#rambled eggs

[mewguca]

posted this on twitter first but a common misconception I see in the RW community is thinking the "umbilical", referenced in the Downpour DLC's Vanilla Game's overseer eye dialogue is the Iterator Puppet's arm, and not the wires.

"It is the remains of an overseer. Overseers act as our eyes on the outside. I used to have a lot of them, but I lost contact with them when I was neutered. My umbilical is cut..."

Here I have included some helpful (?) labeled diagrams indicating what is the umbilical and what is the arm.

the umbilical cord is what connects an unborn baby to the mother's placenta. It is cut when a baby is born. I'm pretty sure this is meant to evoke imagery of birth, specifically of the unborn, since iterators exist somewhat outside of the Cycle, and birth/death/rebirth is an overarching theme in Rain World.

When moon's connection to the umbilical is severed, she experiences something far closer to death than most other Iterators, and when she is revived via slag reset keys, I suppose one could argue she experiences a sort of "birth" or "rebirth" as well. In the corresponding Downpour DLC this dialogue originates from, power is restored to her structure, which is... I dunno, you guys can figure out the symbolism on that one, lol

I don't believe the label of "umbilical" is outright stated in Vanilla, but I'd imagine the corresponding imagery was still intentional, at least on some level. Regardless, I think calling those wires/cord thingy the "umbilical" is probably one of my favorite DP additions!! wooooo!!! well not a DP thing apparently, but I'm still a big fan

Pretty sure someone's pointed this out before, but I still see it sometimes, so I figured I'd yap about it. (actually i just wanted to yap) Also, what should I call the Arm...? The puppet arm, maybe?

EDIT: Apparently this dialogue IS from Vanilla, the wiki just has it listed as DLC for some reason?? ah, so confusing ....!! here's how the wiki looks currently vs how it looked in the past

ty to @soaricarus for providing the second screenshot!!

[eggsinthewind]

i ship them in the way that they are divorced

[lotsa-cats-in-a-trenchcoat]

Obligatory 4 am (it's 2 am but whatever) Outer Wilds ramble

The thing about this game is that it suddenly makes life worth living without explanation. Every time I play it I'm suddenly filled with curiosity about the world around me.

After I finished the base game I went out to long walks through the woods, I picked up an interest in the plants I find and the birds I hear.

It really gives you this extraordinary feeling you've never felt before. It makes you feel so small but not in a negative way, but rather in a "The world around me is so vast and huge and intricate, and I'm experiencing all of it!" kinda way.

I dunno, I just love it. I love this game. And I hope that other people get to experience the same feeling with their own favourite games and movies and books :)

[snively-mun]

“Come on, don’t be shy!”

A commission of my two favorite bi rats from the ever-lovely @starfall-isle!

[yigasaurospinax]

The boops. :( sad wiki is sad. No more boopening.

[whatiscrackalackin]

stardew valley update save me... stardew valley update....save me stardew valley update.....

[aingeal98]

The way Orv will dangle the basic premise in front of you like a set of keys and have you going "Ha! So Joonghyuk is the novel's protagonist but Dokja is OUR main character." and you're so busy enjoying that layer of meta text that you don't notice their other hand winding up the Han Sooyoung hammer to whack you with.

[mewguca]

I politely disagree with some of this; I don't think moon is "willing to throw hands". She asserts her boundaries when you push her to her absolute limit, but she's not quick to anger, and I don't think her getting "righteously angry" is what she really wants.

Moon's defining traits are her kindness and hope, something she's actively worked to maintain even at her lowest point. She gets angry, yes, but it's not like, empowering? She's cornered and overwhelmed and hurt and has no other options than to withhold conversing with you, a creature who can barely understand her.

Don't get me wrong, I do think it's good for her to express "negative" emotions too, as she's still a person after all! But I think people tend to make Moon into a bit more of an assertive and aggressive person than she actually is because they think she "deserves" it or find some form of catharsis through it.

Personally, I find Moon being able to forgive others, find peace, and be happy more empowering. I agree it's good for her to learn to assert herself better! But I also think it's also meaningful to explore the fact that Moon, especially in DP, might struggle with asserting herself and setting boundaries, and that it might be more difficult for her to overcome that than just having a moment of realization. Setting boundaries is hard, especially when you're struggling to function!

also I apologize if this is rude, I uh, still don't entirely understand tumblr etiquette.

I just get really passionate about this kind of stuff because I really resonate with LTTM, and I'm inspired by her active choice to be kind and optimistic and helpful in spite of everything working against her.

I get why people find comfort in this sort of thing, though, so I don't want anyone to like, feel bad for making that kinda content or stop or anything!! I just like talking about this stuff; I apologize if this is inappropriate!!

we need more angry moon, her realizing that she doesn't have to tolerate anyone's bullshit and can/will throw hands if she is pushed too far

this of course is not mutually exclusive with a moon who empathizes deeply with others, it's just that she doesn't take shit from them. like;

"yes, i'm pissed for what you did to me. but i want to see you do better. so quit your bullshit and go to therapy."

or;

"i don't have to give you the time of day. i speak with you because it is all i have to give, and if you continue to disrespect my requests, i have no qualms with withholding my words. so would you please settle down?"

[mewguca]

Since Tumblr allows me to write text, here it is transcribed into the post itself, yay <3:

Why I think the Fifth Urge being tied to the Concept Of "The Self" Is Really Cool!!

(aka my Apocryphal Texts personal interpretation of the fifth urge lol) - by egguca/mewguca

My personal favorite label/title for the Fifth Urge is "Self-Preservation", as it lends itself quite nicely into double-meanings. I also interpret the Urges as manifesting differently on a base level VS on a higher level. (like with animals vs with people, though people can still regress to displaying baser forms of the urges. Hopefully that makes sense?)

On a base level, "self-preservation" manifests as a survival instinct.

To preserve one's current life, rather than accepting death and rebirth. Lesser beings seem to struggle with this greatly, as the slugcats we play as (vanilla) cannot move past Fifth Karma without external assistance (FP or Echoes). I think a lot of people tend to focus on this due to Survivor's association with the symbol.

On a higher level, this is the preservation of the "Ego." Of the very idea of the self. One's self-image. Ascension is often referred to as

"crossing oneself out", so wouldn't that naturally mean to accept an extinguishment of the self? Of course, Ascension is intentionally vague, but I feel like it makes a lot of sense for the Fifth Urge to be tied to ego, at least on a higher level.

In-Game References

Notice how Karma 5 is displayed over the Ancient's face, which is crossed out. This is not seen in any of the other murals. Coincidence?? I think not! /ref

Bright Blue Industrial Pearl

"Abatement of the Self" is mentioned. Shoutouts to "the self" being mentioned.

Bright Red Farm Arrays Pearl / Sky Islands Dark Blue/Green

Moon mentions "ego" here. In Latin, "Ego" means "I." Thus, Ego is tied to the concept of the "Self." The concept of

"crossing oneself out" is tied to the concept of Ascension, and this suggests that the Persistence of the "Self" is (possibly, there are other ideas for this what causes "Echoes" to form.

This stresses the importance of shedding the Fifth Urge in all its manifestations.

＊(I'm not trying to argue my interpretation is "correct" or anything; this is just for fun, lol. Do what you want! It's why this is titled "why I think it's really Cool" and not "why it's correct")

[eggsinthewind]

Humans are space ants, really. War, strength, intelligence, will to survive. We’re just big ants, y’all. The only thing I can think of that really differentiates us and ants is the queen thing.

[lotsa-cats-in-a-trenchcoat]

I'm gonna complain a little about tumblr (yet again!) but I don't think adding the "your followed person liked this is" recommended posts is a good idea. Wasn't the whole reason Twitter users were so stingy with their likes because they appeared publicly? If anything this is gonna drive engagement into the ground instead of bettering it.

People seem to really enjoy the privacy it gives their users (me included!). You can like things and support em without necessarily sharing it with your followers. If I wanted folks to see smth I would probably just reblog it.

I dunno, this seems like a very "let's copy a dying website" move for Dear ol' Tumblie.

[mewguca]

ah I am late but is the second spot for traffic light (srs x nsh) still open?

im sorry i havent drawn them properly in so long sbsihwiwhsjhska. and i dont have proper updated iterator refs either aside from maybe sigs...still though!! I do really like the ship...after all I came up with the silly nickname for it hehe

I understand that it is first come first serve though? So I will just ask and see nod nod

Yeah okay I can do this

gonna update this doc as often as I can

Send me your designs and I will draw them in the blocks

This is all for fun so don't be discouraged if you cant get your ship in

also yeah, no pebbles and moon together because siblings

[snively-mun]

Your new avatar is so cute! That grumpy face ❤️ Did you draw that or is it from an issue?

Isn't he lovely?? It's actually from a commission I ordered from @/starfall-isle! Waiting to get their approval before I share the full version with y'all, but in the meantime...! 💜💚

[hesperocyon-lesbian]

I posted this in the replies of a post recently but I feel like actually posting it so fuck it

This is all purely anecdotal, and I’d love for someone to do a study on this in some capacity but that’s probably not gonna happen so whatever. I’ve noticed pretty consistently that trans spaces I’ve been in lean heavily majority transmasc, particularly when they skew younger (eg college campus trans groups) and that on average transmascs seem to come out younger than transfems. To be extremely clear this is not a complaint, but rather an observation

And for a while now I’ve been pretty sure I know the reason for this. Generally, people who are afab have more leeway for gender expression when they’re teenagers than people who are amab do. This, obviously is not universal. There are many communities whose misogyny includes not letting those they perceive as women dress in pants or suits, etc. However, communities such as those are also just as harsh and violent to those they perceive as men wearing women’s clothes. Whereas, in communities where afab people dressing in pants, suits, etc is accepted, the same for amab people wearing dresses, skirts, makeup, etc is very rarely as accepted.

The end result is this: transfems rarely have our eggs cracked young, because what that often requires is an initial moment of gender euphoria. Dysphoria is far harder to recognize when it’s your baseline, and you’ve never experienced euphoria before. So, young transfem eggs rarely have the experience of trying on clothes that make them feel like the girls they are, whereas such moments seem more common for young transmasc eggs.

This, I think, is one of several reasons that the whole language and culture of “eggs” skews almost exclusively towards encompassing transfems. Our moments of exploring gender expression are rarer and later in life, and stand out so much because of the stigma and insecurity that surrounds them.

I think this is one of several disconnects that some tme people are having with the currently ongoing egg discourse. Transfem eggs often don’t have an opportunity to explore gender presentation ourselves, so we often require someone else to extend a hand and give us an opportunity to try on dresses or try out she/her pronouns or just make a part of us we’ve buried so deeply feel seen. It’s so much of a longer process to reach that point on our own.

To be clear again, none of this is to say that transmascs have it easy, or anything of the sort. Our transitions take different paths, and I think there will always be a disconnect if transfems’ paths to coming out aren’t viewed through the context of how limited our options are.

[yigasaurospinax]

ITS MY FIRST BOOPENING.

Sorry for boop spam, I’m excited to boop, and I will boop to show love. Everyone I follow gets at least one boop. If you get more boops, it means I love you more!

(Also, BOO~p, I get it, lol.)

[alexblue29]

Philza lost it lmao