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narcoticwriter · 9 months

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Primogems & How They Predicted the Most Devastating Plot Twist of the Game

This item may be the bane of every F2P player's existence and the whale's minor inconvenience to acquire, but I believe that in terms of lore and what the future of the story holds, it can possibly be one of the most blatant warning flags in the game.

Before I go into this specifically, I would like to show you where this post is coming from in earnest.

The one on the left was the beta version of the primogem icon and I have the current one adjacent to it as a comparison.

This? This right here? This is just a slap to the face, a true insult, dare I say a gauntlet thrown on the ground in front of me.

You don't know me if you think I'm going to take that shit, so of course, I'm picking it up and I'll have my pistols. Tell me where and when because I'll be there with receipts.

Not only will I argue that the beta design was quite pointed and intentional with how often this specific shape shows up with characters, lore, and the game at large, I will blatantly declare that it is the key to figuring out where this story is going to end.

If you've been here before, you know what to expect from this, and if you're new? Strap in with some snacks and a healthy appetite for questioning the lore because on this blog, we go ham or we go home.

What is a Primogem Anyway?

According to the wiki, the description of a primogem is as such:

"A primordial crystalline gem that's beyond the mundane world. Shines with the condensed hopes and dreams of universes that once were."

The information here is already intriguing in the sense that the words 'hopes' and 'dreams' are used in relation to their appearance as well as the word 'primordial', which roughly means 'from the beginning of time'.

So with that, we have to ask ourselves one question: how do you even get something like that in the first place?

How Do You Acquire Primogems?

Before I go into this, the ways that I am providing are (in my opinion) the only canonical ways that make sense to acquire primogems at all as they have lore, in-game quotes, and things that point to what I believe will tie into primogems either through other topics or their uses.

Genesis Crystals

To start off, the description of a Genesis Crystal is as follows:

"An energy crystal from the very origin of the universe. Formed from within nothingness out of pure potential and hope, it contains enough energy to create a newborn star."

If one looks at the definition of a primogem, one can see that this Genesis Crystal is used to make primogems. This is evident by the in-game application of the '1:1 Ratio' conversion of Genesis Crystals to Primogems.

It should also be of note that the distinct shape of the crystal is defined as the 'triquetra'. This symbol has a relation to infinity and interconnectedness, which is interesting as the crystal is used as a source to create a condensed byproduct in primogems, something decidedly 'star shaped'. So with that, you also have to ask how one could acquire such a thing in the first place.

The Blessing of the Welkin Moon - New Moon

Please note that this is not in reference to the product that you can buy in the game, but instead, the new moon variant that one can get in web events. This, however, doesn't mean that the lore is not inclusive of the said products either.

I have an ask that went into some more detail about this in a more speculative nature, but for the sake of this, I will put the description of this object below:

"A ritual prayer, recited on the rising of the first new moon, to ask for the moon's blessing in the form of wealth and good fortune. For your purposes, the new moon you shall pray to is the first-ever new moon in Teyvat, since it's the first one you've seen here."

So, with this, we can assume that:

There is a 'prayer' one must make to acquire both primogems and Genesis Crystals

The moon plays a significant role in this process as the said object only last 30 days (roughly the same length as the moon cycle)

Something else of note that I would like to point out is that the new moon is when the cycle starts specifically. Over these 30 days, one can acquire a total of 2,700 primogems and 300 Genesis Crystals, the same as the standard Blessing of the Welkin Moon you can buy.

This image of The Welkin Moon shows a few symbols that we've already seen, such as the primogems themselves as well as the triquetra, so we can firmly establish that this is indeed a valid way of getting these things. But in relation to the moon cycles and lore that incorporates that as well, one must stumble into places you wouldn't typically expect to find those or primogems at all.

Spiral Abyss - Moment of Syzygy

Primogems? In my Sprial Abyss? It's more likely than you think.

The Spiral Abyss is split into two distinct sections, the Abyss Corridor (Floors 1-8) and the Abyss Spire (Floors 9-12) and as such, I'm only going to go over The Abyss Spire in-depth as they replenish their primogems every cycle (15 days).

A physical description of the Spiral Abyss states plainly:

"A grand underground corridor which leads to an unknown spiral constructed by a great empire that has long gone. What treasures await deep in the palace, and what monsters lurk in the shadow..."

"Surrounded by mysteries, the inverse tower is now known as- Spiral Abyss."

With this description, I believe that this 'great empire' is not Khaenri'ah, but something affiliated with the 'Lunar Palace', something that existed and fell into ruination long before the game is set.

With this context in mind, one can see why the snippet called 'Moment of Syzygy' would say:

"The cycles of the moon elucidate the turning points of fate, and as the gears turn at the beginning and middle of the month, the treasures hidden at the end of the spire shows itself."

From Moment of Syzygy, one acquires 600 primogems per cycle of the Abyss, so given the presence of 'treasure' and the heavy emphasis on the moon, one can assume that you would absolutely find primogems even in such a place and if you don't think so, there is proof.

For example, the word 'syzygy' is defined as 'a conjunction or opposition, especially of the moon with the sun'. This is another term for an eclipse, a phenomenon that also includes three celestial bodies (the moon, the sun, and the earth).

Another example of this is something called 'Blessing of the Abyssal Moon'. These come in distinct phases (every 15 days) and are labeled as the 'Waxing Phase' and 'Waning Phase' respectively, granting boons to any characters fighting in the Spiral Abyss, this imagery is further emphasized by the accompanying images of the Corridor and the Spire respectively:

Further on, this Abyssal Moon seems to be a variant of the 'Blessing of the Welkin Moon' as the word 'welkin' means 'the sky or heaven'. So now we have the Heavenly Moon and the Abyssal Moon, two direct opposites in terms of definition and distinct as to what is granted as a blessing.

So yes, you could acquire primogems here with some difficulty. There is, however, another way to do so, though this one might be the most interesting one of all.

Batte Pass - Gnostic Chorus

Please note that I am only referencing the 'Gnostic Chorus' in the teaser trailer and not the purchasable one in the game, although like I've said before, the content in each can be inclusive to each other.

I had some back and forth in my mind concerning the addition of the Gnostic Chorus in this classification, but after looking at the provided dialogue from Venti, I believe it has its place as where one could acquire primogems. The said dialogue is as such below:

"Once, there was a glorious kingdom established among the heavens. From that kingdom came a crowned heir, tasked with seeking out the Genesis Pearl from the Kingdom of Darkness."

"The first crowned heir began her journey of seeking the pearl. But she was deceived, and the memory of her noble origins faded. She now believed that she was the queen of the Kingdom of Darkness."

"But take heart, a second crowned heir had already taken up the path where the first had stumbled. This is the story of your journey, of your tale to be told."

Immediately, one can clock the term 'Genesis Pearl' and can relate that to 'Genesis Crystal', which we have already defined as something essential to how one can acquire primogems as well as going into what it is in its core.

There is also the imagery of the star-like things on top of the city in the heavens and this mountain specifically, which also lends credence to the presence of stars.

This 'Kingdom of Darkness', however, is up for some debate, as it could be Khaneri'ah, the Spiral Abyss, the Abyss itself, Teyvat itself, or something that we haven't come across yet, so I don't have anything conclusive to say about this particular matter.

From the Gnostic Chorus, you can get 680 primogems per pass acquired. As to why I chose to include this boils down to the fact that the story being told in the dialogue is the Traveler's. The story at large can easily be applied to the Traveler as the way the canonical story goes is that Aether is the one to pick up the task. While there are many theorists that think this isn't the case, for the purposes of this and how this will relate later, I will stick with this view.

Why Does All of This Matter?

To summarize what we've gone over, you can get primogems from

Genesis Crystals

The Blessing of the Welkin Moon (New Moon)

Spiral Abyss (Moment of Syzygy)

Battle Pass (Gnostic Chorus)

And the reasons why you can get them from there specifically is because:

A tie to the essences present at the beginning of the universe and frequently emphasized to be from beyond Teyvat

The frequent allusions to the moon and its cycles

The presence of hopes and dreams as material as opposed to abstract ideas

Symbols and lore that coincide with the topics already established

So in this sense, Primogems are not to be understated in any way as they can all be canonically acquired from this.

However, one thing that I haven't gone over until now is what one can do with Primogems after they've got them.

What to do With Primogems?

A primogem's uses are described and laid as such:

Replenish Resin

Unlock levels of the Battle Pass

Acquire Fates (Wishes)

While at first, this may seem like a system in which the game itself operates, the lore that I've also provided points to more of what to expect in the future as well as how the main character (Traveler) interacts with Teyvat at large as there are certain objects only primogems can make:

Original Resin

Acquiant Fates

Intertwined Fates

All of these things have importance to the lore due to how they influence the world around them and how they are used, the original resin being one that brings many things into question.

Original Resin

The uses of original resin are for ley line outcrops, domains, normal bosses, and weekly bosses. However, I will only really be focusing on ley line outcroppings as they are related to the ley lines themselves.

The description provided for original resin is as stated:

"It is said that the roots of all the Irminsul trees and blossoms in the world are intertwined at the deepest, most hidden place in the earth, and that the pattern the root system makes defines the Ley Lines of the world."

It is also necessary to define Ley Lines and the respective outcroppings (also called Blossoms), which are:

"A mysterious network that links the whole world together, within which flow the elements..."

"A flower blossom known as "Revelation" which grows from the Ley Lines in response to someone's desire for battle. Perhaps the treasures within it can help one recall the perils that they have experienced once before..."

"A flower blossom known as "Wealth" which grows from the Ley Lines in response to someone's desires. Perhaps the treasures within it can satisfy a person's monetary desires, for now..."

So to clarify, the original resin would naturally be a part of these as well as the outcroppings and as such, I do find it quite interesting that a certain number of primogems can replenish the Traveler's supply of it at any time it's acquired. This is important because the implication suggests that in theory, the Traveler can do this whenever they'd like.

This original resin can also be used to make something called condensed resin, which is described as:

"Crystal filled with immense energy. The silver-white Irminsul trees and blossoms are connected to ley lines that have become blocked over time. The energy contained in tree resin can purify the obstructing substance."

This implies that with enough of this resin, one could purify (enhance the bounty from the ley line blossom) any unnatural thing that could be obstructing the ley lines, something that primogems could expedite quite speedily in decent amounts. This, however, is nothing compared to what comes next.

Fates

There are no words that can describe how absolutely broken this is in terms of lore and implication, but I can give it a shot.

In short, wishes are the gacha system in the game, but as I've broken down the lore for every item in the game that I have here, it's only natural that acquaint fates and intertwined fates will have some lore of their own as well.

So to start off, the acquaint fates are used on the permanent standard banner. There's a brief description provided here:

"A seed that lights up the night. No matter the distance apart, guided by the stone's glimmer, the fated will meet under the stars."

This likely indicates that this certain type of fate is meant for the standard characters on the banner which will come regardless of the time that passes.

However, one must also take into consideration that the design of the acquaint fate was different from the CBT yet again.

As a result of this, I can no longer believe that the triquetra design is simply a coincidence. Primogems are naturally going to be used to make acquaint fates in this instance as the Genesis Crystals have this motif of infinite interconnectedness and primogems are a part of that cycle.

The intertwined fate lends credence to this statement as its description state:

"A fateful stone that connects dreams. Its glimmers can entwine fates and connect dreams, just as how its glimmer links stars into the shapes of a heart's desires."

This is painful to me. As if it could not be more obvious than this. We get it. Crystals = Primogems as Triquetra = Infinity. I suppose it had to be changed for that reason, then.

So this description is obviously calling people out every time they pull for the character they want, but a fateful stone that connects dreams? At this point, I'm being handed the motifs and themes within the story without even having to work that hard for them.

As I've stated before, dreams are described within the crystals and the primogems and as such, they are going to have to do with the intertwined fates. However, I will also make the point that this is the first time that it has blatantly said anything about the stars. As the primogem is meant to resemble that shape a bit, the connection is also there.

It is also interesting that the act of using these is typically described as wishes, so in the sense that primogems are described as condensed hopes and dreams, that isn't as far from the truth as one would think.

Byproducts

Speaking of stars, the byproducts of using these fates manifest in objects called masterless starglitter and masterless stardust. These are the remnants of fates and are described as such within the wiki except a point of note would be that they are referred to as a 'surplus of destiny'. This likely refers to the characters and objects acquired.

The descriptions are also more akin to off-hand comments such as 'perhaps it can create new destinies when in large enough quantities' or 'perhaps it can light up other corners of the universe.'

It should be noted that these objects can be used to buy more fates, but it takes a somewhat substantial amount to do so. Depending on which characters are acquired, you can get a decent amount of these, which can be used to buy things from 'Paimon's Bargains', which segues almost perfectly into this final section.

The Bottom Line (+ My Theory)

After taking into consideration everything I have gone over in the eight hours I have hyperfixated on this theory of mine, I have one conclusion and one conclusion only. This starts with a question. A small one, a seemingly innocent one. One that you wouldn't usually pay attention to but with all of this? You have to now.

Why is Paimon, of all people, able to convert starglitter and stardust into fates?

Well, I believe it is because of what has been established over and over again in the entirety of this post. Take a moment to look at her for a second or two.

What do you see? Is it familiar? With all that you know now, does it strike a chord within you?

It should, as Paimon is the only character in the game to have both the four-pointed star and the triquetra on their person and character design, and if the 'genesis crystal=primogem' ratio is to be made manifest within the speculation, this means that this little person may be unaware that they are a segment of the universe itself.

People have been saying that Paimon is the Unknown God. People have been saying that Paimon is the final boss of the game. People have been saying that Paimon will betray the Traveler in the end.

Well, I believe that every single one of them is wrong.

Ladies and gentlemen of the viewing party, I submit to you that Paimon is none of those things at all. I submit to you that such petty labels and titles mean absolutely nothing to her in the grand scheme of things. I submit to you that she is simply above them all.

We can discuss Teyvat, Celestia, the Abyss all we want but if this information brought forward is right and primogems really are the established way in which it can manipulate the world for our dearest Traveler and his flying companion? Then who are we to stand against it?

I, Narky, submit to you, the reader, that Paimon is, without a shadow of a doubt, the First Descender.

Do I think that I'm reaching a little bit? Maybe. But does the evidence lie? No, I don't think it does.

To clarify further, no I do not think that the Unknown God and the First Descender are the same people nor do I think that they are on the best of terms. So with that in mind, the theory will make a bit more sense.

Final Notes + Commentary

I've been scouring the internet and the wiki for over eight hours now, so I think I'll end this here.

So . . . what do you think? Will this entire theory be retconned in a future update? Will people much more observant than I pick it to pieces? Am I simply off my rocker and not medicated enough? Pick your poison! As I've said before, we go ham or we go home and I'm sitting in my house.

I would like to thank the Genshin Impact Wiki for having all of this stuff available to scrutinize and read to enable me to do this. All images and quotes I use are from there. I would also like to thank @scalpel-mom-mori for sending me an ask about Khaenri'ahn lore, as this is what got me started on this.

Leave your thoughts, questions, and commentary if you'd like. I'll get to them when I get to them.

Thanks for taking the time to read all of this and maybehaps you took something from it that you can utilize somehow.

Until next time, I see you when I see you.

#narky thinks #going ham #genshin impact #genshin analysis #genshin lore #genshin theory #genshin worldbuilding #AKA: i saw ONE thing and suddenly i'm in the wiki trenches fighting for my life

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longing-for-rain · 7 months

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I know you said no bait asks, and I promise this isn't, I'm genuinely curious to hear an opinion from a Zutara shipper who seems pretty rational. (I am not a kataang fan either by the way so I'm not trying to argue that or anything.). Do you believe that Zutara is a feminist relationship in comparison to Kataang? And what are your reasons for being so strongly invested in Zutara?

Hi, thanks for the ask. I’ll do my best to explain my feelings on this, but to summarize, I think there are two questions here that aren’t inherently related: a) is Zutara feminist and b) why do I like it so much. I know this might surprise you, but even though Zutara is my OTP, I don’t consider it inherently feminist. Let me explain though because that doesn’t mean it’s a bad ship at all.

Obviously, I really like the characters together. However, I won’t go ahead and say it’s the “feminist” choice over kataang, because personally I think that discussing whether a female character has a feminist narrative should not center around which man she ends up with. The primary focus should be on her narrative independently. And if she doesn’t have an independent narrative, well…that’s not feminist at all.

But I’ll answer in more detail below because I think this is an interesting distinction.

a) Is Zutara feminist over Kataang?

Like I said above…no, not inherently. I think what this question is getting at is which relationship gives Katara as a character a feminist narrative, which is a tricky question. Only one of these ships is canon, so we only know how one relationship would have played out in the eyes of the creators. Everything else is up to the interpretation of fans.

First things first, I absolutely do not think kataang, as portrayed in canon, adds to Katara’s independent narrative as a character, and certainly doesn’t contribute to any potential feminist narrative of her character. There are many instances of Katara being damseled and/or generally reduced in complexity whenever she’s placed in a “romantic” situation involving Aang. Despite Katara also being a main character, the “crush” is portrayed entirely through Aang’s POV. And post canon, Katara ends up being relegated to the role of a healer who stays home at the South Pole (this is why I could never get invested in LoK). Which, if you paid attention to her character at all, was something she explicitly stated she didn’t want to be and fought to escape. Ending her story that way reversed any “feminist” narrative set up in ATLA. So no, this is not a narrative that centers Katara and her ambitions at all.

Now onto fanon content.

The beauty of fanon is that it’s completely up to interpretation. Fans can give the characters whichever narratives they want. This goes for both Zutara and kataang. Just because your ship is canon doesn’t mean you have to adhere to canon; many canon shippers write “fix it” type content or otherwise make changes to the canon relationship to make it more appealing to them. I’m sure there are kataang shippers who rewrite their canon relationship to give Katara a feminist narrative, but to be honest the ship just doesn’t appeal to me at all so I haven’t seen those, but I’m not saying they don’t exist.

Now, Zutara. Even though there are definitely some hints in the series, there was nothing explicitly romantic between these characters in canon. So, fans are free to interpret how a relationship between Zuko and Katara would play out, and therefore Katara’s narrative within that relationship. Some people do make a strong effort to give Katara a feminist story, and in my experience, this is often a direct response to canon. But on the other side of the coin, some people absolutely…do not. It’s a big ship with lots of content. Some of it gives Katara’s character a feminist narrative, some of it…does the exact opposite of that. I think anyone familiar with the ship is probably well aware of some of the unsavory tropes associated with it so I won’t get into that.

But anyways, for any ship, there is a variety of content featuring Katara. Sometimes she’s a great warrior, sometimes she plays an important political role, and sometimes she’s just treated like a slave. Sometimes she has her own wants and ambitions and sometimes her story revolves entirely around whichever male character the author is thirsty for. Sometimes she’s treated as a complex human being and sometimes she just exists to be a fetish. Which again, goes for literally any ship and character you can think of.

So when asking yourself if Katara is given a feminist narrative, asking which man she’s paired with is asking the wrong question. Instead the focus should be on Katara herself and what the message of the story says about her.

b) Why do you like Zutara?

Although you can probably tell from the above, I do consider myself a feminist and enjoy analyzing media from that perspective. But honestly, that has little to do with why I like this relationship so much.

Sorry if this answer is boring, but I just…like them. Everyone has different tastes. For me, I was immediately drawn to them watching the show as a kid, because I’m a sucker for that sort of hurt/comfort dynamic they had going on in books 2-3. Growing up and taking a closer look, I also found that I see Zuko and Katara as having a lot of similar values and personality traits that I feel would make them compatible in a relationship. Also, there’s the fact that I just really like Katara and Zuko as individual characters so I like the fact that Zutara allows me to explore both characters by themselves, as well as how they interact together.

But if I’m being real, the final Agni Kai scene is what sold me. The emotional intensity of that scene just had me hooked for life. It’s really not much deeper than that, but yes, I’m extremely obsessed and emotionally invested in this ship.

And yes, I do write a lot of Zutara fic and do my best to give Katara independent goals and ambitions and agency as a character. I do my best to write her in a way that portrays a feminist narrative because I personally find that important. But that’s something I could apply to any ship. I don’t think it’s inherently feminist to ship Zutara, because like I said earlier, it completely depends on the individual fans and how they interpret it. I like interpreting it in a way that gives Katara individual power and goals, but that’s just me. Not everyone writes Zutara the same way.

Hope that answers your question ❄️

#katara #zutara #fandom salt #ish #pro zutara #kataang critical #well more like canon critical #ask #anon #analysis #atla #feminism

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ididntwanttohavetohauntyou · 7 months

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On the double standards of Taylor’s love life and Swifties’ role in Taylor’s reputation

{Fair warning: this is kind of long and I actually originally wrote it during the Ratty stuff but it’s relevant now and this post from @9w1ft (specifically the tweet) made me think that maybe this needed to be really laid out there. }

Disclaimer: I am in no way claiming to know what Taylor’s sexuality is definitively, nor am I suggesting that every relationship she’s had with a man was fake, or that she is a lesbian. I myself have experienced enough bi erasure and biphobia to know better, but I had to put this out there explicitly so hetlors don’t have that as a “gotcha”.

Swifties have the lowest possible standards for whom they consider to be a boyfriend of Taylor’s.

Their standards are a) the media has to stir something up b) they have to interact distantly in some public capacity before they c) walk around together (holding hands or not).

I can give you the names so many women with whom Taylor acted like that, often for longer periods of time and with more interaction than a couple dinners and pap walks or whatever she’s done with those men. And that’s without time to go do research which would doubtlessly turn up more names.

To name some examples:

Karlie Kloss, Diana Agron, Selena Gomez, Gigi Hadid, Blake Lively, Cara Delevingne, Martha Hunt, Sophie Turner, Lorde, all three Haim sisters, Zoe Kravitz, Emma Stone, Camila Cabello, Lily Aldridge, Lily Donaldson.

(To be clear, I’m not suggesting that Taylor dated all or most of those women.)

Now, I have no doubt that if most swifties looked up photos of Taylor with a lot of those women they’d go “they aren’t even doing anything in that picture” or “they’re just walking side by side” or whatever else.

THAT’S THE POINT

I’m 1000% sure that if you photoshopped a man into basically any of those pics people would assume they’re dating because they’re walking together.

Almost all of Taylor’s supposed boyfriends have had significantly less interaction with her than those women, but people don’t hesitate to say she’s dating the men. Her team can and will deny it, but swifties will add a name to their list anyway, and that creates a whole other problem.

The sl*t shaming:

In my opinion, the sl*t shaming that Taylor has experienced for about the last 15 years has been, at least in part, because of swifties who jump to conclusions about men she’s seen with. When her own fans believe she’s dated however many guys, it’s that much easier for the media to repeat that and twist it to be negative.

If you wouldn’t look at a random guy and girl standing within a few feet of each other or walking together and come to the conclusion that they must be dating, why do you assume that about Taylor? Or, for that matter, does every person of the opposite gender that you associate with have to be your SO?

[And yes that can easily be turned around on Gaylors, but the whole point is that we aren’t solely using proximity to link potential exes or lovers to Taylor. We actually do the analysis of the lyrics, we break down the connections, we do the research.]

My point is that swifties have contributed on a large scale to Taylor’s sl*t shaming in a way that should make them think twice about who they claim she’s dating. Unfortunately as we’ve seen with this M*tty situation {and now the football guy}, they don’t seem to have the self awareness to realize how they’ve aided such a disgusting campaign of hate.

One more thing: you can say that no one will say those things now anyway because Taylor is on top of the world and they wouldn’t dare sl*t shame the Queen of Pop or “The Music Industry”. You might even be right. But if you do this and feel no guilt or shame over how your actions may have played a part in the several intense periods of sl*t shaming that Taylor has gone through previously, you need to think about why that is.

Taylor said it best in her speech at the Grammy museum in September 2015. She was introducing Blank Space and talking about the situation that made her write the song.

“In the last couple of years the media have had a really wonderful fixation on kind of painting me as like the psycho serial dater girl… It got pretty out of control there for a couple of years because… every article would be like, Taylor Swift Standing Near Some Guy. Watch Out Guy!”

That sounds insane, and it was definitely worse then than it is now, but the fact that it’s happening right now at all is ridiculous. Swifties need to stop helping the media tie Taylor’s name to men as if that makes her relevant. She’s a highly awarded singer, songwriter, and performer who has set and broken records (and then broken the ones she’s set) countless times. Swifties need to stop pretending that dating someone is what makes her interesting or we’re no better than the people who think she only writes breakup songs.

#sorry that this is so long #I’m sure I left stuff out though so definitely feel free to add #okay i’ll shut up now #kaylor #gaylor #gaylor swift #lgbetty #friends of dorothea

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karlie-what-you-want · 4 months

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People were discussing Taylor’s lyricism, and the level of it compared to other artists. Most people said that her lyrics are very good, but not better than other beloved writers like Carol King, MJ, John Lennon, Bernie Taupin, and even a few more contemporary artists. As a songwriter myself, I respect people’s opinions, and I also enjoy a good analysis, so I asked what people feel makes her not better or perhaps a few steps below those songwriters.

I got some really lovely, genuine answers that I won’t go into on this post, but I really appreciated those! They gave me some good perspective.

I also got one answer that emotionally landed somewhere between amusing and frustrating to me. The answer was that the “problem” with Taylor is that her own fans can’t even say what makes her lyrics so good. They’re unable to define it. What makes MJ, Lennon, and others so good was how they influenced artists for years to come. And MJ has lyrics that are clearly better than Taylor’s. (This was all according to one person.)

I wasn’t offended by this, but I found it interesting, because I can define exactly what makes Taylor special to myself and so many others. So I politely put it into words:

I would gently disagree there. As a Taylor fan, I could tell you what (I feel) is so good about her compared to other artists of our time. For me, it’s her ability to place the listener in a moment—in an experience. At her best, Taylor doesn’t have to tell you how she’s feeling; she describes a series of moments, and through the details she gives, you as the listener just feel it. However, I think that gift does tend to get lost in her more “pop” style songs—not always, but often. I’d say All Too Well and Ivy are great examples, though. Not just that the lyrics are strung together nicely, but that they’re very effective. That is just my opinion of course.

I am someone who tries to be objective, so I’m not going to beat anyone over the head with my opinions.

The response I got was…interesting. This person decided that my opinion was to be disregarded because it was…an opinion? “Judging the lyrics should be an objective thing, not a subjective thing. The things you described were subjective things, any artists fans can say that about their favorite artist and it would be true for them. I was talking about more objective literary judgment.”

…🙃

I’m not one to argue with strangers on the internet, so all I could do was politely point out that almost all literary judgement is subjective. And also that the things I described of Taylor are things she objectively does, but whether that makes a good song is where opinion comes into play. And, because I’m a little petty, I pointed out that their statement of “MJ has clearly better lyrics” was also very subjective. Because it is—and that should be okay! But let’s not pass of our opinions as facts while accusing others facts as being mere opinions.

Anyway, like I said. I don’t argue with strangers online. I DO, however, come to vent about their silly behavior to my tumblr community.

#to me Taylor is up there with the greats #but I appreciated the different perspectives when presented politely #more adventures in Reddit #taylor swift

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starastrologyy · 7 months

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I saw your reply to the person, who dislikes predictive astrology..

What do you think about the solar return chart? (as the sr chart could tell you things that will happen for you during the year of whatever age, you're going to be)

Ex. someone having jupiter in 4h in their solar return chart which indicates moving homes.. (correct me, if i am wrong, thank you)

Is it like things are already planned for us (like i want to move somewhere else really badly yet, it doesn't play out so in my solar return chart) or we will make those decisions for ourselves, in that day, month, year? (I find it somewhat surprising yet puzzling that astrology can tell us about our future, eg. future spouse, something unfortunate that may take place)

i feel like the way, i worded it is confusing.. anyways, i would appreciate an answer, thank you. also, i'm genuinely asking.. (not tryna come off as questioning someone's beliefs or anything bad)

Thank you, once again. 😊💕

Hi there,

When reading a Solar Return chart it’s very important that you do not look at a single planet in isolation. You can’t look at one placement and assert that x is definitely going to happen. You need to cross reference and compare the solar return chart against the natal chart. Jupiter in the 4th house of a solar return chart doesn’t necessarily indicate a move, even on its own; I wouldn’t interpret that as a move. I’d more say that it indicates and ‘expansion’ of an existing home or even of a family. Familial relationships can strengthen at this time, especially with those in your immediate family. Alternatively, in some cases existing home and family matters may become exacerbated (Jupiter is the planet that expands) depending on the aspects made to Jupiter.

If I see that someone has transit Jupiter in their 4th house and a Solar Return that is 4th house -focused then I’d say the potential to move can arise during the year. Even then, the person may decide not to move. It’s important to not look at predictive astrology in a manner that is harmful, scary, or deterministic. It shows us our potentials as it gives us insight and information about all the influences that are currently coloring our day to day lives.

When using predictive astrology, the person needs to be quite skilled as you can’t look at any single predictive technique and make definitive statements without looking at all the others. I always say astrology tells us what’s likely to unfold in our lives but at the end of the day you are an autonomous person who has the ability to make decisions that feel right to you.

I always encourage people to use predictive astrology as a guide, and as a helpful informative tool. You should not base your decisions around your transits and solar returns. However, they can help you make more informed decisions. I actually think predictive astrology works better in hindsight for people who tend to be anxious about the future!

Interestingly, I personally have found that a lot of people who are seeking to know more information about their solar returns or transits, are often going through difficult transits themselves. I want to emphasize that Astrology can never ever replace professional medical or psychiatric help. I always encourage my clients to seek professional mental health services if they are in a dark place.

So, to answer your question, solar returns can provide a framework of what is likely to unfold in your life over the next year. However, you may see this and decide that you want to do the opposite of everything that you know can happen. That’s okay, that’s possible, that’s your own choice. I think whether or not psychics, astrologers, or tarot readers can ‘predict’ certain future events essentially comes down to personal opinion and personal belief systems. However, I have found so much accuracy in predictive astrology (when used wisely) , it is so useful when giving a framework of the energies/circumstances that are currently influencing a persons life.

I hope this helps! I recommend you listen to the Astrology Podcast (Chris Brennan) he talks a lot about predictive astrology and in some videos he has people (the audience) give examples of how certain transits manifested in their lives, it’s very interesting and it may give you some perspective/clarity regarding how you feel about this topic.

#synastry #astrology #astrology blog #astrology tumblr #astrology observations #astro thoughts #astro posts #astrologyposts

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thequietesthing · 10 months

Text

THE WITCHER SEASON 3 VOLUME I - REVIEW

SPOILERS AHEAD

YOU'VE BEEN WARNED

Okay so this season felt different than the previous two, maybe for the best. I am not that into the original witcher lore (books and games) that i’m that fixated on canon events so i’ll just judge what i’ve seen on screen.

Geralt: my darling mr. Cavill you are the brightest light in this show, I don't think that anyone will be able to understand and portrait Gerald better than you. Now said that, I don't think Geralt has been very Geralt-y this season (pls don't kill me for saying this). Yes, he should have changed by the power of love and family but they didn't show it. I assume that this magical transformation, that has started in season 2, should have continued and evolved in the 6 months in which Geralt, Yennefer and Ciri live together, of which we see incredibly little. Yes, the letters (very nice touch btw), yes the nice dinners together and Yen's grovelling but not very much on how this affects Geralt intrinsically. So we end up six months later that he is a mostly changed man, and good for him but I wish we could have seen more of a development. Also this season, now that we have finally placed all of our pieces on the board, inevitably focuses less on Geralt and his moods and adventures and more on the general plotting of the entire cast. Also they didn't give my man enough monsters to hunt (maybe the budget was cut seeing how many actors they had to pay). However I loved when he went to Annika's house and the moment when he recounted his childhood and the relationship with Visenna; I feel that in that moment the true talent and acting ability of Henry came through. I thoroughly enjoyed how uncomfortable he was at the mages ball; he's always so put together and firm that it was extremely funny seeing him a bit out of his depth. Anyway as long as it's played by Henry Cavill, Geralt will be always a 10/10 for me.

Yennefer: Contrary to common opinion I liked Yennefer last season. Yes she was selfish, yes she's willing to sacrifice Ciri and betray Geralt to get her magic back, but people don't seem to understand where she's coming from, and I think that a bit of explanation is given in this first part of the third season, through conversations that she both has with Ciri and Tissaia; this is not the place to write an entire apology of Yennefer but the core is this: to her, before, magic was everything; she was mistreated as a child, she never felt in control of her life, and the only way she found her way out of that was through her magic, of the power that she discovered within herself that helped her to finally stop feeling like a nuisance, to finally matter. Once she meet Ciri and she gets to know her however her priority shifts (as often happens with motherhood) and she finds out that she doesn't care whether she is powerful or not, as long as her child is safe. Now, with this out of the way, I loved Yennefer this season (as always). Anya Chalotra has grown so much into herself and her acting in these three seasons and it shows. Her relationship with Ciri is just beautiful (I was skeptical about it before because of the close age between the actresses but they embodied the mother-daughter bond perfectly), her and Geralt will never not be my favourite (I wish they had more scenes tho) and her and Jaskier are hilarious (also, more scenes pls!); but what I found very fascinating about Yennefer is the relationship she has with the other mages, of which we have always seen stunningly few. I found interesting the accusation Ciri moved to her when they were in that spa(?) to which Yennefer responds that that is the version of herself she "needs" to be around those people (strong, uncaring, playing the centuries old politics game of saying one thing and meaning another), and I really liked that because before Ciri was only "coddled" by witchers who are authentic and never had the need to play politics because they stay well away from them. Digression aside, Yennefer with other mages was really nice to watch, how she plays in the duality of who she is and who she needs to be and how she doesn't trust anyone between her peers, only Tissaia that has assumed a kind of a mother role for her. So, long story short, I love Yen and I always will.

Ciri: this poor girl has been through so much. Everyone wants her and she doesn't know what to do with herself. I felt like in this part of the season things just have been happening to her, rather than her having an active role (being dragged around the whole Continent like a package by a Witcher and a mage certainly didn't help) but it seems so me like her developing story and the general plot are going at two entirely different paces: she's still unsure of what to do, of her magical training, while the rest of the story feels almost like is at it's end and she's still there. Anyway, other than her most obvious relationships (Geralt and Yennefer) I liked her relationship with Jaskier this season; he's very protective of her and they act like he's a young uncle with his niece. Also I liked how her spending a lot of time with Yen and Geralt is starting to filter through her character, as she has become a sassy, brave, curious, know-it-all, but still she sometimes acts impulsively or foolishly as apt for her age.

Jaskier: We see him for more than 3 episodes! I would count this as a win already. I genuinely like Jaskier, I feel like he's always been the most relatable and funny character, and this season is no exception. I think Joey Batey is a comedic genius and his acting, and singing, skills are really unparalleled. I loved his journey with Radovid (who to be honest I didn't like at first, even though he is played by Hugh Skinner), they are very cute, especially their scene before the kiss, I was like awwww. Also Jaskier rivalry with Valdo Marxx is iconic, when they meet on the ship and he has a whole band backing him up and Jaskier only has Geralt and Ciri, it was really funny. Also finally Jaskier gets some well deserved love from Geralt, after 3 seasons he calls him "Jask" ♡.♡ (man, our standards are low)

Anyway, you'll forgive me but I'll give a rapid view of all the other characters because otherwise we'll be here all day.

Francesca's role this season has been practically null, other than making the final alliance with Nilfgaard she's going after Ciri (like everyone) and we did not see any repercussion or regret for the murder of hundreds of babies which had me like... ok.... Fringilla is freaking hilarious but I have also not understand her point in the story for now Cahir goes back to his murderous master after killing his elf friend, but I still like him; I think the actor is jumping through hoops trying to show us the duality of this character and how what he does actually affects him Emhyr, other than scheming and burning family pictures he seems to be doing nothing else (for now) Triss is the smartest in the freaking room, also the only one who cares about those poor girls! Everyone is like Ciri,Ciri all the time and she's like what about those poor vanished girls, I love her, but please don't let her have a romance with Istredd, who still after 3 season is going after that freaking Book of Monoliths; I hope that now that he's found it he will find peace and a good barber Tissaia and Vilgefortz I don't trust either of them, even though at the end of this part we find that is the latter and not Stregobor to have taken the girls, and if I'm honest until that scene I believed that "the woman with the funny voice" was Tissaia; also Vilgefortz is also leading on that poor Lydia... nope don't like the man Philippa Eilhart is a legend, didn't like her at first but she's smart as a whip and I think she's playing Dijkstra like a violin (also if they don't show the creation of the Lodge of Sorceresses I'll riot)

One more thing before I shut up, just a quick thought on the last episode: the idea was very well thought, to switch up the linearity of narration by including some back and forth between before and after as Yennefer and Geralt recount the night's event to each other and us (a bit Ocean's 11 style) but the execution.... I didn't particularly enjoy how it was done; maybe I need to see it again but while the change of camera angles through the same scenes helped (so that except for two moments maybe, we heard the same lines but the cameras were in different positions) it felt very repetitive and stagnant. The only positive thing was the music!! That fucking song is now stuck in my head forever: all is not *thud thud* as it seems *thud thud*, stuck all night in my head, anyway also very appropriate lyrics lol.

Ok, I think I'm done(?) I'm sure I've missed something but if it comes to mind I'll edit it in later

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williamrikers · 6 months

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please ignore if this is overstepping/ you don't feel like answering but after reading the tags on your ofts posts, i am curious what you think the kinks of the main casts are! especially since i cannot imagine anything for topmew but this might also give interesting inside into their dynamic that i might have missed. thanks in advance! - @ctl-yuejie

hi, thanks for your ask! this isn't overstepping at all, i love getting asks like this 🥰

so, i never actually thought about this for all of the ofts characters much because i've been way obsessed with mew and top's weirdass dynamic and i've just been enjoying the other couples as they've been shown on screen. HOWEVER! after getting this ask i spent a bit of time contemplating this question and now, i can absolutely tell you my headcanons for each of the couples! 😏

sandray

from what we've seen in episode 9, i'd say that in the beginning of their relationship, ray is absolutely 100% a pillow princess and his insistence that mew missed the best night of his life is complete bullshit, mostly because mew does Not want a pillow princess (i'll come back to that in a bit haha). anyway, ray just has to make big eyes and say na na naaa and sand will do whatever ray wants in bed. since sand is into taking care of people, this works out extremely well for both of them.

however, in episode 9 sand also had those lines about masochism and spanking, so i can kind of see them going in that direction once they're a bit more secure in their relationship. i think sand would probably go wild for acts of service (clear goals, clear accomplishments, feeling useful, lots of praise). i could also see them doing the occasional roleplay.

bostonnick

can't nobody tell me that nick isn't into voyeurism. that man was listening to the sex tape of doom on repeat. from the way he enjoyed toying with atom, i'd say he also loves a roleplay fantasy. maybe a bit of light breathplay too? other than that, i got nothing. funnily enough, apart from, again, voyeurism, boston reads pretty vanilla to me. but i imagine he'll try everything nick suggests at least once.

mewtop

the one you've been waiting for. YES, mew should put top on his knees like YESTERDAY and let them both have catharsis through bdsm already. these two are the ones who would benefit the most from incorporating kinky play into their lives.

SO. what are they into in my opinion? well, to me, mew reads very much dominant. their scene in 6 [4/4] haunts me day and night, mew pushing top down on the bed like that and holding his arms in place while top grins like he's just entered his wildest dreams... yeah, so they're definitely into bondage and top giving up control to mew. i can very much see them playing with more of a bratty vibe, like top playfully resisting and mew reining him in. i also very much see sensation play for them (somebody give mew a flogger already 😭), clothespins, hot wax, ice cubes, blindfolding, the works. these are two people who would buy a whole wardrobe full of toys and plan out when and how to use them in exact detail. also, these guys have money. they will hire a private instructor to teach them everything they need to know about aerial suspension and then have a room in their home outfitted to be able to do that on the weekends.

that said, i do see mew as someone who enjoys making his partner work for it. like i said above, i don't think mew would really know what to do with a pillow princess like ray, i think he would very much enjoy top pushing back and challenging him a little, physically resisting, talking back to him when he gives orders and so on, because that would make the eventual "victory" even sweeter for him.

conversely, what i could definitely also see for these two is some ddlb style play because top does have deep-seated childhood trauma and bdsm could very much help him heal from that. this would be completely separate from all of the aforementioned play i outlined and mostly emotional. (they have a google calendar set up to coordinate what type of play they do on which day. ngl i do see both of them as the playing by schedule types.)

those are my thoughts! hope this was fun 😊 what do you think?

#only friends #*mine #ask

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marvelouslytrekking · 1 year

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Jealous Confessions

Pairing: Tony Stark/Reader Summary: With the threat of someone else making a move on you first, Tony is forced into action Word Count: 1150 Warnings: None, little jealousy A/N: From nothing in months to two fics in two days? I am just using the motivation while she is here lol! Hope you enjoy! This is the secret prompt for @thefirstradiant I am sure you might not even remember sending in a request but here it is anyway! The prompt was: “if there’s nothing going on between the two of you, you don’t mind if i ask them out on a date, do you?”

“You two are basically attached at the hip. You sure you're not just secretly dating?” Natasha questioned Tony. She was well aware that both of you had feelings for the other but also that neither of you were going to get the nerve to confess such feelings.

“What? No, no. We’re just friends, nothing more.” He was quick to correct her.

Well, if there’s nothing going on between the two of you, you won’t mind if I ask them out on a date, will you?” Nat smirked as she casually took a sip of her drink. She watched as you were currently having a great time on the dance floor dancing away with Clint, happy as could be. Honestly, Natasha wouldn’t even complain about a date with you, it was her opinion that anyone would be lucky to have you. However, her motive was not as genuine as she innocently made it seem.

She did not miss the way that Tony’s jaw clenched as he thought about someone else asking you on a date, or worse, you saying yes.

“I mean, with looks like those, if I don’t, someone else is bound to, don’t you think?” She continued to tease.

“I mean, yeah, she’s definitely a catch.” He finally managed to come up with a response.

“So you think I should go for it?”

“Well..” He hesitated, it was obvious he was trying to come up with a reason to say no, anything to discourage her from asking you out, “I guess yeah, I don’t know why you think you need to ask me permission in the first place.”

“We both know why” She smirked. Natasha wasted no time in finishing her drink and heading over to the dancefloor where she quickly found you.

Tony couldn’t peel his eyes away from the scene that was unfolding in front of him. He watched as Natasha made her way to you, the way she seductively leaned into you, the blush that flooded your cheeks at whatever she whispered into your ear. The way you bashfully looked at the ground. Something that normally Tony loved, he loved how easy it was to fluster you, but watching Natasha do it made his blood boil for some reason.

He watched as Natasha whispered something else before seeing you nod your head quickly and smile wide. Another thing he loved, that smile, especially when you would get overly excited about something, like it seemed that you were from Natasha asking you out.

It wasn’t as if Tony hadn’t already realized his feelings before this moment. He was well aware of how much he was in love with you. Hopelessly really. But he never felt like he could risk ruining your friendship, and luckily for him, you never seemed to bring home dates, or talk about them so he didn’t have to witness you happy because of someone else. Yet here he was, watching as you got excited about a date with someone else. And not just anyone, Natasha of all people. Someone he knew would treat you right and probably would take you on the best date of your life.

Tony knew what it was like to be jealous but this was a whole new level. He couldn’t stand the way you were smiling with Natasha the way you immediately started to dance with her. He hated to think that he hesitated too long and might have lost his chance with you for good. He was seeing all sorts of scenes that he may have to sit through play out in his head. He didn’t think he would survive if he had to watch you and her be all cute in the common areas. He definitely wouldn’t survive listening to you gush about how great your date was with Natasha.

With that he decided he was going to have to do something about it. He threw back the rest of his drink and marched over to where you were on the dance floor.

“You can’t go on a date with Natasha!” He shouted at you as he pushed in front of the spy you were currently dancing with.

“Excuse me?” You asked, confused as to what he was even saying. Tony looked pissed, he was red in the face, huffing as if he was out of breath, and he was speaking insanely.

“I’m in love with you and I just- you can’t go out with Natasha because you should be going out with me instead.” He blurted out.

You continued to stare at him dumbfounded. You had no idea where that confession had come from and you had a few too many drinks to fully be able to process what was just said.

“You-your in love with me?” You repeated.

“Yes. and I know you might not feel the same, but I just I can’t sit and watch you date her when I am hopelessly in love with you without at least telling you how I feel.”

You glanced behind him, to Natasha who was smirking away. You weren’t sure what she had done, but you were going to have to thank her later. You quickly grabbed Tony’s hand and dragged him off the dance floor and out to the balcony.

“I am not quite sure what you are going on about with me and Natasha but do you mean that? Do you actually love me?” You asked him once the music had faded into the distance and the cool air was helping you think a little more straight.

“Yes. I have been desperately in love with you for so long.” Tony confirmed. “Natasha told me she was going to ask you out and then I watched it happen and saw you say yes and I just- I couldn’t sit back and watch you say yes to her without at least letting you know how I felt. And if you don’t feel the same and want to go back in there and dance with her I won’t blame you and we can forget this ever happened.”

“Well since I have been hopelessly in love with you for months, I don’t think I will be doing that. I would much rather sit out here with you.” You reply. You watched as he visibly relaxed, like he was holding his breath waiting for you to respond to his confession.

Before you could do anything else, Tony’s hands were on your cheeks pulling you into a heated kiss. Your hands immediately went to his arms, steading yourself as you eagerly kissed him back. Eventually your hands found themselves holding onto his face, not letting him get too far from you.

“God we’re both idiots.” You chuckled.

“Speak for yourself, I am a genius.” He scoffed.

“Dumbest genius I have ever met”

“Shut up.”

“Make me,” You smirked as Tony leaned back into you, capturing your lips in his.

#Tony Stark x reader #Tony stark/reader #iron man x reader #iron man/reader #Tony stark x you #Tony stark/you #marvel #marvel imagine #marvel x reader #Tony stark #iron man #Tony stark imagine #iron man imagine #iron man/you #iron man x you #Aimee writes

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smartycvnt · 1 year

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The Board

Pairing: Rita Calhoun x Reader

Prompt: 6. "You have no idea how badly I wanted to bend you over that table during the meeting."

Warnings: smut, top Rita, bottom reader, vaginal fingering

WC: 1589

The downside to becoming the leading divorce lawyer at your firm was that you had to sit through so every major meeting that one of the partners decided to hold. Rita wasn't too bad about calling meetings, but you had a major bone to pick with the other partner. He was notorious for being a huge asshole and had essentially bought his way into becoming partner with his parents' money. The man was practically incompetent. However, he still had the majority of the control. Most of his meetings, you sat there not paying attention until he called on you for an update on how things were doing on the divorce side of the firm.

You always had positive things to say. You had perfected the way to appeal to your clients, enough so that you personally had a waiting list. Everybody found you by reputation at this point. However, your appearance played a big part in how things went afterwards. A lot of the men, who tended to be kind of sleazy, liked all the short skirts and nearly-sheer blouses. The women required a bit more professionalism. You worked for a very high society group, usually the ones who were too young to fully grasp all of the things that should go into a prenup. Today, you had met with a 24 year old heir to some boat company and dealership out of Saratoga. He was definitely the kind who spent 90% of your meetings together just staring down the front of your shirt and nodding along to whatever you told him.

"Alright, that is enough for today," Rita said, effectively concluding the meeting. You sent her a grateful nod, glad that she put an end to her firm partner's rambling. You were about to get up and leave to go back to your own office, but Rita nodded for you to follow her instead. It wasn't uncommon for the two of you to get lunch together at work. People knew that you were friends from childhood, but there was a lot that they had no idea about. Technically, you weren't married yet, but you might as well have been. Each of you did have something that you wore for the other symbolically like that anyways. Rita had the white gold bracelet you had gotten her from Tiffany's, and you had the pinky ring with Rita's birthstone on it, worn as a promise to always be with her.

"I am free after this to get drinks if you are," you offered. Rita shook her head as she sat down on the edge of her desk in front of you. You frowned, assuming that she had to go to court after this. You hated later court days. It felt like Rita was constantly in court to you, but maybe it was because you rarely ever went to court. You handled divorces, but unless it was a special case, you wouldn't take custody cases. Those were much messier in your opinion. "Court?"

"Carisi wants to talk deals to avoid that, actually. I didn't call you in here to talk about my case, and you know that," Rita said as she pulled your chair a little closer to her. Your breath hitched as Rita leaned forward quickly, her face just a couple inches from yours. Rita studied you for any hesitation and smirked when she saw none. You parted your lips slightly because you could tell from the look in her eyes what kind of kiss this was going to be. Rita had been thinking about this moment and the ones that would follow it. You wondered how long she had been thinking about bringing you back to her office. You hadn't worn this into the office today, but you always kept a couple of outfit changes for throughout the day. Usually, you met with multiple clients and not all of them required the same image.

"I don't think you wanted me in here to talk at all. In fact, I'm a little surprised you didn't just turn the cameras in the meeting room off." You leaned back in your seat as you uncrossed your legs. Rita stepped off of the desk and leaned over your chair to trap you back to it. Even if she wasn't standing in your way, you never would have tried to get up. Rita could keep you here for as long as she wanted to. You had nothing else to do all day except for go home and wait for her. You knew that when you got home, you'd get an extended version of whatever happened in this office, but you were in no rush to get there. You wanted to experience everything you could with Rita.

Rita leaned forward to kiss you once again, just as feverishly as the first one had been. You could feel heat bubbling up in the pit of your stomach as Rita continued to kiss you. You could taste the expensive coffee on the tip of her tongue. Rita's hands fell to your hips, just barely bunching up the bottom of your skirt. Rita did know what was underneath your clothes for the day and had almost been late this morning because of it. Your stomach fluttered as you thought about the way she had tried touching you while you had been getting ready that morning. This time, she was successful in getting you where she wanted you, even if she couldn't properly enjoy it the way she really wanted to.

"You have no idea how badly I wanted to bend you over that table during the meeting. I can't focus on anything when you look this fucking good," Rita mumbled between the kisses she pressed along your neck. You let out a sharp gasp as Rita's teeth scraped against your skin briefly. You could feel the low chuckle coming from her against your skin as she continued to press on. She undid a couple more buttons to fully expose your chest. There was a darkness to the usual softness in her eyes when she looked at you. You swallowed as her fingers brushed against the front of your lace underwear.

You gripped the arm rests of Rita's chair tightly as she pressed a little harder. Rita could definitely feel the heat and wetness through the lace. Your underwear were most likely ruined, but you didn't mind. Rita would buy you countless other pairs because she loved the way you looked in lace. Her fingers pushed the lace over to the side and gently dipped between your folds, as if she needed to test how wet you were. You knew that she was just teasing you, making you wait a little so that you'd get desperate. Rita loved getting you desperate and making you wait for what you wanted. She liked playing games, something that you had gotten used to after nearly a decade of being with her.

"This can't all be from just now. Were you thinking about me when you put that outfit on in your office earlier? Did you think of me calling you in here for parading yourself around like that? What did you think I'd do to you Y/n?" Rita asked. Question after question went in one ear and out the other as she touched you. You began to really lose your focus, unable to mutter any answered beside a simple 'yes' or 'no'. Rita had you right where she wanted you, a bumbling mess with her fingers inside of you. One of her hands came up to cover your mouth, certain by now that the walls in her office were not soundproofed. The meeting rooms were, but the personal offices weren't. Rita knew the kind of clients that occasionally came asking for her help, so you didn't blame her for wanting that extra bit of security, even if it was annoying in the moment.

Rita kept her hand clamped over your mouth as you came, but some of the noise still escaped you. Rita removed the hand from between your legs before the one over your mouth. Your lipstick was beyond repairable, so you spent the next couple of moments making sure that it was completely wiped away. Rita watched you get ready to leave her office, fixing anything on your person that needed to be fixed. You may have been walk of shaming it out of the office, but not everybody needed to know that. Rita was tempted to let you use her executive elevator, but that always seemed to rub others the wrong way. And Rita did not feel like dealing with another series of passive aggressive emails from people who didn't know how to mind their own business.

"Don't stay out too long please. Oh, and give Sonny my love," you told her. Rita rolled her eyes as she nodded. Barba had been her buddy at the DA's office, and Sonny was yours. Rita didn't understand how or when the two of you had gotten so close, even if she was glad that both of you were good friends. Despite how much of a pain in her ass the entirety of SVU could be, she did think that they were good people, especially Sonny.

"I will. Behave yourself until I get home." Rita gave you a quick kiss on the cheek as she led you out of her office. You made a stop by your own office to grab your coat while Rita called cars for the two of you.

#rita calhoun #rita calhoun x reader #svu x reader #svu #my writing

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abihastastybeans · 10 months

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@jilymicrofics - June 2023

Prompt no.22: Urge (ao3)

As wonderful as it may be, being friends with Lily Evans was difficult business – especially when it came to one James Potter.

Walking along with her through the busy roads of Hogsmeade, Mary couldn’t help but notice the way her friend was distracted ever since they ran into Potter and the Ravenclaw Beater Tori Blyton at Zonko’s, laughing over something at the counters. Lily had quickly exited the shop, saying she wanted some fresh air; Now they were walking a few yards behind Potter and Blyton, and Lily looked as if she was mightily holding back the urge to kick Potter in his shins.

Mary looked at her sideways. “Y’know, if I knew that you were going to spend the first Hogsmeade weekend of the year skulking, I wouldn’t have come here with you.”

Lily quickly averted her eyes from Potter’s back. “Have some sympathy, Mary,” she grumbled. “What am I supposed to do? I thought there was something. Why else were we flirting all month long?”

“There is something, I can feel it in my bones.” When Lily looked at her confused, she added, “And by the way you two look at each other. Besides, I really don’t think they are on a date.”

Lily rolled her eyes. “I’m pretty sure they are. Why should I care, anyway? It was probably just that - flirting.”

When Mary Macdonald told Lily that she could try and go out with Potter when he asked her out in the winter of their Fifth year, she had refused.

‘He’s probably just playing a joke,’ she had said, trying to hide her faint blush.

And then the incident at the lake happened and Mary had to talk sense into Lily while consoling her in the midst of her tears.

‘He made me lose a friend, however awful Severus may have been,’ Lily sniffed angrily. ‘Why did he have to taunt him like that?’

‘Lily, you and I both know that it had very little to do with Potter,’ Mary had said. ‘You knew Snape. They can not be friends with people like us. It was a long time coming - at least Potter made it quick and easy.’

Lily was stubborn but there was a look in her face that told Mary that she knew.

It was a surprise change in Sixth year when their whole year started hanging out together what with the impending war outside Hogwarts and being the older class students. Mary watched amused as Lily chased James around the common room after he had singed off her eyebrows with Exploding Snap cards, laughing as she did so.

When they were both appointed Heads in their Final year, Lily started coming back to their dorm in good spirits after meetings with James. When Mary asked, smirking, Lily just said she liked working with James and that she was just happy that their duties were getting easier.

Soon, they went to The Three Broomsticks and got a table and a quick lunch, Lily still looking dull. They were talking about shops they wanted to visit when a small group joined them at their table.

“Hey Macdonald, move over!” Peter sided up next to her, soon joined by his friends.

“Looking lovely, Evans,” Sirius Black grinned as he sat beside Lily.

“Shut up, Black.”

“Nice jumper, Lily,” James commented. Lily glanced at her knitted jumper and looked briefly up at James. “Thanks,” she stated, quickly returning to her food.

“I didn’t see you boys leaving with the rest of us,” Mary quickly changed the topic as James looked at Lily cautiously before taking his seat next to Peter. “Did you just arrive?”

“Yeah, Pete and I were visiting Remus at the hospital wing,” Sirius said, gesturing to a waiter. “James came here with Blyton to help her with some prank.”

“What?” Lily blurted loudly.

“Yeah, she said she needed help with buying some things,” James said. “Expert opinion.” He grinned.

“And she has agreed to let five passes for James in the next Gryffindor Ravenclaw match,” Peter said, excitedly.

Mary saw Sirius take a swift look at Lily before he addressed her. “Why, Mary, what else did you think?”

“Nothing, honestly.” Mary smirked. “I was too busy buying stuff.”

They stayed there for a while as the boys ate their food, talking jovially. Lily was visibly happy as she joked away with Sirius. When they left the pub, Mary whispered in Lily's ear. “If only we knew this earlier.” She laughed when Lily elbowed her, barely hiding her own smile.

#jilymicrofics #jple #abi's fic

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singsweetmelodies · 8 months

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i won't be able to watch the race today but i'm already dreading the result, SO i decided to make this table of predictions to prepare myself for every eventuality*

*that i could think of

i'm only predicting the wins (+ more or less how they came about to be) otherwise i'm going to be here all morning and be late for my event. i might still be late for my event, but... here goes!

SINGAPORE GP 2023: POSSIBLE WIN SCENARIOS

feat. (completely unbiased of course) commentary by katie singsweetmelodies

carlos and george take each other out at the start. charles leclerc wins the singapore gp 2023! 🎆🥰❤️

if this one comes true, i will never shut up about it and will literally be dancing on the rooftops. DREAM SCENARIO BABY!!! (yeah, sorry georgie, i am SO willing to sacrifice you for a charles win.) we want that win #6... we want it SO MUCH 🥹

george russell passes sainz on the start and proceeds to win the singapore gp 2023! 🩵

if this one comes true, i will still be very happy (and not just because it means sainz DIDN'T win.) i love george. a second win for him would be very nice indeed <3

carlos sainz keeps it together and somehow wins the singapore gp 2023 😐

if he actually does this, i may - through gritted teeth - finally utter the words "fine, carlos sainz is a good driver." (i will however also mutter something under my breath about how 2023 is the year of ugly people, and charles is too beautiful and too good to have his name on the list with the likes of the fucking red bull duo anyway. good RIDDANCE that it's sainz who's the only non-RB winner in such a hideous year.)

we have a repeat of singapore 2017, with the top 4 all taking each other out & lewis hamilton proceeding to win the singapore gp 2023! 🎆💜

if this one comes true, my ferrari heart will be in bits BUT i will simultaneously be fucking ecstatic for lewis. i WILL yell "get in there lewis" an inordinate amount of times, and celebrate that 104 with everything in me.

lando somehow wins from p4 (🤔) and gets his first win in spectacular but chaotic style. lando norris wins the singapore gp 2023! 🧡

if this one comes true, i will be... baffled, first and foremost. but then also pretty happy. i have no idea how this one could reasonably come true, but it would be low-key iconic if it did, tbh.

the chaos at turn 1 is even more chaotic than in singapore 2017, which means that fernando alonso from (wherever he qualified, i forgot lmao oops) wins the singapore gp 2023! 🥶

if this happens, i... will celebrate that it's not a red bull? i'll celebrate it for exactly 14 seconds and then turn off the tv. i'm not an alonso fan. to me, he's barely a step up from another rbr win. yes, it IS a step up. but like, the step is 1cm high.

*dutch national anthem starts playing in the background* AND MAX VERSTAPPEN WINS THE SINGAPORE GP 2023! the eleventh fucking race in a row, hoo-fucking-ray.

if this one comes true, i will shake my fist at the fia and insist that it's all their fucking fault for not GIVING MAX A FUCKING GRID DROP, like, you know, the PRECEDENT SAYS THEY SHOULD HAVE. he should have gotten six places at least, in my opinion. nine would've been apt, too. but nooooooo. the great white hope is above all precedent and penalty, apparently. (anyway yeah if verstappen wins i will have no celebrations whatsoever. except maybe a tiny, petty internal one that at least it wasn't sainz. but yeah, nah. if verstappen wins, i won't be very surprised, but i will NOT be amused.)

in a move that shocks genuinely EVERYONE, sergio pérez wins the singapore gp 2023! 🇲🇽

i have no idea how this one could reasonably come to pass, tbh. maybe verstappen's engine dies??? and the ferraris and mercs.... either take each other out, or are WAY slower than yesterday. maybe the red bull was sandbagging???? very drastically??? nah. this one won't happen, let's just be real. but if it somehow does, my enthusiasm will be one fraction of a percentage higher than it would've been for a verstappen win. that is all.

liam lawson wins the singapore gp 2023! 😱👏

yeah no this isn't going to happen - i just wanted to say it. liam lawson, you are my HERO for knocking max verstappen out in q2. you will be p1 of my heart no matter who wins this weekend <333 (except if it's charles or lewis. or pierre, somehow. because, you know. priorities. xD)

RIGHT, well. now at least i feel like i'm mentally prepared to open my f1 app tomorrow evening and see pretty much any result. 👍. let's do this thing

#singapore gp 2023 #race prediction #this isn't REALLY a race prediction; tbf. it's more just me psyching myself up/mentally preparing for what i might see #when i open the f1 app this evening #obviously these reactions are incredibly biased 🤣🤣 and i'm sure i'm going to have some VERY offended anons in my inbox when i get back #but *i* thought this was rather funny xD #and hey! at least i'll have a prepared notes app reaction for (pretty much) any race result #🗒🫡

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lavenderlattefox · 1 year

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A Short Guide on Playing Gourmand

Hello everyone! I just wanted to make a short guide consisting of tips that helped me the most in my Gourmand run! Gourmand is currently my favorite of all the DLC characters to play due to his wide range of tools and his campaign being nicely balanced. This tip will include minor spoilers on AREAS and CHARACTER MECHANICS as well as a certain character-specific quest so if you want to experience those for yourselves, this is your warning. -Why should you read this guide? I've heard a few people share their experiences playing Gourmand, and while I don't want to invalidate their responses I want to say that these tips have helped me to avoid some of the significant complaints and troubles people have had while playing Gourmand! So let's dive into it :))

1. CRAFTING MECHANIC This is one of the greatest additions to Rainworld remixes in my opinion. It changes how you evaluate items and what resources to look out for, while being balanced and fun. Gourmand has tons of recipes at their disposal which you can find the entire crafting table on the Rainworld wiki, but here are my personal favorites: Quality of Life Recipes: rock + firecracker plant = grenade Probably the most basic recipe that everyone and their grandmothers has figured out. Still very useful. slime mold + mushroom = baby nootfly baby nootfly + slime mold OR baby nootfly + blue fruit OR baby nootfly + (any edible item) = 4 food pips This is one is one of my favorites because Gourmand has a staggering food requirement of 7 food pips to hibernate, which can be frustrating for players. However, this recipe can turn 2 food pips into 4 food pips provided a mushroom is near, which saves you a lot of time looking for food in places like Underhang. Do note that avoid using this recipe when an Adult Nootfly is near, since it will still upset the Adult Nootfly despite not originating from it. rock + mushroom = sporepuff Sporepuffs are always useful, from being an insecticide to a Raindeer toll fee. I'll mention this one later for a different reason rock + firecracker = grenade grenade + rock OR grenade + unpopped bubblefruit = pearl From when I am writing this guide, it's actually been a couple of weeks since I last finished my Gourmand run, but even though the wiki says grenade + unpopped bubblefruit = snail, I remember it resulting in a pearl. If I'm misremembering please correct me in the comments. Anyways, grenade + rock is probably the better option anyways because you don't miss out on free food. That said, pearls are useful in passing scavenger tolls, befriending scavengers, and getting a free passage through an easy chieftain achievement. I've always found in all my runs that befriending scavengers is way more useful than ignoring them. I know people have had problems with the occasional grumpy scavenger nailing them with a spear just for kicks, but personally that's only happened to me once. On the other hand, the free bodyguard services came in clutch several times. Plus, not having to worry as much about scavengers randomly throwing spears at you is very nice. I will say that if you want a very nice ending in the Gourmand run, you will have to pass a toll with no pearls in sight (at least in my run). Chieftain status helped me a lot as I could just pass through with a minor offering of a spear. sporepuff + rock = "paincones" AKA Beehives I actually did not know the names for these prior to researching on the wiki. This is a niche recipe as sometimes the bugs that spew out of the thrown paincone will sometimes attach to you as well as the target, but they make decent bartering tools with the scavengers. Also this item helped me get a Centiwing for *the quest* that I will mention more on later. grenade + karma flower = firebug egg firebug egg + grenade = singularity bomb Ah yes, the singularity bomb. This portable black hole that Gourmand is famous for is pretty much known by everyone at this point, but I wanted to include it here anyways because for my first singularity bomb I thought it required two karma flowers. So I wasted my time and resources to make one singularity bomb when I could've made two. Vulture Grub + Karma Flower = Vulture Mask Ever wanted a Vulture Mask without having to kill a vulture or have it chase you around through several cycles? Well now you can just make one! Food Quest Recipes Pretty much everyone knows about the food quest, but I'll just summarize it here just in case: If you want to unlock slugpups in Gourmand, Survivor, and Hunter runs, you'll have to finish Gourmand's food quest of eating at least one item on a list of edible items, the entire list being on the Rainworld wiki. You can eat the items in any order, though I recommend eating them in the order found on the wiki. Some items can be crafted, which is why I'm including them in the crafting section. Jellyfish + Rock = Lilypuck Lilypuck + Rock = Lamp Lamp + Jellyfish = Glowweed I'll be honest with you, I don't know where to find Glowweeds. They're somewhere in Shoreline, but I've never encountered a single one in my semi-blind playthroughs, either through not running into one or just not seeing one. However with the multitude of jellyfish in Shoreline, it's easy to just craft one. Also, Lilypucks are an item on the food quest list, so if you didn't grab one in Shaded Citadel you can easier grab one in Shorelines.

That pretty much summarizes my crafting tips for Gourmand, although there are also more fun recipes you can experiment with on your own. But crafting is not the only thing that's great about the Gourmand!

2. GOURMAND PLAYSTYLE/COMBAT At first glance, the portrait art of Gourmand and Artificer suggest that the Gourmand is a happy goofy fellow while the Artificer is an unstoppable force of destruction. I'd argue gameplay-wise the Gourmand is just as a natural force of destruction as the Artificer is, if not more. This chonky fellow boasts so many tools to take down enemies: Gourmand does a huge amount of damage per spear, doing around 3 damage on hit. The downside? He gets instantly tired upon throwing a spear. This means throwing a spear around multiple enemies risks being caught after throwing by anything that wasn't hit. To circumvent this, try to lure enemies to a pipe. If they already have their back to the pipe, just throw a spear and then go through the pipe to rest, then go back if you still need to finish them off. If they are chasing you, go through a pipe, and just as they are following you, go back through the pipe. Now they are on the other side with their back facing the pipe entrance. Now you can escape, or go back through the pipe to get a free hit on the enemy. Keep going back and forth through the pipe until the Gourmand is ready to go again. I call this pipe camping, and it is highly useful even on normal Survivor/Monk runs as slugcat is basically invulnerable as long as they stay in the pipe. However, it is even more useful on Gourmand as you can dish out a massive amount of damage while avoiding being cornered while exhausted.

The bodyslam. Everybody knows the good ol' bodyslam, you fall onto an enemy from high enough and the Gourmand's splendid girth will stun the enemy and do a big chunk of damage. However, if you're feeling confident in your sliding skills, sliding into an enemy will also stun and do some damage, though not quite as much as damage. Still useful in a pinch.

More on Exhaustion. Have you ever just been running around as Gourmand when suddenly you're exhausted just as a lizard pops out behind you? You still have a chance! Even when exhausted, spam hopping can be just enough to get you to the nearest pipe entrance. Gourmand can still cover a significant amount of terrain by spam hopping even when they're exhausted. If you need to climb a ladder, sometimes jumping off and rolling can be just enough to get you to a different pipe entrance while misleading predators. Once you've made it to the pipe entrance you're safe, as you can catch your breath exactly as detailed in the combat section.

On swimming. I know this seems obvious, but just a reminder: always take a second to breathe before swimming as Gourmand. When Gourmand is exhausted they drown very quickly, so better safe than sorry. Also if you're going straight from Survivor to Gourmand, in Shoreline there are eel lizards. These things are extremely fast in water and you cannot outswim them, so pack a flashbang (blue fruit + rock), as flashbangs can temporarily confuse them.

On storing items. At first it may seem that Gourmand cannot store items in their belly, as holding the pickup button makes them regurgitate a random item at the cost of one food pip. However, if you press E while holding an item after regurgitating a random item, the Gourmand will store the item in their right paw. Do note that when storing an item, the Gourmand will need to cough the current stored item before they can generate another random item. One last note: the big centipede part of the Gourmand food quest. I've noticed that many players have recommended going for an Aquapede rather than a Red Centipede, and honestly that totally makes sense. Do what is most easiest for you, however if you're like me and you hate dealing with anything in water, I'll share an easy way to get a red centipede. In the Garbage Wastes there is now at least one Red Centipede. Around here:

(map image courtesy of https://rainworld.miraheze.org/wiki/Rain_World_Wiki)

there are approximately three to two mushrooms. Craft two sporepuffs, store one just in case and throw them at as many segments of the red centipede's body. Note: sporepuffs DO NOT immediately kill a big centipede. Make sure to kite it for a few seconds before it dies. After about two to three seconds it should go limp and then you can approach it. Aaaand that's all the tips I have on Gourmand! In my opinion, Gourmand is one of the best DLC characters. They perfectly capture what a remix should be: adding new creative mechanics that the player can experiment with as well as new drawbacks while remaining fun and balanced. This campaign has totally changed my outlook on items such as rocks and mushrooms, especially mushrooms, an item I previously saw as mostly useless. The variety of tools in the Gourmand's arsenal are both powerful and many, I hope more Rainworld players appreciate Gourmand for both his adorableness and his gameplay design.

#rain world #rain world gourmand #gourmand #rainworld dlc #rainworld

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self-loving-vampire · 10 months

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what are your top three rpgs? (and if you feel like elaborating further, why are they your favorites!)

I am not good at choosing favorites or "top X" lists, but there are three series in particular that I grew up with and that are very nice and familiar to me as a result.

These are not necessarily the best RPGs I have ever played, but they are ones that have been very influential to how I think about the genre and the possibilities within it.

The first is Ultima, specifically both halves of Ultima 7 (The Black Gate and Serpent Isle).

I'll say straight away that Ultima 7 does have some notable shortcomings; a linear main quest, practically no character-building, mindless automatic combat, potentially messy inventory management, a rushed second half, and so on.

But the things it does do well are really good. Most notably, it was the first game to ever grab me because of how well it crafts the idea of a living world that exists independently of the player.

Ultima 7 was released in the early 90s and yet it had fully-implemented NPC schedules and day/night cycles more than a decade ahead of Oblivion. Even Morrowind didn't really have this.

It had interactive environments that let you do things like bake bread or move crates into stacks to use as stairs.

It had a relatively painless hunger mechanic. Not so difficult to take care of that it gets distracting or annoying, but still a reminder that you should visit the tavern or hunt or something from time to time.

It had a spellcasting system that was kind of hit-or-miss. A lot of the spells did things that were more conveniently accomplished through non-magical means, but some of the spells were actually really cool. Notably, there was one top-tier spell that kills literally everyone in the world except for a couple of major NPCs (who get new dialogue shaming you for casting the spell). This typically renders the game unwinnable.

Both games (but especially the first one) were also open in a way that is not really unique but which was still very exciting if you're not used to that kind of freedom.

The second is Fallout, specifically the first and second games. The ones from before the move to first-person 3D.

I especially like the first game. Some of the early parts are particularly rough, but it nails its tone and atmosphere better than any other game in the series in my opinion. The music in particular feels much more fitting and desolate than the old-timey music they started using everywhere in later games.

youtube

The second game does have some advantages in terms of a much bigger world, more interesting and useful companions, refined mechanics, and etc. However, it is also goofy and kind of memey in a way that was much, much more restrained previously. I do still like it, but the first game has a much more consistent and bleak vibe that I prefer.

Also, even though the character creation is easy to break and there's a lot of skills that are relatively useless, I still love that aspect of it. The traits in particular are a really cool idea.

I also like that you have complete freedom to roam more or less right away. That can be kind of overwhelming to some people given how minimal your initial leads are, but feeling lost in the wasteland is actually part of the fun. It connects you to your character, who probably feels about the same way at that point in the adventure.

The third pair (because all of these games kind of go together in my mind) is Gothic 1 and 2.

This is a pair of action RPGs that also do a great job at both crafting immersive worlds and having a pretty hopeless and harsh tone.

In both games you start out as a weak, fragile, socially-disadvantaged person (a new prisoner in a cutthroat prison colony in game 1, an escaped convict in game 2).

In both games, you are given immediate freedom to explore an open world that is not vast but is so dense with hand-crafted content and expertly-used verticality that it feels decently big anyway. I definitely prefer that approach over having huge worlds filled with either nothing or clumsily procedurally-generated stuff.

And in both games, these worlds are full of things that will brutally murder you in one hit if you meet them without the right preparations.

I really, really like the way the gameplay reinforces the sense of desperation and vulnerability presented by the quests, the dialogue, and the general progression of the story. Especially in the second game. The gameplay's difficulty makes you actually feel how bad your situation is, and it also makes it much more satisfying when you do manage to become strong enough to overcome it.

Multiple video essays have been uploaded to youtube about the extremely immersive and interesting qualities of these games and their open world design. They're really good.

#thanks!#long post

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