#part of the worldstate thing is that i Dont know what happens to the would-be inquisitors in the other worldstates.

[oopsallmabari]

oh man id love to hear more about Jim!! how is he involved in da3??? what’s the history with arya… 👀

oooooh tysm for the question! tbh i'm still trying to figure quite a bit of this out lol

to start with the easier question first, his history with arya. jim is one of the older cousins-a yearish older than eric (eldest of the main trevelyans), so there's a 13 year age gap between jim and arya! there's not any particular animosity between the two of them but they didn't get as close as they could have as kids because of the age difference AND because jim and her brothers did NOT get along. arya had a lot of loyalty to eric as a wee child, so as time went on she stopped actively seeking jim out to play/hang out (mainly because eric would pull her away a la 'you don't need to hang out with that unruly unkempt thing we call a family member'). and jim wasn't interested enough to press it since she doesn't exactly like her family. they definitely had a quiet alliance at larger events, though--malik and eric thrived in large social gatherings where arya and jim didn't, so jim tried to make them more enjoyable for her.

jim is in her early twenties when she hears about arya getting taken to the circle--at that point jim is still in the noble life but is chafing at it a lot, so he's one of the most sympathetic to her when the rest of the trevelyans try to erase her presence in the family entirely. he's not unsympathetic to mages, but it's moreso that he hates the strictures that the chantry imposes on life (especially since jim's supposed to be committed to chantry service but is fighting it tooth and nail). she sends a very brief letter, once, to the effect of 'hang in there, kid', and shortly after leaves the trevelyans behind and takes to the seas.

as for how he fits in to DA3: i doooont know for sure yet, and part of that is because i can't decide what worldstate he's in! i think he could get more involved in my cadash or my adaar's inquisition (since they're a little less rules and honor-bound). also, if i make jim a significant part of arya's dai story i will have to write her into my longfic which has enough family complications lmaooo.

i think i'll go with this: in arya's worldstate jim hears that his little cousin is the herald of andraste, says 'huh good for her' and stays far away from the inquisition itself. happens to be in the storm coast looking for easy work post her crew's mutiny while trying to stay the fuck away from the blades of hessarian, encounters arya a couple times and there's a nice little 'glad to see things are better for both of us, kind of' moment, and arya says he's welcome to a room in skyhold if ever he needs a place to lie low. he does briefly encounter cassandra and send her into a confused gay panic but nothing else happens.

in rhea or ikenna's worldstate i think that jim becomes a semi-companion. he's still fucking around in the storm coast to start but is more inclined to ingratiate himself to inquisitors that are so clearly opposed to the chantry's ideals and ideology (arya's not a fan of the chantry and ya she's a mage but she's more andrastian that not. not the case for rhea or ikenna). jim, with no crew, no money, and no prospects says 'hey i'm really fucking good at killing things and am not particularly liquid at the moment, you should hire me' and rhea/ikenna are like 'hell yeah cmon'. cue every single interaction between cassandra and jim being deeply homoerotically charged and kind of antagonistic (jim and cass respect each other as warriors and hot ppl but cass is horrified by jim's general audacity and jim LOVES to fuck with the uptight devout hand of the divine). they are both meant for each other and also the absolute worst for each other <3

[sirotras]

Riva: 1, 4, 8, 10, 18, 25, 26

thank you!!

da worldstate questions

1.) your Warden/Hawke/Inquisitor's opinion on Orlais?

answered here

4.) attitude towards Andrastianism?

it sure is there isnt it :). she generally approaches other cultures and religions with and open minded, thought primarily academic, interest. and andrastianism wasnt an expection. however, the more it got forced on her, the more bitter she got about it, though she kept those feelings to herself for the most part, it was practically suffocating by trespasser though

8.) who do they hate the most, and do they have an arch-nemesis?

hate feels so strong, and its not a feeling that comes too naturally for her. that said. i dont think she looks too kindly on empress celene, particularly after finding out a bit more abt the things she's done.

i wouldnt say she has a sort of arch-nemesis though, perhaps this answer will change once she gets to properly meet some of our new antagonists tho

10.) are they good horse riders?

id say so! she does generally prefer harts or halla, thought she gets quite used to horses as well over the course of dai

18.) do they have any irrational fears?

boring answer i know, but not really? id say most of her fears are pretty rational, or lie in the realm of abstract concepts

25.) what did they plan for their life to look like before the events of the game happened?

well certainly not Like That. she was very happy with her role as first to the keeper of her clan, and would have gladly taken up the role of keeper when the time came. the thought of being there for her clan, helping guide them, felt right. but the plot sure had other plans.

26.) do they get a happy ending?

VERY RUDE TO ASK THIS ACTUALLY!! you know she romanced solas!!

all joking aside, well. I guess we'll have to wait for veilguard to see how her story goes, wont we? (and if its not a happy ending bioware will have to answer to ME)

[vir-adahlen]

3, 4, and 6 for the dragon age asks!

oh haha! yes! hehe!

3) Do you usually play as a warrior, mage, or rogue? Which class are you planning to try first this time around? Which subclass?

Okay for the most part in video games if i can be an archer, i will be an archer -- i do tend to create rogue characters for my first da playthroughs because i think the mechanics are fun :-) and then vibe out and develop how i think of the character in my head as the game progresses. my warden is a rogue (archer.........) but my canon hawke and inquisitor both ended up being mages. it's always mage or rogue for me but maybe one day i'll nut up and make a big warrior woman. but jeez yeah i mean. to be deft and nimble. that's my silly little power fantasy

okay so thinking about it now i do kinda want Rook to be an archer.. back to basics for me it seems. veil ranger is a cool subclass name. i think people are speculating that mournwatch has to do with the mortalitasi in nevarra and being a slinky little rogue among them seems very appealing

4) What does your worldstate look like going into DAV?

Warden alistair and mahariel are the hallmark of beautiful quintessential absolute divine partnership -- we do anything for them we tear the worldstate asunder for them. they are doing their thing researching the taint and also merrill hangs out with them doing that too

hawke and isabela fell in love but when isabela skips town for years hawke and anders kind of fall in love it's insane it's toxic they fight about politics hawke is vehemently anti-chantry and anti-circle but doesn't have the revolutionary spirit... they can't bear choosing that much loss.. hawke feels totally and completely betrayed by anders at the end of the game while still loving him deeply...

hawke is in the fade :( when she sees the look in alistair's eyes she knows he won't stay behind... so she does!! i think she's alive and i think she's going to Come Back Wrong. every single thing is tragic about hawke. isabela is raging against it. merrill is helping her too

it took me forever to figure out an inquisitor that made sense... the first few i made just literally crumpled up in my mind as the events of inquisition happened....... like i couldn't think of a person who could withstand it all....... but i finally landed on a lavellan who is a historian and writer and he's able to kind of like actively parse the absolute insanity that is the religious fervor and politics of it all as it is happening and that keeps him from going insane. he can't really fight and has to be shepherded to and from the rifts but he has an insane quiet charisma. this is obviously absolutely infuriating to solas who is trying not to fall in love with people but ends up falling in love with him so so hard -- they fade hooked up a little in the beginning but then lavellan :0 falls in love with dorian!!! and so solas is stuck being in unrequited love with lavellan and he's gonna destroy the world over it a little

leliana is divine inquisition is disbanded

6) Do you have your Rook(s) planned out to any degree? If so, would you share some details or ideas you have?

my rook is gonna be an elf.. there's no other way for me. i dont know why but im he/him-ing this guy in my head. another man? could it be? we'll see. i don't know!! my characters definitely take shape as i play. could homosexaulity happen between him and davrin? we'll see. no strong ideas yet i suppose. he feels fast, he feels bossy. i think he's going to be from the city. maybe he wont be an archer. what's up man!!! i cant wait to find out.....

[bladekindeyewear]

Bloggin’ bout HS^2′s second upd8 continued.  > (==>)

And it had felt so real, almost like he could have reached out and touched him--

--Yeah, the next page is gonna be BGDirk just standing there like I saw before I read the update, right?

> (==>)

> (==>)

Two pages. Close enough.

> (==>)

Hah!  Get fucked, Dirk.  (Even if you’re supposedly one of the better Dirks.)

> (==>)

Yep, all see-thru and everything.

DIRK: You passed out in a puddle of your own drool. And what the fuck is that on your face? JAKE: My face? What do you mean on my face? DIRK: The moustache, Jake. Who’s idea was that. JAKE: Oh! You dont like it? DIRK: I didn’t say that.

Oh come the fuck on.  He looks good in a mustache, Jane-influence or no Jane-influence.

DIRK: We’ve had this conversation before, dingus. I’m you. And I’m me. But I only exist because of your powers. The fact that I’m manifesting here, in the new universe, outside of a dream, is evidence in itself for just how absolutely boned you are.

Now what exactly do you mean by that last part?  How is this a sign of trouble?

--Is it because this Dirk thinks he’s needed?  And therefore shit will be going down?

DIRK: You’ve been a useless sack of shit for two decades. I’m here to kick your ass back into active duty.

...Hm.

I mean, Jake MIGHT be able to help stop this stupid goddamn war, but this IS Dirk trying to help him, so...

JAKE: And what side am i supposed to be fighting on? for jane or against her? DIRK: Against her. Obviously. What the fuck, dude.

Pffff.

JAKE: But you were the one who wanted her to run in the first place! You wrote her bloody speeches! DIRK: Yeah, I did. And every single one of them kicked ass. I wanted Jane to be the democratically elected president. Not a cake-slinging Jeff Bezos with a great rack.

Pfff.  I mean, you didn’t do a great job the first way, either.  It’s heavily implied things in Canon-land were about to go to shit too.

Not as FAR to shit, nor as quickly, but still to shit.  So, really, how DIFFERENT is this from the way you wanted it done, Dirk?  How can you claim this isn’t half YOUR fuck-up too?

DIRK: Don’t worry about it. The point is, you have a chance to make a difference. You’re in the perfect position to infiltrate her operation.

Oh hell no.  Don’t send him back in THERE you utter horse’s ass!  How could THAT be good for his mental health!? What the fuck about Tavros?!?

DIRK: That’s horseshit and we both know it. Jane would take you back in a second. She loves you.

I think Jane’s definition of “taking him back” would be a bit broader than his body or soul could fucking afford.

> (==>)

Eugh.  You really liked the Condesce’s way of doing things right down to her style, huh?  To think you used to love the spoon.  Is that a fucking spork?  Is that zilly Battlespork your go-to weapon now?

Also, it took me a moment to realize those green and orange silhouettes were Jake and BGDirk.  I was a little like “how did Rose get here?!?”.

> (==>)

Have I mentioned how good all this art is?  So much attention being paid to the use of color, to making everything look so soft and streamlined?

Looks like she’s going in for at LEAST a hug.  And the art style might be mercifully light on showing us indulgent details of just how asset-laden Jane is supposed to be.  Shots of Jake’s manly bod aside, something in me doesn’t like the traditionally-sexualized stuff pushed like that in a canon that’s been light on it for so long...

> (==>)

Oh, that... THAT looks fake.  Or like, she’s about to turn around and happily wail on his ass or something.

JANE: Boo hoo hoo! Oh, Jake! Something awful has happened! JAKE: It--it has? You mean more awful than usual? JANE: The opposition has taken Tavros, Jake. They’ve finally shown their true colors. I knew it was only a matter of time before they attacked our family directly!

.....Ah.  Well, that explains it.  She’d never cry like that about HIM returning AFTER STEPPING OUT ON HER.

It’s then that Jake realizes that Jane isn’t mad because she’d never realized he was gone.

Poor pages, huh?  All their most dramatic gestures always undercut.

...It seems like we might see Candy kind of resolved in less of a fucked-up worldstate after all, at this rate?

She seems to have forgotten that she’d been cross with him the last time they met, because now that Gamzee is gone, there’s no one left to talk to.

It’s true. Gamzee’s absence always improves things.

> (==>)

All of it is made worse by the occasional wry glint in her eye, or moment of self-deprecation in the slant of her mouth. It reminds him of the Jane he used to know. Or the Jane he thought he used to know.

Ambition is a hell of a thing.  Seems like she’s drunk of it almost as deeply as Prince Dirk.  I’d imagine this could be a pretty consistent thing with really active Life players when they get actual power, huh?  The way it just gathers to Life players in all its forms -- power over others, status, wealth -- it’s easy to start to leverage it in ways that constitute abuse of power over others from a Riddle perspective.

At first Dirk stands at Jake’s elbow, a one-ghost support staff, before he appears to lose interest in Jane’s rant and wanders off across the office, reading the spines of books and spending way too long staring at a startlingly phallic piece of installation art,

--PLEASE let us see it.

, the provenance of which Jake doesn’t know, but could hazard a guess it wore a codpiece.

Nope, never mind. Interest lost.

> (==>)

Then he settles on Jane’s desk, propping his ghost butt there and sort of just...well. Here’s a picture of what he does.

Um.

Where is this going?

> (==>)

Oh, so the BEST option, then.  :D

Okay. That’s a bit of an exaggeration.

Boooooo.

> (==>)

--Alright, forgiven.

he’s thoroughly exhausted from attempting to pay attention to his supervillain wife while trying not to look at the crotch of a ghost man from his brain.

...Okay, hold up.  BGDirk, are you trying to steer him into doing this for self-indulgent, non-comedic purposes? Or is this a bit of Prince Dirk in there?  (I mean... I can’t definitively say Jake wouldn’t have wanted this.)

And I’m still wondering how all of this is going to be relevant.  IF it’s going to be relevant.  Despite promises to the contrary that are seemingly being ignored.

> (==>)

DIRK: All according to keikaku.

Fuck you.

JAKE: i really didnt think id fall off the wagon so quickly. I dont think being here is good for my emotions to be honest. DIRK: Yeah, probably not. But that’s okay. They don’t matter. JAKE: Oh.

Yeah, Dirk, you suck at this more than you know.  This ain’t going to go as well as you “hope” I don’t think.

DIRK: Don’t know anything about stiff lips, dude. But that’s not what I mean. It’s not because you’re a man. You’re a god. JAKE: Oh right. That. DIRK: The world comes first, even at the expense of all your relationships and personal happiness. That’s what being a hero means. JAKE: I guess...i never really thought about it like that.

You’re also not guaranteed to be fucking right, you know.

There are definitely dichotomies where what was best for the world wasn’t best for the person, so far, and vice versa in Homestuck.  But Dirk’s taking his anime-flavored principles as gospel as usual, and ignoring, oh I dunno, the impact of the heart in all of this.  Some people, ESPECIALLY JAKE and other Pages so far, CAN’T operate at their best until they’re at least reasonably healthy and sure of themselves, and investments to that effect are essential to letting them slowly realize their full potential.  Brain Ghost Dirk is likely making the same goddamn mistake he made with his overbearing Dirkbot back on Jake’s island.

> (==>)

DIRK: Think what you want about Jane, but at least she realizes that none of you can ever be normal, and she never bothered to try. Can it really be a god-complex if you’re actually a god? DIRK: People like us don’t get happy endings.

...Yup.  This is the fucked-over part of Dirk’s worldview coming in full play, here.  And he believes in it so strongly that he couldn’t even fucking leave NON-CANON alone anymore.  Fuck.

JAKE: Thats bleak dirk i dont think i could possibly believe that!

Mmmhmm.

DIRK: Yeah. That’s probably more a Dirk thought than a Jake one. I told you, it’s hard to tell sometimes. JAKE: Is...is that really how dirk felt the whole gosh darned time?

Mmmhmm.

> (==>)

Last page of the upd8.  Well... all I can say is, it’s a good thing he’s a fucking ghost here.  And half Jake, at that.  At least that can limit the damage.  Hopefully giving Jake just enough of a kick in the doing-something direction without being so overbearing that he makes things worse, making for a balance of...

...Wait.

Wait, is that why we’re here?

Maybe that finally makes some sense of all this.  Of this cut, of this small violation of that last sentence in Meat, of--  ah, yeah, I might be on to something here!  Only maybe, but still--!

We’re quite possibly bearing witness to a realm of influence where, through measures outside of his control, Dirk has a balanced impact.  Where this same ideology of his, tempered by Jake’s hopeful mindset and Dirk’s inability to take direct action, might just manage to make things better and actually make everyone happier by the end, while solving Earth C’s fucked-up Candyland state at the same time.  It’s possibly to show the readers (through the lens of a Hope player specializing in positive possibility) that Dirk, had he been restrained, COULD have had a positive impact, even at the same time that we’re shown Prince Dirk at his soul’s most overblown and heinous.

And, if we want to be optimistic..... perhaps this’ll show Dirk, too?

Canon and Non-Canon may not “meet” again.  But that doesn’t stop Dirk, via this fragment of his multiverse-spanning soul, from seeing Non-Canon.  From seeing how well things COULD have worked out, had he held back.  And if we keep cutting like this -- back and forth between the “real” story and these events in Candyverse -- perhaps the moment at which Brain Ghost Dirk realizes what he’s accomplished, realizes how much better things are because he could hold back, will coincide at the end with Prince Dirk finally, belatedly, realizing just how fucked his plan was, and understanding at the very, very end why he has to fucking die?

THAT would be interesting.

I guess we’ll see?  Talk to y’all next upd8.