#so there's like a <20-Player community living in the woods

[some-thrilling-heroics]

i'm workshopping halsin's past in terms of relationships

considering that halsin was very likely bullied as a kid (thaniel was his only friend) and how he is a prime target for an abusive relationship (you can say all kinds of nasty things to him and he will just look sad but not break up with you or draw any kind of line that next time it's over or anything - and sure player chara lifts the curse so it's all magic on a pedestal and heart eyes but still…)

the way i see it time-wise: he's 350 now and i don't see him having any relationships like that since the shadow curse / taking over as archdruid, so that takes us down to him at 250 - his slavery 3 years were in his youth so im gonna assume that's closer to him either below or just around 100 so let's say ages 20-80/100 he might have had some relationships, then underdark happened at some point and then ages 80/100-250 again he is out and might be in relationships

so with that in mind, i'm trying to picture his past relationships and how they ended, what could be some common threats in most / many of them and were the breakups amicable or not

maybe besides duty and power imbalance and lack of peers / actual friends the reason he didn't have any relationship in the time as archdruid would also be that he was at that point aware enough that when he gets involved with sb he is easily manipulated by them, even if a relationship starts all sunshine and roses it always devolves when the other party(-ies) pick up on that and - not even to keep himself safe from that but to keep the grove safe from the potential dangers of that - he stayed single? that would also fit with him expecting the ship with tav to end even if it's going well and they are living in the commune, he's still waiting for that other shoe to drop, like all the other times

would his past lovers have issue with his relationship with his bear shape? they'd know he's a druid but he's not exactly standard in his approach, whether you go with werebear approach or not. would that have been a point of conflict in some relationships? would he have ended things if it was?

would some of them - either intentionally or through ignorance - hear him say openly he's polyamorous and take it as an open invitation to cheat on him or to involve third parties without properly discussing it with halsin and just assuming he'd be up for anything and with anybody? (i get wood elves are culturally polyamorous so this point might not necessarily apply to them, but clearly halsin doesn't limit himself to just dating wood elves)

on the flipside i don't want him to only have bad relationships, or only ones that in time turn abusive, but what would happen there? imo the simplest would be 'we're just having fun and want different things long term from life' or duty calls and the like that would necessitate a breakup. i would hate the idea that tav is the only / first good happy steady relationship in his long life and thus somehow special - outside of the special aspect being around the curse breaking bc can't argue with that.

thoughts? anybody?

#halsin #baldur's gate 3 #bg3

[rayveewrites]

So who wants to hear about my extremely weird Hermitcraft AU? Anyone? Too bad, I'm talking about it anyway and y'all can't stop me.

So, you know the fantasy trope of "an ancient super-advanced civilisation that disappeared off the face of the planet/went extinct due to hubris/got wiped out by a plague/etc"? Yeah. That.

...Let me explain.

In this case, the ancient civilisation was, in fact, Players. Players came in a variety of shapes, sizes, species, etc. Humans, Mob Hybrids, Werefolk, Cyborgs, Shapeshifters, assorted Halloween monsters, full-on robots, aliens, technically-not-aliens-but-basically-aliens... the list goes on. Now, what made someone a Player was never particularly well-defined due to sheer variety, but there were a few common threads. Players could break, pick up and place blocks, they could use chests, crafting tables and their own inventories, they could respawn in non-hardcore worlds, and they had a certain level of intelligence (about on par with, say, a human).

So, anyway. One of the most common threads were that Players- all Players- had access to magic. Typically this manifested in the form of inventories, crafting, being able to break/place solid 1m³ blocks, and, of course, enchanting, with Admin and Operator powers manifesting in various worlds for specific people. There were other forms of magic, of course, but learning those typically required (at minimum) a lot of study and/or a level of attunement to that particular branch of magic.

Players lived in communities, on worlds- in this AU, all the worlds were connected, but separated by the world borders. The various Hermitcraft worlds were some of these, as were 3rd Life and Legacy SMP and Hypixel and so on.

So, that's the worldbuilding preamble out of the way.

The worlds updated every now and then, and they added, tweaked and (occasionally) removed various mobs, blocks and mechanics. But this update, the Final Update... nobody's quite sure why, but it removed magic.

Not completely, of course. It set in slowly. Villagers no longer transformed when they were slain by zombies. The monsters of the night became less and less common. Portals became unreliable, until they eventually stopped working entirely. World borders started to fail (and I feel sorry for those unlucky enough to neighbour servers like 2b2t). Enchanting became more temperamental. Still, Players were adaptable. They could manage.

Until they couldn't. See, while Players had magic running through their systems, and had since the universe had existed, all of a sudden their children...didn't. The big problem was that most species- Hybrids, Werefolk, Spaeshifters, Aliens and not-exactly-aliens... their biology meant their children physically couldn't survive without magic. The one exception? Humans.

Already in the majority, humans were the only race who could still produce living children. But these children weren't Players. They had no inventories, no ability to use a crafting table or break a block with their bare fists like their forebears. They managed though, adapting and creating new ways to craft and smelt. And as time went on... they became the only ones left.

See, while Players were all long-lived, and capable of respawn, they did eventually experience the Final Death, from which there was no coming back (ignoring the occasional ghost, resurrection, or any necromancy-related shenanigans that were frankly extremely rare to begin with). And as time wore on, Players slowly died out, until all that were left were those who were Undying, and the Humans who weren't Players (it's worth mentioning that Immortals and Undying were two different peoples. Immortality was granted by the gods; when the gods faded, their gifts faded with them. Undying, on the other hand, were those who had experienced their Final Death but kept going. Undead beings, if you will). Undying could be killed, if their body was so badly maimed their soul had no choice to fly free, but not so badly they would just respawn; as Human societies developed, many Undead succumbed to this fate, either by choice or by force, acts done by fearful Humans.

Let's go forward, now.

It's been over two thousand years since the Players died out, and longer since the Final Update. There is only one world now, the world borders long forgotten. The Players are myths, legends; a mysterious race, now long gone, their builds crumbling to ruin. Nobody has encountered a zombie or creeper for millennia; the only spiders left are small and harmless, a far cry from the creatures once large enough for a skeleton to ride.

Archeologist study the ruins Players left behind. One city, Hermiton, was originally a camping ground for people to study the various ruins in the area; the crumbling remains of a vast monument, the stump of a tree larger than should ever have been possible, a gaping hole some claim leads to the centre of the Earth.

Near Hermiton lies a vast forest, beside the footprint of what had once been an immense mansion. The forest is a mixture of different species, most likely transplanted thousands of years ago. In that forest lives... something. A ghost? A spirit? a cryptid?

Whatever it is, it's not human. The locals claim she looks like a woman, with glowing eyes and long red hair. They call her the Green Lady, for the colour of her skin. They say her teeth are sharp, and that dark claws tip her fingers. They say her cheeks are hollow, her eyes are sunken- but that her gaze holds a fire no Human could hope to match. They say she lives in the forest, and that she is its guardian. They say that anyone who tries to chop down the trees, to clear the land, will face her wrath.

Outsiders will write this off as a modern-day folk tale, an urban myth. But believe it or not, there is something- someone- who dwells in the woods. Someone who brings those lost home. Someone who intercedes if there's danger. Someone who will run through the forest with a familiarity only born from centuries, millennia, of practice.

They don't know who she is. She's a guardian spirit. She's a ghost. Se's been there since the Ancients walked the land. They're not wrong about that last one. Once, she altered a sign planted by the one responsible for the enormous tree. Once, she had her arm sewn back on by the person who'd built the immense mansion. Once, she threatened the man who dug the vast hole, the one they say leads to the centre of the Earth.

She's a Player, the last one left. She's a zombie, the only one to still walk the Earth. She's alone. Once, she had a family, a home. She dwells near the ruins of that home, even now. Her kind, her kin; they're long gone. She's the only one to remain.

She waits for the day her family will return. It's written in the stars, in the fabric of the Universe. They will return. And she will be there, ready to greet them with open arms. For the Univers is kind. The Universe loves its Players.

Alone in the forest, ZombieCleo, Master of Puppets, the Undead and Undying, the Last Player, waits. She'll be there, when her family, her hermits, return.

Even if it takes another two thousand years.

#At some point this turned from a quick explanation to a full fic #jeez #I did go off #I dunno if I'll write any *actual* fics about this au #I'd like to though #It'd be about the return of the hermits #and there'd be some sort of calamity they'd ave to fight off or something #I don't know #It could also be a fun slice-of-life thing? #the hermits show up and just kinda have to...adjust to the New World #the human-looking ones learn the new language #(because languages change after two thousand years) #and try to assimilate #but it doesn't go very well #and some evil government folk try to capture them for study #but Players are just so hilariously OP it fails miserably #So they just kinda leave them be eventually #so there's like a <20-Player community living in the woods #and most of Hermiton knows about it but don't really talk about it #and these are the *hermits* #so obviously they don't stay there for long #They do their best to make the world a better place #and also build ridiculous megabuilds just because they can #maybe it'll connect to (my interpretation of) the Scattered AU #mostly because seadragonpulse lives rent-free in my brain #if anyone has any questions/ideas/additions etc feel free to contribute #I have a very in-depth world and Literally No Plot #hermitcraft AU #last player AU #Rayvee actually Writes

[interact-if]

Scott, author of The Watchwood

Indigenous Heritage Month Featured Author

This is a story about trauma, recovery, and what family always should  have been. It's about the ghosts that linger in your head and learning  to live with them. It’s about the people who love you, and how sometimes  they have ghosts, too. It’s about moving forward, even when it’s hard,  and even when it feels like you’re moving backward.

You are a  member of the Grey family. Once, you were a child, and as children are  wont to do, you broke the rules. You went somewhere you'd been told not  to go, and something very bad happened. Something that has lived in your  head ever since.

Your parents took you, and the three of you  moved far away from your ancestral home. 22 years later, your  grandmother, the Head of the Grey Family, has passed away, and you have  all returned home for the first time.

This is what happens next. 

The Watchwood demo | Ko-fi | Discord | Read more here  

Tags: modern fantasy, horror

Q1: So tell us about the project(s) you’re working on!

My main project right now is The Watchwood, a story about trauma, recovery, and what family always should have been. In it you play a member of the Grey Family, who have resided in an old house called the Watchwood for generations unnumbered. You and your parents left when you were a child, after an event you don’t clearly remember anymore, and ~20 years later you’ve returned for your grandmother’s memorial service.

Not all is as it seems, though. The Woods are dark and deep, your family’s ancestral home holds secrets untold, and there is something perhaps best left forgotten tickling the back of your mind as though it wants desperately to be remembered.

Q2: What has been your favorite thing about using interactive fiction and/or being in the community? What are some of the biggest challenges?

In all, my favorite thing has also been among the biggest challenges? I like building interactive stories- mostly I’ve done this through a tabletop medium, which is different. It’s freer and more open. You don’t have to account for as many variables because you’re playing it improv and you can adapt the story to what your players are going after.

With an interactive novel, though, that’s not so much an option. I’m having to sit down and not only sort out what the most likely avenues of action would be for my readers/players, but also try to delineate what’s going to be most feasible for me to write and work with my friend to implement into code.

Q3: What is something you're excited to explore within your work?

Like I said, this is a story about trauma & recovery. It’s a very personal story for me? And as such it gets really heavy at times, but I’m just- I’m really excited to be laying out something very similar to my recovery journey, and to also lay out this… I don’t know, this concept of what family should be, and how they should act, and what family really means.

Because for a lot of us, myself included, family hasn’t always been a comforting word or presence- but family should be comforting, loving, accepting, and supportive, and the Grey Family is very much that, always.

Q4: What's something you feel is overlooked and would like to be changed? Either with encouraging people to research Indigenous cultures more, by being more aware, or the like?

There’s so much, honestly. I come from multiple nations, most of which are historically and currently located in what is now known as Mexico, although a couple of my nations are located in what is now the Southwest United States as well. Since even just my native heritage is so varied, it really draws into sharp attention how rare it is to see someone understand the way native cultures relate to each other.

Many of my nations share the same stories and concepts- the trickster Coyote is ever-present in Southwest US nations as well as in Northern and Central Mexican nations, for example. But if you go research the Northeast US nations you’ll find that the trickster Coyote is much less present.

There’s no easy, solid, simple, quick answer here because Native nations across the Americas are at once wildly varied and intensely interconnected. The one thing that really ties us all together is these everlasting effects of colonization, and that’s what I’d really like people to put more thought into. How colonization has changed (almost exclusively for the worst) our family structures and our “borders” and our diets and our health. How colonization prevents many people who are connected to their cultures from being legally recognized as a member of their nation. How colonization has changed our cultural views on gender & sexuality.

How colonization has ripped our people away from us- to the point that many do not know who they belong to at all, if they even know they’re Native. How colonization has irreparably damaged our languages and practices. What effect that’s had on Natives across the Americas, and how we’ve persevered anyway.

Q5: Does your heritage influence your story or characters as you create them? How? Why or why not?

Oh, it absolutely does. For a start, no matter how you envision your character in The Watchwood, your family is mixed race. You may have been adopted or not, but your grandfather (always referred to as Abuelo), who is an important side character, is Native (specifically he’s Purépecha, a Central Mexican nation and part of my heritage). I’ll admit that Abuelo is a bit of a self-insert, and people who play will find out a lot about who I am through interacting with him- but his heritage shines through primarily in his food and the way he addresses his family.Other characters who are distinctly Native in some way are two of the three love interests: Salomón and Bridget. I don’t want to spoil everything about their character arcs, but suffice to say that they have two different approaches to their connections to their ancestries- or lack thereof. Their indigeneity affects the way they view the world, and also affects the way they view their genders and sexualities. It’s as much a part of them as my indigenous heritages are a part of me.

Q6: What is something you'd love to see in interactive fiction?

This is a hard one to say, because interactive fiction has been such a fun, interesting, and diverse medium already in the last, say, 5-10 years. I barely ever stumble across a game where I don’t get to play who I want to play, and make choices I want to make. I even get to be polyamorous and ace in some games, reflecting my real identities. I’d love to say “I’d like to see more Native characters” but in truth I don’t want to encourage anyone to shoehorn them in where they don’t belong. What I want to see instead is more Native writers making interactive novels. It’s an engaging and interesting medium, and seeing more Native stories told through it would be amazing.

Q7: Any advice to give to aspiring devs?

Don’t be afraid to turn to your peers for help.

If you want to do something, but you aren’t sure it’ll fit into the end product, do it anyway! Worst case scenario, you’ll cut it and maybe use it for another project later- or maybe it’ll take the project in an entirely new direction that you like better.

Take breaks. If you’re getting frustrated with something, put it away for a little while. After a break- maybe a meal, a good nap, a chat with some friends- you’ll have a fresh perspective and maybe you’ll have figured out what you need to do with it.

Carry a notebook- or at least a notes app on your phone. I get ideas all the time all over the place, and it’s not at all unusual for me to be at a nice dinner with my partner’s family and pull out my phone to start scribbling down ideas for one of my projects. The worst thing that could possibly happen to me is to have an idea and no way to record it before I forget it.

#if: events #indigenous heritage month #indigenous month #indigenous authors #indigenous creators #native authors #native creators #interactive fiction #cyoa #choose your own adventure #choose your story #text-based games

[mwfhomebrew]

Variskosy, Diviner of Death

Beholder by Kuba Grzybowski

Dungeon: Varioskosy, Diviner of Death

“My eyes are many, but the futures they behold are many more. I see glimpses of possibilities. I see countless scenarios laid out before me. And do you want to know something? There is not a single timeline in which you can escape my wrath.” - Variskosy

Variskosy is a relatively young beholder, born recently from the nightmares of Zargomythis the Grizzled One. As such, they are still relatively untested. Every encounter they have had so far has been no match for the young beholder. This sounds impressive, but those encounters were mostly with wild animals and solo adventurers who were caught unaware. These confrontations have led Variskosy to believe that they are undefeatable. Variskosy even believes that they can see into the future, but in reality what they are really doing is just thinking about what could happen.

Shortly after forming, Variskosy found their way to a subterranean chamber full of glowing mushrooms and a waterfall that feeds into a small pool. This chamber was the basement floor of the wizard, Braylee Umberhill’s tower. With Braylee away on adventures, Variskosy set up home inside her tower and made it their lair.

Adventure Hooks

The players happen upon Braylee in a tavern, sulking over a bottle of mead and nursing a busted leg. She returned from an adventure a few days prior only to discover that her home had been taken over by a beholder. She tried to combat the monster, but its ability to disable her magic made her almost useless and she was lucky to escape with her life. In exchange for helping her to defeat Variskosy, Braylee will share the spoils of her last adventure. This includes a small hoard of magic potions, gold, and a couple uncommon magic items.

While traveling through the woods, the players come across a large tower with a tabaxi camping outside. This is Silvio Berrara, a wandering alchemist. He heard that a beholder had claimed this tower as its lair and was hoping to bargain with it for a few vials full of tears. Unfortunately, the foolhardy creature was not willing to communicate with the alchemist and attacked him for trespassing. Silvio is hopeful that some resourceful adventurers might still be able to obtain those vials of tears for him though. If the players are successful, they will be rewarded with their choice of either potions or a favor from the highly skilled alchemist.

The players have been sent to find information from another quest and have heard that a book on the subject may be in the library of Braylee Umberhill. When they reach her tower though, they find a hulking mass of flesh and eyes where they had expected a welcoming wizard. In order to retrieve the book they are seeking, they will have to either negotiate with this creature or defeat it.

Notes on the Tower

Braylee’s tower is a large, circular, five story (including the basement) stone structure with a wide opening in the middle that allowed her to quickly fly from floor to floor. A staircase hugs the walls on each level, allowing access to the floors above and below. There is a rail, 4 feet high, by the opening on each floor to help prevent falling. The height of each floor is 12 feet. The radius of each room is 20 foot and the radius of the center opening is 7.5 feet.

The bottom floor contains a 20 foot deep pool with a waterfall and glowing mushrooms which, unbeknownst to Braylee, opened into the underdark.

The ground floor above that was mostly where the wizard entertained visitors and contains a comfortable sitting area and kitchen.

The 1st floor above that is Braylee’s library. There are two, large, floor to ceiling windows with comfortable benches in front of them, but the rest of the walls are lined with bookshelves that are packed beyond capacity.

The 2nd Floor above that is Braylee’s laboratory where she devises new spells. This level is mostly empty, containing only a couple chests stocked with components, scrolls, and books. Additionally, there is a desk littered with spell ideas as well as a few spellcasting related charts. There are scorch marks on the walls and a few ritual circles drawn on the floor.

The top floor is Braylee’s bedroom. The entire wall is made of glass, allowing her to look out upon the forest in every direction. The furniture here is the definition of opulent and plush. No expense has been spared to make this the most comfortable living space possible. There is a glass door on the side opposite her bed which grants access to a deck that wraps around the whole tower. This door is never locked because Braylee lost the key.

Variskosy’s presence has also warped the tower. A thin layer of slick slime covers most of the floors and stairs, turning them into difficult terrain. Additionally, the walls have become fleshy in places and even sprouted large, yellow eyes that never blink. These eyes are even visible on the exterior of the building. Variskosy can perceive through these eyes whenever he wishes, but does not do so automatically.

Since claiming this tower, the beholder has mostly been interested in the art of spellcraft and has read much of the research the wizard has done as well as many of the books in her library. They spend 70% of their time on the 2nd floor, 10% of their time in the basement pools, and 20% of their time relaxing on Braylee’s bed.

The fact that Variskosy can levitate freely about the tower while players will likely have to use the stairs gives the beholder a sizable advantage in this fight. If players do have magical means of flight, they have to be cautious to avoid the antimagic cone of Variskosy’s eye or risk plummeting into the pool below.

#dnd #d&d #5e #adventure #dungeon #beholder #wizard #tower #ttrpg #magic #cant believe I almost missed the first friday #still one hour left so it counts lol

[thecreaturecodex]

Rimefire Eidolon

Image © Wizards of the Coast, by Dan Scott. Accessed at the Frostburn Art Gallery here

[ @prokopetz​ has claimed that the 3.x era philosophy was that of Sim Dungeon, where every environment was heavily detailed with relevant rules. The “Mastering the Perils” sourcebooks would support that hypothesis. Frostburn, Sandstorm and Stormwrack were sourcebooks dedicated to rules for arctic, desert and ocean environments, respectively, with material for players (new, occasionally overpowered spells and prestige classes) and GMs (monsters, traps, a sample adventure). The monsters in the three books vary wildly in quality from “oh it’s a [TERRAIN] [CLASSIC MONSTER]”, to being creative and weird. I’m focusing on the latter from Frostburn to start with. Something about it being 109 degrees Fahrenheit today where I live makes cold environments rather attractive to me at the moment.

So the rimefire eidolon. In the source material, they’re tied to Heith, one of the new gods in the book, and are fey. Combining fey and sundered gods didn’t seem like a good fit to me, so I took inspiration from their iceberg dependence and made them kami. The tendrils are weird for either fey or kami, but plenty of aquatic animals have them--I imagine their tendrils have the same consistency as the cirri of a crinoid.]

Rimefire Eidolon CR 9 CG Outsider (native) This creature appears as a jagged chunk of ice the size of a human torso, blazing with blue fire. It walks along thin annulated tendrils.

Rimefire eidolons are patrons of the icy seas, each of them attuned to a single iceberg. They claim to be the fragments of a divine avatar, a goodly goddess of cold slain in battle with her foes. They drift throughout the ocean following tales of strange natural and supernatural phenomena, such as auroras, methane seeps, and the rimefire ice that composes their bodies. They rarely leave their icebergs, and so use mortal agents to keep them informed of natural wonders to witness or of wicked ice creatures to combat. Rimefire eidolons can communicate through dreams, and regularly commune with one another.

In combat, rimefire eidolons make use of their abilities to drift through ice and make hit and run attacks. They are relatively weak melee combatants, but can fire powerful beams of rimefire from their bodies. Their cold spells deal rimefire damage as well, allowing them to injure beings of cold such as frost giants. Rimefire eidolons prefer to disable foes than kill them, unless they are irredeemable creatures such as evil outsiders or undead.

Rimefire eidolons are creative spirits, and their icebergs are frequently in unusual shapes or colors due to their ability to shape ice. They encourage animals to live in and on their icebergs, but do not make value judgements about predators and prey. As the remnants of a slain goddess, they have a strong sense of mortality and a grim sense of humor. Their attitude is that they should be proactive in order to prevent others from suffering the same fate that met their progenitor.

A rimefire eidolon’s primary body is four feet in diameter, and their tendrils can extend to four feet in length. They can use their tendrils as feet, as well as to manipulate objects as well as a human can use their hands.

Rimefire Ice Rimefire ice is a strange supernatural phenomenon that combines both heat and cold. Rimefire ice is cold to the touch—merely making contact with it deals 1 point of cold damage a round. However, it does not melt at room temperature, and when exposed to high heat, burns as wood does, except that the burning deals half cold damage and half fire damage. Rimefire eidolons often have patches of rimefire ice within their icebergs.

Rimefire Eidolon              CR 9 XP 6,400 CG Medium outsider (cold, kami, native) Init +11; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, Perception +20, tremorsense 30 ft. Defense AC 22, touch 18, flat-footed 14 (+7 Dex, +1 dodge, +4 natural) hp 114 (12d10+48); fast healing 2 Fort +10, Ref +15, Will +11 DR 10/cold iron; Immune bleed, cold, mind-influencing effects, petrifaction, polymorph; Resist acid 10, electricity 10, fire 10; SR 20 Weakness vulnerable to fire Offense Speed 30 ft., fly 60 ft. (good), burrow 30 ft.; ice glide Melee 2 slams +12 (1d8 plus 1d6 cold) Ranged rimefire bolt +19/+14/+9 touch (2d6+6 cold and fire) Special Attacks rimefire spell Spell-like Abilities CL 9th, concentration +15 At will—chill metal (DC 18), clairaudience/clairvoyance, detect evil, fog cloud, ice shape 1/day—cone of cold (DC 21), dream, ice storm, icy prison (DC 21), wall of ice Statistics Str 10, Dex 24, Con 19, Int 15, Wis 17, Cha 22 Base Atk +12; CMB +12; CMD 30 (40 vs. trip) Feats Alertness, Dodge, Great Fortitude, Improved Initiative, Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot Skills Bluff +19, Diplomacy +16, Fly +20, Knowledge (nature, religion) +15, Perception +20, Sense Motive +20, Stealth +20, Swim +20; Racial Modifiers uses Dex for Swim Languages Aquan, Auran, Common, Senzar, telepathy 100 ft. SQ merge with ward, mystic bond, steer ward, ward (iceberg) Ecology Environment cold aquatic Organization solitary or mystic bond (1 plus 1 humanoid) Treasure standard Special Abilities Ice Glide (Su) A rimefire eidolon can use its burrow speed to move through ice without penalty, as easily as a fish swims through water. It leaves no tunnel or trace of its passage. Ice Shape (Sp) This spell functions as stone shape, except that it shapes ice instead. This is the equivalent of a 4th level spell. Mystic Bond (Su) A rimefire eidolon can forge a mystic link with a humanoid by taking one minute. This humanoid must be within one alignment of chaotic good. When so linked, the eidolon and the humanoid can both detect each other’s health, as per a status spell, and both gain a +2 sacred bonus to saves against death effects. This effect is permanent until either partner leaves the plane, or chooses to sever the bond as a free action. Rimefire Bolt (Su) As a standard action, a rimefire eidolon can fire a bolt of energy at a range of 120 feet as a ranged touch attack. This deals 2d6 points of damage plus its Charisma modifier, half of which is cold and half of which is fire. They can make iterative attacks with this ability. Rimefire Spell (Su) Three times per day, a rimefire eidolon can change one of its spells that deals cold damage to deal rimefire damage instead. It deals half fire and half cold damage. Steer Ward (Su) When a rimefire eidolon is merged with its ward, it may move the iceberg up to 30 feet as a move action.

#rimefire eidolon #kami #frostburn #pathfinder 1e #D&D

[diligentgoose]

My D&D parties characters! I drew this when we were intending to make a Spotify podcast, but it was already pretty late in the campaign so we decided not to. 

Left to right: My Shifter Druid, Ilseyon (Ilsey) Rylet. He led tens-of-thousands of citizens to safety as a Giant Hawk one time when our Bloodhunter accidentally summoned a god that destroyed the city. He also helped find trapped people and corpses. He’s the symbol of Rescue Organisations now and has a giant statue in the centre of the (re-made) city dedicated to the anonymous Druid. He also married his childhood sweetheart, Matyuldi (AKA Matty), a Tiefling musician, not long ago and has been going Agate hunting to awaken a bunch of animals and together they run a non-profit conservation effort for the city. He’s one of two characters who *gasp* have an ACTUAL good, supportive and loving family.  Inflarema Silberstern, our Half-Elf Bloodhunter. She introduced the rest of our party to the concept of found family (via her gay adoptive fathers), and has been so so so integral to character growth and party dynamics. She’s a flaming lesbian and we all love her and her sassy Aarakocra Arcane Ranger GF to the Sun and back. Our Wizard knocked out her asshole blood-brother in a bathroom one time and stole his phone for our Cleric who’d lost hers in the BBEG fight. It was great. We would die for her. Delphine Vontaine, our Wood Elf Monk. We couldn’t beat anything without her tbh. She’s grown up so much from our first session, and I absolutely have to praise her player, who portrays her SO DAMN WELL. She’s easily the best of the players at the table when it comes to RP. She’s our token Mean Girl Rich Kid Barbie, and it’s been a real journey to get her to question Daddy Dearest, but we’re so proud of her for starting to think for herself and defy the bastard. She also has a literal video game GF now (after breaking up with the Wizard, far right), after the party got sucked into a video game demi-plane to rescue Ilsey’s little brother. Sammi is SOOOOO badass. A mechanically Goliath Sniper. Wonderful GM @puwumats went along with this absolute mischief and invented a way for it to be possible in-world for Sammi to live on the Material Plane. Also GM got me into Tumblr and I blame her for me being up until 5am last night building my blog/s.  Liliana Leijon. Aboslute cinnamon role. Too good for this world. Too pure.  She’s our Cleric, guess which domain? LMAO. She’s a lynchpin for the party, and is the other party member who *gasp* has a nice family. Our GM got so creative with her backstory and it was amazing. Too much to explain, but HOT DAMN was that a fun arc. So much has happened since our accidentally summoned BBEG God of Destruction. Long story short, she was an Aasimar. Our Blood Hunter died. Three of us gave up all our GM Inspirations to help try plead with the Raven Queen to bring her back (Divine Intervention). We got it on the last time, and Lil’s had to make a deal to give up her divine ancestry link to Her. She’s now mechanically a half-elf and has blonde hair and a healthy pallor. She was dying slowly from a necrotic curse/disease at the time though, so it effectively removed it from her because it was related to her Aasimar-ness. That’s a plus. Previously J’son Dane (yes, it is the reference you’re thinking of), a Warlock of the God of Destruction, now our SmortBoi Wizard (almost Paladin tbh) to Ioun. A lot happened thanks to epic backstory thought up by our GM, and his name is now Elias Wildvale. He was THE EDGIEST LITTLE SHIT. Passed around from foster home to foster home, emancipated at 14 (literally always carried around his Legal Adult certificate), joined the Mob...Once left a small shoe-store Clerk in the staff room of his store with broken knee caps and pants filled with shit (literally intimidated him into shitting himself with a Nat 20 +, like, 8 at level 2) after he failed for the last time to repay a loan from the Boss. He cried in the shower afterwards and was physically sick. He hated working for the Mob. After Ioun spoke to him, seeing his potential for good, to save him from losing his soul to the BBEG, a huge weight has been taken off his shoulders and he’s been doing so much community work to help disadvantaged kids with his reward for saving the city. Which he did btw. The BBEG dropped a Wish pearl, which he used to undo the destruction of his now former deity. I also wrote this quote down from him because it was a fucking great line: “I’ve committed as many felonies as I have pubes.”

Btw the mob boss was a Halfling named Big Tony who had a Goliath wife. ICONIC.  Not in the picture because he’s been added to the party since, our red skinned emo Tiefling Fighter (samurai aesthetically), Nikolae Adreni, but we all refer to him as Pollux. He was originally an NPC that was a long-time friend of Liliana (whom he calls Castor) and briefly, her BF. We got a new player who’d never played D&D before and was happy to bring Pollux to life while they learned the game. They’re a natural with RP. We still have backstory to explore with Pollux, which I look forward to our characters and us discovering, sometime. Did I mention Pollux is absolute bae and fashion icon? ‘Cause he is.  But yeah, I love my Party and I’m gonna miss this campaign when it ends by early 2021. We’ve been playing since January this year, at least twice a month. Our sessions go for between 8-15 hours. We hardcore love the world and our characters.

#d&d #d&d campaign #d&d 5th edition #ttrpg #ttrpg character #ttrpg campaign #ttrpg oc #dungeons and dragons #homebrew #digital illustration #digital art #drawing #art #artists on tumblr #csp #clip studio pro #clipstudio #clip studio paint #oc #rp group

[veilingofthesun]

14, 20, 26, 41 for the musical asks 🙂

Thank you for asking! Here we go....

14. A musical you would love to see produced by Deaf West?

Ohh, I already know this one! Matilda the Musical, definitely. I think it would work so well. Matilda is this little girl who's ignored and bullied by her parents. A deaf or hard of hearing Matilda Wormwood whose parents never bothered to learn sign language because they doesn't care about their daughter, it just works. Matilda has taught herself some sign language from the books she's borrowed from the library and she and Mrs Phelps can communicate a bit. Then she starts school, meets Miss Honey (who knows sign language and teaches Matilda and all of classmates how to sign) It would have such an impact. I'm getting emotional just thinking about it.

20. Express some love for understudies and swings!

I actually haven't been able to see a lot of understudies and swings perform. I find it easier to talk about people I have actually seen. But I always like an excuse to talk about the amazing Sara Lehmann so... Sara is one of the best performers, both acting, singing and dancing wise, I've ever seen. It's a crime she's not been given a lead role and more featured roles. She's a real team player though... I wish so much I could have seen her perform in some of her understudy roles, for example as Leading player in Pippin (she actually got to go on once) and Mrs Wormwood in Matilda. After seeing her as Anne in If/Then, I actually said that I'd love to see her as leading player.

There's a lot of fantastic Swedish ensemble performers that has understudied a lot of roles, but hardly ever got to go on, because we usually have quite short runs.

My favourite understudy performance is when Christopher Wollter went on as Daniel in Så som i himmelen. When I first saw ssih, I knew that he would be perfect for that role. It was so emotional seeing him play that part.

Quick mentions to other understudies I would have loved to see: Åsa Sjöblom as Eponine in Les Mis and Lena in ssih, Kerstin Hillden as Miss Honey in Matilda and Belle in Beauty and the beast, Nikola Stankovic as Rudolpho in Matilda, Karolin Funke as Billy's mom in Billy Elliot.

26. Best on stage chemistry?

Hmm, I can't just pick one. I'l try to limit myself to a few, I could go on for ages though. Jennifer Damiano and Adam Chanler Berat in Next to Normal, Alice Ripley and J. Robert Spencer/Brian D'Arcy James in Next to Normal, all the mains in If/Then in their various constellations (both obc and the Swedish production) , all the Matildas and Miss Honeys I've seen in Matilda the Musical, Linda Olsson and Marianne Mörck as Miss Honey and Mrs Phelps in Matilda the Musical, Linda Olsson and Karolin Funke in everything they've done together. (I've only seen them together in two productions, but their friendship and connection just shines through) and Philip Jalmelid and Tuva B. Larsen in Så som i himmelen. I could say lots more, but I feel like I should stop now.

41. What are some lines from musicals you really like?

How could it make any difference? How could it matter at all? How do I make such a major event of something so small?

You learn somehow to like the dark and even love the dark

And you find some way to survive and you find out you don't have to be happy at all to be happy you're alive

Maybe we can't be okay but maybe we're tough and we'll try anyway. We'll live with what's real. Let go of what's passed and maybe I'll see you at last.

I don't need a life that's normal, that's way too far away. But something next to normal would be okay.

Quiet.... Like silence, but not really silent. Just that still sort of quiet. Like the sound of a page being turned in a book, or a pause in a walk in the woods.

When I grow up, I will be brave enough to fight the creatures that you have to fight beneath the bed each night to be a grown up.

Patience, my love, time is on our side. Even time loves us. But time is the one thing no one is master of.

I can't really explain it, I haven't got the words. It's a feeling that you can't control. I suppose it's like forgetting, losing who you are. But at the same time, something makes you whole.

I varje hjärta finns en dröm, varje själ har sin. Jag ska finna längtan på den vägen som är min.

I natt ska en stjärna tändas, den ska skina klart. Den lyser dig väg, en gång ska vi mötas åter. Beskyddet av en ängel som står vakt, det vet du att jag har. Jag vill att du ska minnas vad jag sagt. Jag är i gott bevar.

#musicals #asks #askyfullofcomets

[lclas]

heLLO everyone! tis i, mon, 26, she/her, est, and ready to party! im a little late to the game but here’s my daughter Lola, the sweetest thing in the world, if you’d like to plot just shoot me a message on discord or here through DMs! 

tw: gang affliations, prison. 

APPLICATION.

* MEG DONNELLY, CISFEMALE + SHE/HER  | you know HARLOW ‘LOLA’ MCCARTHY, right? they’re 20, and they’ve lived in irving for, like, TWO YEARS? well, their spotify wrapped says they listened to VIOLENT BY CARLOESDAUGHTER like, a million times this year, which makes sense ‘cause they’ve got that whole BUTTERFLY HARCLIPS FALLING OUT OF LOOSE CURLS, HOT PINK HEELEYS DRUMMING ACROSS HOT PAVEMENT, and THE SKIPS OF AN OLD RECORD PLAYER thing going on. i just checked and their birthday is AUGUST 25th , so they’re a VIRGO, which is unsurprising, all things considered.

STATS.

NAME: harlow ‘lola’ dawn mccarthy

HOMETOWN: boston, MA.

DOB: august 25th, 2000

HEIGHT: 5′3″

SEXUALITY: bisexual

TATTOOS: a blue butterfly on her right side on her ribcage.

FAMILY: mother tatiana mccarthy, father adrian mccarthy, older brother jameson mccarthy, twin brother adrian jr mccarthy.

AESTHETICS.

lavender-honey wafting off freshly released curls bouncing against slender freckle covered shoulders, butterfly hair clips clattering on a wood table being plucked up one at a time by baby blue nails, the drumming of wheels across hot pavement while red raspberry shaved ice drips down ring adorned fingers, soft humming to the spin and skips of an old record player, chunky sneakers lost underneath a twin bed, half smoked pack of menthol cigarettes forgotten on the fairy lit balcony of the second story apartment. 

CLICK HERE FOR AESTHETIC BOARD.

PERSONALITY. 

Lola McCarthy is the pride and joy of her family, the youngest, the only girl, and growing up with two older brothers shaped her into the person she is. At first glance Lola has a childish demeanor, she’s all smiles and retro hairclips, skating around town with her pink heelys with little to no care in the world. But she’s an insanely passionate person, she puts her whole heart into everything she does, work, school, friendships, relationships, she never holds back. She’s kindhearted and sympathetic and can cry on the drop of a hat, but she doesn’t let herself get walked all over, there’s a temper underneath all the smiles and sing-song voice, and when she’s pushed hard enough she’ll snap, and she doesn’t hold back with the cruelty that’s embedded deep in her heart. Lola is an amazing friend, she goes up and above for everyone. In terms of romance she’s a little behind, she’s had a handful of boyfriends but one she ever let herself get close too, but since moving to Irving she’s been hoping to try and take a step in life, she no longer has her brothers overprotectiveness holding her back, and there’s no fear of her father’s not so empty threats towards the boys she brings home if he’s not a fan of them. Lola is a fun-loving spirit who finds the positivity in any situation, and will more than likely rip you a knew one if you push her far enough.

BACKGROUND.

Lola grew up in the southside of Boston with her family, her mother was always around, tending to her and her brothers with as much love that filled her heart, and her father worked at the local boxing gym. When she was young that’s all she knew her father as, the ex-famous boxer, at least famous in southie. He never lost a fight, never threw a game, and always supported his family, build his sons up in his footsteps to be miniature little fighters just like him. It wasn’t until much later in her life did she find out her father wasn’t just a boxer, that he had ties with the local gang in southie, a small criminal organization that got them enough heat to have the FBI coming to their door when she was around fourteen. 

Her father hid his transgressions well, he kept his family out of the business as much as possible, and he adored his little girl more than anything... though the things he did kept him distant, something she can remember easily, how he would be gone at odd hours, how he’d come home and look like a ghost. Her mother would usher her and her brothers away from him, telling her that daddy was tired, little did she know her father was full of guilt, remorse for the things he did just to provide for them. He didn’t feel guilt any longer though, after the FBI came, looking for her father, none of the family knew what had happened, what he’d been involved with, and soon their family name became a scandal on the television, and her father was being put in prison for running alongside the Siridean gang in South Boston. After that they lost everything, the bank foreclosed on the house, her mother had to move her and her brothers to a small shoebox apartment, and everything seemed to get more complicated. Lola tried to keep her head up though, she didn’t want to make things worse for her mother, who was grieving after the loss of their life and the absence of her a husband, a man she thought she knew.

As the years went on their lives began to pick up again, they all worked for what they needed, Lola kept her grades up, she kept her ambitions high, and before she knew it she was out on her own, ready to take on the world, ready to be whomever she wanted to be. Though her brothers hardly let her be on her own, and so rather than moving to New York City all on herself like she thought she could, her and her twin Adrian went to the local community college, and she fell into the routine of listening to her brother, her new father figure. It wasn’t until two years ago she finally broke from her routine, decided enough was enough, and wanted to see the world for what it was... though somehow she ended up in Irving, not New York.

Since coming to Irving Lola’s made a little life for herself, she goes to school part-time, works at Rockin’ & Rollin’ full-time, and is just doing about all she can to enjoy her life. She’s often seen at her place of business even when she’s not working, loving the environment and the party scene, but also can be found around the local parks, enjoying the fresh air and talking to the new faces.

TLDR.

Basically Lola is a sweet girl with daddy issues and a knack for cheering people up. She loves making friends and she loves flirting with them all, she’s always a good shoulder to cry on and she’s always up for a party. She’s shy when it comes to romantic escapades but always open to try, she’s just had a very controlled life. She’s up for any sort of plots, romantic, platonic, even some angry bitch who hates how smiley she is, so just shoot me a message for plots!

#irvingintro #about #gang tw #prison tw

[creacherkeeper]

[ID: a header showing the words “Kosis & disability” with a drawing of the main character. the word “kosis” is in original font, made to look like mossy stone. the “i” is speckled and distorted. the character has lavender skin, dark teal hair, and a white and purple striped sleeveless turtleneck. one of their hands is on their head and the other is over their stomach. they are crying with a grimace. the image is distorted and blurred to give it a look of unreality. end ID] 

so kosis is the game i’m working on, as i mentioned yesterday! like i said, this one is a visual novel as opposed to an educational game, but it still deals heavily with disability and mental illness, so i wanted to talk about that a bit 

summary: kosis is set in a world full of magical mushroom forests and adorable villages. but one day our hero comes across an ancient demon temple in the woods and learns the titans of the old world are rising again - and they don’t have much time to save their village 

spoiler warning below the cut! discussion of mental illness, cw for medication 

so as some of you may know, i’m schizophrenic. i have been since i was a kid. diagnosed & started treatment at age 20. growing up, i never saw positive portrayals of characters like me. schizophrenia was this scary thing, and characters with it were often violent, misguided, and wound up ... not okay, in the end, to put it lightly. this really affected my mental health, as still to this day, i get nervous disclosing my diagnosis & have a hard time seeing myself with a happy ending 

kosis is my answer to the problem i have with schizophrenia in media. though not always a happy game, kosis has a main schizophrenic character that is not overly dark, is not horror, and does have a hopeful ending 

at the beginning, the player has no reason to doubt anything that happens in the world of kosis. this world has fantastical creatures and giant glowing mushrooms - why not a demon temple and long-dead titans? but, as the game progresses, the player is meant to suspect something is off. through a mechanic called “assessments”, the player realizes that the hero doesn’t always come to logical conclusions. plus, no one else in the village can see these demons. and when our hero gets attacked, they’re the only one who seems to see any actual injuries  

i wanted to show schizophrenia in a fictional world to replicate what the experience is like for some of us. when in an episode, the things we’re thinking and seeing feel very real and logical. if i set the game in our world, the player could understand fairly easily what was real and what wasn’t. they would start to doubt the hero much earlier. but, in the world of kosis, there’s no reason not to go along with our hero’s perception - at least for a time 

it’s important to me to show that our hero, even when they’re frazzled and afraid, is never a danger to anyone else, and still cares deeply about their friends and village. mentally ill people are far more likely to be victims of violence than perpetrators, but there is an idea in (american) society that mentally ill people are dangerous. i want our hero to be sympathetic and for their thought process to be understandable. if you thought titans were coming back to destroy the world, you’d probably be frantic to stop it too. i want to show that our hero is coming from a good place, but delusion, hallucination, and paranoia leads them to the wrong conclusions, and therefore the wrong actions as well 

medication is used in the game to help the hero once their mental illness is discovered. this might be controversial to people with psychiatric conditions. but the game is based off my own experience. meds aren’t for everyone, but they’ve helped me get to a stable and healthier place. in the game, i emphasize that there are side effects to the medication that the hero may not want to tolerate forever. they choose to go on meds themselves, and also reserve the right to go off them in the future if they feel like its right. meds arent the ultimate or only answer - they also have their family, friends, and community to help them through it. though some of our hero’s actions are confusing, mostly the people around them are concerned and want to help. as much as i wanted to show some of what its like to live with schizophrenia, i wanted to model how the people around us can act with care and concern rather than derision or fear 

while the ending of the game isn’t strictly joyful, it is a hopeful ending with our hero in a place of healing and surrounded by friends. mentally ill people deserve to see themselves with happy endings too. too many stories told about us end in tragedy. i wanted kosis to be different 

future updates, including art, screenshots, and discussion will be posted to this blog under the tag “kosis game”! 

#game dev #GameDev #indie game #actually disabled #actually schizophrenic #kosis game

[elleroodles]

hello el :] i was wondering if you have any advice for someone wanting to start playing guitar with no prior experience!!

man oh man this is SO exciting!!! i love that you asked me this!!! i have so many thoughts!!! i hope i make sense!!! if you have any questions about anything at all do not hesitate to reach out!!! i’m!!!!

1) the guitar itself! (+ other equipment!)

so i started on what was quite literally a grocery store brand guitar my dad got when he was in his 20’s, and if you want to take up guitar as anything more than a fun little thing to dabble in every so often (which is completely fine!) then you might want to start saving up for a trusty brand.

i can’t remember the name of my first guitar since it was a hand me down, but you can literally get them for like. $25 on amazon. i’m going into this assuming you mean acoustic, i’m not entirely sure what the price points are for electric. fender’s the big name brand, but i vastly prefer guild. i love the wood and the sound, and some people at my music studio have said they work realllll good with amps. there’s also several different sizes other than the standard, which is very nice for my tiny little body

the reason i’d invest in a guitar early on if you’re looking into music for the long-term is because they’re super durable if you take good care of them. my guild will probably last me into my thirties, and maybe even longer than that. my dad’s old guitar that i started on obviously did last a long time, but it did Not sound very good. it’s also worth noting that i started learning music with a cheap uke and definitely don’t regret it, this isn’t to say that you Need an expensive instrument to play music, it’s just definitely something to consider if you’re looking for playing in the long term

other stuff i’d advise spending money on is a capo and tuner!! a capo is used to change the pitch of songs and can make playing easier if you need to transpose a song, i wish i got one earlier than i did. it opens up so many more songs!! having a physical tuner is moreso for convenience, phone ones work just fine, but i once lost my phone at a music festival and was Very thankful for my tuner. plus they can help you find the right notes if you’re fretting or singing!! the brand i use is snark

oh and picks!! i don’t really use picks all that often unless i’m live because they mostly serve to make strumming louder, but it’s really up to personal preference. i find fingerpicking harder w a pick but it’s something you gotta mess around with and see what works for you!! picks are incredibly easy to lose, so i’d buy cheap and plentiful packs. i like the nylon jim dunlop .46 mm ones, but picks are really something that varies from guitarist to guitarist

now for the FUN PART

2) actually learning lol

befriend ultimate guitar and never lose it. i would live and die for ultimate guitar, it is probably the best way to teach yourself guitar. there’s chords and strumming patterns you can actually play, and the community’s truly wonderful. there’s a premium option, but i’ve been using the free version for years now and i’d marry it if given the option.

after you’ve signed the marriage license to ultimate guitar, make a playlist!! at first i’d just put any old song you want on it, and then launch into the easy tabs on ultimate guitar (which i’ll just refer to as ug from now on). ug has a playlist system which i’d also ulitize! i’d recommend some guitar songs i started out with, but the best advice my music teacher has ever given me is that if you play music you’re not passionate about, you’ll lose interest so quickly. i have never taken a formal guitar class in my life, and i honestly would say i’m a better player because of that (though i did come from a few years of uke, so i had a pretty good grasp on fretting/strumming). find a song you love that’s easy and learn it!

before launching straight into songs, you probably want to learn some chords. the most common chords in western music are c, g, f, d, a, and e, so i’d nail those down as well as am (a minor) and em (e minor). if you’d like a lesson in music theory and chord structures, i’d be more than happy to help. same goes for strumming patterns, ug is great for listening to and learning strumming patterns but i also like listening to songs and just trying to figure out the strumming pattern. this may sound a bit like bragging and i apologize, but guitar came very naturally to me because i have a good ear for music, so i never really had a whole lot of those beginning struggles. that sounded really arrogant shdgsg but what i’m trying to get at is that i’m probably not the best person to go to if you can’t figure out the rhythm of a song because my brain just does it for me shdgdg

misc stuff:

tuning: standard tuning is eadgbe, another one i like is cgdgbe (a good chunk of wilbur’s songs are in this tuning 🙄🙄🙄🙄). i personally Hate retuning and try to avoid it at all costs so i’d recommend getting comfy with it

more string stuff: strings go out of tune really easily!! especially on new guitars!! it’s super duper important to keep your guitar in tune when you’re a beginner so your ear gets that muscle memory with sound (ie being able to hear an a7 as an a7 and not an out of tune a7)

little bit of vocab:

dim: diminished

m: minor

b: flat

maj: major

don’t be afraid of chords that are all wonky like fdim7!! they’re not scary!! most are very pretty!! but definitely get good at your basic before moving on the trickier stuff

barre chords: UGHHHHH most songs have a pesky little f in them which is a barre chord (a chord where you gotta stick your fretting hand over multiple strings). another scary thing i’d very much recommend getting used to!

oh god i feel like i’ve missed so much, like i said, i had a very unorthodox learning experience so i might make a part 2 to this sometime soon when i get my thoughts in a better order and some sleep but for now i’m so excited that you’re looking to learn guitar!! it’s so fun!! ty for reachin out and if you have any more questions don’t even hesitate to ask, i’d love to help :))))

#sorry for the multitude of essays shdgsgs #my heart has been beating at a mile a minute typing this i have so many thoughts #i’m so excited #ja he hdhshshdhdhs #violet tag #ask

[onestowatch]

Artists on Their Favorite and Least Favorite Animal Crossing Villagers

In the world of hard-hitting journalism, few topics are as divisive and polarizing as Animal Crossing, namely the subject of best and worst villagers. From tier lists to spending an obscene amount of Nook Miles tickets in the search of the “perfect” villager, the release of Animal Crossing: New Horizons has brought with it a seedy blackmarket. Want a smug office working cat with heterochromia? Well, I hope you are prepared to shell out upwards of 20 million bells. 

From Queer Eye’s Bobby Berk critiquing players’ virtual homes to Elijah Wood sliding in your DMs to sell turnips, seemingly no one is safe from this newfound reality. So, as we navigate our way through a world in which Bobby isn’t pleased with my island home having a room dedicated solely to turnip storage, we posed one impossible question to a few of our favorite artist friends. “Who is your favorite and least favorite Animal Crossing villager?”

BENEE

"I don’t like Moose because he only ever wants to talk to me about working out, and I don’t like how he calls me shorty! Katt is probably my favourite because she seems interested in having a chat when I approach her."

Griffin McElroy

“Roald is my favorite Animal Crossing villager by an enormous margin, and was the first creature I tracked down once I got my hands on New Horizons. He’s a penguin who falls into the ‘jock’ category, despite the fact that he’s usually chilling in his igloo-house with a sandwich or a cold one in hand. He cares very much about my sick gains, and I appreciate it to no end.

My least favorite villager is Zucker, who is an octopus that most other players seem to love, but boy, he's challenging. His head resembles takoyaki, which is to say, a fried dough ball filled with minced octopus, impaled on a stick and drizzled with brown sauce. What dark magics breathed life into Zucker? Should I want to eat him? Because I kind of do, and I don't need that energy on my island, thanks.”

Dayglow

“Favorite has to be Sparro by far, like woah! He’s so freaking chill. Least favorite was easily Zipper— good riddance. He had such creepy unwelcome vibes.”

mxmtoon

"My favorite Animal Crossing Villager is Stitches because I think he looks like the funniest and he really likes bugs. He lives on a dirt floor, he's an airplane king, and, despite all odds, has flourished and thrived in his life. I don't even know if I have a least favorite but if I had to pick it would be Pate, she's a duck and just really rude. Her eyebrows also look like W's.”

Cavetown

“Villagers can be a very controversial topic in the Animal crossing community. There seems to be two types of people when it comes to villager preferences - the ones who just love them all equally, and the ones who unapologetically have an overwhelming hatred for specific animals in the game. I’m of course totally against bullying in most cases, but animal crossing villagers are the one exception. 

I won’t name names about the ones I hate in the game as not to hit any nerves for anyone reading, but for example there’s this one resident I have - let’s just say her name rhymes with Banberra - who has being going around pissing off all my best friends in town. She leaves my sweet Sydney and Marina walking around furious for no good reason. I’ve been trying to bully her out of my town but she’s been there since the beginning and seems adamant on staying. She’s my least favourite right now because of how she’s been treating my other villagers.

As for favourites, I could go on forever!! In my current town, Poncho was one of my first two villagers and I decided we’re best buds. He’s a jock villager so is always talking about pumping iron, and I love him so much that I built a whole outdoor gym for him in my town. I tend to unconditionally love the Octopus and Frog villagers. He doesn’t really count as a villager, but my favourite character in the whole game is Leif. I would literally put my life on the line if it meant his flowers would bloom perfectly.”

chloe moriondo

“Pietro is my favorite ACNH villager even though I don’t have him on my island (yet)!!!!!  I think he gets a lot of hatred thrown his way for being a clown, which I personally relate to, and he is colorful and cute and fun and sheepy and I would lay down my life for him. He is by far my favorite villager since I got him in my town in New Leaf.

My least favorite villager is Moose, even though I weirdly still respect him for being so ugly and notorious amongst the ACNH community. In fact, I would almost call myself a fan of him just because of how gross and hilarious I think his little manly mouse face is. I would not want him in my town ever, but I am an advocate of Ugly ACNH Villagers’ Rights so I wouldn’t hit him with a net or be mean to him if he were to visit. (Would NOT ask him to move in though.)”

Jorge (Peach Tree Rascals)

“My personal favorite character is (not surprisingly) K.K Slider. Any dog with that much swag and music playing ability deserves all the love and respect in the world. As for my least favorite it’d probably have to be Pietro. Something about a creepy clown like that just doesn’t sit right with me, It’s just so creepy looking. An honorable mention would be Papi the horse, simply because his name is Papi. Like c’mon that’s hilarious! Plus his dreams of being a comic book writer remind me of when I wanted to be a comic artist when I was much younger.”

Almondmilkhunni

“I like Goldie the most because she’s just super cute. And I dislike Moose, because I hate his eyebrows. He’s a little rat weirdo.”

khai dreams

“I love Roald. He is a weird little beady-eyed dude, but I adore him. He was one of the villagers in my town back when I played Animal Crossing on the GameCube. Penguins were my favorite animal at the time, so I was so happy when he moved in. He is just a dumb little baby and I love him for it. Bonus fav character is Coco. She is just so weird and creepy and cute. She is my wife. She will be my wife. 

My least favorite villager is Colton. F Colton!! He showed up in my camp and wouldn't leave until I let him live in my village. I report him every day to Isabelle, but it seems to make no difference. In his biography it says his skill is ‘Writing about pickles;’ what the hell? stfu Colton. Write about pickles in someone else's town!!!”

#animal crossing #animal crosing new horizons #benee #griffin mcelroy #dayglow #khai dreams #almondmilkhunni #peach tree rascals #cavetown #chloe moriondo #mxmtoon

[kristal-dawn-art]

D&D Player Character Profile

BASICS Name: Avalynn Starsinger (AH-vuh-lin) Nickname: Ava (AY-vuh) Race: High Elf Class: Ranger/Rogue (Hunter/Arcane Trickster) Background: Sage Level: 18

(There’s a lot of info, so under the cut we go!)

AC: 20 HP: 169 STR: 14 DEX: 20 CON: 19 INT: 19 WIS: 13 CHA: 8 Passive perception: 22 Languages Known: Common, Elvish, Dwarvish, Infernal, Sylvan, Thieves Cant Skill Proficiencies: Arcana, Athletics, History, Investigation, Perception, Stealth, Survival Tool proficiencies: Thieves’ tools

Equipment: Studded leather armor+2 Longbow+3 3 quivers of arrows (2 of regular arrows, 1 of adamantine) 2 shortswords

Treasure: Amulet of Health Ring of Protection Cloak of Displacement Tome of Clear Thought Daern’s Instant Fortress Vorpal Scimitar

BACKSTORY The only child of Taeranan and Amaranthea - a moon elven fighter and wood elven rogue, respectively - Sael Starsinger was used to a semi-nomadic lifestyle. When the family of three wasn't traveling, they lived comfortably enough in their residence in the Foreign District of Ravens Bluff. Otherwise, it was the open road for them. 

The trio's infrequent travels put them in a position to gather treasures of some kind; gold, silver, and copper were used to buy luxury textiles, well-made garments, and various trinkets to stock the rather successful shop that the former adventurers tended in the sprawling port city they called home. A few of the treasures they found were offered to the more discerning visitors to the shop, while the rest were exchanged for more coin.  

Having accompanied her parents on their travels from an early age, Sael found it hard to befriend others her age, but she didn't mind; there weren’t many elven children to begin with, and she preferred the company of the written word. When she wasn't training in the ways of the sword with her father, or honing her archery skills with her mother, she could be found sprawled or curled up under a tree, book or scroll in hand. As she grew older, her curiosity and thirst for learning brought her more and more frequently to the library nearest her home, where she caught the eye of its attendant librarian - an elderly wizard and a retired adventurer himself. He took a liking to the quiet young elf - though she would soon be older than he, by all rights, but in many ways still less experienced. Needless to say, the two eventually became close friends, and she would keep him company whenever she elected to stay behind while her parents ventured off.

One day, about a year after the elf came of age and chose the name Avalynn, the family was on yet another of these expeditions and had just left a small farming and mining town where most of the inhabitants were good friends of theirs. Inexplicably, the three found themselves facing a small group of fiends; none knew why the evil creatures were there, let alone if they would target the town, but they all decided to dispose of the fiends just in case. Amaranthea managed to lead three of them away, leaving Taenaran and Ava to deal with the rest who stayed. As a full-grown bear had been the most dangerous creature Ava had had to face so far, she found herself overwhelmed by two fiends and would have been finished off had her father not taken an attack meant for her. Rather than lose her wits, Ava was overcome by a supreme focus she had previously known only when absorbed in a favorite book. From that point, her aim was true, her sword strikes deadly. She remembers very little of the events after that; when she next awoke, she was in a cart watching over her father, and the cart was on the way back to her hometown.

Longing to learn of her mother's fate and mortified that she hadn't been able to hold her own, Ava decided to set out on her own once her father had recuperated enough to be left alone. What better way to hone one's skills than to constantly put them to the test? Seeing the fiends had hammered home the fact that townsfolk lived under threat of more than just wild animals, and Ava decided that she wouldn't just hone her fighting skills - she would use them to try and become the common folk's first line of defense against the evils that lurked beyond the borders of civilization. After purchasing some supplies and being gifted a pair of Taenaran's shortswords, Ava paid one last visit to her wizard friend. Upon learning what had transpired, he promised to look after her father while he recovered, allowing the young elf to venture forth, not quite as burdened as she would have been.

PERSONALITY While still as curious and as observant as when she'd first started out, Ava is no longer as naive, nor as soft-spoken. She usually stays quiet while taking out enemies from afar so her companions at the front line aren't overwhelmed, but will speak up to inform others of a new discovery that could help in the battle, or if directly addressed by an opponent. Almost as strong as her curiosity is her compulsion to do what she can to keep her party alive, whether through healing her companions or eliminating hostiles as quickly as possible. She's the sort who will empty her purse if necessary to buy potions and spell scrolls before a quest, knowing full well that a healing spell or potion may be the difference between someone regaining consciousness and that same someone needing to be raised from the dead. Outside of combat, she's less reticent and thinks nothing of wondering aloud rather than keeping her thoughts completely to herself. This is especially true when she believes she knows something that may be of use to the party. She tends to judge others according to their actions rather than appearance or their personality, and any personal objections to a fellow adventurer are set aside in favor of cooperation with them. 

As serious and driven as she is in combat, she is awkward when encountering average townsfolk, especially those who treat her as almost godlike or show some aspiration to be like her. When with other adventurers, however, she thinks nothing of giving them advice, perhaps even mentoring them for a time if needed. Trivia - Because of all the languages she's learned, her elven accent is very faint. - She's inwardly pleased with her high intelligence because it has come in handy in several adventurers, with a recent instance being when she closed a portal in Melvaunt that led to the Nine Hells despite not being a pure spellcaster. - Her desire to gain information on the enemy even while in combat has led to her coming quite close to death several times (if not outright dying). - While she’s entertaining thoughts of returning to Ravens Bluff, she’s also tempted to get a small house in Elmwood. She’s particularly well-known in the community, but it’s also where she’s most comfortable because of its location.

Avalynn “Ava” Starsinger, art (c) me [Kris/Kae] BG found on Google (I believe it’s from an anime? Just not sure which one) Dungeons & Dragons (c) Wizards of the Coast

#dawnlit drawings #krisart #kristart #kris's art #my art #digital art #Dungeons and Dragons #Dungeons & Dragons #DnD #DnD player character #Dungeons and Dragons PC #DnD PC #DnD OC #high elf #ranger #rogue