#otohan is old lol

[lavender-temult]

Very important things being taught right now

[sicklyseraphnsuch]

DnD Combat and Critiques

Hey, so I have thoughts. I know! How unfortunate.

Combat in DnD is not always going to translate nicely into a narrative that follows storybeats. Like in a good fight, there's a plan - the plan fucks up - then there's a callback to some earlier themes that gets implemented into the finishing blow.

FCG did the last part.

It's the before that's the problem.

BH don't have a lot of synergy. Let's go back to the whole Dungeons and Dragons for all the roleplay - it's still a fighting game. And fighting games require some strategy.

BH does have a strategy. Hit the thing until it stops moving. And they usually do this through raw, brute strength. But when you're facing a high-level, Smart character, it's going to take more than bruteforce

I'm gonna out myself as a LoL player here. I know! It's really quite tragic.

But in teamfights, you do need some characters - like the tank or the support - who can pin down those highly mobile characters so they can just start hitting.

Yes. She had legendary resistances. But her resistances are limited. They had to burn those. Ideally, FCG or Fearne would have done that. Hell, maybe Ashton could have picked her up and squeezed - or tried to. Likewise, Laudna could have cast darkness and it would have crippled everyone but it would be some advantage.

This team desperately needed some way to limit her movement or ability to target them. But without that, FCG had no choice but to remain on healing duty and unable to chance spells like Banishment or fucking Plane Shift. Fearne needed to stay away from damage - let those better at it try - and focus on running utility. Aura of Life came way too late - not that it mattered bc again Otohan's hyper mobility.

I think it wasn't Otohan that was the problem. A lot of babies are kicking and crying that she was too hard. And yeah. She was. And arguably she wasn't the best villain for the audience bc yeah we know fuck all about her. Here's something to consider: Otohan was for the players, not the audience. At most, the audience gets a kick out of BH's reactions whenever she comes up. But her main job was to freak out the players - and she does.

Because BH is not prepared for high level combat. There. That's my critique.

When your healer goes into a rage if he heals too much, that's a liability in a fight. When neither of your tank-utility players have any reliable capture and crowd control capabilities, that's a problem. The most they had was Ashton's gravity well but she could clear that 10 ft difference with ease. They didn't need a fucking slow - they needed a stun.

This team is not equipped for a fight beyond brute force. They don't have a toolkit that lends itself well to tactics.

Otohan was absolutely beatable and I will die on that hill. They just didn't know how to fight her with the weapons they have. Outside of character growth, they really might need a good old fashioned shounen training arc.

[mehoymalloy]

What is your fav thing about each of the AUs that you’re working on?

Cyberpunk

Writing Bells Hells as a group! I'm obviously having a lot of fun depicting romantic dynamics I knew I'd especially enjoy, such as Imogen/Fearne, but I'm also really looking forward to exploring some of the non-romantic bonds in the polycule, such as Imogen and Ashton. Also, this AU is shaping up to be the healthiest (relative term) version of Imotohan I've ever managed (just don't ask what they gotta go through to get there lol). I get to make them truly SOMFT (again, relative term), in due time, and I'm super excited about exploring both Imotohan as a ship as well as how Otohan interacts with the whole of Bells Hells in this setting.

Judicator

ALL the theorizing around facets of Exandria that have not been throughly explored yet in canon. Namely, building up the city of Yios and fleshing out the Aydinlan Seminary as a setting, along with, of course, coming up with every little detail around the creation and magic of the judicators.

KillerCop

Strangely, putting my own experience and knowledge around growing up in 'Small Town, The South' to use by translating Gelvaan into a rural Wyoming town and transplanting some beloved characters in there as well. Imahara Joe runs a mechanic shop, Dancer has a queer bar that the locals tolerate because it's also the only bar in town. Zhudanna owns a diner that serves the best pies, and Old Lass Jemma runs a motel that hasn't been renovated since the 80s. It's neat to explore small town culture and dynamics that I understandably resented when I was a teenager through this new lens of my favorite media/characters.

I would love to toss this question to @inomakani and @maddytrout as well, since all of these are very much joint projects, and I'm curious to see what their fave parts are~

Thanks so much for the ask, lord knows I love yappin' about my WIPs too damn much.

[ludinusdaleth]

Hello, hello~ how about 14, 18, and 20? For of course Ludinus and Artagan lol.

14. Assign a fashion aesthetic to this character.

ludinus - when he showed up in that long cloak & capelet in c2e88 i knew he would thrive with victorian fashion. anything historically british is probably something i wouldn't blink twice about on him, but victorian era longcoats? oh man.

artagan - this is maybe going to sound like the most out of left field thing you've ever heard in your life but listen.... arti would rule redneck "fashion", okay. if he grows his stupid adorable chin beard out, puts on shitty oakleys, and wears camo cargo pants with a sleeveless shirt....? that man would look, frankly, beautiful to my texan self. he would make it work because even despite matching the wild disarray of the look, he'd still very obviously be out of place, like a queer/hippie who somehow stumbled into a bass pro. and yet it would at the same time look correct on him. he'd have a blast down here, trolling conservatives but also genuinely enjoying southern chaos. it fits in my head perfectly. even if it is insane.

18. How about a relationship they have in canon with another character that you admire?

artagan - how could it be anyone but jester. genuinely the best relationship of all fucking time. i want to weep thinking about them. they love each other so much. jester doing everything for him even when he's failed her and him rising up to that when he's never risen up to anything and learning to be selfless. just. oh my god. oh my god.

ludinus - it's incredible how ludinus operates with otohan & liliana, but your meta's gone into that thoroughly. im also very floored every time he does try to extend an olive branch and just be human (for lack of a better word) to characters like fearne, imogen, or caleb.

20. Which other character is the ideal best friend for this character, the amount of screentime they share doesn't matter?

ludinus - i very often imagine a world where devexian & ludinus learned of each others existence, met, and silently sat together in a small nook in a tea shop or lud's tower. not much needs to be said, except the occasional sigh at an old shared memory of an aeorian park, or the buffoonery of the somnovem. a world where they aren't probably on opposite or at least different sides of vengeance, where both can just admit they are fucking tired old men who've lived too long.

artagan - apart from jester? i think arti needs to meet fearne, morrighan, even yu. he's far from any kind of father figure, but.... he sure could be their uncle. these young fae folk are being tossed in the seas of their peoples useless politics, and arti's heart would strain knowing even more of his people are pawns who are forced out of their whimsy for war. he would almost dote on them, in his odd aloof dick-joking way.

thank you!!

[steampunk-raven]

There’s an animatic making its rounds in my mind too!

What’s an animatic you would want to do for Imogen?

Well first of all: I WANT TO HEAR ABOUT YOUR ANIMATIC IDEAS PLEASE. 👀

And for the Imogen animatic! It’s “Do You Want to Play” by Starkid Productions (I binged a bunch of Starkid musicals a few weeks ago lol), and it’s specifically for moonsters!Imogen. In that au, there’s a moment where 10-year-old Imogen is trying to run away from home, but gets followed by Liliana and Otohan. Imogen finally wolfs out and attacks the two before running away. I thought the song would fit the lead-up to it (Liliana and Otohan trying to convince Imogen to play with them - in the moonsters au Imogen has a stuffed elk toy that Otohana tries to convince her with), and the end part (laugh/screaming) being flashes of Imogen attacking them.

(Okay overly detailed lyric-by-lyric shit below the cut because I am not normal about this silly lil au 😅)

If you’re just looking at the lyrics, the song starts out super sweet (“sweetheart” “my lovely girl” etc), although in the musical the context is super creepy. The animatic would start with Imogen hiding behind a tree as Liliana tries to lure her out. Imogen is (rightfully) scared of Otohan, but doesn’t fully know Liliana is a werewolf, so by the line “Some funny games today”, Liliana’s persuasion has worked, and Imogen peaks her head out from behind the tree. She sees that Otohan is also there and immediately goes back to hide, but not before they notice her (“Becky, look, over there”)

Liliana and Otohan sing together as Imogen is covering her ears, trying to block them out. Liliana starts staggering as she walks, and at the “Do you want some candy” line, she falls to her knees as she starts transforming. The next line (“I want you to come here so we can play”) is sung by Otohan, and is also the mental image that first made we want to animate this! They’re literally just in a dramatic singing pose lol, but then there���s a cut to both werewolf!Liliana and Otohan together, with red highlights.

And then finally, with the loud “HAHAHAHA” at the end, that would be more fully rendered drawings of Imogen attacking then running away. After that, there are (and here’s where I reveal I know nothing about music because idk how to describe it) two sweet-sounding things of music, which would be a lil animation of Imogen sleeping with her elk toy and slowly turning into a werewolf (which I actually sorta drew hehe). Anyways thanks for the ask and for bearing with this kinda long explanation!

[alloutofgoddesses]

C3 E50 - It’s the middle of the semester so I have no free time ever and I’m reconsidering all of my life choices leading to this moment

Gale!

Fun fact I tried watching this last night and only got about an hour and half in when I realised I was way too tired and distracted so I turned it off

Jester I miss you

NOPE vibes

Why is Liam so little

Off topic but anybody else have a grey cat? I have a nearly 11 month old grey feline and I would love to know if they’re all Like This or if mines a special (basket) case

Aahhhhhhhh oh my god I’m so happy for Imogen

Planning is an essential part of DND but guess what. I am not paying attention to a whole lot of it unless I myself am planning

RIP Silver Sun? I don’t understand why this is necessary oops

Travis bud when was the last time you got your eyes checked

Fly in studio AGAIN (why are there so many flies in the Critical Role studio)

Miss your merk

…and I guess I’m done with my tea now thanks Hermes

Gnome sinkholes

Also there’s no way they’re coming back with a better ship lol

Laura please don’t do math problems

Keyleth I love you

Nothing bad is going to happen, this plan will go as expected

Awww Fearne gave Ashton a forehead kiss

Shout out to Travis for continuing to wear the sweat bands

Oh boy oh boy

I love seeing Travis “Aabria was only scared of me” Willingham in his element

My tummy feels weird lol… idk why this isn’t very high stakes at all

Hello who are you

Scary Laura scary Laura

Okay but how “high up” is Lilliana for that to work

Oof buddies

Oh hey I own those sweatpants

Just filibuster, that’ll stop the apocalypse from happening

Don’t look at your wife like that Matt

Oh no - I feel like it’s a bad idea to run

Does Travis need the sweatbands because I think I do

WEREWOLF TIMEEEW

OH THAT’S VERY BIG

Get em Laudna

How much attention do we think this combat is drawing. Also who’s hiding in the tent

Casual Lizzo ref

Bye Ashton

The warder is gonna die via electrocution!

Is it Otohan or her mom

AH SHIT I WAS RIGHT ABOUT SOMEONE BEING IN THE TENT

Wait a minute wait a minute wait a minute

Fingers crossed fingers crossed this is a blorbo from our shows

This has to be someone very dexterous

That’s monk shit right that has to be monk shit

THATS EXPOSITOR BEAUREGARD LIONETT

Me too Liam

Ashley I love you - try your absolute damndest please

That’s my second favourite Critical Role lesbian!!!!!!

ASHLEY SHE IS SO HOT

That’s Beau!!

THAT’S MY BABYGIRL

ME TOO LIAM!!!!!!

Multi-campaign crossover!!!!!!!!!

ME TOO DANI

In the words of Liam AND Aabria, what’s sexier than wizards? NOTHING

Oh Caleb is so respectful I love hims

Yeah you have baby

Probably Beau 😬

I would love to see Beau and Caleb in Vasselheim

Hey it’s her!

Very excited for the people who woke up Devexian to meet FCG honestly

Awww where’s the rest of the Mighty Nein

- Who didn’t make it out? I would like to know Caleb

When is Chet gonna become small again. I feel like it’s gonna make Beau laugh

Ashton has been silent the entire time 🧐

Ashton bby speak up ask questionssss

Which of his romantic partners is he referring to

Oh shit third wizard?

Yeah Travis the meta levels are out of this world

There’s Ashton hi buddy

Ajshshsjaj BEAU

I want Ashton and Beau to be passive aggressive together PLEASE

Be careful with that fourth wall it doesn’t look super stable right now

Okay but I would prefer if we move forward with the full team here

Desperately want Beau and Caleb to meet FCG

[THEY] XANDIS IS THEY REMEMBER PRONOUNS MARISHA

Ah goddammit. See y’all next week

[non-neutoniangender]

More CR, more scarves. I watched 4-sided dive between episodes and hot damn I have thoughts about that too.

The essek lore!?!?!?! Aaaaaaaaaa

Also always love watching the cast interact outside of sessions, and 4-sided dive is really well conceived for their dynamic.

Sam..... sam... your add spots are like notoriously bad, cringey? literally everyone saw the second shoe coming lol. God why does sam always subvert exelpectations like that. Anyway, thoughts:

Lol that was the wrong episode I clicked on. That was the spot from next episode.

This is certainly a battle

Poor Imogen doesn't know how guns work

That was an intense encounter lol

But damn Birdie!! She's got some firepower

This is such a cute little hideout!

.....more rocks

The whole time thing is..... really interesting

Ira...... is............ hmmmmmmm very Fey, chaotic, does kinda whatever

Also Morrigan? Hmmmmmmm

What a cool telescope!!!!

Matt is so good at describing things damn

A whole ass ley line god damn

This is a wild mechanism

Lol not everyone failing those damn perception checks on the damn moon

But wow. This moon is.... something else.

Not sure it was birdies silhouette..... was it Otohan!!??!???

"The old fate-sticher herself" WHOMST!?!?!? damn fearne. But also imso intrigued!! I love fate its such a cool concept

"The old Hag" hmmmmmm what an interesting turn of phrase.....

Older elven man, white hair, blue and grey robes, cane....... fucking Ludinus D'eleth ????? God damn he can't keep himself out of trouble

Double date with Ira lmao!!!!

Whoof that's a powerful crown

Damn love at first sight bro

But also what a sweet story!!! I love hearing stories of people meeting their significant others

No way!!!!! Fearnes grandmother stretched time to have Fearne longer!?!?! Holy shit (damn thanks Ira)

Mori is HOW tall!?!? 13 or 14 feet!?!? Who the fuck is she? She's gotta be some kind of powerful fey being and I cannot wait to figure out who.

A collector..... a hag, no one knows how old she is.... one of many titles.... huh

Wow there are a lot more layers to this Fearne growing up situation that previously thought. Also I wonder if fearne was the payment for the lense that she brought to her parents that would've been....... something.

Marisha is on a chair... shits getting real

But a cage around a moon that's new ish.... showing up where it shouldn't, giving people nightmares........

God the storytelling in dice rolls is.... impeccable as always.

A CITY!?!?!?!? holy shit oh my god not two campaigns were cities are a problem, God I hope this one isn't alive.

WOW that was quite the session holy shit. If this campaign didn't have me hooked before, it definitely does now. Holy shit I'm so curious how this ties into the rest of the story of the world.

[mehoymalloy]

For the character ask game: 2, 12, and 13 for Otohan, please!

2. Favorite canon thing about this character?

I love that they're implied to be on the shorter side. Five feet of whoop ass. While I don't have an exact height headcanon for them, Matt has said that they take up a lot of space even though they're lithe and compact, and look down their nose at people despite the fact that they're not actually taller. And while the character art isn't exactly to scale, I like to think Imogen has a solid two inches on them at least.

12. What's a headcanon you have for this character?

They take meticulous care of their armor and weapons. Like I'm talking a daily routine that is never skipped, no matter what odd time that means it might get done. When Orym can't sleep, he does push-ups; when Otohan can't sleep, they clean and oil their swords.

13. What's an emoji, an emoticon and/or any symbol that reminds you of this character or you think the character would use a lot?

I firmly believe that if Otohan Thull had a cellular device they would use perfect grammar and spelling, never use an emoji or even old school emoticons, and maybe even sign off their text messages with whatever their official title is (if they texted at all; they might be one of those "if you can't say it aloud in under two minutes then I don't want to hear it" types lol).

With that said... 🤨⚔️🩸

From this character ask game!

[mehoymalloy]

for the ask game: ☔!

Is there a fic concept you have that you'd like to just explain and share because you're not sure you'll ever write it? If so, what is it?

Just for funsies, here is the bulleted list as it appears in an old Google Doc entitled "Otohan Fic Ideas" that I had to go digging to find lol

Otohan meeting Imogen when she is a child during the war, that memory being unlocked for Imogen in a moment of battle (unsettling af)

The Big Liliana & Otohan & Imogen Canon-Compliant Prequel Fic

Otohan spotting Imogen before the Deathwish run starts? Or even Imogen is there when they first visit the Seat of Disdain and meet Thull?

Otohan's Backstory: (Childhood, Duskmaven, Apex War, Paragon's Call/Ruidus/Predathos)

That 'idk if you're going to gently lift my chin with that dagger or stab me but it's hot' shitpost

Otohan finds Imogen just before the Solstice (canon-ish). Takes her circlet in cavern and tries to sway her during the big culmination

Fucked Up Family – Otohan sweeps Liliana away when Imogen is a baby and they raise her together on their dual search for answers?

I already knocked out one of these ideas on a whim with Don't Think, Don't Blink back when I first started writing for Otohan. And the Fucked Up Family one is what evolved into Moon Moms! Originally, I was actually planning to create a much more canon-compliant prequel, but Moon Moms sort up took over. Slightly different versions of Otohan's backstory will be slowly explored in both Moon Moms and the Let Me sequel.

Out of all of these, I think Imogen meeting Otohan when she's like 9 during the Apex War (when say Otohan is simply a soldier assisting with emergency aid after Gelvaan's fields were razed) has the most potential. Having Otohan unlock what could've been a relatively happy, obscure memory in the midst of the battle of Bassuras would just be devastating to explore.

[mehoymalloy]

reRules: put all of your music on shuffle and list the first ten  songs that pop up. Tag however many people you want, to keep it going,  if you want to, of course.

I shuffled my generic 2023 playlist that has exactly 54 songs, so here’s what I got! Thanks for the tag, @wykart

A song that I liked enough from my Tilda playlist that it got brought over to the generic yearly one.

Same deal; I song I liked enough from my Horizon Big Bang playlist (and the song that the fic is named after!) that it got brought over to the generic 2023 playlist.

Ya want lesbian country music? Cause here ya go.

It's a banger, what can I say. I have an old car with no aux cord, so when this comes on the radio the volume instantly gets turned up.

A song I liked enough from my Imogen/Otohan playlist to- (you get it lol)

A song I liked enough from my Otohan playli-

FLORENCE BBYYYY. The HORNS on this one kick in and I go feral.

This song made me cry when I first heard it on the radio because depression, amirite?

Can't describe the itch this song scratches but it does.

A funky and chill banger of a beat, perfect way to round this out~

Tagging @novastellaris because I'm pretty sure you tagged me in a tag game that I forgot to respond to, so sorry bout that 😬

[steampunk-raven]

Here to yell in your inbox! Gimme Otohan I miss them 🥺

not working on otohan at the moment sorry 😔 here’s an old-ish frame from a comic I was making of her though? NO clue if I’ve shared it before actually lol but ehh it’s Otohan who cares. (also included is the completely unrelated evil woman I am currently drawing :] )

[mehoymalloy]

Thanks for giving me an excuse to update my transcript, not that there was all that much to add lol

I give you Otohan being dramatic af and saying shit no human being has ever said aloud, as well as some moments I personally find very satisfying for obvious reasons 😌

“A Race for the Prize” (3x27)

You choose your two finest champions. I choose two of mine. And we go until down or dead.

“Blood and Dust” (3x33)

(chuckles) You impress me with your brazen infiltration. Brash can have its merits over well-plotted. We who think too far ahead can miss what stands right before us, yes? Who sent you? Who is your employer?

(chuckles) Eshteross. Interesting. I'll have to pay him a visit. That old fool meddles far beyond his aspirations. What do you know of me? Of this? You can answer these questions, or I take the answers from you.

Well. Perhaps the rest of you are weak, like the sheep who bleat to be saved by some higher power. You are worthy of only ashes then.

{to Laudna} (tsk tsk tsk) Can't run from this, my dear.

Your friends are extremely, obnoxiously resilient. Perhaps I've been going about this the wrong way. I should be more complete with my job.

{to Imogen, or to herself} Good. Good. (drawn out): Good.

The more you run from it, the more you lose. There is greatness in you, and our fight is soon. Embrace it, or become (potential error: "be culled"?) like the rest.

(softly): You're not surrendering to me. But to your nature.

Come on. You're so close.

Ah, but you see, you don't just choose to give in, you let go when the moment's right.

“What Dreams May Come” (3x34)

You are a true predator. A gift in their image. If you can be as strong as we can. To deny your nature is to be consumed by it. To embrace it is to master your own fate. I am proud of you.

The bell tolls and looms soon enough. Come. Create something beautiful with us.

“The Fey Key” (3x47)

{to Sorrowlord Zathuda} I assume you are of sound enough intelligence to know what must be done, and that there is no place for pleasantries or ego stroking in the scale of what we are doing. (...) When you finally step down from the shadow of the Moonweaver, I guarantee you will be forgiving.

“An Exit Most Fraught” (3x48)

{to FCG, telepathically} How interesting. I know you. (...) Well, then, punishment it is.

“The Apogee Solstice” (3x50)

{to all, telepathically} Friends! Individuals who have come with us on this journey, our timetable is being accelerated. Please, gather at the Key." (Matt notes that her voice is in “an energized tone.”)

{when failing to speak into Imogen’s mind due to the circlet} (growls)

��Rush for the Bloody Bridge” (3x82)

Maintain the perimeter and double siege defenses! Foot soldiers regroup and do not abandon the Key! Fools!

“Intense Interrogations” (3x84)

I'm looking for some individuals. (…) They were a few Exandrians who were not invited here. Caused a ruckus. (…) They look…a little bit like you.

{re: Imogen} That's interesting because the whole reason I'm here is because I could feel where she was.

How wondrous, all these friendly reunions at once. This is a fortuitous day, is it not? Well, I cannot harm you (Fearne) because you're important to everything we're building. You (FCG), we can do without.

{to Fearne, re: Imogen} Where is she? (…) And what is she doing in Kreviri– whatever the fuck it's called?

when the campaign’s over I’m totally gonna make a compilation of Otohan talking because she’s so [incomprehensible sapphic squealing]