#they're using baba yaga in this book

[itachi86]

ooh baba yaga

[hogwartslegacyreactions2]

Can i request the react to mc wearing the knight armor outfit they have? It just has so much comedic value it would be a CRIME not to wear it. Especially during poppys dragon quest that would be hilarious. Better if MC is a gryffindor as well since the chivalry thing. The outift has so much potential unexplored.

A/N: lmao I love this

HLC REACT TO MC WEARING A FULL SUIT OF ARMOR

!!CLANKCLANKCLANKCLANK!! MC rushed to meet their friend, sliding to a stop in front of them. The visor has fallen in front of their face and they flip it back up after two failed attempts. They hold a pose then do a spin to show off the dull old armor they found. MC just knows they'll be impressed.

SEBASTIAN SALLOW: He watches them the whole time they're running up to him. They nearly trip over their own feet and go face first into the dirt. He blinks slowly and shakes his head, maybe he was seeing things. There's no way they were going to pull off a stealth mission in that. "Mental..." Is all he can manage to say out loud.

OMINIS GAUNT: "What is that God awful racket??" He stands perplexed in front of the suit of armor that seemingly just came to life and started walking around. His face was fully contorted in confusion as MC struggled to open the visor. "What are you-...just, what!?"

ANNE SALLOW: Okay, when she admitted that she was actually into the whole "knight in shining armor" trope, she wasn't implying to them to take it seriously. Now they just look silly. Silly enough to make her smile, but silly nonetheless. "You're not actually going out in that, are you?"

IMELDA REYES: She doesn't want to give MC the satisfaction of making her laugh at their goofiness, but watching them try to mount a broom in armor is the funniest thing she's seen in a while. They're so off balance that they look like a new born deer trying to walk over a fence, while also covered in metal. They keep falling into a heap on the ground and she is struggling to keep it together.

NATSAI ONAI: "Oh wow, you can wear the metal suits in the halls? I thought they were just for show. Can I wear one?" Whatever shenanigans MC is up to, she wants in. If MC gives her one, she'll proudly go stomping around the grounds with them.

GARRETH WEASLEY: He quirks his eyebrows and chuckles. "Come on, the explosion wasn't that bad last time. But since you're here, and well protected, care to test my latest brew? I call it Baba Yaga's Bombastic Buttersnipes! It'll be a hit at the Halloween festival this year, I just know it! ...As long as I can figure out how to keep the splash range to less than ten feet." He says the last sentence under his breath.

LEANDER PREWETT: He covers his mouth as he examines MC's choice of wardrobe. He takes his hand away and opens his mouth to say something but words fail him. He covers a sneaking laugh with a cough and covers his mouth again. "Well uh....good on you for really, uh...committing to the whole Gryffindor...pride, yeah...pfff!" He turns away, turning red from holding his laughter.

AMIT THAKKAR: His confusion turns to laughter as MC fights the visor to stay up. "You're really committed to the 'hero' role, aren't you? Got a suit of, somewhat, shining armor and everything. You look like you just stepped out of a story book." He giggles to himself as MC gives him a thumbs up and proudly marches on.

EVERETT CLOPTON: He laughs so hard, he snorts. He covers his face in embarrassment but can't stop laughing. His sides hurt. He's tearing up. MC needs to walk away so he can catch his breath.

POPPY SWEETING: She looks them up and down for maybe a second before doubling over in laughter. "Well I don't think the dragon will have any trouble spotting you!" She wipes a tear from her eye. "I hope you're more agile than you look or you're going to be roasted alive in that."

ELEAZAR FIG: He thought he was used to MC's unusual fashion sense by now. Turns out they can still surprise him. He doesn't say anything of it, just gives them a concerned side eye. Where did they even find a full suit of unenchanted armor that fit? Maybe he should start asking more questions...but life is easier to manage if he doesn't.

[necronatural]

Limbus Company theory

Okay, I have absolutely no idea if anyone's noted this yet. Did anyone pick up that the Sinners are held down by a Sin, represented in their EGO, and their Canto are about their struggles against another sin entirely. The branch creates a space for 'penance'. When Rodya entered the field of effect of the branch, Baba Yaga went crazy, freezing the entire mine. There's clearly some paralleling at work here.

So let's go through.

Gregor, Canto 1: Sloth V Gluttony (survival); note that this expedition failed, and we later explore Sloth with Yi Sang

Rodion, Canto 2: Pride V Gloom; note that Rodya refused to actualize

Sinclair, Canto 3: Gluttony (Greed) V Lust

Yi Sang, Canto 4: Sloth V Gluttony (greed); Dante's resonance begins

Ishmael, Canto 5: Gloom V Envy; Dante's resonance progresses

When we look at the dominant sins of the remainder...

Heathcliff, Canto 6: Envy...

Don Quixote, Canto 7: Lust…

Hong Lu, Canto 8: Gloom…

Ryoshu, Canto 9: Wrath…

Meursault, Canto 10: Pride…

Outis, Canto 11: Pride…

Faust, Canto 12: Pride…

Dante, Canto ?: ????

Sins not confronted yet: Sloth, Pride, Wrath

Sinner sins left to explore: Envy, Wrath, Lust (If we're talking strictly what progressed Dante's clock, Gluttony & Pride)

Assuming Dante's doomsday clock setting is moving in 5 minute intervals, Dante currently has 2 positions left on their clock; 5 minutes to midnight and midnight itself. It's made almost explicit that their resonance with sinners is the tool with which they resonate with the branches. By obtaining each sin, they're building to some sort of complete whole.

Predictions based on this theory; Pride being so back-heavy probably means we're going to scramble for branches with Hermann. It gives the impression that for whatever reason Pride is necessary, which is interesting.

My own theory: Rodya says she'll settle in the cold [Gloom] for a little longer, and Sonya says she doesn't have the mark. I'd say this might mean Rodya hasn't sufficiently resonated. Sonya may have tried to bait her in hopes of getting better results in this regard.

This may mean ...

The last few Cantos will be a losing streak (LOL)

Someone who hasn't cleansed themselves of their opposing sin/formed the mark of cain will get the branch; I'd imagine this person shares sins with Dante, Vergilius, or Charon, who I believe are probably Envy, Wrath, and Lust respectively (OOP @ WHO WE'RE MISSING ⬆️)

In that respect Vergilius V Sloth, Charon V Pride, Dante V Wrath. I even think the wrath Dante is opposed to could be Vergilius

Very notable there's only 3 sins missing; it could be possible we already have Dante's branch; they were very obviously part of the group of Cain Marked, and again, their clock started at 25-to-midnight and just kind of sat there for a little while. It's also possible it didn't move until Yi Sang because their sin was Gluttony (ambiguous manifestation)? If Hermann also represents Lust ..... Think about it

Rodya's refusal of the call of Cain might become plot-relevant, just as our failure to observe what happened to Gregor on the myth arc timeline of 3 years ago and relationship with the Big Bad makes it obvious he's going to be a core character in the future. We can tell based on those who have the mark of Cain that he just doesn't have the chops, so mayhaps their mutual exclusion will be a surprise tool that will help us later.

And of course, my theories for the sins that weigh down our remaining Sinners: Heathcliff V Sloth, Don Quixote V Wrath, and Ryoshu V Pride. I predict all the Prides share Rodya's opposing force, which is Gloom; we see this in the books these characters are based on, with Meursault's despair of being sentenced to death being overcome by his Pride, Outis putting herself through grueling trials for the sake of returning to her family, and Faust beginning with suicidal depression leading to her pride creating(summoning) Mephistopheles.

I think it would be pretty funny if Dante was Gretchen's evil baby. Or that Gretchen might have been their previous self, manipulated into giving birth to Dante (extremely vulnerable and exploitable state), which they will be disgusted by and put to death. How many representations of the Divine Feminine in classic literature can Dante represent any% speedrun

[slyandthefamilybook]

Noah's Spring Jewish Book Review

this isn't gonna become a regular thing, don't worry. I just need to gush some about these books. I'm gonna keep the reviews short too because who's got that kind of time!

So far I've read 4 Jewish novels this spring and I'm working on a fifth. We'll go in chronological order

1. Thistlefoot by GennaRose Nethercott

~ Two estranged siblings, Isaac and Bellatine Yaga—the grandchildren of the famous Baba Yaga—inherit their ancestor's chicken-footed house. They travel the country putting on puppet shows and exploring their own mysterious abilities, all the while trying to escape from a threatening figure known only as the Longshadow Man, as well as their own pasts. History relives itself in a book filled with magic and mystery ~

This book was so damn good. Every other sentence is tattoo-worthy and hits you like a sack of bricks. The characters feel so real and raw while also managing to fill out their respective roles with a sense of poetry. The book has a supporting cast of memorable characters and a sense of real danger throughout. Every so often the house will interject in a way that reminds me so much of my bubbe (עליה השלום). I've read reviews that said it dragged on a bit in the second act but I was enraptured the entire way through. It's also pretty gay, which I always appreciate. 10/10

2. When the Angels Left the Old Country by Sacha Lamb

~ An angle and a demon—best friends for 200 years—set out from their tiny Pale shtetl to America in search of a girl who hasn't been heard from. They're accompanied by Rosie, a spunky and fire-spirited girl from their shtetl desperate to get away and have an adventure in the far-off West ~

No book has made me feel quite so seen as this one. As someone who grew up Orthodox there's virtually no representation for people like me. The majority of Orthodox characters in media are trying to get away. None of them love it quite so much as I do, as much as the characters in this book do. From Little Ash tucking his peyot behind his ears like my older brothers used to to the angel waking up to daven shacharit. Sacha Lamb takes the brave stance of "what if Jewish theology is real, actually" and it shines on every page. The writing effortlessly intertwines spirituality and reverence with a classic Yiddish folktale. It's also pretty gay. 10/10

3. From Dust, a Flame by Rebecca Podos

Hannah, the descendant of the famed Rabbi Yehuda Loew, wakes up one morning to find herself transformed, her eyes turning to yellow slits. Her mother seems to blame herself without explaining why, and soon after disappears. After receiving a mysterious letter, Hannah and her adopted brother Gabe travel to upstate New York to meet their mother's family, to learn the secrets of her past, and of their own lineage ~

I'll start off by saying I'm not sure if I was the target audience for this book. It was good, don't get me wrong, but the writing wasn't to my taste. It was a little... blatant, where I prefer prose to be a bit more subtle. Again, nothing wrong with it, just not my particular thing. I definitely relate to Hannah and Gabe a lot, each in their own way. A lot of the book felt very comforting and familiar to me. The book is equal parts supernatural action and intriguing mystery, and keeps you engrossed til the end. It's also Extremely Gay 7/10

4. The Way Out by Gavriel Savit

~ Yehuda Leib and Bluma set out from their tiny Pale shtetl, each on a mission of the utmost importance. Yehuda Leib is looking for his lost father, and Bluma is running from Death. Navigating the Far Country full of demons, goblins, and angels, the pair fight their way through history and mystery alike, and prepare to make war on Death himself ~

This book. Oh boy this book. Where do I start? This book made me cry several times, which hasn't happened in over 15 years. This book said everything about death I've been feeling since my bubbe passed away (עליה השלום). This book genuinely made me re-think how I view G-d? All that and more in less than 400 pages. This book harmonized with my soul. This book changed who I am as a person. This book made me crumble to dust and then built me back up from scratch. 10/10

[thisloveforyourmom]

soo important to me how the anime showed off how different dtk's relationship with patty and liz as their meister was very early on.....when they're in human form he's tetchy but if u watch during battles he actually listens quite closely to them. esp in early soul eater you get a lot of blackstar barking commands at tsubaki, soul and maka disagreeing on the best course of action, etc. but with dkt and the thompsons its always a balancing act of mutual communication.

he waits on liz and patty's permission, mostly, to shoot soul and blackstar during their fight. they warn him in advance when they have an uneven number of souls split asymmetrically between them both. whenever they use death cannons, they have to communicate and balance a lot of information that we don't typically see from the other weapons - the stability of the resonance, the frequency, if there's noise in it. and u never see kid outwardly communicating or moving around during that chargeup because he has to focus on how he's handling and resonating with liz and patty too deeply. he devotes that time to them.

and later on in the manga u see that he is ALWAYS thinking on some level about their safety, even in weapon form. during the fight for baba yaga's castle, his literal arm gets blown off and the first thing he does is tell patty (who his severed arm is holding) to stop transforming back into a human because she's much safer as a pistol. when he's kidnapped into the book of eibon he only has a few seconds to react and in that time he tosses liz and patty far enough away that they're protected. he has them travel in pistol form sometimes if he knows it's safer for them. from the very beginning he inverts maka and soul's meister-weapon relationship by assuming complete responsibility for the thompson sisters' safety as the person who dragged them into all this.

more than him being a shinigami i rly think this is why you never see the kind of resonance issues soul and maka sometimes have or the incompatibility blackstar and tsubaki have (like the enchanted sword mode). like, him being a shinigami definitely factors in, but he has a relationship with them based on mutual understanding, consent, and trust, and it's used as the establishing example in soul eater to prove how beneficial it can be to have such a good relationship with your partner - it can even make short work of balancing three different wavelengths instead of just two. love it.

[spouseoftherisingsun]

^old finished projects vs recent sketches^

current list of projects under the cut for the curious

Baba Yaga: Out of the Woods

Key words: HOME, COMMUNITY, FOLKLORE, WHIMSY

What is it? Rogue-lite narrative-heavy video game, wherein you play as Baba Yaga trying to escape the suburbs and return to the Russian woods through a combination of crafting quests, NPC encounters, party-building, and puzzle-solving.

What do you need to work on? Additions and second drafts of outline, pitch, bible, screenplay, concept art, and storyboards. Research on twine?

Untitled Arthuriana Project

Key words: NAMES, REBIRTH, THEATER, OTHERWORLDLY

What is it? A project reinterpreting the Arthurian canon particularly with favor to and focus on the extended mythos of Morgan le Fay, the medium for which is undecided, with favored options being: animated series, animated film, book series, comic series.

What do you need to work on? First drafts of outline and pitch. Additions and second drafts of bible, screenplay, concept art, and storyboards. Revisiting medium decision.

Witches of the Four Movements [s.t.c.]

Key words: POWER, HISTORY, MYSTERY, COLORFUL

What is it? An original fantasy project of epic scale, focused on four independent storylines tied together by the relationships of the four secret witches propelling each plot, and the two secret witches yet undiscovered that are unintentionally interfering with them.

What do you need to work on? First draft of outline, pitch, and storyboards. Additions and second drafts of bible, screenplay, and concept art. Revisiting medium decision.

House of God

Key words: POSSESSION, FAITH, HORROR, FIRE

What is it? An eerie trilogy that starts with a team of grad students assigned to the excavation and restoration of an abandoned rectory.

What do you need to work on? First draft of pitch, bible, concept art and storyboards. Additions and second drafts of outline and screenplays. Revisiting decision between film and television.

Primewick

Key words: CARETAKING, TRAPS, EERIE, DOMESTIC

What is it? A speculative thriller about a motorcyclist who crashes and wakes up in the care of an odd woman living in her old friend's massive, secluded estate.

What do you need to work on? First draft of pitch, bible, concept art, and storyboards. Additions and second drafts of outline and screenplays. Revisiting medium decision.

Untitled Ghost Project

Key words: CLARITY, MEMORY, GHOSTS, MUNDANE

What is it? A speculative drama about an amateur independent journalist dropping out of college to return home and investigate a cold case of the disappearance of a local teacher and single mother, and how locals, especially the missing woman's now-grown children, cope with the renewed operation. (This work shares a storyworld and narrative elements with Primewick.)

What do you need to work on? First draft of pitch, bible, screenplays, and storyboards. Additions and second drafts of outline and concept art. Revisiting medium decision.

Caspar Unlimited [s.t.c.]

Key words: IMAGE, INTIMACY, TRAGEDY, REALITY TV

What is it? A television series taking place in a contemporary world characterized by supernatural and speculative events, combining mockumentary footage following the lives of various employees of corporate empire, Caspar Multinational, and typical drama footage following the documentary crew and cast ostensibly part of it.

What do you need to work on? First draft of outline, concept art, and storyboards. Additions and second drafts of pitch, bible, and screenplays.

Untitled Labyrinth Project

Key words: COLLABORATION, CRAFT, UTOPIA, RUINS

What is it? Slow-burn, esoteric, science fiction mystery about a group of strangers who find each other in a labyrinth of unknown origin.

What do you need to work on? First draft of outline, pitch, bible, and storyboards. Additions and second drafts of screenplays and concept art. Revisiting medium decision.

Untitled Weird Project

Key words: CRIME, HIJINKS, CHASE SCENE, FUTURISTIC

What is it? Animated feature exploring a futuristic city run by silly rules and filled with whimsical characters, including a gang made up of germs and diseases evolved into humanoids; a zombie-vampire pair of lesbian bounty hunters; a skateboarder in his forties wanted by the law for failing to commit to the bit; and his general practitioner, a blue-haired, nine-year-old cyborg obeying disembodied voices of medical talents long passed on.

What do you need to work on? First draft of outline, pitch, bible, screenplays, and storyboards. Additions and second drafts of concept art.

Bad House

Key words: DEBT, FAME, THEATER, FOLK MUSIC

What is it? A comic-concept album-tarot deck combination following a schtick-rock band called Bad Box made up of masked characters in the wake of a scandal that revealed the identities of its two founding members as they tour and promote their latest, and sonically much-toned-down, concept album, which is inspired by and features a few covers of the House of the Rising Sun.

What do you need to work on? First draft of outline, pitch, bible, screenplays, and storyboards. Additions and second drafts of concept art.

Untitled Clue Project

Key words: VIOLENCE, SECRETS, GAMES, GLAMOR

What is it? A television series based on the mechanics and premise of the game Clue/Cluedo, where each season features the same cast of actors assigned a new role, in a new setting, and with new context.

What do you need to work on? First draft of pitch, screenplay, bible, storyboard. Second drafts of outline and concept art.

if you got this far thanks here are some bonus pics of poor quality, pls reply with which project looks most interesting bc i have no basis for inferring atm

[cbk1000]

Is there a cap on the number of questions I can ask for the reblog ask game? XD 4, 11, 18, and 30, please!

Hope today is a great day! <3

4. a story idea you haven’t written yet I have tons. Some fairytale-inspired; I'd like to do a selkie fic. I also have a sort of Rapunzel-esque idea with Arthur being the damsel in distress locked in a tower. Another with Morgana as a sort of Baba Yaga-esque character and Merlin as her raven who used to be a man she turned into a bird for being annoying. Arthur is her annoying brother on a quest who needs her help; Merlin goes with him, of course, and Arthur breaks the spell on him and is highly dismayed to discover the annoying talking bird is a super hot man.

11. a WIP you’d like to finish someday Book of Merthur is the one I'm focusing on right now, though I do also have the sequel to the vet fic partially written.

18. if you keep them, share a deleted sentence or paragraph from a published fic 'What he had written was, “Sorry. I am a tree.”'

30. share a fic you’re especially proud of My Imposter Syndrome is screaming, 'None of them, they're all crap!!!' but I'm going to kick it in the nuts and say Book of Merthur, because it's now officially the longest story I've ever written, and as a kid I read a lot of fantasy, and I feel like baby!Jenn would be stoked that adult!Jenn is writing a gay fantasy epic with lots of penis jokes.

[forgetmenauts]

Howdy! Could we get a member introduction? I’d love to get to know y’all’s names and pronouns ^^

We actually did an essay and interview for the queer horror zine The Quiet Ones last year where we shared some fun intros! I've included screenshots of our intros here, but if you have a chance, you should check out the zine as well: it's run by a delightful group of queer authors and editors.

Here's the link to the issue with the Forgetmenauts feature: our bit starts on page 47.

(Fun fact: Kit is also an author and has had a couple of their short stories published in other issues of the zine, under their full name of Katharine Gripp. They're here and here if you want to check them out!)

Image text below the cut:

Walker Staples (they/them) Instrument(s): Guitar/Banjo/Vocals

Favorite scary movie or book: Let the Right One In.

Favorite cryptid: Jackalope. Who in the band is most likely to survive a horror movie, and why?: I think it's gonna be Tyler; most resources, best equipped for building booby traps.

Tyler Gary (he/him) Instrument(s): Clarinet, Saxophone, Trombone, Keys. Favorite scary movie or book: Recently I read Mexican Gothic and while it wasn't my all time favorite, it definitely captured some good haunting creepy vibes. Would recommend for the mushroom horror.

Favorite cryptid: The chupacabra. Who in the band is most likely to survive a horror movie, and why?: I'd be the second or third to die. “Quick everybody, I have a plan! All we have to do is...“ *Dies in a horrible dramatic way*. I think Abe would be last to die. He would disappear early on and we would think he's dead but he actually just went on a hike and came back at the end.

Abe Finkelstein (he/him) Instrument(s): Cello, un-mic'd backup vocals and banter, howling. Favorite scary movie or book: Oryx and Crake. And I listened to a great podcast about Midsommar but will probably never have the guts to watch it.

Favorite cryptid: The Baba Yaga house. Who in the band is most likely to survive a horror movie, and why?: Definitely Emma. She lives on a sailboat and is a great problem solver, and good at engineering. You might think I was on a hike but I was actually dead the WHOLE time.

Danielle (she/her) Instrument(s): Drums!

Favorite scary movie or book: I am scared easily and don't really watch horror movies! You

didn't ask about this, but my favorite scary-ish video games are The Last of Us and Dead Space.

Favorite cryptid: Loveland frog. Who in the band is most likely to survive a horror movie, and why?: Walker, they would out-maneuver the attacker/swarm/ pathogen/whatever the horror of the horror movie is.

Kit Gripp (they/she) Instrument(s): Mandolin, vocals.

Favorite scary movie or book: Sunshine by Robin McKinley (ok so it’s not that scary but there’s lots of blood and vampires, so it counts).

Favorite cryptid: Nessie. Who in the band is most likely to survive a horror movie, and why?: Probably Collin. If it were something corporeal, he'd knock it out with a baseball bat. If it were an angry ghost, he'd talk to it and de-escalate the situation.

Emma Williams Instrument(s): Bass.

Favorite scary movie or book: House of Leaves.

Favorite cryptid: Selkie. Who in the band is most likely to survive a horror movie, and why?: I think Walker would be the most likely to survive because they are very nimble and quick.

Collin (he/him) Instrument(s): Drums!

Favorite scary movie or book: Hard to pick a favorite scary movie! Maybe Let the Right One In (the original one). It's rare that horror films are at once so beautiful, disturbing, and sympathetic to the villain.

Favorite cryptid: Michigan Dogman. Who in the band is most likely to survive a horror movie, and why?: Kit survives the horror movie, for sure. Zombie flick? Kit decapitates the shambling hordes with lethal pirouettes. Teen slasher film? Kit distracts the villain with some concocted-on-the- spot YA fiction just long enough that he doesn't even notice he's walking right into his own poetic and ironic death. Vampire horror show? Please. Kit was the vampire. Kit was always the vampire.

[kaleidoru]

lore shit that nobody asked for but whatever

when writing it out like this it sounds kind of absurd, but

characters that predate the galaxy they're in: -the God Squad, obviously -Cici (Angel) -Asmodeus (Angel/Demon Chimera) - SHERMAN

Sherman is older than the planet he is associated with. He's just Some Guy but immortal and technically qualifies as a Slime

When Jaro was undergoing his training at a facility run by Gods of Knowledge and Wisdom (Gods also get 'paired up' and assigned to different regions of space that will become their galaxies along with a Baby Sun they work together to raise during their galaxy's infancy) Sherman was... difficult for them to know what to do with.

There are training courses for Creator Gods, and then there are courses for Lesser Gods called "Specialist Gods" (such as a lower rank God that is mostly associated with one or two things, like a God of Storms or a God of Fire, since some people like Ike can just be born with powers so great they just Become Gods over time and so those need to be trained to know how to use that power and hopefully not abuse it)

Sam and Jaro having the issues they did kind of had Cici and Sherman with them before coming to the facility... their 'emotional support angel / armadillo' respectively... Cici being as strong as she is, they likely DID have a small-ish class for angels / divine attendants, so finding a place for her was easy. (like even for Angel standards OPHANS Units are a step beyond anything a normal angel is capable of... she's Sam's 'deputy' and is almost on par with him in terms of raw power, the only thing she can't do is Create like he can outside of generating more Beelzebuddies)

But Sherman was more difficult, because his intelligence and capabilities were closer to a normal child... except for when it came to things like machines and certain types of weapons, then he knew far too much than what a normal child his age should have ever known. He still wasn't really placed anywhere and mostly just wandered around the library reading picture books because he still struggled with words (his creation was incredibly messy... out of all of Jaro's attempts at creating life at the time, Sherman was the only one to survive the ordeal but even then he was pretty behind on learning to speak, read and write etc)

Cici was the one who used her free time to tutor him. Sam and Jaro used to be very close at one point and they even collaborated together on stuff (Baba Yaga and her family were the result of one such collaboration... you can tell Jaro played a major role in their creation because their Eye Style is largely Marzonian in appearance... yeah, the guys EYES sort of indicate where their ancestry has roots... notice how a lot of Sam's guys have white pupils whilst a lot of Jaro's guys have multiple coloured rings in their eyes? That's why)

Sherman being tutored by an angel... I'm sure that doesn't tie into any foreshadowing for his future at all 👁️👄👁️

[brinefathomcaves]

Brinefathom Caves Level 3, Week 5

3.40: The Hags' Vestibule: Submerged. Moldy rag rug over equally moldy floor. Athletics check can break through the floor, opening a hole to 3.56. Barnacles grow over portraits on walls. Stairs up to 2nd-floor hallway. Empty.

3.41: The Hags' Library: Submerged. Shelves of books with gorgeous illustrations and calligraphy, all completely ruined by water. Empty.

3.42: The Hags' Gallery: Submerged. Walls hung with remarkably well-preserved portraits of corpses. Hags can look out the corpses eyes (Perception check to notice). Central statue of a speared, dying octopus. Empty.

3.43: The Hags' Parlor

3.44: The Hags' Pantry: Submerged. Shelves full of rotten produce. Large still-living fish hanging from hooks from the ceiling, thrashing occasionally. An illusion makes it appear that creatures who enter the room are on the hooks. Touching one of these “bodies” dispells the illusion.

3.45: The Hags' Kitchen

3.46: The Hags' Dining Room

3.47: The Hags' Doll Room

3.48: The Hags' Bathroom: Submerged. Frog-footed stone tub, matching sink. Taps of both dispense heavier-than-water sludge that smells like rotting seaweed. Trap door in ceiling leads to 3.52. Empty.

3.49: The Hags' Trophy Room

3.50: The Hags' Bubble Room: 2d12 bubbles drift through this submerged room, not rising. If a non-hag pops one, they hear a creature confessing its greatest fear. Sharp coral springs from the floor; the creature must make a Dexterity save or take mild piercing damage and have their own greatest fear trapped in a bubble.

3.51: The Hag Effie's Room

(Non-key rambling under cut)

The illusion in the pantry is another reference to Lisa Smedman's The Dancing Hut of Baba Yaga!

This week was an interesting change for me, from sprawling caves to an underwater house. On the one hand, the tininess and closeness of all these rooms mean that all my pictures the last week looked like ass, but on the other, it sure was a lot easier to ink with no negative space to worry about.

Generally, when I make house maps like this, I use 5 ft.-square mapping rather than 10 ft., so I can fit in all the chairs and stuff more easily, but here I chose to keep up with the convention I've been using in the rest of the dungeon. I did not, however, use dashed lines for the walls like I usually do for fully-submerged rooms because it would make the rooms harder to parse, and they're already not easy.

[rinwellisathing]

Okay so I know I did a big OC spam yesterday but I have to admit, I've been getting really excited about some plot twists in the magical girl inspired BG3 sequel campaign I'm running in 5E.

So the story follows a group of young women(the PCs) who accept a call to adventure in the form of an open invitation to Lady Alyce Ravengard's seventeenth birthday in Baldur's Gate. At the ball in her honor, she plans to announce an important quest. The players meet her and are tasked with helping her to assist a strange Feywild entity known only as Will'O'Wisp to escape its prison in an old rotting tree.

To do this, they must hunt down the corrupted souls of adventurers who have previously made deals, and allegedly gone back on them, with the creature. Their liasons whom Alyce works with are a strange feywild cat being named Calloway and the printing press Jelliwig from the Stop the Presses! Quest. The players are collecting the soul essences they defeat and are meant to hand them over to Jelliwig to be made into books of the soul's life and then destroying the books to free the soul.

The players have rolled very well and love to poke around in the settings I describe, so very early on, they realized Calloway, Jelliwig, and Will'O'Wisp aren't exactly trust worthy.

Through various shenanigans, the players have managed also to build an unusual group of allies after freeing Gortash from Bane completely by accident, encountering Bhaal's new murder tribunal now run by a feytouched Bhaalspawn, and helping the goddess Umberlee free an ancient chosen of hers from the clutches of Will'O'Wisp.

The big secret I'm so excited about, however, I haven't revealed yet and can only even say here because none of my players in that game follow me on tumblr:

Will'O'Wisp is not what it seems, they're totally right about that! It is actually a clever trick by the demon Pale Night to amass power and spread chaos by sowing the seeds of despair( hey, I admitted many times this is heavily Madoka inspired) in clueless mortals she tricks.

Alyce's mother is dying of a terminal genetic illness and Alyce took the pact to protect her. Alyce also fanatically hates devils because of what Mizora and Zariel did to two of her parents plus her grandfather's harrowing tales from Elturel. Pale Night sees her as an easy way to maintain a puppet on the material plane as well as stick her hands into the blood war just a little to have some fun.

More importantly, if Alyce manages to keep up her pact and her mother becomes well again, Pale Night intends to harvest Alyce's mother's soul and replace her in her own body, thus gaining a position of political power as well as all of her potent storm magic to play with. If Alyce can't keep up her pact and falls to despair, that works as well. Pale Night is nothing if not flexible and mercurial. She will in that case use the deaths of both Wyll Ravengard's wife and oldest child to try and persuade him to bargain with her, blaming Alyce's death on the work of devils. She then feels she could convince Wyll to carry out her bidding within the city at least until she gets bored.

One player is a warlock pacted to Baba Yaga and I love that because I've woven Auntie Ethel back into the story as a result since Baba tends to be a patron of hags and this has allowed the players to find a lot of clues about some of Will'O'Wisp's servants due to Ethel's connections to the fey, for instance they noticed Calloway never goes with them to the bar Ethel has been covertly running, Ethel will explain to them if asked that this is because Calloway is not a cat thing at all, but instead an Annis Hag who not only pissed off Baba Yaga by breaking a pact with her to instead work with Pale Night, but also owes Ethel money.

Meanwhile, Glasya, Archduchess of Malbolge, has her faithful warlock, Enver Gortash's former personal assistant Valda Everett, reestablish herself as his employee now that he's returned. Glasya has instructed her to steer him in the direction of helping the players 1. Because she doesn't like the idea of some ancient demon lord running amok and getting the upper hand on the material plane, and 2. Because she believes she can take Gortash's soul right out from under Bane's nose and add him to her collection of playthings along with Sentry(redeemed Durge) and Teela (Enver's daughter with said Durge who is currently working for Alyce because she has a crush on her).

Glasya and Pale Night are two of my favorite rarely used beings in D&D as a whole since my 3.5 days and The Blood War is some of my favorite lore so running this campaign and having my players love it so much has been amazing ><

[chungledown-bimothy]

I haven’t actually been watching D20, I don’t have the attention span for it. Can you recap this season up to the latest episode for me?

oof. um. this isn't gonna be a great recap, but here we go. (this is all from memory god help me i'm sure i'm forgetting things and having to leave out really funny and great bits for length)

sleeping beauty, the frog prince, mother goose, little red riding hood, pinocchio, and puss in boots all met on a caravan to shoeberg. (Destiny's Children is the group name)

shit's Bad and most of them are looking for people they care about and/or answers as to why things are So Bad And So Wrong. but puss in boots and pinocchio are best friends and conning rich people. simply vibing, we love it for them.

mother goose has a magic book (that he got from making wishes with The Gander who is a Force Of Evil trying to resurrect his dead son and he's got one more wish but it'd kill him to make it) that seems to be the key to this whole thing and it can suck people into it and record their stories, and he gets sick new spells when that happens

things go to shit on the caravan, they all end up together and needing to go find a shard of glass that's in cinderella's fairy godmother's chest.

first combat happens, total party kill. they all fucking die. but the frog prince gets the shard, so it's not all bad. they learn that it's a multiverse situation and they all get thrown into a new timeline where things are Worse but they remember each other and what needs to be done. they get red beads and brennan gives NO explanation

well, pinocchio doesn't restart like the others. his stepmom (the stepmom, she's all the stepmoms) is his fuckin warlock patron and instead of him dying and being in a second story he replaces that universe's pinocchio.

they all meet up again and compare notes, turns out a bunch of princesses (including cinderella, snow white, rapunzel, and the beast) are aware of the multiverse thing and how it sucks that they're stuck in stories where they have no agency. plus things are getting So Much Worse. it's unclear what their plan is, but they want to fix how bad everything is (they need seven princesses, including sleeping beauty), whereas the fairies (there are 8 of them) are more or less fine with how things are and want them to stay that way.

they learn that the stepmother is a horrific eldritch being who eats mothers. pinocchio cuts his strings, she's not his patron anymore. (uh-oh, she might hurt his dad about that)

mother goose gets a text on his book from scheherezade, turns out there are other people with books in different universes and they can communicate through it. scheherezade and her companions are stuck and somehow destiny's children fighting a huge fucking spider would help her out? idk i'm arachnophobic i had to skip all that

they go through the book (?) and end up in The Lines Between, which is sick as fuck and sort of... the central hub for the multiverse? it's super fucking cool. they meet scheherezade and aesop (who also has a book).

ally nails a nat 20 and learns that there's Special Ink used by The Authors (shhh don't say that out loud it'll bring Trouble) to write all of everyone's stories.

there are cutbacks and something Really Bad is going on with it all.

they leave scheherezade and aesop and go to explore more, oops the stepmother is here and pissed that they're trying to put things back to normal (she... eats stories? definitely eats mothers)

puss in boots nails a sick nat 20 and pinocchio's patron is now his own story and the concept of destiny itself.

the stepmother yeets them the fuck out of the lines between, they do some sick backstory stuff, learn that the baba yaga's HUGELY powerful and is why the stepmother is as powerful as she is.

they land in a heavily industrialized city. they go find the person in charge, the baron of bricks, and they lean he's got the big bad wolf, who is Death incarnate, chained up because military industrial complex, i guess?

they free the wolf, who says he can get them to the baba yaga, but they decide that first they want to go find snow white. snow white seems chill, says they need more princesses to save the multiverse. so she yeets them the fuck to toy island where they meet the little mermaid

but oops sleeping beauty accidentally triggered a spell that was looking for the little mermaid (princess detector) and fight what was initially him but ended up really being against the terrible dogfish from pinocchio's story. but they beat it, get the little mermaid's voice back, and make their way back to snow white.

they all get there, and the princesses, including the frog prince's estranged wife, reveal that they actually want to fully destroy the entire multiverse. blow it all up to shit using the ink and mother goose's book.

they tried to fuck up their apocalyptic plans by putting cinderella in the book, but it fails. so they have to fucking haul ass out of there, just a little bit of combat almost killed sleeping beauty and the frog prince.

they get out of there, leaving the little mermaid behind, but only then do they realize rapuzel and her freaky ass hair stole mother goose's book. so they're kinda fucked. but they keep running and end up in the land of giants but hey they're the giants

after a really cool combat, they find and free The Golden Goose, the gander's counterpart, and after they also get back mother goose's husband and some of puss in boots' old friends, the goose, because she and mother goose are one and the same in many versions of their stories, makes the third wish and dies in order to get mother goose his book back.

they learn that the princesses have gotten to scheherezade and have her with them and she's also technically a princess, so they now have enough princesses to end everything.

so destiny's children track down the baba yaga to try to get her help. miraculously, pinocchio nat 20s the persuasion check. they all have to give things up to get her help, and it's heart breaking and beautiful and watch The Trials of Baba Yaga.

baba yaga gets them to the lines between, murph rolls TERRIBLY and gives the princesses a head start for the apocalypse. taking us to the most recent episode.

combat with cinderella, snow white, rapunzel, elody (frog prince's estranged wife), the little mermaid, the beast, and scheherezade begins. snow white is doing magic with the ink and it's all about to go to shit.

they talk the little mermaid and elody into being on their side, dispel the magic that was making scheherezade cooperate, and kill the beast, rapunzel, and snow white. leaving just cinderella.

the baba yaga so far has helped destiny's children, but said she's the only one who's gonna survive all this, so. that's ominous.

the episode ends with the fairies showing up in the room. round two is going to begin in the finale next week.

and that's what you missed on glee!

[cinema-hallucinations]

Prompt: Generate a movie concept for a parody of the Golden Girls where the original characters are replaced by crone/hag characters from folklore like Baba Yaga, Frau Trude, Black Annis and Befana.

Title: Golden Crones

Tagline: Don't ask where the chickens went.

Logline: Four legendary hags from myth and folklore - Baba Yaga, Frau Trude, Black Annis, and Befana - share a ramshackle cottage in a quirky, modern town. Despite their fearsome reputations and penchant for the macabre, they navigate the challenges of aging, retirement, and supernatural shenanigans, proving that even hags can have a hilariously dysfunctional family life.

Characters:

Baba Yaga (300s, looks 70s): A fiery Russian witch with a penchant for chicken legs and a mortar and pestle. She's the no-nonsense leader of the group, but secretly harbors a love for soap operas.

Frau Trude (500s, looks 80s): A stoic German crow goddess with a dry wit and a collection of creepy crawlies. She's the voice of reason (most of the time) and enjoys tending to her carnivorous garden.

Black Annis (unknown age, looks ageless): A mischievously dark Welsh hag with a one-legged hopping gait and a taste for human toes. She's the life of the party, albeit a slightly disturbing one, and loves practical jokes (that sometimes backfire spectacularly).

Befana (unknown age, looks flamboyant): A flamboyant Italian Christmas witch with a flying scooter and a bottomless bag of magical coal. She's the group's fashionista and resident gossip, always up-to-date on the latest local happenings (both earthly and otherworldly).

Plot Summary:

The quaint town of Creekwood is abuzz with rumors about the new residents at the ramshackle cottage on the outskirts. Unbeknownst to most, the tenants are Baba Yaga, Frau Trude, Black Annis, and Befana, legendary hags who have decided to embrace retirement in the modern world.

Living together proves to be a hilarious challenge. Baba Yaga clashes with Befana over decorating for the holidays (Halloween vs. Christmas, anyone?). Frau Trude struggles to connect with the town's overly cheerful book club. Black Annis' pranks land them in trouble with the uptight mayor, who suspects they're up to something nefarious (well, they are, but not always in the way the mayor thinks).

Despite their differences, the hags form a bond. They use their unique magical abilities to solve local problems (with a dash of chaos, of course). Baba Yaga's mystical guidance helps a lovelorn teenager. Frau Trude's connection with nature helps rid the town of a pesky infestation (of pixies, not something mundane). Black Annis' mischievous pranks expose a corrupt businessman's schemes. Befana's gift-giving magic, even with a twist, brings joy to a lonely widower.

Themes:

Finding humor and camaraderie in unexpected places.

Aging with grace (or at least a healthy dose of sarcasm).

Challenging stereotypes and proving that appearances can be deceiving.

Humor:

The film relies on witty dialogue, slapstick humor, and the inherent absurdity of these powerful hags trying to navigate the modern world. Their magical abilities often backfire spectacularly, leading to hilarious situations. The clash between their old-world customs and modern conveniences creates comedic tension. Each character's quirks and eccentricities provide a constant source of amusement.

Parody Elements:

The film parodies the classic sitcom "The Golden Girls" with its focus on a group of older women living together and facing the challenges of aging. However, it subverts the stereotype by replacing them with powerful, and sometimes frightening, hags from folklore. The situations they encounter and their solutions are twisted versions of the problems faced by the original characters.

Ending:

The hags, despite their occasional squabbles, have grown to cherish their unconventional family. They face a final challenge, perhaps a new magical threat or a visit from a curious government agent, and overcome it together, proving that even legendary hags can learn new tricks and maybe even mend their ways (a little bit). The film ends with the hags enjoying a cup of herbal tea (or something stronger) on their porch, cackling at a shared joke, ready for whatever supernatural shenanigans life throws their way.

[fragmentedink-archived]

I realized something last night

so

Cameron gave himself his own name, right? he read it in a book. it was a fictional hero (I believe) and it made me REALIZE Cameron has read fictional books, which, yeah no I know it sounds like "duh" but Cameron reads historical books or books that are useful and he doesn't consider fictional books useful

AND THEN

I thought about it

Cameron has a very old book of fairytales from across the entire realm. it's kept together with magic and is a V Fancy Book. it's the only fictional book he owns

but the stories in the book are Grimm Brothers Flavored and they're stories inspired by the different fae creatures that live in their world

Like,,, Baba Yaga. She's a spooky ass gramma who eats people and she's a very real person who lives in the woods behind the palace but she is ALSO a character in his book

[wahlpaper]

Thistlefoot Review

Thistlefoot by GennaRose NetherCott

CW: Violence, Xenophobia, Antisemitism, Death, Genocide, Self-harm, Suicidal Ideation, Swearing, Toxic Parental Relationship, Money Problems, Homelessness, Possession, Child Death, Drinking, Blackmail, Gore, PTSD, Self Loathing

5/5

I have found in my attempts at using dating apps that the media/entertainment recommendations of my matches tend to stick with me a lot longer than the people do. I say this to be funny, not for pity. Months ago I matched with a book-loving girl who gave me the perfect book rec. I told her about my blog being Queer and Jewish-based, and she immediately suggested Thistlefoot by GennaRose Nethercott. It took a while for it to get to me on Libby, but it was absolutely worth the wait!

Thistlefoot is about two magical siblings, Isaac and Bellatine Yaga. They are left a living house from their great-great-grandmother, Baba Yaga. Isaac and Bellatine are young adults now and haven't seen each other in 6 years. They don't trust each other, but they're willing to work out what to do with the house. Isaac has some debts he wants to clear and Bellatine wants the freedom that comes with a house that can walk. So they decide to continue their family business of puppet shows for one year, adding a stage to the house. Unfortunately, the house wasn't the only thing Baba Yaga left them. The past is coming back through an old enemy who wants the house destroyed.

Folklore, the past, and the concept that the body remembers trauma are all very important to Thistlefoot. Nethercott did a lot of research on folklore while writing the book. She looked into her Russian roots and quite a lot of American stories. She incorporated as much as she could into the book and wrote her own in as well. Folklore also affected how the story was told. Most books in third person have a narrative to explain what's happening outside of dialogue, but it's rare for them to feel like a character. In Thistlefoot, you aren't just reading a story, you're being told one. Perhaps it's Nethercott inserting herself into the story. Throughout, you also get interjections from Thistlefoot, the house, as she tells you interesting, but misleading information about the past.

I absolutely loved the experience of reading Thistlefoot. I didn't really know what was going to happen as I went through, even down to the last page. Every bit of the present, past, and history unfolded when the time was right. The story centers on a group that doesn't want to care about each other, but can't help themselves. Isaac and Bellatine are joined by a musical trio that just wants to fix the world and a girl that Bellatine brings to life with her animation powers. Basically, everyone has something about themselves that they aren't sharing, and that absolutely includes the house. Some pieces are revealed more cinematically than others, but they all contribute to why this book is so popular.

Despite the fact that Baba Yaga is not traditionally Jewish, I think it was a smart move to make that her religion. Russia's history of pogroms and antisemitism plays an important role in the story. There are many happier aspects of Judaism incorporated as well, such as traditional names, the use of Yiddish, and a shofar. Alongside the Jewish representation is queer representation. Bellatine has a romance with another woman, Baba Yaga was happier as a widow than married, Isaac had complex feelings for his best friend, and Sparrow the musician is non-binary. More diversity than this is included in Thistlefoot, making the book that much more relatable.

Nethercott spins an epic tale and race against time in Thistlefoot. If you're looking for a cinematic book that you can feel like a part of, I highly recommend this one. Puppetry, folklore, and memory come together to tell a tale you won't forget!

[volixia669]

Rant about Witcher S2

Feeling kinda sad seeing Witcher Gifs. Not because people are enjoying the show, please, enjoy it! I'm not here to judge your viewing habits!

But personally, I actually thought it would be a good show in S1. They missed some things here and there, and it didn't reeeeaaally feel like it was based on slavic folklore & culture, but I was hoping that now people were hooked, they'd use more of what people weren't familiar with, and get into some of the morally grey stuff as well as the much darker aspects of Witcher lore & slavic lore.

Instead they turned Baba Yaga into a generic demon.

Baba Yaga.

(Click Keep Reading for the rest of my rant because I don't want to be rude but also wow do I have so much to say about S2)

Technically only identifiable as such due to the house with chicken feet, that's how badly they fucked such an iconic piece of folklore up.

Season 2 also brought us "what if Eskel were an ass, and we killed him, then were shocked that people were upset we changed his character AND weren't upset at his passing"

In addition, it downplayed to near non-existence the roles Triss and Yen had in mentoring Ciri, it used the generic demon to kill most of the witchers thereby making the fault of the witcher's decline (checks notes) Yen, Ciri, and a generic demon instead of HUMANITY.

It tried to do the whole "dubious ethics of Witcher creation" but without Lambert's justifiable anger regarding being made a witcher as a kid, it doesn't have the same emotional weight.

Oh, oh. We also have a beautiful friendhsip between two badass women formed, then ruined due to...Interference from Deus Ex Generic Demon.

And like. They could have actually used Yen, The Elf Woman, and Nilfgardian Sorceress (sorry, blanking on names), to show how Baba Yaga ISN'T an evil witch, but rather, well, more complicated than that. How the deals Baba Yaga offers depends on both her mood, and how much respect you give to her. That the morality of what's offered & given also depends on perspective.

But nope. Generic Demon.

Which that plotline leads to blood libel.

This will likely need more explaining, so buckle up.

First up, blood libel is a variant of antisemitism where Jewish people are accused of murdering children thereby fueling pogroms aka genocide attempts. It's been around in Europe for centuries. Centuries.

The holocaust was not the first attempt to kill Jews, it was just the most well known, and most systemic.

Now, sometimes writers will make a fantasy race an analog to the Jewish people. Sometimes the intent is malicious, sometimes its positive, sometimes its neutral. Sometimes they don't intend to, they're just using tropes another writer used which is based on another writer's tropes, which is based on a metaphor/analog.

Now, I do not know all the details about how the author of the witcher books originally wrote the elves.

I DO know that how they were portrayed in the show was as a people looking for a homeland, and were part of a diaspora, with concerns about not enough "purebloods" in the new generation.

Its not at all accurate to the experiences of actual Jewish people, but it IS accurate to the perception of Jewish people many goyim have. (Also yeah, there's some Jews who are concerned about not enough pure Jewish kids, but that's like, a couple of very specific sects and even within those sects not everyone agrees on that.)

Anyways, the blood libel comes in what happens when the elven woman's baby dies. The Jewish analogs go and kill a bunch of non Jewish, I mean non Elven babies.

Fuck you Lauren Hirsch.

Fuck you for that plotline.

Even if it WERE canon, why the fuck would that plotline be deemed appropriate. Even if we pretended it wasn't blood libel, it's still a minority murdering a majority's kids, which oh right, is exactly the kind of shit fox news blabs on about.

I mean hell, the elves were enslaved. I bet there's incredibly false, racist, enraging, propaganda from the 1800s claiming freed slaves would kill children.

But they even put blood over doorways in a fucking bastardization of passover. A holiday where some sects ACTUALLY DISCUSS HOW HORRIBLE THE WHOLE KILLING BABIES THING IS. Oh, and the blood over doorways WAS ANIMAL BLOOD TO TELL THE ANGEL OF DEATH THAT A JEWISH FAMILY LIVED THERE. IT WAS WARDING. IT WASN'T A THREAT.

And instead of the elves being a faction with complicated motives stemming from racism, colonialism, and just having no where to go, they're turned into bland villains. The fuck kind of writing is this.

Oh, and before I forget, another pile of steaming shit to add to the shit pile? Vesemir giving a bunch of sex workers a date rape plant, thereby making it so they CANNOT CONSENT TO SEX, and also being okay with bringing strangers to the keep which makes zero sense.

Its disgusting, misogynistic, and seems like the scene was intended to be played for comedic effect with the mention of the plant as a sort of handwave to explain why the keep is still secret.

I have ZERO issues with sex workers, and in fact want more positive representations of sex workers. What I am not okay with is when media shows characters casually using an actual plant to drug sex workers thereby removing their agency, and it's intended to be a comedic scene.

Fuck that.

There's just...So much wrong with Season 2's writing, with the choices made, with the lack of respect for slavic culture, that I just cannot bring myself to watch the latest season.

Henry Cavill's Geralt is great! I love Anya Chalotra as Yen! I love that Joey Batey fought for Jaskier to be queer! There's so much great acting, costumes, and more.

But the writing choices.

The writing and directorial choices, as well as Hirsch's responses to criticism from fans means I just can't enjoy this season.

So I look sadly at the gifs, knowing that they're showing some great moments, but I can't enjoy them the way that I would have if S2 had been written better.

And you know what? I hope we get to hear more about what was going on behind the scenes. I want to know who wanted what. WHo shouted down what decisions. And just how, how in the world these writing decisions got finalized and aired.