#owyn talks

[ooowyn]

fucking awful site, twitter.... maybe i will change my damn layout finally. no more twitter look alike

#owyn talks

[fishfingersandscarves]

PLEASE tell us the Diann lore 🙏🙏

OKAY NONNIE i have been bursting at the seams about them

first things first, Diann (Dee-ann) is a nonbinary human bard (32 years old) from Baldur's Gate. If they were a little companion I think their quest would be something like The Silent Bard.

They're pretty taciturn and dry, willing to sing when pressed but refuses to play music on any kind of instrument and won't answer why. A complete bleeding heart who tries to stay out of shit but ends up in the thick of it anyway - usually they'll say "handle it yourself! i'm not getting involved" and then five seconds later. they are involved.

Diann's backstory is that they got married very young. Their husband, Owyn, was much older than them and charmed them with his "maturity" and seeming magic know how. He was training to be a wizard in Baldur's Gate and convinced them to run away with him and get married, moving deeper into the city. They used to play their violin all the time when they were younger, before they were married and during their courtship, but as time went on, Owyn focused more and more on his studies and started to take out his frustrations on them. Diann wanted to perform and get a formal musical education but owyn insisted on them staying home and keeping house while he studied magics.

As time went on, their marriage degraded and Owyn kept insisting that Diann stay home, pressuring them about settling down and building a family. Eventually things began to escalate, the further Owyn seemed to get in his magical studies the more frustrated he would become when he couldn't perfect something right away, and he would take it out on Diann. This happened for several years before it reached a breaking point when Owyn attacked Diann and scarred their body with Burning Hands.

After that, Diann made plans to leave and ran away from home. They ended up living on the streets for some time, busking for money to save so they could try and start anew.

Unfortunately, after being free from the house for only a couple of months, Owyn tracked Diann down and cornered them in an alleyway.

However! At that moment, the mindflayers came and Diann got slorped up by the mindflayer ship and wormed.

All this to say, if they had a quest it would be Kill My Husband.

other fun diann facts:

if there ever was a big "who did this to you moment with their big ole body scar" diann would just deadpan: I already told you guys (they didn't they don't talk about themself ) so usually they'll tell Different fun lies like "Tripped and fell on a matchbox" "went skiing in avernus" "splashed lava on my face thinking it was water" etc until uh oh! They get caught and have to fess up for real

hey can't really feel the parts of their body with the burn scars anymore except for the very edges that are really sensitive

i imagine the first time they play their violin would be the tiefling party, away from the crowd, just a solemn, quiet song that they could enjoy

and finally because I have Diann romancing astarion:

this is basically what the first hookup was like:

two bitches faking having a good time.

diann: if I don't pretend like this is a perfect time he'll leave and I'll be alone again

Both of them going You Only Value Me For My Body when jokes on them they're falling in love with personality and soul

#talkies #original character #bg3 tav #anonymous #THANK YOU NONNIE FOR ASKINGGGGGGGGGGGGG

[cannoli-reader]

I read your post about sexism and military stuff in WoT and your idea that the story is not sexist for it's military being all men is interesting, but what about the rest of the gender essentialism? Women are X and Men are Y and all that?

It's still a case of sexist characters, not a sexist narrative. The gender essentialism is what the characters believe. They also believe, or profess to believe, that the Forsaken were bound with the Dark One, by the Creator at the moment of Creation. The Tinkers believe that there is a Song out there that will restore the Age of Legends. The Aiel believed they were always a proud warrior nation. The narrative clearly shows us that these are not at all true. Therefore, just because a character says "Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus," does not necessarily mean that it is an objective fact in the world of WoT.

Just to go over some examples, we have Thom telling Mat "Men forget and never forgive and women forgive but never forget." It's not even all that clear that Thom believes this, let alone Jordan. He's an older man responding to a 20 year old kid's inquiries about his response to a former romantic relationship. Thom's feelings about Morgase are very personal and complex and not something he is ready to get into a whole complicated discussion about, with Mat of all people.

It's pretty clear that Thom has, in fact, forgiven Morgase for her support of the Aes Sedai who abused his nephew, and he has not forgotten what precipitated their breakup. The following book, several months later, shows that he is still deeply effected by what happened to Owyn. By contrast, as we see in Morgase's stream of consciousness, it's not all that clear that she has forgiven him, for his acts of lese majeste before leaving her for good. Thom knew Morgase for years, certainly before she came to the Throne, and for the first few years of her reign, their relationship was purely professional. The romantic/sexual part of their relationship was less than a year. He has had at least one other very close relationship since then, and it was 15 years in the past anyway. It looms large in his backstory to Mat and the readers, but it's not the driving passion of Thom's life, and he really has no way to explain that to Mat without being dismissive of Morgase. So he blows him off with a bit of pseudo wisdom. But it's doubtful he really believes this and even less likely that Jordan wants the readers to believe it.

Another case that comes up is the wisdom of Marin al'Vere, a couple of times in tSR. First Egwene quotes her as saying that women want to be in love, but only with the partner of their choice, and that men need to be in love and so will easily fall for any woman who makes an effort at a relationship with them. She also gives Faile relationship advice suggesting that you control men by giving way on unimportant things and standing firm on important ones, and later, that men are basically just overgrown boys and can be tricked into compliance with sweet talk and bribery.

And this is all bullshit.

The quote about men being vulnerable to predatory women comes up in the context of Elayne's concerns about Berelain making moves on Rand. And the readers know it's not true, since Berelain's efforts to tie a string around Rand's heart (or other anatomy) failed, hard. Hell, Egwene herself tried back in the pre-series in Emond's Field and it has not lasted. The readers also know that Rand is, at this point, seriously crushing on Elayne and Min, the former of whom has done nothing to entice or entrap him, and if the latter did, she herself seems unaware of the effect it had. During the subsequent meeting between Rand, Egwene and Elayne, Egwene is almost hilariously blind to Rand's feelings for Elayne, puzzled by his reactions to her presence and oblivious to the fact that he is far more responsive to Elayne than he is to Egwene. With Faile, of course, we see the first bit of advice being repeated by Abell Cauthon to Perrin on handling women, with Perrin taking note of the similarity, and the latter advice Faile dismisses out of hand and instead persuades Perrin not by diversion and manipulation, but by straightforward explanation of her position.

The gender essentialism is something that the series only pays lip service to, and undermines in any number of places. Egwene is concerned about Talmanes figuring out what she is up to, because he is a man and men gossip excessively so he might endanger her plan ... only to learn that he figured it out from a woman gossiping. Things like this make it seem pretty clear to me that Jordan intended them to be taken with a grain of salt.

[rodolfoparras]

@owyn-cormac posted this screen of Digger

https://www.tumblr.com/owyn-cormac/742665522456526848?source=share

And all I can think about is his teeth.

They were joking in the tags about people reblogging and talking about his tongue?

All I'm thinking about is his canines

He looks like a biter, probably bites you all the time, especially during sex. While topping or bottoming

Let him top in doggy? Probably leaning over you and biting your shoulder and growling like a fucking animal 😊 probably makes you bleed too!

Don't let him see that tattoo trend of people getting their partner's bite marks on them (which is soo A/B/O coded btw)

(I NEED HIM SO SO BAD PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE)

-🐧

First of all thank you sm for linking me to this beautiful account🧎🏻‍♂️ SECOND OF ALL HELLO WHY WOULD YOU PUT THIS THOUGHT IN MY HESD

Digger who loves to mark you up, so much so the rest of the team likes to joke how it looks like you got mauled by a bear or something but he’s smiling proudly in the corner

Digger sinking his teeth into your skin and cleaning it up with his tongue, proudly gripping your ass cheek, while you fuck him,hands resting just on the spot he left his marks digger who will jokingly bite down on your finger and accidentally draw blood, only to eagerly clean it up with his tongue, cock hard and weeping the whole time

ALSO THE TATTOO TREND ARE OUR MINDS CONNECTED BC I WAS THINKING ABOUT THIS not bite marks specifically but getting your initials tattooed on him? Getting to rest your hands on the tattoo while fucking him ?

#alec answers #🐧 anon

[nocompromise-noregrets]

Writers' Month 2023 Masterlist

Thank you as always to the mods of @writersmonth, one of my favourite events, to everyone who prompted me this year, and to everyone who kudos'd, commented, liked and reblogged!

1 blossom and on an island - An Outcrop of Rocks and Grass for @spiced-wine-fic - Rings of Power, Bronwyn and Arondir spot a potential settling place.

2. camping - and we will carry on - Hobbit, modern reincarnation AU, Bard takes the kids camping, in the hope that the place he found last time will help them recover from their loss.

3. festival - She's So Fine - Hobbit, modern heavy metal AU, Sigrid isn't quite sure what she's doing when she invites the rest of Thranduil's band back to their campsite, after Thranduil's dragged her da off into the darkness, especially because Thranduil's bass player is the most beautiful woman she's ever laid eyes on.

4. memories - Everything We Have Learned for @verecunda and @glorf1ndel - LotR/Hobbit, part of My Heart Is An Empty Vessel, Legolas and his father begin to talk about his mother at long last.

5. sun and poolside - Summer Sun - King Arthur (2004), one uncomfortably hot day, the people of the fortress take a trip north of the Wall.

6. surf - Ride the Waves for @antares0606 and @bae-owyn - LotR, part of A Little Piece of the Sea, Imrahil tells Legolas of a popular pastime among the young (and not-so-young) of Dol Amroth.

7. in the mountains - A Silver Ribbon and the Sea for @spiced-wine-fic - Rings of Power, Bronwyn on the journey to Pelargir.

8. fishing - One of Us - Fishermen's Friends, Morgan joins Jim on the boat one morning, and they figure out his place in the band.

9. warmth and home for the summer - Fresh Water for @spiced-wine-fic - Rings of Power, Bronwyn, Arondir and Theo investigate the island across the bay from Pelargir.

10. sandcastle and lifeguard AU - Unpredictable for @eowyn7023 - Hobbit, Sigrid meets a very nice lifeguard when Tilda gets into trouble swimming in the Long Lake.

11. sweat - Like A World Ending - Peaky Blinders, Arthur Shelby never came home from France, not in any of the ways that matter.

12. lemonade and band AU - Walk of Shame for @scary-grace - Hobbit, modern heavy metal AU, Bard hadn’t been looking forward to doing the walk of shame back to the campsite from Thranduil’s tour bus, but having company does take some of the edge off it - although given that the company is his eldest daughter, he isn’t entirely certain how to feel about it.

13. fan and cruise ship - A Fan for the Stage for @myeaglesong - Hobbit, modern heavy metal AU, Thranduil's band is booked on a metal cruise, and Bard and co are invited along.

14. bonfire - A Talisman for @redeemer46 - Hobbit, part of My Heart Is An Empty Vessel, Thranduil has never quite been able to understand why the people of Dale kept the Midsummer bonfire as part of their celebrations, after what happened to their old home.

15. blue and neighbourhood barbecue - Better Late Than Never for @antares0606 - Hobbit, part of the modern AU A Kiss In The Cold And Dark, at a street party for the coronation, Thranduil gets to know some of Bard's friends, and makes a decision.

16. energy - Ash and Dust for @piyo-13 - LotR, the twins are so tired of their endless quest for revenge, but they can't admit it to each other, and they can't stop.

17. at a wedding - Court Etiquette for @inthecrevicesofmycrispytoes - Hobbit, Thranduil is very bored at the wedding of Thorin Oakenshield and Bilbo Baggins, but then he meets the new King of Dale, who has never been to one of these events before.

18. restaurant AU - Mr Underhill's Finest Seafood Specialities for CyanSoul on AO3 - LotR/Hobbit, Frodo is flustered to realise that famous food critic Thorin Oakenshield has booked a table at his Uncle Bilbo's seafood restaurant. Not nearly as flustered as his Uncle Bilbo, though, it turns out.

19. cloud, Passing Shadow - LotR, the twins take a moment to rest, after the end of the War of the Ring.

20. fireworks - A Rain of Coloured Stars for @myeaglesong - LotR, on the slopes of Mount Doom, Frodo has a brief, bright memory of home, before the Ring came into his life and changed it beyond repair.

21. hammock - Outwitted - LotR, the twins have a habit of hogging Glorfindel's hammock, but Glorfindel doesn't really mind all that much.

22. human/non-human AU - Rewilding for CyanSoul on AO3 - LotR, modern merpeople AU, Faramir, recovering from the loss of his brother and his father in the wake of Eye-Corp's failed attempt to ruin their seaside home with a giant golf course and marina, meets a strange woman swimming in the sea near his uncle's island home... (CyanSoul tells me this is the first mermaid!Éowyn fic on AO3! :D )

23. storm and in the woods - always played a part for @scary-grace and @spiced-wine-fic - Hobbit, modern reincarnation AU, Thranduil watches Bard's children exploring the ruins of his home, and marvels at how alike they are to their predecessors, how much he has missed them.

24. summer - Climbing Upwards for @spiced-wine-fic - Rings of Power, Bronwyn and Arondir, in their first full summer on the island, contemplate the future, and Arondir gives their new settlement a name.

25. relax and at a concert - floating high above for @eowyn7023 - Hobbit, modern heavy metal AU, Sigrid, at a really sensational rock show, takes a moment to drift off, thinking of how great her life is just now.

26. found - the tale as it is told for Anon (if you have an AO3 please let me know, I'd love to make this a gift to you!) - LotR, Imrahil tells Legolas how Dol Amroth was founded and named.

27. on the beach - a treaty of friendship and love for @verecunda - LotR, part of A Little Piece of the Sea, Legolas has a conversation with Imrahil's grandson Alphros, and another with Lothíriel, about Imrahil's sons' disdain for him.

28. bright and mythological AU - Restoration for CyanSoul on AO3 and Anon on here (if you have an AO3 please let me know, I'd love to make this a gift to you!) - LotR, modern merpeople AU, Faramir adjusts to having a mermaid for a - well, 'girlfriend' isn't the right word, and he's still not quite sure what is.

29. fireflies and at a cabin - Honey-Cakes and Mead for @sallysavestheday - LotR/Silmarillion, Glorfindel and Ecthelion, reunited, pass a quiet evening in Valinor.

30. happy and children - little sunshine for Anon (if you have an AO3 please let me know, I'd love to make this a gift to you!) - LotR/Hobbit, Thranduil and little Legolas encounter a deer and her fawn, and Thranduil learns that there is still happiness in his world, although his wife is gone.

31. fall and at a hotel - Another Night in Room 305 - Hobbit, modern AU, Bard has to go home at the end of his conference, but hopefully he and Thranduil will be able to stay in touch…

31 fics for 31 days, 38,483 words (phew!) - back next year!

Next from me: Innumerable Stars 2023, and a fic whose premise came to me in a dream. :D

#my writing #writersmonth2023 #lotr #lord of the rings fanfiction #the hobbit fanfiction #bard #thranduil #sigrid #tauriel #legolas #imrahil #fisherman's friends #king arthur (2004) #gawain #galahad #peaky blinders #arthur shelby #barduil #bard/thranduil #sigrid/tauriel #faramir/éowyn #faramir #éowyn #legolas/imrahil #bronwyn/arondir #arondir #bronwyn #rings of power fanfiction #frodo #sam

[mllemaenad]

-it makes my poor European brain hurt just considering trying to cover that much territory, so how come the Brotherhood has outposts everywhere and, with a few exceptions, seem pretty unified in terms of ideology/general nastiness to everyone who isn't them.

Ha. :) The Doylist answer to this is that The Brotherhood are your last minute allies of convenience against The Master in the original Fallout, which means they've cemented themselves as essential to the franchise and have earned themselves at least a cameo in every game since. That, for example, is why they bent over backwards to ensure a version of them appeared in the original plot of Fallout 76 even though there was no practical way to get Roger Maxson's crew out to Appalachia that early.

The Watsonian answer is three part: the first is that they actually aren't unified at all. They're some of the most cantankerous bastards in the entire wasteland. They're incredibly dogmatic, and adhere to a sacred "Codex". Of course, being people, they immediately come up with different interpretations of their sacred text. And, being the Brotherhood of Steel, they can't agree to disagree on the matter – so they have schisms. So many schisms.

The funniest one is in Fallout 3. They have no means of high speed travel at this point, so the group calling themselves The Outcasts schism their way about four streets over to sulk in an old fort and utterly fail to get an old video game working. They also wear darker power armour to show how rebellious they are. I really have no words for how pathetic all this is. It's also really important to them that you understand that you are a wastelander and they are superior beings.

In this case, the argument was that their boss, Owyn Lyons, decided the Super Mutants then overrunning the Capital Wasteland constituted an existential threat to humanity itself and that he should probably do something about that. The Outcasts, led by Henry Casdin, contended that Lyons was way off mission: they're supposed to be hoarding anything you could put a battery in, not saving people from Super Mutants. The sad thing is that, in terms of the most commonly accepted version of Brotherhood dogma, Casdin is probably in the right here.

But usually the groups go further afield than that. The Mojave Brotherhood, in New Vegas, exists because their particular leader, Elijah, wanted to try to research new tech instead of just putting every laser rifle they can find in a broom cupboard (unfortunately Elijah is also a terrible person, so I can't endorse his research - but that's a whole other conversation). The Brotherhood could not handle the conflict, so - schism!

Then there's the big question: do we talk to other people or not? The whole thing is laid out pretty well in the opening of Fallout Tactics, which I found for reference on Youtube. Now I should note that a lot of the stuff in Tactics has been pretty thoroughly retconned. The Brotherhood are not descended from Vault Dwellers, and while I don't know if Vault 0 is still a thing – Vault 31 seems to have replaced it in practice. But the business with the Brotherhood's internal conflict regarding their isolationism seems to now be canon: Roger Maxson, the Brotherhood's founder, references it in Fallout 76.

The main Brotherhood, in California, has traditionally been very isolationist, and just periodically kicks out anyone who doesn't agree with them. It's interesting that they're shown as definitely recruiting outsiders in the TV show but everything in California is pretty clearly on fire at the moment, so it's unsurprising that they're desperate.

Lyons's Brotherhood was sent out, in part, in search of the group they exiled in Fallout Tactics (who are in Chicago, if they're anywhere, not Washington DC, so that mission is going about as well as expected) and are less isolationist.

Which leads me to part two of the Watsonian explanation: the bastards can fly. You probably guessed this if you sat through the eight minute video: they've got airships and vertibirds. The airships aren't surprising if you remember they hail from California: that area has, until recently, been clawing its way out of the apocalypse, so there are resources available to build fancy machines. They've managed to crash them all by Fallout 3, because of course they have, but by the end of that game they (probably, unless the player sided with the Enclave and blew them up a lot) control most of the Capital Wasteland, so they've got the power to hoard and steal their way into building the monstrosity that is The Prydwen.

The vertibirds are, I regret to say, The Chosen One's fault: you steal the plans for them in Fallout 2. This has zero consequences in that particular game so there's no reason to think it's a problem. It's just something you kick yourself for later.

So the Brotherhood gets everywhere because they are one of the few groups with the power to travel relatively easily in the post-apocalyptic world.

And the third part, which builds on that, is that sometimes they're just the same guys.

The Brotherhood of Steel you meet in the original Fallout have cameos in some small bunkers in Fallout 2. They've built a few more installations but it's all still their original stomping ground.

Likewise, the Brotherhood that rolls in in Act 2 of Fallout 4 are the same people you'd have met in Fallout 3: Arthur Maxson appears as a child in Fallout 3, and has brought his chapter in to wreak havoc in the Commonwealth.

The original Appalachian Brotherhood is a dead branch: they were genuinely new people who were wiped out by the Scorched Plague. But their commander, Lizzie Taggerdy, was in direct contact with Roger Maxson. He was the only guy she could get on the phone post-apocalypse, so she signed up with the Brotherhood because it's not like she had anything else planned. Their ideology, in that case, came straight from the original source.

So, there you have it. Brotherhood everywhere, whether you like it or not. And probably Brotherhood everywhere for the foreseeable future, since Bethesda seems to love them.

#fallout #fallout 76 #fallout 2 #fallout 4 #fallout new vegas #fallout tv series #fallout tv spoilers #fallout 3

[avirael]

FFxivWrite 2023

Day 01 - Envoy

What am I doing here?, A'viloh thought as he stepped into the elevator that was supposed to take him to the airship landing. Absentmindedly he started scratching at his wrist - a habit the Lalafell that stood next to him had spent a long time to break him loose of.

“This is insane...”, he muttered quietly, his ears flat at his head.

With This he meant the task Flame General Raubahn had given him. He wanted him to be his envoy and visit the other city states to talk to their leaders on his behalf.

Him of all people? The Flame General’s envoy? What had he done to gain so much trust? The whole thing had probably just been his bad luck and on top of that a lot of people had helped him. He had certainly not done anything special and they would be so disappointed when they realised what a grave mistake they had made to entrust him with such an important task.

Kikipu, who had not missed his muttering, looked up to him and quickly reached out for his hand. “It’s alright”, she said. “Why are you worried, dear?”

Her voice had this soft and calm tone she often used when he was distraught but momentarily it did little to calm A'viloh down. His mind was racing to find a good excuse to cancel his journey.

“Why a ship of all things?”, he asked and gave Kikipu a pleading look.

But she just smiled kindly.

“Because you would need weeks if you traveled by chocobo. And you really don’t need to worry, A'vi. It’s an air-ship. It travels through the air, not through the sea. It can’t sink.”

“But it could still fall out of the sky.”, he replied in a futile attempt to convince her.

“It won’t.”, she simply said.

A'viloh sighed heavily.

“But I don’t want to leave, Kikipu. I’m not the right person for this.” Involuntarily he started to shake at the thought of traveling to such a strange place as Limsa Lominsa all alone.

“Come here.” Kikipu took both of his hands in hers and pulled him down until he crouched in front of her.

“I will be fine until you return.”, the Lalafell insisted. “Remember what you told me about your plans. Isn’t this what you always wanted to do?”

It wasn’t.

Going to Ul'dah all on his own had already terrified him. Being an adventurer, traveling the world, fighting monsters. All of that had been Laqa's dream, not his. He had just tagged along, as he always had. For him a peaceful home and just the two of them together would have been enough. The thought of him and the future they could have had brought tears to his eyes.

“I can’t do this on my own.”, he squeaked with a shivering voice as the tears started to roll down his cheeks.

Kikipu sighed, cupped his face in her hands and gently wiped his tears away.

“Shh…You can do this, dear. I believe in you.”

He didn’t know how she always managed to cheer him up, but her words gave him hope. The last thing he wanted to do was let her down. And it didn’t seem like there was a way out of this anyway.

He pulled himself together and nodded firmly. Then he reached out for her and hugged her so tightly, as if he feared it would be his last chance to ever do so.

She returned the hug, ran a hand over his head and whispered: “You’ll be home again in no time.“

“Thank you, Kikipu.” He said without letting go of her. “Thank you for everything.“

The elevator stuttered and then stopped. As the door opened and they stepped onto the landing platform, A'viloh saw that not only Kikipu had come to see him off.

Momodi, who had already bolstered him up the day before, was there and Papashan and Fufulupa too. Behind them stood Owyne and also Thancred.

Then he realised that he indeed had helped all of them and in way they all had helped him too. They were here because they believed in him and suddenly he not only felt the wish to not disappoint them but also that maybe he could really do this.

He had come so far in such a short time and done things he never imagined he could. And did it really matter anymore if this had been his dream or U'laqa’s? He wasn’t here anymore but A'viloh still was and maybe he could fulfil at least a few of Laqa's dreams.

And for a moment, while they all waved him goodbye as he boarded the airship, he thought he heard his boyfriend’s voice beside him.

“Be brave, Vi. You can do this.”

#FFxivWrite #FFxivWrite2023 #ffxiv #ff14 #final fantasy xiv #final fantasy 14 #ffxiv writing #ARR #A'viloh Tia

[kierancampire]

Will be interesting to see what it's like to play the game now! As yeah, besides a few collectables and such, then just the repeat quests and undiscovered rare/ultra rare dinos, I think I am done with the game now? Least I dunno if there is a quest after getting the parasaurolaphus?

I found some more rare dinos (once again more than shown here) I only took in the Galli and Allosaur. I actually saw a Shamrock T-Rex but I forgot about it before sleeping for the day :( Also, I was having an issue where my coelophysis kept going out of their pen, like, way worse than other dinos, I tried making their pen larger but suddenly it wouldn't count as a pen and it said they had no pen, even though all I did was slightly extend it and it was fully enclosed. So I moved it back to its original size, and this time it worked, issue is, it wasn't showing the pen as their pen, it was showing the entire ranch as their pen, so I think this is why they were never "in their pen" as the game just kept saying their pen isn't a pen, but the ranch was? So I then had to take down and remove their pen entirely, fully relocate them to a new area, then build a new pen there, as yeah, for some reason in this one specific location it wouldn't let me build a pen? Quite frustrating either way

But yeah, after dinner and stuff it'll be interesting to see how much longer the game grabs me, if at all, as as far as I am aware, getting the Paras was the big quest and then that's it! Oh, another weird thing, 2 actually. Firstly, when I brought the Paras back Lucky instantly got sad and wouldn't let me ride her, so I had to go see Owyn for ideas to cheer her up, but something that confuses me is an option was saying I can't find the other Paras, so that's why Lucky's sad? Even though she became sad IMMEDATELY after I put another Para in her pen? So I dunno if I was meant to get this quest earlier but it glitched in a way and it just forced me to take it at such a random point? But also, besides the Para, I also took in the Allo at the same time, this caused what I think may be two bugs? The first was Owyn and Mari came to freak out about my Allo, but for some reason all my dinos escaped their paddocks and were out in the ranch or each others paddocks when this happened? And I have no idea why? So I left then re-entered to hope this rest then all, which it did, but then my character had, what I assume was meant to be the dialogue play for when I took back my first Para, but yeah, I already placed it in a pen so he sorta was standing there talking to nothing?

#personal #paleo pines #game #games #gaming #dino #dinos #dinosaur #dinosaurs

[litcityblues]

The Wheel of Time Rewatch/Reread Pt. 1

The Wheel of Time debuted on Amazon in November of 2021 and the reaction to it was, I think it would be safe to say, decidedly mixed. In general, it was well-received enough to get another season pretty quickly (and now it's earned a third season as well) but fans of the books were not pleased. (To the point where some of them earned the moniker of 'Bookcloaks' on various Wheel of Time subreddits and other places online.)

My fandom growing up was Star Trek, so I think because of that experience, I tend to grade shows on a fairly generous curve. (Every Trek Fan knows that it takes a Trek show three seasons to 'grow its beard' and get really good-- I don't know if that pattern is holding with the newer shows, but certainly, this applies to the '90s run of Trek.) Given that, I was fairly agnostic on the First Season of The Wheel of Time-- I thought some of the criticism was fair but didn't quite understand why people were so vociferous about other aspects of it.

After the end of the 2nd Season, I got curious and decided I would embark upon a closer examination of the source material while I re-watched the show. Since the first season covered the first book, The Eye of The World, that's what I started with. (I also re-read New Spring as well.)

My general hypothesis is this: Maybe Season 1 isn't that good because Eye of the World isn't the best book in the series?

Upon reflection, I don't think that's a fair assessment of either the book or the first season of the show. There's a lot the show does really, really well- but reading the book shows where the gaps in the first season are obvious and even, perhaps, detrimental. People who object to the First Season aren't wrong-- there were some things I objected to, especially in the last episode. But I also think we have to acknowledge the constraints showrunners are forced to operate under as well.

Amazon, for whatever reason, is putting the lion's share of its money into The Rings of Power. Would I be happier if The Wheel of Time had their budget? I sure would. But the two bigger constraints are to make a television show for people who have read the books and the people who haven't AND only having eight episodes to work with. The former is something every adapted work has to deal with, the latter explains the compressed storylines of the first season far more than the former.

So, let's talk about what the first season gets right:

I like that they hit the ground running. It takes a while for the book to get started- though in a mild defense of The Eye of The World, a lot of the front part of the book really sets up more plot threads that pay off further in the series than you realize a first.

Padan Fain (Johann Myers) is perfect. No notes there-- though it would be nice if he was a little more cracked and broken by the end, but I like him and, more to the point, I like that he keeps showing up- sometimes even just in passing.

The Whitecloaks are also absolutely perfect right from the jump and they are menacing, they are dangerous and Valda's casting (Abdul Salis) is also absolutely perfect.

The Tinkers are excellent. So is Thom (Alexandre Williams)- when he tells them about his nephew Owyn, that's more or less straight from the book. More perfect casting: Loial (Hammed Animashaun), Siuan Sanche (Sophie Okwendo)

The Ways work really well- they track very closely to what goes down in the book. They're not in The Ways as much, but with their 8 episode limit, things are compressed- I get it. Machin Shin is really well done- Nyn's Super Saidar I do have an issue with, but we'll get to that in a bit.

I do like that the show expanded the role of Logain (Alvaro Morte) a bit right off the bat. In the book he's referred to and Rand catches sight of him in Caemlyn but that's all we see of him until much later. I like that the show demonstrates just how destructive his army has been and how they portray his madness as shadowy figures whispering to him.

So what fits with the books better than the show?

It's been a while since I've read Eye Of The World, but there's an EARLIER chapter that is like when they're kids and Tam tells them the story of the Dragon? I don't remember it at all also: Egewene has sisters which is something I don't remember at all. But the original prologue where we see Lews Therin destroy himself: still slaps. 10/10 way to open this book. (I don't know if the Prologue to the Prologue was something they added in later editions or what, but it's weird and seems redundant to me.)

If you've read quite literally any other fantasy novel, the early chapters are chock full of loosely concealed references. They're waiting for a festival to start- someone is late and is bringing fireworks? They're a ring and a birthday party away from Bilbo's bash in the Shire. Similarly, the black figure in the cloak has to be from The Belgariad. Eddings might have taken that from somewhere else, but that's where I recognized it from. (The show plays with this too: their pursuit def looks like the flight to Rivendell from The LoTR movies.)

The books have Lan and Moiraine concealing their identities-- whereas the show has them revealed right away. I think the book does that better, but if you don't want to piss around with character development and just get down to brass tacks, I can see making the choice the show made. But the book does it better. With Moraine facing down the mob? ("Is this what Aemon's blood has come to?") Thom is also introduced from the jump, which I like and I love that he recognizes Moiraine right away and doesn't want to have anything to do with her.

13 chapters we spend in the Two Rivers-- nearly 25% of the book and far more than I remember, but it's worth it. Winternight is really what gets you hooked as a reader. That sense of isolation as Rand is trying to get to the safety of the village of being alone in the wilderness and hearing Tam's fever dream letting his parentage slip.

The journey out of the Two Rivers which in the book leads to Caemlyn and not Tar Valon is remixed and reorganized but lays the plot threads for things like the Aiel (in the mining camp) and Birgitte (when they stay in the barn and kill the Fade) and while in the books we meet Bayle Domon in the first book, he do show up in the television show right at the start of season two. I get that they have time constraints they need to work with, but missing Whitebridge in the show is big for me. After Shadar Logoth in the books, there is a profound uptick in the pace of the book. Perrin and Egwene are running. Mat and Rand are running. Lan, Moiraine, and Nynaeve are running. Those chapters really hit home in the books, the impact of them is lessened here.

But what the book does have that the show doesn't is so much foreshadowing. The World of Dreams doesn't get explicit until Book 3 or Book 4 territory, but it's right there in Book 1, even if we don't know what to call it yet. We see references to the Giant Fist on Tremalking, which we see used to cleanse saidin much, much later in the series and we get references to the Panarch's Palace in Tanchico that pays off down the road as well. Rand is also unconsciously channeling now and again throughout the whole book and if you read it again, it's kind of obvious.

Nynaeve's relationship with Moiraine is far more hostile in the books-- she's not a huge fan of the show either, but it's coded as far more hostile in the books which tracks better with what we know about Nynaeve's block and her ability to channel. Her Super Saidar and Egwene's bringing Nyn back from the dead at the end of the show are the things I objected to the most. At no point in the books does channeling work that way and more importantly, it's inconsistent with the show itself as no other Aes Sedai shows even a fraction of the ability the possible exception of Moiraine and the lightning/fireballs against the Trollocs. I get that Nyn and Egwene are supposed to be strong- maybe the strongest potential Aes Sedai in centuries in the books, but they're not that strong.

The 'Perrin Kills His Wife' thing is also not nearly as bad as it appears to be in the show-- if you dig into the books a bit. you'll get to the chapter where Egewene, Perrin, and Elyas are trying to outrun the ravens-- there are so many of them that they will be torn apart if they're caught. In the books, Perrin is presented as being very aware of his capacity for violence- he's a big kid, but for the first time in that chapter he has to contemplate if he would kill Egwene to spare her from being torn apart by the ravens. It's kind of the inverse of what they do in the show: there, they establish his capacity for violence/temper/to kill and his struggle is fighting that. (Though he has far less interaction with Hopper in real life than I remembered-- and to the show's credit, they bumped Hopper's death to Season 2.)

I am also thoroughly unbothered by the Siuan and Moiraine of it all- again, Sophie Okwendo was perfect casting and she uses the required fish metaphors "Skin me and salt me!"- the main series nods to the notion with all the talk of 'pillow friends' but New Spring goes a step further and straight up makes it explicit: "Siuan wanted to kiss Moiraine. So she did." Also, just look at a map of Tar Valon, then go look at some Georgia O'Keefe paintings, and then come back and talk to me. Extrapolate accordingly and if this is the hill you choose to die on with the first season of this show, I can't help you.

The first time through, I had a big problem with the Oath of Fealty that Siuan makes Moiraine take. It's subtle, but Siuan makes her swear fealty to 'the judgment of this seat' which is different and doesn't, to me, imply absolute obedience to the Amyrlin. It does what the show needs it to do- which is to kick Moiraine out of Tar Valon and make sure she can't come back. BUT, Moiraine changes the words of her reply? Does that still bind her? I have questions about this because at the end of Season 2 it looks like an awful lot like Compulsion-- I think that's going to be used against Siuan when Elaida takes her down, but I also think the show kind of made a hash of it all. (Also: what's with that secret passageway thing to the hut? Is that Travelling? I have so many questions!)

The show does get some world-building in that I think is important-- I think exploring what it's like when Warders lose their Aes Sedai is important. I think having white be the color of mourning and the whole funeral sequence was really, really excellent- but not at all in the book.

The struggle with Ishmael (great casting, again!) also tracks really well with the books-- The Last Battle in the books ends up being a very cerebral, inner struggle type of affair, it's an unseen fight and the show sets that pattern as well, even if Rand doesn't realize who Ishmael is quite yet.

The show, I think, misses The Eye of The World. I love The Green Man and how The Blight is portrayed in the books far more than the show and the show is wrong in that the Dark One's prison isn't at the eye.

Little Internet Birdies seem to be convinced that we're getting Queen Morgase, Gawyn, and Galad next season-- but the sequence in Caemlyn is really excellent in the book. At this point, you've already heard about ta'veren from Loial, but meeting Elayne, the Queen, Elaida, Gareth Bryne-- all of that is Rand being ta'veren like crazy and would have been an awesome thing to include in the show.

Moiraine and Lan's relationship in the first season also makes what happens in the second season seem profoundly bizarre. She references not being able to see men's weaves but doesn't actually make that jump until late in the second season and it takes Lan to figure that out? Seems contradictory to me-- she also tells him at one point: "Your losses are mine and mine yours" but then proceeds to shut him out for most of season two? So weird.

The show also dances around "Who could be the Dragon" way too much-- the idea of "five potential Dragons" is something that I get that has to squarely aim at new viewers who hadn't read the books, but it got tiresome, especially since it became pretty obvious who it was- good television practice probably means you want to make that reveal a big moment for the show, but it just didn't work for me.

If you're making this show, you want to balance between new viewers and book readers-- they cannot make a television show that requires people to do homework. Hopefully, they can build a world that inspires people to go and read the books, but if you've read the books already that's a tough thing to accept. So I get the unhappiness, but only to a point. My verdict stands: the First Season was better than people give it credit for, given the constraints they were operating under. At the time, it earned my confidence enough to give a second season a chance and that season was a vast improvement over the first. I'm onboard and ready to go for Season 3.

#the wheel of time #season 1 #eye of the world #rewatch #reread

[treekianthia]

I would like to know about your Octopath cast.

Oh 🥺 I’m so happy somebody asked about them! I started working on them a bit after Octopath II was announced when a friend suggested we make our own casts! It’s been an on and off project for me and recently I really wanted to develop them more! I’m hoping to one day write something for them and post it on AO3, but it’s a slow process!

As I have both my main cast and their important NPCs, I’ll talk about each of them! The travelers will be in OCTOPATH order, with me then mentioning which NPC they are paired with! For the images, the traveler will be on the left and the NPC on the right!

“Your name is Owyn, and you are a Hunter. Many years ago, you lived as a noble within the Southern Kingdom and were soon to be wed. Unfortunately, a long held secret of your family was revealed, and you were labeled as an Omen of the End of Days. To ward off superstition, you were banished into the endless forests of the Deeplands. Though you have since adjusted to the life you have been forced to live, there are rumors that you are being sought out once again…”

Owyn Blaidd, age 55, is my hunter! He hails from the Endless Forests in Deeplands of the Southern Kingdom, where he has been living for the past 25 years! As a hunter, he has a small wolf pack as companions, with them doing a random attack type when summoned in battle.

His storyline follows him defeating both humans and beasts who have also been labeled as “Omens”! His Crossed Paths is with my Warrior, Trefor Bermond.

His special leitmotif is “One Who Seeks Omens”, and the mythical creature associated with him is Fenrir.

Owyn has two important NPCs to his storyline! Sigyn (shown) and Cerys Thrasir, who are the daughter and granddaughter of the King of the Southern Kingdom. Sigyn is 50, while Cerys is 25.

—

“Your name is Celestite, and you are a Thief. The only surviving member of your family, you have been stealing for as long as you can remember. You discarded your true name long ago, rising from the ashes as a completely new person and taking on any job you could to survive. One day when on a routine mission, you hear two names that are familiar to you. You follow the one who uttered them carefully, only to discover something surprising…”

Celestite, age 30, is my thief! She hails from the Greenlands in the Western Kingdom, where she and her partner Zunyite are well known pair of thieves. Her family was massacred when she was 15, leaving her to struggle on the streets until she met Zunyite at 18.

His storyline has her investigating the apparent survival of two of her sisters, leading her to discover the truth about the death of her parents and remaining siblings. Her Crossed Paths is with my Merchant, Oriana di Angelo.

Her special leitmotif is “One Who Seeks Answers”, and the mythical creature associated with her is a phoenix.

As previously mentioned, her important storyline NPC is named Zunyite. Zunyite has been her partner for the past 12 years and has skills in both thievery and assassination. He is 34.

—

“Your name is Tsukiko, and you are a Scholar. You serve the second prince of your kingdom, whom you have known since childhood. Due to your white hair and red eyes you are seen as cursed, giving you a low status amongst the rankings of nobles. Despite this, love blossomed between you and the second prince, and you have devoted your lives to each other. That is until one day, word of your relationship began to spread…”

Tsukiko Hoshihime, age 26, is my scholar! She hails from the capital of the Eastern Kingdom in the Moonlands, where she is a personal advisor to the Kingdom’s Second Prince. As a scholar, she is incredibly smart, with her often tutoring the children of nobles on top of her other duties.

Her storyline follows her investigating the origins of her family’s curse, which is said to have appeared ten generations prior. Her Crossed Paths is with my Dancer, Anima Kane.

Her special leitmotif is “One Who Seeks Devotion”, and the mythical creature associated with her is a moon rabbit.

Her important NPC is the Eastern Kingdom’s Second Prince, Kaguya-Hiko, and the two have been inseparable since childhood. He is 27.

—

“Your name is Oriana, and you are a Merchant. You are the youngest of two siblings, with both you and your brother helping in your mother’s shop. Your father has not been in the picture since you were a baby, and your mother does not talk about him often. One day, your older brother disappears and leaves a letter saying he is going to track down the man who abandoned you as children. Unsure of what to do, you go to your mother for advice…”

Oriana di Angelo, age 19, is my merchant! She hails from a small town in the Heartlands of the Northern Kingdom, where she runs a small shop with her mother and brother. As she is still young, she is still developing her skills as a merchant, making her less experienced than most others.

Her storyline involves her tracking down her older brother, while also dealing with a business tycoon that has been running smaller stores and shops out of business. As previously mentioned, her Crossed Paths is with my thief, Celestite.

Her special leitmotif is “One Who Seeks Family”, and the mythical creature associated with her is a maneki-neko.

Her important NPC is a thief named Lazulite, who is attempting to steal the secrets of the business tycoon for his own gain. He is not associated with Celestite and Zunyite, but chose a similar naming scheme to sound cool. He is 22.

—

“Your name is Pythios, and you are a Cleric. In the region you call home there is a religious uprising, and those who reject the new faith and continue to worship the old are being captured and beheaded. You and your twin brother have gone into hiding for your own safety, but you still fear your days are numbered. One day, a kind young woman offers to smuggle the two of you across the border. You accept her offer, but things don’t go as smoothly as you hope….”

Pythios Athanasios, age 24, is my Cleric! He hails from the Icelands in the Northern Kingdom, where he and his twin brother work as Priests for the Sacred Flame. In his current position, Pythios has a very large influence over the Church and their beliefs.

His storyline focuses on him trying to avenge his now deceased twin brother, alongside stopping the religious uprising in the Northern Kingdom. His Crossed Paths is with my Apothecary, Hiro Hikaruno.

His special leitmotif is “One Who Seeks Revelation”, and the mythical creature associated with him is the dullahan.

His important NPC is his childhood friend, Cassandra Harmonia, who serves as a Priestess for a group known as the Order of the Eight Immortals. She is 24.

—

“Your name is Anima, and you are a Dancer. You have no memories of your past, and currently live with a man claiming to be your husband. Though you live a happy life with each other, you have always questioned your love for him. After getting into a fight with him, you have plans to leave on a journey to recover your lost memories. Packing in the middle of a rainy night, you find a mysterious key…”

Anima Kane, age 22, is my dancer! She lives in the Wavelands of the Southern Kingdom with her husband, Arthwr Kane, who is their town’s Apothecary. The only thing she remembers from her past are a series of dances, and even that is thanks to muscle memory.

Her story involves her running away from her home after finding the remains of a tattered troupe dress in order to regain her lost memories. As previously mentioned, her Crossed Paths is with my Scholar, Tsukiko Hoshihime.

Her special leitmotif is “One Who Seeks Memories”, and the mythical creature associated with her is the selkie.

She has two important NPCs in her storyline: her husband, Arthwr Kane, and a soldier for the Order of the Eight Immortals named Nile Gilderoy (shown). Arthwr is 28 and and Nile is 21.

—

“Your name is Trefor, and you are a Warrior. You are a retired mercenary, having settled down four years ago when you fell in love with a fellow sellsword. Your past haunts you, however, and people you once crossed blades with spread rumors that you are in truth a demon thirsting for blood. Though the rumors aren’t true, you begin to fit the image when your young daughter is kidnapped for ransom. Blade in hand, you head to the promised meeting location…”

Trefor Bermond, age 32, is my warrior! He lives with his wife, Sylphie, in a village located in the Hinterlands of the Western Kingdom. Together, they have a daughter named Mina, who is kidnapped at the beginning of his story.

His story involves him rescuing his daughter alongside trying to find answers to why she was kidnapped in the first place. As previously mentioned, his Crossed Paths is with my Hunter, Owyn Blaidd.

His special leitmotif is “One Who Seeks Retribution”, and the mythical creature associated with him is the dhampir.

He has two important NPCs in his story as well! They are his wife Sylphie Bermond (shown), and their daughter Mina Bermond. Sylphie is 30 and Mina is 3.

—

“Your name is Hiro, and you are an Apothecary. Your family has served one of the many Noble Families of your Kingdom for generations, resulting in them being held in high regards. When the Patriarch of the family falls ill, you volunteer to travel to the Kingdom of the North in order to obtain the medicine to cure him. You spend the night packing your things, when suddenly you hear a voice whispering down the hall. Listening in, you hear a plot you’re not supposed to know…”

Hiro Hikaruno, age 28, is my apothecary! He hails from a large city in the Starlands of the Eastern Kingdom, where his family’s practice is well known. He is an apothecary of high prowess, with his skills passing even his father/mentor’s.

His story involves him trying to track down a mythical butterfly of legend in order to grant a sick noble immortality. As previously mentioned, his Crossed Paths is with my Cleric, Pythios Athanasios.

His special leitmotif is “One Who Seeks Immortality”, and the mythical creature he is associated with is the soul butterfly.

His important NPC is a mysterious woman named Olwen Gale, who seems to know the secrets to immortality and reviving the dead. She is 26.

—

That about summarizes the characters that I have shown so far! I have another important group of NPCs I’d like to design in the future, which is a mix of bosses and lore characters!

There is, of course, more to these characters as well, but as I plan to write a series for them, I didn’t want to spoil any huge plot twists!

Thank you so much for asking about them!

#octopath traveler #original characters #arty asks

[ooowyn]

sometimes i come back here and see one of my own posts on my dash and i’m like haha that’s me! then get obliterated by the notes 

#owyn talks #jesus christ you guys

[jimmytwo-legs]

Session One Recap:

You found yourselves in the dungeon of the Kingdom of Pashoria. Owyn Treebane was travelling for the first time in his life, a humble human farmer who had the misfortune to purchase a heretical trinket for his future marriage. Yochaath Rhoyax is a proud silver Dragonborn from a merchant family who refuses to let go of an old patron, he seems to have a knack for knowing when people are telling the truth. Rinavere is young and fiery, literally. She was imprisoned for attempting to commit arson at the dockyard. Scritch the Tabaxi (and Scratch the Rat) are up-and-coming performers whose show was sabotaged by a rival band. The noble who hosted them sentenced Scritch to the gallows to avoid further embarrassment.

Our Party, having seemingly accepted their fate, settle in for the night. They are interrupted by a scruffy old man called Keuryx, a fellow prisoner, who while talking to himself tells the group that they have been chosen and they must escape through a tunnel he has dug. The tunnel is too small for Owyn and Yochaath to fit. After some digging, Scritch produces the key that Scratch swiped from the guard. Our party makes a bid for their freedom through the dungeon, stopping in a store room to collect their belongings.

While in the store room, Scritch swipes an expensive-looking bag that jangles with riches. Most of the party keeps to their own items and equips them. They are interrupted when a patrol sees the storeroom door ajar and an old man pulled inside. Scritch creates a distraction by projecting a scream from the other direction, distracting one guard. The other meets an unfortunate end at the (burning) hands of Rinavere. The second guard returns and is promptly charmed by Scritch and offers to lead them out of the dungeon. 

Once they reach a courtyard away from the main road, two more guards on patrol appear and Scritch sends her charmed guard away from danger. The two guards engage the party, where one is speared by an impressive javelin thrown from Owyn and the other left unconscious with two “non-fatally” punctured lungs.

Keuryx tells the party that they must escape the city, and gives Yochaath a letter to give to the captain of a boat with a red octopus on the sail. Rinavere leads the party to the docks. Their run through the city at midnight alerts more guards and the bells warning of danger start ringing. They arrive at the docks a few minutes ahead of the guards.

After setting two boats on fire the party finds the Eastern Pleasure and its captain Jimmy Two-Legs, who accepts their letter with one question - their names. They ready the boat to leave but the guards find the party, leading them is Captain Bone. As he calls for their surrender Keuryx teleports in and casts Meteor Swarm, pulverising the guards and dock. The Eastern Pleasure sets sail in the wake of this destruction.

The party gets some rest and awakes at dawn to completely still wind and water. A leviathan surges below and destroys the ship, leaving the party to drown.

The party is drowning when a little black fish with one golden eye offers a deal: he will spare them the depths if they agree to destroy the items tethering him to this world. Yochaath takes the fish’s amulet and the party is washed ashore on a stony beach a few hundred yards from a small settlement.

#session recap #dungeons and dragons #dnd5e

[autisticarachnid]

What was Jacob disappearing like in your AU from his point of view? Also what was his connection to Rakepick?

It’s important to note that in my timeline (idk about the actual game’s timeline on this) jacob was expelled in late april/early may 1980 but he disappeared in august 1981, over a full year later. after he was expelled, he returned home to his parents, owyn and theodora, who were very sympathetic and caring towards him over the whole ordeal. they were definitely saddened by their son’s expulsion, but more by the fact that jacob had just lost his closest friend, and gave him the space he needed while also making sure to take care of him. still, jacob mostly either stayed in his room or snuck out of the house most of the time, both too ashamed over his expulsion and too angry over duncan’s death.

in my au, R doesn’t really have as much influence as it does in the game ? so jacob’s decision to explore the vaults was just that- entirely his own decision. jacob and duncan continuing to explore the vaults was completely their own decision, and R only noticed in their third year or so. R watched the two carefully from a distance, ultimately recruiting a then 22 year old rakepick in jacob’s fifth year to keep an eye on him when necessary. under R’s orders, she left clues that drove duncan to the potion that later ended his life. when jacob began sneaking out, he did investigate knockturn alley in secrecy a handful of times, at which point he ran into a disguised rakepick. she ultimately revealed her identity to him, and did eventually trick him into helping her by informing him of the portrait vault. jacob also knew he couldn’t go at the vault alone, and while part of him feared that his journey with the vaults would eventually also endanger his family, the urge to finish what he started was stronger. he entered the vault with only rakepick in august of 1981, and became trapped in a portrait as rakepick abandoned him there. jacob was, understandably, extremely outraged at her betrayal, but also panicked over his new situation. his youngest sister was only six, after all!! would she even remember him??

as for his time trapped in the vault, he kept himself sane by either carefully planning his revenge against rakepick or thinking deeply about his family, imagining what each of them would do over the years. since time passed differently in the vault, he had no idea what year it was. he did, at several points, nearly lose himself, and a few times wished he could just be dead rather than stuck in the mind-altering landscape of the portrait.

he could hardly even believe it when he began to hear noise from outside of the door. he could hear yelling, talking, the sounds of something heavy falling like an avalanche, and even the roar of the hungarian horntail. the noise caused him to jump up, staring expectantly until the door opened to reveal- to his complete and utter shock and disbelief- a now sixteen year old thalia.

in my au, jacob didn’t actually immediately leave upon hearing rakepick’s name. he wanted to, for a split moment, but was too overwhelmed at seeing his little sister again (and some of the half siblings he had never met before !!) that he stayed with thalia right up to when everyone was about to grab hold of the portkey again. jacob couldn’t bring himself to even dare to step foot in hogwarts again, and so promised his little sister he’d see her again very soon. and thus, as the portkey whisked everyone else away, jacob apparated to outside the bounds of the forbidden forest, and immediately began tracking rakepick down- and he vowed to never let her get away with all that she had done.

#hphm #hogwarts mystery #harry potter hogwarts mystery #hp hogwarts mystery #hogwarts mystery mc #thalia dyer #jacob dyer #patricia rakepick

[driftward]

Title: Karasawa Saga - Party Characters: Karasawa Atraxae, Raubahn Aldynn Rating: Teen Summary: Karasawa goes to a party Notes: None

Karasawa saw Momodi look up and wave at her very enthusiastically as she entered the Quicksand. She pointed a single finger at herself and mouthed ‘me’ at Momodi as she approached, and Momodi covered a giggle with her hand as she helped herself to one of the chairs in front of her desk.

“Hey Momodi, what’s shaking?” asked Karasawa.

“Someone’s been asking after you,” said Momodi with a mischievous looking grin.

“Was it that Thancred kid? He had to come clean up after me, and let me tell you, after that? I will let him have -whatever- he likes,” said Karasawa, even as she swept her gaze over the bottles of liquor on the back.

“Oh, whatever he likes? I shall like to hear of that later,” said Momodi. “But no. General Raubahn said you performed quite the favor for the Sultansworn.”

“Really, my man Owyne just found himself in a bad spot,” muttered Karasawa. “I know what that’s like. Decided to help him out. That’s all.”

“That’s all, said the woman who helped recover a priceless artifact and may well have saved the city from a terrible fate,” said Momodi, the edges of her eyes crinkling in amusement.

Karasawa glanced at Momodi, and laughed. “Bunch of jumped-up, what’d-he-call-‘em, brigands? Please. They wouldn’t have gotten much farther if I hadn’t been there. I just made them get less far a touch faster. Hey, is that purple one any good?”

Momodi turned to look to see what Karasawa was glancing at, and turned to retrieve the bottle, uncorking it. “It’s just juice. Anyroad, however you wish to sell yourself, the General is grateful. You’ve been invited to a banquet.”

“A banquet with a general? With all the best of Ul’dah present, I’m sure? Lots of talking and dancing and being fancy? Pass. How many tokens for the juice?” said Karasawa.

“On the house, it’s just juice. You may want to rethink that banquet, though, it is really quite the honor…” said Momodi, pouring the juice into a glass.

“Oh, quite the honor, you say? Double hard pass,” said Karasawa, and then she muttered, “trust me nobody wants me at fancy do’s.”

“…well, it is the Sultana’s ball, and let’s just say the Lady Lilira would be very disappointed if you weren’t there on her behalf,” said Momodi coyly.

“What do you think I should wear?” said Karasawa immediately, and Momodi laughed.

-*-

Karasawa milled around, spoke with few, and as the night went on found herself mostly trying to figure out how to drain the city’s coffers through the act of eating all of their food when Raubahn approached her. She quickly snarfed down a cupcake as she turned to face him.

“General,” she said. Well, that’s what she meant to say. What came out was more of a “Mremrah” as she tried to speak around the cupcake.

He laughed. “I’m told you are the adventurer that the Sultana has taken a shining to,” he said.

Karasawa shook her head, and washed down the cupcake with some more of that purple juice that had been fetched at her request. She had found she rather liked the stuff. As she did so, she found herself suddenly distracted, with Raubahn standing so close to her. She stared a bit, and set the juice aside, and slowly held a hand out towards him.

He looked at her quizzically.

“Sorry, uh, they’re just… that’s mesmerizing. I think your muscles have muscles. Mind if I, uh - you know, maybe, ah, never mind,” said Karasawa.

Raubahn looked at her for a long moment, and she felt embarrassed, but then he laughed, a big, hearty, jovial sound that filled the room and filled her with the joy of it, and he grinned at her as he curled up an arm and flexed a bicep, slapping it a few times.

“I did used to be a gladiator, lass, and you’ve at least the manners to ask first. Go ahead if you like.”

She wrapped her arms around his bicep, her eyes wide with glee. “By the gods, it’s like sculpted marble. And of course I ask first. I don’t touch people without permission. I mean, unless I’m gonna wallop them. Or if we’ve been good friends for a while and I know it’s okay. Or maybe if they’re asleep and I’m gonna nap on them.

“…actually okay I touch people a lot, but THIS time, I wasn’t gonna do it without asking.”

Raubahn smiled at her. “So, how are you finding the party so far?” he asked.

Karasawa let go of his arm and rolled her eyes. “Awful. Not a single person here is real. I’m not real because I’m trying to be nice and polite and not ruin my friend’s party. The Sultana’s not real because I’ve met her when she’s being real and that tiny polite smile she hides behind while trying to avoid any real conversation, that ain’t real. I think you may be the most real person here, actually.”

Raubahn nodded, his grin fading to a more gentle smile. “I think I see what she sees in you. You’re straightforward with your words. She’s told me about the conversations she and you have had, about the troubles of our fair city. And you’ve the right of it, lass, when you complained to her about how we handle our affairs. We’re up here, eating the rich larder of the land, and just outside the city gate, the people are starving. And you’re right. Behind her guise of stately serenity, she is aghast at the plight of her subjects.”

“…and helpless to do anything about it, aye,” said Karasawa quietly. “I am well used to the uselessness of fighting indomitable systems that have existed long before you were born.”

“You see the truth of the matter then. Aye, there will be no hope for the masses unless and until we can restore power to the crown. I hope that in the days to come, we can rely upon stalwart heroes such as yourself to - what is that? That… light?”

“What is what?” asked Karasawa, and then she frowned as she looked down at herself. She appeared to be glowing. She tried to reach out for her capabilities once more, but once more they evaded her. Well. There was nothing for it. She instead searched her pockets, until she found the source of the glow, and pulled out the locus crystal she had gotten earlier. “…huh.”

As she pulled it out, she began to feel a sensation that she was beginning to find all too familiar, and one she misliked. Pressure buildup, as flux filled her up clear to her eyeballs, resonance keening.

She could hear Raubahn’s voice in the distance. “It is so bright - by the Twelve! Have you been having visions? Visions, of the crystal? I think you may be like as they were… let me explain…”

He began to tell her, of adventurers, lost in some place called Cartenau, and she held on as long as she could, trying desperately to find some way to bleed off the flux before it could overwhelm her. She was certain what he was saying mattered, and she could imagine the voice of her old friend telling her that she had to pay attention to the details.

The story Raubahn was familiar. It was like one of the ones Momodi had told. About the Warriors of Light.

That must have been important. She hoped she remembered it.

“…yours is no ordinary tale. If I am right, the fate of the realm may yet hang upon your deeds. Only heroes and martyrs are fit to bear such a burden. Let us pray you are the former,” Raubahn finished, placing a hand on her shoulder.

Karasawa nodded, stiffly.

“Hey, so, I gotta take this,” she said, just on the very edge of feeling like her head was going to explode. “I’m about to go real stiff and stare off into the distance for a while, okay?”

“Lass?” said Raubahn, but already reality was receding, and memories that were not hers were rushing in.

Raubahn’s memories. Memories of a battle over a battered plane. Memories of him and several others she did not recognize. A battle lost, as fire streaked from the sky and devoured the earth. Orders to retreat, the voices of the lost.

And memory of a man in a mask. A long lost kin, who seemed to revel in the destruction.

Oh, she was going to kick his ass five ways to Darksday if she could help it.

-*-

When she came back, she was not in the banquet hall.

It seemed someone had taken the time and effort to move her, carefully, to a bed in the inn. She looked herself over. She was still dressed, and she still had all her devices on her. She frowned, pushed herself out of bed, and made her way out to the main area.

It wasn’t long before she had caught up with Momodi at the front desk. Apparently, whatever else had happened, that last memory resonance had gone on long enough to alarm several guests at the banquet. Raubahn had made her excuses for her, and had managed to very carefully steer her down to the Quicksand, where Momodi had seen to it she was put to bed to be kept watch over.

Apparently she could walk while in that state so long as someone was willing to hold onto her. Good to know, she supposed.

“…anyroad,” said Momodi, finishing the embarrassing tale of Karasawa’s walk of shame, “the General asked that you stop by and speak with him when you’re back on your feet and feeling up to it. He’s usually over at the Hall of Flames - that’s just widdershins from here, if you follow the pathway out front.”

Not more than a bell later, Karasawa found herself led by someone calling themself one of the General’s Lieutenants to outside a large office door with an ornate symbol on its outside. A jewel and and a flame, balanced on either side of a scale. Popular enough motif in these parts, she thought. The Lieutenant knocked on the door, and walked inside.

“The adventurer, Karasawa Atraxae, at your request, sir,” the woman said, bowing and gesturing at Karasawa to enter. Karasawa shot her a look and raised an eyebrow as she walked past her, waving to Raubahn.

“Hey there boss,” she said. “Momodi says you wanted to talk to me before I went off and found more trouble?”

“I’ve been waiting for you, Karasawa. I trust you are fully recovered?” asked Raubahn.

Karasawa shrugged. “Sure, until the next gods forsaken time the resonance starts keening and my teek goes all out of whack,” said Karasawa.

“…I do not understand much of what you say, but if you are well for now, that is well enough. There is much work to be done—work that I would have you do,” said Raubahn.

Karasawa nodded, crossing her arms and leaning against a wall. “Sure. Whatcha got?” she said.

“I have prepared some letters for my counterparts in the Eorzean alliance. Five years ago, lass, we looked on, powerless, across the battlefield of Cartenau. Our armies locked in mortal combat with the Garleans. And then routed by that thrice-damned primal they thought to summon.”

Primal. That was a weird word, and it didn’t translate quite right. Created belief? Faith concept? Several ideas of what it could be flashed across Karasawa’s mind, none of them as solid as she would like.

Raubahn continued without pause even as she puzzled that conundrum.

“Not a day goes by that I do not think of my fallen comrades… and of the Warriors of Light, of whom no trace remains. The tragedies of the Calamity are not so easily forgotten, nor should they be. Remembering what we lost reminds of us what we had. To that end, I mean to mark the fifth anniversary of the Battle of Carteneau with a memorial service honoring the fallen. It is my hope that my counterparts in the Alliance will agree to do the same. And I would have you bear my words to them as my personal envoy. You’ll be granted an airship pass for the purpose, lass. I intended to anyroad, but there were, shall we say, others who fair insisted. Airship travel’s not what it used to be, what with the ever-present threat from the Garlean empire, but I feel you deserve it and more - and it shall serve you well in the days ahead. What say you?”

Karasawa blinked at him a few times, and then she laughed.

“Oy, me, an envoy! Like, a diplomatic envoy?

“You have got to be kidding.”

#final fantasy xiv #karasawa atraxae #raubahn aldynn #202210-31 #biot writes

[howlsmovingurl]

I posted 14,661 times in 2022

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#also. both that and this drawing are just the 3 primary colors. all the greens and oranges are just the colors mixing lol

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

This is the funniest thing I’ve ever seen

4 notes - Posted June 23, 2022

#4

Sometimes u just gotta talk to ur partner by replying to them on tumblr when ur literally just.

Sitting next to each other.

4 notes - Posted August 27, 2022

#3

[redacted bc it was sad]

5 notes - Posted October 6, 2022

#2

@dentist-brainsurgeon I saw some shrimps!!!! Took a pic of this captivating shrimp behavior for you!

7 notes - Posted May 22, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

See the full post

166 notes - Posted June 20, 2022

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#tumblr2022 #year in review #my 2022 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review #lmao 4 note posts made it into this

[wandercr]

no, you know what ... i'm gonna talk more about the brotherhood, sorry, y'all.

i know this opinion is semi-controversial, and disagreeing is totally fine by me, but i 100% believe that the brotherhood, to some degree, arranged sarah lyons' death. i doubt it was outright assassination, but the details about her being killed in action are left very vague. ( which could also be poor writing, but i'm giving bethany esda the benefit of the doubt just this once. )

now, where most people get finicky with this is regarding arthur maxson, to which i think i'm stating the obvious ... he has no idea that her death is related to the brotherhood, and he wasn't involved in it. the kid was fourteen/fifteen, at most, and had a hero worship crush on sarah. he wouldn't kill her. wouldn't sanction her death. let's not be ridiculous.

there's obviously a lot of discontent in the brotherhood in 2277 about how things are run under elder lyons. it isn't a leap to assume that there are members who would gladly usurp owyn and sarah to install someone more aligned with the brotherhood's original ideals.

i've always imagined there's turmoil between sarah's death and arthur's rise to power, in which there either is no solid leadership at all, or those that do become elder only last a few weeks to months, at most.

in comes arthur: young, desperate to prove himself and able to be manipulated. i think by the time we meet him in fallout 4, he's more or less making his own decisions, but at 16? 18? someone is pulling the strings, and i have no doubt that the brotherhood's reconnection with the outcasts leads to his further indoctrination to the brotherhood's original path.

for eliana, this lack of stability is basically hell on earth. she doesn't trust the faction she credits with saving her life; project purity probably becomes less of a priority; she's a piece of propaganda for brotherhood recruitment, rather than a respected knight, and she has nowhere to go, because the brotherhood has been her life for almost a decade. her voice, her opinion, her status, all of which meant something once, becomes drowned out by the brotherhood's senseless greed and power grabs.

basically, tldr; the brotherhood sucks? the brotherhood sucks.

#╰ ✿ ╮ ━ ❝ sky speaks. ❞ ( ooc ) #eliana definitely plays off how much the brotherhood's path pains her - particularly to the sole survivor #but when i really think about how much she goes through and loses as a result of the changes there. god. #first of all she meets arthur when he's TEN and he's just a sweet little kid who can't shoot to save his life and she watches someone who #could have been a powerful - yet EMPATHETIC - leader get corralled into being a tyrant #she has to deal with the guilt of letting project purity be run by a faction that slowly cares less and less about the average wastelander #each day #if she tries to speak against any of this she's immediately shut down #anyway it's fine i'm fine we're all fine