#will probably have to edit the tags cuz I forgor

[maxolotl7089]

Result of the expression board challenge. Have some sketches of my sona (new ref coming eventually)

[rtgame-fun-facts]

RTGame Fun Fact #15

RT is 100% a licensed doctor & surgeon. you can 100% trust him to operate on you.

[msommers]

1, 3, 11, 14, 19 for riya, meredith and ellana?

ok so like. ignore the time it took me to get to these. i was in fact thinking of them constantly but the act of actually typing?? horrendous. // oc asks: roots edition

1. How many living parents does your OC have? If they're alive, where are they now and what's your OC's relationship with them? If they're dead, how did they die?

RIYA — two! both of Riya's parents are still living in the ancestral Clairmont estate back in Cumberland, thank goodness. Riya is the biggest daddy's girl known to Thedas, they've been nearly attached at the hip since she was born as she's Loren’s only daughter and youngest child. they had matching outfits, practically a language of their own with all of the in-jokes and references, and she felt safe talking to him about anything and everything. she's not nearly as close with her mother, but their relationship is still good. i think Riya sometimes perceives it as being a little worse than it is, but that's just because she's somebody who craves frequent displays that show how somebody feels about her. Priscilla sacrificed a whole new palatial estate to the Circle of Magi just so Riya could grow up in the comfort she was used to, never truly punished her for shunning her studies and responsibilities, and started pulling on every resource to protect her after the frame job. there's no doubt they love each other with all of their hearts, but Priscilla has trouble with vulnerability and emotional expression, and Riya struggles with the high standards/expectations from her. 

MEREDITH — first of all: you're sick and twisted for this. second: zero 💚 they were both casualties of Rendon Howe’s coup. i personally, me myself and i, believe Rendon would have been too much of a cowardly, slimy fuck to be face-to-face with any Cousland when it all kicked off, so i believe that Bryce suffered a fatal stab wound from one of Howe's stealthier soldiers and subsequently bled out in the larder before being found. as for Eleanor?? i'm having a tough time with this one and have been for the whole week it took me to finally get back here. as of right now, i'm fucking with the idea that Eleanor was able to wipe out a small group of the attackers before Rendon finally showed up with his own squad of goons, and she died from one of them stabbing her in the back after she'd gotten far too close to taking Rendon down in a rush attack. i simply find it hard to believe the woman who took down a warship at the age of fifteen would've laid down and died, or been unable to get at least one good strike at the man who filled her with such a powerful vengeance. clearly the fuck didn't die there, but i like to think he spent a good few months recovering from the wound Eleanor left him on her way out.

ELLANA — you'd think after all these years i would have her clan figured out but i kinda forgor 💀 i think her parents would be alive! given who Ellana is, i imagine her family (and clan overall) would hold similar values and they'd lead kinder lives that allow them more peace from outside dangers. i know she'd be a family focused woman so she would have a good relationship with both parents, perhaps closer with her mother just cuz. if i end up making a post in the next few days with a bunch of brand new dalish elves hot off the presses this is your fault (affectionate)

3. How did your OC feel the first time they left home? Why did they leave?

RIYA — answered here!

MEREDITH — first time she left home probably would've been joining her father on teyrn business to visit some bann or other, tagging along because of a young girl's curiosity. likely could have been the first trigger to her becoming interested in politics, bombarding Bryce with questions on the carriage ride to their destination and then somehow finding even more once they were there because she found the business so fascinating. it would have undoubtedly been exciting for her from the jump, and only gotten better the further along they went as she started to learn more and more about the people of the teyrnir and her father's responsibilities. 

ELLANA — her clan is one of the rare groups to engage in occasional trade with humans and i imagine this soft-hearted clown would've enjoyed taking part in those ventures, i'll count that as technically leaving home because i'm sure it was at least a week’s worth of time spent traveling out and engaging. she was eager to go! it would have meant a great deal to her that she was being entrusted to join the journey as a protector for those who were going along, and she wouldn't deny feeling a bit of a thrill at the idea of interacting with non-dalish for the first time. 

11. What was your OC scared of as a child? Are they still scared of that?

RIYA — answered here!

MEREDITH — Aldous doesn't strike me as the type of teacher to censor or lighten history for the sake of a young mind, which i'm sure Meredith would've been grateful for in her young adult years and onward, but as a child she was often worrying herself to sleeplessness over the dreadful—and sometimes downright evil—acts of humankind. the Orlesian occupation and subsequent war to regain Ferelden’s independence was filled with enough horror stories on its own to fuel her nightmares for years on end. this all probably contributes to her later development of paranoia tbh, but let's not examine that rn. i’d say around her origins era that she’s still holding onto those fears, but she has the added fun and lucky experience of getting to learn that her own countrymen are just as capable of their atrocities.

ELLANA — i think she would have been fortunate enough to avoid any serious fears as a child, in part due to her innate bravery and another to her clan having a more gentle history compared to many others. perhaps a fear of heights, which she'd definitely gotten over by the time the inquisition came around (hi mage barrier + flinging self off a cliff to avoid finding a path combo <3) ((she wouldn't like. Literally do that but it's funny)). something super specific but i feel suits her as she's spent so long in the woods: a forest going silent. not something i think she'd have gotten over, and just the idea of it makes her feel on edge. like what the fuck do you mean all of the wildlife and even the wind has gone quiet because Something Is Coming, that’s always scary. 

14. Who was your OC's first love? How do they remember that person now?

RIYA — a noble boy that started training under her brother, Regulus, when she was in her teens. he was a young warrior-in-training with lofty aspirations of gaining glory through acts of altruism and heroics—basically he was a startup version of the heroes she'd grown up hearing stories of from her own family history and other various tales of daring, so naturally she had to pounce on that with all the finesse a 15-year old Riya possessed. it worked because she was pretty and heaped on all of the praises a young fighter would love to hear from a girl (not to mention there's a high chance they already knew each other from running in the same social circles), but it wouldn't have lasted very long. they had a good month or two of a fun and frivolous relationship, but Riya had gotten her first hook-up and that sparked her long-lasting habit of fooling around with a partner until she was abruptly ready to drop them and move on in search of another. she would have been adamant then and would still be now that just because their connection was brief, it doesn't mean her love for him wasn't real (it was a shallow thing entirely based off of her [unsurprisingly] getting horny about a young hero in the making but hey! still counts). i'd say she remembers him fondly because i don't imagine it ended in a Disastrous way. all she's got of him are good memories of early practices for her flirting skills, eagerly observing warrior training, and a judgment-free first sexual experience that probably gave them both a good confidence/happiness boost.

MEREDITH — if there's one thing about me it's that i'm gonna push my “Meredith and Gilmore were childhood sweethearts” agenda whenever i'm handed the opportunity, because i can't be convinced that it's not adorable as hell. a little lady and a young squire?? cuties. babies. must be protected. nothing too serious really but they were in their early teens and had grown up together, having that close bond made it easy to slip into crushes once they hit puberty. he fancied himself her protector and she found it incredibly romantic, as a young noble girly is wont to do. he also knew how to make her laugh, could tell when she was hiding irritation from others to be polite, and took her seriously (which we all know is monumental to a teen girl who has Ideas and Opinions). unfortunately, most of the time when Meredith allows herself the space to remember him, she thinks back to his promise that he would be at her side until she had all of Ferelden wrapped around her finger. makes it harder to face the fact that she’s taking those steps without him, even if she’s managed to find support in others. she’s fond of the times when she can think of him and focus only on his loyalty and courage, rather than the other Horrors which plague her even a decade on. we don’t talk about Fort Drakon <3

ELLANA — the Second of her clan, a girl named Mirisa. a severe case of puppy love that lasted quite a while on both sides. Ellana was practically born with a deep respect and awe for mages, so i imagine that contributed to her developing a crush and subsequently taking any excuse under the sun to be present for Mirisa’s practicing or training so that she could observe the magic. their favored way of wasting the time away and being together was going off to relax under the shade of some tree or other, Ellana with her head in Mirisa’s lap, content listening to the Second ramble on about all she was learning from the Keeper that week. most of the arcane talk went over her head (though she engaged with it as best she could), but her favorite topics were the various tidbits of history that she wasn't learning about in her own teachings. they're probably still friends by the time Ellana is sent to the Conclave tbh and she looks back at their little love affair as an adorable example of harmless, innocent romance. it brings a smile to her face recalling the little moments of sneaking chaste kisses when nobody was looking, or them giggling at nothing simply because they were giddy being near one another. 

19. What traditions or stories does your OC carry forward from their childhood to the rest of their life?

RIYA — answered here! 

MEREDITH — i’m sitting here trying to come up with a condensed list or something but it’s like. take one look at this woman and you know she’s carried and cataloged literally everything she’s ever been told or learned herself through her entire life. she has names of nobility and military figures memorized from wars and conflicts that haven’t mattered in who knows how long. she’s hoarded knowledge on ancient and abandoned Fereldan traditions just for fun. she can recite the entire timeline of the Cousland family back to its origin and give you cute little blurbs on most, if not all, of the family members. she’s a fucking nerd with an obsession to Know Things due to the assumption that knowledge is power enough to keep her safe and in control, she’s not letting anything slip the mind palace.

ELLANA — naturally she carries and maintains the vir tanadhal as both a dalish and a hunter, feeling more attuned to the vir bor'assan (bend but never break. "as the sapling bends, so must you. in yielding, find resilience; in pliancy, find strength.") out of the three. the vir banal'ras (aka dalish calling for a blood debt to be paid) wasn’t something she clung to very much as a kid but the memory of it came rushing back and became very important to her on a handful of occasions during her time as agent/inquisitor. she wasn’t as religious or spiritual as some of the others from her clan, but she still carried out the traditional ways of worship for the evanuris as any good dalish would.

[sunlightcremator]

Sword, Staff, & Tasha? (　。｀‿　´　。　)

Σ(°△°|||)︴ Oh hi, I forgor the context for this but scrolling a bit reminded me. I'll copy Xeno's homework and do 5e and PF here: Sword - 5e: This is really tough. I had the most fun playing a Sorlock, but I wouldn't say I love either of those classes (Sorcerer or Warlock), just that they both have really cool multiclass tools. I like Monk cuz punching is cool, but I don't at all like how 5e Monk is designed. Fighter is boring but is a fun 2-3 level dip too, but probably Wizard takes it - having tons of spells prepared + known and a massive spell list is fun for weird combos. Sword - Pathfinder: UC Monk so far for sure. The Ki powers are a lot of fun to mess around with and flying kick makes full attacking more fun (even if I don't like it being near mandatory). Alchemist was fun to build but being required to pre-buff every fight is boring. Brawler comes in a close second so far cuz of martial flex but my brawler doesn't even have that. Staff - 5e: Caster I think, but it's complicated. I actually prefer the flavor/RP for melee for the most part, but 5e melee don't actually have much to do unless you want to grapple, they sorta just smack things. Usually I made subclasses with mini-games to help with this but it doesn't really solve the issue. The main thing though is that low-level spells/cantrips are easy to get, fun if you build right, and you can pivot into up to 6th-level spells later on to still be useful, so it's what all my characters tended to do. Staff - Pathfinder: Martial here for sure. You've got a lot more options here than just grappling/full attack, even if a lot of them aren't viable without heavy investment. Build options for martials are way more invested as well, lots more ways to interact with the game basically. Casting is fine but doing gish builds is rough unless it's built into the class so nah. Tasha - 5e: Way too many spells here that are fun to use, even if most of them are only fun because they're over tuned. Shield, Absorb Elements, Mirror Image, Misty Step, Minor Illusion, Booming Blade, Wall of Force. Lots to think about since I prefer a lot of my homebrew babies, but I think Hex probably takes it. I don't much care for the damage tagged on, but the disadvantage on ability checks from a score you choose is really cool when combined with stuff like Subtle Spell while stealthing or whatever (since a lot of DCs are actually contests against creatures in 5e). It's not so relevant later unless you're built around milking damage from it, but it's a 1st-level spell that stays relevant for a long while. Honorable mention to Grease and Fog Cloud. Tasha - Pathfinder: I really dislike a lot of spells in this edition design-wise. Mostly just because a lot of them suck when used against players, or they're too niche. Of course I gotta say LIGHTNING CONDUCTOR here even though this is one of those niche spells. Lots of fun when it works out even though I don't think it's at all actually worth casting. Just really fun when you get it for free, lasts for an infinite amount of time in an area, and is like 10 CL above your level :) I die now. Tasha took forever to figure out. Fun to think about though ty Lynte