#rockbreaker lore

[highland-gem-guardian]

Thinking of personal headcanons for the Eleven in my lore instead of sleeping, long post below:

Earthshaker:

Everyone knows that he is deep in grief over the seperation from his siblings. He keeps hidden a primal rage building up inside - he is enraged at his siblings and the divided world they've created, but he knows how devastating his wrath is - he blocked out the sun for centuries and plunged the world into darkness in a battle with Flamecaller. He lives in fear and shame of this anger- of himself - and regretfully chooses to withdraw from modern life to keep it from having the chance to emerge.

Despite his withdrawal from modern life, he needs constant attention. Travelling Dusthides made pilgrimage to visit him in ancient times with stories of heartwarming tales and the greatest feats from across the realm. In modern years, many dedicated Earth dragons across the realm have made it a Rockbreaker's tradition to visit The Pillar and stand by the destroyed relic as they tell it their own stories of love and hope, or leave written stories on biodegradable materials around the base. Earth dragons who cannot travel to visit the Pillar write their stories and bury it in the ground by a quiet dirt road - all roads lead home to Dragonhome.

He is growing amnesiac. He remembers his siblings by their elements through their children that inhabit Dragonhome, but their names are eroding away, their forms and faces a dark blur in his mind.

Flamecaller:

Her heart is breaking and it's slowly killing her. It shattered first when the Icewarden and his Gaolers almost brought the Banescales to extinction in an ancient war between the two deities. Now those ancient scars have opened for the civil war which is tearing apart her domain. She knows she could contact Earthshaker to confess this mutual feeling - but he nearly killed her, and for that she will never forgive.

She is extremely maternal, being protective of hatchlings and dragon eggs especially. It is believed having a Porphyry Flamecaller Statue watching over your nests (regardless of element) will ensure her eyes are watching over the nests and will keep them safe from all harm, and the hatchlings will grow up with a burning desire to live life to the fullest.

She is terrifying in battle. She descends onto the battlefield screaming like a banshee, her lava and flames enveloping the battlefield like the enclosing wings of a phoenix, much to her enemy's awe and horror. She is not one for sending pawns to die in her stead; she fights like a mother snapped into action upon seeing her child in danger.

Windsinger:

He frequently wonders what it's like to live as other beings. To lurk in muddy wetlands as a marsh stalker, or to gallop across the open plains as a centaur? He is endlessly fascinated with the thought of experiencing life through different perspectives.

For his hyperactive personality he is an incredible mediator. He can quickly establish a sense of authority that can silence even Stormcatcher and his shouty mouth. He is responsible for spearheading most of the Plaguebringer and Gladekeeper's truces.

He is possibly the only deity that the Shadowbinder has an inkling of respect for. No one's sure why, but it's speculated he may have saved her from becoming overwhelmed by the Shade. Or maybe it's just that they both have a mutual fondness of pranking their own children and fellow deities.

Tidelord:

He had actually been missing for quite some time before it was noticed that he was gone. His seers were used to him going quiet for several weeks to gather his strength, but it was the change in water temperature of the Shoredeep Presage that was the official sign that something was terribly wrong.

Building on the above point, the prophecies and visions experienced by the Tidelord can overwhelm him, mentally and physically. His body is very weak. It's possible he could have been driven to madness millenias ago had he not had his children to bear the burden with him.

In ancient times he commanded a flock of Omens - non-draconic shapeshifters often taking the form of seabirds. They are not storm seekers, for as well as heralding warnings of dangerous weather, Omens often brought to light informaton and revelations that could drive ship captains insane if their will wasn't strong enough. Most Omens have faded away as the Tidelord's children took on his burden of prophecy, though few still linger into the modern day. No one knows what they truly are and just how Tidelord came to command them. Killing an Omen is a sin with deadly consequences.

Stormcatcher:

He is one of two deities who actively participates in modern day-to-day life alongside his descendants, the other being the Plaguebringer. He travels to projects across his domain to get first-hand reports on their progress and to observe his workers with his own eyes - he is wary and distrustful of information being kept from him.

He likes destruction. Especially when he's personally overseeing failed projects being torn down; the sounds of crashing bricks, metal scraping against the ground, and the rumbling and beeping of heavy machinery is ASMR to his ears.

For his constant pursuit of modern technology, Stormcatcher is a fanboy for airships. He collects certified parts of famous ships, build-it-yourself figurines of model airships, photographs and videos of airship launches, there's even rumours he keeps giant hangars of retired airships that he's personally restored and preserved. Don't tell anyone, especially Windsinger!

I love this pathetic dragon man.

Icewarden:

His cold demeanor is a mask that hides a deep feeling deity underneath. He is blunt because he cares. He will hurt you with the truth because he wants to watch you grow into a stronger version of yourself from moving past it, rather than becoming soft and stagnant in a bittersweet lie. Sometimes he gets carried away with this emotionless state and it hurts his children, which hurts him once he snaps out of it.

He is an incredible hunter. Gaoler Seekers and game hunters alike pray for his keen eye and endless patience to guide them in their own hunts.

He has personally observed horrors beyond mortal comprehension. As a result, he is the only deity who completely understands the Arcanist's withdrawal from the world.

He hates the Flamecaller especially - because he sees himself in her, and what could become of him if he dares open up his emotions to the world. That, and a bitter war between them almost resulting in the extinction of the entire Icefield and Banescale race probably didn't help either of them.

Lightweaver:

She cares for the Arcanist. A lot. She just wants to invite him over to the Beacon to show him the sunrise over the endless horizon, or even visit the Observatory herself to skim through his libraries with him. She wants to be his friend given their shared hobbies. He keeps declining her offers though, to her dismay.

She dedicates herself and her Flight to preserving as much of history as possible so that one day dragonkind's descendants can learn from their ancestors mistakes. Yes, this includes the creation of Imperials and the ensuing Emperors, again to her dismay. She has to fight the urge in her mind "erase them from history... no one must know..."

She is a rather dismayed deity. She fights to keep up a bubbly and outgoing façade though, lest her biggest threat Shadowbinder discover these unpleasant feelings and exploit them.

She taps her claws on surfaces a lot out of habit. She also enjoys manicuring her claws and painting them with glitter.

Shadowbinder

Shadowbinder doesn't hate anyone. In fact, she just can't feel anything or develop bonds with anyone. Everything is just a tool she can manipulate to an end - dragons, fellow deities, worshipping beasts. To what end is something she keeps to herself.

She is a fantastic liar, and revered by fools and monarchs alike as the Queen of Liars. She can spin tales so tall it could make the Arcanist climb the Pillar again, believing that it was whole once more.

While the Lightweaver is her preferred target as her "natural opposite", she will pursue any of the other deities just as relentlessly. Windsinger is probably last on the list cause out of all of them, he could most easily out-sabotage her.

She is the most terrified of the Shade out of the Eleven. Any creature - dragons included - in her sight that shows even a small sign of being Shade-infected is killed instantly.

Plaguebringer:

She cackles like a fairytale witch as she stirs the Wyrmwound and you can't convince me otherwise.

She can be as maternal as Flamecaller, but only to her "children" who have proven to thrive in the Wasteland she's created. Anyone who can continuously survive in the Wasteland she considers her own and treats with a great deal of respect - no matter their element, origin, breed, age, beastkind etc. She personally interacts with these "super mutants", coming up with ways through contagion to make them even more powerful.

Out of the Two Sisters, she's the one who adheres to the natural order of life and death the most. She's appalled at Gladekeeper's vision for the world. Only stagnation awaits a world of never-ending life.

smely

Gladekeeper:

She speaks in a very sophisticated manner, and is generally very polite even to her "sister" Plaguebringer. She won't admit it but she does like hearing the sound of her own voice.

Her ultimate goal is to conquer death itself. An immortal world of never ending life in the form of her green blooms on every patch of ground, reaching towards the heavens and rooting deep into the soil below. Her fellow deities can join her or perish - deep down she sees them all as nothing but destructive warmongers anyway.

Beneath the sophisticated layers of leaves lies a feral deity who isn't afraid of fighting tooth and bloody claw for her beliefs. A battle between her and Flamecaller would be long lasting and terrifying to say the least.

She sprays herself with so much floral perfume - on top of the potent floral blooms covering her hide - that some Nature dragons have a saying "breathe in Gladekeeper's blooms every time [someone] does [thing].

The Arcanist:

He is the least socialised out of the Eleven. Mostly considering he grew up alone and had barely spoken a word to anyone until the Aethers were created. He has a noticeable speech impairment. Witness him with a pen, or on a typewriter or one of Lightning's fancy touchscreen interfaces, though, and he's a speedy techno-magician. Would definitely text/email over answering phone calls anyday.

He often forgets to nourish and clean himself and his quarters. He has trusted scholars who are tasked to remind him; he knows he can't avoid social interactions forever, and that it's in his best interest. A malnourished body would hinder his research after all. Several trusted Fae progenitors are dedicated to maintaining his records whilst keeping out of his way and spin web lairs in the nooks and crannies of his giant shelves. Scribbles - Tomo's scribe - has an ancestor from one of these clans. Awww.

The truth is, when he stood atop the Pillar and connected with the Shade, the two opposing forces experienced totality. He experienced possibilities - on a grander galactic scale than the prophecies seen by Tidelord. He briefly became one with eldritch creatures beyond the fabric of reality. He held ultimate power beyond comprehension, a force beyond creation and uncreation. He wants to understand what this force was, and what it's done to the Shade...and to him.

[mythicalviper-fr]

hi! Thank you for making your guide, it’s been so helpful as a new skin artist. I’m still confused about how to make good festival submissions (?) I thought my submission for Rockbreaker’s Ceremony fit all the conditions you talked about but no one seemed interested in my skin. Do you have any advice on how newer artists can make a good entry?

I'm happy the guide's helped! It is less of a checklist and more on how I personally approach the contest. There are a lot of things I don’t think I described well technique-wise, so I’ve considered making step-by-step tutorials to approach each contest that would better encapsulate the win conditions I described. But for now, here’s one way you can approach a contest, particularly if you’re a new artist.

1. Pick Your Breed (and Battles)

Breed variety, as I stated in the guide, is the Number One reason I win any contest. This is where I think I should’ve gone more into why I favored the Ridgeback F base - it’s important to pick a canvas that will not impede your ability to create and more importantly, a canvas that makes you comfortable as an artist. Ridgeback F has a big wingspace that serves as a good canvas and the anatomy is easy (for me) to design on, which is why this is the canvas I default to.

Here are some of the best “starter” canvases for new artists, in my personal opinion:

Wildclaw M and F: these bases, particularly the F pose, don’t get many submissions (look at their submission rate in the Gala!) They have a standard dino anatomy that’s easy to understand and work around.

Fae M: Fae rarely get entries. The big wingspace is a great canvas, and more importantly, the M Fae canvas is pretty small compared to the others, so it’s less daunting. The shrimp posture can be a bit hard to grasp, but you can honestly just do a wingcent.

Coatl M and F: Coatl is a great base for new artists if shadows and lines are disrupting your creative process, because they don’t have as much of those. (You can also turn shadows/lines off while you’re drawing. I usually have shadows off and lineart at 30% opacity. Just remember to turn them back on when you submit!)

2. Theme Your Skin: Canonical Elements

August goes into this better in his guide, but you generally want to stick closer to canon. Think of skin contests like an art contest for a fandom. If you were submitting to, say, a Percy Jackson art contest, you’ll probably draw inspiration from Greek and Roman mythology, not Aztec or Chinese mythology. Flight Rising is the same. So, here are canonical places you can draw inspiration from:

Past festival familiars and apparel

Existing vistas, scenes, and World Map locations

Artistic interpretations of the canonical lore

If you do want to go outside of canon, my suggestion is to pick a neutral element. This means something that doesn’t have any religious/otherwise connotations, and is still related to the flight. I.e.: icy mountains for the ice flight, different types of minerals for the earth flight, different types of plants for nature. You are making an official item for the site, so work with that in mind.

3. Skin Composition: Balance

Composition is how the elements in an art piece work together. I struggle a lot with it, so I am not the best person to speak on this. What I’ve found that works for me is focusing the canvas on one big thing and putting small elements around it. That big item is usually wings, which is a great neutral component that can take on attributes of different elements. If you look at my skins, they usually follow the equation of skin = 1 big element (wings, bones, crystals) + 2 small elements (gradients, sparkles, butterflies, leaves, flowers).

[RBC 2023 = bones + crystals + rocks] [TC 2022 = wings + gradient + wispy shadow things]

4. Skin Execution: Actually Drawing the Thing

The best part of festival contests is the skill bar is quite low. I am going to contradict myself slightly by saying you do need a basic understanding of how to draw, but aside from that, contests are forgiving if you aren’t an experienced artist. I had six months of experience when I won my first contest and more recently, I was drawing with zero wrist mobility. These are some of my recent skins that were created when I could not render the way I usually do or use line weight.

[TCC 2023 & ROR 2023] 

In comparison, here are skins when I could render and line weight.

[WS 2023 & GG 2023]

Importantly, all of these skins won. So that’s why, from my perspective, whether you’re an experienced artist or not, whether you know how to render or not, is not the point.

I don’t want to imply that you don’t need any skill to win a contest… it is a contest, after all. I think what I’m trying to say is: to make the best entry you can, you need to know the skills that complement YOUR art style. It isn’t necessarily the skill difference between artists that determines who wins, it’s how you use the skills you have to bring out the most in your piece. 

There is no one way to making good art. And the hardest obstacle as a new artist is finding out what enhances your art style. You may not even have an art style yet, and that’s okay. That’s why it’s vital you continue exploring - which contests are great for.

Again, everything in this post is only what I have personally observed. This approach will not work for everyone, since everyone’s creative process is going to be different. But I hope this is a good bare-bones, structured, guide as to what I personally focus on – and I hope that it’s good for reference, even if the specific steps aren’t helpful for you ^^

[secondtolastfr]

I know they said there won't be an ancient before mistjam (and honestly probably not any time soon) but speculating about this stuff is fun. Poll time!

Pro and con evidence, and some breed speculation below the cut:

Light

Pros: Currently Pearlcatchers are the only readily available Light breed change and a Light ancient would open a lot of doors. It would also be cool to answer the settle the lore implications of the Imperials being the Lightweaver's first children. Plus, there's a chance it could be done before Brightshine, so it could get its own fest gene.

Cons: The lore in of itself poses an issue. I feel like there's a lot of expectation put on this flight's ancient, so I think staff would want to take their time with it and make sure it's the best it can be. Depending on what they want to do with it, Brightshine might not be far enough away.

Speculation: I like to believe it could be Emperors. It would be cool for the lore, and also just to have undead dragons. Other than that, I think a unicorn-esque breed or a bird-inspired breed would be nice.

Wind

Pros: Wind hasn't had a fun new thing in a while. Out of the three flights left, I feel like Wind is pretty easily overlooked, and their ancient is a chance to have some fun and give the flight some love.

Cons: Both of Wind's breeds are treasure breeds and readily available in the AH. With Undel's statement about no ancients coming before MistJam, I wonder how that will work out with their fest gene if their ancient comes after their fest.

Speculation: I know they said Couriers wouldn't be an available breed, but imagine if they were! Couriers were mentioned in Wind's BotE story, and I can't think of a better established species for Wind. I feel like the community has had their fill of noodly dragons, so a birdy dragon would work well here. With the Windsinger's history of traveling around, this would be a great opportunity to drop the first Coliseum breed too.

Earth

Pros: Rockbreaker's is months away, so plenty of time for the breed to get its own fest gene. Dustcarve was an awesome set up, and the BotE story has some incredible implications too. Like Wind, I feel like Earth is fairly overlooked.

Cons: Out of these three flights, Earth got the most recent addition of Obelisks. It's a little hard to think of much evidence for or against Earth, to be honest.

Speculation: I still have hopes for a true turtle breed with the shell as the secondary! I could also imagine a dinosaur breed, like an Archaeopteryx, Pteranodon, or Pterodactyl. Or, since we've already got two absolute units, the ancient could just be Little Guys. Earthwyrms, if you will.

Unaligned

Pros: It would be funny

Cons: Definitely a wildcard here. I personally think this is the least likely to happen any time soon, especially with the introduction of ancient fest genes. Realistically I think staff is going to focus on the default elements before they consider an unaligned ancient. Again, the lore would be weird here. And how exactly would we get the eggs? Through brewing, like with Baldwin? Or maybe through the coliseum? There's a lot of questions about introduction and execution to be asked here.

Speculation: Who the hell knows lmfao. I like the idea of a chicken ancient through Baldwin. Or, if dragons can be created through amalgamations of elemental energy like staff has said, what if it was a literal amalgamation? Like a chimera, or a tarasque, or even a proper hydra. If there was ever a time to go absolute ham with a design, I think it would be here.

[saltminerising]

shout out to this dragon's Fucking lore. (name censored for privacy reasons)

"Sick in several senses of the word, the terminally ill [redacted] had but one request for those in his life - upon his death, his body should be hollowed, made transparent, and sewn together all again to create a bouncy house for small hatchlings. Missing out on traditional birthday parties in his youth thanks to his fragility, he wanted to be a part of hatchlings' special days for all of eternity. And wouldn't you know it? His mother, proud to continue the family name in such a bizarre fashion, was more than happy to fulfill his request. When he passed peacefully to the Arcanist's side during the month of Rockbreaker's Ceremony, she began her work near immediately, personally attending to his body alongside a team of fellow artists and designers. The product is, of course, "Inflated" [redacted] - a stretched-taut skinsuit of a bouncy castle. Why your clan has decided to rent [redacted]'s body is a matter of great debate among the residents for perhaps several glaring reasons."

broooo what the fuck. my friend bought it for fodder and realized it had lore... didnt even read it before sending me a link. and since i had to read it so do you all.

[terra-tortoise]

@dearbisexual light!! i'll probably be back to earth eventually bc i <3 earth very much everyone is very kind but im really into making lore for light rn so im like reworking a bunch of my lore and cleaning out my lair to switch over after rockbreakers

[cerillosvillage]

77 & 78?

77. How religious is the bulk of your clan? & 78. If your clan is religious, how is worship done? Privately? Is there a large ceremony?

E X T R E M E L Y

Obviously back when Ajra was running her cult it was... well, a cult. But even after she was forced to give that up, the returning Cerillos tribe are still very spiritual. They worship the Earthshaker, and are pretty devoted. Their religion isn’t very organized, being shamanic in nature, but that means that it’s a very personal kind of worship. Every rock and grain of sand is a gift from the Earthshaker, and most daily practices involve giving thanks to him at some point. There are community rituals, like rituals done during planting season to ask for fertile soil, or rituals in the dry season to stave off dust storms. These are done as kinetic prayer - as in, prayer with specific movements that are dance-like - that lasts for hours, sometimes multiple days. RedRock knows the most about the rituals and generally leads them, but he’s usually the only dancer, as most of the people who knew the prayer movements were wiped out by Elyakim’s monsters. Back before the tribe was so heavily decimated, there could be 50 or more dancers doing the movements at once. 

[fr-kaljaia]

Finished someone today. 

And man, forget accents, real money these days is in brewing pinstripe. 

[corrosivedepin]

NUZLOCKE

HARD HEADED

Its been a few weeks since Quartz found the egg among the stones and bones. Not a wobble or crumble; nothing. She considered traveling up the cliff to where the earth acolytes lived- but what was she going to say to them? Oh hey, i found this egg buried with a dead body, can you make it hatch? As if she could get more than two words with them. Not to mention a few of them responded to her old clan when it hit…. They’d take any excuse to get rid of her.

Despite that she still had a shred of hope for the egg to hatch. Everyday she’d carry it out in front of the sun, allowing it to bathe in the warmth. She was no caretaker but she knew that had to at least help them. She gently picked the egg up from the table, staring deeply at it as she was lost in thought. A crash slammed on the wall of her home, causing dust to go everywhere. She sat the egg down on the bed and ran to the opening of the cave. Above her head were too gangly mirrors darting form one side of the canyon to the other, slamming their bodies into the wall. Their arms, legs, and faces were covered in thick scales. “What in Earthshaker’s name are you two doing?!” she screamed at the mirrors at the top of her lungs, doubting they’d hear any other way. The mirrors stopped, one hanging onto the cliff side right above the cave entrance and the other midair. They blankly looked at each other in disbelief. Then the one above her snarled. “What did you say snapper.” the mirror crept further down, hanging their head inches from Quartz face. Quartz snapped her beak at the mirror, causing them to yank their head away. The other darting to her, landing just in the entrance. “I asked why you two are repeatedly slamming into the wall.” the one in front of her snarled this time, while the one above her looked into the cave. Their eyes widened, and darted pass her. “Wha- Chysio! What are you-” Chysio darted back out and behind the other mirror. “Look Hered! Remember when i told you yesterday and you didn't believe me! Here it is! How much do you think we could make off it?” Hered looked down at the egg they proudly showed off, then a wave of shock and disgust hit them. “Its not that I didn't believe you saw someone with an egg, it's that I didn't care. Do want to steal someones egg, Chysio?” her tone was flat and questioning but her face was filled with anger. “But we don't have anything-” “Chysio? Hered? Are you done yet?” all three looked up to the small child standing at the edge of the cliff above them. “Ceincy! Get back to camp-” Quartz yanked the egg back from Chysio while she yelled up at the mirror. “Hey-!” hered glared daggers down at her, silencing her. “Hello? Who is that? Do they have food?” the young mirror stepped closer to the edge of the cliff. “Ceincy stay there you can't fly yet!” the young one wasn't a good listener, and didn't notice the fragility of the ground beneath them. They took another step, and the ground gave way beneath them.

[cloudmancy]

some banner work I did for rockbreaker’s ceremony 2022 push over on flight rising :) the concept is an expedition into an forgotten underground city, teeming with undead and built for dragons larger than anything living in the world today! I’ll post the lore I wrote for this expedition next week, when all the daily snippets have been revealed.

[onebraincell-fr]

Off brand but I'm just sitting here thinking about how interlinked all the elements are while trying to come up with a rockbreaker accent submission.

Fire flight usually has tons of skin entries related to magma but that's just molten rock (we could even talk about peridotite), could do one on with metals but that feels like it could fall into a different category (copper in lightning, I feel like gold and silver match more with light than anything else). What about that water fest winner from awhile back that was just a hydrothermal vent? Anything I can think of just links back to a different fest in my mind.

This could be read as a deep lore thing related to how the first deity is interlinked to all of Sorienth but it's actually just a cry for help

[drazavonia]

Kairi’s MEMORIA FORMS

ATLA

For the majority of Avatar the Last Airbender, Aang "accessed" the Avatar State in moments of immediate and genuine danger.

The Avatar State is the pure cosmic power of Raava that greatly enhances Bending Capabilities.

However, as the reincarnation cycle went on the spirit of each Avatar became tethered to Ravaa, giving them their connection to each succeeding Avatar.

During Aang's time as the Avatar, when the Avatar State activated, the previous Avatar spirits took control of his body. They use the current host as an "Avatar" to exercise their power and control acting as a defense mechanism for the Avatar.

The best example of this would be in Book 1 Episode 8. After learning of his goal from Roku inside his chamber, Aang was about to be assaulted by a firestorm waiting outside so Aang/Roku activated the Avatar State. 

Once shot with fire, the spirit of Roku blocked it and returned fire. Roku used Aang as his Avatar to protect him from mortal danger.

In Final Fantasy VII, Mako crystallizes into Materia. “The knowledge and wisdom of the Ancients is held in the materia. Anyone with this knowledge can freely use the powers of the Land and the Planet. That knowledge interacts between ourselves and the planet calling up magic... or so they say.” -Sephiroth

“Materia is crystallized Mako. Metaphysically, Materia calls upon the wisdom of the Lifestream to manipulate nature manifesting as the phenomenon of magic for most Materia, although other Materia enhance the user's abilities.” 

In Final Fantasy IX, a Crystal is the progenitor of every world. An entire world’s existence begins with the crystal and its’ entire lifespan is recorded within the crystal until its’ death. This includes the individual lives and memories of all living things inhabiting said world.

**In Lightning Returns Final Fantasy XIII, after Bhunivelze is defeated, all of the souls Lightning collected and used as a sword, had traveled to “The Void” and culminated into a crystal. **Once Lightning, as the Savior, touched the crystal of souls, all of the memories of the XIII trilogy played through her mind. The original world’s history or memories were recorded and preserved in the Crystal through the rescued souls. The Progenitor Crystal then bursts heavenward, sending the souls contained within to the new world to be created.

*In Dissidia Final Fantasy NT, the warriors called upon by Materia and Spiritus left behind their memories in a crystal by touching it. Spiritus was able to give shape to these memories in the forms of the characters. In cutscenes that take place after their creation, these “doppelgangers” act no different from their true counterparts. They also talk about themselves and the events of their games as if they were participants. In other words, these memories were all that was necessary for creating completely new replicas of the main protagonists, minus a heart/soul. After Spiritus gave these “vessels” containing previous memories form, Materia gave them souls in order for them to “exist”.

KH MOM

This theory may only make sense for now if Nomura is using similar thematics and lore of the crystals from Final Fantasy.

In KH3R, it was revealed Xehanort had crystallized Kairi’s heart in a similar fashion to Serah in XIII. When Sora gathered all seven of Kairi’s crystal heart fragments, to assemble them, all of the guardians were needed. Using their keyblades, the hearts of the guardians transferred their light to each of the heart pieces, forging Kairi’s heart anew. 

I think this may be the equivalent of the guardians touching Kairi’s crystallized heart, and immortalizing themselves as a part of Kairi’s heart.This includes the memories and experiences of their entire lives.

Sokai’s joint situation command is called One Heart. The name implies Sora and Kairi’s hearts are intertwining to become two halves of a whole or literally becoming one heart that they share when they are together, like melding.

The wings and feathers of One Heart consist of memories. The memories that are the main focus of the attack are those consisting of Sora and Kairi. However, 13th Vessel found that within the code of ReMind, the wings consisted of memories and experiences from the other guardians who helped put Kairi back together.

This would explain how Melody of Memory could take place from Kairi’s perspective, from within her heart. Kairi traversed her heart to find a clue about Sora and that heart contained the memories of all the Guardians of Light.

When Kairi got to the end, her final heart fragment took the form of Xehanort as a response to Kairi’s desire for information. When Xehanort  overwhelms Kairi, he initiates the final blow only for the Kingdom Key to appear in Kairi’s hand followed by her transforming into Sora. 

I don't believe this to be the heart of Sora, because right after that scene Xehanort states, “Your voice can’t reach us here. Now I’m certain of where your heart is.” And it was essentially confirmed by the end.

The figments that appeared within Kairi’s dream were, The Memory of Sora and Xehanort. 

Similar to how Aang was the Avatar for Roku’s spirit to come through and protect him in episode 8 of Book 1, Kairi became the Avatar for Sora memories to come through and protect her in the Final World.

Kairi is a princess of heart, being one of the only seven remaining hearts consisting of pure light. This is a lot like Raava, the spirit of pure light and all good in the world.  

Artist: GeorgePg

In KH3 it was even confirmed that the pure lights of the princesses can be passed on to new pure hearts, just like the Avatar reincarnation cycle.

KAIRI’S AVATAR STATE

Aang couldn’t go into the Avatar State willingly, each time the previous incarnations of the Avatar would take over Aang’s body when the Avatar State activated in response to whatever mortal danger Aang was currently in.

Aang eventually opened his seven chakras, proceeding to let go of his romantic feelings for Katara, allowing him to enter the Avatar State by will (only once before Azula killed him). Aang gained control of the Avatar State by the end of the series, and revealed he could enter or exit at his behest.

Kairi’s memories of Sora manifested as his Keyblade first, then her form changed to Sora. 

So, here are some of the ways this new Memoria power could be shown:

Projections

All of the abilities Riku gained while traversing the sleeping worlds were still his to use. Sora and Riku were able to use the Dualism Blade from the sleeping worlds as well.

Kairi’s princess powers pretty much break a lot of the conventional rules concerning darkness. She was able to restore Sora’s true form as well as project her light from within the Heartless Storm to guide him through.

This makes me think that she can either project her memory powers the same way keyblades are simply materialized, as formchanges or as links from KH3.

Essentially form changes for Kairi. However I would compare the way these could possibly work to Drive Forms.

Kairi’s usd Sora’s fighting stance as a base for developing her own fighting style. 

From the fights we’ve seen her against with Xemnas and Xehanort, Kairi is a very close quarters fighter. Much like Terra, melee is her main focus, but unlike Terra if you pay close attention to her, she kinda just attempts to wail on her enemies, forgoing a lot of defensive maneuvers. Kairi doesn't have a refined fighting style.

Through training with Aqua, I’m sure she’ll be able to iron out her base combat, but if she does go on a world tour, similar to the Dark Road Mark of Mastery Exam, she would have to gain new skills and use them repeatedly on her journey to refine them. (Like us, the player.)

In MoM, Sora’s Kingdom Key materialized first. This could mean that like Xion originally, Kairi can either produce copies of the guardians’ keyblades or she can transmute keychains out of them. Either way aside from maybe enhancement abilities or shotlocks, they’re essentially just basic keyblades for her. No transformations or forms from the keyblades themselves.

Memory Links

The new Memory Links could start as Rage Form* situation commands. When her HP dips into red, she can call upon the memories of the guardians to take over for her. This would unfortunately mean that we’re not necessarily playing as Kairi, but all of the other guardians. 

Alternatively, they could mechanically work as Links/D-Links. Kairi channels these memories, summoning them as the guardians to aid her in combat.

As she grows into her own, instead of having to rely on the guardians to bail her out of trouble, just like Aang she can learn to gain control of these Memory Links to use as she wants. Kairi could gain experience in the different fighting styles of the guardians, kind of like the bending forms (preferably cutscenes, but I couldn't see them taking it that far).

MEMORIA FORMS

Artist: GeorgePg

The Memoria Forms would be the final evolution of her memory powers. Instead of summoning the guardians to fight by her side or take her over completely, Kairi could weave the Memories of the Guardians into form changes or drive form like power-ups blended with her light powers. 

M-Form (Sora): Second/Limit Form

M-Form (Riku): Dark Form

M-Form (Aqua): Spellweaver/Water based form

M-Form (Ventus): Wingblade/Wind based form

M-Form (Terra): Rockbreaker/Earth based form 

M-Form (Axel): Firestorm/Blaze based form

M-Form (Roxas): Dual Wielding(I'd imagine having a heart that literally cannot be defeated darkness would make it capable of wielding two keyblades. The Duel Attack Reaction Command/Generates OKP & OBV keyblade projections.

M-Form (Xion): HOLY?

M-Form (Mickey)?: ULTIMA?

SYMPHONIA FORM

Artist: GeorgePg

Essentially, The Final Form equivalent for Kairi. I stated the concept in another theory, but it would be the Namine Fusion Concept from Dead Fantasy.

If Kairi can use or project the keyblades of the guardians, then perhaps by the end of her training, she can materialize all of them at the same time.

There’s also The Nameless Star and the power/memory she could pass on to Kairi if she chose to reside in her heart.

It’s entirely possible that this power is limited to her dreams. It’s also possible that this could’ve been a one time thing with no further significance. But apparently none of that stopped me from putting way too much thought into this theory. 

[highland-gem-guardian]

I am visibly shook i’ve been humming and hawing about spending 500g on this accent since last Rockbreaker’s but i’ve finally given in and oh my gosh Mintea you goddess

Accent: Jasmine from ~*Lovely Looks*~ by Jussie #249003

[dramarising-replacement]

rockbreaker good

rockbreakers stuff lookin tasty. ddon't really care about the apparel though, since it don't like the goggles, but the floating gems are neat. familiar and scene rock though.

the scene seems to hint at the body type of the next ancient, most likely the lightning ancient. seems to have a long body, thick legs, and claws. really hope the lightning ancient will break the usual format of dragon body types that 2/3 ancients atm have. maybe there will be an in lore reason why the head of this statue is so broken while the others are mostly intact. probably not though, since i don't think earth and lightning have any lore connections.

for the familiar, i very much like the bones on it. makes me think its a dragon killer. (even though it's probably just old fossils, it's more fun as a recently dead dragons.) and it's neat how it's legs has rocks caked onto it, wonder if it's rock all the way through.

[rifter-pride]

ignoring the questionmarks raised lore-wise I am VERY excited about the prospect of zodiac festival familiars

imagine!

gemini: twin serthis, possibly conjoined the way snakes do sometimes, otherwise just entwined at the tails and lookin' bad

leo: I think this one would be out during Thundercrack? would love a lion-headed chimera, dark grey-blue mottled body with bright cyan lightning markings a la veined to make it look like a thundercloud

sagittarius: obviously a centaur. obviously. if this comes out for Rockbreaker's, would absolutely kill for a centaur archer that like, hunts undead evils in the Cairnstone or something, damn

capricorn: I think this one falls on NoTN, which, not exactly a regular elemental holiday BUT, nevertheless, I desperately need a slightly confused zeeba some nocturnes have affixed a cardboard fishtail onto. NEED it

aquarius: definitely a maren, possibly during the Gala? which would be baller, I'd love a metal ice (seal???) maren with a vase full of ice spikes

taurus: Wavecrest? in which case an aquatic ophiotaurus with bright tropical fish patterning would fully slap

[saltminerising]

Okay y'all acting like it's just gonna be new genes are a bit pessimistic, like if it was just genes why would they announce it so far in advance and illude to it being "ancient", especially with the new plots being water themed and so close to Rockbreaker's tying into the lore from the Obelisk dig, like if it's just genes then the staffed messed up and are going to feel the blowback, but honestly I think y'all are being to pessimistic and not giving them enough credit

[terra-tortoise]

working on lore for my highland sanctum. does it make sense as an earth lair and an earth outpost to have a pair of earth dragons in the highland sanctum? or should it be kept to just representatives of the other flights?

does not affect lore, behind the scenes there likely Are earth dragons there, this is just determining if i get g1s for rockbreakers