Today I was listening to this song and I immediately thought of Constantin and De Sardet. God, I'll never get over it

@queen-scribbles I'm holding onto the ask until I finish the other one ;)

petrichor - the pleasant smell that accompanies the first rain after a long period of dry weather ❤ Nadia/Kurt (pre-relationship but well into the mutual interest phase) featuring Vasco bringing some big brother energy

---

"Oh good! Looks like the rain stopped." Vasco announced with an unnecessary amount of drama as they stepped out from under the tree canopy and into a clearing. There was no way to tell how much of the “rain” that had been soaking them for the last hour was fresh and how much had just taken its time getting to them through the thick foliage. "I guess we don’t have to sleep in the mud tonight after all."

Nadia patted him on the arm in commiseration as she moved past him to scale the stone outcropping they were hoping would be dry enough to camp on for the night. "Sorry to disappoint you, Vasco."

He took her proffered hand and let her help him up the wall. "I’m sure we’ll find some dark grungy cave tomorrow and you can make it up to me."

She chuckled as he surveyed their would-be campsite with a scowl, looking a bit like an angry, tattooed, half-drowned rat. "You really hate being landlocked, don’t you?"

"In some ways, it’s not as bad as I expected." He took his hat off and flipped it over, dumping water onto his boots. "In others, it’s much worse."

He stomped off to get a fire started as she helped the rest of their group up too, except Siora who left with a nod to go hunting. Kurt went last, as he always did, making sure the others didn't fall and wordlessly refusing any help for himself.

Once everyone was up, Nadia took her hat off too and shook the water off the brim. It had made a valiant attempt at keeping her head dry, and while it had succeeded in keeping the rain out of her face, her hair was damp and heavy. She took the hat between her teeth to free up both hands and started disassembling her braid.

“Let me help you with that.” Before she could reply, she felt rough fingers gently push her hands away as Kurt started to unpin the braid from its crown. She stood still and let him work. It wasn’t the first time he’d helped with it - he was surprisingly good at braiding hair, though she’d been sworn to secrecy about that fact - and she trusted him to know what to do.

She closed her eyes and let herself enjoy it, a smile growing on her face as she breathed in the scent of the clearing they’d chosen to camp in. Petrichor lingering from the earlier rain, sweetness from nearby wildflowers, woodsmoke from the campfire, worn leather and steel from the man at her back, a whiff of the ocean that told her Vasco lingered somewhere nearby. Teer Fradee was alive around her, joyfully so, and she reveled in it.

“I’ve missed that smile of yours, Green Blood,” Kurt said softly, bringing her out of her reverie. Nadia turned towards him enough to see his face without disrupting what he was doing, and he paused long enough to brush his knuckle over the corner of the smile in question. “Haven’t seen you smile like that since your mother got sick. This place has been good for you.”

Her smile grew even more. “Less the place and more the company, I think.”

“Well, I know you don’t mean me.” He finished unplaiting her hair and ran his fingers through it a few times, both to wring some of the water out of it and as an excuse to avoid her eyes. “You had me then too.”

“Not like I do now.” He’d always been good at keeping her at arm’s length, friendly but not quite friends, especially the last few years. But that had changed since they’d boarded the ship to Teer Fradee, and seemed to change a little more every day.

“Perhaps.” His brow knotted as he considered her words, like he was trying to find a hidden meaning behind them. She couldn’t tell if he liked the implications or not.

“If it helps ease that furrow in your brow, I can’t give you all the credit.” She reached up and swept her thumb over his brow, smoothing away the frown only for it to be replaced by surprise, his eyebrows shooting up towards his hairline. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe it’s this island. I never in my wildest dreams would have pictured that a place like this existed in the world.” She paused, tapping her chin, and her smile sharpened to a wry grin. “Well, maybe in my really wild dreams. I do have a very active imagination.”

Kurt chuckled, a warm rasp of sound. “You really know how to ruin a moment, Nadia.”

“It was worth it to make you laugh.” Nadia had to fight to keep her footing, unsure if she wanted to shy away from the way he looked at her then or lean closer to bask in it. “I’ve missed your laugh. I thought you’d left it in Sérène.”

“So did I.” His hand finally stilled in her hair but didn’t fall away, resting carefully on the back of her head. “You’ve always been good at bringing it out of me.”

“My dear Kurt, that might be the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.” She meant for it to be playful, but it came out barely above a whisper.

He brushed a strand of hair back from her face, tucking it behind her ear. “Give me time. I can do better.”

A loud groan sounded from nearby as Vasco lowered himself to a log that he’d claimed as a chair. Nadia and Kurt leapt away from each other simultaneously. She met the Naut’s innocent grin with the best glare she could muster, and he held up his hands in surrender. “Don’t let me interrupt. As ye were.”

Kurt mumbled, “I should go see to the tents,” and left, not looking at either of them. If Nadia didn’t know better, she could swear that his ears and the back of his neck were a little red.

“Sorry, Nadi,” Vasco lied. “Didn’t mean to ruin the moment.”

“Yes you did,” she grumbled, pouting childishly as she flopped down on a log of her own. She opened her bag to find her collection of herbs and dried mushrooms, hoping to get something going for dinner and also trying not to let her eyes follow Kurt across camp. She could still feel the echo of that last touch against her cheek.

And she could tell by his smug smirk that Vasco knew it. “Maybe a little. Might want to take that outside the camp next time, if you don’t want an audience. Just say you’re goin’ for a walk. Works every time.”

Nadia struggled to maintain a proper pout as her smile broke through. “Well, I was going to take you to some hot springs tomorrow that Siora told me are nearby, but I don’t think you deserve a hot spring anymore, dear Captain.”

“I beg your forgiveness, Your Excellency,” he teased, dipping into as deep of a bow as he could while sitting down. “Next time I just won’t let ye know I’m watchin’.”

Kurt turned back toward the fire at the sound of Nadia’s laughter, watching her light up with it, smile wide and easy, eyes bright, hair falling in gentle waves down her back. He committed the image to memory along with the warmth that bloomed in his chest from the sight, then turned back to his work.

24 for anyone who wants to answer it because it's *fantastic*, and then 4, 27, 34 for Vesper AND 2, 6, 11, 17 for Vikkari and/or Tragen

Vesper

04. What are their favorite traits about their lover? (one psychological and one physical)

Pfft, just one? Psychological it would definitely be his loyalty/steadfastness; Kurt's always been there and always will be. Physical... I don't think she can pick. She loves too much; his eyes, his nose, his scars, jawline, arms...

27. If your character was going to get arrested, what would be the most likely reason for it?

Either walks out of a store mid-reading a book she forgot she didn't pay for or trying to sneak in somewhere and got caught(she was sneaking in hopes of avoiding confrontation with the guards)

34. Does your character have favorite foods? (breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert, snacks, etc)

Plums! Vesper loves plums. So much. (There aren't any on Teer Fradee, but Siora introduced her to a native fruit that's extremely similar, so now Ves would die for her) Also honey-glazed duck and fruit tarts.

Tragen & Vikkari

02. What is one of your character’s biggest insecurities? Are they able to hide it easily or can others easily exploit this weakness?

Tragen’s is... guilt, in a sense. He’s afraid of someone asking why he didn’t just... leave the Sith when he first got a chance if it’s so anathema to him. (first chance would have been when Baras gave him a ship) He was worried punishment would fall on his family, as well as Baras tracking him down and having him dragged back to watch said punishment. A very valid reason(and probably what would have happened), but he still feel guilty sometimes that he didn’t break ties sooner. I don’t think it could be exploited all that easily, bc he knows his reasoning was sound--or sound as you can expect from a 20 year old kid. So even if he might wish he could’ve done differently, he knows he didn’t have much choice(Also: wouldn’t have met Jaesa, and that’s well worth all the years hiding his true nature)

Vikkari’s, ironically, is his pride. He’s aware of it as a problem, is working on being better about it(by the end of the Crusade he’s done a pretty good job). But it is still something that can be exploited to an extent. You’re not going to get any egregious errors out of him by poking it, but you could manipulate either his pride or his attempts to be less proud.

06. Do they have any hobbies that their lover finds unusual, odd, or otherwise annoying?

Tragen is very bad about remembering to hang his towel back in the  ‘fresher(rather than leave it over a chair/the foot of the bed/crumpled on the floor) and it drives Jaesa just a bit nuts.

Vikkari plays with the edges of his wings sometimes when he’s bored(bc they’re kinda new) which Arue finds odd and then endearing(bc she’s always had wings, so they’re just... there for her. Like hands and feet and hair)

11. What is something that would make your character fly into a rage?

They’re both very protective of the people they love, so threatening one of them would do it. For Vikkari, tearing down/mocking Arue’s journey to redemption is another hot button, he knows how hard that was for her and had strong words for anyone who belitted the effort. Tragen it’s manipulating people(he is just. The Worst Sith Ever 😂), if he finds you manipulating someone--especially someone vulnerable--for your own gain, he can be pretty scary.

17. Does your character have dreams of getting married and/or having children?

Tragen absolutely yes to both. (and that's the plan :3) Vikkari definitely wants to marry Arue, but he wants to be sure it's something she wants, too. And if she doesn’t, he’ll happily continue the way things are.  He hasn't thought about children much yet. Hadn't at all until Nenio asked Arue That Question in the camp banter.

(24 will get its own post bc a lot of them want to chime in 😉)

Okay, I’m going to babble about Greedfall under a cut. I just have to.  tl;dr, you should have been able to romance Petrus and Constantin, no I am not taking critique.  Under the cut: 1500 words of basic Greedfall explanation, and then me lamenting ships that didn’t happen; includes spoilers (noted). 

So. Greedfall. Basically, I had never heard of this game until it was free on Playstation Plus a few months ago, and I was like “yeah okay sure, I’m not doing anything else”, so I played it. I had no idea what to expect. I don’t recall watching the trailer. From the icon, I expected maybe pirates? As it turned out, no pirates ...exactly? But kinda. They’re mostly just colonists with pistols and big hats. Lots of big hats. There are a faction of characters that live on ships, but they’re not pirates. I don’t think they’d appreciate being referred to as such.  Anyway, it’s a rather Dragon Age-like game. I don’t mind saying so, since everyone else has. It has its similarities and differences, but it definitely feels familiar in that way. It’s definitely not a copy, just... inspired, I guess.  You play as Lord or Lady de Sardet, (that’s a silent t, btw), who’s tasked with representing her people on the ‘new continent’ of Tir Fradi-- mostly to the other countries that settled there in the past few years, but also to the natives, who’ve lived there for ever and ever and actually respect the land, unlike you dumb colonizers.  The factions are real pains in the ass, but in a way that’s a litttttle bit charming. Theleme is full of propagandizing Catholics who aren’t above a little witch hunt now and again. The Bridge Alliance are all science-obsessed atheists who think progress is more important than basic morals. The natives are VERY in touch with nature, and have cool Russian accents, skull-like face paint, and sometimes branches growing out of their heads. (The natives have the most diverse opinions, so they’re the least annoying. In fact, they’re rather likeable, except that sometimes they hate you, and don’t bother with pretending they don’t for diplomacy’s sake.)  There’s also the Nauts (the pirates), the Coin Guard (mercenaries, but they kind of work for your country?), and the Congregation of Merchants, aka your country, which are basically neutral ground capitalists that everyone sort of doesn’t hate. (Theleme and Bridge Alliance despise each other, roughly a little more than they hate the natives.)  You’ve got one companion from every faction:  Siora from the natives, Kurt from the Coin Guard, Vasco from the Nauts, Petrus from Theleme, and Aphra from Bridge Alliance. They’re all representatives of their people, but also (as you might guess) non-extremists. Because otherwise you’d want to murder them.  Siora isn’t desperate to kick out the foreigners, she just wants her people to be safe and respected. Kurt and Vasco are basically just following you because it’s Kurt’s job and Vasco’s boss told him to. Petrus is a conniving old man, but he doesn’t shove God down your throat too much and seems to respect the natives, sort of. And Aphra has enough morals to agree that killing for science ain’t cool, and maybe the natives aren’t just savages. All in all, they’re all pretty reasonable.  Compared to Dragon Age, none of your companions (or other NPCs) have a ton of personality, but somehow they still manage to have a good bit, and I ended up really liking them.  SO LETS TALK ABOUT SHIPPING You can romance Kurt if you’re playing a woman, Aphra if you’re playing a man, and Vasco and Siora in either case. But, oh my god?, getting the romance to happen is practically impossible. Save first. I romanced both Kurt and Siora (in different saves; can’t do ‘em both in one), using a guide, but by the time I had thought about romancing, I’d already said one wrong thing to Vasco and screwed my chances hahaha. There’s basically 3 specific conversations you have to have with them, and each time you have to pick the right thing to say, out of three choices. If you offend them at all, there’s no going back. Wow. They’re not very intuitive, either.  ANYWAY. The romances aren’t all that interesting, but they add a bit to their stories, so it’s cool. I think my ship preferences with these four characters are Kurt, Siora, Vasco, and Aphra, in that order.  But you KNOW WHAT? I wanna romance Petrus. Yes, the old man. The bishop. And yeah, I know why you can’t.  (It’s spoiler time!)  You can’t romance him basically for the exact reason you should be able to romance him: he was in love with your mom. Your birth mom, who was a native, which you never knew about. He pined for her after she was captured and taken from her land, and when she was in pain and wanted to die, he didn’t help, and now he’s like “woe is me, I’m flooded with guilt”. Which is partly why he’s following you/ de Sardet around.  So you can’t romance him because he sees you as his kid... kinda?... ish?... I guess? Sure. Ok. I mean, that’s cute. I like it. He makes a pretty bad dad, to be honest, because he’s more like that one slightly morally corrupt uncle who lets you drink hard alcohol when you’re a teenager but only under his supervision. But he cares, and that’s the important thing. I don’t dislike dad-Petrus at all.  But you should still be able to romance him because of the good old classic “you’re so much like your mother”. Problematic? MAYBE. =D But a real missed opportunity. Also he’s my favorite companion. He’s a real manipulator. Gets excited about blackmailing politicians. Sounds like he’s smoked a pack a day. I just like the guy a lot. (And you know how much fanart he has? Like none. Le sigh.)  (Also very few ship fics with him; I’m not surprised, but of course I must remedy this. I’m 4k in already and it’s a lot of de Sardet thinking, and her friends poking at her.)  BUT ALSO, to move on from Petrus.  There’s a character I neglected to mention at all, because he’s not a playable companion (except for a tiny while in the beginning, iirc). He’s perhaps my real favorite character... or maybe tied with Petrus.  Yes, it’s Constantin, de Sardet’s “dear cousin”. Oh my lord, Constantin. What a cutie??? He’s basically the prince. He’s been appointed as the governor of their city on the new island, and he’s precious. Genuinely a puppy.  And I think you should be able to romance him. (It’s less crazy than you might think!)  MORE SPOILERS TIME  So, as it turns out (well, I already sort of spoiled it up there), because de Sardet is actually a native, s/he and Constantin are not actually cousins. They love each other immensely. The game makes no mistake about this. They’re absolutely besties. I think Constantin calls you his lucky star. He’s always so flattering, and seeing de Sardet just makes his day. And since it turns out you’re not really cousins, you should be able to romance him.  And do you know why?  I mean, because they love each other, clearly. But also, that ending. Good lord that ending. I mean, if you didn’t think that they loved each other that much, the ending basically says, “HEY ACTUALLY they totally love each other more than anything”, which makes it terribly depressing either way, because you can either... well, stay with him forever, to the detriment of literally everyone else, or, you know, not stay with him, in order to kind of save everyone. It’s already very heart-wrenching, but letting them literally be in love? GAWD. Talk about pulling heartstrings. It would have made the ending like... an actual choice.  (BIG SPOILER BELOW although you probably already guessed.)  Yeah so you have to kill Constantin to save the island. OR, you two can become the new gods, and everyone fears you and it’s terrible. Lordy. Just terrible either way, because there’s no way you played the game and didn’t end up loving Constantin somewhere along the way, even when the red flags started going up that he’d gone power mad. (Because even when he’s power mad, he still obviously loves de Sardet SO MUCH,  OH my god...)  So. As I said. You should be able to romance Petrus because, well, I want to. Need me that problematic ship, c’mon! And you should be able to romance Constantin because the whole plot is literally written that way??? It’s like the romance that is set in stone, you know? And it literally drives the plot.  The whole “Constantin gets native powers and decides he wants to be a god” thing was sort of predictable (as soon as it started happening, because shit, I didn’t have a clue what was going to happen before!), but overall I thought the game and story were pretty good. I recommend playing it if you’re got 40 hours free and it’s really on sale or something. I give it an 8.2 out of 10. (Higher if it didn’t start to feel kind of grindy at points. Lower if I’d had to pay for it. Much higher if they let you romance your pseudo-dad or pseudo-cousin, hahaha.) 

Ghosting (Constantin/De Sardet)

Songfic

Warnings: Canon character death, angst, panic attack description, allusion to suicide, mother mother song general warning.

It seems like every Mother Mother song reminds me of Constantin or De Sardet so i´ve been suffering for two weeks straight, comments are always appreciated.

Part 2 of the Arms Tonite fic

Words: 1252

When Constantin woke up, he no longer felt the pain in his stomach, he no longer felt his cousin’s strong arms around him either.

When Constantin woke up, De Sardet was kneeling in front of him, in front of his grave. Her head hung low, the weight of loss and guilt on her shoulders.

She stood up and left. Vines had tangled themselves around her ankles, he wondered how long had his cousin been kneeling there.

Constantin followed her home.

“I've been ghosting, I've been ghosting along”

When they were kids, he would hold her hand whenever she led him home from the small forest near the castle. No matter how many times Constantin got lost, De Sardet always found him.

He remembers how he always felt afraid, lost, and alone in those woods, just like now.

He tries to hold her hand, but it slips right through it.

“Ghost in your house, ghost in your arms”

Constantin was clumsy, he still hadn’t got the hang of being a ghost.

De Sardet listened to the stairs creek, and picked up every little trinket that inexplicably fell to the ground during the night.

Being a ghost is hard. Many times had Constantin tried to hug his cousin, their bodies never found eachother.

De Sardet shudders at the cold breeze.

“When you're tossing, when you turn in your sleep

It's because I'm ghosting your dreams”

De Sardet tossed and turned in her bed, the events of that night didn't let her rest, his pale face and scared eyes tormented her dreams.

She couldn’t sleep.

She swears she can feel Constantin’s hand holding hers.

Like when they were kids, and she would hold his little hand whenever he had a nightmare.

How she wishes she could go back in time, undo everything and have him by her side.

“And this is why I have decided”

“To pull these old white sheets from my head”

“I'll leave them folded neat and tidy”

“So that you'll know I'm out of hiding”

Soon, work piled up and De Sardet couldn’t stay home and mourn.

She had to make reports, write letters to the continent, and run errands around the island.

Constantin followed her everywhere.

“I've been ghosting, I've been ghosting alone”

De Sardet paid no mind to the animals that trailed behind her, nor to the beautiful plants and flowers that seemed to grow near her camp.

She also dismissed when a blind Doneigad stared directly behind her head, like looking at someone else.

“Ghost in the world, ghost with no home”

It was known that some ghosts stayed in their homes after death, but how could Constantin stay in one place? De Sardet was his home, and she wouldn’t stop running.

De Sardet ran, ran from the grief, ran from her friends, ran from the memories and her feelings.

“I remember, I remember the days

When I'd make you oh-so afraid”

The first weeks after Constantin’s death, De Sardet thought she had lost her mind, she saw the tail of his coat turning every corner of the house, and swore she could faintly hear his laugh.

The first time she saw Constantin in front of her, De Sardet could feel the air leaving her lungs, the floor under her feet unfolding and swallowing her.

The first time, her eyes filled with tears, and the oxygen became scarce, her knees buckled and she fell to the ground, she felt how all her world came tumbling down on her, every memory of her dear cousin replayed itself in an agonizingly long sequence.

Constantin could only watch as his cousin’s trembling body fell to the ground and broke in sobs, her ragged breath broke his heart. As a ghost, there was nothing he could do so he cried along his Lucky star.

“And this is why I have decided”

De Sardet couldn't sleep, the only rest she got was when she passed out from the exhaustion.

“To leave your house and home un-haunted”

Constantin in his clumsiness, managed to knock off a painting of him, breaking the frame.

When De Sardet found it, she clutched the painting close and cried out to him.

Constantin thought she was mad.

De Sardet misses him so much.

“You don't need poltergeists for sidekicks”

Constantin can’t remember the last time he saw Kurt joke around, or Vasco share his sea stories under some alcohol, or Petrus come to visit “his child”, he hasn’t seen Siora bring exotic plants or Aphra bring study books either.

De Sardet is distancing herself from her friends.

“You don't need treats”

Constantin has tried to cheer up his cousin, with little gifts he could move around.

“And you don't need tricks”

His lack of grace has broken many trinkets.

“You don't need treats”

He has tried giving her flowers, making them grow just outside her window.

“You don't need tricks”

She just closed the curtains, and cried.

“You don't need no Halloween”

He has tried to help with the chores in the house, when De Sardet wouldn’t get up in days.

“You don't need treats”

The horribly folded clothes seem to rest years to De Sardet’s life.

“You don't need tricks”

- And you don't need me. - Constantin realises, he looks at his cousin from the corner where he sat, her beautiful eyes no longer shine, and the dark shadow under them looks more prominent than ever, she looked so distant, so… dead. It broke his heart to see his lively cousin like this.

The candles around him flicker and die. His Lucky star hasn’t noticed it’s him anyways, she always looked right past him.

De Sardet sighs, she swears it’s him, his presence has become… comforting, in a way, but she can’t see him or communicate with him.

Oh how she wishes to hold him again.

“Hey, would it be so bad if I stayed

I'm just a ghost out of his grave

And I can't make love in my grave

I won't put white into your hair

I won't make noises in your stairs

I will be kind and I'll be sweet

If you stop staring straight through me”

“And this is why I have decided”

Constantin looked at his cousin, even when she was asleep he could feel her restlessness. He just kept adding to her suffering, he thought.

“To pull these old white sheets from my head”

He placed one last kiss on his Lucky Star’s temple and made his way to the door.

He will leave her in peace.

“I'll leave them folded neat and tidy”

Looking past the folded sheets he had moved so many times to get his cousin’s attention, a stray tear rolled down his pale cheek - Goodbye, my beloved cousin. I will let you rest. -

“So that you'll know I'm out of hiding”

A cold wind woke up De Sardet, something was wrong, something was... missing.

“And this is why I have decided”

She rushed downstairs and saw that the door to the street was ajar, letting in the wind, and letting out...

He left her.

“To leave your house and home un-haunted”

De Sardet loses him for the second time.

“You don't need poltergeists for sidekicks”

And she knows Constantin has left forever now.

“You don't need treats

And you don't need tricks”

Should she follow him?

“You don't need treats

You don't need tricks

You don't need no Halloween”

“You don't need treats

You don't need tricks

You don't need treats

You don't need no Hallows Eve”

“You don't need treats

You don't need tricks

And you don't need”

“me”

my de sardet questionnaire by @visceralcoma​!

What is De Sardet’s given name? Tristan, its French origin means “sad; sorrowful”

What is the name Arelwin would have given De Sardet? Drust, the Celtic form that Tristan was derived from, meaning “tumult; riot”

What was their relationship with Constantin like when they were teens? As young teens they were best friends and partners-in-crime, though Tristan preferred sneaking out and exploring the city to Constantin’s actively terrorizing the nobility at every opportunity. As the burden of responsibility increased on both of them while they got older, this dynamic shifted to being codependent, as they had no one else to turn to but each other.

What is a heartwarming memory of your De Sardet and Constantin? The first time they snuck out the palace to the tavern together when they were around 16/17 years old. They both almost choked on their first mug of ale, laughing about it and dancing together the whole night until Kurt finally found them and dragged them back home.

Did your De Sardet and Constantin ever have a fight? If so, about what? The first time Tristan, having been pent up on stress from being at his uncle’s court, snuck out to the city without telling Constantin. When he came back Constantin was freaking out about him having left without saying anything. It was at this point that they both realized they were perhaps a bit too reliant on each other than was healthy.

What was the relationship like with Princess De Sardet? Loving, but reserved. Whether it was the confines of nobility or simply because Tristan could sense a certain distance between them, he could never truly confide in his mother.

What was De Sardet’s relationship with their uncle? Tristan never liked his uncle, or his aunt for that matter, for how they treated Constantin. The prince was also never remotely subtle about how he used Tristan for his own ends when he found out his nephew had a talent for diplomacy; by the end Tristan was close to loathing him outright.

Did De Sardet ever get into trouble with their mother and uncle? After the numerous times he would escape to the city and climb up on rooftops like a maniac? Yes. A lot.

Did De Sardet have many other friends? No; his mark singled him out from an early age, and aside from a few friendly acquaintances, his only friend was Constantin. This isolation improved as he got older and his peers recognized him as being quite charming, but he never trusted any of them the way he did Constantin.

How did they handle growing up with their mark? Aside from being socially isolated, Tristan tried to ignore it as best he could, though he heard about the rumors in court even though his mother tried to shield him. That he was an illegitimate child, some bastard son born out of an affair; I’m kind of retconning canon here in that he was well aware that he didn’t look like his father due to these rumors.

It lead him to subconsciously try and over-perform in a way to gain the approval and validation he was looking for, though he would pretend it wouldn’t bother him outwardly. He grew up having a feeling that he had something to prove.

What are De Sardet’s favorite: food, color, music, weather, season, and animal? He loves seafood, his favorite color is blue, he likes listening to piano and violin, he prefers a sunny cloudless sky in summer, and his favorite animals are birds. Mainly birds of prey, like eagles and hawks, though he also likes corvids.

What was their first thought of Vasco, Siora, Aphra, and Petrus when they met them? He didn’t trust Petrus and was cautious around him, thinking him suspiciously friendly for a man with political ambitions. He was curious about Aphra and had a lot of respect for her, both as a scholar and at her competence overall. He liked Siora instantly, correctly predicting they would get along very well. He was intrigued by Vasco as well as attracted to him immediately, though if asked Tristan would swear up and down it was just because he had always been interested in the Nauts.

If they had one, who was De Sardet’s first kiss and/or love? His first kiss was actually with Constantin when he was a young teenager. Constantin suggested it, since neither of them had kissed anyone before and though Tristan initially got embarrassed, Constantin dared him and, having the stubborn streak that he did, Tristan took him up on the dare. They couldn’t look each other in the eye for like a full day after that.

He didn’t have any romantic relationships with anyone before Teer Fradee, aside from the few curious hook-ups. Virginity was not a big deal to him, so he experimented a little, but quickly lost interested due to the lack of feelings involved.

Depending on which ending I want to go with, in the timeline where Tristan chooses to join Constantin, it’s because he was his first and still is his only love. Otherwise it’s Vasco.

What subjects were their favorite to learn while being taught by Sir De Courcillon? He enjoyed all of it, but if he had to pick he would say history and philosophy.

What was their relationship with Kurt initially like? Tristan would say he held a healthy and very mature respect for Kurt, but in truth he was just a kid who went starry-eyed when he saw the huge fuck-off sword. He enjoyed the training even more than his classes with Sir De Courcillon, and he took an immediate liking to Kurt, seeing right through the cold-blooded mercenary act that he put on. Kurt, on his end, tried very hard not to be fond of the kid but ended up failing spectacularly.

What was Kurt’s initial assessment of De Sardet when he began teaching them to fight? Enthusiastic and eager to learn and prove himself, a little bit too eager. Tristan would constantly bite off more than he could chew; it was a whole ordeal for Kurt to get him to slow down before he seriously injured himself being overly ambitious.

What did De Sardet specialize into first and why? He wanted to learn swordplay first, but his mother insisted on tutors to teach him how to control his magic. I’m not entirely sure how the magic thing in Greedfall works, but I’m going to assume it’s an innate gift, so yeah, that had the priority.

What did they feel when they learned they were adopted and the circumstances behind it? Betrayed, angry, hurt. In the bad ending scenario it’s one of the main reasons for why he joins Constantin. Prince d’Orsay essentially kidnapped him, stole his heritage from him, and turned him into something he was never meant to be. That’s not even mentioning the fact that the merchants literally murdered his real parents. It makes Tristan furious even at his mother for being complicit in this, to the point where he kills any love he had for her even though it pains him.

Regardless of the ending, he never returns to the continent again and chooses instead to embrace the culture that was taken from him. His methods in dealing with the colonizing factions also turn a lot more ruthless to ensure the natives are protected, especially in the bad ending where violence becomes his sole recourse.

About the Muse

thanks for the tag @serafinetheangel​! 

Since I’ve been having fun developing my de Sardet from Greedfall I’m going to talk about her :)

- Your Muse’s name:

Emilia “Emma” Ophelie de Sardet

- One favorite picture/face claim of your Muse: Despite the CC being limited I like the way she looks. That being said I happened to re-watch that Hamilton Woman when I was playing the game and took inspiration from the historical figure Emma, Lady Hamilton. 

(I love this cigarette card depiction of her.) 

Two head canons you have for your Muse:

a) While the mark on her face was often seen as a “blemish” that marred her appearance, there was an artist that was drawn to her and used her likeness for several of his paintings. Notably however he only depicted her left side or left the blemish out entirely. however she became uncomfortable with this the older she got. Eventually, she did sit for paintings again, but ordered the artist to depict all of her.

b) Noted for her guile and perception, even at an early age. At first it wasn’t deemed proper for a young woman to “meddle” but once her uncle realized she had a talent for such things, he sent in tutors and masters to hone those skills. Emma always got the feeling her uncle wished it was her cousin Constantin that had those skills, but she never told him.

- Three things your Muse likes doing in their free time:

a) Journaling. She suffered from “hysteria” when she was younger and was gifted a journal by M. de Councillian to ease her. She picked up drawing soon after, as well as writing down her thoughts.

b) Walk throughout the city/city limits “alone” (Except not really because her master of arms always made sure she was protected per the prince’s instruction.) still, Kurt understood she liked her space and always made sure he or his men didn’t hover. However once the plague started to get really bad she remained within the palace walls.

c) Languages. Has an affinity for picking them up 

- Seven people your Muse loves/likes:

Kurt uwu 

Constantin, even though she’s fully aware he can be kind of a dick

Her mother (though that’s more of a high respect)

Siora 

M. de Councillian 

Her aunt 

Aphra (I mean all her companions but she didn’t have many female friends growing up so she appreciates Aphra and Siora a lot.)

- A phobia your Muse has:

Loneliness. 

tagging (only if you want of course :) ) @galadrieljones​ @thevikingwoman​ @lechatrouge673​ @out-of-the-embers​ @laraslandlockedblues​ @ladymdc​

Playing Greedfall #1

I finished the prologue yesterday and am level 8 right now, so let me tell to you my impressions so far:

The Good

I like the voice actress for f!De Sardet, her voice is very soft and fits the character of a diplomat IMO 

Wow is that Dorian’s VA??

Wow is that Blackwall’s VA??

I liked the blink-and-you’ll-miss-it detail with how Teer Fradee is actually named Tír Fradí and Teer Fradee is a butchered misspelling of the pronounciation

Siora seems like a nice character

The hats are fun

The world, despite the everything, feels detailed and lived-in

I enjoy the fact that quests are timed but in a realistic sort of way, adds to the feeling that the world will continue even if De Sardet doesn’t intervene

Speaking of De Sardet intervening, the concept of playing a diplomat is such a good idea and I love it

Yes, you can actually side with and help the natives from what I’ve seen so far, so there’s that, I guess?

The Neutral

Kurt is ... there

Vasco is there but trying really hard to be there more

The concept of playing a diplomat is such a good idea but I’m hesitant to say this game does it well because you don’t actually get to play a character who is also a diplomat, you play a diplomat who sometimes maybe once in a moon makes one decision but other than that has no character traits whatsoever

Siora just feels like a knock-off Merrill at this point

The Bad

To its credit, Greedfall does seem to portray violent colonization as bad (that’s a very low bar, lbr), but it seems to be saying colonization is fine as long as you’re friendly with the natives and build on territories that aren’t sacred or holy or otherwise “claimed” by them so uuuh.

Your cousin, the governor of your faction’s colony, is very much for establishing good relations with the natives, and it’s portrayed as the best option (in the quests I’ve played, plus you’re very much supposed to like your cousin). Given the game’s setting and premise, with you playing a diplomat for a colony among several other colonies (yes, there are multiple different colonizing factions, you just represent one of them), I guess the writers are trying to justify the game’s existence? I dunno, I see what they’re trying to do and I wish they just didn’t bother with this idea in the first place lmao. 

Literally what are the factions. The way the game presents its worldbuilding is trash. I play my De Sardet as someone who actually inhabits the world, and asking NPCs to give me verbal essays about their factions didn’t seem right when my PC would probably know about it all already, so I never did. There is a codex, but it only concerns characters and doesn’t give you any info on anything else? I have barely any clue about how the factions see each other or relate to each other? Maybe that’s on me for being a dumbass but I’m doing my best to immerse myself in the world and it’s making it very hard. 

Especially considering this is the main reason the game exists the way it does? Your PC is supposed to mediate between the factions, I feel like presenting those factions in a natural and comprehensive way is important since you’re supposed to make choices based on that knowledge later on

Like there was one instance where my character had the dialogue option based on intuition that had her say something about the burial rites of the natives, which I had no idea were even a thing and the game never presented it to me in any way? I dunno when or where De Sardet would’ve learned this but it would’ve been nice to see her learning it instead of throwing it out there just becuase she met the stat requirement

Let me know if I’m out of line but the tattoos the Nauts have are very similar to those of the Māori people and given the game’s everything else, I can’t help but side-eye it

I dunno if slapping some white stripes on otherwise black facepaint on a white character saves it from being blackface??? Literally why did they do this

There’s a weird tonal dissonance when (spoilers, I guess) Siora’s mother gets murdered by one of the factions and De Sardet and Siora just sort of walk right into said faction’s camp and ask nicely for the body? Like ... didn’t y’all just have a massive bloody battle? I also had no option to kill the guy who refused to give it to us, I just had to catch him doing some weird shit and then beat him up and he was like “ok ok I’ll give back the body”

I dunno that whole mission was wack 

After that, we find out that the Not!Christianity faction have made an “alliance” with the natives, and will protect them from the faction that attacked them but in exchange they’ll have to convert to their religion and bury their dead according to Not!Christianity

To the game’s credit, this is portrayed very negatively so far? I guess make of this what you will, but I’m not willing to give the game any bonus points given that it is what it is

I should probably let y’all know that I’m playing with mods and cheats because 1) my pc can’t handle the game and the combat lags so much I can’t rly react in time so I rely on knowing my health won’t run out lmao and 2) I don’t really care about a ‘proper experience’, I’m just here to see what all the talk is about and see the story. 

Video Game Review: GreedFall (Spiders, 2018)

Genres: action RPG, fantasy

Premise: Players assume the role of De Sardet, a human noble who arrives on the recently-discovered island of Teer Fradee. Able to ally with either the natives who inhabit the land and/or any of the foreign nations competing to colonize it, De Sardet seeks out a cure for the mysterious illness that plagues their family, while also battling monsters and magic.

Platform Played On: PC (Windows)

Rating: 3/5 stars

Disclaimer: My rating is in response to multiple aspects of the game, not just its politics. If I were evaluating solely on politics and gave the developers the benefit of the doubt that they were trying to make something with a good message, my rating would be around the 1 to 2-star range, depending on player choices.

***Full review under the cut.***

I am evaluating this game based on four key aspects: story, characters, gameplay, and visuals.

Story: I’m immediately wary of any pop culture item that tries to tell a story about colonialism and Indigeneity because it usually ends up indulging in colonialist fantasies rather than critiquing them. Complex, morally-grey stories are great and all, but when it comes to tales about colonialism, “both sides” narratives tend to look a little insensitive. So, I can’t tell you why I decided to play GreedFall, other than I heard that it filled the Dragon Age-sized hole in people’s hearts. Since I’d rather use my own judgment than read video game reviews, I bought this game on sale and gave it a go. If nothing else, I told myself, I could use my history and literary analysis chops to say something intelligent about it.

In terms of politics, I don’t think GreedFall was as terrible as games where the goal in itself is colonization, but I also don’t think it achieved a narrative that was critical enough of colonization. De Sardet’s primary goal is to achieve balance between all the nations (which I’m calling factions because they’re mostly that). While I can admire that GreedFall really pushed for peaceful relationships, as well as pushed back against abuse and racism, I ultimately thought the developers didn’t consider how the struggle for balance actually facilitates colonialism. This game presents colonialism a diplomatic issue, so as a result, Teer Fradee is kind of a fantasy where colonists can settle on native land while maintaining friendly relationships with Indigenous peoples (at least, if you play it that way - at worst, you can seize absolute power). The experience was similar to the one I had playing BioShock Infinite, whose politics involve a “both sides” argument - the difference is that BioShock Infinite made explicitly clear by the end of the game that Booker was the true villain. With de Sardet, it’s a bit more ambiguous, depending on how you play, but I do think the game pushes you to be diplomatic rather than power-hungry. As a whole, it brings up the very valid question of whether or not colonialism should be in media period, or if there’s some value to be derived from consuming problematic media that tries to do good and talking about it.

Still, I have to give credit where credit is due. GreedFall had the guts to actually try to tackle little-discussed themes in this game, such as forced conversion, abuse within the sciences, and institutionalized bullying. While the missions associated with these big themes were accomplished with varying degrees of success, many of them added emotional depth to the game. Companions would have emotional reactions to these quests that tugged at my heartstrings, and there were never any shots of graphic violence or mutilated bodies, so it didn’t feel like I was playing the game for an edgy thrill. All of the side quests had a lot of bearing on the main plot and the worldbuilding - I don’t think I encountered any “fetch quests,” so most of the things I was doing actually related to enhancing my understanding of the world and its social dynamics.

The game also did a good job of presenting players with factions that were constantly in conflict with one another, lending an added layer of complexity to all the political aspects of the plot. Character’s personal quests were also very well done and had emotional depth. Vasco’s arc about learning about his true family was a nice exploration of birth family vs found family (he’s a sailor whose birth family gave him to the naval faction, the Nauts). Kurt’s quest was also a good one about the bonds between military recruits and really showed his commitment to people over institutions (he’s de Sardet’s commander at arms). Siora’s quests were more about staying true to her culture (she’s a native and daughter of one of a now-deceased tribe leader), while Aphra’s were about learning to be open minded when learning about a different culture (she’s a scientist interested in plants). Petrus’ were a mix of taking down the head of his Church and helping your character find their roots (he’s something of a pastor who also wields magic to fight). You can tell that the developers were inspired by Bioware games in that you can cultivate reputations with your companions and eventually romance them. Many of these romances are available to both male and female PCs, so there’s potential for a queer ship.

I will say that by the end of game, I was emotionally wrecked, despite all the political problems. So, I do think the developers of this game have a good sense of storytelling - I just wish they had done better politically.

Characters: Similar to Mass Effect or Dragon Age, GreedFall gives players a player-controlled character (PC) and a host of companions to take on an adventuring party. De Sardet, the PC, doesn’t have much personality when they’re being diplomatic, but I did enjoy the moments when they were confronted with information that impacted them emotionally. I played a female de Sardet, and the voice actress did a good job of balancing emotion with the facade that’s required of a diplomat. Constantin, de Sardet’s cousin and governor of New Serene (one of a few colonial settlements on Teer Fradee), is also carefully written as a charismatic, sympathetic nobleman’s son who wants to prove his worth. He and de Sardet share a close bond, which made moral decisions a bit more personal and emotionally difficult. I do think he became a scapegoat for all the evils of colonization, though, and I wish more was done with him to implicate every colonizer on the island. The companions are likewise very likable and fairly unique. Each of them had personal quests and stories that were compelling and sympathetic. I do wish there had been more opportunities to chat with them, or that they talked to each other during exploration (like Bioware companions do). I also appreciated that the Teer Fradee natives weren’t one, homogeneous group. I think too often we see pop culture try to write Indigenous peoples as having the same culture and goals, but with this game, there was some variety regarding what the best course of action would be against an invading force. I’m sure, however, that the depiction of the natives overall was problematic, but I’m not well-versed enough in native representation in pop culture to articulate the issues. While they weren’t portrayed as primitive or child-like (at least, I didn’t think so), I don’t doubt that there were tropes in there that I just couldn’t recognize (for example, Siora maybe a Chief’s Daughter/Indian Princess trope - it’s complicated). I suggest finding and reading an Indigenous critique of the game. (There’s also this one, which is valid, and I do think the game’s efforts and failures are worth talking about.)

Gameplay: This RPG mainly relies on balancing skills, talents, and attributes. Skills define what weapons you can use and how (one-handed blades, two-handed blades, firearms, magic, etc). Talents are things like charisma, science, or lockpicking - stuff which will affect the way you interact with the world. Attributes are mental and physical abilities like strength or willpower which affect how you wield weapons. Overall, the process of leveling up and gaining points to spend in these areas was pretty straight-forward, and I enjoyed the mental challenge of building a character that fit my play style.

Combat was a little clunky; basic attacks ran just fine for me, but there wasn’t much grace in the way characters dodged or rolled. I also kept getting thrown off by the fact that you can’t press space to jump! But in all, it wasn’t the worst experience. Enemies had helpful health bars, and I enjoyed the combination of a pistol and a rapier to finish off my foes. The diplomatic elements were by far the best part of gameplay for me. If players assign their skill points well, de Sardet can use a number of different tactics and choose from multiple dialogue options, from intimidation to taking advantage of intuition to laying on the charisma. It was fun to figure out which tactic would work on which characters, and how my skill sets translated into consequences for my decisions. I do think, however, that more options could have been presented to players in terms of dialogue choices and role-playing elements. While players make important choices regarding how to handle any given situation, there was little opportunity to purely role play. More opportunities to influence the direction or tone of the dialogue in non-crucial situations, I think, would have helped and made my De Sardet feel more unique.

Visuals: Aesthetically, I very much appreciated that we were given a fantasy game that wasn’t set in the faux Middle Ages. I loved the 18th century vibe to all the clothing and town layouts, and each of the maps were distinct and fully-realized, from the urban settings to the natural ones. There was a bit of repetition in the urban layouts; the palaces, for example, were the same, and some houses were recycled, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as Dragon Age II. I also appreciated that there were people of various races and genders in all positions and all social circles. There were women in the guard, women working on ships, and so on, without any hint that it was unusual. There was also a fairly wide variety of skin tones, with people of color being included in higher social classes and not relegated to lowly servant roles. There are some problems in that “diversity washing” detracts from the racial conflicts that were very present in the 18th century. I don’t think the developers thought through the implications of putting POC in positions of power where they could commit violent colonial acts against the natives. The creatures on the island were interesting to look at. Their designs frequently combined natural imagery (such as vines and wood) with horror to create foes with an eldritch, elemental vibe. The same creepiness was reflected in the fictional disease that afflicts the colonists; the afflicted had black, vine-like tendrils running through the skin, and there was an impending sense of dread whenever I looked at someone who was infected. Despite all the things I liked, GreedFall’s biggest problem is its animation. For a game that was made in 2019, facial expressions and combat are quite clunky, to the point where the characters felt robotic. I understand that not every video game needs to have top-tier level animation, but playing GreedFall was similar to my experiences playing the first Witcher game or the first Mass Effect or Dragon Age: Origins games. Still technically playable, but it feels very outdated.

In-Game Triggers: violence (especially racial violence), colonialism, racism, religious zealotry, torture, 

I feel the need to point out that while I don’t think this game is gory or explicit in any way (PG-13 would be my rating), there are some scenes that people may find triggering. There’s also one where a Native is killed by a religious zealot, and I found it extremely upsetting (it happens when you first enter San Matheus, if you need a heads up). Other than that, you never actually see characters torture native peoples, but you do hear about it later.

Recommendations: I would recommend this game if you’re interested in the 18th century, the age of imperialism, role-playing games, and fantasy. You might also like this game if you’re a fan of Bioware RPGs.

And... That’s Greedfall.

I’m... conflicted. Part of the problem is, of course, the stuff that went on as the lead in to all this, tainting the initial impressions I would have had, the business of getting queerbaited with Kurt above all, but also the Discourse around the business of “grey morality.”

On that later point, at least that turned out to be marketing buzz, and it’s pretty clear that siding against the Natives is unequivocally bad. You may get the choice, but it’s still framed as the negative choice.

Honestly, in terms of gameplay proper, it felt like reskinned Technomancer, so even acknowledging that usually like the least important part for me, I’m not fully impressed or anything. Competent, but button mashy.

I’ve said it repeatedly though, the companions feel like near-complete afterthoughts. Aphra could have been cut entirely and nothing changes. Petrus is icky and I refuse to accept that he’sso casually forgiven. Kurt... Yeah, still bothered about the implication of him being molested by Hermann and that being why he is not a romance for male De Sardet. Vasco - the Nauts entirely - feel like they’re part of a different game entirely. Siora is... Well, I brought her along most everywhere and she spoke up, but I don’t feel much happened with her.

I kinda felt this way about Technomancer’s companions as well, though they felt better weaved into the narrative as well, having more relevance and personality that made them all stick. Here, all the companions feel superfluous, there for some exposition and to be De Sardet’s meatshields in combat, rather than part of the journey.

Speaking of... Yeah, Constantin had little affection from me. Came across as irritating at the start, and by the ending, he seemed more consumed by madness that there wasn’t the pathos from me that the game clearly wanted from him. If I put it into my in-character thinking, my De Sardet decided that Constantin himself died with Catasach and this lingering illness walked him around afterward.

I can’t really tell how well I liked this right now, honestly, considering the meta level shit that surrounded this game, as well as the misfired emotions that the narrative forces responses to.

Still, I’m not going to say I regret playing it. Just that... This is not a bad game, but it has flaws when it comes to what I wanted to see from it, let’s go with that.

I wanted to do this De Sardet prompt from @visceralcoma to help develop Percy some more :D

What is De Sardet’s given name?

Percival “Percy” De Sardet 

What is the name Arelwin would have given De Sardet (assuming Petrus told them and its different than their given name)?

Dylum, pronounced as die-lum

What was their relationship with Constantin like when they were teens?

They were near conjoined at the hip since there weren’t many other kids around their age among the palace, and often would ditch lessons together to run amok Sérène. Constantin was always said to be a bad influence on Percy, who was expected to be more responsible of the two.

What is a special heartwarming memory of your De Sardet and Constantin?

At 15, Constantin looted a half-bottle of wine from the pantry while the cooks were busy and he and Percy ducked out in an isolated alleyway to share it. Constantin had the great idea to skip out on the whole royalty thing altogether and sneak aboard a Naut ship and set sail to wherever it took them. Percy, a bit tipsy, was hesitant, but nevertheless they did. Not ten minutes later, they’re caught by a cabin boy and subsequently kicked off, luckily Percy was able to talk him out of telling the captain about it, who would have surely told his uncle and mother.

Did your De Sardet and Constantin ever have a fight? If so, about what?

When they got older, Percy and him had a fight about Constantin always getting into trouble, how he was supposed to grow out of his childishness, and having to bail him out all the time. Percy was heartbroken when Constantin told him he sounded exactly like his uncle and didn’t talk to him for a near week.

What was the relationship like with Princess Livie (their adoptive mother)?

She was very supportive of her son, even if Percy wasn’t biologically hers, she treated him with kindness and love of a mother to son. She defended him against her brother’s cold nature to Percy, although she had never gave reason as to why his uncle seemingly disregarded him.

Did De Sardet ever have a pet growing up? What happened to it?

He was not allowed to keep pets, but did find a mouse trapped and nursed it back to health in a cardboard box he kept hidden in his closet. He showed Constantin, but his cousin didn’t see much appeal to keep a rodent, though would keep his lips tied about Percy’s pet.

What was De Sardet’s relationship with their uncle (Constantin’s father)?

Distant and indifferent. Percy was fully surprised as to be elected to be the legate for the Congregation, and had hoped that his uncle was starting to see him as respectable, but would find out the real reason...

Did De Sardet ever get into trouble with their mother and uncle? Were they a frequent troublemaker?

On his own? Not at all. With Constantin? Very much so. They rarely were caught in the end and never had a severe punishment.

Did De Sardet have many other friends?

He would talk often with staff workers in the palace, his favorite being a woman who’d work in the kitchen, but he was closest with his cousin.

How did they handle growing up with their mark? Did people mention it? Talk about? Treat them differently? How did De Sardet respond to them?

He knew people would stare at it and generally would keep his head down. If people asked, he would simply say it was a birthmark and hope they would not press. When he was able to grow a beard, he is relieved that it’s practically obscured with it.

What are De Sardet’s favorite: food, color, music (genre/instrument), weather, season, and animal?

Food: Chicken and dumplings; color: navy blue and lavender; music: choir singing (of which he would sing with); weather: thunderstorms; season: fall and winter; animal: unicorn (”who cares if it’s real or not?”)

What was their first thought of Vasco, Siora, Aphra, and Petrus when they met them?

Vasco: Intimidation, he had that sense of authority about him that even made Percy stand a bit straighter.

Siora: She is the first native he’s met, and greatly admires her strength and willingness to stand up for herself and her people.

Aphra: Not exactly easy to trust someone when they point a gun at your face point blank, but she got the drop on him in the first place, cunning.

Petrus: Like some kind of weird and estranged uncle or grandpa that used to peach to him as a kid about light and magic or something. 

If they had one, who was De Sardet’s first kiss and/or love?

He has his first kiss at 18 with a random Naut he’d met in the coin tavern when he was finally old enough to be let in, both of them tipsy, but never goes father than a little make out in an alley. A few years later, a few flings here and there, he becomes very sweet on his master of arms, Kurt, and then followed a certain sea-fairing captain.

Did De Sardet have any childhood/teen crushes on anyone? Describe how they realized it and how they behaved.

Percy had a crush on a coin guard soldier who was a few years his older when he was 16. He’d hang outside the tavern for him, but would never talk to him and nothing ever came of it. Constantin would tease him about spending so much time pining over a man he didn’t know the name of.  

What subjects were their favorite to learn while being taught by Sir De Courcillion?

He loved learning about alchemy and had a natural talent for it.

What was their relationship with Kurt initially like when he became their bodyguard and/or when he became their Master of Arms?

Percy thought of him like a glorified babysitter sometimes and wasn’t much one for fighting anyway. Kurt would have to try and kick him into gear because knowing how to defend yourself was never not a good thing. Their first few training sessions was mostly an unenthusiastic Percy having his ass handed to him.

What was Kurt’s initial assessment of De Sardet when he began teaching them to fight?

He knew that Percy would much rather talk down any potential conflict, but that would not be the catch-all for every situation. Wasn’t half bad with magic when he put some effort into their sparring, couldn’t say the same about his swordsmanship though.

What did De Sardet specialize into first and why?

Light magic, he rather fight from a distance and be more defensive. Kurt would later teach him about one handed weapons in the event that he wasn’t able or became too exhausted to cast spells.

What did they feel when they learned they were adopted and the circumstances behind it?

Complete and utter betrayal and a serious doubt if everything he had knew was to be trusted. He avoided talking to his companions about it, and only mentioned it to Constantin, but would not admit how greatly it crushed him--after all he needed to continue on his endeavor to find the cure. It was more important than feelings, yet would slowly eat at him.

Ok so I strangely love Spiders Studio games. Like The Technomancer may actually be a top ten game for me, everything about the world and design was so cool (combat kinda sucked though lol). Mars: War Logs was interesting and you could see the kernel of what The Technomancer became. Of Orcs and Men got me obsessed with Styx. I know what I’m getting into when I play a Spiders game. That being said…GreedFall is kind of boring.

I’m only 20 hours into the game, but the world feels so much shallower than their other games. The party members barely have anything to say and almost never react to things that they should, which is a shame because I think they are very interesting (well, Vasco and Siora are, Kurt is…present and I haven’t met the other companions yet).

NPCs just stand around and it’s very obvious they don’t exit unless I’m in their area. It doesn’t feel like a real world. And it’s not like this is vastly different from their other stuff, but it’s just super noticeable to me here.

I’m also not very invested in the story yet. Things aren’t explained very well and the world doesn’t have the same uniqueness and atmosphere their Technomancer series did. One place is much like another. Hell, the Governor’s houses are exactly the same layout between vastly differing cultures who have arrived on the island at vastly different times. Also the Islander accents are just distractingly bad and so inconsistent lol. Sound so fake. Like if you’re going to make them use an Afrikaner-like accent, please get actual Afrikaners because NO ONE does a good Afrikaner impression.

And like, I know Spiders games aren’t very GOOD per se, but I always found them idk oddly charming and fun. But this one…eh idk maybe it’ll pick up. I still really like the characters (when they have something to say lol). Vasco’s voice actor gives me almost Garrus levels of fuzzies, please don’t stop speaking. The fashion and creature designs are great (always their strong suits). It just feels so hollow.

Edit: Still some legit points, but I’m having a lot more fun.

8, 14, 37, 55, and 75 for Vesper

8. What do they believe will happen to them after they die? Does this belief scare them?

She is honestly not sure. She tends not to dwell on it, either. She’d rather focus on making the best of her life, doing what she can to leave the world better for her having been in it than debate whether there’s a divine paradise or you just cease to exist or whatever, so I wouldn’t say it scares her. (I’d probably peg her as agnostic or maybe a deist? There’s A Higher Power, probably, but she’s not going to uncritically follow what some religious teacher tells her is The Right Thing to do bc their god said so) 

14. What is their favorite food? How often do they get to eat it?

She has a few. honey-glazed duck with apricots(the cook back in Serénè would add some spices to the glaze, gave it just the littlest bit of a kick, it was amazing), which she gets with some regularity still at dinners. Not with the extra stuff; that was a “my little secret” sort of thing that cook did, so Vesper hasn’t gotten to have it since she landed on Teer Fradee.  Favorite dessert is berry tarts; unless she’s at a fancy dinner, she tends to let herself get a bit sticky-fingered and smeary. Very unladylike. Favorite fruit is plums, which she abso-fricking-lutely prefers to just bite into so the juice is all running down her chin and wrists and making a mess and she’s happy as a clam. There are no plums on Teer Fradee, but Siora introduced her to a native fruit that’s very similar and even juicier, so she’ll survive. (and somehow, despite being very familiar with how much of a mess she makes of herself eating fruit, Kurt fell in love with her anyway)

37. How easy is it for them to say “I love you”? Do they say it without meaning it?

Okay. So. Thanks to her job as Legate and all the training etc that led up to it, Vesper is highly aware of the importance and weight words can carry. She steadfastly believes in not saying things lightly or when she doesn’t mean them. She’d never say “i love you” without meaning it. And because of the value she puts on words, because she doesn’t take the things she says lightly, it takes a long time for her to say it for the first time. She wants to be completely sure she truly means it. After she’s sure though, it slips out easy as breathing. And she says it a lot.

55. What is their alcohol tolerance like? What kind of drunk are they? How bad are their hangovers?

Hahahahah. Her alcohol tolerance is really low. She’ll start getting tipsy off the second round of something even mildly strong, and be trashed by the end of round three. She’s a sleepy drunk; she’ll maybe lecture Constantin about   “behaving himself” and then just put her head down on the table and fall asleep. Hangovers are hell for her, even if she was just a little bit buzzed or tipsy, she has the worst headache known to man the next morning and feels like she’s gonna throw up the whole day. If possible she just stays in bed on those days. If she has to get up and function like a normal human(uuuuuuugh) she’s very good at hiding it. You have to know her really really well to see how miserable she is behind that gracious smile, or pick up on the fact she’s only standing through sheer willpower. THUS. She doesn’t drink a lot. Sips wine at fancy dinners maybe, but that’s about the extent of it.

75. If given a blank piece of paper, a pencil, and nothing to do, what would happen?

She’d start with flower doodles. Then vines. Maybe a mountain. Write her name really fancy a bunch of times. Once it’s filled up, if there’s still nothing to do, she’d probably fold it into a boat or something.

[fun oc asks]