#stp the deconstructed damsel

[sno-the-silly-guy]

Guys, who else noticed in the Pristine Cut Trailer that The Stairs That Go Up still aren't shaded!?

And this one as well!

I believe that Black Tabby Games have finished all the drawings, so surely they wouldn't use incomplete work for the trailer?? But, if you look closely, you can definitely tell that it's been shaded.

SO. My theory is that these are screenshots for Damsel chapter 3. And this is basically a confirmation that we're getting a continued deconstructed damsel!!!! Since she becomes one tone when she deconstructs, it's safe to assume that her backgrounds would follow the same pattern.

I mean, the more I look at it it reminds me of Spectre, but I think that a spectre chapter wouldn't have stairs that lead up. And the stained glass on the walls doesn't look particularly ghost-like. So, what i'm saying is:

I've been right all this time and we're TOTALLY getting a deconstructed continuation chapter with Smitten and Skeptic, based around the concept of forgetting who your partner is and ignoring her one true desire to be free from the cabin. Right guys? Ri- 💥💥💥

[vickozone]

drew two of my favorite princesses. <3 love these guys.

[demonkinguwu]

Stp doodles :p

[starry-teacup]

saw something about the damsel being fake and her love for you is entirely scripted and for some inexplicable reason this made me mad even though I am the firmest advocator of what said person said with a sea of friends who say she does love you. so.

Yes, the damsel was molded to love you. Yes, it was scripted. It wasn't actually real. And the Deconstructed Damsel is there to prove that. It's a commentary on the creator's part- they're pointing out the one dimensionality of your classic fairy tale princess, how she isn't a real person and we're romanticizing poorly sketched out plot devices.

However.

While the Deconstructed Damsel is an illustration of how our actions shaping the princess can invalidate her traits and identity when viewed from the right angle, that doesn't only apply to the damsel. Sure, it was given to her to make a point about the kinds of stories they're drawing themes from, for contrast and stuff, but our actions mold every single princess, not just her.

We molded the Witch to hate us. We molded the Adversary to fight us. We molded the Prisoner to distrust us. And we molded the Damsel to love us. It's part of what makes chapter three so interesting- we let our creation out in the wild, and then the environment and the choices she makes helps us to fill in the finer details, as well. It's why I personally believe the Thorn is the only one capable of loving you- we didn't make her to love us. We just made her to experience complexity, like all the other chapter threes, except this one involved compassion.

Yeah. The Damsel is a computer program we encrypted with affection. But if we're gonna be real about that sort of thing, we also have to look into our beloved Tower's domination, our Stranger's mystery, our Spectre's grief.

None of it was ever real. Just a choice we made and a role she played.

[pyxehastoomanyinterests]

some more slay the princess!! or, for the 3rd drawing’s case, slay the prince(that one post about transmasc damsel got to me)

[stpsideblog]

I've seen some people talk about The Damsel and The Deconstructed Damsel as if they're the same, with the claim being that the only difference is that in the normal Damsel ending you don't notice how hollow she is. But I don't think this is. True.

Yes, both The Damsel and The Deconstructed Damsel are smoothed over and formed into the ideal of a love interest who wants nothing more than to escape with you and make you happy.

But it's the act of doubting her personhood that takes it away.

The Deconstructed Damsel isn't a glitch showing what the Damsel really is beneath it all, she's a changed version of the Damsel shifted, as any other of The Shifting Mound's parts, by your perception of her.

When you start to ask about her agency, that is when she loses it. When you start to view her as inhuman and wrong, that is when she becomes those things. When you believe you are the only person here, then it becomes true.

When you deconstruct The Damsel, you aren't revealing truths about her, you're changing her through your own doubt in her identity.

[chaotic-cheese-blog]

Princesses be upon ye!

Happy valentine's day to anyone who celebrates it, whether it be alone, with friends or even fucked up princesses 💕

[vickysaurus-art]

The Shifting Mound with every other princess as her minis! With the Apotheosis joining last, but the very opposite of least, it’s finally done! For now, because I plan to ink it, and those spots around Fury are reserved for the Pristine Cut princesses, so it won’t really be done until autumn at the earliest.

[generative-adversarial-nitwit]

i will NOT blorbo the protagonist/player character of slay the princess i wont. i wont do it. i wont stoop to it. even if he IS babygirl

[wysteriaisapenguin]

An Afternoon Break with Skepty and Smitty

(Featuring Deconstructed Damsel!)

[saucy-mesothelioma]

I've been working on some Slay the Princess colored panels, and I wanted to share them. Obviously spoilers under the cut

First up is the Base Princess

I wanted her to give off "blank slate" as much as possible, so I tried to keep a lot of color out of her pallete. A lot of the other princess pallets have some elements of the Base Princess, but at varying levels.

Next is The Witch

Definitely gave her a lion vibe with the hair and tail colors, and I just really wanted to give her a lavender-tinted dress.

Next is The Damsel

God knows I had to make her as stereotypical as I possibly could: pink dress, lacy ruffles, the works. She's got them big blue autistic eyes and we love her for it.

Ran out of room, so I'll do some more in Part 2

[metanarrates]

I was so tempted to tag you in the princess poll lol I was like does meta know????

Number One Fan Of Weird Reincarnating Princess Goddess Women already on the case good anon

[chaoticgoodthief]

STP Voices Personality Swap

Inspired completely by @remaking-machine's awesome AU! I decided to put my own twist on the idea and see how it turns out! (ramble under the cut so that my mutuals don't have to watch me go insane, as per usual)

Self-imposed rules:

Personalities swaps must be based off of this line (or at least my interpretation of it) to force me to think more about how that would even work:

Princesses must be kept as close to canon as possible. I would give a good reason but honestly, it's just more fun that way

Ok, without further ado, let's get started!

Hunted (swapped with Opportunist): Will be on whatever side keeps him alive. Will be completely on board with defeating the Beast since he knows he will die if he doesn't fight her. However, he drops all pretences the moment they aren't in danger of dying. All the other voices actually like him up until he drops the helpful act, which at that point they all immediately hate him for deceiving them. For the most part, acts similar to his canon counterpart but a lot shadier in a way that nobody else seems to notice.

Opportunist (swapped with Hunted): Treats the Witch like an ambush predator and thus always is correct about her next move. False bravado comes off like a prey animal puffing itself up to be more intimidating. Genuinely looking out for your survival, but generally disliked by the other voices for his flighty nature. Does not trust Thorn, but empathetic towards her pain. Generally acts very different from his canon counterpart, but his facade is a nearly eerie replica.

Skeptic (Swapped with Smitten): An seriously unhealthy amount of trust in the Prisoner and only the Prisoner. If she told you to stab yourself he would agree with her because he's that sure that she has a plan. Completely distraught in the Drowned Grey route because he knew she had a plan and it's all your fault for not believing in her like he did. It's actually creepy how easily Skeptic falls down the exact same path as canon Smitten after a personality swap. I love it.

Smitten (Swapped with Skeptic): Serious trust issues after being stabbed to death by the princess and locked away by the Narrator. Rather than you being the one to ask questions in the start of Chapter II, he will ask them before you get the chance. Since he will force you to grab the knife, there is a much higher chance of getting the Burned Grey route. Can be calmed down if you manage to get him to put his trust in the Damsel, but manoeuvring away from Deconstructed Damsel is also a lot harder due to his insistence to get answers. Somehow even more sceptical than canon Skeptic.

Stubborn (Swapped with Broken): Most downtrodden of the lot because of just how exhausted he is from the seemingly endless fighting. Even getting with him to the cabin is a pain due to his refusal to Do This. All the other voices think he's annoying and whiny, with only Contrarian vaguely getting along with him. Interrupts the Narrator's "You're here to -", with "Die. And die. And die again. And if we're lucky... die quickly." He's just as bad as canon Broken and it's so funny yet so sad at the same time.

Broken (Swapped with Stubborn): He's not physically strong in the slightest and failed to kill the princess once already, but this time he's going to win. Comes off as a yappy chihuahua trying to fight a lion. Again. However, he's actually on friendly terms with a good few of the other voices due to this. The Tower is vaguely amused by him up until the moment that he actually wins. And then? Then's she's pissed. Would be great friends with canon Stubborn, but only after proving himself in a fight.

Paranoid (Swapped with Cold): Turned off his emotions to focus on getting everyone out alive (think MoC Cold). Clipped, clinical tone for everything, including the Survival Mantra. Thinks the others don't appreciate him enough for the sacrifices he made in order to keep their body working. He is right. Completely numb to death in the MoC route to the point he doesn't even bother to use the Survival Mantra anymore, not that it matters at that point anyway. Very similar to canon Cold, but more apathetic than bored.

Cold (Swapped with Paranoid): Extremely superstitious, believing the princess to have cursed him with her death, which is only amplified when she returns as a ghost. Urges you not to touch the mirror because you might break it, begins talking about finding an exorcist if you let the Spectre possess you, refers to the Narrator as a malevolent spirit (I mean.... he isn't wrong), the whole shebang. I'm not going to lie, this one is honestly one of the funniest to me. Do not put in the same room as canon Paranoid. It will not end well for either of them.

Cheated (Swapped with Contrarian): Over the course of interacting with the Razor, he quickly starts just messing around after realising nothing he does matters. He treats the situation less and less seriously, to the point that he's making actively dumb decisions just to see how everyone reacts. Throw the blade of the window? Sure, why not? She'd kill us even if we had it! Throw her out of the window she's she's a bunch of blades now? Sure! Why not? She'll just come back, right?

Contrarian (Swapped with Cheated): Tried to get out and now look what's happened. Actively bitter about being trapped into a set path and determined to make it as much of a hell for everyone else as it is for him because of it. Curses like a sailor and is generally just So Done With This. He's not trapped with you. You're trapped with him and he will make everyone knows that. Will still try to make it up to the Stranger, the Hero and the player for his actions later on but does not hesitate to berate you for leaving him behind in the Stranger's cabin. Honestly, he's probably the closest to canon. Spicy Contrarian, if you will (get your mind out of the gutter not like that)

Hero remains the same, but his opinions about all the others are... very different, to say the least.

Phew, that was a lot of fun! Maybe I'll come back with a part two for SwapAU meets canon!

[17magpiesinatrenchcoat]

ALL THE SLAY THE PRINCESS ANALYSIS-ISH POSTS IVE FOUND ON HERE SO FAR

As someone who can never really grasp meanings in media beyond surface level, analyses like these are always lovely to read. Here are all the ones I’ve gathered during my short time in the fanbase so far, this is mainly for myself, but maybe it would be useful to someone else!! Also. If anyone knows of any more, please please send them to me!! I will add more as I go too.

I don’t think these all count as analyses, but they all made me go “oooh :0” so yeah

https://www.tumblr.com/momentomori24/735278091386126336/i-just-had-an-epiphany-about-the-cold-that-i-never

https://www.tumblr.com/lipstickchainsaw/735000176332259328/the-pristine-blade

https://www.tumblr.com/electronicdelusionstarlight/735270452740734976/id-like-to-point-out-that-in-the-wild-if-you

https://www.tumblr.com/dapperrokyuu/735178155760992257/alright-now-that-ive-seen-the-end-slay-the

https://www.tumblr.com/momentomori24/735068416032047104/something-i-really-love-about-the-smitten-is-how

https://www.tumblr.com/geebeeskoos/735078530884534272/the-nightmare-the-moment-of-clarity-might-be-the

https://www.tumblr.com/electronicdelusionstarlight/734951196420358144/id-like-to-point-out-that-while-the-tower-and-the

https://www.tumblr.com/bpdwwx/734705488874422272/insane-over-slay-the-princess-imagine-death

https://www.tumblr.com/satellite-slickers/734633384872132608/slay-the-princess-is-really-cool-because-learning

https://www.tumblr.com/satellite-slickers/734573430353117184/i-just-realized-that-even-though-our-protagonist

https://www.tumblr.com/satellite-slickers/734558408577073153/i-like-how-the-twist-in-slay-the-princess-isnt

https://www.tumblr.com/golvio/734492024048369664/it-was-a-bit-of-whiplash-going-from-the-damsel-to

https://www.tumblr.com/three-lesbians-of-the-apocalypse/734467272705490944/theres-something-so-chilling-about-asking-the

https://www.tumblr.com/in-fair-verona-we-set-our-scene/734463751524319232/the-more-i-think-about-it-the-more-not-exactly

https://www.tumblr.com/honeyfizzly/734464645923045376/i-think-the-horror-of-deconstructed-damsel-comes

https://www.tumblr.com/colorful-noircuts/733183847545683968/rambling-about-something-i-realised-in-slay-the hello my lovely mutual!!

https://www.tumblr.com/k20spock/734344272686481408/i-feel-like-i-havent-seen-as-much-discussion-of

https://www.tumblr.com/nerdlordofnerds/734384189011607552/man-dont-you-hate-it-when-you-try-to-rid-the-world

https://www.tumblr.com/lipstickchainsaw/735338029994115072/oh-for-the-stp-questions-what-do-you-think-of

https://www.tumblr.com/honeyfizzly/735336172257198080/i-really-adore-the-witch-wild-route-because

https://www.tumblr.com/supervillainies/735028943239921664/ive-mentioned-it-before-but-voice-of-the-cold

https://www.tumblr.com/lots-of-little-pink-clouds/734249738756620288/follow-up-thought-tsm-says-when-you-meet-he-gave

https://www.tumblr.com/angelofthemornings/734527183265185792/one-thing-i-like-about-slay-the-princess-is-that?source=share

https://www.tumblr.com/metanarrates/734373760026705920/if-you-choose-to-chain-yourself-next-to-the?source=share

https://www.tumblr.com/satellite-slickers/734216961853095936/durring-slay-the-princess-our-leads-have-the-only?source=share

https://www.tumblr.com/golvio/734035911415857152/tried-the-damsel-route-today-this-shot-and-the?source=share

https://www.tumblr.com/electronicdelusionstarlight/733870455536173056/say-what-you-want-about-the-smitten-but-the-man?source=share

https://www.tumblr.com/electronicdelusionstarlight/733801315338190848/the-way-the-skeptic-implicitly-trusts-the?source=share

https://www.tumblr.com/electronicdelusionstarlight/733269659334426624/the-way-the-shifting-mound-ends-every-ending-by

https://www.tumblr.com/electronicdelusionstarlight/733333027972907008/the-way-the-princess-has-no-name-but-at-the-same

https://www.tumblr.com/justsalpals/733475592170848256/the-spectre-really-had-no-idea-what-she-was-doing

https://www.tumblr.com/electronicdelusionstarlight/733630301609295872/the-way-you-can-only-kill-the-princess-with-the

https://www.tumblr.com/lipstickchainsaw/735453678374469632/also-what-do-you-think-of-the-adversary-i-like

https://www.tumblr.com/lipstickchainsaw/735448991864635392/oh-oh-another-question-what-do-you-think-is-up

https://www.tumblr.com/lipstickchainsaw/735538031989293056/oh-what-do-you-think-of-the-spectre-and-prisoner

https://www.tumblr.com/lipstickchainsaw/735509320346812416/what-do-you-think-of-nightmare-and-spectre

https://www.tumblr.com/minotaur-asterion/735506279592787968/might-be-a-weird-question-but-what-do-you-think this one isn’t an analysis at all but I thought it was funny

https://www.tumblr.com/birdmitosis/735586819735961601/this-honestly-really-fascinates-me-because-it

https://www.tumblr.com/lipstickchainsaw/735614693262196736/ohhhh-and-what-about-the-narrator

https://www.tumblr.com/elieclowngamer/735849806204960768/okay-but-like-spoilers-for-slay-the-princess

https://www.tumblr.com/lipstickchainsaw/735902648917721088/what-do-you-think-about-the-beast-in-stp

https://www.tumblr.com/lipstickchainsaw/736242037895168000/what-do-you-think-about-the-fury-and-the

https://www.tumblr.com/k20spock/736789844699807744/birds-and-trees-in-slay-the-princess

https://www.tumblr.com/lipstickchainsaw/735509712935829504/what-do-you-think-of-nightmare-and-spectre

https://www.tumblr.com/lipstickchainsaw/736243685245730816/what-do-you-think-about-the-fury-and-the

https://www.tumblr.com/fierce-little-miana/736431035990016000/strange-beginnings-ending

https://www.tumblr.com/chi-the-idiot/736610535159873536/ok-but-we-need-to-adress-how-slay-the-princess

[chessheart]

i present to you: arts and crafts au

in which the narrator is a kid with his first creative writing project and lots and lots of (tiny) models

the construct is actually just a paper and thread model he keeps in his room and yes he is reading off a script and acting it out on his own

the stp artstyle is not in fact an artstyle, this is in fact how the construct looks like. deconstructed damsel is a piece of paper because he thought it would be funny

apotheosis is a mannequin he found. for reference, the princess and tlq are roughly 8 centimetres tall. the “narrator” is a fake bird he got for his birthday after a very weird obsession with birds. the beast is his (very disruptive and occasionally possessed) cat

stp starts as a roleplay script narrator writes for fun (with random people joining in to help act it out), but problem is, of course the models become sentient, and of course the narrator doesn't realise

then the story starts writing itself, and all the narrator's plans go to shit

witness all the weird shenanigans tlq and shifty get up to when narrator isn't watching (and when he is, not that they care)

[pyxehastoomanyinterests]

thinking of the damsel route where the princess turns into an anime girl. thinking about how the mere act of questioning her autonomy made her lose it. because viewing her as brainless made her so. because our perceptions shape who she is, and by not believing her simple want we are not believing her existence as an original person. thinking about how she's a person until we decide she's not being "person enough"