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argentdandelion · 5 years

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How to Add Angst to the Pacifist Route

Warning: Mentions some very dark angst indeed.

While comparing and contrasting music videos for Undertale Genocide and Pacifist Routes, the author noticed something: the Genocide Route music videos are often better. This could be because the Pacifist Route videos, unlike the Genocide Route ones, are often devoid of emotional weight, complexity, and stakes, ending up less tonally nuanced than the game itself.

One should pay a little more attention to canon details (Frisk actually dies! A lot!) or make reasonable extrapolations to how it would feel in-universe.

(While this article was originally designed for music videos, it is also useful for fanfictions and fan comics.)

1. Frisk is basically an unstoppable, time-warping deity on a rampage of mercy.

Flowey: Why are you being so nice to me? Art by Golzy Blade Dee/Golzy

Frisk never stays dead for long because of their (possibly single-minded) determination to survive and achieve their goals. Frisk can take a direct hit from a god's super-powerful blast, and hold on by a fraction of a point of health. Even if said god outright shatters Frisk's soul, Frisk simply refuses to die. Frisk’s determination apparently can warp fate itself and break all barriers, including, well, the barrier. In essence, Frisk is an unstoppable, unkillable abomination. This would all be terrifying if Frisk weren’t a loving goody two-shoes pacifist....as it is in the Genocide Route. However, even a goody two-shoes Frisk who has never killed anyone, ever, can be frightening. Undyne could easily feel scared when a human child with no known combat experience effortlessly blocks all her attacks.

Then there’s Frisk’s rampage of mercy. Frisk can forgive and befriend anyone, even people who tried to kill them, even those who tried to kill them repeatedly. Why? What does Frisk know that others don’t? Is Frisk on some other level of morality entirely?

It’s not that far-fetched to feel suspicious of people who are too good: after all, some people find the utterly wholesome and compassionate Mr. Rogers unnerving. What would it feel to face off against Frisk, a person one was trying to kill all of ten seconds ago, only to be spared over and over? Flowey himself seems terrified by Frisk’s incomprehensible mercy, as it’s so against the worldview he’s built and his own lack of compassion. He cries, and says: “Why are you being so nice to me?”

One way to make this even more terrifying is to keep Frisk’s face completely neutral at all times, giving a sense of detachment between them and others. (see sample image, where their face is obscured) It makes one wonder: is Frisk truly good, or is it all an act they’re compelled to perform?

2. Frisk endures a lot of pain (and death) when, sometimes, it would be so much easier to kill their foes.

Even when played by an exceptionally skilled player, Frisk will die many times. (due to the inevitable deaths in the Omega Flowey battle) An easy way to add angst to the Pacifist Route is to linger on this gruesome fact. Just because Frisk can come back as many times as they want doesn’t mean it’s easy and painless. How does it feel to die? To hear one’s very SOUL snap in half?

The attacks, too, are surely painful. One could add some realism through attacks having physical effects. For example, when fighting Toriel, Frisk’s clothing and eyebrows could get singed, and they could sweat from either nervousness or the room gradually heating up from all the fire. Or, for more intensity, Frisk’s clothes could catch fire and they’d have to put it out, or Frisk could suffer minor burns just from getting too close to fireballs. The most angsty option of all, for really dark works, is for Frisk to know what it’s like to burn to death, with all its gruesome details.

This angst isn’t completely out of the blue: Flowey expects Frisk to feel terror and agony as he traps them and kills them over and over. One could also make Frisk feel shocked or baffled when returning to life, with phantom pains and injuries even through their HP is fine. Perhaps rewinding time would even make them feel disoriented, or nauseous, or even fill them with existential wrongness.

All throughout this, Frisk would have to wonder: is it worth it to die over and over? Is it worth reviving Undyne, someone so openly out for their blood who has, in fact, killed them multiple times? Wouldn’t it be easier, and so much less painful, to kill rather be killed? Perhaps Frisk can make an exception, just this once, for a particularly aggressive or unforgivable monster. How much do they have to turn the other cheek for people who want them dead?

3. Frisk feels a crushing sense of responsibility to do the right thing for everyone, to give everyone’s story a happy ending.

YES ❤ NO

As anyone vaguely familiar with Spider-Man would know, with great power comes great responsibility. To do the Pacifist Route, Frisk would have to care about the monsters and feel dissatisfied with their fate, to the point of trapping themselves underground and risking getting hurt (and dying) repeatedly. For maximum angst, one can make it one of the worst Neutral endings, all the way to the near-Genocide Queen Alphys ending.

What if, out of a sense of responsibility for monsters’ happiness and security, Frisk resets/reloads repeatedly? What if “good” isn’t good enough?

Some players, hoping to save Asriel, play the game many times. In some works, Frisk does the same, even breaking the rules of the universe for it. For the sake of angst, one could easily make Frisk motivated by guilt: they can’t stand to leave Asriel behind or let him turn back into a soulless flower. That just brings up another guilty angle: why is Frisk so kind? Why did Frisk climb a mountain it’s said no one ever returns from?

In a Post-Pacifist work, Frisk might become a control freak who requires perfect relations between humans and monsters. After a mild diplomatic gaffe (e.g., a monster spilling punch on a human diplomat), Frisk might reload and relive several hours’ worth of a diplomatic event just to prevent that from happening. One could easily make Frisk a secretly lonely, anxiety-prone hero because of the immense responsibility. Perhaps, after seeing the same predictable responses, Frisk would become like Flowey, and reduce everyone to roles to play. Yet, Frisk would still do good, though more by reflex than actual compassion.

4. Frisk is alone in their power and knowledge.

Frisk is the only one who can rewind time. That’s a lot of power and responsibility for anyone, and certainly for a child who didn’t even choose to have that ability.

With no possible mentors (if they don’t ask Flowey), how will they learn how and when to use their power effectively? In-game, the player goes back to a previous point either by closing the game and opening it up again or when Frisk’s HP goes to zero. However, as there’s not really an in-game explanation for closing and re-opening the game window, Frisk may only know how to reload by dying.

This could be played for morbid humor, such as Frisk wondering what a Tide Pod tastes like, or massive angst. For maximum angst (risking over-the-top grimdark status, which I don't recommend), Frisk feeling the need to painfully reload every time something goes even slightly wrong could, over time, reduce their will to live—the very determination that enables that power. Frisk's very sense of self-preservation might erode: for example, they might idly wonder how many lethal food allergies and how to test them all. If one wants to get really, really dark, someone could catch Frisk trying to reload in some horrible way, and Frisk would have to explain themselves.

The only one who can understand what it’s like to control the timeline, to die over and over, and potentially to feel an existence estranged from others is Flowey. Depending on how much Frisk knows about Flowey and Frisk’s understanding of morality, Frisk may simply consider Flowey ‘evil’. If Flowey has this power and is evil, or got this power and then became evil, what if Frisk feels doomed to become evil someday, too?

For extra angst, Frisk may come to be more like Flowey in worldview or behavior and not even know, because they’ve never done a Genocide Route/never so far into the route. More sympathetically, Flowey became a lonely wreck partly because he spent so much time exhausting the possibilities of the Underground. At first, Frisk might reload only when something bad happens. But what if Frisk gets curious about alternate paths, and what would happen if they said something else instead? That would be a step towards Flowey.

#Undertale #Undertale Analysis

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crimsonrevolt · 7 years

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Congratulations Sierra you’ve been accepted to Crimson Revolt as Florence Wilson!

↳ please refer to our character checklist

The way you fleshed out Florence and made her entirely your own was something that really struck us -- given that there’s not a lot to go on with canon information for her. But you built her up in our heads, and it was beautiful to see a fully formed and fleshed out character come to life in our imaginations! We’re so excited to see her on the dash and see what potential plots you come up with for her! *your faceclaim change has been accepted

application beneath the cut

OUT OF CHARACTER

INTRODUCTION

Hey there! I’m Sierra, I’m 22, and I use they/them/their pronouns. I live in the EST (GMT -5) time zone! I also play Hestia here.

ACTIVITY

I try to post at least four out of seven days of the week, though I’ve been getting better at time management as the semester winds down! I’d probably give myself a 7 out of 10? .

TRIGGERS

*removed for privacy

HOW DID YOU FIND US?

I think I originally found the RP through the HP RP tag, though I’ve been playing Hestia here for a while now!

WHAT HARRY POTTER CHARACTER DO YOU IDENTIFY WITH MOST?

Most frequently I identify with Luna Lovegood; she is fiercely loyal, intensely kind, and willing to fight for anyone she cares about. She has a unique point of view and may not quite understand the world around her at times, but at the end of the day she is one of those people who wants to listen to the people around her and make the world a better place.

ANYTHING ELSE?

Nothing at the moment! But if you want some fun facts about me … here we go? I want to be a Rabbi and I’ve been teaching myself Hebrew, German, and Dutch over the past year or so. I also have read the Harry Potter series in Spanish.

IN CHARACTER

DESIRED CHARACTER

Florence Irene Wilson;

Florence, from the Latin Florentius or Florentia, means “flourishing” or “prosperous.” It is also the name of the city where Mr. Wilson proposed to his wife.

Irene, from the Greek Eirene, means “peace” and is derived from the name of the Greek goddess who personified peace, or one of the Horai. It is also the name of Florence’s late maternal grandmother who died months before Florence was born.

Wilson, from the English ‘son of Will.’ It is a surname that has been in the family for generations.

FACE CLAIM

If possible, can I change Florence’s faceclaim to Felicity Jones? I feel like she has a lot of similar aesthetic qualities to Troian Bellasario but is more of an underused faceclaim. My second choice of a faceclaim for Florence would be Willa Holland; my third choice would be Camila Mendez.

REASON FOR CHOSEN CHARACTER

Florence has always found a reason to fight. She is too strong-willed and too outspoken to let something that bothers her go unnoticed. There are beginnings of a fire within her, sparks flying, hoping that a fire will catch on and burn through the darkness of her current world. As a girl who cares far too much about justice, Florence is never satisfied with the way that things are. She is the first to stand up when someone asks for help and the last to step down when things look bleak. Still, despite all of this, Florence doesn’t just want to fight. She wants to make some kind of a difference, to foster real, tangible change. The Order wasn’t doing enough to satisfy her; they were careful, slow, and too under the radar. After leaving Hogwarts, it became clear to Florence that there was too much at stake. She is a Muggleborn, the only witch in her family. With her right to existence on the line, this war is far too personal for her not to join in Aversio’s efforts.

PREFERRED SHIPS // CHARACTER SEXUALITY // GENDER & PRONOUNS

Florence/Chemistry

Florence dedicates herself wholly to a cause, whether it be her work with house elfs or her dedication to Aversio’s cause. It isn’t often that someone catches her eye romantically; sure, there are people she doesn’t mind looking at … people too good-looking to ignore. While she isn’t entirely opposed to having a one night stand or a fling, the idea isn’t the most attractive in the world. She would prefer a long-term relationship, but only if it was with the right person. For most of her life Florence has been too occupied with her work and special interests to truly pursue a relationship, though, and she doesn’t see that changing any time soon. That being said … things can always change!

CREATE ONE (OR MORE!) OF THE FOLLOWING FOR YOUR CHARACTER:

-A MOODBOARD

https://68.media.tumblr.com/42a4f4abdd52d83c7d191732289cee6c/tumblr_or3oq4nFbX1vgn58eo1_500.png

- A FEW HEADCANONS

Myers-Briggs Personality Type: ISTJ-A, The Logistician

“Logisticians don’t make many assumptions, preferring instead to analyze their surroundings, check their facts and arrive at practical courses of action. Logistician personalities are no-nonsense, and when they’ve made a decision, they will relay the facts necessary to achieve their goal, expecting others to grasp the situation immediately and take action. Logisticians have little tolerance for indecisiveness, but lose patience even more quickly if their chosen course is challenged with impractical theories, especially if they ignore key details – if challenges becomes time-consuming debates, Logisticians can become noticeably angry as deadlines tick nearer.” Wand Type: 10.5 inches, Cedar wood, unicorn hair core

IN CHARACTER QUESTIONNAIRE

The following section should be looked at like a survey for your character. Answer them in character and feel free to use gifs. Or, if you’d rather, answer them in third person or OOC without gifs. Answers do not have to be extremely lengthy.

♔ If you were able to invent one spell, potion, or charm, what would it do, what would you use it for or how would you use it? Feel free to name it:

“This sounds absolutely ridiculous, but I would love to create a spell that could check my writing for any sort of grammatical errors. It’s not that I’m a horrible writer – it can just be so time consuming to go through something twice, three times, or even more, only to find that I’ve messed up something as simple as a semicolon. I’m sure someone’s thought of it before … though I’ve never heard of it, so … maybe it doesn’t?”

♔ You have to venture deep into the Forbidden Forest one night. Pick one other character and one object (muggle or magical), besides your wand, that you’d want with you:

“Merlin, that’s a tough one. I suppose I’d have to go with Ted Tonks, though. He’s just one of those people that I trust implicitly with those kinds of things. He seems pretty smart and levelheaded, and he just gives off vibes that he would protect someone and stand by them no matter what. – and I guess I’d bring my pepper spray, seeing as it hasn’t failed me yet.”

♔ What kinds of decisions are the most difficult for you to make?

“When I know that something is right for me personally but isn’t best for everyone else, it can be difficult to prioritize things. I don’t like putting myself first … but there are times when its necessary.”

♔ What is one thing you would never want said about you?

“I never want people to say that I don’t try or that I’m fighting a meaningless fight. People who can’t try to understand what I’m doing probably haven’t had something to fight for in their lives.”

WRITING SAMPLE

Sitting alone in her parents’ living room, Florence felt a burning inside of her. It started in her head, rearing its ugly, searing pain each and every time she recalled a Missing Person poster or read another obituary describing a thoughtless, unnecessary death. It travelled down to her cheeks, red and filled with a kind of fury that she hadn’t felt before. There were no tears left inside of her. Even if she wanted to cry, she couldn’t bring herself to let a single tear drop from her eyes. To cry would be to surrender to the pain, to let it overwhelm her and take away any agency that she felt left. And yet, no matter how much Florence wanted to fight the pain, to stand up and shout, to throw something across the room just to watch it break, she couldn’t bring herself to do so. It weighed her down, pressing on her shoulders with the pressure of a thousand heavy bricks. At school, just a few short years ago, ignoring news from the outside world seemed easy. She didn’t care as much for updates from the Daily Prophet as she did for letters from her mother and father. The Wizarding World, even after all the years she’d spent at Hogwarts, still felt a little foreign to her. Florence connected more to news about Parliament than the Ministry and wanted to hear more about ongoings at home than the winner of Witch Weekly’s Most Charming Smile. But now that she had graduated and returned back to the comfort of her Muggle home, she yearned for a way to stay in the loop about the war in the Wizarding World. While the Prophet’s updates came steadily, they were impersonal, reducing people with families, hopes, and ambitions to nothing more than a name and a ‘Last Seen’ date. Panic set in nearly every time she opened the paper. Which of her friends would be the first to appear on the list of missing or murdered people? When would the war finally hit her too close to home? Florence tore the Obituary page from the paper, crumpling it in her fist. Kenzie Blair. The young woman’s face swam in her memory. It must’ve been at least a year since they spoke; Florence never considered the younger girl to be more than an acquaintance, a somewhat-annoying, bit-too-chatty Hufflepuff that just wanted to make friends. In her mind, Kenzie had always seemed a bit younger than she actually was, eternally fourteen no matter how old she actually turned. Now, of course, the younger woman would always be seventeen, barely old enough to apparate, much less to make a name for herself. Florence got up from the bed and crossed the room to throw away the balled-up paper. Looking at it only infuriated her, making her want to scream. Almost without thinking, Florence headed to her own bedroom, slamming the door behind her. The letter from Kingsley Shacklebolt lay on her desk, just where she’d left it for the past month. Taking a piece of paper, Florence shakily wrote three short words on the page before shoving it into the envelope and sending it off to Kingsley with her owl. “Let me fight.”

#florence wilson #hp rp #hp rpg #marauders rp #lsrpg #accepted app

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