#side trailer is like a psychic attack on my mind

[deltaruiner]

WAIT HOLD ON I JUST REALIZED MADOKA IS USING A MODERN PINK PHONE IN THE SIDE TRAILER ITS SO CUTE

BUT ALSO. LIKE. HOW DID SHE GET ONE?? DID HOMURA'S FALSE WORLD ADVANCE PHONE TECH TO MAKE THE MEGUCA HAPPY??? DID ONE OF THE NEW GIRLS WISH FOR SMARTPHONES????? DID THEY STAY IN THE FALSE WORLD FOR LIKE A DECADE???? IS THIS CANON NOW?!?!?!

[crystalelemental]

Unit Teambuilding - Irida

Barring Flareon, I think Glaceon is my favorite Eeveelution.  It's such a cute design, and while I hate ice in real life, Ice types are actually one of my like...second order favorites.  Psychic, Grass, and Fairy outrank them, but I do love Ice types.  So it always bugged me how bad Glaceon was in the main games.  Ice is notoriously bad, and Glaceon is one of those Eeveelutions with almost nothing to its name.  But once again, Masters delivers to me something beautiful.  A Glaceon that isn't just good, but is legitimately one of the best Pokemon in the game. And Irida’s the guaranteed lodge unit next month per the reveal trailer they put out, and is highly likely to have Flareon as the opposite to Adaman’s Vaporeon.  What a time to be alive.

General Overview Ice Zone has entered the meta.  The type that needed this buff the most...got it last.  Incredible.  On the plus side, they picked a doozy of a sync pair to give it to.

Irida's main claim to fame is her field effect setting.  Ice Zone is accompanied by her passive, Watch for Ice, which summons Hail upon its use.  Both effects go live simultaneously, which is a massive benefit to many Ice-type pairs. Moreover, her main passive, Space Spreads over Hisui, ensures all comps benefit from these conditions by protecting all allies from Hail, powering up their moves during Hail (amount unspecified, probably 20% given SS Lana), and quickly charges gauge.  Her main attack, Icy Wind, debuffs speed per hit and is AoE, and her grid offers both Satisfied Snarl 9 and Mind Games 9 for a lot of debuffing potential.   Her Buddy Ice Beam is a one-shot -4 to special defense as well, making her incredibly fast-acting for Gauntlet.  Irida's got the second strongest Ice-type sync nuke in the game, losing only to SS Silver, but being around 50% stronger than Ghetsis at full capacity.  Like Adaman, Irida has some really nice tools for tanking on the special side, and her final passive is Vigilance, which is not only fantastic as a side to protect from rogue Sure Crit AoE moves in Gauntlet, but gives her a lot of freedom with lucky skill as a tank.  Irida has a metric ton of utility.

So okay, what's the downside?

Starting from the top, Irida has no MPR on her Zone.  This is incredibly damning, as unlike a pair like SST Red, her expansion of the effect is not innate, and it's only Extension 3, leaving a lot to be desired.  While she gets a third application, it's only through entry, which is a damning method of access, as you burn a lot of your timer on team setup.  Her debuffing covers a wide range of stats, but is only -1 per hit, which is very slow-acting around her other traits, so she’s slow to set up multipliers.  To compound this issue, her buddy move kinda sucks ass.  -4 special defense is nice, but it's single-target, and 1MP.  This is not something that impacts all targets in a 3v3, and the lack of repetition limits its impact on stages where special defense buffs happen regularly.  Her sync nuke, while respectable within her type, is only okay by broad Tech standards of the current meta, and to access that full power sync, you MUST give up Hail Alert, which is its own nightmare because her sync's natural ability is Hail being active.  Lastly, while her tank set exists, being hit with First Aid 2 and no other pop healing means she will not be as consistent nor reliable as Adaman, who tops out at 70%.  I don't think she'll be pulling in his solo rates for Gauntlet.

As an added frustration, Irida's support skews special.  She's SC Ingo in that way, where the debuffs are focused on one offensive type, leaving the other fairly high and dry.  As a result of her choice, she works well with Ghetsis, Lorelei, Pryce, and BP Candice, but in exchange, she works worse with the top Ice-type damage dealers in Hala, Winter Leon, and SS N, as well as options like Summer Steven, Candice, SS Silver, Winter Nessa, and the most tragic of clowns, Wulfric.  Because more Ice-types are physical than special, her decision is questionable.  But, as a tradeoff, the Sinnoh Spirit Master Passive, combined with her ability to support any team, even if they're not reliant on Hail or even Ice-type, serves her much better than Adaman.  Adaman had so few options to work with in Sinnoh it's hilarious, but Irida has a metric ton of specially offensive partners in Sinnoh.  Cyrus, SS Cynthia, NY Dawn, Lucas, SS Cyrus, and especially Fantina love her contributions.  And debuffing special attack is a rare commodity that, partnered with boosted move damage and protection from Hail, means she works well with Devastation/Overpower picks like Alder and Diantha, who are tough to shop for.

I'm going to be honest, Irida is like...the ideal design for a sync pair in my book. She is exactly the right level of stupid good at her job, but notably flawed to not feel disgustingly overpowered.  Fantastic range of support through a unique zone, a struggling weather condition, and debuffs.  Acceptable but not exceptional damage contribution, so she helps net the KOs but doesn't overshadow her partners.  Fun variety with potential tank sets.  Irida offers so much without feeling overbearing, and after the absolute bullshit of third anniversary and Galar Neo Champions, I legitimately thought DeNA just forgot how to balance a Master Fair.  Glad to see we're back on "Good but still fun."

EX and Move Level? Same as Adaman.  Given sync is a big draw, Irida could really use the 3/5 for damage.  1/5 can be used just fine for support, but you do lose out on the valuable Mind Games and field effect extensions, so be mindful of what you're using her for.

Team 1: Irida, Pryce/Lorelei, SC Jasmine/SS Dawn/P!Mallow Let’s start with a simple one.  Pryce finally gets to matter with Irida.  Hail gives Starting with my personal favorite angle, Irida salvages the missing pieces of Lorelei.  Oh, and Pryce too.  Both are specially offensive options that are Not So Great.  Pryce loves having the full 60% move damage bonus of Hail with extension, while Lorelei just needed as much as you can hand her.  Support is striaght-forward.  SC Jasmine offers quick-acting crit and Safety Net strats.  SS Dawn is a great pick for Ramp Up 2 Lorelei, thanks to her own All Ramped Up.  P!Mallow is a slower option that works really well for Gauntlet.

Team 2: Irida, Ghetsis, Lodge Dawn/Melony Another F2P adjacent team.  Ghetsis is a great beneficiary of Irida, thanks to her speed debuffs setting up his natural multiplier.  This frees him to use Noble Roar Double Drop to instead set up multipliers.  The choice of support is a matter of power or consistency.  Lodge Dawn powers up Sinnoh Spirit, and you will be seeing her a lot on this overview.  Irida and Ghetsis both need +2 special attack, and after that can focus on gauge and bulk, which is all Dawn does.  Melony is the alternative, that offers Precision Pals on trainer move to ensure Ghetsis' Glaciate always lands

Team 3: Irida, BP Candice, Glacia/Lodge Dawn Another F2P adjacent one, and I reference this specifically because I have a vision of making BP Candice workable.  Glacia is another that offers the exact +2 special attack needed, and can buff crit rate per attack, solving some of Candice's setup.  Irida once again offers every form of damage increase possible to provide to Candice.  The specific joy I have is in the idea of EX BP Candice.  Did you know she has Super Syncer?  Explode sides with all the powerup Irida offers, then SEUN Blizzard with max capacity.  I gotta try.  Glacia's a notable partner due to the appreciation of Hail.  She gets more recovery and much improved physical defense this way, and Irida's reduction of special move damage through Master Passive is much appreciated.  But if you want full Sinnoh, Lodge Dawn is here as always.

Team 4: Irida, V!Agatha/V!Bruno/Colress, S!Steven/W!Leon/Hala Irida may not support the physically defensive offensive pairs, but listen.   She doesn't need to.  Physical defense debuffing is incredibly easy to support.  Many do it themselves.  More importantly, we have Variety Agatha as an ideal candidate, and Bugsy's Scyther as a backup, who pack Leer as a debuff.  If you're really ambitious, there are Screech options too.  If needed, given their effective self-setup, you can run Colress for Screech support instead of a support, or let Irida tank, depending on the stage’s offensive abilities.  I also want to draw particular attention to Hala, who's always been a pain because he lowers speed and wants it to stay lowered for his multiplier.  Irida packs two forms of gauge acceleration.  She can help patch up Hala, but you’ll want a support with good speed.

Team 5: Irida, Fantina/Giovanni, Lodge Dawn/Lodge Morty Let's begin the non-Ice discussion.  Irida's passives blocking hail damage and offering a DPS boost while Hail is up, means she supports anyone.  With a Master Passive to boot, this can add up to a lot of extra firepower.   Fantina is probably the biggest winner of this, given her tech nuke of Smarty-Pants.  Irida's Mind Games 9 and Buddy Move allows Fantina to get to full power sync easily. Lodge Dawn gets the stats Fantina needs quickly, while providing full Sinnoh Spirit benefits.  Otherwise, Morty provides better matched Theme skills for Fantina.  While not Sinnoh, I'm going to add Giovanni as someone with Smarty-Pants/Brainteaster that Irida supports, so we can keep track of how many types she's working with.

Team 6: Irida, SS Hau, SS Mina/Lodge Dawn SS Hau is a particularly funny option with Irida.  Thanks to his passive skill of applying +1 special moves up next on every field effect activated, his combination with SS Mina was already known for producing some good damage.  What happens when you add in someone who adds two effects on entry, and per use of their Zone?  What happens when they further boost your Buddy move's DPS through a Master Passive and added damage under Hail? Irida and SS Hau will truck stages really well.   Mina is better defensive backbone and more field effects, Dawn is better Master passive effect.

Team 7: Irida, Alder/Diantha/Karen, Lodge Dawn/SS Mina Really trying to justify pulling Mina here.  Irida can debuff special attack!  This is a rare multiplier to worry about, but it functions well for both Alder and Diantha, who need that debuffed as fast as possible.  Lodge Dawn offers a the usual, but also has Struggle Bug for even more special attack debuffing.  SS Mina allows Alder and Diantha to start blasting turn 2. ��Of note, both Alder and Diantha are DPS units.  We're playing to Diantha's Devastation nuke a bit, but her DPS is where it's really at.  And Irida offers two stacks of bonus damage, of at least 20% each. 40% more move damage, on a dude with Hyper Beam, and a lady with Hit the Gas 5/Fairy Power 5 Moonblast.  While not as overpowering, Karen also benefits from these debuffs.

Team 8: Irida, Cyrus, Lucas As mentioned, Sinnoh has plenty of powerful special attackers, and Irida can tank.  What better way to use that ability than a dual strike comp of two solid DPS units, with ideal self-setup?  Lucas and Cyrus want for nothing offensively, and the Dragon Zone effect overriding Irida's Ice Zone doesn't matter so long as Hail remains.  This is also Full Sinnoh, so 50% bonus move damage on Roar of Time.  Have fun.  While you can do Rain with Hydro Pump, this kinda invalidates Irida's main reason for being here, and relegates her to a glorified special defense debuffing tank.  Who loses some bulk because no Hail.  I'm not going to say it can't be done, only that it shouldn't.  And who knows, if SS Cynthia ever gets a grid expansion like she desperately needs, maybe she’ll work well in a comp like this instead.

Team 9: Irida, NY Dawn, Support Dragonair Another way to use Tank Irida is to place the frail support bot on the side. Dragonair tops off Irida's special attack, and notably caps Dawn's crit rate thanks to Dawn's double buff.  Dawn complements Irida's tanking well thanks to an immediate -4 Attack through Featherdance.  Interestingly, you can swap Dawn as the main tank.  She's evasive, and gains nice benefits from the Master Passive as well.  There are options

Team 10: Irida, Cheryl, Thorton/Darach/Volkner/BP Candice Let me tell you about Cheryl.  Cheryl and Irida are BFFs now.  Irida can actually tank, while Cheryl has a tough time with physical assaults.  Irida cannot heal herself reliably, but Cheryl provides +2 to both defenses on a healing trainer move.  Cheryl also tops off Irida’s special attack, and provides a bit of speed as well.  For Gauntlet purposes, Thorton is a good flinch rate, Darach debuffs attack where that may be needed, Volkner supplies paralysis (and flinch), and BP Candice just does the damage thing.  All of these are chosen for Sinnoh reasons, but you can use something more consistent for a specific role as needed.

Final Thoughts I feel like you can always tell when I’m really excited about a sync pair, because I’ll have like ten team options when I talk about them.  Irida’s going to be a delight.  I love her kit.  I love that it’s Glaceon.  I love that she actually compressed Ice Zone and Hail into one unit, defying my expectations.  I love that they threw in Mind Games 9 for no reason.  I love that she can tank.  I love how well she works with some of my favorites in Sinnoh.  I love that she has legitimately great supportive effects beyond her primary role.  I’ve always leaned more Team Diamond Clan, but Irida is so the favorite now.

Reverence ended toward Almighty Sinnoh (False Time), now Almighty Sinnoh (Blessed Space) is my True Deity.

[kittymaverick]

Mystery Case Files 21: The Harbinger commentary and review, part 2.

outSpoiler free review first: Holy SHIT GRANDMA studios, talk about knocking the ball out of the park. Not only was that a solid good MCF game to start off with, you’ve now set up the expectation for the next game so high, I’m honestly a little afraid for you. Like... do you know how high the bar is now that you’ve hinted about the content of the next game? Right, coming back to Harbinger for a second. Barring one tiny little slip up which I think was just something that got lost in translation (English is like that), the lore of MCF managed to stay intact, which needs to be applauded. At one point, I almost questioned if there might be almost too many references, especially with that happens to the references in the game itself. (Yes, I, the MCF nerd and fanatic, actually had that thought). I still flip-flop a bit on whether this was a good execution, or a good but shaky execution. For one thing, the way it’s executed... wow, that’s some heavy stuff emotionally. Which is why I’m questioning if that’s “good”, because I suppose there was a line of emotional heaviness I didn’t expect we’ll cross in MCF, but GRANDMA took it there. And so far... part of me is guiltily okay with it, but wow... The studio’s art style does suggest that a detraction from from MCF’s usual Elizabethan English Horror Story with a side of Soul Steampunk and Celtic Druidism would not necessarily be a bad thing. That GRANDMA chose otherwise though, and stuck with a very, very MCF story (albeit more limited to the Celtic legends part), takes guts. What I do wish we’ll get, after the next game, is a story line that’s a GRANDMA original, sort of like Eipex’s the Black Veil, because I think the studio has potential in creating something that’s more them without pulling away too much from MCF. Anyway, that’s the spoiler free review part. Back to my spoiler filled commentary!

Aisling: I know I act suspicious, but I’m just a psychic! MD: I know I’m just a detective, but people keep dying around me, so hey, we’ve got that in common. Aisling: James gave me this cube by the way-- huh? *Emblem of MD appears* ...I’m sorry, that ancient celtic emblem... has a bloody hat. It has a bloody hat. I’m DYING.

Realized I jumped back too far to do this retroactive commentary. Oops.

MD: Okay, well, maybe he isn’t dead yet. We could probably dig him out-- *Nigel turns to bone* MD: ...Never mind. He’s beyond saving. Someone get the coroner!

Six thousand mirrors in the room, and not one shows your face. MD: A technique I have perfected over the two decades of my career. Didn’t save you from getting married to a homicidal madman though. MD: ...I don’t think he picked me because of my looks to begin with.

...Hey MD, I know paper work wasn’t exactly involved and all, but did you actually divorce Charles, or did you just betray him? MD: *DEATH GLARE* You know what, pretend I never asked. MD: You’d better.

MD: Let’s see what skeletons Nigel has in his closet. You know, the last time you found skeletons in a closet, quite literally... MD: Shut up, I was trying not to think about that! (This happened in Key to Ravenhearst. The Skeleton was Charles and Victor.)

Okay, so James was a MCF fanboy, Marge you met on one of your American trips, Nigel was a Fate Carney, John worked on a restored Ravenhearst. I don’t want to say her Majesty might have under exaggerated the number of keywords there were going on here... MD: Oh no, she definitely made it out to be less important than it seemed. She also definitely sent me in because the report she’s going to get out of this is going to be spectacular. The idea that HRM might be the ultimate MCF fan in-universe tickles me with delight. MD: And fills me with utter dread.

Nigel’s shadow puppet theatre: I got fired from the carnival! Boo! MD: Nigel, getting fired from Fate’s Carnival probably saved your ass. Temporarily, until whatever is going on here got you. MD: .................... What? Oh... MD: Yeah. Oh geez I’m looking forward to the case after this now! 8D MD: Why is it that the more I’m tortured, the more gleeful you are?

*Telephone rings* MD: Hello? Marge: HELP ME SOMETHING IS HERE AAAAHHH Well shit. MD: Yeah, she’s done for. Let’s go see the body.

*Gibs collects collectibles before going to body* *I die laughing because that’s my priority too*

MD: Oh no Marge I’m so sorry I couldn’t save you in time... ...Yeah right, says the person who doesn’t want to get their hand on the black stuff. MD: Look, my sorrow doesn’t in anyway override my desire for hygiene, okay? Reminds me of that one time I called some detectives from the last century dandies for refusing to stick their hand into a barrel of rainwater...

MD can I point out how you’re making detailed sketches of MARGE’S BODY in your journal? MD: Look it’s this or pyromania, okay? Don’t judge me. Also, I’m starting to think people that meet you on your cases shouldn’t bother locking their diaries. You always manage to crack them open.

Marge: Oh James is such a darling, I should get him to marry my daughter, then I’ll be such a happy mother-in-law. .............................. MD: ...................... Well, um, I guess Marge was a cougar on the inside, maybe? MD: Yeah, let’s phrase it like that (Restrain desire to make crude NSFW jokes...)

Marge: DAMN THAT GIRL FOR STEALING MY BOY. Marge, seriously, there’s officer Davis. I’m sure he’s just as nice! MD: And not on anyone’s death list. For now. MD: Don’t say that...

Davis: Well, I guess that’s one more evidence against Aisling. HOLD IT! MD: This note here shows clearly that Marge intended to frame Aisling for an attack on her! And the diary entries clearly document how much she hates the suspect. Therefore, the evidence shouldn’t be permissible-- Davis: Yeah, but Marge is dead, and there really isn’t anyone else in town left. *Record scratch* MD: ....It could be... you? Davis: Harhar, look here’s the evidence, go talk to Aisling. MD: Urgh, fine. It’s okay, MD, I was rooting for you there at least!

Aisling: Death, death is all around us! *Flees* MD: Okay, Aisling, that’s really not helping and only making you more suspicious! But since you’re away, I’m going to rifle through your trailer. Um, now who’s suspicious???

Hm, you know, this place would have been great for a holiday spot. MD: I don’t know, given my records with holidays... ...True, you’ll probably end up doing exactly what you are doing now. MD: That said, I think I’ll take a slice of apple pie since no one’s looking. Does the agency pay for your food on your cases? MD: They’d better because I’m giving the recipes to Her Majesty if they don’t...

Aisling: I came here to save John but he’s locked upstairs, please help! MD: Um, if you had let me come with you... maybe some time could have been saved? Aisling: But what if I get killed first then? MD:........ She’s got a point. MD: Dammit, fine...

Hm, so John’s ancestor worked on the original Ravenhearst... We’ll probably need to open up the original game to see if that was the guy that fell from the construction site. (My guess is it’s not, because that carpenter was originally meant to be Rose Summerset’s husband, so it should have been Summerset. Plus Rose’s kids were the twins and Victor.)

Oh damn, a model of Ravenhearst-- MD: Hm, it’s missing a weather vane. ........... MD: Look, just because I burn the place down several times, doesn’t mean I don’t care what it looks like, okay? Can you point out the window that you escaped out of by any chance? 8D MD: *sighs* This one...

Aisling: John, NOOOOOO. MD: Right, gotta cut him down quick! He might still be alive. *Proceed to spend over minutes solving puzzles* MD: I swear, this happened very fast in actuality... Never as fast as the plot demanded though...

*Puts weather vane on model* *Model turns into a raven* MD: ???????????????? Okay, I need to take points off for THAT ridiculous transformation and animation. XD

Aisling: I can’t take this anymore! MD: I know this is hard, Aisling-- Aisling: Here’s the next slab, btw. ....This mood whiplash... I’m dying.

Um, so apparently the banshee wasn’t trying to destroy the world, but was trying to restore herself, which... you disrupted. MD: Look, Allison and her friends needed rescuing okay? I couldn’t just sit idling by. ...If that was disrupted, then how DID Aisling turn human then??? MD: .....Let’s save that mystery for another time because I feel a headache incoming... (Fix edit: It seems to imply that the ritual was only disrupted, not failed, so Aisling did get her skin back, though now she doesn’t remember being a banshee...)

Aisling: I’m a banshee? That’s... That’s impossible. MD: Well, I’ve been through a lot to say most impossible things are actually probable in reality, though if you somehow don’t remember me shoving you back into the cave, um, then I’m grateful. Once you do, please don’t kill me. BTW, your turn on the cube of mystery!

Aisling: Well, if I’m a banshee, I guess I should go back to Dire Grove. We can catch the next ferry. MD: You know that’s a really long trip right? It might take us the better half of a day-- Or a single puzzle’s worth of time. MD: ...Where was THAT kind of fast travel all these years??? I do like how it’s implied that you guys had a huge detour with picking people up and dropping them off though.

Ais: Okay, we’re here in Dire Grove-- AH! MD: Wow, even nature is saying NO to you. Ooooooor it could be a certain immortal druid-- MD: Please don’t. It’s fine! We have a banshee. MD: All she does is predict death! Oh yeah, forgot about that...

*Aisling gets “kidnapped” by green energy* Gibs: That can’t be healthy. MD: That’s honestly pretty normal at this point for us. At least she didn’t get dropped down a tube.

Um, what’s with the Chinese incense in a Druid’s domain? X’D (I’m going to pretend they traded that...)

(I honestly don’t have a lot of stuff to comment on in the section in Dire Grove, because there isn’t much to snark about. Which, I guess, comes to show that 99% of silliness comes from MD dealing with PEOPLE, alive, dead, revived, or otherwise not really a human.)

*Aisling goes back to banshee form* MD: First, no hard feelings about last time, right? Aisling: *stares* MD: Please, thank you, and I’m sorry??? Aisling: You did help me out, so I guess it’s fine. MD: *sigh of relief* BTW, four people technically did DIE though in the process. Aisling: Um, that wasn’t me, if you recall your lore correctly. MD: True enough, but STILL. Just pointing it out. You want her to scream in your ear? She’s still got time for that.

Aisling: BTW, this energy is still floating about. And I think I know why. Will you accept this energy and use it to save the world? MD: Oh hold ON a minute. You want ME to do WHAT? Aisling: Save the world. You heard what I said. MD: Okay, listen. I started this detective job mostly because I thought it was cool... (MD’s going to be at this for a while. Are you going to listen, Aisling? A: To be honest, I’ll probably stop around the part where MD apologized for shoving me back into the cave... By the way, want to hear my part of the story on how I turned back into a banshee? Sure!) *****************************************************************

HOW AISLING BECAME A BANSHEE, AGAIN. Aisling: To make a long story short, there was a lot of puzzles Puzzles which you had to personally solve, without MD’s help? Aisling: It really makes you appreciate how hard MD has had it for the last 21 years...

Did... did you just KILL four people to restore your spirit? Aisling: I just helped their soul cross over! I swear! Aisling, you’re being really SUS right now and I’ve practice how to spot a liar lately! Aisling: I only predict deaths! And then find the souls and tell them where to go. I swear that’s my task. EVERYONE VOTE AISLING AISLING IS THE IMPOSTER

Is one of your abilities literally “summon joyride”???? Aisling: it’s a carriage A carriage can be an awesome joyride if you use it irresponsibly Aisling: How does MD tolerate you? They don’t, they’ve just had worse company and I’m a lesser evil. 8D

Aisling (actually Gibs): *suffers through the last giant super puzzle* ...Yeah, REALLY makes you appreciate what MD goes through. Aisling: Is it always this bad??? Sometimes. I’ve seen worse.

Gibs: THAT CARRIAGE IS BADASS. See, I told you it was a joyride. Aisling: You know, I think I’ll float back to the MD. No joyrides. Awwwwwwwwwwww... Okay, now let’s rewind back to when MD started their rant. **************************************************

Aisling: BTW, this energy is still floating about. And I think I know why. Will you accept this energy and use it to save the world? MD: Oh hold ON a minute. You want ME to do WHAT? Aisling: Save the world. You heard what I said. MD: Okay, listen. I started this detective job mostly because I thought it was cool, and it was for the first couple of cases where all I had to deal with was bust the criminal organization STAIN and recover the Hope diamond for the Queen. But then that’s where all my trouble started because she sent me to this creepy manor which turned out to be a prison to not one, not two, but FOUR ghosts. What’s even worse is the first time I went, I thought I only had to rescue Emma. I was wrong, and for the longest time, I thought Fate Carnival folks were dying from my mistake. Turns out later it was completely personal. This was everything that happened before I met YOU. (Again, really sorry about kicking you back into the cave and getting you stuck in the situation you were in in the last who knows how many years...) Afterwards, I went to the Louisiana which got me on the bad side of a certain ghost pirate, who turned out to be the grandfather of the guy killing the carney folks from his mother’s side. Which was why he was killing them by the way. She sold him to Fate’s Carnival. Anyway, after figuring out that I’ve dun goofed, I went back to Ravenhearst manor, which turned out there was a WHOLE OTHER SECTION I didn’t discover last time, which was somehow a very personalized and twisted marriage proposal that I didn’t notice until too late. I burned THAT down for good measure before taking a break in some place near a lake. But then that guy’s FATHER took up issue with what I did, which I didn’t even started, to be honest. He tried to kill me for whatever grudge it was that he had. I had to stab his horocrux with my badge to get him to stop that time. But then it turns out that father ALSO has some offspring here in Dire Grove, and I had to come back to prevent THAT from going down in flames as well. Thankfully, I think they remained sane. I can’t say the same for the twins, who turned out to be the evil guy’s kids. They most definitely went insane, and REMADE Ravenhearst, which I had to burn down for THE THIRD TIME. All that plus the jump I took landed me in an asylum, which turned out to be the one where both the evil bald guy and his dad was imprisoned once upon a time. Of course, the guy’s father tried to kill me, AGAIN. Took care of that, and also removed the shard that was driving me bonkers. It only gets worse from here though. I got chased around by an woman with a clock for her heart who I had to defenestrate out a clock tower. She didn’t stab me, but then the guy who probably ENGINEERED MY ENTIRE LIFE did, because apparently he wanted to use my soul’s virtue to anchor death to the mortal world or something. I got an immortality feather out of that, I guess, so it wasn’t too bad, but I basically DIED. And then afterwards there was that undead guy who was really hung up about his biker jacket. Next was the evil guy’s ancient youngest son nearly destroying the world (4th wall break: THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT) trying to revive him which thankfully DIDN’T HAPPEN BECAUSE OH GODS I WOULD HAVE DIED FOR REAL ON THE SPOT IF IT DID, FEATHER OR NOT. Then a creepy woman in a mirror had to be locked back into the mirror dimension. And that’s when my agency had a fucking SECURITY BREACH which turned out to have been in the making for YEARS. And then the pirate guy came back and nearly enslaved me. I had to blow up his ship and exorcise him from this world. And AFTER all of that, I was finally sent to Blackmoor, where I met YOU, and also saw a bunch of people marginally related to me die from a cause we still don’t have any answers for. *DEEP INHALE*

Aisling: Okay, so your point is.... MD: My POINT is.... out of ALL the sane and wholesome people in the world who don’t have ANY BAGGAGE whatsoever, why do I, the Master Detective, have to be the one to save the world here-- Charles: Hello. MD: *SCREEEEEEECH*

CHARLES IT’S BEEN FOREVER-- wait, you’re not here to serve the divorce papers are you? Charles: Of course not. I’m asking MD to come back home with me. MD: WHAT?! Charles: Where else would I welcome you back to? *Evil cackle* ......... 8D8D8D8D8D8D8D8D Aisling: ........... :| :| :| :| :| :| :| :| :| MD: .................D:< D:< D:< D:< D:< D:< D:< MD: Aisling, hand that energy over, I’ve a WORLD TO BURN.

I have to point this out... the last time we saw Charles IN THE FLESH in game, was Escape from Ravenhearst, which was NINE YEARS AGO, likely TEN by the time Crossfade comes out. Happy Tenth Anniversary of your wedding, Master Detective? 8D

MD: AS IF.

[fountainpenguin]

S and T for the ask

S: Any fandom tropes you can’t resist?

> Bittersweet endings. I don’t like completely perfect or completely depressing ends… I like little nibbles of both.

> Witty banter. Never get tired of it.

> I’m not normally one for AUs, but I love college AUs for worlds that don’t have a college equivalent. What do they study? I must know.

> Fleshing unliked/overlooked side character out with an interesting backstory and cool hobbies.

> We dislike each other but have to keep up appearances.

> Smooth, probably sexually experienced character is easily flustered.

> Alternatively: smooth character flirts with someone, takes it too far, and instantly backpedals while screaming internally.

> Sharing space on a road trip.

> Soft holiday stories! Especially fantasy holidays, because then I’m falling in love with the worldbuilding and pleased that the characters are happy.

> Blind dates.

> Tired but loving single parent who works very hard

> Two tired parents working very hard, so glad they’re in this together

> Someone falls in love with a single parent, asks their kid(s) permission to marry their parent, and lets kid help them pick out a ring and participate in wedding plans.

> HEALTHY!!! STEP-FAMILIES!!!

> Jerk messed with the wrong person and now they’re in for it… We don’t know when… but oh, they’re in for it.

> Petty villains (“Whoa, whoa, whoa! I call in an evil plan, and you send your B squad??? Frankly I’m a little insulted!” -Snaptrap)

> Petty heroes… Read: Randy Disher, a full-grown adult police lieutenant, getting his feelings hurt when the Captain says he’d save Monk, not him, if both were in the water because Monk can’t swim, and Randy persists by asking if his mind would change if Randy was holding an anchor and the Captain asks why he wouldn’t just let go of the anchor and Randy looks him in the eye and says “Family heirloom” and the Captain just >:|

> Gift giving is shown to be a valid form of affection and not played as a greedy, materialistic love language (Related: Character A buys cute little gifts for B sometimes and it doesn’t turn into a story about wasteful spending or needing to shower your partner in gifts or else they’ll freak out).

> Bed sharing / cuddles (As long as it doesn’t progress to sex… I have to be in the right mindset for that and 9.5 times out of 10 I’d rather have snuggles).

> Quick, casual, absentminded kisses. Convince me this character’s instinct is to express affection even when they’re distracted and you have me eating out of your hand.

> Kisses in awkward places… Up against walls, quickly stolen while the third wheel is out of the room, couple trying to hide even though their friends ship them and no one present will judge them for a kiss… Yes. The more uncomfortable the position or time, the better. Love that spontaneous cute.

> Fake dating and in the end they’re still good friends, no push into a romantic relationship just because they were in this situation together.

> Healthy mutual break-ups

> Asexual characters!!! I’m for any story that acknowledges people like me exist and are happy, whether it’s a story about discovery, the difficulties of being ace, or a story where the ace character is just at peace.

> People are close friends and not dating. Both are comfortable with their relationship and no one tries to make them feel bad.

T: Any fandom tropes you can’t stand?

(Below the cut. Keep in mind these are my personal preferences and I’m not attacking anyone who likes tropes I dislike. This isn’t a comprehensive list, just some thoughts about tropes I don’t enjoy reading).

> Redemption through romantic love. So. Much.

> Everybody Lives AUs

> Soulmates

> Forbidden love

> Amnesia

> Coffee Shop AUs (I’m all for “In the future this character gets a job” stories, but I dislike “I’m going to flirt with this person while they’re in a position they can’t leave” stories)

> Psychic powers / Twins can read minds. It’s not an immediate deal-breaker, but my interest will drop sharply.

> Falling in love way too quickly / confusing infatuation with genuine love and the moral of the story is that you should risk your life plans and dive headfirst into relationships with people you don’t know well yet (I didn’t watch The Sun Is Also a Star, but the trailers pushed ALL my wrong buttons).

> Physical touch is the only or most important way to express affection. I’m all for love language miscommunication stories. I don’t like being told those who don’t express physical touch easily are frigid or uncaring.

> Big rescue scenes in romance (Ex: Hero carrying love interest from a burning building… I’d rather see hero helping love interest up a tough patch of the trail they’re hiking, or leaving a party to find their partner a dessert they’re not allergic to, something small and affectionate like that).

> Asexual invalidation/correction stories (Related: Virgin mockery). I don’t mind reading these if the main character is asexual and it’s a story about sexuality exploration or a character facing difficulties because they’re ace (That’s what Origin of the Pixies is, after all), but if the author legitimately believes asexuality needs to be fixed or that ace characters can’t be in fulfilling relationships, that’s what I don’t like.

> Canon: *Characters state they don’t want to be together romantically*  Fanfic: *Makes them romantic*  As a reader, I’m willing to let you take my hand if you show me careful thought processes and honest conversations while the characters work through changes together in early chapters, but if there’s absolutely no explanation (or indication that backstory will be given later) and the story just starts with them together for some reason… I won’t play along.

> When two people in canon are very close but not an official romantic couple and the only ‘fics about them are romantic. I don’t mind some stories being romantic, especially if they’re set in the future of canon, but if I can’t find more than a tiny handful of ‘fics that match their canon relationship, I get frustrated.

> Oh, here’s a trope I despise with the intensity of a thousand suns… Animals that are not dogs behaving like dogs (Ex: Maximus the horse in Tangled). Other animals are interesting too!

> I dislike a lot of angst tropes in general. I like psychological horror, like the slow recognition of your own sins (which is probably why I write villain backstories). A loved one dying in your arms, or trapped inside a burning house, does nothing to me. You could not get farther from affecting me if you tried. My heart will break if someone hesitates in an otherwise cheery story and the other person staggers back, realizing things aren’t as perfect as they thought. I live for moments where the bliss suddenly snaps and in an instant, everything’s changed. But deaths drawn out with gasps and bleeding, or houses going up in flames, don’t really land. Angst has to be fast and hard or I find it tedious.

> Developing a crush on someone before you even see or hear them interact. See also, liking someone you have no business liking when your people raised you to dislike theirs. How do you exist outside your culture? I want reasons.

> Using new pronouns for a character who hasn’t revealed their preferred pronouns to the narrator and/or a character outs someone by using new pronouns without ensuring they’re okay with that. I’m cool with long-established pronouns, but if some characters don’t know yet, they don’t know yet.

> I’m personally not a fan of self-insert stories, especially Self-Insert x Canon. Specifically, I dislike the trope that self-inserts will draw canon character attention and take the focus away from a canon character development story, which is what I prefer to read. Self-inserts who don’t disrupt the status quo are fine by me.

> I can accept OC x Canon if you don’t contradict canon, but the OC has to be well fleshed out with realistic flaws, and if the canon character is completely OOC, I’m backing out (It’s specifically Main Character OC x Canon that I don’t like- I’ll happily dive into “Failed relationships in canon character’s past involving OC exes because canon characters won’t work for this”).

> Timmy wakes up one day and realizes Tootie’s the girl for him. I need a looong slow burn to sell me on that one. I’m happy to see him recognize his own judgmental attitudes and accept her as a friend, but if it moves into romance while they’re still young, I’m out.

> Wanda being pregnant instead of Cosmo… I 100% forgive this for anything written before “Fairly Odd Baby,” but if Wanda’s the pregnant one then I immediately scroll up to check the upload date. If I can’t trust you with that piece of canon, what can I trust you with?

> Wanda confronts Cosmo and argues that he’s being mean to her. That’s a can of worms I’d rather skirt around.

> I’m all for Cosmo and Wanda having a second kid, but NOT while they’re still with Timmy.

> Abusive Juandissimo.

> I also don’t like fluff. I don’t deliberately avoid sweet, plotless stories, but I don’t seek them out. I lose interest in fluff more quickly than anything else.

… I’m realizing now that the reason I don’t like romantic stories is probably because most of them revolve around expressing affection the literal opposite way of how I prefer it (Ex: Way more stories about physical touch and making out until impulsive sex occurs, not enough quick kisses in passing or time spent existing quietly on the same couch enjoying your separate hobbies).

I don’t inherently hate romance, I just have different romantic preferences than the media that usually crosses my path. I’m more about companionate love than fiery passion. It’s hard to convey the comfortable silence I like in words.

Fanfic Ask Meme

[dirkgentlyheadcanons]

Okay, so about those S2 E1 spoilers

Notice: I did not watch the episode. The lovely thats-entirely-to-much-tuna in the DGHDA discord chat did. So these spoilers are secondhand.

(And under the cut)

All of these are copied and pasted from the chat itself, and then occasionally paraphrased my me

Omg so much blackwing angst

Friedkin is a huge shit 

There's like this montage of Dirk doing all these tests and for one of them

if he gets it wrong, he gets electrocuted

And it happens like 12 times 

And another one smacks his face with paintballs if he gets it wrong (which explains why dirk has paint on his face in the trailer)

One of them (the tests)  is guess the correct image

One is guess which jar the ball will fall into

One of them is press the button to disarm the machine or something like that

The last one is the paintball one

There's a convo where Dirk is like "I'm not psychic" and Friedkin is like "yes you are" and Dirk is like "no I'm not" and Friedkin is like "yes you are" and it keeps going until Dirk is like "look, saying it faster doesn't make it true"

Omg Todd is losing his damn mind

Imagine S1 Dirk and multiply it by 10

Farah helps, yeah, but she thinks he's going crazy

He ends up being right though

But he does seem insane

He has one attack in front of Hobbs where insects are like flying out of his mouth

And Farah scoops him away but he drops the pill bottle on the ground and Hobbs finds it and obvs it has Amanda's name on it

And she's a wanted person

So that's trouble

Hobbes and Tina are amazing

Hobbs is hysterical. 

He pulls up behind Todd and tells him he can't park there and then just like monologues to Todd in a friendly way for ages

Tina shows up high and drunk

The interaction between Bart and Suzie is amazing

We know about project Moloch

And also Mona Wilder

Lots of parallels between Todd and Suzie

One convo between her and her son that mirrors Dorian's first convo with Todd

Bart is confirmed Marzanna

Ken is Project Alpha

No Mr Priest in e1

A lot of Mage tho

There's one part where the Blackwing dudes are shoving Dirk into a room and he gets all mad and goes "Hands off, I'm not a shopping cart!"

He gets so mad at Friedkin he starts like SLAMMING on the glass screaming "I'M NOT PSYCHIC" and he has to get dragged out of Moloch's room and the last thing he says is "THIS ISN'T HOW IT WORKS" and he's almost in angry tears

Ken inadvertently gave Friedkin the idea that he might get more results if he exposed the projects to each other

Moloch is in a coma

Moloch was Dirk's first assistant

He's really upset to see him so frail and skinny because he had a stroke when they moved him

He's all "What have they done to you?"

He says Moloch is the nicest person he's ever met because he let him talk and never interrupted him

So he's talking to Moloch and telling him he has friends now and he talks about how amazing Farah is

And then

He's like "I'm sorry, I have a new assistant now..."

And then his face goes ALL SOFT 

and he says

"His name is Todd, and he's...perfect" 

There are some Todd/Farah hand-holding moments though, so I wouldn't get high Brotzly hopes

But still

It was gorgeous 

It seemed like Moloch has always been in a coma and Dirk talked at him when he was little 

Freidkin doesn't have the squeaky toy anymore 

Hold on lol it's insane 

So Friedkin leaves the toy on his desk 

And then it starts to move 

And it falls off the desk and turns into a mouse

And the mouse skitters towards the door 

And turns into a piece of paper 

And floats under the door 

And turns into like a bubble that floats down the hall

And then into a Blackwing employee 

And then a little butterfly that ends up in Dirk's room 

And Dirk wakes up and sees it

And then the butterfly goes under Dirk's bed so we can't see it and turns into Mona 

And Dirk's all pleasantly surprised to see her and like almost paternal 

And he goes "What are you doing here?"

All soft 

And she tells him to find the boy 

And he's like ???? 

And she repeats it I think? And takes a cup of something and throws it at him and he literally dissolves into the bed in like 0.1 second

And that was it 

The car falls out of the tree in this episode too 

Right in front of Farah and Todd

Farah is literally losing it at Todd telling him he's not Dirk and the universe doesn't take sides and connectedness won't work for him and there's this creaking

And they turn

And this car falls out of a tree and nose-dives like BOOM 

Ooh also Suzie had some sort of accident and walks with a cane 

But I'm wondering, purely because of the Todd parallels (complete with her crawling through her own window), she might be faking the limp? 

The first time you see Bart, I'm pretty sure Suzie is driving and you see Bart like bike past her super quickly? I think she's on a bike? It's blink and you miss it. And then later, after the Mage has killed Suzie's boss (interesting Mr. Palacius mirror), and his henchman are taking Suzie outside to kill her, Bart rolls up and kills all of them and points the gun at Suzie and asks, "Do you know Ken?" 

And Suzie is freaking out but clearly doesn't know Ken, and Bart has this great speech about like "Normally i would kill you, but I think people don't like it when they're killed and it makes them sad, and dead, so I'm not gonna kill you, to make you happy"

And Suzie's like "okay..." 

Hahaha exactly! And Bart's like "Are you happy now that I'm not gonna kill you?" And Suzie's like "Yes..." And Bart's like "Well then why aren't you smiling? When people are happy, they should be smiling, like this..." And she like pulls this demented smile and Suzie tries to mirror it and Bart is satisfied and asks Suzie if she wants to come with her and be best friends

And Suzie is like "No, thank you..."

And Bart gets really upset and threatens to kill her anyway and then starts screaming at the universe and Suzie randomly blasts her backwards with magic and Bart tumbles into this huge hole in the ground 

Suzie did not know she could do this

The henchmen were trying to use this spell book and wand to kill her and it wasn't working

It fell on the ground when Bart killed them

And then this feeling overtook Suzie while Bart was freaking out

And I feel like maybe the wand like flew through the air to her? It all happened very quickly.  

But there's one scene where Amanda and Vogel are in this sort of wooded area by some water and Amanda is having confusing visions and promising Vogel that they'll find the rest of the Rowdies

And then security rolls up and tells them they're trespassing and Amanda is holding her ground like "We're the Rowdy 3!" And he's like "But there are only two of you." And she goes, "Ugh, shut up, math!" And they run towards him threateningly.

[gyromitra-esculenta]

So, upon returning home, I thought to myself, hey, the new X-Com DLC was announced, and that got me thinking in general about the X-Com series (fuck you, Terror from the Deep or whatever were you called). Especially, the cool resistance sniper looking chick.

But it all began with me looking at the trailer of the ‘War of the Chosen’ and thinking, cool, there’s the evil alien sniper, lanky full stealth alien assassin, and a big guy that seems the most reasonable out of them, and they are all purply-violet-bluish… *squints at the screen* *squints more* Holy f*ck! TEAM TALON!?! …and they all hate one another?

I started to think that the new X-Com general storyline would incorporate well into Overwatch, especially if you take into the account the fact that the new X-Coms are a reboot in a way, but you could maybe possibly make the old games into things that did happen – Alien Crisis, not Omnic Crisis.

Following stuff is deeply inaccurate lore, a bunch of headcanons and an AU. @drift-ed This is what happens when you leave me to my own devices :| This is your fault.

So, the basic premise of X-Com is just that, killing aliens. You win, and that’s it. But with the second one, the storyline goes into ‘alternate’ reality in which the Commander was captured and Earth was benevolently taken over by Advent. Which makes X-Com into a successful organization that is toppled by a single ‘surgical’ strike and in its place a new world order has risen – but things are FAR from good.

The Commander then is rescued from Advent during the first mission in X-Com 2 where he was used as a kind of ‘strategic’ commander for Advent troops, but that’s not exactly that clear. Then you have the Avatar project which supposedly was to create vessels for Ethereals (current top-of-the-food-chain aliens).

But, psych!, apparently the Commander can ‘drive’ an Avatar and at least one Avatar was operational before the end of the game.

Which is of course, in my not-so-humble opinion, a very significant thing (and me reading way too much into a hack storyline for a strategy game), because Avatars are in a way psychic powerhouses, but… that’s supposedly because Ethereals are using them as vessels. But the Commander has a full use of the Avatar’s powers and during the ending is shown doing stuff with psychic energy.

So… one. There are no psychic powers before aliens invade. And then you can only develop your units in that tree because they have a predisposition towards it and you have the alien tech to make it usable (lore-wise, I think). Or there’s even a possibility that predisposition is only there because of the aliens and some kind of contamination/experimentation.

Two. The Commander is never mentioned having psychic powers if I remember correctly, and then he uses the Avatar by a way of forced ‘synchronization’.

Three. Avatars are made from people. As in, they are genetic scrambled eggs? At least that’s how I remember that.

Four. The Bureau – and the end mission of X-Com 2. You know, in the Bureau it’s canon that Ethereal can attach to or take over a human. During the end mission, there are at least two different Ethereals talking and they sometimes say some conflicting things, which, coupled with the Commander taking advantage of the whole psychic powerhouse Avatar thing, lends to a theory that the Commander has an Ethereal attached to him.

So…

The first X-Com leading character team is a rag-tag bunch of weirdos. The second X-Com team is a rag-tag bunch of weirdos. The trailer for the new DLC shows three different additional resistance groups and hints at least at one character being a weirdo.

So. Imagine this. Overwatch, successful in repelling beginning stages of the alien invasion, is taken down by a surgical strike (haha, doesn’t look like that from the cutscene really), loses a part of its core team, including the Commander Gabriel Reyes. The New World Order arises under the benevolent rule of the Advent (*cough*Talon*cough*) and everybody loves them.

After several years the resistance made up partially by the remnants of the core Overwatch group takes out small Advent training/recruitment center in some city, and, lo and behold!, they rescue Gabriel, who, unbeknownst to them, has an Ethereal attached to him (maybe possibly). And then, having their Commander back, they start to really fight back. As much as I like keeping faithful to the thematic roles of the characters, Gabriel makes much more sense as the new Commander (even if we assume the original Commander was Jack) since X-Com now pretty much wages a guerilla war against the Advent (*cough*Talon*cough*). And Gabriel does want to wreck some shit up.

Now, the Ethereal thing is optional here, since it’s assumed the Commander doesn’t go on field missions, but then it’s really how you headcanon your troops there if you do. But, once in a month or something, there are rumors of unknown resistance group or operative that pulls something impossible, infiltrating Advent (*cough*Talon*cough*), blowing something up, and it/he starts to garner some individual attention, even is given a name: Reaper(s). And from what’s known, they are more than bordering on supernatural.

But there are also small pockets of resistance disappearing overnight without trace. Sympathizers in the cities snatched away without notice.

And then, Advent (*cough*Talon*cough*) presents their new Speaker, taking over for the one killed by the X-Com. Charismatic, white-haired, of course it’s Jack, and everybody and their grandma knows it’s a blatant trap. And Jack, as a leader of previous X-Com, is more believable for people, when spouting Advent (*cough*Talon*cough*) propaganda.

Even if it’s an obvious trap, they take the bait and prepare, which leads to an epic showdown that culminates in Ethereal on Ethereal violence and some explosions. Well, they take out the new Speaker, at least the Ethereal attached to Jack, but Jack himself couldn’t have survived, which makes it a bittersweet victory, but not an unexpected outcome.

Since then more Avatars (like 3 or 4, separately) appear, and every each one they go after is not Jack. But maybe sometimes it feels like *someone* is helping them during those missions – some other missions too.

So, the end-game. The mission itself is pretty interesting, let’s just say that it’s a suicide mission with win condition that only the Commander has to survive, every other soldier is expendable, and all Avatars must be killed. Avatars arrive through gates with alien helpers, and alien helpers also arrive by themselves (or something like that).

So the whole squad is getting pretty much pummeled, under fire from all sides, and the last gate comes online and out steps another Avatar with his helpers. So it’s just as well they have like zero chance survival with those odds, but god help them, they are going to take down the whole undersea facility with them while the Ethereals prattle on about the worse threat towards everything and stuff, only…

Welp, the last pod of aliens starts to attack their brethren and the newly arrived Avatar goes all psychic maelstrom on the closest enemy Avatar, so much in fact that you can literally see and hear the Ethereal possessing him go squish.

And Gabriel KNOWS. Fuck the humanity, he couldn’t care less at that exact moment, he’s about to get up and cross the whole distance to the other side of the chamber regardless of the barrage of fire from the both resistance and aliens, and deck that fucker that let him think he’s dead.

‘I know. Later.’ He hears Jack in his mind. So they make the last push, kill the last load-bearing Avatar, and Jack basically throws them through the collapsing gate.

And a moment later gets decked on the other side just as he steps out of the gate.

Then Team Talon comes in to recover two important Advent (*cough*Talon*cough*) assets. And apparently, they hate one another *shrugs*. I’m pretty hyped for the story side of the DLC even if I know it will be a hack storyline. STILL, BETTER LOVE STORY THAN…

Oh yeah, and freaky psychic sex with an Ethereal voyeur.

There’s a lot that could be done with xcom plot :|

And seriously, the Chosen Ones could be, like, holding a big sign with ‘we’re team talon’ on it.