#koth mentioned | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

rainofaugustsith · 5 months

Text

Bad SWTOR choices

I accidentally reblogged and replied on a post I didn't mean to, but I did want to talk about this - how many times the LS/DS choices in SWTOR and particularly KOTFE and KOTET seem completely off base. Top four: The reactor in KOTFE chapter 3.

Okay, to recap: the Outlander has just been freed from carbonite, where they were slowly being poisoned to death. They are doing so poorly that Lana has to help them walk at some points. They are on a planet they know nothing about. There's a nuclear reactor Vaylin has ripped from its moorings, and the actual nuclear physicists who tend to the thing have given up on it. So of course it's perfectly reasonable to expect the half-dead Outlander to fix it, and to treat them like a monster if they make the sound decision to not try to learn nuclear physics in two seconds.

Better decision: give the Outlander a choice to try to help people evacuate and make that LS/DS. That would still fit with Koth's desire to help people and could still be used to influence his opinion of the Outlander, but would be more realistically and logically in line with what could be done. Since nobody knows what the Outlander looks like at this point it could also be used to create more conflict/nuance for Zakuulans. They've been told the Outlander is a monster but - this person who looks just like the Outlander saved them. Could Arcann be lying to them?

Senya in KOTET chapter 1.

So the planet of Voss is being bombed to pieces, and Senya doesn't give a single fuck about that. She just wants you to save her son, the dictator. Who has shown zero remorse and has literally run the Outlander through with a lightsaber. Your two choices: let Genocidal Dictator Boy join the Alliance and work right alongside the people he's actively tried to murder, or refuse and be considered a monster. Choices, choices.

Better decision: Refuse to save, imprison for war crimes, save, save without joining Alliance. All of which should be neutral. They could have even branched this off further - does Arcann go off to atone through his actions of trying to help rebuild? Do you just let him flee and become a ghost? Is he turned over to the factions and put in jail? Or do you execute him?

SCORPIO in KOTET chapter 5. HOW many times has SCORPIO lied to you, tried to do away with you and otherwise caused extensive trouble? Bonus for Imperial Agents, how many times in the class story did she casually mention she eventually wants to murder you? Of course, by all means, let her merge her consciousness with the homicidal cyberplanet who has just tried to murder you and has horrific weapons at its disposal. I'm sure no harm could come from that. After all she promised she won't bother you. It's not personal.

Better choices: - Let SCORPIO merge with the promise of helping you destroy the faction of your choice later (DS - hey, I SAID it's a dark side choice so let's go for the goalpost with it) - Kill SCORPIO (neutral), - oho, what's this? You've been able to completely neutralize SCORPIO and contain her in the Gravestone with the super special top secret program Doctor Oggurobb has been working tirelessly on for months since you learned SCORPIO wasn't dead?? Whoohoo! Victory without death! (LS).

Dramath in KOTET chapter 7.

Because you haven't been subjected to Valkorion's family enough, here comes Daddy Dramath. Who is imprisoned in a holocron in a max-security basement crypt and swears, up and down, that he will go away and not bother you if he's set free. I mean, you have so many reasons to take Family Valkorion/Tenebrae at their word, right? It's not like this could be a malicious Force ghost. You've never run into any of those, nope. And it's not like you're on a planet that has been corrupted into something terrible in the Force (or lack thereof) which might make it even more dangerous to release ghosties you meet.

Better decision: - Free (LS), - Keep - but swear to release after you've defeated Valkorion and keep that promise(LS), - Imprison and tell Dramath he's your servant forever, mwahahaha (DS). Let that be the differentiating factor in whether he helps you or not in KOTET 9.

#swtor #anti Arcann #rain talks swtor #kotet spoilers #kotfe spoilers

26 notes · View notes

my-deer-history · 2 months

Text

Francis Kinloch in Müller's letters to his family: Part 3

These extracts are from Johannes von Müller: Sämmtliche Werke, volume 7 (1810).

My translations here, original German transcriptions below the cut. Müller and Kinloch have set off on their tour of Switzerland!

21 Aug 1775, to his brother

From there a narrow, steep path leads between sheer drops and vertical mountains into the Weissenburg hot spring, travelled only by pedestrians. Imagine the most terrible rock faces, with water rushing down and partially breaking up into dust and mist; between these rocks, a forest river flows noisily over rocky ground, over trees that water and wind had torn away from the slopes, and the rubble from the mountains that had broken them loose and thrown them down. A strong servant from the baths carried Mr. Kinloch and me on his back through this river to the healing spring.

21 Sept 1775, to his father

We drove in a Bernese carriage through Freyburg to Affry Castle, where the awful roads necessitated us to send the carriage home. After 2 hours, we came to Cicogne, where with some effort, we managed to interpret out of the patois of the people that we had taken the wrong road. An old farmer’s wife led us back on track through the muck by moonlight. Beyond the Saanen the path became entirely too difficult. There we rented a miller’s cart. Imagine: our suitcases, me and our dog on this cart, Mr. Kinloch beside us, the servant with a pack on our horse.

[...]

On sunday, Mr Boissier arranged a ball for the whole town in our honour, where everyone had to dance - the farmers and their wives and all sons and daughters, and Mrs Boissiere, and Mr von Castela and Mr Kinloch and even Mr Boissier himself - though he is lame - and even I - though I cannot dance very well. This day I translated an Italian opera into French. I forgot to mention the letters that we received at Berne, Mr K one from America, I one from England from Mr Thomas Boone

Undated, 1775, to his brother

My dear brother! I cannot describe my contentment to you enough. [...] I am loved, and friendship is the joy of my life. My Englishmen, my American,* Bonstetten, Tronchin, Bonnet!

*Kinloch

20 March 1776

At the moment, Kinloch and I are reading Tacitus for the second time (me, for the third) [...] Mr Bonnet is giving us 2–3 lectures a week on psychology. But don’t imagine him as an ordinary professor, he does not allow himself to be paid except in the attention and friendship of his audience, and these are only two, Kinloch and me. We go to him at 4pm, his psychology lesson starts at 5 or 6, and we stay until 11.

June 1776, to his brother

Letters from England have convinced Mr Kinloch to move his planned journey forward to the autumn.

21 Aug 1775, to his brother

Von da führt ein schmaler abhängiger Weg zwischen Abgründen und senkrechten Bergen in das warme Bad Weissenburg, niemanden als Fußgänger. Stelle dir die schrecklichsten Felswände vor, mit Wassern, welche da herunter stürzen und sich zum Theil in Staub und Nebel auflösen; zwischen diesen Felsen wälzt sich mit großem Geräusch ein Waldwasser über einen felsigen Grund, über Bäume, welche Wasser und Wind ab den Gebürgen gerissen und Trümmern von Bergen, welche sie abgelöset und herabgewälzt hatten. Durch dieses Wasser trug Hrn. Kinloch und mich ein starker Badknecht auf dem Rücken zu der heilsamen Quelle.

21 Sept 1775, to his father

In einer Bernerkutsche fuhren wir über Freyburg nach dem Schloß Affry, woselbst die schlimmen Straßen uns nöthigten, die Kutsche heimzusenden. Nach 2 Stunden kamen wir auf Cicogne, wo wir mit Mühe aus dem Patois des Volks erdollmetschen konnten, daß wir den unrechten Weg eingeschlagen. Eine alte Bauersfrau führte uns durch den Koth beim Mondschein zurechte. Jenseits der Saanen wurde nun der Weg allzu arg. Daselbst mietheten wir einen Müllers - Karren. Stellet Euch vor, unsre Mantelsäcke mich und unsern Hund auf diesem Wagen, Hr. Kinloch neben her, den Bedienten mit einem Pack auf unserm Pferd.

[...]

Am Sonntag gab Hr. Boissier unsertwegen dem ganzen Dorf einen Ball, wo alle Bauren und Bäurinnen und alle Knaben und Töchtern, und Mad. Boissiere, und der Hr. von Castela und Hr. Kinloch, und Hr. Boissier selbst, ob er wohl estropirt ist, und selbst ich, ob ich gleich nicht wohl tanzen kann, tanzen mußte. Diesen Tag übersetzte ich eine italiänische Opera ins Französische. Ich habe vergessen, der Briefe zu gedenken, welche wir zu Bern erhalten, Hr. K. einen aus Amerika; ich einen aus England von Herrn Thomas Boone

Undated, 1775, to his brother

Mein lieber Bruder! Ich kann dir mein Wohlbefinden nicht genug beschreiben. [...] Man liebt mich, und die Freundschaft ist meines Lebens Lust. Meine Engländer, mein Amerikaner, Bonstetten, Tronchin, Bonnet!

20 March 1776

Gegenwärtig lesen Kinloch und ich zum andern (ich, zum dritten) Mal den Tacitus [...] Herr Bonnet giebt uns wöchentlich 2–3 Lectionen über die Psychologie. Stelle ihn dir aber nicht als einen gewöhnlichen Professor vor, er läßt sich nicht anders bezahlen, als durch die Aufmerksamkeit und Freundschaft seiner Zuhörer, und dieser sind nur zwei, Kinloch und ich. Wir gehen um 4 Uhr zu ihn, um 5 oder 6 fängt er seine psychologische Stunde an, und wir bleiben bis um 11 Uhr

June 1776, to his brother

Briefe aus England haben Hrn. Kinloch bestimmt, seine vorgehabte Reise auf den Herbst zu verschieben.

#francis kinloch #johannes von müller #karl viktor von bonstetten #18th century history #queer history #these extracts have it all #moonlit wandering through the fields #carried across a river by a hunky fella #dog!!!#presumably the small lapdog variety if it's riding in the cart #country ball where even poor müller is forced onto the dancefloor

10 notes · View notes

racefortheironthrone · 1 year

Note

On your old WOIAF review, you mentioned that the Brindled Men are close to Robert E. Howard's racist ideas about the relationship between humans and apes. Could you elaborate further? Also, what do you think about the theory that the Brindled Men and the Ibbenese are another species of men, like the Neatherthals and the Australoptecus were to us? Or do you think their depictions in WOIAF should be read as not 100% accurate, since the meisters are talking about things so distant from Westeros that they only heard about?

I want to clarify my current thinking, because I find myself a bit unsure as to what the situation is.

It's always difficult to divine a writer's intent, but I think that's particularly true in this case because of two simultaneously true facts: one, GRRM is fascinated by the idea of what if the non-homo sapiens hominids, like the Neanderthals and the Denisovians, were still around. Two, GRRM is a huge fan of the work of Robert E. Howard and that dude had some weird and unusually racist even for the 1920s beliefs about human beings, great apes, and how evolution and species works. (I'm going to leave aside H.P Lovecraft for the moment, because parsing the similarites and differences between their thinking on this when they spent years corresponding with each other about this and many other topics is pretty hard to do.)

To provide a short version of Howard's beliefs: in part because Howard was a white Texan born very close to the "closing of the American frontier," and in part because of how he personally related to America in the 1920s, Howard had this odd combination of beliefs, in which he saw "barbarism" (which he sort of used as a short-hand for both less-developed times, places, and definitely people, including pretty much all non-white people) as savage, unintelligent, driven entirely by base urges, but also honest and vibrant and energetic; similarly, he viewed "civilization" (which again, he used as a short-hand for certain peoples, places, and times that he considered to be the most similar to contemporary white people) as more enlightened, more refined, more intellectual, but also corrupt and decadent.

In Howard's mind, humanity was constantly in a loop of civilization growing ever more refined and decadent until it collapsed back into barbarism due to its own weakness and corruption, at which point it would be replaced by the rising dynamism of the barbarian who had toppled it, who would found a new civilization, and then so on. (Howard was probably borrowing from someone who had borrowed from Ibn Khaldun.)

What made Howard weird, though, is that he thought this could happen at the level of the species: if humanity became too "degenerate," they would literally go backwards and devolve into non-human apes; and vice-versa, apes could ascend and become human (or at least human-like).

You see this trope all over Howard's writings. Here it is in "Tower of the Elephant":

""We saw men grow from the ape and build the shining cities of Valusia, Kamelia, Commoria, and their sisters. We saw them reel before the thrusts of the heathen Atlanteans and Picts and Lemurians. We saw the oceans rise and engulf Atlantis and Lemuria, and the isles of the Picts, and the shining cities of civilization. We saw the survivors of Pictdom and Atlantis build their stone age empires, and go down to ruin, locked in bloody wars. We saw the Picts sink into abysmal savagery, the Atlanteans into apedom again. We saw new savages drift southward in conquering waves from the arctic circle to build a new civilization, with new kingdoms called Nemedia, and Koth, and Aquilonia and their sisters. We saw your people rise under a new name from the jungles of the apes that had been Atlanteans. We saw the descendants of the Lemurians who had survived the cataclysm, rise again through savagery and ride westward, as Hyrkanians. And we saw this race of devils, survivors of the ancient civilization that was before Atlantis sank, come once more into culture and power—this accursed kingdom of Zamora."

Here it is in "Rogues in the House":

“That is Thak,” answered the priest, caressing his temple. “Some would call him an ape, but he is almost as different from a real ape as he is different from a real man. His people dwell far to the east, in the mountains that fringe the eastern frontiers of Zamora. There are not many of them; but, if they are not exterminated, I believe they will become human beings in perhaps a hundred thousand years. They are in the formative stage; they are neither apes, as their remote ancestors were, nor men, as their remote descendants may be. They dwell in the high crags of well-nigh inaccessible mountains, knowing nothing of fire or the making of shelter or garments, or the use of weapons. Yet they have a language of a sort, consisting mainly of grunts and clicks.

“I took Thak when he was a cub, and he learned what I taught him much more swiftly and thoroughly than any true animal could have done. He was at once bodyguard and servant. But I forgot that being partly a man, he could not be submerged into a mere shadow of myself, like a true animal. Apparently his semi-brain retained impressions of hate, resentment, and some sort of bestial ambition of its own."

And here it is again in "Queen of the Black Coast:"

"Cast in the mold of humanity, they were distinctly not men. They were winged and of heroic proportions; not a branch on the mysterious stalk of evolution that culminated in man, but the ripe blossom on an alien tree, separate and apart from that stalk. Aside from their wings, in physical appearance they resembled man only as man in his highest form resembles the great apes. In spiritual, esthetic and intellectual development they were superior to man as man is superior to the gorilla. But when they reared their colossal city, man’s primal ancestors had not yet risen from the slime of the primordial seas.

...Many died who drank of it; and in those who lived, the drinking wrought change, subtle, gradual and grisly. In adapting themselves to the changing conditions, they had sunk far below their original level. But the lethal waters altered them even more horribly, from generation to more bestial generation. They who had been winged gods became pinioned demons, with all that remained of their ancestors’ vast knowledge distorted and perverted and twisted into ghastly paths. As they had risen higher than mankind might dream, so they sank lower than man’s maddest nightmares reach. They died fast, by cannibalism, and horrible feuds fought out in the murk of the midnight jungle. And at last among the lichen-grown ruins of their city only a single shape lurked, a stunted abhorrent perversion of nature."

And here it is in "Shadows in the Moon":

"Out of the shadows of the cliffs moved a monstrous shambling bulk--an anthropomorphic horror, a grotesque travesty of creation.

In general outline it was not unlike a man. But its face, limned in the bright moonlight, was bestial, with close-set ears, flaring nostrils, and a great flabby-lipped mouth in which gleamed white tusk-like fangs. It was covered with shaggy grayish hair, shot with silver which shone in the moonlight, and its great misshapen paws hung nearly to the earth. Its bulk was tremendous; as it stood on its short bowed legs, its bullet-head rose above that of the man who faced it; the sweep of the hairy breast and giant shoulders was breathtaking; the huge arms were like knotted trees.

The moonlight scene swam, to Olivia's sight. This, then, was the end of the trail--for what human being could withstand the fury of that hairy mountain of thews and ferocity? Yet as she stared in wide-eyed horror at the bronzed figure facing the monster, she sensed a kinship in the antagonists that was almost appalling."

So you can see why I get a little nervus when in WOIAF GRRM invents a new group of people in the far-off land of Sothoryos and describes them in terms like this:

"And the native races grow ever more savage and primitive the farther one travels from the coasts.

The Sothoryi are big-boned creatures, massively muscled, with long arms, sloped foreheads, huge square teeth, heavy jaws, and coarse black hair. Their broad, flat noses suggest snouts, and their thick skins are brindled in patterns of brown and white that seem more hoglike than human. Sothoryi women cannot breed with any save their own males; when mated with men from Essos or Westeros, they bring forth only stillbirths, many hideously malformed.

The Sothoryi that dwell closest to the sea have learned to speak the trade talk. The Ghiscari consider them too slow of wit to make good slaves, but they are fierce fighters. Farther south, the trappings of civilization fall away, and the Brindled Men become ever more savage and barbaric. These Sothoryi worship dark gods with obscene rites. Many are cannibals, and more are ghouls; when they cannot feast upon the flesh of foes and strangers, they eat their own dead."

Are these Neanderthals and/or a non-sapiens hominid species, or is GRRM unwisely indulging in a bit of Howard pastiche in a more problematic way than just dropping the city of K'dath or Carcosa on to the map of furthest Essos? It's hard to say. Some of the details - the description of the bones, the long arms, the foreheads, the jaws, the mention of them not being able to cross-breed - suggest a non-sapiens hominid like the Neandethals. But others - the fact that some of them can learn to talk but further into the interior they become more bestial, the mention of "dark gods with obscene rites," the invocation of cannibalism and corpse-eating - feel like Howard pastiche. And then the eponymous skin seems like all GRRM's invention, but it's hardly flattering.

Either way, I think this is an aspect of the world-building that should have been edited out. I don't really see the benefits being worth the potential downsides.

#asoiaf #asoiaf meta #brindled men #robert e howard #conan #cw racism #conan the barbarian

56 notes · View notes

neon-dynasty · 1 year

Text

Compleated Planeswalker Theories

Welp, here we go. I'm sure you've seen this image from earlier:

We were told that five of these Planeswalkers would not make it through the events of All Will Be One without being compleated. So for the next month we get to think long and hard about which ones it'll be. For now, however, here's who I think we'll be losing to Phyrexia and who will survive to fight the good fight.

EDIT: I should mention that a big part of why I theorize who will be compleated and who won't be is primarily due to the assumption that each side will have a mono-colored cycle of Planeswalkers. I'm also looking at the What If artwork and making huge guesses about which color they'd fall into based on the design. My pairs are: White - Kaya (ceramic and flesh) and the Wanderer (Elesh Norn styled helmet) Blue - Jace (lots of neon and tubes, robotic features) and Kaito (neon accents) Black - Nissa (spines and rotted plates and noxious fungus) and Vraska (sharp segmented Sheoldred-like body, skeleton motifs in the background) Red - Koth (blazing furnace chest and also revealed card) and Nahiri (looks like she's in full control, least deformed) Green - Lukka (large body set in the Tangle / Hunter's Maze) and Tyvar (emphasis on muscles, "natural" features like hair and tentacles)

Koth of the Hammer

They already showed us his card! That said, his "What If" art is pretty neat.

SAFE (from compleation - nobody is safe from Phyrexia)

Jace Beleren

Everyone's noticed it by now, but in his What If art, Jace has Luxior sticking out of his exposed heart. That's a very specific detail that all the other characters are lacking, and hints at some major story implications. Jace has been one of the poster boys for the game since his introduction, so it definitely fits the trope of a veteran leaving at the end of a massive crossover story arc.

That said, it gives me hope that the heroes will find a way to undo the damage of compleation, should they want that at the end of the storyline and beyond.

COMPLEAT

Vraska

I think Jace's compleation is going to be a motivating factor for Vraska, and possibly even what causes her to join the fight.

At least that's what I set out to say. After considering each character's design and color alignment, a couple of predictions got shuffled around. At least her What If art is incredibly awesome, and very fitting for her.

COMPLEAT

Lukka

Aside from the fact that his What If artwork is super fitting (and awesome), Lukka hasn't been a good character the handful of times we've seen him, and this could be a way for Wizards to sweep him under the rug. I think they'd even be willing to snip the whole "voice in his head plot" thread to get rid of him.

Again, that's what I would have said, but look at this art. We don't see any beasts in this piece. That said, it's him or Tyvar for the green rep, and I think Lukka is more likely to be safe in the end. If I'm right about the colors, we'd be seeing at least one Planeswalker in a new color in this set, and I don't think they'd introduce a new color identity to a Planeswalker after all the previous emphasis on how compleated versions of the characters have twisted versions of their personalities.

SAFE

The Wanderer and Kaito Shizuki

They just introduced these two, and there's a lot more story left to tell for both of them. Tamiyo was already compleated. Jace and Vraska are a much more emotionally resonant couple in the story. And yes, there's a personal desire to see the Wanderer and Kaito have a chance at a happy ending, despite how amazing their What If artwork is (especially Kaito's monstrous spider form).

As a side note, Kaito's spark doesn't reside within him, and the Wanderer's is unstable. It's possible that Jin-Gitaxias would be able to fix both of those things, but unlikely, I think.

SAFE

Tyvar Kell

Dude is such a lovable himbo, but ultimately I can see Tyvar sacrificing himself to save someone else OR taking on a fight he doesn't know he can't win just to punch something. Either way, we just met him and have relatively little investment in his story.

Between him and Lukka as the green representative, I think Tybar is more likely to be compleated. I love the twisted Saitama vibes on his incredibly unsettling What If art.

COMPLEAT

Nissa Revane

Simply put, Nissa has too many loose plot threads dangling. Emrakul, Zendikar, Chandra, Liliana. I think Jace has a much better chance of being the veteran who bites it, and I doubt they'd off two original members of the Gatewatch in the same story.

That, and the face on her What If art looks a little too much like her regular face. I love the vibes though. It really screams (or perhaps whispers) "I am this forest."

SAFE

Kaya Cassir

Kaya is an active character with a lot of story left in her, but it would make a lot of sense if she were compleated as an extension of that. She's already been a noble, an assassin, and guild leader, an assassin, a hero, an assassin, and most recently, a cog vital component in Teferi's time machine.

At the moment, she's super OP as a Planeswalker, able to transport other living creatures across the planes AND through time, apparently. Her What If art shows a very Norn-inspired look, which suits her pretty well.

COMPLEAT

Nahiri

The fact that Nahiri's What If artwork looks so much like her original form made me think she was going to be one of the ones who were safe at first. However, she looks like she's actively enjoying her new state. And, unlike Tyvar, completely in control. That makes me think that she might strike a deal with Urabrask, undergoing Phyrexianization willingly.

Plus, I mean, sword arms.

COMPLEAT

And there you have it. That's my theory on who's going to be compleated, and who's going to continue the resistance against the Phyrexian tide. I tried to look for details in the artwork that may hint at specific story points (like Jace with Luxior), as well as keeping in mind the fact that we'll be seeing two color-balanced cycles.

As always, please share your own thoughts and theories. I look forward to seeing what we all come up with!

#mtg #planeswalkers #phyrexia #phyrexia all will be one #all will be one #jace #kaito #kaya #koth #lukka #nahiri #nissa #tyvar #vraska #the wanderer

64 notes · View notes

sullustangin · 1 year

Text

Fluffy February 2023 Recap

Mission success: I wrote something every day! Some of it was short, some of it was elaborate. Main link to the AO3 collection will be in the reblog later today.

1. Hello -- Theron Shan notices something strange going on at base (with hideous fanart!)

2. Soft -- Theron snuggles with Eva Corolastor (smuggler oc) early in the morning, before he has to go...

3. Anniversary -- Jace Malcom, a stickler for etiquette, arrives with an appropriate first anniversary present for Eva (and Theron).

4. Starlight -- After finding Nok Drayen’s treasure, Eva takes Corso Riggs, Risha Drayen, and Bowdaar somewhere special to celebrate.

5. Amber -- Arcann seeks redemption in the form of Darth Marr’s lightsaber, with the help of Talos Drellik. I’ve already decided I’m going to re-edit this for a larger work in the indeterminate future. Cameo by Ramesses (Sith Warrior OC)

6. Stretch -- Jace watches Satele Shan walk through her lightsaber katas as he drafts a critical sales pitch.

7. Cloak -- Jace deals with the crisis of the day, thanks to his brother, Kal Malcom. I’m mentioned Kal in the past, but this is his first appearance as a character. Let’s just say he’s different from his big brother.

8. Callous -- Eva and Theron spend time together at the firing range.

9. Breezy -- Rass Ordo talks with Torian Cadera and thinks about Mandalorians in love. Then he meets Fria Whitcord (consular OC).

10. Thunder -- Athene Corolastor tends to Eva during her first thunderstorm. Athene has been illusive as a narrative voice until now. Instead of the ethereal, light figure she looks like, she’s definitely coming out with a harder edge than I anticipated.

11. Immaculate -- Arcann goes to see his mother Senya Tirall for an important appointment.

12. Shell -- Eva goes on her first mission with Theron after the carbonite freeze. This is a heist fic, with background bickering from Lana Beniko and Koth Vortena.

13. Pride -- As he holds their son Argento (Argo for short), Theron talks to Eva about the pitfalls of parental pride. This does have some sad feels in there, but everyone is safe and happy here.

14. Free Space: Heartbeat -- Theron goes on his first mission since Ziost, guided through the guts of Zakuul by Marcus Trant. He takes a detour to visit someone. This is the long one of the bunch, at 1800+ words.

15. Reward -- Things weren’t always bad with Darmas Pollaran. A brief look at the beginning of the relationship between Eva and Darmas, right after Balmorra in Chapter 2.

16. Glow -- A fluffy, slightly risque fic on Copero with Eva and Theron: they have plans.

17. Blessed -- Corso gets to know Guss Tuno shortly after Hoth.

18. Glide -- Theron races in his first swoop competition in front of Jace, a fellow former swooper.

19. Loop -- Eva, Corso, and Hylo the cat arrive on Coruscant for the first time.

20. Sink -- The state of a sink and the surrounding environs can reveal a lot about a person. This seems to have been a favorite with readers. :)

21. Tender -- For once, Lana gets hurt, and her friends are there for her.

22. Remember -- Eva experiences her first “Eternal Fleet Remembrance Day” with Theron.

23. Crave -- Aric Jorgan catches Theron at the cantina at 0300, due to unforeseen happy circumstances. This one has some CWs at the top.

24. Bubbly -- Day 2 of the ‘official’ Jace Malcom/Satele Shan relationship on Alderaan.

25. Murmur -- Theron is greeted by Eva and their daughter, Dyominia, after an unexpected mission gone wrong.

26. Joy -- Joy is a noisy house, according to Jace Malcom. Cameo appearances by Kal, Theron, Eva, Argo, and Dyo.

27. Blaze -- They who shoot together, stay together. Or at least that’s Akaavi’s advice to Eva and Theron.

28. Goodbye -- the silly-ass bordering-on-crackfic sequel to #5, starring Arcann, Koth, and Talos.

@fluffyfebruary

36 notes · View notes

queen-scribbles · 4 months

Text

Breather

My SWtOR Secret Santa gift for @ishallobservethis! I had to do something with Felin soon as I saw she had a "tripped and fell in love by accident" arc with Koth. I love the Smuggler, I love accidentally falling in love pairings, and Koth always need more love. So I wrote them a little scene between chapters 7 & 8 of KotFE.

---

Despite her best efforts in the moment, Felin had never been all that good at subtlety. So it wasn't really a surprise when Koth caught one too many of her 'surreptitious' glances in his direction.

It was enough to prompt him to look up from his half-disassembled rifle, arching a brow at her. "Need something , Outlander?"

"No, um, I just... the stuff with the Heralds was... a lot." Felin set down the tools she'd been using to repair her own blaster. "Wanted to be sure everyone's okay after that, you know?"

"And I'm first on your list?" A wink. "I'm flattered. And fine. The rifle took damage, not me." He shrugged. "Not the first time I've been in a fight like that, anyhow."

Former military. Right. On the run for deserting because he had a conscience. He was used to danger, used to Zakuul and Asylum and didn't need her fretting over him. But I want to.

She didn't want to dwell on why that was. She cared about all her comrades in arms, that's why.

"Good," she said, clearing her throat. She picked up the tools and went back to work. There was just a little carbon scoring to clear away, but better to have it in working order now, under the circumstances. "I gotta ask, Koth," she started after a few minutes' companionable silence working side by side, "especially after that mess, what exactly did Lana tell you that had you all gung-ho to bust me out?"

"Bunch of stuff," Koth laughed, turning back to reassembling his rifle. "Findin' the lost riches of a crime lord, taking down some bigshot admiral--not to mention a near-mythic Sith. Or was he a Jedi?" He shrugged, brow furrowed as he slotted the casing back together. "Point is, she spun you up as this dashing hero who thrives on long odds."

Felin chuckled. "Somethin' like that. And what, your curiosity got the best of you?"

"Somethin' like that," Koth said, shooting her a grin. "Gonna take someone experienced with long odds and pulling down powerful Force users to deal with Arcann and Vaylin. Wanted to see if you were the real deal. She didn't mention you have a great smile, though."

She smirked down at the blaster. They'd traded flirty banter a couple times in the swamps; if he wanted to go again she was happy to play. "Can't imagine how that slipped her mind, it's one of my best features."

"Guess she was distracted by the skytroopers and Knights and wildlife chasing us," he deadpanned.

"I do bring a flare of adventure to the lives of most people I meet," Felin joked, biting back the odd little squirm that didn't want to see him hurt in the course of this adventure.

"Only most?" Koth asked, half-joking, as he secured the last pieces back in place.

"Some are too boring to be helped," she said with exaggerated drama, biting the tip of her tongue. as she finished and holstered her blaster. "Not you, though," she winked.

"Well, that's a relief," Koth said with a laugh. "Think I'd be a little intimidated if you found my life experience boring."

"You mean running from a galaxy spanning empire with a price on your head isn't normal for you, Vortena?" Felin said with faux-shock.

"Right now it is."

"Touché."

The hum of the engines shifted, rocking the shuttle just a little. The computer beeped, and Koth wiped his hands on his jacket as he leaned over to check it.

"We're dropping out of hyperspace," he reported. "Almost there. I should check on the Gravestone repairs when we land. If we're gonna use it to save the galaxy."

"Yeah, be bad for that hope--and the engines--to go up in flames when you try to take off," Felin said dryly. "Would hate for our dashing heroics to end before I have a chance to really see what y- the ship can do."

Koth chuckled, sent her a smirk. "Have a little faith, Outlander. Let me show off her moves." His expression sobered as a view of Asylum flashed outside the shuttle. "Be careful down there, huh?"

She nodded as they headed to strap in for landing. "Do my best."

The flicker of relief in his eyes made her heart skip a beat. Or two. Maybe she wasn't the only one worried.

Maybe she liked that thought a bit more than she should.

#queens fic #swtor secret santa 2023 #swtor #swtor smuggler #koth vortena #smuggler/koth

23 notes · View notes

wiisportslesbianism · 10 months

Text

Feeling inclined to talk about the TF2 summer update so uhhhh here's my lil review:

~Cosmetics & Warpaints~

Overall I think the new cosmetics and warpaints are a tad underwhelming but they are still very much appreciated. There were a few cosmetics of note (like the halflife one for medic) and I'm always happy to have more warpaints to choose from. As for unusuals I haven't checked them out. I don't trade much or spend a lot of money on the game so I don't have many unusuals and that will likely remain the case for the foreseeable future

~Maps & Modes~

God damn, fourteen new maps, four of which are an official version of Versus Saxton Hale. Fucking wild. Now the obvious elephant in the room is that the VSH maps are currently only able to be played through community servers, as they were bugged in casual. While I'm disappointed I do have faith that they will release a patch soon so everyone can enjoy the mode! As for the rest of the maps:

Most of the new maps tend on the larger side, with long, exploitable sightlines. This is most evident on Venice, a map that has sightlines so absurd they give me flashbacks to Wutville. With that said, Venice is an absolutely stunning map, and it's not the only one. All of the map makers really knocked it out of the park in terms of the artistry. Unlike a lot of the classic TF2 maps, all of these feel incredibly visually distinct and are frankly gorgeous.

With the large number of maps in the update, we ended up with a large spread of game modes. There were a few of note (in addition to VSH)

Player Destruction made it's return in Selbyen, a seemingly New England inspired tourist trap fishing town in which you collect chum (via killing enemies) and then feed it to chubby little seals.

Sulfur is an attack/defense map that seems to play similarly to cp_steel, but with a twist. Simply capping the last point isn't enough to net the win for BLU, they instead have to hold the point similarly to koth.

Lastly, if I remember correctly Pelican Peak is the first original Capture the Flag map released in quite some time, making it noteworthy enough for me to point out here.

My favorites:

Selbyen (player destruction)

Player Destruction is always one of my favorites, and combining that with the vibes of a coastal New England town and it's an instant favorite. Here's hoping it becomes the first pd map to be playable year round in casual!

Reckoner (5cp)

From my first couple games, Reckoner feels like a genuinely well balanced 5cp map, and the Japanese city aesthetic really ties it together. That's all, no gimmicks or anything. Just some solid 5cp. I would love to see this added to the casual map pool after the summer event ends.

~Final Thoughts~

Okay it's time to wrap up this stupidly long post that no one will read. All in all this is a pretty good update, and there were a bunch more maps that I didn't even mention that are still pretty good. I know a lot of people are complaining about this update, and I admit that a lot of the complaints are valid, I'm just glad they've given us anything, let alone 14 fucking maps lol. Part of me accepted that Valve was done TF2, but I'm glad I was wrong about that.

Anyways this has purely been self indulgent for my ADHD so uh thanks if you somehow read this far

#team fortress 2 #tf2 #tf2 summer update #valve #steam #adhd

14 notes · View notes

bloodsbane · 2 years

Text

nooOOOOO not an episode with bedbugs <:CCC

#banebabbles #koth lb #i already read a very scawy horror comic that mentioned bedbugs #and had themes of Infected Bedding #i don't wanna hear or think about bed bugs for the rest of my liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiife

1 note · View note

jb-nonsense · 10 months

Note

wait but I wanna know why Theron's your least favorite :D explanation? (positive connotation i prommy)

Well it all started as a journey. It's a long journey, for sure, of a varying opinion change over the years of playing the game, from forces inside the game and outside the game. But I am not one to post things negatively about other people's favs out in the open so readmore it is

So we begin this journey as a wide eyed newbie player just figuring out what I wanted my legacy to be with my first knight, Leeloa. A friend was playing along with me, and I really enjoyed the Doc romance because I am definitely a fan of the 'player gets played by his own game and catches feelings' trope. Well, I get to SOR and mention to friend that I think Theron's fun and she tells me to ditch Doc because she didn't like him and thought Leeloa could do better.

I ended up remaking Leeloa because I listened then did not like that course, because it just didn't fit Leeloa. So honestly, I did like him when I first started.

But then writing happens, and it felt like he...Never developed past the whole "reckless, I do things when I do them" kind of persona, especially with the betrayal. And the more I delved into information on SWTOR, it just...Bothered me. He's descended from the hero of the original games, but oh no not force sensitive, but he's a great spy so amazing.

Why?? Because he had some Jedi training because it was expected for him to be force sensitive but oh no he WASN'T what a shock...

Except that...Doesn't really track with the Jedi and, everyone hates me, but the test for the midichlorians. They would know, they wouldn't just assume because his mom was Satele.

And somehow, despite acting in the most unspy like ways, he's a great spy. I don't know why anyone would have the Grand Master of the Jedi Council's son as a spy because that is just a huge liability.

I'll admit I haven't read the extra material because I just think it's...Kind of silly to have content outside of a video game beyond, say, a short story or a short comic.

There's just a lot of his story that if you look at it closer and in the grand scheme of Star Wars, is just absolutely ridiculous and maybe, a bit more Gary Stu than Luke.

Now then, to the writing and how he was treated in expacs. (This area is a place where Lana is also on thin fuckin ice.) The absolute favoritism shown to him by the devs drove me crazy. It started to weed away at my liking him and move me more into the exasperated/tired/neutral about him. You have this whole giant alliance, but the focus being on him and Lana so much was just annoying, especially considering it was Koth who helped the Outlander escape in the beginning chapters and how he got pushed aside. It didn't narratively feel...Cohesive and just a 'Look at the Sh*n kid go!'

The nail in the coffin is how the fandom acts about how he's a golden boy, how he gets fawned over, and honestly?? I just hate liking those characters for personal reasons. It always seems like people ignore what we're given about the character and expanding on it and, instead, ignore it and write an entirely different personality with the face they think is cute. I am huge on consistency, it's my style of writing, my preferred style of reading (thanks literary analysis class in college you ruined me), so fandom just fucked me over from liking him and while he's still friends with my knight, I try my hardest to ignore fandom with him, do my best to try to enjoy him, because I do intend to run all the game romances for gif making purposes.

Also he's really written as playersexual if you play a light side character and some conversations felt awkward like the devs were expecting you to have romanced him.

#antitheron #I don't know how to tag that so it doesn't show up in tags #antitheronshan #this is literally the best way I can explain it #I think if I try to avoid people who especially have acted like he's superior to Doc or act like he's the best thing since sliced bread #I could maybe rekindle some of that enjoyment bc I damn well better for Alema's playthrough #negativity cw #cw negativity

12 notes · View notes