So my brain cooking up some DnD type AU with the Gachiakuta cast. Its chaotic but hey I figured out most of the races and classes by now @.@ let's get to writing
The things I would do for infold to make a banner or an event where the MC has to comfort the guys as well. They are all so caring yet MC is partly oblivious to the darkness and hurt in their hearts.
Let her comfort them after a nightmare.
Let her decorate Zaynes scars with colourful bandages.
Let her be the one to hold them when they are sad.
Because it would mean so much and show how they work as equals in their relationships. I'm begging you infold.
Mydei line about entrusting his weak spot to Phainon a billion times over if he needed to becomes even more insane when you remember that him entrusting his weak spot to Phainon is supposed to be a show of his faith in Phainon as his equal to stand up him to when the time comes.
He’s not just trusting him with his weak spot, he’s declaring that he’d still see him as his equal in a billion other lifetimes
Yesterday I played through the 3.7 story quest. Before going into the quest, I was debating heavily with myself what kind of ending I really wished for – tragic and realistic or happy and dream-like. After finishing the story now, I still feel that kind of restlessness and there are a couple factors as for why. So, see this post as just me rambling and venting a little. Cool? Cool.
(Beware of spoilers)
So, before I go into some detail, I would like to say that the story around Amphoreus is great. It has deep lore, lovely and well written characters and characters that are – most-importantly – well integrated and intertwined with the world. The music is great; the maps are beautiful and carried by some of the best environmental story telling we have seen from Hoyo in a long while
Still
The last quest left me a little disappointed? But let’s start from the beginning. The quest starts out with the looming descent of Iron Tomb – THE main event of the quest, THE big bad we need to defeat. The battle against Iron Tomb was the center of the story and suffering surrounding Phainon and all the other Chrysos heirs. It was also the center of all the promotion material coming out just days before the update. (Material that contained some important information that players would or wouldn’t receive based on their online presents, which is a little well...strange).
Iron Tomb was the looming catastrophe that could end the cosmos yet … the build up was… kind of lukewarm. Let me explain. Contacting the allies, Herta and Screwy searching for the 13th titan? Fair, good lead up, important for the story. But the thing Hoyo just fails to do in a lot of their story telling is to create urgency and the feeling of dread.
If the end of the world is looming like a blade over your neck it is the worst possible timing to hit a reader, or a player with a big chunk of exposition. The whole reveal concerning Cyrene when Herta and Screwy met Lygus took way too long as did some other parts of the quests.
Sure, you have the option to get a nice and easily digestible sum-up BUT
If you are a player like me who wants to respect the work of VAs and writers, you have to sit through a long time of doing nothing but listening
If you already program an option for the player to skip through that part, why make it this long in the first place?
Hitting the player with exposition, that is delivered solely through words and long sequences with a still frame is like hitting the brakes in a fluent story.
In the instant where Lygus did exactly that, when he revealed all about Phainon to us, it felt more natural, because HE was the big bad. HE was in a way the dread that caught up to us. Plus, Phainon was a really beloved character, and we didn’t know what would happen one the final core flame was delivered. It was different here because there was a universe altering battle about to occur.
Hoyo often destroys the feeling of urgency because they feel the need to take the players’ hands and tell them a bedtime story right before the main event, and that is something that just feels unnatural. If you want me to be engaged, to feel immersed, to feel the fear of the characters, then give me time limit for example, don’t let me go of on exploration in the middle of it, give me a reason to stay engaged rather than get distracted.
And while the battle against Iron Tomb in itself was absolutely epic, with great animations and actually posing a challenge, I wished the built up would have been just a tad bit better. Especially concerning Phainon.
And oh boi do I have a lot to say about my sweet innocent angel.
Phainon – our first contact with Amphoreus, the character who probably suffered the most, the protector of the universe for the longest time – you deserve everything.
The way Phainon was written or side-lined by the Trailblazer rubbed me the wrong way starting back when “We” became the deliverer. Like what do you mean?
Amphoreus worked so well because WE actually became a part of the story, WE became a part of the Chrysos heirs. We weren’t the chosen one but simply a part of the story and that was FINE. Being in a team, a kind of family or community, working together to achieve a goal was awesome.
Why did we need to become the chosen one? With us stepping into the role of main character the other characters suddenly became a supporting cast rather than equals and it felt wrong. Phainon hat suffered so much, yet sometimes his suffering almost seemed like a side note. Mentioned to remind us, but the emotions behind it lacking.
It wasn’t constant by any means. There were instances the other heirs showed their respect and empathy toward Phainons sacrifice. Mydei telling Khaslana that he would always tell him his weak spot, Cipher admitting to lying to Phainon to keep him stable – those where instances I teared up because it was prove for their bond and their deep-rooted connection. But there were other characters who barely said anything at all, and the most deeming example is Cyrene.
While yeah, the tall Cyrene isn’t the original one why did she never mention anything really emotional about her childhood friend? Phainon and Cyrene knew each other the longest, they knew the secrets of the world and the heavy burden they shouldered together. Cyrene’s sometimes almost flirty behavior toward the trailblazer seemed strangely out of place if you consider that again – Iron Tomb is knocking at our door.
She sometimes would go into great detail about some things and then be like “We shouldn’t waste any more time” What do you mean, you just gave me 10 minutes of monologue? Like?? Please, I love both Cyrene’s but loving a character also means pointing out when some things just don’t add up.
*breathes in*
Okay, listen, one last point I want to talk about is the missing immersion. The Trailblazer is supposed to be us. He is the tool to create immersion. If so, then make them show emotions. I’m not talking about the obligatory pouty face. Make them cry, make them crash-out after witnessing Phainons past, make them break down, make them run toward the Chrysos heirs and hug them upon meeting them again – just…something.
It’s the same with Himeko and Welt. They are basically parental figures. Make them worry more about the kids. Himeko always calling us “kids” or “kid”, loses its meaning when we get a lukewarm discussion about seniority within the Astral Express crew as soon as we are back save and sound.
We lived through decades and centuries of war and conflict. Where are the corresponding emotions to make it believable? Like people WE NEARLY ENDED THE UNIVERSE??
And that too is something that could have been just the tiniest bit more immersive if you had shown me the damage the decent of Iron Tomb caused on other planets. Instead of just telling me… SHOW me. Let some pictures flash by of what is happening, that’s enough. Remind us why we need to keep on fighting.
And what does the destruction for Iron Tomb mean for Nanook? And the other Lord Ravagers? No reaction from them whatsoever. (which is a minor issue really – could be that we learn more about that in the future).
…
Again, I still think that Amphoreus is beautiful and that the story is great. I don’t want to say that everything is bad, because it isn’t. The over-explanation and the sometimes convoluted plot strings, paired with exposition placed where it doesn’t belong are just factors that make a good story unnecessarily complicated and slow.
There were also very good parts, like the goodbyes from the Chrysos heirs, their words of encouragement, the fact that there is a small chance that we will meet the characters again in the future and the subtle foreshadowing thanks to Screwys and Lygusus last talk. All these points are just easily lost in a convoluted middle part of a quest, that sometimes felt more like an audio book.
Right now, we still have the interlude to look forward to. So I will stay open minded and probably give my final verdict at its end.
So, after just recently getting back into HSR and playing the entirety of the Amphoreus quest back to back I finally had some time to sort my thoughts on the characters. And as Mydei was one of my biggest reasons to come back I found myself noticing a little bit of a rift between how I see Mydei and how he is perceived by others or even marketed.
So I decided to write some of my thoughts down.
When we meet Mydei the first time he seems reserved, almost unfriendly. He has his guard up, literally challenging us to a fight. He is the stark contrast to Phainon who is perceived as a hero-archtype, leading us to Okhema and being constantly worried about our wellbeing.
It isn’t until later that we truly learn more about Mydei and one of the most deeming moments is the mission that leads us to his former home. When we split up for the challenge we cross paths with Mydei time and time again. And while yeah there is a possibility that he was still wary of us, I also had the feeling that he was checking up on Phainon, making sure nothing happened.
What really caught me by surprise back then was Phainon's comment along the lines of “giving Mydei some alone time to mourn his lost home”. It is the first small moment that gives away that Mydei has a much softer core hidden inside his undying body.
In pursuit of Nikador and the handling of his coreflame it became clear to me that Mydei isn’t a warrior constantly rushing into the next fight because he finds some twisted sense of fulfillment but more a veteran that is very in tune with his abilities and the expectations others put in him.
Mydei isn’t interested in protecting and nurturing the credo his people followed for decades or even centuries. He wants to give them the freedom to decide. He wants to absolve them of the destiny to d*e in battle – because he can’t struggle free from that path.
Mydei's life started with battle and it ended with it – repeatedly. From the moment his father threw him into the sea of souls he had to fight to survive. When he came back he had to lead his army into battle over and over again. The fleeting sense of companionship he experienced for the first time in his life with his friends? Breaking away bit by agonizing bit to lead him to his destiny – to challenge his father. And even after that Mydei still had to fight for the right of his people to stay in Okhema, against titankin, against Nikador, against the black tide. With this last drawn-out battle being one of the worst because it mirrors his beginnings perfectly.
He grew up in loneliness and fought his last battles all the same, away from the other Chrysos heirs, his people and his found home.
But why is it so important for Mydei to make his people understand the venom behind their credo? As an undying man he could be indifferent to d3ath, laughing at it in fact, but Mydei treats the possibility of d3ath with respect and understands the serious threat it poses to others.
I think that yeah while Mydei can’t “d*e” he is still able to feel the pain of wounds, he still has never forgotten what d3ath means. He values life, especially the lives of others, exactly BECAUSE he knows how d3ath feels like. He doesn’t want others to suffer the same way he does.
And his respect and protectiveness for life is illustrated very well when it comes to the kids he meets, when he talks to Krateros about his people and also when Phainon is involved. While Mydei approaches dire situations with calculation, Phainon is led by emotions which can be your end on the battlefield and Mydei knows this.
And that’s why Mydei comes across more like a war-branded veteran and not like a hotheaded youth. He doesn’t pick fights just to fight. In his wish for his people there is the wish he has for himself – to live a life that isn’t ruled and led by battle. But that isn’t a choice he has.
His choice is stripped from him because he knows that he is the only one to take on the coreflame of strife. He is the only one strong enough to guard the border, to buy some time, to protect and that not only because of his strength and experience but also because of his undying body, that forges him into a weapon and burns away his wishes for his own life.
And he does all this time and time again because he knows there is no other option. Mydei is realistic and honest and knows what needs to be done – he is the material a king should be made of.
But that’s not all – sometimes if we look away from all the tragedy and hurt we also find him to be silly and almost like a youth. The best example is the bath scene where he calls Phainon out. He basically points at him and is like “That’s what you get for challenging me” a behaviour you would expect from a teen.
Phainon seems to bring a certain lightheartedness into his life. The rays of this warm sun shines on scared skin and makes it possible for Mydei to relax just enough to actually enjoy his life. Even if those moments are few and far between. He challenges Phainon not just because they are equal but also because it makes him forget. If he spars with Phainon there is no fear of the pain of being hurt or unalived. He doesn’t have to worry about being thrown back into the waters of the river of souls.
With Phainon he has the safety that he won't drown and therefore is able to live parts of a childhood he never had. Then while Phainon had friends when he was a kid and caring parents Mydei never got to experience the embrace of a mother, the proud pat of a father, the lightness of summer days spent with friends. Mydeimos was always a soldier, a prince and a future king before he became Mydei, a friend and a soulmate.
The tragedy of his character is that he has to hide his soft heart behind his duty to become the flame bearer of Strife. And in a way it is the same with Castorice and Cipher. The calamity titans are praised only by their people but cursed by others. Yet for me they are the unsung heroes of a story that is about to be erased.
So yeah the tragedy of Mydeis existence is that it is fundamentally connected to fight – a fight that left him standing alone, that left him being ended by his closest, that left him burnt by the sun that taught him the warmth of a home.
I honestly can't decide on how I want Amphoreus to end. On the one hand I would love a happy ending because I love all the characters so much. They are so well written and we were able to form such a deep bond with them.
On the other hand a tragic ending would be beautiful in a cruel way as well. It would underline the gravity of the story. It would make us realize how great the threat truly is and therefore - sure, you have to end the plotlines of characters that the players are connected with. Only then the ending will have an impact.
However it will end I will deeply miss Amphoreus. I will miss the deep lore, the music, the maps everything. Especially the map design because contrary to genshin for example the environmental story telling is well executed. (The the overnight version of Okhema - god I love this map)
I just wonder how they will proceed with the planet from a development standpoint.
If Amphoreus is doomed the planet would become dead for future events, possible map additions and so on because lore wise it wouldn't exist anymore. The only solution would be to play with the Remembrance like when the trailblazer "d*ed". that the Amphoreus existing would be created from our momories.
Either way I will probably end up crying (again) and crash out but we will see.
So my friend and I exchanged writing prompts for some practice and her idea was figure skating Phainon x hockey player Mydei and welll... I might got caught up in it and noe it turned in a full outline for a fan fiction (ooops).
That’s a question that has been stuck in my head for a couple weeks now. At first a lot of people thought he was depressed thanks to how the system treated him and he called it quits. By now we see him being manipulated and basically threatened time and time again by Shang. Which could be an even more plausible reason but bear with me for a sec.
For me personally it makes no sense for Nice to be dead. And there are several reasons for that. Firstly, and obviously, he is currently ranked quite high in the online ranking – indicating that a lot of people want to see him again or more.
But if we look closely, we have to ask ourselves if Nice would really call it quits the way he did in the situation, he is currently in. Would he just jump off a building that openly? Leaving his dreams behind and his (boy)friend? Suddenly it seems so uncharacteristic for him – especially him doing it with an eyewitness.
So let’s have a closer look.
Currently in episode 21 it is evident that Nice is “created” to be weapon for Shang to exercise his revenge. While Nice seemed quite confident while he fought the other Heros in the last episodes he now gives of the vibe of a trapped animal.
He screwed up and only god knows how many strings had to be pulled for Nice not to be exposed especially with Loli raising in the hero ranks.
Shang wants to stay in control of Nice. That is not only evident in him acting like he wrote the abusive parents handbook but also in the moment he interrupts Nice reminiscing. Nice who thinks about his idol and Wreck is pulled back into the dark reality with Shang standing in front of him. Hell, at this point I’m not even sure if Wreck wasn’t purposefully made a villain to isolate Nice further.
In any case – Shang gives him a second chance to “redeem” his previous fuck up with being tasked to inject Smile with Fear. That way the path would be paved for either Dragon Boy or Nice to raise in the hero ranks and both Shang and Rock have a motive to get their pawns inside the ranks.
Now there is a chance that Nice will turn on Dragon Boy since Smile is his idol. Smile is what Nice once wanted to be. A good hero, a honest hero – instead he became a tool. It is possible that Nice will falter in the crucial moment and won’t be able to follow through with the plan. It could be that he injects the Fear into Dragon Boy. (it looks a lot like it from the snippets of the episode 22 PV).
But what would that mean? Basically, another fuck up on Nice behalf – another reason to fear Shang, another step toward being discarded.
BUT there is another crucial point – X role in it all. We heard that in episode 21 X already wanted to retire. Yet to the present day he still holds the title X. He was quite close with Smile. If something would happen to him while X – the best hero around!! – is out cold and sleeping at home, he would surely not forgive himself. Plus, Smile would suffer because of some stupid fights of ranks and power that X doesn’t seem to be interested in in the first place.
A scenario like that could give him more than one reason to keep his title as X but also – to team up with Nice.
And here is where my speculation begins. Nice and X are clearly connected to one another. In the one official art on the official website Nice and X are dressed in the same color scheme while everyone else isn’t. Plus, both are more similar that it seems. Smile was pointing out that X has at least “two sides” his common rational side and his hero persona. It is the same with Nice. Nice has this good guy image while he is scared and possibly quite traumatized on the inside.
Nice could give X some valuable insight into the different parties, on the commission, the managements and so on, since X isn’t really involved with them. X on the other hand probably has the needs to help him fake his death. Both have a reason to topple the corrupt system over. They could both earn their freedom.
Now the question is why go through the trouble to fake his death and only leave one (1) witness behind.
Nice needed to get away from Shang, without Shang noticing. Nice would know that his management would come up with a plan as to not write him off as dead. But he still needed a witness to make sure no one would be looking for him. A lot of witnesses would mean though, that his trust value would suffer.
With Lin Ling taking one Nice persona we have another advantage for Nice – he isn’t losing his power. When Moon “died” her trust value plummeted. If Nice would have “died” he would have lost his powers and would therefore probably struggle to execute future plans. Lin Ling even manages to raise Nice trust value and therefore probably making him more powerful.
So if you think about it… a lot about Nice death isn’t adding up. X most likely has the means to help him fake his death making it possible for the two to navigate under cover without loosing power or baring their hand.
After all we have to remember (like it is heavy referenced in the OP) that a lot about the hero ranks is a gamble or a game. Smiles fate is most likely to set the stage for something quite intriguing to happen and while yeah maybe I’m just coping (because I don’t want wreck to loose his BF) it would also be an interesting plot line to follow in season two.
areudirty
blakekathryn
andulkaphoto
2087
gummygunk
ellievsbear
snowghoul
