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simplegenius042 · 17 days

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Late WIP Wednesday & Six Sentence Paragraph Friday

Tagged by @socially-awkward-skeleton @cassietrn @cloudofbutterflies92 @direwombat @voidika @nightbloodbix @aceghosts and @adelaidedrubman

Tagging @strangefable @strafethesesinners @turbo-virgins @minilev @g0dspeeed @josephseedismyfather @josephslittledeputy @corvosattano @carlosoliveiraa @titiagls @derelictheretic @afarcryfrommymain @megraen @shallow-gravy @onehornedbeast @softtidesworld @snake-in-the-garden @wrathfulrook @shellibisshe @chazz-anova @purplehairsecretlair @florbelles @inafieldofdaisies @ladyoriza @la-grosse-patate @skoll-sun-eater @starsandskies @vampireninjabunnies-blog @yokobai and @thewanderer-000 + anyone else who wants to join in. Here's the taglist.

Three WIPs for Far Cry The Silver Chronicles, A Radioactive Calamity Of Love, Bombs & Gore and six sentences paragraphs for a little Classroom Of The Elite AU fic not related to any of my series as of now (though I do have a separate fic in the making for The UnTitledverse). You'll find these under the cut:

Here's a WIP prologue for The True Sinners, where Joseph, per the Voice's orders, seeks out the Tarot Card Holder to tell him of his family's fate in a clearer form than the Voice can give as well as the identity of the Muse. The Voice had only given Joseph one warning; to take the Tarot Card Holder's words with a grain of salt, though his Tarot's knowledge is indispensable for their... newest wrench in the plan, the Holder himself should be considered untrustworthy and far beyond the human he had once been. Enjoy Joseph trying to keep his cool as the newest dickhead in the series, the Tarot Card Holder, tries to strike our favorite prophet's nerves down below:

The humming continued on as the Holder seemingly glided along the wooden planks from inside his stand. Joseph could not see his legs from underneath the extensive robes he wore, and watched in silence as the Holder, with his disproportionate size, did not disturb the various items he skimmed past in his little shop.

Hooded back turned to his customer as he rummaged through his piles of oddments, Joseph cleared his throat, proceeding with the matters he wished to discuss, "I've come here to seek your help, actually."

He received no response or reaction from the Holder, who ceased his humming in favor of grumbling, callously picking items up and throwing them away.

Seeing that didn't get the Holder's attention, Joseph continued, "It's of the upmost importance. The Lord had guided me here to help me understand what it is I'm not seeing in my visions. The old world is on the brink of a great Collapse that will-."

The Holder piqued up at that, stopped rummaging through his messy mound of junk. His hooded head slightly turned towards Joseph, indicating his attention had been reached, and his deep voice rumbled out, "A Collapse you say?"

Joseph let out a breath, briefly smiled to himself as he proceeded to explain, "Yes. I have seen visions of a Collapse that will end the current world and-"

"-And bring forth a new one, wipe the slate clean, etcetera, etcetera," the Holder interrupted, tone radiating mild annoyance as his hand motioned with haste, "I know what a Collapse is. I'm just confused on why that sadistic prick of all mechanisms wants a last resort of horrifying proportions like that to come this early in such peace."

Joseph blinked, brows furrowed as he sets his aviators back up. He watched the as the Holder's robed arm returned to dig around once more. The Holder stopped his movements, tugged at the object he found, and yanked it out of its little hidey hole.

Finally turning to Joseph as the stacks of trinkets collapsed and collided into clatters behind him, the Holder paid it no mind as he approached the front of the stand to see Joseph, face-to-face.

Or rather mask-to-face, considering the Holder's porcelain disguise.

The Holder leaned over the counter with one arm, and even without the stool Joseph sat on, or the size of the stand giving its owner an extra foot in height, he understood that the robed clairvoyant would still be two feet taller than him.

Joseph felt slightly intimidated being looked down upon by such a huge person, especially with all the Lord had said of this person. And yet, Joseph still held onto his faith. As long as he had faith, he would be safe from whatever vile temptations this man had.

"Whatever peace you may think is occurring isn't set to last for long," Joseph insisted, "And the Lord had guided me here. In His own humble admittance, in his own infinite wisdom-"

The Tarot Card Holder snorted with a shake of his head, "More like desperation."

Joseph breathed in a calming patter, just as his beloved had once taught him, "I am here seeking your help to know the fate of my family. A fate that he himself cannot foresee anymore."

The Holder hummed, resting his chin on his gloved palms, the triangular hood holding up like a strong tent, undisturbed by the motion, "And so it sent you to me of all creatures. You both must truly be desperate to get a win for once, huh?"

Joseph face crinkled as he eyed the Tarot Card Holder with weariness. A "win"? What is he talking about? Is this the deceit the Lord had warned me of?

"I don't know what you mean..."

The Holder's eyes, barely seen through his mask, bore down on Joseph. Letting out a huff of air, the Holder explained.

"I figured," he started, "But I must ask, how well do you know of the Muse chosen to take the role of "Hell"?"

Joseph did not comment on the words the Holder spewed out of his forked-tongue as the Voice had instructed, but he did close his eyes in thought, remembering the words and visions the Voice had shared with the Father. The fire. The Garden. Himself. And the ever-shifting future of his siblings, their life and their deaths. That was not the reason to why the Voice tasked him with seeking out the demeaning figure of the Holder.

No, he recalled, it had been the inconstant shape of Hell's figure which led God to push me towards this very stand. He remembered how volatile Hell's setting, form, and voice was within those visions.

"Nothing at all," Joseph admitted conclusively.

"I see," the Holder noted as he tilted his head, the mask betraying no emotion, revealing no humanity, "And yet you said you were here to know of the fate of your family. You do know the knowledge of someone's identity and the fate of loved ones don't exactly coincide correctly, right?"

As the Holder placed his hand from his chin to the counter, Joseph gawked in surprise as the Holder stood taller from within his stand, adding an extra foot in height than what Joseph initially believed. However, this stupor was momentary, as Joseph hunched forward, hands clasped together as he placed them on the counter, his rosary stuck between them.

"I am here to know the fate of my family and the identity of this "muse", this Hell who haunts my mind," Joseph elaborates, neck aching at having to look up so high at the broader figure, "I was under the impression you could provide me both."

The Holder chuckled, shaking his head as if he was admonishing a child, "You neglect the cost of such knowledge. If you've come seeking the Tarot's help free of charge, then I'll be the first to gleefully tell you that you can't have both. Pick one or the other, and hand over whatever possession you have on your person to complete this exchange."

The Holder glances from Joseph's face, which scrutinized the Holder, to his rosary to roaming around the rest of his body.

"Unless... you have another possession to offer alongside the one in your hands?"

Joseph caught on, glancing to the rosary in his hands, gripping it until his hands drained pale.

He avoided the Holder's eyes, and the larger of the two softly hummed, whether in understanding or waning patience of the exchange Joseph couldn't bring himself to focus. The Lord never mentioned this...

"It didn't tell you, did it?" The Holder deduced, chuckling, "Ah yes, such exchanges as these require you to offer something of equal value in return. Often time a gift from a loved one, regardless if they reside in the mortal realm... or have already departed."

Joseph brushed the ornament of the cross, the beads digging into the palms of his hands as he held on to it, like he was holding her hand again.

She always had faith. And she shared that faith with me, giving me back something I thought tainted and lost to the words and hands of Old Man Seed. Gifting me a piece of her, an immortalized memory, like the ink on my arm.

And he was expected to let it go?

"Why?" Joseph breathed out, voice so timid that he was surprised when the Tarot Card Holder scoffed in response.

"Why else?" his baritone voice drilled into Joseph's head, not so dissimilar from the Voice, yet this was more... cold indifference on the Holder's part. Irritation reeked out of his words, an annoyance that has grown over time from spending the many years, perhaps decades, answering the same questions over and over again.

In the Holder's eyes, Joseph was no different from any other person seeking out the Tarots' wisdom.

Taking Joseph's silence as lacking an answer himself, the Holder explained further, "A possession that was a gift from another is far more valuable to the individual than it would be if they got something for themselves. The level of care one must put in to preserve such gifts, makes it harder to let go."

The Tarot Card Holder's broad shadow encompassed Joseph's body, the shorter man hesitantly looking up to find the Holder had leaned closer to his face. And in the empty chasms of the masks sockets, Joseph spotted the dim glow of inhuman gold irises glowering into his pleading blue.

"So, Prophet. Are you willing to give up her rosary for the sake of your family? Or will you give it up for a stranger's face and name?"

Here's a WIP for The Waters Of Life Flow, my Fallout 3 fic in the A Radioactive Calamity Of Love, Bombs & Gore series. Imagine wanting to find your dad with your best friend but some strange, blindfolded woman hijacks that plan to get you to show her around the Wasteland that you've only set foot on (and can't back out under what may have been a threat of "consequences"... however vague that can be considered a threat). This is still in its early stages of development. Anyway, Alph and Amata walk Marissa "Ress" Bishop to Megaton as seen below:

The heat of the sun simmered down on the trio as two begrudgingly walked in front of one, a situation more likened to a warden keeping watch of her wards rather than two "locals" giving the "newcomer" a tour as their unofficially branded captor insisted.

Alph glanced to Amata, his best friend taking the heat outside the air-conditioned vault as well as he is. He could guess that her jumpsuit was itching against her skin as badly as his own was, the material clinging too close for comfort, the blue clothes damp from sweat.

He chanced a look back to the woman behind them, the glaze of her long platinum blonde hair shining with an ethereal beauty, almost like how he envisioned angels would have from Dad's descriptions.

However, Alph wasn't foolish enough to neglect the memory that this woman was anything but angelic. He saw how she killed those crazed people at the school. While not ungrateful for saving them, forcing both him and Amata to walk her around the area with his old, yet still functional, Pip-Boy was a different story entirely.

Especially since there is practically nothing noteworthy marked on my map, but she wouldn't know that.

Which was true, the two maps on his Pip-Boy only showed the markers that indicated the only Pip-Boy wearers in the vicinity, and the trails had made. The surrounding area around his marker was dark on the map.

Amata helped him mark down the coordinates of their Vault and he had the foresight to mark down the location of both the school and what had once been a neighborhood.

And now we're on our way to "Megaton"... or at least where I hope it is.

Alph snapped out of his thoughts when he heard a curious hum. His focus returned, and he realized that the woman had noticed his gawking, in spite of the fact she was still wearing a blindfold.

When she gave him what he assumed to be a friendly grin, he couldn't help but remember the manic one she wore when she slaughtered their captors. Freaked out by the bloody image, he turned his eyesight straight ahead, focused on maneuvering around the boulders in scattered around them rather than the woman behind them.

He heard her snort behind them, and Amata turned her head slightly to look back at the woman, but paused in the action, and shook her head as she kept forward.

Her face was flushed, dark skin boiling under scorching sun. He wasn't any better, with his lighter skin turning an uncomfortable red. How in the actual fuck is the psycho behind us not dying in those clothes?

Though the better question would be to ask how her pale skin hadn't been burned to a crisp from the flamethrower that mohawk guy blasted at her earlier, but he chalked it up to just defective equipment... for now.

He heard Amata gasp beside him, grasping his arm as she pointed forward.

"I-I think this is it!" she stated aloud, relief and joy flowing out of the laugh she let out. Alph focused forward, really missing his glasses, but through his blurry vision, he could see a mass of metal welded together to form a gate. There was also a robot out the front of it, the corpse of a giant insect full of charred holes only a few feet away from it.

Alph smiled, checked his Pip-Boy, and saw that the predicted coordinates were a match. He almost let out a chuckle.

Until he felt the hand of that woman pat his shoulder, then he soon lost his smile.

"Good job you two," she congratulated them, arms slinging over both their necks, "I knew you'd make perfect guides. Now unless you don't mind burning in daylight, I suggest you get a move on. Capiche?"

And here's six paragraphs for a small Classroom Of The Elite AU fic I've been working on, a little "What If" canon divergent scenario I've come up with. Essentially it boils down to "What if Kiyotaka Ayanokoji was accompanied by Takuya Yagami and Ichika Amasawa to the Advanced Nurturing High School?" as a ploy orchestrated by Atsuomi Ayanokoji to see how the masterpiece can perfect the two fifth generation students to be equal to him and give these two a chance to help Ayanokoji adapt socially. I haven't ironed out the exact details of how this is done, but I mostly wanted to write a fic where Ayanokoji was like an older brother-like figure to both Amasawa and Yagami (...in his own way) and how this would fuck up the plot. Also, my man Yagami needs a win after being done so dirty in the source materials. I will be combining elements from the anime, manga and light novel because I'm insane like that (especially for Yagami and Amasawa). Anyway, here's the six-paragraph introduction:

The bus ride had been uneventful thus far. We passed by Cherry Blossoms and the dwindling city buildings of Tokyo, and as a vehicle of public transport, occasionally pulled up at stops to pick up further passengers; few were casual citizens, most were high-school students.

I fell under the latter; amongst the seated boys and girls wearing white shirts under red blazers with gold trims, though with definite differences in the uniform depending on the student's sex, was myself, standing with one hand on my backpack, the other on the straphanger above me. I involuntarily shook as the bus drove on the road to my new location.

I kept my idle gaze out the bus window, the flurry change of Tokyo's scenery from declining pink to the increase of concrete tempting me the chance to ponder on whether the sociopolitical status of Japan's society met the standards of equality, but I had held off on following that thought, especially with two eyes fleeting glances at me from the seats behind.

I found their staring difficult to ignore, more annoyingly so due to my keen awareness of the fact. I had wanted to remain inconspicuous, but their fidgeting would bring unwanted attention towards me, and on themselves, if they were too frequent. Perhaps not consciously, but subconsciously the rest of the students could become curious or worse, intrigued by my presence if the two continued their prolonged stares.

Though I couldn't exactly fault my kohais; regardless of how ridiculous the notion was, their observation of me was not unfounded. For Ichika Amasawa and Takuya Yagami, I was an enigma, a living legend in their generation. Not only a name, but a title, a successful set of data that they were expected to surpass in the curriculum.

I wasn't so concerned about Amasawa, as her apparent admiration of me likely outweighed any desire to do anything against me. Yagami though... despite his gentle demeanor, I suspected he was hiding his true thoughts of me underneath the surface.

Nothing I could do now; we were all on the same bus, heading into an unknown ocean of variables and outliers. A consequence of Matsuo's kindness upon taking care of the three of us, I suppose.

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softlyapocalytpic · 1 year

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Character Analysis of Fallout Companions

Perhaps I’m outing my self as cringe here, but I have a draft to do with Homestuck God Tiers??? So I thought about trying my hand at it again. I actually used to have a pretty moderately successful analysis blog back in the day but its been. some time. since I seriously classpected. So any Homestuck fans dont come for me, I’m a little rusty.

Doing characters from 3, NV, and 4! I’m not doing everyone as there are some characters I don’t feel like I know well enough to give one to, or just didn’t have any good matchups into a god tier. This is a 100% me metaing about the characters through the lens of Homestuck godtiers. You can check the tags to see if a character made it in! Also, if you want somebody in specific, please do send an ask! I’d be willing to do it <3 (I’d be open to doing OC’s but I’d probs have to an extensive interview haha. Oh nooo, not a reason to info dump about you’re characters to an interested party that wants to meta about them <3) And if anyone is curious about what all this homestuck jargon means please do send an ask and I’ll be happy to explain in fuller detail.

Fallout 3

Fallout 3 is a story of sacrifice, duty, responsibility, and a story of selflessness vs selfishness. It’s within the karma system, it’s within the dichotomy of choices, and the kind of companions you can bring with you. Star Paladin Cross is the picture of lawfulness, duty, and responsibility and she admires James and Catherine who were selfless and self-sacrificial. Vs the selfishness and cruelty of a lot of the characters we meet; Burke, Jericho, Moriarty etc. Also I’ve cheated on this one, the only companion we have is Butch, I’m so sorry. Take Amata and Moira as my apology.

Butch

He’s a shit talking bully, he’s a rebel without a cause, he’s a smooth talker hiding behind coping mechanisms that he made to help him survive. He doesn’t give a shit about whats strictly “right” or “wrong”, but his own ideals that he’s decided to live by. That’s what he’s true to, and he wants to disturb the status quo. He’s the aspect of Rage, baby, in the best ways possible. Rage players aren’t just destruction incarnate, they’re the people who would rather live in anarchy than live in a broken system. I love Rage for Butch because I think he shows the best and worse sides of it depending on how you want to frame him. As for his class, totally thief. Cocky, but hiding insecurities. Skilled at manipulating his aspect, at pushing people’s buttons to get what he wants, and using conflict to bond with the people around him. Also Thieves end up in positions of leadership often for their charisma, and while they may begin as bullies they often change and develop over time.

Final Diagnosis: Thief of Rage - Yeah! I kinda said it in the main paragraph, but I think to connect back to what I wrote in the beginning... I think that while Fallout 3 the game might kinda condemn Butch for who he is, he is neutral! Not Evil, not good, and I think that speaks to something even if they didn’t think about very deeply. Butch represents himself, but he’s not necessarily cold-hearted, especially within my own interpretation. I think he does lean towards the selfish/bad karma end as far as how Fallout 3 views his character, but I think ultimately his archetype is that of a trickster which makes Thief of Rage a great fit. He’s here to cause some chaos!

Amata

Amata, as a character, is thematically, emotionally, and morally in opposition to Butch as a character (I don’t think their godtiers reflect that however). She’s the daughter of the Overseer, and that comes with a responsibility that struggles with but ultimately accepts on her own terms. She’s responsible and duty bound to the tasks set in front of her, and will work within side and bend the system that she lives in until she gains the power to change it. She’ll break the rules to save her closest and oldest friend, but in the face of leadership she chooses that over her own personal emotional bonds. It’s her own form of self sacrifice that I think is alluded to being the best option for the vault even though it’s at the cost of the Lone Wanderer. That is all to say, she’s a Blood player. Her class? Mage, I think. The Mage has a deep personal understanding of their aspect through personal experience. It means that they suffer for that understanding, but ultimately come out wiser and more experienced than those around them.

Final Diagnosis: Mage of Blood - Amata carries her burdens with her, her promises, her bonds, and even in the face of them being burdensome, flawed, and broken she chooses to understand them. To stay and make something more out of it. She loves her father, she doesn’t want him to die, and she cares about the LW, but she knows that the vault would be just as bad for them as they are for the vault. She knows what it’s like to make personal sacrifices for the greater goods, but she rebels in little ways because she won’t be caged by it.

Moira

When I think about Moira there’s one line in particular that stands out to me: “ Well, the world broke just like glass. And everyone's trying to put it back together like it was, but it'll never come together the same way.” I adore Moira. For me, she’s the most heartfelt character of Fallout 3, the one that felt like that the writers created with soul, and that line is seals it for me. And in this way, most definitely Moira is the aspect of the Space, from quirky experiments, to the way she recycles the old and lets go of the old, as well as being intensely creative. That leaves her class which I’m very honestly unsure about. Moira does have big Jade vibes, but I think that as much as she’s the wacky scientist the biggest act she commits in the games is the Wasteland Survival Guide. Pursuit of knowledge, of understanding of the world, to help others survive. Trying to reform the Wasteland into a new mosaic after the world shattered, that tells me that she’s a healer, a guide. So, I think I’ll nominate her with Sylph, if only for the idea of putting the wasteland back together.

Final Diagnosis: Sylph of Space - While I’m not super sold on her class I really love Space for Moira. I think its a perfect fit and I like how it ties into her story. Moira represents healing for the Wasteland and a step towards not just surviving, but building something new and more beautiful.

Fallout: New Vegas

So the funny thing about all of the companions is that they have similar core themes because its the core themes to the games. New Vegas is just deliciously written that way. Will they dwell in the past, or begin again? That lends itself to the ideas of hope, growth, change, new beginnings, etc. when they choose to begin again, and themes of cynicism, “old world blues”, violence, and stagnation/inability to move on from trauma and grief when they choose to stay in the past. (Although, hey, I do KINDA think Cass’s more violent route is better than the diplomacy one. Fuck the Van Graffs my dude. She had the right of it.)

Which makes analyzing them for individual god tiers difficult even if it makes them well written lmao. I think with these four I tried to focus on the differences in how they approach these scenarios to inform their godtiers.

Arcade

Arcade has some healing imagery off the bat in the medical sense of the word, as well as knowledge for his research role with the Followers of the Apocalypse. In my mind, Arcade is thematically Veronica in a decade from now. He has some important differences, but their stories really have a lot of connective tissue especially in comparison to the other companions in this game. It’s that Enclave-Brotherhood parallels baby. However, he’s been burned, lived a life of constant paranoia and lost connections, and it’s made him close-off. Bitter. He has so many ideals and dreams for a better world, and he wants to fight for them, but gets stuck. I think in this way he’s definitely a Life Player whose finally getting to strut his stuff after years of not being able to. As for his class, that’s a lot harder! He’s got the vibes for a few different ones, but I think that he definitely falls into a Passive class for me. I also would really love to put him as a Sylph if only to parallel Veronica so they could be a Passive/Active duo, but I think that he’s actually a Seer. He’s watched the world, seen it, understands it, and struggles to find a way to effect. He sees himself in Virgil. He feels like the guide that others go to in order to seek understanding, but he’s grappling with how to change the world as well. I think about his Independent Vegas end card, about how it wasn’t what he thought it was, but I think in the end that is a minor setback to the journey he hopes to help cultivate in the Wasteland afterwards.

Final Diagnosis: Seer of Life - He sees raw potential, what the world could grow to be, and its a double-edged sword. On one hand, it means that he has a more hopeful vision for the world, on the other

Veronica

Originally, I thought she was dead on for being a Life player, but in actuality I think that Time is better suited for her. Veronica Fixes things things. Her imagery is mechanical based. She gets stuck in the past being surrounded by the BoS and is desperately trying to lead them in to the future. She’s a fighter. She wants to heal the world, but she’s doing that though her tools, her technology, and her fists. I love the imagery of her surrounded by the current of electricity, or ticking clocks, and the fact that she has end card that points out that she fixes and solves things for people in the background. She loves solving a problem by punching it, but she’s a compassionate person. She wants to make people care. But as much as she’s a fighter she’s forced into the sidelines and forced into never making change, unable to Fix or heal. She’s overlooked, underappreciated, and is a sturdy moral backbone for people that send her away to get supplies. To take care of things out of the way. So I believe that makes her a perfect fit for Sylph! Sylph’s have to learn how to trust in themselves and to embrace their own paths. She wants to help people that aren’t willing to help themselves, and for many Sylphs their story leads them to realizing that they can’t help everyone, or they shouldn’t be burdened with that responsibility.

Final Diagnosis: Sylph of Time - Veronica needs to make a choice: to get stuck in the past trying to save whatever she can of people who refuse to change, or to leave them behind and move on so that way she can effect the change she wants to see in the world. I always left incredibly dissatisfied by her end card in the latter ending as I refuse to believe that Veronica would just... give up. But I think it takes time to heal, to realize that the BoS can’t chase her to ends of the earth, and in my canon she ends up in the FotA.

Boone

Honestly, off the bat, he reeks of being a Doom player. He literally goes around walking thinking that maybe this time his number will be up only to forced to keep on going. He’s angry, cynical, and feels (and is sometimes) like he’s at the whims of fate and other systems bigger than himself. Yet, I think this makes him able to have a large well of understanding and a kind of emotional intelligence for the people around him that suffer similarly. If Life players are here to give you a pep talk, Doom players are here to sit with you in the shit. I think one could make an arguement for a disaffected Time player, but a lot Boone’s will to fight comes less from a cause to fight for and more because of self-destruction, an attempt at a kind of “redemption” (not that he believes he will ever or even can achieve that), and hatred for what the Legion in specific did to him. It’s not that he wouldn’t hate them otherwise, but it’s a personal hatred rather than something that comes solely from his own morals. I think that’s because a lot of Boone’s ideals are informed by the system that shaped him, and made him into a perfect soldier that just listened to orders and absorbed whatever they wanted him to believe, and now he’s (subconsciously) in a search for individuality and purpose. As far as his class, easy, Heir. Heirs are often controlled by their aspect by virtue of it being channeled through them. This fits in perfectly to his background as a solider being the perfect vessel for discipline, rules, and etc that he eventually learns to question.

Final Diagnosis: Heir of Doom - I think I explained it all pretty well in the above, but I think as a final note: Heirs are often under the influence or leadership of someone else as they look to others, but I think they all most have a moment of breaking away. Of self definition, or else they feel out of control of their life and at the whims of others. I feel like this fits Boone.

Cass

She’s a tough nut to crack. I don’t think she translates incredibly well into homestuck classpecting, however if I had to choose an aspect for her it’d be Blood. I considered Rage, but based on the official Extended Zodiac website there was a pivotal difference that helped me with the decision: Rage players will burn everything down, but Blood players will stay stubbornly on sinking ship. I think that Cass’s want to take down the Van Graffs and Alice McLafferty can be read as her burning down the old because she values the truth more, but we meet her stuck in the Mojave Outpost refusing to sell even when she has nothing less. Cass is oddly loyal for someone who has spent most her life walking from place to place with connections. Despite knowing the flaws of the NCR she sticks with it because she believes it’s the best answer into the anarchy of the Wasteland, and that’s an important difference. Rage players would rather live in anarchy than in a broken system, but Cass isn’t like that. For all her Rage, she values the sentimentality of the caravans and how it’s her last connection to her father. The NCR is home no matter how badly they fuck up so she’s here for the long run. So where does that leave her class? I honestly can’t say, but if I had to throw a dart I’d pick Thief. It enables her to stay true to the aspect of blood while still being able to have a more destructive side that would reflect Cass’s proclivity for righteous outrage. I think, as well, as the Thief is a manipulator, it reflects Cass manipulating the system in order to dispense justice in order to get her revenge in the diplomacy route. She also has no issues with moral ambiguity. The ends often justify the means.

Final Diagnosis: Thief of Blood - I think I covered it pretty well, but TLDR, Blood represents her loyalty to her connections as well as her stubborness that prevents her from hopping from a sinking ship. Thief represents her willingness to bend the rules and manipulate things in order to exact her revenge. Also her cockiness/confidence lmao.

Fallout 4

So I fucking struggled with Fallout 4. It has a shit ton of themes going on for it’s characters, and I think only one was easy. Fallout 4 talks about a lot; the themes synths bring up the most is the nature of identity and soul, but they bring up so many questions from that. When has science gone to far? What are you willing to sacrifice in the name of progress? Blind faith vs being critical of everything around you. Paranoia, trust. Freedom. Is there any place to stand morally within a broken world? It asks, a lot of questions, which I have my own answers to, but it makes analyzing the companions to distill their stories complicated especially when not all of them speak to core thesis of identity. (These frustrations very much come from a place of love, dw.)

Piper

Piper is an innately compassionate person, but she seeks truth above all else, and that ends up pushing the people she cares about away from her. It alienates her, and sometimes she doesn’t realize that the Truth can be harmful in the way she spins it. She’s quite a good fit for Light player, although a much sweeter one than the ones we get in Homestuck canon. Light players seek out knowledge at all costs, which often puts a bad taste in people’s mouths. Light players are know-it-all’s by nature, and believe that it’s important to be informed about everything for the sake of being informed. They shine light on people’s lives, and because of that, often shine light on places that people didn’t want to be seen. Piper’s class, Witch, allows her to manipulate information; a power that is incredibly powerful and could have catastrophic implications if not wielded carefully. I think this a perfect way to reflect the impact of the Publick Occurrences- it has the power to shape the perceptions of the wasteland, and she had a long learning process with that power. Witches are also rebels! That rebel against the status quo of their aspect and are generally the more positive and peppy of the classes by nature. Piper doesn’t go with the flow, she follows her own path, come hell or high water.

Final Diagnosis: Witch of Light - Piper is a good person at her heart, and a lot of Witches are, but they came with the old adage: “With great power comes great responsibility”. I think Piper really did love the attention that came with the paper, and valued the trust of the people around her, but didn’t realize that digging into people’s crap wasn’t going to make her loved. She’s nosy, opinionated, and ends up pushing people away in her pursuit of her highest value: the truth.

Danse

Oh Danse. I had, so much trouble nailing him down. I debated a lot because his story has themes of personal identity (Heart), strong convictions and faith (Hope), and despite how empathetic he can be to his allies, he doesn’t extend that to the rest of the world. In fact, thanks to the BoS, he has a lot of violent hatred. BUUUT, it’s hilarious how obvious it was in the end. Danse seeks out bonds. His story begins with a close friendship, one that defines him. The BoS gives him a community he desperately wants and needs which then informs everything about him. He’s a leader, and a good one at that. He’s empathetic and reliable at his best, and stubborn and narrow-minded at his worse. His bonds make him blind to the hypocrisies and flaws, and his loyalty makes him easy to manipulate. He’s easily a Blood player, and one that is pretty far a long his journey, but it’s his class that really informs why he’s unable to grow. Heirs have a hard time knowing when to move on, when to let go, and when paired with the stubborn Blood aspect it makes for a very loyal and very stuck in their ways person. Heirs are very naturally inclined to their aspect, and have a lot of power because of it, which I think lines up with a tough beefy boy given that Blood is connected to the flesh as well. I really wanted to give him Knight because I thought it’d be cute, but he doesn’t fit the bill. ;;

Final Diagnosis: Heir of Blood - I think there’s something very telling that two of the soldier characters have ended up as Heirs. Heirs are powerful/skilled, but get taken advantage for that very purpose as they’re kind of like vessels for their aspect. As the vessel of Bonds, Danse is primed to let the things he attaches himself to blind and manipulate him, despite how much he prizes critical thinking and independent thought within his own troops. And then it’s no wonder, when everything he’s ever bonded to is ripped away from him and he’s revealed to be the very being he’s sworn to kill, that he falls apart and spirals out of control. Even then, even when he runs because he’s scared, he’s willing to die for his cause without intervention. He’ll go down with the ship.

Hancock

Hancock is an inspiring leader that leads by example- he’s not holding people to expectations he wouldn’t ask of himself first. When he feels like he might be getting out of touch, that leadership might be going to head, his answer is to do travel and explore. To see the world again so way he knows what it’s like to be a follower. Even if he’s loyal to his community, he doesn’t commit to sinking ships. If Diamond City is gonna be some bigoted assholes, then he dips. He’s not attached to even his own identity, carving out a new one when the old one no longer speaks to his values. He’s cocky, confident, charismatic, and has no issue getting his hands dirty to rid the Commonwealth of shitty elements. He supports synths and the Railroad, but won’t be held down to their cause, preferring the more fluid position of someone who can turn the blind eye the RR needs to operate. All of this, however, hides someone with a deep sense of self-loathing. Before John Hancock let John McDonough die he floated with no anchors, he wasn’t someone he admired, and that person didn’t get to just disappear. He’s an easy mark for the aspect of Breath, and I think that the confident yet secretly self-loathing Thief is another great fit.

Final Diagnosis: Thief of Breath - I think at the core of Hancock’s identity is Freedom, freedom to live one’s own life and decide who and what they are for themselves. It’s why he aligns with the Railroad, but as much as he adopts of a new identity I think it was to be someone he could be proud of being. An identity to allow him the freedom to be a leader, a hero of the people, because he felt that John McDonough wasn’t that. So he quite literally stole a representation of freedom in the US for himself. I think there’s also something really poetic about how Thieves are often seen as selfish, but Hancock really isn’t. His aspect counteracts that as it would go against his beliefs to violate someone else’s freedom.

Nick Valentine

Nick’s story is entirely about nature of his identity; whether or not he’s even real or has a right to exist. He’s so clearly a Heart player which fits right at home with his neon side and aesthetic, there’s even a connection between hats and the soul in Homestuck, it’s perfect. Heart Players are regarded as self-absorbed in the analysis community (and I guess canon), but I don’t think that necessarily true across the board. There’s a difference between being self-absorbed and being fascinated by, or toiling with, the nature of one’s identity and soul. People who have a strong sense of internal self often use that to connect with other people, and help others reveal things about themselves they didn’t know. This is where Nick falls for me. He’s an intensely compassionate person who connects with other people and cares deeply about the world. There’s also the fact that Heart often has the “splintering” of the self, and Nick is quite literally that, a splinter self from the OG Nicky Valentine. As for his class, I’d say that he’s a Mage! Nick has suffered because of his identity, he was kind of “born” from it. The snapshot of OG Nicky was taken from a time where he’d just lost an important romantic relationship, and then our Nick woke up in the trash. Before that, he was forced through different iterations of personalities that didn’t stick. Nick’s internal turmoil doesn’t come from a place of insecurity, but of deep personal suffering that has given incredibly wisdom, compassion, and understanding. This is all textbook Mage, especially for one of the Heart.

Final Diagnosis: Mage of Heart - I think I really said it all, but Nick really is a great example of a well-developed Mage of Heart, and I love that within Homestuck Canon he’d classified as a splinter made real. I think it really fits thematically for him. Nick is really our quintessential exploration of the theme of identity and soul within Fallout 4, and so I think that Heart is a great match up for him.

And that’s it! I wrote a lot about X6 and Deacon who unfortunately didn’t get through the final cut because I couldn’t come to a good conclusion for them. Generally speaking, I think that Knight of Mind could work for X6 but my meta felt really incomplete and repetitive. Deacon fucking ALLUDES ME. I know all his potentials, but I can’t find a good match up that really nails him down, so I’m putting him to the side for now. As for the rest of the companions who didn’t get written about, if I didn’t mention them it’s because I just didn’t feel like I could come up with something for them. I would love to do Preston in the future, maybe try something for Raul, and Mac as well.

(Rip Cait & Curie but I almost never traveled with them. Same goes for Gage & Old Longfellow.)

Maybe I could explore more standard NPC’s in the future? idk lmao.

I wrote New Vegas first and 4 last and I think you can see me gradually get into the swing of things. I really wanted to do more, but I think I’ll just have to make a follow up post with people I missed. I’m not fully satisfied on all my picks, but I think to ever get this out of my drafts I’ll just have to live with that.

Anyway! I hope anyone who is in this same niche as me enjoys this, I definitely haven’t been in the Homestuck community in years, and in all reality won’t actually ever return to it, but it was really fun to do this.

<3 Thanks for reading.

#fallout 3 #fallout new vegas #fallout 4 #butch deloria #amata almodovar #moira brown #arcade gannon #veronica santangelo #craig boone #rose of sharon cassidy #nick valentine #paladin danse #john hancock #piper wright #fallout meta #homestuck #godtiers

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