#or Uranic I’m not entirely sure
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hey, Im a queer with ADHD and my relationship with my parents and family is amazing! I’m so lucky to have-
*realizes I only truly relax around 2 people (neither of them are related to me), I will probably never come out to my family, I don’t know if I’m masking or not because I’ve just accepted that I’ve failed at society, and school has gone from ‘hah this is easy :)’ to neurodivergent burn out + anxiety*
well shit
#justletmetalk#Queer#asexual#ace#acespec#pangender#panromantic#or Uranic I’m not entirely sure#ADHD#actually adhd#adhd brain#adhd problems#neurodivergence#neurodivergent#neurodiverse#neurodiversity#neurospicy#80hd
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The Story of Aphrodite Part 1
The sketch was done with 4H and B7 pencils and a little color for her majesty’s eyes.
This story is a snippet of a background I’ve written about Aphrodite the Goddess of Love regarding how she became the goddess of love. This piece is rated PG but installments will be rated R and will have additional warnings. Mostly writing this because it’s always bothered me how it seems like pop culture appreciates her because she’s hot and thinks she’s just a petty manipulator. I see a lot more of an icon and wanted to paint her in a different light.
Word Count: 3377
For so many, the beginning was chaos, but for Aphrodite, that was more than a poetic truth. While the world would have one believe that the goddess of love, sex and beauty was put on this earth already ordained the most beautiful or the most sexual, it was a long and strenuous road for the goddess to become the icon mortals will remember her for all time. No, her entrance into the world was anything but beautiful.
The sky cracked angrily with flashes of lightning jetting from one end of the world to the other as the ground quaked with Mother Earth. Gaia was shivering in stunned horror at the brutality of Uranos’s death. Though she had orchestrated the entire event, nothing could have prepared the celestial for seeing her husband slain like cattle, his severed genitals scattered across her lovely planet like seeds to tilled soil.
It was from his blood that various creatures arose from Mother Earth's womb. The Furies: a rightfully dreadful group of female monsters with sharp teeth and claws made to rip apart oath breakers; the Giants: massive beasts of great strength and aggression; and the Meliai: a melancholy family of ash-tree nymphs.
But there was one last piece of the Sky Father left unnamed, floating along the water in a white foam of divine seed. Gaia blew the breath of life into the water, then watched as the waves of the oceans lead the mass away from the grizzly scene of patricide towards the quiet white beach of Paphos Cyprus. Here, in the crystal clear waves, something extraordinary happened.
From the foam emerged a shimmering pink clam that opened to reveal a head of thick wavy hair the color of blood, which rose as the being stood. With surefooted steps, a creature rose from the sea, a creature that didn’t resemble the Furies, the Giants, or even the Meliai. No, this creature was something else entirely.
She somewhat resembled the Titans in shape, with smoothe, earth toned flesh and hair that reached past her hips, but there was something different about her face and body that set her apart from her half siblings. Nude, as all beings were after birth, every inch of her perfect form was on display. Long, strong arms, a shapely form, ample breasts and a round bottom. Her dark skin glistened in the remnants of sunlight, giving her the characteristic glow of what Gaia recognized immediately as that of a goddess.
Her face was lovely, with eyes that held curiosity as they scanned across the beach she found herself on and supple lips pursed in awe at her own spontaneous existence.
“Hello?” she called out in a soft voice. “Is anyone there? Where am I? What is this place?”
Gaia didn’t answer at first, instead she watched from a distance, as she usually did in these types of situations. Best see how things will play out in her own absence before interfering unnecessarily.
Just then, the waves retreated from the shoreline, then rose up into what looked to be a wall that stood a great deal taller than the woman. Dropping down in a sudden downpour, two bodies were left in its wake. A man and woman dressed in thin, iridescent robes with bluish toned skin and black hair gave a shallow bow to the newly birthed woman.
"Hello," the man spoke tenderly, "I am Oceanus, the lord of the ocean. And this is my wife Tethys." His wife gave a small smile and tilt of her head.
The woman who had only lived for minutes inhaled sharply, then glanced around.
"Don't be alarmed, I won't harm you. I saw you appear so suddenly and heard you call out. Do you have a name, my child?"
She shook her head.
"Then we should see to it that you find a fitting name. I'm sure you must be confused, we can help you. And perhaps Mother would be so kind as to come to your aid as well.”
At the que, Gaia materialized in the sand, a grand creature shaped like any other woman save for the granules of rocks and mud used to give her large body form. Tendrils of the seaweed that had been floating along the shore were swept into the manifestation of Mother Earth and to anyone she appeared the epitome of a Primordial Deity in all her ancient glory. “If you knew I was here then I assume you’ve seen what Cronos has done.”
“You mean what you’ve had him do,” Tethys gently corrected. Her large dark eyes fell upon the soft fleshed woman standing between them all, not shivering in the draft of wind sweeping across the land. “Yes, we’ve seen. Is it not what you wanted, Mother? Father dethroned?”
“Not like that,” she answered honestly with a gentle shake of her head. “Your father wronged me and deserved to have his strength stripped of him, but not disrespected. Not disgraced. What Cronos did will forever taint my soils as the first ever blood crime.”
The three bowed their heads in silence as they contemplated what to do next.
It was the newly birthed woman who would break their thoughts with a soft, melodious voice, “What is to become of me?” All eyes turned to Gaia, who tapped a finger on her chin while brooding.
“You don’t strike me in the same way as the other creatures. And I can’t be sure that Cronos even noticed her being born, I myself would have missed it if I hadn’t seen the current pull away as it had.”
“What is that supposed to mean, Mother?” Tethys asked.
“Nothing. I’m simply making an observation. One never knows when such information can be useful.”
Tethys and Oceanus shared a glance at their mother’s scheming ways, but it was never a good idea to argue when Mother Earth was involved.
This was, after all, entirely her domain that the Titans inhabited. She was, and always will be, the great force when angered.
Uranous, the Sky Father, had learned this lesson the hard way.
“Oceanus, Tethys. I would like you to look after this child for the time being. I know you’ve your own children you’re rearing but she doesn’t look to require much care. She should be strong enough to carry her own weight, have her work hard alongside your other daughters and raise her to be good and loving, but also strong.” Gaia reached out and lightly stroked a sandy finger across the unchildlike face with round dark violet eyes glossed over like a sparkling amethyst. “She was born of your seas, Oceanus. She belongs with you. Take care. I can sense great things will come from this one.”
The woman’s eyes met with Tethys, who offered a sincere smile while taking her husband’s hand and offering her other towards her. “I have enough love to spare for one more. You are more than welcome to join us in our home.”
The woman looked between these three and, seeing no other alternative, took the light blue hand of Tethys and followed her and Oceanus into the salty water of the Mediteranian Sea.
And so, the world was given the one born of foam, Aphrodite.
Life with the gods of the world’s oceans was as good a life as any other Aphrodite could have hoped to have. The kingdom of Oceanus spread across the seabed, with a central, enormous palace in the deepest crevices of the seas, carved out of various corals blossoming in red, pink, and yellow reefs. The inhabitants of the kingdom ranged from the fish, whales and sharks that filled the waters to merfolk with tails in place of legs as well as those like Aphrodite with feet. The main difference between the foam goddess and other oceanic humanoids was her lack in ability to change shape at will like those truly born of water. In certain corners of the palace were air pockets that one could dry off and rest their weary limbs after a full day of swimming, which is where Aphrodite found herself most evenings stretched out on beds of seaweed and sponges.
Many years passed since that fateful day on the beach of Cyprus and the young goddess found herself happily living as a member of the Oceanus’ courts. He and Tethys raised thousands of children who would grow and leave to venture into the world, creating streams, rivers and ponds to preside over as their own domain. Many bore children, whose children had children, and so on and so forth. All while Aphrodite stayed the same, day in and day out. Her brothers and sisters tried for many years to try and find a suitable partner for their beloved, adoptive sister, but none caught her attention, though she caught many other’s eye. While she seemed to be, without question, the most beautiful creature yet to be born, she remained, for the most part, content with being single. The love of her family was all she needed, perhaps one day she would find a mate to settle down with but for now she reveled in her freedom of such responsibilities of being a wife and mother. Instead she worked on herself, studying the power of the sea in synchrony with Selene’s moon, helping to classify the many sea creatures she came across, to staying physically fit and maintaining strength. She was just as strong as any man in the sea and as fast as any fish.
For the most part, the goddess had a leisurely life. On any given day, Aphrodite and the daughters and granddaughters of Oceanus swam from one end of the world to the other in races, searched the seafloor for rare shells and gems, or explored underwater caves for new signs of life. On rare occasions they would find themselves on the beaches playing with crabs and gulls, but for the most part they were warned against going above the water surface.
“I rule all within this realm, but once you are under Helios’s sun, I cannot protect you. So take care, my daughters of the sea, to stay close and stay safe,” Oceanus told the women in all seriousness, though usually it would fall on deaf ears. The ladies had never known harm unto themselves or anyone else, truly this life was perfect without danger.
But Oceanus knew all too well that the world above was not as peaceful as that within his home. Cronos, after the death of his father, had grown more cynical every year. While at first his reign was dubbed the Golden Age for all the food abundance and peace that came after the initial slaying of his father Uranos.
The peace, however, was not meant to last. Over time, Cronos became paranoid that his rule was tainted by the curse his father spouted in his dying breath, that he too would someday be dethroned. It was said to be empty words by his brothers and sisters, merely the final cries of a being desperate to have the last say in how the world he helped reign over would crumble without him. Cronos tried to hold onto that thought, tried desperately to quail the nagging suspicions he had playing in the back of his mind like a fly buzzing in the ear of a bull. Until the day the ruler of all the world found out something terrible: his wife Rhea was begotten with child.
He tried to maintain his composure for the most part, but in the end, his own paranoia got the best of him. At the end of the infant’s gestation, Rhea gave birth to a beautiful, clay toned baby girl. While all of her sisters, who had helped with her delivery, were busy tending to the new mother, Cronos stood in the corner of the room holding the newly washed, freshly born child in his arms. She was small, incredibly so, compared to other children of titans. And she held a slight reddish glow around her fragile form.
How strong would she be?
How powerful?
His eyes went over to Rhea, who gave a soft smile in return. “Darling?” she called out.
But he didn’t move. Instead, Cronos looked back down at the infant.
No.
He couldn’t risk it.
To the horror of everyone in the room, Cronos raised the child by her ankle, high above his head, and with a crack unhinged his jaw like a snake.
He swallowed the child whole.
Rhea was so stunned she passed out while her sisters stood in mortification as the king of all the world quietly left the room.
Five more times did Cronus do this unspeakable act of consuming his children, each time sliding more and more into madness.
Where once the world was bursting with life, now it had grown dark from clouds that offered only lightening and thunderous roars. In a few places his misery hadn’t tarnished the lands and those who could fled to escape his wrath.
But those under Oceanus’ rule knew nothing of this pain and suffering, spending their days playing oceanic games and hosting grand feasts as their neighbors above starved.
It was on a particularly normal day that Aphrodite was babysitting for her adoptive sister Doris. It was nothing new for the lovely foam goddess to be asked to keep children, as she didn’t have her own and typically didn’t have any worldly duties like her siblings. She hadn’t a river to attend or a kingdom to rule, and so she found herself with her niece Amphitrite and nephew Nerites playing hide and seek in a grotto off the coast of Megiste. As children of Doris, Amphitrite and Nerites could transform into tailed creatures to help them to move through underwater caverns, though that did little to keep Aphrodite from catching up to each of them. She had been swimming for immeasurable years before these two thought of being born and she had grown to be as fast as her aquatic brothers and sisters, despite being tailless. Over and over, the children cried out in delight at their aunt’s ability to best them repeatedly at their own game, no matter how hard they tried or what animal they transformed into, she would catch them.
They had gone nearly one hundred rounds when Aphrodite stopped just short of tapping Nerites’ arm at the sound of thunder.
His high pitched voice echoed when he shrieked in surprise at the sound, making his sister laugh at his plight.
“You’re such a guppy,” she giggled.
“I am not, I was startled is all!”
“The water seems to be getting worse,” Aphrodite cut in, looking outside as the water began to pour. Fortunately, underwater seldom changed from the surface weather problems, but it still would warrant a cautious swim home.
“Did you see that?” she asked, her amethyst eyes rolling over the cavern walls.
“See what, Auntie Ditey?”
“I,” she narrowed her eyes, was that a shadow on the wall? No, it must have just been refracted light. No one ever came into the blue caves, she reassured herself. Most land dwellers were afraid of unknown waters. “It’s nothing. Who is ready to head back to see grandfather and grandmother?”
“Oh, can’t we play one more time?” Amphitrite begged, her oversized eyes sparkling with the last of daylight echoing off the water. “Just once, please, Auntie Ditey?”
Both children sported their largest eyed pleads they could muster before Aphrodite shrugged, “Now what kind of aunt would I be to say no to such sweet faces. Alright, darlings, we’ll play once more, then we have to hurry off.”
“We can race home!” Nerites offered in a boast. “I’ll turn into a dolphin!”
“Of course, and I’ll beat you like I always do,” Aphrodite teased.
The children turned her towards the cave wall and she proceeded to wait for their collective, “I’m ready!” before she began her hunt.
As they played their last match, somewhere just inside the mouth of the blue caves floated a wooden raft that had rolled inside to escape from the oncoming storm. A man quietly sat on his makeshift boat as he watched the woman and children playing until they swam away, mere feet away still unaware of him. In truth, he wasn’t paying them much mind until had a good view of the earth-toned woman's rise from the water to stand on the outer ridge of the cave’s wall before throwing herself back to make a splash. The children yelped in delight as the man’s jaw fell agape. She was lovely, in the most sincerest of forms, unlike any creature he had ever seen. Her dazzling eyes, her smooth skin, her flaming hair. It was nothing to him that she was nude as most creatures, particularly those of the water, chose to forgo such trivialities as hiding their bodies.
Yet here this man was, watching the woman with a rise within himself he had never imagined before. What was this yearning he felt? He didn’t speak up, in fear
When the storm passed, he made his way out of the caves towards the beaches of what would later be dubbed Athens. There he made his way towards Mount Othrys, where his father and uncle eagerly awaited his return. All the while, images of the enchanting woman played over and over in his mind’s eye.
“Atlas!” his father Iapetus greeted from the dining table. He sat as always to the left of King Cronos, who was brooding over a meal a servant had just served like it had been burnt. Atlas never liked his uncle, but didn’t care enough about politics to press the matter, rather he explored the corners of the globe in search of adventure and unseen lands. “I was beginning to think you had been held up somewhere and we’d have to track you down.”
“No, not at all, I got caught up in some weather just on the other side of the eastern islands. Nothing too concerning.”
When he took his seat beside his mother Clymene, dinner commenced and the guests took up their light conversations as Atlas stared down at his plate deep in thought. Around the table, he could hear everyone carrying on, his uncles Coeus, Hyperion, and Crius, his aunts Queen Rhea, Theia, Themis, Mnemosyne, Phoebe, and Tethys, and a few cousins whom he never took the time to memorise their names unless he liked them. As they carried on as normal, he replayed the images of the intoxicating woman he had seen in the cave.
Why hadn’t he spoken up?
Why hadn’t he asked her name?
“Dear, you’ve been out all day, surely you’re hungry?” his mother gently asked.
He heaved a heavy sigh before his eyes landed on his mother, her glistening light blue skin reminding him of the children that played with the woman. That’s right, they would have been descendants of Oceanus. And that woman, she must have been someone from his court. Perhaps a nymph of some kind?
An idea popped like a bubble into Atlas’s head.
“Actually, Mother, I was wondering. Tomorrow could we visit your father’s kingdom? I haven’t seen grandfather Oceanus in quite some time.”
“Oh, well, I’m actually going to be busy tomorrow, but I’m sure your father-”
“I can accompany you.”
The table’s idle chit-chat ceased as all eyes fell on Cronos, who rarely spoke at such events as trivial as family dinners.
“Tha-that won’t be necessary, your highness,” Iapetus reassured, “I know you must be busy with more important things than traveling into the realm for a family visit.”
“No, I’d like to visit our brother. I haven’t heard from him in quite some time, it would do some good to… catch up with one another.”
Atlas noticed the tension in the room thicken. As far as he’d known, Oceanus was as dedicated to Cronos as any of his other brothers, but there was speculation that Oceanus had closed his doors to most of those above sea level because he didn’t agree with the way his younger brother ran in domain.
But again, politics wasn’ t what interested Atlas.
For now, it was finding out who that mysterious woman was who had ensnared his heart.
#greek gods#Greek#Greek Mythology#greek myth#greek myths#greece#ancient greece#Aphrodite#cyprus#goddess#goddess of love#atlas#greek legend#gods#Titans#cronos
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Redwall Falls: Chapter 1
@faceheightknifefight and I were talking and it somehow turned into a discussion about Brome as a paranormal investigator, which spiralled into me writing the Gravity Falls Redwall au no one else asked for. Please enjoy my attempt at being creative. (the first part is a little on the short side, but the rest should be longer. You know, when I write them)
“You’re sending us away. For the entire summer?” Brome repeated. School had only been out for a few days and his parents were already ruining his life again. It wasn’t fair.
“Seasons, Brome. You make it sound like it’s the end of the world. It’s just for a few months so your father can work on his re-election campaign without the two of you getting under foot. You’ll be back in Noonvale before you know it. And besides,” his mother stared pointedly at the controller he was clinging to like a lifeline, “you need to get out more. Who knows? You might even make a few friends.”
Rose glanced up from her book and winced (probably because it was such a low blow). It wasn’t that Brome hadn’t tried to make friends in the past. Other beasts just… weren’t interested in his hobbies. They usually found his obsession with the supernatural either perfect ammunition for relentless teasing or just plain kooky.
“I… I don’t believe it.” Brome muttered indignantly. He’d thought better of denying his lack of social life. It was a losing battle. Why were parents always like this?
“Your great aunt Polly has been asking if the two of you could come visit her for years. I wouldn’t have agreed to it if I didn’t think you could handle it.” Aryah pointed out.
“She’s not even really related to us. What if she makes us sleep outside? What if she has a secret evil twin no one knows about? Or worse. What if she doesn’t have wifi?!” he protested, anything but convinced by his mother’s attempts to reassure him. She raised an eyebrow, in an unspoken really?
“She’s your father’s godmother. I think we’d know by now if she had a twin. And she owns a tourist trap, so I’m sure wifi won’t be an issue.” she told him with as much patience as she could muster. Having given up on reasoning with his mother, Brome turned to Rose (who was taking this whole thing remarkably well) and asked, “You’re really okay with this?”
“I don’t know, it sounds kinda fun. And there are worse places to spend a summer.” she replied with a shrug. Brome nodded sagely. She did pose a fair point. He could think of at least 10 places that would be worse than Gravity Falls, even if Great Aunt Polly turned out to have a double life.
“Dance camp?” Asked Brome knowingly.
“Dance camp.” Rose confirmed with a shudder.
“Noted,” he allowed, “but weren’t you saying you wanted an epic summer romance this year? What about that?”
“Well I-yes, I did say that, but I don’t see why that couldn’t happen just as easily in Gravity Falls.” she told him. Darn. Brome was rapidly running out of valid counter arguments.
“But what about…” he wracked his brains for something, anything, good enough to convince his family this was a bad idea. He couldn’t.
“Please don’t take this up with your father, Brome. You know how it’ll end. Just… try not to ruin this for yourself by freaking out over it before you even get there, okay? I’m sure you’ll have lots of fun.” Aryah said eventually. Brome and Uran Voh were often at odds and their fights almost always turned into yelling matches. Combined with the young mouse’s tendency to over analyze everything, she was probably justified in her concern.
“I’m not freaking out, mom. I just like being prepared for the worst.” Brome replied honestly as he slipped off the couch. He switched off his video game and fled up the stairs to his bedroom. He flung the door shut and hid under his bed where no one would find him. Stupid parents, stupid Gravity Falls, stupid everything. This was going to be the worst summer ever.
////
The bus pulled to a stop. Rose put a bookmark in her copy of Love Amongst the Badgers and glanced over at Brome. He was still sound asleep, undisturbed by the screeching of the brakes.
“Brome.” the mousemaid nudged her brother. He didn’t wake up.
“Brome,” she repeated, louder, “we’re here.”
Still nothing. She tried again, louder this time.
“If you don’t wake up right now, I’ll leave you on this bus for an ax murderer to find.”
“You wouldn’t!” Brome protested, finally reacting. Rose only smiled.
“I don’t know… you have been pretty obnoxious lately…” she pointed out with a shrug.
“I-I’ll be good! I promise!” the young mouse insisted, trying to look innocent. Rose pretended to consider this for a moment before replying.
“Okay. Works for me! Now hurry up and grab your stuff so we can go find out if Great Aunt Polly really is a were-mole – secret agent – alien with a dark secret.” she said, shouldering her backpack and pulling her suitcase out from under her seat. Brome rolled his eyes.
“I never said… you know what? I will do that. But not because I want to see if she’s got a third eye, or anything like that.” he stubbornly relented. He followed her example and gathered his belongings (and a few candy wrappers).
“Of course not,” Rose agreed as she surveyed their seats to make sure nothing got left behind. When she was satisfied, she made for the bus’s exit, Brome in tow.
It took exactly five seconds to locate their great aunt. Dressed in a brightly colored sundress and fez, she would have been hard to miss. Even her cane, which appeared to have a magic 8 ball attached to it, was anything but subtle.
“Who still wears fezzes these days?” Brome asked under his breath. Clearly he didn’t appreciate the elderly mole’s sense of fashion.
“Brome!” Rose hissed, not wanting to make a bad first impression on their host for the summer. Great Aunt Polly grinned and waved them over, oblivious to the siblings’ conversation.
“Hiya, kids! Welcome to Gravity Falls. A completely normal town, where nothing out of the ordinary happens. Ever. Nice to meetcha!” she greeted, shaking their paws enthusiastically. Rose was caught a little off guard by this description of Gravity Falls, but she tried to ignore it.
“It’s nice to meet you, too, Great Aunt Polly. Right, Brome?” she said brightly, elbowing her brother in the ribs.
“Uh, yeah. I, um… like your cane?” Brome jumped in, forcing himself to stop staring at her bizarre ensemble.
“Thanks, kid! All a part of Madam Mystery’s charm!” Polly told him with a wink. Rose raised an eyebrow.
“Madam Mystery?”
“My stage name over at the Shack,” the mole explained, “Your father did tell you about the Mystery Shack… right?”
“Not… not really…” Brome began.
“We know he used to spend every summer here and that it’s a pretty major tourist trap, but he’s usual too busy with his duties as town mayor to tell us much else about his childhood.” Rose finished for him. Her heart sank a little as she watched Great Aunt Polly’s face fall at this news. She hadn’t meant to upset her. But if she’d let Brome continue, the truth would have come out far more harshly.
“Oh. That boy… I guess you’ll just have to see for yourselves. Come on, you two, might as well get going.” Polly told them after a moment.
“Sure. Which way to your car?” asked Rose, trying to distract the mole from her obvious disappointment. She was curious to see where they would be staying, anyway. Polly nodded towards a rather beat up looking station wagon parked haphazardly between a pair of minivans.
“Right over there.”
The two siblings glanced at each other with mirrored looks of horror at the sight of the vehicle. It had quite a few dents in it along with a cracked window. And… was that a bullet hole? For a split second, Rose considered asking the bus driver if he would drive them to the Mystery Shack. Or maybe even all the way back to Noonvale. However, she was pretty sure he’d refuse, and if Great Aunt Polly had managed to make it all the way to the bus stop without dying, then they could probably survive the ride back. Hopefully.
“Are you sure this thing is safe, Great Aunt Polly?” Brome demanded, giving the station wagon a suspicious glare. He'd never been one for risk taking unless it was to spite their father.
“Course it is! Haven’t gotten pulled over by the cops in weeks.” Polly informed him. She popped open the trunk so they could load their things into it. Brome stared at her with the are you kidding me? look Rose knew all too well. It was the same look he gave their father whenever they argued.
“You mean you’ve actually been pulled over?” he wanted to know before getting in. Polly shrugged.
“Well… maybe once or twice.” she admitted conspiratorially. The young mouse stared at her in awe.
“Woah! I can’t believe dad is letting us anywhere near you.” Brome said with a grin. It appeared the eccentric mole had finally won her brother over. Shaking off the last of her reluctance, Rose climbed into the station wagon and sat next to him. It was going to be an interesting ride.
“First thing’s first,” Polly declared as she pulled out of her parking spot, narrowly missing a group of squirrels who were out for their afternoon jog, “we gotta come up with something less formal sounding than Great Aunt Polly. I’m gettin tired of it already.”
#redwall#redwall fanfiction#redwall au#gravity falls#i have no idea what I'm doing#hopefully you find this entertaining folks
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Short Fiction - The Face Of God
"Have you ever really thought about the face of God, Captain?"
Doctor Merrill leaned forward in his chair, cradling the steaming cup in his hands, looking at it for a long moment. His eyes seemed to lose their focus briefly, as though he were gazing at something far away, before squeezing shut, only to flash back open, fixed on Captain Hernandez' own eyes. Merrill held the stare for what seemed like an eternity, then relaxed, his shoulders slumping as he let the soft cushions of the chair enfold him. The cup, still held tightly in both hands, drifted up to his lips as he sipped at the coffee twice before resting its warmth upon his lap.
"Can't say that I have," Hernandez said softly. She'd been woken from her sleep by Merrill insisting on speaking to her. Three days on her ship without a word, and now here they were, alone in the narrow space that served as the ship's common mess, drinking coffee — real coffee, brought on board by Merrill when he'd transferred off of Midday Splendor for his trip back to Central on Earth — while he, finally, decided to open up about... whatever it was he needed to talk about.
"Your family's Catholic," he asked. "Yes?"
Hernandez nodded. "Essentially. I suppose depending on who you ask, God's an old man, a young man, an infant, or something in between."
"What do you think?" Merrill's question was pointed, something hiding just underneath the words.
"I..." Hernandez paused. "Honestly, the Church never spoke to me. I think that's why I'm out here. I think maybe God's too big to live on one planet, and only have one form. Kind of Spacelane Cliche, I know but..."
Merrill shook his head. "No, no, you're fine. Don't cheapen your lack of rigidity. You're closer than you know."
Hernandez sipped from her cup, letting the dark, rich flavors swirl around in her mouth before swallowing. "Oh? How's that?"
Merrill glanced back over his shoulder, checking yet again to make sure they were alone in the room.
"I've seen them."
"'Them'?"
"The Engineers."
Hernandez' eyes widened, then narrowed. "Are you sure?"
Merrill sat the coffee down on the table, then withdrew his hands. They shook, not in fear or shame, but in excitement, as he pulled them back against his body. He held them, one inside the other, tightly against his belly, lips moving quietly in a practiced countdown. Hernandez knew the drill, she'd seen it prescribed enough times by ship's psychiatrists to help crewmen with anxiety, especially after their first EVA or deep-space recon. Prescribed it herself, before she'd secured a captaincy and left room for someone else to fill the counselor's office.
Merrill's eyes never opened as he spoke, not so quietly as to be unheard, but still softly enough that Hernandez had to lean in. His words weren't the practiced meter of someone reciting a speech, with inflection and emphasis meant to draw a response from the listener; rather, they carried the sound of a man watching it all happen again, the moment he closed his eyes. She'd seen this in trauma cases, heard that tone before a thousand times.
"We were on a mineral survey," he said. "I'd tell you where, but they made it very clear that I'm not allowed to do that. Not yet. Fifth planet of a nine world system. Seventeen AI's, four biologicals. Myself, Doctors Plenem and Havarsk, and Professor Utumi. Utumi and I were the only Humans on board. Plenem, the Dosili, had this irascible grump at all times. Hated being in cold sleep, but with the ship using a Sling-Drive instead of gates to get where we needed to go, what were we supposed to do? Stay awake for the trip and age out to retirement before we got there? Havarsk is a Galbriki and you know how they do on long, boring voyages. We woke him up last."
"We were four days in to the mission," Merrill sighed. "Doing well, honestly. Ahead of schedule. I was on the night shift with Utumi, going over core analysis when it happened."
"'It'?" Hernandez asked.
"The light. The brightest light I have ever seen. The instruments said nothing was there. Some of the most advanced sensor equipment in the entire fleet, and nothing. The AI's didn't pick it up. They saw nothing. But I saw it. Utumi saw it. Plenem and Havarsk rushed up to the bridge because even dead asleep, THEY saw it."
"It was like space was opening up on itself. The void was gone, and it was... just light. Light, pouring out of a hole in reality. Then it just stopped. It wasn't like a zipper closing or a wound sealing, it just... stopped. The four of us vetoed the AI's, and moved the ship immediately. The light had come from the fourth world. Middle of the habitable zone, but... dead, really. No magnetosphere, no real atmosphere to speak of."
Hernandez drained her coffee, pouring more in to her cup as Merrill paused, holding his own cup up for more. "Any other habitables in the system?"
Merrill shook his head. "No. That's why we were there. You don't mine populated systems. Not if you want to stay out of jail."
Hernandez nodded, quietly, signalling to Merrill to continue.
"There were thousands of them. All shapes and sizes. Nothing that the eye could really settle on, you know? We knew they were there, but they weren't... THERE. The AI's, the instruments, they all continued to say there was nothing happening. But there was. They were moving, all over the planet. Encircling it. I tried to count them, but I couldn't tell you how many there were if I tried. I say 'thousands,' but it could have been millions. It could have been ten. They slipped in and out of my peripheral vision, into the little blind spaces in our retinas that our brains edit out. I knew they were there, but... If you ask me to describe them, I'll give you a different answer every time. Not because I'm lying, but because I honestly remember them differently, every time I try."
"That sounds frustrating," Hernandez said. Merrill laughed.
"It's liberating. But do you want to know what they did?"
He didn't wait for her answer, draining his cup and setting it down on the table before leaning in to whisper range.
"They. Took. The. Planet. Apart," he hissed. "Just... opened it up like it was an orange. Somehow, without any of us realizing, all the little ones had vanished. Or maybe they became the big one. I don't know. But suddenly there was a... ship... a... machine... something. Huge. Bigger than anything I've ever seen. Bigger than the planet. The instruments registered THAT. Gravity well. Massive. Enough to crush us. But it didn't. It just... sat there. And it took the planet apart. Layer by layer, peeling it off in smooth, even segments. Pulled it apart all the way down to the cold, hard core."
"And then... then... holes. In space. Cometary material, or... ice from some far-off cloud, maybe. Trans-uranics from who knows where. Meteors and rocks the size of India. They all just came pouring out of the holes. Some of them smashed into the core. Others drifted, lazily, down to their new homes in the planet's layers, like... well, like chocolate chips or berries in the frosting you put between the layers of a cake. And the instruments got all of this. But they still didn't SEE the SHIP."
"What... what did you do?" Hernandez gasped. Her heart had lodged itself in her throat, and she'd unconsciously begun her own slow countdown, getting her racing pulse under control.
"We watched them. What else could we do? We watched them, and they... made a planet. Remade a planet. I'm not sure. We took shifts, resting when our brains would let us, or taking sleeper shots when they wouldn't. It took them four days. And then they just... put the planet back together. I watched as they sealed off the planet's core. It had been dead. Cold, grey. A lump of metal. Now it was spinning. Violent. Hot. Alive. As they wrapped the layers back around it, it burst its cage, spreading carefully up through the once-dead rock. I watched the rock melt into the magma and begin to course and flow like any proper world's lifeblood should. A myriad of thin, barely-there beams washed over the planet, and suddenly it had tectonic plates. And then we registered a burgeoning magnetosphere. By the end of it all, when the ship just... winked out... it had an atmosphere. Nothing we could call livable, but... there were signs. Traces of organic compounds in the clouds, on the ground. The rains had begun by the time Central called us to inform us that our governments would be sending ships to pick us all up. They put Utumi on a ship to Delta Pavonis, to make sure no one could intercept both the Humans."
"What happened to the AI's?" Hernandez asked. "Are they still out there?"
"Maybe," Merrill shrugged. "They only caught the last half of the miracle. That's not what the folks at Central are after, I suppose."
"That's a hell of a thing to see," Hernandez sighed.
"It is. It makes you understand why there are cults, out there, dedicated to these... legends. To the people who say they've seen them. And why so many of them are Doomsday-types, as well. If The Engineers can create habitable worlds... if they're the real reason why there are so many more livable worlds than any equation can predict... why couldn't they also be the reason for the dead worlds, out there? Why couldn't they give... and take... as they see fit?"
"What do you think, Doctor?"
Merrill gazed on Hernandez briefly, then shook his head. "I'm a scientist. I don't think any other scientist would expend so much effort creating, only to engage in some twisted, Malthusian concept of retributive balance. If you can do the things they can do, there's no reason to be a dick about it by killing a whole world just because you made a new one."
Hernandez chuckled. "Fair enough. So... why talk to me now? Three days of nothing, and then... Now?"
Merrill's eyes shifted, moving erratically around the room, seeming to settle in one corner briefly before shooting to a space just above and behind Hernandez.
"Because I was asked to do so."
Without knowing why, Hernandez glanced over her shoulder, but saw nothing.
"By whom?"
"It's here," Merrill whispered. "It's very small, but if you know where to look, you'll see it. It wants you to listen to what it has to say."
#amwriting#prose#prose fiction#science fiction#the engineers#short fiction#Artificial Intelligence#Aliens#can a brother get a reblog?
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How to fix Go Astro Boy Go
It's not a horrible series by any means but it does have a lot of problems and things I would do differently. I've seen all the episodes so I feel I am qualified to write this
Basically if I got my grubby little hands in this show I would:
Remove Dr. Blunt Entirely. It's a proven fact that the more screentime he is given is directly proportional to how bad an episode is. Maurice can stay but he's on thin fucking ice
Cut out the rest of the leftover non-Dr. Blunt related grossout humor. Leave that shit in the 90s where it belongs.
Commit to letting OT2 be an actual Cobalt rather than just Cobalt-Adjacent (though she is an honorary Cobalt in my heart). He can still be entirely digital tho I like him being an emoji
Be a little nicer to Astro Kitty. He can still be the stinky lil brother character he already is but like tone it down a little? He's a bit much sometimes in how often he inadvertently makes things worse. Likewise I'd also tone down Suzu's attitude towards him a bit. Like I know they're supposed to just have some more sibling-like back and forth between them but a lot of the time I thought it felt kinda mean spirited. As someone who really likes writing banter I feel it can be done a lot better lol
I'd like to maybe add and switch some VAs around as I don't always feel the voices fit the characters, especially in regards to the few recurring characters or characters of the day
Let some of the tezuka cameo characters recur a bit more. As a subsection...
Phineas Fandango (Duke Red) was really fucking hilarious imo and I feel the last minute addition of his own bootleg Team Astro had a lot of potential for a fun dynamic but it got horribly wasted by being so last minute. Outside of being a fun villain there are a lot of good messages to be had about not rejecting all current technology vs. respecting the technology that got us where we are now. That said I would definitely keep him as a more minor, sillier antagonist because....
I want more Dr. Fusion (Tenma), which I know is wild of me to say cause I'm really ambivalent to Tenma in general at the best of times, but I feel like his brand of science (especially as he is in this adaptation) leads to a lot of good lessons about ethics in science and the tendency to want to toss people and safety aside in the pursuit of pure scientific progress. Also just to be spicy I think it would be fun if in this version Uran was Tenma's instead of Hamegg's and served as a foil to Astro.
If there's room for it, I'd also like to see Alejo (Tamao) some more, just as a minor recurring character because I thought he was cute and I liked his dynamic with Suzu (though I would absolutely give him a different VA, I'm sure he's a nice kid and all but he sadly cannot act very well)
He didn't actually appear as a character in the series proper, just a background element, but since in my perfect world we have wiped Dr. Blunt from existence, I would like to let Black Jack guest star in the episode about the human body instead
And uhhhh
That's pretty much it as far as I can think of off the top of my head lol. Some of these ideal changes are more obvious personal preferences *cough*cobalt*cough* than like actual gripes but yeah thanks for coming to my TED talk
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Bit of a “meta” start for this edition of the MMN, as I just want to let folks in on how our Monday Meeting is running and the sort of topics generally covered, and the specific ones we talked about this week. Except for the [REDACTED] ones.
Bit o’ history, for folks coming new to this blog.
The Monday Lunch Meeting was once a meeting the entire staff of White Wolf was able to have for something like the first six months I was at WW mid- 1992. As the company grew, we went from everybody attending, to some departments spinning off to other days as the sheer number of people made it impossible, but Production & Design, my department, kept to Mondays.
I liked, and still like, starting the week with what is essentially a huddle. A re-focus moment before the week pulls us in all sorts of directions. In the early days, we’d actually divvy up tasks at the meeting to be sure everything we needed to accomplish in the coming week was covered. Even when all that was left of WW in terms of publishing TTRPGs was Eddy Webb and myself, we actually ate lunch during the meeting still, until I founded Onyx Path and brought the company-wide Monday Meeting back.
Dragon Blooded Kingfisher illustration by Mel Uran
So, through all the years we come to our current Monday Lunch Meeting, although there have been evolutionary changes to our process:
1- We are a virtual office, with folks scattered around who attend, so we’re “starting off on Monday” even if Matthew’s day is actually getting close to sundown.
2- For a similar reason, nobody is required to eat lunch during the meeting, and with us all on Skype it’s really best if folks don’t do much munching and crunching.
3- Therefore, nobody waits until folks are midway through a Subba Wubba sandwich to tell us how the Andes plane crash survivors turned cannibals. In detail. Until some folks turned green.
4- Onyx Path has now grown to such a point that we have nine people in on the call, so in the interest of staying focused, we’ve recently adopted a process where the first hour of the meeting is the Production half, where we run down every project being worked on. You see most of that list in the Updates here every week. Then we move to Operations, and we review sales info, marketing, social media and PR, and new business.
5- Everyone is encouraged to both venture opinions and to bring up anything they feel is pertinent, and to absolutely speak up if they need clarification. The main purpose of the meeting is to provide everyone with knowledge of where Onyx Path is on that Monday, and what we need to do for the rest of the week, or even further out.
6- Usually, I’ll derive the points I want to write about in this blog every week from the general drift of our interests and concerns at the Monday Meeting, although, as our crew knows, sometimes I’ll zoom in on something related but not directly discussed if I think it makes a good subject.
C20 Freeholds illustration by Pat McEvoy
This week, here’s some highlights of what we discussed:
I threw a whole bunch of project pitches at White Wolf for approvals, and we’re waiting for the OK or notes from them.
We also sent over another bunch of project outlines for approvals as well, and we’re also waiting for those to get back to us. Both of these steps are the ones before the steps you see below in the Updates, and are basically the developers preparing the info they need in order to hire writers.
Speaking of outlines, we have a bunch almost done for the upcoming Scion projects that came out of the Kickstarter Stretch Goals. Neall really couldn’t finalize them until the text for both Origin and Hero was complete.
Dixie has been touching base with “her” developers for the CofD and Exalted 3rd, and working with them on their schedule of releases, and she’ll be doing her first errata input pass on the next book ready for that stage, either Night Horrors: Enemy Action or the Beast PG.
We sat down last week and conceptualized the release schedule for the Trinity Continuum lines, now that we have a much more concrete idea of our Trinity community interest and numbers after the Kickstarter. Thinking through how the Continuum can be represented by Community Content is an added, and welcome, piece to that process. Now we’re arguing about which actual titles the TC Core and TC: Aeon should have!
Some writers are late, some artists needed replacing, some editing is getting swapped around, and some projects are holding up other ones. So, situation normal, and we adjust to this every Monday!
We expect Wraith20 errata to close sometime between this Weds. and next Weds. and we’ll see if Night Horrors: Enemy Action and the Beast PG also fit that time frame.
Mirthful Mike is starting on the graphics for the Dragon Blooded Kickstarter for later this month, and we’re looking for James’ to present his plan for the KS based on earlier conversations. I’ll be asking James to establish address change and shipping deadlines right in our KS description and FAQs, because we continue to have backers message us two years after shipping wanting their books – and we just aren’t set up to have these books sitting around indefinitely. We really hate disappointing people.
The Mirthful One is also designing the logo for the Scarred Lands Community Content site, the Slaracian Vault. Once that is finished we’ll be stress testing the site. Eddy is also looking at opening up a few aspects of Canis Minor, the Pugmire Community Content site, so keep an eye out there.
For the Scarred Lands Kickstarter, as backers are aware, we’ve just had the damnedest time pulling together all the threads that my old friend Stewart Wieck left dangling after his untimely death, but with a few adjustments we and Nocturnal Media have almost everything needed in the fulfillment shipper’s warehouse. While they are arranging the shipping, I’m going to send out the Scarred Lands posters from the Kickstarter individually to those who pledged for them.
Mighty Matt McElroy wants everybody to know that we have shipped a whole truck-load of extra Kickstarter projects to our friends at Indie Press Revolution (IPR), including the Prestige Edition and Screen of Dark Eras (the first one), the Deluxe and Ultra-Deluxe Editions of Exalted 3rd Edition and a whole lot of the additional items, and the Deluxe Edition and Screen for W20 Shattered Dreams. (See more info and links below in the IPR section of the Blurbs!)
Matt also pointed out that the Beast Players’ Guide and Night Horrors: Enemy Action PDFs have been #1 and #2 on DTRPG‘s bestsellers list these past couple of days! Congrats to all involved!
Although we have, as a company, pulled away from monitoring social media beyond our own – as per one of our wellness resolutions from our MidWinter Summit – we do go over any posts that concern us. So we did today. As usual, this isn’t an area that I like us to wade into publicly, but I include it to show that we don’t just ignore internet comments.
We learned in our meeting that our in-house developers (Eddy, Dixie, and Matthew) really like to talk. So we discussed how we could maybe give them a place where they can talk as much as they want…
Scarred Lands Spiragos illustration by Brian LeBlanc
So you can see, that these notes are indeed pulled from the Monday Meeting each week, and while you could say our motto should be “Many Words, One Path”, it is in fact:
Many Worlds, One Path!
BLURBS!
KICKSTARTER:
Our next Kickstarter is slated to be EX3‘s Dragon-Blooded near the end of March.
As we try and find ways to enable our community to more easily play our games, the Onyx Dice Rolling App is now live! Our dev team has been doing updates since we launched based on the excellent use-case comments by our community, and this thing is both rolling and rocking!
The devs have added a whole bunch of new game lines’ dice and rolling bg’s and got caught by a bug Apple needed to fix, so be sure to update your app and soon that should be fixed.
There’s been tweaks to all elements of the UI, you can now preview every die type in the store, and you can use multiple die types per roll! Here are the links for the Apple and Android versions:
http://theappstore.site/app/1296692067/onyx-dice
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.onyxpathpublishing.onyxdice&hl=en
Three different screenshots, above.
(The Solar Anima special Dice above)
Promethean: The Created and Demon: The Descent dice on a Demon: The Descent tabletop
Hunter: The Reckoning and Mage: The Awakening dice on a Mage: The Awakening tabletop
ON AMAZON AND BARNES & NOBLE:
We’re delighted to announce the opening of our ebook stores on Amazon and Barnes & Noble! You can now read our fiction from the comfort and convenience of your Kindle (from Amazon) and Nook (from Barnes & Noble). Our initial selection includes these fiction anthologies:
Vampire: The Masquerade: The Endless Ages Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
Werewolf: The Apocalypse: Rites of Renown: When Will You Rage II (Kindle, Nook)
Mage: The Ascension: Truth Beyond Paradox (Kindle, Nook)
Chronicles of Darkness: The God-Machine Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
Mummy: The Curse: Curse of the Blue Nile (Kindle, Nook)
Beast: The Primordial: The Primordial Feast Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
And here are six more fiction books:
Vampire: The Masquerade: Of Predators and Prey: The Hunters Hunted II Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
Werewolf: The Apocalypse: The Poison Tree (Kindle, Nook)
Werewolf: The Apocalypse: Songs of the Sun and Moon: Tales of the Changing Breeds (Kindle, Nook)
Vampire: The Requiem: The Strix Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
Werewolf: The Forsaken: The Idigam Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
Mage: The Awakening: The Fallen World Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
Andand six more more:
Vampire: The Masquerade: The Beast Within Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
Werewolf: The Apocalypse: W20 Cookbook (Kindle, Nook)
Exalted: Tales from the Age of Sorrows (Kindle, Nook)
Chronicles of Darkness: Tales of the Dark Eras (Kindle, Nook)
Promethean: The Created: The Firestorm Chronicle Anthology (Kindle, Nook)
Demon: The Descent: Demon: Interface (Kindle, Nook)
And even more books are now on Amazon and the Nook store!:
Scarred Lands: Death in the Walled Warren (Kindle, Nook)
V20 Dark Ages: Cainite Conspiracies (Kindle, Nook)
Chronicles of Darkness: Strangeness in the Proportion (Kindle, Nook)
Vampire: The Requiem: Silent Knife (Kindle, Nook)
Mummy: The Curse: Dawn of Heresies (Kindle, Nook)
OUR SALES PARTNERS:
We’re working with Studio2 to get Pugmire out into stores, as well as to individuals through their online store. You can pick up the traditionally printed main book, the Screen, and the official Pugmire dice through our friends there!
https://studio2publishing.com/search?q=pugmire
Looking for our Deluxe or Prestige Edition books? Try this link! http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Onyx-Path-Publishing/
Here’s the link to the press release we put out about how Onyx Path is now selling through Indie Press Revolution: http://theonyxpath.com/press-release-onyx-path-limited-editions-now-available-through-indie-press-revolution/
You can now order wave 2 of our Deluxe and Prestige print overrun books, including Deluxe Mage 20th Anniversary, and Deluxe V20 Dark Ages! And Screens…so many Screens!
And you can now order Pugmire: the book, the screen, and the dice! http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/manufacturers.php?manufacturerid=296
Wave 3 of our extra Kickstarter projects is now on sale at IPR!
Here are the direct links for the Chronicles of Darkness: Dark Eras Prestige Edition: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Chronicles-of-Darkness-Dark-Eras-Prestige-Edition.html
Chronicles of Darkness: Dark Eras Storytellers’ Screen: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Chronicles-of-Darkness-Dark-Eras-Storytellers-Screen.html
Deluxe Exalted 3rd Edition: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Exalted-3rd-Edition-Deluxe-Edition.html
Ultra-Deluxe (Orichalcum) Exalted 3rd Edition: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Exalted-3rd-Edition-Ultra-Deluxe.html
Exalted 3rd Edition Storytellers’ Screen: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Exalted-3rd-Edition-Storytellers-Screen.html
EX3 Chibi Bookmarks: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Exalted-3rd-Edition-Chibi-Bookmarks.html
EX3 Canvas Map of Creation: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Exalted-3rd-Edition-Map-of-Creation.html
Deluxe W20 Shattered Dreams: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/W20-Shattered-Dreams-Deluxe-Edition.html
W20 Shattered Dreams Storytellers’ Screen: http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/W20-Shattered-Dreams-Storytellers-Screen.html
Plus price adjustments on M20, Book of the Wyrm, Anarchs Unbound and a
few other projects!
DRIVETHRURPG.COM:
Coming this Wednesday as both PDF and physical book PoD on DTRPG, we reveal The Secret of Vinsen’s Tomb, a Jumpstart adventure for Pugmire. www.drivethrurpg.com/product/232337/The-Secrets-of-Vinsens-Tomb–A-Pugmire-Jumpstart
A cat living in Pugmire disappears, but neither the police dogs nor the cats of the Cat Quarter know why. When zombies attack the heroes, however, all signs point to an invasion by the Monarchies of Mau. But how does this intrigue tie into the lost tomb of the first king of Pugmire?
The Secret of Vinsen’s Tomb is a Pugmire story for three to six characters. This jumpstart contains all the rules and characters you need to play — just grab some dice and go! You can also use this adventure with the full version of Pugmire.
The Secret of Vinsen’s Tomb contains:
• An evocative and mysterious setting that’s both family friendly and deep enough to create compelling stories.
• A summary of Pugmire’s traditional fantasy rules system. It’s designed for streamlined play, with an emphasis on cooperation and action over competition and violence.
• A complete adventure for a Guide to run for three to six players. Also useful for Guides running a full Pugmire game of first or second level characters!
• Six ready-to-play characters, so you can jump into the action.
Can your good dogs discover the secret of Vinsen’s Tomb?
Also available this Wednesday, are two physical PoD spell card packs and PDFs for Pugmire: the Artisans‘ and the Shepherds‘ spells.
Ask the darkness, and it shall answer: the Beast: The Primordial Player’s Guide Advance PDF will answer your questions when it goes live on DTRPG.com this Wednesday!
The Beast Player’s Guide expands on the material presented in Beast: The Primordial, with additional information on the Families and Hungers, what it feels like to be a Beast and experience the Devouring, and how to commune with the Dark Mother. You’ll also find two new Families and two new Hungers!
The book also includes a plethora of new Atavisms, Nightmares, Merits, and Birthrights, as well as systems for creating smaller, subservient versions of the Horror, new forms of Inheritance, and details on the mysterious Obcasus Rites.
There are some things that even a Demon fears – Night Horrors: Enemy Action for Demon: The Descent arrives as an Advance PDF this Wednesday on DTRPG.com!
“Fighting the Machine is like fighting the ocean. You literally cannot hurt it. Doesn’t matter how much poison we dump into the ocean. We’ll only kill the things in it. We’ll never kill it. Same with the God-Machine. Kill angels, traitors, stigmatics, cultists, cryptids, whatever, you’ll never hurt the Machine Itself. No, that doesn’t mean we stop trying. You stop trying, you drown. Screw that.”
—Mr. Bliss, Guardian Inquisitor
Night Horrors: Enemy Action includes:
• Dozens of Storyteller characters, including Unchained, angels, exiles, cryptids, and stigmatics, for use as antagonists, allies, or just inspiration
• Multiple plot hooks and story seeds for your Demon: The Descent chronicles
• A brief look at cults in Demon, including the Ten Thousand Names of God, a secret society fueled by the God-Machine
With a howl of RAGE, the W20 Changing Ways PDF and physical book PoD charges at you this Wednesday on DTRPG.com! http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/229183/W20-Changing-Ways
Changing Ways is an in-depth look at what it means to be a werewolf, both on a personal level and as part of a pack. It digs deep into what it feels like to have bones re-knit after breaking, the range of senses available across all forms, and the sudden heady rush of the Gifts and Rites bestowed by spirits. It also provides a look at what life is like for lupus and metis werewolves, characters who have had experiences alien to any person. It shows the many ways that werewolves organize in packs, and how those packs are designed as groups of warriors, rather than aligned to the behavior of wolves.
Changing Ways contains:
• A detailed look at what it means to grow up as a lupus or metis werewolf, and how that colors a character’s perspective.
• More information on what it feels like to be a werewolf, a creature that changes in both body and mind.
• Frameworks and organizations for packs, along with new tactics and systems for forging the pack as part of play.
Appearing on DriveThruRPG this Wednesday are the PDF and PoD physical book versions of Arms of the Chosen for Exalted 3rd Edition! http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/226224/Arms-of-the-Chosen
Take up the panoply of legendary heroes and lost ages, and awaken the world-shaking might of their Evocations. Before the dawn of time, the Exalted wielded god-metal blades to cast down the makers of the universe. In an ancient epoch of forgotten glories, Creation’s greatest artificers forged unimaginable wonders and miracle-machines.
Now, in the Age of Sorrows, kingdoms go to war over potent artifacts, scavenger princes risk everything to uncover relics of the past, and the Exalted forge great arms and armor on the anvil of legend. These treasures are yours to master.
Discover the mystical power of the five magical materials and the secrets of creating your own Evocations. Wield weapons of fabled might and don the armor of mythic heroes, making their puissance your own. Claim Creation’s wonders: the miraculous tools of the Chosen, living automatons, flying machines, hearthstones, and more. And unleash the mighty warstriders, titanic god-engines of conquest and devastation, to once more shake Creation with their footfalls.
We unveil Vampire: The Requiem 2e‘s Half-Damned as PDF and PoD versions on DTRPG.com this Wednesday!
http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/227500/Half-Damned
I love her, she’s family, but I don’t love what she is.
– Antonio Ramírez, dhampir
This book includes:
• An exploration of what it means to be one of the Half-Damned, dhampir, revenants or ghouls.
• Mechanics for creating Half-Damned characters.
• Information for creating and running chronicles using the various Half-Damned character types, both with vampires and alone.
• Information on Half-Damned antagonists for vampire chronicles.
A Land Where Legends Walk
Drawing enthusiastically on Greek mythology, the revised and re-imagined Scarred Lands nonetheless retains its place as a modern fantasy RPG setting. This is a world shaped by gods and monsters, and only the greatest of heroes can expect to be counted among them. The most populous continent of Scarn, Ghelspad, plays host to vast unexplored regions, hides unsolved riddles from ancient cultures, and taunts adventures with the promise of undiscovered riches hidden among the ruins of older civilizations.
Yet the myths of the Scarred Lands are relatively recent events. The effects of the Titanswar still ripple through the world, and the heroines and villains of many of these stories are part of living memory, if not still living.
The Award-Winning Fantasy Setting Returns
Scarred Lands has been a favorite fantasy setting since the release of the Creature Collection for the d20 System in 2000. In subsequent years, over 40 titles were published for Scarred Lands, making it one of the most fully supported fantasy RPG settings ever and the premiere product line of Sword & Sorcery Studios.
Available in both 5th Edition and Pathfinder compatible versions! PDF and PoD formats available NOW!
http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/193014/Scarred-Lands-Players-Guide-Pathfinder
http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/197803/Scarred-Lands-Players-Guide-OGL-5e
CONVENTIONS!
And now, the new project status updates!
DEVELOPMENT STATUS FROM FAST EDDY WEBB (projects in bold have changed status since last week):
First Draft (The first phase of a project that is about the work being done by writers, not dev prep)
M20 Gods and Monsters (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)
M20 Book of the Fallen (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)
C20 Novel (Jackie Cassada) (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition)
Deviant: The Renegades (Deviant: The Renegades)
CofD Contagion Chronicle (Chronicles of Darkness)
M20 The Technocracy Reloaded (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)
M20 Victorian Mage (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)
Dystopia Rising: Evolution (Dystopia Rising: Evolution)
Spilled Blood (Vampire: The Requiem 2nd Edition)
CofD Dark Eras 2 (Chronicles of Darkness)
Redlines
Guide to the Night (Vampire: The Requiem 2nd Edition)
Second Draft
WoD Ghost Hunters (World of Darkness)
Tales of Good Dogs – Pugmire Fiction Anthology (Pugmire)
Development
Signs of Sorcery (Mage: the Awakening Second Edition)
GtS Geist 2e core (Geist: the Sin-Eaters Second Edition)
Night Horrors: The Tormented (Promethean: The Created 2nd Edition)
Hunter: the Vigil 2e core (Hunter: the Vigil 2nd Edition)
Fetch Quest (Pugmire)
They Came From Beneath the Sea! Rulebook (TCFBtS!)
WW Manuscript Approval:
Editing:
Ex Novel 2 (Aaron Rosenberg) (Exalted 3rd Edition)
Exalted 3rd Novel by Matt Forbeck (Exalted 3rd Edition)
Trinity Continuum: Aeon Rulebook (The Trinity Continuum)
Monarchies of Mau (Monarchies of Mau)
Post-Editing Development:
Changeling: the Lost 2nd Edition, featuring the Huntsmen Chronicle (Changeling: the Lost 2nd Edition)
Dragon-Blooded (Exalted 3rd Edition)
Pan’s Guide for New Pioneers (Pugmire)
The Realm (Exalted 3rd Edition)
Kithbook Boggans (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition)
Scion: Hero (Scion 2nd Edition)
Trinity Continuum Core Rulebook (The Trinity Continuum)
Indexing:
ART DIRECTION FROM MIRTHFUL MIKE:
In Art Direction
Ex3 Monthly Stuff
Scion Hero
Changeling: the Lost 2 – Art is contracted.
Trinity Continuum – Reviewing TC:Aeon artnotes.
Ex3 Dragon Blooded
Boggans – Contracted.
Monarchies of Mau – Sorting through buy and figuring out roster.
Marketing Stuff
In Layout
Scarred Lands Community Content – Covers and knocking together a quick SV logo. Went back and attempted to make the templates easier and more explanatory…
Scion Origin
Wraith 20 Screen – Front approved… now waiting for errata phase to assemble all the charts.
Fetch Quest – Taking some time this week to tweak the card design.
Proofing
Book of Freeholds – Off to Mark to put in page xx’s. I’m doing up the cover this week as well.
Pugmire – Pan’s Explorer’s Guide (or whatever)
Cavaliers of Mars – Art is in progress… but the layout is done and solid enough for Rose to proof.
At Press
Beckett Screen – Shipped to shipper.
Scarred Land PGs & Wise and the Wicked PF & 5e – To fulfillment shipper. PDF and PoD physical book versions on sale at DTRPG. Dice are in, Adventures on their way.
Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition (Changeling: the Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition) – Books and Screens created and are en route from printer to fulfillment shipper.
Prince’s Gambit – At press.
V20 Beckett’s Jyhad Diary– Deluxe edition files sent to printer.
C20 Ready Made Characters – PoD proofs on the way.
Pugmire Artisan Cards – On sale this Wednesday.
Pugmire Shepherd Cards – On sale this Wednesday.
Scion Dice Packaging – Shipping to fulfillment shipper.
Wraith 20 – Backer PDF out, and errata is coming in.
Ring of Spiragos – PoD versions on their way to KS fulfillment shipper.
Pugmire Vinsen’s Tomb – On sale this Wednesday.
Beast PG – Advance PDF on sale at DTRPG.com, errata coming in.
DtD Enemy Action – Advance PDF on sale at DTRPG.com, errata coming in.
TODAY’S REASON TO CELEBRATE: BEWARE THE IDES OF MARCH! (yeah, yeah, we all know that the day/date on the whole Ides thing slid around, so don’t bother writing in – just look out for guys with knives headed for you, okay?)
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Hey everyone! My name is Dominic (Nic for short), and I thought I’d tell you a little bit about me :)
I am a Uranic-flux, Demifluix Genderfaun guy, and I’m happy with he/him, they/them or xe/xyr/xem pronouns. ... I know, this is a little bit complicated! Let’s break it down:
Uranic means I’m attracted to males, masculine non-binary persons, unaligned/androgynous non-binary persons, agender persons and basically anyone except for females or feminine non-binary people.
-Flux is in reference to the fact that I recently found that I fluctuate between feeling sexual attraction and being asexual (not feeling sexual attraction).
-Fluix/Genderfluix/Fluidflux means that my gender switches between different gender identities, but also fluctuates in intensity of those genders. Demifluix means that one aspect of my identity is static (for me, that’s ‘male’) whereas the other parts change.
Genderfaun is a particular type of genderfluid. It is where the gender identity is fluid, but never encompasses being female or feminine. So, I go between male, non-binary, agender, demiboy, masc-aligned non-binary and possibly more (although those are the ones I have so far experienced), but I am never female or female-aligned.
Not everyone will understand how I can identify the way that I do, and the labels that I use can be a bit confusing for some people to get their head around. For this reason, you may find me referring to myself simply as a ‘gay male’, or a ‘gay trans guy’. It’s a much simpler way of stating who I am, although it isn’t entirely accurate.
Thank you for taking the time to read this! If you found this informative, be sure to keep a look-out over the following weeks for my friends! They will tell you a bit about other (mostly simpler) gender identities :)
I am also happy to take requests for name and pronoun validations, answer questions (whether about me, the other characters you’ll meet on my blog, or about anything you may have on your mind) and just have general conversations with people - I love to make new friends!
As you see the other characters pop up on my blog, feel free to request messages personalised from specific characters - they are all fictional (I am the only one behind the screen) but we’re happy to draw you a picture and post something special for you <3 Similarly, you can ask for a validation ‘from an ace character’, ‘from a demiboy character’ or any other identity. I currently have fifteen (including me) characters created, each of different gender identities and sexualities, but if you want something from someone who doesn’t exist yet, I will happily make a character just for you :)
Again, thank you for reading through my long post. You’re all amazing and I hope you have a lovely day, night, week and forever <3
#trans#transgender#nonbinary#NB#uranic#aceflux#ace#asexual#gay#genderfaun#genderfluid#genderflux#fluidflux#fluix#genderfluix#demifluix#characters#positivity#dominic price#safe space
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Pluto
By urasawa x tezuka Is a amazing!!😢😭 I'm sitting in my library enjoying myself with a quick read of perfect girl. When these thick Mangas with Pluto on the side catch my eye.😮 So I decided to read one, on the cover is a cute little girl with a self satisfied smirk and with out reading the back I assume it's some cutest magical girl plotline😃. So I settle in with some music and read....I had no idea the ride I was getting on. I began near the middle with book three there I meet Uran being well Uran explaining that she had to skip school and help the scared animals because they were scared and I fell in love because duh, she a smart mouth little girl who's self sure😋. Soon after we meet her brother Atom who's a nice foil to Uran's attitude...and their not human! WTF😯😕😀 that's great! Finally I decided to check out the back and see that it was written to take place in Astro Boy Universe...which I never read but *shurg* I'm already invested so here I go. Next thing I know I'm devouring the entire book and praying that the next is on the shelf.
It wasn't.
But number 6 is so I read it and the next and the last. Now all eyes in the library are on me because I'm a sobbing mess because Wassily told you not to die, Epilson! He said your name and cried on your shoulders. And you were so kind and loving and hot and understanding and sweet and..and did I mention hot? Anyway I wrote all this to say read Pluto! The art style is distinct and nostalgic. The story raises questions of humanity and what is ethical when it comes to robots with or without AI. I need to find out if there is an Anime of this... but yeah read it!
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12.07.17 get ready I saw falsettos in theatres
it’s always fun being in a theatre mostly full of teenage girls, young gay men, and old couples, (and me and my mum), and just crying a whole bunch. collectively. as a group. anyway below are some chronologically segmented thoughts on this experience™ warning it’s long
“four jews” was so good, so bouncy, so happy. I love my kids. To Be Honest I was already crying a bit tho from the start just with the. uh. knowledge of what is to come
by “tight-knit family” christian borle was Already sweating and honestly, same
in “love is blind”:
the “daddy’s kissing boys” kiss was SEEN and REMEMBERED because BOY HOWDY they MADE OUT
and before that happened andrew did an eyebrow waggle?? and a “come hither” crooked finger beckoning marvin near??? help??
“but so am IIIIIIIIIIII” I love brandon uranowitz, I love mendel
I watched andrew rannells as he did the “ah-ah” and he was a FLAWLESS boy, thank you camera crew for giving this to me
“the thrill of first love”
was so much more??? sexual??????? than I’ve ever seen it be??? andrew rannells put your tongue bACK in your mouth, oh my god
they. were. PALPABLE. that is all I can say
their little bickering and random spurts of dialogue were cute tho. like after The Kiss, whizzer said “that’s all you get” and I was like lmao my boy
legit I’m not joking about how steamy it was like they were mouth to mouth breathing the same air by the last “LOOOOOOOVE” and I was sweating
in “marvin at the psychiatrist” anthony rosenthal is the purest boy, best boy, absolutely flawless, KILLED IT YALL HE DID THAT. VERY PROUD
in “everyone tells jason to see a psychiatrist”
whizzer stared at marvin for sO LONG after the flick.
also can I just mention? andrew rannells? as whizzer? loves jason so much, and you can really tell
in “this had better come to a stop” the fluidity with which andrew rannells delivers his L’s in “late for dinner late again” is just incredible honestly, never fails to impress
“I’m breaking down”
was the first song where the cinema audience clapped really hard along with the filmed audience.
yall sjb killed it, she killed me, it was amazing.
she d e s e c r a t e d that banana
“please come to our house”:
“hello to my house, so good of you to travel on account of my unraveling now let’s eat some food” anthony rosenthal’s fake smile was so on point during the delivery of this entire line and I was like. my boy
“I’ll wait for yoouuuuuuuuuuuuuu” trina held that note for SO long as she left the room, smiling shyly at mendel, and it was cUTE
“a marriage proposal”:
I LOVE MY PARENTS AND THEY LOVE EACH OTHER GOD BLESS
“I’m… not a giant man” “good” AAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!
THEY CONTINUE KISSING EVEN AS MARVIN STARTS SINGING OVER ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STAGE AND THEN THEY HUG THIS IS V IMPORTANT INFORMATION
“a tight-knit family reprise”:
mendel is so??? happy???? marvin pls let him live
“king of the losers” “at eighty an hour” the camera man was just ON MENDEL like. yes my boy deliver it
“I just got a family” “the family was mine” still fuckin gets me. damn. mendel is so happy and just?? full of bliss at his new life??? and marvin is so… act one marvin… you get me
“march of the falsettos”:
Excellent
bran uran’s voice sounded so strained my poor boy
whizzer: “stop pulling my shorts!” marvin: “they’re so hard to take off!” oh my god
whizzer screaming into the void for the blocks to be thrown up like: “hit me! another one!”
the finger thing with marvin and whizzer? yeah that happened. they both gasped in fear
“the chess game”
bitch it was t e n s e
idk andrew rannells made the choice to call marvin “man” a whole bunch in this production and??? ok
after marvin storms off, whizzer is like “mARVIN” still in that growly voice from the last “life’s a sham” (nice) and he starts to say “it was just a g—” and then he sees marvin and goes. quiet
also from midway through this song until the end of act one, andrew rannells has this big Curl of Messy Hair in the middle of his forehead and I’m sorry but it was a blessed sight
“making a home”
hi the little zooms on whizzer? unpacking his suitcase in the corner? being sad? broke my heart, thanks
“could he love me?” the angle of the shot had happy mendel in front and whizzer kind of behind him off to the side and stop this, camera crew, stop
for “the games I play” I have no words. andrew did so good. so good. he was so sad. and he hIT those high notes yES boy. the audience clapped a bit after this one
“marvin hits trina”
he just barges into their house and starts yelling and tears up their wedding invitation like holy fuck marvin, what is ur damage
“I am so dumb.” and there is the longest silence as he walks all the way around before he starts his Lil Rampage
the actual Hit was p quiet but that’s what makes it all the more poignant, because you can hear trina’s little cry of shock and pain, and it takes her a second to bring a hand up to her cheek
after the Hit someone behind me in the audience just. let out an audible breath, like the wind got knocked out of them, and I was like. same bitch
“I never wanted to love you”
EVERYONE. ON STAGE. WAS CRYING.
the mood of this musical changes so quickly when it gets to this song and it’s. Good. like it cleaves my heart in twain don’t think it doesn’t but it’s. good
trina needs a fucking hug (and mendel is going to give her 20)
“how do I start… not to love you” FUCK
whenever marvin looks at jason tbh my heart hurts bye. which bRINGS US TO
“father to son”
the pure adoration and faint amusement on marvin’s face as his son is all like “I think… girls are” like it’s so cUTE
near the end as marvin was singing about love the camera just showed us whizzer? sitting alone in the dark? leaning his head on a corner of the Cube™? how dare you
anyway christian borle was crying and so was I
act two time because there was no intermission which was… not great to be honest oops
“falsettoland”
bran uran had little glow sticks in each hand and at “homosexuals” he just pointed at the audience and the music stalled as he just waved about at them like “YALL ARE ALL GAY JUST TAKE IT”
“and a teeny tiny band” a bunch of little paper cutouts of the band rose up from the Band Area Void and bran uran did a little dance to incite people to love and cherish the band (always love and cherish the band guys they’re so good they do such a good job)
“nancy reagan” andrew slapped the blow up doll so hard lmao
“spiky lesbians” EVERYONE CHEERED AND I WAS LIKE DAMN RIGHT
in “about time” marvin holds jason close and is like “as mature as my son who is tHIS TALL!! that’s all!!” and you really can see… just how much he’s changed, my boy,
“year of the child”:
anthony rosenthal is the cutest kid alive
his little dance between his parents as they’re all like “my chiiiiild” is. just. incredible
“I’ll bring women from the wrong side of the tracks” mendel says out of the corner of his mouth, as he tucks jason under his arm and leads him away, like a bad influence
“the baseball game”
when whizzer first appeared and marvin was all “what is he doing here??” he hid behind charlotte while simultaneously trying to get a good look at whizzer and it was. adorable
whenever marvin touched whizzer’s hair, whizzer couldn’t keep the smile off his face. I’m deceased
“how would I know… without him… my life would be flat as a lake” ok but who is responsible for this lmao
“would it be possible to see you or to…......... kiss you” BASHFUL MARVIN I REPEAT BASHFUL MARVIN
“a day in falsettoland”
“yEEEESSS IiiIiiIII dOOOooOoO” u already know it was perfect, I don’t need to tell you
charlotte pulled cordelia in with the apron and their part of the stage went dark but they kissed, they did, saw it with my own two gay little eyes
“what more can I say”
TOO… SOFT… HELP
andrew had his leggy out
before whizzer rolled over he?? gave marvin a lil kiss on the cheek? it was really audible????? I’m???
when marvin looked under the sheet, instead of his customary simple eyebrow waggle, this man Dared to laugh in delight along with the audience like “yes I love this boy he is mine and I am his and that’s incredible”
ALSO AT THE END when they both just cuddle into each other they… kissed each other’s faces a bunch… h e lp me
“something bad is happening”
charlotte is so upset and I am upset because hERE WE GO
“more racquetball”
the costume department is full of geniuses tbh like the loosening of whizzer’s costume? genuinely just looked like the poor man had lost a bunch of weight
he fell so hard and abruptly and something in me fell with him
“I’m sorry” HIS FACE CRUMPLED AND HE STARTED CRYING
“days like this”
someone forgot to turn on andrew’s mic at the beginning so his mouth said “good morning” but you couldn’t hear it
“kid you’re looking very good today” whizzer just gives a self-deprecating smile and he. he Knows.
cordelia’s laugh is the cutest thing I’ve ever heard in my life
“I’ll let you win, whizzer” “don’t let me win…” “I’ll let you win” I’m really upset, whizzer looked so… wrecked
at the end of “cancelling the bar mitzvah” mendel’s fucking “why don’t we tell him that we don’t have the answers” whole thing got me w r e c k e d. he says those lines like a man who knows how awful it is, but he knows how true it is, and he’s helpless to stop it
“unlikely lovers”
“marvin? did you hear what I said?” they were both crying, you could hear the tears in andrew’s voice, and christian borle kept… sobbing… between his lines…
like when marvin stopped singing and cordelia/charlotte were at the door he just had to crumple for a moment and just lie there shaking?? a broken man?? just to recuperate for the next bit of the song? kill me
the way marvin looks people in the eye and just says “I love you” with the softest voice. god
so “something bad is happening reprise”: charlotte sang this directly to marvin, a steadying hand on his elbow, peering into his eyes past her own film of tears to make sure he understands what she’s saying. and he does. and he just turns away and walks off
“you gotta die sometime”
when he swung his legs out of bed his voice broke from the effort
he got really choked up after the second verse and he was openly crying by the end of it (still killed it tho, my boy)
this is my favourite song but I can’t watch anyone sing it ever
“jason’s bar mitzvah”
jason rushes in, bubbly and cheerful, and andrew is still fucking sobbing and it takes him a while to come down from it and everything hurts
“don’t know why, but he looks… like marvin” fucking crying already and then there’s a little pause, jason is really agitated, and marvin just whispered something like “hey you got this” and I WEPT
marvin kissed jason’s head. he loves this boy so much
whizzer also kissed jason’s head??? jason has so many dads who all love him so much
whizzer’s “thank you” was just a whisper but it rang through the theatre and then it was so quiet. I could not breathe in the space after whizzer’s final line. (I mean I was sobbing but I was real quiet about it)
“what would I do”
andrew was crying, christian was crying, I was crying, it was beautiful tho
whizzer just walks out in his pristine white shirt and it’s. it’s poignant. it’s such a stark contrast from the last time we saw him, it hits really hard
“I’d like to believe that I’d do it again and again and again” the crescendo that christian puts in these lines leading to that really Powerful last “again” shakes me to my fucking core (and yeah, makes me cry, you guessed it)
“we’re just gonna skip that stage” it sounded like it hurt to say that. it hurt to hear it too
just in general there’s this softness to christian borle’s voice when it’s live that’s not really there in the cast recording but it’s really, really beautiful
whizzer gives him one last, sad, little smile before the lights change
there were three men sitting beside me and my mother and they were all sobbing
“falsettoland reprise”
marvin buried his face in his hands for most of this, but there were moments where he didn’t, where he tried to be strong in the face of his loss. he couldn’t do it anymore once they put the gravestone down.
to be honest i could barely see jason put the chess piece down because everything was too blurry from my tears
as my mother put it, “there was no catharsis at the end. it was really, really sad. but it was realistic about that, about death, and love, and everything.”
20000000/10 would watch again, please release a dvd
#this is so long lmao do I ever shut up? no#falsettos#falsettos proshot#alligates says things#alligates has life experiences#that's a new tag#because I saw book of mormon in london two months ago and boy howdy!! forgot to make a post abt all my Thoughts
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Of course the big news is that we’re starting the Trinity Continuum: Aberrant Kickstarter campaign tomorrow, Tuesday July 2nd, at 2pm Eastern US time. And above is one of the pieces of artwork; this one featuring the dramatic moment when Randel Portman manifested his powers. Becoming then, The Fireman – the first known Nova (Aberrant).
Just one Word of Warning about the KS: as of the time I’m writing this, we are still waiting for the OK from Kickstarter after their review of the site. Certainly, we don’t expect issues after 30+ KSs, but if they don’t green-light this in time – just keep an eye out on our social media for when it will be live!
And while I’m at it, please note that you’ll need the Trinity Continuum: Core book in order to play TC: Aberrant, and we’ll have options for how you can include that with your rewards. We’re also going to give backers links for the finished TC: Core character creation chapter and the TC: Core Jumpstart along with the Trinity Continuum: Aberrant preview text released during the Kickstarter.
As previously, our goal with this Kickstarter is to raise the funds to print more books than the ones backers pledge for, so that we can get Trinity Continuum: Aberrant into retail stores. Scion 2nd Edition has only just been available for a month in retail, and our next Storypath System books to go into stores will be the Trinity Continuum: Core and TC: Aeon projects, followed by Dystopia Rising: Evolution and They Came From Beneath the Sea!, so we’re just getting started with introducing Storypath to the world.
Any help you can give by pledging to this Kickstarter will certainly help that effort!
Shunned By The Moon art by Leo Albiero
Like I mentioned last week, I personally have a long history with Aberrant, so I’m really looking forward to seeing where this KS goes. Plus, I got to work with Steve Kenson on this edition, a designer whose work I’ve loved since Mutants and Masterminds, and who was great to chat with on the couple of Diversity in Gaming panels we were on together.
I was so glad that after having pitched him on joining the team, and then poor Steve having to wait years as we hammered out the core Storypath rules, when at last I could finally contact him and say we were moving forward. A fair amount of that gladness was that he was still interested in the project after so much time had passed since we first talked about it!
But he was, and, in fact, you’ll be able to hear his fascinating thoughts on Trinity Continuum: Aberrant, as well as many other games and issues, on this coming Friday’s Onyx Pathcast where he is interviewed by the team!
In parallel with the Trinity Continuum: Aberrant Kickstarter, we continue to run the TC: Aberrant web comic You Are Not Alone right here on this site. So far, we’ve been thrilled with everyone’s comments as the storyline begins to talk about the world situation in TC: Aberrant and hint at the changes we’ve made to the setting in this edition.
Please be assured, we made no changes lightly, but this is very much a new edition, not a continuation of storylines from first edition. Our real world has significantly changed since the late 90’s when Aberrant was conceptualized, and so must the game’s setting. Plus, then, the idea of examining personality cults and deconstructing super hero tropes was still something fresh to the genre…not so much now.
We think we’ve moved the whole setting forward in ways that will thrill newbies and long-time fans alike, but we should know better how that has registered once You Are Not Alone and the TC:Aberrant KS have finished. Come along with us – and let us know what you think – it should be a fun ride!
Related Storypath System news: the Storypath Nexus Community Content site looks like it’ll be ready to go after this week. The July 4th holiday just jams up our effective time, so after this week we’ll be more readier.
Speaking of another world entirely, July is also the start of the Scarred Lands mega-campaign.The Vengeance of the Shunned starts, why, right about now, on the Slarecian Vault Community Content site for SL.
This was all planned by a team of community content authors headed up by Travis Legge, who we just recently brought on to lead the development of Scarred Lands. So, you could think of this mega-campaign as a really huge “audition piece”! But really, there are so many talented people who contributed, and I’m sure you’ll be seeing their names in official projects before long!
Wraith20 Book of Oblivion art by Mel Uran
Finally, I’d just like to encourage our community to give a listen to last Friday’s Onyx Pathcast. Our Trio have had a lot of fun during this past year of podcasting, and while they continue to bring their positive energy to last Friday’s episode, the subject matter is really not something that they are joking about.
The subject is Harassment, which is an issue that we at Onyx Path have been dealing with in a variety of ways since the company was founded. In fact, some of the strongest sections of this Pathcast are when Dixie, Eddy, and Matthew, speak of the different kinds of harassment they have personally encountered during their time in the TTRPG business.
From over-eager fans, to other industry “professionals”, to attacks and threats from strangers on the internet; all of these and more demoralize and frighten the very creators that our community look to for creative and engaging work.
I’ll provide you with another anecdote: if you look at our production in the 2017 time-frame, and the relative dearth of Kickstarters and number of seemingly stalled projects, a large number of these issues were because our creative teams were simply exhausted from dealing with harassment across the board. They had no creative impetus because so much of their time was spent defending themselves, and friends and co-workers.
A large part of our 2018 and 2019 Onyx Path Summits were about how to deal with all this negativity, including my shifting these blogs away from talking directly about these ongoing problems and into focusing on the fun and creative things we are doing. Not as a smoke-screen or panacea, but as a deliberate effort to remind both our community and ourselves of how awesome it is that we are able to create whole worlds for a living.
We can acknowledge the seriousness of the issues involved without letting that drive us away from the truly magical projects we create. You can hear that in the voices of Eddy, Matthew, and Dixie, and the conversation they have.
This is why this episode of the Onyx Pathcast is important.
Please take some time and give it a listen, if only to get a better grasp on the challenges we all face to bring you all of these:
Many Worlds, One Path!
BLURBS!
Kickstarter!
Starting Tuesday July 2nd at 2pm EDT, the Trinity Continuum: Aberrant Kickstarter will blast its super-powered way into our lives!
ONYX PATH MEDIA
Onyx Pathcast art by Michael Gaydos
This Friday’s Onyx Pathcast features world-renowned expert on all things super-heroic in games, Steve Kenson! The gang talk with Steve about his huge body of work, his specific brilliant design work on Trinity Continuum: Aberrant, and his many other interests: https://onyxpathcast.podbean.com/
And Here’s More Media About Our Worlds:
The live Onyx Path News was such a hit last week (watch it again here: https://youtu.be/ssolzT5iGOo) that we’ll be doing it live again this coming Wednesday! Subscribe to our channel and click the bell symbol to be informed whenever a new video goes up!
Matthew’s Contagion Chronicle actual play continues apace with multiple parts uploaded over the last week! Here’s episode seven, where our characters encounter (and slaughter) a bunch of Beshilu: https://youtu.be/U5yrLR1WYmI
Keep watching Travis Legge’s Scarred Lands actual play of Myths & Matchmakers over here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLmiXCaSrrCIjmCJQQ7oLwLNahmDbdn_2J Seriously: he’s one of the best people to watch if you want to find out about this setting!
Devil’s Luck Gaming haven’t stopped with their epic journey through Scarn either: https://www.twitch.tv/DEVILSLUCKGAMING
And our journey through the Scarred Lands doesn’t end yet, as the always excellent Caffeinated Conquests continue to march through the Gauntlet of Spiragos here: https://youtu.be/ygamfg9yBak
Returning to the Chronicles of Darkness, Occultists Anonymous‘ latest episodes of the Mage: The Awakening 2E continue here:
Episode 25: Igniting An Old Flamehttps://youtu.be/2va2Eae2jfcMammon has some time alone to reconnect with an old acquaintance. Atratus speaks with her dead brother. Wyrd has some concerns. Songbird… meditates.
Episode 26: Escalation https://youtu.be/L4pADEK8aPo Atratus, Songbird, and Wyrd the Seer have a discussion of what is necessary to handle the mysterious Letter Man. Plans are made to investigate the original meeting spot. Songbird remains in his room..
And the Keeper of the Archive continues their overview of Scion Second Edition here! https://youtu.be/nCg8aXg1c0c and https://youtu.be/iaLFToU6OD0
Please check any of these out and let us know if you find or produce any actual plays of our games!
ELECTRONIC GAMING
As we find ways to enable our community to more easily play our games, the Onyx Dice Rolling App is now live! Our dev team has been doing updates since we launched based on the excellent use-case comments by our community, and this thing is awesome! (Seriously, you need to roll 100 dice for Exalted? This app has you covered.)
ON AMAZON AND BARNES & NOBLE:
You can now read our fiction from the comfort and convenience of your Kindle (from Amazon) and Nook (from Barnes & Noble).
If you enjoy these or any other of our books, please help us by writing reviews on the site of the sales venue from which you bought it. Reviews really, really help us get folks interested in our amazing fiction!
Our selection includes these fiction books:
OUR SALES PARTNERS:
We’re working with Studio2 to get Pugmire and Monarchies of Mau out into stores, as well as to individuals through their online store. You can pick up the traditionally printed main book, the screen, and the official Pugmire dice through our friends there! https://studio2publishing.com/search?q=pugmire
We’ve added Prince’s Gambit to our Studio2 catalog: https://studio2publishing.com/products/prince-s-gambit-card-game
Now, we’ve added Changeling: The Lost 2nd Edition products to Studio2‘s store! See them here: https://studio2publishing.com/collections/all-products/changeling-the-lost
Scarred Lands (Pathfinder) books are also on sale at Studio2, and they have the 5e version, supplements, and dice as well!:
https://studio2publishing.com/collections/scarred-lands
Scion 2e books and other products are available now at Studio2: https://studio2publishing.com/blogs/new-releases/scion-second-edition-book-one-origin-now-available-at-your-local-retailer-or-online
Looking for our Deluxe or Prestige Edition books? Try this link! http://www.indiepressrevolution.com/xcart/Onyx-Path-Publishing/
And you can order Pugmire, Monarchies of Mau, Cavaliers of Mars, and Changeling: The Lost 2e at the same link! And NOW Scion Origin and Scion Hero are available to order!
On Sale This Week!
This Wednesday, we are offering the Changeling: The Dreaming 20th Anniversary Edition Player’s Guide in PDF and physical book PoD versions on DTRPG!
CONVENTIONS!
Gen Con: August 1st – 4th
Save Against Fear: October 12th – 14th
GameHoleCon: October 31st – November 3rd
We’ll also be back at PAX Unplugged later this year!
And now, the new project status updates!
DEVELOPMENT STATUS FROM EDDY WEBB (projects in bold have changed status since last week):
First Draft (The first phase of a project that is about the work being done by writers, not dev prep)
M20 Victorian Mage (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)
Exalted Essay Collection (Exalted)
Trinity Continuum Jumpstart (Trinity Continuum Core)
Wraith20 Fiction Anthology (Wraith: The Oblivion 20th Anniversary Edition)
One Foot in the Grave Jumpstart (Geist: The Sin-Eaters 2e)
Dragon-Blooded Novella #2 (Exalted 3rd Edition)
Exigents (Exalted 3rd Edition)
Terra Firma (Trinity Continuum: Aeon) Titanomachy (Scion 2nd Edition)
Crucible of Legends (Exalted 3rd Edition)
Many-Faced Strangers – Lunars Companion (Exalted 3rd Edition)
Contagion Chronicle: Global Outbreaks (Chronicles of Darkness)
W20 Shattered Dreams Gift Cards (Werewolf: The Apocalypse 20th)
W20 Art Book (Werewolf: The Apocalypse 20th)
Redlines
Monsters of the Deep (They Came From Beneath the Sea!)
Tales of Aquatic Terror (They Came From Beneath the Sea!)
Kith and Kin (Changeling: The Lost 2e)
Scion: Demigod (Scion 2nd Edition)
Second Draft
Tales of Good Dogs – Pugmire Fiction Anthology (Pugmire)
Dragon-Blooded Novella #1 (Exalted 3rd Edition)
Across the Eight Directions (Exalted 3rd Edition)
Mummy: The Curse 2nd Edition core rulebook (Mummy: The Curse 2nd Edition)
Masks of the Mythos (Scion 2nd Edition)
Scion: Dragon (Scion 2nd Edition)
Geist 2e Fiction Anthology (Geist: The Sin-Eaters 2nd Edition)
Development
WoD Ghost Hunters (World of Darkness)
Oak, Ash, and Thorn: Changeling: The Lost 2nd Companion (Changeling: The Lost 2nd)
M20 The Technocracy Reloaded (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)
Creatures of the World Bestiary (Scion 2nd Edition)
Heirs to the Shogunate (Exalted 3rd Edition)
Scion Companion: Mysteries of the World (Scion 2nd Edition)
Let the Streets Run Red (Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition)
Cults of the Blood Gods (Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition)
Legendlore core book (Legendlore)
City of the Towered Tombs (Cavaliers of Mars)
TC: Aeon Jumpstart (Trinity Continuum: Aeon)
Manuscript Approval
Trinity Continuum: Aberrant core (Trinity Continuum: Aberrant)
Pirates of Pugmire (Realms of Pugmire)
Hunter: The Vigil 2e core (Hunter: The Vigil 2nd Edition)
Chicago Folio/Dossier (Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition)
Deviant: The Renegades (Deviant: The Renegades)
TC: Aeon Ready-Made Characters (Trinity Continuum: Aeon)
Editing
Memento Mori: the GtSE 2e Companion (Geist: The Sin-Eaters 2nd Edition)
Night Horrors: Nameless and Accursed (Mage: the Awakening Second Edition)
Spilled Blood (Vampire: The Requiem 2nd Edition)
Lunars: Fangs at the Gate (Exalted 3rd Edition)
Heroic Land Dwellers (They Came From Beneath the Sea!)
DR:E Threat Guide – Helnau’s Guide to Wasteland Beasties (Dystopia Rising: Evolution)
DR:E Jumpstart (Dystopia Rising: Evolution)
Post-Editing Development
M20 Book of the Fallen (Mage: the Ascension 20th Anniversary Edition)
V5 Chicago By Night (Vampire: The Masquerade)
V5 Chicago By Night Screen (Vampire: The Masquerade)
CofD Contagion Chronicle (Chronicles of Darkness)
Distant Worlds (Trinity Continuum: Aeon)
Dark Eras 2 (Chronicles of Darkness)
Indexing
ART DIRECTION FROM MIRTHFUL MIKE!
In Art Direction
Contagion Chronicle
Dark Eras 2
M20 Book of the Fallen
VtR Spilled Blood – Waiting on the splat art.
Trinity Continuum Aeon: Distant Worlds – Sketches coming in.
Trinity Continuum Aberrant – KS Sketches and finals coming in.
Hunter: The Vigil 2e
Ex3 Lunars
They Came From Beneath the Sea
TCFBtS!: Heroic Land Dwellers
Night Horrors: Nameless and Accursed
Ex3 Monthly Stuff
In Layout
V5: Chicago – A couple of chapters left to go!
Trinity Core – Getting cover specs from printer.
Trinity Aeon – Getting cover specs from printer.
CoM – Witch Queen of the Shadowed Citadel
Proofing
DR: E – annotated proof back to Josh
Aeon Aexpansion
C20 Cup of Dreams – This week.
Ex 3 Monthlies
At Press
Dragon Blooded – Deluxe shipping to Studio2.
Dragon-Blooded Cloth Map – Shipped to Studio2.
Dragon-Blooded Screen – Printing.
The Realm – PoD proofs ordered.
Trinity Core Screen – Printing.
TC Aeon Screen – Printing.
C20 Player’s Guide – PDF and PoDs for sale Wednesday!
Geist 2e – Need to input Errata.
Book of Oblivion – Putting in errata.
Trinity: In Media Res – PoD proofs ordered.
Scion Jumpstart – Gathering errata from Backer PDFs.
Scion Ready-Made Characters – Gathering errata from Backer PDFs.
Blood Sea – Errata being input.
WtF Shunned by the Moon – Advance PDF prepping for next week.
Today’s Reason to Celebrate!
On this day, at about 11:30 in the morning after 23.5 hours of labor, my first daughter was born, singing, well cooing, from first breath and looking right into my eyes with her baby blues. And today, she’s a Psychiatric Resident and mother of her own cute little baby. Time, it flies! Love ya, kid!
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