#the arcana game meta

[macabremayhem]

The old sketch of human (or not?) Valdemar.

Because of their antiquity, I came up a headcanon about their origin. So, what about a country near the great river and with the great pyramids? Many lands of the Arcana world have references from India, Arabic region or Mongolia – so, Ancient Egypt? Why not? I can't decide, maybe this is ancient Zadith? There is nothing about Zadith in the canon, just a note in the ArcanaWiki:

"The homeland of Asra's parents, Zadith lies across the Malvent Strait from Vesuvia. This is a country where both science and magic are highly respected. Those who combine both disciplines are known as alchemists."

I think this short description is suitable for the heritage of such civilization as Egyptian.

I’m sad that the history of the world is so poorly developed, but I still love the lore so much. And I’d be happy to read (only from the original writers), say, a brief history of the world. But since there's no any history, I'm taking the liberty (and, a bit, my history degree) to assume: Zadith is the inheritor of some ancient civilization like the Ancient Egypt.

I'm not good at naming, so I will provisionally call it "Deshret" – Egyptian word for "red land, desert". Valdemar spoke about "millennia of existence", describing their antiquity, so I'm pretty sure: they have been born as a human in the ancient kingdom, like the Ancient Egypt. Also, note that red beetle brooch at the neck: similar motives were common in the Ancient Egypt. And, I think, Valdemar had this beetle brooch long before the Plague.

Okay, maybe developers in Portia's route (flashback scene with Prospero and foundation of Vesuvia) just showed Valdemar to us as we know them, because of developing another (kinda "more ancient") sprite and costume for the short scene is not viable. But anyway: we have what we have. What if we imagine that "red beetle brooch" of the Courtiers is rooted not only in the Red Plague? What about a, merely my headcanon, the Egyptian "scarab" motif?

So, there's the old traditional sketch I have. When I drew this pic, I imagined Valdemar just after their first deals with the Devil. Just look at their eyes.🫀

And – of course, they are in the tomb. Maybe as a priest? Who knows, fellow humans.

[mapofredemption]

@arsenicxarcana YES I LOVE THAT THEY'RE FOILS

I was gonna make a meta post about how the characters’ corresponding patron arcana are in the same sprite pose as them but then actually looked and realized that’s only true for Julian lmao so I guess just have these comparisons

+ Valerius & The Hierophant whose poses are kinda just inverted versions of each other

[thydungeongal]

Having thought about it some more, the dissonance between people who are okay with talking in an out-of-fiction register over the table and people who insist on an in-fiction register for even mechanical discussion isn't as simple as the latter group being irrationally demanding of some kind of immersion, but it is definitely an issue of the group not having properly established a tone. Now, this is also not particularly helped by the fact that many games are. Really bad at communicating what kind of tone is to be expected of players over the table. But I feel it's further compounded by the fact that many modern RPGs basically expect players to be able to make mechanically informed decisions, with their characters acting as a group to overcome obstacles together, and with no agreed upon in-fiction definitions for many game mechanics the language of the mechanics remains the best cipher for players to communicate these things about their characters.

Some games do a better job of this than others and are thus more amenable to playing in a way where there is almost zero communication in a meta register. Some games, including most mainstream trad RPGs (your D&Ds 5e and Pathfinders 2e) make it all but impossible because they are so mechanically dense and require players to make mechanically informed cooperative decisions. Trying to play one of these games with zero discussion through the best cypher the players have for making sense of the fiction (the language of the rules) would be an exercise. Imagine a group of aliens, all speaking slightly different dialects of the same language, all trying to explain gleeblor (and all of them have a slightly different definition of gleeblor).

Some crunchy TTRPGs do a better job of bridging this gap between mechanics and fiction which means there is less need for code-switching. World of Darkness games have always had descriptive text indicating what each Dot of an attribute or ability roughly corresponds to in real life. Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy also does this, grounding character skill ratings with actual examples of what kind of person could be expected to have that skill rating (Eureka also has explicit guidance for what kind of discussion should and should not go through the meta channel, which is sort of the thing I was grasping at in the first paragraph: many games do a very poor job of transmitting the desired tone to their players, which means that players are left with an oral tradition of never talking in terms of mechanics even while playing mechanically dense games that make such a playstyle all but impossible).

Anyway so Pathfinder and modern D&D are not exactly amenable to this type of play, which doesn't mean they're bad games, but it should be acknowledged that these games do very little to actually communicate how their numbers would translate into terms in the fiction, meaning that the rules text is often the best cipher players have available to them for communicating changes in the fiction. Because the games themselves don't do a lot to define their mechanics in terms of the fiction, any discussion of "what goes in the meta channel and what doesn't" should ultimately rely on consensus, not a single player trying to enforce their (arbitrary, personal) interpretations of the mechanics on the rest of the group.

Anyway this ties a lot into something that @vixensdungeon is always posting about and what her recent 0D&D posts also touch on: the shape and presentation of modern D&D rules is so that it's really easy for players to just look at them and decide that their character can just "Do an Arcana." She's also talked about how back in 3e days even the skill names had much more of a Verby quality to them. There's less of a need for this code-switching when the Thing in the Fiction matches with the Thing in the Mechanics. Gonad the Barbarian would like to Climb a wall, so in D&D 3e he Climb checks that wall. In D&D 5e to Climb a wall Gonad the Barbarian must Athletics on that thang.

And this relates also to our silly 0D&D posting. A Warrior (level 2 Fighter) fights with the strength of two men. Halflings may never be able to rise above the ranks of Heroes, but Halfling Heroes have Superheroic wherewithal (saving throws of a character four levels higher). Naiviv the Medium may yet one day rise to the rank of Wizard. 0D&D is also, in general, less mechanically dense than modern D&D, so a game of 0D&D where the meta channel is almost never used is entirely possible.

Anyway also shout-out to Apocalypse World as well, because it has a completely different approach to bridging the gap between mechanics and the fiction; a way which might turn off people expecting more crunchy play with less room for language games, but a way nonetheless. These are all examples of effects that can happen when a character does a thing:

Force your hand and suck it up.

Back off calmly, hands where you can see.

You lose your footingm

It's not openly for sale, but you find someone who can lead you to some selling it.

It reaches deep into the world's psychic maelstrom.

You provide covering fire, allowing another character to move or act freely.

Your prey doesn't suspect you. Otherwise, they're wary and alert.

See what I mean? When a lot of the mechanical text is like this there is less need for code-switching. The meta register and the in-fiction register are all but the same. It's not an approach that works for every type of game (a mechanically dense game of tactical combat written in this register wouldn't necessarily be unplayable, but it would leave a lot of things ambiguous that people generally drawn to mechanically dense tactical combat games would rather the game resolve for them), but for the type of game Apocalypse World is it works remarkably well.

[vintagerpg]

My first encounter with Into the Odd was on a bookmark — the entirety of the rules system was crammed onto one included with my copy of Silent Titans. I’ve still yet to find a copy of the original 2014 edition from Lost Pages.

This is the revised edition from 2022, featuring gorgeous illustrative collage work by Johan Nohr throughout. I appreciate the use of orange on the cover (an under-appreciated color) and the book feels unusually good in the hand, like a book from an earlier era. The rules take up a bit more than a bookmark’s worth of space here, but not by much, honestly. I’ve no proof that the “Odd” of the title is a sly reference to Original D&D, but I’ve also got no proof to the contrary, and it seems appropriate: the system is recognizably D&D, but stripped utterly to the bone. Three attributes instead of six, doubling as saves. D20. Damage deplete hit points, then Strength, then death becomes a real risk. That’s basically it. This minimal framework is the basis for a whole sub-genre of light weight, short run D&D-ish engines, like Knave and Cairn.

Odd has its peculiarities. It is designed for a specific setting (that doubles as a meta commentary on settings, wildernesses, cities and dungeons) in which adventurers explore the underground in search of Arcana, which are powerful, largely uncontrollable magic items (there are no spellcaster classes, so Arcanum are the only option for magic). So, in some ways, it seems like there is only one way to play the game. On the other hand, Chris McDowall has hacked his own system to make Electric Bastionland, which uses the same basic framework without the magic and plays…completely differently. So maybe it really is all in the dressing…

[mimir-anoshe]

I love that ARCANE is using the MAJOR ARCANA for symbolism.

Chefs kiss.

These are Sevika's tarot cards from season 1.

The Magician (upright) overlapping Death (upright).

Foreshadowing? Oh hell yeah. But its only now after S2 Episode 6 do I understand what they might actually be foreshadowing. People may have talked about this before, so I apologise if this is similar to anyone else's meta. These are all my own thoughts, I usually just watch arcane and don't dabble into the meta but this season has me feral and I just rewatched season 1.

SPOILERS for Arcane S1/S2 below.

I just want to prologue this post with a note about how I've noticed even from season 1 there are thematic parallels and linear symbolism being afforded between Jinx and Viktor. Others in the community have too I'm sure. Its strange. I thought it was interesting in S1 but didn't deep dive into it, but S2 has driven headfirst into it and its making me go "oh... oh ok." Even Viktor in S1 noted Jinx's genius, and in another timeline perhaps Powder would've been a student of Viktors had fate not set them on parallel paths. Two children of Zaun, both mechanical/scientific geniuses. One physically disabled whilst the other mentally disabled. One who "escaped" and was given a chance, rising to the top only to create something that would be used for harm. Fighting that fate at every step. Whilst the other trapped at the bottom of the barrel, forced to use her gifts to become a weapon herself. Such GOOD story writing.

So now let's think about the art of the cards, because in tarot, even the symbolism of the specific art is important. Its why an artists interpretation of a major/minor can be so crucial to a reading.

Here's a figure map I made earlier.

Lets begin with Death.

Thirteenth of the Major Arcana, a "significant transformation and the end of a phase in life." There is death and rebirth symbolism all over arcane, but let's take a closer look at the symbolism mirroring the art.

Figure 7&8 - The one who has "died" a skeleton/skull laid down and being "imbued" with something as something else is taken away.

See that the imbuing focuses on the "chest" area.

It's quick, but it flashes briefly when Viktor is being imbued with the Hexcore. He canonically dies "the skull" and is reborn with the Hexcore on an "altar"/table.

Same with Jinx. Canonically "dies" and is reborn laying on an "altar"/table using shimmer. Purple being used as the visual thread between shimmer and the arcane of the hex; a colour imagery representation of "magical" alchemical/arcane power turning them into something beyond human.

Singed and Jayce. Two hands of death, giving and taking life as if they were a God. One using shimmer, the other Hextech thats imbued with shimmer. Messing with the balance of life and death.

With Viktor, the energy is transferred straight into his chest, just like on the card.

So now we've established the parallels to the death tarot, lets look at The Magician.

The First of the Major Arcana, "the connection between the physical and spiritual worlds, and the ability to manifest one's desires."

Viktor is the Magician. No doubt. He connects the physical and spiritual world of the arcane, he brings people back from the brink of death, as he was. He manifests his desires through the use of the hex, the arcane. And the dude just looks like a mecha wizard.

Though if you want it to be even more obvious.

Figure 3 - The Third Arm/Third Hand.

The image below is "The Machine Herald" Hero from League of Legends. This is the hero Viktor is based upon.

He canonically has three arms, same as the Magician in the card. The Magician is Viktor, Viktor is the Magician. The Magician is the Machine Herald.

The Magician overtakes/overlaps death. But Viktor by episode 6 still doesn't quite resemble the machine herald from the games. There's no third arm... Yet. So the Magician in the card isn't Viktor from episodes 1-6, this is the machine herald who comes after the one killed in episode 6. Another Rebirth is set to happen for Viktor.

Figures 1 &2 - White mask. Red/pinkish eyes.

Hmmm... Red/pinkish eyes are associated with shimmer. And a white mask, of the machine herald? The mask of a messiah. That the hextech Viktor will most likely also be imbued with shimmer like Jinx, to become the true "machine herald." Messiahs of the hex, monsters of the shimmer.

Its also worth noting that both Jinx and Viktor are framed as messianic figures of Zaun in this season. One the fighter who will rally together the undercity and free Zaun from its oppression. The other a healer and a saint like figure who will free the Zaunites of their suffering and lead them into a better future.

Jinx wanting peace - represented by Isha - and Viktor's dream of peace and healing for Zaun - represented by a lot of things including healing Vander - are metaphorically and literally killed in episode 6. Funnily enough, one symbol of peace killing the other (Isha and Vander - Child and Father). After all, peace and violence are two sides of the same coin, as are Viktor and Jinx. Or should I say, two sides of the same cog...

Figure 4&6 - The Cog shaped Hole in the Magicians chest/The Cog Coin and Jinx's cog.

"I understand now. The message hidden within the pattern. The reason for our failures in the commune. The doctor was right. Its inescapable. Humanity. Our very essence. Our emotions... Rage. Compassion. Hate. Two sides of the same coin. Inextricably bound."

In episode 6, whilst Viktor is explaining to Vi about what it will take to heal Vander, Jinx is sceptical. She doesn't even believe in herself as a messiah, so this "hero"? This "saviour" coming along to solve their problems? To fix things? When all she can do is break everything around her, jinx her own family, destroy? She's scoffing at Viktor sure, but she's also scoffing at herself. Mirroring. People treat her like they treat him, so to believe in him as a saviour means she would have to look into the water of that well and face her own reflection. And Viktor sees right through it, the pretence, and he sees her potential.

Knowledge is a paradox. Jinx wants to stick with what she knows, to destroy instead of to build, to "Watch it all burn." Or ignore the plight of Zaun, so she can live peacefully with Isha. Jinx - Powder - is choosing to remain ignorant to what's right in front of her. Right up until the moment Isha dies.

In the scene earlier in the episode, Jinx accidently destroys a bit of the well, releasing a cog that falls into water. Cogs have been symbolic of Viktor healing people throughout this season, using cogs to "Build."

Powder was thrown into water just like that cog by Silco, and reborn as Jinx. But its not Silco that picks up this cog. Its Viktor. He holds the potential of his creation in his hand, and in paradox, holds Jinx's destruction. Viktor holds Jinx's potential. He's literally holding the two sides of Jinx/Powder in his hand, her - their - fate. Just like Jinx, Viktor has the equal capacity to destroy, and if he is reborn as a weapon later on, perhaps that cog represents Jinx being reborn too. As a creator. A builder.

He holds onto Jinx's cog all the way through the rest of the episode, balancing that potential, that fate, of creation and destruction in his hand. Right up until the moment he dies, and the coin/the cog falls, sealing their fate. His death causing the deaths of Isha and Vander too.

So we've established that the story is viewing cogs/coins in a similar light. We've also established the show is linking Viktor and Jinx through the symbology of the cog.

This is reiterated in the symbolism surrounding the Tarot cards. Around the cards are coins that take the shape of cogs, the currency of Zaun. Fate - coin flips - and cogs, gods and machines. Deus Ex Machina, that is what Viktor is to become, and Jinx creates destruction using machines. She's an inventor, just like Viktor and Jayce. A creator and a destroyer. A god of the machine.

So how does Figure 6 - the coin cogs - relate to Figure 4? The hole in the Magician's chest.

On the Tarot Card, the Magician has a circle in the middle of his chest. A hole. Just like the hole Jayce puts through Viktors chest at the end of Episode 6. The one that kills him.

But if you look closely at the image above, it might be a stretch, but to me, the striations on the inner ring look very similar to those of a cog. The hole is what kills Viktor. Cogs have been given visual symbolism for healing, and are also associated with Jinx's potential for creation. Its a stretch, but it could potentially be foreshadowing Jinx using her abilities to heal Viktor; to build instead of destroy. We've already seen Jinx do it once with Sevika, by "building" her a new arm.

I also find it interesting that we're shown Jinx using her talents to build someone a new arm, and Viktor - the machine herald - still has yet to acquire his third arm. Perhaps he doesn't make it. Perhaps Jinx does?

Maybe, just maybe, Jinx - Powder - is the one to fix Viktor, and flip the cog of fate once again.

Now in Episode 6 we already get foreshadowing that it'll be singe - not Jinx - who saves Viktor by imbuing him with the ultimate shimmer from Warwick/Vander - stabilising him. He says it in the episode, but Viktor refuses to sacrifice Vander in the name of creating the ultimate weapon of destruction.

"It would destroy him."

Viktor's potential for destruction goes hand in hand with Jinx's.

Its even foreshadowed in both the cards. The red/pink eyes of the machine herald foreshadowing shimmer. And the shadow being imbued into the chest of the dead skeleton (Viktor) looks an awful lot like Warwick; the beast that traps Vander.

So why am I talking about Jinx saving Viktor if I'm so certain its Singe? Well I'm certain Singe will bring Viktor back to life, to be used as a weapon. That seems like the most likely outcome.

But like Viktor was saying about Vander "He's not a specimen, he's a man." Viktor was doing everything in his power to save Vander's humanity. So yes Singe will bring the machine herald back most likely - even if I think it'd be thematically cool for it to be Jinx - but I think Jinx will save Viktor. Save the man, the humanity. Be the big fat hero.

Jinx was a girl imbued with Shimmer, and despite having monstrous abilities and doing monstrous things, her humanity has still survived.

I could be wrong, I most likely am, but the the thing that's getting to me is this...

Figure 5 - The Broken Infinity.

At the centre of Viktor's chest, in the middle of Jayce's death blow and Jinx's cog of creation & destruction, is a symbol.

Now a diagonal infinity symbol is associated with the Firelights. Ekko. The boy who shattered time.

Broken Infinity? Shattered time? Seems to go hand in hand.

Though Ekko's symbol is a whole infinity, more akin to a Z than an ongoing X.

There are plenty of theories Ekko will play a role in Viktor's fate and the fate of everyone by rewinding time somehow. And the multiple shots of the coin rolling support that to an extend. Rewind time, change fate, change the flip of the cog. And I agree, I think Ekko is going to have a role to play. But there's also another character who fits with this symbol, who uses shimmer to move faster than humanly possible and defy fate time and time again. Who is the fulcrum of fate in the eyes of the story, the catalyst of everything. And only one character who has solely been associated with a broken infinity symbol before.

Jinx. That's Jinx's symbol. Her champion tag.

Jinx's symbol, right at the centre of Viktors chest. And this line to Jinx from Viktor...

"You have much to offer this commune, Powder. Your talents could be used to build instead of destroy."

And the line from Singe, about Viktor's fate being tied to the commune. Viktor IS the commune, he's the centre of it all. The one who can make the dream of Zaun - Vander's dream - a reality. And that line foreshadowed Jinx using her talents to help the commune. To help Viktor.

Hell, she was technically the reason he "died" in the first place. She fired the rocket that nearly killed him. Wouldn't it be poetic story telling if she was the one who saved him in the end?

I can't wait for Saturday.

I believe whatever happens, Viktor and Jinx's fates are inextricably bound.

[starfirexuchiha]

My P5 Royal Tumblr Posts Directory

I made so many P5R related posts in the past so I decided to organize them and put the links to them in a post so that people, as well as myself, can easily find them!

Since I am a Shuake enthusiast, most of these links are Shuake-related posts which is not surprising lol. I will update this as I find more of my old posts.

Links to my Translation posts

P5R Guidebook Interview Translation - The Royal Trio is a “Love Triangle”

P5R Guidebook Interview Translation - Akechi is the Deuteragonist

P5R Guidebook Interview Translation - About Akechi’s silly Navi Line 

Navi Akechi Status Ailment Translations

Joker’s gay dream about going to the beach with Akechi Translation

Joker’s gay dream about going on a movie date with Akechi Translation

P5R Keychain Merch Translations

New P5R Goro keychain merch & ShuAke Flower Language Translations 

P5 Tactica Crow Trailer scene Translation (Contains Shuake rivalmance)

P5R Artbook Translation - Creator’s Comment on the Shuake “Bad Ending” artworks

P5R Artbook Interview Translation - Regarding the “Bad Ending” (Maruki Ending) and devs being aware of Shuake fans

P5R Magazine Translation for Rokuro Saito's comment on the Royal Trio

P5 Maniacus Magazine Translation - Confirmation that Akechi has the Wildcard ability

P5R Magazine - Translation for the Shuake Profiles

P5R Magazine - Translation about meeting Akechi in 3rd semester

Links to my Guides (including Translated Guides) posts

P5R: Akechi Confidant Dialogue Choices guide

How to make Akechi obtain his 3rd Tier Persona (Hereward) in P5R [Concise]

P5R Guidebook Translation on how to make Akechi obtain his 3rd Tier Persona (Hereward)

P5R Guidebook Translation for Akechi’s Confidant Guide

List of Gifts that each Male Confidant Likes

P5R: Complete Akechi Gift Guide

P5R: List of ♪♪♪ gifts for Akechi (With picture references)

Confidant Deadlines for Akechi, Maruki, and Sumi

How to get the Royal Trio PS4 theme

Links to my Theories/Meta posts

The Flower Meanings behind each P5R Flower Keychain Merch

Ryuji and Sunflowers

“Acedia” - Akechi’s deadly sin

Side Effect of using Call of Chaos

Black Mask Goro also represents a Harlequin

The meaning behind Paradise Lost (Joker’s strongest melee weapon)

The Symbolism behind Akechi’s Tie and Badge

Hereward is the First Robin Hood who is also unhinged

Faith, Hope, and Charity Arcanas and how it will foreshadow a future P5 Spinoff game

Akechi being undetectable

Shuake connection to Adam and Steve

P5 - “He made HIMSELF go psychotic!”

The events in P3 took place near Maruki’s palace

The Real reason why Akechi is unaffected by the dream world

Goro’s surname may be fake

“Night on the Galactic Railroad” references in Persona 5 Royal (ShuAke-related meta)

Links to Unused Content posts

3 Unused Farewell Gifts in P5R for 3/19

Some Unused Akechi Lines in Mementos

Unused Akechi Thieves Den conversations

Unused Shuake dialogue in Darts Game

Goro thinks shirtless Joker is distracting

P5R Unused Showtime Stickers

Prince Akechi has Unused Navi lines

Some Unused Akechi Costume Conversations

Unused Goro Texture File

More info about the Unused Goro Texture file

Unused scene where Goro is still alive after Maruki's Reality got destroyed

Unused Content - Goro’s Unused Mementos Request (Not my post but this is so interesting that I wanna bookmark this here)

Links to Misc and Trivia posts

Tsundere Akechi moments in P5R

Persona 5: Mementos Reports - Some Akechi Trivia

Akechi is also an artist

P5 Tactica Translation of Goro’s special dialogue to Joker 

Goro scaring Ryuji

Akechi wanting Joker to be his true self (independent of the player’s will)

Akechi’s Arcana card is mysteriously missing in the official P5 and P5R websites

List of times where Goro thinks Joker is attractive

Goro’s ENTJ quotes by cognitive functions

The Answer to whether or not Akechi is alive in P5R + Shuake moments

Goro has a warm tingly feeling

Goro being a jealous bitch in the Royal Trio Love Triangle (Not my post but I love bitchy Goro)

[felassan]

ancient meta from the dawn of time and by that I mean pre-DA:I's release in 2014 [edited for brevity] [the Hermit card].

"The Inquisitor’s Edition of DA: Inquisition comes with a deck of 72 tarot cards, both major and minor arcana, with custom artwork Solas - The Hermit The Hermit, set against a barren landscape, leans on his staff and holds a lamp in front of him to light the way in the darkness. Let’s start with the obvious: Solas is literally a hermit. The card speaks of retreat, wandering, distance, reclusion, solitude and (when reversed) loneliness. In the story of the Tarot, the Hermit heads out at night, peering at and examining whatever takes his fancy. In the same way, Solas walks the Fade while asleep, finding brilliant unimaginable lights, only to smile in delight and move in for a closer look. The Hermit’s lantern illuminates animals that only come out at night, flowers that only open in moonlight or starlight - Solas sees things in the Fade that can only be found if you go in without fear, without preconceptions, your way illuminated by the knowledge. The Hermit wants the truth at all costs - Solas values freedom of thought above all else. In readings, the Hermit can symbolize a wise person with a philosophical attitude. The person may also be someone older, like the old man the Hermit is usually portrayed as. The person may be someone the querent meets who will give them the insight, tools or training needed to overcome an obstacle - someone who can shine a light on things that were previously mysterious or confusing. This comes from an interpretation of the Hermit: he has internalized the lessons of life to the point that he is the lesson. Now he returns from isolation to bestow boons on his fellow man and share the knowledge he has gained. Now he is like his lantern, illuminated from within by all that he is, capable of penetrating the darkness. He helps, acts as a mentor and offers wise counsel. In the knowledge he offers the Inquisitor, Solas embodies one of the meanings of the card - guidance. The Hermit is ruled by Virgo. if anyone is going to take a lantern into a dark place to see what’s going on, it’s a Virgo. Solas reflects key themes of the card such as going on a personal, solitary quest." </end 2014 rambling>

[emphasis added rn]

Light is a super common metaphor for knowledge, wisdom, insight and guidance. Cole says "He wants to give wisdom, not orders". The riddles in Lateral Thinker, in which we have to light a series of braziers with Veilfire torches, go:

"The Dread Wolf keeps its gaze on the one light that illuminates the way forward. // Where the Dread Wolf's gaze blazes, paths are brought to light. // When the Dread Wolf's gaze is bright, light burns in a ring of the dead. // One sees the hunter, one flees from it, one hunts it in turn, one outwits them all."

A lighthouse is a tower-like structure designed to emit light and act as a beacon. The Game Informer article calls Solas' Lighthouse a "towering" structure. this magical realm in the Fade is his lair, his inner sanctum, his home base; it reflects him (and his hermitty isolation). the article kind of likens it to visiting your friend's bedroom, it's not a showy place like Skyhold or a fortress, it's something realer and more intimate than that. you could read it as, Solas' personal home in the magical Fade is called a lighthouse because Solas, like the Hermit with his lantern or little flame in his hand, is like a lighthouse, a beacon in the dark - as if the "flaming Rook" emblem on the front of the 'red book' isn't just a fiery rook as in the chess piece or Tower card with Fen'Harel above it, but a tower-like structure, a lighthouse, and at its top blazes a bright fire, a beacon of light like those atop a lighthouse, where Solas himself resides, lighting the way.

[kradogsrats]

so I have like four posts in my drafts with notes and outlines for some kind of arcanum mega-meta but I realized I can just say what I want instead of having to go full academic citations on everyone so:

An arcanum is a connection to a primal source that allows access to its power. Arcana are usually innate, as in magical creatures and elves, but can be learned by humans and (implicitly) elves. (The only elf example we truly have is Aaravos, though... so who knows.) Mages strengthen (or IMO a more accurate word might be "focus") their arcana to access primal rune magic, a system of drawn runes and spoken Draconic words that draw power through the arcanum to produce spell effects.

It's very, very difficult to learn an arcanum—otherwise we'd see elves doing it much more often. Or rather, I think it's very difficult to learn a first arcanum—i.e. the first one you don't have naturally—and after that they get easier, because you know what it feels like to do it. It's also basically impossible to teach an arcanum, since learning one is similar to reaching a state of enlightenment—you can try to tell other people how you did it, but they won't be able to do it the same way. However, you can get a boost:

Now, it may be kind of a moot point as to whether Callum would be able to understand the Sky arcanum without having had the primal stone, because at that point you're changing the scenario so much that it doesn't make sense, anymore. BUT we actually have a similar case:

Villads describes the "sailing sense" of an experienced captain as a connection to the wind and the weather. Could he bridge the gap to Sky magic, if he knew it was possible? Ehhhhhh... but he at least seems to be in a similar-ish place to where Callum is, at that point. That is, a place he has taken a lifetime of sailing to build up to, and that Callum has reached in about a week.

Through using the primal stone, Callum has experienced channeling the power of the Sky primal from nothing, and that channel remains just the tiniest bit open. He still needs to go through his epiphany regarding understanding the Sky, as well as having felt it, but the two aren't unrelated.

(See what I mean about how you can't teach an arcanum? Yeah.)

Callum doesn't need an Ocean primal stone to learn the Ocean arcanum, because he has already figured out the experience of understanding/connecting with one—now he "only" has to do it with a different primal source. It's like... waving your arms around aimlessly in the dark, versus feeling around for something you know is there.

Anyway, here's the point:

This kind of magic is explained to us (courtesy of Tales of Xadia) as an effect of dark magic use—dark magic corruption allows for "parlor-trick" spells like lighting candles without a reagent or incantation. It's implied that primal rune mages are also able to cast similarly small spells without runes.

Not to get too tinfoil-hat about this, but Tales of Xadia specifies that dark mage characters can do these kinds of spells without dice rolls, and that they do not run the risk of gaining Corrupted stress. Now, in terms of the game rules, this is effectively saying "they won't do literal damage to themselves" since stress is the system's equivalent of damage. But.

I do think it is true that significant dark magic corruption allows access to dark magic abilities that are otherwise impossible, but that's not the same. For one thing, none of the instances of this "snap" magic that we see include any markers of dark magic—no purple glow or blackness of the eyes, etc. It may not even be dark magic at all, it's just that only dark mages ever do it.

With the primal stone, Callum is able to experience the channel between himself and a primal source, and later recreate it. Given the relationship between dark magic and "deep" magic, could the act of casting dark magic spells—not the corruption, necessarily, but the experience of magic—open a small connection with deep magic that humans as of yet don't recognize or really know what to do with?

I know other people have done "snap magic is deep magic" before, but now I have said my piece on possibly why and how and maybe this will finally let me fucking rest.

[bowenoke]

I'm microwaving the mechanics of stress tokens rn. because as per Siobhan's comment about animal handling and nature checks... they get to pick which skills they'll take disadvantage on.

The solution everyone here on tumblr is talking about for ALL their other problems, to just rely on each other, would genuinely work here. All they have to do is pick one person to maintain a given skill, and everyone else can not bother with it. forget arcana checks; Adaine can do arcana checks. Everyone else stops giving a singular shit about magic. Sneaking?? Who cares about being stealthy! Everyone else rocks comfy pajamas at school, and lets Riz take care of that. (Not even in a meta-gaming way, but in the genuine sense that they cam rely on their friends in-world to handle specific types of problems.)

More than forcing them to exhaustion, the stress mechanic seems like a really great opportunity to let individual party members shine at Their Thing, their Expertise, in a party where skill bleed is huge, and everyone has taken feats and multiclasses to become a jack of all trades bc of the modern setting often splitting the party

[writing-for-life]

Sandman Meta-Analysis

Literary/Conceptual/Psychological

Morpheus Meets Matthew—The Rest is History

About Black Mirrors (an exploration of the relationship between Dream and The Corinthian, both as a literary concept and in Jungian terms)

The Mother Wound (or what if one of your major arcana was possibly created in the image of the parent who emotionally abandoned you over and over)

“Tales in the Sand” in Context of “The Doll’s House”: About Patriarchy, the Madness of Pure Dream and Nada & Morpheus as mirrors of each other

Where the Blood Fell, Red Flowers Grew”: Red Flowers as a Symbol for the Loss of Innocence & Guilt in Tales in the Sand & Brief Lives

Hob Gadling’s Involvement In The Slave Trade Between The Late 16th And Early 19th Century (This is a new, revised and expanded version of this addendum to someone else’s post)

Perspective Requires Being Anchored in Reality—About Holding the Entire Collective Unconscious and Dream’s Struggle with Connection

The Importance of the Dreamstones—The Ruby as Dream’s Essence (and the consequences of locking it away and then receiving it all back)

He Hears the Sound of Her Wings—When Death Equals Solace

“But He Loved, He Should Have Been Forgiven”—About Free Will, Responsibility and Agency: Lucifer and Dream as Foils

When Destiny is Inescapable or: He Truly Is the Worst Older Brother (Based on a fun ask prompt that turned into a serious meta)

The Portrayal of Womanhood in A Game of You

The Sandman Overture and Exiles: Omnia Mutantur, Nihil Interit—Everything Changes, Nothing Is Truly Lost (Not Even Hope)

The Ultimate Character Tag Library

The Mortifying Ordeal Of Being Known (Or: Does Morpheus Really Have Commitment Issues?)

Death’s Wedjat Eye: Deeper Symbolism or Random? (Based on an ask)

The Women of the Sandman: A Collection of Meta-Analyses, Fics and Art

Spun Stories And Hard-Hitting Realities As Bookends To Brief Lives

The Thing About Daniel (is that he is not a palette-swapped Morpheus)

The Sandman Timeline As Published In The Annotated Sandman (timeline with a few meta thoughts)

The Truth Of Mankind Is Also Dream’s (short comics panel/show quote comparison)

The Endless Are Not Their Opposite—They Only Define It

Only Hope (!) Calls You Out Like That (Dream, Desire, Hope And Loneliness),

The Difference Between Daydreams And Desires Or: How Dream And Desire Wouldn’t Have Saved The Universe Without Hope (Based on an ask)

Dream's Relationship To His Emotions & The Differences Between Show!Dream and Comics!Dream (Based on an ask)

About Love As The Catalyst For Change

Morpheus and Calliope: About Inspiration, Personhood and Change (Based on an ask)

What Does Morpheus Like in Women? (Based on an ask)

Dream’s Loss of White Hair as the Loss of Innocence: The Killalla-Situation

Touching Death or: Why Dream is Not Simply Touch-Starved in The Sound of Her Wings (Addendum to someone else’s post)

Keeping Them In Character: Could Morpheus Be Saved? (An exploration of fanfic, but lots of good meta thoughts, so I included it here)

Did Morpheus Want to Die? (Addendum to someone else’s post)

When Desire Stops Being the Villain

When a Story About Stories Can Be Read in More Than One Way, and Why a Story About Change Changes With Us

If It Is Implied Lucien Is Adam, What Does That Make Lucienne?

Sunday Mourning—About Dream Entities and Stars (Why Head-Canons Are Wonderful, But Forcing Them On Creators Isn’t)

Who Is at Fault for Dream’s Death? The Endless as Concepts (Based on an ask—I accidentally deleted the OP 😩, but thankfully, I still had reblogs to link to)

Dream and How He Experiences Love (Or: When the Unreal is at War with the Real, and Finally Understanding Unconditional Love Tightens the Noose Around Your Neck That Has Been There All Along)

Tales In The Sand—Did We Find the Women’s Story? Or: The Rejection Of Dream/Hope As A Concept

How Do You Solve The Orpheus Problem? (an exploration of ideas for fanfics, but too many good meta thoughts not to include it here)

Nuance in (The Sandman) Fandom

To Be Human Means To Die (Even For Morpheus)

Let’s Talk About Thessaly (In The Context of Second and Third Wave Feminism)

The Blood on Morpheus’ Hands (more a processing attempt than a meta)

Why The Order of the Last Three Issues of The Sandman Matters

The Facet is Not The Jewel (old post about the ubiquity of Dreamling)

#sandman meta: Even more metas of all kinds, like those of others I (sometimes quite extensively) participated in.

Sandman Comics Reread & Netflix Sandman Rewatch: All my Sandman Book Club contributions, ordered by issue/episode (we are currently discussing on a weekly schedule, join us!)

Next: Sandman Meta-Analysis Music >

Link to full pinned post

[blind-alchemists]

sorry, Zagreus, I've had your sister for five hours and I already like her more than you.

anyway! I did treat myself and bought the game early and. it's just very good!

in somewhat chronological order, my thoughts after yesterday's session

the music! the music is even more amazing than in the first game and if I'm done, I need to listen to the whole OST on loop

the art!! also even better than in the first game!!

Melinoë is a great protagonist

it's incredibly funny the first god we encounter is Apollo, because Apollo is the guy people modded into the first game years ago

... boy, I wonder what the speedrunning meta will look like for this game (I have very obscure knowledge about Hades I speedrunning meta)

I love the little backgrounds that pop out with the art

oh, right, I jumped into the Hades I EA late, so I never saw the place holder graphics in-game before

the environments!! beautiful.

I shouldn't have played the first game last week. It's fucking with me. where's my second dash??? Why do we start with 30 HP??? where are my death defiances??? weapon mechanics???

of course there's a fishing mechanic again.

I like Hecate's design.

saluting??? what's the lore behind that?

OH. this tone of the story isn't ... quite what I expected. A lot more serious. a lot more severe.

Melinoë doesn't remember her family??? Hello??? what the fuck???

and she keeps talking about her task with such a dutiful determination ... no, I'm not crying. But. That's such an interesting conflict.

NEMESIS!! She's holding her sword aspect!! her design!! her resentment!! her vengeance!! her rivalry with Mel. how Mel calls her Nem. please. tell me she's a romance option. PLEASE.

oh, hi odysseus.

hey, there's hypnos! ... why's he sleeping??? (funny thing is, I got the Charon dialogue that implies he's more useful this way lol)

I cannot. Take. Skelly serious. It's worse because Mel does.

I like Moros' design. The long hair going over the horns? Yeah, that's good.

Mel gets an AXE??? a heavy, double-bladed axe??? (I love women wielding heavy weapons, and as long as the rail doesn't make a return, I'm good with anything after enough time)

I like the new art sprites for reoccurring characters!

ahhh, the good old "we don't trust Olympus so we're not telling them everything" line. understandable, but I figure that's going to blow up sooner or later.

I love Mel's bond with Artemis and Selene and the implication that both helped raise her.

... and I like the predominantly female cast so far

Nemesis can show up in Erebus???

BABY MELINOË omg

why does every chthonic goddess / titaness sound like they have a thing for Persephone. Nyx already had a few lines like that in the first game. Why does Hecate also have these kinds of lines.

the Hecate fight frustrates me to no end, because I'm very used to more dashes, more health, and more death defiances, and very different weapons :( (I have bet her twice in total so far)

unrelated, but I didn't know I needed a sheep in the Hades art style but it's so damn cute and I want a large art print of it

Archane!! I love how her silks change Mel's avatar

Oceanus is beautiful

... except for the traps. Really not digging the traps. or the maps.

CHAOS??? why are you holding your old form's head??? and why is there an embryo coming out of it??? why do you have wings??? why do you wear a suit??? the new design unfortunately checks all the boxes but upon reflection that is because it fits into that very niche character design trope I've seen in manwha recently and I couldn't put a name on it if I tried

on that note, I also adore Aphrodite's new design!!

not quite sure what I think of the gathering / farming mechanic yet

I do like the incantations, magic, hexes, and arcana though!

HERMES! I also adore his design.

wait, what? Mel's going to Olympus? You're telling me one part of the game is descending into the House of Hades and the other is climbing to Mount Olympus?? (that's my speculation, at least.)

god, I hope the cast of the first game is alright/alive. :(

I hope we also get to see Athena, Ares, and Dionysus at some point :(

on that note, I can't wait for Mel to meet her brother and realize he's the opposite of her lol. I love siblings and mirrors.

[misty-wisp]

1, 3, and 19 for the ask game :3

oc development ask game

TY FOR THE ASK ARIA GRAAAHHHH

okay, uhm. this got REALLY long. so i'll put most of it under a read more

What was the original thought that led to the creation of this character?

okay. full stop. asuka originally existed as a quite literal self-insert of myself for the sake of being shipped with goro akechi. bc i finally played p5r at iii think 18, maybe 19? and got REALLY obsessed with him. fell in love, you might say. i've grown out of that and now am more or less insane abt asugoro as a pair in itself rather than like. the thought of being in a relationship with a fictional character, lmao.

this is very critical information to me though. i will never forget asuka's origin as a selfship self-insert. never stop selfshipping, you WILL get cool and awesome ocs out of it.

here's some super old art of p5 misty from before she got changed to being asuka:

(these were all definitely traced btw. idk where the first one is traced from, but the second's from rika's official ref for higurashi sotsu, the third's from marie's portrait, and the fourth for aigis' arena portrait. my ass did not want to learn to draw at the time lmao)

i don't think i ever drew any proper ship art of her and akechi, and i never wrote anything proper with them, either. or with her at all. her character was pretty messy--her arcana was still the aeon, but i made the reason for that like..her being aware she's a self insert? and therefore not meant to exist? i got really meta with it, it was weird. and there was like. a lot of personal stuff too but let's not get into that

iirc the reason i changed her from a self insert to a full oc was for the sake of creative freedom--i really limited myself making a self aware self insert, and thought it'd be more fun to take that basis and twist it into a different but kind of adjacent character.

3. What was the first thing you decided on, the character's name, appearance, personality or their role in the story?

her name!!! the first thing i went for in asuka's actual creation was changing the self-insert's name. i still wanted to be a little self indulgent with the character concept, so i wanted a name that had a meaning that related to birds--just to throw in some kind of parallel or connection to crow.

so, i went with naming her asuka, with the kanji 飛 (asu, "to fly) and 鳥 (ka, "bird"). there are other kanji combinations you can do for this name, but i went with that one in specific! i remember that i tried making that kind of self indulgence with the name more reasonable by saying it moreso symbolizes her freeing herself from her manager, like a bird escaping its cage and flying away from its owner.

at the same time, i think my initial concept for asuka's persona was odette from swan lake, so it'd be a double meaning for both her name and persona having a bird-related theme. i don't remember if her codename was originally something like swan as well, but i wouldn't be surprised if it was.

19. What is your general favourite thing about the character? What is your least favourite?

holding myself back from saying asugoro. i'm normal. i'm normal.

i think my actual favorite thing about asuka is the whole thing i came up with for her being the aeon arcana. i don't think i actually spoiled it in full here? but i'll go ahead and drop some things because i proooobably won't be writing or releasing a full fic detailing everything she'd be involved with in the game's story anytime soon, lmao.

she's not human! she has a crisis because of that! she might not get to exist! she has a lot of beef with her dad! her dad loves her a lot and he's protective of her but he's been lying to her this whole time about her existence, her childhood, her memories, everything!!! and she loves him too but she's so angry because he lied to her!!!! her whole life he lied to her!!!! her life is a lie!!! she's not meant to exist!!!!! she's not meant to be living or breathing or anything!!! but she's here, she wants to be here, and if there's a chance that'll be taken away she's going to fight for herself and her personal freedom to live even if that means turning against the people she loves most and taking away their freedom for her own selfish wants--

in short. i really love that i went full self indulgent with this part of her character because i think it paid off. i think it helped me expand p5's world, just in my own little head. and p3's world on a technicality but shhhhhh you tooootally didn't hear that

now. my least favorite thing. i wanna say it was the personal stuff that kept me from really developing asuka in her first year or two of existence, even back when she was just a self-insert. that's time i can't take back! but i'm happy i have time now and that i've developed her so much. she's so cool

[1eos]

i just finished the game.................my brain is wired completely differently now i am not the same as i was 3 hrs ago....

the person u become after finishing persona 3:

NO BUT LETS TALK ABT IT (spoilers under the cut)

thee fucking bittersweet excellence of the persona 3 ending my god. you've passed december you've made your choice ryoji is fucking GONE and there's this feeling of doom bc you know he's gone and you know the world is on the path to be gone no matter what you do.. and then nyx shows up and she comes FROM THE MOON the celestial body that has been the centerpiece of all of your day to day week to week goings on. AND SHE'S WEARING RYOJIS FACE. ALMOST LIKE A MASK. when i tell u i gagged.............................like who comes up w this shit i need to kiss them.

and the final battle is so good 'the arcana are the means by which all is revealed' i could quote nyx in my DREAMSSSSSSSSSSSSSS. and in the final final battle the protag stands alone facing like a cocoon of human misery and with 1 hp 1 sp will not die, emboldened by the power of bonds raises one finger and gives his all to push back the end of the world? and then u realize this is what it was all heading towards. the moment the protag came back to iwatodai the events were set in motion bc death was in him! for him to live meant he would have had to continue on in ignorance. persona 3 is truly a shakespearan tragedy esp if u factor in the meta of it being a video game so theyre all in this tragic timeloop and characters dying but being unable to die and are reborn constantly to play out their roles. like wowwwwww rest in peace shakespeare :( you wouldve loved the doomed yaoi btwn minato and ryoji :(((((

[utilitycaster]

hi yes hello im the lowish int wizard anon! no offence was taken! ive never actually played dnd so i dont know the ins and outs very well at all, and it was an entirely hypothetical question as i have no plans to play either. that said, i do have ocs i made with dnd mechanics (ie classes and such), one of them being a wizard! his name is Vi :3. and yes. hes not the smartest man around. the largest reason i asked is because, he keeps his components in colour coded pouches - with matching bracelets (blue on the left and red on the right) - so he knows where his peices are because hes a little bit of a scatterbrain and i love him. it wouldnt do any good in a fight to go "ah shit give me a sec where did i put my amber" you know? i didnt think that would classify as low wisdom. i have 0 idea if he would work at all the way he currently is. lmao.

again, my man will more then likely never be used in a real game so this is all just food for thought and fun to mess around with. thanks for awnsering and offering to give ideas! i really value your metas and such. you appear very well spoken.

Hey anon! Thank you! Anyway good news. That is CLASSIC low wisdom. Absent-minded academic who is brilliant in a very narrow field of study and can't remember where he put a single spell component or his keys or literally anything? That is practically the definition of high intelligence, low wisdom. Give your wizard high intelligence and super low wisdom (and no proficiency in investigation - stick it all in arcana and history and nature and such) and go forth to your heart's content. (But also...at this point I would say that if you are using D&D mechanics to help create an OC but don't intend to play, you can kind of do whatever; just know that if you do get an opportunity and want to play this guy in a D&D game you should re-do the stats to fit with gameplay, ie, high intelligence)

[waffleweirdo]

I will forever be in awe of Arcana Arcadia. Starira is a game with so many issues, but the fact that it’s story was able to come to a conclusion that intricately interweaves every single character’s story into a grand epic is spectacular.

It has all of revue starlight’s meta narrative and symbolism in spades with Play A

Every single character ties into the narrative in an important way, both in the play, and in the production of the play

Aruru Otsuki. Do I need to say more?

The intermissions all give insanely good characterization

They actually wrote a play that spans eras and genres and worlds and it works??? I am always floored by the revue starlight writers what the heck

Plus the way it ties up the story with Elle and adds a new perspective than what we just see from the main cast.

It’s actually incredible, and in my opinion revue starlight at one of its best points. And it’s from a shitty mobile game and locked behind hours of other content! Why!!!

This was just an excuse for me to gush about Arcana Arcadia.

Anyways, if you haven��t you should read all the stories on the wiki. It’s worth it!! Some of them aren’t great, but Arcana Arcadia is so good that it’s worth it!

[fipindustries]

you can tell balatro really succeeded on me because it made me actually google for the precise meaning of certain cards and the meta of how they are used, which i never do for a game ever.

but is just perfect, such a tantalizing neat system, that is anotther way in which the game triumphed with me, the game doesnt go out of its way to explain the deeper intricacies of the planet cards or the arcana cards or the spirit cards, these are all things i had to figure out as i played and i did! i go into the mental effort of charting this system in my head on my own! and i had fun doing it! i tried other games that want you to do this like tunic or whatever and it just did not click for me but this game did it