#the forerunner series

[zilentis]

a Forerunner Builder, Inspiration-From-The-Domain, and her little Huragok; Far Too Dense.

The Forerunner is less impressive, but I’m still happy with her (she looks like a Forerunner). What I was really focusing my effort on, was the cute Engineer, I really really wanted one and I’m so proud of him. Almost entirely sculpted from Greenstuff

[unsc-offical]

is it true that they put the mamsnrhbr chehfde in the soder?

DEY PUB DA MAMSNRABER CHIFED INT A SODRE

[critical-quoter]

You are what you dare.

Halo: Cryptum - Greg Bear

[drunk-on-starlight]

Would love to know why Chant-to-green decided to look so human.

[latest-updates-and-history]

Dive into the World of Sport Watches

port watches have become essential gear for both enthusiasts and athletes in today’s fast-paced world where technology and fitness go hand in hand. These timepieces have transformed from simple stopwatches to multipurpose devices that flawlessly combine fashion, fitness monitoring, and cutting-edge functions. Sport watch offer a special fusion of usefulness and design, whether you are a professional athlete aiming for peak performance or a fitness enthusiast looking to track your progress. We will go into the world of sport watches in this blog post, looking at their features, advantages, and frequently asked questions. - Read More

[buymobilenz]

The Apple Watch uses its own internal sensors to calculate distance, speed, calories burned, and heart rate. However, these sensors aren’t always accurate. In fact, some people say that the Apple watch is not as accurate as the Garmin GPS watch.

[owl-it-here]

Missed Opportunities: DCMK #1

The longer I follow the story of Detective Conan the more I regret that the author didn't introduce more APTX 4869 side affects beyond the pain of transformation. I can understand why he didn't do that as the series is meant to appeal to a younger audience as well, but this is really a missed opportunity.

First of all, rejuvenation to the age of 6/7 certainly affects a person's mentality and emotional stability. A child of this age has different needs than a teenager who has not completed the puberty process. As much as Shinichi's relationship with Ran is adorable. The longer he stays in “Conan's” body, the more he should notice changes in his feelings. There should be a moment where he catches himself reflexively thinking of Ran as a sister. Especially since he often separates his original persona, referring to himself as someone else. Regardless of how good an actor he is, with the level of stress he experiences every day, it certainly affects his livelihood. We seemingly see Shinichi catch on to Conan's habits during his brief transformation, but it's not enough.

There is also a good chance that Conan's intelligence will not be able to help him with the emotional fatigue of his childish body. In my opinion, there should come a point when Conan's nerves of steel, formed while growing up as Shinichi, will not hold up. Not necessarily during a time of danger or investigation, but later, for example. For a reason that will not seem important. Simply because he became overwhelmed.

To be clear, I'm not talking about memory or skill fading, but about matching capabilities with the body. It is known that the TV series added a lot of extra episodes (so it seems to us that an eternity has passed), while according to the manga, probably not even a year has passed yet (I am actually not sure, although it should because Conan is not Ash Ketchump). But you have to remember that a year for a young child, a year for a teenager and a year for an adult are completely different intervals. The longer he is in this body, theoretically, the easier it will be for him because he will begin to grow up in it again. In practice, it may be more difficult for him because adult emotions will be mixed with those of re-adolescence.

In addition, our lifestyle and what we face partly affects our appearance. The basis is written in the genes, but that's about it. Based on how many times Conan was in a life-threatening situation, and that he even underwent surgery in his rejuvenated body, this should gently affect the appearance of his older self. With the use of a pill that temporarily ages him, there should be an effect that there is something different about him. Every time it is used, there should be a slight difference. Ai could also use this as a warning not to overuse the pill. ( Besides the fact that it will stop working at some point.)

Our dear boy should just have it a little harder…. Turning into a younger self with full capabilities just seems too easy. Even if to some extent DC is the forerunner of this trend among popular series. To speculate what could have been.

[syn4k]

What's Mianite?

Mianite was a Minecraft roleplay series started in 2014 by Tom Syndicate and Tucker II_JERIICHO_II! It had two seasons, the second of which started late in 2015 and ended in 2016, and one spinoff series called Mianitian Isles that started in pandemic-era 2020 and ended sometime in 2022 IIRC. It also featured Jordan CaptainSparklez (yep, that CaptainSparklez) and Sonja OMGItsFirefoxx.

The premise of Mianite is that there are three gods: Mianite, god of order, after whom the series is named after, Dianite, god of chaos, and Ianite, goddess of balance. Each god has a champion (or champions), a player who carries out their will on Earth. A main point of tension present in all three series was that the champions were often caught between the bonds they had with each other and their loyalty to their gods, which made for some really damn good moments in all three series.

If that sounds interesting to you, good news, you can totally jump into this blind! I recommend starting with Jordan CaptainSparklez' POV first, since he's a central figure in s1 and involved in basically all the main plot points in s2. He also edited down his livestreams (the entire series was streamed live on Twitch) into shorter episodes with only the relevant clips sticking around. You can find his s1 playlist here, his s2 playlist here, and his Isles playlist here.

Fair warning: Seasons 1 and 2 but especially 1 are very much products of the time they were made in, and while they're pretty chill, some of the jokes and references made come off as dated and off-color today. The R slur is also dropped a total of like, four times over the span of the two seasons but I thought I'd point it out anyways jic. Season 2 also handles themes of abuse, torture, and is just in general a Little Bit (very) Strange.

is it worth watching it? i don't know. i don't know you. however if you can handle the format and the longevity of it (jordan's s1 and s2 povs combined are 200 episodes long), it tells a pretty damn compelling story about how uhhh [checks notes] divinity is found in the most human of places, how morality is farther from black and white than anything you could possibly imagine, and how and why it's important to pay attention to the way people present information and what motives they may have behind not only how they share it but behind why they might share it at all. it's also a testament to how humans will always find ways to stay silly no matter how serious things get around them. and last but certainly not least mianite is the forerunner of queercoded as FUCK characters interactions etc its just So Very, in more ways than one, All The Time.

but also ive had a raging hyperfixation on it for the past several months so who knows if any of that is accurate lol

good luck and have fun, anon :]

[writeforfandoms]

Warrior Song 13

Find the series masterlist

Okay guys, we're approaching the end! I think we've got two chapters left in this story. And remember, if you kill me, I can't finish the story.

Medic learns more about Atriox's plan, and has a difficult decision to make.

Warnings: canon typical violence, canon typical plots against humanity, nobody likes humanity I guess, playing fast and loose with canon, canon is my sandbox. Mention of injuries.

Word count: 2k

Master chief/John-117 x f!reader

“Humanity has been more opposition than I first imagined,” Atriox growled. He’d left you on the ground, for which you were grateful. It was easier to hide the shaking when you were already seated. “But you will not be for much longer.” 

You couldn’t see exactly what he was doing. You were a medic, not an engineer. But you knew it was bad. 

You wished you did know what he was doing, so you could find some way to stop him. 

Not that you really thought you could. You were, after all, the third most harmless person on this ring. 

“Why did you not break when you lost your Master Chief?” 

It took you a solid two seconds to realize that Atriox was not speaking to you, but speaking of humanity in general. You swallowed hard.

“Well, he died before, so.” You almost immediately winced at yourself. Oh yeah, great plan, snark at the maniac with the weapons and hands as big as your head. Good job. 

Atriox huffed. “Then I will see to his death permanently this time,” he growled. “He will be the first, but not the last.” He looked down at you over his shoulder, the blue lighting only making him more intimidating, somehow. 

You swallowed hard. That was very much a threat. One he apparently intended to see through. 

This was so bad. 

Two of the Endless floated nearer to him, and Atriox once again elected to ignore you, back to you. You took the chance to look around, carefully. You were far from alone, after all. 

There were weapons and supplies stacked neatly. More than you were comfortable seeing. 

It looked like war preparations. 

Which was terrifying, of course, but also rather useless here. Sure, Atriox could lead the Endless and whatever of his forces remained against the humans here on the Halo, but that was far from all of humanity. 

Fernando had told you the Halo was non-operational, John had dismantled whatever it was that made it a weapon. 

So what was Atriox’s plan? 

Not that it really mattered, so long as someone thwarted his plan. You doubted you could do much, but you could try. 

Very carefully, you scooted back away from the control panel and Atriox. Nobody even looked at you, clearly deeming you harmless. 

Maybe you could use that to your advantage? Somehow? 

You could feel the Halo humming under you, gentle vibrations that would have been soothing if you weren’t absolutely terrified. Nobody else seemed to pay it any attention, but you leaned into it a bit. 

Look, you could really use anything to help you calm down a bit just about now. 

Okay, so you couldn’t tell what they were planning, and they were currently ignoring you, correctly deciding that you were not someone they needed to worry about. Okay. What else could you do? 

There were tons of weapons, of course. Most of which you didn’t know how to use. And which you had no chance of doing any real damage with. Okay, yeah, not your best idea. Moving on. 

The Endless seemed to be doing their own thing - only a few were around Atriox. You didn’t know where the rest had gone, because when Chief had been chasing them there had been many, many more. Possibly they were around the rest of the Halo? But for what purpose?

Maybe they knew how to repair it.

The thought stirred dread in your chest, cold seeping into your bones and your mind. That… was horrifying. And terrible. That would end so poorly. 

But you had to consider it.

From what you remembered, the Endless had been around with the Forerunners, so there was a possibility they knew how to work this tech. 

Which was honestly pretty terrifying. But this whole situation was pretty terrifying, so you weren’t sure how to qualify the actual level of terrifying anymore. 

Okay. So. Atriox and the Endless were definitely up to something. You couldn’t do a lot from here. But you could watch, observe, try to piece together their plan.

And that’s exactly what you did. You sat there, thigh aching, gaze fixed on Atriox and the Endless around him. Maybe if you watched you’d get some hint, some clue as to their plan. Maybe. 

It was the least you could do, anyway. 

For the large part, they all ignored you. Atriox, the Endless, the Sangheili. All of them. You were beneath their focus, not worthy of watching more than to make sure you didn’t grab a weapon and start shooting. 

Not that you were offended by this. They were pretty much right about that. 

You had no idea how long you sat there. Time was meaningless and impossible to track. You just stayed exactly where you were, watching everything.

So when the Sangheili approached you again, you flinched. But he just sneered down at you and hauled you to your feet, grip uncaringly tight around your upper arm. You winced but kept quiet. 

You were moved through a doorway, though your thigh ached and threatened to give out from under you. A walkway went around the circular room, with a single walkway stretching out over nothingness to a central point. 

“Move,” Atriox growled from to the side of you. You chanced a quick look, but he was just watching you. So you stepped forward carefully, slowly. 

“What am I doing?” You kept your voice low - it felt wrong to speak at full volume here. 

“Ensuring my victory.” Atriox stepped up behind you, too close, looming over you. Then again, being on the same damn Halo as him was too close. Two of the Endless floated near you, watching with open curiosity. 

So. They needed you to do something. Some way to interact with the Halo, or activate it, or something. But they needed you to do it. Or else why bother grabbing a human at all? Why bother keeping you alive? 

Too many questions, not enough answers, and no way to get them. You blew out a slow breath, looking down at the interface in front of you. You could probably throw yourself off the walkway, which would at least slow down his plans. Give Blue Team a chance to catch up and stop him. 

But you didn’t want to. You really didn’t want to. 

Apparently tired of waiting for you, Atriox grabbed your arm, pulling your hand forward to slap against the interface. It lit up vibrant blue, sending chills down your spine. 

“The Forerunners thought they were being so clever,” he growled, watching various statuses show up, flicking through them. “Leaving their technology to humans.” 

The two Endless moved closer, and you stepped away. Carefully. Slowly. Your arm ached and throbbed where you’d been grabbed twice now, but nobody stopped you. They were focused on the displays. 

Okay. Maybe you could back up, grab a weapon, and… do something. 

You didn’t have a chance to plan more than that, though, as the sound of gunfire echoed down into the open room. Atriox started barking orders, his remaining soldiers gearing up quickly. 

You used the distraction to scuttle away as fast as you could, trying to remain out of the way. Partially because you didn’t want to get shot, and partially because you didn’t want to get grabbed as a shield. It was easy for you to hide in the growing chaos, looking around almost desperately for some way to defend yourself. 

The sounds of fighting grew louder, the shots getting closer. You had just turned to look back at the weapons stash, so you had a perfect view of Blue Team advancing into the room. Your breath stuttered out of you. They were okay. They were all okay. 

“Master Chief,” Atriox rumbled, taking one step forward. “We meet again.”

Chief didn’t respond, just shifting his grip on his gun, helmet fixed on Atriox. 

“You will not be so lucky again.” Atriox started forward, the floor shaking under his steps as he ran towards Chief. 

You didn’t watch. You couldn’t watch. Two of the Endless were still working at the terminal, completely avoiding the fighting. Whatever they were working on was bad, clearly. They were trying to get it done. 

You’d just have to disrupt their work. 

A shotgun slid towards you, bumping into your shoe. You picked it up quickly and then looked at Blue Team. Fred nodded to you once before he threw a whole Unggoy into the pit, the high-pitched squeals fading quickly.

You didn’t hear it hit the bottom. 

You knew the basics of gun safety, at least, so you were able to point and shoot. Which you did. Your first shot was a little wide, but the second hit both Endless. One of them turned on you with a furious sound while the other continued working. 

Well. Damn. 

You pressed your back into the wall, eyes wide. That had not gone according to plan! 

But the Endless didn’t have a chance to attack. Two more shots hit it in the back, and it turned and… teleported? It did something and moved away from you. 

Giving you a chance to focus on the remaining one. You needed to stop it. Somehow. You had no ammo, no convenient ally to help. 

So you did what you could. You threw the entire shotgun at the Endless. 

The Endless turned, energy crackling at its fingertips. Oh shit. It floated towards you slowly, seemingly just to enjoy the panic on your face as you scrambled backwards, away from it. 

Kelly dropped down out of seemingly nowhere, pinning the Endless beneath her and shooting it in the face three times. “Stop taunting them,” she scolded you, sparing you one look before she leapt off to deal with something else. 

You breathed out slowly, shakily. Yeah. Right. Good idea. You’d accomplished your goal, anyway. 

Back still pressed against the wall, you hunkered down a little, trying to be as unobtrusive as possible. The fight around you was loud and far too close, but there was nowhere else to go. 

You had the perfect vantage point to see Atriox look back at the control panel. You saw two Sangheili descend on Chief to distract him. You saw Atriox leap back to the control panel. 

You looked down when you felt something bump into your shoe. Another weapon. But this time it was a grenade. You had no idea what kind it was, or what it did, but you recognized the shape. 

You picked up the grenade. Blue Team was scattered across the room, dealing with the veritable flood of Endless. 

Could you make that throw? Maybe. 

A sharp clang jerked your head to the side as Fred hit the wall across from you, getting back to his feet quickly, in time to block a shot from an Unggoy. 

Your Spartans were doing well, but they hadn’t known the extent of what they faced. They didn’t know Atriox’s full plan.

Neither did you, of course, but you knew more than they did. You knew that he couldn’t succeed. 

You knew what you had to do.

It took all your courage to take that first step forward. Then another. You moved slowly, softly. You didn’t even register to the combatants - the Endless were focused on Blue Team, and Blue Team was focused on eliminating the actual threats with extreme prejudice. 

You nearly wobbled the last step you dared, your instincts screaming at you to run away from Atriox. But you didn’t. You held your ground, facing his back, shaking. You pulled the pin on the grenade, crouching a little. Okay. You could do this. 

You rolled the grenade right between Atriox’s feet until it hit the bottom of the control panel and stopped. 

Your gaze met John’s across the room, his visor impenetrable as ever, but still comforting. He shouted, and it took you a moment to realize he’d called your name. 

Atriox made a triumphant noise. 

John lunged.

The grenade went off.

[vintagerpg]

En Garde! (1975) is the first roleplaying game from Game Designers’ Workshop. It’s the earliest swashbuckling game (set in Musketeer-era France, or at least a simulacra of that era constructed from swashbuckling Hollywood films).

Like Boot Hill, this is primarily a one-on-one tactical combat game, though unlike Boot Hill, there is quite a bit going on beside the combat. The combat is about what you’d expect, though an interesting complication is that duelists lay out a series of pre-planned actions in secret and then attempt to reconcile them. There’s something neat about this programming.

More interesting is the focus on the character’s life that takes up the rest of the book. There is a mechanical social life that plays out week to week, with the character taking part in social activities and, hopefully, gaining status points. This system provides a loose narrative framework for potential tomfoolery, duels and other roleplaying opportunities. It’s the first social simulation I can think of and, the ONLY one, for several years. The next thing to emerge like this is probably Midkemia’s Cities simulator.

The other interesting thing is the game’s approach to military life — a necessary part of a gentleman’s life, taking up the entirety of the summer season with campaigning, which imparts special effects, benefits and, possibly, death. This is a clear forerunner to Traveller’s tours of duty lifepath system.

It also establishes a couple of GDW’s publication practices — the book is chapbook sized, give or take, and, aside of the Maurice Leloir illustration on the cover (from The Three Musketeers), there is no art inside.

[unsc-offical]

Did you know covenant ship walls are made with 37% asbestos which is why a lot of them are/were insane.

[aficionadoenthusiast]

i think the most interesting thing about luke castellan's character is that no matter what he did, he is fundamentally a good guy.

i mean, obviously he didn't always succeed, but everything he did was for demigods and to help make demigods' lives better. he (rightly!) saw a problem in the gods and tried really hard to fix it which is how he got corrupted in the first place - because he wanted better lives for himself and his people. he didn't do anything for money or fame. he didn't even particularly care about power. he just wanted the gods to stop mistreating their children. if the demigods had a union, luke would be the forerunner.

and the funny thing about that is it actually took him a long time to decide he wanted to overthrow the gods. he ran away at 9, right? met thalia at 14? that's five years it took to be disillusioned, then three more to actually act on that hatred. it took percy about an hour to be disillusioned, and he was literally fighting gods within a week. without luke to go first, i imagine percy would have led a rampage the size of texas before his 14th birthday.

then you also have to look at his recruitment methods. again, he didn't promise the demigods he recruited anything besides getting even with their neglectful parents. even percy (and jason) promised kymopeleia temples in return for her help. he promised annabeth a place at his side (i think?), but he also asked for her help when he realized he fucked up. by the end of the series, he sacrificed himself to kill kronos! this is not a man who intentionally did evil; this is a traumatized teenager trying to make sure no more kids get hurt.

technically, he succeeded because he managed to help elevate percy to a point where he could ask for those things, but my god. this kid is the definition of a tragic hero.

[critical-quoter]

I had nothing to offer anyone. I was an empty husk. I was trying to rebuild something of my personality, reshape myself into a defiant and discerning ego - but it was hard.

Halo: Cryptum - Greg Bear

[siderealscribblings]

99 years, 11 months, 27 days

“Esteemed subjects, we come before you today to reaffirm the pledge we made nearly a century ago. For a hundred years, we have pledged ourselves to the constant defense of Fontaine and Her blessed waters and for a hundred years, our people have enjoyed peace in the wake of the cataclysmic Cataclysm...did I really write cataclysmic Cataclysm?”

Furina sighed, scratching a line of her speech out as she sat perched on the edge of her writing desk. “In the wake of the...theeeee....disastrous! Disastrous Cataclysm? No, still sounds repetitive…let’s see…in the wake of the… disastrous aftermath of the fall of Khaenri'ah?”

Furina cleared her throat, standing up to look at herself in the mirror. “Esteemed subjects, we come before you today to reaffirm the pledge we made nearly  a century ago.”

Furina raised her hand, frowning at the gesture and tilting her palm back a little. By now, she had a repertoire of gestures she used when expressing herself as Focalors; grand, sweeping motions that never felt right but seemed to entrance her subjects. It was hard to tell when she crossed the line into parody, so she tucked her elbow in a little closer, praying it was just enough to look convincing.

“For a hundred years, we have pledged ourselves to the constant defense of Fontaine and Her blessed waters and for a hundred years, our people have enjoyed peace in the wake of the disastrous aftermath of the fall of Khaenri'ah,” Furina said, wrinkling her nose.

Too wordy, she thought. Half the audience would be half-listening anyway, eager to get to one of thousands of parties, sporting events, and performances that were taking place in Fontaine. Champion duelists from across the country were gathering to fight in a tournament where the prize was a single pearl from Furina's necklace. Actors, theater troupes, and singers from across the world would grace the Opera Epiclese's stage in a round-the-clock series of performances. The Archon's household was hosting three increasingly lavish galas culminating in Furina's hundredth birthday, but citizens across the country would be celebrating her anniversary for a whole week. Gardes had booked tavern backrooms months in advance for their parties, apartments overlooking the parade route were rented out for exorbitant sums of mora, and Mondstadt had sold Fontaine so much wine, whiskey, and beer in the last few months that they were finally able to finance a wall around Mondstadt City.

Everyone else was looking forward to a week without work; all Furina had to look forward to was the grandest performance of her career.

It's not just humans I have to fool now, Furina thought. Liyue was sending adepti who knew Egeria personally and if Rex Lapis wasn't among them, she would eat her hat and owe Neuvillette ten mora. Yae Miko had spent nights kissing an Archon's bare skin; surely she would take one look at Furina and know she was a fraud. And then there was the delegation from Snezhnaya; two sorcerers that raised hell and plumbed the mysteries of the cosmos before Furina was even born. 

Threats she had kept away for so long would now sleep under her roof and try as she might, she couldn't enjoy her last night of peace. Instead, she found herself pacing back and forth in her nightgown, obsessing over every line in her speech and trying to make each passage perfect.

If I get any sleep at all this week, it will be a miracle, Furina thought, finally moving on to the next line of her speech. “Egeria's blessed children have emerged from the shadow of Our Beloved Mother's death to become technological forerunners, economic titans, and the finest artists in the world... okay, that'll do I suppose.”

Furina's eyes wandered over to the pile of presents she had been unwrapping all week. She tried to pace herself, giving herself little treats to look forward to as the preparations for the centennial consumed her whole days. Time spent with Neuvillette was limited to hurried business lunches in the company of others and late dinners before bed. He had been consumed with his own preparations, shouldering some of the more tedious tasks like reviewing diplomatic credentials, screening her birthday gifts, and working on a present of his own that he refused to discuss no matter how large and watery Furina made her eyes.

He's developing an immunity, Furina thought, picking up a box on top of the pile and nearly dropping it as she saw the pale white snowflake emblem of the Tsaritsa stamped on the lid. 

Read More...

[blueiscoool]

Archaeologists Find 73 Wari Mummy Bundles in Peru

A team of archaeologists from the PUCP Archaeology Program “Valley of Pachacámac” have uncovered over 70 intact burial bundles with carved masks.

The discovery was made at Pachacámac, an archaeological site in the Valley of the Lurín River, located southeast of Lima, Peru. Pachacámac (named after Pacha Kamaq – the “Earth Maker” creator god) was first settled around AD 200 by the Wari, a Middle Horizon civilisation.

Pachacámac mainly consists of pyramids, plazas, cemeteries, and a series of ramps, centred on a sacred zone containing the Painted Temple, the Temple of the Sun, and the Old Temple of Pachacamac.

Recent excavation results announced on the Archeowieści blog, which is managed by the Faculty of Archaeology of the University of Warsaw, have uncovered over 70 intact burial bundles dating from the second half of the Middle Horizon (AD 800–1100).

The burial bundles were found either deposited individually or in group clusters at the foot of the Painted Temple, some of which are wearing “false head” masks made of carved wood and ceramics, a common burial practice of the Wari culture.

Professor Makowski, said: “In the pre-Hispanic Andes, no-one died; everyone was predestined to continue living in the parallel world of their ancestors.”

Excavations also discovered wooden staffs with images of Wari elite wearing Tiwanaku-type headgear. They were located in a votive deposit covered with a layer of oyster shell fragments imported from Ecuador.

The Wari worshipped the Staff god, the chief creator god, which is often found in both portable and fixed art using different media such as stone, textile, and ceramics. Some scholars believe that some variations of the Staff God are possible depictions of Viracocha or Thunupa, and are the forerunner of the Inca principal gods – the Sun, Moon, and Thunder.

[jovianwishes]

Hetalia and the myth of the Dutch independence war: a mini essay/rant

One thing I often see go by in the Hetalia fandom is the notion that the 80 years war/the Dutch Revolt was an independence war against the Spanish and solely that, sort of American Revolution style. This is not surprising, since for many years, over two hundred, this notion has been pushed and propagandized here in the Netherlands. But, modern historians are now pushing a different view on the 80 years war: the independence of the Dutch Republic was completely accidental and not the intended goal.

Ever since I began studying history in university this has been quite a special interest of mine. So I'd like to shed some more light on this new look at the 80 years war and why it actually makes complete sense. First of all: before the 80 years war there was no interest or idea that the Dutch provinces form 1 nation together. In fact, all the provinces, and especially the cities, were highly independent ever since the beginning of the middle ages. They all had their own identities, coin and even language sometimes. These provinces (which by the way, were their own countries (editors note: with which i actually mean duchies, counties, bishoprics, etc) but for ease I'm calling them provinces) and cities have centuries of history with each other as allies, rivals, and sometimes even conquerer. In generally, none of them really liked the other. The concept of a united Low Lands came *solely* from the top, from those that colonized the provinces (e.g. the Habsburgers, but before that as well with the Burgundy's).

The 80 years war started because the Spanish king began taking away the rights of cities and provinces, began taxing them heavily and started imposing trails against non-catholics. After peaceful negotiation didn't work, riots began breaking out in the south, in what is now Belgium (back then kind of the southern Dutch provinces). These riots formed a reaction that went all the way to the north of the Dutch provinces. Then the Spanish send in troops and the 80 years war was truly kicked off. Before I continue, it is also good to mention that some consider the 80 years war a civil war, which indeed had it's merits. Not all provinces and cities were in agreement with each other (in the contrary...) and religious differences caused a lot of tension within the rebellion.

So as I said, modern historians are in agreement with each other that until the last few years, there was no real interest in forming one country. The (northern and southern) provinces wanted to regain their rights, lower taxes and have religious freedom, that was their goal. The forerunner of the 'have the provinces become one country' party was William of Orange, an important noble who, although he was symbolic the figure head of the fighting Dutch provinces, did not achieve anything of what he wanted before he died. So, in the later stages of war (and, it is good to mention here that the war was not one monolith - it was a long series of conflicts stretching out many years), there came a slow realisation that the only way to win was to unite. And eventually, that is what happened. What follows was a true "Golden Age" for the Dutch Republic but also a time of *extreme* political unrest - the Republic was honestly constantly on the brink of falling apart because again, no province could agree with each other.

Anyways, I want to end this way too long post with saying that you're not wrong for depicting the 80 years war as an independence war. It's a notion that has been pushed for many years, but I would like people to consider a different way of looking at the NL. A way that considers that the provinces were just like the HRE: a collection of countries with long histories that deserve to have their own story told. I personally, in Hetalia, consider all the provinces their own personifications. Ned is for me the personification of the "Low Lands", an imagined community of trading and fighting provinces that would love to stab each other's hearts out and then steal their gold, hahah. Oh, and also, people need to remember that Belgium was an incredibly important factor in the 80 years war. The Belgian provinces, which back then were just the southern Dutch provinces, helped enormously in the fight against the Spanish but eventually they were too weak to hold up. Anyways, thanks for reading!