#retribution spoilers

[witchofthewild]

This is apparently my fifth? Outfit line-up for Lewis, which is a little embarrassing considering he wears the same worn-out jeans and baggy hoodie every day 💀 but I haven't posted abt him in a while so here's an intro for any new folks 🤭

[sugarxinim]

Applause to the dumb villain who just got kissed

[mindfights]

me in 2019: i’m going to do a full character sheet for ainsley. me in 2023: [half-dead, nerves in hand fucked up from a surgery] me in 2023: what if i finished this ancient wip?

[ryuichifoxe]

Another face to add to the story progression comparison :) He's fine.

[amlovelies]

These are just off the top of my head and julia flavored because of who I am as a person. feel free to yell at me in the tags over lines I left off

[honor-among-thieves]

I think what's getting missed when people talk about Sidestep's human memories, the memories come from someone who is 48+ years old.

[starrypawz]

Ok but in Retri I do actually live for the chaotic black comedy of the scene just before the crash where it's like

Step: OH SHIT ORTEGA KNOWS ORTEGA KNOWS I CAN'T HANDLE IT ANYMORE IM GOING TO COME CLEAN

Step: YES YES IM THE VILLIAN

Ortega:.... what i found out you're related to hollow ground?

Step:... Ortega:...

[whowhatifs]

MORTUM MORTUM MORTUM

[grapecaseschoices]

i forgot how delightful (and kinda sad) the mortum friendship route is

[witchfall]

retribution thoughts (spoilers)

thinking about how my sidestep thinks all she wants is revenge when actually all she wants is recognition of her pain, that all she wants is to connect with other people, that all she wants is to be loved, despite having a bone-deep belief -- a core, genuine, self-forming belief -- that she could never have such a thing because of the creature that she is.

i had a lot of fun in this retribution playthrough, where every time she had the option to make a friend she incidentally did her best. but then would turn around and think about how this is stupid, how it won't mean anything, etc. herald seems nice. chen also likes dogs. all of them, people she thinks could never truly know or love her.

doubled down when she decides to try and tell mortem the truth (the lies get complicated) and mortem shuts her the fuck down. followed directly by the apartment scene with ortega, where she decides to go all the way with lights off -- so maybe he'll just finally see the truth and drop her like he is supposed to, just like everyone else.

(she is a mess. sidestep, entropy, aisling...what a mess.)

so she does the stupid thing and goes to hollow ground's lair as herself, as instructed.

but at the end, it was people caring -- it was even chen, concerned! -- that in part helped her escape a hell of her own making. I hope!! I think!!!! I legit am concerned at the end that she is Not Right...!

I LOVE THIS GAME GRRRRRR!!!!!!!

[witchofthewild]

You don’t know me, but I know you.

[anduefex]

Ortega's time loop for the WIP ask game

The concept here is that Ortega is looping the Hollow Ground incident, but told through Sidestep's eyes. I'm not sure what form it will eventually take (multiple loops? One really tired Ortega? second or third person?) but I am having fun, which is the important part. Spoilers for Retribution, obviously.

--

"It's you," he says, and he looks so tired and sounds so surprised. Like he was sure it wouldn't be. "What are you— no. No, I think we need to talk about this."

This being what he saw: you, leaving Hollow Ground's stronghold. But he can't know what happened inside, how you shook Hollow Ground's hand and agreed to share the city. It's safer this way. Your goals don't contradict each other, your revenge doesn't threaten his stability — Ortega doesn't get it, but why would he? All he knows is that one man died. He doesn't know about the things worse than death.

"I should have said something before," Ortega is saying.

[mindfights]

Tell me, are you Lucifer? Masks are off and bridges burned.

[ryuichifoxe]

Still waiting until tomorrow to post actual spoiler art but...here's a glimpse of that 85% arrogance at play :)

[ourocorvus]

I’d love to hear more about your sidestep if there’s anything you’re up for sharing!

Heck yeah!!! Sorry this is coming late, I saw this ask after you sent it and then immediately lost it like a fool.

Connor is my "main" Sidestep though he's not the first or only and I haven't solidified a canonical play-through for Retribution for him yet, but he's the Sidestep I feel most interested in. He typically leans anti-villain with high chaos. I'm also still working on his general character and armor design (and whenever I first start drawing characters they look really weird for a while, I don't know why that is) but I'll get there...some...day..........

Apotheosis (Connor Szarvas) is a mysterious villain and known telepath known mostly for causing property damage and beating the snot out of heroes that get in his way but is also obnoxiously affable and is big on giving theatrical villain monologues and taking selfies with his hardcore fanbase. He let Dr. Mortum talk him into having a cool cape but well…things happened, and it is in the possession of Lady Argent on a somewhat permanent basis. Apotheosis tends to be a non-lethal villain…for now (there are at least two characters in the story Apotheosis would turn his back on his principles to get the opportunity to kill, even if he doesn’t know it yet).

Apotheosis has a speed and telepathy boost, but he tends to excel in hand-to-hand combat. Speaking of stats.

Apotheosis/Connor is: -Medium Arrogance

-High Empathy

-High Daring

in his most canonical runs. Connor is (typically) a streetwise tactician. His vice is sugar. He is healing from the Heartbreak trauma (the Outsider scar). Despite his dead-eyed look he is more of a Sad Clown trope than is entirely possible in the in-game text (minor headcanons huzzah) and overly depends on humor to bolster his sense of feeling liked and accepted. Connor’s is friendly with all the Rangers, despite everything, but his romantic interests are in a polyamorous triad with Ricardo Ortega and Lady Argent.

His puppet is Jonah. Jonah is close friends with Dr. Mortum and Ricardo. Both Connor and Jonah are friendly with Rosie. Thank you for asking about him. I like to talk about my OCs (is he an OC? idk) but I'm not very good at it. It's fun anyway.