#want to start working on her more for the future playthrough

[sandplague]

(i'll just copy & paste the text here)

Pathologic 3 FAQ #1

Answers to frequently asked questions and a few hints about what’s coming next!

Hey hey!

Very soon, we’ll be sharing the first details about the game, starting with the soundtrack: on November 4th, we’re taking part in Save and Sound, an annual event dedicated to sound design and soundtracks in video games.

We know the wait has been long, and we want to thank you for the warm reception of the announcement. Today, we’d like to clarify a few points that we often see coming up in community discussions about the Pathologic 3 announcement.

So, let’s get started!

Q: What happened to the route for Pathologic 2? Has it evolved into a sequel?

A: Yes, that’s exactly what happened: the game simply grew beyond our concept of DLC—it will have different gameplay and entirely new features. Instead of one game with three playthroughs using the same gameplay but different storylines (as in the original 2005 release and the Classic HD remaster), we’re creating three fully developed games with distinct gameplay and significant differences in narrative.

Now, these are truly three separate protagonists with unique worldviews, perceptions of reality, and distinct tools. From a gameplay perspective, this means three different approaches and a complete rethinking of the original scripts.

One storyline was released in 2019, centered on the Haruspex. It was a large game that took much more time and work than initially planned. For publishing reasons, it was titled Pathologic 2.

Pathologic 3 is a new, full-fledged game focused on the Bachelor. The title was chosen to avoid confusion, making it clear that this is not a DLC but a complete game with a similar playtime.

Q: What about the Changeling?

A: Finally, there’s the Changeling, but we’d prefer not to make promises prematurely, so we’ll return to her when there’s more to share.

Moving forward, we plan to stick to this approach. We understand that premature promises about the previous Pathologic led to unfulfilled expectations. We apologize for that and don’t want to mislead you in the future. The developer should not be an unreliable narrator—unlike his characters.

Q: How do Pathologic 2 and Pathologic 3 differ?

A: The protagonists! And that’s only half-joking. The main idea and reason for dividing these games is that the Haruspex and the Bachelor are very different characters. The further we developed the Bachelor’s story, the clearer this became. We didn’t want to compromise by making the game a “safer” rework of the original script, so we reimagined the core gameplay loop:

The Haruspex needed to survive, fight, scavenge, rummage through garbage for scraps of bread, and try to save those he held dear along the way. The Bachelor is a man of intellect. Survival is not his primary concern; his goals go beyond what one lifetime could contain. He needs to think, formulate theories, and gather evidence. Ultimately, he must issue commands and observe the results. This distinction will be emphasized through gameplay, mechanics, objectives, soundtrack, and so on.

After Save and Sound, we plan to return later this year to show you what we mean. As they say, "Show, don’t tell."

Q: Who will receive game keys?

A: We remember our commitments to those who supported us during the fundraising stage nearly ten years ago, so we will provide keys to:

Kickstarter backers and other platforms where support for the game was available during the fundraising stage

Backers from 2014 and 2015

Also, backers entitled to two copies will receive two keys. We’ll share details on how to claim keys closer to release.

Q: Will the new game have its own artbook?

A: At the moment, we’re not planning a physical one, but we might create a digital artbook for the Supporter Pack. We're not sure yet!

Q: Which languages will the game be localized into, including text and voice-over?

A: We definitely plan to localize into English and Russian, and we’re considering Brazilian Portuguese, German, and Simplified Chinese. We’ll confirm languages closer to launch.

Q: Will the Russian title of Pathologic 3 remain?

A: Yes, we’re still considering options. Current ideas include “Finally,” “See, You Didn’t Believe Us,” and “Sorry for the Long Wait.”

Q: Will the game be available on GOG and other stores?

A: We’ll know closer to release, but it’ll likely be available on all platforms where Pathologic 2 can be found.

Q: Will preorders be available?

A: No.

Q: What platforms other than PC are planned for release?

A: We’re planning releases for PS5 and Xbox S/X, likely following the PC release.

Q: What engine is the game being developed in?

A: The same engine as Pathologic 2: Unity.

Q: Will the same voice actors return for Pathologic 3?

A: Yes, we’ll bring back the same actors from Pathologic 2, or at least, we’ll do our best.

We’ve prepared a big surprise for you in the coming months, so please add us to your Steam wishlist!

Until then, we’ll see you on November 4th!

[mamasplat]

i was on vacation- the aggression chart???? lmao

nicee 👍👍 loving the work

also the themed playthroughs seem fun :)

Oh I’m having a great time with my true calem run, just got through shalour city

And while I’ve yet to piece together the aggression chart I will use this as an opening to break down the relationship chart that started as an unholy consequence of me trying to fit calem into anime plots

Starting from the top:

Shauna having feelings for Calem is something that is laid on very thick in the firework scene. Anime wise I almost linked Shauna to Serena too but I ended up backing off the idea because I was lacking evidence.

Tierno, i don’t think i need to explain this much if you’ve watched the anime, his crush on Serena was something he was very open about.

Miette, I actually don’t think she had a thing for Ash, like at all, she does not try to pursue him at all in the anime she just likes to talk about it, it’s a tool to get under Serena’s skin. But that alone would make her a valued piece of the unholy love triangle amalgamation so I added her to the chart.

Calem, specifically, Rival Calem: okay I think I need to explain this one a little more blatantly. Calem’s character arc cannot exist without Serena. His entire journey is dedicated to her mere existence, and pokemon masters really hammers home how important she is to him. She is the blueprint to his every move and step forward because in his mind she deserves better than he can offer so he will fight to be better. The way he talks about her when she isn’t around is unapologetic admiration and I cannot ignore the writing on the wall. He likes her. He’s got it bad.

Serena, specifically anime Serena of course. Her emotional attachment to Ash isn’t just surface level like Tiernos attraction to her, being around Ash gave her the courage to be herself, to stand up to her mom and make her own future, to keep going even when she’s lost and lost hard. She used Ash as a moral compass to keep her head in the game and that only strengthened her connection to him. The end of the series kiss scene was far from unwelcomed, it was over due.

Ash….this boy is oblivious as shit. I’m sorry Serena was not sly nor slick she fumbled at every turn and you STILL didn’t know??? I and from what I can see, many other fans, have come to the only conclusion that Ash just doesn’t do romance. He has ignored so many clear cut love interests and left them one sided because he doesn’t recognize or want romance. He just wants to be the best like no one ever was, love isn’t on his mind, therefore he is clueless to the love induced war going on around him. He is an unintentional ladies man.

And ALLLL of that is just the information i collected from rewatching the whole of X&Y while also replaying through pokemon X and ALSO going through pokemas events. Its all connected, i haven’t done anything else with my free time, its all kalos baby. ALL KALOS.

Blame Pokemon ZA being announced (I say as if I hadn’t started this before that)

[widowling]

As self indulgent as it is, I kind of love the idea of Rook being Solas and Lavellan's time traveling baby.

Like, who knows how time works in the Fade. Maybe it's not so linear. I think part of the reason why Elves started to age after Solas erected the Veil is because it kick-started the process of linear time in Thedas. Before the Veil, the elves were eternal, the titans were eternal, and afterwards they were shattered and quickened to the passing of time.

But behind the Veil, in the Fade, past and present and future is all happening at once. So I don't think its so far-fetched from like a lore perspective to headcanon Rook as being born in the Fade, and then being placed outside of it at a particular time and place.

I'm thinking of Solas and Lavellan having a miracle baby in the Fade. Then after the baby is born, they look at them and recognise them. It's a tragedy. They know they have to give the baby up, because they already have, in a time paradox kind of way. For Solas, it is a part of his atonement. For Lavellan, it is another thing she must give up in order to save the world.

I think this works especially well for a mourn watcher Rook, who was discovered in the Necropolis as a baby. I imagine the spirits in the Necropolis watching out for baby Rook, slipping back to the Fade with regular updates for Solas and Lavellan. (Thinking about a Lavellan who knows Rook eventually romances Emmrich acknowledging that Emmrich is already there and Solas just screaming crying throwing up). It kind of works with a Shadow Dragon Rook too if you think of it as Lavellan sending her baby in the general direction of their Uncle Dorian. I don't know how it might fit with the other factions, cause those are the only two I have played so far.

I'm imagining Rook discovering the truth about their parentage and being all "I was so caught up in the euphoria of Inquisitor Lavellan being my mother that I forgot it meant that Solas is my father."

Or, maybe, you know, its not that literal. Maybe its more like how Kelsier sees Vin in Mistborn. Solas sees himself in Rook, that cocky, foolhardy youth he used to be. That recklessness, the passion, and rebellious nature. Maybe Solas kind of hates Rook for it, in the same way he hates himself. Then he sees Rook's kindness, their loyalty, their empathy, and he thinks 'that's not me. That's Lavellan' and suddenly he's looking into a mirror thats showing him a thing he could have had if he had made a different choice. He thinks, if he had stayed, if he and Lavellan had had a child, then he hopes they would have been just like Rook.

Anyway, I indulged and made Rook into a solavellan love child. His name is Revas, because of course it is. I think for a canon playthrough, he would probably be a mourn watcher mage, because both his parents are mages, but for now I wanted to play a different class and faction than my first playthrough.

He looks just like his mama, but he has his father's violet eyes.

[adoribullpavus]

EXCITING NEWS GUYS

i have started development on my first ever renpy game. i'm so excited since this is something i've wanted to do for a while now, but renpy always kinda scared me. but i've finally put it into action and i'm really looking forward to the journey ahead.

the game is still in extremely early development, but i have planned an outline of the plot, written some scripts, and have come up with so many ideas i want to share with you all.

as you can see, it is a dai fan game. if anyone knows if i can get sued for this, please let me know lmao

i don't want to give too much away but here are some features i'm planning to include:

you can choose from 17 different characters to play as (12 will be available straight off the bat, and 5 will be secret routes that are unlocked via other routes). these are all characters from inquisition.

you get to decide who your character ends up with, or even stay single if you want to be.

you can end up in a polyamorous relationship with (almost) free reign as to which characters that relationship includes.

no two routes are the same. each route will have the same plot but you can make it your own through your choices. remember; just because picking option b worked for your dorian playthrough, doesn't mean it'll work when you're playing as cullen.

there are a LOT of choices that genuinely impact the direction of the story.

each character has a bunch of different endings and they're all carefully tailored to your decisions.

as the game is still in early development, with only a faint outline holding it together, plans can change. however, as far as i know, this is how many endings each character can have:

the dorian route has 8 endings and 7 secret endings.

the iron bull route has 11 endings and 6 secret endings.

the varric route has 10 endings and 6 secret endings.

the cullen route has 10 endings and 5 secret endings.

the sera route has 6 endings and 5 secret endings.

the leliana route has 11 endings and 7 secret endings.

the cole route as 3 endings and 4 secret endings.

the josephine route has 11 endings and 5 secret endings.

the blackwall route has 10 endings and 3 secret endings.

the cassandra route has 9 endings and 6 secret endings.

the solas route has 10 endings and 3 secret endings.

the vivienne route has 3 endings and no secret endings.

i have tried to provide as much freedom as possible when it comes to pairings, but there are a few exceptions:

dorian and sera are still gay/lesbian and can only be romanced by characters of the same gender - so naturally they will have less endings as their options are restricted.

cole doesn't have a lot of romantic endings as there were only one or two characters i felt comfortable writing him with (so far only dorian has a cole romance ending, and cole has three secret romantic endings). this could change in the future but definitely not for characters such as varric and solas who cole shares a very parental relationship with., or for vivienne due to the power difference between them that would make me extremely uncomfortable to write.

vivienne also doesn't have a lot of romantic endings but that's more to do with the fact i struggle to write her in romantic scenes. again, this could change.

the rest are all free to romance whoever they want. cullen can romance a man (or two or three). cassandra can romance a woman (or two or three). basically there's no such thing as straight in this game. go nuts.

i will keep you all updated as i progress. the game will take a long while to create and i would appreciate any advice/help/suggestions etc to make it enjoyable for everyone. i would also appreciate the support from you guys as i dive into my first game making experience.

but just remember i am a single 20 year old girl who's doing this in her free time. i don't have a huge team behind me so the game is going to take a lot of time and effort to become something playable.

follow the tag ' #the dai kissing game ' if you want to keep updated on the game's progress.

thank you guys!!

[thegeminisage]

lucanis/rook good. lucanis/neve good. lucanis/davrin DEFINITELY good. but i think we are sleeping on lucanis/harding. here's a link to some of their banter, though i'm not sure it's everything in the game.

harding starts the game casually threatening lucanis (like davrin) with her very fancy demon-killing arrow. and yet, aside from the one line where he points out that she only has the ONE arrow, instead of getting bitchy with her the way he does with davrin, lucanis seems to respect her bravery. he notes in another cutscene (i'll get to it later) that her being so small physically might have made it easier for other people to intimidate her when she was young, so it's possibly he was making incorrect assumptions about her based on her size and easy-going nature, and is surprised to find she's made out of pretty tough stuff after all, despite of those things

she then throws him totally off-guard by assuring him she isn't brave at all, but terrified of him (or spite), and she knows that if he does lose control, it won't even be his fault - but she'll put him down no matter how scared she is. lucanis's reaction to this is to first try to laugh it off as brutal honesty, and then grow sober and TELL HER TO KEEP HER BOW CLOSE? one little shred of sympathy and kindness totally obliterated whatever combative sarcasm he was gearing up to give her with that "only one arrow" business.

later, lucanis urges her to watch their enemies rather than him - he's genuinely concerned that she's so scared of him and distracted by him she's going to get herself hurt.

lucanis, who canonically doesn't sleep and gets lots of bad dreams, talks through all of harding's dreams with her - from the silly and mundane to the genuinely terrifying - and goes out of his way to buy her spearmint to help with her nightmares. like he cares SO MUCH

after weisshaupt (on my playthrough, anyway) we learn that harding has since GIVEN her demon-killing arrow to him to prove to him she trusts him, and he wants to give it back to prove that he trusts her. it's genuinely very sweet

also after weisshaupt, harding comforts lucanis and tries to get him to stop torturing himself over his missed shot at ghilan'nain. she's not alone in doing this, but it's still good

COFFEE SCENE. not only does this scene prove lucanis pays close attention to harding, he looks at her with so much fondness here...and after this scene, their party banter involves her working through what he's pointed out about her. his dialogue implies that she shouldn't change to appease other people - because he cares about her well-being AND because he thinks she's great just the way she is.

NOT ONLY THAT, but harding realizes lucanis's evaluation was so keen because he himself is a little bit of a people-pleaser - and with that observation, once again manages to catch him off-guard. she surprises him throughout their relationship

one of my favorite bits with them is comparing notes on their various magical situations. both of them are firmly non-mages who have been unwillingly saddled with magical or magic-adjacent abilities. lucanis is the first to figure out why constantly using magic always makes her hungry (from experience) and he can also relate to being completely freaked out the first time her magical abilities manifested.

near the end of the game, lucanis admits that harding's reputation with the bow is more than earned, and even expresses interest in working with her in the future, after the war against the gods has ended, for an absurd amount of coin. i've seen people point to this banter as proof that lucanis doesn't know the value of money ("it's a banana, michael, how much could it cost? ten dollars?"), but he does his own shopping - he absolutely does know the value of money, he just ALSO places a high value on harding's skills and trustworthiness. i would dare to venture he is smitten!

also, this. OWWW MY HEART

[chrysanthemumgames]

Related to the ask about being able to ask Demeter to apologize to Hades (or the Underworld group in general, really).

I didn't think of that before, as I don't know if my Dionysus would actually be the kind of person to outright ask Demeter to do so (though maybe he would, sometimes he gets very defensive about some stuff despite his usual meekness), but I sort of don't know if he'd allow Demeter to visit more if she doesn't apologize?

What I mean is that, for the specific upcoming-likely-visit he let his father decide cause his relationship with Demeter is too strained atm. But his general view on this is "we need time apart, and then I'll think on it, and maybe we'll have a relationship someday again". So basically, not barring it out but still very on the fence. But yeah, obviously the situation with his father is pretty exceptional, and he wouldn't just try to keep Demeter away in this context - he's too selfless for that. Now what I'm getting to is that atm, he still really doesn't want to interact much with his mother, and in a way, I always imagined it as Demeter having to do the right move now, to show my Dionysus that she can ACTUALLY change. And I always linked that change to her starting to accept he likes the people in the Underworld and starting to see them as actually worthy of respect. And while in order to maybe appreciate them she would need to get to know them, apologizing for such a thing is basic decency and standard respect after what she did, not necessarily linked to appreciating or even properly knowing them, at least at first.

So what I mean here is that I never imagined asking her to apologize because I see it as something she should do on her own if she wants a chance at a relationship with her son later on (all from the perspective of my specific playthrough, of course).

And, the actual question is - do you think there are any chances she'd do so by herself? Or at the very least prompt the MC to tell her what should she do to try and make up for stuff (cause if asked specifically, then my MC could indeed tell her to apologize). And I mean, during the visit that will occur next, or like, by writing to Hades afterwards or something, that works too. I'm asking mostly because in that ask you said when she'll visit this time, the situation will be too tense and basically you implied asking her to apologize could come only at a later visit (unless I misunderstood). But a later visit won't necessarily happen in my case if she doesn't apologize before, is what I mean. Unless she does something else that would truly warrant my Dionysus to be okay with her coming back so soon of course.

I'm fine with it either way, by the way! I'm not writing this to complain about the possible inability to ask her to apologize or anything! I'm genuinely wondering about future possibilities and the paths that may exist, if you have any base ideas already.

There's still a bit of fuzziness in this where I'm not sure exactly what scenes are going to come up when. There will be at least one more chance for Demeter to show up in the Underworld regardless of whether PC approves (because it will be a rather urgent situation for another person). I'm not going to spoil things too much, but I don't think people who are sort of quietly not okay with her will have no chance to reestablish connection, but in general the more specific the PC's requirements, the less likely they are to be met (because of course I can't write all those potential courses of action for her, etc, etc.)

So I guess my answer basically boils down to "wait and see, because I don't have the minutiae planned to that extent just yet." :)

[stealthnoodle]

How to Scrape Your Way Through Honour Mode and Look Reasonably Good Doing It

I won't say I beat Honour Mode on my first try, because my Dishonour Mode playthrough served as a critically useful dry run, but I will say that the first character I made with the intention of completing Honour Mode properly did in fact complete Honour Mode.

Below are the 13 most important lessons I learned along the way that made this possible.

1) Do not be Mothman.

You really want to minimize fights and maximize available vendors. Ask yourself "What would Mothman do?" and then do not do that thing.

2) Do be a half-orc.

Fights can go real wrong real fast, and in the early game, you are perpetually one bad round of combat away from oblivion. In my case, the harpies critted Shadowheart to death, and then every chucklefuck in my party failed their wisdom save at the same time. The other two members ate more multiattacks than they could handle, and then so did Pizzazz, but she held on with one single precious hit point after the last blow. She dug herself out of the hole with heal potions and her fists of righteous anger.

Pizzazz being a half-orc saved the entire run here. Having Death Ward once a day comes in fucking clutch when you're below level 5, and tbh the hardest part of Honour Mode is getting to level 5.

The harpy fight was also when I realized the need for a critical strategy:

3) Make one party member your panic button.

I only really needed this trick in the early game (I cannot emphasize enough how most of my close calls were before level 5), but it saved my ass several times. Panic early, panic often.

Pick the party member who has the least to contribute to a fight and park them where they can't get drawn into initiative. You can leave them all the way back at camp, or if you're me, just put them far back in hiding so it's easy to pull them in to help with late-fight cleanup if things are going well (or to finish a fight in the goofiest way possible, see above). Either way, their job is to run crying to Withers if everyone else dies.

Speaking of which…

4) Exploit Bone Daddy's indifference to being pickpocketed.

You can get back whatever "the price of balance" is by yoinking it right out of Withers's pockets. If you fail the sleight of hand check, no worries; you get pulled out of hiding, but he doesn't react at all, and you can just squat back down and get right back in there.

5) Tell Jesse you need to cook.

Potions of Speed are the goddamn Philosopher's Stones of this game. So I made Gale a Transmutation Wizard, made him proficient in Medicine, and put him in charge of alchemy. Just clearing the gnoll zone got me pretty well set for the first two acts.

Getting double heal pots sure doesn't hurt, either.

6) Start a local chapter of the Warding Bond Cleric Club.

This is something I discovered was possible while I was fretting over prepping for the end of Act 2, because last time was such a clusterfuck. You can hire three hirelings, give them fun names like Ouchie Magnet, Sexy Pincushion, and Yoohoo Loviatar, get them to cast Warding Bond on the party members you actually intend to use, and enjoy the full benefits of it out in the world while your hirelings stand around bleeding at camp.

Any buff that lasts until the next long rest and doesn't require concentration works like this, fyi. Death Ward and Longstrider are also especially handy (and once you get to level 11, Heroes' Feast). Setting this up is tedious enough that I only did it a few times during the game, when I was going into situations I couldn't easily extricate myself from in case of emergency. (So the Mindflayer Colony, the Iron Throne, the Steel Watch Foundry, and one last time for the Temple of Baal.)

7) Break big battles up into bite-sized skirmishes.

Why would I fight all the cultists at Moonrise Tower in a grand climactic battle when I could sneak around before finishing the Gauntlet of Shar and pick off my future foes in packs? Since they're not hostile yet, it's pretty simple to wipe them out one room at a time, using Minor Illusion to lure guards away from their posts. Then I got the joy of showing up with Jaheira and all her Harpers to curbstomp the two (2) guys I missed.

Also good for removing all the intellect devourers before you pick a fight with Mindflayers in the Mindflayer Colony and for surviving gnoll swarms. Sometimes you even get lucky and a hyena falls into a hole, somehow.

8) Fill your camp with literal tons of explosives.

See a smokepowder barrel? Pick it up and send it to camp. Do this consistently and you will have deeply nervous party members every time you light a campfire, probably, but you'll also have a way to cheese boss fights that you're worried about. I chugged elixirs that raised strength before the end of Act 2 so that I could bring a dozen smokepowder barrels with me to the Myrkul fight and absolutely trivialized it.

9) Become a partial illithid.

Mourn your aesthetic and commune with that frosty little worm. (Take Volo's amateur eye surgery, too, btw. Just fuck yourself up.) The powers are worth it. A truly hardcore player would also get their companions to dip a toe into ceremorphosis, but I started by asking Astarion, who fucking loves regular tadpoles, to try it, and his response made me feel so bad that I abandoned the cause entirely.

10) Start your day with a delicious and nutritious Heroes' Feast.

So I never really read the description closely because sometimes I'm just like that, but thanks to the Warding Bond Cleric Club, I started paying closer attention to buffs and holy shit??? Thoroughly Stuffed is a baller condition, and it also makes food. I didn't have to go grocery shopping even once! Having three bonus clerics with spell slots to burn also meant the 6th-level cost wasn't coming out of Shadowheart.

11) Accept that late-game enemy saving throws will mercilessly fuck you.

It feels real bad when you cast a 6th-level spell that operates on saving throws and your target shrugs it off with 0 damage. Spells with attack rolls are usually better bets, and Artistry of War is a wizard's once-per-short-rest MVP. Open Hand Monk Pizzazz was consistently my best damage dealer, especially once I looted the Bonespike Gloves from Strangler Luke.

12) Skip the high-risk low-reward quests in Act 3.

Consider your party composition and tactics and whether any optional quest line is worth completing for its rewards. Cazador, the Sharrans, and Ansur are non-trivially difficult fights that I didn't need to subject myself to, so I didn't. But there's real good shit under Sorcerous Sundries, so of course I cleared out that vault.

Hell isn't actually that bad on Honour Mode (no, really! The restoration faucets have unlimited uses!), but it's not a sure thing and I could live without the rewards. Had a tense moment passing the DC 30 Persuasion check with Kith'rak Voss later, but he chilled out and even let me borrow his dragon's breath.

The only unnecessary hard fight I did was the Steel Watcher Titan, which was a bad call on my part; I kinda wanted the crossbow and I really wanted to keep the runepowder bomb in case I needed it, but Mothman didn't do this fight, so I was not prepared for the Hellfire Steel Watcher Titan's bullshit. I won, but it was a closer shave than it should have been.

Then I ended up not using the crossbow at all.

13) Thank Gale for his sacrifice.

The Netherbrain is fucking nasty on Honour Mode. Fuck Karsite Grip. Fuck Aegis of the Absolute. Does it feel bad to make Gale sacrifice himself? Yes. Would it feel worse to lose the run right before the finish line? Also yes.

I brought every explosive I had with me (which required two rounds of strength-boosting elixirs, because the game hits you with a long rest before the Astral Plane) just in case Gale got cold feet and I burned all my inspiration fucking up the persuasion roll, then went through the sewers to avoid the larger fight. Someone (Gale, so I couldn't be too mad) failed a stealth check and aggroed them all anyway, but Pizzazz covered the ground to the brainstem in like three rounds and everyone warped up after her for the cutscene, so no harm no foul.

Then Gale volunteered—nay, insisted on blowing himself up and I felt bad! Real bad! Not bad enough to change course, but Pizzazz's face was also my face during epilogue:

P.S. At least for me, the achievement procced after the epilogue, credits, and post-credits scene, and I was tense af the entire time. But not so tense I couldn't be sad about Gale (oh no he wrote me a letter) and Astarion (oh no he's still in hiding because of Cazador). Luckily my big hot wife was there to support me.

Anyway, let's load an old autosave on another campaign and check out those golden dice, shall we?

Ahhh, my horrible son

[expirisims]

Trolling Like a Boss

The next morning, Joey was up early to troll the forums...lovely girls here I tell ya, LOL! Meanwhile, Cheri fixed the broken tv. She's cheap and doesn't want to pay for a repairman. (Also, this was before I discovered in another save that my sims on rotation can indeed meet an unfortunate end, but more on that later.)

Also, this IS day 4. Day 5 is missing. The next household on rotation is the Orzoco household, but as I mentioned at the start of my Constant Springs playthrough, their entire week's worth of screenshots as well as day 5 from the Crews household and some of the Pierre household (coming up) was somehow deleted.

To sum up the Orzoco household, Carly Orzoco is namesake and a fortune teller. Her roommates are 1)Marisella Davison, who became a life guard and I built a little beach for her to work; 2) Christina Mott who works at the school and started dating another sim named Brian Robinette. They had a disastrous date at the Spring Festival and were close to breaking up by the end of my time with them. I am SOOOO bummed I deleted the screenshots! Ugh...

Now back to the post at hand...

Joey met up with Donnell for yet another date! These two are getting close, will there be wedding bells in the near future!?

Aww...look! It's Dena! Gosh I hope she doesn't try to steal Joey's man!

Back home, Cheri has decided to go into robot mode for the rest of the day! LOL! These two girls have proven to be unpredictable and full of Simmy chaos. I love it! LOL!

[seattledaytwo]

🍒

didn't get a chance to play DE yet, but I humored myself with some playthroughs already and I'm... questioning shit rn. I just checked what max's phone has to offer in my ending (bae ending with pricefield as... hs sweethearts apparently). and I just don't understand wtf happened. I don't want to spoil the main plot of DE, but the way they don't offer any datas or timeframe... I'm kinda offended by the messages shown in max's phone. it looks so wrong. I mean, ofc there is the whole multiverse and I can believe that in some universe pricefield could've broken up but??? it feels wrong actually seeing it, I mean my expectations are my own mistakes, but... I need time to process

I mean, it could be great, but they promised to respect both endings. and the way I see it, most people who saved chloe didn't do it to see such an ending. I get that this stuff happens in real life, it's natural outcome for the relationship built on trauma, but for both Max and Chloe it's really off and out of character. I probably need to see more from the game to get a better perspective, but now i'm just sad.

how are u feeling tho?

OOF okay yeah I'm going to be brutally honest about my thoughts on Double Exposure.

So from the very first announcement, the concept left a bad taste in my mouth. It felt incredibly cheap to bring Max back, and I knew that even if the game was fantastic, that narrative choice would always rub me the wrong way. I don't like the idea of Deck Nine taking Dontnod's characters and continuing a story that had been tied up with a perfect bow already. It feels...I don't know. It feels gross, I guess, is the best word I can use.

Chloe's lack of presence stood out to me immediately, and combined with the pieces of the game we'd seen, I knew she wouldn't be part of it. At best, there would be some offscreen explanation about her traveling or something (like how Dragon Age explains where the Warden went if you romanced Leliana). What they went with was...worse than I anticipated, lol.

In my opinion, it's very clear that they brought Max back solely to bait people into buying and playing, and it's backfiring HARDCORE on them right now. I've seen so many people cancelling their preorders and turning away from the game. The promos for the games were purposely avoiding a mention of Chloe, not to be fun and surprise the fanbase, but to string people along until the very last second. Clearly, it didn't work out!

It's really a bummer because I think I would have LOVED this game if it featured a new protagonist. I mean, switching timelines, a university story, an older protagonist? Absolutely right up my alley! But the fact that they dragged Max in to be the hook immediately turned me off to it.

To be honest, I would be very unsurprised if this is the last Life is Strange game after all the backlash that's already starting. And honestly? I'm kind of okay with that. I have concerns about how Deck Nine and Square Enix would/could handle future installments, since it feels like the integrity of the series has been degraded so much with DE.

I never had any plans to play the game, but I don't even really feel like watching a playthrough now either, lmao. All that to say, I really don't consider this game canon. This feels more like a parody than an actual continuation of Max's story.

It's very, very sad to me because the first game came out when I was a teenager trying to figure herself out, and Max and Chloe were very integral to exploring and discovering my sexuality (even before I realized it)!

I love True Colors and I think Deck Nine is capable of writing a compelling (if not a little lacking in some aspects) storyline, but diving back into Max's story was a really bad idea and I think it might be the series' downfall.

And...wow, I guess I had more to say than I realized 😅

[shenanigans-and-imagines]

Evie (Ace!Tav) Playthrough Day 3(?)

Day 1... Day 2 - Day 4

Astarion x Evie (Ace!Tav) Masterlist

For the uninitiated, I wrote a Tav well before I ever had a chance to play the game. Now, I finally can and thought it might be fun for my first play through to be as that Tav. Or, at least as much as the game play will allow me.

These are just some of my notes and scattered highlights that I thought would be fun to share.

Let me know if you think if I should continue this and any suggestions you might have.

This actually is more Day 3/4 since I did go back and redo some stuff I wasn't keen on; yes, I've discovered the power of quick saves!

Guys I'm going to romance Gale so fast and I don't think I can hurt this man

Got the "go to hell" dialogue with him; stood in front of the goblin so he's told me at least some of his deep dark secret; basically in the green on approval

I'm not sure if I'm strong enough to reject him guys

Obviously I'll keep playing and see how it goes, but I told myself this would be an Astarion play through

Of course, it does align with my thoughts about Gale having feelings for Evie at the start, so it might all work out

Giving me a lot more ideas about slow burn Astarion and Evie stuff in act 1

Going forward from that Wyll is now in the squad!

He's so perfect and soft with the kids

Definitely more distant at the start in terms of putting on the Blade of Frontiers mask, which I actually really like for future development

Switched out some stuff and guys "Speak with Animals" for the extra animal dialogue is so worth it; I love being a bard

Volo has also been underplayed in how funny he is: I'm now picturing Evie being unsure whether to be annoyed or amused by him every time they meet

She's definitely met his type before; they have very different approaches to the role of the bard in society

Got a lot of quests and God I never wanted to slap a bitch as hard as with Kagha

The fact I can't punch her in the nose without sparking all the druids to turn on the tieflings really does hurt my soul

Evie's nails are digging into her palms the whole time

On that note, the fact you can kill Netti without consequences is objectively funny to me

I rejected even taking the poison because Evie wants to live, she's not just going to take her life

Was not expecting Netti to fight, but needless to say four against one isn't much of a fight

We walked out of there and nobody has said a thing

Also shocked that choice doesn't get Astarion's approval; I thought for sure it would

Actually that's a question I have to the internet: can you do non-leathal damage? There are some things I'd like Evie to try to steal and don't necessarily want to do lethal damage

Found the back underground passage, but turned around because I knew I would get distracted and I wanted to find Karlach

Went out of the grove, found some of the Absolute followers

Astarion not happy with Evie saying we can't trust the power the tadpoles give us

They're really not starting off on the right foot

Now debating going forward with the guy squad or going back to camp, picking up the ladies and either go back to the underground cavern or continue to search for Karlach

Suggestions at this time are welcome

[pokemon-dungeon-masters]

Progress Update!

I know it’s been a while since I posted an update on here so here’s just a big update dump!

Last time I really talked on here, I was about to run a few beta test sessions. Which did happen but too much happened during the two sessions and I ultimately had to cancel the rest. Which was a bummer but its ok! I got a lot of good data on what did and did not work. So I took a few weeks as a break and got back to work. Most of said work has been reworking the Move dex to be clearer and more consistent. Which brings me to…

The Move Dex is now at version 6!

@bdigfreakingwooper and I, as well as a few others from the discord server, have gone through the entire move dex (again) and its hopefully in the last stages of development! Combat still needs overhauled somewhat so the move dex might need to be updated again afterwards but other than that, I don’t foresee any other big issues so I’m happy with where its at.

It now includes all moves (excluding z-moves & dynamax/ gigantamax moves), a few custom moves (still being added to), Key words, and move range descriptions/examples. I will be posting it here in the near future, once combat has been reworked and a few more custom moves have been added. Here’s a few notable moves that I just want to show off:

I’m sure parts of this won’t make much sense yet so if there’s anything you’re curious about, let me know!

Current Focus

What we’re currently working on is creating an Ability dex, with every ability being adapted to this system. We’ve started work on it and it hopefully won’t take nearly as long as the Move dex to finish (or finished enough). Other than a few annoying ones (looking at Transform) its not too bad! My personal favorite so far is Ball Fetch, the signature ability of Yamper, which in this system has a D6 Chance to regain an Orb after a party member uses it, if User has free pouch slot. Just the thought of little Yamper running to retrieve Orbs is so cute I couldn’t help myself lol.

As for what comes after the Ability dex, I have an ever growing To-Do list that’s slowly being worked through, starting with overhauling the combat system. Then there’s going through all the status effects, weather, terrain, items, Dojo effects, and a bunch of other stuff. Once that’s done I’ll be going back to working on the Player’s Guide, which will be a simple introductory guide to the system, character creation, and a few other important things. After that? No clue. We’ll see what happens!

Other Stuff

The server has reached over 30 members! Its been an absolute blast to hang out in with everyone. I definitely wouldn’t have gotten as much work as I have without those in the server, most notably Nines (@bdigfreakingwooper) who is now the Co-Creator of PDM! She has done a lot work independently as well, like creating a version of the character sheet that automatically fills in stuff like move information and a treasure bag sheet that does the same with items! Its absolutely insane, biggest thanks to her for being here through so much of the development.

Also about the server, I’ve been streaming a playthrough of Explorers of Sky, following the adventures of Team Soy Bois, and it’s been a huge blast. A few of us have even been doing voices for all the characters and some others enjoy just joining muted and chiming in using the text chat. We also have been doing movie nights, going through all the Pokémon movies, which has been on hiatus but will be starting back up next week! Its overall a very chill place and I would encourage anyone following the blog to consider checking it out!

As always, I appreciate the support and interactions from everyone and I will try my best to update more regularly! If you have any questions or comments or anything, my asks and DMs are open!

[void-speaks]

Bouncing ideas back with Pixelsss (btw feel free to tag me if you want I don't mind)

I FULLY AGREE with the theory that the previous chief doctor is the Ominous Voice and the fact that he didn't resign willingly that was literally like the first thing I thought.

Okay, I saw someone on like... Steam discussion? Who pointed out that the statue is actually Hippocrates (I actually don't remember the name they said but I googled it) and the oaths specifically for physicians are attributed to him. It would make sense why the Voice (I am NOT even gonna try to spell his name without reference) says he is a blind judge, and that WE need to be his witness. Because we are present in the moment, we can see the wrongdoings of the perpetrators and attribute each broken oath to each member of the staff. I feel like it's also worth mentioning that Friedrich says "there he is again" which could be just a reference about how many of those statues are around the Klinikum, but also maybe not?

NOW ABOUT THE PLAYER THEORY

The reason why I LOVE the theory that we are Joey (younger version of Joseph) is because:

1. In my opinion, it adds depth and sympathy for Joseph's character. Look at his younger self, so curious, so impressionable, so willing to help. And here he is now, so corrupt and so fueld by his own wrath.

2. I ADORE the theme of witnessing the corruption of your future self, coming face to face with the monstrosity that you've become. Joey doesn't necessarily realize this, but we do. And it's so AAUUAHAUAHA7AGAUAGAUAGAYAGAYAGAGAYAGAYAYAY

Of course, this theory is not perfect at all. Specifically in how that would work with the loophole and where it all started (I have a similar problem in Little Nightmares 2 because it's near impossible to pinpoint where the timeloop starts). The thing about Joseph not recognizing Joey I addressed in my previous post, but the reason why Joey wouldn't recognize himself in Joseph is because... well, I dunno, he just wouldn't? I wouldn't be able to recognize my future self either tbf. Hm, let's assume that Joey is somewhere in the ages of 21-22 like I initially did... so that would make at least a 9 year difference. And they do say that power changes people.

And this is where I'm going to yap about Joey and Joseph.

While Joseph is still a massive asshole and an abuser, but Joey isn't... look at him, he is so curious about everything, he comments on random things he may find interesting and pokes his nose into every corner of the Klinikum (based on my own recent playthrough of doing exactly that). He's so eager to help, seasoning the soup for the birthday guy, finding Dokhu's plushie and giving him a little crown as a birthday present, agreeing to help nurse Helene not because he exactly needs something from her, but just because of how relentlessly she's working to the point of neglecting everything else. How he feels sympathetic for Astrid and even for Wolfram (who does not deserve his sympathy that mf just tripped he can handle it). And yet... his older self is so egocentric, so ignorant and willing to harm others. So what exactly happened?

I think that it's because Joey later on felt unappreciated, ostracized and ignored. He was young, he recently moved to a new country and he's just fresh out of university. He has ideas that have potential, but no one is listening. So he becomes angry. He fights his way to the top, first making Friedrich resign, then beating everyone else to the spot and doing his best to charm the other staff so he'd be accepted. So of course, when he fought so hard to get to where he is, when someone starts to question him and tell him how wrong he is, it triggers a fight or flight response, and Joseph is used to fighting by now. Is he still more than old enough to understand the gravity of his actions and how badly he is hurting people not only physically but emotionally and mentally? Absolutely. Should he have prioritized the feelings of his staff, the other people he had to step over, his patience? Absolutely, he has the ability to, we've seen how sympathetic he can be. And yet he is so blinded by his wrath at the rejection he faced early on, that all of that goes forgotten. The way he says everything, how no one dies at the Klinikum, how the dental clinic is something the medical community should thank him for, how Astrid's paper criticizing his research is thrown away in the trashyard... it all screams of someone who is still seeking praise and validation which he didn't get before, but this time not using the knowledge he genuinely has, not using his kindness and compassion and ability to work with people, but instead using vile means that will secure his position and the things he desires. He found many, many loopholes to exploit in the system and he took that opportunity (ha, get it?) to get what he wanted, no matter how much harm he will bring and to whom.

So poor Joey ends up as the subject of that loophole. He has to face first hand how much destruction and abuse his older self brought onto the Klinikum. Just how many times has he been harmed to the point of death but has woken up again and again just to suffer more? And it doesn't matter who you are, patient, just a trainee or an employee. Unless you're willing to exploit and abuse others, you have no chance in this system. Wolfram looks completely normal at first, because he was already an abuser, his later forms only reflect how ugly he is inside. Randolph himself looks completely normal at first, but later on he is distorted worse of them all.

Anne is constantly getting shocked and will pass out if the system is shut down, yet smiles sadistically when she puts another, someone lower in power than her through the same treatment.

Sabine has the wounds from the torturous device that she uses on someone who is, again, lower in power than her, yet still puts it on them because she can't face the fact that doctor Randolph is a corrupt man. She gets salty when you don't follow her, but no matter how many times you try to run away, she doesn't attack you. She says that you're holding up well, that you did well and so on and so forth, because she just hasn't realized that this is abuse that she is going through and putting another through.

There is Hauser who saw what was happening, who knew about all the wrongs of the staff of the Klinikum but chose to cower and hide away in the attic, pretending to be ignorant, ignoring the cries of those who were suffering in favor of saving his own skin.

Wolfram took advantage of the poor patients, people who were supposed to be under his care, and when confronted with his crimes, he realized that nobody really cared. No one took the patients seriously aside from the pesky strict nurse who'd probably filed complaints against him. So, realizing that his deeds went unpunished he simply continued doing what he did for his own twisted pleasure and desire to control and exploit those below him.

Sauer was responsible for the food of the patients, arguably one of the most important things that contributes to a person's health, yet he still choose to be sloppy with it, causing more harm than good. Forced to boil alive in a pot, he still doesn't get anything, and continues being a bitch to patients and serving them food which will only make things worse just because of how bitter he is that such a "tiny mistake" led to this much suffering on his end.

And Randolph himself. Blinded by his own feelings, he neglects and ignores the feelings of those around him, only caring about his own success, only caring about validation and being noticed, proving everyone who doubted him wrong. And at the end, he is forced to face not only his own trauma, but the trauma he repeatedly put other through, distorting him into the horrible monstrosity that he became on the inside.

Astrid cared about her patients, but she also cared too much to try and hold other staff members, other authority accountable for their mistakes and heinous actions. And what did she get in return? A horrifying fate, to put it lightly. And even STILL, even after what Joseph has done to her, she is willing to talk. She hopes to see him again, to confront him about everything, to try her best to resolve this peacefully. But alas.

(Her phrase "You are not Joseph" would also be an incredible play on my interpretation/au? because yes, Joey isn't Joseph, he's not the monster that he may or may not grow up to be.)

Helene cares about her patients way more than about anything else, she just wants to make sure that they're if not healthy than at least comfortable with the little conditions she has to work with, and therefore, because she isn't that much of a threat, she's left as she is.

I completely forgot what was even the point of all of that while writing LMAO

Oh yes, maybe the moment Joey ends up in the Klinikum was the exact moment when he already began heading down the wrong path (based on how sarcastic he acts sometimes and how willing he is to disobey whose higher in power than him). So to be forced to see what his future were to look like, and not only that but to experience the harm he's would do to patients and staff first hand, it reminds him of what being a medical worker is really all about. It's not about the groundbreaking research, it's not about making a name for yourself in the medical community. And so in the end, Joey uses the same loophole that Joseph had used all this time against him, sending him down one last time, killing that abusive prick in himself.

Okay, I've rambled so much about this theory that it almost looks like I'm heavily advocating for others to subscribe to it. I'm not, I'm just on a creative roll as of later and so that's what caused me to imagine so much based on that theory and minor details. There's still the stuff I mentioned earlier that wouldn't make this theory work with Joseph and Joey not recognizing one another, and with the wording the Voice uses in our final confrontation with Joseph, he tells us how the doctor's wrath is affecting everyone, "including you," the player. That single phrase doesn't make much sense in that theory, but at the same time, Friedrich's other phrase about "I'm not your enemy. Well, perhaps... a part of me is" WOULD make sense in this theory. He's not an enemy to Joey, but he is an enemy to and in the eyes of Joseph.

All that being said, I would actually prefer for the game not to get an expansion or dlc with explanation of this stuff, because I feel like it's much more interesting to see different interpretations built on the core idea and theme of the game, which is the abuse and mistreatment of patients.

Also, a way smaller headcanon which could apply no matter the theory you personally believe is that our player has a deep ass voice based on the... erm... grunts? From the beginning of the game where we fall from the ceiling.

Also these rambles are not going to be a frequent thing (I HOPE) because these ideas are all I've had since first watching a playthrough, later on playing the game myself and then writing a thing for the game (yes it is about the Trash Collector and Joey. No I don't wanna talk about it yet. Unless you ask really nicely :)), so once I've told all that's on my mind I will probabaly go back to lurking. This was quite frankly unnecessary and I'm not even sure about posting it in the main tag but to be fair, I think I'll do it at least for the sake of categorization.

[ndostairlyrium]

4th question for the ask game: what does your worldstate look like??

Hello!!! Thanks for asking!

And sorry in advance for the length :'D

The ask game

So, um, lemme grab the Keep real quick hahah

I'll paste pics from that, from time to time u-u

This worldstate could be summed up as: we hate dragons, and we're saying "world peace" at the q&a portion of the show

Ela - Walker Hawke - Ankh

Origins:

Elanor Cousland, Warrior, 2H Weapon, romanced Alistair

Honorable, fair, and possibly the stupidest - earnest? Both things are valid for her and can cohabitate lol

-Companions:

-Arl of Redcliffe:

Helped Redcliffe prepare, all townspeople are safe, Isolde is alive, Connor is alive and not possessed, and Jowan was sent back to the Circle. The urn of sacred ashes is pristine ✨ a dragon was hurt in the process tho <<

-Broken Circle:

Supported Mages, Irving is alive.

-Nature of The Beast:

Brokered peace, saved the halla <3 we love our weird goats <3

-Denerim / Landsmeet:

Anora is queen (literally and metaphorically. my warden fangirls pretty hard @ her)

DLCs:

-Awakening:

We sided with the Architect, because she's stupid like that << and full of hope, okay, but mostly stupid

-Witch Hunt:

She let Morrigan go, but didn't follow her. I guess Alistair still blames her for that

-Warden's Keep:

Both Avernus and Sophia are dead, she couldn't drink the drink <<

-

Dragon Age II

Walker Hawke, Entropy Elemental and Force Mage, Humorous personality, romanced Fenris

Joined the smugglers at his arrival (he's quite the silver tongue)

-Companions:

-Act 1:

Going along with the "Blame the fereldan for everything" trend, starting from mom. If you get repeated "it's your fault" constantly, you start to believe it.

Also, the way he's butthurt for poor Ketojan!! Damn!

Will blame himself for handling that quest horribly. He can't understand, literally. He'll bring that experience with him forever

-Act 2:

A classic "my bullshit detector worked, but what the hell is going on anyway?" :'D

Also of course we did the 8 run around the columns << it's a must have in every playthrough!

-Act 3:

Sided with mages, heart of gold confirmed.

Also we hate dragons in this game as well u-u

Anders is alive and well, with a hand stamp on his cheek

-DLCs

Recruited Sebastian (unfortunately) - Sided with Larius (again, unfortunately) - I, huh, can't remember anything of Mark of the Assassin because it was unplayable :'D literally. The dialog wasn't working, it glitched every five minutes, and the game started to crash at a rapid pace after the party. Will watch walkthroughs in the future, because I remember having fun <<

-

Dragon Age: Inquisition

Ankh of clan Lavellan, Rogue Archer, Artificer, slayed all the dragons, romanced Cullen

Stoic approach favored

-Advisors

Prefers a honest approach, when she can. Diplomacy route is her favorite, but when she's dealing with nobles she always talks to Leliana first. The poor Cullen is the last to get attention :'

She denies being chosen by Andraste, Cassandra is veery happy about it /s

Reasons with Leliana about her role in Valence's cloister. Not hardened

Helps Josephine by raising the Du Paraquettes to nobility

Tells Cullen not to use lyrium, but it was more like "what do you want?", "This", "Then I'll help". Anyway, I always disliked how that discussion was handled as an addict myself lol

Leliana is the new Divine

-Companions:

The "friends with Blackwall" happens after a big while after what he did, but I won't say anything else since I have the chapter(s) planned and ready to be delivered lol then I will talk about it freely

-In Hushed Whispers / Champions of the Just

Sided with Mages, Mages are allied with the Inquisition

-Wicked Eyes, Wicked Hearts

This won't bite her in the ass in the future, noooo, like, totally a great decision :'D

The judgment after that was top tier best BioWare moments, I will cherish that experience forever <3

-Here Lies the Abyss

The utmost horrid choice was between Hawke and Alistair. She preferred to give the Wardens a chance, because she understands the weight of their duty - also they saved the world multiple times?

There's much else to say that relates to this decision, and some of it is personal, I must admit. But I'll eviscerate the thing another time, maybe :'D if people are interested ofc

-What Pride Had Wrought

Didn't drink from the well, because Solas made a good point about it lol and after what happened with Flemeth later, well... she's okay with that decision :' thanks Solas!

Oh, and she did the rituals. Good elfie <3

DLCs

-Jaws of Hakkon

I don't really have much to add, other than:

She sees what her role could turn into and that's a pretty scary outcome. She had fun with the bear thing, tho! That was pretty hilarious, plus I have something in mind with a climbing contest but, um

Will say the sayings another time lol

Also we still hatin on dragons

-The Descent

Did stop the earthquakes, enjoyed the trip and all the new info! 10/10 would return for Spring break (I hated it, she had the time of her life. That dlc was hard o-o like, intensely hard what the hell)

-Trespasser

She's gonna slap the god, and then she's gonna treat him with chicken soup and a hug

Also, she always knew that the Inquisition had a limited time, and she did everything she could to make it right. But you can't squeeze a lemon forever and pretend the sauce isn't increasingly bitter (?)

-

That's all I guess? Hopefully it's understandable :'D

[danganronpasurvivoraskblog]

Just recently finished my playthroughs of Danganronpa Another 1 and 2. First of all, lots of your characterisations and writing I've seen of the characters from those games, as well as seeing why some are beloved (and lmao you gave Iroha such a comparative writing glow-up), make more sense now I actually know who they are, so nice job on that!

Second of all, just wanted to ask out of curiosity, as I've been following the blog on and off over the past year or two, so missed large chunks of story: what is the current known status (ie not expecting anything spoilery if any are unknown) of the various characters from those games in the story? Though I do want to read the whole thing chronologically and catch up, there's a shitload to catch up on, and it's not really feasible with the time I have available right now.

Keep up the good work and don't push yourself too hard!

//Firstly, thank you so much. Making sure that I bring out the best in these characters so that everyone can mutually enjoy them, even the sucky ones, is one of my main goals with this blog.

//Second, if you're looking for a brief rundown on the status of the Another characters specifically, then I can tell you, sure.

Yuki - After escaping the Utsuroshima Killing Game, he's spent the duration between that game and the current events using his Divine Luck to help others, just as Utsuro used to do. He established his own cult organization of people, similar to the members of VOID, but more righteous, called the "Whitecloaks," with all of them being down-on-their-luck people that he saved/looked after in the past. There are currently two Whitecloaks, Akane Taira being one of them, and the other's identity is unknown currently. Mukuro was a third Whitecloak following her, Makoto, and Kuripa's fight against Yukari in Shikoku, but after the battle at Zetsubou's factory base, she rejoined Future Foundation. While mostly their own group, the Whitecloaks are currently in a mutual working relationship with Lazarus; the unidentified creator of the Future Foundation's machines that can bring people back to life, for a reason that no one quite knows yet.

Akane T. - She was ressurected by Lazarus, despite the fact that Yuki still resides in her old body, and it's unclear how she's still here. But Yuki made the request to revive her, and now she works with him as a Whitecloak, trying to help the world that she once sought to destroy.

Tsurugi - He's the Chairman of the Kisaragi Foundation, and an ally, albeit a shaky one, to the Future Foundation. The events of Utsuroshima softened him up a tad, and he leads his men in a more militaristic fashion than the Future Foundation, but with less of an iron fist than before. He will still do whatever it takes to destroy Despair and save the world, though.

Rei - Second in command of the Kisaragi Foundation. Probably the most understanding person in the Kisaragi's upper echalon, but still very serious about her work. She's dating and currently engaged to Mikako.

Teruya - Died in the Utsuroshima Killing Game, but was ressurected by the Future Foundation at Tsurugi's request. He resumed work in his old office, trying to live past his old experiences going through two Killing Games, but these days, he's doing better than ever really.

Mikako - Died in the Kibougamine Killing Game (The Killing Game from Another 1) but was ressurected at Tsurugi's request just as Teruya; though she was brought back as more of a favor for Rei. She works in a high-profile office at the Kisaragi Foundation, and is their lead expert in cases that delve into the more paranormal. She also started dating Rei, and they are currently engaged.

Ayame - Deceased.

Haruhiko - Deceased.

Kakeru - Deceased; though his younger sister Midori works for the Kisaragi Foundation as a lawyer. She's in a relationship with Ryutaro Maki; Kiyoka Maki's brother.

Kanata - She was brought back by Organization Zetsubou to help them make Ultimate Hope's, as well as to serve as a medical practitioner for them. However, they held her father, Hikaru Ando, hostage, so she did not help them willingly. After Hikaru was rescued, and Kanata was freed from Zetsubou shortly after, she went with Future Foundation to help treat the soldiers and wounded people from the factory battle, but then left for the Kisaragi Foundation afterwards, and now currently works alongside her father as a lead medical expert.

Kinji - Deceased.

Kiyoka - Deceased; though her younger brother, Ryutaro, works for the Kisaragi Foundation as a commander. He and Midori are in a relationship.

Kizuna - Deceased; though her mother, Minako, works for the Kisaragi Foundation as a consultant and profiler. Minako used to work as a hostess, and was Yoruko Kabuya's senior before they split apart. In the present day, they've made amends.

Mitsuhiro - Deceased (and he will stay that way forever)

Satsuki - Deceased; though her brother, Keisuke, works for the Kisaragi Foundation as a squadron leader, enforcer, and commander. He's one of the most reliable soldiers in the organization, and Tsurugi considers him his top man.

Yamato - The original Yamato is deceased, however, Hikaru and Zetsubou brought back his AI to help manage one of their labs. When Hikaru was rescued, the AI was returned to the Kisaragi's, and manages most of their system. His relationship with Mikako, as things are, are a little shaky, despite everything; since Mikako struggles to see the AI as the brother she once had. Yamato understands.

Sora - Rei rebuilt her AI, and shortly afterwards, released her to Yoruko when Sora saved the Kisaragi building from Mikado's AI; an event that traumatized her. Shortly after, Sora and Yoruko got married, and Sora has been on a few adventures with the Future Foundation since, including partnering up with Kaede to rescue her from the Zetsubou-seiged lab that Hikaru was trapped in originally.

Yoruko - After the Utsuroshima Killing Game, Yoruko turned down the offer to work at the Kisaragi Foundation, due to not trusting Tsurugi initially, and worked in the Reserve Branch of the Future Foundation. She became the Branch's spokesperson, and works as both a councillor, and a manager for the FF warehouses alongside Sora. Yoruko has also lent her help to the Future Foundation over the years, particularly towards Class 77, aiding them in a few of their battles. She's currently enjoying some downtime with her AI wife after everything that's happened.

Iroha - She currently works as a hostess at Kokichi's cabaret club, which doubles as his base of operations when it comes to prying into the personal affairs of the Future Foundation and Zetsubou. With his employees doubling as his own faction, Iroha is surprisingly loyal to Kokichi, though that's largely because he treats her a lot nicer than people like VOID or Mikado did. She's a lot less self-centered than she was in the past, and is currently dating Ryota Mitarai; after the two bonded over their shared history of fucking things up massively. She also currently shares a home with Syobai, sticking with him even after their Despair Queen scam days; and the two are a lot closer.

Syobai - Like Iroha, Syobai works full-time for the High Roller under Kokichi as an assistant manager. Though he's still very money motivated, Syobai has a surprising respect for the way Kokichi does things, and oftentimes serves as his right hand man in his DICE operations. His personality hasn't changed much, since he's still quite a sleazy self-centered jerk, but he's on a more neutral side of the law now where he doesn't cause trouble for the Future or Kisaragi Foundations. At least not unless Kokichi pays him to. Also, though he won't admit it, he's quite fond of Iroha, and the two of them share an apartment.

Yuri - Deceased.

Hajime M. - Deceased.

Kokoro - Deceased. Though, as stated, Mikako works for the Kisaragi Foundation, and most of her influence from her mother is gone; including the chip she placed in her brain.

Emma - Deceased.

Setsuka - Died in the Utsuroshima Killing Game, but was ressurected by the Future Foundation at Tsurugi's request; due to her detective skills being valuable to him. She currently works as the Kisaragi's lead investigations officer, and as always, is very friendly to everybody. She's always willing to go the extra mile for people she takes a shine to, and does so often. Without Kanade's influence, she and Hibiki have a very close relationship.

Hibiki - She died in the Utsuroshima Killing Game, but was ressurected by Zetsubou to use as leverage for Kanade. When Kaede freed her, she also broke Kanade's control over her. With Kanade now gone, and with Hibiki completely free from her, she's working on reestablishing a life for herself, and has asked Kaede to train her to fight, just as Kuripa taught Kaede to, so she can stop anyone else from living a terrible life like she has.

Kanade - She was ressurected by Zetsubou to be a muscle/mercenary for them in the fights against the Future Foundation; with her chaotic nature serving them well for a time. After a slew of rough fights, which almost resulted in Hibiki dying, Kanade was subdued by Seiko. However, when she tried to kill Seiko, the side effects of being ressurected too quickly took hold, and it turned her into sludge. However, not before Kuripa gave her the most painful death imaginable. Hibiki managed to survive thanks to Akane giving her her Divine Luck, and now Kanade will not haunt her again.

Shinji - Deceased.

Nikei - Deceased (fucking better be, lol)

Mikado - His AI was rebuilt stronger into Mikado NEO after his defeat in the Utsuroshima Killing Game. He was defeated by Hajime, but later tried to attack the Kisaragi Foundation by controlling Keebo's body. He was defeated, and mercilessly killed, by Sora.

//I hope that sums everything up for you.

-Mod

[twothpaste]

12, 23 for the ao3 meme?

12: favorite character to write about this year PROBABLY picky/peter/agnes. Uh Oh!!! i've been getting more and more insane in the membrane about her for the whole back half of 2024, as i slowly work through North of Neverland. the deeper i get, the more i unravel her. i really love writing characters who change a lot over time (i think i talked about this with claus last year!). i get to play around with tense & framing, flash back & forward, compare & contrast their various selves, it's the bessst. and the coolest thing about writing this fic is like. ok so a lot of my fics have "ooo a dead/absent character is haunting the narrative" stuff going on. but in this one, peter's future self is the absent force that's looming over everything. agnes is a huge aching hole in his world that he's not quite ready to fill yet. and there's something so cool about writing that, finding little ways to constantly imply her hovering overhead, even as peter remains oblivious & in denial (mostly denial 🙃). dropping hints in the prose that this story is secretly actually a fully-realized & better-adjusted agnes reminiscing about a past formative experience, rather than a present ordeal. agh. and don't even get me started on the minch family drama. long winded answer i know but tldr i am Lost that sauce y'all.

runner up goes to twilight princess link in Jack London. was worried i'd write him too similar to lucas, but it turns out he's even softer and gentler and more patient, despite also being so much fiercer. my tp playthrough this year got me right in the chest, i love this poor kid.

23: fics you wanted to write but didn’t i don't really hold myself to "i need to write x within this year" goals - but i did expect i'd have the picky fic finished by now, and that i'd have moved on to other ideas in my pipeline. one of 'em is the "intermission claus & paula do a sci-fi podcast" fic, which might sit on the backburner a while longer. i've gotten some other ideas in the meantime that i really wanna write first (including a little oneshot / epilogue thing following north of neverland, about porky….) (and a oneshot about hinawa & claus …………)

[undead-potatoes]

COUNTERSPELL ASK!!!!!!!!! (unless you already answered this (I couldn't find it) or it's already in your inbox)

If New Year's resolutions were a thing in Faerûn, would Jay or Aurora be the kind to make any? What kinds of resolutions would they make? Would they ever be able to keep any of them? Are there any resolutions they'd keep making over and over again, but always fail?

Bonus, because I kind of answered it in my post: What are their plans post-BG3?

I did get a similar-ish ask, but it also had like 4 other questions baked into it, so I'm answering this particular question here (also hi Nonny, if you're reading this I'm working on your ask too!)

- - -

Jay is totally the kinda guy to make resolutions every year, and then fail horribly at keeping any of them. He'll get better at sticking to his planned schedules, he'll get home earlier so he can sleep more and better, he'll set aside time to work on his hobbies, he'll take a vacation for the first time in his life.

And then he never does any of those things, just keeps going as he always has while telling himself "last time I can be bothered with this, I swear". The resolutions mostly stay the same because his life does, and because he never manages to see any of them through.

I think he likes the idea of new beginnings, a fresh start to do things right, but it's of course a romanticized idea more that anything else.

- - -

Aurora is more pragmatic about it, and while new beginnings is a central theme in her journey, she doesn't see the point of waiting for a particular time of year to do so.

She might say she'll do something just for fun, but it's not serious at all, and she rarely even tries to follow through.

If she did do them, they'd probably be things like "spend more quality time with loved ones" and "be kinder to yourself" (something she really needs to work on).

Cult!Aurora wouldn't do any resolutions either, and thinks it's even more stupid than post-tadpole Aurora. She has shit to do, she doesn't have time to sit around and promise herself she'll do all the things that needs doing like that.

- - -

Bonus:

I think I mentioned this in another ask at some point, but Jay's plans for life post-game is essentially:

1) Finish all business in Baldur's Gate 2) Go to Waterdeep to live with Gale 3) ??? 4) Profit

He doesn't have any concrete plans for his future for the first time in forever, and it does him well to just vibe for a while and have Gale pamper him a bit, a gesture which he eagerly returns in kind. They're holding off on marriage at first, giving both a moment to settle into each other's lives, and just learning to know each other better in a less life-threatening situation.

Jay also needs time to feel like he actually belongs in Gale's life, especially among his wider social and familial circles (which luckily works out in the end, I hc that Gale's mom and wider family are actually pretty nice and welcoming cause I need that W for my guy).

Eventually he starts up his business again, operating out of both Waterdeep and Baldur's Gate with the help of a portal set up between the two cities (that would surly be within Gale's capabilities yeah?) I'm sure the wizards of Waterdeep would love a funky little guy who can get a hold of all sorts of weird stuff that they need.

- - -

Aurora's plans depend largely on Shadowheart's ending. In my first playthrough I let her choose the fate of her parents, which meant they died and Shadowheart was free to live life on her own. But I'm not sure if that is my final canon, now that I know both Jay and Aurora would admit to wanting to save them if they were their own parents.

If her parents die, it's simple: Aurora, Shadowheart, and Astarion travel around Faerûn, seeing all sorts of things and getting into way too much trouble, again. They eventually plan to settle down somewhere, with both Aurora and Shadowheart keen to live a more normal life for once, and Astarion finding his own place in that life I'm sure.

If her parents live, Shadowheart stays behind to make up for lost time, while Aurora and Astarion go to the Underdark to help sort out the hoard of unsupervised vampire spawn they unleashed down there. Maybe Shadowheart eventually joins them, traveling around much like when her parents are dead, or Aurora and Astarion occasionally travel around on their own, while Shadowheart stays behind with her parents.

Either way, she has no real interest in a future where she's separated from either one of them for too long at the time.