This Fatalis Helm was painted and finished by my assistant and friend @hex.crafts and will be posted in my shop Friday at 2pm PST! Worn at @wastelandweekend , this helm is searching for a new worthy wearer! Do you have the guts to bear this visage? This will ship in time for this years Wasteland event! #hexcrafts #fatalishelm #wastelandweekend #sabertooth #postapocalypticfashion https://www.instagram.com/p/CiQPSO-pYFo/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=
Alright, "Theef" 7x14, we gotta talk about this episode. Honestly, it's one that I remembered nothing about except that the title was familiar and I know I watched it during the show's original run because I was obsessed and never missed an episode. Watching it about 24 years later, now as a physician myself, and boy is it woefully underrated. Take out the Appalachian voodoo, and the story is a timeless moral dilemma, one that physicians and other healthcare workers face on a daily basis. The Hippocratic oath is widely known for its phrase "First do no harm", but is allowing ongoing suffering exactly that - harm? Many of us in modern medicine have seen it first hand - the desire to prolong life in spite of suffering and without regard to quality of life. Scully affirms that she would make the same decisions as Dr. Wieder did, opting to alleviate the suffering of a patient at the end of their life. A death with dignity. But it doesn't mean one isn't left to feel the gravity of that decision, grappling with the thought that the very medications given to lessen pain and suffering might also hasten death, and that one would never really know the truth. These are never decisions made lightly, but they are made with the patient's best interests at heart. To be clear, any such decisions involving end of life care would be made either with the patient themselves, or their next of kin/healthcare proxies if they are unable, unless in emergency situations where there might not be time. The show takes some liberties with the physician decision making, although the context is in an emergency scenario. Nevertheless, some family members and loved ones of the deceased may not agree with the course of action. Although one would hope none would act as brazenly as Orell Peattie, conjuring up violent deaths as revenge via hexcraft and poppets, it certainly does not mean hospitals are violence-free zones. More and more we are seeing disgruntled patients and family members bringing weapons into halls meant for healing and threatening hospital staff. The show isn't one to necessarily offer up solutions to the real-life monsters and dilemmas it reveals through its stories, but rather sets out to cast a light on them and let the audience do some thinking about them. Almost a quarter of a century later this particular one is still relevant. Orell Peattie is obviously wrong for inciting various gruesome deaths, but is he also not a victim? Losing his daughter in an accident, who he was convinced he could save with his Appalachian voodoo. What about Dr. Wieder? He took care of Lynette Peattie on the day of her accident giving her increasing doses of pain medications because she was screaming and had vital signs indicating an extreme level of pain. He felt she was beyond the help of modern medicine and did not want her to suffer. But does that mean his family should suffer the vengeance of Orell Peattie? Both men victims, both men with lost loved ones, and both men perpetrators. Even medical doctor Special Agent Dana Scully was questioning herself by the end. And that's why this is truly a gem of an episode. Deeper than it appears and the real mystery lies firmly in the realm of reality than fantasy.
The foundation of all modern Magic Practices is based in Magic Theory.
User Classifications
Attuned: Those born with the innate ability to sense and store magic.
Unattuned: Those born without the innate ability to sense and store magic.
The 4 Approaches to Practicing Magic
Spellcraft/Hexcraft
At its core, akin to the intricacies of mathematical equations, Spellcraft and Hexcraft delve into the technicalities of magic. Practitioners meticulously craft spells by manipulating specific properties of energy, resulting in a vast array of controlled and precise magical effects. This approach empowers users to wield magic with pinpoint accuracy, creating an expansive repertoire of spells and enchantments.
Magic Arts
Elemental Arts: Focused on harnessing and manipulating the fundamental forces of nature—earth, air, fire, and water—Elemental Arts practitioners delve into the intricate control and manipulation of these energies. Mastery in Elemental Arts enables the casting of spells that shape, control, or summon elemental forces for various purposes.
Life Arts: Centered on the manipulation and understanding of life energies, Life Arts practitioners delve into the mystical essence of living beings. This discipline involves healing, restoration, vitality enhancement, and the understanding of the natural life force. Practitioners of Life Arts specialize in spells that heal wounds, revitalize energies, and promote well-being.
Death Arts: Exploring the mysteries and energies surrounding death and the afterlife, Death Arts practitioners delve into the manipulation of life force, spirits, and the transition between life and death. This darker art might involve communing with spirits, manipulating life energies, or dealing with necromancy, exploring the boundaries between life and the beyond.
Epigraphy
Enchantment Inscriptions: A specialized skill within artifact creation, this involves inscribing runes or magical symbols onto objects to imbue them with specific effects or powers. Runes might hold protective wards, enhance abilities, or serve as keys to unlock latent magical potential.
Curse Binding: A methodical practice involving the creation of enchanted objects or items that carry curses. These cursed objects, once activated or triggered, unleash their negative effects upon the bearer or the environment.
Warding and Sealing: Emphasis in protective magic, a specialized skill used to create barriers, wards, and seals that shield against malevolent forces, entities, or influences.
Alchemy
Alchemy, at it's core, harnesses the potent energies within magical artifacts, raw materials & ingredients, and gemstones. This modernized magic blends the line of science and magic. This approach allows for the transmutation of one substance into another, utilizing a deep understanding of magical properties to concoct elixirs, brew potions, and create a variety of magical artifacts and charms.
Arcanology
Artifact Crafting: This involves the intricate process of crafting powerful magical artifacts that possess unique and potent abilities. These artifacts could range from enchanted weapons and tools to mystical objects imbued with specific purposes or protections.
Charm Crafting: Practitioners focus on imbuing smaller items or trinkets, such as amulets, talismans, or charms, with magical properties. These items often serve as conduits for protective, enhancing, or symbolic magical energies.
Potionology
Healing Elixirs: Created to aid in healing wounds, reducing inflammation, and promoting regeneration when applied topically.
Enhancement Elixirs: These elixirs are applied to the skin or imbued into items to confer temporary boosts in physical abilities or attributes.
Protective Elixirs: Creates temporary shields or barriers on the skin, offering protection against magical or physical harm when applied.
Transformational Elixirs: Applied externally, these elixirs induce temporary physical changes in the form of camouflage, alteration of features, or enhancement of senses when applied to specific body parts.
Utility Elixirs: Used to aid in performing specific tasks or granting temporary abilities, applied to objects or surfaces to imbue them with magical properties.
Potions
Healing Potions: Potions designed to heal wounds, cure ailments, and restore vitality from within the body upon digestion.
Enhancement Potions: Potions that temporarily enhance physical/mental attributes or abilities when ingested.
Transformational Potions: Potions ingested to induce temporary physical or mental alterations, affecting the consumer's body or mind directly.
Emotional Balancing Potions: These potions help stabilize emotions, reduce anxiety, or induce specific emotional states.
Spiritual
Rooted in ancient traditions, the Spiritual Approach draws upon a higher power or deity to access magical energies. Practitioners invoke the blessings and favor of these higher entities, channeling their magic through rituals, prayers, or sacred rites. This approach reveres ancient practices, tapping into divine sources to manifest potent mystical abilities.
Divine Invocation: Practitioners focus on invoking and communing with higher entities, deities, or spiritual beings to channel magical energies. This involves rituals, prayers, or ceremonies to seek guidance, blessings, or empowerment.
Sacred Rites and Rituals: Specializing in performing sacred rituals or ceremonies, practitioners conduct intricate rites to honor or connect with spiritual entities. These rituals might involve offerings, ceremonies during celestial events, or rites to tap into specific divine aspects.
Ancestral Magic: Focused on drawing power from ancestors or ancestral spirits, this subcategory involves honoring and communing with the spirits of one's lineage to seek guidance, protection, or wisdom.
Nature Attunement: Practitioners attune themselves to the natural world, drawing upon the energies present in nature—forests, rivers, mountains—to harness magical power. This involves rituals, meditations, or ceremonies conducted in natural settings.
Cosmic Alignment: Focused on celestial bodies and cosmic energies, practitioners attune themselves to the movements of stars, planets, and celestial events, harnessing cosmic energies for magical purposes.
Intuitive
Embracing a more instinctive and organic path, Intuitive Magic flows naturally through practitioners. Users of this approach rely on their innate connection to the energies around them, allowing magic to manifest in more spontaneous and practical ways. Rather than complex spells, intuitive magic often leads to immediate and instinctual applications, driven by the user's innate understanding of the magical forces at play.
Instinctive Elemental Manipulation: Practitioners have an innate ability to instinctively manipulate elemental forces without formal training. This intuition allows them to shape and influence elemental energies without relying on structured spells.
Natural Empathy and Connection: Some individuals possess a deep empathy and natural connection to living beings, allowing them to sense emotions, intentions, or even communicate with plants and/or animals effortlessly.
Dreamwalking and Astral Projection: Intuitives proficient in dreamwalking or astral projection can navigate the dream realm or astral plane naturally, without formal training, tapping into these realms for insights or interactions.
Shapeshifters: Individuals with the innate ability to alter their physical form, assuming the appearance of other creatures or beings. They can morph into animals, mythical creatures, or even different humanoid forms.
Dual Natured Beings: Those capable of transitioning between different forms or states, such as mermaids transforming between their aquatic and land forms, fairies altering the appearance or abilities of their wings, or werewolves shifting between human and wolf forms during a full moon.
Cleo, the time witch with the second start and mysterious past they rarely make reference to. Seriously, they mentioned wanting to bring someone back once and that’s it. Also, their hexcraft is just such a perfect fit for someone so detail-oriented.
Prismarina, the water witch with the confusing swings that we’re finally getting an inkling of info about.
Tiff, the nature witch who has me hooked on learning Botannia. Also, I could listen to her voice all day. She could read me the phone book, but the Botannia spellbooks work nicely as well.
Scott, the incredibly messed up necromancer trying to bring back his beloved Milo.
Lauren, the sardonic sand witch, who can’t seem to get out of her own way.
Shelby, the storm witch who seems at times to be winning by accident.
Eloise, the illusion witch who is at least as mysterious as the time witch, though that’s probably because she does streams rather than videos so I’m just getting other people’s POV on her.
Joey, the firefrost witch who is just unhinged. Sure, let’s summon a demon without knowing what we’re doing. What could go wrong?
Bertha, the NPC(?) who seems to be scamming them all while being in charge of everything.
But do you know what I love most about this SMP? The thing I don’t often see mentioned anywhere?
Witchcraft SMP was launched right after that wizard game with all the antisemitism put out by the transphobic author who shall not be named. And this SMP is full of queer folks. As far as those I know: Scott and Joey are gay, Shelby is ace, Cleo and Eloise are bi. (I’m not sure if Cleo explicitly identifies as trans, but does use she/they pronouns, so I’m guessing somewhere in the nb spectrum?) Prismarina’s character was courting Eloise at one point, but I don’t know whether cc!Pris has said anything about her own orientation. I don’t know Lauren or Tiff much at all, but presumably they’re at least allies, especially since they basically came out of Minecraft retirement for this SMP.
None that I’m aware of have come right out and said it, but from my POV, it looks like 8 queer and allied MCYTers decided to collectively flip the bird to that other game, and I think that’s just beautiful.
But it’s nice to be around you. Like I haven’t lost centuries of my life.
In the glorious coronary artery of Baldur's Gate, where the cobblestones utter tales of yesteryear beneath the ceaseless cadence of modernity, lies Serenity Park—a sanctum of compassion, an enclave where the very essence of serenity and intricate aesthetic merge in an incorruptible embrace. This verdurous refuge stands in stark contrast to the city's resilient dynamism, a testimonial to the blissful coexistence of nature's majestic splendor and the lure of hexcraft.
Upon stepping through the lavish wrought-iron gates, visitors find themselves nestled within a vivid mosaic of chromatic grandeur. The emerald embrace of the grass beneath one's feet stretches far and wide, periodically adorned with beds of blooms radiating fiery reds, regal purples, and incandescent yellows—a carnival of nuances that stimulates the senses. Towering sentinels, ancient trees whose boughs dance a slow ballet in the gentle breeze, cast a dense canopy above. At the very core of this botanical paradise, a fountain sculpted from stones that have drunk deeply of enchantment stands as a monument to the phantastical. Dragons and fae, sculpted with magnificent care, seem almost to stir beneath the cascade of crystal-clear waters that leap and frolic, scattering prismatic droplets into the sunbeam’s tender caress.
The aural panorama weaves a hypnosis of serenity—a work of art composed of the fountain’s soothing murmurs, the sussurant rustle of leaf upon leaf, and the distant, graceful calls of avian serenaders. Intermittently, the air is filled with the effervescent laughter of children at play or the dulcet tones of a bard’s lute. A bouquet of floral fragrances melds with the petrichor of rain-kissed earth and the luxuriant breath of grass, crafting an aromatic panorama as complex and nuanced as the city itself. After a downpour, these scents burgeon, accompanied by the mineral scent of ancient stones and paths that bear the memory of countless sojourns. Fountain’s cool mist juxtaposes the sun’s warm caresses, a sensory contrast that revitalizes both body and spirit. Polished smoothness of stone benches, designed for moments of introspection or quiet camaraderie, mixes with the textured tales told by the bark of each tree, urging visitors to connect and ground themselves in the omnipresent now.
“Your words mean the world to me.” Her hues hold a soft glimmer of adoration. “Despite the centuries that separate us, being with you feels like home. It's a feeling I haven't experienced in a long time.” The curve of her lips forms a gentle arc, akin to the crescent moon gracing the nocturnal firmament. The age discrepancy between them has never been a probleme. Despite being immortal, in human years, he is still somewhat older than her. Perhaps she has a tendency to like older men. She reached out, lacing her fingers with his, sensing the marble-velvet texture of his dermis. “I’m glad I can make you happy.” Her smile, intense as a kiss.
The old magic can do a lot in terms of protection and healing, but it can also be very dangerous, capable of nasty curses and the like. It’s a volatile form of magic like that, and quite capable of falling victim to corruption, either from outside evil such as hags and fiends, or the wielder’s own vindictiveness.
And so, there are those that learn how to fight against these old ways. Stereotypically, these are often divine casters like inquisitors that seek to defeat these insidious foes, but that does come with some unfortunate baggage. (There’s a reason that inquisitors have been replaced by thaumaturges in 2E)
Some, however, find that the best way to combat dark magic is to learn similar mystic arts, alongside martial skill. In the past, we’ve looked at the Hexcrafter, which combines magus arts with the old ways to let a magus cast hexes. Today, however, we look at the Hexbreaker, a magus that learns counterhexes to dispel curses and even turn such foul arts back upon their caster.
They might be part of an old ways tradition to curb the most wicked among their number, or they might be newer, arising from other sources that simply seek to be rid of such malice. Either way, they demonstrate exceptional skill at countering the dark arts of spellcasters and other curse-bearing creatures.
Protecting themselves and others from curses means reacting quickly, and these mystic warriors learn an art of channeling their arcane reserved to disrupt a curse spell, malevolent hex, or similar ability as it is used, potentially negating it. It does not, however, have any effect on accursed auras that certain creatures have, however. Additionally, they can potentially learn spells to properly remove curses and break enchantments.
They can also expend even more arcana to turn the curse back on the caster, delivering an ironic punishment to them.
There are also two new arcana they can learn. The first lets them expend even more arcana to help guarantee their success in countering such cursed magic.
The second, however, causes dangerous feedback when they counteract or remove a curse, wracking the body and mind of the curse-layer.
A few ordinary arcana also suit them well, particularly those that are effective against other casters as well as blessing their weaponry against particular types of foes.
This archetype is specialized, but simple, offering a way to counter hags, witches, and other foes that specialize in curses and dark magic. As such, I would build to be an anti-caster that disrupts enemy magic regularly, using their anti-curse abilities as a nice bonus for the right situations.
Exactly what these warrior-mages experience with the old magics are will color exactly why they went into this art and how they view them. Perhaps they hate all practitioners of witchcraft, regardless of their intent, or maybe they have a deep, intimate understanding of the old ways that other witch-hunters might not?
Chasing the rumors of a curse-slinging witch, the inquisition sent some of their agents and a “heathen specialist” to hunt them. However, upon arriving they find the home demolished, apparently by a giant slug. The inquisitors are disappointed, but content to move on, but the specialist isn’t so sure the witch is dead… or that they are indeed a heretic at all.
Adaros have a long history of conflict with hags and sea witches seeking to use their people as tools of vengeance against surface people, so they have learned much about curse magic to turn aside their dark magic and destroy them, their greatest warriors often recognized as “Spellbiters”
Kovas of Longshadow is a mercenary witch hunter, wandering from place to place, keeping an ear to the ground for dark magics and abuses of lighter arcana. He always studies a job thoroughly to determine if the mage in question has truly done wrong and deserves his judgement. However, refusing work that doesn’t meet his standards tends to make enemies of those seeking the wrongful death of someone by claiming they are a dark practitioner.
going back to watching the x files after 2 days of House is jarring because this episode involves a doctor's family being targeted by hexcraft and has them being killed by illnesses and other awful things. But with the hospital setting I keep forgetting what I'm watching and waiting for House to appear
for this kind of thing i put "for the sake of the story" first but also worth noting that the period of time between the end of the medieval period and and the industrial revolution is really short compared to the length of the medieval period itself. it depends on how you define it but you could easily make an estimate of about a thousand years, and then adding on like the classical period, it's a pretty substantial amount of time
another thing worth noting is that on the scale of like european history (or at least how it's framed) 2000 years seemingly unbroken is a massively long time but it for example egypt and china have very long histories
GOING ON A TANGENT ABOUT THIS but i think saying very little changed and marth would manage just fine is maybe an understatement, because the tech ostensibly is not very different but the culture and geopolitics? undeniably is. actually i'd be really interested in exploring marth and the awakening characters discussing that!
please go on the tangents I love it
I absolutely agree that, technology aside, Marth probably would be suffering from massive culture shock if they dropped him into Ylisse. Ylisse is nothing like Altea, and considering how humble the man seems, knowing that he's enshrined as the Hero-King in Ylissean lore would probably throw him for a loop. That honestly would be fascinating to see.
Also: you're exactly right about Euro-centric history having a very particular framing, a constant push toward industrialization that muddies a lot of discussion -- because there are other cultures with incredible histories that stretch back thousands of years. In the case of Egypt, they were building pyramids like the Giza complex 2,500+ years before Cleopatra. Their histories are incredibly rich and complex, and they're technically pre-Medieval. Even if it does borrow trappings of Medieval Europe, I think it's entirely reasonable to say that their cultural history has been continuing and progressing along the course of other ancient cultures.
(To be fair, though: "for the sake of the story" is a totally legitimate and valid answer, and one that I embrace wholeheartedly. Again, I don't want to play Fire Emblem: Industrial Revolution. That sounds like a shit time.)
@thewizardmus replied:
Hang on but there IS a substantial difference between Altea and Ylisse's development
Magic!
In the older games Magic was very simple. There wasn't that many tome types and none of them had meaningful secondary effects(because of hardware limits but shush) meanwhile in Awakening magic has progressed well enough that Wind Fire and Thunder magic all have their own branches instead of "Merrics tome" and "the others" and powerful spells that were at one point legendary aAre reproduced and can be purchased at your local Anna, Merric's boyfriend's whole deal in 12 is he took over Khadain because he was mad that Merric was chosen for Excalibur and he got the number 2 tome Thoron. Come Awakening and Thoron isn't just Robin's signature spell for Chrom killing but also something any mage with the gall to study a bit can pick up and use freely
That's not even mentioning the weird crap that Plegia has been making the entire time
In conclusion while you could totally drop Marth in Ylisse and he'd be fine, if you gingerly placed Merric in Ylisse or Plegia he'd have his mind blown
Okay so let me start by saying that I do take issue with calling magic in Plegia "weird crap." I think it's reasonable to say that Plegia has come farther with magic than Ylisse has, given that they have three separate canonical branches of magic: staves, tomes -- split between anima and dark, the latter of which Ylisse doesn't deal in -- and hexcraft. If we posit that magic is a better signifier of advancement than industrial-level technology, that would place Plegia head and shoulders above Ylisse as the most developed nation on the Archanean continent.
In fact, I've talked about this before, along with the general concept that there was a magic revolution rather than an industrial one.
Mask collab with @hex.crafts , leather patches and blank dryad horns are available! Use the link in my profile to grab one of these handmade pieces! #missmonster #missmonstermel #fatalishelm #hexcrafts #dnd #costume #prop #horns https://www.instagram.com/p/CiTOVfVvY0P/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=
Eyyy so I am really interested in the Twili-kana in ur fic?? Like are they completely separate from TP Twili or are they more or less the same? Also the concept of demon tribes is super rad in and of itself
Eyyy!! Thank you! And hi hi yes yes so
Thus far I have only gone into a couple tribes as Link interacts with them, but I'm excited to get into more, especially the Twili!
So they are meant to be more or less the same!
Whether or not they're from the same population as the TP Twili is up in the air. While I won't get into it much in this fic, I like to think that the Twili ended up in a separate realm later on in the timeline due to their work with Hexcraft. That magic system is not fully written out yet, but in general, I am operating on the idea that it's finicky to work with and may blow up in your face. Kind of like how one must be careful with wording when dealing with Fae.
All this to say, the idea is that at some point through hubris, they accidentally hexed themselves and banished a large population to another plane. Which thus gets interpreted and passed down in history as a moral folktale about the gods themselves banishing the Twili. Like: "they were yet another tribe of demonic interlopers in fate", "they meddled greedily with powers they shouldn't have", "they were an inauspicious people", etc etc.
I'm long-winded, but I hope this answered your question and satisfied some curiosity!
I think I'm going to remake my Witchtrials AU to rework designs, the lore, and even the name.
The AU: While I am reworking the lore, the main idea is that witches live hidden among humans because they are hunted by the angels, which is why angels send watchers to live among humans, to find the witches so they can be eliminated. Witches also have aspects relating to the type of powers they have.