#umbra colony

[false-god-bl0g]

UMBRA COLONY (RAIN COLONY) INFO

RELATIONS

The Family: Neutral Tide: Hostile Summit: Hostile

FOUNDER

Delta

CURRENT LEADER

Ripple Cloud (Formerly Ripplecall) Hemlock

HISTORY

Delta was a denizen of the original colony that fled the city. She and a select few of her followers retreated to the rainforest and created a home among the dense foliage. She even cultivated a lost language between the “big cats” who already resided in the rainforest. Legend says she had the power to call forth rain whenever the colony needed it most. Many cats once believed that cats who had passed on brought forth clouds when she cried out to them at the highest point in the rainforest.

CURRENT HISTORY

(Took place 1 year ago from current timeline)

In a cruel twist of fate this colony was taken over by a huge black jaguar named Hemlock after he murdered their leader in cold blood along with countless others. The broken remains of the colony were renamed Umbra in honor of his own black pelt. A lot of history and stories of the original Rain Colony have been lost due to the senseless slaughter of the elderly cats in the colony. Any cat that speaks of Rain Colony, including mentioning the past leader by name, is brutally punished or killed.

TERRITORY

The Roaring Falls & The Storm Pool A waterfall located deep in the rainforest whose flow entirely depends on the amount of rainfall, thus why the pool in which the water cascades into is called the Storm Pool which is always at its highest during the rainy season. The Mother Tree/Umbra Camp A huge tree made up of multiple trees. This is the colony’s main base and where the dams and kittens reside as they cannot sleep in their nests among the treetops. The Wetlands A swampy area near the Storm Pool. The Dividing River A huge river that comes down from the mountains running through almost all the colony territories.

PREY

Small snakes, lizards, & turtles

Certain types of frog

Tropical birds

Smaller species of monkeys

PREDATORS

Large snakes

Larger bird species

Larger monkeys & apes

Jaguars & other big cats

TRADITIONS

(Any Rain Colony traditions were done away with or lost. Making way for new traditions enforced by Hemlock.) Battle Royale A “chance” that Hemlock gives to all adult cats that wish to have their rank changed. Seen as “an opportunity” for pawns to advance in rank to either a favorite, scavenger, or a gladiator (granted they excel in battle) The Assortment When runts are old enough to begin learning Hemlock assigns them a rank and he leaves the responsibility of teaching to the current favorites, pawns, scavengers, and gladiators. Claws-Out Training All fighting training is done with unsheathed claws regardless of how young or old a cat is. “A real opponent will not hide their claws for you.”

[nommedtail]

saying genshin is racist and copies other games when youre a fgo fan LMFAOOO explain to me quickly why quetzalcoatl looks like that in that gambling game. lets also talk how guilgamesh and enkidu are also pale as hell and also the 103919 historical figures turned into lolis

anon, your anime gambling game of choice is most definitely very heavily inspired by legend of zelda breath of the wild. me liking whatever media you deem unworthy doesn't magically make that an untruth.

people can like stuff and be critical about its flaws, y'know. nothing is perfect, especially games that monetize through pretty jpgs in a world that's y'know. generally pretty unkind to melanin!

quetz is prob bc they used that debunked story that the aztecs thought their gods were blond and blue eyed or whatever. people still believe that! just like how people thought the lady who sued mcdonalds over the hot coffee was in the wrong. propaganda is insidious

the genderbends and lolis suck, and i hate them, i'm not alone in hating them, especially on this hellsite, but they make boatloads of money. so they'll keep being made. that's it, that's the reason!

for gil, i think there's the whole, sumerian divinity had blond hair/red eyes (in the story's lore at least) and the pale skin is ...him being 2/3 god???? idk, it's still bad lmao but he was made by like, some dudes to be a villain for their indie dating sim game in like, the early 2000's lol

enkidu's design has to complement gil's silly saint seiya lookin ass bc they're boyfriends i guess?? i dunno, i'm not a wiki

[scribe-of-stories]

heyyy happy STS!! since we writers do way more worldbuilding and backstory work than we actually get to show in the story, what's something that you're proud of creating/really like but won't get the chance to explore in the story?

Cee this is an extremely dangerous question to ask me, thank you.

By and large Lexical doesn't have a "main narrative", so I end up perusing most stories I think of and turn them into shorts. That said, the flood gates are open and I'm attempting to keep Lexical to one Genre of fiction: modern fantasy.

That said I know how Lexical as a universe ends, kind of. As said I like to think of an endpoint then go back to an interesting start. 2000 CE give or take 20 years was the interesting start. Given enough time Lexical would change genre from modern fantasy to science fantasy. Alien cultures would be met, the wyrd things from said cultures would be challenged and embraced, and the horrors from between the stars that are the answer to Lexical's fermi paradox would be overcome (hint: the answer is dark forest).

I have this story idea about Humanity coming to grips with having to face what it is, why it exists, and what comes next. The spoiler answer to that is that the creation of Entities like itself is the natural process of the Lexical universe.

Maybe one day I'll write a far in the future story about Humanity discovering these things, and it's Inscribed living in a Culture type civilization.

Thanks again for the ask, this was very fun to answer.

[theresattrpgforthat]

Mint Plays Games: NIbiru

The Pitch

Nibiru is a game about amnesiac characters called Vagabonds, wandering a gigantic space-station habitat in a speculative future, trying to keep their identities a secret even while working to uncover pieces of their memories that they’re slowly starting to recover. It’s a unique game because you create your character backstory as you play, rather than inventing your backstory during character creation.

I find it hard to describe the setting of Nibiru, and I think that’s because there’s so much lore placed inside this game. The locations of the setting are divided into three sections: the Antumbra, The Penumbra, and The Umbra. The Antumbra is located in the centre of the space station, is the most easily habitable, and acts as a series of urban cityscapes, ripe for political intrigue and big social games. The Penumbra is a series of colonies, struggling to maintain control resources, and pushing back against the powerful, well-funded city states of the centre. The Umbra is the barely survivable borders, where gravity pressure, floods and blackouts constantly threaten your life, and small communities try to get by in a setting great for exploration and eerie adventures. Any given group is expected to find ample inspiration in just one of these areas; you certainly aren’t expected to explore the entire breadth of the station (although you can if you want to, of course. It’s your game).

Being a game about amnesiacs, character creation is rather simple. Because you are playing amnesiacs, you don’t have to select a skill list, but rather build your skills alongside your memories; every time you recall a memory, you either give yourself a negative modifier and earn Memory Points, or you spend previously earned Memory Points and give yourself a positive memory. But at the beginning, all you need to do is choose a habitat that carries themes that feel resonant to you, and think about how that might affect your character. However, the Habitats give you the core themes of what you want your character’s story to be about, and I think they’re very special.

The Habitats

There are five Habitats: The Machine, The Leviathan, The Dreadlands, The Dreamlands, and Brighttown. If you are from The Machine, you were some kind of robot or AI in your past life; at some point you gained sentience, and now you’ve awoken in a human body. If you are from The Leviathan, you were originally some kind of animal, driven by instinct; and while your body is different now, those instincts are still there. Dreadlands inhabitants suffer false recollections provided by a parasite called The Nightmare, which turns all of your skills into negative memories, but still shelters and protects you, and gives you plenty of chances to re-try something you’ve rolled poorly on. Dreamlands inhabitants do not collect one set of memories, but rather find themselves reliving periods of various other lives, of people that they meet as they go about the world. And finally, Brighttown players can play versions of themselves, dropped from the mundane world into an alien environment that still occasionally turns up artifacts of the world they came from; pieces of their old life continue to haunt them.

I played a two-shot of Nibiru over the past few months. I had four players for this game, each of whom picked a different habitat to play with. We didn’t have anyone to play the Leviathan habitat, but all of the others were represented. Our first session involved introducing the players to the system, while the characters woke up in a tank of water and found themselves meeting a small settlement that needed help sending aid to their neighbours. Our second session involved a voyage through a series of flooded corridors, dealing with hostile wildlife and suspicious patrols on their way to a hidden settlement built around a strange landmark. From a GM’s perspective, it was a simple delivery mission: get something from point A to point B, and deal with whatever obstacles pop up in front of you.

The Mechanics

This game only uses d4's. In order to do something in Nibiru, a character must make one of three rolls: a regular roll, a contested roll, or a special roll. A regular roll involves rolling 3 dice, adding or subtracting dice according to relevant modifiers, and looking for at least one 4. A result with at least one 4 is a success; a result with no 4’s and at least one 1 is a critical failure. A contested roll involves two players rolling 3 (or more) d4’s and adding them up. The highest total determines who wins out. Finally, a special roll is invoked by the GM whenever the character engages with a special mechanic of the game, either a Stress test, a Habitat mechanic, or some other special rule. Typically a 4 is good and a 1 is bad, but there can be more nuance, depending on what you’re rolling for.

Just from the two-shot, I could tell that Nibiru is more designed for the long haul. Character progression is slow, using two different kinds of experience points, and characters will level up only after filling a journal page with eight memories. Creating these memories is one way to spend these experience points, as well as a way to generate more. This encourages most players to switch between creating positive and negative memories, generating both positive and negative modifiers to any given roll. The biggest advancements happen at the end of the journal page, where characters write something called a Revelation - a special power that uses the second type of XP as a resource, to allow the players do something unique and powerful, such as experience premonitions of the future, or cry black tears that can be used as a poison. Over our two-session adventure, we got nowhere near receiving a Revelation.

That being said, we did play enough of a game to get a good taste of what I think is the most interesting thing about Nibiru - the memories.

The Memories

We began the game with an opening scene of each character pulling themselves from the water, gasping for air, and being confronted with their very first link or memory - something that established each characters’ expected tone. Our Machine character wanted to recall a series of disjointed recollections of the space-ship they were responsible for, and hint at the tragedy that caused them to lose the entire crew. Our Dreadlands character began a series of memories of things going wrong around her home; people arguing and breaking in, threatening those that she held dear. Our Dreamlands character began telling a series of stories about the man he woke up next to; following the confusing tangle of events of his life journeying through the Umbra, and our Brighttown character described to us a memory of something incredibly familiar: a movie theatre, and the ticket that came with them to this new, alien world.

These memories weren’t just establishing character backstory, they were giving the players a chance to build a history collaboratively, and build parts of the world. They also gave the players control over what kind of tone they wanted to set; a Dreadlands player that is consistently creating negative memories is setting a gritty undertone that contrasts the bright, but distant memories of Brighttown. The different themes of the habitats were also clear signposts: a Dreamlands player knows that at some point they might have to help the NPCs they meet reconcile with lost parts of their past, and the decisions they make about what parts to reveal and what parts to keep quiet about says something about who their character is - and how they judge the other people they meet in Nibiru.

The Letdown

My biggest letdown regarding Nibiru is not what it provides, but what it lacks: incentives for the characters to relate and depend on each-other. The players had no reason to turn to each-other while they were wrestling with their own personal emotions: I suppose thematically, they might have had a narrative reason to do so, but there was no mechanical prompt or reward.

It was rather easy to emotionally or physically isolate oneself from the group, working together when only you were in danger, but not sharing their memories or working through their lost paths together. In some games, like Thirsty Sword Lesbians, or Last Fleet, characters are drawn or pushed together, seeing each-other as resources or tools to use, but in either case forcing the characters to confront each-other’s vulnerabilities. Nibiru’s introspection makes for a rich character experience, but in isolation, and as a result it was more like telling four separate stories, than one cohesive one.

The Takeaway

One thing Nibiru reinforces for me is the fact that you don’t really need a backstory for a character in order to find them worth playing. And the themes introduced in Nibiru’s habitats have me thinking about how baking the themes of the game into the character backstory that you do have can tie your players more closely to the setting than otherwise. As amnesiacs, your characters have a solid reason not to know any of the lore, but the fact that the players know where their memories are coming from give them enough agency to hint towards the kind of stories they want to tell. Nibiru is a game about discovery: discovering who you are, and what the world around you is like.

Nibiru is also a game with plenty of space for tragic stories. Your character sheet has space for a number of symptoms that will start to affect your character should they take too much mental damage, and these symptoms can range from hearing voices to experiencing delusions. There's a lot about mental health and memory loss tied up in the mechanics of this game, which means that as a group you need to have a talk about what sorts of themes you're comfortable experiencing, and whether there's any consequences you need to avoid for safety reasons.

I think Nibiru has the potential to create a very emotional experience for your table, but I think that you have to play this game with folks who you can expect to naturally turn to each-other even as they introspect. Mechanically, it's beginner friendly, but when it comes to role-play, it demands a level of vulnerability that I'm not sure every table wants to have.

You can check out my spreadsheet play-kit for Nibiru here.

[rockybloo]

Quick question. When it comes to Bitterbat's (or any Monstrum for that matter) many different forms, do they serve a specific purpose in Monstrum culture, or are they just fun forms that he likes to transform into when he feels like it, other than for power / magic-related reasons of course?

All Monstrums have different reasons and ways for how they use their forms.

Monstrums view their forms as extensions of themselves and how they express their identities. Some use their forms for different tasks and some just shift freely depending on how they feel.

Typically, all Monstrums will have a preferred form, which is the one they spend the most time in. A large amount of Monstrums typically go the humanoid form route though but there are civilizations in Umbra that are comprised mostly of mini Monstrum and others are big ass Kaiju colonies.

Bitterbat is one of the Monstrums that assigns certain situations to his alternate forms. And the default form y'all see, like on the cover and the cover of the chapter, is his preferred form.

He likes it because it's just the right size for him to wrap his arms around Sweetheart without taking up too little or too much space.

Lord Vile did try to set rules in place for different form usage but nobody paid any attention to that shit because switching between forms for a Monstrum is as second nature as breathing.

[shivering-isles-cryptid]

Memories of Dark Love

Fem!Durge x Gortash

After defeating Ketheric Thorm, Umbrae has some flashbacks that the party don’t appreciate

Umbrae looked down at the man, coughing black blood as decay settled over his body. “You… you fucking disgrace!” Ketheric shouted, every trace of the once cool General gone, replaced by pure rage. “I always knew you were… nothing more than a psychopath.” He coughed again, struggling to stand, but not getting higher than his knees. “I stood by, letting Gortash play with his pet. But I knew it was only a matter of time before you snapped.” Umbrae stared down at him, gripping her dagger tightly. “What… what are you talking about?” She asked, before a sharp pain shot through her skull. She stumbled backwards, dropping the dagger and grabbing her head. Visions swam through her skull. She was reclined on Ketheric’s throne, twirling a dagger between her fingers. A man stood beside her, staring down at a book, but she would catch him looking down at her every now and again, a smile in his eyes. Soon, Ketheric entered the hall, Z’rell and Balthazar following behind him. She smiled, throwing the dagger into Ketheric arm and giggling when he simply pulled it out. He spoke, but she has no idea what he said, or what she said in return. What she can remember is standing from the throne and walking towards the man… Gortash? Gortash (?) grabbed her hand, spinning her like they were at a ball, before pulling her against his chest. He said something, but Umbrae couldn’t hear it over the sound of his heartbeat, perfectly in time with her own. His chin was resting on top of her head, and if it was anyone else, she’d cut them down at the knees. But not him. Never him. Her Father wouldn’t dare tell her to harm him. Z’rell said something, and Gortash’s grip tightened, physically restraining her from lunging at the orc. She still snapped at her, baring her teeth as if they were fangs.

The memory lurched from her mind, causing Umbrae to stumble again as another one was forced to her mind. She was staring out a window, the Shadow Lands stretching before her. The smell of decay usually made her entire body writhe with ecstasy, a pleasure that none but one other has come close to matching. But the decay of the Shadow Lands was corrupted, wrong. She imagined this is how most people felt about true decay. She heard footsteps, heavy, metal boots on stone flooring. Hand wrapped around her waist, pulling her against his chest and resting his chin on top of her head. He says something, but all she remembers is the heartbeat against her back, perfectly in sync with her own, and one simple word. “...dearest…” She had closed her eyes, leaning into his touch as he moved his head from her own to her neck. Just as lips began ghosting over a spot on her neck, her mind jumped once more. Umbrae bent over, gripping her head and giving a shout of pain as another memory forced its way through the holes in her brain.

She was standing in the Mind Flayer Colony, casually carving symbols into the organic wall. Then, footsteps. Heavy boots on squishy floors, occasionally transitioning to metal flooring. She didn’t bother to turn around. She had been waiting for him. His arms snaked around her chest, pulling her against his own, resting his chin on her head. His heartbeat… it wasn't him. She struggled, fighting against the pretender, but then a dagger pierced her stomach, carving upwards. Her body burned as she cried out, feeling each cut as if it was happening in the present day, but then a hand touched her shoulder. She was pulled from the memories, Ssadowheart holding her up while the rest of her companions stood behind them. Umbrae looked at Shadowheart, placing her hand over hers, before nodding and returning her gaze to Ketheric. “I remember. Not many things, but enough. I was crazy, maybe I still am, and I was definitely the furthest thing from loyal. But you… you are worse than I ever was.” She said, slowly approaching the man, leaning down to pick up her dagger. Raising the blade over her head, she stared down at the once mighty General. Devotee of Selune, General of Shar, Chosen of Myrkul, now dead by her hand. The blade came down, stabbing right into his head, piercing the brain and sticking out of his chin. She pulled the blade out, turning away from the collapsing corpse and rejoining her friends. She was vaguely aware of Dame Aylin stomping on Ketheric’s body, but she was too distracted.

Gortash. That was his name. The name of the Guardian she sees every night. The face she sees when she closes her eyes. The name of the man who sold Karlach to Zariel. She loved… loves? him. But he had sentenced one of her closest confidants to a fate worse than death. He was responsible for the tadpoles wriggling through their skulls. He was the villain, the one they would destroy. And yet… the idea of ever harming him, it made her sick. The idea of any violence being used against him sickened her, made her feel protective. But she knew he was evil, wasn’t she too? When she killed Alfira, she didn’t care. She hid the body and told the camp she had lost her nerve. Sure, she felt guilty for lying to them, but not for the brutal murder of an innocent girl that just wanted to be good. Sceleritas had made hints to her previous endeavors, and they were nothing in comparison. The memories she had recovered were always red with blood. Until now. Gortash, he had calmed the Urge she had been cursed with since she woke up on that damn nautiloid, probably even longer. Aylin said something, Shadowheart saying something back, but the words were not processing in her mind. She was drowning in her own thoughts, dragged under by memories of Gortash, holding her close, chin on her head, heartbeats in perfect synch. “... Gortash…” She was ripped from her own mind when she heard Karlach say his name, flames wrapping around her as Wyll tried to calm her down. “That motherfucker! Selling me to Zariel wasn’t enough, he put this fuckign tadpole in my head too?” She shouted, Umbrae slowly approaching them. “He wasn’t alone, it seems.” Astarion said, everyone turning to look at her. “You. Tell us he lied. You didn’t know Gortash. You had nothing to do with this!” Karlach shouted, Umbrae taking a step back. “I…” She started, but Wyl stepped between them. “Karlach, we all already know that she doesn't remember anything.” He said, hands held up.

“She could have been lying. I know it’s what I would do if I was suddenly dropped in the middle of a group I had tortured.” Astarion chimed in, Wyll and Shadowheart both glaring at him. “Umbrae is a formidable ally. She has proven herself time and time again. But if the lich spoke true, then she has been the true enemy all alone.” Lae’Zel said, standing behind Karlach. “If she infected us, why would she infect herself? You all need to calm down.” Shadowheart said, standing in front of Umbrae. “Ketheric was dying, he could have been lying to get us to kill each other before reaching Baldur’s Gate.” Wyll said, moving back to stand next to Shadowheart. “We’ve all been in each others minds. If Umbrae was evil, we’d all know by now. She has been nothing but upfront about what she does remember and the urges in her mind. We have no reason not to trust her other than the words of a necromancer. Which, I might remind you, are notoriously untrustworthy!” Gale stood next to Wyll, the three of them forming a wall in front of her. “I… do remember.” She said, everyone turning to her. “What do you remember?” Halsin asked, everyone backing away from her. “I remember Gortash. And Ketheric. And the Colony.” Everyone was silent, and she couldn’t tell if they were waiting for her to continue, or if they were preparing to attack. “I knew him. I was allied with him and Ketheric. I was supposed to meet Gortash down here… but someone attacked me, pretending to be him.” Karlach let out a roar, drawing her axe and charging at Umbrae, but stopping in her tracks as pinks chains erupted from the ground and wrapped around her. Shadowheart held her hands up, a faint pink glow around them, before nodding to Umbrae to continue.

“I don’t remember much. Almost nothing. I do remember him though. His face is clearer than anyones. I rememebr his voice even though I don’t remember his words. I remember his touch, and his heartbeat, how his chin felt on top of my head. How just being near him sileneced the voice telling me to kill. How his heart would beat perfectly in synch with mine.” She put a hand on her chest, feeling the soft pumping under her skin. “You loved that m… man?” Wyll asked, clearly stopping himself from calling Gortash what he was. A monster. “I think I did.” She knew she did. There weren't any doubts. Everyone stared at her, and Umbrae stared at the ground. “How bad was I, if I loved a man like him?” Her voice was quiet, shaking slightly, and she was terrified of the answer. Gortash was a monster, a slaver, a tyrant, a backstabber. And yet, she loved him. She could feel a hand on her arm, and looking up, Halsin was standing before her. “Whoever you once were, you aren’t any longer.” He reassured, and Umbrae nodded slowly. The party all traded glances, Lae’Zel scoffing and heading towards the portal, followed by Astarion and Wyll. “I’ll stay with Karlach and try to cool her flames.” Shadowheart said, Umbrae nodding stiffly and heading towards the portal, Halsin and Jaheira on either side and Gale following behind her.

[arthurdrakoni]

Flag of the Kingdom of Leon

This is the flag of the Kingdom of Leon.  It comes from a world where the Reconquista failed and most of Spain remained under Islamic rule.  For many years Leon was forced to pay protection money to Al-Andalus.  However, after a while they were able to appeal to their powerful Christian neighbors for support.  For many years, the boarder of Western Europe was considered to stop at the Pyrenees Mountains.  The Iberian Peninsula was lumped in with the rest of the Islamic World.  This somewhat miffed Leon, as they were often lumped in with the rest of Iberia, when anyone remembered that they existed, that is.   

The discovery of the Americas was delayed by a few decades, but it still happened.  Albeit, it was by the English-funded John Cabot, rather than Christopher Columbus.  The colonization of the New World occurred rather differently than in our world.  For example, Al-Andalus colonized Mexico.  This resulted in a new form of Islam that combined Sunni Islam with tradition Aztec beliefs.  The native converts proved particularly zealous, and more than willing to wage jihad upon their neighbors.  Meanwhile, England colonized Brazil and France proved more successful in its colonization of Canada, among other developments. 

Leon got into the colonization game as well, though a bit later than the other powers.  Their first successful colony was Nova Asturias, located in what would have been the Southeastern United States.  Nova Asturias became a major producer of tobacco, cotton, lumber and other raw materials.  This allowed Leon to slowly build up its economy, rather than blowing through a bunch of money like Al-Andalus' did.  Leon also established colonies in Patagonia, Southern Africa, and even a few islands of Indonesia.  

What Leon lacks in sizes it makes up for in economic prowess.  Recently, despite years of resentment and conflict, relations with Al-Andalus have begun to improve considerably.  Leon is a nation that truly lives up its motto Sub Umbra Floreo, which is Latin for "I Prosper in the Shade".  This is a reference to Leon's historical existence in the shadow of Al-Andalus.

The flag is a simple crimson background with a golden and bejeweled Asturias Cross in the center. 

Link to the original flag on my blog: https://drakoniandgriffalco.blogspot.com/2018/08/flag-of-kingdom-of-leon.html?m=1

[scourgebff]

oooomt cattails. have you played both of them? who did you romance whos your favorite etc etc

YES i’ve played both I’m absolutely hooked! i was in the beta for wildwood too and got the krampy plush cause they’re my little microscopic creature. best money i’ve ever spent. in the first game scout was my partner nearly in every run cause he kept it real always i was devastated when he was cut in the second one (tho i get it 💔) but krampy, luna, and ember were favs too! and the second game i’ve had files with most of the characters as partners but my favorite runs are with charlotte and talon bc they’re awesome. love that funky little cat umbra though too they were so irritating to get lmao. beach is the best location for a colony in wildwood btw 🫶

[dancing-coyote]

Happy Valentine's Day! Any Valentine's Day-related HCs you got for your PCs?

Aww, thank you! I hope you're having a great one, too!

Most of my OCs either aren't familiar with Valentine's Day (either because they're not from Earth or any human colony, or because "frivolous things" like holidays weren't considered "relevant" to their education growing up haha poor Jeannie and Nate) or they don't celebrate it for various reasons (most stemming from the whole "a hostile alien empire has been actively genociding humanity for 30-odd years" thing going on over in Halo!verse.)

One OC who's both familiar with the holiday (because her moms are Human Mythology specialists) and inclined to participate is Azrael. She thinks the concept is cute and also it's adorable when her stoic tough-guy biker-bot husband gets all flustered at being fawned over.

Corona and Umbra also pick up on the holiday after being reunited on Earth, and it sort of becomes A Thing for them to do a little something to celebrate the bond between them, that even war and being separated for centuries couldn't break.

[clover-cattailsgame]

•• Cattails Guide: My Character Pronoun Headcanons •• ••

As no NPC character has set genders, I decided to post my personal list of character pronouns here, these will be the information I go with in all of my stories, unless specified..

Now, I have changed the genders before, once- I originally said Robin was a male, even romancing them with a female character, before figuring out the "most calicos are female" fact, which I honestly didn't know until a few years ago.. And switched Robin over to a female in a later save, now enough about that- let's get into it!

* THESE MAY CHANGE OR VARY

DEPENDING ON THE SAVEFILE!! *

- ORIGINAL GAME-

- FOREST COLONY-

Mayor- he/him

Sarge- he/him

Ember- she/her

Doc- he/him

Missy- she/her

Lyrus- he/him

Scout- he/him

- MYSTIC COLONY -

Alisa- she/her

Oracle- she/her

Krampy- they/them

Savannah- she/her

Mossie- she/her

Nil- he/him

Slip- he/him

- MOUNTAIN DOMAIN -

Leo- he/him

Jag- he/him

Luna- she/her

Delta- she/her

Pebble- she/her

Arthur- he/him

Robin- she/her

Ursa(Leo's random kit)- she/her

- CUSTOM COLONY -

Claudius- he/him

Peanut- she/her

Galen- they/them

Sunshine- she/her

Claw- he/him

Mango- she/her

- WILDWOOD STORY -

Coco- he/him

Spark- he/him

Lainey- she/her

Fliss- he/him

Bob- he/him

Elli- she/her

Buttercup- she/her

Talon- he/him

Glimmer- she/her

Charlotte- she/her

Champ- he/him

Zephyr- he/him

Rosemary- she/her

Phantom- he/him

Garlic- she/her

Alabaster- she/her

Umbra- they/them

[diinferi]

ORIGIN

[DROP-IN] + No memory set altering your actions. - No history or friends in this world. You wake up in a prison in your starting region. A guard approaches and tells you that this isn’t supposed to be anyone in the cell you’re in. He decides that working out who you are would be too much hassle and lets you out into Tamriel.

LOCATION

[CYRODIIL] The Imperial province in the centre of Tamriel. Predominantly temperate in climate with large cities including the vast Imperial City the cosmopolitan centre of the Empire and its governance.

RACE

[BRETON] Humans of High Rock with some Elf heritage. Have very slightly pointed ears. Eccentric and naturally skilled with magic. They have a natural resistance to magic.

BIRTHSIGN

[THE SHADOW] Those born under the Shadow are capable of becoming invisible for a minute once per day.

PERKS

[FORTIFY MAGICKA] You are simply have more magicka than you would normally have. Magic tires you less to perform.

[RESIST MAGICKA] You absorb around 25% of the damage from spells ignoring the damage from that 25%. Ignores beneficial magic.

[SKILL BOOKS] There’s a chance whenever finishing a new book or short story that you will become noticeably (and permanently) more skilled in a vaguely related discipline.

[ENCHANTER] You are capable of enchanting objects well. You know how to trap souls and how best to get good effects.

ITEMS

[STEEL ARMOR] An excellent full set of steel plate armor.

[STEEL WEAPON] A fine steel weapon of your choice. Blades, blunted weapons, bows, or polearms.

[ARTEFACT BLADE] Goldbrand, the Ebony Blade, the Ice Blade of the Monarch, Umbra or Chrysamere. All immensely powerful and wickedly sharp swords with truly legendary fire, life drain and frost, soul trap and healing enchantments respectively.

[LEATHER ARMOR] A finely made, handsome set of leather armour.

PROPHECIES

[CHAMPION OF CYRODIIL] You are in a bare cell in the Imperial City Prison being insulted by a Dunmer in the cell across from you. Shortly, the Emperor and his bodyguards (the Blades) will use a secret door in your cell as a route of escape from assassins. What follows is the Emperor’s assassination (which is unpreventable) and a plot to drag the world into Oblivion. You will be in the middle of all of this and the Emperor’s dying request that you deliver an amulet will spiral into a quest to save Nirn. Your goal is simple but far from easy - stop the Oblivion Crisis.

Reward: Should you choose to be you will always be a person of note due to your tendency of being in the right place at the right time. While being a magnet for weird happenings is often dangerous the rewards and status you can attain are considerable.

DRAWBACKS

[OBLIVION CRISIS] Oblivion gates regularly pop up around you with increasingly large, powerful and bizarre manners of daedra flooding out. Unless you enter and close down the gate they will just keep coming. The daedra seem to be after you specifically but they’ll settle for bystanders.

[CLIFF RACERS] You are often attacked by a colony of Cliff-Racers that appear to be following you. They seem highly resistant to the climate and you will never be able to kill them all. They’ll attack you in groups of 4 or 5 while outside and smash through windows to get to you.

FUTURE

[MOVE ON] You go to another realm for 10 years.

[trackerkitsune]

👀

Sorry for sliding in most of them, but!

1, 6, 9, 11, 15?

@runningwolf62 cuz this answers some of yours too :3 this is under a cut cuz it looooong~

1: What is their pre-bullshit backstory?

Olexei was a doctor on a space colony before he became a Harrow Prime. Family run clinic, his parents were both medical professionals before him.

Kitsune and Rien were once a little girl called Erin, who had an obsession with space and a decent knowledge of anything to do with it, and a love of animals. (Rien notably changed her name to still reflect her original name, but at the same time to spite the Orokin.)

She was good friends with Rell, often spending a good amount of time talking about space flight with him and listening to him talk about the complicated mathematical principles related to it… Up until the Incident on the Zariman Ten-Zero. Both of them became protectors in different ways of the other kids on the ship.

6: What is their personality like? Are they different around strangers? How?

Rien’s pretty mistrustful of strangers, and doesn’t tend to open up much, acting standoffish. She keeps the snark on 11 and probably gets herself in trouble.

When she’s gotten used to someone and trusts them, the softer side comes out. She fusses over people, she loves physical affection and will happily display such affection to others too. She’s got some insecurities that she tries to hide with arrogance, but even just the meaning of her name betrays those insecurities.

Kitsune is not what you’d call well-adjusted. Though she’s a sweet, caring person to those who know her, she’s a little unhinged and tends to intimidate strangers to try to get them to leave her alone - an unhealthy coping mechanism from the harsh reality of never knowing if a mission will be her last or someone else’s that she knows. There’s the additional factor of her void powers making her unstable too. (Umbra does his best to help with this by providing her the stability and patience of a parent.)

Most still find her quite unsettling because of how her void power manifests itself.

Olexei is pretty damn aggressive when he’s left alone with strangers - his first meeting with Rien, without the calming influence of his known Operator, was rather violent. Only the Drifter’s reflexes from multiple loops of Duviri saved her, honestly. He’s cold, standoffish, and refuses to speak or communicate with those he doesn’t know in any way, and doesn’t enjoy being pressed to do so - he lashes out, though thankfully not with his powers.

When he gets used to someone, though, and accepts them into his tiny circle of trusted people… A little of his human side shows through. He doesn’t exactly ease up much, but he does at least talk and share some snark. He enjoys bantering with Rien especially, and is protective of Kitsune. When he gets angry, he can be pretty cruel too - a cruelty that he gained during his captivity under the Orokin. He’s got a very visceral fear of Infested, and refuses to go aboard the derelicts after one very unpleasant encounter.

-

9: Do they keep in touch with past classmates? Friends? Other Tenno?

Rien doesn’t really know if any of her fellows have survived in Duviri, and has subsequently lost contact with most of them.

Kitsune stays in contact with quite a few Tenno, and has worked with (bullied) Darvo to set up a sort of bar and social venue on Larunda relay for Tenno to hang out. She's something of a relatively constant presence, and is always willing to help out.

-

11: Are they comfortable jumping out of their warframe and showing their own body to other? Why (not)?

Rien spends most of her time out of warframes, and has no particular worry about showing herself.

Kitsune won’t show herself except with people she trusts. (Which ends up being quite a few people eventually.) She doesn’t mind the Entrati, and is particularly comfortable around Son, owing to their mutual experiences of having freedoms removed from them.

-

15: Do they have anything that still ties them back to their days as human?

Olexei doesn’t have anything physical tying him to his past as a human - only the vague and inconsistent surfacing of his past medical knowledge and his memory of what got him turned into a warframe in the first place.

[alteredsilicone]

Artemis lives in the Drifter camp with Umbra, Voland and Kahl's squad where they also sometimes allow Perrin and New Loka Operatives to come for some missions and Earth-reclamation work.

Eir lives on his own Orbiter which he uses to go on missions for Suda. He does not have a home in the conventional sense.

Virgo has a fancy apartment in a Perrin dormitory, she lives on a Perrin-controlled colony somewhere on Pluto. Technically the Drifter encampment is her Operator's lost Orbiter, but she prefers to visit rather than live (it's crowded anyways).

Iris lives with the Maenroni family as their live-in servant-and-bodyguard, the Maenronis live on a Corpus shit amidst a ship colony.

[ace-angel-judas]

she got the bite on their first meeting !!!

“How are you doing down there, Estelle?”

The communication device in her ear was breaking up slightly, no thanks to the snow storm that she had unfortunately landed in.

While she was expected to land in the middle of the planet, a snow storm had made her little vessel land in the middle of a mountain.

It was snowing, thick, thankfully the vessel had emergency clothes for such a thing. But communication was difficult.

“Hoseok?” Estelle asked into the device, “I can’t hear you properly,”

“The planet has two species! Umbra and Lumen- don’t- run- dangerous-“

A beeping sound made Estelle pull the device from her ear, frowning. Being a researcher for the Union had been her dream forever, although she thought she’d be researching already established colonies.

Not trekking through a snowy waste land.

There was nothing but rocks and snow all around her, not even signs of growth. Estelle noted it down in her device, sighing.

For now, it was time for shelter.

Thankfully, a small cave looked to be her saving grace. It was mostly covered in snow, slightly hidden in the mountain but she spotted it barely.

Stepping out of the snow, Estelle huffed as she watched her breath float away. Only something else moving in the snow made her narrow her eyes.

It all looked white, until something shifted and reflected off the snow.

“What is-“

Before she could take a step, something pounced out of the snow and she was sent flying to the ground. This being was twice as strong as her, clawed hands pining her down as a pair of fangs stared at her face.

This creature, this being, seemed to be covered in iridescent scales, pointed ears and long black hair. A tail curled from behind itself, which had snagged itself around Estelle’s waist.

This tail had also managed to rip open her clothes, most of her bare skin exposed to the cold and the beings eyes.

It sniffed the air, slowly circling around her hair and face. Its eyes trailed down her barely body, observing every curve and soft fleshy part that was now exposed. The tail tightened over her breasts, rubbing against her nipples and making her squeak.

Estelle breathed heavily, grounding herself, observing this being back. It looked male, as far as humans decided what was male, it’s clothes seemed to be made from some sort of white leather and it’s eyes were green, reflective like a cats.

“I’m not here to hurt you..,” Estelle whispered, “I promise..,”

It let go of her arms, Estelle slowly pulling her gloves off and revealing her hands. Instead of five fingers, this being had four. It wasn’t unusual for different species to have appendage differences.

Her hands reaching up, softly touching this beings face. He felt cold, freezing to the touch yet oddly beautiful. No humans were this attractive.

“Your.. very handsome,” She whispered.

Its ears flicked, Estelle tilting her head to the side. She watched as its eyes suddenly turned into slits, nostrils flaring.

“Wait-“

A set of sharp teeth sunk into her neck, Estelle crying out in pain.

[cryingasiwrite]

Universe of Kisuan pt.3/??

This is part one of who knows how many of posts about the world Atarah's Crown takes place in. This universe is called Kisuan, it's a collection of three (maybe more who knows) realms: Alius, Valideus, and Eohenia.

Today, we're gonna talk about the realm Valideus and yes I'm using my series/universe bible for this.

This one is a big boy...

Background:

Valideus was once apart of the realm Kisuan along with Alius and Eohenia, but split when the god Iohr was cast from the pantheon. Since then, the only magic applicable in the Valideus realm is a form of elemental magic or gifted by a deity.

There are ten countries which make up Valideus: Triuse, Condor, Saine, Huton, Osca, Norsia, Seyda, Budos, Domun, and Eal. The majority of the countries are specifically ran and controlled by a certain potestate, or elemental magic:

Triuse and Eal are Vitum

Codor, Saine, and Huton are Saxum

Norsia is Aura

Seyda is Ignis

Budos is Unda

Domun and Osca, the two great superpowers of Valideus, are a blend of the potestate.

This does not mean that these countries only have their respective potestates living there, only that they are the majorities.

Countries:

Yes I made that map, I'm very proud of it.

Domun

Eal

Triuse

Caldor

Saine

Hutton

Osca

Norsia

Seyda

 

History:

Age of Empires:

There was a great empire, Arcé. (In cannon era, this empire no longer exsists, though the capitol of Domun is named after it.)

The Arcean Empire stretched across present-day Domun, to Budos, Norsia, and Eal.

Effectively, Arcé was the largest empire the history of the Valideus Realm.

At the same time, the Empire of Caldu stretched from present-day Codor, through Siaine, all the way to Huton.

Lastly, there was the Innul Empire, reaching across Seyda and up to Norta.

During this period of history, Arcé and Caldu fought relentlessly with eachother, usually regarding borders.

Dark Ages:

Kisuan split into the three realms.

During this time, Caldu was the first empire to fall, leaving present day Caldor, Saine, and Hutton to be warring clans.

To the south, Arcé falls soon after, becoming five kingdoms who constantly fight with eachother aswell.

Only the Great Innul Empire remains standing without issue. 

Middle Ages:

Provides a great upheaval in the political sphere of Valideus.

Socially, quet-gas (portals to other realms) are now being commonly used by the Datums to travel to Eohenia and Alius.

The Great Innul Empire fell, leaving the kingdoms of Norsia and Seyda in it’s wake.

Triuse now forms as a kingdown, opposit of the Vitus Mountains from Caldor.

This new knigdon stretches down through present day Domun–Umbra Terra–an Eal; effectively taking over Eal who was beginning to form as its own.

Budos spans across the modern-day Domunian territories of Idor, Monmor, and Eurus.

Lastly, modern-day Idor, Monmor, Eurus, Adrian, and Umbra Terra continues to war with one another. 

Age of Enlightment and (Cannon) Age of Technology:

Unification of Domun.

Eal is left stranded from Triuse but is still a colony of Triuse.

Eventually, Eal gain independence and becomes its own nation.

There becomes a growing focus in learning potestates, especially for people who are not warriors.

Nobility, on the other hand, begins to stop learning and harnessing their potestates.

There is now more trade between Valideus and Alius, and Valideus and Eohenia; more people migrate and travel between the realms.

With this, we see a rise in social problems between the potestates, Datum, Cetari, and Venefi.

The Kalta Dynasty is established in Domun

Deities:

A single pantheon rules over Kisuan in its entirety and, so long as the pantheon remains complete, as will Kisuan. In the beginning, Kisuan was one realm, a combination of Alius, Valideus, and Eohenia, just as the pantheon was one. During the Dark Ages of Alius (the golden era for non-european countries) one god, Iohr, was cast out of the pantheon. In doing this, Kisuan was split into the three realms.

Deities In Valideus:

Goddess of Travelers and Peace: Asoi

Goddess of War and Strength: Coros

Magic:

The Valideus Realm is aport of the Kisuan Universe. While Alius does not have any forms of magic and Eohenia has “fantasy magic”, Valideus has potestates. Magic in the Valideus Realm comes in two faucets. Potestates, an elemental type magic, and Gifts, blessings from the Goddess Asoi. (I'll make a post specifically about potestates but here's a quick overview)

Potestates:

Potestates are passed down from parent to child. There is no dominant or recessive potestate, so it's pretty much a 50/50 chance if the parents have different ones.

Aura, the potestate of Air

Ignis, the potestates of Fire

Saxum, the potestate of Earth

Unda, the potestate of Water

Vitum, the potestate of Shadows

Gifts:

Gifts are abilities or a form of magic that fall outside of the scope of potestates. Datums and Semisos Datums can get them in a (for lack of a better descriptor) baptismal like ritual from the goddess, Asoi. Some beleive that the Gift you receive says something about either the life you will live or who you are. For example, here are the Gifts of the four main characters in the Atarah's Crown series:

Enayat Asen, Gift of Empathy (he can see people's emotions like colored auras)

Roman Eren, Gift of Endurance (he can push his body's limits past what he should be able to. Ie. running further distances without training, holding his breath for longer than should be possible, etc.)

Piper Caroll, Gift of Replication (she can create multiple mirror images of herself)

Iris Dunn, Gift of Healing (she can manipulate cell regeneration and heal cuts, bruises, broken bones, etc.)