#rainy series

[rainyinautumn]

Did someone say COMPLETE DATA ANALYSIS OF ALL THE DEATHS IN THE LIFE SERIES? No? Well. I did it. Here are some neat graphs for you guys to look at so that you don’t have to deal with the gigantic spreadsheet I did!

Let’s start off with the big bad question: what gets people killed in this game, anyway?

Note that a CAUSE OF DEATH is not the same as a KILL. Cause of death is what pops up in the chat when someone dies (ex. PearlescentMoon was slain by Smallishbeans, BdoubleO100 fell from a high place). The cause of death does not always account for player responsibility (ex. TNT traps). Generally, a player is only considered to be someone’s cause of death if the death occurs through direct PvP combat. HOWEVER, responsibility for an indirect kill such as a trap still goes toward a player’s total kill count—for example, Joel has 14 kills overall, 10 of which are direct enough for him to be considered the actual cause of death. After all, axes don’t kill people without being swung by someone.

A few other whacky things about kill counts:

Self-inflicted deaths do not count toward a player’s kill count (ex. Grian doesn’t get a kill for jumping off Monopoly Mountain at the end of 3rd Life, Scott doesn’t get a kill for blowing himself up at the end of Double Life).

When it comes to Double Life, soulmates are considered to share their three lives. No distinction is made between Soulmate A's life and Soulmate B's life, and each death only counts as one kill (ex. Joel gets one kill for killing Scott with fireworks, even though that also killed Pearl (however, Pearl’s cause of death is still Joel, as her life is considered the same as Scott’s)).

Using the /kill command does not count toward your kill count. Grian.

With that cleared up, let’s look at kill counts.

By the skin of his teeth, Grian leads the pack in total kills. The top three you see on that graph are the only players who have a KDR (kill-to-death ratio) of more than 1—for you folks who are unfamiliar with those, a KDR of more than 1 means you kill other people more often than you die. Less than 1 means you die more often than you kill other people. Here are the highest and lowest KDRs in the series:

“What’s this?” I hear you say. “Jimmy Wet-Paper-Bag-of-a-Man Solidarity DOESN’T have the lowest KDR in the series?”

No. No, he does not, and it’s actually really funny you should ask.

Because of Last Life’s mechanic of life transferring, even players that have been in all three installments of the Life Series don’t have the same death count. Eight players died more than three times in Last Life. Another eight died exactly three times. And one player only died twice.

By virtue of starting on yellow and never receiving any extra lives in Last Life, Jimmy holds the record for fewest deaths in an installment of the Life Series with just two deaths in Last Life. He is the only player to ever die less than three times in a game. This means that although he has just one kill, he has fewer total deaths than BigB (who has died a very standard nine times), the only other player with one kill, so his KDR is higher. Congrats, Jimmy, you’re not last in everything. But you are still the only player without a PvP kill.

Speaking of PvP, it’s time to look at how people do that! Here’s a graph of the top five weapons that tend to land PvP kills the most in the series:

And now here’s weapon preferences by game:

[Double Life not depicted due to lack of PvP deaths—only 4 occurred, using a diamond axe, a diamond sword, fireworks, and an iron axe respectively.]

Despite 19 more deaths occurring in Last Life than 3rd Life, the two actually have the exact same amount of PvP kills (28). It’s interesting to note the strong preference for bows in 3rd Life, which was a much more warlike game and had several fairly formal battles where people fought from a distance. Last Life required an overall sneakier strategy, resulting in a higher use of traps. In combat, non-ranged weapons like swords and axes were generally preferred due to fights often starting in close proximity and without warning, courtesy of the Boogeyman curse. Comparatively, Double Life saw remarkably few PvP kills, likely due to each person being twice as accident-prone by virtue of being linked to another player—in fact, with a total of 12, accidents accounted for three times as many deaths as PvP in Double Life and overall for more than half (57%) of the deaths in the game.

As for individual player stats sheets, here’s an example of one of those:

If you want to see one of those for ALL 17 PLAYERS, you can go to this slideshow! More details about the stats can be found in the presentation notes of each slide. And, if you have a really specific question and want to get into the nitty gritty, feel free to send me an ask! Hope you guys enjoyed the data!

[rocketbirdie]

taking matters into my own hands and giving us the gongaga we deserved

[hotwaterandmilk]

2024 English language manga releases I'm enjoying

Here are a couple of titles I've picked up in English so far this year that I've enjoyed. Most of these I read digitally in Japanese for one or two volumes a couple of years back, but opted to wait and purchase the English print versions for my collection.

I feel like all of these books are worth the purchase price, but don't have the energy to do individual posts for each of them. So here's a very smooshed together post covering a few 2024 reads.

GOGOGOGO-GO-GHOST! from Yen Press

Akechi Ushiro is a heavily flawed, hard-working woman whose disregard for her own wellbeing results in her coming face-to-face with her equally flawed guardian spirit, Masako. The pair decide to combine their forces and begin tackling the obstacles in Ushiro's life using curses.

Hiruzuka Miyako's darkly funny tale of a woman taking control of her life alongside her queer sister spirit is such a delight . Featuring a rough-and-ready art style that helps underscore the macabre elements at play, the entire first volume is scathing in its humour and unashamed in its portrayal of Ushiro's flaws. I was surprised when this one got picked up by Yen Press a while back, but so happy to see it enjoying a stateside release. If you're after something that doesn't always play nice, GOGOGOGO-GO-GHOST! might well be for you.

Edit: If you haven't read it before, this Japanese interview with Hiruzuka is worth reading for a bit more on her background and the creation of the series.

Pass the Monster Meat, Milady! (Akujiki Reijou to Kyouketsu Koushaku) from Kodansha USA

A sweet little fantasy romance between two individuals who find solace in one another despite being reviled by the general public for their interest in monsters. One loves defeating monsters in battle while the other loves cooking them!

Melphiera is a smart, capable heroine while Aristide Rogier du Galbraith is a dashing and supportive hero. The manga art is a bit low in detail, but the characters and story are absolutely worth your time. I'd love to see the LNs that the manga adapts in English someday too. I mentioned in tags before this whole series gives me the types of vibes I enjoy in historical fantasy romance novels, so if you like that kind of content this might be a good title to check out (or recommend to friends who appreciate romantasy but haven't tried manga before).

In The Name of The Mermaid Princess (Mio no Na no Moto ni) from VIZ Media

In a country where being "unhuman" or in some way supernaturally inclined is seen as a curse rather than a blessing, Princess Mio takes medications to suppress her mermaid-esque traits and please her father. Her perspective changes when Yuri, a tutor from her fiance's home kingdom, encourages her to be herself and embrace the things that make her different.

I've seen people say this is a bit too obvious in its parallels between fantasy oppression and IRL issues, but this is a Ribon manga for young girls so yeah it's on the nose but I think it works for the audience it has in mind. Tashiro Miya's artwork here is gorgeous and both leads are quite endearing (Mio is SO freakin adorable I can'ttttt). Overall a solid little series with nicely packaged volumes for those after something for a younger audience.

The Moon on a Rainy Night (Amayo no Tsuki) from Kodansha USA

A romantic slice-of-life tale featuring two high school girls, one of whom is a budding pianist (Saki) and the other a loner who is hard of hearing (Kanon).

I don't normally go much on high school romance but the way this series blends classic GL melodrama tropes with genuine issues in an earnest manner works for me. While we see things more from Saki's viewpoint as she eagerly tries to learn more about Kanon and tries to figure out her own sexuality, we do also come to understand Kanon's thwarted ambitions and the difficulties she has with letting people in.

Kuzushiro's art is quite whispy and cute, with all the characters tending to look quite well-realised on the page. While I prefer romances that feature a character with disability to centre their perspective, I do feel this does a decent job of portraying both girls as they try to navigate their deepening relationship. YMMV on this though, particularly if you are d/Deaf or hard of hearing.

Sketchy from Kodansha USA

Ako is living an unfulfilling life with a dull job and even duller boyfriend, but she suddenly finds herself thrust into a whole new world upon encountering a mysterious young skateboarder.

Sketchy, while ostensibly about women taking up skateboarding is more a snapshot of their individual lives and the role having a hobby plays once you're no longer a child. Ako's story particularly resonates with me (I literally worked her job at a similar age) but all the characters prove interesting in their own way.

Makihirochi's art is a bit more experimental than others on this list and may not be to everyone's taste, but I do think Sketchy is still worth checking out even if you're not entirely sold on the art (which I think has improved since I first became familiar with her work through Itsuka Tiffany de Choushoku o in Comic Bunch). Titles like this, which, let's face it, have low levels of mainstream appeal, don't often get English language releases so I highly recommend supporting this one if you have the opportunity to do so.

[cybergus]

Strange (and rainy) Days (June 2023, Mexico City), by Abelardo Ojeda.

My Street Photoblog.

[julialametta]

one a day 366/155

"Bodenschätze" / "found on the floor" / Vienna / ©Julia Lametta

[lesbiandreamriso]

This episode added so much to my correct conclusion that Ran is just as down bad as Tul is. She immediately knew something was wrong when Tul left the snacks but didn't stop to see her and she showed up to her house after one missed call. Dr Ran you are never beating the allegations.

[ectoplasmer]

MOST NORMAL THING EVER but like… holding your f/o’s hand… running your thumb over their knuckles and feeling the dips and rises of their bones… resting your fingertips in the spaces between their knuckles and feeling like you’re completing them, filling in the empty spots… pressing your palm together with theirs and feeling the way they slide into place perfectly and the warmth that radiates from their hand over time… aaaaaa

[hatter-and-dodo-in-wonderland]

Hello Jervis and Brownie!

I have to ask, is it cold in France right now? Does it ever snow?

Oh, no it's really hot here...

See? We're actually burning!

[fuck-i-like-too-much-stuff]

Watching Mark and Ohm chronically lose and Great and Inn chronically win across games over 2 days at 2 am is actually equivalent to whatever it is they do with the couch and notepad

[friendlylocalwhumper]

The little "thanks" to the empty room AFTER Simon left killed me. It absolutely destroyed me. He wasn't prompted to thank Simon, he just did WHEN HE COULDN'T GET ANY BROWNIE POINTS FOR IT!! My man has a tight grip on his tragic backstory and Simon just wants a peek at it

“Yes.” | “Kneel.” | Best of Three | Correspondence | Appraisal | Collapse | Cupcake | Foggy | Cracking | Just Breathe | Urge | Trim | Stupid | Upkeep | Old Defeat | Watching | Simple Loyalty | Overreaction | Set Up for Failure | Burning | Healed Wrong | Haunted | Boxes Buried | Heavy Blow | Loneliness

Rain patters across the windows. The air conditioning keeps the air comfortably dry, and that coupled with the cool blue light from the storm outside makes it almost the perfect temperature for curling up on the couch with a blanket.

So there Major is. Lying on his side, knees up by his chest, one arm hanging limply off the cushion to dangle near the floor.

“Move over. My show’s coming on.” Simon gestures with two hands full of snacks. Popcorn, chips, chocolate.

Major sullenly draws his legs in closer, and his captor settles happily onto the newly available spot. The remote gets snatched up and the TV buzzes as it turns on.

There’s some room for the snacks to be set down, so Simon wedges the popcorn bowl between his thigh and Cupcake’s foot. Then there’s more room, so the candy gets set down too, the chip bag balanced on top.

With the familiar theme song playing, Simon relaxes into the cushions, digging lazy fingers into the bag in search of a chip small enough to shove into his mouth without having to break it in half. He’ll go for a bite of chocolate, next, some sweet to go with the salty…

There’s enough room for the bag of chips to have its own space, now. Simon frowns and glances at Cupcake, who previously was taking up two thirds of the couch, but now is taking up less than half. His legs are bent up tight against his body and that arm is no longer dangling. Now it is braced against the cushion under him like he might need to bolt.

It was only yesterday, the break-in. The house still smells a little of blood. Simon hums around the handful of popcorn he just shoved into his mouth. Major is trying to get away from all points of contact, all warmth. But not getting down off the couch. Scared? Disgusted?

“Cuf-...” Chew, chew, swallow. “Cupcake? What’s up?”

A heavily scarred arm folds and shifts to better hide his head. His face. Major grunts softly in refusal to speak.

“Have some snacks. You like these chips. Come on, eat something.” He pats a friendly hand on the ridge under Major’s blanket that looks like an arm. “Watch the show with me, Cupca-!” A flurry of movement startles Simon into silence, and he registers the dark figure looming over him before he feels the weight across his lap and chest.

The obedient, sullen killer has flung his blanket away, pinned Simon’s arm, and straddled him in under a second. Major’s eyes are wild, his chest heaving for air, as he leans forward hard to keep his captor pinned.

Simon’s eyes flit rapidly between Major’s as he processes this. He feels no edge of a blade pressed to any part of himself, or the muzzle of a gun. He isn’t being threatened with anything. Major looks… empty-headed. His body reacted and he didn’t have a plan.

When Simon laid a hand on him over the blanket, he thought it was his elbow, maybe forearm. But it felt too broad. Must have been Major’s hip. And after yesterday… that must have felt… bad.

“Hey,” Mutters the pinned man without anything accusatory in his tone. “Cupcake. You have three seconds.”

It takes two. Major looks confused, angry, and frightened in a flash, and then he’s clambering off to fall to the side with a panicked grunt. Simon can shoot. Simon has resources, Simon’s quick with his gun and stronger than he looks. In an instant Major remembers all of the sessions they’ve had. The alarming strength Simon can have when he’s excited to cause pain.

The whole couch trembles. Simon lifts a hand to placate, and the couch jerks with the captive’s flinch. Pure adrenaline rules him, after the fright of his hip being grabbed and his body reacting, only to hear a rare and earnest threat. Three seconds then a bullet in him.

“Eat popcorn,” Simon settles on saying, after a brief staredown that Major wouldn’t step up to. “Watch the show. Alright?”

Cupcake shrugs up a shoulder, shifting tensely to flop into a more forcibly casual position. A scar-jagged hand dives into the popcorn bowl and emerges with a fistful of the stuff, shoving it awkwardly into his mouth. Major chomps in a bitter vendetta against the snack.

“There you go, Cupcake. It’s not a session, so I’m not going to hurt you. Relax.”

Against Major’s instincts, against his pride, his muscles go slack in stops and starts. The blanket lies pooled in his lap and his glaring at the screen softens into plain watching. It’s not a session. He gets warnings, before they come. Out here, right now, it’s just snacks and TV. He can relax.

taglist: @morning-star-whump , @lthrboy, @apokolyps, @paperprinxe , @vampiresprite,

@wollemi-whump, @watermelons-dont-grow-on-trees , @whumps-and-bumps , @defire, @notactuallyluska

[jortenthusiasst]

TW: SA/R@pe mentioned

Does anyone know if these are gonna be Canon to the sunshine court ?? :'D

[rainyinautumn]

Behold. Life Series 4 bingo card for the upcoming season made by yours truly.

[k-marzolf]

“She thought to herself, "This is now." She was glad that the cozy house, and Pa and Ma and the firelight and the music, were now. They could not be forgotten, she thought, because now is now. It can never be a long time ago.”

— Laura Ingall’s Wilder, Little House in the Big Woods

[maximum-gothic]

[cloudcountry]

SUMMARY: blanc and kyle attend your after party.

WARNINGS: none!! :D

COMMENTS: happy birthday @vivislosingitagain <3 thank you for being my friend and for making me so happy this year. i hope you had fun today ^^

“I hope you enjoyed your birthday.” Blanc smiles, his features flickering with shadows in the soft candlelight.

“I did.” you smile back, voice soft as you stroke a sleeping Kyle’s head, “And so did Doctor Ash here, apparently. Drank himself silly celebrating again.”

You try to laugh it off as he snuggles into your hand. It doesn’t work. Blanc notices and his smile turns softer.

“You’re beautiful when you smile.” he says, and your heart skips a beat at his charming words.

Of course. Of course Blanc would slip in a flirtatious comment. As much as Oliver got on his case about it, you could never quite bring yourself to do the same.

“You smiled a lot today.” he adds, standing up from his seat and approaching you from across the small (the too small) dining room space, “I swear, your radiance will never fade.”

You can’t move with Kyle’s head resting on your shoulder, his hand placed gently on your thigh as your hand is buried in his hair. Blanc knows you’re too kind to get up, so he pulls out a seat right next to you.

“We love you dearly, sweetheart.” Blanc places his hand over your free one and intertwines your figures. You forget how to breathe for a second.

“Happy birthday. It’s an honor you spent it with us.”

With the way the world starts spinning, you’re convinced you’ve also had too much to drink. Except you know that’s not the case, because you’re so very aware of Kyle’s warmth on your left and Blanc’s soft smile on your right and oh, how your heart is fluttering like mad.

You’re so in love with them. So, so in love with them.

And when you look at the two of them, you know in your heart they love you too.

The cake rests half-eaten at the table as the three of you end up falling asleep there, ready to wake up with cramps in your necks and sore backs and stinging ears after Oliver for sure scolds you in the morning.

But you also know your hands will be warm, intertwined with the hands of the people who cherish you the most.

[murdercamelinplacesitshouldntbe]

murder camel shoulsnt be becoming a leaf!

Its becoming rainy and cold here again how is your fall bein?