Hello! Thank you so much for clicking on this. A while ago, I was asked to do an essay explaining why people ship SolKy other than the whole rivals/opposites attract reason, and I got a lot of feedback stating it was useful for newcomers to the ship! As a result I’ve decided to post this on tumblr, but just on the ship’s tag as to not bother uninterested people.
A couple of disclaimers before I begin. This is firstly just my own opinion, so whilst it makes sense for me, other shippers may disagree with my points. I’m also not claiming they are canon because they are not. But I do hope it’ll give some insight into why some people like me enjoy them together.
Even once you’ve read this essay, you can still dislike SolKy. This isn’t an essay stating you have to ship them.
This will be extremely long as I basically cover every single interaction they’ve ever had with each other since I know some people sort of gloss over their dialogue, so grab yourself a drink, get comfy, and I hope you enjoy reading!
(Last edited: 09/05/2021. This will be updated again when Strive releases!)
Ima get canceled for this so badly but GOD I LOVE SOLKY (I do also love DizzyKy too btw) AND THIS ANALYSIS JUST MAKES ME LOVE IT MORE.
So actually let me add to this analysis by giving my argument against the common points of why people think SolKy is “bad”. Now this is particularly because the Proship/Antiship discourse got a hold of this ship and tries to claim it’s “immoral” to like it. I am, similar to the Doreamu-san (original op), not saying you have to like this ship or ship it yourself just refuting misinformation I see spread.
…but seriously I always worry getting canceled for talking about this ship even though I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it. I’m tired of that and rather talk freely. So yeah for the record I like both SolKy and DizzyKy, pls don’t cancel me?
I logged back into my old Tumblr so I could reblog this despite not being in the GG fandom anymore. I will always care deeply for SolKy, so thank you for adding your points! I especially agree with the age gap one — given Sol's age, most ships for him will be inherently problematic.
Hello! It has been an extremely long time. I wanted to make a post regarding my content on AO3 and what is going to happen to it.
As you probably know, I have been inactive in the Guilty Gear fandom ever since Strive. Throughout the years I've grown greatly as a writer and been involved in another fandom. Whilst I was always fine with my Guilty Gear writing, I am at a place where I am extremely proud of how my writing has changed throughout the years.
As a result, I wish to take down/rewrite some of my previous Guilty Gear fanfiction. It is not because I am ashamed of it, but because I believe what I can produce now is of a much higher quality, and I'd like to give that to the community instead of my previous writing.
I know it can be upsetting to those when a story they like gets taken down from the internet, so if you did like my writing in its past state, please feel free to save it, as I cannot guarantee I'll archive it.
Regarding my other endeavours such as the SolKy repository, my next step will be to update the archive to the links of all of the lovely scans sidra has done.
Thank you for reading and supporting me in the past!
Hi my name is Sol Badguy and I have long dark chestnut brown hair (that’s not how I got my name) with no streaks and no tips that reaches my ass and golden brown eyes like on firre dragons and a lot of people tell me I look like Freddy Mercury (AN: if u don’t know who she is get da hell out of here!). I’m not related to Daisuke Ishiwatari but I wish I was because he’s a major fucking hottie. I’m a gear but my teeth are straight and white. I don’t have pale white skin. I’m also a scientist, and I go to a magic army called the Holy Order in Illyria where I’m in the seventh year (I’m two hundred and seventeen). I’m a goth (in case you couldn’t tell) and I wear mostly red. I love Hot Topic and I buy all my belts from there. For example today I was wearing a red jacket with matching belts around it and a black leather belt, brown belts and red belt boots. I was wearing black lipstick, no foundation, black eyeliner and red eye shadow. I was walking outside the holy order. It was snowing and raining so there was no sun, which I was very happy about. Ky kiske stared at me. I put up my middle finger at them.
The link got updated once again! The server has been around for almost two years now. We share scenes from the mangas, doujinshis, clips, audio snippets, ideas, headcanons and more!
If you wish to join, paste the below text into the search bar and please remove the brackets around the . !
Hello! Thank you so much for clicking on this. A while ago, I was asked to do an essay explaining why people ship SolKy other than the whole rivals/opposites attract reason, and I got a lot of feedback stating it was useful for newcomers to the ship! As a result I’ve decided to post this on tumblr, but just on the ship’s tag as to not bother uninterested people.
A couple of disclaimers before I begin. This is firstly just my own opinion, so whilst it makes sense for me, other shippers may disagree with my points. I’m also not claiming they are canon because they are not. But I do hope it’ll give some insight into why some people like me enjoy them together.
Even once you’ve read this essay, you can still dislike SolKy. This isn’t an essay stating you have to ship them.
This will be extremely long as I basically cover every single interaction they’ve ever had with each other since I know some people sort of gloss over their dialogue, so grab yourself a drink, get comfy, and I hope you enjoy reading!
(Last edited: 09/05/2021. This will be updated again when Strive releases!)
How this all began
If we’re starting right at the beginning, it’s common knowledge that Ky and Sol weren’t exactly on great terms and often clashed most of the time due to their conflicting beliefs. Ky saw the world in terms of black and white, and had very strict rules on what constituted as right and wrong. Sol seemed to think differently and went against that, which was a stark contrast compared to the other Order members at the time.
Considering that they were in fact, in the middle of a war, you would think that generally people would be willing to put their differences aside and work together.
But Sol wasn’t like everyone else, going off and doing his own thing instead of actually listening to orders, so it’s understandable why Ky found him rather irritating.
However, Ky did grow curious of Sol. Obviously curiosity does not equate to love, but it is the basis of Ky wanting to become more friendly with and know more about Sol. There seemed to be something that Sol knew but Ky didn’t, but how was that possible..? As a result, despite how infuriating he could be, Ky sought to seek out the truth and so fought him for answers.
In regards to why exactly they fight (aside from the fact that this is a fighting game), Ishiwatari wrote something called ‘Hostility is Akin to Love’ right above a picture of them fighting:
Hostility is akin to love
Thinking of your opponent’s actions to fight,
Reading your opponent’s inner thoughts to fight,
Planning attacks that will hit your opponent to fight,
And then transmitting your thoughts with those attacks,
The more you think of your own advantage, at the same time you think of your opponent,
In the instant you mix with your opponent, a passionate feeling arises, and blood boils,
Reality is hurt, and you wound your opponent,
Hostility is akin to love.
— Guilty Gear Isuka Mook
It states how fighting someone can be close to feelings of love because you have to think about what your opponent is doing, as well as how you’re going to respond to your opponent. Overtime, you start to memorise how your opponent thinks, and as a result you’ll know them on a deeper level.
So considering the above, this explains how even though they weren’t on friendly terms, they still formed a bond with one another.
Now we’ve established how exactly their relationship started, and why Ky was curious about Sol in the first place, let’s look at things from Sol’s perspective.
Sol’s attitude towards Ky
We know that Sol was also pretty annoyed by Ky, which was totally justifiable given the extreme way in which Ky thought the world worked. But Sol didn’t exactly dislike Ky.
In order to provide some evidence that Sol cares about Ky, let’s cover that infamous scene everyone likes to reference which shows Sol crying over Ky’s dead body:
Sol: "I came to pick you up."
Ky: "Always coming late... you never could fix that..."
Sol: "You..."
Ky: "As to be expected... until the very end... I could never beat you..."
Sol: "Don't say anything!"
Ky: "I have... a request..."
Sol: "I said shut up!"
Ky: "After Commander Kliff... carry on... the Holy Order..."
Sol: "Stop it... that's your job!"
Ky: "Please... promise me..."
Sol: "Dammit..."
Ky: "If it's you... you can do..."
Sol: "Hey.... what's wrong. Hey! KYYYYYY!"
— Guilty Gear XX Drama CD Side Red, Battle of Rome — Deathmatch
A lot of people bring this quote up when discussing SolKy and yes, it does show Sol cares about Ky considering how Sol never really cares about anyone in general, but the fact that Ky’s death managed to make him emotional shows what an impact Ky had on him. There are however more quotes that show Sol’s feelings.
There’s this scene in the GG Xtra manga, Ky and Sol get attacked by a mountain-sized gear. In order to save them, Sol rips off his limiter and Dragon Installs. This scene is very poignant when you take into consideration what Sol said in After Story A:
Sol: "Back during the Crusades, before we met... Kliff told me this rumour about a prodigy swordsman."
Sol: "If you couldn't guess, that was you. I didn't give a shit at the time..."
Sol: "But then I saw you on the battlefield."
Sol: "I saw someone out there who surpassed all of my expectations. Or perhaps I should say 'something.'"
Sol: "No openings, no wasted movements, no carelessness, no hesitation, no embarrassment, not even any honor. No chivalry or mercy. A being unaffected by emotion."
Sol: "You were a killing machine. Taking down gears with brutal efficiency."
Ky: "...That was a long time ago."
Sol: "I'm not done talking. I've seen the face of the 'serious' Ky."
Sol: "Then one day, you challenged me."
Sol: "You wanna know what I thought right then?"
Ky: "..."
Sol: "I was afraid. Hell, I was scared shitless."
Sol: "'He figured out that I'm a Gear, and he's come to kill me.' That's what I thought."
— Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-, After Story A
Sol admits that he knows just how scary Ky can be. Since Ky was extremely against Gears, if Ky found out that Sol was a Gear, then Ky would have most likely attempted to kill him. But Sol knew this and was willing to die for Ky’s sake, and transformed anyway:
Ky: "Sol..."
Ky: (Really... that's really..)
Ky: (That's really you!?)
Ky: "SOL!"
Sol: "Shut it..."
Sol: "I didn't do it..."
Sol: "To help you out—...."
— Guilty Gear Xtra, Chapter 5: Unspeakable Thoughts
Going off on a bit of a tangent from Sol’s feelings, but I just want to point out Ky’s state of mind at this point. Ky in this time period was still very anti-Gear, as it was only through this moment and his encounters with Solaria and Dizzy later that made him change his way of thinking. It took a long time for Ky to accept Gears, and he still had the remains of that mindset in him when he had Sin, as he refused to make eye contact with him because Ky was ashamed of having a Gear child. So the fact that Ky knew Sol was a Gear, believed all Gears were evil, but still decided to accept Sol into his life and wanted to support him regardless of that, is interesting.
Back to Sol, another small quote that manages to show Sol’s feelings towards Ky is this:
Sol: (Maybe I'll finish them off while I'm at it...)
Sol: (But that would mean breaking my promise to Ky...)
— Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus R, Sol Badguy Path 2
Now, Sol doesn’t care about 99% of what other people do as long as they don’t get in his way. The fact that he intends to keep his promise with Ky suggests that he holds Ky in somewhat ‘high’ regards compared to others.
There’s also this quote that shows Sol is thinking about Ky in Overture:
The frustrations of the man wielding a giant sword were piling day by day, and a familiar face appeared in his head.
What’s he up to right now?
“Hmph, whatever…”
With a feeling of self-contempt, Sol Badguy shook his head.
What am I getting sentimental for?
— Guilty Gear 2: Overture, #0 “Noise”
And when Sol encounters Raven later on after seeing Ky incapacitated, Raven points out how he can tell Sol is upset, meaning Sol’s not really doing a good job of pretending he’s still indifferent to Ky.
Raven: "You're as ruthless as ever, huh, monster?"
Sol: "Look who's talking."
Raven: "Can you not put down your sword and talk? I understand you're upset with Ky Kiske defeated."
Sol: "I'll ask your corpse for answers."
— Guilty Gear 2: Overture, #5 "Gaze of the Chronicle"
Sol’s thoughts about Ky become even clearer during his confrontation with Sin when he’s under the influence of Valentine, where Sol defends Ky’s actions and tries to make Sin understand Ky is not 100% at fault:
Sin: "Can you see it? Can you feel it? This is my real power. This is my mother's strength."
Sol: "But it's light. It must be from your father."
Sin: "Shut up! Don't ever mention him!"
Sin: "He abandoned my mother and me using justice as an excuse!"
Sin: "Who cares about the King!? Who cares about the people!? That man, and that Kingdom, not one of them can protect a damn thing!"
Sol: "I don't give a damn about your family."
Sol: "But you know what, Ky may be a stubborn idiot, but at least he's true to his beliefs."
Sol: "A punk like you is still alive thanks to his justice."
— Guilty Gear 2: Overture, #15 "Roaring Compass"
Okay, that’s the pre-Xrd era for Sol done, now to focus on Ky’s pre-Xrd’s emotions.
Ky’s attitude towards Sol
We’ve established earlier that Ky was annoyed by Sol and disliked him in the Crusades. However, afterwards it seems as if Ky saw himself as friends with Sol:
Ofc1: "All of them seem to have been destroyed by... fire?"
Ofc2: "Yeah... why could that be?"
Ky: "........"
Ky: "Change our course!"
Ky: "Head towards the Eastern United States!"
Ofc1: "May I ask why, Chief Ky?"
Ky: "To meet an old friend."
— Guilty Gear Xtra, Chapter 4: Former Friends
We know that Ky outwardly expressed his first signs of liking Sol when Sol stole the Fuuenken and Ky chased after him, only for Sol to win in their duel, and Ky says this:
Ky: "Promise me one thing..."
Sol: "..What?"
Ky: "We'll meet again."
Sol: "Hmph... Well, if fate brings us together..."
Ky: "..That's fine."
— Guilty Gear XX Accent Core Plus R, Sol Badguy Path 1
It’s pretty interesting that Ky wanted to see Sol again despite how Sol never used to listen to his orders, and how Sol never even tried to act like what the Order expected their men to act like (chivalrous, putting the people first, etc). It at least shows us that Ky saw possibly the potential of becoming friends with Sol. And Sol didn’t even say straight up ‘no’ or ‘in your dreams’ or whatever Badguy-esque notion he usually would’ve done, so we can assume he doesn’t mind seeing Ky again either.
Then they don’t speak to each other properly for 5 years until the tournament that Testament holds, though they have probably ran into each other a few times within those years.
A common misconception people have is that during those 5 years, Ky was obsessed with Sol and would constantly try to find him. Obviously, this is not true. Ky was busy with IPF stuff and Sol was hunting Gears down.
However, it’s not as if Ky completely forgot about Sol — he was just probably at the back of his mind, and Ky does admit that he has been chasing after Sol the most more than anyone else:
Ky: (Waiting outside for me when I left the ship... burning red flames. Soon, they seem to take the shape of a man... and he appears before me. Yes... it's him. The one I've been after the most... it's him.)
— Guilty Gear X Drama CD, Vol. 1: Track Seven — Crater
There’s also these two other quotes:
Ky: (Sol...)
Ky: (Why are you so stubborn about doing things alone?)
— Guilty Gear Xtra, Chapter 5: Unspeakable Thoughts
You can interpret this in two ways: either Ky wants to help Sol out and/or he’s curious as to why Sol always does stuff alone.
And then there’s this:
Ky: "Maintaining peace, law, and order. That is my duty."
Sol: "Whatever..."
Ky: "You and I, we are cut from the same cloth."
Ky: "How long are you going to keep that facade?"
Sol: "..."
Ky: "Answer me Sol!"
— Guilty Gear Judgment, Sol and Ky Ending
Being ‘cut from the same cloth’ is quite a strong statement. The phrase means that Ky thought he and Sol were similar somehow, and that he shared something with Sol. Regardless, the ‘how long are you going to keep that facade’ at least shows that Ky knows Sol is intentionally acting distant/rough/etc. and that its not actually who he is.
Jumping to pre-Overture, just before Ky gives Sin to Sol, Ky is in a really depressive state due to all of the stress he’s been going through. This leads Dizzy to contact Sol. The fact that Sol is called means that Dizzy knows that Sol is possibly the only person who can help Ky at that point, which puts some emphasis on just how much Sol means to Ky or at least affects him.
Before I move onto Xrd, there’s this part where Ky gives his son to Sol. This proves he trusts Sol so much considering he was asking him to take care of Sin for a long period of time.
Ky: “Sol....I want to request something...”
Sol: “...hnn?”
Ky: “My son....Sin..can you take care of him for a while?”
Sol: “...what did you say?”
Ky: “I know it’s unreasonable but...I still want to ask...”
— GG2: Overture Story, Sol's Story
The Xrd era (because it is so long, it needs its own section)
The Xrd era is extremely interesting to me, because Sol and Ky have some more in-depth conversations, and boy, do they have a lot of conversations.
Focusing on Sol first, theres a scene in REV where Sol asks Ky why he isn’t interested in his past:
Sol: "Why don't you ask me already?"
Ky: "Ask you what?"
Sol: "About my past."
Ky: "I can ask you?"
Sol: "I guarantee, it won't be interesting."
Sol: "Every other word that came out of your mouth was 'Duel me,' or 'I challenge you!' You were so eager to fight and..."
Ky: "........"
— Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-, Story Mode: Chapter 03, Sense A
Given that Ky was constantly pestering Sol about his background in the past, it makes sense why Sol is suddenly a bit confused about Ky’s sudden change in behaviour. But it also shows that Sol wants Ky to know about his past. After ~170+ years of being alive, Sol wants to finally open up to someone again, and he specifically chose Ky for this. It shows in the very least Sol trusts Ky and knows him well enough to decide to let him know about who he used to be.
And then Ky says this, which is basically him just showing Sol how much he cares and understands him:
Ky: "Sol. Of course I have an interest in your past."
Ky: "But wanting to understand someone and trying to understand everything is completely different."
Ky: "Right now, Sol Badguy's future matters much more to me, than Frederick's past."
— Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-, Story Mode: Chapter 03, Sense A
There’s also this scene in SIGN:
Ky: "I don't know your history."
Ky: "I don't know if you had friends once, or if you fell in love, or why you burn with such hatred for That Man and the Gears..."
Ky: "I don't even know your real name."
Sol: "..."
Ky: "But I do know a great deal about a man named Sol Badguy."
Ky: "Blinded by vengeance, he lost sight of himself, and now he runs from the truth that frightens him."
Sol: "...Say that again."
Ky: "Tomorrow always comes, Sol."
Sol: "..!"
Ky: "If tomorrow promises to be cold and dark, I cannot stand idly by... even if I know my efforts will come to nothing."
Sol: "... The self-righteous apple doesn't fall far from the tree."
Ky: "I don't expect the world to change tomorrow, but I do hope that, today, perhaps my words will reach you."
Ky: "Sol..."
Ky: "I'll be waiting for you. We'll all be waiting for you. Sin, Dizzy..."
Ky: "Once all this is over... come home."
— Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN-, Story Mode: Chapter 04, Kaleidoscope B
Three things to take away from this:
Ky admits that he doesn’t know anything about Sol’s background, but that he knows a lot about the current Sol, and then goes on to explain how Sol acts. Which to expand on, means that although Ky used to care about Sol’s past, he doesn’t really mind about it anymore because Sol’s past won’t really change much who Sol is to Ky now. Also, the part where Ky explains how Sol was ‘blinded by vengeance,’etc. shows that Ky knows Sol’s current personality well enough in order to be able to distinguish his behaviours. Which is interesting because nobody has been around Sol long enough to be able to know him really well unlike Ky (Aria and Asuka count too, but they were around Sol when he was Frederick, and Sol seems pretty adamant on the idea that he’s a separate person from Frederick.)
‘Come home’ is pretty significant, as it implies that it’s almost like Ky is saying home is with Sin, Dizzy and the Valentines, and so when Sol is done getting revenge on That Man, instead of letting Sol just wander off alone, Ky wants Sol to be a family with them.
The fact that says Ky says ‘I’ll be waiting for you’ separate from ‘we’ll all be waiting for you’ implies that either Ky’s want to wait for Sol is somehow different from everyone else’s or it’s just for the sake of being dramatic. I interpreted this in both ways, as it seems like Ky knows that Sol treats him differently compared to others. So in a sense, by Ky emphasising that he’ll be waiting for Sol, it might make Sol more likely to ‘come home’.
There’s also a scene that shows Ky knows Sol’s personality well:
Ky: "When I look at you, Sol, I see a man who is afraid."
Sol: "... What?"
Ky: "It became clear when I watched you caring for Sin."
Ky: "You work very hard to keep everyone at arm's length."
Sol: "..."
Sol: "I got Gear blood in my veins, and it ain't friendly. It's always there in the back of my head, whispering that I oughta just destroy all of this."
Sol: "The only way I'm gonna get some closure is tracking down That Man and beating some answers out of him."
Sol: "And if he doesn't have 'em..."
Sol: "Then maybe there really isn't a good way to live."
Ky: "That's why you close your heart off."
— Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN-, Story Mode: Chapter 08, Hope A
There’s also this:
Ky: "Not all people have the strength to stand on their own."
Sol: "..."
Ky: "If only life were simple, and the right path was laid out before each of us..."
Ky: "But even then some would leave it, and some would struggle with walking it. Such is human nature..."
Ky: "The truth is that no path will ever be 'right' for all people. Each of us must find the one we are meant to walk--and sometimes that is where none exists."
Ky: "That is what I learned from you."
— Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN-, Story Mode: Chapter 08, Hope A
This just shows that Ky actually learnt something from Sol. Which I think is important because Ky is someone who always used to be very strict to his ideals. The fact that he learnt something from Sol that had an impact on his mindset means that Sol actually managed to have a great impact on Ky.
There’s this scene where Sol finds out that Aria isn’t dead when he confronts That Man, and he has somewhat of a mini mental breakdown. So Ky excuses them from the room, and goes outside to talk with Sol:
Ky: "Sol. The grudge you hold is certainly not something that can be taken lightly. And, whatever answer you think you've found, I doubt any of us will be able to stop you from seeing it through..."
Ky: "But we have very little time left. Right now, we need the Gear Maker's help."
Ky: "So, I'm begging you... Just for now. Why don't you stay outside with me."
— Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-, Story Mode: Chapter 06, Cause A
The last line that Ky says is interesting because it’s obvious that he’s just trying to calm Sol down, and Ky thinks that if he stays with Sol outside for a bit, he’ll be able to help him calm down. Furthermore, Ky thought it was more necessary to pause everything and help Sol out rather than keep listening to the plans of what their next course of action would be.
Ky does have the habit of comforting Sol. One of the more significant moments is whenever Sol refers to himself as a monster:
Ky: "Yes, he took away some of what makes you human, but that doesn't mean he altered your mind or your soul."
Sol: "So what?"
Ky: "I want to believe that you'll fight for the people of this world."
Sol: "Are we seriously having this conversation?"
Sol: "Look, kid. I'm a monster. I'm here to do two things: Destroy That Man, and kill all the other Gears."
— Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN-, Story Mode: Chapter 04, Kaleidoscope B
To expand a little on Sol’s mindset, it’s common knowledge that Gears were generally in the past regarded as akin to monsters. Now we don’t have any solid proof Sol is referring to himself as a monster because he’s a Gear, or because he feels guilt about the whole Gear Project, etc. But we do know it’s something he’s affected by given that he constantly refers to himself as one.
So the fact that Ky constantly reassures him that he’s not one, and that Ky didn’t treat him differently after finding out he was a Gear, must be comforting to know.
Then at the end of REV, there’s the scene where Daryl is about to shoot Sol, because he (quite rightly) doesn’t trust the fate of the world to be left to Sol. And so, the kids get beamed up, but Ky asks to be left behind:
Ky: "But, if you plan on targeting Sol, then you must leave me behind, as well."
Daryl: "What!?"
Zappa:"60 seconds until impact..!"
Sol: "What the hell are you doing?! Stay with Sin!"
Ky: "I am well aware that this is a one in a million chance..."
Ky: "But, if I survive at the expense of my dear friend, then there is little reason left for my ruling this world as king."
— Guilty Gear Xrd -REVELATOR-, Story Mode: Final Chapter, Fireworks
This was a really odd moment because Ky’s life was never in danger at that moment. If he had been sent on board Daryl’s ship as originally planned, he would have been safe. But Ky intentionally chose to risk his life, and its kind of startling because Ky has always put his people above everything. There were times when he put the people above his own family, like when he kept his family a secret instead of coming out with the truth about them in order to remain as King to protect his people.
So Ky suddenly going ‘I would rather die with Sol than take care of my people’ is really extreme. Also Ky was willing to leave his family behind, which is even more extreme. So this just really proves how highly Ky regards Sol considering how he would rather die with him than live without him.
Some concluding notes
I think Sol and Ky’s personalities do work really well. Perhaps not in the Crusade era, but if we take a look at the Xrd era, they have shown to get along and have deep conversations with one another that they both enjoy. They know each other extremely well; they know how to support one another when life gets a bit too much and they’re also capable of telling one another when the other is wrong.
Sol teaches Ky that life isn’t as simple as it seems, and that (figuratively speaking) he shouldn’t stick exactly to the textbook. He’s able to see under that perfect image Ky puts up about him being able to cope with everything, acting as a source of stability when you consider how Sol has been the only person who’s been around Ky since the very beginning.
Throughout all of Ky’s life, he’s been under so much pressure. From being Commander in the Crusades, to becoming the Head of the International Police Force, to becoming King. In every situation, people are constantly relying on him, and his environment is changing rapidly. But despite everything, Sol has always remained the same. He looks the same, acts the same, etc. Ky can rely on Sol and trust Sol. He’s like a source of stability for Ky in those hectic times.
And Ky provides something similar to Sol too, given how often he ran into Sol time and time again. When you’ve been alive for so long, it’d feel reassuring in the very least to see a familiar face. And Sol does seem to get less annoyed each time they meet each other again, considering like how in Overture he voluntarily went to go see Ky after seeing himself on a wanted poster.
Ky also gives Sol the chance to open up to people again and form connections with them, something that Sol has been reluctant to do. Sol needs someone to care about him, and Ky proves that by constantly reassuring him and never giving up on trying to help Sol, even though he kept getting pushed away.
They may not be canon but I really do love how they work together. Yes it’s true some people may like them because they are ‘rivals’and seeing rivals get together and bicker is great, but actually I think when people focus more on how much they support and rely on each other, as well as the fact that they do get along, them being in a relationship is more convincing.
Whilst this essay focused on their canon interactions, there’s plenty of other great material out there. For instance, the Guilty Gear 4KomaKINGS manga provides plenty of great SolKy interactions (like the time Ky wanted to have a friendship diary with Sol, only to get rejected and start crying about it. Of course, take these interactions with a pinch of skepticism considering the frivolity of the source material.)
And that, was my very long SolKy essay. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading! Though you may not have agreed with everything I have said, you still continued reading, and I am grateful for that. Thank you for showing such enthusiasm and loving this franchise.
Since people loved the Thigh Kiske mod so much, it was about time Sol got the same treatment too. So he’s now shirtless.
I actually updated the Ky files with small improvements as well which is why there are 3 files for him rather than 2.
Because these files replace the default colours, these will affect how the characters look in story mode and digital figure mode whilst you have the mods on!
I haven’t seen any tutorials on this, so I’ll do my best to explain the process! This only changes the colour palettes of the characters and does not change the actual character models.
What you need:
- Guilty Gear Xrd
- uMod V 2.0 alpha (r53) - Must be this version
- Gimp
Edit 16/04/2021 - Gimp comes with DDS compatibility, so you actually don’t need the DDS plugin from the earlier ver of this guide! I’ve also gone more in-depth on the different textures you get (newly added step 3.5).
Step 1: Setting Everything Up
Open up uMod. Select Main > Add Game and find your .exe file of Guilty Gear. It should be somewhere in C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\GUILTY GEAR Xrd -REVELATOR-\Binaries\Win32.
Then select Main > Tick Use Global Hook.
Open up Guilty Gear. If things have worked, a tab should have opened in uMod. Make sure the Guilty Gear Xrd tab is selected in uMod.
Click Capture textures > >. A bunch of options will come up. Right now, you need to make sure Save Single Texture, Show Texture In the Upper Left Corner and Show Message In The Upper Left Corner are ticked.
You’ll see three buttons - Back, Save and Next. You need to assign keys to these buttons, this is what you’ll navigate through the textures with. Click one of those buttons, and press a key. I use 8, 9 and 0 because I hardly ever use those keys.
You want to make sure only the DDS box is ticked. This is important as when extracting/re-inserting textures, if you use any other format, the files will be messed up.
Finally, make sure you’ve set a save directory. uMod should automatically default it so any texture rips go into your uMod’s texture folder, but it may not have.
Everything should look like this when done. Press Update.
Step 2: Extracting The Texture
Enter Training Mode. Select the character you wish to mod.
Important: If you only want the colour palette to affect everything but the Main Story mode, when selecting a character, make sure you don’t select the character’s default colour palette. If you want your mod to affect how the character looks in the Main Story mode as well as all other modes, then change the character’s default colour palette.
Start pressing the key you assigned to the Back button. Locate the character texture (your character will light up green once you’ve found it).
If your GG crashes, you may have to go through the textures more slowly.
For me, I found my Ky texture around the number 1032 in REV. So check around the 1000 area.
Hit your Save assigned key. You’ve now ripped the texture! It should appear in your textures folder (or wherever you assigned it to save).
Do not rename the texture.
At this point, untick Save Single Texture, Show Texture In the Upper Left Corner and Show Message In The Upper Left Corner. Click Update.
You can close uMod and Guilty Gear if you want.
Step 3: Making Your Edit
Locate your ripped texture, and open it with GIMP.
This will come up. Make sure Load mipmaps is unticked. If successful, your file should have opened in GIMP!
At this point, edit the texture however you want.
It will be difficult to tell which texture corresponds to each part of the character. So you’ll have to do a lot of trial and error.
(If you’re modding Ky, I’ll save you some time and point out roughly what corresponds to what. If something isn’t labelled, I’ve forgotten what part it is.)
Once you’re done with your edit to the texture, export it. Please remember you don’t rename the file. Keep it the same name. Make sure it’s a DDS file.
If this box below comes up, make sure you have Generate Mipmaps on.
Step 3.5: A Guide on the Different Textures
If you’ve gone through the different texture files, you’ve probably encountered three similar-looking files: the base texture, shadows and outlines.
Here’s a quick overview of what they do:
- Base texture: Standard colour scheme, this is what you’ll be primarily changing
- Shadows texture: Gives a slight tint to the characters. This is why if you don’t edit this file, your colours can look different in-game
- Outlines: In order to edit this, cover up the transparent pixels with green if you don’t want the outlines to show, and erase to show more green if you want more outlines
Final Step: Using Your Mod
Open up uMod and Guilty Gear if you closed it earlier. Always open up uMod first and then Guilty Gear, or it won’t work.
Open up Training Mode or Digital Figure Mode or whatever mode is gonna be best for you to take a look at the character.
Now, drag your Mod File/s into this box:
The game may freeze as it loads the new texture. If your game crashes, keep uMod open and reopen Guilty Gear.
For this example, I’m gonna be loading my Ky Mod which shows off his bare legs (yes, really). It’s on my tumblr. It’s worth checking out for the video alone.
And there you go, you’ve made a GG mod! Now all you have to do is share the Mod files to people.
A Quick Guide To Installing Mods
1. Open uMod 2. Main > Add Game The .exe should be somewhere in C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\GUILTY GEAR Xrd -REVELATOR-\Binaries\Win32 3. Go back to Main > Tick Use Global Hook 4. Open GG Xrd REV 5. A new tab should have opened for the game on uMod. Drag the mod files into the white bottom box (the box that has labels Title, A, D, Author and Comment) 6. Mod successfully installed! If game crashes, just keep uMod open and open GG again. Notes: You will have to Open uMod and continue from Step 4 everytime you open GG Xrd. This is because the texture changes aren't saved permanently. Currently there is no way to do that.
Questions that you may have:
Q: “When I reopened Guilty Gear, the texture didn’t save.”
A: That’s because uMod doesn’t replace these textures permanently. You’ll have to open uMod everytime.
Q: “uMod didn’t change my game’s textures.”
A: Make sure you always open uMod first, then Guilty Gear. It also could have been because you’ve changed the file’s names.
I can’t believe that in one of the GG mangas, Ky wanted to make an exchange diary (a notebook shared between friends, who take it in turns to write in their thoughts or other comments) with Sol. And then Sol rejected him so he started crying.
How is this canon
If you’re curious, this is from ギルティギアゼクス4コマKINGS (DNAメディアコミックス)
Ky has also electrocuted himself in the manga, has taken a quick peek at a ‘scandalous book’ and regretted it, and disguised himself by only wearing a cloth round his head, someone please save this boy-
I can’t believe that in one of the GG mangas, Ky wanted to make an exchange diary (a notebook shared between friends, who take it in turns to write in their thoughts or other comments) with Sol. And then Sol rejected him so he started crying.
How is this canon
If you’re curious, this is from ギルティギアゼクス4コマKINGS (DNAメディアコミックス)
Is it possible for you to do 🎀 or💋 (whichever’s easier to write) for SolKy because I am also very predictable
No shame in that! I tried include a bit of both!
-
As night fell, the loud hubbub of the castle ballroom gradually waned into tranquil calm. Nobles excused themselves back to their homes, and the staff began cleaning up. One of the last to leave had been the High King, bidding the remainder of his guests a fond farewell before retreating to his personal quarters, followed closely behind by a larger figure.
“Goodness, I swear they get longer every year.” Ky pushed the door to his room open and stretched his arms over his head. “But at least it’s over now.”
“About fuckin’ time.” Before the door could even slam shut behind them, Sol had undone his tie and tossed it over his shoulder before moving onto his top buttons. “Can’t stand these damn formal events.”
The king gave him a gentle smile. “I’m sorry, I know you don’t like them. But it is customary that a king’s consort come to such events.”
“You can say that all you want, but if that snooty bastard with the monocle called me a ‘ruffian’ one more time I was gonna punch his lights out, and that’d be entirely on you.”
“Must you always resort to violence?” Shaking his head, he paused when he noticed that his partner was divesting himself of his shirt. Ky eyed him cautiously. “I don’t have enough energy for that tonight, Sol, I really don’t.”
“Oi, and I thought I was the one with the dirty mind.” Sol undid the last of his buttons and casually threw it aside. “Relax, I just needed to get out of the damn penguin suit before I set it on fire. But I can’t imagine I could get anything out of you before you conk out for the night?”
Sol sat down on the bed, patting his leg. The earnestness of it was slightly mitigated by the shifty look in his eye, but Ky was tired enough that he simply settled in his lap and sank comfortably into the man’s chest.
“Mmm, have I ever told you that you make an excellent pillow?”
“Yeah. A lot.” Sol looped arms around Ky’s chest and leaned in to kiss the tip of his ear. When he felt him relax into his lap, he let his hands get busy undoing Ky’s buttons, only to get a little zap for his trouble.
“And just what do you think you’re doing?” He asked, grabbing Sol’s arm.
The Gear rolled his eyes. “I have no idea how you aren’t itching to get this damn dress off-”
“Robe.”
“Dress.” Ky caught the tip of a grin out of the corner of his eye. “Might be roomy on the lower half but you’ve been wearing it all day. Besides, if I got it all wrinkled while cuddling you’d never shut up about it. Still want me to leave it?”
He thought for a moment. “No, I think that’s a reasonable request.” He took a moment to kiss Sol’s hand before letting both hands rest in his lap. “Carry on.”
