I hope I’m not reading into this too much, but the way that the Touchstarved logo (with the characters) on the Red Springs Studios website and in the PV trailer is set up makes me think it’s not just an artistic choice. I know that the characters in the image have been rearranged in a different order for certain promotions, but I just want to talk about why I think the characters in the main logo are set up that way and what it could imply about Touchstarved’s routes.
As seen above, Ais is in the center with Leander on his right (our left) and Mhin on his left (our right). Behind him, there’s Kuras and Vere. Ais is obviously the poster boy for Touchstarved. He’s usually in the center for their promotional images and merchandise e.g. the game’s loading screen, the pins and the tote bag. The devs themselves have said that Ais was the first character they created and that they built the world of Eridia around him.
There’s lots of theories floating around about Leander’s design which features Ouroboros, his eye bags, motifs of life and death, his white lilies, and lots of other things. His belt in particular features a triple goddess symbol which represents stages of womanhood as the Maiden, the Mother and the Crone. The Maiden is associated with beginnings– so things like (re)birth, youth, exploration, etc. The Mother is associated with, well, motherhood but also power and stability. The Crone is the opposite of the Maiden, being associated with death. I’m sure there’s already theories on his belt and this symbol, but I think personally Leander only represents one of them in the grand scheme of things.
I think Leander, Ais and Mhin respectively represent the Maiden, Mother and Crone. Despite Leander’s death motifs, I feel like him being the Maiden is fitting because of his personality and character design. His coat is green and so are his eyes and magical flowers. Green is the color of life. Though his flowers are typically used for funerals in some cultures, flowers themselves are full of life. He even comments that they don’t last long, but they’re beautiful nonetheless. As life is. Secondly, Leander’s personality is, perhaps, the liveliest among the cast. He’s always upbeat and smiling (or blushing) which is why I think he represents the Maiden. He’s what you’d think of when you think of youth. He’s partying, drinking, performing magic tricks, has a club/the Bloodhounds and he seems to be having fun all the time.
As for Ais, I feel like it's pretty understandable that he is the Mother. He’s marketed as powerful, violent and intimidating. He loves bar brawls and hates easy fights. Additionally, it’s implied that he used to be a leader or at least in a gang. Red is a predominant part of his character and design. The Seaspring is red. So are his horns, eyes and the accents on his clothes. Red is, well, a powerful color. It represents powerful, strong emotions like love and anger. And emotions are a big part of Ais’s character. They’re his fatal flaw!
And finally, Mhin is the Crone. I was actually debating whether they were the Maiden (and Leander would be the Crone) since they were fairly new to Eridia like MC… like a new beginning in a new city? I’m going on a tangent here, but I think it may be deliberate on the devs’ part. Leander and Mhin could possibly represent the Maiden and the Crone because life and death are intertwined. Mhin has a celtic knot/triquetra on their cloak’s clasps. The triquetra is used to represent three things that are deeply connected e.g. the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In pagan traditions, it’s used to represent the Maiden, the Mother, and the Crone… like the triple goddess symbol on Leander’s belt. Anyways back to Mhin, I think the Crone suits them the best. Their supposed monster form is either a crow or a raven. Black feathered birds are associated with bad omens. Moreover, crows and ravens are associated with death thanks to pop culture and media. Our first encounter with Mhin was when we were at death’s door. They also shroud themselves with a cloak, have white hair and are extremely pale when compared to the rest of the cast.
The way Leander, Ais and Mhin are set up in the logo makes me want to believe that they’re representing the triple goddess symbol and that at least story wise, they may be the most important routes. They’re placed at the front and all three characters have something to do with curses. Leander knows his way around curses. He might be cursed himself. His eye bags are pointed out by MC and he doesn’t seem to be that fond of sleep either. Ais technically doesn’t have a curse, but the last two lines of his character introduction are “He’s beginning to suspect that he may not be in control of his powers as he thought. Can you save each other, or will he drag you into the abyss with him?”... which sounds like a curse to me. And aside from Leander, is also the only one to know about MC’s curse. Then, for Mhin, they also have a curse of their own and have been seen sneaking around the Senobium… possibly for a cure of their own?
This isn’t to say that Vere and Kuras aren’t important and relevant characters. It may just be the typical thing with otome games where certain routes have more lore than others and it’s recommended to save them for last. It’s usually the poster boy’s route. In this case, Ais’s.
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Hiiii! You can do this for the main characters or just for yourself, the mod!!
shuffle your favorite playlist and post the first five songs that come up. then copy/paste this ask to your favorite mutuals. 🫶🫶
Backstabber by Kesha
Ten Duel Commandments From HAMILTON
Say No To This From HAMILTON
MØTHER OF THE MOON by Myofae
Cry Baby by Melanie Martinez
@brookiedaaroacecookie @asillylittlelee @fyouimgay2 @raedioactive @hatsunebixu
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more sillies I made, I have to make a tag for this now that there's two posts,,
I guess it will be ,, desires AU? ill explain later (lie)
basically Arti and Saint hate eachother but Enot likes them both, and eventually the both of them warm up to Enot and want to make them happy. But they still absolutely DESPISE eachother, so they're both with Enot trying to be good partners but they're at eachother's throats :3
I am once again referencing this script I love it so much
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where's Ezra Miller!? I'm tryna get me some of that there they
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