#vax would so do this. I need a vax. | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

ravendruid · 6 months

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I want someone to push me against a wall and kiss me like they do in those cheesy romances.

#vax would so do this. I need a vax.#Keyleth would be awkwardly cute about it but she'd do it too #i also need a keyleth #remind me to delete this later #just 11 pm dumb thoughts

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your-turn-to-role · 1 year

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Keyleth tries to interrupt Ludinus doing his evil stuff -> Power Word Stun on Keyleth -> very very deadly attack barrage on stunned Keyleth -> Vax appears in a swoosh of raven feathers deflecting a (probably?) deadly blow -> "Don't even dare" -> Ludinus needed a "divine spark" and had prepared for this -> Vax gets laser focused by magic machine bullshittery -> Vax gets compressed into an orb/sphere -> orb Vax gets inserted into the machine as the last piece Ludinus needed to activate it -> something happened but we're not sure yet what we'll have to wait at least until next week for more info

hope it helps :)

OKAY

THIS IS FINE

god the person in the notes on that post saying this was just like how vax died but in reverse was R I G H T and i hate it

(for those who don't remember or didn't watch THAT fight. campaign vax did not perma die bc of his deal with the raven queen. his end of campaign death was just a formal goodbye bc he was already dead. his actual death happened in the first fight with vecna. when he got hit with a 22DC hold person he couldn't physically break out of. and being under hold person, means that disintegrate automatically hits. and if disintegrate takes your hit points below 0, you are not only dead, you can't be revived by any spell except for true res, which is the only resurrection spell the raven queen does not allow)

(and technically, disintegrate was cast on him twice, before it took effect. bc keyleth saved him the first time)

#both of my roommates are out tonight which im very glad of #bc while i love them and they both follow this blog so they would not judge me #i do not need to explain right now why i keep yelling and going THIS IS! FINE! out loud #but also AAAAAAHHHHH #MATTHEW MERCER. YOU TAKE GOOD CARE OF MY BOY. OR IM COMING FOR YOUR EXPENSIVE MAP PARTS. AND YOUR MINIS. AND YOUR LIGHTS.#FUCK IT ALSO YOUR FOG MACHINE #anyway hiiii m&k if you see this im totally fine i promise #did not yell any of the above out loud either #sbahdhaydjdnusbdjd #i may have to watch these episodes but im gonna wait to hear what happens first #bc like. if vax is okay. i will love this. if he is perma dead dead soul too im sorry i will simply be ignoring it #bc my heart can't take that #cr spoilers #ask

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good-to-drive · 5 months

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I feel like anti-gatekeeping was supposed to be "let people read marvel comics even if they don't know exactly how many wrinkles stan lee has on his ballsack" and it's turning into "let people speak to any issue with authority regardless of their credentials or experience" and it's stressing me up, like there are 100% cases where vetting someone's credentials is stupid and judgemental but there are also cases where it's fucking essential and we kinda need to know the difference

#it's not gatekeeping to say you don't have a medical degree so shut the fuck up and listen to people who do #alternative care is fine but it literally always needs to be married to science based care #idk I feel like anti vax talking points are just so deeply engrained in our dialogue #even people who would never in a million years consider themselves an anti vaxer will parrot them to make their own point #unknowingly i think #but it's still harmful

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anakinh · 1 year

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random tlovm thoughts

my most controversial critical role opinion is that my least favourite members of vox machina are, at different points, vax and scanlan.

Well, I’m assuming that not all of it is the most controversial. Scanlan was a main reason why I couldn’t get into CR1 at first (there’s the reason why I started with 2 and it’s because the first thing you see in CR1 is Scanlan and Grog shouting about brothels and whores.) But Scanlan was supposed to be Like That(TM) and his character arc made him so tolerable that he became one of my favourites. TLOVM is currently doing a great job adapting said character arc and they managed to make him still gross and far too horny without all the other disgusting content, so A+. He was still my least favourite in S1 of TLOVM but that’s what I expected, and he moved up the ranks in S2 as his character arc boots up, which is also what I expected (the Kaylie scene was great). I personally thought that making him get the final blow on Umbrasyl a bit much - being a bard I thought he would, like, rally the troops or do a big heal or something, but I guess it’s understandable as they had to make him use Mythcarver (poor Scanlan, that sword hardly fits him.)

Vax was the other way around - as I grew to like Scanlan more, I grew to like him less. It’s not very personal, it’s just this man’s level of angst and melodrama grew beyond what I enjoyed. Same in TLOVM - he was great in S1, started getting more eye rolls in S2. Still much more tolerable than in the stream, mostly because I didn’t have to listen to his 20 minute monologues on how sad he is and his reckless charging off became more like encouraging speeches now that he’s born again??? That wasn’t in the stream, idk how I feel about that. It was in the last episode. I can’t really comment. Also he’s prettier which makes it easier for me to enjoy the dramatic wing scenes, making the eyerolls much more affectionate (although ofc in the stream said scenes were also less dramatic so they’re actually about even?).

Interestingly enough, my favourite VM member in stream was always Vex but in TLOVM S1 it was Keyleth. In S2 it went back to Vex, which I guess makes sense as she got a lot more screentime in 2.

#me.txt #not expecting anyone to read this but i like writing down my thoughts #i read far too much twilight as a child and now my ability to like sad emo boys is capped at what i like to call the 'edward cullen line'#to be fair my ability to like sad emo boys is low in general #in da2 anders was like 'we can't be together... i'm too dangerous for you.. :(' and i was like k bye #and i LIKED da2 anders #wasn't gonna touch the romance tho because not a fan of angsty dramatic romances either #i genuinely do like writing out my thoughts like this. it helps me... ponder? synthesize? understand?#but a lot are more controversial and i don't want to publish so they languish in my drafts #/#//#///#////#just to be safe #(safer?)#uh #tlovm spoilers #please tell me if i need to add some anti tags. i am trying to keep it out of all relevant tags but tumblr search might still pick it up #speaking of angsty dramatic romances i keep thinking about how kiki/vax is the kind of high-octane tragic romances #that the bards would sing of and theatres would preform for ages to come #...shame i don't like those #i think I shall continue to write things like this. it improves my ability to explain things and put thoughts into words and fuck i need it #maybe I should try for proper grammar too #lmao #oh! I looked up Mythcarver to see how bad it was and Matt changed it! Before it used to affect Cutting Words which made it all but useless #Lore Bards don't need swords. Sword Bards don't have Cutting Words #now it's more general so it's actually a good weapon for Sword Bards! yay

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the-trans-dragon · 1 year

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I found a documentary series with an episode titled “The Next Pandemic” from November 7, 2019.

Pre-covid.

Really bonkers to watch. Various professions talk about their biggest concerns and priorities. Bill Gates gives his opinions a couple times.

I’m going to bed 💜

#the show is called Explained. on Netflix #I don’t really wanna advertise for Netflix so… idk.#that kinda broke my brain. I’m halfway howling in anguish and ranting in frustration—and halfway utterly speechless #what is there to say? ‘wow I wish anti-vaxxers let us utilize our technology.’#did it occur to anyone to put funding into public education? did anyone worry about the way capitalism doesn’t allow us to trust products?#did anyone think all their hard work would be useless because people didn’t believe in the plague?#I hate the anti-vax movement with so much passion; but I understand the logic of it and how irrefutable that logic can be #some of it is just nonsense conspiracy theory but some of it is legitimate fear. we are suffocated with advertisements. ‘you need this!’#‘buy this blender or you’ll never be healthy!’ ‘buy this purse or you’ll never have friends!’ ‘use our shampoo or you’ll kill the planet!’#‘buy our pain meds because they’re safer!’ ‘use these bandaids or you’ll get infections!’ ‘wear these shoes to prevent permensnt foot damage #‘get this vaccine or you might get sick!’ like…#something something automimicry. something something boy who cried wolf.#99% of the time it IS a scam when someone tells you that you need something. and how do you establish trust in a society like that?#I know the data and I know how vaccines work and I know the risks because I’ve studied it extensively #but I haven’t studied cars at all. and if a mechanic said ‘buy this or your car will explode’ I don’t think I’d take his word for it.#sigh… okay bed time for real now.#sorenhoots

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spitxlfields · 2 years

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I am going to blame how I’m feeling on the fact that I got my first dose of the smallpox/monkeypox vaccine yesterday and then slept for 13 hours.

Regardless, I’ll be around since I need to get some computer stuff done anyway.

#That's No Moon! (ooc)#Mun: Graves (singular)#all i'm saying is that if/when monkeypox does become a big thing because *gestures broadly*#it's gonna be the gays and the boomers absolutely thriving and i think that's poetic or something #(i don't remember what year the cutoff is but people born before then in the US defacto got the smallpox vaccine #as part of the childhood series. i know my parents were like 2 when the polio vaccine was FDA okayed and I'm pretty sure they had #the smallpox vac. and like people in other countries depending on if the disease stayed endemic #like i have a friend from Libya who is around my age who got the jab. which reminds me of a funny story. anyway)#i'm very very very very lucky to live in a major city where both of our local queer clinics have been hardcore pushing testing and the vax #by the by i actually don't feel as bad as i thought i would. the water blister absorbed super quick #and all it looks like is like i have a big bug bite #i just took too many edibles last night whoops #and it was a really long week in the morgue ive needed a rest. a break. as a treat.#but i am medicated hydrated fed and changed clothes so i'm doing pretty solid regardless

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aq2003 · 1 year

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tanner horrorjengashow your homophobic homosexual swag

#horror jenga rpg #'ladies first' JUST CALL KAYDEN A SLUR MY GOD <3 #i take it back they arent toxic exes tanner has too much internalized homophobia.#i dont believe in his crush on sat i think thats comphet. hes like ults steve if he was a nerdy 80s photographer #he is so funny i do think he is yet another 'queer man that needs therapy' matt pc but he specifically #is so repressed and insane that the power of friendship could not fix him.#also i do know that kayden deeply sucks but god i feel so bad for him. hes like. u know that scene of campaign percy #'apologizing' to vax post sunken tomb but clearly he just wants vax to punch him. kayden is like if an entire character was just that #hes just given up on the idea of ppl caring abt him even tho sat is right there and needs him to be there for her #idk whtat the hell would fix him either. good lord. the amount of problems these horror jenga show guys have

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obesecamels · 1 year

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#I'm gonna scream #A woman walked in while I was at the front desk wanting an appt for her new puppy #But can she please talk to the Dr about these ridiculous vaccines #She tried So So hard to find a puppy who hadn't been vaxed yet and settled #She isn't doing dog food. She's cooking spinach rice and chicken for their every meal.#Because ''i don't know what your opinion is on the state of the world #but we are UNDER ATTACK from THE DOG FOOD COMPANIES and we are UNDER ATTACK through these vaccines.''#She worked herself up until she was red-faced and swearing. Luckily my coworker came and rescued me at that point #All I said was to ask her how old her dog was before she got into it & I said 'i hear you' after every time she prompted me with 'RiGhT?!?'#I just #I got nothing #How is this happening #And then my boss and coworkers discovered the JK Rowling fiasco and there was a whole other can of worms #I didn't think I was old enough to miss when the world was simple #EDIT: oh yeah and a few weeks ago a different lady said her dog didn't need a rabies shot because if a rabid animal charged him #she would step in the way and take the bite instead. Like rabid animals are out there offering martyrdoms.#I'm gonna scream! I'm gonna scream.

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nellasbookplanet · 26 days

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In the wake of FCG' fate I've been thinking about death in ttrpgs, and how it kind of exists on three levels:

There’s the gameplay level, where it only makes sense for a combat-heavy, pc-based game to have a tool for resurrection because the characters are going to die a lot and players get attached to them and their plotlines.

Then there’s the narrative level, where you sort of need permanent death on occasion so as not to lose all tension and realism. On this level, sometimes the player will let their character remain dead because they find it more interesting despite there being options of resurrection, or maybe the dice simply won’t allow the resurrection to succeed.

Then, of course, there’s the in-universe level, which is the one that really twists my mind. This is a world where actual resurrection of the actual dead is entirely obtainable, often without any ill effects (I mean, they'll be traumatized, but unless you ask a necromancer to do the resurrection they won’t come back as a zombie or vampire or otherwise wrong). It’s so normal that many adventurers will have gone through it multiple times. Like, imagine actually living in a world where all that keeps you from getting a missing loved one back is the funds to buy a diamond and hire a cleric. As viewers we felt that of course Pike should bring Laudna, a complete stranger, back when asked, but how often does she get this question? How many parents have come and begged her to return their child to them? How many lovers lost but still within reach? When and how does she decide who she saves and who she doesn’t?

From this perspective, I feel like every other adventurer should have the motive/backstory of 'I lost a loved one and am working to obtain the level of power/wealth to get them back'. But of course this is a game, and resurrection is just a game mechanic meant to be practically useful.

Anyway. A story-based actual play kind of has to find a way to balance these three levels. From a narrative perspective letting FCG remain dead makes sense, respects their sacrifice, and ends their arc on a highlight. From a gameplay level it is possible to bring them back but a lot more complicated than a simple revivify. But on an in-universe level, when do you decide if you should let someone remain dead or not? Is the party selfish if they don’t choose to pursue his resurrection the way they did for Laudna? Do they even know, as characters, that it’s technically possible to save someone who's been blown to smithereens? Back in campaign 2, the moment the m9 gained access to higher level resurrection they went to get Molly back (and only failed because his body had been taken back by Lucien). At the end of c1, half the party were in denial about Vax and still looking for ways to save him, because they had always been able to before (and had the game continued longer it wouldn’t have surprised me had they found a way). Deanna was brought back decades after her death (and was kind of fucked up because of it). Bringing someone back could be saving them, showing them just how loved and appreciated they are. Or it could be saving you, forcing someone back from rest and peace into a world that's kept moving without them because you can’t handle the guilt of knowing you let them stay gone when you didn’t have to. How do you know? How would you ever know?

#cr spoilers #sometimes i think about how oryms backstory has it baked in that will was magically impossible to bring back #while yasha was simply not powerful enough in either magic or connections to bring zuala back #and by the time she was years had gone by and yasha had moved on and bringing zuala back would've been cruel and selfish #similar to how deanna was brought back but now she was left behind and alone #speaking of could you ever truly move on from grief in a world like that?#how do you accept the inevitability of death when it isn’t necessarily permanent?#no wonder delilah and sylas went evil to keep each other alive #no wonder laerryn accidentally caused the calamity in trying to break through the planes #the hubris of a world like this would be UNREAL #as would the bitter feelings from everyone who knows this power exists but can’t access it bc they’re like. a farmer #critical role #long post #nella talks cr #cr3 spoilers

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chaoticace2005 · 3 months

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Reasons the Mothman should die, collectively written by the residents of the Hazbin Hotel:

Coding for Characters: Vaggie, Charlie, Pentious, Alastor, Niffty, Husk, pretty much everyone

TW: References to abuse

He’s holding back Angel’s progress. (Vaggie, is killing really necessary?) (I am concerned about going after a Vee)

I’m hungry (ALASTOR!)

Ms. Angel gets nervous when on the phone with him.

His coat is tacky.

He’s a bug! And bugs must be DESTROYED!

So Angel stops feeling like he has to be so damn fake. This is getting on my fucking nerves.

HE LICKED CHARLIE!!! (Vaggie, wait it’s okay.)

Color scheme sucks. Purple AND red?!

He makes Angel sad, NOBODY should make Angel sad.

Those obnoxious glasses just make him look stupid.

He’s a manipulative, abusive prick.

ANGEL DIDN'T KNOW BOUNDARIES WERE A THING?!?!?!?!?!? (Honestly that explains a lot.)

NOBODY deserves to be in an abusive relationship.

Too many arms. Nobody needs that many. (...Angel has that many?) (Well maybe he shouldn't.)

Ms. Angel keeps coming home all messy!!

He’s ruining hearts for everyone. Me and Angel already have enough. At least those are on our bodies, what’s his excuse?

Hearts should not even be ASSOCIATED with Valentino, THIS IS NOT LOVE.

I can do without all the sexual depravity. While I am in Hell this is NOT one of the reasons.

If I have to hear that ringtone one more damn time-

The Eggies found some of his films. They should never be exposed to such horrors. Now I have to explain what “a sex” is.

Makes picture shows that are a disgrace to the idea of “entertainment.”

He’s making a bad name for Uncle Ozzie. This is NOT “lust.”

So we don’t have to listen to another one of Angel’s pornos. (Agreed, it’s quite horrifying!!)

So Ms. Angel isn’t tired when she gets home and can save the kinky stuff for then :) (Niff, really?)

So the kid stops coming home with bruises and cuts that I fix up at 3 am. (Husk, what the fuck?)

Because what the FUCK Valentino?

He keeps forcing Angel to do drugs. (HE WHAT?! Like crack??) (That but also I’m pretty sure whatever comes out of him is an aphrodisiac.)

I want to use his antenna as a backscratcher

Has that whole red color thing going on. Only I am allowed to wear red :) (Al, your text isn’t even red.) (My what?)

What is up with his red spit and smoke? Seriously disgusting.

The red stuff from him may be what allows Velvette to create her “Love Potions” which funds Vax’s stupid endeavors (Do you mean Vox?) (Who?)

FOR MY COLLECTION :D (…yeah okay.)

Really is making a bad name for Overlords. And not in the fun way.

Angel’s shown trauma signs of abuse in our meetings. Im pretty sure it’s Valentino.

Make a doll out of his fur so I have a main villain for roach puppet shows!!!

His only purpose is to keep Veks occupied but considering Vixen’s inane attempts to catch my attention it isn’t working.

So Angel can have his soul and he and Husk can run off into the sunset together like in a fanfiction!!! (Ah, yes that would be nice.) (WE WHAT?!) (Oh Husker, denial doesn’t suit you.)

So Angel can get a good boyfriend THAT’S NOT ME to stop these bullshit allegations.

So Angel can admit his feelings to Husker because our cat surely isn’t going to be the first to do it. (ALASTOR I SWEAR TO GOD!)

Who knows how many other people he’s abusing.

Seems to give Vicks confidence. He has enough of that as is. It much more fun to destroy him.

He makes Angel sad which makes Cherri sad!

HE HIT ANGEL!!!

Called my dear Rosie an "old hag" NOBODY CALLS ROSIE AN OLD HAG.

Angel is a good friend and deserves so much better.

I’ve forgotten what moths taste like.

He keeps trying to get Angel to move out :(

Told the kid he had to lose weight. What the actual FUCK. (Ill kill him.)

He’s annoying and looks quite stupid. How has this not been added yet?!

He’s making a bad name for Spanish speakers everywhere. (Yeah it’s embarrassing.) (Wait… what?)

He’s making a bad name for pansexuals everywhere.

He’s making a bad name for wing-holders everywhere. (HE HAS FUCKING WINGS?!) (Oh, yeah, I didn’t tell you?)

Too tall. This is ridiculous.

Won’t admit he’s blind so he’s become even more of a public safety hazard.

If I get one more transmission of him and Box commiting lascivious acts someone will be eaten. I don’t care who. What the purpose of these are I don’t know. Advertisement? (I think it’s to make you jealous boss.) (Ha! Jealous of what? Mediocre sex with a pathetic excuse for a businessman with a TV as a head?)

Because Angel deserves fucking better.

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unheavenlycreatures · 10 months

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Another thing that The Murderbot Diaries makes me think about is the concept of someone's birth being unethical in and of itself, and how to reconcile that with loving and supporting them. Wells touches on it briefly in Rogue Protocol in regards to GoodNightLander and their laws surrounding SecUnits, but while I wouldn't call it one of the main themes, it just kind of weighs uncomfortably in the air-

A SecUnit is made to cause pain, to feel pain, and to be disposed of when it is no longer more valuable than the sum of its parts. It is made sapient so it can feel every ounce of boredom and pain that it is put through. There is an extent to which the creation of a SecUnit is, in and of itself, an act of cruelty by its creator.

Where we're at right now, Murderbot seems to have a rather low view of other SecUnits. It knows what it wants, and it knows who it is, to an extent, but what does it think about a SecUnit's place in society in general? What does it think of in regards to a long term solution? Does it think one exists?

Then, also: Murderbot is an invaluable asset to anyone that it offers its allegiance to. But that then begs the question for Preservation, for PUoMaNT: How do you support, love, and care for a person who has been traumatized by having been brought into the world in the first place? How do you heal the wound that is the crime of your birth?

Then, taking it to its logical conclusion: How do you draft up laws and policies so as to support a person while not condoning the act of their creation? How do you make it clear to the person in question that they are worth of love and care, while also wrestling with whether they should ever have been brought into existence in the first place?

Preservation can make laws establishing constructs as autonomous individuals, but what next, and what will those laws do in regards to the rhetoric surrounding them?

How do you reconcile making space for someone's existence in a utopian society, without saying the thing that you are thinking, which is: In a perfect world, you would never have been created?

And maybe this is just me being deep in the paint in regards to allegory for disability here. As someone who has been in leftist spaces where the existence of disabled individuals in post-capitalist society is a problem that needs to be fixed, as someone who grew up autistic in an anti-vax household, as someone whose existence is often rather inconvenient for the folks planning their jobs in the metaphorical post-capitalist communal homesteads.

I mean, to be certain, I don't have literal guns in my arms, but I am genuinely interested as to how the post-capitalist societies in TMBD intend to handle people whose very existence is, through no fault of their own, antithetical to their values.

#.txt #tmbd #the murderbot diaries #murderbot #secunit #lotta thoughts

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cherubfae · 3 months

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ways they show they love you || vox machina x reader

With Vax, Vex, Keyleth, Percy, Grog, Pike, Scanlan & bonus!! Trinket, the best boii c:

tags: fluff, wholesome, pre-established relationships, crushing/mutual pining

Vax

You need your bow restrung? Here let me do it for you. Oh, you are cold? Take my spare cloak, please, I insist. Lest you catch your death. Vax prefers to have you near his vicinity so he can reach you should something happen. His hand brushes against yours as you pass one another. His chest pressing against your back so he can reach something on the top shelf for you. His nose runs along the column of your throat. A common phrase he said to Vex soon became one he said to you as well. Do not go far from me.

Vex

Offering her hand to help you down a rocky hillside or up the steep slope of a mountain. Instructing Trinket to keep a close eye on you, and as best boi, he does. She gives you soft forehead kisses when you're fast asleep, damn-near chokes when you crack an eye open to smirk smugly up at her. Gives you a bit of the cold shoulder after but it's only because she is so heckin' embarrassed and needs some time to cutely and stubbornly pout.

Keyleth

Did you get enough to eat? Want some more bread or stew? She doesn't mind taking the first watch if you're still tired, the group would benefit from you being well-rested. Huh? No, she definitely wasn't admiring you while you slept, that's insane.

Percy

Subtle touches. His hand at the small of your back or on your waist. He never strays far from your side nor you his. Leaning his head on your shoulder for a quick nap, feeling safe to rest his form against yours. Pressing a quick kiss to your hand when you need to part ways for a bit, it causes everyone else to groan, but he needs to do it. Just in case. No matter what, Percy needs you to know you have his entire heart.

Grog

Picking you up and spinning you around every time he sees you. Always wanting to sit by you at dinner or have his bedroll near yours. Picking you up and out of the way of danger. Carries you and Pike on his back easy-peasy! Excitedly waits for you to wake up every morning, oftentimes he's leaning over your face. You bump heads every time, but Grog still follows this ritual as long as he's awake before you. He hopes you'll do it for him next time!

Pike

Always healing your injuries no matter how minor. She hates seeing you in pain. She tries not to pick favorites when it comes to healing but if you're the closest to her when others on the team are downed, she's gonna pick you first. Pike's gotten better with going for the most-critically injured now! Loves to give big, warm hugs where you two spin each other around. The hugs linger longer when no one else is around. A heartbeat and your lips almost brush, causing her cheeks to light up a bright pink.

Scanlan

Gentle hand-holds lack his former suave flirtatiousness and instead are replaced with nervous, almost shy glances and soft reassurances. Frequent check-ins when you are injured, if there is anything he can do or get for you. Shiny pale blue puppy dog eyes making sure you are always safe. He brings you little wildflowers he collects, always writing new songs he isn't sure that he intends to sing. Buys you little tokens and jewelry that suit your taste as long as he can swing it.

Bonus:

Trinket

Gentle pokes with his cold nose and soft huffs against your cheek, this sweet bear will nuzzle his face into your tummy. Often times plops down beside you in an upright sitting position. You're his favorite after Vex. ♡

|| I DON'T GIVE PERMISSION FOR MY WORKS TO BE REPOSTED, RESHARED, OR EDITED. TUMBLR IS MY ONLY ACCOUNT AND THE ONLY PLACE WHERE I POST MY WRITING. ALL CHARACTERS BELONG TO THEIR RIGHTFUL OWNERS, THE STORY BELONGS TO ME. || CHERUBFAE © 2024

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utilitycaster · 6 months

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There were a few incredible decisions regarding mechanics from Spenser this past episode that I wanted to highlight.

The first is obviously the choice to have Sean's decision take place behind the curtain. We've seen this used a few times on Critical Role by Matt; but it's been in front of the audience, away from the other players (most notably Vax's choice with the Raven Queen, but this has also been used for some of the Mighty Nein's interactions early on, and for Yu's conversation with Zathuda). It's apt for a horror series; the tension is derived not just from the other players not knowing Sean's position, but also from the audience being unaware.

The second is the decision to have Sean's roll to navigate the underwater tunnel be hidden from the other players, but not the audience. It's important that the other players make their decisions without knowing if Sean was successful, but it's fine if the audience knows as it's not part of the larger mystery.

I don't necessarily think it's a strength or weakness of many TTRPGs that players above the table have information their characters might not have access too; the metagame is still part of the game, and truthfully, the players still knew that Sean had been offered a choice whereas their characters knew nothing of it. Because of the limitations of the medium - you only know what you are told by the GM or by other players, who may not think to narrate every little potential tell - I would even argue that a well-run game allows room for a little metagaming to make up for that significant gap between the truth of the story and what the characters are "supposed" to know. But I also think it is important to allow some surprises and reveals to be genuine, and in a GM-ed (as opposed to GM-less) horror game with complex character relationships that does require concealing some player/GM interactions.

The third was the resolution of the two PVP moments. The first, between Jean and Sean, defines a turning point. It's Jean's realization that Sean is compromised. A success, for each of these characters, represents them surviving so that they can carry out their as of yet unrealized goals in the scene; they are shooting to prevent the other from stopping them from doing so. It's better to keep living having missed than die having hit. And so with the sixes they roll, they miss each other but both have the information they need to make their next decisions.

On the other hand, the second moment, between Sean and Bee, is a desperate last-ditch attempt. Neither of them expect to survive the encounter, and both make this clear in their narration. Sean just needs to make it so Bee's soul can be taken, even at the cost of his own life. Bee, meanwhile, is not trying to save herself, but is simply trying to stop Sean so that Jean can close the rift without his interference. A success is the realization of these goals, even at the cost of their own lives; it's better to die having taken down the other than live with the other having escaped.

I think this is a masterful example of understanding player goals and finding a way for the mechanics to support it, because this is, ultimately, a standard roll for each character involved that simply happens to affect another character instead of something controlled by the GM. A lot of people can get very caught up in rules as written and neglect that often, written rules still allow a certain degree of space for the GM and for the players, and stepping back and understanding the purpose of the scene lets everyone find a satisfactory resolution quickly and tell the story instead of going down rules rabbit holes.

#critical role #candela obscura #candela spoilers #critical role spoilers

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deramin2 · 30 days

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(Spoilers for Critical Role Campaign 1)

I don't have any expectations for wherever FCG will stay dead or come back somehow because I've spent 9 years watching Sam Riegel totally subvert my expectations in a narratively compelling way.

But I will say that "FCG shouldn't come back because it would lessen the impact of a narratively perfect death" is EXACTLY what people were saying about Percy's first death after C1 E68. (The first televised character death.) If he had to have an end, it was a fitting end that, while tragic, neatly tied up the thesis of the story. Would Taliesin even want him to come back? With Whitestone saved and Ripply killed, was there even much left to explore?

They found Percy's death letter telling them he loved them all but please bury him in a ditch with all his designs so he could be forgotten by history. He was so sorry for all he'd done and he could never make it up.

But they tried anyway, having to wrest Percy's soul away from Orthax. The players knew what they said in the resurrection ritual was meaningful along with their rolls. But they did not know they were also having to convince Taliesin. If they'd tried to appeal to Percy's soul in the wrong way, dice be damned, Percy was going to refuse. What we got was really meaningful and powerful roleplay (especially from Marisha and Laura) that did convince Percy along with successful rolls.

Being brought back did not at all weaken Percy's own sacrifice or the impact of his death. It forced him to confront everything he'd been running from. It forced him to see that there were people who loved him and would not let him throw himself away for them. They didn't want a martyr, they wanted their friend. It utterly changed the trajectory of his character.

There's only four ways I can think of on the table to bring FCG back:

True Resurrection — Incredibly expensive high level spell. They would have to find the materials as well as someone who both can and is willing to cast the spell in the middle of a war to stop a second Calamity. None of this would be easy. The ritual could still fail. FCG could decline to come back and the other players would not know that until they went to all the effort. The Raven Queen views True Resurrection as heresy which is why they didn't try it on Vax. How would a second chance change them?

Reincarnate — Lower level and cheaper spell. FCG would come back as a fleshy being instead of an Aeormaton. Would the experience live up to FCG's fantasies about it? How would it change them to realize they are truely alive, and always were, but are now also mortal? Reverse Veth story? Wild ass Pinocchio retelling? What does it mean to get a second chance but everything about you is different?

Wish — I think this would count as duplicating True Resurrection. High component cost and requires a high level magic user. (If it's duplicating a spiral there's no risk of no longer being able to cast Wish.)

Hag Deal — They do know a fatestitcher Hag who likes them and limes making deals even more. Orym may be able to just extend his existing deal. What are the consequences for the deal marker as well as FCG? Would the robit feel responsible for that person's fate? How would that affect how they feel about coming back and the meaning they need to make from it.

I don't think there's a right or best option because whatever we speculate on, the actual result will be full of meaning and very poignant. I can't imagine that Bell's Hells won't try to bring him back. They've lost so much already. They couldn't bring back Eshteross or Bertrand or Will & Derrig. They couldn't live with not even trying. Maybe their method works, maybe it doesn't. But at least they tried.

And if FCG does come back, they have to live with knowing that even though they saved their friends and put an end to Otohan, they also hurt their friends by treating themselves as disposable. They forced their friends to confront that each of them might have done the same and that's deeply unhealthy. It will change the character development tremendously.

My favorite film and play genre is where the protagonist dies (or nearly dies) (usually self-inflicted) at the beginning and has to journey through purgatory to find themselves again before they can return to the living. Films like Wristcutters: A Love Story (2006) or Castaway on the Moon (김씨 표류기 2009). Death matters because it reminds you to live. The journey is finding meaning in both life and death and coming back utterly changed.

#critical role #Critical Role Spoilers #critical role meta #critical role campaign 1 #critical role campaign 3 #vox machina #Bell's Hells #Percival de Rolo #Fresh Cut Grass #wristcutters a love story #Castaway on the Moon

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centaurianthropology · 6 months

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My thoughts on C3E77

So apparently this one was controversial?

I'm going to say right now, I really loved everyone's decisions. They all fit the characters, but more they fit the players. I know that there are claims that Tal ignored all the warnings, but I actually think Matt may have misjudged the situation going in.

Ashley made it clear on 4SD that she did not want the shard. I think she's not really feeling the Dark Fearne storyline (and that's fair), and Matt seems to have missed that she genuinely didn't want to go down that route. Maybe he thought she was playing coy? Maybe they've been playing together so long he thought he knew a story she'd enjoy and missed her signals that she wasn't into it. I've done that before with some of my long-term players.

However that went down, Tal and she had a conversation after 4SD about what they wanted to do, and it was clear going into the episode that they at least had it planned out who was taking that shard, and it was going to be Ashton from the off. The fact that Matt was not expecting that somewhat surprises me. As Taliesin said: he put a big red backstory-shaped button in front of Ashton, and Ashton is terrified of losing people. If Fearne didn't want the shard, Ashton was going to dive on that grenade head-first. And part of Ashton wanted it. They are told they can't do something, and they will go about proving that old tree and everyone else wrong in the most self-destructive way possible. They are intensely punk in that way.

Matt may have designed the shard for Fearne, but this is not the first time that an item meant for one player ends up with another. Deathwalker's Ward was made for Percy, but through the events in the Sunken Tomb, it ended up with Vax and led to a hell of a story. And now something meant for Fearne goes to Ashton, and I have a feeling we're now in for another hell of a story. Because Ashton is now, essentially, a lava genasi, with three impossible things crammed into their broken body. Will they survive the campaign? I have no idea, but it has become clear that they don't expect to.

And honestly? This may well be what the Hells need, not in terms of power, but in terms of really realizing how self-destructive they all are. Marisha may say that no one loves a martyr, but Laudna was very much ready to play that role earlier this episode. Imogen is very self-destructive. So is Orym. So is FCG. The only two who have shown any degree of self-preservation are Fearne and Chet. The rest are bombs waiting for the most poetic moment to go off.

And today one of them did for a moment. They finally saw the end result that their self-destructive tendencies get them: Ashton blown into a thousand pieces, scattered across the top of the ziggurat. Deanna's ring saved him. Fearne's Aura of Life and FCG's Aura of Vitality saved him. Ashton could only roll and take damage.

Matt may have not designed it this way, but this was absolutely Ashton's 'where do you get your strength from' moment of the campaign, but in a very different way than Grog or Yasha experienced them. Because Ashton might just need this realization slapped into them by all their friends: this was dumb and they would have died because they didn't trust their friends. Because their strength and their salvation truly came from the people that love them.

Ashton has been, up until this point, a bit gung-ho to die for his friends. Honestly, they all are, and it's about time he and all the others learned how to live for their friends.

Anyway, hell of an episode, and a brutal but thrilling last hour. I was grinning right along with Sam. The mad fucker pulled it off by the skin of his teeth and by the grace of two friends dumping every bit of healing they had into him.

#critical role #ashton greymoore #taliesin jaffe #I love how this complicates everyone's relationships #and may actually make them talk about self-destructive bullshit #good #this was needed #and honestly good for both Ashley for sticking to not wanting a storyline she wasn't jiving with #and Taliesin for taking that lack of interest and running with it #cr spoilers #Ashley Johnson #Fearne Calloway

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finn-writes-stuff · 1 year

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May I ask for headcanons for Grog, Scanlan, Percy and Vax with gn shy s/o pretty please?

Shrinking Violet

Quiet and shy, you've caught the eyes of the men of Vox Machina.

Grog, Scanlan, Percy & Vax x Reader

Fandom: The Legends of Vox Machina/Critical Role

Format: Headcanons

Warnings: N/A

Gender-Neutral Reader

Masterlist

Whoever sends me a proper Percy request next is going to have my hand in marriage. -Finn

Grog

Grog has never been shy in his life. It often just doesn't occur to him to be nervous about talking to people. He has things he wants to say and do, so why would he not?

It creates an interesting contrast with you. His booming exuberance compared to your quiet restraint. There's a joke in the party that between the two of you, it averages out to the perfect usual amount of speech.

Grog wants you to feel comfortable around him! He understands on some level that people are often quiet around him because they're scared or intimidated, and he really doesn't want you to be.

You're definitely able to notice that Grog is gentler with you, trying to pull you out of your shell without scaring you off.

The extra obvious tell is Pike trying to very nonchalantly tell you about how Grog is totally chill and you can just talk with him! She isn't the most subtle of wingmen.

Scanlan

He has little restraint and even less shame. He will say anything that pops into his head, no matter how awful it is. Speaking to him will inevitably leave your ears burning.

Scanlan thinks it's kind of cute that you're so shy and makes a game out of getting you to laugh at his jokes and talk without seeming so nervous.

Seeing you when you're happy enough to forget how nerve-wracking social interaction is, melts him. The first time that he made you properly laugh, like a full, loud, straight from the chest laugh, he was left a little dazed.

The innuendos actually get worse. You don't brush them off with snark the same way most of the party does, and he absolutely capitalizes on it to double down on flirting with you.

Percy

Percy has a hack for social interaction and it boils down to being rich. He leans into the 'I am important and smart and well-spoken' part of his personality and it gets him what he wants. So even when social interaction is overwhelming, he can just default to that.

So, naturally, he teaches you the finer points of it to help you talk when you need to. He lets you practice with him and only laughs when you start making fun of him.

He is a big fan of leaving crowded situations to go work in his own space, and he will offer you the chance to come with him whenever he does. You just have to hold tools for him while he works.

If you're in a situation where you're stuck talking with strangers, he develops a habit of sweeping in with a convenient reason for you to leave the conversation. It satisfies something deep in his chest when he gets to play your knight in shining armor.

Vax

Vax'ildan, king of charming his way behind closed doors. He is pretty solidly at ease in conversations, and when he isn't, he can certainly fake it.

He'll tease you about how shy you are, he finds it adorable and he likes pushing to see how far it goes.

That doesn't mean that he allows other people to tease you or push is though. He will make them fuck off the moment you look uncomfortable.

As a kid, he was shy and nervous, but it has been a long time since he had to watch everything he said. He doesn't want you to feel that talking is going to get you in trouble. As much as he can be an ass, he genuinely wants you to be comfortable with him and the rest of the party.

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