#we are getting into the deep alternative history lore now lol

[daisychainsandbowties]

To follow-up on the other characters with this WN Dragon/Temeraire AU (because we've been talking so much about Ava & Bea & Lilith):

What are your thoughts on Camila's dragon's name? Because now I am reminded of how the Spanish football team is called La Furia Roja, and what if Cam calls her excitable dragon Furia, because that would be such a funny dissonance.

Yasmine, I think, is definitely the kind of person to give her dragon a traditional name by English standards. (I am imagining she's English.) So something with Latin roots.

Also, also, when Dora gets introduced, maybe she can have the American dragon. (I am going to push this American dragon agenda because pretty.)

Regarding the African dragons, I can't remember them allowing to be beholden/bonded with humans in such a way that they would do things for humans? They've always been their own masters, and even rule tribes/kingdoms sometimes, so I can't imagine an African dragon joining the OCS. I think there was one in Temeraire joining Laurence's company, but iirc that was under special circumstances? Or was that an Australian dragon? I can't remember now.

And circling back to the idea of one of the OCS having a Fleur-de-Nuit: what if it's not the OCS who has one but Adriel? (I feel bad villainising this dragon again, but imagine the demon army having this advantage!)

I am fully on board with Camila calling her Flecha-del-Fuego literally just rage - she would think it extremely clever: 

Cam’: ask me what i’m getting up to today, lilith?’ 

Lilith, in a long-suffering tone: ‘pray tell, what are you getting up to today.’

Cam: ‘i was thinking of going into a flying rage.’

Lilith: ‘i despise you. i resent you. i hate you.’

Cam: ‘nononono wait.’ - she climbs onto Furia - ‘if i were french i’d be en-raged.’

Lilith: ‘if only you were in the belly of a dragon.’

Cam: oh, you love me.

Lilith: *blushes and busies herself with Makaria's harness*

YES absolutely for the sheer Camila of it all it has to be Furia. & Cam dragon’s dragon is such a poseur but also very prettily coloured - black with red highlights on legs & belly & the ends of his wings - and the perfect companion for Cam because they both enjoy doing crazy loop-de-loops at high altitudes and once almost cause an international incident playing ‘dragon soccer’ (someone’s tail knocks over a cottage. probably Makaria’s). 

Yas would absolutely choose a traditional name - I have her down as from Egypt (which is nominally part of the Ottoman Empire at the time, though really only nominally, & it’s unclear based on the lore if that would be an actual place, but that area is I think under the jurisdiction of the Ottomans) but she has been in England since she was three. her dragon i’m thinking is a girl? I think she might choose an Egyptian-sounding name for her dragon, because you know that Yas is very passionate about her homeland. I like the idea of something unexpectedly short like Senu or Shay. 

i think someone should for sure have an American dragon, though unfortunately there would be many commonalities between British dragon-breeds and American ones, thanks to the fact that colonisation definitely did occur. (the same reason that there is little distinction between Irish and British native-breeds). there is not much detail about dragons native to the American continent (a bit more in Golden Age where we see that there was some mingling of draconic bloodlines, so perhaps something along those lines?) i cannot remotely think of a name for that dragon now, but it will depend on what kind of dragon it is, really. 

no, i can’t imagine an African dragon joining the OCS, though they might be willing to let the ocs assist with possessed dragons & demons from time-to-time (with a preference to simply manage it themselves, as they always have, but the ability to save possessed dragons instead of having to kill them would likely appeal). i can’t remember if it was an African dragon who joined Tem’s crew. there was Kulingile but that was the offspring of two of the Turkish ferals. 

also, yes absolutely. the Fleurs are heavyweights and fire-breathers, so it would suit Adriel perfectly. i think in this case the dragon would be possessed, but lengthily, so that there is likely nothing remaining of the original dragon’s personality. 

[naughtygirl286]

So yes we went to see the new Horror movie Night Swim and its our first movie of 2024!

Now I thought it was pretty good its pretty much a classic Haunted House movie but the house isn't actually Haunted but its the in ground pool that is haunted and of course there is a reason for that which is explained in the movie.

Your basic story is the family is moving to a new town were the mom (played by Kerry Condon) will be closer to work and she is going to school to become a teacher and the Dad (played by Wyatt Russell) was a professional Baseball player but had to quit because he is developing MS. So they are looking for a new place and none of them seem right until they find this place which has an amazing in ground pool. The Doctor has told Wyatt Russell's character that swimming is good for MS and that is one of the reasons they buy the house. So they move in and get the pool ready and everything and they are living a happy life and then things start to slowly begin to happen the kids and the wife are seeing and being bothered/attacked by some type of creature? I believe this to be the physical manifestation of the Evil that lurks in the water. but the pool is having a different effect on the Dad as it is healing his MS and when that happens as he get more and more healthy the evil in the pool begins to possess him and that is when things really start to go crazy. It hits all horror bench marks for a usual Haunted House or real Haunted anything movie being you have Stage 1 where it is the build up to stuff happening usually Stage 2 is stuff actually happening Stage 3 is Discovery this is where they find out the history/backstory/lore about the Haunted whatever Stage 4 Showdown how to stop it I feel Horror movies like these can be summed up in the quote from Jeff Goldblum's Dr. Ian Malcolm: Oooh, ahhh, that's how it always starts. Then later there's running and screaming. but seriously though I thought it was pretty good being that the pool was the thing that was haunted it felt interesting and different some of the filming that was done in the pool and under water was really well done and the visuals for things like I don't know what to call it "the deep?" where the evil lived with in the pool it was almost like a alternate universe with all the people it had collected was cool and reminded me of something else but I can't think of it at this moment.

Now I didn't find the movie really scary but it did have like the right amount of creepiness and should make you wonder about pools from now on lol but yeah I if you want to give it a watch I would say go for it.

[maxdurden]

3, 5, 6, 7, 13, 17, 25, 26, 28, 30!!!!!!!!!! or as many as you want i just realized this is a lot of numbers!!!!!!!

3 Biggest self-insert OC?

definitely wes, it's not even a competition. sometimes self insert next gen au ocs for your favorite media can be something soo important to a teenager coping with untreated mental illness. but i also think i project at least a little onto every oc i make. i just think embuing the little guys that live in my head with a bit of my soul makes them more fun, sue me

5 What are some of your OCs biggest fears?

this is a hard question!! i think my ocs are consistently coping with the fear of being unlovable and alone. but also my ocs are very often super afraid of heights, which is definitely projection. wes is afraid of sharks and the ocean in general! that kid grew up near gotham harbor and you wouldn't trust large bodies of water if you'd grown up near that shit either!

6 Do you have any OCs without stories? Will you ever create one for them?

yeah! i have shelves full of ocs that i made in a blind haze and now they sit and collect dust in the broom closet of my mind. and honestly? who knows, but probably not. a bitch can barely write fanfic, not to mention a competent original story

7 What are your favourite relationships between your OCs? (romantic or platonic!)

my favorite relationships are always familial!!! i fucking,,,, LOVE exploring family dynamics in fiction i'm so normal about it. it's why peisistratus has basically the same amount of interaction with his brothers as he does with telemachus in bbyhr (and i think i should get to count AT LEAST echephron as an oc because i showed that man more love that homer ever dreamed of). but!! i had a superhero oc named jaime and their relationship with their dad (xander) was really fun to mess around with! the aforementioned wes has relationships with a lot of canon characters and their relationship with dick is sooo fun to think about (good relationship dynamic to squirm to, even).

i also really like really close friendships! like the kind where two characters just exist as their entire messy selves around each other because they're so close that it doesn't matter. wes was good friends with the xander i mentioned earlier and their dynamic was Ride Or Die, but then when they fought they were absolutely brutal to each other. very sibling-like ig lol

13 Which story has the most lore?

LISTEN i also don't do lore because i'm not a nerd. but if i did lore, it'd be the story that wes comes from. it was technically a dc related universe? i think it could generously be called an au, but it got so out of hand we ended up calling it the councilverse. it had enough of its own lore to justify being a whole ass other world. there were gods and sirens that had insane and deep lore completely unrelated to dc comics. not to mention!!! all the backstory for all the characters (i could not come close to giving an exhaustive list of all the characters. by the end of it there were roughly three or four generations, and three alternate universes within this one overarching concept of the councilverse. she was,,,, messy)

17 What are some tropes and character dynamics found in your wips?

most common character dynamic has to be Messy Family Dynamics. from parental issues to weird estranged siblings vibes, i simply cannot be stopped. swallows in the windless field is playing up the menoetius and patroclus drama, and braved by your hearts resolve is just a love letter to daddy issues lmao. i think i'm a big fan of slowburn tropes like yearning and obliviousness. and the power of friendship? is a trope you'll have to pry from my cold dead hands

25 What’s your favourite genre to write? Is it also your favourite genre to read?

lately i've been REALLY into writing historical fiction. i've enjoyed all the research i've gotten to do for bbyhr. but i also enjoy writing fantasy stuff maybe more! fantasy is by far my favorite thing to read, but i can be picky about historical fiction stuff. i also really like reading superhero stuff, but writing it makes me nervous (i do it for myself but idk that i'd ever publish it for fear of it not being that good and also for fear of dc comics fans [source: i am one and they are scary])

26 What are your favourite books?

i mean,,, i OBVIOUSLY have an unhealthy fixation on the odyssey and the iliad. so, ya know. we are the ants is a book that had a huge impact on me when it came out, it's kinda sci-fi ish but very fun! and i do, i think technically, have to give credit to the song of achilles and circe for being as formative as they were.

i've also been reading A LOT of comics lately because i realized you can get that shit for free on the internet (pls pls pls don't ask why it took 20+ years for me to figure this out i'm just an incredibly lil guy with not a very big brain). so i've recently revisited the red hood and arsenal run that rewrote my brain chemistry as a teenager. but also favorite comics could be a whole other conversation so maybe i should stop there lmao

28 Favourite songs at the moment?

ahh!! i have so many. i've been listening to a LOT of phoebe bridgers and boygenius. so smoke signals and icu are probably two songs that i spend the most time listening to rn.

but also! against the kitchen floor by will wood (i can finally listen to songs OTHER than this one now, though, which is great)

nightstand by dev lemons!! is really good

body to flame by lucy dacus

and!! the kingdom is within you by gang of youths (fun fact: listening to the gang of youths album angel in realtime. and day dreaming about fridging batman for the sake of drama between the robins is a very good pastime)

30 How are you doing? <3

i'm doing good! my birthday was yesterday :3 so that's neat. i am in desperate need of motivation to write (and a cure for the temptation to write jayroy fanfic)

[kyogre-blue]

Setting aside the “Rukkha Did Nothing Wrong” aspect of Sumeru 4, there’s also another point that we can glean from the flashback, which is roughly that there is actual and literal Bad Knowledge that comes from outside the world and this stuff is so hard to get rid of that Deshret killed himself, Rukkha used up most of her powers, and yet we still have Withering and Eleazar in the present day. 

And I have a (bad) feeling that this is all leading into “Celestia Had A Point Actually.” 

Since the Enka lore revelations, there’s been a kind of theory going around, regarding how the Enka survivors assumed that the Primordial One defeated the Second Throne, but we don’t actually have confirmation of this point. It’s just their assumption. 

So the theory you can make based on general narrative tropes is that actually the Second Throne won and now poses as Celestia, and the Archon War was basically a maneuver on their part to reduce the number of potential threats to their dominance, and the gnoses were given to the victors to monitor or control them, and the Visions are similarly given to humans to control them too (with malicious intent). 

But the problem with this is that Genshin doesn’t really follow narrative, uh, patterns. You’d think “oh, so the Inazuma prelude talks about Visions and searching for where they come from, and we had that mention of how Electro Visions aren’t given out for a year now, that means we’ll find out something about Visions in Inazuma!” Well, the answer is hell no, we find out nothing except a single line in the summonable version of Raiden where she says “lol archons have nothing to do with visions.” Same with the big statue, it’s just never explained. 

You can speculate that this is a result of rewrites or whatever, but it happens quite a bit in general. Genshin just isn’t very into building up to twists or secrets. 

So I feel like the alternative and even somewhat more likely take on the backstory is that the Primordial One DID win, but perished in the process. And that Celestia has always been working toward humanity’s own good, but humans are just too arrogant, greedy and stupid to understand. 

There is a piece of lore text that I can’t be bothered to dig up, which mentioned how the “creator” is gone and the “administrator” is having a hard time. So you’d have the creator Primordial One dead as a result of the battle with the Second Throne and the administrator Unknown God putting up a valiant if potentially losing struggle against the corruption of Bad Foreign Knowledge with methods that might be a bit much but are ultimately justified. Given the trends so far, maybe the Archon War’s devastation was based in a misunderstanding or some individual bad actors misleading everyone else. 

And, of course, all those civilizations that got wiped had it coming. They all touched Bad Knowledge they were not meant to touch, like Deshret. And like the desert people, they shouldn’t carry grudges, they should be grateful that the good, proper gods saved them. 

Worth noting is that the Sal Vindagnir people were doing something with the Irminsul and had prophecy powers of some kind, so it’s very possible they went too deep somewhere. I still recall how weirdly worded some of their lore was about how people blamed the heavens, with the implication that they weren’t necessarily right about that. And Khaenri’ah has been heavily broadcast as just being in the wrong, with stuff like stealing vishap research data from Enka thousands of years ago and the Pale Flame mask saying they “tore away the veil of sin.” The way this is going, the entire business of the population being cursed into monsters is quite possibly not Celestia’s doing at all but rather a side effect of whatever their sages and/or Gold got up to. 

Maybe this feels like a weird and almost contrived direction for the story to go, but keep in mind they’ve done three iterations of “history is written by the winners, our god was killed by the winner of the Archon War” > “actually our ancestors were saved and supported by the mercy of the Archon, we were totally wrong, we should let go of grudges and be grateful.” THREE TIMES

[dreamrecorder]

When the earth crumbles to dust.

Alternatively: "Until then, we will find each other again." <|||>

fluff & angst shot, reincarnation au, modern au

| Zhongli x Guizhong | Zhongli x Reader |

Warning: ptsd, panic attack

He came to learn of the name of the young woman with billowing sleeves. Guizhong.

Zhongli realized, that the Goddess of Dust has become a prominent turning point of his life. Back then when he lived the title of the God of War, he was vicious, cold, and unfeeling. However, because of her, such attributes mellowed and eventually died out.

When the goddess died, cutting off her final words, grief and despair washed over the man. Such emotions, he had not felt before. But because of her, he feels. He felt these foreign yet strong emotions run through him. All these emotions, for her.

Yet, it was too late, Zhongli realized.

It was hard for him to stand back up after her death in the field of wilted glaze lilies. Yet the man hardened himself, as he is the very embodiment of the earth. Thus, he protected her people and his which would later unite to what is Liyue today.

Perhaps, if he had not met her, Liyue would not exist.

However, to this day the memory of her death still haunts him. What would have she said, if she completed her final words?

'If you can unlock it-' then what? If the man was being honest, he was not sure if he wanted to hear those words. However, truth be told Zhongli does know how to complete the puzzle Guizhong had left him.

He was just scared. Afraid even. The Memory of Dust... Zhongli was afraid that if he unlocked it, it would also turn into dust, just as the goddess did. This is why he did not bother unlocking the artifact as it is his final memento of his love... Zhongli knew that the time will come when he is ready to open the artifact. As such, the God of Contracts made a contract to himself.

...

There was a time, actually, when he was ready to unlock the secrets of the Memory of Dust. However, a certain someone made him rewind his emotions of grief and longing all over again.

A woman with long, snow white hair and a pair of red eyes- along with the skill of crafting and constructing proven by the floating chamber above Liyue. Everything about that woman reminded him of Guizhong. It just pains him. In fear of feeling grief again, he avoided her as much as possible. But it didn't help him any further preparing himself to open the Memory of Dust.

So, he waited, abiding by the contract Zhongli made for himself.

...

Sipping tea, Zhongli finishes typing the last of his speech for a seminar regarding the history and culture Liyue. He leaves the cafe, with the next destination in mind- the local museum of Liyue. As a man of culture, Zhongli finds visiting the museum a pleasant experience. However, today's visit made him empty.

Just as he was gazing on a painting of glaze lilies, a young woman with billowing sleeves, stood by him.

At first, he had not paid you any attention. He only did when you spoke.

"You know... when I painted this, most of the time I think something's missing. Even now, actually."

Zhongli's gaze focused on the woman, and he swore he saw her. He gulped.

"I think... the scenery is perfect by itself already. What would you have added if you think your piece is still lacking?"

You pondered a bit, white hair shfting as your head tilted. Your red eyes, suddenly deep with wisdom.

"I don't know..." you began as doubt laced your voice. "I thought of two different scenarios before... But whatever scenario I choose, their outcome would be the same. They would make me... sad?

I'm not gonna lie, I like how this piece turned out. To others, it would seem that scene conveys serenity and happines, but to me... It just seems so... empty."

Zhongli hummed in understanding and agreement, as he, too also sees the emptiness in the painting despite the great skill and detail in it. It was missing her. The painting was empty, just like his heart. "If you don't mind, would you like to share to me what you wanted to add?"

You met the man's eyes and a flick of familiarity whirred in your head, but you ignore it. "Maybe another time? I'm just here for a quick visit the director."

For some reason, Zhongli felt disappointed. "I see. Perhaps another time then. I'm usually here every Sunday evening."

"Sure, I... I think I can work with that. See you then." And with that, you left. Leaving the man in the dust.

The next time Zhongli met you, it was another Sunday evening. When proper introductions were done, again, there was that flick of familiarity, but you did not bother. Once the both of you are seated in the benches just outside the museum, you showed him your laptop. When you did, you saw the the way Zhongli's expression shifted into a familiar sadness. It was almost like the expression you make whenever you face the empty painting.

"The field of glaze lillies, you see... I dream of it a lot. But not as the one displayed in the gallery. There were always two scenarios in the same field of glaze lillies."

Nostalgia filled Zhongli's entire being and he felt the Memory of Dust hum softly within him. It gave him a sense of comfort. The first picture was that of him and Guizhong in perfect likeness of their appearances. And the second... The second was also in perfect likeness of her death.

Observing the man's reaction. Something- sank into you. A realization. "Why... why do you look like him?"

The question brought Zhongli back to reality and quickly recovered himself, replying that it must be pure coincidence and chance. But he knows that you are her.

You were suspicious at his answer first, but brushed it off. Then your phone rang. Looking at the caller, you stood up. It was time for you to leave again.

"It seems that our time together has come to an end. As for the paintings, forget about it, would you?" Then you turned around, about to leave.

Those words... those words were also what Guizhong uttered when she-

The bench creaked as the man abruptly stood up, grabbing your wrist.

"D-don't leave..." Zhongli croaked, feeling... things again.

There was a desparation in his eyes you couldn't ignore. Your heart was beating loudly in panic. Don't leave? Why? Observing the man again, you decided that your worries were not of your priority. Zhongli began to sweat profusely, his grip tightening, his breathing labored, his body shivering, his eyes clouding.

"Shit, calm down, Zhongli. I'm not leaving. I'm not leaving..." you said with a reassuring tone as you sat the two of you on the bench. His grip was still on your wrist but you didn't mind. "Come on work with me, Zhongli. Breathe with me. There, inhale... exhale... inhale... exhale..."

Inhale...

Exhale...

Inhale...

Exhale...

You're not leaving. You're there. You're alive. You're alive. You're alive. You're aliveYou're aliveYou're aliveYou're aliveYou're aliveYou're aliveYou're aliveYou're aliveYou're aliveYou're aliveYou're aliveYou're aliveYou're aliveYou're aliveYou're alive

"You okay?" Your voice brought him back to life again. Trying to reassociate himself, Zhongli took note of his surroundings. Then, he took note of how your hands held his.

"What's this?" The question piqued his curiosity. You knelt down the floor and lifted something, but he could not see. He took another note again, his heart felt emptier. Emptier...

The Memory of Dust!

When you were back at his side again, his panic rose when he saw you holding the memento. His instonct told him to take it back, but the way you held it seemed... right.

"This... How did you get this? I had this when I was five then it suddenly went missing when I was sixteen. How did you get this?"

Zhongli steeled himself. It was now or never. "D-Don't you remember me...? Guizhong?"

And just like that, your name from long before along with the artifact unlocked the memories which presented themselves as dreams haunting you for so long.

You saw everything. A great golden dragon by your side. A man and a crane on a high mountain peak. Battles and deaths. Ballistas. The floating chamber. The death of the dragon. And most of all, the man by your side with you in a field of lovely glaze lillies.

With tears streaking your cheeks, you gingerly held the now glowing artifact. "Are you not going to open this yet?" You asked the man with a teasing grin and an equally teasing tone towards him.

Zhongli, still processing, could only blink at your question. "W-what?"

You chuckled at his state. "Has your brain finally eroded, Morax? I asked when are you going to open the Memory?"

Morax?

Zhongli swiftly pulled you into a hug as he buried his face on your shouldef. He was holding onto you for dear life as you reciprocated the gesture as well.

"It's really you..." Zhongli murmmured, voice muffled, when you took notice of the interval shivers of his body.

"Come on, please tell me those are happy tears?" You asked curiously, still caressing the long hair of his. Zhongli could only nod and you laughed once more.

The moment the man nodded, the Memory of Dust crumbled away and Zhongli understood.

A/n: brain dead thoughts empty but i need more guizhong lore but happiness is the way to go lol

[violet-t-9]

Check in on my (not very realistic) wish list for episode 135

1. The M9 eventually find a way to catch up with Lucien and Cree before they are able to go to the astral sea and at least start the combat (Bonus: Cree gets a wild magic effect that gives M9 some advantage or laughs).

Doesn’t look like it’s gonna happen. Well, I’m still personally REALLY happy that they all decided to explore a little bit much and ended up with combat lol. I love the heavy lore dump, reveals, map and the Aeorian nullifier/others combat, all part of the D&D fun.

2. Caleb and Beau somehow don’t get any extra eyes from their dreams (look, let me have some hope alright, last episode was kinda open-ended).

Noooo not on the clavicle and the palm... These stupid eyes are the reason why the empire siblings rolled bad rolls first thing in the morning, I’m telling you.

3. People on watch in the dome have some one-on-one conversations (Yasha and Fjord are doing the first watch, looking forward to it, also hoping for whoever on the second watch to talk).

Nope :( I’m a bit sad that they just kind of time skipped to the morning but it’s understandable.

4. If the empire siblings do get eyes can we at least have a morning eye check routine and Essek’s reaction to it? (Bonus: Essek examines the eye and offers help in some way)

I mean, we got part of a nice conversation about the eye so that counts as a reaction right. Essek is very wary about it, understandably. Don’t worry Essek, Fjord will take care of it if the eyes turn them evil. 

5. More wild magic effects from casting in Aeor! Jester, Essek, Caleb, Caduceus, Veth and Fjord I’m looking at y’all. (Bonus: the effects are harmless and fun ones, like Bjald)

OH NO CALEB not first thing in the morning... wow never mind it’s a nice nostalgic smell! Apple tart, how awesome. I mean a lot of people used higher level magic and didn’t roll yet (or maybe they did we just don’t know)? This particular effect was harmless and fun tho. 

6. They explore the Aeorian ruins even more along the way and discover cool relics/labs/history and lore (Bonus: clues related to the Eyes of Nine).

Ayyy genesis ward looks like a fun place, thanks to their high investigation rolls we found so much sweet lore. They also went into underground city ruins and basically wizard paradise lol. AND A BOOK ON THE SOMNOVEM! This is the first clue we have found so far. Also, Factorum Mollis project/Creator Hammer? Athodan’s rejuvenation/dunamancy? The plot thickens. THEY FOUND WHERE THEY NEED TO GO! B9!

7. Beau and Yasha have fun with some shameless PDA OR alternatively they get some super private time (bonus: cuddles in the dome).

I love their morning flirting. “That was amazing babe”, “Jump I’ll catch you!”, “Come here baby”, that’s some shameless PDA right there we love to see it. ALSO, Marisha said “we are doing PDA it’s a thing” and I feel so validated right now.

8. Jester and Fjord heal each other at least one time OR have a deep conversation (bonus: Jester complimenting Bjald).

They didn’t heal each other/converse BUT they had some nice moments! Fjord holds Jester’s ankles and waist at her request, how cute!

9. Continuing to hope for Essek’s fancy dunamantic spells OR magical items (I just love his style and flair okay).

OG Fortune’s Favour!! Thanks Essek. Identifying the keycard was also helpful. Essek giving Veth a pearl and telling her to aim it was so funny lol. LEVEL 4 LIGHTNING BOLT? What spell/item is that? Wow Essk is well-equipped.

10. They talk seriously OR laugh together about Bjald/smooth Fjord (Bonus: Veth disses Bjald just because) but Fjord eventually gets his hair back.

Wow straight out of the gate lol, Veth doesn’t wait (they are seriously expending spell slots for this). Also Veth cannot stop trying to grab his illusory hair. She also tells Devexian that Fjord is not a robot despite him not having hair I can’t even- Also, rejuvenation tube gave Bjald hair back and a long rest, great! 

11. Continuing to hope for Caleb to polymorph into anything really, or using polymorph on any party member (polymorph! Caleb interactions my beloved).

Sparrow! Caleb my beloved! “I’m adorable” indeed, he totally is adorable. Landing on Jester, Fjord and Charlie must have been fun.

12. More moments of Essek’s trust issue (OR changes in his opinion) with Charlie and more moments of Charlie being helpful to the party.

Charlie was a very competent translator! Also, Essek does continue to have a lot of trust issues. 

13. Jester and Charlie cute interactions OR Veth and Charlie interactions (Bonus: They reach the genesis ward to fix Charlie).

Charlie stopped listening when Jester asked him to, how cute! Veth also advocated for Charlie’s repair because she is already 100% attached - and they did fix Charlie I MEAN DEVEXIAN. Veth’s flirting with Devexian is... kinda cute? I guess?? Not sure how Devexian feels about it lol.

14. Cad attempting to speak with the dead on the remaining TT members (there is still Otis and Zoran right) and learning some useful information.

Well, speak with the dead was cast on the dead Aeorian warrior and some useful information was learned about the rejuvenation chamber I’d say. It was not cast on the TT members though. 

15. Caleb casting fire spell challenge! I miss his signature fire magic that we have not seen in a long time, actually (Bonus: Essek is impressed).

Well fire bolt is a fire spell and actually does decent damage for a fire bolt.

16. Cad has a particularly badass moment in or out of combat (bonus: divine intervention success).

HOLY THAT BANISHMENT WAS SO BADASS, also that canceled nat 20 on Yasha. Wow Cad continues to be cool in battles, he is such a MVP!!

17. Veth has a particularly badass moment in or out of combat (bonus: HDYWTDT).

I mean all Veth’s sneak attacks are badass in my book.

18. The wizards nerd out about/investigate Aeorian magic together OR have another conversation (look, I love how they talk to each other okay).

WOW both happened! Essek stayed behind with Caleb in the record room and had a conversation to keep him on track. Right after, Caleb also reminded Essek of the same thing. Once again, I love how they talk to each other. Their dynamic is so fascinating. They also nerd out about/found dunamis (and a literal beacon piece) together in that chamber! That would make sense, time magic = rejuvenation and all that.

19. I know this is highly unlikely but I still kinda want to see the tower again with Essek getting a full tour! I want to see his room decor.

Nope, as expected lol. I don’t think we will see the tower until they deal with Lucien? We will see though, you never know.

20. We find out what exactly Capeleb/Caleb saw when Jester was casting commune/scry (it’s totally something Artagan-related, but what though?).

Nope, but it’s fine. It’s probably not urgent, otherwise Caleb would mention it.

21. Yasha pushes another red button and Beau enabling her out of love.

Yasha went “do it” as Fjord went in the tube lol so she was more of an enabler.

22. You know the drill by now - everyone remains relatively happy and alive by the end of the episode except Lucien and Cree (they can perish), and the episode ends on a terrifying cliffhanger as always.

Wow that episode was PACKED with so much information, I can’t even digest it all. Anyways, the score this time is  14/22, which is not bad at all. 

Bonus: 

Caleb shared half of his pearls with Essek! Also, wow that IS a beacon that they just found. The 3 magic users showboating each other at the end I can’t lmao I love them.

I just love all the noises of the Aeorian Nullifier, thank you Matt.

Jester, for that wand of smiles move, I love you even more (also she was the only one who actually tried to keep the party on task lol).

This episode will certainly need some re-watching to process all the information... but wow what an experience! Loving everything, as always. I cannot wait for next Thursday!

[lairofsentinel]

Mystra

I'm so new in the Forgotten Realms lore that everything I read needs always further research. So far, what got me between disbelief and mistrust was Mystra stuff meddling with humans to such deep level. Because, really... what the fuck these Gods? I always have problems with Gods in fantasy worlds. I don't like them when they are like Greek mythology entities. I prefer them when they are a mere illusion of mortals.

However, here, in the Forgotten Realms, we got them as entities like Zeus... so they can have mortal fun. UPDATE April 2021: What it’s said in this post about shadow weave and shadow weave magic and shadow magic are incorrect. In 5e, shadow weave is not mentioned, apparently a non used concept anymore. In 4e it was collapsed with the destruction of the Weave, and Shar attempted to recreated it, failing at it because she never “was” the Shadow Weave. Shar always rejected that level of commitment. However, according to bg3 [Ethel’s words] shadow magic currently is the same as netherese magic, described by Gale/Narator also as “Primal weave” or “blackest weave”. No book from 5e says a word about shadow weave anymore. 

According to what I've read, Mystra was, in fact, a young peasant girl with non-trained skills in magic, but somehow, she became the Goddess of Magic when Netheril fell. [I need to read a lot of Netheril because apparently everything bad comes from there. It's the Tevinter of the Forgotten Realms. I honestly don't understand how you just become a goddess out of the blue. One day a mediocre mage, the next one, Goddess of the Magic itself. What a gap there.]

As a Goddess, she has a system to determine who is her “Chosen One” (hence why Gale explicitly said that word, it was not by chance). The Chosen Ones have unique access to the Weave and therefore they cast powerful magic. Among their responsibilities, they need to research new magic, wander the Realms fighting the evil (and/or doing research), and to stop the abuses of magic and the imbalances of the Weave. This makes Shar followers an easy target for them to strike so far I understand, since Shar crafted an alternative Weave (Shadow Weave) from where she drags the power that infuse into her followers. However, it's a mirror Weave, extremely dependable of the normal Weave. Like Gale explained, when Mystryl died, the Weave stopped existing, and with it, the Shadow Weave fell apart too. It seems that Shadow Weave is an aberration, an imbalance of the Weave itself. [So, Shadowheart and Gale may have strong discussions on the matter.]

The man who was Mystra’s first Chosen One was a lesser god called Azuth (we found some books of this guy in BG3). The man was his devotee (despite being a low rank deity as well), his servant, his chosen one, and later, his lover (when Mystra was still Mystryl). It seems he shifted his role to a more fatherly one when Mystra was reborn [Oook]. He also was in love with another Mystra's chosen, so... divinity polyamory we have here.

Then she proceeded to accomplish a strange plan [details of this atrocity here]: to have seven immortal Chosen. So she possessed a sorceress who conceived seven immortal women with her husband [thanks god it was with her husband and not with a random man that Mystra fancied]. These women are known as the Seven Sisters, all of them are “chosen ones” of Mystra, and in a sense, they are also her daughters. [oh, boy. Greek Gods-like stuff.]

She also named Chosen One a necromancer called Sammaster who was doing research related to metamagic and dragons. The story says that Mystra appeared before him and they “spent 10 days together”, turning him into his Chosen One for a while. She apparently had a whim to choose him because soon a previous chosen one was going to die in battle, so she wanted to sort this out sooner than later. The story also says that this encounter made the necromancer feel as though they were in love. [I see the pattern now....] What it's worth highlighting: this man went into deep undead research all his life showing that Mystra has a weird moral sense of what is good from evil, which makes sense, since (magical) knowledge by itself has no alignment. Magical knowledge is never good or evil, it depends on the use you give to it (It’s also worth noting that the previous Mystra was True Neutral while the one reborn in Midnight was Neutral Good. There are two different Mystras in history.). But returning to the necromancer, the guy, in the end, manipulated by a priest of Bane, abused of his powers of Chosen and Mystra removed them. He concluded that most of his problems have been caused by accepting Mystra's role as Chosen One. Soon after that Sammaster became evil and succumbed to madness.

In short, Mystra is a goddess who loves to play favourites, and encourages research in a competitive way using a certain degree of seduction for that. So that, the Arts and the arcane knowledge will be always expanding via competition [she has such a neoliberal-magic ideas]. So, being her Chosen One seems to bring a lot of responsibility and troubles. However, it also grants you fancy benefits:

Casting more spells with less effort. 

Natural detection of magic (maybe some residual effect of this ability is what makes Gale able to sense shadow magic in Shadowheart or in the Main Character if they are a user of magic. Hence his “that gust of weave”. Gale also presents sensitivity to detect magic via smell (mirror) and taste)

Development of magical immunities, and sometimes even poison and disease immunities.

The chosen ones become harder to kill, kind of tank-wizards. [Which feels like an oxymoron, lol.]

And the most important blessing: silver-fire [this is the fire Gale speaks about when his spell failed] Which is an overpowered ability in the Forgotten Realms. It can destroy any barrier and does massive damage. It can be cast once each hour, which is... wow. It can destroy “dead magic zones”, which are zones disconnected from the Weave and therefore, places where no common magic can be cast. With Silver-fire, such zones are reconnected to the Weave and become part of Mystra's influence once more. And finally, it allows precise teleportation once a day.

What we can infer now from this info and Gale, is that... when he got Mystra’s attention, it was not just because he was a prodigy alone. It had to be whether he was doing some research that interested her (probably not) or his fate was going to lead him to unknown knowledge in a future. Considering what he did with the netheril orb, one would say that maybe Mystra saw that event in a future, and considered it interesting enough to choose Gale as the one dealing with that bit of hidden and dangerous knowledge. Because so far I read, it’s clear she can see future or potential in a certain degree, and determine who replace her chosen ones. We also saw she favours those who explore the unknown without moral issues, and she has no reserves to exploit that by seductive ways. 

Now, unlike Sammaster, why did Gale stop being his Chosen one if his fate was to retrieve that netheril orb? I believe she removed his title of chosen one when Gale got that orb stuck in his chest, not because his action was an aberration before her eyes (we remember she is quite flexible in her morals) but because the artefact was dangerous to herself. That orb looks to me like something that imbalances the Weave in great escale; it’s basically a necrotic black hole which feeds on Weave. Maybe she removed her favour on Gale because now the man had a power that could consume her. Remember the Chosen Ones are constantly in “touch with her body/weave” [lol, horny gods these gods], and considering that thing sucks all Weave... it seems obvious that could eat her up. So, maybe, all this stuff of Gale being Chosen One was just another of her plans to access to the knowledge of that tiny bit of primal Weave, completely hidden from her, and she is expecting for Gale to resolve it in order to recover his benefits as Chosen one. 

She certainly is a super smart goddess, basically a mastermind, who doesn’t care to whom she uses and discards in order to obtain knowledge. So, using Gale this way, without explanations.... it could be one of her plans. Turn into her lover a young man that would be desperate enough to risk reaching dangerous spaces to offer her precious unknown knowledge. The plan became too dangerous to Mystra, so she severed the deep link between them out of preservation, and now she is waiting for him to solve it, offering her the knowledge obtained from the process. Absolutely possible.  

But we’ll see. So far, I know a little bit more of Mystra.

Update of several days after writing this: The more I think about all this info, the more I wonder if Mystra’s Chosen One system splits her champions into two different groups: The “valuable” Chosen Ones, where Elminster and her seven daughter fall; they are the embodiment of the good use of magic in favour of neutral or good uses. And then, you have the “disposable” Chosen Ones, who seem to be more like victims of a certain degree of manipulation of the Goddess. In this category falls the necromancer Sammaster (and potentially Gale?). They can have more grey morals, but as long as they provide new knowledge and advance in the Arts, she favours them anyways. I mean… so far I read, Elminster was never “in love” with Mystra, and all that crappy dynamics between Goddess and mortal was never part of his relationship with her. His lover, though, was one of the Seven Sisters, so maybe that’s why Mystra controlled herself. I don’t know xD [These horny gods]. But when it comes to the necromancer’s story… it feels as though she encourages this seduction so the wizard will take all the necessary risks to go beyond the limits of knowledge to get her attention and favour. There is something manipulative there. 

More content of bg3 in general [here]

[prompt-wars-in-the-stars]

Sorry it took an age! Here's the D&D Modern Star Wars AU with bonus Jango x Obi since you gave free reign with parings.

Obi-Wan was not quite sure what to expect when he had been invited to Anakin's 'campaign'.  He'd understood his little brother had began playing a role-playing game once he started college and had been happy to see how it helped Anakin bloom in confidence and his moods mellowed out as he befriended his 'party members'. Obi-Wan had gone to a game shop and the young woman working there had happily helped him purchase some dice and books for Anakin when he'd realized his brother was not going to let this hobby go anytime soon. Seeing Anakin beaming when he opened the presents had made the disbelief and judgement of the worker's worth it. Apparently Obi-Wan did not look sufficiently 'nerdy' as the teenage worker, A. Tano had explained. 

Obi-Wan was fairly certain nerd was supposed to be an insult. It certainly had when he was younger, but the girl had said it with pride and he'd seen the merchandise bearing the word. So perhaps he was just out of touch.

When he'd received Anakin's invitation, it had been a text that had been followed by 'only if you wanna', 'our DM really wants some new blood', 'we don't see each other much any', and 'IGNORE THAT IT WASN'T FOR YOU'. Obi-Wan had spotted the obvious lie and felt instantly guilty. They had been spending less time together with Obi-Wan's new book and promotions for the movie and Anakin being at college and with his friends so often. It would be a good structured way to see each other each week. Anakin had tried to be nonchalant when he'd said yes, but Obi-Wan knew he'd been grinning and vowed to make sure it was a good game and threw himself into research. 

A. Tano, who finally introduced herself as Ahsoka, had been happy to help and had turned out to be a player herself, explaining classes and races and lore to him as they looked through dice and The Player's Handbook. She'd offered to just send him her PDF's of the book, but he'd declined though it was sweet. He preferred physical books and enjoyed being able to tab and write in them. Although he did accept the many websites she directed him to that were quite helpful.

All in all with a few texts to Anakin, who sounded more and more wary of his specific game related questions, he felt quite confident in his character and emailed the DM, whose name Anakin had failed to supply, his typed up storyline and sheet for approval.

The man, presumably one of Anakin's classmates, and it was an odd thought to have a 20 something with some authority over him, had approved it and complimented his storyline with something along the lines of, 'It's always nice to have another story and roleplay player in the group. I was concerned Anakin had invited another Murder Hobo, but you will do nicely Kenobi.' Anakin had sent him a long line of 'lols'  when he'd asked what a 'Murder Hobo' was and promptly forgot to explain it as he instead asked for romantic advice. 'For a friend.' After she'd finished laughing, Ahsoka had, yet again, proved much more helpful in explaining and managed to get Obi-Wan to buy another set of dice, a lovely blue shade that glimmered and had gold numbers. He had yet to play and he was becoming quite fond of collecting the different colored sets. His first one had been 'Lawful Good' at Ahsoka's insistence.

All in all he felt confident as he drove to the address Anakin had texted him and the DM, who never signed his emails, had confirmed. He'd been expecting some first time apartment or perhaps, at worst, a dorm. Instead his GPS led him further and further into the countryside outside the city Anakin went to school, until he was turning down a gravel driveway. The road was covered in trees on both sides that bent over it, cutting off the sky as the outstretched branches blended together and pretty soon he was going up a small hill, into the large forest he had spotted from the freeway. Obi-Wan was somewhat nervous, but his GPS assured him this was correct and then he was pulling into a large lawn spotted with cars and staring at a beautiful sprawling cabin style home with a full wrap around porch, garden out of a fairytale and picturesque pond with a small pier.

That was not a college student's home, but he could clearly see Anakin on the porch talking enthusiastically to an older looking young woman with a besotted look Obi-Wan recognized. Perhaps it was one of Anakin's friends' parent's home? Obi-Wan realized he was suddenly nervous at the realization that besides Anakin, his neighbor, and his agent he hadn't really socialized with anyone since they'd moved here two years ago. That was a bit embarrassing. 

Before he could consider it too long he parked beside one of the other vehicles and saw Anakin look up and grin like the sun at the sight of him. It made Obi-Wan relax. He would be fine. For goodness sakes he was a friendly grown man he could socialize fine. He'd even been called charming on more than one occasion. 

It would be fine.

Obi-Wan hurriedly collected his binder and then grabbed the cloth bag containing the snacks. Ahsoka had insisted that snacks were a must for any game and helped him select a collection beyond Anakin's favourites. Obi-Wan got out and just managed to brace himself in time for Anakin to launch himself at Obi-Wan and wrap him in a tight hug. Obi-Wan stifled a laugh into his brother's shoulder and returned it one armed only protesting when Anakin tried to pick him up. The boy, young man now, laughed at his protest but dropped him. He looked up into familiar blue eyes on a tanned face framed by a mess of long curls and felt something inside him soften.

"Anakin," Obi-Wan said, full of affection and then to distract from it reached out to gently tug the curls. "It's gotten even longer."

Anakin rolled his eyes pulling away, grumbling but still grinning.

"Qui-Gon's was longer," Anakin pointed out,  the same argument he'd used when he said he wanted to start growing it out. "And it's nothing compared to your mullet."

"It was not a mullet," Obi-Wan protested by rote and was surprised when there was a soft feminine laugh from behind Anakin.

Obi-Wan looked over Anakin's shoulder to find a lovely young woman a few years older than his brother. Her brown hair was done up in a lovely curling style and she smiled brightly. She wore an odd dress that was deep blue dress frames with black lace with odd white square patterned corset that resembled windows on the waist. There were swirling shapes in the blue and he could see up close that the top of black bodice said "Police Box" in white lettering.

"Oh, hello there," Obi-Wan said, slightly surprised. Anakin looked askance at the greeting which made Obi-Wan want to roll his eyes. Instead though he smiled and side stepped his brother to offer the woman his hand, shifting the handle of the snack bag to his wrist. Anakin had the absurd idea that Obi-Wan was an unconscious flirt, which was ridiculous. He may have bantered with others on occasion, but it was all very lighthearted and he hadn't pursued a flirtation in years. As it was he was suspecting he had become too much of an odd hermit to be all that appealing despite Anakin's insistence of 'seductions'.

He was even convinced that Obi-Wan's neighbor had some kind of crush on him rather than a strangely intense hatred and disapproval.

'Hello there' was not his 'signature move' despite what Anakin liked to claim.

"Obi-Wan Kenobi," he said, ignoring Anakin's betrayed look as the woman shook his. Her hands were small but strong. 

"Padmé Naberrie," the woman returned with a dimpled smile of her own.

"Queen Amidala?" Obi-Wan asked, startled and Padmé looked just as surprised but then beamed laughing.

"You follow my blog?" She sounded torn between flattered and embarrassed. 

Obi-Wan nodded. "Your analysis is very thoughtful and it's been helpful for developing my more political character's thought processes as well as provoking me to consider my own--How did you put it, 'civic duty and impact on my government and holding them accountable'?"

"Oh," Padmé said with a smile and her face sharpened with interest. "Anakin mentioned you were a writer. You're focusing on something political?"

"A bit of alternate history fun," Obi-Wan admitted lightly. He was very much not thinking on the stacks and stacks of posted notes covering his desks, hours of recorded footage from documentaries, and books that were more sticky notes and highlighting than text. He was ignoring the hours and hours of time thrown into research spirals.

"What are you changing?" Padmé asked, eyes bright and interested. 

Obi-Wan opened his mouth to answer but was cut off by a loud clap beside them. They both turned to find Anakin standing there hands together looking embarrassed and vaguely panicked. Obi-Wan stared, confused as his brother went pink and started speaking, rushed and stumbling.

"Alright. Don't wanna be late for game!" Anakin choked up and ducked between them grabbing Obi-Wan's arm. "COME ON OBI-WAN YOU CAN SIT BESIDE ME."

Obi-Wan allowed himself to be dragged, stunned by this but Padmé laughed lightly behind them. He noted the color on Anakin's face deepened at the sound and he felt something inside him soften. He had not imagined the besotted look then and he had most likely found the one behind the advice for Anakin's 'friend'. 

Obi-Wan hid a small smile as he followed Anakin inside. It was loud, though the noise seemed to be coming from down the stairs to the immediate right. The first thing Obi-Wan saw was a very comfortable living room with some weapons hung on the wall, one wall reserved for what appeared to be an album's worth of family photos, a large TV, and several glass cases that seemed to contain figurines and models. Children's toys were scattered haphazardly throughout and this along with the colorful quilts, the homework and crayons spread out on the coffee table, and baby pen folded in the corner seemed to soften the room.

Obi-Wan's smile stayed firm until he looked at the man in the middle of the room who was collecting the scattered toys to place in a box. Clearly older, closer to Obi-Wan's age and likely the parent of Anakin's friend. Obi-Wan opened his mouth to greet him only for the man to look up and for Obi-Wan to come face to face with familiar brown eyes.

His words died.

The man looked just as stunned--even more handsome than when Obi-Wan had last seen him, part of him pointed out--half bent over, one hand wrapped around a stuffed dragon and the other stabilizing the toy box he was carrying. He was slightly rumbled in soft worn-in sweatpants that clung to his thighs and a white tank top that fully displayed his arms. The outfit was finished by a lopsided crown of dandelions and wildflowers, resting on his head. He looked so much softer, older of course with wrinkles around his eyes and a few small scars, but there were smile lines and he looked so much more in his element in a way that made Obi-Wan's heart squeeze and a worry he'd carried for two decades unfurled.

"Obi-Wan?" Anakin's voice knocked them both out of the staring. Obi-Wan jumped and turned to Anakin to find him frowning and then flickering a quick look to the man. "Do-do you know Jango?"

He sounded so baffled by the concept.

Obi-Wan honestly wasn't sure how to answer or how much was his to share.

"We're old friends," Jango said smoothly stepping forward to offer his hand and a smile as he met Obi-Wan's gaze.

Obi-Wan took it, feeling the warmth and calluses of his palms without quite believing this surreal moment was happening.

"Yes," Obi-Wan confirmed, voice thankfully not showing the strange mess of his thoughts. His eyes were focused on Jango's taking in the color he'd used to know so well. "Very old ones."

The warmth lingered as the broke apart and Obi-Wan felt strangely bereft at that and curled his palm closed as if to keep the memory of the sensation from fading.

"Time for game," Jango said, firmly and Anakin looked ready to protest, but a soft touch on his shoulder had him following Padmé down the stairs leaving Obi-Wan alone with one last suspicious glance.

Alone with Jango. Who he hadn't seen since he was sixteen and completely besotted.

[hackedmotionsensors]

Hey I feel like you’ve already answered this but what are some of your favorite iron man or Captain America comics and why? What story lines would you recommend? I’m curious about the more modern stuff. What’s some of your fav comic artists when it comes to marvel?

OKAY SO. 

holy shit this got long so UNDER THE READ MORE WE GO

This is always kind of a hard question to answer because I personally have not read everything in regards to either Iron man or Captain America. I’ve read the Tales of Suspense stories a lot because I keep trying to start over from the very beginning. And that’s not always helpful if you just wanna dip your toes or give Iron Man/Cap a go.

So what I CAN tell you is here’s what I did when I was first getting into comics around 2012.

I went to Borders/Barnes and Noble and a I read a bunch of the compilations they had in the store. Someone has already done the work FOR you so its really easy to just pick up a book and read from there. 

I started out with Invincible Iron Man  (I’m gonna link to Amazon but I suggest not buying from them because Bezos is a demon [comixology is owned by amazon as well but it is a convenient app]) 

Marvel has its own comics app but if you also read and pay for other comics its not ideal. There are places to “read comic books online” and for older stuff I definitely do this now but for newer comics I’ll try to pay for them especially if its indie. Support indie comics!!! 

Anyway. Invincible Iron Man. A polarizing story in terms of Iron Man lore. But its definitely an easy one to get into and read especially if you’re coming in from MCU and are just testing things. You don’t necessarily need to know all of his history but it covers the basics. 

Next I’d try Demon in a Bottle It’s the original alcoholism arc. A must read for general Tony’s lore. This isn’t the one where he ends up a hobo on the street where Cap helps him escape from a burning building. But this is where he goes off the rails the first time. Bethany Cabe is his current girlfriend and tries to help him. And he kind of recovers. I’m not sure this is exactly a FAVORITE but it has a lot of the important shit for Tony. His temper is something that doesn’t get talked a lot about I think but he DEFINITELY has one. The art is very..........lol its not BAD per say but its also not like wow what gorgeous art. 

Another important Tony lore is Armor Wars So you wanna read the first few times Tony and Steve fight about REAL SHIT. This is it. This is the classic story where he realizes his tech is being used by bad guys and HE’S THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN STOP THEM NO CAP NOT EVEN YOU BECAUSE YOU’RE A GOOD GUY AND I MIGHT HAVE TO GET DIRTY. It has the classic Steve sitting in a dark room waiting for Tony to come back with his date and then throwing his shield at Tony going “I don’t want your trash”

It also has a lot of good Tony being in a morally grey area. *chef’s kiss* 

And then basically read all the fun stuff with Kurt Busiek in Vol 3 (This isn’t an amazon link but the marvel database so you know roughly where to start) 

VOLUME THREE HAS SUCH HITS LIKE

The Sentient Armor: Tony accidentally kills Whiplash in a lightning storm. The Armor comes to life. The armor falls in love with Tony and WANTS TO BECOME ONE WITH TONY. Tony does not want this. Tony is beat up and kidnapped and taken by the armor to a deserted island. The Armor is like Tony I love you so much GET IN ME NOW. Tony is about to die from a heart attack. The armor RIPS ITS HEART OUT AND SHOVES IT INTO TONY. Bye Tony I love you now we’re one forever. RIP

Tiberius Stone’s 2 arcs (they’re not in consecutive order but they’re both hella gay): Tony’s old boarding school friend shows up again and is a TV mogul and is DEFINITELY NOT Slandering Tony in the press or blowing up his buildings or framing him for MURDER oh my god Tiberius is a pain in the ass and we definitely boned down as teenagers but he would never frame me for MURDER but his TV devices that seep into your brain like the boob tube thing from Batman Forever are pretty suspicious. Oh no Tiberius IS a bad guy and he got me naked (why?) and hooked the both of us up to the TV machine and now we’re trapped in his horny tv dream why am I dressed like Alice in Wonderland???  ALSO HE SLEPT WITH MY GIRLFRIEND!!!!??

(This is why I will FOREVER get upset that Killian in Iron Man 3 isn’t Tiberius Stone. He IS LITERALLY FOLLOWING THE TIBERIUS STONE PLAYBOOK INCLUDING THE PHYSICAL LOOK WHAT THE ACTUAL HELL MARVEL CINEMATIC UNIVERSE FEIGE YOU OWE ME MONEY!!!!)

Also at the beginning of Vol 3. Tony gets the absolute holy hell bejesus shit beat out of him. And that lasts for a WHILE and seeps into the Avengers Vol 3 (which you should also read its fun and I like that George Perez actually tries to make people look ethnically diverse but also you can tell Clint from Cap)

There’s also a part in vol 3 where Monica from FRIENDS shows up at a party and that’s a wild thing that happened.

But basically I think you can start just about anywhere with Iron Man and have a good time if you’re a deep Tony fan. He has a lot of great stories and its why he’s my favorite. Even this last run with Slott I still KIND OF LIKE ANYWAY??? bc its Tony. Its not always written to what a lot of long standing Iron Man fans would say is canon but I mean.....he’s got 57 years worth of comics behind him so he’s bound to change here and there. He was once a super villain, died, brought over as a teenager from an alternate timeline, and then merged with another Tony I forget the details but its silly lol

Side universe reading Iron Man Noir, Ultimates (Hickman’s run is very fun but also Ultimates 1 and 2. DO NOT READ ULTIMATUM IT IS GROSS, I HAVE READ IT FOR YOU ALMOST EVERYONE DIES ITS GROSS.

Ultimates is literally half of the basis for the MCU. Don’t read Ultimates Iron Man tho. Not only is it written by a creep its also extremely stupid and doesn’t even really make sense in terms of what happens later in Ultimates. It basically gets RetConned immediately.

Also Ultimates universe has Gregory Stark. Tony’s fun evil twin brother who for some reason is blonde. I can’t really give you a specific story to read with Ultimates because its the most god awful confusing universe to try and find stories from so I literally don’t even remember. I’d check an Ultimates fan blog for that.

AS FOR CAPTAIN AMERICA.

I love Steve Rogers. I really do. I think he’s a fun character. B U T. His comics for me can be very boring. He has some great arcs as someone who is supposed to be a representation of what a GOOD AMERICA can aspire to or whatever. But America often times SUCKS A LOT (our current times being very obvious). Cap definitely fights for what he believes and so that’s why he often takes off the garb of Captain America and runs around in a slutty v neck and a cape as Nomad. Or when he comes back from the dead and his BFF is the new Cap (WITHA  KNIFE) and wears the sexy Secret Avengers uniform. Very sexy. We stan the Colonel Rogers uniform very much. But his early comics are a lot of “OH MY GOD I KILLED BUCKY ITS ALL MY FAULT BUCKY!!!!! RICK JONES PUT ON BUCKYS CLOTHES THIS ISNT CREEPY I PROMISE”

A GREAT run in Avengers is the Cap’s Kooky Quartet or as I call Cap Joins the Baby Sitters Club. This goes WAYYYYYY back to Avengers 17 

It runs for a very good while before Giant-man and Wasp come back because Giant Man can’t shrink back down lmfao idiot. But its a lot of fun and establishes Cap as being a really good leader even tho he’s thrown into the hot seat because he was out on a mission and everyone else was like “We’re taking a vacay bye Cap. Good luck with the kids” *John Mulaney doing Andy Cohen impression* HUH WHAT WHY

I have no idea what to Rec really lol I know @sineala is part of a SteveTony 616 discord and they do readings every month(?) of either very SteveTony based arcs or specifically Steve or Tony arcs. But I think they have a better grasp of Steve stories than I do.

I would say most recently the run with Mark Waid and Chris Samnee as the artist is a VERY good read. The story is pretty nice and dry lol but the art. Holy shit.

I know there are a bunch of artists that really REALLY get Cap but Chris Samnee is probably my number one favorite Cap artist. Even his sort of retro style works with Cap SO WELL. And I like Mark Waid’s writing. Or at least I don’t think I’ve ever been really mad at it like with Dan Slott or Gillen (We will never forgive for what he did to Tony’s backstory and taking Maria from him) lol

Uh...but as far as I could tell the entire run where Bernie is his girlfriend is VERY good. She first shows up in Captain America 247 . Cap is an illustrator on the side (or as his main job) and man what a dope. His art habits are worse than mine like get a desk Steve. But this arc through Bernie goes through a lot of Steve being kind of stuck in the past and not knowing how to embrace the modern or future and Bernie is there being the coolest fucking chick in the world who’s studying to be a lawyer, watches Wrestling, listens to Bruce Springsteen (I think lol I forget), dunks on Cap for being a weirdo old dude. Very put together woman of the 80s. She proposes to Cap and because I think the writers changed he’s like I HAVE TO LEAVE IMMEDIATELY BYE. 

This isn’t on any of the main timelines but its a good read Captain America Man Out Of Time. Basically Cap coming to grips with the future and realizing the past sucked ew. lol Also he listens to Radiohead which Tony gives him a personal concert for because of course he does.

And then of course there’s this fucking TOME of a story Captain America: The Winter Soldier .

Im gonna sound a little negative but I don’t mean it against anyone’s favorite but I have the most exhausting time trying to read this story. I’ve tried at least three times lol. I think maybe Brubaker’s weird obsession with the Cold War (Remember when he called people who were yelling at Slott for being a creep a ‘Bunch of Commies’) is just so fucking heavy handed that I can’t personally get through it. I would much rather watch the movie.

HOWEVER. There’s good old Bucky coming back from the dead. Natasha. Sam Wilson. Sharon Carter. All big players in this story. So uh lol good luck with this one. If you’re also a Bucky fan this is a must read but as I only peripherally like Bucky I don’t care to read this one. 

So I’d check out this arc.

Also a personal fave of mine is 

It starts here on Captain America 402 . Its the best story IN THE WORLD. ITS SO ICONIC. NOTHING CAN COMPETE. I LOVE CAPWOLF SO MUCH lol

[madfictionland]

S4 Worries - Things We All Wanted To See But Probably Won’t

- Glossaryck being seriously questioned for all of his bullshit

- Septarians, Septarsis! like... what even IS Septarsis? A world? A dimension? A dimension without magic? A place on Mewni? Seriously

- when exactly did the Septarians develop the advanced tech?

- Seth/Toffee connection

- more about Toffee and why his name was Toffee? things like Toffee’s return, Toffee in flashbacks, his history with Eclipsa/Globgor, anything please

- Great Monster Massacre and the truth about Mewni’s origins, literally the missing pages of the Book of Spells, hmm

- Blood Moon connection to the bigger plot..... yeah yeah lol, no connection, in the end it’s a random curse used to fuck with Starco and extend the shipping drama

- more Globgor once he is actually free

- Realm of Magic explained, with its origins, bigger mythos or something, and don’t forget the scary dark magic unicorn from S3 climax

- blocked entrance to one of the worlds in the Realm of Magic (Septarsis?) 

- the DAMN floor at St Olga’s

- Ludo and his brother in a decent arc

- why the heck Rasticore grew a full hand and an eye now????

- decent pay-offs for everything shipping related that happened in S3: less drama, more conclusion, more plot/explanations, plot moving forward

- maybe a cool “free time on Earth” episode or two, and we get to see Jackie, school, sensei, and Marco’s home (no drama involved)

- Mina as the crazy antagonist who needs to be dealt with

- generally, a decent ultimate antagonist for S4 who acts in the shadows and needs to be faced, whether that’s Seth, Glossaryck or something else

- Glossaryck’s plans/backstory, maybe a flashback even

- Marco’s magic/cheeks

- Monster arm return, like seriously, at least one episode right?

- Eclipsa’s father/mysterious captain painting explained (to explain that the captain was her father yet leave the painting unexplained in the show... now that’s the worst scenario because... am I supposed to think Eclipsa turned her daddy into a painting with dark magic? lol)

- it’s pretty clear, like 95%, that they’re aiming for Starco to be endgame so... just make it a thing, make it flow naturally now, after all the build-up from S3, and make room for other things than shipping wars

- literally, more of this for the gang and some adventures in new places/dimensions, not just Mewni:

- so yeah, make Pony at least somehow attractive as Star’s supportive friend and not a selfish bitch, and give Tom some happiness, personal growth and fulfillment, free of shipping drama baggage (also: a cool new outfit!)

Instead, here is what we got and will possibly get...

- more shipping wars, now totally forced (tomstar, kelco, starco, tomco, both for forced drama and lighthearted almost meme-like jokes)

- Star ignores both Marco’s and Tom’s feelings, she is a shitty girlfriend and kind of shitty friend (if we consider the quality of writing this season), she completely ignores the situation that she created for both of them, maybe it’ll change but who knows...

- Starco will most likely become canon but only during the ending segments of the show

- more LGBT angles for LGBT crowd (I don’t mind it but I must admit: it gets kind of annoying when it gets featured purely for kicks but *other* things, developed and hinted at much earlier, become a letdown, + we get the needless shipping drama extended beyond limit)

- Eclipsa’s “kingdom struggle”, probably the best part delivered so far

- Glossaryck fucks with everyone and it’s apparent now, although who knows whether there will be actual story to be seen here or not...

- more monster/mewman politics and possibly a good ending for both sides

- some cool Ludo episodes but not sure about arc with brother

- Tom has issues as a mummy boy so I hope he can at least move beyond that and gain some agency by the end of the season

- more shipping drama and *Starco needs to be “rediscovered” anew without a curse*... gosh

- at least something about Septarsis *pretty please*

- Eclipsa and Globgor’ full backstory

- some shenanigans with time/multiverse/dimensions? (this could be great OR this could suck big time, only time will tell)

- possibly Earth episodes at some point, after Eclipsa’s official coronation and peaceful happy ending? after Star no longer needs to care about the kingdom so much? although filled with, guess what... shipping drama I assume? which at last leads to official starco, towards the very end and too little too late, all plot points considered

CONCLUSION:

This is my expectations at this point, based on what we saw so far of S4. Not even a decent final season to otherwise an amazing, deep show, if you ask me - both in terms of bigger plotline and relationships, the quality of S4 so far and the approach it took seem questionable. Really surprising how it turned out... considering the release of Book of Spells (lore, lore, lore...) and everything that the show did during S3 in order to set a solid ground for official Starco and resolution of the shipping dramas. I’ll keep my expectations low (sadly) and try to imagine there is an alternate universe somewhere out there where the S4 poster and lore from the Book of Spells are actually indicative of the final season, not empty premises. I mean... what could have been, right? Right?

[tainbocuailnge]

The fandom you're in looks really awesome, and the reason I followed you is it the cooler that comes with it, but I have no idea what it's about or what the actual game is? Is there a place I can go to kind of find out and maybe play myself? (You're so passionate about it that I'm starting to get really curious but google is my enemy)

I’m GUESSING you mean fate series cause that’s my number one thing I do not shut up about. it’s uhh kind of a spiraling mess of a series but most installments are standalone enough for it to not be a complete hell to get into, but also I’m glad you asked because getting in without help is definitely hell

fate started with the visual novel fate/stay night, written by kinoko nasu and released in 2004. as such that’s the best starting point in my opinion, because it features all the detailed worldbuilding groundwork that later installments kind of gloss over so it can be hard to go back to if you already know all that from other installments. the plot is that seven magi summon legendary heroes to fight for them in a ritual war, with the prize being the holy grail which can grant any wish. leading themes are what it means to be a hero and save someone, the way history repeats itself, and forming your own identity in the wake of trauma. it has three routes, the last of which especially has really heavy themes of physical emotional and sexual abuse so if you need detailed content warnings pm me and I’ll do my best

fsn has several releases, the original vn features infamously bad erotica but there’s a rerelease called fate/stay night [realta nua] which replaced those scenes with pg-15 content and also tightened the visuals up a bit. I’ve got downloads for both versions here. it’s like 80 hours of vn so that’s quite the investment but there’s also the anime fate/stay night [unlimited blade works] featuring the second route, and the third route is getting a series of movies the first of which is out too, called heaven’s feel - presage flower. fate route (the first route) sort of got an anime in 2006 and unlimited blade works a movie in 2010 but those are really really bad so look for the 2014 anime and 2017 movie. imo the ubw anime did a decent job and heaven’s feel is doing pretty good too so far so they’re good for seeing if you like what the series has to offer before you dive into a long ass vn.

the prequel to fate/stay night is fate/zero, a light novel series written by gen urobuchi in collaboration with nasu. as such it’s notably darker than the rest of the series but by nature of being a prequel it makes for an equally decent starting point as stay night, since both will spoil things for the other. fate/zero has an anime too. 

imo stay night and zero are the ‘standard’ fate installments, if someone says they like fate you can safely assume they’ve consumed at least one of those - is what I used to say but apparently it’s been so long that even this isn’t a reasonable assumption anymore. oh how times have changed. anyway please do start with zero or stay night cause like I said those are earlier installments so they’re at high risk of falling flat if you already know the deep lore from later stuff.

the biggest most booming fate installment is fate/grand order, a mobile game featuring characters from all other fates as well as a lot of newcomers. it’s pretty newbie friendly in terms of lore I think but you’ll get more out of it if you do know the background for all these characters since character development tends to carry over between installments. it’s infamously story heavy for a mobile game, especially in the later chapters when nasu got the hang of writing for mobage. the tone is also notably different from fsn and fz in that it’s more…. grandiose and theatrical, and obviously it waifs everyone up a bit so they can get you to spend money. still good tho. still love it. it’s got two anime specials, first order and moonlight lostroom, but first order makes no damn sense if you don’t know anything of stay night and lostroom takes place after the events of the first fgo arc. there’s anime projects of two of the chapters in progress too.

you thought that was all? you’re a fool this isn’t even half of it but I’ll briefly go over the rest under a cut cause those 3 are the big players.

carnival phantasm is a comedy OVA series featuring skits about several works from the same author. about half of it is about fate and the other about tsukihime, an earlier visual novel. watching order is after stay night. today’s menu for the emiya family is the canon domestic fsn au manga and anime where everyone’s just chilling eating dinner together instead of killing each other. 

fate/hollow ataraxia is another visual novel. it’s a direct sequel to fate/stay night and a personal favourite. it takes place half a year after stay night and features much of the same themes, but from a pair of characters who lost the war in fsn before it even started.

fate/apocrypha is another series of light novels. in terms of reading order i’d put it after stay night and zero. it features a cast twice as big as those two and basically approaches the same themes from a different angle. it’s got a finished anime and an ongoing manga but the anime kinda butchered pretty much everything about it. unfortunately one of the light novels is still not translated so the anime is still the most accessible way to get approximately the whole story. the manga IS very good though so once that’s finished I’d probably tell people to read that one if they want to apocrypha

fate/EXTRA is a psp game it’s like 10 bucks in the ps store iirc. for reading order I’d put it after stay night but not necessarily after zero. in this one the ritual for the holy grail is held in a simulation on the moon, which is a supercomputer, and it’s an organised tournament with 128 participants instead of a 7 man free for all. it’s about forging meaningful bonds in a system designed to drive people apart and finding the drive to keep going even if nothing is certain. the gameplay isn’t great but the story is $$$ it’s my other personal favourite. it’s sequel is called fate/EXTRA CCC, it’s on psp too but never got a western release, but there’s a translation of one route out there and some madmen are working on a translation patch that’ll be done in time for my grandchildren I hope. CCC is the wildest ride of my life i love it a lot but it’s very horny so not really for everyone. fate/extra CCC fox tail is a manga which follows an alternate CCC route and i hear it’s cool. the sequel to CCC is fate/EXTELLA which did come to the west and is on several platforms, and somewhere next year fate/EXTELLA link should get localised. extella is very rushed and mostly expands the extraverse world but if you can grab it on sale after you decided you like extra it’s not a bad buy just don’t pay full price. fate/EXTRA last encore is an anime which. sort of comes after extra? it’s very trippy arthouse bullshit and I ate that shit up but it’s definitely not for everyone. the last 3 episodes are missing on netflix so make sure you don’t miss those if you decide to watch.

fate/kaleid liner PRISMA ☆ ILLYA is a magical girl spinoff manga & anime which sounds great in theory until you see it’s mostly pedobait, but extremely unfortunately for us sometimes it does something legitimately cool so we all suffer. don’t get into prillya it’s bad for your health. 

fate/strange fake WAS an aprils fools story but this series has no limits so now it’s a full on light novel spinoff and also manga I think? I don’t keep up with it but it throws some wild ass lore our way sometimes. you’ll probably want to be up to date with apocrypha and everything before it before you try this one.

fate/prototype was just the original concept for fsn extrapolated a bit upon but again this series has no limits. prototype has an animated feature and some material books, and then the light novels fate/prototype fragments of blue and silver are the prequel to prototype, but it’s weird cause we never got a proper prototype so I don’t know what’s up with that. fate/labyrinth is a side story to fragments which I know even less about. I actually never see anyone talk about prototype so there’s probably no translations lol

lord el melloi II case files is even more light novels. I’m pretty sure you need to have gone over stay night, zero, hollow ataraxia, apocrypha, and strange fake before this one starts to make sense. there might be translations? i don’t know a fucking thing my guy