Just now learning tumblr chose Imaudna over Laudmogen and I don’t know how to process this. There’s even two spelling of Imaudna/Imodna and y’all are just out here tagging it twice instead of just once with Laudmogen. Wild.

MMMMMMMMMM

THE LAUDMOGEN FEELS ARE KICKING INNNNN

"my own day six years ago" FUCK

@nairdde32 replied to your post “Episode Thoughts”:

Wait so, they need to slow down, but also just throw laudmogen away because they're not going fast enough? I'm confused. Also the reason they didn't have closer ties to the setting is probably because they knew they were outsiders irl and didn't think it was appropriate.

​This is an extremely revealing reply, and I disagree with all of it:

Having Laudna die is not "throwing laudmogen away"; it's a character death, with all that entails. However, it's been immensely clear that the fandom continues to have little conception of Laudna beyond "can be put into a relationship with Imogen" and "Delilah". It's true that I primarily focused on Imogen's relationship with Laudna, because that was what was most in focus this episode...but also, yes, the plot needs to slow down but their relationship has felt simultaneously stagnant but unrealized.

Think about Caleb and Nott, Fjord and Jester, or Yasha and Molly early in Campaign 2, or even the Ring of Brass in Calamity (note: I'm excluding campaign 1 because I can't say for sure how much is home game vs. pre-planned). There was a weight of knowing each other in those pairs or groups that I just don't see. They've been traveling with just each other for 2 years. Where's the anecdotes? Where's the inside jokes? Where's literally any sense of shared experience prior to coming to Jrusar a few months ago and moving in together? Imogen doesn't even know Delilah isn't a goddess. Laudna continually does not realize how Imogen feels about her powers, something that, once again, most of the rest of the party and minor NPCs seem to have picked up on. If I had to be generous, I'd say that because the two of them both felt so ostracized they were too terrified to open up further for fear that this person would leave them too, and for what it's worth I think Marisha has done that work with Laudna's characterization...but it hasn't moved forward.

And yes, the plot needs to slow down so there is more time for character conversations and character beats; this is not a contradiction. In this case, actually, I can use Campaign 1 as an example...think about Vasselheim, or the build-up to the Briarwoods. Not a ton was going on, plot-wise; they spent much of Vasselheim on fetch quests and shopping, and then they spent a lot of time in Emon mostly messing around and then traveling, but there were tons of conversations in those arcs that truly haven't had time to occur in this campaign because we keep having hour-long lore dumps instead.

I also want to be clear: I would not be advocating to just kill off one of them to fix the plot or anything...but yeah, if one of them has died? I think there's a lot that can be done with a new character that Laudna, who I think is a very good character who's in a campaign that doesn't work well for her, cannot achieve.

This was already long but the second part is actually truly baffling. If a white cast believes they cannot tell a story about a continent primarily inspired by western, southern, and southeast Asian cultures then that's a valid choice, but then don't tell the story. Set the campaign in Issylra or the Shattered Teeth, and give Marquet over to EXU series.

I would argue it makes it worse to still tell the story, but rather than having characters rooted in the setting allowing you to truly engage with the cultures, to actively decide to tell it from the perspective of outsiders. Indeed, one of the main ideas in Said's Orientalism is that stories about Western Asia are told largely through the lens of the visiting colonizer. It seems a disservice to run two campaigns where PCs are tied to people, powers, and cities on the continent in a way that informs how much they care about their home, and then to specifically decide not to do that for Marquet and play characters who will pull the plot to Tal'Dorei instead. And to be clear, I think this was an oversight, not a deliberate choice, which is good, because an oversight is an understandable mistake and a deliberate choice would be, well, all of the above. A deliberate choice would also make the fact that the singular Marquesian character is, in fact, a white woman, completely nonsensical.

how do you even explain laudna and imogen to non critters. they're best friends. they're partners. you can't define their relationship. they're always there for each other. they know everything about one another. they both have so many secrets. they both want to know so much. they're girlfriends. but not like that. or like that. they're made for one another. they're complete opposites. they are love.

im settling on calling it laudmogen

LAUDMOGEN NATION RISE

launda is like a melody in imogens head