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theresattrpgforthat · 9 months

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Are there any RPGs that would work well for a Touhou-styled game? What are your thoughts on recreating something as complex as a bullet hell shooter in tabletop form? Thank you!!!

THEME: Touhou Bullet-Shooters

Hello friend! Bullet Hell Shooters are not usually the kind of games I like to play. I prefer social drama over physical combat, although I definitely understand the allure.

I looked up Touhou and as far as I understand, it’s a shoot-em-up game in which the protagonists protect a haven for yoke called Gensokyo from various threats, or “incidents’. What I understand about bullet shooters is that knowing your enemy is key; so repeated runs or play-throughs are expected so that you can get used to enemy attack patterns, etc.

Now, I'm not a dungeon-crawling aficionado here, but from what I've heard about dungeon-crawls - that is, if you think from the point of view that rogue-like video games provide the same level of grinding and failure as a bullet-shooter. Dungeon crawls have the ability provide the same kind of feeling, because your characters have to travel the same ground over and over again. The difference might be that in dungeon crawls and rogue-likes, it's not just the player getting better - the character also receives upgrades in the form of equipment, or abilities.

So when it came to recommendations for this post, I found a few games that might vibe with Touhou themes, but I also tried finding some other rules systems that you could potentially play around with to find the style of play you're looking for.

Next Dream, by ohnoproblems.

A gmless, diceless game for 3-6 players using the belonging outside belonging system. You will need to know the rules detailed in Chapter 1: Playing the Dream found in the full rulebook to get the most out of this play kit.

Based on the Touhou series by ZUN, Next Dream lets you create and play your own stories in its world. Play as one of the colorful and eccentric denizens of Gensokyo as well as its undergirding social, metaphysical, and narrative pressures. Plot festivals and crash incidents; delve into the arcane and mingle with the divine; fill the skies with your own histories, emotions, and desires as written in the language of magical artillery.

I’m including this game even though it doesn’t really fit into the bullet-shooter vibe, because it’s inspired by Touhou. Your characters might be involved in conflict, but you could also take actions like “fall out of love” or “delve into old knowledge.” Belonging Outside Belonging games ask players to play both a character and a setting element, facilitating GM-less play. These games are usually very exploratory and emotional. I suppose the answer that the designer had for your question about recreating a bullet-hell-shooter was to… well not do that. Instead their goal was to focus on the story elements of Touhou that felt meaningful and abstract the combat out to look at the emotions underneath it.

This World Summons Too Many Heroes, by Nick Duff.

This World Summons Too Many Heroes!! is a tabletop rpg about regular people being pulled into a fantasy world to become heroes, demon lords, goblins, talking swords, or any kind of adventurer you could think of! Go on an isekai adventure in the Kingdoms of Ceria, where summoning scrolls have been scattered across the countryside and people are recklessly using them to steal people from other worlds and bring them into this one with new powers gifted to them by a goddess of reincarnation.

A hidden magical world is basically an isekai, so this game has some thematic elements that might resemble the setting of Touhou. The idea in this game is that people from other worlds keep being brought into one kingdom, and the sheer amount of them is causing a lot of problems. If Gensokyo is letting too many things past its barrier, perhaps the problems in This World Summons Too Many Heroes look pretty similar. The Goddesses Expansion is an add-on to this anime game, and it comes with new classes, new enemies, and new toys to play with in the same fantastical world.

I’m also including this game because it’s based off of the LUMEN system, which prioritizes combat and making your characters feel powerful. If you are interested in dynamic combat and the ability to face off against a vast number of foes, you should definitely check this system out. I even have a LUMEN folder where you can see a number of different themes!

Gun Witch - Lead, Thread and the Dead, by Blackberry & Holly.

GUN-WITCH: LEAD, THREAD, AND THE DEAD is a role-playing game designed for two or more players, centred on making your way in a world wracked by war and decay, where even the gods are struggling to find their footing. It’s a game about building community and connection inimical to the very context, about finding common ground with people who view things in a way you never could, and about doing what you can to bear a weight that you can’t let drop, no matter how much you might want to let go. It’s also about the weight and power of violence, wielding your weapon properly, and working astonishing miracles of life and death at the end of the barrel of a gun.

This is another game that lists Touhou in its list of inspirations, although it also digs into the western genre to give you a world full of danger and violence. This game also has guns as an integral part of combat - so expect to have the ability to shoot through your problems. Your characters are Covens of different orders, all of which take different jobs and walk the Sacred Path of the Six Chambers. The art really draws me in for this one.

Knave, by Questing Beast.

KNAVE is a rules toolkit by the creator of Maze Rats and The Alchemist's Repose for running old school fantasy RPGs without classes. If you are introducing a group of new players to OSR games, Knave allows them to make characters and understand all the rules in minutes. Every PC is a Knave, a tomb-raiding, adventure-seeking ne’er-do-well who wields a spell book just as easily as a blade. This is an ideal system for players who like to switch up their character’s focus from time to time and don’t like being pigeonholed. A PC’s role in the party is determined largely by the equipment they carry.

Knave is a pretty well-known game in the OSR scene. OSR stands for Old-School Revival, which is a very popular sphere for dungeon-crawlers. Your characters are pretty small and squishy, and you are raiding tombs. It’s very likely that your character dies during play - and you’ll have to create new characters to throw into the dungeon and try to solve problems that you didn’t survive the first time.

RUNE, by Gila RPGs.

You are an Engraved. Cursed to wander the shattered world of Obron, you seek the power to take back control of your fate. Explore Realms, kill Rune Lords, and carve the power of fate into your very being.

RUNE is a solo tabletop RPG inspired by the soulslike genre of video games, including Dark Souls, Bloodborne, and Elden Ring. In RUNE, you are a wanderer of the lands of Obron. The world is dangerous, but full of power if you are willing to reach out and take it. RUNE combines narrative exploration with tactical combat to capture the environmental storytelling and high stakes combat you love in soulslike games.

What stands out for me in the RUNE pitch is the following quote: “Enemies have movesets that are determined by dice rolls, telegraphing their intentions and giving you a moment to react.” The designer also describes RUNE combat as a “puzzle” that you will have to solve - which sounds similar to the idea of learning enemy patterns in order to overcome them. It’s not going to work for group play, but it’s something that you could play around in solo mode and maybe steal some ideas for something else!

Breathless Games (SRD designed by Fari RPGs)

Breathless Games are games about characters who are getting into more and more dangerous situations, with depleting resources that can only be re-charged whenever you decide to “take a breath.” The biggest problem about taking a breath is that, well, the GM gets to advance the situation, make it worse. There are a number of Breathless games that have been made for different genres, quite a few of which focus on horror and survival, but there’s also a Magical Girl game, a monster-hunting game, and a southern gothic game! You can check out my Breathless folder to see what I’ve found on Itch so far.

Other Games I’ve Recommended

Mystic Lilies, by Will Uhl at Merry Mancer Games.

Blood Neon, by Rad Mad. 11dragonkid's video about Infinite Revolution also mentions Touhou games in terms of game feel, even though the game itself is in space.

I’d also recommend checking out my Hellbusting Games post, particularly the bit about Hell Grinders.

#tabletop games #indie ttrpgs #dnd #game recommendations #asks #touhou #shoot-em-ups

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phlve · 6 months

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Sociotype Profiles — LII

Ego

Leading Ti

The LII naturally assesses statements, opinions, and actions in terms of conformance to certain principles. These principles may in practice be rules of thumb based on experience, but LIIs will usually appeal to more general, self-evident reasons, if the need arises. The LII is most engaged in communication when they are critically analyzing people's decisions and actions as well as how they generally are or are not consistent with certain pre-established goals. their dual, the ESE, likes hearing the LII's judgment, and simultaneously softens its edge by shifting their focus to how they are communicating their ideas, letting them see the intellectual thought process from the outside. The ESE appreciates and praises their ability to take the information seriously, but the ESE will find funny ways of reminding the LII of how they are coming across when they seem more serious than they realize.

"Just because" is not in an LII's vocabulary. If there is a reason for something, the LII will probably want to find it. The LII strives to reduce things to their most essential aspects, and mentally recreate the whole from the bottom up. The LII's theoretical tendencies can often leave him out of touch with reality, and if unchecked may lead to abstract theories that make logical sense but have little bearing on the real world.

The LII may explore many avenues of thought, but in the end only tell others his refined conclusions, because he sees the intermediate steps as irrelevant. He is often too concise for his own good, making it difficult for others to understand his ideas.

Creative Ne

The LII often applies Ti in an academic field such as mathematics, one which allows for abstract speculation to be realized in concrete conclusions. The LII does not much care for implementation or hands-on work, requiring some degree of independence from material demands in order to develop his own ideas. If the LII feels made to do a task he perceives as boring, he will try to find an original way to do it, if simply for the sake of developing an interesting idea. The LII can think on his feet, and is able to consider multiple viewpoints, although if he feels that he has fully analyzed an idea in the past, he may dismiss it out of hand with Ti.

The LII is always in tune with the "big picture", looking at things from the most general perspective possible. Given this frame of reference, he sees many ways ordinary life could be changed to meet his vision of how things should be. Thus the LII is often seen by other more practically-minded types as naively idealistic.

The LII does not come up with ideas simply for their own sake, but tries to relate everything back to "the main point". He quickly becomes impatient or disinterested with discussion that is simply meant to generate ideas, instead of realizing them.

Super-Ego

Role Fi

The LII is acutely aware of social conventions, such as saying "please" and "thank you", and expends much effort to conform to these rules to maintain the status of a "polite" person. But he tends to overdo the conventions themselves, as opposed to the relationships they are supposed to establish, and so ends up stepping on other people's toes (violating some less easily definable convention which he would never really want to conform to anyways). He prefers an easy-going environment where such conventions don't exist in the first place. When in a heated argument, an LII can alienate others by his natural tendency to hold and defend strong opinions (Ti).

If asked to express a unique, personal sentiment, such as a favorite color or football team, the LII may find difficulty choosing if there is no "obvious" answer. He often feels like he has no real personal, subjective feelings at all, and usually has to make a conscious decision where other types could easily supply an instinctive reaction.

The LII also is very sensitive about how other people see him, feeling depressed if he has affections that are not returned. For this reason, he tends to avoid expressing signals that show interest in certain people (as opposed to signals about his general mood and demeanor, which he feels to be much more natural), but of course it just aggravates his loneliness, instead of relieving it.

Vulnerable Se

The LII hates being ordered what to do, and chafes especially under orders that don't make sense to him. In such cases the LII is likely to criticize the authority — but if he does he is not subtle about it, and usually ends up being marked as a "rebel" and feeling even more frustrated than he did to begin with. An LII works best alone, so that he doesn't have to subordinate (to) others — or constantly negotiate his priorities, which strains his patience and diverts his time and attention away from reworking his understanding; if he is forced to waste time defending what he already knows, he gives up the freedom to deepen his understanding further. He does not tolerate pushiness combined with close-mindedness.

The LII does not like being simply told "get real" or "get off your duff", which he views as crude, intrusive, and insulting. He prefers to be left alone - or better, included in an atmosphere of open discussion that is receptive to his thoughts and thereby inspire him to develop them more.

If the LII has a problem that cannot be solved intellectually, but requires direct personal confrontation, he may resort to total avoidance rather than approaching the person directly, which he tends to think will produce only frustration and contempt. The LII thinks that, in an ideal world, everyone would just listen to reason instead of insisting on having their own way.

Super-Id

Suggestive Fe

Being a naturally private person, the LII finds it difficult to believe that others would be interested in what he is thinking or feeling at any given moment. He feels like something is not quite right if his interaction with the people around him is too aloof. However he only rarely makes an effort to venture into more open spheres, because he usually avoids making small talk, preferring to talk about his real interests and say only what he truly believes.

To this end, the LII, above all things, appreciates others' attempts to get him to "open up" emotionally and express his true thoughts and views of the world - not just as an abstract ideal living in his head, but as something that other people actually care about enough to participate in and bring to fulfillment. His focus on important abstract matters also leads him to detach from the world, if it is not complemented with a healthy dose of silliness. The LII is usually oblivious to his emotional-psychological state and feels little responsibility for improving it, not to mention the state of others. This means that "bad emotions" can build up in him until some environmental factor comes along to alleviate them. Visible demonstrations of emotional warmth play a major part in this: something as simple as a big smile and a hug is enough to brighten an LII's day. The LII can be attracted to insincere displays of affection, even if he consciously realizes that they are only in jest.

The LII is often at a loss for what to do in social situations, and appreciates others who make him feel included in a new group and in the emotional side of a situation. The LII tends to take life very seriously, and appreciates others who can show him the lighter side of things.

Mobilizing Si

The LII has poor control over his physical well-being, neglecting matters of simple hygiene relatively easily. He dislikes having to take care of mundane details of work, but simultaneously derives pleasure from aesthetic neatness and organization.

The LII is easily annoyed by sensory over-stimulation, including loud noises, bright light, and temperature. On the other hand, he easily becomes "addicted" to more pleasurable things, such as music, which have a corresponding effect on his mood (Fe). When left to his own devices, the LII tends to oscillate unhealthily between total indulgence of the senses and total neglect (the latter especially when working on something he feels to be extremely important). He tends to feel guilty for indulging in hedonism for the sake of hedonism.

On the surface the LII can seem easygoing, but in work projects or at home his critical nature will become more obvious.

Ignoring Te

The LII is an efficient worker, and seeks out new tools, resources, or methods as long as they are directly relevant to his work or interests. He is not likely to keep especially careful track of his finances, avoiding this by keeping his needs simple and constant.

The LII can easily understand whether something is impractical or not, but prefers to explain why using structural principles. He dislikes rote memorization of dates and the like, but paradoxically will often have a mental store of many arcane pieces of information (such as the first 100 digits of pi) he finds interesting or equally absurd technical skills (like mastering a video game). Such skills and information will either be a part of his leisure activities, or relate directly to his main interests, which he chooses not based on their immediate practical consequence, but on how interesting they are.

The LII only exchanges such information in conversation for entertainment, and criticizes overly bland or rambling analyses, especially if he feels they have no point.

Demonstrative Ni

The LII is a naturally cautious person, and never acts without considering the consequences in detail. This tendency sometimes prevents him from acting decisively—or at all. However, he tries not to be overly pessimistic about the consequences of others' actions, and only offers direct advice in this area if it is specifically requested. If something bad happens he is usually willing to forgive and move on without placing blame, re-establishing the course as subtly and smoothly as possible. While he tends to have very specific ideas about his general life principles and goals, he is basically indifferent as to their specific timeframe and implementation.

The LII has an active imagination, but it tends to fade in and out and its products are rarely verbalized. He hardly ever says purposely cryptic or idiosyncratic things, and criticizes others for employing overly obscure concepts.

Source: Wikisocion

#personality theory #personality types #typology #socionics #sociotypes #lii #intp

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oliveraiku · 1 year

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Would you consider bllk to be an example of the obsessed artist trope?

I had to think about what the ‘obsessed artist trope’ was, for a moment. But if I did understand correctly, it comes down to two prime example from the Naruto world: Deidara and Sasori.

Obsessed with their art, while in different ways, both Deidara and Sasori are fundamentally lost to the human perception and transcend the ‘obsession’ by ultimately becoming art, and fulfilling their credo. While Blue Lock, does somehow fit in the ‘obsessive’ type of artist, I do not think that ultimately it quite follows the trope (at least not every single character).

There are different types of obsessions, explored in Blue Lock, that are however close to the artist type, but in this context I would not rather say it’s an artistic obsession trope, while on the other hand it can be defined as ‘protagonistic obsession’ which in the end is a synonym to egoism.

Which, you'd say: well, of course it is. But if we do break down the 'egoism' trope (if we talk about tropes), it does circle back to obsession, but not towards an art, but rather focus on oneself, while interacting with other people. This seems very theoretical and abstract as a statement, but consider how there are four pinnacles of obsession that are explored in Blue Lock: the most obvious one, Isagi Yoichi - and his core point as a character being the development of an egoism that goes beyond the simple play of soccer, and goes deep instead into reforming the way Isagi thinks. It’s an obsession rooted in evolution, where the character destroys and creates anew (he is one of the examples I’d say fits the artist obsession trope).

Isagi is not obsessed by wanting to become a God, but by the by-processes that ultimately allow him to become that : a masterpiece (the creation of a play, exactly as he wants it to go, as he envisioned to). The fault is that he does not strive for perfection, because he ultimately knows that even if he became n.1, there would also be the possibility of being devoured. He does not want to become Noa, he wants to beat him.

Then, on the other side of the ring, we have Barou and Rin. I lump them together because in the end, what they have in common is two fundamental things: the obsession they both sport are tailored and rooted in both themselves and another core person that becomes a challenge to overcome, and is seen as somehow the final goal (if they beat that person, it means that their ego is fulfilled). Clearly, for Rin that person is Sae (who I’d argue is probably the most refined and artistic character of Blue Lock, who is therefore plagued by perfection), and for Barou it is Isagi.

Why? Because they both do what Rin and Barou would never allow anyone else to: they push them off the pedestal they have built for themselves, and show why exactly was it possible to. It creates an obsession to win, to demonstrate one self, to prove better - but not to fulfil an obsessive artist trope, not to become perfect. Perfection takes another meaning all of a sudden, and somehow it both falls short on the two of them (Rin is defined as villanuous, and Barou is the king of villains - they are already, in a sense, fulfilled in the trope).

Look here, Rin is already convinced that there is little to improve himself on. He’s not striving for more.

While Barou has find a goal for himself in the middle of it, while he thought he already reached his peak.

And then, last but not least, we have Kaiser, who finishes the four-angles formation. Together with Sae, Kaiser is probably the one that the most might fit this trope, but at the same time, he also falls on the same obstacles that Rin and Barou do (but I do not think it will last long. Kaiser’s striving to become Noa, and then surpass him, so he is only going to grow from now on - even though Mineyuki might go through the stubborn way and let him prove to himself that he can beat Yoichi even without adapting and going even further).

However, Kaiser is ultimately both the prototype and the patient 0. Kaiser is a perfectionism, and he does not allow anything to stray away from his plan: look at the interaction he and Isagi engage when they meet. Kaiser does not dismiss him like others have done, but instead he employs Yoichi in a way that would fit him the best, because in the end Kaiser knows he's still not quite there, and that despite being good, he has still things to learn and grow into. It's the same way that Sae feels, I believe, when he sees Shidou. Shidou is a supernova, and where others find him unmanageable, Sae tries to build a play that is flawless, and not lukewarm - but he did not believe he would find a striker worthy of his own talent in Japan, before Shidou, which implies that Sae has still not arrived at his peak (which is then underlined by the fact that no matter how good their duo is, they are still fallible). Kaiser is an obsession that is rooted in a 'being better than’ or that of being better than anyone else, as that would surmise that he is not the one in the fault, or uncapable of reaching such a level of plays. He strives for perfection.

Ultimately, as you see, I would say that Blue Lock uses the artist obsession trope, and does it quite well, but it cannot be quite called an example of it. But then again, this is my opinion, so take it with a grain of salt, because ultimately art is up to the individual perfection, and what Blue Lock most strives for is to give space to their own protagonism, that expresses itself in many and different ways.

#blue lock #bllk #blue lock manga #bllk manga #isagi yoichi #itoshi rin #barou shouei #michael kaiser #bllk meta #blue lock meta #sunn’s mailbox corner #. with ; anon #blue lock analysis #bllk analysis #character analysis

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summonhouse · 1 year

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Heart is very cute... Where is your roleplay set?

HI atm the focus is on the kingdom of the new world (btw. if you guys ask about any of my other oc worlds .. i always default to "the new world" as the title of the planet/continent/country/kingdom that is the setting. this has been the case sinceeee 2018ish beginning in ipseity. i like to reuse concepts like that). ruled by the formerly glorious king muse (design pending. imagining largely grayscale with high contrast emphasis. a large dog of a man) (heir; prince mosaic) in recent times hes become terribly ill both physically and mentally (much like most of the citizens, really) but no one picks a fight with the new world necessitating action from him because of its extremely overt religious activity and a lot of what the government should be controlling is controlled instead by said religious organizations so its not like anyone suffers for his inactivity. unless you dont like religion which in that case Uh oh. the religion is also an important facet of the setting; heart/soul/mind are "gods" in the sense that theyre personifications of abstract magical concepts (whether theyre real sapient actionable "people" is debatable. if they are fully realized entities they do not interact with humanity whatsoever); worship towards each respective god grants certain boons or curses of which are interpreted as very special blessings. while not everyone is religious and you can kind of ignore these things its definitely the main driving force in a lot of civilian organization and the center point of much of the conflict ...

#ask #yay i love talking

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thosemintcookies · 1 year

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So yeah apparently AI art can do hands now

And I think this is the thing I get back to. The longer these things learn the better their stuff gets. Eventually all the kinks will get ironed out. You will see computer generated images that are indistinguishable from something done manually. In fact, the applications reach farther- eventually we will see 3D art in real space, and art using traditional mediums. Like we have to shift the focus to the injustices without making quality judgements, which are in essence, identical to the ones aimed at all new mediums as they emerged. You think a couple decades ago people weren't having the same thoughts about digital art? You think these same exact sentiments aren't hurled towards modern art and abstraction in general?

Like if we have to really internalize that art is art is art. AI art is art. Sometimes it can be good art, because we live in a tech and data dense era and these mediums are becoming increasingly sophisticated in the ways they can communicate something about our relationship to tech and data, about ourselves and what we consider important.

All arguments about AI art being bad art, or not real art, is a rehashing of the elitist divisions we make, and we've been having this talk for literally centuries.

In addition I feel like we also have to be careful about the idea of "copyright" because even before the machines, it's been a murky territory. What about IPs? Remixes? Sampling? Collage? Found art? It's also limiting to think about AI art as "lesser than" because it "only" rehashes from existing pieces.

So, what is there to say? How can we better communicate the outrage? I think to the real point of it is about the unequal and frustrating power dynamics at play, especially because a lot of people who do gripe with this whole issue are artists that simply do not make that much money from their art. It's about a capitalist culture that reduces art down to Mere Aesthetic, which says that the product is more important than the intention and the process. It's about the divorcing between intent and profit. Its about the hellscape where there's merchandise sold of explicitly anti-consumerist/anti-capitalist works. It's about media industries that treat its workers as replaceable. It's about people choosing to have An Image that titilates rather than opting to foster community with like-minded fans.

And of course there are ways to fight back. Of course we can foster communities in our own spheres. We can also applaud art that has intent and direction. We can also increase systems that let artists thrive instead of being treated as cogs in a machine.

This wouldn't even be an issue if artists were fairly compensated for their labour and if people really cared about art beyond commodity value. AI art and artists who use machine learning could just be another movement of artists doing something interesting. Instead, this beautiful, terrifying technology is being used to generate soulless images for lonely men and to objectify celebrities and as leverage to further put other artists in jeopardy. It's such a fucking waste.

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clan-nightblood · 1 year

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Hi,

A couple of questions about Celeste and Trystal, if I may?

As I understand it, Warriors harness and channel their rage through connection to their "inner beast", unleashing wild fury, moderated by a focus on protecting their allies. How does Celeste balance her "rageful" side with her slow, methodical and calm demeanor? Is her rage something which only appears in combat when she calls upon it? Or is her rage purely internal and her allies (and opponents) only see her glacial composure?

As someone who favours the solitary outlander life, and presumably often operates alone, how does she control her inner beast without allies upon whom to focus her wish to protect? Does she focus upon them in her mind? Or more abstract concepts that she wishes to defend, such as community or the natural world?

Given that Celeste is so cold and stern, it doesn't much suggest that she is blessed with anything resembling a sense of humour (or that she would see the point in such a thing). If this is the case, how does she experience the fun-loving, charming and passionate Trystal? Does his sense of fun go over her head? Or does she find it irritating? Or has he managed to build enough of a relationship with her that his charm has elicited something of a thaw, to the point that she might laugh on the odd occasion? Conversely, does her calmness help temper his levity and passion at all? Or does she connect more with his underlying heaviness of heart?

Thank you so much for such an in-depth set of questions! Please forgive me taking this long to respond; life happened, as it often does.

Through living alone, and then with the Dravanians, and through watching the shifting forms of ice and the ways of the natural world, Celeste has learned how to save her energy, and what matters truly call for action. She bides her time, saves her strength, watches, waits. She moves slowly through the world and spends her rage where needed, and that is generally in service to those she desires to protect. Though she does have that inner fury, it’s not visible to her enemies, and only gets noticed by allies who know her very well. The tiniest changes in her physical demeanor tip them off, and there's even a change in the air around her as it grows an icy chill. Enemies don’t suspect a thing, but become unsettled and nervous, and allies unsuspecting become concerned and must rely on their trust to guide them. Inside her, all the strength and might of divine wrath drive the beat of her heart and the flow of her blood.

Celeste's inner beast is satisfied through hunting bigger and bigger prey, until she develops her own core beliefs and morals. Her true desire is to have a family, protect that family. At first it’s to protect the Dravanians, which entwines her with Iceheart and involves her in the Dragonsong War. Through this she sees the Ishgardians, and becomes curious of their families, their culture. Eventually she is able to become one of the Nightbloods, and protecting her family and anything that could possibly threaten it becomes her focus. The fury is used to destroy any and all threats to it - whether that threat be corporeal or abstract.

While Trystal is absolutely a jovial and sarcastic being, he does know when to tone it down. He quickly realized that the ways of society are lost on Celeste, and she only knew chunks of common tongue. Instead he approached her very directly and used gestures as well as words, and for the most part Celeste could understand him. As their relationship progressed, she would ask questions when something seemed unclear, and Trystal found himself explaining even the tiniest things. Now she understands more, but still doesn’t show much in the way of reaction or emotion. Occasionally Trystal will get the most minor of smirks or a snort from her, and that’s how he knows Celeste understood something funny or sarcastic. Celeste doesn’t always understand what Trystal's laughing about, but she knows he’s happy, and that’s enough for her. Trystal sees her as a point of calmness, someone who keeps him grounded when things become too chaotic or wild. He often finds himself confiding in her as she silently listens or offers a soft croon in return. This generally allows him to work out his own problems with her simply witnessing and offering only minor advice. Celeste may not know the ways of society, but her spirit knows the truth of a matter when she encounters it. Together they make a very strange and unlikely duo, calm in the faces of their respective storms.

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hbelcherarts246-01 · 4 months

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Process & Reflection (Week 4)

Text Reflection

This week's chapter covered the qualities that make typography either legible or illegible, as well as the distinct characteristics of individual letters and words that make them immediately recognizable to readers.

I'll be honest, it was a bit of a difficult chapter to follow, both because the concepts it covered were pretty highbrow, and the format in which it was presented ironically detracted from the text's legibility. I'm a little confused at the author's choice to format certain parts of the text in ways that they directly identify as being hard to read. Unsurprisingly, their choice to do this made the text very difficult to read. For example, one of the paragraphs was formatted using justification instead of the usual left-aligned format. It was very jarring and interrupted the flow of reading.

However, the information I did get from the chapter was fairly helpful and relevant to our current project, the music festival project. For example, the chapter talks about the limits of typographic abstraction in terms of legibility. This is crucial to keep in mind, I think, for things like typeface design, and more relevant to us, logotype design.

I need to keep this in mind while working on my logotype because, while I might know what the logotype is supposed to communicate, a reader or viewer may not be able to tell. This is where peer feedback comes in handy. Showing your work to someone else with fresh eyes can alert you to possible issues.

The chapter went on to cover how letter, word, and line spacing, line length, typeface weight, and typeface size can affect the legibility of individual words and a reader's ability to quickly and fully read bodies of text.

While these concepts are very familiar to me, the section on legibility and color was full of new information; it was by far the most helpful and relevant information in the chapter, especially in the context of our current project. The section discusses how poor implementation of color and typography can massively affect text's readability.

The way I understand it, while poor implementation of spacing, line length, typeface, weight, and size can disrupt a reader, poor implementation of color can make text nearly impossible to read. Even the most well-spaced, appropriately sized, and perfectly kerned typography becomes unreadable with poor implementation of color. Accessibility is also an important consideration, specifically for those with colorblindness, dyslexia, or impaired sight.

This will be extremely helpful information to have in our current project because we are dealing with brand color palettes and formatting body text. Additionally, we have to create a logotype, which requires a sophisticated implementation of color. The color palette I chose for the music festival contains a lot of analogous colors, like blues, purples, and magenta. Since the colors are very close to each other on the color wheel, they’ll be hard to read if placed on top of one another.

Process

In terms of the work I've done this week, a lot has happened; it feels like this project has been pretty fast-paced. We’ve created mood boards, sketched out logotype and poster layout designs, and rendered logotypes in black-and-white and color. Today, we reached the “finalization” stage of the logotypes and posters. I've been consistently running into issues with my logotype design, which has made developing a poster layout difficult.

I essentially did a “do-over” of my original logotype today, because during the critique, Professor Wanco pointed out that the “logo” part of my logotype (see below images) was the main focus, which took attention away from the typography. Additionally, she helped me realize that the typography of my logotype could not stand alone, which is a crucial part of this project.

I feel like the critique and subsequent "do-over" were both so helpful, genuinely. It helped me get un-stuck. I have included a sketch of the new logotype design below, which I am working on refining and vectorizing. In addition, for comparison, I have included an image of my original logotype design below, which I vectorized on Wednesday.

New (above left) vs. old (above right) logotype designs.

In-progress posters with logotype incorporated.

Taking a step back and experimenting with different logotype designs facilitated my development of an effective poster design. As I worked on the new design for my logotype, I tried to find ways to make it more compatible with the grid layout of my poster. I had an awful time trying to make my original fully circular logotype fit into the grid layout, so I knew I needed to change its overall shape to make it “cooperate” with the poster’s required elements– a grid layout, typographic hierarchy, and 3 columns of body text.

As you can see from the sketches above, I ended up changing the logotype’s shape to be semicircular, which leaves plenty of room for the required elements. It was overall a lot easier to use within a grid layout than a full circle was, and it allows the typography to take precedence over the ghost graphic without becoming too boring. I have ideas for the new logotype+poster design (see above images).

I feel a lot more confident and excited about this project now than I did yesterday!

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yuna-writes · 10 months

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The right partner

A relative once told me that friends usually don't last a very long time because people lives start to change. They either get married, have children, and become too busy with their lives to maintain many friends. I'm not sure if that's true, but my relative had a lot of friends around my age. As my relative is nearing mid 50's, many of them hasn't really kept in touch and stayed around. They either started a family or moved somewhere far away. So my relative suggested I should really trying prioritizing in finding a partner instead of trying to make friends that most likely won't last.

I'm still open to making friends, and I prefer creating friendships and hope one of the interaction might lead to a partner. It feels more like natural interaction compared to speed dating random strangers and rushing things. But I've also thought about what type of partner is the 'right fit' and I do have an idea on the type of person I feel attracted to, but unsure if they are the right fit in terms of my needs. I think I'm more interested in extroverts because of their high energy level, spontaneity, and I feel like they would encourage me to go outside more. It balances out my introverted personality.

But for some strange reason every single extrovert I hanged out with didn't go well. They either got frustrated with me and I got drained by their energy level. Another thing I noticed is that people who focus a lot on the outer world and enjoy the present for 'what is' tend to not connect with me on an intellectual level. They don't care so much about theories, concepts, philosophy or they don't seem open to them. They just care about what exist in the present reality.

So the idea of dating someone different seems intriguing because the novelty in the relationship might seem new or exciting. It's like entering the mind of a different world through another person, but after a while, I do foresee an issue in the relationship where we might misunderstand each other a lot and miscommunicate. For me, I never understood how and why my personality formed but I can spend several weeks staying indoors, enjoy reading books, watching's shows, and writing literature. Therefore, usually intellectual ideas or creative pursuits energizes me.

When I look in the outside, everyone seems to be engaged in more outside activities and dating culture is very focused on outside activities as well. At some point, I felt like as if something was wrong with me. Was I too shy, anxious or anti-social? I don't feel any of these apply to me. I do feel a bit anxious if I'm forced to be an extrovert, but I don't think it has much to do with anxiety rather then my boundaries. Everyone has boundaries and what they can't do. Some of things I never really understood about an extrovert is when someone told me she felt really anxious being alone in her room for several hours. She always need to be outside and surrounded by people. Therefore, she is more anxious when she is forced to be alone and in her own thoughts. I don't think people realize extroverts can feel anxious too, but I suppose they haven't questioned why would they feel anxious when they always appear confident, energized and seem to appear always positive.

I do think introverts get misunderstood more but I've accepted it as a normal way of life I guess. It's not just being introvert, I don't seem to be very interested or connected to the culture. That was something I didn't understand either. I'm not very interested in prom, partying, bar life, American sports, and many western recreational activities. It's not that I never tried them or wasn't open to them. I did try some activities but I always end up favoring activities requires intense intellectual focus, creativity, and abstract thinking. It's usually activities that's considered unpopular and very individualistic. So I guess if I had to find a partner, this person have to understand my interests and need to be indoors a lot. I just haven't met someone who have the same energy wavelength. I did meet some introverts, but I felt like they weren't introverts more than really depressed and anxious people. I feel like a healthy introvert isn't someone who's depressed but excited about pursuing their own thing in their own style.

#notes

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longlistshort · 10 months

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Work by Denise Treizman for the 2023 Florida Prize in Contemporary Art at Orlando Museum of Art

Denise Treizman’s sculptures have so many interesting components tying them together. With every new angle, new details emerge.

The museum’s information on the artist and her work-

The raw materials of Denise Treizman’s work come from the waste stream of contemporary society. She accumulates these materials in a variety of ways to upcycle them into vibrantly colored sculptures that hang on the wall, sit on the floor, or fill rooms with immersive installations. Her practice evolved during her MFA studies at the School of Visual Arts in New York. Initially an abstract painter, she was captivated by the extraordinary things she found discarded on New York’s streets. Shifting her focus from painting to sculpture, she started to make art that incorporated and responded to those objects and materials. She continued her career in New York for nine years followed by two in Haifa, Israel, before arriving in Miami, where she currently lives and works.

Another formative experience occurred while she was at ACRE, an artists’ residency in Steuben, WI. There she was introduced to weaving by a fellow resident artist. Concerned that she did not have the patience to learn the practice or work in a way that did not yield immediate results. she was at first reluctant to take it up. After some reflection. she decided to try weaving with nontraditional materials. Starting with duct tape and bubble wrap, she was excited by the outcome. Teaching herself the techniques and working intuitively, she now has several looms in her studio, each with weavings in progress. These often become points of departure for new works, but they are not made with their eventual ends in mind. Rather, she treats them just as she does other materials, as visual elements that must contribute to her vision for the work.

Treizman notes that she does not make her sculptures with found objects but instead from objects and materials she accumulates. She banks things that have a resonance and relevance to the nature of her work, not knowing when or how they might ultimately be used. A list of some of the objects in her recent sculptures may suggest rather arbitrary choices, including pool noodles, tennis shoes, exercise balls, hula hoops, pompoms, and a dumbbell. A look at the work, though, belies that idea. These things are accents, punctuations, dissonant notes within a larger cohesive aesthetic dominated by a swirl of optically seductive materials. Shiny plastics, synthetic fabrics, colored duct tapes, iridescent papers, neon spray paints, and sparkling LED lights provide the overall visual language that pulls her works together. With a playful and sophisticated eye, Treizman assembles sculptures that are explosively energetic, teetering on chaos but resolving into beautifully expressive statements.

#denise treizman #orlando museum of art #2023 florida prize in contemporary art #art shows #florida art shows #florida artist #art #art installation #sculpture #neon art

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cosmowithablog · 1 year

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Manifesto of Hidden Beauty

The art we view, and the everyday objects that surround us are all filled with beauty. Although some are more in plain sight than others, it’s our job to find and define that beauty. Throughout my Tumblr posts, I recognize I choose to gravitate toward happy pieces and describe objective art in a positive light. Altering our perspective of things can create a bigger difference in our well-being than we may assume. This is why we should go out of our way to look for the hidden beauty.

In the assignment where we had to describe what a piece of art meant to us, I chose to describe a picture where a figure is knelt down with a bow and arrow in his back, a flying umbrella in the background, and a white butterfly in his hand. Instead of focusing on the negative, I pointed out the importance of the white butterfly. When looking at this image online, many viewed it as teh hard things one has to go through in order to reach their goal. However, when I first saw it, I knew the butterfly represented hope. With everything in the background going on, the butterfly remained the top focus, which to me, is beautiful. Being able to appreciate the sense of direction you have while everything else seems to be going bad is being able to appreciate the beauty of any situation.

The public art assignment was based on the body sculpture from the FSW library. Objectively, it’s easy to point out the architectural details of the sculpture, but not so much its meaning. As I had said, the sculpture represents natural beauty. Most would just view this as a sculpture of a body, but to women, it means so much more. In a generation where the beauty standard has caused unhealthy lifestyles and harsh criticism towards women, it’s beautiful to see a curvier body made into art. If more people came to a deeper understanding of the things that they see every day, such as this sculpture, they would see the beauty behind it.

When it came to the abstract image assignment, I had written about Arthur Dove's painting called The Goat. It’s a terrain that looks like it's a goat shape. My initial interpretation was that the goat makes up the scenery because he is one with his home. I like to view things in a peaceful and happy way, and imagining the goats being free in their safe place was the only way I could view this image. Along with this, I also felt drawn to this piece because of the familiarity it gave me to my grandmas house in Mexico. She lives on a mountain, and the same green, brown, and blue in the drawing are what I see when I visit. When I visit, I'm always awakened by the goats that are walking down the mountain. From an image that doesn't have anything specifically written out, I was able to see the harmony within it.

For the Poetic License, I chose a poem about cats. I love my cat Cosmo, and to me, it only seemed fitting. The poem is from the cat's perspective, and it described the everyday things cats do as being done with compassion. The poem says the cat sings to its owner in the morning, which is a beautiful way to view your cat meowing in your face in the morning. Being from the pet's perspective allowed the poem to represent the cat's actions in a different way, a purer way.

After going over my past assignments, the purpose i’ve been writing for became clear. I encourage everyone to be more optimistic in their lives. These things are easier said than done, but once you start to actively look for the beauty in your day, the things around you, and in the nature that makes you, they soon become the first thing you notice. (655)

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yugiohz · 2 years

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my chainsaw man review :) major spoilers be warned

Genre: I think it’s funny how, for the most part, csm makes it a point to repeatedly mock the hero archetype only for the story to have a VERY heroic ending with the city getting attacked by a Devil and Denji getting ready to fight it’s oddly satisfying .

World building: initially, I was left very dissatisfied with the world building: csm establishes several interesting elements, it never really bothers to expand on these, let alone explain its magic system but halfway through the story it becomes clear that csm is much less about the world/magic system/an abstract us vs them conflict and much more about how everything relates to Denji’s character, so in hindsight I don’t mind the lack of in-depth world-building because it’s a character-driven story, which I did not expect but enjoyed and even prefer tbh.

Which brings me to my next point

Characters: as I said, it’s a character-driven story and thus focuses heavily on Denji, which on one hand is great because he’s an intriguing protagonist but on the other, every other character falls very flat next to him, which I personally don’t mind since it’s easy to only focus on Denji but yeah I did notttt care about 90% of the cast. Power is a really fun character and Aki is cute but outside of the main trio I really did not care about who dies and who survives.

The one thing that lowered csm’s enjoyment factor significantly for me was the female characters’ writing; every non-Power csm can be reduced to one quirky characteristic and I could not care less about himeno (had to google her name) dying she’s so pathetic im sorryyyy but she needs to work on her issues and stop pining after boys that are significantly younger than her it was a bit repulsing rip.

Theme: I think csm’s strength definitely lies in its theme of consumption and how it reflects the diegetic power politics. Food/consumption metaphoric is rlly nice in general and csm implements it really well for a manga, it was easy to catch on quickly and anticipate more and the ending was very satisfying so all in all interesting theme, nice development and good closure. I know there’s also religious themes but I didn’t really notice those tbh but there’s videos on that I’m gonna watch maybe it’s gonna change my general opinion who knows,.

Anyway back to the theme of consumption, I really loved that oneeee, it’s straightforward but nice nonetheless. I really like how the food immediately reflects Denji’s (lack of) power and his vulnerability throughout the chapters: The manga opens with Denji being forced to eat a cigarette (non-edible // Denji is an abandoned child) to eating rotten food (a bit more edible // still alone) to eating basic food (edible but really odd combination (the sandwich)// lives with aki so he’s slowly socializing) to eating fancy food in a restaurant (big change // socializing, Denji has worth) to eating Makima (climax). It’s interesting how his triumph over her is different from manga like a*t (sorry) where it’s violent mid-fight consumption. Instead, he takes his time to prepare her as a meal which emphasizes his newly-gained agency through this deliberate performance, which is really important I think because throughout the manga, several adult women take advantage of his vulnerability and powerlessness so yeah the final cannibalistic act is nice because it reflects denji’s development and growth so well, albeit morbidly.

Narrative foils: Lastly I don’t want to get too much into the grooming, I think on one hand it’s definitely meant to emphasize Denji’s vulnerability so it has a right to exist in the story, on the other it quickly turns voyeuristic (and fetishistic) which I could only side-eye it is what it is. One thing I’ll say is that Makima wasn’t really a complex/interesting antagonist to me, she works well and is the perfect antagonist for this very specific protagonist (denji as a very limited focalising protagnoist vs Makima as an omniscient but closed antagonist) but outside of their antithetic dynamic, I think she’s boring but I also know the author did not have me in mind when he wrote csm so it’s whatever jskncd.

LASTLY csm has some reallyyyyyy really beautiful paneling and art I loved taking my time to stare at some pages I am sooo obsessed with the gun devil (?)’s attack and how the death count was displayed so neatly in front of the silent visual chaos, also the whole snowball scene was cinema!!!!

6.5/10 I think but im not sure im so bad with concrete ratings let’s say it was a ride.

#csm spoilers #chainsaw man spoilers #not rebloggable bjt feel free to disagree or comment etc etc this is all very subjective etc #idk what else I should tag this as I don’t thing anymore cw apply and it’s clear that I’m spoiling a lot

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namchyoon · 2 years

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RM says that he too has changed. “I got used to being on-trend as I’ve been living in a milieu where being fashionable is important, but I don’t think I should keep on living like this. I don’t quite know how to do it, but I’ve started wanting to produce something long-lasting and timeless. I’m beginning to think about it a lot at this point — it’s been nearly nine years since I became a member of BTS.”

When I ask about the current direction of his lyrics, he answers in broad terms. “In the past,” he says, “I was bound by rules a great deal — like, ‘I should be doing this and that’ — and I was preoccupied with showing off certain techniques, etc. These days, however, I focus instead on creating a certain texture that I want to convey in a more abstract way. I’ve developed the ability to think in multisensory dimensions, incorporating visual as well as tactile elements. I take a holistic approach with the lyrics, melodies, beats and voices — all the elements of music.”

Anyone who has been following RM for a while knows that his answers are never one-dimensional. The steps he takes, the words he uses and the direction he takes are all carefully considered. His answer to the question, “Was the change of direction natural?” doesn’t disappoint, either. “The word ‘natural’ could refer to several turning points,” he says, “but it’s difficult to describe. I’ve spent time pondering what kind of adult I’m becoming. I’ve been learning to become more aware of my own rough outlines when it comes to choosing things I like and that are close to my heart. At first glance, it might seem like I’ve changed naturally, but on closer inspection, it’s something I’ve intentionally shaped. I went through painful periods, but looking back, it feels natural.”

There are several keywords that describe BTS, and they all apply to RM’s development as well. RM has been searching for his identity, a process which naturally led to the creation of music. He considers BTS to be a sort of miracle and believes their sincerity and dreams will prevail, touching the utopia deep within many of us and helping to make the world a better place, despite everything. “They say we need to concentrate on the present rather than pursuing our dreams,” he says. “I believe having a dream can be important. I hope there are others who still retain a little boy or a little girl in their hearts and continue to believe in old-fashioned values, such as hard work and hope. I often struggle as well. The expectations people have of me, and the pressure I put on myself, are too great. I imagine even if I work in a completely different field in the future, people will still expect me to accomplish something, and I might not be able to meet those expectations. I think I’m still going through the stage of creating a rough draft.” Dreams keep on making our hearts sing even when they are accused of being banal. RM’s dream is human after all. “I want to be recognized as someone other than a member of BTS, and I want to create other types of art,” he says. “I have many dreams, including the dream of living in the quiet countryside, where I can read and study. I’m very happy now, but I find the pace of life quite overwhelming. I want to find the right pace for myself someday.”

excerpts from namjoon’s interview with vogue korea here

#not posting the entire one here but GOD HIS MIND i want to share it for once #he's so thoughtful it makes me so :(#namjoon #bts #kpop #type: text #favourites

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makingspiritualityreal · 3 years

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Numerology Life Path 7 - Your Birth Card and its Ruling Planet

Numerology Life Path Numbers and their assigned Tarot Card Meaning Series This is a post in my new astrology/numerology/tarot series, that only concerns you, if you are a Life Path 7. Posts on consecutive Life Path Numbers will follow. Originally, I wanted to do them all in one post, but my writing turned out to be so long, I decided to split the post and seperate the Life Path Numbers. The introduction part of the post will be the same for all Life Path Numbers, in case you only read a post about your own Life Path Number, and nothing else. Introduction The concept of a Birth Card links Tarot and Numerology together, in order to deepen our understanding of a vibration of a Life Path Number we are born with. The Birth Card, or rather Birth Cards, are Major Arcana Tarot Cards with assigned numbers, which correlate with Life Path Numbers. Understanding the meaning of tarot cards, mixed with the knowledge of Numerology Vibrations, helps create a more unique vision of your life experience. A person with any given Life Path Number, having several Major Arcana energies present in their lives, usually struggles with one of the energies more than the other. As a result, life will probably force them to focus on mastering one of these energies. In general, however, any Life Path describes both your biggest downfall and ultimate triumph - just like with an Astrology Chart, the highlighted numbers/astrology houses point to your biggest strengths and weaknesses. For a better understanding of this concept, visit my article “Natal Chart - A map of your issues?” Remember, that everyone, besides their Life Path Number and Birth Card also has a unique astrology chart. Thus, for some people embracing the higher expression of their energy is easier, for others it’s harder and it takes more time to master, and some energies become easier to deal with than others. Most human beings are somewhere in between, working on their path and having some achievements while struggling with difficulties at the same time. In the spiritual community, there are differences in opinion on linking Astrological Planets and positions to specific numerology numbers energies. My take is a result of my own personal experience, conversations with other people in my field and research, in order to give you the widest possible spectrum of ideas and increase the understanding of every Life Path Number. If you are a Master Number 11, 22 or 33, there will be a seperate post on how the Birth Cards apply to you as well. Even If you have only a basic understanding of Astrology, Tarot or Numerology, this post will still be helpful to you, because it describes the unique vibrational mix that comes from the expression of both these spiritual sciences mixed together. To calculate which Tarot Cards and what Life Path correspond to your birthday, click here.

Life Path 7 - The Chariot and The Tower

The energies of a Life Path 7 are ruled by the ephemeral, compassionate, wise vibrations of Ketu and Neptune. This can make it one of the most challenging Life Paths to navigate, as it requires a higher level of spiritual mastery and an ability to constantly assume a bigger picture perspective. That is a difficult thing to do in a world so highly revolving around materialistic concepts. Yet, if you are born with this Life Path Number, a certain free-spirited attitude and refusal to be sucked down into too many mundane details is something you need to develop within yourself.

Such a highly spiritual soul purpose associated with a Life Path 7 is due to Ketu being one of the primary rulers of this Life Path Number. Ketu, ruling detachment from the material realm, forces this life path to focus more on the energetic manifestation of their physicality instead of trying to navigate it through practical means. Ketu is also highly analytical, making this people excel at tasks, that require solitude, contemplation of abstract concepts and individual work. These people can make excellent writers or inspired researchers.

The other planet associated with a Life Path 7 is Neptune, the agent of universal, humanitarian compassion. That gives this Life Path a very loving, yet impersonal nature, where they express caring and kindness towards humanity and people in general, but may remain confused in one-on-one relationships. In this way, a Life Path 7 is a flip side of a Life Path 2, who thrives in intimate situations, but should open up more to group activities. A Life Path 7 naturally seeks out crowds, where they can occasionally show up and recharge on their need for a collective exchange of compassionate energy. Yet, in private situations, they can struggle to focus on their partner, open up or truly connect with another, as they are always absorbed in their own little world.

Because of Neptune being such a high vibrational planet and Ketu giving the ultimate higher-dimensional mastery, the spiritual consequences of wrongdoing for this life path are more severe than for others. These people need a moral compass, spiritually, the most of all life paths. In extreme cases, I have seen Life Path 7s fall prey to accidents and disease, if they succumbed to the temptation of their lower instincts.

Because of Neptune's influence on this Life Path there can be a significant difficulty in finding their way out in this material world, which can lead to poverty or other practical problems. If one neglects consulting their higher, intuitive nature and stays within the confines of the material, there may be an illusion of desire for a get rich quick scheme due to an innate lack of practical sense or ability to build without external help. These people, if they overfocus on the material realm, may get frustrated due to lack of dividends or practical rewards, or they may simply waste their resources away due to an internal feeling of emptiness and dissatisfaction. If they get overwhelmed with this conflicting energy and forget to search within, they may forget their true purpose altogether. Yet, because of the foggy energy surrounding this Life Path, they don't have the capacity to intellectually or physically fully power through their problems like other life paths do, and they shouldn't even try. The only solution is going with the flow of their natural spiritual direction. That is imperative, as breaking out of this flow causes poverty, debt, sickness, forced isolation and all sorts of trouble in the physical world. Material prosperity will only appear in this person's life proportionate to their level of spiritual prosperity.

Associated Tarot Cards point the way for a Life Path 7 towards assuming a successful direction in this incarnation.

The Tower - This card is the testing moment, when we lose everything that we are used to having around us. But the purpose of this loss is always in our highest good. This is why things fall away at a critical point in our lives, when the foundation is so corrupted it can no longer support itself. The Tower is actually a tool of keeping things in check spiritually, meaning then when things go too far down the wrong direction, the Universe balances it with a Tower moment in order to prevent an imbalanced energy from growing further. The Tower points to this Life Path's ability to discard the excessive burden of material illusions and continuously purge in order to make sure one remains "pure", spiritually, free of self-deception and in tune with one's inner guideline.

The Chariot - The Chariot is linked to Ketu's thoughtless manifestation, that this Life Path possesses. A Life Path 7, regardless of their spiritual inclination, needs a firm direction not to drown in their negativity. Even for this Life Path, their spiritual nature needs to have anchor in the physical world, that keeps them on track with their journey. That anchor is balance, that the Chariot card represents, the balance between their inner shadow and light. A mature Life Path 7 knows how to preserve that balance, and drive that carriage effortlessly.

A Life Path 7 should never choose an easy way out, as it will backfire for them more than for anyone else. Not only will it cause misery internally, but also externally people will mirror it to them and they will be disapproved of for their wrongdoings more than any other Life Path number. It is as if others subconsciously sense their higher nature and place expectations on them to act accordingly with it, so where other Life Paths might get a pass, this Life Path number will not. In reality, it is the Universe's tool to assure that these natives stay on their correct, spiritual path, and it is Life Path 7s themselves that have a high level of subconscious, spiritual analysis and self-judgment. As a result, any negativity that comes their way from the outside is a projection resulting from their own deeply rooted high spiritual expectations, and an internal disappointment, if they are not met.

The best advice a Life Path 7 can hear is that it will always pay off for them practically to be kind and preserve their spiritual integrity. It is essential for this Life Path to realise, that any lower energies they invite for short-term gain will immediately backfire, and deep down they are unhappy with themselves for making any wrong choices in the first place. Ketu has a perfectionist nature to it, and a Life Path 7, whether they realise it or not, has a deep level of internalised spiritual perfectionism. An unaware Life Path 7 can become judgmental, trying to hold others to this high standard that they carry internally, while refusing to face their own actions. This process is simply a mirrored expression of a desire, to reach that point of excellence by themselves.

If you are a Life Path 7, solitude is something essential to your well-being. Make sure your lifestyle allows you to make time for yourself. It is in isolation, away from the external noise that may unnecessarily cause you to project your spiritual desires on others, that you can work on yourself, find truth and connection to your ultimate power of deep, analytical understanding of this existence.

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my-name-is-dre · 3 years

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Mettaton is a False Prophet - Pt. 2

This is a continuation post from my older theory back when Undertale was still the big thing that Mettaton was a false prophet designed by Alphys and Asgore to fulfill the Deltarune prophecy, which explains all of his eerie similarities to Flowey and Asriel. Here is Part 1 if you wanna catch up!

[UPDATED INFO FROM DELTARUNE CH. 2]

With the debut of Deltarune Chapter 2 came a fan-favorite newcomer called Spamton, and the interesting thing about his character is that it has a lot of similarities with Mettaton, especially his secret form known as ‘Spamton NEO.’ Now, the general story behind his character is that he was once a spam email puppet account who was never able to make a deal. This was his life until he was called by a mysterious person who suddenly made him wildly successful by continually aiding his career over the phone, eventually causing his friends to leave him over their envy of his newfound success. This success eventually landed him a spot in Queen’s mansion until it all came crashing down one day, and the only remnant left of him was a dead phone line tied to him that only repeated static back at anyone who tried to call it.

As everyone’s likely aware of now, there is a hidden bossfight in which you can, once specific conditions are performed, fight Spamton NEO, a version of Spamton hooked up to a suit that unabashedly resembles the same form Mettaton took on in the no mercy route of Undertale. This suit has been referred to as ‘the machine’ which is described by Swatch as the creation of an unknown Lighter, “digitally visualizing their hopes and dreams which never came to be.” This then became an incomplete dream which was locked in Queen’s basement. In battle, the fight also resembles the fights the player had with Mettaton through Undertale, with their soul turning yellow and shooting projectiles to take Spamton down. But the similarities between the fight against Mettaton Ex and Spamton NEO don’t end there, as both fights involved taking apart components of the body gradually over the course of the battle, with Mettaton having his limbs blown off and Spamton having his strings cut.

Now, this backstory is all very important as it alludes back to the body’s origin in Undertale as a creation of Alphys to make its host proficient at killing and absorbing a human soul. The description of the body is textually different but similar, in that Mettaton NEO was designed for the purposes of killing explicitly whereas Spamton NEO’s body is described by Swatch as being an agent in which one can envision their hopes and dreams through an implicit power of determination.

It’s important to note here that, career-wise, Mettaton is quite similar to Spamton in that they both had great and newfound success upon accepting a deal that gave them some meta-knowledge of the world they inhabit, with Spamton being told that the world he lives in is a game that can be exploited (as implied by his dialogue), and Mettaton was granted some of the same abilities that Flowey possesses (changing the game’s name, being able to audibly speak, and being a monster soul possessing an inanimate object). Whereas Mettaton is a story of continued success, Spamton is a story of failure, but how does this fit into the context of the theory that Mettaton was a failed attempt to fulfill the Deltarune prophecy?

That quote from Swatch on describing the purpose of the body is important to explaining this, as it eerily resembles Mettaton’s role in Undertale’s story as a machine designed to harvest a human soul and potentially fulfill the Deltarune prophecy but was unsuccessful to do so because Mettaton is a false prophet. The theme of false prophecy and failed transcendence is exemplified by Spamton’s backstory, as the power of meta-textual awareness granted to him (by Gaster presumably) resulted in short-term success that rose him to the heavens only for him to fall down hard back into being forgotten. The fall he suffers from cutting off his strings is a dual-layer metaphor for how Spamton fell from success and how Mettaton was unable to fulfill the Deltarune prophecy unlike his parallel successor Flowey.

And if it wasn’t obvious that Mettaton’s constant desire for your soul is equivalent to Spamton’s desire for [hyperlink blocked], he goes on record describing all of the control he’d have over his life if he were to harvest your [hyperlink blocked], implying that the hyperlink is code for determination. Spamton also routinely refers to “heaven” throughout his dialogue, which could imply anything transcendental, but I believe this is also another direct allusion to the Deltarune prophecy and its description of an angel: The divine vocabulary fits. Perhaps Mettaton was trying to indirectly achieve this reception from heaven through his promulgation as an icon of monsterkind wanting so desperately to have a human audience? Perhaps this constant appeal ‘heaven’ is Spamtron’s version of Mettaton’s constant appeal to a nebulous audience? If that’s the case, it implies that the audience of Mettaton has divine power, which seems to suggest that it’s composed of far more than just monsterkind. Another minor thing to note here is that Spamton also refers to “the presses” if you defeat him by depleting his health bar: “WAIT!! [$!?!] THE PRESSES!”

“KRIS, DON'T YOU WANNA BE [Part] OF MY BEAUTIFUL [Heart]?” is a very unsubtle nod to the process Chara and Asriel underwent to bypass the barrier and return to the Surface. There must be something about the abilities that the NEO suit offers that is implicitly tied to the Deltarune prophecy. Spamton’s constant use of the phrase ‘big shot’ is another multi-layered metaphor. The ‘big shot’ in question is a triple entendre, as it refers not only to Spamton’s aspirations, but also the fulfillment of the Delta Rune prophecy and also more banally refer to the yellow soul’s newfound ability to shoot a charge shot.

After sparing Spamton NEO, he offers some dialogue that resembles Flowey’s plea to you after defeating his Photoshop form, in which he asks why you’re showing him mercy after all of the unnecessary cruelty he did to you to prove his worldview correct. He then goes on to make a reference to Pinocchio in which he asks you to cut his strings and make him a “real boy” (an even funnier phrase given that he’s a puppet). But this is also an allusion to Mettaton, as he reveals to you throughout the game that his robot body designed for him by Alphys is a form that makes him feel more like himself because it’s implied that Mettaton is an incorporeal ghost like Napstablook. He then makes one least appeal to Heaven and says he’ll live for himself and his friends, acting as a microcosm of both Mettaton and Flowey’s character arc.

In the “weird route”, Spamton also makes remarks prior to battling him that allude to Mettaton NEO’s fight in the no mercy route: “THANKS TO YOUR [Total Jackass stunts] I HAVE [Becomed] NEO.” “TO [$!$!] ME OVER RIGHT AT THE [Good part]!? WHAT ARE YOU, A [Gameshow Host]!?” “MY ESTEEM CUSTOMER I SEE YOU ARE ATTEMPTING TO DEPLETE MY HP! I'LL ADMIT YOU'VE GOT SOME [Guts] KID! BUT IN A [1 for 1] BATTLE, NEO NEVER LOSES!!! IT'S TIME FOR A LITTLE [Bluelight Specil]. DIDN'T YOU KNOW [Neo] IS FAMOUS FOR ITS HIGH DEFENSE!? NOW... ENJ0Y THE FIR3WORKS, KID!!!” One line in particular references Asriel calling Chara’s name before Frisk lands in the bed of flowers in the Garbage Dump: “YOU MAKE ME [Sick]! MUTTERING YOUR [Lost Friends] NAMES AT THE BOTTOM OF A [Dumpster]! NO ONE'S GONNA HELP YOU!!! GET THAT THROUGH YOUR [Beautiful Head], YOU LITTLE [Worm]!”

This is an even more poignant line, as Spamton resides in Trash Zone, which is meant to resemble the Garbage Dump area of Undertale, which was a point in Waterfall where you were given a hint into the backstory of the game before landing on a bed of flowers. It’s also the area where you encounter Mad Dummy and where Alphys dates Undyne in the true pacifist route. Clearly, the symbolism of taking place in a dump is very important for connecting the worlds and stories of both of these games, given that it’s such an important spot for two major characters tied to Mettaton.

If it weren’t obvious at this point, Spamton damn near confirms that Mettaton was designed at least partially to fulfill the Deltarune prophecy but was unable to because he didn’t possess the same potential or determination that Flowey had due to his lack of relation to the original human and his focus instead turning towards an abstract human audience. The dialogue from Swatch about Spamton being the embodiment of a Lightner’s dream also implies that, keeping in line with the themes of desire in the Dark World, that Mettaton might be directly responsible for the creation of Mettaton. Perhaps this is why the NEO suit so eerily resembles the God of Hyperdeath if it’s directly tied to Mettaton’s desire to fulfill the Deltarune prophecy. If this is the case, isn’t it a bit odd that the God of Hyperdeath is also implied to be Asriel’s creation from flavor text in Kris’s room? What an interesting parallel.

#undertale #deltarune #spamton #spamton neo #mettaton #mettaton neo #undertale 6th anniversary #deltarune theory #deltarune spoilers

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land-of-classpects-and-analysis · 3 years

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The Rogue Class Analysis

When the word ‘Rogue’ is brought up, what is the first thing that comes to mind? A person who lives in the forest, cloaked in shadow, always on the run from authority? Someone who steals from the rich and gives to the poor, a bow and arrow always in their hand? A mysterious, brooding figure with a secret and mysterious backstory who hides their trauma behind a charming personality and slick, witty tongue? Perhaps something along those lines at the very least.

Now, there is some weight to the point that the Rogue is a figure almost as well known and cherished as the Knight. Across multiple pieces of media, there is often at least one way the Rogue and their legacy manifests. This could be as simple as the term “Rogue-ish Charm” being used, as Rogues are famous - or infamous - for having some of the most charming personalities; if only being challenged slightly by that of Bards.

In a way, this matter of fact can go for Classpects, as well - specifically Classes. However, the charm of a Bard is a discussion that will happen for another day. For now, let’s truly begin to focus on just who exactly the Rogue - or rather the people connected to it - is and how they act like. As mentioned before, Rogues are often figures cloaked in shadows and shrouded in mystery when it comes to media - and those connected with the Rogue Class are no different. They tend to be the ones who linger in the in-between of groups, never being truly in the spotlight, but rarely ever being fully shoved to behind the stage and curtains.

For some Rogues, this is a deliberate choice. Not wanting to be the main protagonist of their own story, but also never truly wanting to lose all control over their narrative. They often much prefer to play a supportive role - being one of the many support beams helping to keep up the rest of the group. However, that support can often only go so far before the Rogue realizes that they are at a grand risk. What risk, exactly? Why, the risk of their facade falling apart and their true self being realized.

As much as the Rogue may present themself to be a kind and loving individual, this is often an over-inflated part of their personality. That is not to say that they are cold or uncaring, but rather that the amount of effort they put into others is often far more than they normally would. Why they do this is often to hold up the other parts of their facade - specifically the ones that hide that the Rogue isn’t one who exactly knows what they are doing, or that they are as successful as they may present themself to be.

One of the biggest things Rogues love to brag about is how much of their Aspect they have. A Rogue of Doom may brag about how empathetic they are, perhaps a Rogue of Light speaks highly of all the knowledge they have, or a Rogue of Space talks so highly of themself and their calm, precise nature in battle. All of this confidence, all of these boasts about their greatness and triumph in their Aspect; all of these facades and characters the Rogue plays.

But, why? Why lie about something such as this? Aspects are such a deeply personal thing - a force rooted into our souls like the veins within our own bodies. To lie about having any connection to it is to create this false idea in everyone else’s head - the idea that the Rogue is someone far bigger and better than they really are. So, once again, the question is begged: why hide this truth away from everyone, even close friends, and instead craft countless frail facades?

The simple answer is this: the Rogue is ashamed, and they are scared. It could be argued that they are ashamed of being scared, especially for the Rogues who seemingly hold more power over others in their group, or who feel they must be the stronger and better person no matter their situation. Rogues are often selfless people, and are so quick to give away pieces of themself so that others may further their own growth. Oftentimes, they will convince themself that their own suffering will never truly be as bad as someone else’s. And so they continue to give, and give, and give to others.

It is because of this selfless nature that people tend to flock to the Rogue, and begin to lean on them for more and more support. The last thing a Rogue wants to be is a disappointment to the people around them, so they allow for this theft of themself to continue. However, deep down, the Rogue is scared of so many things. Scared of failure, disappointing others, never rising to their true potential - whatever that may be. But, most importantly, the Rogue is scared of their Aspect.

To be more specific, the Rogue is afraid of taking a hold of their Aspect - of finally stealing it away from where it is plentiful. To try and take hold of a force so abstract and flexible would be like attempting to wrestle eels coated in oil; near impossible, and extremely dangerous. For the Rogue, if they are to try and attempt to take hold of their Aspect too early, they risk losing a connection to it altogether. Many Rogues tend to be very spirited people, and as such are very quick to try and jump ahead of their Aspect-lessons as soon as possible. Sometimes this is out of a want to help people sooner, while other times it’s because they simply are bored and don’t want to be stuck with what is, essentially, Aspect Homework.

Whether Rogues realize it or not, they are people who have a lot going for them. The universe tends to have great plans for them, and it is shown in how they interact with the world and people around them. Rogues tend to have great influence on their surroundings, and sometimes can even become the catalysts for some rather important events around them. Although they may try to steer clear of being the center of attention, the spotlight still often manages to fully capture them every once in a while. When it does, then it is often a sign from the Rogue that their journey is about to take a rather interesting and unexpected turn.

With that in mind, one of the biggest struggles the Rogue heavily internalizes is that they tend to underestimate themselves. They don’t think themself as anyone special, or of grand importance to the greater plot of the world around them. Instead, many, or even most, Rogues will see themself as just someone doing what they believe to be best. When faced with compliments in regards to the good things they do, they tend to be the type who get red-faced and try to brush it off with a small comment. ‘It was the right thing to do’, or, ‘I couldn’t just let someone/my friend deal with it on their own’ are two extremely common remarks made by Rogues.

As humble and selfless as Rogues may present themself to be, this deflection and internalized underestimation of themselves are some of the biggest things that prevent the Rogue from taking control of their Aspect. Humbleness does not always mean progress. Selflessness is not always harmless. By allowing for them to constantly be the one in a supportive role, they occupy themself with far too many side-quests that involve other people’s issues when, truly, they are meant to focus on their own journey and their own growth. Some say that a Rogue does all of these tasks, jobs, and quests so as to avoid even having to think of their journey - believing that if they keep busy, they will never have to answer to their Aspect’s call. For some Rogues, this is true.

Perhaps one of the reasons Rogues struggle so much with their journey is that they are not even sure what they are meant to do. Everyone around them has all of these distinct powers of destruction, manipulation, creation, and more; but what do they have? What are they? Who are they to the group, the world, or even the whole universe they dwell within? Their Aspect has been stolen from them so much that they often do not question it, or even try to fight it. Some Rogues may believe that this is their power; to have their Aspect taken from them by everyone and everything around them. A person so passive that they always seem to have some piece of their Aspect to give, despite never having lifted a finger to achieve it.

Little does the Rogue know that they are so very, very close to discovering their potential and power(s). It should be of no surprise to read that the Rogue is one who is meant to steal their Aspect, and that they have their own personal spin on it. For Rogues are those who not only steal their Aspect, but they give to those who are truly lacking in it - much like themself. Rogues are very rarely meant to keep whatever they reap from their sowing, instead giving it to the world and people around them.

If the Rogue so chooses, they can keep some pieces of their Aspect all for themself. When enough of this force has been collected, they can then acquire the power of being able to steal through their Aspect. However, Rogues are those so often held back by their high morals, loyalty, and more, that very few even understand their first power of only stealing their Aspect. The thought of ever having to take something away from someone is oftentimes enough to keep a Rogue away from continuing their journey any further.

Despite their selfless nature and alluring charm, Rogues are still those who tend to keep to themselves for the most part. Whenever a Rogue is in a conversation, very rarely was it them who started it. They tend to be those who believe that any conversation they start must have a purpose; uncommonly being one who enjoys mild chitchat and small-talk. If they are going to start a conversation, chances are it is because they have something deeply important and/or urgent to share with the other(s), or they merely prefer the company of whomever they are talking to.

It could be said that Rogues are those who much prefer to be approached rather than approach others. To an extent, this is extremely true; however, it should be said that this attitude is not one of being self-centered. Quite the contrary, actually, for they are someone who much prefers to let others speak first and for themself to speak last. They tend to be the one who listens to everyone else, whether it be wonderful news or the most devastating story to be told.

On the other hand, Rogues are those who tend to hide away all of their problems from everyone else; even if the very ship they are standing on is engulfed by flames. No matter what is happening in their life, they will be the person to put everyone before them. If anything, chances are that the more worst things the Rogue has been through, the more they are willing to help others around them.

Helping has and always will be their biggest priority in life. Almost every action they do is to help someone they know and care for. There are only a few things in life that could ever change this part of the Rogue. They are lovers, not fighters. Although they are not a healer, their actions and motives tend to run nearly, perfectly parallel to that of a Maid or Sylph. On that same note, however, do not believe them to be completely harmless only because they do not hold the same destructive power as a Bard of Prince. Underestimating a Rogue is one of the most foolish things to do.

However, even the Rogue themself is guilty of underestimating themself in almost every way possible. It is because of this self doubt that they put up their facades in the first place. A cool person who has everything under control, and who is never bothered by anything at all - that’s who they present themself to be to nearly every person they ever meet. There may come a time where they themself begin to think this facade is who they really are even though, in reality, they are struggling heavily with an immeasurable amount of problems.

In order for them to properly start their journey and acquire their powers, they must learn to come and face the truth. They aren’t as great as they present themself, they aren’t as flawless, skilled, or even suave as others perceive them to be. And that’s okay. At least, for most people who are faced with this truth would come to think. It’s not right to expect perfection all the time, and it will ultimately become something that brings out more harm than good.

The facade of how they want to be perceived is not who they are, and it is not the person that their Aspect is looking for. It is something that prohibits them from becoming a true hero. What their Aspect is looking for is someone truly brave and confident enough to even attempt wrangling it; stealing it from any source that holds it. As it stands, so long as the Rogue is withholding an identity that does not truly reflect on who they are as a person, then they will never be able to begin their journey towards their powers nor their Aspect.

Although they care for their friends and enjoy playing a supportive role to those around them, they can only help them so much before their attempts become useless. No, the way in which the Rogue is meant to fully help their friends is not through comforting words, loving gestures, or silent moments of solidarity. Rather, they are meant to redistribute their Aspect to those who are so desperately in need of it; or, more accurately, steal away their Aspect from those who have far too much of it and give it to those who are lacking in it.

It could be said that, to an extent, there is a considerable amount of Rogues who know the curse they have inflicted upon themself. Being aware of what is holding them back from being their best self is sometimes what helps them to start their journey, but other times it’s what holds them back more. Now, there has been a lot of emphasis on their facade and anxieties, but what about the solutions for this? Or, perhaps, what about the rewards for them removing their facade?

Many times, a Rogue will scare themself out of removing their facade. They’ll convince themself that the cons will always outweigh the pros, even if it means helping others to the best of their ability. It is a long and internal battle for the Rogue when it comes to breaking through these facades, but it is one that will have many rewards awaiting them. It is the Rogues who manage to look past their moral compasses and internalized lawfulness that will begin to see the cracks in the walls they have fortified around them. Through those cracks they will not only see their true self, but they also begin to see the true world around them.

For as faithful as the Rogue is to the people around them, it is a faith that comes from blind following and ignorance. It is because of this ignorance that they subconsciously put everyone they care for on a pedestal, with them as the pillar holding them up. By putting away and dismantling their facade, they will come to realize that they are not the only person with flaws in the world; even those who we pour our hearts and souls into are sometimes not always the best or most elegant individuals.

The more aware of reality, their very own included, that they become, the closer they get to achieving a sense of alignment with their Aspect. However, by doing just this, the Rogue will also have to see past their false paradise - they will have to realize how truly bleak and harmful the world around them can be. Most importantly, they will have to see how misplaced their Aspect has become in the world - or even as small as the very group they belong to.

Such a change in perspective can become overwhelming to some Rogues, and thus prevent them even more from beginning their journey towards harnessing their power. It is something far bigger than them, so who are they to even begin and try to think on how they may fix it? There have even been some cases where it’s made them even more afraid of their Aspect, causing them to avoid it even more - sometimes for the rest of their life or existence.

However, there are just as many Rogues who will see this and eventually overcome that initial feeling of shock and being overwhelmed. Once they do, they can finally start to get to work on finding the best ways to redistribute their Aspect - making it far more evenly placed amongst their group and, perhaps eventually, the world around them. The journey in which the Rogue takes down their facade is often a personal one, best left to be heard about than witnessed. Occasionally on their journey, though, they will come to a pit stop where a person they love and/or trust waits for them. They have given so much to their friends, and so it is time for their group to return the favor during the Rogue’s journey of self discovery and alignment.

Ultimately, the Rogue is someone who has to become comfortable with taking something that rightfully belongs to them: their Aspect. They have to accept that they won’t always be able to please everyone, right alongside not allowing injustices to lie; inside of their own life included. By stealing their Aspect away from something or someone, it means putting others at a slight or even grand disadvantage while also giving an advantage to another sector. Recognizing their true self as a Rogue will not only help them become more confident in who they are as a person, but it will also help them become the hero they are meant to be.

For the Rogue to harness their potential alongside their power, they must first learn about all there is to know about their Aspect. How it affects them, their friends, and everything else around them. Knowing about one’s Aspect is not something only restricted to the Classes of Knowing; one of the best examples of this would be the Rogue. Once they come to understand the ebbs and flows of their Aspect, how it swirls mystically inside and out of them and everyone - everything - else, they will finally begin to approach their powers of thievery.

Along the way of this journey, they will have to overcome their own internal blockades; namely, they will have to stop worrying about hurting those around them. Sometimes a Rogue’s Aspect is one so deeply personal and ingrained in one’s being, that to steal it from someone could feel the exact same as stealing away their right of oxygen, love, or life itself. It is something many Rogues struggle to face and battle, for it is a fear the size of a titan, so deeply stitched into them. What the Rogue needs most on this journey is a companion, someone to be there and help guide them into the waters - holding their hand, no matter how frigid or boiling it is, or how deep it may go. After all, the Rogue has been there for their friends numerous times; is it not fair that at least one of them returns the favor?

It is a long journey for the Rogue to become comfortable to steal away their Aspect. While there will certainly be some who may never truly make it to their full potential, there will be a hundred thousand more that will find their way across the finish line. Against all the odds, and all of their own personally created challenges, the Rogue will finally get to feel what it’s like to be of far more fulfilling use to the world around them.

At least, that is how it should feel. That is how it does feel for most of the other Classes whenever they fully align with their Aspect, and truly begin to harness their powers. More often than not, the case is the exact opposite for the Rogue. It is not the theft of their Aspect from themself that is discomforting, but it is the fact they now have to maintain boundaries.

In the past, the Rogue would hold their Aspect out for everyone to take their piece, leaving themself with very little of their Aspect left. Now that they have learned how to steal their Aspect, however, their next step is putting up rules. These rules are not only meant to prevent outside forces from taking too much from the Rogue, but also prevent the Rogue from unevenly distributing their Aspect to the world around them. One of the biggest responsibilities for the Rogue, after all, is to maintain complete Aspect Balance in the world around them.

Take too much, and they will be the one hoarding their Aspect from those in need of it. Give too much away, and they risk putting too much of it where it does not need or deserve to be. Finding that balance not only in the outside world, but inside of themself, as well, is a daunting task for some Rogues. What the Rogue will learn from plenty of opportunities of practice is how to determine when someone has truly had their fill, and how to ignore any possible rebuttals; how to ignore the loud thumping of their ever-bleeding heart.

Once they manage to teach themself these important factors - of course, if they do manage to do so, as not every Rogue is guaranteed to succeed in this journey -, they will not only begin to steal and redistribute their Aspect, but also accumulate it for themself. With every piece they steal and place somewhere else, a metaphysical Aspect Residue sticks with them without the Rogue knowing. This is a much slower, but natural process for the Rogue to build up their own amounts of Aspect Residue, but it is one that is well worth it.

If the Rogue were to become aware of this gradual build up, then some may find it far more beneficial to begin actively taking their fair share of their Aspect when stealing and redistributing it. A few Rogues may find this to be more cost effective with time, resources, or something similar. Other Rogues just may be eager to keep a little bit of extra of their Aspect, no matter what comes of it.

This begs the question, what does happen with this residual Aspect that the Rogue is left with? Why do they even gather it in the first place? Much like any other Class, the Rogue Class is one who holds a secondary power. However, their method of reaching this secondary power is only slightly different from most of the others. While an Heir must plunge themself into their Aspect, a Knight must free their sword from themself, or a Seer must gain a pure clarity and understanding of their Aspect, the Rogue is one who must build up their Aspect on the inside.

Rogues are those who are naturally equipped with their Aspect, but they are so often quick to give it away to those around them. Therefore, by keeping more and more of for themself whilst stealing it, they allow for their Aspect to truly find a place in their heart and soul. When enough of their Aspect has built up inside of them, then the connection between the two forces will become far stronger and rigid - a new level of understanding achieved by the hardest working Rogues there are.

This understanding of one’s Aspect lends itself to a new power. That power is being able to steal through the Aspect itself. Stealing through one’s Aspect means to hold control and a grand understanding over it, capable of using it in the many different forms it can take. Very few Rogues do get to achieve this power, yes, but the ones who do get to truly show off just how far they are willing to reach in order to help out their allies.

A Rogue of Life would be able to steal through literal Life; i.e. having creeping vines beckon to their will. However, they may also use their amassed wealth and luxury as a get-out-jail-free card. On the opposite end, a Rogue of Doom could summon a gang of the undead to help them acquire the treasure they so desire, or use their tragic backstory as a way to schmooze what they want out of someone’s pocket. Of course, this is only two of many other ways in which a Rogue may steal through their Aspect. It is a power that calls upon a creative mind, willing to play around and perhaps even toss out their own personal morals and other blockades when the need arises.

These are often the Rogues who have gained the most genuine confidence in almost every part of themself; though that is not to say they are always going to be confident. After all, a Rogue’s job is never truly finished, not when there is still an imbalance of their Aspect left in this world. Being one of the Classes meant to bring that balance to their group is often one that seems to continue for eternity, but so is the way of the world. For Rogues, what often matters most to them is the certainty that somehow they have made things a little better for a struggling person in this world. Or, perhaps on the flip-side, they made a nuisance into a much smaller problem; bringing a king off of his throne.

When the word ‘Rogue’ is brought up, what comes to mind may now seem like a far cry from how Rogues here truly act. A Rogue may have a charming personality of mysterious gravity to them, but this is often because they do not want people to know who they really are. And it is this facade that has left the Rogue so stunted in their growth. For the journey of the Rogue is not as traditional as some of the other Classes.

Many Classes may seek out means of redemption, to fix what they have broken on the outside. But, the Rogue is different in that it is not something external they have broken, but rather internal. They had allowed for themself to be picked apart, piece by piece, by everyone around them; especially those they love and hold close. However, there came a time where the Rogue had to finally realize that this was not a sufficient way of helping others. No, they needed to take the initiative to better not only themself, but also their Aspect.

By going on a personal journey of betterment and self-reflection, the Rogue will have to face the fact that there is no such thing as perfection. Even the people they so deeply idolize and love have flaws that cannot forever be ignored. This is meant to be a wake up call to the Rogue; that even they can have their own imperfections, commit acts that hurt those in their group, and still have the potential to be a good person who is loved.

The most important part of a Rogue’s journey is that they realize how much they are worth. How much they matter to their group, the world around them, their Aspect, and, ultimately, themself. Only once they realize their worth will they finally be able to help those around them to even higher levels, including themself. It is most certainly a slow going journey for some Rogues, but there is a promise that, no matter what, they will achieve that power to steal their Aspect.

Rogues play critical roles when it comes to maintaining balance with their Aspect. Chances are that any Thief in their group will play as a lovely reflection of them, and pose an interesting challenge. Thieves are those who steal their Aspect for themself and only themself; at least, more often than not. Because of this, they could help the Rogue to become more connected with their powers, as the two of them would become near polar opposites to one another. When the Rogue has come far in their journey of thievery, they may jokingly say to themself that ‘at least [they are] not a Thief’.

Ultimately, the role of a Rogue is someone who continuously helps to usher everyone closer to their end goal. Whether it is a group wide goal, or individual ones. During the Rogue’s journey, they will come to take on a far more neutral mindset, often because their own personal goal becomes that of winning. For a Rogue in a game, they will do what they can to usher in that victory for others, even if it means breaking and/or bending a rule or few.

Rogues are not healers, nor are they protectors. They cannot fix what has been broken, and they cannot defend what has been exposed. What they can do is exploit moments of vulnerability and weakness to get what they want, stealing what belongs to them and those in need. If the Rogue deems someone or someplace to be withholding an overabundance of their Aspect, then it will be up to them to formulate a plan to reinstate that balance.

If you ever need a job to be done, then the Rogue is someone you can most certainly count on, even if they occasionally doubt their own ability. Even when they do have self doubt, it is so often spoken over by their dedication and care for the people in need. No matter where a Rogue is in their journey - whether they are just starting, half-way through, or have achieved complete alignment with their Aspect. Nothing will ever stop the Rogue from having a large, bleeding heart for everyone around them.

And that is what makes the Rogue who they are. No matter what Aspect is tied to them, everything they do is in the name of someone else in some way. The Rogue knows how it feels to be lacking in their Aspect; how lonely it can leave one to feel. And so they learned, and they taught themself how to take hold of what belongs to them. They are the conductor, the arch, the bridge that allows for their Aspect to move on to someone in need of it.

The Rogue does this because they care. They create an even playing field not just for themself, and they do not redistribute their Aspect for its balance. They do this so that those who have natural disadvantages, as well as those who have a natural advantage, all have a fair fighting chance. In the Rogue’s presence, everyone can have a chance to give their piece, even the Rogue themself. In the Rogue’s presence, everyone has a chance to succeed.

#Rogue #Rogue Class #Homestuck #Hiveswap #Rogue Analysis

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