#post-apoc survival

[linuxgamenews]

Urban Strife an old school strategy game due later this year

Urban Strife post-apoc survival and RPG game coming to Windows PC, but has plans for Linux. All due to the creative minds of developer White Pond Games. Working to make its way onto Steam in 2023. Urban Strife is a tactical RPG game that blends old school turn-based strategy and post-apocalyptic survival mechanics. Along with a thrilling RPG storyline. The game will be released on Steam in Q3 2023, with other platforms yet to be announced. One of those other platforms will be a Linux port. According to the publisher's email reply from White Pond Games, "they have a Linux port in the plans, but they are not sure when this is going to happen." This is good news since Urban Strife is developed in Unreal Engine 4. But the release date for the Linux port is still TBD. With no word on Steam Deck, yet. In Urban Strife, players start as an amnesic survivor rescued by a shelter in a southern US city. And as a result, they must become a true leader and rebuild the pillaged camp. Due to bringing hope back to the survivors. Including real bullet ballistics, a day / night cycle, fire with dynamic material use and spread, and advanced sound travel mechanics. While the AI NPCs have their own lives and faction-based morals, and advanced modding support. Players can work out alliances, or go to war with ruthless factions. Try to survive a sure return of the huge zombie horde that almost ended society.

Urban Strife Announcement Teaser

The game features common weapon classes. Such as handguns, shotguns, hunting, assault, and sniper rifles. Special pros and cons make them the right choice in specific stories. Urban Strife uses a classic Action Points system, with consecutive turns & interrupts based on skills. While avoiding the pitfalls of turn-based combat, especially against large numbers of foes. The game also features survival mechanics. Since players have to search for resources, rebuild and upgrade the shelter. As well as hire residents as specialists, and use refugees as labor. On top of this, Urban Strife post-apoc survival and RPG game has more unique features. Due to an RPG aspect where players can explore a world populated with living NPCs, with their own life, and convictions. Since they can choose to ally with one of the three main factions that are fighting for control. The game also features body parts targeting, melee attack modes, and dynamic campaign options. So be sure to Wishlist Urban Strife on Steam. Which is due to make its way onto Linux and Windows PC in Q3 2023. So join the games Discord.

[peteramthor]

Monte Cook Games has dropped a post apocalypse resource book for their Cypher System over on DrivethruRPG.

https://preview.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/471616/rust-and-redemption?affiliate_id=35459

[rad-roche]

i'm playing with vivid weathers and it's amazing what such a small thing does for fo4's atmosphere, something it was very good at anyway. nothing quite like walking around up north, the 'safer' area, seeing a crack of green lighting and having your geiger counter start wailing because you're taking +12 rads a second just standing around

[country-corner]

I know these were made for a post apocalypses gathering. But, I'm going to be honest, wish I had a couple of these when I was younger and cutting down a locus tree.

[diamondnokouzai]

its honestly kinda funny when um old post-apoc books (like, 70s and 80s) write abt the ruins of nyc and include the twin towers. lol.

[thegreateyeofsauron]

i remember a bunch of people making ponysona's and wishing they were ponies irl and doing like revolver ocelot hypnotism to convince themselves they were ponies and then panicking because the ponification hex kicked in while they were driving to work, but then loudly insisting theyre nothing like furries because furries are *weird*. (they're all furries now.)

Does anyone remember the internet when MLP first got popular and people online were insisting They were swearing up and down that the show was for adults, and that it was marketed towards kids but was Definitely For adults, full of mature humor and dark concepts and deep complex characters. and then nowadays you go look up an episode of MLP: FiM and the episode synopsis is something like Pinkie Pie Lost Her Balloon 🎈💔

[baylardian-1]

Some PMD OCs I've been sitting on for a very long time. :D Originally they were meant to be a part of like a post-apoc PMD story but I'll probably just make them more normie PMD OCs.

The Sigilyph is named Ahul, he's aloof and doesn't trust easily. Figure he comes from a hard life, fighting to survive, always hungry, etc. and that's why he's so standoffish. He mostly keeps to himself until he stumbles upon an orphaned baby Riolu who he reluctantly takes in and raises as his daughter. :3 He names her Ata after his sister.

[hothammies]

the party leader, mike wheeler - apoc au character details + poll under the cut!

---

mike's role in the party:

a scouter - essentially plans runs, checks areas first to ensure safety, and directs the runners during supply runs

assigns basic survival chores at the beginning of each day (laundry, boiling water, patrol, hunting, etc.)

is the "face" of the party -> always the one to negotiate with people of other groups

even though the party likes to give him shit for being kind of rude and bossy about how he talks to them in "leader" mode - they always hang onto his every word! they love and respect him deeply

kind of like a tired dad whenever he's not fighting with someone else -> basically watches over everyone to make sure they're okay

would never hesitate to do something deplorable to protect the party: family first

skills + hobbies:

considered the designated driver (along with max): nancy taught him when he was younger. he was scared about being useless due to his inability to shoot and aim guns so nancy helped him find something useful. max teaches him how to drive manual so that he can drive her muscle car (its how they get over their distaste for each other)

writes an entry in a journal that he stole every day! he lets will doodle in the margins of the paper :)

loves to read whatever's around - particularly interested in history, sci-fi, and old journals from people before the apocalypse (reads them with dustin and el -> they are nosy as hell and live for the drama)

great at using machetes and hatchets -> do NOT let this boy shoot a gun. he will accidentally hurt you and himself

good at fixing up guns and navigating - lucas (guns) and dustin (navigating) taught him :D

quirks / fun facts:

he likes to switch around the pins on his jacket a lot! the party find pins around to give to him (range from terrible to wearable)

since he's the only boy that likes to tie up his hair, max and el like to doll up and play around with his hair during their downtime

is very annoying and particular when it comes to doing survival chores (out of love) -> makes sure that the chores are divided equally among all of them and that no one gets the same chores twice in a row

--- other notes: mike was the first character i had in mind when thinking about this au (no surprise there) and the drawing of him sitting cross legged with a machete in his hand was the first ever "official" drawing i made for this :D i tried to make apoc mike similar to canon mike in terms of his temperament, his hero complex, his self-sacrificial tendencies, his inability to appropriately process his romantic feelings, his natural leadership and his personality. about mike's inability to use guns -> looking at mike's character dnd sheet, his dexterity is low and s1 mike wheeler cannot aim for shit either (see his rock throw). the reason he's most comfortable with machetes (and hatchets) is because of their versatility as both weapons and tools! just wanted to share because i think mike needed a nerf and him not being able to shoot guns is both in character and funny as hell to me i've had mike and will's char sheets done for a while and i really love the way they look :) i'm excited to post will's next! i'm working on the character sheets in batches of two, so which duo are yall most interested to see next? i'll work on them based on the poll results and post them next week at the earliest :) i'll prob also try out some concept designs for the demogorgon-like zombies sometime soon as well!

[heywriters]

I'm definitely going to downsize the account with the intent of eventually deleting it—Pinterest has been a thorn in my side for years. However, I do have some big collections of quotes, creative ideas, character face claims, and other things there that I feel are useful.

First collections to go will be the external links & resources since many are dead or weren't good to begin with. I will keep those up until end of this poll (week) for anyone who wants to fave them.

Collections on the immediate chopping block are linked below!

Also, in part, I would like to remove as much art from my inactive accounts as possible. I know I can't stop Big AI from scraping Pinterest, but I can at least not leave a ton of unprotected (and often uncredited) stuff out in the open. It's simply a sentimental thing at this point.

Save whatever you want and support the artists if you can!

[the-cat-and-the-birdie]

Your post apocalyptic Hobie thing may have sparked my dormant need to write a fic about him

Penny for your thoughts? More hc’s??

These are just the ones that pop into my head right away so they might not be 'brilliant' but -

Hobie is no doubt a master of booby traps. His base his and stops are covered in them.

Nothing too dangerous, but things like trip wires connected to strung-up cans that make noise, cages that cage in zombies or intruders, etc.

It shows off his engineering skill, and it's just one of the many precautious he has around - wouldn't want anyone sneaking up on him right?

Post-Apoc Hobie plays an acoustic guitar, because electric guitars require amps and electricity. But his acoustic guitar is just as beat up and sticker-covered.

LOVES canned beans (because they're popular in Britain lol)

Loves taking in stray animals that aren't zombified.

This included his coup full of messenger pigeons, that helps him communicate with other survivors.

He also repairs old radios, and tries to air broadcasts with he can, contacting other survivors.

He collects old CDs and Vinyls he finds at stores. They take up precious energy from the generator, but it reminds him of a time when things hadn't gone to complete shit.

He squatted in Buckingham Palace at one point, tearing up all the expensive stuff and turning it into things he could use for survival (and also messing with the dead royals' shit)

He has A LOT of rock climbing equipment, like chalk and hooks and rope, to help him climb over the destruction

Like, he's REALLY good at 'urban rock climbing'

There were state sanctioned underground bunkers for police, military, and their friends. Eventuall, even these got zombified at one point -

He met Post-Apoc!Gwen in one of these bunkers. Her dad had become zombified, and he had came to her rescue.

He's great at first aid - that came before the whole shitshow, back when he helped protestors that protested the human trials that would turn into the science-lab-mishap that started the whole apocalypse.

He makes his punk jewlery out of found things - like soda tabs, scrap metal, etc.

He openly feels bad about killing zombies, and he'll reveal this - only if he's close with you. He still recognizes they were once humans. He doesn't enjoy it that much - though it can be cathartic

He will always take any book he can. He stook piles them, says that they're worth saving for the future generations.

He also does this with medicine, breaking into labs and old colleges in hopes of finding old samples and a potential cure'

These are just random ones I have off the top of my head - they may not be much, but yeah :))))

I LOVE HIM

[yellowocaballero]

Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint: YJH Commits the Improbable and Reads a Webnovel

Don’t be weird. Don’t be weird about this, Dokja. I hurriedly went back to the novel myself, reading it next to him. Reading a novel next to somebody…that was like reading it together, wasn’t it? 

It wasn’t together. But it wasn’t separate. It was a strange and obscure connection, one where you said nothing but were linked by a shared experience. It meant something when two people experienced the same thing. Especially this.

Somebody else experiencing this…it was like they were experiencing me. Why had he sat down next to me? Why had he stared? Why did he talk to a stranger like this, ask questions so intently? Why would he go so far as to ask about the book, read it beside me? Did he like it?

With a strange and obscure wonder, the man said, “This isn’t even good.”

Well. That was a natural reaction.

When I'm trying harder than usual to nail a difficult character then I write a lot of side shit in order to try and lock them down. Obviously everybody in ORV is hard as fuck to write, so I decided to write a quick scene as a character study for KDJ & YJH to try and nail their voices. I think this was written right after the divorce arc.

Super short 3k encounter under the cut.

I noticed the man sitting down next to me immediately, but it took far longer to notice he was staring at me. He hadn’t even turned on the computer - he just stared at me, completely shamelessly. It was another few minutes before I finally worked up the courage to fully turn my head to look at him. 

I had noticed from the corner of my eye, but he was an unrealistically attractive man. The punk black shirt, canvas pants, and dangerous black boots suited him well. It made me want to forgive him for staring at me. I didn’t quite forgive him. 

“Is there something you need help with?”

Maybe he had seen me here several times and mistook me for a library expert. I was, in a few ways. Mostly not. You’d think that guys who spent as much time as I did at the library would be some sort of well-read genius. I just read webnovels on the computer. It was my ideal location, since there was a computer and it wasn’t home. My webnovel and isolation was all I asked for. I didn't know who I was asking, but there had to be somebody.

The man somehow hadn’t anticipated the question. He wasn’t big on blinking or moving, which wasn’t a great trait in creepy library men. He took a long few seconds before answering. It wasn’t a tremendously difficult question. I knew it: the more attractive a man was, the stupider he became. Maybe that explained myself?

“What are you reading?” 

Question with a question. The man had a deep, bassy voice, but there was an awkward wobble to it. I hurriedly switched tabs to a news site. “Nothing.”

“You seemed intent.”

“Why would you notice that?” I asked flatly. I could play this game too. “And why were you staring?”

“I wanted to know what you were reading.”

He didn’t seem that curious. Maybe the question was a nicety, meant to open me up towards selling me sharp knives or something, but anybody who would say a nicety like that wouldn’t stare at me for ten minutes first. 

“Just a webnovel.” I knew I sounded defensive, but you could only hear the exact same thing for so long. “Fantasy. It’s not fanfic or anything.” I paused a second. “I don’t know what fanfic is. By the way.”

The man’s eyes skittered away, the nervousness blooming. He stared at my suddenly banal computer screen instead, as if I was stupid enough to show my cards and flip back to Ways of Survival. “What’s it about?” 

I couldn’t help but perk up a little. Was he seriously interested in that? This was beyond bizarre small talk. Better keep the explanation to two sentences. Play it cool, Dokja.

When was the last time somebody had actually asked what it was about? That girl in high school, maybe. When she was pretending to ask me out to get a giggle out of her friends. That reverse counted. 

“It’s a post-apoc regressor fantasy,” I said. Really cool. Wait. This guy was way too attractive to be a nerd. “Oh, a regressor’s a genre. It’s when the main character goes back in -”

“I know what a regressor is,” the man said tersely.

So he was a nerd? That seemed improbable. Attractive people didn’t have to become nerds, and nobody was a nerd voluntarily. “Sorry. Yeah, but it’s about a regressor who has to save the world from gods and demons. And a lot of other stuff. It’s mostly action. For a male audience.”

The man looked a little pained. Crap. I failed. C- in social interaction, Dokja. “Audience, huh.”

I stared at him blankly. “All stories are for an audience.”

“What about a story nobody reads?”

“So can I help you, or…?”

“Can’t a story be just for you?” The man suddenly seemed a little urgent, as if this conversation had tilted into an area that actually mattered. I thought I was the only one… “What about a story that you tell to yourself?”

I stopped and thought about it. I had thought about the topic before - a Dokja found it hard not to - but the thoughts usually walked a tired track of self-pity. But the man spoke sincerely, and some topics deserved a serious answer. The man waited for me to talk with growing impatience. Pushy. 

I decided to give the answer I had when his eyebrow started ticking. “People tell themselves their own stories when they’re trying to create an ending they want. As if framing your life as a romance means you’ll get married at the end. Life doesn’t really work that way, though…”

The man leaned forward a little, his urgency only growing. “What if it did?”

“That’s a hypothetical,” I said. “So it’s fictional. You just made fiction out of making fact out of fiction. That’s fiction at the end of the day.”

“If fiction was real, would it become reality?”

It was a question that was both very banal and very odd. “That only happens in isekais.” The man stared at me blankly. How did you know about regressors and not isekais? “You know. Americans call them portal fantasies. It’s a popular genre, there’s all kinds. Regressors, Returnees, and Reincarnators.” A little awkwardly, I added, “That’s, like, genre canon. See, my novel explains it.”

I opened up the webnovel tab, navigating instantly towards the line I was thinking of. It was pretty early in the book, while Yoo Junghyeok explained to Lee Jihye and Kim Namwoon that he was a regressor. As usual, the narration had to step in to explain the basics of the worldbuilding. It was always nostalgic to read the beginning of the novel: back when the worldbuilding wasn’t insanely convoluted. 

“ ‘In the cruel star stream, there are only three ways to survive’”, I read out loud, before something occurred to me. “Oh, the star stream is kind of like an evil apocalyptic Twitch stream. Gods and demons watch scenarios - that’s a sort of game where a bunch of people die - and then they watch people die, it’s a gory -”

“Like a Twitch stream,” the man said tightly. This guy was a huge fan of repeating what I said. 

I just shrugged. “It’s a metaphor. The novel’s about the entertainment industry and exploitation of -” the man’s face was becoming increasingly stormy, so I went back to the novel. “Right, here: ‘In the cruel star stream, there are only three ways to survive: bear regression, change into a returnee, or accept reincarnation. These are the strongest people. In this new and dying world, the weak will not survive.’” I looked back at the man, almost forgetting the casual act. “Cool, right? There’s lots of isekai elements - I guess you could say that there’s a sophisticated nature to it sometimes, this metatextual aspect? - but the story itself doesn’t really hit those isekai beats. MCs are meant to be relatable everymen, but you can’t really call Yoo Joonghyuk relatable. Oh, that’s the MC. He’s really morally gray, it’s that kind of story. He’s the kind of hero who always does his best but who’s constantly fucking up. He’s, like, on his 945th regression. Not great at the -”

“945th?” the man asked. If he was strangled before he was dying of asphyxiation now. 

I got it. “He’s a sunfish,” I said sympathetically. The man seemed like he was in too much pain to understand the reference. “That means he’s super easy to kill. But that’s mostly at first. He gets super badass later. One time he decapitated four -”

“This is funny to you, isn’t it?”

I stopped short. I couldn’t read the man’s face at all, but I felt very judged. And a little like I had disappointed him. “It’s not exactly a comedy,” I said awkwardly. “It’s just cool. It’s fun.”

“You didn’t look like you were having fun while you were reading it.”

Damn. Caught. I looked away, rubbing at the back of my neck. “Uh…yeah, I’d read that section, like, five times. It’s just comforting, I suppose.” For some demented reason, I felt the need to add, “You read it in class and you can pretend Yoo Joonghyuk would beat up your bullies for you. Or that he’d stand up for you against your - that kind of thing. He’s a hero. It’s not about watching the hero suffer. It’s about cheering for him when he wins. Um, I shouldn’t admit this, should I?”

But he didn’t look like he thought I was cringe. The man spoke quickly, as if he needed me to know before anything else. “He used to threaten his sister’s bullies. That’s the sort of thing he does. Did. As a child.” He paused a beat. “It’s why he started working out. They weren’t very intimidated. Or so it seems.”

I nodded eagerly, suddenly excited beyond measure. “That’s totally him! He just hides it behind that cool murder guy exterior. You really get it. You know, maybe you’d like - uh, nobody likes it, but it’s oddly compelling -”

“Sure,” the man said. I quietly exploded. “Pull it up on the computer.”

And for the very first time in my entire life, I sat next to somebody as they read Ways of Survival. I was practically vibrating. I couldn’t stop sneaking glances at his face, trying to suss out if he was enjoying it or not. He had skipped forward a few chapters, so maybe he wasn’t that interested - but he looked so intense - but he always seemed a little intense - another human being on this Earth was reading Ways of Survival! Was this a dream? I didn’t want to wake up. 

Don’t be weird. Don’t be weird about this, Dokja. I hurriedly went back to the novel myself, reading it next to him. Reading a novel next to somebody…that was like reading it together, wasn’t it? 

It wasn’t together. But it wasn’t separate. It was a strange and obscure connection, one where you said nothing but were linked by a shared experience. It meant something when two people experienced the same thing. Especially this.

Somebody else experiencing this…it was like they were experiencing me. Why had he sat down next to me? Why had he stared? Why did he talk to a stranger like this, ask questions so intently? Why would he go so far as to ask about the book, read it beside me? Did he like it?

With a strange and obscure wonder, the man said, “This isn’t even good.”

Well. That was a natural reaction. I wasn’t offended. 

“I don’t like to call stories good or bad,” I said philosophically. “Every story has something for everybody. Ways of Survival is a great story if you love it enough.”

“It could have at least been good.” The man leaned back, exhaling like he had run a marathon. “All of this…and it couldn’t even be good?”

This was basically expected. “The characterization is good,” I offered weakly. 

“Of course the people are good,” the man said irritably, as if this was a foregone conclusion. “But the book itself is embarrassing. The writing is awkward and choppy. The plotlines seem rushed and convoluted. And the regressor is completely unsympathetic.”

“Are you kidding? How can you be unsympathetic to a man with so much inner pain?” I had to roll up for my bias. If Yoo Joonghyuk had a million fans I was one of them, if he had one fan then the fan was me - he did literally have one, and it was literally me. “If I’d seen my loved ones die a million times I’d act cold too. He just loves people too much, so he pushes them away. It’s really deep. And he’s cool.”

The man looked away from the monitor, eyes flaring, and I had to fight the urge to retreat against that intense look. “How can you love a book that’s so faulty?”

All I could do was shrug awkwardly. “It’s pretty easy when it’s all you have.”

“There’s other books.”

“None of them are mine.”

The man’s eyes narrowed a little, his face tightening. “It’s a public book. What makes it yours?”

“I’m the only person who reads it.” This person was getting a little intense. It should have been awkward and uncomfortable - and it definitely was - but somehow I could only care about the fact that he wanted to read my book. It didn’t even matter that he didn’t like it. That had never happened before. “I suppose it’s the author’s too. But a book belongs to the audience, you know. The author can have every intention they want, but the people who read it decide what the book really is. No offense to the author or anything.”

“What if the book doesn’t have an audience?” 

Nobody had ever looked at me like this man looked at me. He was looking straight through me, as if I wasn’t even there - but he was looking at me as if there was nobody else in the world. It wasn’t comfortable. But it wasn’t uncomfortable either. Maybe that was just the nature of true things. 

“That’s a little sad, isn’t it?” I asked. “Every book deserves a reader.”

“Could be a crap book.”

“Is a reader not allowed to enjoy a crap book?”

“What about a crap person?” the man asked urgently. “Does a crap person deserve a reader?”

“I don’t know.” I could only shrug a little helplessly. I wish I wasn’t so helpless. This man was clearly looking for a certain answer, but I couldn’t parse it out. “It’s not about deserve. People are allowed to love crap people. Readers are allowed to like crap books. It’s not so different, I think…”

“It’s bad taste, though.”

“Isn’t that somebody’s own choice?”

The man was silent.

The air had grown awkward. I went back to the novel, abandoning the man to stare blankly at his own computer screen. I didn’t know why my own personality and a webnovel gave him so much to process, but Ways of Survival incited a lot of deep thoughts about the universe and the nature of humanity in me too.

I was on chapter 1,452 before the man finally stood up. He carefully pushed in his chair, reaching to straighten a nonexistent collar before letting his hand fall. 

“Thank you,” the man said. “This helped.”

He seemed sincere, and earnest sincerity was something one ought to accept. “You’re welcome. I don’t really know why, though.”

“Let’s say I needed closure on some things. The turnaround was worth it.” He glanced upwards, as if he was speaking to God. “But I’m not thanking anybody.” 

“If somebody does you a favor it’s polite to say thanks.”

“I would strangle that bastard before I thank him.” Bizarre sentence, but the man paused for a second anyway. “I Googled the top pro gamer in South Korea.”

I was caught off-guard by the subject change. “I don’t keep up with esports?”

“I didn’t recognize the name.”

“Neither…would I?”

“It was a relief.”

The man turned off the computer and stood up, as if the non-sequitur was the final and most important thing to say. I was still stuck on what esports had to do with anything. 

Wait. Something finally occurred to me. “You never said your name.”

The corner of the man’s lips twitched upwards. “Kim Dokja.”

“That’s not funny.” It was actually pretty creepy. How long had this guy been staring at me? “Hey, how do you know my name?”

“I know everything about you,” the man panned. “All of your secret fears in the dark. All of your love and hatred. I know you, therefore we are comrades.”

I stared at him blankly. “But I don’t know you at all.”

“That’s another story.” The man stuck his hands in his pockets, easily turning and walking away. “Until next time.”

Until next - “Hey! What does that even mean!”

But the man ignored me, and when he turned a corner and disappeared out of sight he may as well not have existed. I was left alone in that library, abruptly alone and lonely. In a lifetime of isolation I had never felt so abandoned. 

Desperately, insanely, I cupped my hands around my mouth and yelled as I could. “Come back! Nobody ever sees the mysterious stranger again!”

I wanted to see him again. I wanted more questions, more answers. I couldn’t allow this man to be a flash in a pan, a blinking light in the night before all grew dark. 

I wanted him to be a different sort of mysterious stranger - a friend you hadn’t met yet. One that kept his distance and could never come nearer until he eliminated all threats to his life. Some romantic stalker that loved me from afar. Even foreshadowing or a Chekov’s gun, a story where every element has its own meaning - one where strangers always reunited, and nobody disappeared forever.

If I wanted that story badly enough, would it happen? I was just Kim Dokja, a reader who would never write his own story by sheer nature. I had always been content with that. But in that moment, for the very first time, I wanted to create the story. 

No - I wanted to create the narrative. But that wasn’t achievable outside of fiction. Not for somebody powerless like me. The loser only grew powerful in fiction. Real life didn’t work like that. You had to have power to become powerful. Only powerful people wrote their own stories. And somebody like me could only become powerful in a shitty isekai. 

For a long time thereafter I wondered if I regretted that wish or not. Something as simple as regret ought to be easy to determine. But regret was one of those insidious little things, a sour thread that ran through every happy moment and curled around the sad ones. An emotion that stayed present in happy or sad circumstances, when you failed to obtain something you wanted or when you were never satisfied with what you had. 

But Yoo Joonghyuk had always made a pretty shitty mysterious stranger.

[doodstormer]

IT'S WEBCOMICS DAY

LETS BLOW THE DOORS OFF

ARKIN BLADE

Arkin Blade is an action-fantasy comic that oozes its fighting game influences from every pore, there's plenty of down time between the fighting but it's the awesome fight choreography you're here for

IKON

Ikon is a fascinating supernatural crime drama story set in a meticulously researched 90s Russia setting. Every panel is heavily detailed and there is a ton of craftsmanship in every little brush stroke that makes it a delight to read!

ADVENTURE CLUB

If you are any kind of fantasy or tabletop RPGs enthusiast Adventure Club isn't just a recommendation it's practically required reading! Wonderful characters and a great cozy blend of humor and heart!

SOMEWHERE FAR BEYOND

Somewhere Far Beyond is a dark fantasy comic about a monster slayer that has not yet gotten very deep into its story but is already incredibly immersing. The markerwork alone makes it a blast to read!

UPIÓR

Upiór is a Polish supernatural fantasy story steeped in folklore and pagan myth, coupled with a lovely art style that really evokes its cultural origins and makes each page a feast for the eyes.

TALES FROM ALDERWOOD

Tales from Alderwood is a magical adventure story about a misfit mage and her journeys through the bureaucracy of wizardry and her encounters with the kinds of insane people that regard adventure as a profession

DEAD OR ALIVE

Dead or Alive is a nice easy read about coping with death and trauma, told through the vehicle of a mysterious bandit and a card-counting cheat who set out on a journey across the great southwest. Hijinks ensue.

TOWER IN THE SKY

Tower in the Sky is a nice little magically themed story about wizards in love and the immense pressure put upon them by their particular jobs that has made it difficult for them to cut loose.

ARCANE FRONTIER

Arcane Frontier is a story set in a very unique post-apoc world that really is post apocalypse, featuring all sorts of strange and wonderful contraptions and creatures and a protagonist with anger management issues.

NOW HIRING

Now Hiring is set in a world where space aliens have become an everyday part of society, though some, like Maks, struggle with trying to survive in that society and become easy targets for trouble…

BEYOND THE LANTERN LIGHT

Beyond the Lantern Light is a really unique spin on the fantasy genre featuring an elderly adventurer who is coming to terms with a past failure and now has set out to try it all one more time.

SILENT JEAN

Silent Jean is a low-fantasy world where by a convenient doctrinal loophole nuns are allowed to wield weapons and work as monster-slaying detectives. The comic oozes with style and the stark inkwork and halftones really drive the tone home

[lesvegas]

Super simple mostly spoiler-free thoughts on Furiosa right after watching.

I'm definitely gonna need to rewatch it again in the future to take it all in but it's really, really good. It is different from Fury Road, though. In arbitrary numbers I'd say Fury Road is a 9/10 while Furiosa is an 8.6/10. While Fury Road is much more of an action-driven spectacle that keeps you hyped the entire time, Furiosa (while also being spectacular, don't get me wrong) has a lot more emphasis on plot; there's more dialogue, more locations and events, and the movie follows Furiosa from childhood to adulthood in her mission to survive, get revenge, and return home.

That said, everything Furiosa adds only improves Fury Road retroactively, and I can't wait to be able to watch Fury Road right after Furiosa to get the whole story chronologically in one sitting. Fury Road gives you enough to be invested in Furiosa but her titular movie makes me really, really want to see her succeed in her mission all over again. Great writing, set design, costumes and props and stunts as usual, and I didn't think I'd enjoy Taylor-Joy's performance even half as much as I did, she was fucking stellar. All the actors in the movie were, even the child actors, particularly the one who plays young Furiosa.

Go see it, especially if you never got the chance to see Fury Road in theatres when it first released. If you like post-apoc media in general, there's a lot to love in this movie. And because this is a FNV-centered blog and I have a FNV-centered brain, I was constantly thinking about how finally, finally there's another movie out there that I feel I can compare to FNV besides The fucking Postman (1997).

Yes, Furiosa is a lot more like FNV than Fury Road, or most post-apoc movies that I've seen for that matter.

Short answer: It's a revenge story that's only a small part of a greater wasteland war.

Long answer, with spoilers:

...

I haven't written this out yet because I have a lot of thoughts and also kinda wanna see it again before I really put it to paper. Post. Y'know.

But trust me on this one.

[sreegs]

Kenshi is the GOTY imo, incredibly engrossing. If you don't know what it is, it's a post-apoc other-world survival game. The gameplay is a combination between Fallout and Rimworld, but the "build a base" part is optional. It's unforgiving and has no quests or goals, like Dwarf Fortress, so the fun comes in what you set out to achieve.

The setting is on an alien planet divided up into regions that are hostile to live in by natural flora and fauna, and also by lack of resources (or only one specific resource in abundance). You have warring major powers and minor factions and their affairs play out with you or not.

There are multiple ways to start, but the recommended start is a solo adventurer at a crossroads town with no governing authority. From there you, do what you want. You start as a weakling so pretty much everything can kill you, however you can scrounge by and scrap with weaklings to get a start. And when you lose a fight, it's not always the end. Many times losing a fight is a way to gain XP in skills that increase your survivability. Losing a limb is just an opportunity to replace it with a better, artificial limb.

From there you can do what you want. You can be a loner and roam from town to town collecting bounties, or stealing things, or trading for money. You can do the same thing but recruit a group to do it with you. You can build a settlement and try to be self-sustaining. You can build a settlement that is an industrial manufacturing base that sells their wares to sustain itself. You can venture into ancient ruins to find old tech from before the apocalypse that you can either use, keep, or sell. Up to you.

It's definitely got a learning curve. It's hard. But if you like Rimworld, Dwarf Fortress, or Fallout (especially the 2D Fallouts but it's got New Vegas vibes as well) then you might like it. Another thing that I personally like about it is its grunge and clunkiness, because its interface makes it feel like a game from the 90s.

Their website is https://lofigames.com/, there's a demo there. They link to Steam but it's also available DRM-free from GOG. (as of this post, August 14, 2023, it's on sale for $14 USD)

[scifimagpie]

Theme tag

The bolded words represent major themes, and the italic ones, minor themes, that appear in Monsters and Fools, my current wip! It's a sequel to The Underlighters, and instead of being a horror-inflected post-apoc coming-of-age story, it's a neo-noire about civic politics and rights issues in the same post-apoc setting! Here goes.

addiction | beauty | betrayal | change vs. tradition | chaos vs. order | circle of life | coming of age | communication | convention vs. rebellion | corruption | courage | crime and law | dangers of ignorance | darkness and light | death | desire to escape | dreams | displacement | empowerment | facing darkness | facing reality | faith vs. doubt | fall from grace | fame and fortune | family | fate | fear | fear of failure | free will | friendship | fulfillment | good vs. bad | government | greed | guilt and forgiveness | hard work | heroism | hierarchy | honesty | hope | identity crisis | immortality | independence | individual vs. society | inner vs. outer strength | innocence | injustice | isolation | knowledge vs. ignorance | life | loneliness | lost love | love | man vs. nature | manipulation | materialism | motherhood | nature | nature vs. nurture | oppression | optimism | peer pressure | poverty | power | power of words | prejudice | pride | progress | quest | racism | rebirth | relationships | religion | responsibility | revenge | sacrifice | secrets | self-awareness | self-preservation | self-reliance | sexuality | social class structure | survival | technology | temptation and destruction | time | totalitarianism | weakness | vanity | war | wealth | wisdom of experience | youth

tagging in!

@acertainmoshke @mrbexwrites @tabswrites @writernopal @squarebracket-trick @sm-writes-chaos @isabellebissonrouthier @digitalsatyr23 @sleepyowlwrites

[crash-bump-bring-the-whump]

My In-Depth Masterlist!!

Oh my god, it's about time I actually sat down and organized something like this. Hopefully this helps people dive in!

Things I write a whole lot: romance (especially polyamorous romance), gay and trans characters, horror, lab whump, gore, action whump, angst, sickfics, team dynamics, supernatural whump, urban fantasy and lush green post-post-apoc fantasy, also apparently now I do military whump lol Things I don't write: emeto, eye gore

I collaborate a lot too, so you'll see plenty of other people's ocs! Go check them out if you want, I think they're neat.

How to read stuff: I jump around a lot, so don't worry about it. It's generally pretty clear if it's modern or not, and barring my Arknights AU That I Kept Threatening My Friends With where you'll want some knowledge of the actual series/game, you can probably jump in just about anywhere and figure it out as you go!

I think I'll organize this by character! The only limit to characters and worlds colliding is how much I want the characters to interact, so no worries. They'll all be mashed together at some point anyway, if I know myself. All character tags will take you to a list of their drabbles in the order they were written and posted!

Mariano Ortiz/Mariano Cross - Playlist link

Tag: Mage of Violence Transgender man (he/him) A stoic, stiff war mage on a quest to help his kingdom survive an invasion by making a soul-binding Pact with a diamond dragon to make his magic more powerful. An ex-war criminal manager of a mom-and-pop coffee shop with a draconic tattoo artist for a roommate and boyfriend. Either way, he's doing his best to make up for the skeletons in his closet and figure out how to be a person again.

Bastian, Dragon of the Deepest Forge

Tag: Dragon of Diamond Cisgender (sort of??) man (he/him) A brash, headstrong dragon who is one of the most magically potent of his kind and knows it. A gothic, pierced-up tattoo artist with diamond growing from his scalp and the confidence to take in a quiet war criminal as a roommate. He thinks Mariano is weird, and he can smell the blood on his hands a mile away, but that's alright because he's also kind of cute.

The War Mages/Dimitri, Manuel, Laredo, and Izan - Playlist Link

Tag: I'll get around to it I swear, I promise I'll find a good one and actually go through and tag everything eventually Dimitri - Cisgender man (he/him) Manuel - Cisgender man (he/him) Laredo - Transgender man (he/him) Izan - Cisgender man (he/him) A ragtag group of ex-war criminals, no matter the setting. Feared for their ability to raze whole towns with just their magic, they were the pinnacle of their military's power and capabilities. And then Mariano ruined it for everyone. Whether Mariano was top dog or the baby of an elite special ops unit, he just can't seem to stomach what they're doing and the fallout changes every one of their lives. Some are more upset about this than others. They'll be fine, don't worry about it.

Luis - Playlist link

Tag: The Leader Cisgender man (he/him) Gentle, soft spoken, and the only person on this planet who scares Mariano or any of the other war mages. Luis demands perfection from the people he trains. He demands self-sufficiency. He demands the unshakable will to live at any cost. Known for his results and ability to shatter even the most steadfast soldiers, he'll do anything to ensure his mages are able to thrive in any circumstances, even if he has to prepare them for it with his own two hands. Watch out for his whip.

William Bennett - Playlist link

Tag: A Gentle Death Nonbinary (he/him) A sweet, laid-back, blind grim reaper under the employment of Death Herself. Protects souls from the manipulative influence of angels and demons, and safeguards lives from untimely deaths with every fiber of his being. Was MIA for a year, kidnapped as the unwilling, undying assistant of Daniel the Archangel. Has baggage about that nasty scar across his throat, but he'd rather talk about his side gig of DJ-ing at local gay clubs.

Daniel the Archangel

Tag: The Archangel Cisgender man (he/him) A curious, persistent archangel tasked with getting "hands on experience" with humans. Unfortunately for everyone, Daniel is a very literal person, and was also a doctor in life. To achieve his goal, he's started taking on assistants, but they just can't seem to withstand the rigors of his research. Luckily for Daniel, a polite grim reaper was tasked with looking into the string of mysterious deaths and disappearances that all center around his remote mansion. Who is Daniel to say no to such a golden opportunity to show someone what he does?

Brian Litos - Playlist link

Tag: What If This Storm Ends Binary bigender (he/him and she/her) A flirty, bubbly vampire who seems like he'd be more at home in the pool than stalking the night. Sweet and outgoing, Brian has a strong sense of what she wants and how to get it. Unfortunately, he is also an escaped experiment by some scientists who had their eyes on military contracts to manufacture perfect predator of humans. A controllable, undetectable being that kept its soul-tied magic while gaining the physical benefits of being undead. They succeeded. They could not control him for long. Now, after being duped into partaking in the experiments, she's long-dead, has a thirst for blood and a nose for adrenaline, and a happy career as a small-time porn star.

Elliot Bhar - Playlist link

Tag: Lightning Eyes and Alibis Transgender man (he/him) A rough-and-tumble werewolf who spends his days as a waiter at an upscale restaurant. With a history of homelessness and the betrayal of being turned by his own brother following the accidental murder of their parents, Elliot has trust issues galore. He's doing his best to just keep his feet under him and learn to accept help from his boyfriends, though.

Jackson Ryder

Tag: Saturday Sun Cisgender man (he/him) An immortal who's honestly had a chill time so far! Sweet, outgoing, and almost friendly to a fault, he was almost destined to become more than friends with the gentle grim reaper he accidentally spilled coffee on. And the werewolf and vampire that said grim reaper was dating. He just wants to live a comfortable life with the people he loves, but somehow things just keep happening!

Asao the Angel

Tag: Shattered Trust Cisgender man (he/him) An angel with a skeleton in his closet that he'd really, really like to bury, if at all possible. A horrific mistake made as a teenager has haunted him ever since, and drives him to do things he never thought he could in the name of fixing it. What can you do when you just want your best friend back, but he refuses to talk to you after how you murdered him? Nothing but try again, and again.

Gabriel Rivas - Playlist link

Tag: The Original Sin Cisgender man (he/him) A demon prince who killed his way to the top and now rules with a shocking amount of empathy for the demons in his court. Ruling over a labyrinthine city, the screams of the eternally hunted echo through the streets each night, and Gabriel listens with satisfaction. The only people he hates more than the angels who want to hurt Throl are people who prey on the weak, after all. Also he bartends on the side, because he loves to flirt and likes the energy of a gay club on a Friday night.

Throl Escamilla - Playlist link

Tag: It's Sacrilege Nonbinary (he/him) A fallen angel framed for a plot to murder the Seraph that was far, far above him. Such is the risk of being a messenger serving under Archangel Daniel, but Throl does his best not to dwell on the past. He can't particularly complain either, now that he's married to one of the most notoriously violent demon prince's in the demonic realms. Gabriel is sweet, attentive, and would tear apart any would-be vigilantes who would want to destroy the infamous Traitor. Perhaps Throl was really the winner here.

LaChappelle

Tag: The Artist Cisgender man (he/him) A photographer with a taste for intense visuals and a hatred for faking something when the real thing is freely available. He's dedicated to bringing breathtaking photoshoots to stimulate the minds of all his patrons, and for his highest paying contributors...the process videos as well. All his models get something out of it too, as LaChappelle makes sure that every single one gets their prints delivered to their home.

To be continued! I still have plenty of characters to add, but this is a good starting point.