#taako adventurezone

[its-your-mind]

ALWAYS rotating TAZ: Balance around in my brain like microwave but ESPECIALLY with the announcement of The Suffering Game graphic novel

The dope thing they can do (and are doing) with the graphic novel series is sprinkle in moments of foreshadowing and hints to the reader about what REALLY might be going on here, which is so cool and I’m a huge fan of it, especially when you’re telling a story in this form.

But what is REALLY FUCKING TASTY about Balance as a story is that none of the motherfuckers telling it had any clue what they were doing when they started

Gerblins is dick jokes and not knowing how dice work and making fun of each other for voices. LICHRALLY the scene where Taako grabs the Umbrastaff is immediately proceeded by Clint trying different voices for Merle while Justin begs him to stop, as Taako. Merle gets launched across the room cuz he failed his save, and now Taako has an umbrella. The scene moves on.

Griffin brought them up to the BOB, introduced them to the Director, and gave them memories of a war fought over nameless, lost, powerful but mysterious artifacts. The memory that Taako takes from it is the idea of soured cream (ya know, for his taco quest).

And then they’re off, on different adventures, making friends, saving lives, making more dick jokes, and Griffin is in the background, slowly building in the meta-plot, as all DMs do.

But this meta-plot was HUGE. It was ALL-CONSUMING. It completely changes everything we know about this world and these characters. It takes the moments of dick jokes, and arguments about character voices, and flirting with death, and adds a layer of tragedy and complexity that just wasn’t present the first time they told that story.

AND THAT’S WHY THIS STORY KICKS ASS. The vibe of the story changed as Tres Horny Boys grew closer and closer to remembering the lives they had lost, as Griffin upped the stakes, as people started dying. They still don’t know shit for most of The Suffering Game, but you absolutely could not have predicted the tone of that arc after just listening to Gerblins. It sounds like a completely different story. And so when the other shoe drops, when shit breaks bad, when it’s the end of the world… again, and they have to reclaim their Stolen Century…

It makes sense. The tone has shifted enough to accommodate that kind of change. The characters have grown (back) into themselves enough to make this work.

Because TAZ: Balance is a tragedy. But the tragedy happened before the podcast even started, and had been erased. So of course it started off with goofs and dildo jokes. Of course the three of them started being standoff-ish with each other and making light of every situation that should have had a lot more weight. They didn’t know what they had lost, and we, the audience, didn’t either. So it was easy to laugh and joke… until slowly, it wasn’t so much anymore.

Plenty of people have praised Griffin’s storytelling abilities, but I think the thing that was most impressive to me was how he took the disparate threads laid out behind the Boys on their adventures, and followed them backwards, into the story they had lost, and forwards, into the ending they earned. I fucking love that he settled on Istus as the deity to interact with them, because I don’t think there’s a better representation of the story Griffin was weaving behind the scenes of the arcs.

Story and Song wasn’t really an arc driven by dice rolls and role playing - but it wasn’t railroading either. Griffin took every story they had told, every happy ending they had fought for, and twined them around and through each other. The world was saved not because of a lucky nat 20 roll, but because every person they had helped through the story came out in force to fight beside them to save their world.

And so in the end, the Stolen Century was a tragedy. But The Adventure Zone: Balance was a story of hope, of family, of the power that just a few loveable doofuses can have when they move through the world, making friends and saving lives. So when the world was ending and they needed help, there were dozens of people waiting to hear the Story and the Song that would give them the push they needed to fight, and the hope they needed to win.

#taz #taz balance #taz balance spoilers #taako adventurezone #merle highchurch #magnus burnsides #McElroys #griffin mcelroy #the adventure zone

[swearwolfcola]

This is my third time drawing this and I’ll probably just keep doing it tbh

2020 | 2018

#the links are to see the progress pls don’t reblog old ones #taz balance #TAZ #taako from tv #taako taaco #taz taako #taako the wizard #taako adventurezone #taako fanart #there will always be a special place in my heart for this specific wizard

[junotter]

Tres horny boys in a beach cycle my beloved

Edit: Part 2 here!

#the adventure zone balance #taz balance #taz #taako #taako adventurezone #magnus burnsides #merle highchurch #taz fanart #my art #WOAH your mom lets you have two different taako designs!!!??? #the stolen century #ipre #i specific stolen century cause these are my stolen century specific designs #mayhaps make a part two if there's a demand... hehe

[macaronimars]

i saw the gay makeup meme again and i suddenly couldn’t get a taakitz version out of my head

#the adventure zone #the adventure zone fanart #taakitz fanart #taakitz #taako x kravitz #taako the wizard #taako from tv #taz kravitz #taako adventurezone #taz fanart #macaroni art

[vampratx]

they are very special to me

#art #fanart #sketch #digital art #taz #the adventure zone #taz balance #taz taako #taz lup #lup #taako #taako adventurezone #the adventure zone taako #taako fanart #taako taaco #taako and lup #lup taaco #lup taako #taako from tv #lup taz

[thesteamhunk]

Playing around with brushes so here’s a very WIP Taako sketch!

#taako taaco #taako #taz taako #taako from tv #taako adventurezone #the adventure zone taako #taako fanart #taako the wizard #the adventure zone #the adventure zone balance #taz #taz balance

[epsil-on]

Taako and Lup <3

#artwork #digital art #taako #taako taz #taz #the adventure zone #character design #taz balance #taako taaco #magnus burnsides #taako adventurezone #taako from tv #merle highchurch #lup taaco

[auphaniim]

back to my roots 💪🪄

#ahhhhHHHHH #my art #taz #the aventure zone #taako x kravitz #taako adventurezone #taako taaco #taako fanart #the adventure zone fanart #taz fanart #fanart #art #artists on tumblr #digital illustration #procreate #kravitz adventurezone #taakitz

[andmynewlymeltedheart]

my fav thing abt the first ep of The Stolen Century is Griffin is absolutely shitting himself into oblivion about adding a whole vital person to the life of his brother’s thoughtfully constructed character and meanwhile Lup says 3 words and Justin is like

#the stolen century #lup adventurezone #taako adventurezone #the adventure zone #taz #griffin mcelroy #justin mcelroy #the mcelroys

[crinkle-cut-pickle-bucket]

Inktober: Day 9- Bounce

Sorry, gotta bounce—I’m sensing a lich’s presence emanating from…your umbrella?

image description:

a greyscale drawing of two figures, pictured waist-up, standing outdoors, backed by a white stone fence and a starry night sky. One figure, Kravitz, is a skeleton in a dark, hooded robe, who is holding a large scythe in his outstretched right hand. Near the scythe, there is a glow of an open portal that is just out of shot. Kravitz’ eyeholes are shaped to express, perhaps regret. His left hand is also outstretched, in the other direction, resting on the shoulder of the second character, Taako. Taako is a light skinned male elf with blonde hair tied up in a bun. He is standing—revealing a side profile—and facing Kravitz, with arms crossed. He is wearing a loose shirt with cut-out sides to reveal an undershirt. There is a bag’s strap hanging from his shoulder. His expression is quietly shocked and blushing. There are stylized indicators emanating from Taako to convey his surprise. Below, and spanning the width of the image, there is a long block of white which contains the following words: “Taako, I’ve had a lovely night. Do you think I’ll be hearing from you again any time soon?” end description.

#inktober2023 #inktober prompts #inktober #inktober challenge #ink drawing #art challenge #taz taako #taz kravitz #taz fanart #taz #the adventure zone #the zone cast #taako adventurezone #taako from tv #taako #kravitz taz

[mdlnsrt]

you seriously don’t know him? he’s taako, y’know, from tv?

#art #mdlnsrt #my art #the adventure zone #taz balance #the adventure zone balance #taako #the adventure zone taako #taako adventurezone #mcelroys #the mcelroys #the mcelroy family #podcast #podcasts #procreate #taz #this has been finished since MARCH

[leftmyheartinthetardis]

I've been losing my mind the past couple of days over The Eleventh Hour gn in general but especially over the cup going through THB's pasts because like

Here's Merle's past and it's clear and comprehensive and the Voidfish static appears only in the middle of his memories when he must have been on the Starblaster

And then there's Taako's

And the static is bleeding into all his earlier memories because Lup was always there until she wasn't. And that's when his memories become clear because you can't erase what was never there

#taz #the adventure zone #taz gn #taz gn spoilers #taz eleventh hour #eleventh hour gn #taako #merle #if you listen close you can hear me crying #lup #lup adventurezone #merle highchurch #taako adventurezone

[thesnakethatmarches]

I’ve already seen a couple posts about it but

These moments in Taako’s memories? These ones right here? Paired with the look in his eyes each time Lup is mentioned this book?

The awareness of absence but the unknown of what it could be. The feeling of loneliness that feels like it hurts more than it should, but why would it?

Taako knows loneliness, Taako has been alone from his very first concrete memory, but within that loneliness something is missing, something that is just eluding him.

((Also in almost every memory in this sequence, near or around the area the static inhabits is a flame or a fire of some kind :)))

#taz graphic novel #taz gn spoilers #taz #taz gn #taz 11th hour #11th hour #taz taako #taako adventurezone #taako and lup #lup adventurezone #lup taz #the adventure zone #the mcelroys

[junotter]

I wasn't sure which version i liked so have bothhhhh woahh

#the adventure zone balance #taako #taako adventurezone #taz balance #taz #the adventure zone #taz fanart #my art #fanart #im on a balance relisten because listening to music while shelf reading got boring #also listening to steeple chase dont worry #anyway struggled figuring out anything for my taako design #ik its not especially unique but i do not care #have to say im really loving lining lately started using the pens from a set i bought ages ago actually and they're very good #might be posting some just lineart stuff soon #teehee

[macaronimars]

y’all ever just like. Think about Them?

#the adventure zone #taz balance #taz fanart #taako adventurezone #taako from tv #merle highchurch #magnus burnsides #taz balance fanart #macaroni art

[transformersweatpants]

Merle is introduced after Caroline’s greenhouse heart event - after the cutscene the player may click on a large bush in the corner and (similar to Krobus) a startled Merle emerges. You’re given dialogue options to either convince him to move somewhere else or keep squatting in the greenhouse. Random dialogue options include him searching in vain for Scuttle Buddy, sweet-talking the tea plant, and attempting to convert the player into a worshipper of Pan.

Magnus lives in the Adventurer’s guild and offers two services: Pet-walking (increases the players <3 with pet) and Protection in the mines (carries the player home if knocked unconscious, guarantee no lost items or medical bills). 2+ Heart Event is him coaxing Dusty (Alex’ dog) out of his pen with a treat. 4+ Heart Event is helping him name his new goldfish! Name options: the lord esquire goldfish, Steven q fletcher the goldfish, steven the goldfish. 8+ hearts with Magnus and he mails you a “questionable fried unicorn.. horn?”

Taako works part-time as the chef for the Pirate Bar on ginger island, and occasionally shows up to work at the Stardew Valley Saloon. When given fried calamari he sighs wistfully and exclaims “brings back warm memories” with a wink. Random dialogue options include him asking if a gift is secretly Gogurt, asking for directions to the wizard’s tower and explaining that he can’t have someone stealing his thunder. When given a Dinosaur egg he inexplicably cries “DUPREEEE”. He eventually teaches magic in the community center (library section) to the kids and the player if cajoled

#taz #the adventure zone #taz balance spoilers #taz balance #the adventure zone balance #merle highchurch #merle hightower highchurch #clint mcelroy #magnus burnsides #travis mcelroy #taako the wizard #taako taaco #taako from tv #taako adventurezone #justin mcelroy #stardew valley #sdv au