Ask Cueball

A story-driven ask blog for Orbot, Cubot, and Ergo from Sonic The Hedgehog. Run by BG. (@bgsartcavern) Rules + Info (Google Doc) Works best on Desktop.

[ask-cueball]

Welcome to ASK CUEBALL, an interactive fancomic starring Orbot, Cubot, Ergo, and Tribot from Sonic the Hedgehog!

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Created by @bgsartcavern. All characters property of SEGA.

[ask-cueball]

Once again, happy birthday to our wonderful-est pink pyramid, Tribot!!

I hope everyone has had a wonderful April Fools Day! I know I've been gone a while (again), but I'm ready to announce some changes to Ask Cueball...

I've decided the direction we're taking is changing a bit. So I'm excited to reveal these sneak-peaks of redesigns for the upcoming-and-definitely-real Mecha Arc! All I'll show for now is the head designs, but I hope this excites you for what's definitely, actually, totally gonna happen..!

(If it wasn't clear, this is another April Fools bit, haha! These designs are indeed for something of mine, but not Ask Cueball...)

[ask-cueball]

"...Tribot, do you really expect me to wear this..?"

Happy Birthday Ergo!! (I'm a few minutes late but it doesn't look like he cares too much.) November 18th 2008 is when Sonic Unleashed released, and thus the start of all future shapebots was born! And also the werehog. We love werehog in this house.

I've been taking on extra work irl to try and get some more income so that's why this is a bit late, but I am working on the next post and I hope for it to be out soon!!

[ask-cueball]

Sonic Colors came out November 11, 2010, making it Orbot and Cubot's birthday! (The hats were Cubot's idea. He made them himself are you proud of him?)

Also no this isn't late it's still a couple minutes before midnight in my timezone LOL

Hoping that I can have a real post out within the next week or two, key word there is hoping but we keep on truckin!

[cubotkinnie]

idk what to put here, just admire the drawing i made of the ask cueball ergo :3

@ask-cueball

[ask-cueball]

Oh I LOVE this so much!!!! Sorry I'm so late, I really do adore this, love seeing some Errgo love <3

[ask-cueball]

Lil status update, the next post IS being drawn currently! I was on a trip out of state for 3 weeks and it made it difficult to work on anything, let alone this comic, but I'm home and settled now so I'm more capable of working on things.

I mostly wanted to just make this post saying that the Cohost I was setting up for Ask Cueball is now unfortunately cancelled, as Cohost announced earlier this month that they will be shutting down by the end of the year. I am still looking at alternative options, including Pillowfort, as well as possibly setting something up on a Neocities when I have the time to fiddle with all that code. But until then, this Tumblr account is still the only place to read Ask Cueball. Anywhere else is a repost, and is NOT approved by me in any way.

[ask-cueball]

Welcome back, after such a long hiatus, to Ask Cueball: Arc 2!!

As you can see, I decided to return to Tumblr! I am also going to set up a Cohost and possibly a Pillowfort for the comic as well - however they aren't up quite yet, as I'm actually away from home on a large trip and will be until the end of the month. Normally I would wait until things are less hectic to post, especially since I haven't decided on a new schedule (I work Saturdays now, so it's not a feasible schedule anymore), but today is also the 4th anniversary of Ask Cueball, and I felt there would be no better time than now to bring us back! It's been in the works for a long time, so I hope you enjoy what I have in store.

And, HAPPY 4 YEARS!!

(P.S. - the Discord server is now open to the public again! The old link should still work, and I'll have a pinned post up by tomorrow that will have the link as well. Feel free to stop in!)

[ask-cueball]

...so. Tumblr's gone through a lot the past week or two, huh..?

With this new update, I...don't think I feel comfortable posting Ask Cueball to Tumblr anymore. I've already switched all the toggles to opt-out of them selling my work to the AI companies, but I also know from here that they've already compiled and sent the data, including things that should never have been sent like post drafts, private posts, and all the unanswered asks that you all have sent in. My work, and your work, is already in the hands of the AI companies, without our consent. And most of my work is old enough that Glaze didn't even exist yet, so of course there was no protection on it when the data was compiled. Plus, you can't Glaze text.

...I haven't decided where I'm moving yet. I'll let you all know once I figure it out, and I won't delete anything here until I've relocated, so you'll still be able to read the comic. But between the AI stuff and the recent public treatment of trans people on this site, I don't want to host my art here anymore, not like this. As of right now, I'm considering a Cohost and/or a Neocities site, and am looking out for other options as well. The Ask Cueball Discord is remaining active and you're always welcome to join (it's been pretty quiet since the blog's also been pretty quiet, but I am active on Discord all the time so if you show up I'll be there!) And while it's not Ask Cueball related, or a social site at all, I do have an ArtFight as well.

Sorry to give you guys an update like this, I know you'd rather be seeing some funny shape robots by now. Hope you all understand, and hopefully it won't be too long until we find a place better suited for us.

[ask-cueball]

Hi there. I've known about this blog for a while now, when I was looking on Tumblr for posts about Tribot. I haven't been following the overall plot of this blog, but I'm curious to know if you've ever considered utilizing Conebot in some capacity.

Hi!! Sorry for the radio silence on this blog, I've had a lot going on, plus with recent rumors I really gotta focus on protecting my old art instead of posting new stuff unfortunately.

To answer your question, I have indeed considered! However, I'll only ever add a new character, especially a new shapebot (as they're very clearly not mass-produced like say, an Egg Pawn) if I find a way to bring them in and keep them in a way that's plot relevant and engaging, as I don't want a flood of characters who are just here for no reason and don't push the plot forward in any way. So as of right now I won't confirm or deny the inclusion of any other shapebots, be them canon (e.g. Conebot, Cubot Prototypes) or my own OCs, but the other lesser-known shapebots have not been forgot about :) Thanks for the question!

[ask-cueball]

"All things considered…he took that better than I thought he would."

We're back, everyone!

[toto-la-estrella]

Para celebrar que volvió es comic de ask cueball un dibujo de mi parte favorita

To celebrate its return, this is a comic from Ask Cueball, a drawing of my favorite part.

@ask-cueball

[ask-cueball]

Happy (belated) birthday to Orbot and Cubot!! Plus an Ergo and Tribot because I can. (This was meant to be posted yesterday but things got FAR too busy.)

I'll use this as a chance to announce that on Saturday, November 18th, aka Ergo's birthday, the next Ask Cueball post will be released!! I want to thank everyone for their patience and support, and I hope you all enjoy what's coming next!

If you're wondering why the Orbot and Cubot arts are so much newer than the Tribot and Ergo ones...it's because the original Orbot and Cubots from this doodle page were much less happy:

And I figured these probably weren't ideal for a post celebrating their birthday. (These aren't spoilers for the next arc to be clear, they're depictions of the first arc's struggles.)

[ask-cueball]

Hey...been a while, hasn't it?

So this comic has been at a standstill for a while now. I'd like to have a talk about that, and about how we'll be going forward from here, and I need to ask your opinion on something as well. There's a poll under the cut but I'd appreciate if you could read the rest of my ramble before voting.

So, uh...prepare for a word wall, heh. Sorry.

This year has been slow for Ask Cueball for several reasons. First, Arc 1 ended, and there was a long break because of that. Then physical injuries made me unable to draw for a long time. But neither of those really apply anymore. I've healed from my injury (and learning to help what didn't heal) and if you follow my main art blog you'd know that I've been drawing again for a while.

So I've been thinking lately about why it's been so hard for me to work on Ask Cueball, and I think it comes down to two things - one part of it has to do with my art and how it's grown and changed, and the other is my interests and how THOSE have grown and changed.

I do like Ask Cueball's art style, I like how simple and clean and consistent and expressive it is. I think Ask Cueball is really what helped me start to develop my own personal style. But at the same time...at this point, my style has evolved beyond it. Ask Cueball was drawn with a mouse on an old broken laptop. Since then, everything has updated and changed. It feels counterproductive to go back to my old methods of art, like I'm limiting myself, going backwards.

And then when it comes to interests...once again if you follow my art blog, you've probably noticed I haven't drawn anything Sonic or shapebot related in a long time. Things change, I've discovered new things, found myself in fandoms that are...honestly WAY kinder and chiller than the Sonic fandom (because let's be honest, even in our little corner of shapebot hell with a population of like 20 people there's still been some drama).

But, all that said...I still love this place. I love the story, the characters, all of it. I love my fans, especially those who have stuck around even throughout this slow, uneventful year. I love this comic. Which is why I'm refusing to end it here. I want to keep Ask Cueball going, and I've set a hard deadline for myself to release a comic post in November. After that, well...this is where I need your help.

How do YOU guys want me to continue the comic? (please read at least the bottom half the post before voting!!)

Continue the comic, the same as it was, with the old art style.

Continue the comic, but with sketches instead.

Cancel the comic, and tell us a written summary of what the plot would've been.

Obligatory "I didn't read all that I just wanna press a button" option

Voting ended onOct 25, 2023

My thought was that maybe it might be quicker for me to update Ask Cueball if I did it in sketches? But I don't want to lower the visual quality...and then that last legitimate option, the one with the comic being cancelled? I will only do that one if it gets above 90% approval. I don't want to end the comic like that, I want to see it through to completion, but if this is what we think we need to do then we will do it.

So basically, this poll is asking what's more important to you, the speed or the quality:

The first option will likely be slowest, but the comic won't lose ANY of it's quality or polish. This is what I'd like to do but I worry about how long it may be between posts.

The second option should be a little quicker, but the comic will be worse, sloppier with little-to-no color, and will no longer have its clean quality.

The third option (again, only happens if it gets above 90%) will be the quickest, as I will just tell you the remaining story over probably 1-3 posts, with little to no art at all, and then it will be done. The comic is over.

Regardless of what wins, the next post will be coming out in November, and it will be in the old style, as it is partially complete and I don't want to switch styles mid-post. I do not guarantee returning to our old weekly posting schedule, REGARDLESS of which option wins the vote.

I felt guilty that I missed the 3rd Anniversary in September, but I also felt like I hadn't done enough this year to really celebrate the 3rd year as though the blog was still going as strong as it had before. I hope that going forward, we won't have to miss the 4th too.

TL;DR - Ask Cueball hasn't been active much this year for several reasons, but it will be coming back.

[ask-cueball]

Looks like we're going with the original plan!! Thanks everyone for voting, it makes me happy to see people still want this comic to continue even with how little I've been able to give this year. Expect an update in November soon!!

[ask-cueball]

Hey...been a while, hasn't it?

So this comic has been at a standstill for a while now. I'd like to have a talk about that, and about how we'll be going forward from here, and I need to ask your opinion on something as well. There's a poll under the cut but I'd appreciate if you could read the rest of my ramble before voting.

So, uh...prepare for a word wall, heh. Sorry.

This year has been slow for Ask Cueball for several reasons. First, Arc 1 ended, and there was a long break because of that. Then physical injuries made me unable to draw for a long time. But neither of those really apply anymore. I've healed from my injury (and learning to help what didn't heal) and if you follow my main art blog you'd know that I've been drawing again for a while.

So I've been thinking lately about why it's been so hard for me to work on Ask Cueball, and I think it comes down to two things - one part of it has to do with my art and how it's grown and changed, and the other is my interests and how THOSE have grown and changed.

I do like Ask Cueball's art style, I like how simple and clean and consistent and expressive it is. I think Ask Cueball is really what helped me start to develop my own personal style. But at the same time...at this point, my style has evolved beyond it. Ask Cueball was drawn with a mouse on an old broken laptop. Since then, everything has updated and changed. It feels counterproductive to go back to my old methods of art, like I'm limiting myself, going backwards.

And then when it comes to interests...once again if you follow my art blog, you've probably noticed I haven't drawn anything Sonic or shapebot related in a long time. Things change, I've discovered new things, found myself in fandoms that are...honestly WAY kinder and chiller than the Sonic fandom (because let's be honest, even in our little corner of shapebot hell with a population of like 20 people there's still been some drama).

But, all that said...I still love this place. I love the story, the characters, all of it. I love my fans, especially those who have stuck around even throughout this slow, uneventful year. I love this comic. Which is why I'm refusing to end it here. I want to keep Ask Cueball going, and I've set a hard deadline for myself to release a comic post in November. After that, well...this is where I need your help.

How do YOU guys want me to continue the comic? (please read at least the bottom half the post before voting!!)

Continue the comic, the same as it was, with the old art style.

Continue the comic, but with sketches instead.

Cancel the comic, and tell us a written summary of what the plot would've been.

Obligatory "I didn't read all that I just wanna press a button" option

Voting ended onOct 25, 2023

My thought was that maybe it might be quicker for me to update Ask Cueball if I did it in sketches? But I don't want to lower the visual quality...and then that last legitimate option, the one with the comic being cancelled? I will only do that one if it gets above 90% approval. I don't want to end the comic like that, I want to see it through to completion, but if this is what we think we need to do then we will do it.

So basically, this poll is asking what's more important to you, the speed or the quality:

The first option will likely be slowest, but the comic won't lose ANY of it's quality or polish. This is what I'd like to do but I worry about how long it may be between posts.

The second option should be a little quicker, but the comic will be worse, sloppier with little-to-no color, and will no longer have its clean quality.

The third option (again, only happens if it gets above 90%) will be the quickest, as I will just tell you the remaining story over probably 1-3 posts, with little to no art at all, and then it will be done. The comic is over.

Regardless of what wins, the next post will be coming out in November, and it will be in the old style, as it is partially complete and I don't want to switch styles mid-post. I do not guarantee returning to our old weekly posting schedule, REGARDLESS of which option wins the vote.

I felt guilty that I missed the 3rd Anniversary in September, but I also felt like I hadn't done enough this year to really celebrate the 3rd year as though the blog was still going as strong as it had before. I hope that going forward, we won't have to miss the 4th too.

TL;DR - Ask Cueball hasn't been active much this year for several reasons, but it will be coming back.

[ask-cueball]

...I thought I'd healed up. I've been taking it easy, drawing way less than usual, but even with all that my hands are unusable again. It hasn't even been a week since they felt better. I'm really sorry but until I can figure out how to fix this the comic is gonna be updated on a "you get it when you get it" basis. Because I can't keep a schedule like this.

[ask-cueball]

My hands and wrists are healing very well, but I don't want to stress them and make them worse again, so I'll have to skip this week's update. Given my rate of improvement, I should be back next week.

[ask-cueball]

So I'm hoping that I can get a post out this weekend, but my hands are currently unusable and I have to use voice to text to make this post. Hopefully I recover before Saturday both for the sake of the comic and because I have work on Saturday, but we'll see.