I just need to say that as an outside observer who hasn't watched the show but has gone down the buddie rabbit hole more than once as the show has aired.. the scene that always sticks with me at the end of the day is the one where Eddie gets shot. don't get me wrong, there's lots of good stuff about them but that's some elevated gripping emotional angst. The silence as the shot hits. The blood splatter. Them reaching for each other. Even without the investment of having seen the show it's just an unbeatable peak heartwrenching moment. It feels unreal.

If you became super rich and could design your own house, but could only add THREE unnecessary/random/expensive home additions (like how people will have bowling alleys, movie theatres, closets with museums of shoes, car display rooms, spa rooms, wine cellars, etc. in their mansions) - what three would you choose?

Everybody like dolls of all shapes and sizes. Years ago many people wished and asked for doll styles and bodies we have now, but I've been seeing other hobbyists complain about these styles (confessions here, instagram stories, etc). It makes me a little... annoyed? disheartened?

I can finally make a doll with the body type I wanted for the head type I wanted, which wouldn't have been possible before. I can understand it feels oversaturated, but the more the merrier, right?

man about 11 years ago I avoided buying male dolls specifically because their legs were so weird looking. now it seems that sculptors have discovered what calves look like and I am cheering at the progress

My computer is fucked frfr :((

i was interested in there being a "rebel" character in the game, or well, a revolutionist! though one thing that throws me off about him is the fact that he just cannot consider david being secretive about his true personality. and out of all the characters, you'd probablyyy most likely guess as xander to be more open-minded to whether or not david's hiding a lot about his true attitude, because xander is constantly fighting systems that may appear to not have anything wrong with it first until you look deeper and see how corrupt many systems in the world are. yet it feels as if with xander, what he stand for isn't consistent.

thoughts on neptune

Neptune the place or neptune the guy......

Nepture the planet is actually like super nice I would live there 👍it has RINGS did you know that..... it's not really my favorite planet actually because I love Saturn's rings (and I'm also legally required to have earth as a near favorite) but I think it's pretty nice.

neptune The Guy is actually only really neptune via sheer luck and their slight dislike of most of the other space names. Or already knowing some guy with said name meaning it couldn't use the name (or they would explode) . Slight dislike of said names not being anything concrete moreso "wow that's a bit not me, huh?"

quite frankly neptune the guy needs to get it together

I've taken some new pics for the trans pride stuff since I'm in a better location for it.

[ID: A white person in a sleeveless black shirt posing in two different hats with a baby blue top and pale pink bottom, both of them with a white heart on the forehead. The first image is also showcasing a matching scarf. /end ID]

It's getting warmer, but I'll keep them up until they're bought. Interested? :3c Enter code "ILTCAPRIL" at checkout for 20% off. That's "I'm Leaving The Country (after) April", because I have a one-way flight OUT of the US at the beginning of May, and I'd like to make some sales before then!

Do you have any ship names for Salem/Summer? I've seen a couple floating around but I don't think there's really one preferred by the fandom, and you seem like you'd have some really cool ideas.

i'm really sorry for what i'm about to say. but i hate rwby ship name culture. so i actually do not ever think about this. i'm so sorry you had to find out this way.....i have no thoughts on it

good luck coming up with something.... (waving you goodbye at the pier with my handkerchief as you sail away)

wish i could stop like self-inflicting emotional harm and making myself literally dizzy from just like.  the Traumatized Vibes.  like i really didn’t need to read the “what did your parents say that ruined your self esteem” reddit thread, but like i sure did in fact read it lol

new jjk chapter is… uh…

Custom mtg mechanics jumpscare

I think TMA is bleeding into some of my D&D worldlore. Some of my gods are more like... people who have committed themselves so much to a concept/ideal (eg. luck, ambition, family) that they became the gods of those things. And then some of them are just... the raw, unfiltered/unworshiped ideals themselves.

For instance, there isn't really a god of war, but there is just straight up War, an entity, or the essence of war itself, which... exists.

I guess to some extent, the more concrete/person-shaped gods could be taken as avatars of the more essential forces/ideals.

I'm still not sure exactly how I want to do my pantheon, to be honest. I have a few gods developed, and some have names and take on physical forms, but others are... thereish.

been debating back and forth as to whether i could possibly be dyslexic (i know im at least dyscalculic) because of specific typos and reading blunders i make but like. OpenDyslexic is impossible for me to read. like my eyes just glaze over and stop trying

When it comes to high-context and low-context cultures, where one has the expectation of people understanding specific subtle nuances of what someone says, and the other has the expectation that everything needs to be explicitly said to be understood, I've heard plenty of people from low-context cultures ask "why not say what you mean and mean what you say then, why would you have to speak in riddles?" about high-context ones, like people of the latter type are just being cryptic and esoteric on purpose.

But culture does not consist of things you do on purpose, it is just the way things are done where you were raised. And when you were raised in a high-context culture, the thought of needing to explicitly state something instead of using some phrase or expression that you've learned to use comes as a culture shock, too. It's not "fuck you for not correctly understanding my riddles three", but "oh shit, I hadn't occurred to me that I would need to say that out loud."

The first time I went on a business trip to the US, my partner came with me, and we immediately discovered that he does not fare well on long flights. So when my publisher asked me about future trips, inquiring whether my partner would be coming with me, I asked him. He said that he would, if the flights weren't such a problem - he would need to travel in some way where he could get his feet up or lay down during flights, like business class or first class. Being also a finn, I understood what he meant and relayed the message as is to my publisher, not considering that they might not.

To both of our surprise, they started to actually look for first class tickets for us.

Finnish culture is a high-context one, people don't talk much and aren't very confrontational. Being demanding and putting someone else into a position where they're forced to be upfront or demanding is rude. And in finnish, saying "this would only be possible if these entirely absurd/completely impossible conditions were met" is a polite way of saying "no". You are simply explaining why something cannot be done, without either saying an explicit "no" or seeming like you're making up excuses. It offers the other party an opportunity to agree that these conditions cannot be met, so neither party will come off as confrontational or demanding.

Both me and my boyfriend considered it self-evident that the request was absurd, and could not be read as anything but a polite way to decline. It had not occurred to me that an american's natural response to "it would be impossible to do this" is to start figuring out how to do it anyway.

HEY! Just because I am now 20 I think having something to kind of re establish boundaries would be good! Considering the ones I put all those times ago have changed :D GENERAL RULES! Do not be racist, sexist, homophobic, antisemitic, ableist, or discriminatory against anyone for any reason. Please if someone is calling you out for things you have done or said, please self-reflect and take the proper steps to change or remove yourself from the community. If you see something you do not like, and it IS MADE WORSE BY BRINGING ATTENTION TO IT, THEN IGNORE IT! Bringing attention to problems that just arent really problems with either the community or me in general are not worth it! Please use common sense when thinking about what/what not to engage with! I personally wish that people in the community do NOT engage with people who just obviously do not like me! Chances are they want a reaction from it so it is MUCH better to just not argue with someone whos mind you will not change! ALLOW CRITICISM OF ME AND MY CONTENT! IF YOU DONT AGREE OR DONT LIKE THEN DO NOT ARGUE ABOUT IT!!!! ALL IT WILL DO IS CAUSE UNESSICARY DRAMA!!! DO NOT make ANY comments or content about me that is explicitly sexual. I completely understand that lately there have been bits due to the changes in how I’ve been presenting myself and how I’ve been presenting more femininely, but that does not allow anyone to use that as an excuse to sexualize any features and such that are more feminine or masculine. Remember that femininity is not sexual and should not be seen or created as such just because its there! (for example, the Vtuber costume and chat being overly weird over the added boobs where there was no need for it). DO NOT draw me in ways that are sexual either, such as highlighting any aspects in a sexual way, or making the content something sexual. I am completely okay with being drawn as any body type, masculine presenting or feminine presenting, as long as you stick to this! PLEASE DO NOT SPECULATE ABOUT MY PERSONAL LIFE!!! Making jokes about certain topics CAN be fine, but a line is crossed when it becomes a legitimate speculation or if a joke is said when I have expressed my discomfort! RESPECT MY FRIENDS!!! All of my friends are their own, incredible people. And they do not deserve to be lumped in or referred to as JUST "my friend". Be respectful in their chats even when im not there, and be respectful to all of them everywhere else! IF SOMEONE IS TRYING TO INFORM YOU THAT YOU MAY BE DOING SOMETHING WRONG PLEASE LISTEN!!! There has been a lot of times in which I have seen people be unwilling to change in the face of a genuine discussion, and that is not something I want in the community! I should NOT have to police every single thing because it should NOT take me saying something in order to change your mind! As my words are not worth more or less when it comes to a lot of subjects! And lastly, do good. Whenever you have the ability to. BE POSITIVE!!! The hater mindset is very draining and can be very toxic to both you and the people around you, so highlight the good instead of the bad if you have the ability to! I am so incredibly proud of how far this community has come, and I cannot wait for the future!!! I have spent some time writing this, but it may not be perfect, so I will update this as time goes on and I think of more, or if something needs to be SUPER cleared up, but for now these are the main ones! I will NOT be updating this after every little thing however, as I do not want you guys to feel like the only way that something is wrong is if I talk about it! As you guys should be able to sustain yourself as a community without my consistent input! Imma go enjoy my birthday by eating a pizza :) thank you all!

Ok so I watched the interview with Stephen Rooney, Astarion's writer, and here are some highlights. (I'm an aspiring writer and current game design student who wants to write for games so I'm sorry if some of these insights aren't as interesting to you as they are to me <3)

He calls Astarion his "horrible little vampire boy"

He loves seeing the fandom around Astarion<3

He did write other characters in the game, but mostly NPCs surrounding Astarion or his storyline, so it mostly revolved around Astarion

Astarion is not as connected to other companions/Origins as, for example, Lae'zel and Shadowheart, or Wyll and Karlach are to each other, but he is still reactive to their stories, even if it's just to stand off to the side and laugh when something terrible happens

He had a clear sense of where Astarion's story would start and end, but it got "muddy in the middle", but those are also moments where the best ideas come from

They write from the general idea that every character has one "good" and one "evil" ending, in order to give the player choice. RIP Ascendant apologists :(

According to Stephen, two of the most important aspects of Astarion's character (to keep consistent when bringing him to Idle Champions, at least) is that he enjoys violence, but is also fun about it

"He has a certain appreciation for violence, I guess? A bit of a murdery streak. [...] He's a vampire, he's all about blood, and he's all about, kind of, those darker sides of humanity. [..] But at the same time, he is ... He is really fun, he's really fun to write, he's really fun to have in your party, and it's very important for me that that is also represented."

"He's gonna stab you, but will have a smile on his face as he does it? I mean, I dunno. That's kind of him in a nutshell."

Larian would not have allowed for Astarion to be a typical brooding Dracula type, and there were scenes that were shot down for not being original enough

The main thing about Astarion was trying to get a "sense of fun." It would be easy to write a character that was very unlikable, and they absolutely did not want to do that

Rooney says Astarion is consistently terrible throughout the game and awful in a whole lot of ways, but he also needed to be charming enough that you could tolerate his presence and wanted him around

Rooney also had a lot of input on Astarion's stats (meaning the 10 Charisma is probalby 100% intentional)

He also had input on how certain lines should be delivered, even though the writers didn't directly work with voice actors

The way Astarion moves and poses is "all Neil"

Apparently, Neil Newbon worked on the character for years and Rooney did not speak to him once, though his voice work did influence how Astarion's lines were written and it became a "feedback loop" (Possible context for "ONLY SLIGHTLY, NEIL")

There were no points where a line delivery drastically changed Astarion's writing; rather it was a constant, slow evolution

However, there was one very spoilery moment where Neil gave such emotion to some "basic" lines that it fundamentally changed the scene (WHAT IS IT OMG)

It's difficult to balance approval, as you don't want to straight up write a monster. Every character needs to have some humanity in them. So if it comes to leaving the party, it needed to be the result of something central to said character. They wanted to be mindful of situations that would cause actual rifts between characters. (I assume this is why most generic disapprovals/approvals are +/- 1 or 2, while character-related ones give +/-5 or more)

However, as they don't write straight up horrible people/monsters, it doesn't come up as often as one might think.

The interviewer makes a point about how characters like Astarion and Lae'zel are good examples of how to play "evil" characters, as they are maybe not the best people but are still eager and willing to stick around the other party members

They worked to make sure the characters would work as a group, no matter the configuration of the group. The characters needed to be on the same path, even if they don't always agree or walk that path the same way.

Stephen Rooney is very proud of the "climactic" scene of Astarion's story. (AS HE SHOULD BE.) He even had to step away from the computer and have an emotional moment. Me too, man.

He's also "extremely pleased" that there's a point where you can punch Astarion in the face. "Actually, that one might be my favorite part" A MAN OF THE PEOPLE!!

Stephen Rooney's tip on what specific thing you should try out with Astarion: When he's trying to get a "sneaky nibble" at night, you should "probably" let him bite you. Way ahead of you there, sir.

No discussion about Astarion's romance unfortunately, but that's that!