#untitled fishing game

[vertebrae-entertainment]

1.25.23 - ‘Anchor’

Hi y’all! Its been a while since we did a proper blog update, so i figured it was time i talk about the thing people usually talk about when i bring up the main character of our fishing game: “whoah, he’s a big dude huh?”

Designing a tough guy

When me and Åge first discussed this project, I told them two things would make me automatically passionate about it. The first was that the main character should be a hot dude, and the second was that he should be transgender. Now, at a glance it doesn't seem that complicated (and it really isn’t). I like hot dudes, I like to draw bulk, and I am a trans man myself. Seeing as we are a two-person team, there’s no CEO to tell me what I can and cannot do, so naturally this was how the basic concept ended up.

Following from there I started designing. I took some amphibious inspiration, building him sort of like a frog- top heavy and with long legs, lending itself well to animating acrobatics. I wanted to make him tall and menacing, with a shadow covering his face to make him seem mysterious. At the same time I couldn't forget his fishing lifestyle. In the end he ended up somewhere between Batman and Popeye, with a sprinkle of elegance for good measure. It turned out to lend itself really well to build him like he was hunting monsters for a living, as that was what the game was turning into.

After settling on a color scheme of black, white and red, and taking inspiration from the simplistic designs of the UPA-revival movement for ease of animation, I figured he needed a tattoo- both to top off the design and hint at his marine connection. The anchor seemed obvious! A symmetrical object right on the middle, plenty of body hair, and our main man was ready for the screen!

The tough guy through a queer lens

I have a huge soft spot for towering tough guys, it's no secret. From Conan to the T-800, this hyper masculine archetype may seem dated and boring to others, but personally I cannot get enough of it. What kind of pressure does it take to make a man two steps from a monster? In an odd sort of way, I suppose I find it relatable. Furthermore, I always find masculinity as a topic lends itself really well to a transgender lens- it's like free nuance! It is one thing to be born into this cruel, limiting role.. But what does it tell of a character, their story, when it is a choice?

Some people express confusion learning that this fisherman is transgender, which drives the question: should you be able to tell? Frankly, I think there should be a hell of a lot more trans men in media before we tackle this question. Assuming someone can’t be genetically tall and bulky due to the gender assigned at birth is an awfully dated idea to begin with, in my humble opinion.

I am out here making what I  would like to see a trans man in a videogame do, which is be huge, wrestle monsters and kiss cute guys. A topic me and Åge started tackling back in the Liquid State days was the concept of a trans power fantasy- which is exactly what it reads on the tin. While there are few men (trans and not) who fit into the shapely mold of a hyper masculine, sword-swinging barbarian god, many admire these characters and live out their fantasies through them.

Besides, you can tell! We specifically make excuses to show off his shark-teeth patterned top surgery scars because we want people to know. Hey, are you a trans guy that likes bulky dudes? This one’s for you!

In conclusion

While my inspirations are deceptively simple and reasons are uncomplicated, I often catch myself thinking about this design. Is it realistic? Is it alienating? Is it empowering? Is it wise? Even if he was designed straight from a trans man’s gut with no worries about the greater question of good representation, I often find myself thinking as though the task of representing all trans men lies solely on my shoulders. It is an unrealistic, unfair expectation. I am not all trans men, neither is he. 

His design and background is a love letter to one of my favorite types of characters, no doubt mixed in with years of queer, man-loving brain soup. He is what I like, and what I want to see in a video game. At the end of the day, I can only hope that what I enjoy also appeals to others.

So far, all signs point to yes. :)

This is our fanart wall, right by my desk at our office. I put them right where i can see them every day. Thanks for the support, folks- it means the world to me.

-Hauk Want to know more? Follow us here or on Twitter for regular updates on this project- or click here to join our discord!

[scottbaiowulf]

my main characters so far, donny and marina

[phil-isms]

dream dapg uploads

untitled goose game. need i say more.

4 hour long asmr video of them exploring in breath of the wild/tears of the kingdom

dan and phil react to tatinof

50 part full play through of baldurs gate 3. i need to know who they romance.

solo phil apex legends video. he gets so pissed off he spends the last 10 minutes sat playing in silence.

parallel play building legos next to each other

dan vs phil : guilty gear strive

solo dan aquascaping project. he goes off on a 15 minute tangent about fish care and how fish are often neglected as pets

tier list maker every ffxiv mount ranked

dragon city spon making dragon themed soap/bathbombs

it takes two part 2

[fagnightsatfreddys]

A little web weave for @zeteri-art for the @mcyt-halloween gift exchange!!

I tried going for a theme of Watcher Grian and the ending of Third Life with a little bit of Scarian if you squint (I love over-dramatizing cubes) I hope you like it!!

Image credits and link sources under the cut

Together (Baphometkun)

Phrase - Wings - Eye - Image composition: Myself

Phrase, drawing (existentialterror) - Background image (Baphometkun)

X

This must be the place (Naive Melody) - Talking Heads

X

The Man Who Sold the World - Nirvana

Picture - Phrase (lilsquiddymcinky, top comment on this video) - Editing: Myself

Phrase (Fruiteas) - Photo (Fedor Vasilev and Anna Ivahnenko. Manchester 2020) - Hands: Myself

World of Flesh and Blood (Fruiteas)

Telephone line - Electric Light Orchestra

Image editing (_journalsandjunk_) - Picture they used (Elk at the Game and Fish Department - Lucas Foglia)

Snow day (Baphometkun)

Image (flesh.png) - Text (that-house - Untitled.)

The Man Who Sold the World - Nirvana

Holy bird (Julianmiholics)

Together (Baphometkun)

[mentalnote1]

Untitled - Poetry

Closed in a world of what’s to be

Can’t you see it’s me in the distance

Blank with resistance

Hard to tame

Sensations knows my name from past games

Nowhere to hide

Pain is greedy and the heart is needy

Beauty is all over me

Social anxiety

Thoughts lie to me

The truth and its reality

Pain shared is pain lessened

Living in the lesson

Trapped in my mind

Hiding from my own behind

Because it’s time that searches for me

I allowed the dark to creep into my rain

Because I can’t sustain without at least a little pain

My fish died but I’m still alive

[lavenderleahy]

Seven Sentence Sunday

Sharing a bit from my untitled bee fic that I will hopefully post tonight or tomorrow morning!

Tagged by the lovely @bidisasterevankinard @evanbi-ckley and @girlwonder-writes

“Did I ask for a lesson in California law?” Gerrard snaps. Buck ignores him. Fuck if he’s gonna let Gerrard become a bee murderer. “Yeah, it’s kinda cool, ‘cause, like, the Wildlife Fish and Game Code technically defines fish as any, umm, mollusk, crustacean, invertebrate, or amphibian,” here, Buck counts on each finger as he names the creatures, “and since bees are invertebrates, they’re protected.”  Gerrard pinches the bridge of his nose. “Firefighter Buckley, I do not have the patience for this. Go get the vinegar before I lose my everloving mind.”

Tagging a few mutuals who might be interested! @queerdiazs @didsomeonesaybuffet @herrmannhalsteadproduction @theotherbuckley @inhiswill

[veronae-buddie]

Teaser Tuesday Thursday

Tagged by @queerweewoo, thank you lovely!!

From my steadily-being-written untitled handcuff wip.

“And…” Eddie falters a moment, then blurts, “You’ve done that?” “I’ve done all of it,” Buck says easily. “I’m what they call, ‘up for anything’.” “Anything,” Eddie breathes. His astonished eyes rove aimlessly about the room. “Wow.” “I mean, I make sure I’m safe,” Buck says, taking a nonchalant sip of his bourbon, clinking the glass against his bottom teeth. “Like I said, some of it you only do with someone you can trust.” Eddie’s eyes dart back to Buck, and words tumble from his tipsy lips. “The only person I trust that much is you.” Slowly, Buck’s eyes widen and he looks at Eddie as though he’s never seen him before. Thoughts flitter through his mind, a sharp and desperate wondering at just what Eddie means by that. Hope and excitement unspool through him, slowly and tentatively, but undeniably. Fishing through the alcohol muddling his mind, Buck chooses careful words. “If you want me to be that person for you … I’m game.” “That … person?” Eddie’s voice is a terrified whisper. Catching his lower lip with his teeth, Buck nods slowly. “If you wanted to … play,” he says, echoing Eddie’s chosen word. “I’ll play with you.”

Tagging!

@shortsighted-owl @disasterbuck @serensational @blue-winged-boy @emotionallyencumbered

@gnoeltop @inell @verdimundi @darkrose6578 @littleblackraincloudofcourse

@deliriousbean @idealuk @oldfangirl81 @ronordmann @shealwaysreads

@queenofthesydrianites @marvelgirl9326 @graendoll

[doomed-era]

WIP Tag Game

When you're tagged, share the names of each wip doc you have no matter how ridiculous! Tag as many people as you have WIPS, if you can. Open asks to talk about these WIPS!

oh hey this looks fun. sure

thank you for the tag @amelias-hart!

Several of my WIP names are abysmally stupid, but hey we'll just go with it idc. I'll do fic stuff I do have some original things but they are few and far between

BOTW/BOTW AU/"Canon" Stuff

Chapter 14 draft 1 - Just GBoH chapter 14. Nothing really to say about this.

a human's touch - I've been wanting to write some toxic Hylink and that song is so them

scraps - Random things I want to include in later parts of the AU, or first drafts of things I have included. My friend recommended I do this a while back and it's been really helpful so far.

ceremony - Pre-calamity fic detailing Link's entrance exam into the royal guard. He mopes internally about not having a mustache.

Four-Dot Two-Dot - Half-finished WIP of Mipha chatting with the other Champions over Divine Beast comms.

fengaffenjotime - Goofy crossover idea I had where ALT!Link and GBoH!Link meet up. ALT!Link is annoying.

In Spite of Shadow - Fic about ALTTP Link dealing with things after saving Hyrule and stuff.

Desynchronization - Minurah WIP...they are so doomed yuri. Kind of stuck on this, I gotta write an outline so they can kiss

the devil went down to georgia - Ganondorf makes a deal with the Goddess of Decay after outwitting her in a series of impossible trials.

Trapped in a island with a big fish princess - Mipha Lives AU based on an idea my friend had.

Original LoZ AU Stuff

Lance's Diary - Sort of a prequel to ALT that I work on whenever the whim strikes me. I actually do have a few diary entries up on Tumblr, I just never bothered to post more.

vweep - WIP of Lunar Ascension Link and Zelda chillin'.

fengaffenjotime - As explained, goofy crossover. I'm kind of stuck on this one, so I'll probably end up rewriting it.

Untitled Document - ALT Chapter 7 first draft! I'm definitely rewriting this; it is SO old I hate it.

Better Friends - Leylines thing I've been playing around with. It's old and I need to outline it probably...

Tagging: @only-by-the-stars @hi-there-cake @rawliverandgoronspice @lucky-clover-gazette + anyone who wants to!!

[thunderlina]

LOST MEDIA: Gorillaz - Plastic Beach Web Games

I come to you tonight with one request: I want help in tracking down the Plastic Beach point-and-click adventure game from the Phase 3 (2010-2012) Gorillaz website.

In 2010, coinciding with the release of their third studio album, British virtual band Gorillaz gave their website a huge overhaul, including the release of several new flash games. The centerpiece was a point-and-click adventure game (untitled, usually just referred to as "Plastic Beach") in which the player was able to explore the island of Plastic Beach, similar to the games available on earlier websites where the player was able to explore Gorillaz HQ Kong Studios.

Along with this game were a few others: Escape to Plastic Beach, a three chapter long action/adventure game (the third chapter of which cost €1.50 to play, and was available both for PC and iPhones.) Just recently the developer, Matmi, hinted at trying to re-release these, but they went silent regarding it and nothing has come of it so far.

There were also two smaller Flash titles, Submatronic and Gorillaz Fishing. Not entirely sure what these two entailed but they were listed on the website and, like the adventure game and Escape are not playable via the Wayback Machine nor are they archived elsewhere.

From my research, it seems the website had some kind of DRM software that the older websites (which have been archived over at zombiehiphop.xyz) didn't, since the Plastic Beach game used full tracks from the album and EMI was worried about piracy. Before anyone suggests it like was done in other places where I've asked about this, no, the game was not released on a CD or DVD. Because of this, all four games unique to the Plastic Beach era website are lost. The iPhone port of Escape to Plastic Beach was also removed from the App Store years ago, and as such is also completely lost.

As of right now, all that still exists are low-quality videos of the adventure game in action, a few screenshots, and a handful of Flash files I've dug up from the Wayback Machine.

The loss of this game represents not just a loss for Flash preservation, but a huge loss for Gorillaz fans as it was an integral element of the story of the Plastic Beach era. Without it and much of the other content from the old website, the already incomplete story that Jamie Hewlett and the rest of the Zombie Flesh Eaters team were trying to tell lives on almost wholly through secondary accounts. While recordings exist, it is simply not the same as having access to the full experience.

I ask of you all to please consider my words and help me do something about this, instead of wallowing in hopelessness as it seems the community has been doing for oh so long now.

Thank You.

Footage of the adventure game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUnvkZFPu1Q https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pmAo_POMRHY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DW6KHLLgBss https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWIkwVDIJNQ

The handful of Flash files I dug up via the Wayback Machine: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1RKpP9o-j-4jFkdQEDN54ye5LGZIrBd_7

[behind-you-gem]

Considering Grian’s fishing obsession lately, I’ve seen suggestions for various aquatic bird hybrids he could be. Heron Grian, Kingfisher Grian, Duck Grian, Penguin Grian….

I see you all. I hear you. But consider:

Goose Grian.

The ultimate “untitled goose game” style annoying goose.

[uwudonoodle]

Word Search Tag Game

Rules: In a new post use the words below (or choose your own) to find where they appear in your WIP/s and share those parts.

My words are: sigh away upset

I was nominated my @physalian Thanks for giving me an excuse to finally share some of my writing!

This is all from my untitled Zelink long fic wip set between BOTW and TOTK. This is one of the first times I've ever shared my writing. Be nice to me, I'm a beginner.

Sigh:

Impa took a sip of her tea. "So, do you still feel the same way about him?"

Zelda looked at her hands, then nodded. "I thought, back then, we might have been growing closer. He was starting to open up more." She smiled wanly, then shook her head. "I was probably mistaken, and now he doesn't even remember me."

"Have you asked him how much he remembers?" Impa raised an eyebrow at her. Zelda didn't answer. "Ask him. I bet he remembers more than you think he does."

"What does it matter if he has a dozen more memories of me? You were married before, right? You know love is often in the little things. He doesn't have the complete picture anymore. All the conversations we had, the trust we built... He's different now. You see how much more unburdened and open he is than before."

"-and that's a bad thing?" Impa asked in surprise.

"No, it's not." Zelda stammered. She took a deep breath. "Whatever relationship we had before is gone now, and that hurts."

Impa sat looking thoughtful before continuing. "It's true that you can't go back to how things were before. He may never recover all his memories, but you two have also fallen into a friendly dynamic far faster than two strangers should. The future isn't written yet. Just because the past didn't work out the way you wanted, doesn't mean there's no hope for the future."

Zelda shook her head. "I'm not getting my hopes up. I've had enough disappointment to last me a lifetime."

Impa put her small wrinkled hand on top of Zelda's. "I won't argue with you on that."

"Hey, Zelda!" a shout came from below. Zelda stood and walked to the porch railing. Link was standing near the cooking pot holding a basket of eggs. "Are you ready to ruin your second omelet?" She smiled back at him, and held up a finger to say she'd be down in a minute.

Impa poked Zelda's ankle with her walking stick. "You love him." she teased in a sing-song voice.

Zelda sighed and closed her eyes. "Yeah, I do. I love him." She thought for a moment. "I don't think I've ever said it out loud before. And you keep it to yourself." she added with a warning finger. "Awe, I'm sorry. I didn't even drink my tea."

"Just go." Impa said with an exhasperated grin.

Zelda left her cold tea and ran down to him. As predicted, she did ruin her second omelet. They had so many eggs, Link encouraged her to keep trying, so she made a third and forth as well. On the fifth try, she finally got the perfect flip. The smile he gave her made her more happy than her success did.

Away:

Link sat down, removed his boots, and began rolling his pants up. "There should be a few fish in that marsh. Would you like to wade out with me?"

"I could, but I don't think I'll be much help."

"That's okay. You can stay here if you'd rather." Link said as he dipped his feet in the water.

Zelda sat in the grass near the edge of the water. It was twilight now. The strongest light came from the soft green glow of the fireflies that bobbed over the water. All she could see was Link's dark silhouette as he wandered through the shallow water some distance away. She wondered how he could see anything in this low light. She heard an unexpected sound, and leaned forward. Was he whistling? Zelda didn't know much about fishing, but she thought you had to be quiet so as not to scare the fish away.

Link's silhouette slowly wandered towards her, occasionally stopping to whistle. When he was just a few paces from her, he blew the loudest whistle yet. Suddenly, nearly a dozen small fish swam right up onto the dirt in front of her. Zelda was so shocked, she just sat there with her mouth hanging open.

"Quick!" Link shouted. "Grab them before they find their way back in the water."

Zelda wasn't sure what he expected her to do, but she jumped to her feet, and picked up the first fish she came to. It was cold and writhing and she wanted to throw it. Not knowing what else to do with it, she held her long skirt out in front of her like a basket, and dropped the slippery fish into it... and then another, and another... Soon, her dress was heavy with wriggling fish. She could feel them flopping against her legs. She ran towards the fire pit, shrieking her discomfort all the way. She let her skirt drop, and all the fish fell into the dirt, still flopping wildly. She shivered violently.

"Are you okay?" Link had finally caught up with her.

Zelda turned to look at him, a large wet stain on the front of her dress. Link started to laugh, and she eventually joined him. "What did you expect me to do?" she asked incredulously.

Link took a couple of breaths before responding. "I don't know, but it wasn't that. I never knew fancy dresses were so useful."

"When I was a kid, I watched the maids use their aprons to carry things from room to room. I got the idea to use my skirt to steal berries from the gardens. I always got caught though, as they often left red stains on the front of my nicest gowns. I guess I still have an instinct to use my dress to carry things." Zelda gestured towards to water. "What were you doing out there? How did you get all the fish to jump out of the water like that?"

"Since I couldn't see very well, I decided to try scaring the fish towards shore by making noise." he explained. "I wasn't even sure how many I'd rounded up. It looks like we'll have plenty for dinner though."

Upset:

When they'd finished lunch, they resumed pitting the cherries. Although it went much faster with two people, it still took some time. They worked together in silence for a while, until Zelda broke it by bursting into giggles. "What?" Link questioned, welcoming a distraction from the monotony in front of him.

"Nothing." she said. She pinched her lips together, pretending it hadn't happened.

"Hmm... because it sounds like something." he pushed. "Are you still laughing about what happened at the dye shop?"

She gave him an apologetic look. "It's not like my memory has faded much in the last hour." she said defensively. "I'm still grateful to you, by the way."

"For what? Sacrificing my own dignity to spare yours?"

She covered her face with her hands as she burst out laughing again. She peeked one eye out from between her fingers. "I am sorry for laughing. I can't help it."

Link felt his face soften. "Don't worry, I'm not actually that upset about it. I've never dyed a dress before, so that last drop was bit of a surprise for me too." Despite himself, he started to giggle along with her. What was there to do about it now but laugh?

I'm nominate: @tr33fr0gg3r @mistresslrigtar @hurricane105 (Sorry if I missed any of my other writer friends. Feel free to nominate yourself.)

Your words are: eye glow door (Or you can pick your own words if you don't like these ones.)

[vertebrae-entertainment]

art i drew of alaska dying in a glue trap

[beefrobeefcal]

WIP Tag Game - thank you @burntheedges for the tag! 😘

rules: list the names/titles of docs in your wip folder + open your inbox to asks about them!

Untitled Joel Miller fic - @perotovar's frith celebration Joel finds his purpose.

Untitled Frankie Morales fic - @burntheedges 's roll-a-trope fic challenge Soul mates are real, this much is true.

Part 5 of There Are Other Fish in the Sea (Ezra x Mouse/Little Birdx Frankie) How much is too much for Ezra?

Like a Cigar (Max Philips x f!reader) Max helps... ish.

On the Waterfront Ch 9 (Big Fish Morales x f!reader) Who's dead? Who's Alive? Who's POLLUP?

AU OTWF Omegaverse (alpha!bfm x omega!f!reader) bc why the fuck not

Untitled Tim Rockford Sex Pollen fic (Tim Rockford x f!reader) hitting all the buttons: procedural, coffee shop, sex pollen, voyerism, bathrooms, publics sex...

No Pressure TagList: @strang3lov3 @whocaresstillthelouvre @ace-turned-confused @wintrwinchestr @bitchesuntitled @xdaddysprincessxx @maggiemayhemnj @goodwithcheese

[und8e2ff]

Saint Seiya AU where everything's the same but...

okay, so- I was browsing Wikipedia looking for material to make more historically accurate shitposts.

As I do...

Pisces Aphrodite's symbol, much like the goddess he's named after, is the rose. A red rose specifically.

However, did you know that another symbol of the goddess Aphrodite is lettuce?

fucking

✨L E T T U C E 🌈🥬

it's okay if you don't know where this is going

so-

Saint Seiya AU where everything's the same but instead of Aphrodite's powers being based around and channeled through roses, his powers are based around and channeled through LITERAL LEAVES AND HEADS OF LETTUCE

------------------------------

Fuck a rose, mans is walking around with a whole leaf of lettuce just hangin. out. his. MOUF

You can't tell if he's late to anime school or late to the salad bar.

HE'S NOT EVEN CHEWIN IT, IT'S JUST THERE-

Imagine him standing there looking all cool and beautiful yet intimidating (as he does), but instead of holding a rose, it's a whole head of Romaine.

Walkin around the sanctuary with iceberg lettuce leaves tucked behind his ear instead of something normal like an anemone or narcissus (flowers, other symbols of Aphrodite).

Just out here looking botanically confused.

------------------------------

Shun and Seiya get to the Pisces Temple and it's just a farm...

🥬🥬 A LETTUCE farm 🥬🥬

Pisces Farmodite AU???

And he has all different kinds planted.

There's butterhead, frisee, arugula, mesclun, little gem- You Name It

Seiya runs ahead as usual.

Instead of it being a long stretch of rose-covered stairs up to the Pope, the whole way up is covered in liek, idk... Endive???

For those of you who may not have looked into the food facts of lettuce (you not missin out on anything), lettuce is basically nutritionally-bankrupt, crunchy water.

Specifically, raw lettuce is like 95% water.

Instead of Seiya being slowly poisoned to death, he's having his Flintstone gummies siphoned out of his body until he dies of malnutrition.

Shun gets hit in the chest with BLOODY RADICCHIO

Instead of a white rose sapping out his blood, Shun gets hit in the chest with a white, translucent leaf of lettuce.

Once the leaf has completely sapped out his blood, it looks like this:

------------------------------

Imagine Aphrodite being the Bubba Gump of his universe.

Instead of him obsessing over all the ways you can cook shrimp, it's over all the different kinds of lettuce and how best to prepare them.

------------------------------

Away from the whole lettuce thing...

There are many animals associated with the goddess Aphrodite. Among them are hares, bees, fish, and geese.

I can't decide which idea I like more:

Pisces Beephrodite/Bee Keeper Aphrodite AU - Aphrodite with his usual roses and flowers but he also keeps bees as pollinators and as his lil striped buzzy frens.

Pisces Bunphrodite AU - Where everything's the same but he just has a pet rabbit. It can also be combined with the Pisces Endive-phrodite (Lettuce Aphrodite) AU where the bunny/bunnies live on the lettuce farm and it's their favorite snack.

Pisces Aphrodite but with a Ranchu Goldfish AU - Where he has a ranchu goldfish that just kind of floats there... It's the center of his universe and if you even look at his fish wrong, YOU'RE DEAD.

Untitled Goose Game - In which Aphrodite has the most ornery pet goose on the face of the planet. It only likes him. And much like the Ranchu AU, this goose is the center of his whole world. Aphrodite doesn't care if his goose just stole your identity and ruined your credit score. Keep his goose's name...

OUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH

goose is probably named Rutherford or smth

[libraford]

I *love* the motif deck; the composition, the flexibility, your watercolors are wonderfully done, and while I'm hoping to be able to buy it eventually, I'm desperately poor and can't rn (if I can sell some earrings I maybe can though lol) but every time you post a sample reading it's... also dragging me to filth, and strangely tiding me over, so thank you and also wtf how do you do this

I'll be honest, I don't know how I do anything. I'm just trying to make it to Friday.

The Motif Deck was born from an idea I had a couple years ago, which was an oracle deck with no words attached to the cards so that the reader was encouraged to free-associate. But when I was sketching out the thumbnails I only had four colors in my pen set and I was working on it while at a laundromat so I couldn't get more because someone might steal my laundry. But I ended up really enjoying the simplicity of the color scheme so that got stuck in my head for a bit.

The drive to do an oracle deck with no standard meaning came from doing tarot for like six years (at that point, it's more like 10 now). I've always been a really talented reader and I picked up on the concept right away, but the symbols in tarot seemed a little hard to connect with (which lead me to make @thesweeneytarot ). So I started reading based on vibes. Like... what colors do I see most of in this spread, where are the cards facing, what seems out of place, how do we create a story based on what we have in front of us.

Proved effective! I was doing really well on tarot readings. It felt less like divination this way and more like a puzzle, like a story, like a game.

So what if there was a deck that was made for this style of reading? How do you even start that? What would it look like? Could I make something like that? Where do I start?

Then my friend introduced me to a game called Dixit, and it's sister game Mysterium, which uses untitled surreal art cards to tell a story. And I noticed that sometimes the art cards would have similar objects in them, like red ribbons or gold keys or blue fish. And it was interesting to me how the person in the storytelling position would make different associations than I did and I considered this a feature, not a bug.

I toyed a bit with doing divination with Dixit cards, but I found them a bit too obtuse for my liking and there were too many details to get caught up in.

So I was like... okay, I like this. What do I like about this? Let's do this but make it simpler.

...then covid.

So the idea sat on the backburner for awhile.

Then i got back into doing tarot readings and got the itch to try something new, started thinking about That oracle deck again, but now I'm thinking about those primary colors and how I tried like four different color combinations in my thumbnails and couldn't remember what they were meant to mean between them.

Then thinking about color theory. Like actual color theory but also the meme. And how the red ribbons in Dixit could be the strings of fate or they could be streaks of blood, or the red design on the hospital floor could be 'energetic and positive' or they could be... streaks of blood...

Like... sure, colors might have set meanings... to some people. But they also have meanings in their context. The color of a thing tells a story just like the thing itself.

So this is how I came up with the idea of repeating the images in different colorways.

So now we have my elements: no words, no inherent meaning, simple images, repeating objects interacting with each other, and cards repeating in different colorways.

And then the hard part, which was making it. I do actually have an art degree, so making the paintings wasn't difficult for me, but the logistics was hard. Because I had to decide which objects were common enough to be understood by everyone, and I had to pare the number down to something reasonable because this deck was bound to be massive.

Which took another year.

And now it's done! The slow parts go slow and the fast parts go fast.

I'm the kind of person who like... if I get into my head that I want to make something, I'll find a way to make it. And like... my philosophy for making things has always been that I intend to sell one, and that's to myself. But if I like it, someone else might, so I make it available for other people.

But I'm really glad that other people like it or are even just curious. Like, when you're making a 'product' (which almost feels rude to call something that I did for myself) the hardest part is getting people interested in it. So the fact that so many people think it's cool makes me so happy. (Am I cool now???)

Thank you!! And sorry for the overshare. I just got really excited.

[illarian-rambling]

Thanks for the tag @gioiaalbanoart!

Writblr Interview

Short stories, novels, or poems?

Oh, definitely novels. Even my short stories are pretty long lol

What genre do you prefer reading?

Fantasy, sci-fi, anything fun :)

What genre do you prefer writing?

Definitely fantasy with some heavy steampunk flavor

Are you a planner or a write-as-I-go kind of person?

I'll usually plot out a vague plan for each chapter, but no further than that. Short stories, I pretty much just wing it on.

What music do you listen to while writing?

It's gotta be instrumental or I can't pay attention. I tend towards a mix of video game music, classical, and jazz. Each of my characters has their own spotify playlist linked in my pinned post, so if you're looking for 6 to 8 hours of instrumental music, be my guest :)

Fave books/movies?

Favorite books are anything by Sanderson, the Foundryside Trilogy, and the Kingkiller Chronicles. My favorite movies are the lotr trilogy.

Any current WIPs?

My rotating roster is Honor's Outcasts and The Mystery of the Mortal God. The Final Voyage of the R.S Starbreaker is one I keep on backburner, and I'm currently working on an untitled short story.

If someone were to make a cartoon out of you, what would your standard outfit be?

Probably my work clothes ngl. A fishing shirt tucked into cargo pants, tucked into mud boots with a sun hat and mosquito net. My hair is in pigtails and I'm covered in bug spray. I probably smell musty as hell.

Create a character description for yourself

A tall young woman with a fuckass blonde bob, probably a checked-out expression on her face, and really awful tan lines. She's always wearing a necklace and usually some painted boots. The aesthetics are somewhere between punk and rustic.

Do you like incorporating people you actually know into your writing?

Nah, it's never appealed to me

Are you kill-happy with characters?

Not really, but I've been known to make exceptions

Coffee or tea while writing?

Girl, water. I need hydration lol

Slow or fast writer?

I'm not sure what the metric is exactly, but I'd say decently fast, though it depends on how my life is going also.

Where/who/what do you find inspiration from?

My own brain, books and shows I like, dreams, all sort of places

If you were put into a fantasy world, what would you be?

Probably some sort of alchemist who lives in a basement and eats toads

Most fave book cliche?

Thwarted prophecies. I love it when something goes wrong in a way that's correct to the letter. This is a little ironic, as if never written a prophecy once.

Least fave book cliche?

When characters are overly whiny, but especially when they whine about cool stuff. Like, sorry your shape-shifting abilities are making you question your humanity, but rip to you, I'm different. The only exception to this dislike is if they're whiny in a funny way. Anything is forgivable in literature if it's entertaining.

Fave scenes to write?

Probably those high tension fight scenes or anything with emotional stakes that isn't just a ton of dialog

Most productive time of day for writing?

I'd say early afternoon, but I have more free time to write at night

Reason for writing?

These characters are my friends. Giving up would be abandoning them. Also, I legitimately enjoy reading my own writing.

I'll tag @thecomfywriter @albatris @sm-writes-chaos and anyone else who wants to play :)