#misfit dragons storyline

[serenums]

the misfit dragons storyline makes no senseeee

the diplomat in that situation was supposed to be wrathion & turns out vyranoth was the one to convince both the netherwing flight AND the thorignir to come to the dragon isles

i like vyranoth & i like a nice redemption arc but again, it feels like wrathion was there just to... fill some empty space or something. man. this is disappointing

#jade.txt #justice for wrathion fr #dragonflight #wrathion #misfit dragons storyline

[silriven]

Thoughts on the Badlands Campaign

So I finally got around to playing the Badlands storyline for myself. I went into this thinking "oh, maybe I'm reading way too much into the quest text, maybe when I play it myself, I'll see why everyone tends to find Rhea the sympathetic one in the story here."

I'm here to report that, uh, no, when I was the one actually taking eggs from the imprisoned mother and then murdering both her and her children in game, I found it just as impactful. Maybe a little more. We do some really despicable things for "the greater good" here.

The black dragon body count racked up by you, the player character, in this questline is thirty-six: 12 darklight soldiers, 22 whelps, Velarok, and Nyxondra. Alliance characters get a trio of enthusiastic dwarf sidekicks to help us with some of this.

The saddest part about playing this, for me, was realizing that when Rhea sends you after the escaped Nyxondra, you find her circling above her brood. So her first act of freedom was to go to the surviving experiments to try and protect them. You then kill 12 for the quest.

Another sad thing is her one line of dialogue, which is also the last thing she ever says: "My kin won't forget what you've done! We will rage, mortals!" Have her kin actually forgotten? We don't know, because so far, none of the black dragonflight have brought this up.

(There are these lines from the recent "Misfit Dragon" quest line with Wrathion and Vyranoth in patch 10.2, though, which I still love. It's a stretch, but it could be a nod to a lot of Badlands story things, including this, so there's that at least.)

All of this is on top of the suffering endured by Nyxondra "off-screen" as Rhea forced her to lay eggs while she was an invisible prisoner trapped within eyeshot of her unaware kin ("right in the middle of their breeding grounds"). It's unknown for how long.

One last interesting thing that stood out to me was that Rhea refers to herself "an envoy of Alexstrasza herself", so I think it's not a question of "if" Alex knew about this but "how much" did she know.

There's also a very dark joke about draconic diplomacy somewhere in here

The part of the quest that I think is really most affecting is when Rhea seems to have an epiphany and realize the extent of the pain that she's caused, but then she immediately doubles down on the excuse that Nyxondra's sacrifice "was necessary." Nyxondra, of course, seems to disagree strongly. Her free will has been taken from her by Rhea, she has no agency in this situation.

After this, Rhea sends a Champion out to "put her out of her misery," like she's a wounded animal. It's barbaric.

Then there's this line: "The Red Dragonflight is as benevolent as it is powerful." This is the final bit of salt in the wound. The Red Dragonflight was anything but benevolent in this quest. I think the only way you could come to that conclusion is if you see the corrupted black dragons as not only past the point of saying, but as lesser beings who are disposable, whose pain is some kind of comeuppance for having succumbed to the Old Gods.

It's another case in World of Warcraft of corruption being associated with moral "badness" by the narrative. The narrative in this game constantly implies that the dragons who succumb to corruption do so because they have some kind of moral failing or moral weakness. The narrative tells us that black dragons "deserve" not just to be killed but be made to suffer for their madness and for the actions they took while under the Old Gods' influence.

Rhea even says this somewhat explicitly: Nyxondra supposedly deserves what Rhea is doing to her because of what her flight did to Alexstrasza. Her suffering isn't just the consequence of cold science being done to save the future of the black dragonflight, it's deliberately retributive.

I'm not really going anywhere with this, just kind of wanted to talk again about how (intentionally or not) Wrathion's origin story is dark as hell.

#silriven: ruminations #nyxondra #rheastrasza #rhea #badlands #world of warcraft #wrathion

[cantsayidont]

August 1978. The first year of non-adaptation STAR WARS comics was rocky: a lackluster serialized adventure in PIZZAZZ, with Luke, Leia, and the droids crash-landing on a world full of monsters, and a clunky SEVEN SAMURAI/MAGNIFICENT SEVEN pastiche in STAR WARS, with Han and Chewbacca recruiting a group of misfits to fight a bandit leader on a backwater planet, a tired plot burdened with too many in-jokes (the bandit leader, Sergi-X Arrogantus, is a parody of comics artist Sergio Aragonés!). They're pretty bad, and it was likely only the wild popularity of the movie that kept the series going.

With issue #11, cover-dated May 1978, Archie Goodwin took over as writer/editor, while Carmine Infantino (whom Lucas had apparently wanted originally) becoming the principal artist. Goodwin's first storyline isn't a great improvement, a convoluted and overlong mess involving a gang of starship wreckers on a water world called Drexel, sentient telepathic dragons (pretty obviously inspired by Anne McCaffrey's popular DRAGONRIDERS OF PERN novels), and a band of space pirates (first seen in #7, the first post-movie issue) with a refitted Imperial Star Destroyer. That storyline's most useful accomplishment is to bring the main characters back together, something that may have reflected behind-the-scenes negotiations between Lucasfilm and Harrison Ford, who had not initially committed to appearing in subsequent films. With Ford signed for THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, Goodwin was able to reestablish the character dynamics that had helped to make the first movie such a hit: the bickering triangle of Han, Luke, and Leia, with Chewbacca and the droids on hand for occasional comic relief.

I have mixed feelings about Goodwin's STAR WARS stories. He had a good grasp of the characters, his original characters are interesting, and he navigated the various Lucasfilm-imposed constraints as well as anyone could have. In particular, he uses the mandate to limit direct confrontations between the heroes and Darth Vader to good effect dramatically, staging a series of near-misses that serve to make Vader more threatening as a villain. On the other hand, Goodwin's individual plots tend to run on too long, which saps their momentum. For instance, the Wheel storyline in #18–23, in which the "Star Warriors" are trapped aboard a giant space-casino run by Leia's charming but unscrupulous former senatorial colleague Simon Greyshade, has a novel setting, good villains, and a creepy subplot about Luke having put himself in a catatonic state in his first attempt to meditate on the Force. However, what might have been a banger at four parts feels strained at six, with contrived subplots about Han and Chewbacca having to compete against each other in the Wheel's deadly gladiatorial games, and the homoerotic relationship between Greyshade and the Wheel's sentient master computer (which is less interesting than it sounds). Also, wherever Goodwin tries too hard for emotional impact, the results are often overly precious. This weighs down some otherwise excellent stories like "A Princess Alone!" (#30), a Princess Leia solo adventure in which Leia infiltrates an Imperial industrial planet to reach her former teacher from Alderaan. It's a good showcase for Leia, and the story's depiction of Imperial labor practices is suitably horrifying, but Goodwin eventually overplays his hand with a subplot about a young girl inspired by Leia's heroism, which ends things on a treacly note.

Goodwin continued writing and editing the comic book through the EMPIRE adaptation (in #39–44), but after that, he wrote only a few more stories and relinquished the editorial role to Louise Jones, shifting his focus to running Marvel's Epic line and to writing the STAR WARS newspaper strip. The newspaper strip is more polished than the comic book, aided by very attractive art by Al Williamson, but Goodwin's plots have the same weaknesses, and the energy level is notably lower than his earlier SW comic book stories. This is particularly pronounced in later reprints of the strip, which Dark Horse reedited in the late '90s to color comic book format, making the already somewhat laconic pacing feel choppy to boot. The comic strip also doesn't follow the same continuity as the comic book, which is distracting if you're familiar with both.

#comics #marvel star wars #star wars #archie goodwin #carmine infantino #terry austin #luke skywalker #han solo #leia organa #chewbacca #c3po #r2d2 #bob wiacek #al williamson

[less-than-three-3]

octopath traveler 2 - a masterclass in developing a sequel and an instant classic

I think that in games, when developing a sequel, it’s not uncommon to see a team take feedback and make changes that try to make it more widely received. Often, I feel that in that endeavor it’s easy to lose sight of what made the original game uniquely tick or feel like it did. Don’t just take my word for it (though what games I feel fall into this category can be controversial), it’s something that Sakurai has often mentioned before, for example.

Octopath Traveler II is a master class in how not to fall into that pitfall, and not just one of the best sequels (most improved award), but I think one of the best turn based RPG’s to date, at least by modern standards. I think it’s probably not a game that’s for everyone’s taste, but if you go in without expectations, I think it’s hard to ever really be let down. Likely spoilers below (especially end-game spoilers), but I’ll try to leave them to the end.

Before digging into the sequel though, I just want to briefly touch on octopath 1 in 2023. Something that I think about a lot is Scott’s retrospective on 3D World (I ain’t timestamping this one sorry), specifically, that 3D World was given a good bit of flack on release because it felt like it was “taking 3D mario into a bad direction” when, in a post-Odyssey world, we can really look back and really appreciate 3D World for what it is, and not judge it for what it isn’t (watch the whole video, it’s a great retrospective). 

All this to basically say, I think a lot of the flack that octopath 1 got was kind of in the same vein. People really wanted it to be what it wasn’t. It’s not a Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest, where you get a ragtag team of misfits banded together on a big journey, maybe with small individual branches along the way. It’s 8 very differently motivated individuals who just kind of pick each other up and just happen to help each other do their thing. The exp sharing and party system I can get being annoying, but I don’t think it’s really more than just a minor annoyance at worst, and I can get behind it being good to push the player to experiment with team composition (your leader gets somewhat overleveled but I really never found it that much more broken than synergies you get by mid-game). In another game that I love, Ruined King, they do have full party exp share, and while I loved experimenting and moving parts around to make different comps, I definitely felt that is very self-motivated, and the game doesn’t have too much in place to force you to move people around besides required character segments. Random encounters... I get complaining about it, but again it feels like idiot-proofing the level curve, because so often I see people in games with “walking encounters” just never ever fight them and then complain about being underleveled and having to “grind”. 

This might feel like an odd rant to go on, and yeah it is partially just me getting on my damn soapbox and saying “octopath 1 was good actually”, but it’s important as context for why I find octopath 2 to be such a brilliant game (and because octopath 2 gives a new appreciation for these elements). I love the RPGSite review because it sums up this angle really well:

“As I mentioned previously, Octopath Traveler is meant to be a structurally open game that values player freedom. The overall arrangement of eight individual characters with eight distinct storylines may not fit the more traditional and expected structure of a unified JRPG party and a unified goal, thus some concessions are made in order to fit that vision in terms of character dynamics.   Maybe it took falling in love with the SaGa games - which share some common components - for me to begin to understand what Octopath was trying to do all along, but I think this was the right direction to take the sequel in. I'd rather not see Octopath change dramatically and risk its identity in order to conform to expectations it doesn’t try to meet. If you’re looking for linear, story-driven, party-centric RPGs, there are an abundance of them.”

Don’t get me wrong - I’m not saying the original is perfect. I found some of the stories not that interesting (or maybe I just never gave them a chance!), and certainly the character interactions were a little sparse and unimpactful. But that’s where octopath 2 really shines beyond its origins, because I think the entire cast is absolutely wonderful, and their interactions, both in their paired quests and side-banted, ooze character. There is certainly a disparity between characters because they are all such different people, but as you get through chapters you can definitely feel them warm up to each other and get to understand each other’s perspectives. It’s such a breath of fresh air because in the original I felt like a lot of them were kind of just, one character asking the other for advice, and then they give it? And the structure of the chapters is so varied in the sequel, including how and when to use path actions (the night/day system helps a lot), when in the original it definitely felt a bit cut and paste.

I don’t even know where to start with the characters and their stories. I guess, like with Live-a-Live, I’ll just list them from my least favorite to favorite, but just know that I loved all of them.

8. Agnea - her motivations really kind of felt the most octopath 1 out of everyone, and not necessarily in the best way? I mean, she’s pretty much like Tressa, who I love don’t get me wrong, but it is just strange to me that, throughout every single chapter, it never really, like, felt like there should really be conflict? It’s a weird way to put it, but she is pretty much just going to become a star, and that sure is the journey she goes on. I don’t even really think she has many foreshadowing moments, but I might have just missed those? She’s super adorable and lovable and brings everyone cheer, and her story is very much the lighthearted one, so I suppose it fits. I don’t know, it just didn’t fully click for me. Great member of the party, I just wasn’t the most invested. Part of it may also just be that it feels like so different from Prim, who was easily one of the best characters from 1.

I think that is literally the only vaguely negative one I have, and I didn’t even really dislike her story, I just was least invested in it lmao

7. Throne (I will be leaving out the accent sorry I’m lazy) - I think the premise and split path and internal and external qualms are interesting, but I just kinda felt like it was Therion-lite. The final twist... sure is a twist of all time. I’m not in love with her story in retrospect, but it was like good enough moment to moment. Kinda like Lycoris Recoil, thinking about it.

6. I guess Osvald is 6th? These rankings past 8 are definitely pretty wishy washy. His character and story and motivation is just. anguish. Everything sucks (for Osvald). Harvey sucks. At every step you think you cannot get more upset at the situation and it just keeps on getting worse. How. Incredible.

5. Ok I fucking love Partitio but I would be remiss to rank his story too highly, because he is just god’s gift to mercantilism. He can do no wrong. There is no growth. But he’s really fucking charismatic and funny so it totally makes sense. It’s also really funny that he is the most socialist merchant ever, and he takes down the chains of capitalism and their absurd contracts and loopholes and then that final boss fight is just so awesome. I love Partitio.

4. Hikari also goes in the middle for just being A Political War Drama (I love those). He’s pretty much simba. But like, a dark, fucked up version of simba. I don’t know if I have that much else to say about it, that pretty much is everything. 

3. Castti is really really interesting. Piecing together lost memories felt a little cliche to start, but the story being put together and the final few turns of the story were absolutely gut wrenching and my god what an incredible story. She is the mom of the group, and I don’t know if she was really that much more.

2. Temenos is a really interesting cleric character, and a huge departure from Ophilia (for the better). He is pretty much just Sherlock, from Sherlock. He can really be an asshole, and it’s really interesting to see this kind of angle, and not in a “church bad” trope, but in a “church good? but we need to fix the church?”. I would probably be mobbed for not mentioning Crick. So I have. I cannot talk about Crick without massive spoilers. If you finished his story you know why. Great character, great story.

1. Ochette may not belong up here but she is by far my favorite character what a fucking idiot I love her dearly. Just too stupid to live. There are like, a maximum of two things on her mind, ever. Her arc is great. She is voiced by Yuffie Kisaragi, the best character in FF7R. I am biased. This is my write-up. What are you gonna do about it.

Speaking of Live-A-Live, I can’t help but think Team Asano working on that remake helped reinvigorate some notable improvements in this sequel. Obviously the Octopath games have a lot of flesh and blood from Live-A-Live to begin with. But the final chapter of the game felt very reminiscent of that of LAL, both in terms of literal story structure, but especially with the worldbuilding and foreshadowing dropped throughout the game. I will spare many of the details, but I really liked the way that the foreshadowing is much more apparently integrated into events, major and minor, in each character’s story. 

The combat system being pretty much the same, but with an extra new gauge, is great, because the original combat system was already really great. I truly think that if you have complaints about the break/boost system, the game probably just is not for you. I vibe with it, I get it, I love it. Latent powers just add a new extra layer to how to approach turn planning and break timing. Such a small change that adds so much.

Class rebalancing/skill changes were also very noticeable for the better. I feel like a good amount of people must have complained about access to aoe because good aoe is pretty much a premium now, unless your name is ochette (and even then you really have to look for it) or osvald (scholar privilege, ig). Support skills shifting around makes for different dynamics in approaching battles, and I especially love the new hidden classes, specifically Inventor, though Arcanist and Conjurer are neat too (though Arcanist gets really broken... but it’s ok because merchant is a pretty weak class otherwise?). My only real complaint is that I wish you could refund/re-allocate JP in some way, and that’s just because I love experimenting with class combinations.

The day/night system giving pretty much 2 of every “ability” per time of day makes pretty much any comp good for just roaming around town stealing getting to know the townspeople. Having time-specific passive abilities is a neat function, but I think there is definitely a good amount of room to build upon this. A very great seed planted for a future game. There will be a future game, right?

Being up to level curve was only really a struggle for one level jump, I think it was right before chapter 3, but I think they make patching up those last couple levels really easy with all of the exp boosting tools they give you, and really early (I had not equipped them because I thought it was only for the equipping character - no, they’re bonuses for the whole active party - and that’s probably why I got a little behind). Otherwise just going through chapters, traveling from one place to another, exploring the side dungeons, the natural leveling pace felt, well mostly unnoticeable, which I think is the best place for a leveling curve to be? 

Dungeon design strictly in terms of explorability is nothing mindblowing, but it more than makes it up with the visual and sound design. Even now 2DHD still looks fucking wonderful and I wish so badly for the DQ3 remake to come out and other 2DHD games to come out. And yes, the music is incredible. I feel like often people just mention the battle themes, and yes, they go hard, but with both Octopath 1 and 2 every single environment has such unique sonic character. I don’t necessarily know if the best town themes come close to my favorites from the original (Orewell my beloved), but just the sheer variety in character, instrumentation, and composition is very much still ever-present, and I wish Yasunori Nishiki many many more opportunities in the future because he is genuinely one of the greats. Even better, though, like in any good musical design, is when the sound just cuts out. There is nothing more unsettling, especially in a game with such a lush soundtrack, than silence. Every such moment is incredible. I could literally make an entire separate essay on the sound design of these games (I have), but I won’t gush on and on here. 

Octopath Traveler II is a game that really really plays into its strengths, and even while it successfully patches up most of of its original’s actual weaknesses, it is very much its strengths that continue to really shine. It is an RPG experience unlike any other out there, and if it’s one you are keen to experience, you will have a wonderful time. This is one of my favorite turn-based RPG’s, followed closely by Team Asano’s own Triangle Strategy, and I think it still has incredibly high potential to continue to iterate on its niche. I absolutely think this will be one of the more influential games of the genre for the future - a modern classic, while still feeling solidly rooted in its inspirations from the SNES golden era. 

#octopath ii #octopath traveler #jrpg #jrpg review #octopath spoilers

[roseborough-if]

Dragon Age/Mass Effect anon here (I feel like I need a sign-off at this point because I've sent you so many asks 😔), I only got into them about two years because the person I was dating was obsessed. I love the story and plot in Origins, the characters in DA2, and the romance options in Inquisition (Josephine and Sera have my heart). I think overall though DA2 is my favorite due to the tragedy of it all. Jdifbfofn anyways my question here is what your favorite Dragon Age game is 🎤

i don't mind getting asks about non-story related stuff too, especially about video games, sjskssjjs, so you're good. 💞

spoilers for the games underneath!!

ahhh, yes, i always struggle with this question because i love them all for different reasons. origins is a very nostalgic game for me and makes me the most emotional out of all of them. i haven't known peace since i played it for the first time and declined morrigan's deal because it seemed so fishy to me and my warden ended up dying a tragic death. i adore zevran and leliana the most out of the bunch. 🌹 idk if we will ever get it, but imagine playing it with next gen graphics, that would be so sexy. 🤯

da2 is so good, bro. it's my least played game, but the characters are my faves out of them all, i would do anything for my boy fenris, i love him so much i feel insane. 🥺 the fact that hawke and their merry band of misfits have no real goal or a world to save is my favourite thing about it, they're just random people that get pulled into the wildest shit imaginable and it's beautiful.

i know a lot of people consider inquisition the worst one, but i love it. i'm fondest of my main protagonist out of the rest of my dragon age ocs, and i just really enjoy her and solas' storyline. 🥚 i'm also really into the evanuris, i think they're so cool!! corypheus is super lame, though, i don't think he's an interesting villain at all, tbh.

anyway

tldr: i can't choose, don't make me choose. 😔

#mailbox

[hughmanrights]

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor among Thieves

Director(s):

John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein

Main cast:

Chris Pine, Michelle Rodriguez, Rege-Jean Page, Justice Smith, Sophia Lillis, Hugh Grant and Daisy Head.

Runtime: 134 minutes.

Does it pass the Bechdel test? Yes

Basic Plot:

A rag-tag group of misfits and warriors fight for their lives against malevolent forces.

Overall Thoughts:

Dungeons and Dragons: Honor among Thieves is an excellent action high-fantasy film. The special effects, storyline, acting, costumes and comedy are all high quality. Moreover, while this film is set in a high-fantasy film, Honor among Thieves gives enough information to guide those unfamiliar with Dungeons and Dragons. A fun movie overall.

Overall rating: 4.8 out of 5 stars.

#dungeons and dungeons #dungeons & dragons #dungeons & dragons: honor among thieves #chris pine #michelle rodriguez #regé jean page #justice smith #Sofia Lillis #hugh grant #daisy head #fantasy film #john francis daley #Jonathon Goldstein #heist film #fantasy

[thequestersrest]

Hello and welcome to the Questers Rest, a place for adventures of all types and trades. Here, we offer amazing beds and on the road essentials for you, our most esteemed! And who knows who you might just run into at such a place? Perhaps a future party member or perhaps the enemy that’s been hot on your trail? Whichever it is, we at the Questers Rest hope you enjoy your stay and recommend us to future guests.

Extra Note, Regarding My FF7 Muses: Due to the disappointment I felt with the second half of the Remake, I have decided to represent their canon appearances within the 1997 release as well as the following versions included in: Crisis Core & Advent Children.

[ carrd ] rules will be placed here, be sure you’ve read them all—and thoroughly! Otherwise you’ll be under the Fizzle spell until you do so.

Muses and description are below the cut, if you have any questions regarding my muses, please let me know.

(DQ11) Hero, the 11th Luminary — hailing from the quaint mountain side village of Cobblestone, 11 is a young man who recently came into his powers as Luminary at the meagre age of 16. 11 was raised in Cobblestone as a baby, but is really the long lost prince from the once thriving Kingdom of Dundrasil. Already, his life is full of risks and dangers as he navigates the world with his quirky band of misfits, hoping to put a stop to the evil Jasper before the world is thrust into an ever lasting era of darkness.

(DQ11) Sylvando, *ahem* that’s the “Great Sylvando” to you, honey~ — originally hailing from Puerto Valor, Sylvando is the son of the famous Don Rodrigo, a legendary knight who would go on to train Hendrick and Sylvando in the art of combat. Yet, knighthood wasn’t where Sylvando’s heart resided. And so, with an eager heart Sylvando set out to carve his own destiny. Wanting more than anything to bring smiles to people’s faces around the world as a circus performer. He would later join the Luminary’s conquest against the dark forces that threatens their world.

(DQ11) Hendrick, the Luminary’s sworn shield — a strong and well-built man, Hendrick serves as the general of the Heliodor army, alongside his fellow compatriot, Jasper. Born in Zwaardsrust, Hendrick would go on to train under the ever-watchful eye of Don Rodrigo, alongside his son Sylvando. He would also serve as one the storylines temporary antagonists, believing that the Luminary was the Darkspawn. (Under construction)

(Chrono Cross) Harle, the franglais speaking-jester — The ever-mysterious and beautiful jester, Harle serves as Lynx’s right-hand women and later on, the protagonist’s temporary ally. She displays a playful and flirtatious side upon meeting Serge, the central protagonist, she is also very skilled in black elemental magic. [Major plot spoiler ahead] It is also later revealed that despite her human appearance, Harle is actually the 7th dragon who’s power is directly tied to the moon. Her proper title is the Dark Moon Dragon.

(Chrono Cross) Karsh,

(Chrono Cross) Glenn,

(Final Fantasy VII) Sephiroth, —

(Gurren Lagann) Kamina, the headstrong leader of Team Dai Gurren:

(Dragon Ball) Gohan,

(Dragon Ball) Cell,

(Dragon Ball) Vegito

(Dragon Ball) Gogeta,

(Dragon Ball) Android 17

(Dragon Ball) Android 18,

(Dragon Ball) Android 21,

(Hellsing) Alucard,

( coming soon… )

[dragonmickie]

BY THE WAY LAST(?) NIGHT I had a dream about dragon age 4 dropping and first of all. It was Not Good like from a gameplay standpoint, disregarding my typical "random inability to do a physical action and have it do something" dream thing, it was just pretty wonky.

There were two storylines you can either play or it automatically switches between them at plot points? which is. Something anyways there are two sides, Solas's, which also had Varric, Cassandra, Dorian for some reason, and the inquisitor ?? the other involved the New player character and mostly new characters, but also Alistair, Merrill, Isabela and Zevran were there. The new characters had a real "band of misfits" vibe. the new player character had a variety of customization options genderwise, and you could also choose to play your warden? OH ALSO alistair looked like he did in da2 i was like naur not again?

I can't remember the plot very well, but there was like a big war in like a valley or smth, and there was this sort of... crater? ravine? where the Solasheads were at. there was green shit everywhere all fadey like. For some reason there was another.. fuck whats it called. DAI Orb. but it was huge and Varric floated above it. For Some Reason. Anyways they were fighting Grey Wardens, and solas was like UGH if only they were exiled in inquisition 🙄 the inquisitor for some reason had magic rift powers but no weapons? on the OTHER side, the Misfits were running around towns and villages trying to save civilians from the War Stuff going on. the dialogue went back to DAO type dialogue but with voice acting, but the controls were bad. or maybe it was the dream thing. anyways I hope they don't do this. Id say id wish they brought back merrill bela and zev and alistair :( but they'd fuck them up for sure LOL

#dragon age #long post #weird dream stuff #i love how you can tell my bias from the 2 groups LOL

[voxvulgi]

Dragon Age Verse; Hailey Hawke

BASICS.   A mage just like her father, Hailey took refuge with the rest of her family to Kirkwall but lost Bethany along the way. She acts as a mediator for her family, spreading herself too thin to protect Leandra, appease Gamlen’s temper, and get Carver to like her. Her approach to most situations is diplomatic / helpful. She trusts too easily and accepts all companions into her band of misfits, rarely declining to help them with their needs. Her desire to help everyone with the least possible damage will probably be the death of her.

STORYLINE CHOICES. 

Hailey sends Feynriel to the Dalish to learn magic.

She distracts the Templars while the apostate mages escape the cave.

She returns Seamus back to his father and kills the mercenaries who killed his Qunary friends.

She couldn’t bring herself to kill Kelder, returning him to the Magistrate bc she didn’t feel like it was his fault that he killed all those elven children and he felt a lot of remorse for it 😬

She rescued Keran from the blood mages and got him reinstated with the Templars.

She defended Ketojan (the Qunari mage) from the Qunari.

She solved the mystery of the dying miners then became the co-owner of the mine to ensure better conditions and protection for the miners. (Yes, she killed the dragon. Yes, she felt bad about it.)

She refused to help the rogue Templars disturb the peace with the Qunari, and she let Petrice die.

She killed the Arishok.

She tried to help Nuncio, then let Zevran go.

She handed the anti-Meredith conspirators to Enchanter Orsino instead of Meredith.

She rescued Nathaniel Howe at the deep roads.

She spared the runaway mages who didn’t try to kill her.

And of course, she sided with the mages.

COMPANION CHOICES.

CARVER.   became a Grey Warden. always jumped back in to help Hailey despite them not seeing completely eye-to-eye. Hailey always puts his safety first and loses her mind (in a good way) every time she gets to see her brother again.

VARRIC.   probably Hailey’s best friend. she helped him look into the haunted mansion, didn’t kill Bartrand, and didn’t let Varric keep the lyrium idol. Hailey finds Varric the most comforting person to have around, especially appreciating how he never judges her for her stupid decisions.

ISABELLA.   Hailey helped her with all her quests but, ultimately, greatly disapproved of Isabella’s theft of the Qunari book. Isabella never returned as a result.

MERRILL.   Hailey enabled all her reckless blood magic endeavours, ultimately getting Merrill expelled from her clan. they attacked Hailey and Merrill’s party, but Hailey refused to fight back and fled with her companions. she still has a Dalish target on her back.

AVELINE.   provided Hailey with the big-sister energy she so desperately needed in her life. she admires Aveline’s conviction and solid moral compass. Hailey helped her start a relationship with Donnic.

ANDERS.   saw eye-to-eye with Hailey the most out of all her companions. he was so cool! evading the Templars all this time and healing all those refugees -- what’s not to adore about that? Hailey helped him relentlessly, but ultimately, she kicked him out after the Chanrty blew up. he had betrayed her trust and broken her heart, and she never wanted to see him again! but when it came down to the final boss fight, she did take him back. there was no point in refusing his help.

SEBASTIAN.   had Hailey’s heart the moment he introduced himself at the Chantry. she was smitten by his princely charm and his code of honour, helping him find his family’s killers through multiple quests. ultimately, she supported Sebastian staying with the Chantry bc that seemed to be what he really wanted, and she even agreed to this “chaste marriage” he suggested -- which meant she would have to become a Chantry sister, something she didn’t really want for herself. but at the end of it all, when the Chantry was decimated, Hailey couldn’t bring herself to kill Anders. she just couldn’t. he was her friend. killing him wouldn’t bring all those people back! so, enraged, Sebastian left her and promised to bring armies from Starkhaven to lay ruin to Kirkwall and hunt down Anders. post-DA2, Hailey regrets him every day.

FENRIS.   the person Hailey tried to impress the most -- just after Carver. Hailey and Fenris rarely see eye-to-eye, especially on topics concerning mages, but that just makes her even more determined to change his mind with compassion. her cavity-inducing sweetness to Fenris is also highly influenced by how bad she feels for him. she lets him walk all over her during his angrier moments, and she avoids taking him along on quests where she knows she will be helping mages because she doesn’t want him to dislike her. she helps him find and kill Danarius but stops him from killing his sister.

#// FINALLY A SHORT PROFILE FOR HAILEY'S DA VERSE 🥰🥰🥰 #// ft my terrible photoshop skills #// AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH Hailey i love you so much 😩 #verses. hailey #;; dragon age #hailey. dragon age #blood tw

[cygnahime]

It’s time for Cygna’s opinions

okay I cannot stop thinking about that DA metapost that has a chart w high-low fantasy as one axis and dark-epic as the other

and places the DA games as starting at the low-dark end and moving steadily toward the high-epic end

even though: the final boss of Dragon Age: Origins is a zombie dragon god. The final boss of Dragon Age II is...a human woman. Her name is fucking Meredith. Yeah, there’s lyrium and moving statues, but...Meredith. We fought a fucking Karen as the final boss. I don’t know how to tell you this, but “zombie dragon god that destroys the soul of its killer” is, uh. the more epic of the two.

first, “dark” and “epic” aren’t the ends of a spectrum, as I’ve mentioned; they’re two separate qualities. dark fantasy is often small-scale, and epic fantasy is often triumphant, but - look. the Lord of the Rings is The epic fantasy, right? ...the one where the hero is unable to live in the world he has saved due to the physical and mental trauma he sustained in the saving? the one where in the last chapter he departs the earth, dying metaphorically if not literally? that one? (or the Silmarillion, which is arguably even more epic, but in which everyone dies horribly and also the tale of the children of Hurin is in it?)

second, the DA games simply do not, factually, increase in scale, in epicness/high fantasyness, in a linear fashion. Dragon Age II is fantasy noir; it takes place in a single city and its environs, and while events in the climax spill out politically/religiously to the rest of Thedas, the threats to the safety of Kirkwall are individuals and institutions. mages-templars-et cetera, but also: racism, classism, xenophobia. the Qunari are a fantasy race but they don’t present a fantasy threat; they have an army, an ideology, and gunpowder. serial killer may be using magic but the magic is incidental to the, uh, serial killing. even Anders’ big show was - that was just fucking gunpowder. the ingredients were given fantasy names, but I know the components of gunpowder when I am sent to collect them. the only magical part of that bomb was the remote detonation mechanism.

whereas! while DA:O was indeed dark in a lot of its storylines (hello there f!Tabris. goodbye f!Tabris.) the actual structure of the plot is classic fantasy. they don’t even - they don’t even fucking subvert “the Good Noble blond young king is betrayed by his Bad dark advisor who ~mysteriously~ has somewhat Semitic facial features” in the least! that’s not Dark, and it’s not - it’s not even interesting! it’s always what happens! anyway, you and your ragtag bunch of misfits have to go from place to place gathering allies to defeat the rampaging zombie army, and also place the rightful ruler (whoever you decide that is) on the throne. it could not get more classic fantasy than that!

I mean, I also have issues with the idea that adding rape (only committed by men against women) and slavery and hamhanded depictions of racism to a fantasy story makes it either meaningfully darker (please, just...read more fantasy) or “deeper” emotionally or intellectually. Especially given some of DA’s more egregious lack of consequences, ESPECIALLY in DA2 - you can sell Fenris back into slavery, and absolutely nothing bad happens! I genuinely liked how in DAO there were some acts various party members would absolutely refuse to have any part of, and they would leave your party or literally fight you if you did them. There were 100% canon paths where the Warden died forever!

And those things changed not because the games got “more epic” or “more high fantasy”, but because they became a profitable series which must be protected. DAO could take more risks because they weren’t constantly having to think about whether they would need to use something later.

#cygna age

[felrend]

Thoughts on Dragon Age 2

It still holds up really well over all and there was barely any side quests that I didn’t enjoy doing. The mage robes were still a horror to look at lol I never felt like they fit the original character design for Hawke and was happy that I could boost my stats to wear other armour pieces. And of course getting the full Champion gear is always a treat.

I can’t picture playing another class in DA2 since I’ve felt the mage powers are boosted and always felt more effective than the other two games. It was a struggle with my rogues however with the looting chest and unlocking doors. But that’s my own fault for focusing on the wrong stat for that ability. I know what I’ll be doing next play through lol

But my biggest issue was with my companions and how they spoke to each other. Particularly towards Isabela. The constant slut shaming (specifically from Aveline) was extremely unsettling. Especially when Isabela was initially trying to help Aveline get with Donnic (they are a cute pair btw) and throwing in some light ribbing which Aveline responds with “shut it whore!”. I never noticed this trait when I first played it but having a better understanding of sexuality and respecting peoples differences, this was a turn off and made me avoid putting these two in the same party together.

Even having Fenris and Anders in the same party wasn’t as volatile as Isabela and Aveline. And I know not all your companions are meant to get along but taking it to the next level of belittling someone was…ugh I hated it.

Merrill’s storyline wasn’t as dark as I remembered it either. I felt bad for her in the end with how we ended up having to kill the Dalish clan. It broke my heart since I actually really loved the Dalish. And the fact that both Anders and Fenris told Merrill that she should have been the one that died was a stab to the heart.

Anders is a complete hypocrite with any negative comments towards almost every character. I was glad when everyone would call him out on this and shut his arguments down. Because pot meet kettle.

Fenris disappointed me when Hawke’s mom is murdered and she’s clearly in mourning. He walks away with the dialogue option I chose and that totally crushed me. Not that I’m expecting him to sweep Cynder off her feet in that moment but at least being a quiet presence in her time of need. But I still loved his romance and I hope we see him in DA4.

Even with these minor opinions, I do love my rag tag group of misfits. I loved our banters together and to get little snippets of what everyone did outside of the group. Like the fact that Donnic goes over to play cards with Fenris. I absolutely adored that and made me happy to think that they bond outside of the game.

Oh and of course, I will always feel like Varric and Hawke are soul mates. They were meant to be in each other’s lives and I had a hard time not choosing him to be in my group. Varric and the Inquisitor have a special relationship but nothing like him and Hawke.

It was also a total treat to get some minor side quests from Origins. Like having my King Alistair show up in Act 3 as well as Zevran. I completely forgot they were in here haha and of course our continued story with Cullen. Gotta love our commander! I doubt Hawke would want to give him a cuddle to make him feel better but you bet your sweet ass that the Inquisitor will get up in there haha!

I know this is a giant read and I’m sorry! I just have so many feelings and needed to get it out before starting Inquisition! Forgive me lol

#dragon age #bioware #dragon age 2 #my thoughts #cynder hawke #female champion #female hawke #Isabela #fenris #Anders #merrill #aveline #aveline vallen #varric tethras #don’t hate me #lol #alistair #zevran #cullen rutherford

[kanohivolitakk]

Since its 3Hs anniversary some really cool things I like about the game that aren’t talked about enough because the fandom is too busy arguing who is right and who is wrong

The worldbuilding just. 3H has honestly one of my favorite fictional settings. Its just both expansive but also genuinely interesting. I have spent HOURS thinking about the world and made so many ocs its not even funny. I love thinking about the setting of the game so much.

I LOVE the puzzle like way the game explains its world and story. Like I know some people don’t like it because it makes the game a bit too convoluted but personally? I LOVE 3Hs way of not telling everything but rather giving hints and clues the player has to piece themselves. It makes the games world feel more interactive and feels so satisfying. Then again I enjoy that kind of approach to worldbuilding

In general I love 3hs fragmented story and the way how the story is placed in many different fragments. It is geniunely rewarding to replay the game from another storypath and notice the foreshadowing Would’ve the story been probably better had it been just one storypath? Honestly yes. But 3h is ambitious and one of the ways it is is with its fragmented story structure.

The structure of White Clouds is criminally underrated honestly and gets way more hate than it deserves. I love how the first few chapters set up the world of Fodlan and show injustices/conflicts of the world with chapters like the chapter where you face off Lonato for instance. Then the next few chapters are spend in deepening the mysteries such as the conspiracy against the church and the mystery regarding TWSITD. Then Jeralt dies and the last few chapters are spent as “beginning of the End” so to speak, as things clears to the intense climax.

On related note I LOVE how the game handles perspective and how the lords are the respective ways we view the story. I know so many people say “WHite Clouds is same on all paths” but I do feel that’s kinda the point. The story is the same but there are differences that come from the way each of the lords is strongly characterized and has different values, worldviews. The subtle changes on what are focused on in each route also foreshadow what will be focused on each route, which I think is super cool.

Even beyond the lords and routes the game does explore the idea of perspective well. I do think 3h has this very “everyone is the hero of their own story” type of approach to perspective and it shows it well. Each character believes they’re in the right and you can get this view that they view themselves as right. Even Agarthans who are the designated villains have this sense they think they’re in right and that the Nabateans were evil.

The way how games routes being divided into having a different focus is very cool. I love how AM is a smaller scale personal tragedy, how CF is a battle of ideals and how VW explores the world and reveals deeper mysteries. I also love how all of these are related to the lords ideals and worldviews: Dimitri is the most conflicted of the lords so he gets the most characterfocused story focused on . Edelgard is the most ideologically driven so her path focuses on her ideals and battle of wills against Rhea. Claude is the one who is the most freespirited and wants to know the truth so his route focuses on revealing the mysteries.

Also the way the houses characters reflect their respective routes storyline and central themes: Black Eagles are nobles that have conflicting relationships with nobility reflecting Edelgards goal, Blue Lions are all united with the trauma of Tragedy of Duscur, and Golden Deer are a house of misfits who give this “ragtag group who will save the universe with POWER OF FRIENDSHIP and this cool gun I found” vibes which fit the route PERFECTLY

I LOVE how the game plays with and subverts a lot of Fire Emblem tropes. While it does play some tropes straight (dad death and evil cult manipulating behind the scenes) it does do a lot to break from series conventions and playing with ideas to make a more ambitious story. The way it either subverts expectations (The evil emperor being female well intended extremist, Rhea being the Gharnef/Medeus instead of the Nyna archetype she’s presented as), twists familiar tropes to their natural extreme (Dimitris arc is basically the natural extreme end of stereotypical FE lord) and other similar things make the game feeling so planned out, like the writers understood FE stories and wanted to make something that challenges FE while still feeling like it.

The way how every major player acts as foil/pararell to another player is so GOOD. Every faction leader can be compared to the other somehow and that just makes the game SOOOO fun to analyze, trying to find all the similarities and differences and pararells is so rewarding.

A more specific example on this is how i love how the game plays with the idea of holy/sacred weapons. While normally these weapons are artifacts from goddess that defeat dragons, here the holy weapons are bones made from dragons and just???? HOW METAL IS THAT????????? It’s just such a neat way to subvert the idea of sacred weapons. Rather than being blessed creations of the goddess, they are weapons of destruction made by the villains.

I ADORE THE GAMES science fiction elements. I know people say they feel out of place but personally, they make the game memorable for me. I still remember the first time I saw that scene with nukes. I especially love the heavy implication that Sothis isn’t a goddess but rather a powerful alien. It makes her character much more interesting

I know a lot of people don’t like Agarthans but can I just say their backstory being “forced to hide after their land got conquered and desiring it back” making them a dark mirror not just 3h lords/Rhea but FE lords as whole is SO FUCKING METAL. This is what I mean with 3H writers knowing their tropes like back of their hand.

I love how in Part 1 sometimes you’d talk to two characters in Monastery at once instead of just one. It’s something I miss in part 2 honestly.

I love the small sidequests such as the fishing tourney and White Heron cup and wish Part 1 had more of them, it would’ve made the school part feel more alive.

I LOVE how some missions (esp paralogues) have subgoals that you can clear to get better rewards. I wish the game had been more clear with them or even made them main goals of maps sometimes.

I LOVE THE WAY Paralogues act as small gaiden stories that show more of the games world and characters. Its a neat way to let the sidecharacters shine and reveal some neat secrets of the games world and story.

The gameplay loop is honetly fun and satisfying. It is rewarding and while it gets tiring towards the end overall its a good gameplay loop.

I ADORE the aesthetic of Shambhala. Its just so sleek and sinister. The cyrillic letters spelling different words is so cool. Shambhala is my favorite map in the game and the aesthetic is a big reason why.

The games soundtrack is so good!!!!!!!!!!  But not only that I LOVE the way its electro elements subtly hint of Agarthans being in control behind the scenes. This is especially cool in Road to Dominion where the electro parts are barely noticeable yet present. but other tracks have subtle electro vibes as well.  The other way the games music tells the story (such as use of leitmotifs or how the monastery music changes once Jeralt dies) is great as well.

I love how 3h can be read as an allegory for reformation era and reneissance. Its such an interesting way to read the games events and compare it to a real historical periods there’s quite a bit of f

In general I ADORE the cultural references of the game. There’s surprisingly lot of way the games world is based on real life and the details are just *chefs kiss*

THE GAME IS DENSE WITH THEMATIC IDEAS. Besides the perspective the game tackles ideas of how trauma can affect a persons psyche and worldview  (as well how a persons trauma affects the way they interact with the world which in turn can affect the world as well), grief, societal values, historical revisiniosm and so much more. The game tackles SO MANY topics in an interesting manner, it is thematically just as dense as it is storywise as well.

I also love how the games thematic parts work in harmony with the story rather than one overshadowing with the other. Its super refreshing honestly where a games themes and story are both rich and I don’t have to pick one over the other.

Lastly I ADORE the games central message (or at least what I see as the central message anyway): The world’s fucked up and most people want to fix it, but what they deem fixing differs and because of that they go into conflict or outright war rather than trying to find a common ground. Everyone wants a better world but no one can agree what a better world truly means  so they fight over it. It was a theme that not only resonates with my personal values but also hit me REALLY hard when I first played it as it’s a theme that I found incredibly relevant and reflective of our own world during the time I played the game for the first time.

So yeah. I made this post since there’s SO MUCH neat things about the game, its gameplay and story that sadly get swept under the rug in favor of either arguing  which lord was right/wrong or complaining how the game is an unfinished, rushed and overambitious mess. Is 3h perfect? Hell no. But it’s a game that I hold near and dear to my heart and does genuinely SO MANY THINGS RIGHT, I’m sad no one talks about the genuine strengths the game has anymore, instead just complaining.

I’m not even joking when I say that 3h should be up there as heralded as one of the best, most ambitious and complex JRPGs alongside Xenogears, the first Xenoblade game, Suikoden and Trails series as whole along other such games. Its a shame the games reputation is less like those games and more like Persona 5s where everyone focuses more on its flaws and the fans being annoying than the fact the game does geniunely A LOT right. It’s just that good, ambitious game I love so much.

#Kirika Talks #Fire Emblem #FE3h #Fire Emblem Three Houses #Fire Emblem Meta

[baka-monarch]

MHMHHHM the Borrower-to-Giant!Tubbo AU is wonderful!

This is going to be somewhat long.

Before I delve into questions, I want to make one thing clear. The difference between a borrower and a tiny is that a tiny is just generally a small tiny person whereas a borrower is small tiny person that burrows supplies and whatnot, right? (Are the two terms used interchangeably? Or is it slightly different because one is associated with camping in the walls of homes?)

Some questions for the AU: (also I'm assuming the AU is set after Dream's in prison, but before Tommy gets stuck with Dream in prison, because imagine getting resurrected and being very much hurt by any touch, and then your borrower turned giant friend yoinks you in his hand. Pain. Poor Tommy) The timeline is up to you my guy.

Since Tubbo is a borrower in this, does he still follow the same storyline in canon? Or is only some stuffcanon? (Think fighting for Lmanberg, Schlatt's right hand man, President arc etc)

Uh words, I'm thinking Tubbos backstory for this AU could go two pathways (it's up to you either how) where either Tubbo is just his canonical self but borrower, or simply a borrower that witnesses the events of the Dream SMP and mostly hangs out with Tommy and Ranboo and he tries to help them recover from thy TrAuMa. (Or a mix of the two, like he never becomes President, maybe Fundy does, and so he just clings between Tommy and Ranboo)

This relates to the above, so Tubbo hates Techno, but is it moreover because of Techno's actions to Tubbo or because of Techno's actions to others?

Also would the giant potion be timer based or would it need another potion to reverse it?

This AU is marvelous, thanks so much!

Oh gosh this is gonna take a while-

Tiny refers to anyone who is smaller then another character- in this au Tubbo would be considered a tiny until he becomes a giant then anyone who is human sized would be called tinies (or I'll probably just call them smallers) since not all of them are humans

Timeline wise I imagine this happening after Tommy's resurrection- yes I know of his trama, but also, angst-

It follows mainly the same story line as smp except again, Tubbo lives with a bigger and let's himself be carried often apart from when doing his own thing (or spying for people) (I also imagine he has some claustrophobia from Schlatt trapping him in a much more smaller box now)

He's a Borrower that is involved with canon like in canon, but apart from that he does mainly watch while hanging out with Tommy and Ranboo apart from the big Tubbo canon events-

He hates Techno more of because of Techno's actions- basically he has the same mentality as The Butcher Army still and after Techno does so many more bad things to L'manburg, and him and Tommy (mainly Tubbo and his friends is what affects his veiw of Techno) he still is against Techno and still wants to get back at the piglin for everything he did to anger The Butcher Army (since they did fail to kill Techno)- so it's more of a, he's gonna take one canon life and move on then a seething hatred- but Tubbo also doesn't know about the Syndacate or Techno's friendship with Ranboo in this... So it's terrifying for Ranboo to see Tubbo treat one of his friends as nothing more then a toy to be torchured until death

The giant potion is not time based. It'll last until someone can figure out how to make a shrinking potion- problem is Tubbo has gone a little power hungry and isn't exactly ready to give up his new size any time soon

Thank you for the ask!!!!

Mcyt g/t tag list:

@nomynameisanon @trashpumped @loriepoptale @encaos @i-am-a-weeb @wyforyu-gaming @shy-septic-dragon @5unfl0writ3r @colorfulsiren @moonmwah @iwasgoingtohellanyways @echoslime @wilbur-simp @trouble-off-grid @the-misfits-system @lilsyxx

#ask #mcyt g/t #mcytg/t #i still can't think of a name for this au #tiny!tubbo #borrower!tubbo #giant!tubbo #g/t techno #g/t tommy #g/t ranboo

[holdbeast]

So I’ve been reading the Critical Role campaign 2 boss fight spoilers and ... huh.

Wow.

C1 and C2 really are Dragon Age Origins and Dragon Age 2, aren‘t they?

The first, a largely traditional heroic power fantasy. And the boss is an undead abomination and (ex/future) God that is trying to destroy the world.

The second, a kind of janky storyline that survives on the basis of strong character beats between misfit found family. And the boss is a formerly friendly character that transforms into an eldritch abomination out of nowhere.

.... at least it doesn’t sound like Caleb ever turned to terrorism?

I’m now weirdly optimistic for C3 even though I tapped out of C2 several months ago. Hopefully the cast will take some lessons from C2 and make something amazing.

#Critical Role #Still a dragon age blog #Please critrole cast I’m begging you if Matt gives you a cool war plot hook in C3 #FOLLOW IT

[yusuke96universe]

In need of more Turles content

Why I want more 'Turles' Dragon Ball content.

Background: TURLES' RETURN | ZtoS | Off-The-Cuff and MasakoX's "What If Turles Turned Good" series are both great

Both provide interesting avenues to reboot ideas that a modernized Turles could have.

One links Turles to both retconned Bardock as his estranged brother that unlocked the False SSJ form missed out on a chance at redemption when Planet Vegeta was destroyed. So this can provide Goku a direct connection to his family lineage again.

The other links Turles up with the Heaters organization that competes with the Frieza Empire. This actually provides a method to connect a lot of the contradictory backstories within supplemental materials.

I am a fan of MasakoX's DBZ 'What If' series. I don't always agree with his takes on certain concepts, but through a lot of the community, I can cherry-pick what I like and make my own take on certain subjects like I did with his What If Nappa or Cell turned Good series for example. I often make super long, well-crafted comments that hardly ever get attention, and here is one I made

The comment was about how interesting a character is in the Dragon World

I think Turles should best be used as a means to complicate a plot or storyline. He can fit in many types of stories. He easily can fall under the Magnificient Bastard trope (a.k.a. the Charismaniac), a potential ally, antagonist or something else entirely that makes things difficult for all involved. He can best be used like how Law was introduced in Sabaody Archipelago, a seductive danger that pulls you in. You know he is probably going to stab you in the back or you're being played, but you just can't say "No" to his offers for one reason or another. Either he is charismatic enough to win you over or he's got something you want, bad.

Any character from any alignment good, evil, divine, or even Demonic should have something interesting to say about Turles because he is such an outlier to the rest of the characters. He just offers so much potential fun dynamics and storytelling.

A smart and methodical Saiyan, who still loves to fight and isn't a coward? In fact, he is willing to take on just about anyone, he was introduced while he was preparing to take on Frieza of all people. As smart as he is, he has to know how outmatched he is compared to Frieza's Empire, but he was going to do it. In their interactions within games and such, Turles isn't even nervous, on the contrary. He's pumped!

A fighter who prides himself on his strength, but isn't totally blinded by it to overlook the forest for the trees. He has been shown to have foresight determine his actions. He does get arrogant and that makes him vulnerable, but he can quickly recover by allowing his pragmatism to take over.

A Dragon Ball villain that can respect his enemies? He is open to potential partnerships and underlings joining his side, in fact that is how he recruited his Crusher Corps. (so he could potentially be written to have his own Power of Friendship moments) And he may be willing to ally with the good guys if their goals ever align. He also knows how to be a team player as shown in Xenoverse 2, where he is quick to play mediator with the villains.

A deserter that still has pride in his race, but felt wronged by the caste system that discredited him which acts as a motive for his current actions. So a political plot can be on the table. (he fits a usurper plot to a T)

A drifter whose experiences have led him to blaspheme against the established Divine hierarchy because his Tree of Might that he is known for, is the property of the Gods.

He's pure evil so other pure evil creatures like Devils and Demons who directly oppose the Angels and the Gods could recruit him to be direct counters that contrast the good Saiyans.

While Turles is known for being an 'Evil Goku clone' meant to contrast his characteristics, in doing so, he has contrasted a lot of his own Saiyan race's characteristics as well which puts him in the same boat as Goku who he is meant to contrast. They are both outliers of their race in one way or another.

Anime Goku Black is a sophisticated and elegant Kai on a Multiverse level Crusade compared to Goku's outdoorsman simplicity.

Manga Goku Black contrasted Goku's gentleness and innate goodness by being one of the most vicious villains the series ever had. Zamasu was being taken over by the Saiyan body's base instincts for destruction and violence transforming him in to a ferocious monster.

Turles on the other hand can display traits of both the smart and elegant Zamasu and the Saiyan's natural savageness and societal cruelty while being similar to Goku in that he is an outlier of their race because he reels those traits in opening himself to many more options and avenues to potentially walk down.

I am not even getting into the fact that Turles looks just like the main character so he could be a surviving relative. A cousin, an uncle, half-brother, even a Grandfather with how Saiyans age. Heck a straight up counterpart isn’t even out of the question. 

Personally, I am a bigger fan of him being his own person, and his shared looks are only used to highlight how he contrasts with Goku, but also how they gain similar things like leading a group of strong loyal misfits who admire his power. It’s like the two take their own paths, but arrive at practically the same destination and that is what fascinates me about Turles the most when compared to Goku.

My point is that Turles has a lot of storytelling potential for involvement within What Ifs and even the future of the Dragon Ball Super, but what do you guys think? Do you want to hear my thoughts on how I would reboot Lord Slug as well because I can do that next?My take is a bit different from others but I think it's really interesting. Also, wouldn’t a False Super Saiyan line of forms for Turles be really interesting?

#Dragon Ball #dragonballz #dbz #dbz turles #turles #reboot #what if #what if turles turned good #dragon ball super #dragon ball z #dragon ball #dragon ball xenoverse 2 #headcannon #super dragon ball heroes

[agentrouka-blog]

How do you think Jon and Sansa's storyline will play out individually in TWOW ? How do you think their dynamic will be in TWOW ? Will there be sprouting of a forbidden romance utilising the incest angst trope or will it be completely platonic ? Will Sansa arrive at the Wall when Jon is dead ? 😅 I know I shouldn't have asked so many questions but I am just curious about what your views might be regarding the above . ❤️ your metas btw.

Hello, and thank you!! :)

I think that - given the idea by the other anon that Shireen’s sacrifice will be the weather-changing event that allows Sansa to travel North - Sansa will begin travelling northwards fairly early in the book, after yet unspecified shennanigans in the Vale. The moutain clans are likely to feature in some way and they have seen her in KL and they had good relations with Tyrion and I kind of want them to help her travel. They are literally the mountain clans, who can traverse the Vale in less than ideal conditions if not they? 

Jon... yeah, not certain at all. I imagine a spirit quest involving Ghost warging and possibly contact with Bran, but... who knows? It’s hard to predict. I think he might actually be dismissed from the Watch upon getting better like Selmy, and make his own quasi-political moves in the North with Stannis? I don’ t think they will meet at the Wall, really. I think they will move toward each other and meet on the road. He will be resurrected alone and he will be Very Sad and Grumpy and Sansa will help with that a lot, while he will finally be someone who genuinely cares about her and protects her.

I definitely picture a rescue-in-the-woods situation with Sansa, and Ghost, and I think the way their relationship plays out will be an understated but deeply romantic connection underneath their political cooperation and mutual learning. As in, GRRM will stick to his style and we’ll get maybe a deeply touching line or three, but he won’t suddenly throw around dramatic inner monologues to the tune of Arys Okaheart. But the imagery will be off the charts long before he gets more obvious. 

GRRM didn’t give the story of Aemon and Naerys such prominence to have it not affect how Jon and Sansa perceive their feelings for each other. There’s a path through that mess and it’s “chaste and courtly love”. Lady and Knight. I think they would unspokenly gravitate toward that scenario. Angst, yes, some shame, yes, but also a certain “I know this story” kind of resignation. I don’t see them convulsing in self-hatred so much as in a bittersweet melancholy. 

Alongside that and gaining in prominence: Florian and Jonquil.

They’ll obviously cooperate to retake Winterfell and there will be succession drama. If GRRM is kind, Rickon will be a part of that. They will obviously clash on some fronts, but I think in general we will see them shine together, combining their strengths.  Sansa triumphing in her first chapter when she correctly identifies the three strangers near the queen and impressing everyone present? We’ll see that a lot. Jon getting over his grumpy self and turning a ragtag bunch of misfits into decent fighters for a common cause? We’ll see that a lot.

So, they will both be in Winterfell, in uber-Stark mode, pining, and preparing for how they think they need to face the ice threat. Enter the Dance of Dragons to the South, and the impending arrival of Arya and Bran, and whatever drama the Lannisters might still exact, and whatever happens to Rickon. I think that will be TWOW. Also, the marriage to Tyrion will be a thing. The annullment will, I think, be part of what motivates Jon to seek contact. 

Come ADOS, I do NOT think we’ll see Jon running away from Winterfell or sleeping with Dany specifically to escape the danger of incest. That would be irresponsible (running away), and stupid (she’s a foreign invader, a fellow monarch and super dangerous) and it would demand a narrative punishment far beyond “accidental incest” because it would be a betrayal of Jon’s feelings for Sansa and a callous use of another person, which would specifically also hurt Sansa and would preclude a reward at the end. Whatever Jon does, it will be “professional” and in service of House Stark or Westeros. Jon WILL be rewarded at the end. It’s not the romantics punishing hours, it’s a song. 

I also think that Aegon will have a significant role in Jon’s ADOS arc, be that potential ally or heartbreakingly resentful enemy. They are half-brothers, and Aegon would follow Aemon as an example of a decent Targ. At whichever point RLJ comes into play, Jon will need that example to counter Dany’s, along with Arya pounding a frying pan over his head, screaming “The woman is important, too!” about Lyanna. 

The threat of the Others and its resolution is hard for me to connect to Jon and Sansa since I see it as so deeply connected to Bran, and mostly in the mirror of Lady Stoneheart. I have far too little Norse mythology background to begin parsing that. But I see the ending of Disney’s “Moana” as a good example of what it will be, rather than anything the show did. The contrast to that harmonious ending will be the political fire chaos in the South. 

Or, you know, I may change my opinion again in a week. But this is the general scenario I am working with now. In my head. 

#asoiaf #asoiaf speculation #jonsa #twow #jon snow #sansa stark #aemon and naerys #florian and jonquil #RLJ