#some miners are more equal than others

[merlinfromberlin]

Theoretically, if I ever were to consider writing a TF One Shattered Glass retelling/continuation, I would definitely base it off of Animal Farm.

A few more details/ideas below the cut bc of TF1 spoilers.

Also, it's been a while since I've last read Animal Farm so I'm sorry in case I got any names wrong/am a bit wonky on the plot. I don't have my copy with me right now, so I can't look any of it up.

Characters

Quintessons = Humans Sentinel = The Farmer Orion = Napoleon D-16 = Snowball Elita-1 = The third pig (?) Various miners = the other animals

First Half of the Movie

The first part of the movie would largely stay the same except that Orion is not as naive or nice. Instead, he's clearly power hungry, he saves Jazz not bc he cares about his co-worker/friend dying but bc Jazz will be in his debt, he's looking for the Matrix not bc he wants to help the miners but bc it will make him more powerful and maybe even allow him to overpower Sentinel.

I think I'd even keep D's darker moments - he can still want to kill Sentinel, but I don't think he'd try to kill Starscream anymore. Mostly bc the High Guard's motto has changed to sth like "Together We Are Strong" (no, that's not a quote from Reinhardt in Overwatch - you are imagining things). Not yet sure if it's him or Orion executing Sentinel.

Pretty sure I would have them abandon Bee (who is slightly more bitter and jaded than in the movie) in Sublevel 50, though. Maybe it's even B-127 who wants to go back bc he is afraid of the things (punishments) that may be awaiting him in the outside world and they just let him, Orion maybe even convinces him that it's better to stay safe down there. This way, he has one less competitor for power. Then they move on and never think about it again. D might remember him later, once he's Megatron and banished and go back to get him bc he realises that that was very fucked up. But tbh. as much as it hurts my heart to treat my blorbo like that, I think it would be the best statement for the story if B just vanished from the story and we never get to see him again. Because this time they (Orion) are not out to actually improve stuff. They just want to change who's in power.

Rest of the plot till they return to Iacon stays largely the same for now.

Some more plot points:

The uprising of the miners/Orion leading them into battle? That's the Great Battle between Animals and Humans.

Sentinel's execution? That's the animals banishing the humans from the farm.

Orion receiving the Matrix ? That's the pigs taking control of the political system of the farm bc they are "best suited" to it. All seems to be fine and dainty for a bit. :) (Not yet sure how Orion would receive the Matrix. Not yet sure if he actually even gets it. If he does, it's not almost sentient like it is in the movie where it only bonds with good leaders. Instead it is just a pure power-up. Instead of Megatron, Orion gets the transformation/power-up scene.)

All the miners receiving T-Cogs? First Liberation of the Animals. All Animals Are Equal.

Optimus banishing Megatron (would happen later than in the movie - only after the first functionist rules have been introduced)? That's Napoleon banishing Snowball. We don't see Megatron (or the High Guard) again for the rest of the story.

Some more:

Not yet entirely sure what I would replace the windmill with. Maybe some sort energon refectory/distribution system.

The everchanging/vanishing rules on the farm? Some animals are more equal than others? That's OP and his governement slowly introducing more and more functionist rules.

It ends, rather suddenly, when one day one of the miners realises that oh damn, OP is barely distinguishable from Sentinel. Except instead of cogless miners we now have Functionism.

Maybe there is another racing scene with two new miners (Hot Rod, anyone?) And someone, maybe Jazz or a random NPC we met in the first chapters/during the first racing scene is like: Huh, when did we start needing miners again?

And that's it.

Maybe, if I'm weak, there'd be an epilogue/additional oneshot where we get to see B-127, Megatron & co. again and learn what happened to them. But at the same time, I think that would dramatically weaken the story. + It would be depressing af bc they are not in a good place.

[ikkosu]

Omg are you into sentinel x reader? I've been imagining a scenario where reader is one of the cogless bot he decided to kept as a 'trophy wife' (but more like a pet) to boost up public opinion

spoilers!!! (Not direct spoilers, but just tread safely in case.)

Pookie I am into anything involving sentinel, (my favorite being sentinel x my fist and back shots) ANYWAYS THAT IS SUCH A GOOD IDEA have you seen the size difference between normal bots and the miners?????? Its so delicious. Jazz was half of orion's size and he's so small djddjdjjedkekejf can imagine miner reader on sentinel's lap herhgehehehheheh and he's holding their dainty waist.

He definitely doesn't see them as an equal but I think he does kind of see them a little bit higher on the list since theyre his pet, of course. Sentinel would be astounded at how they polish their plating, being ignorant and all.

"You don't wax?"

"No."

"Right, so not even a little?"

".... No?"

"Unbelievable."

Yeah, he's um a little out of touch. So, he takes it upon himself to 'take care of them' and 'fix them' in other words, haha lol I control what you do so it's best you shut up or I'll send you back to the mines. Or, possibly killed becuase have you seen the size of this guy????

He could just grab you by the neck and boom, broken like a twig.

He's enamored by the idea that he's good husband material and would flaunt you at interviews with ridiculous, made up stories about the two of you. About how he loves coming home and seeing his conjux, 'crying' about not seeing them often because he's got 'prime duties' as he puts it. Airachnid palys as his witness by staring off into space becuase it's all bullshit.

I would imagine he'd still allow them to work so that the miners get the idea that even the Prime's conjux is working at the mines!!! So why shouldn't they?

But the moment you come back he's snatching you up and throwing you into that bathtub like Pokemon go.

You're not an idiot. You know what he's doing and playing along is better than rotting in the mines. And, besides you always knew there was something off with the prime. Cue, reader having mini subplot of unfolding his intentions!!!

This kind of scenario goes two ways, it's either sentinel picked up miner reader and put on his facade for as long as possible, being too nice but also passive aggressive and showing his streaks of aggression and ego, or he could just pick them up, already showing his true self, although I would imagine he wouldn't really yk show show his true entire intentions

Itd be funny if he fell, heads over heels first. Not because he likes you or anything, but becuase he's lonely? I mean being a prime is a lonely job and eventually he believes the facade he puts on and has some kind of crises around it which kind of makes him a little more dangerous. Becuase now you're the biggest fattest weakness to his ego and he doesn't like vulnerabilities.

He might just kill you. Its not like you can run, right?

[urlocaldesertdweller]

TF1!Sentinel Prime x Cybertronain Racer! reader (GN)

TW : Manipulation, possessive behavior

(this is my first time writing for the transformers franchise so im very sorry if my terminology and information on this is extremely skewed/inconsistent but i hope can you enjoy it :,) )

You are an icon, an inspiring bot, and your popularity has skyrocketed ever since you became a racer. Now that the thought is on your mind, you can only really remember ever being a racer, nearly your identity.

It is your passion, your art.

Countless bots, ranging from miners to high-ranked guards, look up to you. Surprisingly enough, the few things that can possibly top races are the before and aftermath interviews. It keeps you well-grounded and helps you remember why you do what you do; it's for everyone, cogless or not. Your words and actions further empower and keep the miners striving for success and only the best future.

From the thrill to the fame, it nearly gives you everything you adore. Even the attention of the one and only Prime.

Sentinel is quickly interested in you in more ways than one. And the signs are fast to come from nowhere. From the first time, you are surprised and excited when The Sentinel comes from behind to congratulate you for yet another victory with the current race. Needless to say, you and the public are amazed by the sudden turn of events.

You are a clever bot, but his charming words have you swooned, especially when he asks if he can ask some questions himself when, in his words, "...there's less of curious eyes staring at us."

Nevertheless, a stir of emotions pokes your mind. While you also are primarily sure that Sentinel is pleased with you. There's a very worried side of yourself wondering if you did too much. Considering that your popularity has spiked up next to Sentinel's.

He'd never tell you, but one of the reasons for his interest in you was that you have and are on par with him in terms of adoration. Even your merchandise would be created and quickly sold off. So, of course, having a fragile ego with subtle confrontation, he wanted to get to know "a little more about the famous racer he's been hearing about."

Perhaps it's the fact that you are still filled with dazed wonders about your Icon. You fail to notice that he keeps snug servos on your shoulder plates; in fact, you feel all the more honored that he's touching you so willingly!

He questions you in his tower, which you feel a whole other level of luxury. Your face is covered by a broad smile you failed to keep under wraps for him. Although Sentinel saw you nearly as an equal in popularity, you, on the other hand, wonder if this is a dream. A dream of being recognized and interviewed by Sentinel Prime himself!

The questions around the end of the interview get more personal, which passes your mindless optics. Honestly, he thought you were adorable for such a tough-looking racer to be so in awe and gripping their knees tightly with their servos. All for him, you are acting like this for him.

When the interview finally ends, he shakes your servos in his hand, which lasts a second or two, and your optics never seem to leave each other's gaze. You are finally sent on your way home as he asks for more information from Archind.

Times like these become more frequent, and the two of you quickly become close regarding friends, of course! But soon enough, you catch small details that can't help but make you think that there's more going on with Sentinel.

He actually starts attending your interviews, and you can't help but think that he could possibly be rooting for you during races. If you win, which is most of the time, he'll wait until everyone pipes down from your glamorous victory, and he will give you a gift like no other, a gift that truly outshines the rest!

If you happen to lose, which you can find yourself doing, he will be the first to comfort you even if the loss doesn't make you all too down. Of course, he still has his boundaries of only wanting to do it behind closed doors to keep up with the solid and admirable Prime he is.

Whether you were to see it or not, your relationship eventually becomes...interesting, to say the least. You find yourself spending more time with him, which is a very odd thing to say about your average bot. You even see him becoming more possessive over you even though you can perfectly defend yourself from any harm. But he still finds his way of keeping you up in that tower, spending any time he has available for you.

Touches also become ordinary, especially during the interviews, which initially surprises you. From wrapping his large arm around your whole body to congratulating you. To even the smallest moments of him taking your servo in his, holding it long enough as you walk together side by side.

Did I mention that he becomes possessive and has a fragile ego? Yep, he quickly gets jealous when some close companions of yours come up to greet and talk to you. He watches you enjoy yourself within their company...a little too much. He'll find his way of coming up between you and your friend. And like an irritated bird fluffing their further to appear bigger. And his status alone will definitely scare off most of your friends.

Of course, you are irritated by him. He totally comes up with the excuse, "What? Don't tell me that they are better than me." " Who's the one you've been cheering you on? I'll tell you one thing: It's not them."

As time passes, it all becomes clearer to you. From him pushing your friends away to keeping you in his tower only to let you out for your races and interviews, his touches. And finally, to him, all of a sudden, confirming your relationship during an argument.

"You can't do a single thing to me, starlight."

"You and I? We are a power couple, and I want it."

"Oh, you are finally getting it? You may be fast on race tracks, but here you are, mine, starlight."

You can't leave; you can't leave him. His little racer is caged in his tower where only he can know where his precious are and what he is doing.

...

[lets-try-some-writing]

In your professional opinion: what would be some Cybertronian Superstitions? Like do the miners hit the entrance of mines after someone dies inside it to help free their sparks from their tomb? Do people not say Unicron’s name after dark for fear it’ll summon him? Is there a name(s) that you can’t say inside the Iacon Hall Of Records or else you’ll be cursed with bad luck????

Please feel free to go hog wild with this.

Oh boy I LOVE the idea of that sort of thing. Honestly, I can see all sorts of little superstitions existing due to mythos and history.

Miners make it a point to never leave their tools unattended. They take them everywhere. To recharge, to fuel, even to get repairs. As for why they do this? There is a certain belief that the tools carry a bit of the luck and wisdom of those who held them previously. And since most tools are handed down from one fallen miner to the next, miners treat their tools with reverence. Many have carried the same pick, and each has left their mark. It cannot be disregarded.

Additionally, miners refuse to enter a deep tunnel system without whistling down it first. The habit has been long since made null and void by tunneling improvements, but there are stories of miners getting lost in the dark, before they adapted to it. Many died before their optics were augmented to the low light conditions. Great swaths of miners still believe that the wandering sparks of those lost in the dark linger there, scared and alone. Whistling down the tunnel before entering gives the lost spirits of the dead something to cling to, a guide to the afterlife in a sense.

Gladiators have a particular set of beliefs revolving entirely around the concept of honor. They know that their work is bloody and often cruel, and so they have developed a strange set of beliefs. Every gladiator, before combat, will take a stick or something equally useless, and snap it in half. They will give half of their broken instrument to a trusted comrade and march off to fight. If they return alive, the two pieces are to be put back together and promptly crushed into powder to be cast out upon whichever mech or beast died so that the gladiator could live. A sign of respect. However, if the gladiator were to die, their comrade is obliged to gather up the fallen's half of the instrument and have them run through their funeral rites with the joined object. This is done out of a belief that the dead must be honored, lest they linger in the living realm to haunt those who killed them (in the case of the gladiator surviving) or to stay with the other piece of their spark (in the event the gladiator dies).

Gladiators also have a firm belief that going into battle without paint will inevitably lead to bad luck coming upon them. They take meticulous care of their accenting paint, tracing swirls and jagged lines with delicate touches meant for those of higher castes. Some believe the marks distract enemies. Others say that the marks ward off attacks, letting otherwise lethal combat situations turn in their favor. No one really knows what they do. It is just something that must be done. Failure to go into battle without paint has led to more than a few gladiators meeting their end. Seeing such things has left the rest preferring to not take chances. Megatron himself went into battle without paint one time, and he quickly learned never to do that again when he returned with a brand new scar on his shoulder.

Amongst dock workers, there are various superstitions revolving around cargo in particular. It's bad luck to look at someone's cargo if it has a written letter attached. It doesn't matter what is in the box, it is considered a stain on one's spark to witness the usually rather sappy interactions between those who bother with sending hardcomms. Additionally, dock workers have long since grown to fear any box that comes in solid black. There was exactly one incident where a black box appeared amidst the cargo and disappeared without a trace, taking several other cargo pieces with it. Since then, any black boxes are either thrown right off the truck with a collective agreement that the loss will be signed off as an accident, or said boxes are loaded up with one unfortunate spark to transfer alone. Black boxes being delivered by one mech are often found missing, the driver and the box itself having vanished without a trace. Black boxes are terrifying, and not one dock worker is willing to risk it.

It is also notoriously bad luck among dock workers to deny the youngling with golden optics a ride. They will appear anywhere and at any time without rhyme or reason. When they appear, they never say a word, instead coming up to dock workers and pointing toward whatever transport they are loading up. Dock workers have long since learned to quietly nod and promptly ignore the youngling as they load up alongside the cargo. Interacting with the youngling results in the worker in question befalling some unfortunate end. Ignoring the youngling entirely leads to a similar situation. This superstition began long ago, and many younglings have abused it relentlessly since no one knows what the mysterious youngling from the myth actually looks like aside from their optics.

Low caste mecha as a whole have a strange superstition revolving around the concept of truth. They are notorious for keeping information to themselves, but low caste mecha never ever outwardly or blatantly lie. They are very careful to leave even the smallest grain of truth in their words. Why? Because telling lies brings the whispers of Liege Maximo. What are the whispers? No one is exactly sure. It is an evil omen, one that has led the low castes to develop odd honesty. They don't want to risk Liege's touch, not when he was stated to have been torn apart during the first age for his manipulations.

Low level soldiers hold the belief that giving away their names to one another is bad luck. Since they can all die at any given moment, they find it easier to remain nameless around one another. To them, remaining without a name in the optics of those around them ensures that survivors of battle can move on without fear. Giving a name means binding oneself to another. Their sparks might linger if they are attached, and that could lead to pain for both themselves and their comrades. So to get around this, soldiers don't do the name thing. Instead, every soldier refers to each other through characteristics or words of endearment. "Yellow" for a mech with yellow plating. "Comrade" or "Brother" for a mech they have served with frequently. Anything except a name. It would be cruel to bind the dead to living and the living to the dead.

Soldiers also have a belief that leaving a corpse to rot is incredibly bad luck. It doesn't matter whose corpse it is. It can't be left out. If nothing is salvageable, the spark chamber must be removed and taken to be given proper funeral rites. Not a spark wants to risk and angry spirit lingering because the body was not tended to properly. This belief extends to the point where soldiers will actively tear out their own spark chambers if they know they are going to die (or request others to do it for them). They don't want to linger and haunt those around them, so its best that the core of their frame is guaranteed proper rites.

Flyers of all kinds simply refuse to fly when Luna 1 and 2 are fully aligned. There are a thousand stories telling tales of fliers crashing, being killed, hit by rogue shots, and everything else. They won't risk it, and instead of flying, flyers will instead actively hide from the moons on such occasions. Usually unwilling to be locked in tight spaces, such cycles are the exception. To be seen by the moons is to be hunted. They won't risk it. Additionally, flyers have one particular stretch of Cybertronian landscape they all avoid like the plague. Mecha have been known to go in and never come back out, or if they do return, they are changed. They don't want to mess with that place, not for anything.

Flyers also hold the firm belief that one must keep their optics in perfect condition. They run tests all the time to ensure that their optics function without issue. Some even go so far as to get goggles or visors built into their frames just to protect them. Most chalk this up to a simple desire to not go blind. But flyers think differently. They won't get their optics replaced even if its an option. Why? Because they hold the belief that they carry the optics of a mech who didn't get to soar. Every flyer who has ever lived has had the optics of a grounder who will never get to grace the skies. For flyers, they see their optics as something sacred. They fly not just for themselves, but also for whoever their counterpart is, living or dead. They honor another through their sight, and so they must maintain their vision at all costs. Some call the phenomenon something akin to soulmates. The flyers state that it is the price they pay for their gift of flight.

(Note: Starscream and many of his people do not subscribe to the above thought process. Thundercracker is the only notable exception. Most chalk this up to his love of romance novels.)

Enforcers have many little quirks depending on city, but one they all share is the universal habit of naming their weapon of choice. It is a strange not quite religious belief for them. Whatever the thought process actual is, Enforcers rely heavily on their weapons, and as such, they must appease the weapon itself. They have to bond to it, make it an extension of themselves so that they can move it just as easily as a limb. They go about this through naming, and once named, they never get rid of the weapon in question. Even if its outdated, old, or broken. The weapon stays. If it is obliterated or lost, the Enforcer is obliged to get a copy of their prior weapon for the sake of their continued success. For this reason, most Enforcers fight with inbuilt weapons until they settle on something, and then they buy several copies just in case.

Enforcers will also never actively say "goodbye" to one another. Doing so would imply that there is a possibility of not coming back from the next patrol. So Enforcers simply don't use such language. "Good luck" or "Get those slaggers" are common supplements. Surprisingly, Enforcers only dodge around "goodbye" while on duty. They will casually wave off companions when not on the clock without a care in the world. However, if an Enforcer really does not like someone while on the clock, they will say "goodbye" as their polite version of a middle finger.

It is not exactly a rule, but Archivist as a whole simply do not refer to the Primes by name most of the time. There is a belief that uttering their designations aloud will bring their gaze upon whoever spoke. That can either be good or bad depending on the context, but since Primus's chosen can never really be predicted, most Archivists won't risk it. Instead, if they must say a Prime's name, they will tap a nearby surface a few times to supposedly draw attention away from themselves and hopefully keep the Prime in question from seeing them. It makes no sense, but even Orion Pax kept to the habit. Although some, like Orion, usually worked around this by coming up with slightly different pronunciations of the designations of Primes to hopefully avert their gazes.

Archivists also refuse to read anything relating to relics after a certain time. There is a longstanding belief that doing so can drive a mech mad. Hidden knowledge comes at Primus's chosen joor. Sometimes Archivists will reach grand discoveries at this specific time after delving into records of relics. But more often than not, Archivists have been noted having mental breakdowns, crying, losing their minds, or otherwise going haywire. Medical professionals chalk it up to exhaustion and mania. The Archivists believe it is a warning. They refuse to read about relics during Primus's joor. Obviously, there are some thing between the veil they are not meant to know.

Medics won't come within a ten mile radius of the smelting pits where most of the dead are dealt with. They believe it is a bad omen to linger in places of death, and that the wrath of the deceased can stick to their frames, making other patients lose their lives. This has led medics to make it a habit to remove dead mecha from hospitals as fast as physically possible, handing them off to medical students to carry to the pits. Medical students hardly ever do anything of note with the patients, so the professionals don't feel bad dumping all the potential bad luck on them. The only medics who actively hang around smelting pits are morticians and mecha focused on autopsies. They think lingering around the dead will help them understand the dead. That way, they can better diagnose just what killed a mech. Such medics are usually avoided by the rest who work with the living.

Medics have very sensitive servos. There is a longstanding belief that if a medic is to retire or happens to die, he or she must give up their servos to a younger medic in training. This is to pass on skill, at least in theory. It is also a sign that a medic in training is skilled and worthy of note. To take the servos of an old medic is to take on their legacy. Similarly to the miners, medics take honoring those who came before them very seriously. They will go above and beyond to keep their servos in perfect condition so that whoever comes after them can have the vital sensors that come with a medic's servos. Ratchet is one of the few mecha to not have inherited his servos from anyone. He has also never signed up to have anyone get them after he dies. Most take this to mean he never will die. And considering how long Ratchet has lived, a good chunk of the population firmly believe that Ratchet is eternal.

[polygonal-trees]

Welcome new Transformers fans!

You might have seen this Don't Make Me Tap The Sign meme floating around. Transformers One has been out for a little while now so I want to expand on it as well as some other TF fandom things.

What does "Transformers doesn't have a set canon" actually mean?

Essentially, every new Transformers story is a reboot. They might draw from or expand on concepts from previous iterations but canonically each continuity family is separate. This means all lore is extremely flexible - origin stories, relationships, even personalities can change wildly between iterations and while some may be better or worse than others, they are all equally canon.

For example: Orion Pax was a dock worker in G1, an archivist in Prime, and a miner in TF One. None of these contradict each other.

Continuities also tend to share ideas without being directly connected. For example Transformers One draws from Transformers Prime in multiple ways (e.g. it features Airachnid) but it is not a prequel to Prime and in fact directly contradicts it. Yes I know there's a guy on xitter claiming tfone is a prequel to the Bay movies but he's wrong.

What is a continuity family?

Most storylines include tie-in novels, comics, video games, and other shows that all share the same canon.

The Aligned Continuity is the most well known. It consists of Transformers Prime, Rescue Bots, Rescue Bots Academy, Robots in Disguise 2015, multiple video games, and some tie-in novels and comics. They are all ostensibly set in the same canon... except the Aligned Continuity is inconsistent so even its lore is loose :')

My point is that while every continuity is separate, some shows are connected.

(Sorry if this is confusing. It is confusing. You get used to it)

What about fanon?

The Transformers franchise is old enough that a lot of fanon has become so pervasive it exists in a sort of nebulous space where it feels like it could be canon or at least become canon once enough fans are working for Hasbro but essentially: oh boy is there a lot of fanon

For example: seeker trines, doorwing speak, the Unicron Singularity and all forms of robot sex (sorry) are fanon, but they appear so often in fanworks that it's easy to get confused (I know I do!)

It's safest to assume something isn't canon unless you've seen it in a show (and even then, it may only be canon to that particular show)

Can I mix-and-match in my own fanworks?

Absolutely! It's very common for creators to set a story in one continuity but transplant a character from another, or use a different backstory, or borrow whole plot points from different canons. Chop up that lore and make a delicious continuity soup.

So why is this important?

It is very, very, very, very, very frustrating to be "corrected" about something that isn't relevant, or to see someone critisize a show based on lore that doesn't apply, or to have a character be called OOC when they're not, etc. I think a lot of fandom slapfights could be avoided if more people understood how loose Transformers canon actually is. Do what you want with your own creations but please be mindful when it comes to interacting with other people's.

This is A Lot

You don't have to know everything about Transformers to be in the fandom and have a good time - if you're only interested in TF One that is perfectly alright, you don't need to watch every show and read every comic and play every game to be considered a fan of something.

But if you want to find out more I recommend checking out the TFWiki - it isn't perfect but it gives a good rundown of most general lore as well as details about specific shows.

That's it from me. I hope this is helpful! It's the sort of thing I would have liked to read when I first joined the fandom haha

[multidimensionalsock]

A list of indie games that take you to weird places with weird vibes.

My favorite genre of video game, go to a weird place and meet other weird people while you explore the weird little world and learn about the meaning of life.

Truberbrook

A sci-fi set in 1960s Germany. Quantum physicist, Hans Tannhauser wins a lottery he quite determinedly, did not enter, to visit the tiny, strange, remote and rather dead town of Trüberbrook. On your first night you have your research papers stolen, meet a woman who insists on you going up the mountain with her, and get far more than you bargained for in terms of multidimensional, universe warping nonsense.

Night in the woods

Mae, and anthropomorphic cat, drops out of college to come back to live with her parents in her dying home town in the American rust belt, for reasons she refuses to explain. Here she discovers that not only has the town moved on from where it was when she was younger, but the people have too, and she's forced to battle with this as well as supernatural dreams about instrument players, and a town full of a range of weird people that feels just as alive as she does and have their own stories and lives.

eastward

After the world was threatened by a substance called 'miasma', the lasting human population hides in cities that offer some form of protection. Your main character finds himself a miner in a controlling and subterranean town, knowing nothing of the outside until he finds a mysterious girl and takes her in. You go from being the best, frying pan wielding miner, to getting kicked out of the town into the wider, post apocalyptic world, exploring the weird settlements of the outside and making friends with equally weird acquaintances.

oxenfree

A group of 5 teenagers take the last boat out to an old military fort for an overnight party on the beach. There are legends about the island, that sometimes you can pick up frequencies to radio stations that don't exist, and that is how you unwittingly open a ghostly rift tied to the islands past, your friends start disappearing, and you need to solve whats going on by exploring the island, and the frequencies in the old military tech that haunt it.

disco Elysium

You're a cop, or rather the closest this unpoliced area of revachol can call a cop. You're drunken, and a drug addict, and a body has been hung on a tree outside for the past week, threatening to start a civil war between corporate and unions and minor militias for the past week, beginning to rot. As a husk of your past, apparently accomplished self (though you cant remember that, you cant even currently remember your own name after the bender you went on) you need to try and solve the mystery, alongside your partner Kim. Along the way you can also decide to join a union, or a bootlicker, a drug addict, or wear some very questionable clothing while telling a woman her husband died, all while being fully narrated to by 24 weirdly talkative voices in your head.

Everybodys gone to the rapture

This is a town with no people, just an empty place with the stories of those that were. In the shopshire countryside a town exists where everyone has disappeared, only bright orbs to lead you around the valley, listening to telephones, radios and recordings, as well as the lights themselves morphing into their human counterparts, to show the past events that led to everyone disappearance, symptoms of illness, before eventually fading, unexplainably, into lights, an infection created by a none human entity, a 'pattern', which can travel from human to human. A look at the tangled lives of humans in the town, and eventually how they reacted to their quarantine and those around them vanishing.

[boundinparchment]

Con Clavi - I

You serve the church of the Tsaritsa, under Father Pantalone. Faith is a gift you received long ago but a certain heretical Harbinger is determined to push those boundaries. Il Dottore/Female Reader. Eventual Pantalone/Female Reader. Reader is a Canoness/Nun. Inspired in part by straw-bunbun's Priest Pantalone art. Story is rated Explicit. Minors DNI. Religious symbolism, corruption, many many liberties, eventual smut. Dead Dove applies. Available on AO3 here.

You suppressed a shiver as you listened to the reading by the man standing at the pulpit.  This hour was always the most difficult, you found, not because of the service itself, but because it was always coldest just before dawn.  Of all of the hours of the Divine Office, Prime was, by far, the most tedious.

Those who wanted to stop in for service before they began their day of work did so and were scattered amid the pews.  

Father Pantalone continued on with a prayer concerning work and called for a blessing from the Tsaritsa for those whose safety would be compromised that day.  He treated Agents and miners as equals in his service; before the eyes of Her Most Holy, all were human, Hers to protect.

Your knees ached from genuflection, the wooden kneeler only marginally better than the stone beneath it.  There was no cushioning here.  Some said it was because the Father was a stingy miser; others claimed it served as a reminder that the Tsaritsa’s love was the true comfort.

After this, you would eat in silence before delving into a contemplative study for the morning.  Terce would be observed, and then you would begin your day.  

As a canoness, it was expected of you to take on a social service as part of your dedication. You spent most of your mornings and afternoons educating noble daughters in-between observations of the canonical hours.  

You felt more like a governess than a nun at times.  If not for your strong pull to the faith, you would have considered such a position.

Fate had other plans.

And it was better than nursing.

You needed the Father’s opinion on a particular student prior to their appointment, now that the thought crossed your mind.

As service wrapped up, you responded with the appropriate, “Glory to the Tsaritsa,” before the procession exited the sanctuary, accompanied by song.  

The Father usually waited in the narthex to see people off.  With so few in attendance, save the monastic communities, perhaps you would be able to speak with Father Pantalone early...that would save you the headache later.

You waited until the congregation cleared out and then made your way over to the golden-eyed priest, smoothing out your white tunic, the color expected of your order.  

“Good morning, Father.  May I have a word?” you asked.

“Blessing be upon you, sister.  What can I assist with?”

He always wore a smile, as he did now, one that fooled the common person into making a decision to put even their very last mora into the donation tray during mass.  Such an act would, to some, seem disingenuous, corrupt even.  It ensured that the church remained open.

Towards you, the gesture was an attempt to keep you from taking too much of his time.  If he were approachable at this hour, you would not seek him out again.

“One of my students was recently betrothed, as I’m sure you’re aware.”

“Yes, I gave approval on the match to both families.  The announcement should be out this week, Archons willing.  Is there reason for concern?”

His smile grew tighter as the words passed his lips.  A strange man, Father Pantalone; full faith in the Tsaritsa but a strange disdain for the rest of the pantheon.  Your revered mother once said that with the way he balanced the church’s books, one would think he worshipped Deus Auri (or Yanwang Dijun as you once heard used).

Usually the request you were about to make would have gone to the revered mother you served but both families supported the church financially.  They paid for the recent reinforced ceiling above your head and the doors that kept out the cold.

Doors that were pushed open by a single figure with a white cloak, bird-like mask over his eyes, and a vicious grin.  His blue hair was plastered with snow, which he trudged in without so much as a toe-tap.

Only Harbingers such as the Father himself wore martial bands on their cloaks, you knew.  And this man certainly wasn’t Tartaglia.

“Shut the door, Dottore.  You didn’t have to bring the weather with you,” Father Pantalone snapped, his smile dropping instantly.  “What are you doing here at this hour?”

The man you now knew as Dottore waved an errant hand and the front doors to the church slammed shut with a final gust of wind.  

“I’m heading back to the Palace after an examination of the northern chasm.  Surely even you wouldn’t allow a fellow heretic such as myself to freeze, would you?  Doesn’t everyone have a place among your flock, Father Regrator?”

He spoke with an arrogance that made your blood boil even more.  As if his interruption wasn’t enough.

The priest regarded the other man with exasperation and disdain, his authority immediately undermined.  It was well-known that Father Pantalone held the Tsaritsa in the highest regard, which most used to refute the rumors that he was nothing more than a money-hungry clergyman.  It was an accusation you never thought to be rooted in anything other than envy and spite.

But Lord Harbinger Dottore spoke with a level of certainty that only came with his position.

Father Pantalone turned his attention back to you, intent on ignoring Dottore, who was now looking up at the ceiling with a sharp-toothed snarl.

“Excuse my colleague’s interruption, Sister.  What were you saying?”

“The young lady wrote a recent essay regarding the duty of the faithful.  It was an interesting analysis on the purpose of marriage and how one might consider matchmaking to be an antithesis to fate.  Her family’s recent choice is clearly a source of contention.”

“A topic that you’re more than equipped to handle, Sister.  After all, you ran away from your own betrothal, did you not?”

You swallowed the dark desire to ask the Tsaritsa to damn him.  

“Something I’m certain neither family wishes for her to emulate.  It would be a shame for them to blame the church if that came to fruition.” The quick, humble save fumbled from your lips as your eyes darted between the Father and the other Harbinger.

Golden eyes disappeared in amusement as the priest gave a soft chuckle.

“I suppose you are correct, dear Sister.  I’ll speak to the Revered Mother about the matter.”

His tone was dismissive; you would receive nothing else from him and determined to escape higher political matters, you bowed and began to head out of the narthex.  You caught whispers before Father Pantalone’s voice rang out again, stopping you in your tracks.

“Sister, you are on your way to breakfast, are you not?”

You turned and regarded both men again.  Dottore’s obscured gaze was no longer on the ceiling but on you and you felt your skin crawl.  Anyone in service to the Harbingers, to the Tsaritsa in any capacity, knew of Il Dottore, the Second Harbinger of Eleven, and his unusual stance on the world.  

Completely unfaithful in the Seven, including the Archon he served, and yet he held a station only surpassed by Capitano.  He was outranked by empathy, some said, for the Captain was often willing to lend his strength to all who asked, provided their goals aligned.

“I am, yes, Father.”

“Please take our guest to the kitchens and see he leaves through the back entrance when he’s finished.  I would rather he not be seen coming and going from the front doors and not immediately combusting.  I have a schedule to keep but even I am not unkind to blasphemers.”

In any other capacity, you would have found his remark humorous.  Father Pantalone’s posture was rigid, his jaw tight, and although he smiled, nothing in his brow signaled he enjoyed nor believed the words that came out of his mouth.  

And you had no choice but to agree, even if it meant interrupting the usually silent breakfast, for Father Pantalone had already walked away.  Naturally.  You asked something of him; it was only expected he would ask something of you in return.

To Dottore, you said: “If you would follow me, Lord Harbinger.”

You led the Second Harbinger through the side corridors and back outside, along the covered walkways around a courtyard.  The sun had yet to rise, torches imbued with Pyro throwing shadows as you made your way to the kitchens.  Dottore stopped for a moment, and when you no longer heard a second pair of footsteps, you paused and turned to find him regarding the snowy courtyard, the fountain frozen.

The firelight made his shadow look like a hulking bird.

“Is your student wrong, in your opinion, Sister?” he asked.

“I’m not quite sure I understand your question, my lord.”

You did but you weren’t going to outright answer him.�� Not when he was keeping you from the warm hall and your morning coffee.

“To consider an arranged marriage sanctioned and approved by the Tsaritsa to be an attempt to control fate.  That by your student not having a say in the matter, having no control over her life, her own fate is undermined?”

It was too early for this, you thought bitterly.  And Pantalone said too much in front of the wrong person.  Not the first time your own history slipped through during conversations it shouldn’t have.

“That would depend on whether one believes it is the Archons or Celestia who has control over fate,” you said at last.  “Archons interpret the Heavenly Principles but there is a divide on whether the Archons act on their own or Celestia can override their will and therefore they are nothing more than figureheads.  Either way, free will is…difficult to define.  Some find comfort in it; others prefer the idea that another power is in charge of everything.”

“Diplomatic, Sister, but not what I asked,” Dottore chuckled.  “I suppose I should expect as much from someone in Pantalone’s realm but you strike me as someone who has defined free will for herself.”

You suppressed a shiver as you watched a black bird, some kind of corvid that lived around here, flew from a nearby tree and settled into the snow.  It buried its head before it wiggled, covering itself as it played with the newly-fallen powder.

“One should have a say in the long-term decisions of their lives,” you replied.  “Marriage is one of those decisions.  Many know how to wield a hammer and nail two pieces of wood together.  Some can build houses.  Others simply rely on that skill to repair what needs to be fixed and leave it at that.  Faith should be a compass, a guidebook; nothing more than a tool by which to live.”

The corvid made a sound as it wriggled and hopped about, soon joined by its companions.  Here, the birds were well-fed and clever for it, often seen as blessings of the Tsaritsa for their playful and comforting nature.

Elsewhere in the nation, they were absolute menaces.

Your answer seemed to satisfy him, for Dottore’s chest rose and fell once, warm breath snaking from his nostrils as if he were a long-lost dragon.

He fell in step with you again and when you reached the kitchen, he left your side and settled in front of the fire almost immediately.  Attentive eyes fell on you as you spoke to the cook about making sure the Harbinger left through the service entrance.  

In silence, you brought a cup of coffee and a plate of food to Il Dottore.  The only acknowledgement you received was a silent turn of the head along with a slight nod.  

At least he had the decency to respect the atmosphere.

Normally, the smell of coffee and warm bread was enough to shake you from the cold.  You would have spoken softly about what others were reflecting on that morning, sought guidance on which verses might provide insight.

Not today.

The coffee tasted burnt.  The bread felt stale.  The meat was cold.

And too many people were watching.  As if they knew.

You left your hot drink unfinished and tucked the errant bread into your pocket.  As you wished your fellow Canonesses a good morning and departed, you felt ice bloom over your shoulders, unfamiliar and attentive.

As you passed the courtyard, you paused only long enough to break up the bread and feed the eager birds.  They fluttered and squawked, picking up the pieces eagerly.

This morning’s reflections would be tedious but worthwhile.  Reminders of why you came to the arms of the Tsaritsa to begin with.

[quibbs126]

Okay, so I think I have some more ideas for that Transformers au, since that was all my brain let me think about during the second half of my shift

It’s mostly just about Megatron and also the Decepticon cause

Okay so first off, I think if I want to make things the way I do, I’m gonna say that the Decepticons are genuinely fighting for equality for Cybertronians, while the Autobots are fighting to maintain the status quo. It’s not necessarily to say all Autobots want inequality, and some are fighting in hopes to build a better future through more peaceful means, but a lot of them don’t really recognize that the system is or was that bad. And there are still bad Decepticons, either those just wanting to cause mayhem or are just looking for a way to better their own status, but a large portion are fighting for change in Cybertronian government

Part of what makes the Autobots the generally dominant force in this conflict is that they’ve got a lot of propaganda going for them and against the Decepticons, including that being why they’re called “Decepticons”. Not everything said about the Decepticons is untrue, they are willing to do less than savory things to achieve their goals if necessary, but the idea that the Decepticons are evil deceivers is largely propaganda

I think in my head, I want the war to be portrayed as an actual civil war and revolution. When we hear about them in history, yeah there seems to be a relatively obvious good and bad looking back, like with the American Revolution and the Patriots and Loyalists, but in the moment, when they happened, neither side was entirely good or bad, and there’s reasons as to why people stuck to one side or the other, because they were people, not entities with a singular shared ideal

The French Revolution might be a more accurate comparison to the Cybertronian civil war, but also I grew up in America so the AR is my big frame of reference and I don’t know much about the FR other than it being semi inspired by the American one and having a lot of execution. But you get what I’m saying regardless

But also if we want the idea of the Decepticons being “evil”, well you gotta probably add some propaganda to explain why that’s how they’re depicted

Optimus is someone who just wants peace and is genuinely a good person, but he was also raised on Autobot propaganda and was never in a position in life where he would have particularly suffered the system (though he probably did still have hardships, I just don’t know what). Throughout this story he learns to see the truth of the matter more

Meanwhile, back to Megatron, the person I meant to be talking about

Okay so I’m thinking that he’s from a colony or city that was at the bottom rung of Cybertronian society, though I haven’t decided particularly what his job was. It might have been a miner and/or gladiator (I’m debating gladiator to have that be a reason he’s high up in rank), but maybe I should do something else

But anyways, I haven’t worked out the kinks in his backstory, but his birthplace was under control of the Autobots, and he became emboldened by the ideals of the Decepticons and their leader (who at this point I might just make Galvatron), and ended up leading an uprising alongside his fellow bots to overthrow the corrupt leadership in their home, and being successful in this attempt. The Autobots were planning to launch a counterattack to reclaim the area, but the Decepticons caught wind of the uprising and managed to get there first, leading to the place becoming Decepticon territory and being under their protection

While not everyone involved decided to join the Decepticon rebellion afterwards, plenty being content to just have their freedom, Megatron decided to join with them afterwards, wanting to bring their cause to even more places amongst the galaxy

Megatron was a powerful bot, and one with a lot of guts and courage, and he has some skill in leading other bots, which led to him becoming a Decepticon commander. He’s also extremely loyal to those who’ve earned his respect

However his main flaw is that he is deeply emotional, and as such has a tendency to let his emotions overtake his logic and common sense, and that’s when he tends to fail and make the wrong decisions. This tends to particularly be a problem because his main emotion is anger

This is exactly why Starscream ends up getting assigned to Megatron as his second in command; Starscream may not be the most upstanding bot, but he’s very shrewd and very flexible with his circumstances, always looking for a way to come out on top, not letting grudges and emotions get in the way of things. Couple that with his extensive military experience and he was considered a good fit for Megatron, with the idea the two could even each other out

Speaking of Starscream, I’m flirting with the idea he may have at one point been an Autobot, but eventually switched sides alongside his squadron, but that’s neither here nor there

Anyways back to Megatron, he tends to judge people based on their character and direct actions rather than their skills and accomplishments. It’s not to say he can’t work with someone who’s highly skilled but an asshole, he just won’t like them

You’d think this means he’d be able to make peace with the Autobot squadron relatively quickly, but he has a deep hatred for Autobots (probably backstory related but again I don’t know the specifics) that tends to override that idea of judging by their character. Over time he also learns to let this hatred of the Autobots go, particularly because of Optimus as he sees the bot is genuinely good and wants to do what’s right

Also with that, I’m thinking he and Optimus have no prior connection, only meeting now at the time of the story. They probably knew of each other, but had no prior personal relationship

So basically they get enemies to lovers instead of the divorce arc. Well I mean, I’m not sure if they end up together, maybe one or both of them have other people they date. But you get what I mean

And yeah, I think that’s about it. I should probably go do homework now in all honesty

[xxbrightshadowxx]

TF One Shatter Glass Au

Kay so I’ve heard about Shatter Glass before in transformers which is basically of the autobots were evil and decepticons were good(I think? I’m not sure. in the words of my cousin I’m still new to transformers) so I decided to come up with an au for Tfone for it.

Everything would start out the same, everything from the movie would play out, until the attack at the High Guard’s base. Instead of Bee and D-16 being captured it’s Elita and Orion.

D-16 is crushed and is ready to give everything up, he snaps at Bee and laminates that they are doomed and ask how can he do optimistic and naive when he was in a crappier position than he was beforehand. They argue for a while till D-16 kinda admits he’s jealous of orion for being so optimistic and kind even during horrible times. Bee helps him out and shows him to always look for good and tells him this is a chance to improve their lives.(kinda effy on this part)

With the power of persuasion aka, D-16 cannons, they convince the high guard to help them go rescue the others

Meanwhile back at Sentinel’s tower Orion thinks D-16 is dead and is depressed, the evidence is destroyed and he feels like crap. Sentinel mocks them like on the film, and Elita bites back at him which results in Sentinel berating Elita and nearly hurting her till Orion intervenes. Sentinel, tired of Orion being mouthy, takes the( I think it was a drill or a torch?? Can’t remember the name.) and uses it to scratch up his mouth. Orion’s optics turn to yellow

Basically similar thing happens, D-16 gets the miners to help(though is more threatening and uses the high guard to convince them) he freaks out when he sees injured Orion and the same thing happens in the movie except when D tries to shoot Sentinel Orion convinced him not to and D’s optics turn blue. While they walk away, Sentinel tries to stab Orion but D pushes him out of the way and gets stabbed. D and Orion tries to catch him but fails and falls into the well.

Orion turns around and his optics are a bright red and he kills Sentinel, less graphic than D-16 does in the film, a simple execution shot to the head. Meanwhile D-16 is, you guess it, is given the matrix for choosing good even in his darkest moments and sacrificing his life for him.

Orion steal Sentinel’s t cog and changes his designation to Optimus Prime, claiming himself the new ruler. His speech is able to convince several others including Elita, Bee, and several other miners that the only way to become equal they must steal their t cogs back from the ones that ‘wronged them.’ So attack the ones already with t cogs and steal them for their selves.

Megatron comes back and is horrified at what Orion has become but Op knows that’s he’s crossed a line he can’t go back and they fight. Megs wins but can’t kill his friend leaving him to leave. The miners feel in a way betrayed since Megatron told them he could change their future but he wants to keep the bots with t cogs alive. Basically saying he ‘deceptive’ them.(get it?)

The miners, Elita, Bee, and Op leave leaving some miners behind, the high guard, and Megatron behind.

In this au, while good, Megatron is still a bit violent and the decepticons methods are still a bit violent but they do want peace and equality. Most of his journey would be becoming a better leader for his team and for Cybertron. Starscream would still try to surprise him because, yes.

Meanwhile Op is kinda manipulative in this au. He uses his kindness to trick and gain bots trust to make them do whatever he wants. Op wants equality but his ideas to achieve it is fucked up and twisted. Elita, after realizing her entire life and all her effort was for nothing also sorta crashes out and is fully on board with OP’s plan. After Meg’s ‘death’ and seeing his two friends actively prompt their idea of rebuilding Cybertron, Bee kinda goes along with them. He is not as bad or evil as Elita and Op in this au so his optics are either yellow or orange. He’s like the thundercracker of this au.

I might write a fic about this one day. If I do, I’ll post a link here if anyone thinks this is an ok idea?

[gumnut-logic]

“What the hell were you thinking?!” Virgil ducked a fist aimed at his head, grabbed the guy around the belly and flipped him face-first into a wall.

“I dunno! Maybe I wasn’t?” Gordon darted out of the way of his own opponent’s fist.

Virgil grabbed a woman’s dropped scarf from a nearby table, his fingers brushing against broken glass. He shook the material and more glass tinkled to the equally strewn floor. The man in his other hand writhed and attempted to kick him in the shins with the heel of his boot. Virgil just shoved him harder into the wall.

Twisted scarf made excellent restraints, particularly when looped into a chair which was conveniently bolted to the floor.

It was a bar. It was supposed to be a quiet night with Gordon. A couple of brothers shooting the breeze after a hard day at work. It wasn’t often they got to sit down for a moment, have a meal and just talk.

There had been a false alarm. A reported mine collapse that hadn’t been as serious as suspected and after three earlier rescues in that day, Virgil had called a halt and invited Gordon out for dinner.

His fish brother had looked at him somewhat strangely for all of two seconds and then enthusiastically accepted.

Stashing Two at the nearest GDF base, donning casual clothes, they’d borrowed a car, driven into town, and after a couple of personal errands, found a decent looking bar and ordered steak and a couple of beers.

It had been really good. It wasn’t often that they got time to just relax and enjoy each other’s company.

The alcohol had been minimal as technically they were still on call. Gordon had a quite long and persuasive discussion with John as to whether he should drop down and join them.

John politely declined.

Gordon threatened his tribble collection.

John threatened a fish tank or two.

Gordon threatened a telescope.

John threatened to tell Penelope about Gordon’s fangirly underwear collection.

Virgil stepped in before Gordon exploded.

As it was, the couple one table over were staring over their shoulders at the two guys apparently arguing with their collars.

John was wrestled into a promise of some downtime day after next and asked to tally it up with the rest of the brothers as a family get together.

All was good and well and enjoyable.

Until they walked into the bar.

It wasn’t a rough bar. In fact, it showed signs of families visiting during the day and had a few older folks out the back playing the slot machines.

But every community had this type and every community had to handle their bullshit.

Five of them in total. Two of them decided to harass a woman sitting by herself at the bar. Gordon happened to be ordering some mineral water to follow up on their beers at the time and, of course, he stepped in.

And this was the result.

Of course, the entire situation split the bar into three camps – the Tracy side, the annoyance side, and the innocent bystanders who just wanted a quiet meal at the pub.

Virgil had a foot each in the first and last camps.

But he was a Tracy and a guy built even bigger than Virgil loomed over Gordon with all the signs of intending to smush his brother.

While Gordon was quite capable of wiping the floor clean with the guy’s head, Virgil hadn’t been comfortable with the four others paying far too much attention to the matter.

So, he had swallowed the last of his beer and, putting the glass down, wandered over to stand beside his shorter brother.

Now, Virgil wasn’t particularly tall, but where Gordon’s swimmer’s strength was mostly hidden by his shirt, Virgil’s heavy lifting strength most certainly wasn’t.

The loomer eyed Virgil with a little more respect, but unfortunately the man’s height must have outpaced his IQ, because he didn’t back down.

He had far too much confidence in his buddies.

Loomer threw a punch and Gordon educated him in WASP fighting techniques.

It was a very short lesson.

Virgil took on the four who didn’t like that.

God bless his wonderful sister for all that training, sans coffee at five in the morning or not.

Gordon finished off Loomer and took on two of the guys Virgil had been dancing  with.

From then on it had been dodge and attempt to restrain. Virgil had no interest in causing injury, he just wanted to contain the idiots.

They didn’t seem to want to comply.

So, there were bruises and broken furniture.

Virgil felt sorry for the bar owner. No doubt Tracy money would be fixing a few things. Scott was not going to be impressed.

Virgil walked up behind a guy who had thought it would be fun to team up with Gordon’s opponent in a semi-coordinated attack. He didn’t bother hitting the man, he just grabbed an arm and yanked. Spinning him around he used another convenient wall to bring his attack to a very abrupt halt.

The man’s language was explicit and quite offensive.

“Okay, now break it up.” Several police officers walked into the bar.

Gordon’s opponent was already on the floor. The aquanaut held both of his hands up and backed up to show he was no threat.

Virgil had to keep a hold of his still profane antagonist, so he was only able to hold up one hand.

A gun clicked. “Let the man go.”

A frown and Virgil did as he was asked, holding up his remaining hand.

Foul Mouth spun around and before the police officer could react, planted his fist in Virgil’s cheek bone.

“Hey!” And there were suddenly police everywhere. Hands grabbed Virgil as he attempted to shake the stars from his eyesight.

Goddamn, that hurt.

“We’re the victims here. He’s my brother, let him go!”

Blinking, he tried to straighten, but his arms were wrenched behind his back and handcuffed.

His head spun.

“Do you have any idea of who we are?!”

Gordon, shut up or we’ll be on the networks within minutes.

Then Scott would be really pissed.

Virgil wilted in the grip of the men holding him.

His brother was going to be apoplectic.

-o-o-o-

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[satohqbanana]

Arcanium Series Magic Worldbuilding Excerpts

"Types of magic" won in the worldbuilding poll, so let's have something about the types of magic... plus a few extra tidbits. Again, fair warning that some of this information can get scrapped or revised as I complete Arcanium, but this are the most stable ideas I am running along with for now.

Fun fact: Some of these are actually from the game WIP. You would've read it in the game in a basement's library!

Excerpt from Magic 101 Volume 1, "Magic and the World":

The world is made possible by two principles: the corporeal and the magical. The corporeal gives the magical a physical body, while the magical is the force that drives the corporeal.

Magic needs a physical conduit to be used in the mortal realm. For most mages, harnessing their power with their own body is enough. Mages are born with a spiritual force and a spiritual resistance strong enough to cast or repel magic forces.

Trivia: It is also widely accepted that the mortal body possesses innate control over magic. If not, most mortals would've succumbed to magic poisoning in the mere presence of a mage or a magical object!

Excerpt from Magic 101 Volume 2, "Laws and Theories of Magic":

The Theory of Force Segregation states that one power will always be weaker than a second power and stronger than a third power. This theory divides the forces of magic into two: the cycle of elemental forces and the cycle of light forces and dark forces.

The elemental forces are as follows:

Foliage, the force of plant matter.

Flame, the force of fire and warmth.

Fluid, the force of wind and water.

Flashbolt, the force of lightning.

Fillstone, the force of earth and minerals.

The light forces and dark forces are both divided into three types. Light forces include Motion, Energy, and Radiance. Dark forces include Silence, Curse, and Shadow. One cannot be without the other, and neither force is stronger than the other.

Excerpt from Magic 101 Volume 3, "How to Use Magic":

Users of magic are generally called "mages". Mages are allowed to go by any equivalent titles, and mages can gather as many monikers as they wish.

There are many different types of mages based on their affinity, proficiency, and ability.

The most common types are the elemental mages, light mages, and dark mages, who control various magic forces as indicated in Volume 2. It is also typical of an elemental mage to have offense-type magic, a light mage to have restoration-type magic, and a dark mage to have support-type magic.

There are also types of mages based on their use of magic, such as material mages and biotic mages.

Material mages can manipulate magic to specifically influence non-living objects. They often enchant weapons or charms.

Biotic mages who can manipulate living objects. Glamourers and shapeshifters fall in this category.

Rarer types include the omnimagi, the extochants, and the ambivals.

Omnimagi can wield most if not all forms of magic. For them, learning magic is almost as natural as breathing.

Extochants can control and redirect others' magic, but never their own. Most extochants are unaware of their own power and can potentially live through their lives not knowing they are mages.

Ambivals can harness the internal magic of both their own and others'. Such potential is equally incredible and dangerous.

Excerpt from Healing Magic Vol. 1, "Basics of Magic and Ailments":

Magic poisoning is an ailment brought about by overexposure to magic. Researchers have theorized that external magic can disrupt one's internal magic, especially if it exerts enough spirit force for one's spirit resistance to completely break down.

Magic poisoning has a high fatality rate. Survivors are recorded to suffer nasty black, vein-like scars over their body. These scars cannot be surgically or magically removed. Magic poisoning is more likely to occur in places brimming with magic power, such as the Chromatic Mountains that surround Kaleidopolis.

Healers and researchers have developed different ways to treat magic poisoning and prevent it from spreading. However, an individual who has survived magical poisoning before is likely to suffer twice the next time it occurs.

Miscellaneous clippings on alchemy from various reputable journals and accounts:

Alchemy is considered a counterpart of magic, but they coexist for a reason. Alchemy is a form of contractual magic, wherein a user, called an alchemist, opens a rune gate to communicate with the pantheons of gods to buy a magic spell.

Alchemy is the safer alternative to magic. One simply uses an especially-crafted alchemical scroll, and alchemical recipes in general have a 0.05% chance of failing. In the case of failure, the payment and the ingredients will simply disappear and the user will not be affected.

Alchemy is similar to cooking. One needs a few materials, called ingredients, to create an object or to summon an ability. Payments are often made using coins, jewels, and in some cases, even rare artifacts. It is sacrificing what you have to gain what you desire.

Alchemy helps the world restore gems in mines, place treasure boxes in remote areas, and hide away artifacts often thought to be long-lost… or at least that's how I think of it. I mean, where else would the gods and demigods take those things to???

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[yakuzacanons]

hey! Hope you're doing well, love ur blog sm it gives me life

Wanted to ask, do you think the guys have some hobbie? Would they be more likely to introduce their hobby to their S/O or could it be the other way around (the S/O easily introducing them into a hobby)? Thanks beforehand!

OOhhh this is a fun one, sorry it took so long to get back to ya btw. Giving u a big hug. Bit of a long post so sit tight and enjoy!

Kazuma Kiryu

Is working out a hobby? Seriously though, he likes working out and fishing. Not very likely to introduce his hobby to you unless you already express interest in it but is down to try whatever hobby you have as long as it's not something too crazy like climbing Mt. Everest.

Majima Goro

Honestly, he likes singing. It doesn't even have to be public, like karaoke. A lot of the time, you'll find him coming up with his own jingle by himself, minding his own business. Definitely more easily influenced by his S/O's hobbies than the other way around.

Saejima Taiga

Generally speaking, he's an outdoorsman. Likes hiking, camping, fishing, and hunting. Would love to do a camping trip with you but only if you want. Equally likely to introduce a hobby of his to you as you might introduce one to him.

Akiyama Shun

If taking a nap was a hobby, he would say that's his favorite activity. In reality, he has no particular favorite hobby but he does spend a lot of free time doing volunteer work for the homeless. Honestly, whatever your hobby is, he's down to try since he doesn't have one of his own to really offer you.

Tanimura Masayoshi

He likes learning how to cook and bake. That or trying the newest and weirdest flavor of snack he can find. Generally a really explorative guy and will try just about anyting you suggest.

Ryuji Goda

Has a particular interest in traditional ceremonies, especially tea ceremonies. Just fond of tea brewing in general. Also has an interest in coffee brewing but that's more out of him needing caffeine in the morning than an actual love for coffee, unlike his genuine love of tea. Would never force a hobby on you. Also not likely to be influenced himself; he barely has time for the one hobby he does have.

Nishikiyama Akira

To put it simply, he likes learning about pretty things. Like expanding his knowledge of fashion and jewelry, more so in how its made or where certain fabrics come from. Also kind of interested in gemstones and minerals but can never remember all the names. It's more of a passing fancy for him, sort of like knowing random trivia or facts, so he doesn't take it too seriously.

Daigo Dojima

If he ever DOES get the time to indulge in a hobby, it's typically something artistic. He would never go so far as to say he has any talent but he's tried his hand at piano and painting. For when he doesn't have time, you'll catch him folding tiny origami cranes at his desk. Actually pretty good at doing that but he never knows what to do with them when he's done.

Mine Yoshitaka

Does a lot of kickboxing and boxing when he's by himself. Will neither try to influence you with his hobbies nor is he easily influenced by your hobbies. Mostly just lovingly and curiously watches you while you're invested in your hobbies; he's more interested in observing than participating.

Tatsuo Shinada

Is baseball too obvious for him? Even if it is, it's the truth. Most of the time, you'll catch him doing something baseball related because that's most of what he knows and it's fairly affordable. Passing interest in photography too but only just in passing.

Ichiban Kasuga

Likes riding a bike or going fishing. Going on walks is also a good option for him. More likely to be influenced by his S/O's hobbies than the other way around. Always down to try something new, for better or for worse.

Yu Nanba

He doesn't personally consider this a hobby but he's actually quite skilled at sewing! Maybe it's just a natural extension of knowing how to do stitches as a nurse. Also more likely to try a hobby because of his S/O than influence their hobbies himself.

Adachi Koichi

Likes reading true crime novels and learning about cars. He doesn't own a car himself but he likes to learn about vintage models or go to car shows if he can. Neither hobbies are particularly serious for him though and more of a passing interest. Will try just about any hobby you present to him but be warned, he can be a little clumsy.

Tianyou Zhao

He spends almost all of his down time exploring something food related. Loves to come up with his own recipes and experimenting with old recipes. Also does a fair bit of tai chi on his days off. Just be aware, if you're dating, you ARE going to be his taste tester.

Joon-Gi Han

It sounds funny but he likes to read or watch random shit for the hell of it. Watches lots of video essays and then spits out everything he learned from it like a fountain. Also really good at making little model airplanes and figurines, although he kind of forgets to clean up after himself sometimes.

[tanuki-kimono]

Hello! I love your blog bc it helps me a lot with writing and crafting. Thank you so much for making it!

Are there any patterns that deal with poison? Either in the pattern or in the dyeing process?

Even if there's not I'm glad you and this blog exist 💗

(anon continues) Poison in the dyeing process, like when green dresses were dyed with copper arsenite and it was extremely deadly.

Or a pattern of someone being poisoned, like a historical/folktale.

_______________________________________

Thank you for your kind words <3 I tried to keep things organized but the subject is huge so my of the top of my head answer is going in many directions. I hope you'll still find what you need :3

I'll briefly cover here dyes and (pigments), poison motifs, real life and supernatural poisonings. Buckle up we've got a long post ahead!

____ ABOUT DYE

Tbh I had to think for a moment because I don't recall major "poison" stories linked to dyes in Japan, be it fictionous or real (yet that doesn't mean none ever happened, especially considering Japan's history of industrial poisonings...).

Most gruesome details in the fabric industries I know of are about the horrific life & work conditions of female laborers in spinning mill manufactures (as in many countries, Japan industrialization process was ghastly...).

If potters and dyers had excellent practical knowledge, chemistry as a science officially started kind of late in Japan as it was not a local interest, and as rangaku (study of Western knowledge) often favored other subjects like medicine or warfare.

So, until the introduction of aniline dyes (not textile related, but this article about the use of synthetic dyes in ukiyoe printing is super interesting), Japanese worked with "natural" dyes, like ai (indigo) which was the most used during Edo period.

As with any ingredient, being natural doesn't equal safety. Some mixtures could be quite potent/foul, and process could be dangerous. Plants and minerals base ingredients could be toxic (cinnabar and orpiments were then used as paint pigments, and lead could be found in make up), as were mordants used to set colors.

If you want to easily overview which ingredients were used to create colors, I recommand browsing [Irocore] which presents colors with explanation in English in their database (pick a color then scroll down).

Not related to poison, but ai (indigo) is traditionally prepared in aigame/enormous floor set jars I find utterly terrifying:

I don't know if this tidbit can help you, but some dyes and mordants actually damage the fabric overtime, leaving them brittle (silk desintegrates after a while which is a huge issue in textile conservation).

____ POISON MOTIFS

Concerning "poison" themed patterns, none would be actually used traditionally on a kimono or an obi beside novelty items ^^;

For example, many plants can be toxic, but I don't see them set as pattern for this property - they'd rather refer to a poem, be a symbol of the passing of seasons etc. Fuji (wisteria) can be quite harmful, yet it's a beloved traditional motif in Japan.

You have much more chances to find pattern with kujaku (peacock) which are thought to be impervious to poison in Buddhism, than say venomous mukade (centipede) or the horrific ômukade (a youkai I covered in a folktale).

Snakes like the habu and mamushi are dangerous, but if used as pattern snakes are most often auspicious and linked to rain dragons or goddess Benzaiten.

If you squint hard, toxic fugu could count as poison pattern, but such a seasonal delicacy as a motif would mostly underline wealth (as those fishes are pretty expensive as they are prepared by specialized chefs), a kind of carpe diem spirit, or just a fun pattern because fugu balloon shape is cute ;)

____ POISON MURDERS

Poisoning was certainly a thing is Japan since ancient times (see kodoku sorcery). Poisons were for example used in some fishing techniques.

I am pretty sure some kuge and buke were disposed of this way - even thought poison was seen as a coward weapon (hence why its supposed to be only used by shinobi/ninja - even if this "fact" is opened to a lot of discussions!).

During Edo period, such murders made up the news and penny dreadful-like illustrated books favored by city dwellers in need of a fright. But those stories didn't pass to posterity beside cheap ukiyoe plates, and were never as popular as some shinjû (double suicides) or ghost revenges like poor poisoned and murdered Oiwa's:

____ SUPERNATURAL POISONINGS

If your poison is both physical and metaphorical illbeing, mushi could be your guys ^^ This term actually covers everything small and crawling, from real worms and insects, to anything inside one's body causing distress - be it a parasite, an unknown illness, an overboard emotion, a curse etc. If you've read/seen Mushishi you've got what I mean:

In fact any illness-causing being could count as poison-bringer. Hôsôkami (smallpox demon) was truly feared by all before vaccination was introduced in Japan.

Finally, continuing the supernatural poisoning trail, best girl is probably legendary fox witch Tamamo no Mae who among other terrible deeds made emperor Konoe fall sick with poisonous miasma (some version of the story attributes the disease to another monster, the nue). I covered a similar murderous kitsune folktale here.

[torchship-rpg]

Dev Diary 10 - Martians & Spacers

Hello cosmonauts! Today we’re going to go into some more detail on human identities (don’t worry, we’ll get to aliens soon enough). Torchship development is progressing behind the scenes, albeit a bit slowly (the last two weeks especially have been hellish), and in particular we’re working on a revision of some of our core systems in a way that hopefully we can touch on in our next dev diary.

Until then, let’s wrap up the Sol-based human identities today.

Spacers

It’s safe to say that humanity in Torchship are a bunch of space cadets, and an awful lot of them were eager to live in space the moment the opportunity arose. The result is that, in the year 2169, there are entire cities floating free in the Sol system, and thousands of small stations for mining, processing, and refining the near-limitless resources of the asteroid belt and Oort cloud.

Spacers live in much-reduced gravity to the Earth norm; 0.35g is the ‘standard’, originally because of mechanical limitations in the construction of stations and now simply their norm. This means they’re recommended the ‘Freefaller’ trait, just like Lunars. They are also recommended the Radiation Hardened trait, representing modifications and pre-emptive treatment to cope with living outside of a planet’s magnetosphere and atmosphere. This gives you inbuilt reduction against radiation damage in exchange for slower passive healing due to the metabolic cost of those redundancies.

Spacers are divided into two broad categories; Habitat Spacers and Deep Spacers. As the name implies, ‘Habbers’ live in the many purpose-built space habitats which orbit Earth and, to a lesser degree, the other planets in the Sol system. These habitats are enormous technological wonders and a vital step in the space-based economy of the Solar Union, containing the light manufacturing facilities which turn the resources of Luna, the outer system, and beyond into consumer goods. They also help route the people and resources flowing to and from Earth, ensuring the colonies get fed and Earth reaps the benefits of large-scale industry without the environmental cost.

Habbers might live in space, but their day-to-day isn’t much different from their Terran cousins. Their habitats are huge, massive cities with equally large green areas. Standout habitats include L5 Hab, home of Star Patrol HQ and Academy, L4 ‘Guest Star’, the former headquarters of the PLA’s astromilitary and current HQ of Star Force, and Destination Station, the orbital anchor for Earth’s space elevator. 

Habbers, especially L4 and L5 citizens, made up a disproportionate amount of Solar Patrol members back in the day, so they get recommended the ‘Veteran’ Trait, scoring you reduced Stress in combat and bonus Security/Tactical certs in exchange for a lowered total Stress threshold. The strong presence of both the play market and shipping bureaucracy come with the Entrepreneur trait; you’re a better negotiator than average because you’re used to these kinds of transactions, but take Stress from both offering the Union’s Credits in negotiation and from the Union being in debt, as you have a much better handle on what it might mean for people when the Union’s economic systems are strained.

By contrast, Deep Spacers don’t live in cushy habs. No, these crusty cosmonauts make their living out in the farthest reaches of the Sol system, mining ice from Saturn’s rings, breaking up distant asteroids, and sending the bounty back on slow orbits. Not long ago, before the FTL drive was invented, this was the farthest you could get from the authority of the Union; most Deep Spacers are anarchists of various sorts who very much prefer their little self-contained communities to the stifling oversight and endless democratic procedure of Earth, who eschew the ration credit and play market for gift economies and black markets of their own devising. Their relationship with Earth never has to get deeper than minerals for biologicals, and most of them prefer it that way.

Still, Deep Spacers are the rock-solid core of the Patrol, because a lifetime on stations and rockets give them unparalleled instincts for the job. They are recommended the same Claustrophile trait as Mazedwelling Lunars and the same Communal Spirit trait as Urban Terrans, meaning they’re great working in a team or on EVA. They also pick up languages quickly with Polyglot, because many of their stations are extremely multicultural, and it's not uncommon for deep spacers to speak five or more languages, plus whatever pidgins are used at their trade posts.

Finally, both types of Spacers are recommended two traits which make them beloved by Star Patrol. Voidborn gives a bonus to patching hulls in exchange for added Stress when the vehicle is low on Supply, representing both their lifetime of decompression drills and their deep awareness of how thin the margins are in space. They are also recommended the Well-Connected trait to always have friends in the Patrol wherever they go, because for many Spacers, this is the family business!

As a final note, Spacers get a unique third sub-identity, the Daedalus Children, which is mostly a way of showing players that they’re free to go wild with the Trait choices even if they’re playing with humans. The Daedalus Children are a small group of artificial, silicon-based human duplicates created by the sapient supercomputer running Sagan Station, orbiting the distant planet Minerva 500 AU away from the sun. They have a psychic connection to the Daedalus computer (who they affectionately call their ‘Daed’) through the Patron Being trait.

This gonzo addition makes it clear that this is a big, strange, somewhat silly world, and you should feel free to make your blorbo whatever you want, and damn the canon!

Martians

Let’s go down the gravity well again and meet the Martians. Mars is well on its way to being humanity’s second homeworld by 2169, the result of a near-obsessive colonisation and terraforming effort through the 21st century. More or less the moment fusion engines made it viable, humans were throwing comets into the poles and setting up artificial magnetospheres, excited by the possibility of using their new high-energy toys to create a livable planet in less than a century.

Unfortunately, though perhaps not surprisingly, their maths were somewhat off. Mars is lingering in a low oxygen state, and has too many people and too much infrastructure now to try any of the big flashy high-energy terraforming anymore. Instead, it’ll be slow centuries of cultivating an artificial biosphere before Terrans can breathe unaided on the surface; despite the rapidly spreading greenery and brand new oceans, Mars’s current average surface oxygen level rivals the peak of Mount Everest.

Undeterred, the Martians turned to genetic engineering so their children could play outside. The result is that Martians get recommended the Hypoxic Conditioning trait, which gives them total immunity to low oxygen conditions and a shocking ten minutes of normal activity in total oxygen deprivation. In exchange, they take a penalty to their physical capabilities, reflecting the metabolic changes and the fact they’ve all ended up a good eight centimetres shorter than they would be without the modifications.

Martians also get recommended the Driven and Lone Wolf traits, neurological consequences of this engineering; these traits combine to mean that Martians work best when they’re alone and hyperfocusing on a single task. This may or may not be familiar to some of you, which is very much intentional; Martians are a not so subtle fantastical allegory for neurodivergence. 

The two major Martian sub-identities are The Red Frontier and The Dome Cities. The Red Frontier represents what is often thought of as the archetypical Martian lifestyle, even if it’s slowly being displaced; small groups of people living in bunker-like bases deep in the vast Martian wilderness, tending to the massive fleet of agriculture, survey, construction, and maintenance drones which are both building infrastructure and tending the genetically-engineered biosphere of Mars. This job gets them recommended the Machine Minded trait, which eliminates the penalty normally taken when working remotely with machines in exchange for one to social interaction in person.

Mars’ fragile ecology manifests as a strange sort of tundra, with spindly evergreen trees, hardy lichen, and a variety of engineered animals. A lot of work has to be done to keep it all going, especially because insects can’t survive the oxygen-poor environment, which makes pollination difficult. Martians get recommended the appropriate Environmental Adaptation trait for this tundra; they know all about survival in cold, dry environments. 

Finally, if you wanted to play one of those terraforming drones instead, that’s always a viable option; we dropped Machine Life in there as a reminder!

The dwellers of the Dome Cities are part of Mars’ high tech industry. Because of the gravity well in the way, Mars doesn’t export much in the way of material goods. Instead, it uses the concentration of expertise needed for terraforming and drone management to make cutting-edge software and media for the rest of the Union, and the cities are where this takes place. Martian cities are much more high-tech than their Earth counterparts, with lots of automated systems designed either to make up for the smaller population, or simply because Martians are already used to making robots do as much work as possible; Machine-Minded is unsurprisingly also recommended here.

Because Mars is a world of specialists, where being the best at your One Thing is a strong cultural value, the Prodigy trait is recommended for citizens of the Dome Cities, allowing them to pick three certs as Focuses and advance them faster, at the cost of advancing the others slower. Finally, the greater reliance on automation sees the Prosthetics trait recommended, representing both the greater reliance on mechanical parts over regrown tissue in medicine and the fact Martians aren’t adverse to a bit of computerised self-improvement.

Digital Elysium

Just like Spacers, Martians have a third, highly-specific sub-identity. Where Daedalus Children are a gonzo departure from the setting’s norm, the citizens of Elysium City instead are instead deeply rooted in the history of the setting. Remember how we said the Star Union isn’t a utopia? Well, this is one of the major ways it has failed, and a resolution is one of the things that can emerge over the course of the campaign.

Forty years prior to the modern day, a group of Cybernetic Democrats calling themselves the Lab Rats hatched the brilliant scheme to all move to one of the brand-new Martian cities together and use their newfound political majority to set up one of their predictive networks, peacefully starting the cybernetic revolution on a new world. They built themselves an automated city, possessed by a ghost of convenience which always knew exactly what you needed, always had a train ready when you reached the station, and always had a task you wanted to do ready to go every time you looked at your smart watch. It was efficient, seamless, responsive, and incredibly alienating, replacing any real sense of community with quest markers in your smart glasses.

When vital colonists tried to leave the city, the algorithm predicted the majority wouldn’t like that, and it locked the doors to stop them. Then the Solar Guard showed up to the ‘hostage situation’. Nobody listened to one another, both sides refused to understand what was going on. The Solar Guard rolled in tanks, and the algorithm helped the Lab Rats ambush them. After a month of brutal street to street fighting, the first war on another world, the Solar Guard retreated, and bombed the city with jumpjets until the terrified defenders lost hope. Once the majority no longer wanted to fight, the algorithm dutifully switched off.

Forty years later, Elysium City is still under military occupation. It was supposed to be brief, but the neighbouring cities who now have the controlling vote keep extending it whenever violence flares up, and each extension radicalises a new generation of Elysium citizens. Both sides are incredibly unpopular with a majority who just want peace and a greater Union who find it all monstrous, but the systems of the Solar Union are paralyzed by their own democratic checks and balances, leaving the city in a horrible limbo. 

If you want to be from Elysium, you get recommended a whole pile of traits reflecting the extreme circumstance. Vengeful and Fretful are two recommended Traits representing the understandable anger and anxiety which come from living in a city where drone bombing still happens with regularity. Prodigy reflects how Elysium City is the single largest concentration of computer science geniuses in the entire Union, due to the fact that none of them are allowed to leave. Dark History can represent in equal parts being a member of the Lab Rats or the Sol Guard, both staggeringly unpopular organisations to everyone else in the Union.

Finally, Patron Being represents how, despite the best efforts of generations of computer engineers, the self-replicating Network still lingers deep in the electronic bones of Elysium, waiting for the day that a majority want it back. Hackers and technomancers both claim they have made contact with the Network, and this trait can represent your dedication to bringing it back.

[wuxiaphoenix]

Worldbuilding: Dragon Fall

So... what if, instead of either “a blight upon the land” or an ordinary (if huge) creature’s death, what if the demise of a dragon was more like a whale fall in the ocean deeps? A massive bonanza of nutrients (and magic) that attracts whole communities of odd organisms, persisting for decades, sometimes most of a century, until the last shred of bone and marrow is gone?

The critters that show up and flourish on whale falls generally also exist in other deepwater communities. You may be familiar with the deep-sea vent communities around black smokers, where water is under such tremendous pressure that it’s still boiling liquid at over 400 F, and life keeps a toehold by a food chain based on archaea that synthesize food out of sulfur compounds. You may be less familiar with cold seeps, where hydrocarbon-rich liquid seeps out of the earth’s crust and archaea set up a similar food chain, with just less heat. Or places where a deep freshwater-saltwater interface provide a handy chemical gradient for chemolithoautotrophs to grow and feed food chains.

(Yes, I swear it’s a word. Organisms that can synthesize their own cellular energy - autotroph = “self-feeding” - just as a plant does from sunlight. Only they’re using a breakdown of chemicals like sulfur and minerals; hence litho, from stone.)

Critters from all of these communities show up and thrive at whale falls. Something similar should happen with dragon falls. Though the critters, and possibly plants if the dragon falls on land or shallow water, should be... unusual.

Elementals are some of the first creatures that come to mind. D&D dragons are all aligned with one of the four classical Greek elements; Air, Earth, Water, or Fire. Elementals tend to turn up in places strong in their element. An undine in a waterfall, an earth elemental in a landslide, a salamander in a volcano, an air elemental in a storm or on a gusting mountaintop. The death-site or body of a great wyrm might be equally attractive to beings that need elemental energy.

Some of those beings might well be intelligent. Wizards and sorcerers going out of their way to acquire exotic components by any means necessary is pretty much a fantasy staple by now. And quite a few of them wouldn’t care if the parts rightfully belonged to someone else. Or if they were hazardous. That’s a problem for untrained mages; they’re far too learned to make such mistakes!

(This is why D&D partitions Intelligence and Wisdom as different stats. Intelligence says “what a shiny idea!” Wisdom is what checks whether or not the Shiny will swat you flatter than a poisoned pancake.)

It would be interesting if killing the dragon was only the first step. Then you’d have to figure out what to do with the body, what kind of scavengers are likely to show up, what plants will be affected, whether or not it’s better to disperse the remains over a large area or leave them in one concentrated lump to quarantine....

All that, and dealing with the inevitable intelligent scavengers, out to make a killing (ahem) selling Genuine Dragon Bits at the local shady auction. Or the darkweb, if it’s urban fantasy. I wouldn’t envy the FBI that headache!

[odinsblog]

US Bitcoin Miners Use as Much Electricity as Everyone in Utah

Bitcoin miners in the US are consuming the same amount of electricity as the entire state of Utah, among others, according to a new analysis by the US Energy Information Administration. And that’s considered the low end of the range of use.

Electricity usage from mining operations represents 0.6% to 2.3% of all the country’s demand in 2023, according to the report released Thursday. It is the first time EIA has shared an estimate. The mining activity has generated mounting concerns from policymakers and electric grid planners about straining the grid during periods of peak demand, energy costs and energy-related carbon dioxide emissions.

“This estimate of U.S. electricity demand supporting cryptocurrency mining would equal annual demand ranging from more than three million to more than six million homes,” the report said.

While mining began in the US a decade ago, an influx of crypto mining companies have relocated from China after that country banned the industry in May 2021. Over the last three years, a flurry of large-scale miners have gone public in the US, setting up operations in some of the most energy-rich states such as Texas and New York.

(continue reading)