#as if most games don't have some form of storytelling within them

[rawliverandgoronspice]

I think what particularly annoys me with the "zelda was always gameplay before story" is that... it's not true? At least I don't think it's true in the way people mean it.

Zelda games were always kind of integrating story based on the standards of the time. When game stories were in game pamphlets, Zelda's stories was in the pamphlets. ALTTP tried to tell a pretty complicated stories with the limitations of the time. OoT was actively trying to tell an epic, cinematic tale packed with ambiance and expand what 3D could offer that 2D games struggled with. Majora's Mask is deeply character-driven in many, many ways. Wind Waker and Twilight Princess are both pretty concerned about their stories, down to the point that some people were bored by TP's cutscenes in particular. Skyward Sword, from what little I have played it, is very very invested in its characters and their journey (and 2D Zeldas have Link's Awakening, Minish Cap... None of them are visual novels, but they are concerned with emotional journeys, character arcs, mysteries about their own world...)

What is true is that the narrative wraps around the mechanics, and not the other way around. The mechanics drive themes, aesthetics, emotional beats and character journeys; and that's great. The world is a puzzle, and the world is delightfully absurd when it needs to be, full of heart when it calls for it, dark and oppressive when it suits the player experience.

That does not mean the games aren't invested in their stories. Even BotW has a pretty complicated story to tell about an entire world rather than one specific tale or legend --all of it at the service of the gameplay, which is exploration and mastery of your environment.

So. Yes, none of the Zelda games are million-words long visual novels that care deeply about consistency and nuance; but stories don't need consistency or deep lore to be meaningful and serve an emotional journey. Again: gameplay is story. The two cannot be so easily parsed from each other.

And Zelda as a franchise obviously care deeply about story, characters and setting (and still does right now --otherwise there wouldn't be a movie), even if it doesn't try to imitate prestige narrative-driven games, which is great and part of why I love this series so much. Doesn't mean it couldn't have done better in the past, it obviously could have, but I feel like pretending that nobody ever cared about story or character is just... false? It's a huge disservice to the devs too. Some of them obviously cared immensely.

The "gameplay above story", at least in the extent to which it is paraded today to defend TotK, mostly, is a really recent development. And I think it's one that deserves to receive some pushback.

#thoughts #tloz #zelda #the legend of zelda #totk critical #(sort of) #(I mean this is the subtext) #guys in 1998 nintendo was trying its darnest to make an epic story (with uhhh the writing that it got) #(love that game to bits but won't defend the actual writing) #the fully gameplay-driven game was mario 64!!! #I think this perception is also partially the fault of that “narrative game” category that is just.... kind of like Prestige TV but for gam #as if most games don't have some form of storytelling within them #and that coherence and vision and consistency are part of game design too #and will hurt a game's enjoyment if not handled correctly #a really really paired back narrative game is really difficult to pull off actually! #because you still need stakes and some degree of intrigue #so you need to figure out how to introduce this without walls of text and is it narrative design? is it game design? it's both!! #anyway anyway

[legionofpotatoes]

All other criticisms of modern Star Wars aside, the thing that gets me the most is how every single story is being written to fit into some Avengers-level grand finale that just isn't laying a solid enough foundation to make it worth the wait. Regardless of whether the individual stories are good or bad, what makes them fall so short, imo, is that there's usually no real payoff within their own runtimes (unless you count cheap callbacks or loose promises of More, which you shouldn't)

Like, I already knew halfway through Ahsoka that we were in for a cliffhanger and it's just like...alright, guess we'll see how this ends in about 5 years? Even Mando, which had a great first season and was poised to stand on its own two feet and ride off on a rootin' tootin' bounty huntin' adventure, has ultimately become yet another dusty path on the road to the current Big Plot with an indeterminate due date. That's not deliciously addictive media, it's a dry-ass carrot on a spindly little stick, lol

Of course, this is a problem that many franchises are happily getting cozy with lately because everybody wants to have their own Infinity War / Endgame moment, but I guess it seems a bit more egregious with Star Wars because, ironically, it used to work best because it had less overall focus. Like, sure, we had concurrent movies, animated series, and games, but they were always happy to do their own things and tell their own stories with definitive conclusions. Now it all has to funnel into the Big New Plot and, man, I honestly just can't bring myself to care when it feels like an endless waiting game

I definitely need to get around to watching Visions at some point because, every time it pops up, it sounds like the lifeblood that Star Wars sorely needs atm

Yeah the setup-and-payoff a-to-b type dramatic clarity that seemed so entrenched into the very bones of cinematic grammar - up to around the emergence of streaming, wink wink nudge nudge - is sorely missed in star wars atm. sure maybe downsized writers rooms fidgeting with limited series formats instead of doing actual seasonal TV has something to do with it, but even that is probably such a small piece of the larger issue that spins all this longform storytelling bullshit ferry wheel around.

Another part is certainly chasing the MCU business model of it all like you said. Carrot on a stick is verbatim how I've often described these things myself, the endless promise of another promise of another promise instead of forming a complete thought with a beginning and an end. servicing the plot before story at all costs. another part still is reverence towards the aesthetic trappings of the source material instead of its themes, trying to nail the exact texture of tatooine's huts and dial in the perfect balance of lightsaber choreography and pay homage to a thousand iconic shots before articulating something true in the text.

And like it's an endless laundry list, this confluence of capital-I Issues both industry-scale and creatively-driven that seem to be flaying the skin off the bones of whatever star wars even "is" nowadays. no one can answer that in the context of billions of dollars made off toys and storylines centering around this one moment in fictional history about sons and fathers and empires and rebellions. so they just keep twisting in the wind filling in any gaps within that period. I don't know nonnie, it's all so bleak. ahsoka and obi wan and even mando tbh. as charming as season 1 was, it truly felt like it coasted on its incredible restraint to avoid muddying its aesthetic with cameos, and lucked into effective storytelling as a result of that utterly unintentional alchemy. that's obviously well and truly gone now as its true optics have reared head.

what star wars is by itself is such a pointless discussion, right? andor argues it's a perfectly functional heightened universe that can support incredibly nuanced and dramatically charged stories of grassroots rebellion and the bureaucratic strain of fascist regimes. visions argues it's a world beholden to the force, an endlessly mutable and elegant metaphor that can support infinite monomyths and fairy tales. both are equally fantastic at executing on their takes, despite being in diametrically opposite extremes of interpreting the source. so it's not really about that at all, why the other stuff sucks this bad.

they're just bad at the craft of it, that's really it. whether it's auteur worship or business decisions rotting that fish down, it still rots all the same. maybe the new writers' guild contracts can shift the winds a little, because I was so securely done with star wars and then the aforementioned 2 shows came and affected me. so, so profoundly that I'm back on the hook again. like a lil sucker!

#long post #anon #asks #boy howdy forgive me mister baby yoda for I have engaged in star wars discourse again #this will definitely not backfire on me as it never before has.

[aotopmha]

I've been finally watching an FF7 playthrough and I did not expect what the game's identity ended up being.

Currently at the end of "Disc 1".

I knew about Aerith's death long before I truly cared about Final Fantasy, but what I did not know about was literally anything else.

Aerith's backstory as an ancient, Sephiroth's characterisation as an horror villain across the game, Barret and Dyne, Nanaki and Seto.

Before Aerith even dies, we learn Sephiroth can literally control Cloud and he first ends up beating her up and then later at the capital almost killing her because of Sephiroth's ability to control him.

It's fucked, but absolutely incredible storytelling by itself.

Sephiroth's minimalistic presence itself makes him a fantastic villain because of his relation to Cloud and whatever screwed up cosmic horror Jenova is.

I did not see any of the psychological aspects of the story coming.

And I think it's an incredibly well-told narrative from just a plain script perspective, too.

Everything matters in some form, very few dialog boxes are wasted.

I also get why everyone is shipped with everyone.

Because all of them have such strong dynamics with each other even if the dialog is really straight-forward.

Guess I'm 100% a fan.

(Also as a massive FF14 fan, FF7 is an absolutely fascinating thematic companion to FF14 and I'm only at the end of disc 1.

I love, love how FF14 does its own thing while paying tribute to all other FFs. It's absolutely a tribute, but still very much has its own identity as a game and narrative.)

I'm turning into kind of a massive FF fan narratively at least, I think – FF7 is fantastic dark sci-fi/fantasy, FF6 fantastic steampunk/high fantasy and FF14 is some of the best long-form storytelling ranging from lower to higher fantasy, light-hearted to dark fantasy and a bunch of aesthetics beyond these basics that somehow all blend.

Now from all other FF stories I've seen fully, I think FF10, FF4 and FF16 are the ones I'd place lower narratively.

I think FF10 is my least fav of these because none of the cast did much for me, FF4 has the least depth narratively, though it is still pretty fun and FF16 suffers a bunch because of its uneven last third or so, even if I like the cast and base themes a bunch.

But what I like about them all the most is that even within the turn-based formula they all feel very different to each other, again, narratively-speaking. 16 is very little like 7 and even 4 and 6, the games I consider to be closest tonally handle characterisation and narrative structure pretty differently.

Each game brings something new to the table *the series* has not done before in some form. For example, as far as I know 16 is probably one of the most low fantasy games we've had in the series.

It's not new in the broader context of fantasy media, but it is new for FF.

And I like series that don't sit still like that.

#Final Fantasy VII #Final Fantasy 7 #FF7 #FFVII #FF #Final Fantasy

[goodboyaudios]

Hello! My name is Grim, and I fancy myself a bit of a researcher. Now, this is not for anything important or extremely serious. Instead, this is mostly for my own pure enjoyment and something I have in the works that is to be posted on Tumblr. You are not obligated to answer any or all of these questions I have posed. I know it’s a bit much. Take your time, but don’t feel obligated to do anything. Feel free to add any additional input! Thanks for your consideration!

1. How different do you think your work would be, in terms of getting across a point, in a different medium thats not Audio RP?

2. How do you think your work would be different if it more reflected main stream industry forms of storytelling where you as a creator would be more separate? (ex. movies, tv shows, games, etc.)

3. How important do you find the voice acting in your work?

4. You are the primary voice of your works. Would you consider taking a step back from voice acting in your work to focus on narrative work?

5. Do you believe your own individual ability to voice characters enhances the story overall?

6. Do you enjoy the idea of a “Listener character” or would you better prefer to not have one?

7. As a writer, how does the writing of the Listener take you out of your comfort zone? (ie their effect in relationships, plot movements, etc.)

8. Is Audio RP your favored form of art?

9. How do you believe Audio RP differs from main stream forms of art/entertainment?

10. Do you believe that your work has over arching themes that relate to you personally? (very optional)

Sure! I'm happy to answer some questions!

I think with the addition of a visual medium it would most definitely be significantly easier, yes.

Well, I can't say for sure. I could explain for hours about how mainstream media forces a creative to conform their work within often-times hostile parameters. Nevertheless, I'd be blessed with the opportunity to try. That being said, I have a lot more creative freedom here on Youtube than anywhere else, at least by my standards.

I think it's very important. Conveying enough emotion without the added visuals means that it is ALL DOWN to vocal performance.

I am typically the primary voice, yes, but I must admit this is a very difficult question. I love to write stories of scifi and fantasy, I love to take concepts and ideas, pieces of dialogue and conveyed emotion and put them into an all expansive list of things to try, but I personally love bringing those emotions and ideas out myself. I find it fun! I suppose...I wouldn't! Writing is fun, don't get me wrong, but being able to perform it is part of my joy in creating what I make. If I stopped doing one, I'd have to find it elsewhere and that would take me away from doing the other thing.

I like to believe that, yes. It only makes sense that the writer knows the exact feeling to convey in a script, but you could call me vain for that if you like lol!

Listener characters are the bane of my existence lol! Okay, that was too dramatic. It's very difficult to write a character that doesn't talk, but represents...basically everyone! How do you compensate for that? And echoing dialogue is not something people do on a regular basis. No one talks like that, but we need to in order to get across what the listener is thinking at any given time, because if you don't, everyone is confused. It's quite frustrating and a hell of a dilemma in the scripting process.

Well, like I said earlier, I have to try and accommodate for everyone which is a challenge all on its own. It's VERY easy for the listener to become a talking head and I try my best to avoid it. Alas, I imagine even the greatest xlistener writer has fallen into that trap lol

No, it is not. I like 2D animation and RPGs.

Money? Budget? A lot more emphasis on visuals? When you start out as a content creator, you start with nothing and are tasked with making something, but with mainstream media, the network hands you a budget to make something. Granted those things might not be great given the parameters of the network, but hey! At least you can say you made something!

Very much so, yes. Zed is directly related to my insecurities and fears of not being enough as a person. Makkaro is related to my need for a work/life balance so that I might enjoy the little things while still giving my all. Albus is a toxic form of what I wanted to be when I grew up, a man who can fight through anything, but inside is deeply broken. Yargwynn is my running away from my problems in hopes that it'll all just go away. Mortallous is those problems always chasing me, always catching up. One day, I will tell a story of Zed realizing who he wants to be. That story will show that the man I really want to be, is myself. I will no longer be Good Boy Audios, but Good Man Audios. Yeah, it's cheesy as fuck, but hey, I like cheese.

Thank you for your questions. I really appreciate the time you took to ask me them. And I hope you enjoy my stories moving forward too!

#good boy audios #goodboyaudios #youtube #asmr roleplay #asmr boyfriend

[lenasai]

Hey! I've tried getting into blaseball before but could not understand it. Could you explain? 🥺

ID: The "Sickos" comic meme. End ID.

i will never pass up an opportunity to talk about blaseball!

i typed a lot, so the rest is under the cut for the sake of people who have me on their dash

unfortunately, i have bad news about getting into it as an active participant - the developers decided to end blaseball as an ongoing project in june for a number of reasons, one being that running it at the level they wanted to (and really, at any point in the game's history) has been unsustainable for the team.

however, i encourage you to look further into the fan creations because there is so much more than just the game!

to summarize what blaseball was: blaseball was a fantasy horror baseball simulator with an ongoing plot and a very creative fanbase. i would describe the relationship between the fans and the devs as a large-scale version of a tabletop roleplaying game, with the devs (and the simulation running the game) as the game masters. a lot of iconic moments in the discipline era in particular were a mix of the devs taking a "yes, and" approach to fan input and the number of ways in which the site broke.

the experience of watching games was very minimal and mostly text-based, so it wasn't too unlike watching real baseball updates online, except weird things happened sometimes. different weather conditions introduced a small chance of something happening to teams and players, or even tweaked the rules of play for that game. my favorite weather was sun .1, which added 0.1 points to each run scored per inning. it was also just an adorable tiny sun, which is the reason it's my favorite.

the players were all just names and stats, which enabled the fans to fill in the blanks and craft their own narratives around them.

aside from the teams and players, there were also a number of entities that performed different functions within the league. some had extended reach beyond the main site - for example, if you wanted to keep up on twitter, you could follow the commissioner and receive updates about events and other things that happened during the season.

optionally, a lot of fans also discussed games as they were happening on the official discord. most of the teams still have active discord servers, so if you find yourself attached to one, i'm sure you could find someone who could give you a link

i don't blame you for having a hard time getting into it because for a period of time, things were getting more and more complicated by design! the expansion era (season 12-24) was all about telling a story about the harm of endless growth. the big bad was literally the god of capitalism. this was quite the effective storytelling mechanism, but it also meant getting into blaseball was very difficult for new fans. i had a friend who tried getting into it around the time shit really hit the fan and they gave up 😭

thanks to the efforts of a very dedicated group of fans - the society for internet blaseball research in particular - it is possible to experience blaseball in some form, albeit not as an active, ongoing thing. before is a wonderful archive of the blaseball.com website that is mostly functional. you can type in which season/day you want to see or view a list of major events here. for less complicated games, i recommend the discipline era. for more chaos, late expansion era is where that's at.

for both official history/season explanations and team/player lore, check out the blaseball wiki! there's lots of cool stuff to check out there if you want to learn more about something.

i also recommend the blaseball roundup - an official recap of everything through season 22, starring quinns from people make games as the anchor! (for plot reasons, seasons 23 and 24 are not covered. unfortunately, given the state of the game, i don't think this will happen.)

quinns made his own video for people make games back in 2020, which is also a nice watch.

for a comprehensive list of all of the official videos, analysis from the blaseball news network, and more, this is an excellent fan project that puts everything in one place with links out to the internet archive.

finally, there is a metric fuckton of fan art and fanfic to check out! there isn't really one central location for most of the art, but you can find a lot of writing in the blaseball tag on ao3 and itch (which is being really slow for me at the time of writing, but you can search "blaseball" on itch and get some results 👍)

blaseball might be "over," but its fanbase is not going anywhere, and i can guarantee you there is no bad time to get into it. we are all love blaseball here ❤️⚾️🩸

#blaseball

[centi-pedve]

been scouring the regretevator wiki cause i was curious (terrible wiki btw i am so sorry. one page has a citation that just links to some discord bullshit which people who are not in the server obviously cant see) anyways i am getting a terrible impression of the creator(?) and i would be interested in your thoughts on this business if youd be willing to share :3

oh goodness gracious... well we do have Some thoughts and we dunno if they match your own concerns since, we purposefully don't go out looking for whatever the creator has said but yeah even from a distance it's. Not looking good. (Already mentioned some of these before but for the sake of putting it in one place we'll be redundant)

definitely has his own takes on certain characters, headcanons, and the like. it was silly at first but as time went on and the more effort he put into pushing negativity over certain things the less fun it became. we think, if you want people to dislike a character, you try and make them dislikeable within the context of the story and then let people form those opinions. rather than being weird about the fact that there are still people who do like the character and punishing them by denying them the most basic things or even involving them in the story at all because Doesn't Deserve It. yes this is primarily about unple/asant

related but... too much of a reliance on telling stories with twitter or other unofficial platforms. did we learn nothing from the dumbledore is gay tweet. like a huge amount of information on the wiki that is very important to understanding the characters are just is NOT in the game, like if you played the game fully you'd still need to rely on the wiki to be able to participate in fandom. honestly a large part of that is why we're so biased towards certain characters! unple/asant and infe/cted are the only characters with lore and trivia and such that we've bothered to go on the wiki for and memorize. we've played the game for hours and hours but that doesnt mean much lol. once again, unple/asant especially, it literally DOESN'T TALK or participate in ANY of the active dynamic story because Doesn't Deserve It but there's still things to know about unple/asant and people who like the game just want something!! like dunno the overuse of social media in storytelling just makes it so much more unfun, we don't like how information is released and the fact that we need to rely on external material that... is sometimes taken back because the creator has gone on record Just Saying Shit. favorite example vv

Which is really funny considering it has 1 piece of dialogue on the game. So it can physically speak, and is also not "mewing 24/7" by result of having that dialogue (pretty sure the creator was just encouraged to say that without giving a fuck but, whatever). but the things that happen in game are second to the creator's twitter feed AMIRIGHTFELLAS

3. the,. the ableism. we've heard people tried to bring it up with the creator in the past and they were ignored so we feel comfortable mentioning it lol. bi/ve is a stereotype of someone who suffers from paranoia really, we mean we love her but... lol... and we will say it again pe/st should not canonically have npd or aspd. like omggg the evil character that robs people has two pds negatively stereotyped as belonging to evil people we're sure there was no bias in this decision. maybe we'd be less bothered if people didn't treat it as so serious and pretend to be cluster b allies like "you have to give him some understanding cuz he has aspd and npd 🥺" like no because he's evil, also maybe it wouldn't hurt to care about real people with those pds instead of a caricature. also the half-hearted throwing around of the word "mute" for unple/asant has been pointed out as ableist by a lot of people.

tldr uhhh wuhgghh NOT A PERSONAL ATTACK nobody get us (: nobody talk us...

#asks #good morning! (starts bitching

[365runesoftheamalgamations]

The Not Yet Forgotten Introduction

hello and how are you?

This has been far too long since we have been active and we've wanted to get back into the flow of things! And we believe it is time for a Reintroduction! So, without further ado,

A Proper Introduction

Welcome to the Writing Blog! We are the Not Yet Dead Authors, the Natsume Rune! You may refer to us as Natsume as a whole, or say hi to any of the specifics who run the blog/do the writes! Our pronouns are we/they, and we are an aromantic/asexual genderfluid cluster of whispers drowning in the Void for more than two decades. So just another set of Wanderers who wish to reach out and touch the Worlds in a more pronounced way!

Full Writeblr Introduction under the cut!

Getting To Know Us

We are most comfortable writing and conversing in italics! It just feels like it speaks with our souls, so please be aware that most of the posts and such will be within that realm of writing.

Our most comfortable sense of writing is in third person present tense! We also write in first person (sometimes) and second person (rarely) but our comfort lies in others and their present.

We write mostly fantasy but also dabble in horror, science fiction, dystopian and other works and writing styles. We do hold our own universe, the Storyverse, that we will hint, note, and talk about, depending on things, as well as a multitude of Worlds that will be given over to the Stories happening within in. Hardcore about both worldbuilding and storytelling, so we will probably have a lot to say about both the Worlds and Stories that come with our hyperfixations.

Our writing forms include: fanfiction, short stories, drabbles, flash fiction, novels, poems, and role playing! We enjoy rolling through forms and trying out different ways of telling and sharing stories, so please note that there will be a lot of everything on here.

We follow from the System's Blog, @365runesofthesystem, and will try to be really active in the community, so if you see us around, then feel free to indulge us! We love to be tagged in games and sent asks and the like and will try to get to all of them in due time. [ yes, we do hoard Tag Games, shut the fuck up about it. ]

If there is anything else anyone would like to know, do not hesitate to ask or message us! But be aware that we are not afraid to deal with anything impolite or inappropriate, we have a zero tolerance standard and we will keep it without hesitation.

The Amalgamations of our Creations

We have a lot - and yes, we mean a fuck ton - of Works and Stories that we want to tell at some point in our lives, so this list will definitely grow and expand and shift as we go through our journey.

If you want a full list of all of our Works, check our both our Original Works Masterlist and our Fanworks Masterlist!

All Links to WIP Pages and Intro Posts will be added as we get things sorted and settled!

But here are a few of our more pronounced Works, [ yes, they can and will probably shift and change. No they are not in any particular order, we hate figuring out orders. ]

Grayland's Shadow

Original Work | Fiction, Low Fantasy, Horror Elements First, Second, Third Person | Second Drafts

Ecstasy. The screaming, the struggling, the pleas for mercy, he loved them all. He loved the way they always seemed to think that he would set them free. That, if they were good and tried hard enough, he would just let them live, bleeding and knowing. As if he would ever let anyone go. He never did. He never wasted an opportunity either. So when a girl, around her way into adulthood, sat down next to him on the bench that day, he had no intention of letting her go. None.

Constellations By Orion

Original Work | Fiction, High Fantasy, Action and Adventure Third Person Present Tense | Scene Drafting/Worldbuilding

Orion is the first one she goes for, as he always points North. "I am just saying, your little stowaway is pretty cute." "I don't need a man Orion, I need directions across the sea." "Trust me, if you want a purpose, you should find Ursa Major. She's the guide of adventure, new life." "And where can I find her?" "At the heart of the ocean. She is the Guardian of Polaris and her baby, Ursa Minor."

The Queen & The Heir

Short Story | Fiction, High Fantasy, Medival Third Person Present Tense | Scene Drafting/Prompt Response

She hates herself for hesitating. She stares at the note, gentle cream instead of stark white in order to hold the same connotations of the maid notes that she, and more importantly he, was accustomed to seeing. She glances at the Guard, barely catches the door closing completely, locking her in with the words that would prove herself justified. Or truly and quietly mad.

The Rapunzel Witch

Short Stories | Fiction, High Fantasy, Fairytale Retellings, LGBTQIA+ Third Person Present Tense | Chapter/Scene Drafting

Vibrant and sharp, it is another small check to his identity; the Queen is staring at him, though instead of the hard determination of a leader, he stands before the soft gentleness of a person unused to such direct contact. Something shifts in those eyes; the Royal Majesty frowns more before he lets his eyes drop to the ground between them. “Well, that’s that then, isn’t it?” The Knight feels a soft pang; he almost takes a step forward, hand twitching at his side before the Royal spins around and walks away from him. “Your obligations are fulfilled; the Rapunzel Witch lives.”

The Plague Begins With Me

Original Work | Dystopian, Horror Third Person Present Tense | Scene Drafting

Lost to the devastation of the Plague and destroyed by the aftermath of Humanity’s Fall, the World of Zeomia holds nothing but the dystopian devastation of disease and decay. Shouldering a responsibility that no one else is allowed to know, Zero tries to give mercy to those who have fallen from her own twisted fate.

Main Tags of the Blog

rune ⊹ writings | general writing tag rune ⊹ works in progress | where you can find all of our works rune ⊹ wanderlust | general tag for other blogs rune ⊹ nonsense | fun and silly things outside of the writings/writeblr rune ⊹ beloved | general tag for the mutuals of the writeblr rune ⊹ asks | tag for answering asks and anything from the inbox rune ⊹ authors | writing updates and softer thoughts of us rune ⊹ background noise | anything to do with the blog

#rune ⊹ authors #writeblr #writing community #writeblr intro #creative writing #tumblr writers #writers of tumblr #writerscommunity

[scalproie]

for the character ask game: kuai, hanzo, bi-han, and smoke with 12, 15-20, and 22 :)

12. What's a headcanon you have for this character?

Kuai: I like to think that in the 2nd timeline, post-alliance, kuai wouldve unknowingly taken some inspiration from hanzo's leadership of the shirai ryu to lead his own clan, reforming a lot of stifling rules to establish more of a community within the lin kuei members.

Hanzo: And similarly, especially after the trauma of having lost his entire clan, hanzo wouldve also unknowingly picked up a few things from kuai to lead the new shirai ryu, but rather than making changes to his clan's rules, he's doing most of the work on HIMSELF to lead it more "efficiently" and avoid past tragedies from happening again. Which, if mk11 didnt happened, would have resulted in both clans being similar enough that they have no issue partnering and temporarily switching members for missions, and, should it ever come to that, could even be merged as a single clan (as they once were after all), all thanks to the efforts of their grandmasters.

Bi-han: In the 1st and 2nd timeline, I wanna think bi-han initially did wanted to take the masters' attention and implied abuse away from kuai by being a cocky (but talented) little shit, but over the years the act became who he is as a person as he rose through the ranks to become the lin kuei's best assassin.

Smoke: 2nd timeline smoke literally Came Back Wrong, its impossible to tell where tomas the human boy sacrificed by a cult ends and where enenra the smoke demon begins, is he a human posessed by a demon? or a demon with a human's memory? He is neither completely from earthrealm nor the netherrealm, he belongs nowhere, hence why he has found a home in, and is extra protective of, the few friends he has made.

15. What's your favorite ship for this character? (Doesn't matter if it's canon or not.)

Subscorp for kuai and hanzo, Bireena for bi-han, and I guess Subsmoke wins by default for tomas (obv not the mk12 one). Im a basic bitch what can I say.

16. What's your least favorite ship for this character?

Everything else, im not a multishipper

17. What's a ship for this character you don't hate but it's not your favorite that you're fine with?

Again I guess I'll go with subsmoke

18. How about a relationship they have in canon with another character that you admire?

Kuai and hanzo in the 2nd timeline over the course of three games... pretty good👍 (<- rewrote my brain chemistry). Bi-han and hanzo's rivalry is great. Smoke is underutilized but I do love that he and kuai will be friends in every timeline

19. How about a relationship they have in canon that you don't like?

EVERY relationship they all have could be better bc sadly we get our storytelling from a fucking fighting game, but I want kuai to have a better (not necessarily more positive) dynamic with frost, I want hanzo and harumi's relationship to be done justice, I want bi-han to have his childhood as well as kuai's explored and their history toward each other as brothers deepened (1st and 2nd timeline ESPECIALLY bc man. fuck mk12) and I want smoke to form one meaningful relationship that isnt tied to kuai.

20. Which other character is the ideal best friend for this character, the amount of screentime they share doesn't matter?

Kuai: kitana

Hanzo: harumi/kenshi/jax/sonya (legends). For the loner of mk, he sure has a lot of bestie potential

Bi-han: sareena (the brotherhood of shadows really)/sektor & cyrax/fujin (I stand that he and fujin would have the funniest dynamic, especially as noob saibot. I want them to have a 80s buddy cop-like adventure together)

Smoke: jade/reptile/johnny

22. If you're a fic reader, what's something you like in fics when it comes to ths character? Something you don't like?

WHEN ITS WRITTEN BY MY FRIENDS honestly my wants are simple: I just like when theyre written as adult men raised in a very isolated at best, oppressive at worst (for the lin kueis in particular) environment with lots of unadressed trauma, I also dont like when theyre written as TOO openly romantic, these four men are aaall about repression of feelings (hanzo a little less so) so it'd all be about the subtle, little things. and pining for ages.

#THANK YOU SO SORRY FOR THE DELAY #tagging later #bluehairedspidey #ask meme

[darkestprompts]

DD2 Shrine Rewrites Part 2: King Baldwin the Good

And here we are again, back for another rewrite that is not, in fact, a rewrite. We will go over it nonetheless, since the positives we find will provide good contrast for what comes after.

Leper's shrines are some of the best, yet I don't put them quite on the same level as Man-at-Arm's, and that's because of DD2's self-imposed constraints. Barristan's story manages to work within the proposed (and rather narrow) framework of flawed characters seeking redemption. Baldwin, in turn, is an explicit and deliberate exception, demostrated by his position as the only character facing the light in the chapter introductions. That's crucial here, because we'll soon see with Audrey how forcing the regret and redemption structure upon characters that have nothing to do with it can make for confused storytelling. The Leper shrines are allowed to go where it makes most sense, and it shows. I also can't give Baldwin the same props as Barristan because a straight up heroic character is simply easier to write than a mess of human failure searching for purpose. Finally, I'd argue that Baldwin as a character rested on a much firmer base than Barristan, despite his own vague backstory comic.

Baldwin as we knew him

Going solely by the comic, the Leper is a little mysterious. He was some kind of prince or a king that left his realm after developing an advanced case of leprosy. We could assume that the illness is the reason he left, but that's shaky. We can also suppose that Baldwin was liked or at least pitied by his subjects, judging by the sad faces in the crowd.

However, even before diving into his in-game characterization, we already have strong hints about his identity. He is named after Baldwin IV of Jerusalem, the leper king of that historical crusader state. Furthermore, his design directly references Baldwin IV's portrayal in the movie Kingdom of Heaven, that is overall very flattering to the guy. From these two sources, we can expect our Baldwin to be a tragic character, deeply religious, but still representative of the ideal Christian king and knightly general. All these elements are confirmed by the game: he's one of the religious classes, mentions leading men into battle, his CC set confirms that he's a king in exile and his barks give him a dignified demeanour. Baldwin also draws on the medieval image of the warrior-poet or minstrel-knight, shown through a speech dotted with lyrism. His very last treasure isn't a reminder of his past greatness, but a humble flute made of tin.

The Leper class description emphasizes the role of inner strength in adversity, as do skills like Solemnity and Reflection. He's also one of the few classes, together with Abomination, Occultist (arguably) and Flagellant, that can harm himself for the benefit of others (Quarantine). That one of these is the resident masochistic gremlin says a lot. He can be wrathful and fearsome (Revenge, Intimidate), but never a selfish tyrant. Overall, Baldwin comes off as noble, selfless, disciplined, artistic and powerful despite his looming death.

And then they made him hot on top of that. Like. Damn.

...What was I supposed to talk about again?

Ah, right, DD2 Baldwin.

The tide falls

DD2 adds a lot of context and new information to the original comic, yet it succeeds in forming a narrative that feels genuine to the character we know because it never strays far from or contradicts what was established in the first game: it simply gave it definite form.

In DD2 we find out Baldwin contracted leprosy from consoling his disease-stricken subjects. He does this in spite of his advisors, who try to keep him away from the "undesirable" population. As his health withers, conspiracy festers around him until he finds the strength to face and kill his treasonous advisors before they kill him. He then opts to abdicate, trusting his legacy more than his remaining years of ailment (and perhaps, one may wonder, to avoid further questioning of his aptitude to rule?).

On broad strokes, it's quite perfect! It demonstrates Baldwin's sense of charity and love for his people, his disinterested outlook on the throne and how, despite his good nature, he's not a man to be trifled with. The last chapter, where the exiled Leper reflects on his many blessings, is a touching conclusion to a bittersweet tale of virtue.

But wait, someone might ask, you are always going on about things needing to make sense, why aren't you roasting Red Hook for making Baldwin prance around and hug lepers until he got infected?

Because, good reader, Baldwin's tale is a hagiography from start to end and that's exactly the kind of crazy shit I'd expect from a medieval saint. Don't believe me? Look up female saints and mystics like St Catherine and Angela de Ligno, who had the most delightful habit of drinking puss and eating scabs from the diseased. For charity. I guess. Baldwin's pretty sane in comparison, trust me. Especially if you consider the "embrace" action as more metaphorical for him taking care of the sick rather than distributing hugs.

But is it perfect?

My criticism is twofold, although it doesn't prevent any of my enjoyment of the story. One, I would have liked at least a passing mention of the Crusades, given the likely origin of Baldwin's realm. A small change in Chapter 1 attributing the outbreak to the movement of armies would have been sufficient. We don't know how big Baldwin's hypothetical participation in the Crusades would have been, but it would add a bit more nuance to have that little bit of bloody history on the background.

My other issue stems from the lack of emphasis on Baldwin's changing disposition towards his impending doom. As it stands, the transition between the bedridden king to the indomitable leper happens almost incidentally, while the focus is on the palace intrigue, when it should have been a key moment of personal transformation. Perhaps the battle with the advisors was meant to illustrate that moment, but one gets the impression he could have gotten up and kicked ass at any point if he wanted to. This could be fixed with a few lines highlighting an epiphany or ongoing reflection about his mortality, and the nature of pain and adversity.

Oh, wait, I lied. There's one more problem with DD2 Leper.

WHAT ARE THOSE???

Sweetie, you are still wonderful and handsome, but what the FUCK are you wearing?

Next time, we dive into the uncomfortable catacombs of questionable writing decisions with our darling thief Audrey.

#darkest dungeon #darkest dungeon 2 spoilers #dd leper #dd baldwin #dd2 shrine rewrites

[enddaysengine]

Barghest (Chronicles of Darkness)

Been on a Pathfinder tear, so got to get some Chronicles back in there too. While you have yet to see it, I've been writing about the undead a lot lately, so I may as well continue. 

Content warning for animal deaths and ghosts ahead.

Barghests are the ghosts of animals, which in the Chronicles of Darkness don't have nearly the same psychic impression as humans, nor do they have proper souls. Most barghests are Rank 0 - on par with objects and eerie sounds more than individuals. More substantial barghests form when a mortal suffers a breaking point as part of the animal's death, which starts to build a story. Beloved animals are likely to leave ghosts behind, with their memory persisting beyond death. It's a heartwarming detail in a horror game, though certainly one that could be twisted to be tragic. Gruesome, traumatic, or unexpected animal deaths will also do the trick, as the shock of seeing something die in front of them triggers the mortal's breaking point.

Mechanically, the fascinating thing about barghests is that they still count as *animals* for magic purposes. So the Key of Beasts is always resonant when targeting a barghest, while vampires can use most of their Animalism Disciplines on them. The bigger question is if mages can use the Life Arcana on Barghest, which is a question left to individual tables should decide for themselves. I can see arguments for and against, but if the answer is yes, it creates a weird and interesting Mystery for mages to dig into. If you're playing Mage, take some time to think it over and talk it through with your group. If you are a Storyteller looking to use Barghests in your chronicle, the bigger picture is to look at how they can connect to other monsters going bump in the night. A cryptid with a dedicated nature theme that can also manipulate animal ghosts will be memorable and dispel the idea that because something is natural, it is also kind. After all, this is a horror game; let it be a bit horrific. 

Frequently used rural backroads are fascinating places for Sin-Eaters to travel. Gopher, rabbit, and snake barghests line the side of every kilometer, standing a silent vigil over the route they failed to cross. These ghosts are little better than statues, not doing much of anything. When they hit a critical threshold, however, they start to fuse together, becoming a hideous chimera of everything that ever died on that stretch of tarmac. They don't like cars. 

A "Black Dog" haunts Yorkshire's estates, but all is not as it seems. Amateur occultists quickly assume this is some sort of werewolf, but it is an ancient canine barghest. This ghost has managed to avoid being pulled into the Underworld through liberal use of possession and claiming. If anyone can track down the old dog's bones and give it a proper burial, it will put the ghost to rest, but after centuries of stalking the moors, finding them will be a challenge. Meanwhile, the barghest has claimed a new body and is out to sate itself on fear and blood. 

The Ordo Dracul have identified a new Dragon's Nest, an occult nexus that draws in Barghests and prevents them from losing Essence. Aleron, a Scholar of the Curse, seeks to study the site to develop new Scales and enhance prestige within the Prince's court. One problem is that the Circle of the Crone also lays claim to the nexus as a sacred site and has their own plans for the local Barghests, which they do not need the Ordo meddling in. Another problem is that Aleron has a secret agenda to develop a new Coil that will grant him mastery over ghosts.

#ghost #barghest #animal death #Chronicles of Darkness #geist the sin eaters #Vampire the requiem #mage the awakening #plothooks #rpg inspiration #urban fantasy #urban horror

[zannolin]

JACOB GELLER why do horror games sound so beautiful video the love of my life i love that video so much omg

i was completely in tears by the end of it every hair on my limbs standing up straight from the absolute chilling beauty of some of those tracks. like i was already really into the resident evil save themes—i listen to them when my anxiety gets bad. but oh my god the bit about the evil within 2? and amnesia: a machine for pigs? the machine's monologue. oh my god. i could barely breathe. i'm listening to the everybody's gone to the rapture ost right now and losing my mind.

it really just drove home to me how incredibly profound the stories in video games, especially horror games, can be. there's some absolutely wonderful ones out there and i can't stop thinking about them and how i wish i and other people weren't blocked from experiencing them fully by technological or other restraints. the best i can do for most video games is find someone playing them to watch because i don't have a computer or gaming system capable of running them or the money to get said equipment. and you can get a lot out of a let's play but video games are meant to be played and sometimes i wonder how much more powerful it would be to be the one experiencing the game like that you know. i wish they were taken more seriously as forms of storytelling and art bc holy shit some of these games you know.

#answered asks #anonymous

[papabirdurskeks]

Do you think Sulyvahn is related to Papa bird in any way? I know that based on cut dialogue... He's supposed to be a son of tree witch - but it doesn't tell us much because we don't know who's his dad anyway.

In Dark Souls 3 people are turning into trees so the tree witch could be human oe something else before but it's a conjecture.

Also since the tree is white, but Sulyvahn= little black eyes= crow?

You know, that is a very interesting thought and it's a theory I often see being thrown out there among the lore videos and communities alike!

Given how vague From Soft likes to be about certain aspects of their lore and storytelling, especially with the Dark Souls series, it's very hard to make an accurate conclusion as to who or what Sulyvahn's relation is to Father Ariandel.

From what is confirmed in the game, the spell Snap Freeze, states that Sulyvahn was born within the Painted World and had not experienced loss like many of its denizens; therefore, setting out later in life as such a world held no real purpose for him to stay in. That is a given fact that he is indeed from the Painted World, giving us the closest we have to any sort of relation to Father Ariandel. And said spell is ironically found after the player kills a lone Tree Woman guarding said spell. It is from said that the cut dialogue found in the files of the game belonged to this particular Tree/Birch Woman.

This is what we have in terms of canon of Sulyvahn's connection with the Painted World.

However, as interesting as the idea could be that he and Ariandel could share some sort of relation (father/son, uncle, cousin, brother, anything familial), I do feel the likelihood of it happening is very slim!

When comparing both Sulyvahn to Ariandel, the most they have in similarities is that they are not entirely humanoid in form and both hail from the same worlds so to speak. They also share some sort of religious background as well but, utilize their powers differently from one another. However, when comparing Sulyvahn to the Tree Women, you do notice a lot of similarities between the two: such as the long, lanky frame and arms, pale skin (or bark if that is the case?), and even similar types of magic/weaponry used to defend themselves or fight back.

But if one were to look more closely at the wings Sulyvahn has, they are more akin to tree branches then they are Corvian wings!

Here is a side-by-side comparison of wings from the both of them:

The wings are completely different in structure and form, with his wings being more branch-like and sparse and the humanoid Corvian's baring feathers and volume to resemble that of a bird's wing. The same can be said of the skin textures used for both models. There are obvious ridges or scale like structures placed in the Corvian models then onto Sulyvahn, who looks a bit smoother or bark-like in some views. The body structure is also very different as well. Humanoid Corvians tend to hunch over more and have double jointed arms and legs.

But when looking at the Tree/Birch Women, their branches to which make up the majority of their arms, hands, and fingers, are definitely closer in appearance! The same can be said of his body structure as well!

Suylvahn's body model:

Tree or Birch Woman:

As for the face, well, it's hard to say considering From Soft never truly gave him a face in game for us to find!

What we do get to see though is an interesting look of what could be scarring or roots forming around the base of his jawline and down his neck. Some speculate that the statues outside of his boss arena could be him, but again, it's not entirely clear if this is true or not.

And it's pretty obvious, yes, that he is related the Tree/Birch Women but I only add further emphasis because there is a possibility that Sulyvahn himself is a Birch Person that has yet to take roots like the others do as he never experienced loss in his life, therefore finding no need to keep himself rooted at home in a place that serves him no real purpose, thus he was probably never human to begin with. The wings he has are tree branches sprouting from his back and he uses magic to help keep him afloat as if he really were flying or gliding across the arena.

OR he's a possible hybrid between Corvian and Tree/Birch Woman and said father was probably killed or went his own way prior to his birth. To which again, can be possible as he has those "wings" that sprout midway of his boss battle similar to the way Corvians sprout their wings before attacking, bur again uses magic/spells to keep himself afloat.

Overall, am I saying the idea that Ariandel and Sulyvahn are related is a ton of rubbish? Absolutely not! I do think there can be some interesting merit behind it if further details can be found! But to be truly certain on the idea, it still bears a lot of speculation to look at!

The idea of them being family members to any degree would be very interesting to see come to light!

#matla answers #soulsborne #dark souls 3 #dark souls #pontiff sulyvahn #father ariandel #ashes of ariandel #headcanon territory #non doodle reply

[aotopmha]

Done with FF14 patch 5.2.

I think there are two issues I have with it:

1) How Ardbert's body managed to stay preserved for 100 years for Elidibus to possess it.

2) The filler.

In terms of the first point, usually they address these things in some form, be it in main or side dialog, and I did not get to every piece of side dialog.

(So if anyone knows and can find anything on this, I'd gladly be corrected on whether they do clarify it in some form or not.)

It makes sense for the Cardinal Virtues because their bodies lived on as Sin Eaters.

But as far as we know, Ardbert's was buried for a hundred years. It should be dust.

I think it's a very similar situation to Minfilia's entire plot thread involving the idea of one having to consume the other and the Scions not really putting any effort into trying to separate the two instead, which is a really obvious idea that's never really brought up.

I can fully understand how these can be overlooked writing-wise because the entire situation with Minfilia gives the characters and audience an interesting moral quandary and the situation with Ardbert's body some really nice weight to Elidibus as a villain and character.

And to be fair, I think the implication with Minfilia has always been that they just couldn't find any other solution since as said, one has to absorb the other to be at full power.

The situation with Ardbert's body is tougher because the most we have is the implication of finding his Crystal of Light and returning it to Seto and that the crystal might have preserved the body, but as said, it's never really spelled out directly how his body stayed fine enough for Elidibus to possess.

(I do find it funny that Elidibus supposedly shaved, though.)

For the second point, with the story getting so much better with making sure everything matters in Shadowbringers, some of the side stuff, particularly the subplot with the two guys wanting to become Warriors of Light felt timewaste-y, it reinforces Elidibus' plan, but I feel like that whole aside with them before the dungeon didn't really need to be there and these really stand out in a story with actually decent enough pacing.

I've also been watching a FF7 playthrough recently and it struck me so heavily how concise and straight to the point, but still meaningful that game is with its dialog even through some of the awkward translation.

I love FF14 deeply, but its prose can hurt, especially in the ARR to StB era.

Brevity is the soul of wit, they say and I'm happy Shadowbringers and Endwalker not only much improved the storytelling, but also the prose of the story itself.

I actually felt the difference in prose the most between 3.0 and 3.3-3.5 and 4.0 and 4.1-4.5 earlier on, but Shadowbringers and Endwalker are the true big step forward and I don't mean just not in terms of wasting your time, but also in terms of making the smaller, slower moments just as substantial as the big turning points.

They're still not perfect (oh boy, the lead up to Mt. Gulg and the entire final section before the Atiascope in Labyrinthos), but the story makes sure the slow stuff at least matters by the end. The Moogle quest in HW could be almost entirely removed and nothing much would change, same for the Company of Heroes/wine quest in ARR and most of the chores in StB, particularly the ones involving the Ruby Sea.)

That's what I really like about the Endwalker patches. They're all super evenly paced, always keeping things going within the narrative they're telling. You never linger too long at any point in my eyes. In fact, I feel 6.5 might've needed a little more breathing room with some elements.

But tl;dr, I just really appreciate how much the game has improved narrative pacing-wise despite still not being perfect with it. It's really nice.

#Final Fantasy 14 #Final Fantasy XIV #FFXIV #FF14 #FF #Final Fantasy

[tc-doherty]

Hi happy WBW! (Saw you liked that post, so answer if you’d like, if not, no worries :3c)

What is dragon culture like compared to human ones in your WIP? Are there kingdoms in each? What’s their relationship to one another?

Thank you! I assume this is for Dragon's Daughter, so I will answer accordingly~

Humans, as Patrice is so fond of saying, are complicated. Dragons are much more straightforward. A dragon will tell you exactly what they think of you and what expectations they have of you, and mean everything they say. They can be a little bit more reserved when dealing with humans but generally…dragons don't leave much room for ambiguity.

There are only a few thousand dragons in the world, and they don't have any kingdoms or centralized government. Instead they live in small self-made communities known as cities. Dragons aren't likely to take permanent romantic partners, the bonds that they share with the others in their community are more important to them.

Dragons live for a long time and they tend to be less emotional than humans. They pride themselves on being rational. Dragons are also very concerned with the concepts of choice and personal freedom. While there were initially many conflicts with humans in the past, most dragons long ago decided to retreat to areas that humans would have difficulty accessing. But how much a given city interacts with humans really depends on the dragons within it. While dragons are overall more similar than not, different cities do take on different personalities.

Like humans they have religion, although it's relatively casual, and many holidays. They're fond of the arts, storytelling, and jokes and games. Life among dragons tends to be calm and peaceful.

But due to their reserved and even-tempered natures, certain dragons can find humans' exciting, loud, and overly friendly society to be addicting. Some dragons do choose to live among humans, and once they get used to that it's very difficult to go back. Although they do form close, long-lasting bonds with one another, it's not really the same as the acceptance and emotional support that humans provide to their loved ones.

#writeblr #world building wedneday #Dragon's Daughter #Miracles also has a lot of dragons and focus on dragon culture #sorry if you meant that one! #it's all completely different than this lol

[tasteslikevequill]

Distaste Towards Other Species - Shadow The Hedgehog Headcanons + Some OC Lore.

(Edited to have a cut!)

As of recently, I've been diving into Sonic the Hedgehog again due to Sonic Prime (I finally finished it and have so many disappointed feelings despite loving the show design and concept.)

Which had made me trail off to some OC's of mine. One of which, is a rat. (This isn't an actual OC that has any story or plot, but, is rather more for fun as a visual representation of myself within the franchise. I made one for my beloveds as well -- and I don't use him for storytelling.)

However it made me wonder if Mobians raised by humans would develop certain stereotypes or distaste (prejudice) towards other species of Mobians.

Examples:

-Foxes are sly, cunning and tricksters generally in media.

-Rats are considered gross pests due to carrying diseases or residing in people's trash.

-Pigeons are seen as 'stupid' or the vermin of the sky.

-Lions are considered courageous, brave, or a leader figure.

Would these stereotypes imprinted on Shadow from humans lead him to forming certain thoughts or expectations on different Mobians?

Shadow acknowledges Tails' strengths and cunning ability to event things, and he himself is very intelligent himself and most likely doesn't entirely equate the 'smartness' of Tails to his species -- but more has it play in as a subconscious taint.

Would this effect other Mobians raised by humans as well, especially if their human has pre-instilled notions on how an animal should act and impose it on said mobian?

A character of mine that I would also consider at risk of having these -- is Oyami. One thing that marks him as different from most Mobians is just that, when introducing himself he often leaves out his species.

Example:

"I'm Sonic! Sonic the hedgehog." Vs Oyami...

"I am Oyami."

I don't believe any of the Sonic franchise would ever fully commit to this, but, if we -- as people enjoying the series, games, comics and so on -- really considered a society of humans with Mobians...

These ideas come to mind. I feel like Mobians would carry their own strange stereotypes or expectations of each species, but I feel like Mobians specifically raised in a human environment would carry a specific set of these distastes or even -- liking?

Oyami was adapted by humans through a rehabilitation center, and would be raised with little to no contact with other Mobians. Due to this, he has a different sense of style then most Mobians.

He doesn't wear shoes, he doesn't wear proper gloves and will often forget to put them on. (He's only begun to wear them due to other Mobians.)

I can see him proscribing these ideals subconsciously towards other Mobians. Expecting more of lions, feeling a slight urge to avoid touching a rat, and even being more at ease with dogs.

I think it would be something to consider, especially since Shadow already view himself as the ultimate life form -- it's what he's been told he his and tries to uphold himself to that standard. Would this, this belief installed into him by his human companions, also lead to him developing subconscious ideals towards his fellow Mobians?

That, and we know the racist and grouping tendencies of humans... I doubt Maria or Ivo would install those beliefs into Shadow (racism towards human skin tones,) but perhaps he heard remarks from other researchers and with this ignorance -- been subjected to similar thoughts? Did Maria and Ivo specifically attempt to shelter him from this, and it confuse and then disappoint him with humanity when he inevitably stumbled across it?

How would a storyline with Shadow the Hedgehog speaking against prejudice of someones physical person impact? It would certainly be an interesting way to connect him to an audience...

But this is just my thoughts I decided to rant over. If someone else has anything to add or can think of a good example where something like this is displayed, then, I'd be happy to learn about it.

Images of Oyami (might be outdated:)

#shadow the hedgehog #oc #sonic oc #sonic the hedgehog #rant post #rant #original character #just thinkin #sonic fandom #headcanon #oc lore #sorry for spelling mistakes

[pazodetrasalba]

Of Dragons and Girls (2)

Dear Caroline:

I find beauty as the second iteration less interesting than intelligence, both as a result of how much less I value looks, and because it is more difficult to see you reflected in the second sister, not because you aren't beautiful -to me you are so to a very high degree-, but because I am pretty certain you wouldn't see yourself reflected on the village belle. There seems to be a universal truth embedded within her story, though, and one that might have happened to you: love and reciprocity have an absurd element of arbitrariness (one which my personal vision of heaven/utopia would obliterate with gusto). Some of our worst and most irrational behavior is tied to it.

The third iteration is a master psychologist and storyteller -both roles that easily blend into each other. Breaking the dragon's game requires a reframing which she is supposed to provide. Leaving this for the next entry, we could speculate a bit about what needs to be reframed, and why.

What is meant by the dragon's demand for 'purity of heart'? The impression one gets, from intuition and from the story's examples, is something like complete, altruistic, unmitigated goodness, a commitment to do the right thing as an end in itself, and with no other mercenary purposes or overtones. In a way, this seems like an oblique criticism -and strawmanning- of a deontological demand, where intention (here with a hyperbolic demand to its absolute purity) is the currency at play. This would, of course, be inhuman: even the best of us are far from perfect, and our good deeds tend to be tinged by conscious or unconscious desires of achieving something else with them. The resolution of your story brings pragmatism, and a rejection of (fairytale) absolutes, along with a rejection of an essentialist, inmutable 'self' that can be judged 'good' or 'bad' once and for all. And you've ever been one to look at nuances and shades of grey.

On second thoughts, then, this moves me from the deontological sphere - what you seem to be rejecting is a closed, discrete and perfectly labelled view of self, which while it is something I don't quite find myself completely liking or agreeing with, is pretty reasonable. Rather, it feels that you are right, that it is always a question of degrees and labels the partitioning of a continuous spectrum, like the colors, but it is still something where we could objectively agree for some forms of stability defined in wave spectrums and proximities within certain bounds (cultural-subjective or measurable).

'Pure of heart' brings to mind, of course, the Gospel and the Beatitudes. I remember very distinctly, when I was about 10 years old, studying and memorizing them, and being a bit stumped by them: definitely with this was one, and also with "Blessed are the poor in spirit". What does purity of the heart entail? Any maximalistic reading would implied that no one can actually be saved.

Quote:

Blessed are pure in heart: for they shall see God

Matthew 5:8

#caroline ellison #fiction #folk tales