#this was the worst playthrough ever but very short

[rpgchoices]

Ash of Gods - playing the worst possible outcomes

I am trying the disaster replay of Ash of Gods where I pick all the wrong decisions. It was quite interesting and uncovered some extra lore. I will divide everything in the three main characters' storylines:

LO PHENG

If Lo Pheng does not immediately kill Reet, he escapes with Reet and the other prisoners. They end up travelling - I chose not to save Reet with the sacrificial stones.

Reet dies - and the party continues their journey, looking for the travelling menhir. Because Reet is not there to break the Enses' enchantment, Lo Pheng never encounters or recruits Khama. This means that, once you reach the travelling menhir, Shannet successfully kills Alus.

This is enough to bring the travelling menhir to you and you meet Orkan he asks about Reet. I suspect Orkan might be working with Childao.

If you allowed Reet to die.. Orkan punishes you for your merciless action:

The menhir doesn't take you to Amma but back to Wodan, where the reaping is in full motion. You end up killed by the same reaper you escaped/killed in Wodan at the beginning of the game.

But I think seeing Augrin there this also confirms that some humans of the Temple do approve of the reaping. This might explain why when you find out that Coronzon (Lower Umbra who works for the temple of Divine Retribution) is a traitorous snake... you (Blance/Hopper) also starts understanding that there is no difference between the Temple of Divine Retribution and the Temple of Wrath... both might be infiltrated by Umbra and corrupted to facilitate the reaping.

This is the last slide for Lo Pheng:

THORN BRENIN

For Thorn I started by specifically not choosing the silk scarf. The silk scarf has an enchantment that can save Krieger from a misterious curse. I also made sure to kill Hode in battle as much as possible, which would end up in killing Hode (prince Ho).

Without the silk scarf, Krieger does transform into a strange creature, almost a werewolf, not sure what he is supposed to be tho.

And Prince Ho gets a cutscene where the group is mourning and worrying about the king wanting their heads (especially Sopp).

At this point I continued the journey normally, and reached Ursus. Because Hode was not in the party, I did not get the initial cutscene where the prince gets recognized. Instead I went to meet Philia... and there Thorn was arrested. Gleda escapes with Philia.

When Hoppe/Blance arrives in Ursus, I decided to do nothing to save Thorn and... Thorn was killed:

At this point some slides appeared saying that Gleda escaped with Philia and that Thorn's party escaped too and tried to go and meet with Gleda.

Gleda is never found... and was probably killed by Adna, because left unprotected. Thorn's companions instead arrive in Opacum.

Interestingly, if you let Thorn die, his son Mact lives. And Qarbaph/Drooket/Drewer lives too. Basically, Qarbaph/Drooket/Drewer saves Mact from the cannibal and brings him to his grandpa in Opacum.

HOPPER

The most interesting path was Hopper. The worst outcome for Hopper was not following the riddle of Childao and collecting the seven riddles... but we already know that this ends up simply awakening the god with full powers instead of trapping the god in a human.

Still, with Thorn dead, Gleda lost and Reet dead... you HAD to play the ending as Hopper, something that is usually not available.

The path to Ursus is the same. In Ursus Thorn is not going to get the twin bodyguards to free him because of the gravity of his crime, so if Hoppe does nothing, Thorn dies. If Hopper asks Coronzon to help... Thron also dies, clearly Coronzon is a traitorous snake. Thorn only survives even if Ho is dead if Hopper uses his spell.

Still, in this playthrough I decided to let Thorn die.

Once there with Thorn dead, Hopper/Blance does not leave Ursus to look for Thorn but gets a request from Coronzon to look for Gleda.

Thorn travels to the usual places and also meet with Rask. The plot proceeds as usual. In this game I also got some extra information on Hopper's past (and how his Higher Umbra Dorpkhal would eat children and kill people even on their original planet).

Hopper finally arrives in Opacum where he meets with Thorn's father in law... and there you find out that Mact was saved by Qarbaph/Drooket/Drewer. Both Drooket and Mact are in Opacum.

Philia is also in Opacum and she is the only Chosen One left. Amma also arrives at Opacum even if Lo Pheng did not escort her.

Given that you play as Hopper, you can chat around and find some more lore. For example, I had a chat with Amma where I found the names of the other Lower Umbra and found out that the reason some Lower Umbra did not join the rebellion was because they never intended to betray the Higher Umbra.

Thorn is dead so he is not there to fix the mess with his family. Hopper is there when Brann kills Stakhet, and Stakhet asks Hopper to kill Brann before he decides to go after Mact. Unfortunately he ends up killing Mact and Hopper kills Brann.

Amma turns into a reaper and we see Hopper's thoughs when he has to kill her:

For a moment he also thinks about killing himself. We also find out that Reet, Philia and Gleda are not the only Chosen Ones, but there are many (all descendant of Umbras I suppose).

Because Brett was not a character anymore and Drooket was alive, in my game Drooket was the one who ended up killing the last Higher Umbra (Nakoma).

While you watch him die, Hopper reflects on how four of his Lower Umbra were Curros:

And at the end Philia became the avatar of Childao's god, fully awakened in her head and ready for destruction. This also confirms that Childao WANTED her god to be reincarnated but needed it to be dormant... it means she knows there is something dangerous about the gods, even hers.

#ash of gods #this was the worst playthrough ever but very short

[nexus-nebulae]

desperately wanting to be a proper zelda theorizer but having no access to the games myself

#except for two of the games which do not take place in hyrule and dubiously may not even be the same universe as hyrule #i want to make my own timeline so fucking bad man #i desperately wanna tug at strings and figure out how to connect skyward sword and tears of the kingdom #i mostly just want to look at all the details that are usually undiscussed #but i don't own a switch nor am i shelling out over 400 dollars for both the device AND both totk and botw #and i do not know what skyward sword plays on because i did not know the game existed until two years ago #because the only nintendo console i have ever owned is a DS and that is why i have only majoras mask and phantom hourglass #which are. difficult to connect to the lore of the rest of the games. #especially when you have not played either of their direct prequels nor know their stories very well #we have some extra money now i might get a DS copy of ocarina just to get started #eventually i do want to collect and play all of these games #like. all of them #i want to get a good idea of the entire series as a whole and how these different games connect and relate to each other #and since i've only ever watched theory videos and short playthroughs that cut out most of the details #its hard to form my own theories and opinions #honestly there are a lot of popular zelda theories that just don't click for me and i want to try my own look at the topics #the timeline. of course. being the worst contender

[lonely-cowboy]

without you

pairing: connor (rk800) x gn!reader

summary: it's been almost three days since you last saw connor. with the ongoing revolution, you're concerned about his whereabouts. and if you'll ever see him again.

word count: 1.9k

warnings: occasional cursing but that's it

author's note: let me paint a little picture for y'all. it's currently 1am and i'm sitting on the couch in the dark sobbing like a baby bc i just finished my very first playthrough of dbh and didn't even realize i was near the end and i hate that it's over (i'm just gonna play again). anyway! my solution to stop (worsen) my sad lonely thoughts was to write this! yippee! healthy coping!

masterlist ⟡ requests

You were never a fan of staying home all day and lounging around in your pajamas doing absolutely nothing. You felt unproductive, like you were wasting time. And if there was one thing you hated more than anything, it was wasting time.

But– like anything– there were some exceptions. The most common exceptions were the days after an intense investigation, mostly those involving considerable physical exertion (which really just meant any form of running). Those days, your body was so unbelievably sore that it was almost necessary for you to stay in bed and do nothing all day. Besides that, the only other exception was the occasional rainy day. 

And now. Now was an exception too.

It was nearing three days since you had last seen Connor. Usually, that wouldn’t have bothered you. Three days was nothing. It was always possible that the two of you were just far too overwhelmed with work to see each other. But with the rising android revolution that threatened Connor’s life– and that of any android– you immediately assumed the worst.

Huddled on your couch, you stared blankly at the muted television as it flashed between news stations. You weren’t really paying attention anymore, too consumed by thoughts of Connor. You pulled your blanket tighter around your shoulders, eyebrows furrowing with concern.

Truthfully, you hadn’t known Connor that long. Sure, you worked with him frequently to investigate the sudden rise in deviants, but in the grand scheme of things, it felt like you had just met him. Of course, that didn’t stop Connor from burrowing his way into your heart with those soft doe eyes and that gentle, slightly confused smile. You had a soft spot for him now, so it was perfectly reasonable that you couldn’t help but worry for his safety. 

You released a heavy sigh as you turned off the television, trying to shake away any negative thoughts. With narrowed eyes, you glanced at the other end of the couch where Hank had been sitting almost three hours ago. He had been checking in on you frequently the last few days to make sure you were– at the very least– living, though he would never admit it. Whenever he did stop by, it was always because he “forgot his jacket” or “couldn’t watch the Detroit Gears game at home.” Whatever lame excuse he came up with, it was always intended to ensure you were okay. 

Today’s lame excuse was that he ran out of beer and didn’t want to go to the store during such a “crazy fucking time.” That ended with the two of you sitting in silence on your couch, watching the television for any sign that Connor might be okay. In your book, that just meant he wasn’t dead.

But eventually, Hank had been pulled away to the precinct for whatever reason. He promised he’d make it short. He was reluctant to go anyway, so he wouldn’t be gone long. Three hours felt pretty fucking long to you.

You pursed your lips worriedly, forgetting Connor for a moment as your mind was now focused on Hank’s safety. What if he somehow got himself tangled up in this revolution? What if he managed to get caught in some wild crossfire with no means of telling you?

No, that was crazy. You were being irrational. Surely he just decided to brave going to the store to get some more beer once he left the precinct, right? That made so much sense. Obviously, he was outside your apartment building right now struggling to get in because he didn’t have a key and was too preoccupied carrying his mountains of beer. Obviously…

Without thinking, you scurried into your closet and pulled on your warmest clothes. You threw your thickest jacket over your pajamas, not bothering to hide your snowflake pajama pants. You pulled on your shoes and a beanie, ignoring the way it matted your hair. Then, you were out the door and rushing downstairs with the belief that you could miraculously manifest Hank’s presence.

There was no other explanation. You were blessed with some magical powers that you were yet to understand because as you marched into the snow, Hank suddenly appeared. You didn’t stop until you were jabbing a finger into his chest, glaring up at his towering figure.

“What is wrong with you?” you seethed. “You can’t just leave like that!”

Hank sighed with what sounded like irritation, though you knew he could never be irritated with you. He raised his hands in mock surrender as he grumbled, “Sorry, kid, I–”

“Oh, no, no, no! I’m not done!” you growled, choosing to ignore that maybe you were being a little overdramatic. What’s life without a little drama anyway? “You had me fucking worried, Hank! I’m already worried sick about Connor, I don’t have the energy to worry about both of you!”

Hank said your name in an attempt to stop you, but it was no use. Now that you had an outlet to channel your jumble of emotions, you were going to let them all out.

“I mean, you’ve seen me, Hank! I can barely get out of bed because of that goddamn android!” you shouted. “His safety is the only thing on my–”

Hank rolled his eyes as he grumbled something about how he was “tired of this shit” that didn’t involve him. That only seemed to fuel your fire, the crease between your brows deepening with anger and worry. You opened your mouth again to yell at Hank as he stepped aside, but you quickly shut it once you noticed the figure standing bashfully behind him.  

Connor stood a few feet away having clearly been told to stay put once Hank saw your angry self storming out of the apartment building. His hands were clasped neatly behind his back, standing tall against the harsh winter winds. His eyes were already on you, watching you with a warm glint. When you met his gaze, the corners of his lips turned upwards into a small, unsure smile. 

Compared to him, you were sure you looked absolutely stupid. No, no matter what you looked completely stupid. You stared at Connor with absurdly wide eyes, mouth opening and closing like a confused fish. You were so baffled by his appearance that you couldn’t even move, no wonder the poor man was confused. All this while wearing your stupid fucking snowflake pajamas.

Neither of you made any effort to close the uncomfortable distance between the two of you. You were thankful that Hank managed to find his way back into your apartment building because you would be a doubly flustered mess if he saw how awkward the two of you were. At least Connor made some effort to communicate. He raised a hand in an awkward wave, his soft voice barely heard over the din of the wind. 

“Hello.”

Your feet were moving before your brain could catch up. You sprinted towards Connor– though it was more of a fast waddle if anything– and pulled him into a tight hug. A heavy sigh of relief left your lips as you felt his firm body against you, inhaling his scent slowly. He was real.

You squeezed him a little tighter, burying your head into his chest. It was as if you didn’t want to let him go, and truthfully, you didn’t. You couldn’t bear the thought of never seeing him again.

Connor’s arms wrapped lightly around your body. He leaned into your touch, relaxing in your arms with a comforted grin. Until you, he had no idea what it was like to be cared for. Perhaps the greatest gift of consciousness was your affection.

Connor murmured your name in a quiet rasp, his lips moving against your hair. He reared back to catch your eyes, but you refused to let him. You just held him closer and allowed yourself to calm in his presence. When you finally did pull away, you glanced at him with a confusing look of joy, sadness, and anger.

“I didn’t think you were ever coming back,” you mumbled, letting the words spill out. “I was so scared… Connor, I… God, I missed you…”

There was a beat of silence as Connor’s LED spiraled yellow, his head tilted to the slightest degree. It seemed as if he was struggling to find the right words out.

“I…,” Connor started hoarsely. “I think… I missed you too.”

Despite the whirlwind of emotions you felt, you couldn’t help but laugh at Connor’s words. A small smile traced your lips as you studied him with furrowed brows.

“You think?” you repeated with another quiet laugh, your breath pluming in the cold air.

Connor paused again, his LED flashing yellow once more. He opened his mouth to speak but closed it as he considered his words a moment longer. He was looking into the distance, but when he glanced back down to you it was as if all the right words suddenly came to him.

“I don’t know what it feels like to miss someone,” he explained softly. “But I think… I think this is what it would feel like. I felt… I don’t know… there was a tightness inside of me when I thought I would never see you again. Is that what it’s like to miss someone?”

Your grin widened as Connor spoke. A tinge of pink coated your cheeks, and you were sure it wasn’t just from the cold.

“Maybe I’m biased, but yeah, I think so,” you answered sweetly.

“Oh,” Connor muttered as he took a moment to process that information. “Then, yes. It appears I did miss you.”

Your chest felt light from the joy of having Connor back. You were so giddy, in fact, that you didn’t even think before you were leaning forward and pressing a delicate kiss to Connor’s cheek. It was only when you pulled away that you realized what you had done, your face heating with embarrassment.

You glanced at Connor worriedly and noticed the faint blue coloring along his cheeks. It almost made you laugh seeing such a confident android turned into such a poor, flustered mess. Well, you took his silence to mean his was flustered, but his silence lasted so long that you weren’t so sure anymore.

“Connor?” you asked. “You okay?”

“Yes,” Connor replied immediately. “I was searching my database for the best way to greet someone you missed.”

It was your turn to be flustered again, eyes going wide with surprise as you murmured, “Oh. And… what did you find?”

Connor’s gaze finally focused back on you, his expression neutral aside from his fading blush. The corner of his lip quirked up slightly as his eyes searched your face like he was memorizing every little detail.

“I found that the best way to convey you missed someone is by kissing them, as you’ve done to me,” he answered in his typical matter-of-fact tone. “However, whereas you kissed my cheek, I noticed that most people kiss on the lips. I’d like to do the same if that’s alright with you.”

Your stunned silence must’ve been enough of an answer for Connor because he leaned forward with a grin. His warm hands moved to hold your cheeks, fighting off the evening chill. Your hands immediately moved to rest over top his, seeking out his warmth while his soft lips moved against yours. He pulled away far too soon for your liking, but he rested his forehead against yours as he whispered sweet words against your skin. 

“I missed you too.”

───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────

author's note: i hope you enjoyed! this is my very first post ever, so i'm a little nervous! if you have any constructive (and kind) criticism, please lmk! and if you have any requests i'd love to hear those too :)

#detroit become human #connor x reader #dbh connor x reader #rk800 x reader #dbh connor #connor rk800

[galedekarios]

hi! sorry to bother you, do you know if the dialogue where gale says to mystra “because i’ve someone else to live for” happens only during his origin? i never heard that with my tav and can’t find it in the parsed dialogue i’m very confused 😭

you aren't bothering me at all!

i checked the files again because i only got that line during gale's origin playthrough as well, and i found that extremely disappointing tbh because it is a beautiful line.

it's why i included it, despite it not 'officially' being in gale's romance in this gifset that i made a while ago:

the parsed dialogue files have this for an origin gale playthrough:

Mystra: Gale of Waterdeep. You look well. Gale: Mystra. Please - I have so much to explain to you. Mystra: There is much unsaid between us, but time runs ever short. I've been watching your journey here. Your triumphs. Your temptations. Your doubts. Mystra: You discovered what lies at the Heart of the Absolute - the Crown of Karsus - and you disobeyed my instruction. Why? Gale: Because I have someone else to live for. ORI_State_Partnered Avatar or Companion is in an exclusive relationship Mystra: I know. Your union is one I find surprising, but you are your own man and it is not the worst choice you have made, after all.

the devnote says avatar or companion so i'm thinking the line was perhaps meant to be in custom tav playthrough at some point during development as well.

however, checking the same conversation in the file meant for a custom player, yields only this:

the line is completely absent here, nowhere to be found, while most other lines that are in a gale origin are also in a custom tav playthrough. in fact, i think it's the only line that's not there, too.

so that likely only leaves the following options: it was cut/chosen not be there for a custom tav, or it was forgotten to be implement for a custom tav.

since it's not the files for a custom tav, we can be sure that it's not a bug that we aren't getting this line from gale.

#gale dekarios #gale of waterdeep #gale x tav #tav x gale #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #bg3 spoilers #ch: gale dekarios #vg: baldur's gate 3 #series: baldur's gate #tagging because i was asked this a lot so maybe it helps some people #but also i will never not be disappointed with how half-baked all other romances are except the one(tm)

[purrincess-chat]

blue guitar boy + 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 13, 18, 19, 25

have fuuunnnn answering

Rae, you glutton for punishment, you XD

Fair warning for those who maybe don't know the history here, this answer will be salty~

2. Favorite canon thing about this character?

His relationship with Marinette was short lived and stripped of any meaningful content

3. Least favorite canon thing about this character

That he got off essentially with no punishment for LYING TO MARINETTE'S FACE and keeping secret that HE KNEW HER FUCKING IDENTITY and she doesn't even get mad at him for lying about it, and the narrative doesn't punish him for it either in any meaningful way. I mean, I was happy he had to leave for a while, but then him learning Mirakungfu is just ehhhh I'd have preferred he just never found out and left anyway to go travel with Jagged. I also hate that Jagged is canonically his dad/a deadbeat dad. I liked Jagged significantly more before that was canon, but after that being canon it kind of ruined his character for me ngl...

5. What's the first song that comes to mind when you think about them?

Not really a song-song per se, but I think of jacksepticeye's Night in the Woods playthrough when he's like "why is there always some douchebag with a guitar who's like 'I sing about my feelings cause I play guitar'" and that is always the first thing that comes to mind when I think about him. Also, since seeing the Barbie movie I think of that one scene with all the Kens playing guitar at the Barbies, and I love that movie so much for pointing out how cringy it is.

7. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you like?

They make him more attractive when they draw him than he actually is in canon

8. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you despise?

Literally everything else XD People who have been here a long time know about birthdaygate. I hate that they pretend he is better than Adrien, I hate that they act like the love square is toxic and their ship should have been endgame, I hate that they take key traits from Adrien and give them to the blue boy in order to make him more interesting but then shit on Adrien and act like he's the worst character in the show and somehow a creep/abuser toward Marinette/LB while propping up the blue boy on a pedestal as if he's god's gift to the fandom, I hate that they excused away him lying to Marinette about knowing her identity and even praised him for it when literally a season prior to that they shit on Adrien for finding out in CB and not telling her when she just literally had no idea and never asked, but when blue boy gets asked point blank if he knows, he lied and somehow that was perfectly fine and acceptable and they were glad he finally did something selfish/for himself for once. Literally, every time I read a take by blue ship truthers, I feel like my braincells die.

13. What's an emoji, an emoticon and/or any symbol that reminds you of this character or you think the character would use a lot?

I don't have much of a reason for this, but I feel like he would sign off most of his messages with a peace sign ✌️

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

That one episode with Juleka wanting to model was kinda cute when he was encouraging her

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

Marinette~

25. What was your first impression of this character? How about now?

Listen, for those that are like why so negative about the blue boy, Cat? What did he ever do to you? I want it to be known, that my first impression of him was very neutral. I didn't love or hate him. He was just okay. I thought he was a little bland, but I was open to seeing where he would go. The fandom 100% ruined him for me entirely. Canon helped later in S4 as I've already talked about, but it was mostly the fandom. Birthday spamming bitches. But when he first debuted, I just thought he was kinda meh, which was a crime apparently. But since then I've been more open with my disdain, so idgaf about it anymore. He's still mid imo.

Send me a character and some numbers

#cat replies #asks #ask game #blue one salt #blue boy salt

[lilbittymonster]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Tagged by @crackinglamb, tysm 💜

1. how many works do you have on ao3?

Currently 33

2. what’s your total ao3 word count?

110,421

3. what fandoms do you write for?

Currently writing for Final Fantasy XIV, but I have also written for Borderlands 2, Fallout 4, and Critical Role

4. what are your top five fics by kudos?

Only A Thought Away - Critical Role, Widomauk, Soulmates AU.

This Is Home - Critical Role, Widomauk/Fjorester/BeauYasha, Domestic slice of life.

I Will Endure - Critical Role, Widomauk, background Yashagard, Canon Divergence.

Forgiveness - Critical Role, Genfic, a bit of catharsis that still ended up happening in game just not the way i first envisioned it.

Boy, Oh Boy - Critical Role, Genfic, modern au.

All of these were done for a discord event several years ago.

5. do you respond to comments?

I do, I make an effort to respond to every one I get. Only exceptions being a couple "moar plz" "when's the next chapter?" type ones that I just deleted.

6. what’s the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Extinguishing the Last Light, my worst end Lightwarden AU where the Scions fail to defeat the final Lightwarden and the First continues to drown in Light.

7. what’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Walk to the Water, a 10k Borderlands Gaingel MerMay AU

8. do you get hate on fics?

Not yet, but if anyone tries it they've got another thing coming :)

9. do you write smut? if so, what kind?

I've written plenty, I've only posted the one E fic though. Mostly gay elf porn.

10. do you write crossovers? what’s the craziest one you’ve written?

No.

11. have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I know of.

12. have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope, though I'd be fine with it as long as I'm added as a co-author with a link to the original English.

13. have you ever co-written a fic before?

I have, I was doing a pretty large scale Critical Role rp fic with four other people. It disintegrated from some interpersonal tensions and one person leaving the fandom entirely but I still think very fondly on it. Before that, I was doing a Borderlands OC rp with a friend.

14. what’s your all-time favorite ship?

You ask me, a bisexual, to make a choice? Lol. Lmao, even. I do not have a One True Pairing, I have learned the mature art of multishipping like a goddamn adult.

15. what’s a WIP you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

OOF well this is a tie between Sometimes Goodbye and A Thistle's Thorns, both being all but abandoned due to fandom drift and loss of motivation. I found the original outline I had (thankfully) written out for Sometimes Goodbye, and I have started another BL2 playthrough, but FFXIV has eaten my life at this point so idk if I'll ever come back to it properly.

16. what are your writing strengths?

Show don't tell, detail descriptions, I have been told my characterisation through dialogue has been consistently on point (which is a relief), worldbuilding

17. what are your writing weaknesses?

Finding a good place to end. if left to my own devices I will Just Keep Rambling. That was actually one of the reasons I kept my FFXIVWrite entries so short. I needed to get over the hump of just letting things end.

18. thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I haven't had this particular problem yet, but I will once I start writing stuff for Stormblood, because Kitali is multilingual.

When I'm reading it, though, I prefer to just have a dialogue tag indicating which language is being spoken and then either a bold, italics, or both to show what's being spoken in what language. It saves me the trouble of scrolling back and forth and back and forth from the notes at the end of the chapter or trying to remember what was said where exactly and in what context.

19. first fandom you wrote for?

Borderlands 2

20. favorite fic you’ve ever written?

That would be Dragoon Age: Origins, the telling of Kitali and Estinien's first clash which I definitely did not just spend the last hour or so rereading nope not me

Tagging: @captainsparklefingers @screamingvikings @ir0n-angel and anyone else who wants to take a shot, I have lost track of who writes and who doesn't lol

#tagged

[shinysamurott9]

2024 Games: Mega Man X6 Tweaks

After playing X5’s improvement project, I felt it was only fair that I give X6's a go as well. X6 Tweaks is a sort of like a custom tweaks patcher allowing you to alter several elements of the game to your liking, including how the characters play, certain specific elements of level design, elements of the game’s presentation and a lot of stuff being tracked under the hood.

Before going into that though I feel I should talk about my opinion on base X6.

I hate it.

I really do not like base X6. I have played a majority of the side scrolling Megaman games, not all of them but most of what could be considered main series games and I genuinely feel X6 is the worst Megaman game, of the one's I've played at least, I've heard many bad things about BN4. But with X6 itself I feel like there were a lot of good ideas and some genuinely fun things to mess around with, but between the massively inconsistent difficulty, poor executions of it's ideas like the Nightmare Effects, bad design decisions with things like the secret boss areas and all armour pieces being required to use an armour again and of course it's infamously bad level design. Any good or sensible idea X6 had, is ultimately either undermined, falls over itself or is lamented for being stuck in this game.

So what exactly does Tweaks do to fix these issues?

In short, quite a lot while also adding a number of miscellaneous additions for fun and QoL, but at the same time, not doing much to fix arguably X6's biggest issue.

With my playthroughs, for the overall important changes, I opted to disable the Nightmare Blindness, leaving the other nightmare effects on. Aside from that, I activated incomplete armours, made it so the Exit Stage button was always available, unlocked aerial moves like double jumps and dash, fixed the translation, added the custom mugshot graphics, and tweaked the damage tables to make a few things more tolerable, like the donuts.

These changes did do a lot to make X6 more tolerable which did allow it's better qualities to shine through. The game is a lot more open with your routing, probably at least in part because every stage needs to be revisited anyway. The armours are fantastic, I'd argue they're some of the best armours X ever got and with the updated script, I can at least appreciate what the story was attempting. The script does even have some stuff that is genuinely interesting or funny.

Nightmare Zero actually has lines that read like he is Wily, I genuinely did not know that til now.

MF actually pulled the "I got better" card,cannot believe this.

Zero canonically hates puzzle games lol

They even added unique dialogue for Zero in the intro stage and against Nightmare Zero should you use the cheat to unlock him from the start which is a fantastic touch.

Some other fun additions include letting you change the Ultimate Armour’s palette to any of the three from the PS1 Trilogy as well as a fixed version of the X6 colours to match the portrait and a colour palette for the Legacy Collection Ultimate Armour which I think was updated to make it look better.

Unfortunately, at it's core the game us still X6 and it's main issue, the level design is still very much a problem. Scaravich is still a random layout , leaving the armour, boss portal and heart tank up to RNG. Mijinion still has his really annoying secret area, and his main area still throws literally everything at you, and of course, Heatnix is still just donuts. Would you believe me if I said someone actually told me they thought this was not only fun, but better than an actual level? Course the Gate stages are still just as bad too, but hey you can actually beat them without parts now. Bringing Shadow Armour to Gate is actually a reasonable idea now, as one of the few changes the hack does make to level design is adding a platform to the infamous jump. An air dash for No Armour and Shadow Armour is also available.

Sadly, like X5 Improvement, the hack ultimately does very little to fix the overall level design and the more problematic sections. But to be clear, I can't really blame the hack creators for that as the only real solution would be to just completely scrap the existing levels and completely redesign them from scratch, something well beyond the scope of a rom patch. So overall while it is an improvement over X6, I'd really only recommend it to someone who's familiar with X6, the bullshit it throws at you and the ways you can cheese it.

I'd say it helps the stromg qualities of X6 stand out enough to get B tier, but a pretty low B if I'm honest

#games i played #2024 games talk #megaman #Megaman X #Megaman X6 #video games #tier list

[kulvefaggoth]

I really think Bayonetta 3 needs to go down in history as one of the greatest games of all time that unfortunately has some of the worst writing you're ever gonna see.

Like on the design level everything about Bayonetta 3 is a gigantic improvement over everything that came before. The technical aspects of this game are nothing short of stellar and by god does this game have some of the best music and action setpieces i've ever seen in a video game. It looks fantastic and somehow through black magic it runs on the fucking toaster that is the Nintendo Switch and runs well.

So it really breaks my heart that the actual story of this game is such a dump. i'm not gonna talk spoilers rn but nothing makes sense nothing is explained nothing is addressed. And it goes for a big climatic emotional finish that feels completely hollow to me.

Idk i feel everybody who did the actual programming and design for this game did such a fantastic work that shows a lot of love and dedication to this franchise and the story feels like it was written by people that couldn't give less of a shit. It's not about ships or anything like that there are stories i love that suffer from chronic heteronormativity but are still great stories. Bayonetta 3 is just really really really really badly written as a story. It's just not good. It's downright awful and sometimes even feels a little too mean for no good reason.

You should play it if you like action games because it's a fucking masterpiece in that regard. If you're here for the story you might want to go watch a playthrough on youtube and save the money (maybe donate it to a pro-choice charity lmao).

I'm not sad i'm just disappointed they fumbled a very important part of what would be an easy 10/10 game if the writing was at least on par with the previous games.

#i know there's people who hate the bayo2 story #and while i never got why i think we'll both agree 3 is a sharp drop of quality #god it's so bad

[skvaderarts]

For everyone who asked for an Elden V story, here you go!

Elden V: The Journey to Destined Death

Chapter 1: The Chapel of Anticipation

Note: Well, this is curious. Would you believe me if I told you that this is the first time I’ve written fanfiction for a new series in over a decade? And that this is the first Crossover I’ve ever attempted? And the first time I’ve ever written a story in first person at all? Honestly, it’s kind of exciting! If you’ve ever read Dracula, that’s kind of what I’m going for here. Well, not entirely. What I mean is that I’m going for a journal/diary entry sort of deal here because I’ve always wanted to try something like that but didn’t have any ideas. But after doing a playthrough of Elden Ring with V, well… Yea. Here we are lol! Thank you to everyone who was interested in the idea! I hope you end up liking this disaster.

(-~-)

Day 1?

Well, then. I have much to cover, and presumably very little time to cover it in, so I suppose I should start from the very beginning. Wait, that doesn’t make much sense… Perhaps I should slow down. Yes, there is no rush. After all, where could I possibly be going?

The events I have experienced within the past few days are nothing short of remarkable. I must relay them to the best of my abilities, lest their intricacies flee me like the memory of a dream upon waking up. And perhaps that is all this is: a midnight fantasy dreamt up by my idle subconscious as I partake in a less-than-restful night’s slumber. But to that notion I can only offer this as a comment: we shall see. It is hardly relevant at the moment.

As I was saying, then. I haven’t the faintest idea as to where I’m supposed to be. I awakened upon the hard ground, bare stone at the feet. And when I finally managed to clamber to my feet, I was suddenly blinded by golden light. I felt compelled to step through into the unknown, and once I did, I was in some sort of old weathered stone building.

It was mostly empty save for a few chairs and some wood laying around. Well, that was until I stumbled upon the remains of a young woman in the corner by the door. Frankly, I don’t know how I managed to miss her. The building consisted of exactly one room with a door directly in front of me, and yet I managed to almost overlook her. How shameful. Almost as shameful as my inability to give her a proper burial, but there were no tools available for me to do such a thing with. I was forced to wish her well, ask her forgiveness, and then forsake her.

I found punishment for my sacrileges deeds just beyond the door. It was… perhaps the heaviest thing I’ve ever had to push. I don’t know if the hinges were rusted in place, or simply needed to be oiled badly, but they just did not want to move. I practically fell through the door when I finally managed to force it open. And when I stood up, well… 

I sincerely do not believe that I’ve ever been so high up in my entire life. The only reason I knew that there was an ocean below me beyond my field of view was the sound of crashing water. Between that and the sound of crashing water, I could almost swear that the entire rock face that the building was built onto was swaying, but perhaps that was simply my distaste for heights getting the better of me. 

Regardless, the entire building was built onto the top of a giant narrow stone structure that jutted out of the ocean. Perhaps a segment of the existing cliffs that I couldn’t quite make out in the distance that had separated long ago? It doesn’t really matter, does it? The only thing I’ve learned about it is that it is called the Chapel of Anticipation. Strange.

Perhaps the worst walkway that I’ve ever had the displeasure of walking down led me to what has to be the most fear-inducing bridge I’ve had the displeasure of crossing in my lifetime thus far. The flimsy rope bridge felt as though it would give way at any moment, and the constant creaking of the wood only inspired terror, much like the sorry excuse for stairs that had led me to it. Most of the boards and nearly the entire railing had been missing from that “structure”. I put one foot on that awful thing and when I saw it yield I opted to jump over the edge of the foundation of the building instead. They led to the same place, and I’d rather have a broken ankle than embrace the sweet release of death.

Which is a real shame because that’s what happened the moment I crossed that godforsaken bridge.

I scarcely believe that I shall be believed or that I can believe what has transpired myself, but I seem to have, for lack of a better way of putting it, been acupuncture to death. I walked through an archway and was promptly ambushed by something I hesitate to relate to you. It looked as though it had stolen the arms and legs of others and attached them to itself, but somehow the limbs still functioned! It was like the worst kind of spider. No, that is an undue insult to all arachnids. Even the worst of them are better than this thing. 

And it was upon realizing that I would have to do battle against whatever that thing was that I attempted to summon Griffon only to find that I had no access to my summons. Not a single one of them. Their markings were gone. My hair had even returned to its natural color. I was defenseless, save for a sword that I have no recollection of acquiring or knowing how to use. 

So I made the only sensible decision faced with this kind of situation. I fled for my life. 

And then I realized that I’d been sealed into the area by some sort of mystical force that manifested in the form of a green energy barrier. And regardless of how hard I tried, I could not get it to budge.

Faced with the reality of my situation, I made a choice. I would not die without putting up a fight. And although the “battle” lasted all of thirty seconds once that thing jumped up into the air and harpooned me from above before tossing me off the side of the cliff into the ocean, it was… an attempt, at the very least.

I tried. But I cannot say with any semblance of honesty that I am satisfied.

But a suppose that I should address the elephant in the room. The fact that I should not be currently breathing, let alone able to retell these events. I… have no explanation as to how I managed to survive that fall. Mostly because I didn’t survive it. I felt the air rush around me for several seconds before making impact with the water. Between the force of my landing and my grievous injuries, I have no rightful claim to continued existence. And yet, here I am.

After washing up in some sort of cave, I heard a voice tell me to “seek the Elden Ring.” I believe it was a young woman who told me this, but I was only semi-conscious at best so I cannot be sure. What I do know is that I came to and found four flasks, one filled with a blue liquid and the other with a red mixture. Upon examination (I shall not go into the particulars) I discovered that the red ones assist me when injured to an impressive degree, and the blue one presumably does something similar. I’ve yet to fully discover its capabilities. I shall keep experimenting.

I then stumbled through a cave filled with what I can only assume are the tragically emaciated locals, nearly all of which attempted to kill me. Perhaps they seek to eat me? They will be sorely disappointed if that is the case. I have little to offer them. Regardless, I eventually managed to escape after being ambushed by a soldier of some sort and hurried up a flight of steps that led to a lift of some kind. And once I reached the top I encountered… yet another door.

Do you remember when I said that the door back at the Chapel of Anticipation was heavy? This one lifts from the bottom instead of down the middle. And it’s made of METAL. I wish I was being hyperbolic, but getting that door open was perhaps my hardest challenge yet. It took every ounce of strength that I could muster to lift that door, but I finally managed to stumble out into the open where I proceeded to lay face down on the ground for several minutes while I waited for my head to stop spinning and throbbing from overexertion.

Once I finally crawled to my feet I dragged myself down the hill and towards what appeared to be a ruined church in the distance. I’ve slept in less, and after everything that I’d experienced that day, I need to rest. Dusk was fast approaching. I had no idea what lurked in the darkness here.

I reached the church with no trouble, though I did glimpse something in the darkness that beings me unease despite my lack of knowledge as to what it was. The vague outline of something massive navigating the main road, the jangle of heavy metal and heavy thuds deafening as I stayed my distance and crept through the open side wall of the church. I think it was golden, but in the dim light, who could blame me for not being able to tell? Something tells me that if I remain here I shall find out. And that I shall not enjoy what I discover.

A fire was already blazing, and a strange man in a red and white coat with glowing eyes beckoned me to stay. And I was too tired to even think of not complying. I would rest there for now. I can only hope that I will be safe here until morning comes. This is everything that I have experienced thus far. Perhaps I shall awaken to find that this has all been a strange dream and that I can hardly recall it. That is the best I can hope for, it seems.

Hopefully, this will be my final entry. We shall see.

(-~-)

Day 2.

Well, it appears that I am still here. Delightful.

I must make the most of it. 

To my surprise, the man I met last night is a merchant. His name is Kale. Not like the plant. More like Kah-lay. I must make a note of this lest my tongue slip. And he was a helpful one at that. One who furnished me with some excellent information and advice as well as a crafting kit of some sort. I now know how to craft a handful of different items and recipes. And after gathering a few more of the currency in these parts (apparently called runes) that I was able to pillage from some strange, sentient flowers, I purchased a few more recipes from him. I feel… not quite confident in my survivability, but better equipped, at the very least. And thankfully, I have very little to carry.

I decided to wander the area and see what I might discover. I stumbled upon a strange man in an all-white robe, a white mask adorning his face. He calls himself Varre, the “e” being a long “a” and the Varr rhyming with “yar.” I hope the next person I encounter has a name that is simpler to remember, but I suppose I am one to talk, all things considered. At least we all speak the same dialect. That is most fortunate, indeed.

He has directed me to utilize the little plumes of golden light around me, to follow their rays and see what they lead me to. If I touch them I can apparently resurrect at them should I fall in battle. I… expect this shall happen often, unfortunately. Apparently, I am something called a Tarnished and I am also “Madenless.” I considered asking him to elaborate further as to what either of those things mean, but I can’t be bothered to find the strength to even try to comprehend what's going on here. He said that without a Maden I cannot strengthen myself and hope to survive. Yes, as though I would not have remedied that aspect of my physical form before now should I have been able to. But at least here I do not feel my strength slipping away. I believe I am in a sort of stasis. Perhaps I should not be so hasty with my efforts to find a way out of this place… 

I shall follow these rays he speaks of. How else would I fill my free time?

Day 3.

It was a long, wet night. I retreated to the church where Kale resides, a place called the Church of Elleh. There is a small portion of the rooftop left intact over the doorway that I could take shelter under. It was as far away from the warm flames of Kale’s campfire as I could possibly be, but I fear my chances should I become waterlogged. And thankfully the rain let up for a few hours during my mostly sleepless night, giving me an opportunity to warm up.

I’m actually wearing different clothing here. I arrived in this place wearing them. A black set of light armor with a large black hood and a trailing cape. I… actually quite like it. The garments are warm but not too hot, the boots are durable and serviceable in regards to comfort, and the cape makes an excellent blanket. Not to mention that the color hides me in the darkness, at least so long as I remember to wear the hood lest my white hair gives me away. I wonder how the locals will react to that… 

That being said, I have concerns about the symbol on the back. I hope it does not bring me harm. I have no way of knowing what it means. Thankfully, no one seems to pay it any mind, so perhaps I am worrying myself needlessly. There are many real threats that I should be focusing on. But for now, I shall focus on staying dry and out of the rain. I shall depart once it lets up.

Day 4.

It rained the entire day, so I stayed near the church. But after the night passed and the next morning came, I realized that I could not allow rain to keep me confined to a building. I am simply going to have to endure it within reason.

I’ve been walking through the wilderness for several hours now. And I am exhausted. I do not have my cane, and some of this terrain leaves much to be desired, especially in the rain. I am cold, and as I venture closer toward the base of what appears to be a castle up upon a distant hill, the winds grow stronger. And so does my desire to leave this area, but I have no idea where I am.

But for the most part, I have been sticking to main roads while I attempt to sort out my lack of food. I am not yet completely famished, but I do not wish to wait until I arrive at death’s door to find sustenance. Huger is always an unwelcome guest.

Day 5.

I opted to purchase a spyglass from Kale after exploring a little further and have located what appears to be a map upon a stone structure along the main road. The bad news is that it is in the middle of a military encampment, and I can see no less than 12 soldiers from here. They seem well-armed and unwilling to assist me. In fact, I was ambushed by a few of them on the road and only managed to fend them off due to their complete inability to breach my shield. 

Oh yes, I have a shield! I’ve had one this entire time, something I did not notice until I turned over on it in my sleep and it caused my back to ache. And I have some sort of strange item in my pocket. I believe it to be a crucifix of some sort, but not like any I’ve ever seen. I shall investigate what it is capable of.

For now, I am planning to infiltrate that camp during the night to snag that map. Perhaps when they fall asleep I can seize my opportunity. 

Kale has also informed me that there are more of his people scattered about this continent. And he has warned me not to cross them. I have no motivation to do such a thing, but I completely understand his reasons for bringing this to my attention. If my personal experience is anything to go by, I now inhabit a hostile land and must keep my wits about me. He is right not to trust me. I hope to earn that. He has helped me immeasurably. I am hopeful that we will meet again.

Day 6.

I have discovered that this item I possess is called a Seal and that it is used to cast “incantations”. And one of the ones I seem to be able to call upon is an invisibility spell. This will no doubt prove to be invaluable. It certainly did last night when I infiltrated that camp and snagged the map. It turned out to be merely a fragment, but it was comprehensible, at the very least. I am pleased.

I have also come to the conclusion that I need a better weapon. What sort? I haven’t the foggiest idea, but anything has to be better than this blade. It isn’t the length that’s the problem, per se, but I… I am not accustomed to this sort of thing, but the weight simply does not feel satisfactory. Perhaps something lighter. Something more elegant and nimble and easy to wield? I shall have to experiment.

The strangest thing ing occurred overnight. I was approached by the young woman from the cave! Her name is Melina, and she offered to become my companion on this journey, helping to enhance my power and strength. She also informed me that I had been chosen by a “spectral steed” named Torrent. I have been gifted a ghost horse. I shall not question this. No, I shall receive this gift at any cost with eager foolishness. I’ve grown so weary of traveling on foot. Even without knowledge of how to ride a horse, I would sooner figure that out than continue to march until my feet bleed.

She only wishes for me to make a journey to the foot of the great golden tree that towers over the entire kingdom. I cannot anticipate any issue with this request. If there is one thing in this kingdom that I cannot imagine getting lost searching for, it is that tree. I cannot even describe how large it is. Naturally, I agreed. I need all the help I can get.

And more help I received.

I had to pick this back up to add an addendum. A strange blue woman with two heads and four arms in a rather large hat came to me in the dead of night under the light of the moon, bringing with her a blanket of fog. Kale fell into a deep sleep, so I can only presume she wished to speak in private. She asked me if I was Torrent’s current owner and introduced herself as Renna, gifting me a bell that can supposedly call forth spirits. 

Fascinating. I shall have to test this. I’ve experienced less believable things. if I’m being completely honest. This could be of great help to m.

She then wished me well, informing me that I would likely not see her again and that she wondered when my kind would “tire of obedience to the Two Fingers” before disappearing into blue powder, blowing away into the night sky. Further mysteries that require solving, I assume. For now, I obey only my own whims, at least to my knowledge. And my current decree is that I shall sleep. I… I am so tired.

Day 7.

I… I nearly perished today. My heart races and my hand trembles as I struggle to write this.

Upon setting out to explore the wider world I came into contact with a being known as the Tree Sentinel. He is the being I passed upon my arrival to this land, a towering golden knight astride a heavily equipped golden steed. And like a bolt out of the blue, he ran me down and knocked me off of the side of a cliff into a lake where I barely managed to summon my horse and escape. 

But upon fleeing, my body battered and bruised and no doubt with several shattered ribs, I hurried across the edge of the lake until I came upon a bridge. I crossed under it, my intention to convalesce under a cave, but I was suddenly set upon by a hooded figure with a ragged dagger who I utterly failed to fend off. And just as I was certain I would draw my last breath, another individual entered the fray and fended off my attacker, allowing me just enough time to take a swig of my final red flask and join him in battle.

After the deed was done he informed me that his name was Yura and that he hunted individuals called Bloody Fingers. And that they would come for me again, but he was impressed that I’d managed to survive that encounter, much in the same way that I myself was. The man who attacked me was called Nerijus, and he’d apparently sought out my blood as a sacrifice. I would shutter at the thought if my body wasn’t already shaking.

Apparently, they were once Tarnished themselves, tempted away from the guidance of grace by a shadowy cabal. I must stay vigilant. These lands yet hold more dangers I am ignorant to, and they probably always shall.

But after parting ways I stumbled into a nearby cave and was accosted by a man who goes by the name of Patches. He… didn’t put up much of a fight before begging my forgiveness and had since offered to sell me items, but considering his location and the bandits he shares the cave with who also tried to kill me and, to be frank, his entire demeanor, I have little reason to trust him. And yet… perhaps if I’m especially desperate he will be of use. At least I know I can handle myself against him should things take a turn.

I left the cave and hurried over to the area where I was informed Yura would be, and he greeted me pleasantly. He didn’t seem to mind a stranger accompanying him for the night, and we shared a pleasant conversation. Well, it was until he informed me that crossing the breadth of the lake would almost certainly spell my doom as a DRAGON apparently roosts there. 

I… do not know how to ever process that information.

I have done battle against demons but a dragon… something about it inspired terror. Perhaps the way Yura described it as “as fearsome as it is majestic” before telling me to stay well away from it unless I had a death wish or simply wanted to be burned alive. I possess neither, so I shall take his advice.

It is time that I take my rest. I shall depart in the morning. I have received a lead on something of interest that I shall seek out come dawn. Today has been a learning experience, and it has provided hard-earned lessons that I shall not soon forsake. I depart at dawn. One can only hope that this Weeping Peninsula that I’ve heard so much about shall be fruitful. And hopefully safer. Or at the very least I hope it rains less. I’ve grown tired of being constantly cold and wet.

(-~-)

Okay, this was really fun hahaha! I hope you all enjoyed it. Each chapter will be a collection of diary entries. The amount will vary depending on what sorts of things happen in my playthrough, but I’m hoping to do at least 3 each time. Let me know if you like this and take care. It’s all for fun. Here’s to hoping that the FromSoft fanbase doesn’t crucify me for shitposting anywhere near their sacred grounds SMH. Please. Let me know what you think and I’ll see you all soon! Take care! Bye bye!

#V #Fromsoft #Elden Ring #AU #DMC #Crossover #Essentially Isekai #Shipost of the highest order #Spoilers

[rottenbrainstuff]

BG3 playthrough - completely finished under Moonrise

Wow, oh wow.

From the top: first we had fight #1 with Ketheric. I made sure not to kill Kar’niss earlier because I thought I’d have an opportunity to talk to him on the roof, but nope! We just jumped straight into fight #1, and then he was just a large extra hassle to deal with. I felt SO bad killing him, because I had to incapacitate him somehow, and my bard has really good fear spells so that’s normally what I use. It felt really crummy making this poor guy cower while I slowly chop him down. Sigh. (hey what comes out of those incubating death rock egg things? I was too scared to see and killed them all immediately)

Man. I couldn’t stop staring at Ketheric’s eyes though. Even on lower rendering settings, you can see they clearly spent a TON of effort on his eyes specifically. Man, guys. You must have had a special task team that worked for months just specifically on rendering his wrinkles, and the glassy rheumy effect of his eyes. Holy shit. It’s such a cool direction to take, set up your baddie as this awful, ruthless general with all the battle remains and the chilling letters, make him creepy as fuck with the goblin and the axe demonstration, then also put a shitton of effort into making him also just a really really sad really really old man. I love it.

Then after that: wading through the mindflayer colony. Online says that the companions who have extra dialogue or cutscenes in here are Wyll, Gale, and Karlach, but :( :( :( that leaves no room for Astarion? I decided to not have Karlach. Sorry babe. And anyways, without Astarion, who else is going to take out poor old Chop in one single merciful blow?

I rescued Zevlor from the pods, thank god, thank GOD finally. (hilarious to see his tail poking out the back there) My tav has been upset about him for weeks here. Goddamn, poor guy, he’s been thralled by the Absolute but doesn’t care what you tell him, he puts the blame on himself. Even when you tell him it’s not his fault he was enthralled, he still says that that might be true, but whatever the Absolute does, it starts with something that’s already inside you. Buddy, my buddy. And they programmed so many different ways to get angry with him and blame him. Why? Why do you even want to blame this poor guy who is already blaming himself more than you ever could? I mean at best he was enthralled and couldn’t help it, but at worst he just made a bad decision that he honestly and immediately regretted entirely and was disgusted by. Leave this poor old man alone. He won’t even get angry if you pick the most aggressive and mean dialogue options, he just agrees. Sigh. Back with the other tieflings, you can mention to Cerys that you found Zevlor, and she will just be angry at him for letting them down when they needed him. And I mean. Yes that’s valid but damn it makes me sad. Poor sad old man. Anyways he leveled up in the time we were away, and he is a mean fighter now! Nice! I wish he could have stuck around longer. That was an awfully short conversation, for as much as it was all built up, with all the other tielfings mentioning how angry at him they were! Is this REALLY the only interaction we have with him now until act 3???

DAYUM this area is shitty for a resisting dark urge. So many lovely horrible things down here. Wow. My poor tav, he needs a big long rest to process all of this, but after you’re done everyone wants to talk and there’s a big old cutscene coming up. Poor guy, no rest for you.

THE MIND JARS: wow ok. So at the very beginning of the game, you found those two green brain jars on the nautiloid. Hopefully you stuck them in your storage, or maybe you thought they were useless and you just sold them. EIther way, I’m pretty sure it didn’t occur to you to bring them with you when you went into the Moonrise pit? Why WOULD you think to bring them? It’s too bad if you didn’t, because in this area is the only machine in the game that lets you use these jars, and once you find the machine and realize what it’s for, you can’t travel back to your trunk to get them, and you ALSO won’t be able to return later on. So. Tough luck. Me, I was travelling with my team of 8 str weenies, and every mind jar I found, I sent straight to my camp! Why wouldn’t I? These guys can’t weigh themselves down with extra shit! By the time I found the machine and realized what it did, there was only one jar left in my inventory that I didn’t send back to camp.

I suppose the jars maybe are supposed to be a fun little easter egg for players who go back and play again. Too bad I’m very willing to reload and redo things for hours and hours lmao. I reloaded just a couple hours and this time brought all the jars with me. Thanks, I hate it! What a horrible and disturbing little touch. Yay. Was my least favourite the child mind, or was it the spooky singing one? Hard to say!

I was shitting my pants when Ketheric turned into the Myrkul apostle form, cause it looked scary, but damn? We just all slammed it a few times and it was totally fine? Very very cool boss though. I loved the little skeletons sitting on his shoulder with the flails. Goddamn Ketheric stayed sad right until the end huh? Driven to do horrible things in a misguided attempt to help his daughter, forsaken by three different gods, and his last dying thought and words were of Isobel. I fucking lost it when I found the little note that he keeps on him. Excellent writing Larian, excellent job of making your good guys flawed and your bad guys sad. Man I love it.

Now I have a shitton of talking and cutscenes to wade through to get to act 3. I absolutely ADORE how when the guardian talks about the elder brain, it is just ever so slightly the wrong reaction, lmao. I love how instead of being just generally horrified that there’s an elder brain there at all, it seems to be really, really indignant that mortals are controlling it. “I mean yes hey let’s go save the people of Baldur’s Gate from being turned into mindflayers, but the audacity! The audacity of putting an elder brain in thrall!” and my tav is like hmmm I feel like that’s an… unusual reaction to this situation….

Astarion is absolutely preening after the fight, saying that he never thought he’d be the one defeating the shadows. Yeah see buddy, it feels good sometimes to play the hero, doesn’t it?

Man, my party is enormous now because of all the summons I have walking around with me. I currently have Scratch, three quasits, a shadow wraith thingamajig, an earth elemental (which oh man I absolutely love) and now, the latest addition, a cambion. The cambion is hilarious. It’s a totally sentient and intelligent thing, but I can’t talk to it at all. I imagine it’s pissed off at being summoned here away from its dinner to do boring bullshit errands for this group of wankers, so it just totally and completely ignores me.

Off to act 3 now! Can’t believe I’m in the final act of the game! Can anyone tell me where I can get my own tall, hot, and intensely devoted aasimar girlfriend?

#bg3 #bg3 playthrough #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 spoilers

[amewinterswriting]

Happy STS! What’s the story that has influenced your writing craft the most? Whether it made some element of storytelling ‘click’ for you, or served as an example of how not to do things, which story has taught you the most?

Oooo, this is a tough question to narrow down. Mostly because I am a big believer in consuming stories in a lot of different mediums, all of which have some different advantages and disadvantages to the way in which it can tell a story. Partly because I definitely pick up a lot of 'how I don't want to do things' and I don't really want to put those stories on blast, necessarily. So I'll try to narrow down a short list (edit: this is definitely not short):

I, Lucifer by Glen Duncan (novel): A masterclass in unreliable narration, given that it is told from the perspective of the Devil and he himself tells you he might well be lying! Very witty and surprisingly heartfelt and queer sympathy for the devil story - all things that have shaped a lot of my writing!

Oneshot by Future Cat LLC (video game): I urge anyone even thinking about making interactive media to give this game a full playthrough. This really challenged my perception on what a video game is 'allowed' to do and be. The characters within the narrative address you personally (as in, you the player, not the character you control), and it only gets more meta from there. Some puzzles involve you digging around in your own documents folder (on your actual computer) for a file the game has generated for you. Narrative wise, it makes you care so much, so quickly for Niko, a lost kid who just wants to go home and is in a dark and unfamiliar land with only you to help them. It manages to capture that emotion of helplessness perfectly, especially given that it only has 2-D sprites, written text and music to work with. I can't say much more about it without spoiling it, but it's short (~11 hours), cheap (£8.50 full price, regularly on sale) and so very worth your while to experience first hand.

Old Harry's Game by Andy Hamilton (Radio series, originally on BBC Radio 4): Another take on sympathy for the devil (I might have a type) but closer to pure comedy than I, Lucifer. That doesn't mean that there isn't a lot of pathos, however. It's a wry and darkly comic view of Catholic Christianity dogma (written from Hamilton's own experiences of the Church growing up) but also veers into physics, psychology, philosophy, politics and history...and somehow continues to be funny throughout. It uses the radio medium to great effect, too: for example, having the entire environment of hell and the punishments therein reduced to sound effects and a few pithy lines of dialogue lets the listener fill in the gaps and imagine the scene. Demons often transform their bodies with a single sound effect and the characters get to narrate the grotesque ways in which they've changed, often leaving the worst detail until the right moment for maximum comedic effect. It's very intelligently written and available for free on the BBC Sounds app as of writing.

Robinson in Ruins by Patrick Keiller (film): My obligatory 'do not do things like this' pick. A documentary film if you take the meanings of both words very loosely; this is an essay, spoken over static shots of everyday British objects. Such as a road sign. And the lichen on a road sign. Or a brick wall. It's an infodump made into a film and possibly the most bored I have ever been by a piece of media (closely followed by Goodbye Dragon Inn, which is ostensibly a narrative about a cinema's very last movie screening before it closes down, and follows the people inside in slow, tedious detail as they do such riveting things as eat lunch, walk up stairs and take a piss). I have a reasonably high tolerance for 'art' films, but I discovered a very low tolerance for being bored to tears while watching this.

Notable mentions:

Love Simon, 2018 (film): I learnt I really don't care for coming out stories. They either go ridiculously well, with super supportive friends and family, after a long period of closeted worrying (which really minimizes the very real concerns a lot of us do have about coming out) or depressingly badly (which is just trauma porn for straight people). And they always gloss over the ongoing process of coming out - for me, coming out to family was no big deal, but I did have to think carefully about whether it was safe for me to come out at work and I still have moments of hesitation when dealing with older distant family/friends of family because I simply don't know if this particular acquaintance is homophobic or not.

The Chrestomanci Chronicles, Diana Wynn Jones (novel series): one from my formative years (and incidentally, a series I still think would be amazing to adapt to a television format). Often quite dark for children's literature (spoiler: a protagonist's sister has spent most of the protagonist's life spending his life force for her magical power. He is twelve when he finds out), can be read in any order but reading them all gives clues and details about the worldbuilding and offers background to the characters that do show up over multiple books. I really like the format of self-contained stories within a wider narrative world and this was possibly my first exposure to it.

Tales of Series (video game): a narrative hallmark of the whole series is setting up an expectation about the world (along with a serious question) and then, about a third of the way through, revealing some new information about the nature of the world that often adds a new dimension to the question asked. I still feel like Symphonia does this best: the beginning of the game establishes that your childhood friend is a Chosen - the only one with the power to save the world, and must go on a quest to different shrines to unlock her power and save the world from the evil half-elves. So far, so standard fantasy fare. Then, as her journey reaches its conclusion, you learn that her role is sacrificial, and you refuse to allow that to happen. Shortly after, you learn the world you're saving is one of a pair, and by saving it, the other world goes into decline. And this is a cycle that has been ongoing for millennia. And that the half-elves aren't all evil but a lot of discrimination has been thrown around by humans, elves and half-elves, and some of the acts you've seen are a twisted kind of self-defense. And it all gets more thorny and complicated from there, including a morally grey ultimate villain who is a perfect narrative foil for the lead protagonist. But the major thing I love about this series is the twist in the nature of the world that ultimately leads to the detailed analysis of the question being asked (in this, the twin worlds in a constant state of rise and decline lending nuance to the question of discrimination and what to do about it, not only along the race axis, but also about wealth, social power and cultural groups). All this with a genuinely lovable cast of characters who have so much hidden depth and personality that slowly gets revealed by plot and optional 'skit' scenes that are triggered by various game activities (from plot points to cooking to visiting different areas on the world map). If you have 60+ hours to dedicate to it, Symphonia is very rich in world development, character development and narrative. Just maybe don't hold all the other games in the series to the same high standard... (look, Graces was bad, we all agree on that. And they never made a sequel to Symphonia that reduced all that character and narrative development to ashes because that would be frankly awful)

#ame talks #writblr #storyteller saturday #on writing #ask games #this definitely got away with me #tales of series #chrestomanci #old harry's game #oneshot game #I really could have kept going for a long time

[ersatz-colubridae-88]

drags myself out of hell I BEAT HUNTER. SOMEHOW. granted it definietly wasn't the best hunter experience i'll definietly revisit their campaign later... do you have any recommendations for what campaign i should attempt next? i thought about gourmand or spearmaster, rivulet maybe, but their incredibly short cycles,,,, not the best after playing a slugcat where i had to hurry constantly (i do still love riv though. my silly). i think based on how everything is going downpour is going to beat me to death 😔😔 /hj plan my funeral cookie

as for my bastard scug ocs:

the traitor - a bloodthirsty slugcat, wanting nothing but pain upon anyone and everyone. they're based on the outlaw loading screen description; "all that come near are slain, friend and foe alike". they often try to get creatures on their good side before using them to kill others and eventually betraying them. they're not dumb though, prefering to make others trust them, even a little, before putting a spear in their head.

the explorer - an adventurous and curious slugcat, wanting to know all there is about this cruel world and it's inhabitants. they task themselves with writing and drawing about their findings. the explorer is a very skilled climber, fast and light, better then all other slugcats. they aren't very strong in combat, but they're not afraid to fight back when threatened. they have an intense hatred of water, swimming rather slowly and running out of breath fast. they owned a journal full of their knowledge, but at this point its scattered all around the world. they appeared before survivor and monk and died to the rot trying to fully explore five pebbles. they like looks to the moon a lot though, bringing her drawings here and there.

god i love this silly slug game. thank you for giving me permission to cheat on challange 70 ill probably have to o7

(good lord worst ask answerer ever i'm so sorry hi)

WOWWW GOOD JOB ON HUNTER! i didn't even beat hunter when i first played the game lol that's so awesome! (granted i was trying to be VERY optimized with my playthrough so i kept resetting and getting mad instead of just playing the game lol)

honestly, i HIGHLY recommend going in the campaign unlock order for all the slugcats (gourmand/artificer, spearmaster, rivulet, saint) because the story reveal and experience is just so good that way. i played all the slugcats and have been playing them for a while and so i love them all now, but artificer and spearmaster in particular are VERY difficult to start out with. rivulet not so much though! the short cycles are honestly not that bad if you know where you're going. it's other things in the campaign you'll need to worry about. but that's spoilers... :-) so basically, for story and experience go for gourmand or artificer first. you won't regret it. (when you get to the rivulet/spearmaster unlock PLAY SPEARMASTER FIRST. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE. very important)

your little guys are so cool too!!! i love the story you gave the explorer... wehhhh ;_; the rot consumes... and i like the concept of a deceiving and very smart little sluggy like this thing gaslights gatekeeps AND girlbosses. so cool. please show me more about them whenever you feel like it

#INCOMING BROADCAST #again very sorry this ask slipped my mind #oops #godspeed on c70 btw LOL

[mass-effect-1-mod-manager7h]

[INFORMATION] Common Game Fixing Mods - Hero Approved - MELE - Answer HQ

💾 ►►► DOWNLOAD FILE 🔥🔥🔥 And giving veteran players the perfect excuse to jump in for yet another playthrough, perhaps with a few Mass Effect Legendary Edition mods added into the mix for some fresh gameplay. Despite adding a number of improvements, especially for the first game, Mass Effect Legendary Edition still feels outdated in many ways. Luckily, the modding community has been very busy ever since MELE came out and already created close to mods as of this writing. Some of these mods are designed to improve upon existing aspects of the game while others try to bring something new to the table. There are a few big ones but most Mass Effect Legendary mods are a lot more subtle. With that out of the way, join us as we take a look at the best Mass Effect Legendary Edition mods available in Expanded Galaxy Mod is a fairly sizeable mod that adds a number of interesting changes to Mass Effect 3. Among other things, you can expect a handful of new weapons, better mission timings also available as a standalone mod , a few tweaks to the interior of the Normandy, and more. There are also various gameplay improvements, including the ability to change armor at mission launch and change your weapon loadout at any time. Every squadmate gets some new casual outfits and a couple of characters also get some extra armor. Though the Squadmate Pack is entirely optional so you can take it or leave it. This module brings to the table a whole slew of changes to the Normandy, including new crew members, customization, weapon imports from ME2, and a bunch of other features to boot. Expanded Galaxy Mod was originally created for the old version of Mass Effect 3 and contained even more improvements and content. You spend the majority of Mass Effect 3 roaming around the galaxy gathering war assets for the fight against the Reapers. Many of us hoped that the hassle would eventually pay off in the final mission when all the allies we made along the way would help us take Earth back. Worst of all, not even most of your previous squadmates bothered to show up. But thanks to the Take Earth Back mod we can finally make the ending of Mass Effect 3 a bit more bearable. The mod adds troops and characters from all races to the Earth hub while also introducing appropriate dialogues, videos, events, models, and more. Well, at least that specific portion of the mission. Among other things, Spectre Expansion Mod adds new shops, missions, star clusters, war assets, and even a powerful new enemy type. Spectre Expansion Mod requires EGM to run so make sure you grab that one first before you attempt to install it. Including a few of the ones found on this list. LE1 and LE2 have similar community patches you can, and should, install. There are a bunch of reasons for wanting to do this, primarily to help with the flow of the story. For instance, the mod makes Lair of the Shadow Broker unlock only after you meet Liara and help her with her quests on Illium. Some of the changes and additions found in Spectre can also be found in other mods, but this is a package deal that replaces the need to download a bunch of smaller mods to achieve similar results. Some of the changes made by Spectre include things like infinite boost for Shepard, infinite boost for the Mako, increased maximum inventory limit, weapons rebalancing, difficulty tweaks, and more. In short, Spectre has a little bit of everything. It even adds cheat commands for those who want to make certain aspects of the game a bit easier or faster. Black Market License is a Mass Effect 1 mod that gives the player access to hidden items. Including weapons, armors, and mods. You can unlock these items by first buying a Black Market License from the Normady requisition store. After you have installed the mod, of course. The items unlocked by this mod were already partially implemented into the game by Bioware but were left on the cutting room floor for one reason or another. Some of them are crazy powerful, which may explain why they never made it into the full game. This mod rebalances them to a certain extent and makes them unavailable until your character reaches around level 20ish. Items added by Black Market License appear naturally in selected stores throughout the game. You can sometimes also find them randomly by killing enemies or opening containers. Make sure to pay close attention to the instructions found on the mod page. On the bright side, if you ever want to turn it off, you can simply buy a Revoke Black Market License item in-game. There are a couple of Mass Effect Legendary Edition mods that let you upgrade weapons to rank 10 on your first playthrough of ME3, but this is our favorite one due to its simplicity. And also because its abbreviation is UWU. With UWU enabled you can rank your weapons up to max level right off the bat, provided you can afford it of course. One thing worth noting is that the mod automatically gives weapons found during missions a higher rank than they would otherwise have. These weapons start at rank 3, which is not a huge deal, but it does affect the balance somewhat. Better Camera is one of the oldest Mass Effect Legendary mods around, having launched just one day after the remastered trilogy came out. Keep it at around 80 or 90 tops for the best results. Better Camera works for all three games. Fight Institutional Sexual Harassment, or F. Normally, you would have to flirt with her and invite her to dinner before she decides to return your fish, which feels a bit odd to say the least. You can skip the date entirely by simply installing this mod. Mass Effect 3 is no exception. By far one of the most annoying ones is the security scan found on Deck 2 of the Normandy. Thankfully, you can easily get rid of that little annoyance by installing the Security Scan Skip mod. This mod essentially removes that restriction and lets you use all available weapons regardless of your class. This particular mod only works for the Legendary Edition of Mass Effect 2 but there are similar mods for the other two entries. It also incorporates the Shepard Can Run mod, which allows the Commander to sprint for much longer than usual. The primary goal of the mod is to make combat more action-packed and less sedentary. Instead of hiding behind cover and taking pot shots every now and then, you are encouraged to move around the battlefield to try and flank enemies. The AI is no longer absurdly accurate, especially when firing while on the move, giving you the opportunity to move around more. Which you should definitely do a lot because the AI also receives penalties when firing at moving targets. Aside from that, the mod also does a lot of weapon rebalancing, adds new weapon sound effects, and more. This is easily one of the best Mass Effect Legendary Edition mods for Commanders who love collecting and displaying trinkets from all over the galaxy. The Collectors Cabin adds statues, figurines, toys, and an assortment of other objects you can hang around in your cabin. Including the iconic Shepard hologram. To make things a bit more immersive, a lot of these objects need to be purchased from the Spectre Requisitions store. Meanwhile, others can be found by simply completing certain missions. This Mass Effect 2 mod does exactly what it says on the tin and allows you to recruit certain companions earlier than in the vanilla game. Namely, Thane, Samara, and Tali. The mod also gives Shepard early access to Illium and Tuchanka, but only if Wrex is the clan leader there. Tali becomes recruitable a bit later on but before Shepard has to deal with the situation on Horizon. You can speed things up a bit by completing a couple of missions in the meantime. Yes, you read that right. Her appearance and powers will be identical to the ones she has in Lair of the Shadow Broker. Next up on our list of best Mass Effect Legendary Edition mods, we have something a bit… different. Most people strive to get the best ending in Mass Effect 2 i. Or can you? Thanks to the Last Person Standing mod you can have your entire squad killed during the suicide mission and still import your save into ME3. This is a very simple mod for the first Mass Effect that gradually increases the XP from kills, missions, and other sources. This is one of the most popular Mass Effect Legendary mods at the moment as it has been featured quite a bit in the news lately. Not just that but Shepard returns to the Normandy and is present during the memorial scene. The makers of this mod really did an incredible job creating alternative cutscenes, videos, ending slides, and more to go along with the new ending. The mod also does away with the annoying Starchild. Good riddance! Personally, I never liked the DLC but there are quite a few people who enjoy it and they can keep playing it thanks to this mod. The Pinnacle Station mod also fixes some bugs and adds some improvements here and there, making it arguably even better than the original DLC. If you decide to romance either of them, the romance will carry over into Mass Effect 3 LE. More Gay Romances was made using repurposed dialogue and a bunch of cut content. Jack and Miranda were meant to be romance options for FemShep from the get-go until Bioware decided to remove them for whatever reason. Luckily, a good chunk of the content was fully voiced and can be added back into the game thanks to this mod. There are a few Mass Effect Legendary Edition mods that seem a bit redundant but you may want to download them anyway. This is one of them. This one is pretty straightforward. You know how you sometimes skip certain dialogues to get through conversations faster, only to find that you ended up choosing a wrong option in the process? But not anymore! This mod allows you to safely skip conversations without having to worry about also skipping selections. The best part is that the mod works for the entire Mass Effect Legendary Edition trilogy. Next up we have the obligatory textures mod. This one has been around for years and actually served as one of the main sources of inspiration for Mass Effect Legendary Edition. In addition to textures, ALOT also improves lighting and shadows to a significant degree. Some of these armors were simply ported over from Expanded Galaxy Mod while others were taken from Ark Mod. You can of course simply get those two mods instead and skip this one if you want, but you would be missing out on a few casual outfits and texture enhancements by doing so. The Andromeda armors are somewhat immersion breaking and a few of them look strange on Shepard, but having more options to choose from is never a bad thing. Speaking of which, the mod also adds helmetless versions of DLC armors. These include the Collector armor, Cerberus armor, Dragon Age promotional armor, and all the other ones. The cherry on the top is that you can combine armors with helmets from different sets to create new looks. A very welcome feature considering the mod also adds shades along with several other neat accessories to play around with. Well, now you can thanks to this mod. Most notably, the Omega emblem is replaced by an Alliance one. In Mass Effect 2 you can unlock alternative outfits for your squadmates by completing their loyalty missions. Or can it? As it happens, you can get rid of the headgear along with other accessories such as piercings by simply installing this mod. In a couple of instances, primarily with Garrus, the headgear is altered as opposed to being completely removed. More specifically, the mod makes Liara look like she does in Lair of the Shadow Broker in all three games. This mod fixes that by gradually transforming Saren from a largely normal-looking Turian to the version we all know and love or hate. Expect Saren to look less cybernetically enhanced than usual when you first encounter him, only to gradually see him metamorphosise into his regular self throughout the course of the game. Hands down one of the best quality of life mods for Mass Effect Legendary Edition. True to its name, this mod makes it so that you only need one probe to collect the resources of an entire planet in Mass Effect 2. Sure, the scanning minigame is fun at the start of every new playthrough but it becomes incredibly annoying just a couple of hours into the game. No need to worry about that any more thanks to this mod. As an added benefit, launching a probe on a planet will also detect any anomalies that might be present. This is another one of those small Mass Effect Legendary mods that does exactly what it says on the tin. Namely, it lets you avoid both the hacking and bypass minigames. There are two different versions of this mod you can install. With the Classic version you still have to open the UI but the minigame is automatically completed as soon as you hit start. Meanwhile, the Modern version completely removes the minigames along with the UI. Galaxy Map Trackers adds a feature that should have honestly been present from the beginning in the original Mass Effect. Namely, the ability to track active UNC assignments and anomalies on the galaxy map. Even better, the mod also tracks undiscovered anomalies and assignments much in the same way. Whereas the previous mod shows you all the most important points of interest in the galaxy map, this one marks their location on UNC world maps. Charted Worlds is even more useful than Galaxy Map Trackers in many ways because it lets you avoid aimlessly wandering around planets in search of points of interest. Luckily, you can skip the vast majority of it thanks to this mod. Exactly what it says on the tin. This mod allows you to freely move around the galaxy map in Mass Effect 3 Legendary Edition without being chased by Reapers. It also significantly bumps up the scan range so you can spend even less time on the galaxy map. This is your go-to manager for Mass Effect Legendary mods. The mod manager makes installing, updating, and just generally keeping track of everything so much easier. It also comes with support for the LE launcher along with tools for modders and game diagnostics. All in all, a very useful manager. We recommend getting this one first because it will make installing the rest of your mods significantly faster. Not just that but certain mods require you to have this manager before you can even install them. This first mod is a must-have for anyone planning to play through all three games back-to-back. The Trilogy Save Editor is exactly what it says on the tin and allows you to edit your save files in a wide variety of ways. Do you wish you killed the Council instead of sparing it in ME1? How about changing history so that Kaiden dies on Virmire instead of Ashley? Well, with the Trilogy Save Editor you can do all that and more. However, doing so does feel a bit like cheating so I would personally stick to just the save editing functions. But the choice is up to you. You can find all of the Mass Effect Legendary Edition mods we discussed in this article, along with many others, on NexusMods. If you enjoyed this list of Mass Effect mods make sure to check out some of our other ones down below. I'm a classic jack-of-all-trades author who loves to write about most topics, though gaming has always been my strong suit. Or robots. Or space-traveling superhero robots disguised as Stephen King. Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Menu Search Search for: Search. Take Earth Back Image credit: Tydeous You spend the majority of Mass Effect 3 roaming around the galaxy gathering war assets for the fight against the Reapers. Unrestricted Weapon Upgrades There are a couple of Mass Effect Legendary Edition mods that let you upgrade weapons to rank 10 on your first playthrough of ME3, but this is our favorite one due to its simplicity. Better Camera Image credit: Jade Better Camera is one of the oldest Mass Effect Legendary mods around, having launched just one day after the remastered trilogy came out. Early Recruitment This Mass Effect 2 mod does exactly what it says on the tin and allows you to recruit certain companions earlier than in the vanilla game. XP Rescale This is a very simple mod for the first Mass Effect that gradually increases the XP from kills, missions, and other sources. Safely Skip Conversations This one is pretty straightforward. No Headgear for Squadmates In Mass Effect 2 you can unlock alternative outfits for your squadmates by completing their loyalty missions. A similar mod called Skip Minigames LE1 is available for the first entry in the trilogy. Galaxy Map Trackers Galaxy Map Trackers adds a feature that should have honestly been present from the beginning in the original Mass Effect. Trilogy Save Editor This first mod is a must-have for anyone planning to play through all three games back-to-back. Leave a Reply Cancel reply Your email address will not be published.

[shepherds-of-haven]

Shepherds of Haven

Shepherds of Haven is a dark fantasy interactive fiction game. In it, you play as a Mage living in a world where magic is outlawed and your people—those possessing supernatural powers—are oppressed and reviled. The world is ruled by humans who believe in science, technology, and industry: at best, you and your kind are nothing more than a fairytale, and at worst you are the state’s greatest threat. 

Thus, using magic has been illegal for centuries. But after years of persecution, you are suddenly offered an opportunity to use your powers for good: demons are now returning, and the world needs fighters like you to protect the population from their invasion. Guns and bullets do no good against monsters pulled from primeval nightmares; only your people and your supernatural powers have the ability to fight fire with fire. 

So you join the Shepherds: an order of elite heroes and fighters comprised of the very people the world once feared more than the demons themselves. As a Shepherd, you’ll solve magical crimes, slay demons to protect the citizens of Haven, and build your reputation throughout the capital. Explore the world of Blest, recruit allies and factions to join the Shepherds’ cause, find romance and companionship, investigate mysteries, lead rebellions and exorcisms, and uncover answers to the crises plaguing the world. Where are the demons coming from? Where have the gods or God gone, if they ever existed? Who are you, really? 

And will you be the world’s true savior... or will you be its ultimate downfall?

Customize your protagonist: choose names, gender, sexuality, appearance, weapon, magic specialization, educational background, racial heritage, and much more

Play as male, female, or non-binary; straight, gay, bisexual, or pansexual; as well as aromantic, asexual, aro-ace, or allo

Thousands of choices and role-playing variations: build your character’s personality and worldview from the ground up, test your loyalties and morals in every chapter, and make meaningful decisions that will change the story and world of the game in large and small ways

15 companions to recruit and befriend, each with their own unique story

10 romance options (5 male, 5 female) and 2 one-night stands/flings

Fulfilling friendship and romance routes, culminating in dozens of different possible endings for each major character, as well as diverse endings for the protagonist, their relationships, and the state of the world

An ever-changing codex, character guide, journal, inventory, and stats page that grows and adjusts as you play

A hubworld-style exploration system between chapters: interact with the city and explore the world on your days off; take quests or side jobs; train; shop; gamble; pray; read; and spend time with or date companions between story missions

Dozens of mechanical secrets to reward your playthrough: achievements, a new game+ system, a save system, unlockable art, collectible trading cards, room decorations and souvenirs, a planned “stupid mode,” and planned DLC

Much more!

✨ Play Here ✨

Completed Prologue, Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3

Approx. 270,000 words

Last Updated: August 2021

FAQ

⭐️ Play here ⭐️

Prologue, Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9 [In Progress]

Approx. 1,115,000 words without code

Last Updated: April 2024

Currently only available to testers and Patrons until the beta build

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If you like my interactive fiction work, please consider checking out a hardcover, paperback, e-book, or audiobook copy of my debut novel, a science fiction thriller called WE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN HERE, published by DAW Books and Penguin Random House! Read more about it here, here, and on my website, or check out the links below!

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#Shepherds of Haven #shoh #pinned post #links #I will try to update this accordingly! #long post #long #info #interactive fiction #game #fantasy #dark fantasy #interactive game #interactive novel #choice-based game #choice game #fantasy game #IF #We Have Always Been Here #WHABH #lena nguyen #text games #WIP #IF WIP #indie games #indie game #gamedev #game development #amare game #text game

[yanderecandystore]

Could you please do a fanfic for a male version of Yandere! Lady Dimitrescu (from Resident Evil Village game) with the reader.

I really like the Resident Evil franchise but I'm too lazy to know what the hell is happening in the older games XD I'm so sorry about that-

I loved watching playthroughs of Resident Evil Village (can't buy the game ;-;), but I felt like it was a bit empty, idk- I felt like the lords weren't really explored enough.

Also the Duke is the best husbando in the whole game- Fight me! >:3

TW/Tags: GN = Gender Neutral, I normally forget to properly name it when it's gender neutral, most of the time I just say "reader" // maybe ooc // lazy genderbent, I'm terrible with names // size difference // servant reader // mentions of gore/cuts/bruises/blood and deaths (and torture- I'm so sorry-) // reader gets hurt // mentions of vomiting

It's Dinner Already [Yandere!M!Dimitrescu x GN!Reader - Short Fanfiction]

It's dinner time already, unfortunately for you, of course.

It feels almost like a routine at this point- Which in a way, it is! You always take care of your tasks during the day, while dreading the inevitable time for dinner to arrive again.

Everyday, at this exact same hour, you and the other servants would prepare a meal for Lord Dimitrescu and his lovely… Sons…

As someone who has started "working" for their family only a month ago, you can positively say: Starving in the cold woods next to your village would have probably been a more merciful death than the ones you have witnessed at this place. You weren't as accustomed to such brutal executions at your village, actually you hardly even witnessed so much death, at least not so up close.

When you came here, you didn't expect to be instantly comforted and treated with respect- You were a commoner looking for an possibility to thrive in a noble's house, you were basically an easy target for any entitled selfish lord to easily belittle you and make you work for them until your hands would turn to dust. Yet nothing could have prepared you for such an odd situation.

Vampires. Monsters. Fiends if you were bold enough to insult them. You weren't exactly welcomed as much as you were snatched in and now forever trapped inside this castle. You can still hear their laughter… Their insane expressions of pure glee, the way they have bursted into maliciously laughing at your pain as you screamed for help trying to open up their door again and be free from that nightmare.

The chase didn't last even a second, they stabbed your legs with their scythes and brought you deeper inside this hellhole, as you cried your eyeballs out. The sons had brought you back inside so their father could take a look at the "intruder".

An absolute titan amongst the mortals. His height was only a sick reminder of how much power he had over the castle, over his sons, and now- Over you.

He may not have been as massive as he was threatening as you remind him to be, but at the time you were just in awe of his height considering you have never seen someone as tall and as mighty.

Then again- You have never seen vampires as well. Were they the same vampires as the books you've read as a kid? You weren't so sure of it…

You were hoping that if you begged for life and for forgiveness for having disturbed their peace, that they could spare you and let you go back to your village. Sadly enough, you commented on how you were only trying to look for a job as a servant.

You probably shouldn't have given them ideas, but it's too late to think about your mistakes now, however.

The sons begged to see your blood spilled, yet Lord Dimitrescu was merciful enough to grant you your "wish", as he said.

It has been a month ever since you were trapped inside and forced to work as a miserable little servant, and even if you didn't suffer the worst forms of punishments that they had in-store for you, you couldn't help but fantasize about just running away and never turning back.

You're so tired of this castle, of the smell of carnage, of the undeserved and over the top punishments, and especially of the people who would subjugate you to such things.

But at last, it's dinner time already, and you can't keep them waiting.

You feel your hands shaking as you walk out of the kitchen and into the dining room where the masters of the castle were so graciously waiting for you. You know what they're waiting for- But you can't let them distract you, for those that commit accidents are faced with fates worse than death.

Although you would rather do this process quickly, you can't afford mistakes to happen, so you take your time to set not only their meal in front of each one but to also pour "wine" into their glasses. You do all of this without looking directly into their eyes, only bowing down to each one and saying "excuse me"s in what they would call a "decent tone", as the smell of their disgusting beverage starts to irritate your nostrils. If you didn't know the main ingredient to Sanguis Virgins is, you probably wouldn't have this immense disgust over it, but right now just the thought of it makes you want to gag.

Only villains could so easily drink blood, and still make a living out of it.

Your internal thoughts of pure hatred against this whole situation almost completely blinded you to the fact that they were eerily, very quiet.

….

On most nights they would be talking with each other while occasionally making comments about you or your presence. Obviously they were all pretty nasty comments that they somehow expected you to back it up in some way or another, it's when they try to insert you into their conversation that makes you hate this occasion so badly, but it normally ends as quickly as it begins.

But as you are pouring wine to Lord's Dimitrescu, you notice that they haven't said a single thing while you were there. You stop what you're doing as you realize that they were silently observing you this whole time, and as you look into their expressions you come to think that maybe you have messed up-

Somehow, in some way or form, you may have messed up- And the fact this mistake could cost your head only agitates your already very worried mind.

….

A small moment of silence continues before the middle son, Cassandro, starts to chuckle in an almost innocent way- As if he was a kid who just said a bad word for the first time- And as he bursts into sudden laughter, Daniel leans towards Bello and loudly whispers:

"- I told you, they do this every time." To which Bello only replied with:

"- It's almost like hypnosis in a way."

The three sons were mesmerized by your ability to trap yourself in your own mind. They're probably aware that you do this as a defensive mechanism but they still find it comical in a weird way. You feel yourself get more tense as you look up at Lord Dimitrescu and see him staring back at you, with an unreadable expression across his face.

Before you could come up with an excuse to whatever you may have caused to disturb their dinner, the Lord himself spoke.

"- How inappropriate. As my sons, you three should know better than to laugh at our servant's airheaded mind-"

And as he said that, their smiles begin to disappear and be replaced with frowns and a bit of shame as they become stiff at their father's words.

"- And how inappropriate of you, too. To be so distracted in the presence of your masters, that's quite rude don't you think?"

But as he continued their bodies begin to relax once again as they realize he wasn't focusing on them- He was focusing on you.

Words have completely disappeared from your vocabulary as you start to think that maybe you won't be able to see another day after their meal is over. You try to mumble some possible responses before getting interrupted by him once again.

"- It's very rude, so very rude in fact that I think we deserve some answers. What were you so distracted about? What were you thinking that could have possibly taken over your small little head?"

Right now, he was sounding a bit condescending, thankfully not as angry as he would have been with the other servants right about now. Every little mistake was used as excuses for punishments- And if you were walking on thin ice before, right now you are one-step closer to breaking this entire lake and getting yourself killed by the freezing temperatures of the water below you.

Thanks to your luck (or maybe lack thereof, depending on how you see this) Daniel came to "your rescue" by coming up with an excuse for you.

"- Maybe they were hungry." He said without any indications of it being a joke or a lie- As the youngest yet craziest of the bunch, he always had that weird "naive yet dangerous" energy coming from him. He was naive enough to make that statement when it's very clear that you actually despise being near them, but he still was a son of Dimitrescu.

You know better than to underestimate any of these people.

The Lord didn't seem completely convinced as he side eyed Daniel who was blissfully eating his meal without acknowledging his dad's glance or his brother's looks of disapproval.

Without a warning you were pulled closer by your wrist and forced into sitting next to the Lord, who made a sign for another servant to bring you your food. This… Doesn't feel right at all, you're waiting for the worst to come yet you don't feel like you can ever prepare yourself enough for what they have in store.

"- M-My Lord- This isn't needed, I'm fine. I'll just continue my duties, if you can excuse me-" You plead, while trying to get up from your chair.

"- Oh but what host would I be if I didn't take better care of my guests? Poor thing, you must be starving if you can barely serve us wine-" And as his tone gets progressively more sarcastic and a bit louder, you can hear his sons snickering from the other side of the table, but you can't see them since you can't take your eyes away from him.

You're worried that if you look away for just one second, that you may not be able to see ever again.

"- It's so sad when one of our guests feels hungry- What's worse is when we are also very, very hungry."

"- Thirsty, even!"

"- Oh, I can feel my throat drying just at the thought of such misery!- Our dinner seems to be ruined."

You hear their whispers, you hear how they are clearly joking about this- How overly dramatic they're being over something so miniscule as you just- Ignoring them.

Let me remind you this is all because you refuse to look them in the eyes, that you refuse to give them any satisfaction for the heinous things they have done! You've seen so many people get hurt inside this castle only for their sick and twisted thirst and entertainment.

"- Indeed, my boys. My appetite is ruined, though dinner is not over yet-" Lord Dimitrescu spoke as he looked at his sons clearly enjoying your inevitable pain, but before he could continue he turns himself to you again, putting a hand on your arm and saying:

"- Wouldn't you agree?" Loud enough so that his sons could hear it, but soft enough to send the tiniest shivers down your spine.

"- …!"

"- No, no- Please, not again!-" He wouldn't dare do this, would he??

But before you could react he had already done it, you barely noticed how fast he had grabbed that knife to slice your wrist- His hand firmly gripping your arm as he made a deep enough cut so that your blood could be easier to access.

It somehow hurts just as badly as the first time his sons have stabbed your ankles and dragged you across the floor- At least you're not bumping into things like before, and even if it's a deep cut it's not as big as it could be if he used his claws to actually do this.

Oh, oh those claws- You almost thought he would use them on you… Those were something else. You can't remember exactly what happened, and why it happened, but you remember seeing him use those on another servant who may have crossed the line at some point.

Well "crossed the line"- More like "casually inconvenienced him". Lord Alcino may act like an incredibly high noble but he acts so childishly and in such an egotistical manner that you are surprised he can even have a castle like this in the first place! You don't remember what the servant has done to be so cruelly dismantled, but you don't doubt that it was for a stupid reason!

You miss that servant actually- Probably the only person who you actually talked with, and the first one to actually taught you how to do your job… You two could have been friends if he didn't intervene.

You briefly remember those moments before getting to experience the most weird sensation of all- Having your bloody cut be licked and sucked on. It hurts and it stings in a way that not only makes you want to cry but to also gag at the thought of you feeding this monster.

You refuse to look at him even in this scenario, you refuse to see him feeding off your blood… Sometimes you wish you were just as poisonous as some species of frogs, poisonous enough to make his mouth burn so he can experience a fraction of the pain he causes to others.

You tried fleeting away, you tried getting up and moving away but his grip on your arm only helped you in getting closer to him- You have your eyes closed as your only option is to cry and muffle your agony.

But as always, he is not satisfied with you just ignoring him. This was supposed to be a lesson, yet you're clearly avoiding your teacher as best as you can- But not today, little flower, you're not getting out of this so easily.

This is the first time he ever got to really taste your blood, as normally you would be behind the other servants while trying to learn how to please him, the only moments where he gets to see you is when it's dinner time, but oh- You're just so cruel!

Escaping inside your own little head while he has to content himself with just your image. Your presence is very much appreciated around this hour, little one-

He has noticed this before, of course, but it was only when he noticed his son's curiosity over the way you behave around them that made him organize this little trap. He didn't have everything planned actually, his plan only involved getting to this moment no matter what- And oh boy, has luck been on his side!

Your blood tastes better than expected of a commoner, your delicate and fearful whines of pain are just as delightful but what really gets him is this tough persona you try to convince everyone you have- You despise him, and it's clear to see why- But he knows his charms will probably work on you one way or the other.

He gripped your face trying to make sure you'll get to him in the eyes as he has a taste of you. Absolutely delicious, especially after you so gracefully "ruined" their dinner.

His sons were just watching as they continued to drink from their crimson glasses. They were just enjoying the show, as everything seems to easily amuse them- Their father was just showcasing how they were so much better than the common folk, and they have no other option but to take notes and to remember what they have to do if they ever feel ignored by the servants in the castle: Show who are the true masters of this place.

None of them were really interested in drinking from you, considering how all three seemed to recognize how their father has taken a liking towards you. No one would dare mess with their father's prey.

If you had enough strength in you, you would start vomiting as soon as this has started, but the more he takes from you the more you feel like you can barely stay conscious.

He wasn't supposed to take so much, at least not so soon- He wanted to just take a sip but he can't deny the fact he would rather drown himself in your blood than to let go.

He sighs, as he notices that you're slowly getting less and less aggressive, getting more and more tired as he drains you from this cut.

You're not unconscious yet, just barely stable enough to understand what's going on.

"- Sigh… Now that was a decent enough meal." He can't praise you for being tasty, can't have you being cocky around him.

"- Here, since I'm done here I'll take you to the servant's living quarters- And because I'm so kind I'll make sure that wound is safely secured and cleaned, so here- Come along now."

And as he stood up he offered you his hand so you could get up yourself, but you don't have enough energy to walk yourself to your room, thankfully you're already ready to go to bed and wish to never wake up again.

And as the nightmare never ends, he decides that if you are going to be difficult then you leave him no choice but to carry you there. How much has he taken from you?? Jesus, he should learn some self-control before doing this again- The absolute brute that he is.

Your vision may be a little screwed over because of the lack of red cells running through your body at the moment- But you have a weird feeling that you two aren't heading towards the servant's living quarters, as you feel like you two are quite literally going in the opposite direction.

Oh but it's fine- Right?

It'll be fine. Surely. After all, he already took what he wanted from you, and he doesn't seem to need more so- You probably won't have to worry about anything right now, dinner time is already over, you can finally relax now….

🍭꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍰꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖🍭

So I'm sick again- Sorry y'all, I just have a horrible immune system and I really don't understand what is wrong with me-

I'm sorry if you didn't like this boo :(

#sheep's stuff #yandere #yandere x reader #yandere vampire x reader #yandere lady dimitrescu #yandere lord dimitrescu #yandere lord dimitrescu x reader #gn!reader #yandere fanfic #yandere fanfiction #yandere short fanfiction #special delivery request #special delivery short fanfiction #m!lady dimitrescu #male lady dimitrescu

[borisbubbles]

Character analysis: Vivienne de Fer (Dragon Age Inquisition)

So, if you’ve wondered where I popped off to the past two months or so, I’m going to give you an answer - I finally bought Dragon Age Inquisition (legit on my gaming wishlist since its 2014 release) and I’ve been obsessed with it ever since. 

The main draw to this game however, isn’t so much the gameplay (if you want a game that feels similar but has better gameplay - Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is what you’d want instead), but the storytelling and particularly the character development are top notch. All nine companions are fascinating and fleshed out in such a realistic manner I’m still gasping in awe on my fifth playthrough.  Thus, a post on it is in order. It’s a bit different from my usual content, but don’t let that discourage you - clearing my head from Dragon Age will allow me to let Eurovision back in and continue my unfinished 2020 ranking.  In this post, I will be analyzing one of DAI’s most interesting characters - none other than Madame de Fer herself, Vivienne.  Now, I’m under the impression that this is a rather unpopular opinion but I absolutely love Vivienne. And no, I won’t apologize for it. As a Templar-thumping elitist with a icy, sardonic demeanor the sheer ‘Idea Of A Vivienne’ is meant to make your head spin. Dragon Age has always been a franchise in which mages are a socially surpressed group and to be confronted with a socially confident enchantress who likes Templars and seemingly supports the social shunning out of her own ambition is the walking embodiment of flippancy. 

and yet, I feel a lot of sympathy for Vivienne. 

Yes, she’s a bitch. She knows she’s one and she’s a-ok with it. I won’t argue with that. Sadly, the “Vivienne is a bitch” rhetoric also drastically sells her short. Vivienne is highly complex and her real personality is as tragic as it is twisted. 

Madame de Fer

So let’s start with what we are shown on the surface. Vivienne is a high-ranking courtier from an empire notable for its deadly, acid-laced political game. She seemingly joins the Inquisition for personal gain, to acrue reputation and power, and eventually be elected Divine (= female pope) at the end of the game. She presents herself as a despicable blend of Real Housewife, Disney Villain, and Tory Politician, all rolled into one ball of sickening, unctuous smarm. Worse, the Inquisitor has no way to rebuke Vivienne’s absurd policies and ideas. You can’t argue with her, convince her to listen to your differing viewpoints or even kick her out the Inquisition. She has a way with words where she can twist arguments around in such a fashion that she lands on top and makes the other person look like the irrational party.

“Thus speaks the Inquisitor who has made so many mature and level-headed choices so far. Such as releasion malcontents upon the population without safeguards to protect them should they turn into abominations. Very wise. I rearranged some furniture. Lives aren’t thrown into jeopardy by my actions. Perhaps a little perspective is needed.”

She’s Cersei Lannister on creatine, Dolores Umbridge on motherfucking roids. If you look at merely the surface, then yes, Vivienne looks like the worst person ever created. I love a good anti-villainess however, and she’s definitely one. 

Yet, she never actually does anything ‘evil’? Yes, she is ‘a tyrant’ as a Divine, but 1) the person saying this is Cassandra, whose dislike for mage freedom is only matched by her dislike of being sidelined 2) Divine Vivienne isn’t bad to mages either? (hold that thought, I’ll get to it). She never actually sabotages the Inquisition, no matter how low her approval with the Inquisitor gets. She never attempts to stop them, no matter how annoyed she is. She’s one of the most brutally honest companions in the cast, in fact. (It always surprises me people call her a ‘hypocrite’ - you keep using that word and it doesn’t mean what you think it means.) The ‘worst’ display of character is when she attempts to break up Sera and the Inquisitor and even then - are we going to pretend Sera isn’t a toxic, controlling girlfriend with a huge chip on her shoulder? I love Sera, but come on.  

Vivienne is a character where the storytelling rule of Show, Don’t Tell is of vital importance. The Orlesian empire is an empire built around posturing and reputation. Nobody really shows their true motivations or character, and instead builds a public façade. It’s like how the Hanar (the Jellyfish people) in Mass Effect have a Public name they use in day-to-day life, and a Personal Name for their loved-ones and inner circle. Vivienne’s ‘Public Visage’ is that of Madame de Fer - this is the Vivienne who openly relishes in power, publicly humiliates grasping anklebiters with passive-aggressive retorts, the woman who is feared and loathed by all of Orlais, and this is the Face you see for most of the game.

The real beauty of Vivienne’s character and the reason why I love her as much as I do (which is to say - a LOT) are the few moments when - what’s the phrase DigitalSpy love so much - Her Mask Slips, and you get a glimpse of the real woman underneath the hennin.

This is the Vivienne who stands by you during the Siege of Haven and approves of you when you save the villagers from Corypheus’s horde.

This is the Vivienne who comforts you when you lament the losses you suffered.

This is the Vivienne who admires you for setting an example as a mage for the rest of Thedas.

This is the Vivienne who worries about Cole’s well-being during his personal quest, momentarily forgetting who or what he is. 

This is the Vivienne who, when her approval for the Inquisitor reaches rock bottom, desperately reminds him of the suffering mages go through on a day-to-day basis because of the fear and hatred non-mages are bred to feel towards them and how this can spiral into more bloodshed without safeguards. 

This is the Vivienne who shows how deep her affection for Bastien de Ghislain truly is, by bringing you along during his dying moments. I love this scene btw. This is the only moment in the entire game where Vivienne is actually herself in the presence of the Inquisitor - needless to say, I consider anyone who deliberately spikes her potion a motherfucking psychopath ^_^)

“There is nothing here now” fuck I *almost* cried at Vivienne, get out of my head BioWare, this is WRONG -- people who delude themselves this is an irredeemable character. 

So, who is Vivienne really?

Understanding Vivienne requires recognizing that the mask and the real woman aren’t the same person. I think her relationship with Dorian is the prime example of this. I love the Vivienne/Dorian banter train, obviously - an unstoppable force of sass colliding with an unmovable wall of smarm is nothing short of a spectacle. However, there’s more to it than their highly entertaining snipes. As the incredibly gifted son of a magister, Dorian represents everything Vivienne should despise, and should be a natural enemy to her. And yet, she doesn’t and he isn’t.. Their gilded japes at each other are nothing more than verbal sparring, not dissimilar to how Krem and Iron Bull call each other names when they beat each other with sticks. In what I think is one of the most brilliantly written interactions between characters in DAI, I present Vivienne’s reaction when the Inquisitor enters a romance with Dorian:

Vivienne: I received a letter the other day, Dorian. Dorian: Truly? It's nice to know you have friends. 🙄 Vivienne: It was from an acquaintance in Tevinter expressing his shock at the disturbing rumors about your... relationship with the Inquisitor. Dorian: Rumors you were only too happy to verify, I assume. 🙃 Vivienne: I informed him the only disturbing thing in evidence was his penmanship. 🙂 Dorian: ...Oh. Thank you. 😳 Vivienne: I am not so quick to judge, darling. See that you give me no reason to feel otherwise.

Madame de Fer can never be seen directly expressing approval to a relationship between the Herald of Andraste and an ‘Evil’ Tevinter ’Magister’. By this subtle, subtle conversation, Vivienne indirectly tells Dorian that she considers him a good match for the Inquisitor and approves of the romance. It’s one of those reasons why I could never truly dislike Vivienne - between the layers of elegant poison lies a somewhat decent woman who never loses sight of the bigger picture. Not a good person maybe, but not one without some redeeming qualities.

The crux of Vivienne’s personality is that she, like all DAI companions, is a social outcast. She’s a mage in a fantasy setting where mages are psionically linked to demons, and grew up in a country where the majority religion has openly advocated the shunning and leashing of mages (’Magic exists to serve man’ - the Chantry is so, so vile in this game.). Vivienne’s “gift” was discovered so early in her life that she can barely remember her parents. Vivienne grew up in a squalid boarding school, learning from a young age that she’s dangerous and her talents need to be tamed and curbed. She is also terrified of demons, as her banters with Cole point out:

Cole: You're afraid. You don't have to be. Vivienne: My dear Inquisitor, please restrain your pet demon. I do not want it addressing me. Inquisitor: He's not doing any harm, Vivienne. Vivienne: It's a demon, darling. All it can do is harm. Cole: Everything bright, roar of anger as the demon rears. No, I will not fall. No one will control me ever again. Cole: Flash of white as the world comes back. Shaking, hollow, Harrowed, but smiling at templars to show them I'm me. Cole: I am not like that. I can protect you. If Templars come for you, I will kill them. Vivienne: Delightful. 😑

Vivienne’s Harrowing is implied to have been such a traumatizing event to her that she’s developed a pavlovian fear of demons ever since. (Hence her hostility towards Cole.). Vivienne is fully aware of the inherent dangers of magic, and projects this onto all other mages. 

Besides, given how Dragon Age has a history with mages doing all sorts of fucked up shit, ranging from blood magic, murder, demonic possession and actual terrorism (yes, *ElthinaBITCH* had it coming, but let’s not pretend like Anders/Justice was anything other than a terrorist), Vivienne’s policies of controlled monitoring and vigilance are actually significantly more sensible than the options of ‘unconditionally freeing every mage all over Thedas’ and ‘reverting back to the status quo before the rebellion’. They’re flawed policies, obviously. When Vivienne says “mages” she pictures faceless silhouettes foremost and not herself. Regardless, unlike Cassandra and Leliana, Vivienne is aware of the fear others harbour for her kind, and how hard it is to overcome such perceptions.  

Additionally, Vivienne’s a foreigner. She is an ethnic Rivaini, a culture associated with smugglers and pirates (Isabela from DAO and DA2 is half-Rivaini). This adds an additional social stigma, again pointed out by Cole:

Cole: Stepping into the parlor, hem of my gown snagged, no, adjust before I go in, must look perfect. Vivienne: My dear, your pet is speaking again. Do silence it. Cole: Voices inside. Marquis Alphonse. Cole: "I do hope Duke Bastien puts out the lights before he touches her. But then, she must disappear in the dark." Cole: Gown tight between my fingers, cold all over. Unacceptable. Wheels turn, strings pull. Cole: He hurt you. You left a letter, let out a lie so he would do something foolish against the Inquisition. A trap. Vivienne: Inquisitor, as your demon lacks manners, perhaps you could get Solas to train it.

This is the only palpable example of the casual racism Vivienne has to endure on a daily basis - Marquis Alphonse is a stupid, bigoted pillowhead who sucks at The Game, but remember - Vivienne only kills him if the Inquisitor decides to be a butthurt thug. She is aware that for every Alphonse, there are dozens of greasy sycophants who think exactly like he does, and will keep it under wraps just to remain in her good graces. 

Finally, there’s the social position Vivienne manufactured for herself, which is the weak point towards her character imo. Remember, this woman is a commoner by birth. She doesn’t even have a surname. Through apparently sheer dumb luck (or satanic intervention) she basically fell into the position of Personal Mage to the Duke of Ghislain. Regardless, ‘Personal mages’ were the rage in Orlesian nobility, and the prestigious families owned by them like one may own a pet or personal property. By somehow becoming Bastien de Ghislain’s mistress and using his influence, "Madame de Fer” liberated herself from all the social stigmata which should have pinned her down into a lowly courtier rank and turned the largely ceremonial office of “Court Enchanter” into a position of respect and power. This is huge move towards mage emancipation by the way, in a society where, again, Mages are feared and shunned and are constantly bullied, emasculated and taught to hate their talents. Vivienne is a shining example of what mages can become at the height of their power. Power she has, mind you, never actually abused before her Divine election. Vivienne’s actions will forever be under scrutiny not because of who she is, but because of what she is. The Grand Game can spit her out at any moment, which will likely result in her death. 

Inquisitor: “You seem to be enjoying yourself, Vivienne?” Vivienne: “It’s The Game, darling. If I didn’t enjoy it, I’d be dead by now.”

Whether Vivienne was using Bastien for her own gain or whether she truly loved him isn’t a case of or/or. It’s a case of and/and. The perception that she was using Bastien makes Vivienne more fearsome and improves her position in the Grand Game, but deep down, I have no doubts truly loved him. Remember, Vivienne’s position at the Orlesian court was secure. She had nothing to gain by saving Bastien’s life, but she attempted to anyway. That Bastien’s sister is a High Cleric doesn’t matter - Vivienne can be elected Divine regardless of her personal quest’s resolution. She loved him, period. 

No, I don’t think Vivienne is a good person. She treats those she deems beneath her poorly, like Sera, Solas, Cole and Blackwall (characters I like less than Vivienne), which I think is the #1 indicator for a Bad Personality. But I don’t think she qualifies as ‘Evil’ either and I refuse to dismiss the beautiful layering of her character. I genuinely believe Vivienne joined the Inquisition not just for her personal gain, but also out of idealism, similar to Dorian (again, Cole is 100% correct in pointing out the similarities between Dorian’s and Vivienne’s motivations for joining, as discomforting it is to her). 

In her mind, Vivienne sees herself as the only person who can emancipate the mages without bloodshed - her personal accomplishments at the Orlesian court speak for themselves. Vivienne isn’t opposed to mage freedom - she worries for the consequences of radical change, as she believes Orlesian society unprepared for the consequences. Hence why she’s perfectly fine with a Divine Cassandra. Hence why her fellow mages immediately elect her Grand Enchanter of the new Circle. 

Hence why Vivienne is so terrified by the Inquisitor’s actions if her disapproval gets too low. The Inquisitor has the power to completely destroy everything she has built and fought for during her lifetime. Remember: Vivienne’s biggest fear is irrelevance - there’s no greater irrelevance than having your life achievements reverse-engineered by the accidental stumbling of some upstart nobody. This is the real reason why she joins, risks her life and gets her hands dirty - the only person whose competence Vivienne trusts, is Vivienne’s own. 

Even as Divine Victoria, I’d say she’s not bad, at all actually. Vivienne has the trappings of an an Enlightened Despot, maintaining full control, while simultaneously granting mages more responsibility and freedom, slowly laying the foundations to make mages more accepted and less persecuted in southern Thedas. Given that Ferelden is a feudal fiefdom and Orlais is an absolute monarchy, this is a fucking improvement are you kidding me. (Wait did he just imply Vivienne is secretly the best Divine - hmm, probably not because Cass/Leliana have better epilogues - but realistically speaking, yes, Viv should be the best Divine and it’s bullshit that the story disagrees.) 

Underneath the countless layers of smarm, frost and seeming callousness, lies a fiercely intelligent and brave woman, whose ideals have been twisted into perversion by the cruel, ungrateful world around her. Envy her for her ability to control her destiny, but know that envy is what it is.  

The flaw in Vivienne’s character isn’t so much the ‘tyranny’ or the ‘bitchiness’ or the 'smarm’. Her flaw is her false belief that she is what the mages need the most. Her belief that her competence gives her the prerogative to serve the unwashed mage masses... by ruling over them. For all intents and purposes, Vivienne is an Orlesian Magister and this will forever be the brilliant tragedy of her character. She was created by a corrupt institution that should, by all accounts fear and loathe her but instead embraced her. It’s that delirious irony that makes Vivienne de Fer one of the best fictional characters in RPG history.  the next post will be Eurovision-related. :-) 

#RPG #Dragon Age #Dragon Age Inquisition #Vivienne #Vivienne de Fer #Madame de Fer #DAI #Dragon Age 3 #BioWare