksja, Oil on Canvas, 60x100cm. The Artist transports us into a dreamlike world where cities and villages become accessible through the use of 'Riksha.' These surreal entities, depicted as almost frictionless, one-wheeled or ball-based vehicles, move faster than the wind. The rich, intricate details and imaginative elements of the painting create a sense of mystery and wonder, inviting viewers to delve into the fantastical narrative where human ingenuity and mythological enchantment converge. The use of whimsical design and decoration elevates the mythological theme, making the painting an enchanting piece that stimulates both thought and imagination.

[acqua-marine]

[euphorictruths]

Earth Ship II- Amanda M. Moody

[unusual-suspects]

Wisteria Portal

July 31st, 2024

Reoin Defiant-Ouellette

[yellowmanula]

John Brophy

[e-adlirez]

The art style of Cloud Castle is absolute ass bro why are their eyes so big

Idk man it just looks.... off

I wish they brought back the og art style like Blue Scarab Hunt because that was gorgeous

Well if you’re referring to the book's artstyle as a whole, then calm down buddy the illustrations as a whole are pretty good all things considered (believe me some of the illustrations in the later books are waaaaayyyyy iffier)

But if you are referring to Danilo Barozzi’s illustrations in the book then uhhhhh… yeah I don’t blame you, I didn’t like the big anime irises either, she didn’t cook with this one,,,

The interesting thing is Barozzi also did pieces for Secret of the Snow and those looked fine (she did well enough that I have to squint to determine which ones were done by her). My guess is either she did a lot of the illustrations for the latter half of SotS and we just got used to it, or it’s because the artstyle of special editions 2 and 3 were more… experimental? Books 4 onwards developed a very specific… look for the artstyle that adhered very closely to the main book illustrations of Spanish Dance Mission onwards, thus the illustrators had to follow suit, resulting in whatever looks off to look especially off.

(Even with this set of pictures, I’m only about 70% sure these are Barozzi’s because of how alike yet different the styles are from each other in the book. The first one could be Barozzi’s, but it could also be Giuseppe Facciotto’s, since he also did illustrations for SotS and his stylization means he sometimes puts the eyes really close to each other in a way that’s weird but still makes sense somehow.) On the contrary, books 2 and 3 (and I would probably even include book 1 there) had a more experimental look to the illustrations, which seems to be based more on (and this is just a theory of mine) Giuseppe Facciotto’s iconic work for the covers of Mouseford Academy books 2-12, 14, 15 and 17 in the English books (he did waaayyy more covers for the Italian Mouseford books— he was basically the cover guy for the Mouseford books for a WHILE) as well as the books from Spanish Dance Mission to Lost Letters. If you’re wondering why those covers go as hard as they do, then now you know why.

(These aren’t all of Facciotto’s works for the covers we know in English but you can see that he popped off <3)

But yeah as you can see with special editions 2 and 3, the art direction seems to be heavily inspired by Facciotto’s artstyle.

However, when Barbara Pellizzari’s works became the aesthetic poster child of the books’ brand, that was reflected in the illustrations and how their aesthetic changed, as seen in the main books and how they look currently, special editions 4-9, and the Treasure Seekers trilogy.

This new profile thing of the girls? This was done by Pellizzari (coloring was done by Flavio Ferron), and thus it became the main reference for how the girls look in the book’s illustrations.

And it’s not just in the general direction to the artists for how to draw the Thea Sisters, but also in the direction given to the colorists. Alessandro Muscillo was the colorist for the special edition books since book 1 and the Treasure Seekers trilogy, and you can see that the direction for the style varied through books 1-3, like maybe direction was experimenting with the mood the illustrations were to convey, beginning with the cartoony and bright colors of book 1, easing into the more grounded and layered palettes of books 2 and 3

Then book 4 was when they transitioned to using digital art /j

I jest, but seriously book 4 was the debut of the coloring style we end up keeping for the rest of the special editions and for all of Treasure Seekers, which is very… bright :D

(I would show more picture examples but I manually took pictures of my physical copies for the Cloud Castle and SotS illustrations and gwuh I’m too lazy to grab my entire collection just to take pictures,,)

Bright as in like… the colors are very defined and saturated. I dunno how to describe it, but when you see it, you get what I mean. It’s very bright and pretty and colorful and it stands out. There are still variations that happen on occasion (Star Fairies in particular uses a good dose of airbrush for the lighting and shadow effects, and Crystal Fairies looks like someone had a bit of fun using sparkle brushes), but other than that, it’s very bright. I don’t hate it, but I do acknowledge that yeah, if I was introduced to the series when it had fully transitioned to the new style, I never would’ve gotten into the series in the first place, because the older books had something that didn’t make it feel specifically catered to girls. The colors were bright, but not too bright. Colorful, but unified. They weren’t that complicated, and they didn’t have to be because the colorists (plural, there were at least 3 per book once upon a time) were popping the hell off with the colors they were given. But y’know, the newer books’ consistent style did give me a good spot to practice drawing mouse furries so I’m not complaining too much about the newer style, haha.

(Tiny baby E’s (it’s literally from 2020 what’re you on about mate) her first mouse Violet drawing using Barbara Pellizzari’s artstyle in Treasure Seekers 1 as an anatomy guide!!)

With that said tho, yeah I miss the old books -m- dunno if it’d fit the aesthetic of the special editions but m a n we could’ve had it and it probably would’ve looked cool

Also the illustrations go way harder in the older books, like Prince's Emerald? I've talked about Prince's Emerald and how it goes hard before, and I still stand by it and say that it does in fact still go hard

Maybe it won't fit the uh splash of color they gave the hardcovers, but imagine they grabbed Giulia Basile's coloring work for the graphic novels and used that as sort've a basis for the coloring style of the hardcovers. Not exactly the same-- would probably still add a touch of whimsical watercolor and/or paint to the very cel-shaded style, but we could've had something pretty dope -m-

Anyway that's my ramble simultaneously defending the hardcovers' artstyle and reminiscing on what could've been haha

[jenyifer]

August September LGBTQIA book list.

Now quick disclaimer: I moved during this time. Very stressful. So maybe that’s why I have so many dropped and disliked books. I’m going to give these quick reviews in a specific order of would recommend to mehhh only if you are that type of person. I don’t give spoilers this is just a taste. I am lesbian who is 30 so that also colors my perception of these stories. Only going to include pics of the top 5 to drag you in for easy screenshotting.

Okay Let’s go.

1. Somewhere Beyond the Sea by Tj Klune 🏳️‍🌈👨🏼‍🍼👬🔥🏡⛓️‍💥 okay once again when I take over the world House in the Cerulean Sea and Somewhere Beyond the Sea will be required reading I didn’t think the follow up book to one of the best books in the modern age about feel good found family foster family could get any better. But I was proven wrong. The sequel gives you all you need. You can tell the author felt the pain of our world as he wrote this but the children and characters give those stories life. I cried I laughed. There is nothing quite like it.

2. The Spirit Bares It’s Teeth by Andrew Joseph White 🏳️‍⚧️💕😱🩸👁️🐰 You know what I am putting this one as 2 because despite it making me have countless panic attacks because I’m not fond of… gore? Horror? I adored this book still thinking about it. The romance is 10/10 T4T. I adored the mystery and intrigue. The main character is autistic and very anxiety ridden I can’t describe to you how this book will change you. Although approach with caution.

3. The Disabled Tyrant’s Beloved Pet Fish Vol2. 🏳️‍🌈🐟🤴🏻🤣 mild 🌶️ on a completely different note the “IS THAT MAN IN LOVE WITH A FISH” is a treat that always surprises me with the amount I love it. Maybe I am trash crazy but I find this funny easy to read and in this second book we got even more time with the fish and his prince actually in human shape. The miscommunication trope is strong with this one but so is consent and romance. Idk I just fucking love it. I want the prince to become emperor with his fishy lover haha.

4. The Name Bearer by Natalia Hernandez 💃💐🏳️‍🌈👩‍❤️‍👩💜💜 Okay quick disclaimer here the book is an classic style fantasy journey it is slow. However I really loved how beautifully thought out the universe was it’s a latinx woman forward book. The romance is not the point but it feels very natural which I appreciate. Main character might even be ace spec. There are great side characters. I really love the apprentice wizard but WARRIOR NUNS!!! Hehehe also things seem to be not what they seem which is always cool. I’d definitely suggest this to any fantasy lover.

5. Grandmaster of Demon Cultivation the comic vol 1-3 🏳️‍🌈👬🪄🪦💀🫏necromancer evil wizard is reincarnated into his nephew’s body years after his death. Or is he evil? Or is he 🏳️‍🌈? Hahah yes he is. Anyways in the present he’s finding the consequences of his actions while his…. Love interest is going to make sure nothing happens to this version of him. You slowly get the past. I find the comic is the easiest way to consume this fantasy story. Yes there is anime, book, and a Netflix series and a new Japanese manga is being released but I like this one. 🤷🏻‍♀️

6. Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire 💜🪦🚪 about a school for those who come back from other universes and long to go back. Main Character is probably ace spec. Very interesting fantasy book for someone who consumed a lot of fantasy as a child. Thought it was also very thoughtful book. I had fun it’s not super surprising or new ground but I enjoyed it for a quick read.

7. Spell Bound by FT Lukens 🏳️‍🌈🐈‍⬛🧙‍♀️🧑‍💻 well it’s YA. Out of the other FT Lukens books I semi enjoyed this one. The characters are still dumb as rocks and the setting could use some more fleshing. But it’s okay. For a fun quick read that semi reminds you of urban fantasy? It’s good. The side ship found family was a little forced but I enjoyed the side characters.

8. Psalm for the wild built 💜🍵🤖🏕️ it’s a chill cozy book for people who are over worked. I’d say if you want scifi it’s not. It’s closer to fantasy. Very short and preachy.

9. Casefile Compendium vol2 by Meatbun 🏳️‍🌈🩸🌶️🚩🔍🐉🥼 Danmei Murder mystery modern times age gap. Does have 2 chapters of non consent and absolutely off the wall opinions about the medical industry.

10. Otherworldly by FT Lukens 🧚‍♂️🏳️‍🌈🥶❄️ YA familiar escapes fairy world finds a skeptical person decides they’ll def fall in love and make a deal. I listened to 50% the characters are intensely idiotic and just…. So so so blind. I couldn’t do it. The skeptic is a person who moved to the city for their family but they do stuff for their family without really caring for them I’m just not buying it. The familiar is infact a psychopath or so low iq he doesn’t care to live or feel or observe anything in 5 years. So so so stupid. Omg.

I had several DNF

I made my parents listen to Ocean’s Echo by Everina Maxwell in my mission to make my parents less homophobic. My mom enjoyed it. My dad said it was way too gay. 😩 man I wish it was way too gay.

What am I reading next? Hummm idk yet. Suggestions are always appreciated!!!