:: woah cal and I are full on matching now, are you guys proud <3 of course I donโt have it in me to make mine as fancy as she does and I really doubt Iโll have the time to put multiple posts about me. so what you wanna know, youโre gonna have to ask or get it from here but hey you can thank her for me even getting this far /lh
:: anywho hiii hi! iโm taegan or tae if you didnโt know already. truth be told, iโm not entirely as active on tumblr as i used to be?? and thereโs a 85% chance my notifications with app just completely fail to work but donโt let that scare you away from asking me anything. I donโt bite, usually.
Time flies by you when you're not paying attention, huh? I wonder who the people in these murals are?
It's about that time of the year again... May 17th!
Last year, my anniversary surprise was a total ass mess! But like... in a fun way! In a silly way! I enjoyed it, and I'm pretty sure Tae did too.
This year, I decided to keep it simple...ish? For our third-year anniversary together, I wanted to have just one simple and fun post. No mysterious post dump, nothing too... too dramatic. I'm sure Tae will have the dramatics part covered.
... you know, I suppose this is the part where I would be all dramatic and sappy, showering you with words of love and affection and admiration? But honestly, this year I don't have much to add as opposed to years prior. Tae's the same strange, lovely woman she was last year (just a little more wild? And primal. and- /j), so anything I could say would be a bit redundant.
But, yeah! We're moving on before I start repeating myself and repeating myself.
Anyways! This year, I actually planned a theme out ahead of time! Last year, I didn't have a theme perse? I had a vibe I wanted to go with- that theme being nostalgia and growth- so I ended up using a lot of old sonas, including the oldest variants of our sonas from when we first met each other.
I wanted to do something new and somewhat opposing! So, I ended up using more recent pairings and even included OCs in the possible lineup. This is why I went with the idea of a stained glass exhibit, where each drawing would be its own exhibit that people could walk past and visit.
We've had a lot of new characters in the past year alone, let alone the three years we've been together. (And we've been friends even longer!) It made it really difficult to narrow down what I was gonna do, and unfortunately, I'm very indecisive! So, I left the hard thinking up to Tae with a simple question.
What are your top five duos from the past year?
And using her answers, I made a total of five (5) stained glass portraits! This shit was.......... really hard. It was a bit of a labor-intensive project, much, much more than I thought it was gonna be. But, I think overall, everyone came out super nice!
I ended up having to take a major break in between the sets, though... to avoid injuring my hand/wrist, I took a week break in between each set. You might be able to tell which ones were done in the same timespan; you might not be. I don't fully know!
Anyways, Tae's answer to my question was this: Marell Dean and Rarity Chappel, Holly Eastman and Dahlia, Rue Jackson and Twilight Serene, Remi and Fleur, and Geno and Clover.
Because these were the duos Tae had chosen, these were the duos I decided to work with! Similar to last year, I had an underlying story for this art set. The story for this one is pretty simple. actually... its just a museum filled with stained glass portraits of "famous" people from the distant, distant past, with a couple of friends visiting the museum together and looking at all these famous people.
As for the five (six?) people I chose, I crafted little stories in my head about their "famous" role in the past. But, before I can get into that, I should reveal the art, and by extension, all the people I used!
Of the five duos, I turned three of them into completed stained glass portraits! This also comes with accidental design reveals for a couple of these characters below. Oopsies!
Tada! Holly, Dahlia, Rue, Twilight, Marell Dean, and Rarity were the six characters I chose! Four of which are getting their full designs revealed for the first time! Can you tell Tae made my life severely difficult? (/j)
Besides having to figure out colors and adjusting designs in the process, this project was really fun! (And taking breaks in between sets gave me the time to figure out the design optics off the clock.) I had a lot of fun with this project too, experimenting with my own artwork in ways I haven't before. Especially the coloring!
Having my coloring composed of many smaller blocks of similar shades of the same colors, rather than one large chunk of color, was a unique but fun experience! It gave me a chance to use colors I've never used before, and honestly... I think I found some nice new colors!
Additionally, I have alternative renders of the artwork! I think this set might have the most alternative renders of any artwork I've done in a long time! Each piece has four different versions of it, including the complete version, version A with Blossom and Noel, version B without them, and its portrait background. You've already seen the completed versions above, but what about the other versions?
The Nightshade Detectives: Rue Jackson and Twilight Serene
"The detective duo who uncovered the Nightshade scheme and saved Rondo City from its mutually assured destruction."
This one is the only portrait to depict two people in it, rather than one person. I decided to pair Twilight and Rue together in one drawing together, because I wanted them to act as the "center" piece in a larger illustration. Besides that, I imagine the museum paired them together due to the fact that they were two detective partners who were always together. Version A has both Blossom and Noel in it, and it's the only artwork where the two visitors are paired together on the same piece.
Similar to Holly, the story that accompanies Twilight and Rue is about the Nightingale Nightshade Case that they cracked together, saving Rondo City from its destruction. This case would end up becoming super famous, causing Rue and Twilight to become famous heroes in the history books as a result. (Additionally, Twilight would become more famous for her involvement in the Frosthelm Befallen case.)
Drawing-wise... this one was probably my favorite one to actually color? I like the composition of the piece, and the two interactions are really cute. Their background also reflecting their opposing aesthetics and their dynamic also looks really nice, as... I kind of wanted to use the Moon and the Sun vibes Twilight and Rue have going on.
Below, I also have drawings of their Boardwalk outfits, if you wanted to see those. (Lore-wise, Rue and Twilight's exhibit is special because it actually is supposed to be animated.)
The Arknight Doctor: Holly Eastman
"A survivor of the Sleep Room incident and the original founder of the Arknight Revival project."
This one is Hollyโs portrait! Doctor Holly Eastman <3 Version A includes Noel looking at Holly's portrait while traveling through the museum.
So, the story that accompanies Holly's portrait in this museum is basically what he was famous for. That is the Arknight Revival Project, a project Holly started after leaving the Sleep Room and his father, Dr. Eastman. This organization would become famous for providing medical support and medical care, and it pretty much revolutionized proper healthcare in a war-torn region. So, Holly is pretty much famous in-universe for being the founder and the main driver of this organization.
This one was an interesting piece to color in, due to Holly's hair having a gradient from light to dark, and a gradient isn't something I could quite do with the way I went about coloring this set! So, I was forced to figure out a different way to represent it. I think it came out nicely, though it is a bit subtle?
Overall, fun experience, fun experiment, oh Holly, my beautiful princess with several disorders. Normal stuff.
The Dreamer: The Black Dahlia
"The mysterious young woman who emerged from the ashes of the Sleep Room."
Dahlia's exhibit... this portrait is made to match Holly's portrait, since Holly and Dahlia make up one of the three duos. Version A has Blossom in it to match Noel in Holly's version A.
Story-wise, Dahlia isn't as famous as she is infamous? She's the most well-known as the mysterious young woman who emerged from the ashes of the Sleep Room experiment, an experiment that Holly's father had personally overseen in the past, the same Sleep Room that Holly left. And when I mean ashes, I mean quite literal ashes. The Sleep Room caught vicious fire one day, and everything was reduced to ash. Dahlia had emerged from those ashes. She is seen by history as both generally villainous in nature, but also a tragic figure as someone who took revenge on the system that hurt the man she loved, even if it meant burning herself and the world surrounding her away in the process. (Although it is highly debated if Holly really loved her back, or if she was simply a means to an end.)
I'm in love with Dahlia's portrait. Dahlia's always been a fun muse/sona, and I was always sad I never had a proper design for her. But now I do! And, I love everything about her... the heart-shaped curls in her hair, the gothic attire, the candle she used to (allegedly) burn down the Sleep Room. I also like the way she looks next to Blossom, someone who is such an opposite to her yet so similar. A lover and a fighter, but they love and fight for very different things in very different ways. (And Blossom isn't an arsonist.)
The Thread Cutter: Rarity Chappel
"The young woman who saved herself and her planet from the Silent Rapture's destination."
Rarity design reveal? For our anniversary? Couldn't have timed it better myself, actually. Version A includes Noel looking at Rarity's portrait. Rarity's portrait matches Marell Dean's portrait! They're the other set I went with... obviously.
Story-wise, Rarity's portrait focuses on the story of her sacrifice in order to save Planarcadia from becoming the next victim of the Silent Rapture, which is the name of the event that destroyed Marell's home planet. She did this by severing her own thread of life in order to sever the Rapture Seed's anchor to Planarcadia after realizing it had attached itself to her, like it had attached itself to someone else on Marell's planet previously. By cutting her own thread, she severed herself and the Rapture seed, preventing it from completely destroying the planet. This self-sacrifice is seen as extremely heroic and selfless by history, causing Rarity to get a portrait in this museum.
I love Rarity's character, and I love her official design even more! I love the purple, off-white, and black design... I hope this design reveal is worth the wait.
The Scales of Justice: Marell Dean Mariana
"The young man who shattered the Scales of Justice and reshaped the meaning of divine law."
This one is the last one I did, and this one is forโฆ Marell Dean Mariana! He matches Rarity Chappel, and together, they make up the third and final duo I did! Version A includes Blossom in the foreground as she looks at Marrel Dean in (quite frankly) confusion. Of all the portraits, Marrel Dean is the one who interests her the most.
Story-wise, Marell Dean is similar to Dahlia in the sense that he is more infamous than he is famous. The story behind Marell Deanโs portrait surrounds how he shattered the scales of Justice and Harmony, a set of self judging scales that are used to justly measure the weight of someoneโs crimes. Through shattering these great and powerful scales, Marell Dean forced the divine law the intervene and ended up reshaping the meaning and human view of the divine law itself. In a way, Marell Dean completely shattered โJusticeโ and โOrderโ. This made him a popular but controversial figure in the history, causing the museum to add him as a stained glass portrait.
This one is another accidental design reveal, just like Dahlia and Rarity! Similar to Holly, Marellโs hair is also a gradient from dark to neon, which means this Marell Dean inherently will look different from future Marell Dean drawingsโฆ oopsies? Heโs very cute though! I like the way his portrait came out.
Extra Portraits
I did mention in Twilight and Rueโs portrait, that I had made two alternative versions with younger versions of Twilight and Rue. Those are right here! I didnโt do the full coloring cycle since, franklyโฆ I kind of forgot. But I did have them colored in. These designs will definitely change in the future, but, theyโre here now?
And then, I have the backgrounds for my five portraits, each one tailored to the person in the stained glass! Itโs nothing special, but itโs nice to look at the full background every once in a while.
And then the last thing I had was this portrait mock-up! Originally, I wanted to have a version of the stained glass museum where they were all side by side. I only got as far as the mock up thoughโฆ before deciding I wanted them all to be separate.
โฆ thatโs pretty much it for this yearโs anniversary celebration! From me, at least. I had a lot of fun drawing these stained glass portraits (despite having no clue what I was doing) and I hope you guys and Tae had fun looking at them!
I probably will be hearing about this post for the next couple of hours, wish me luck, chat. (/j)
heroโฆ not to sound like a nagging nancy, but you should probably focus on taking care of yourself than updating your already confusing pinboard! blood loss really isnโt any good!
also, iโm scared, what do you mean it technically *is* worse? i just came to ask what your favorite fairytale character troupe was, but i fear weโre getting a little side tracked here! - Minori
Thatโd probably be a good idea, yeah. but I felt the need to update it and I had to see it through. Iโll do something about all ofโฆ this though. I promise.
You know what? Letโs not worry about it right now. Anyways! Favorite fairytale character trope? I fear the answer to that one might be a liiiittle obvious. Younger me would probably have had a field day with this questionโฆ oh and with you calling me hero in general. I think Iโm also quite the big fan of Fairies but Iโm blaming that on the Mems.
There was also dragons butโฆ that feels a little ironic now.
a little bit worse? hero, your entire backside is completely covered in something golden, and you look like a hot mess! โฆ wait, is that golden stuff your blood-? - Minori
Oh. yyyyeah, fun fact my blood is golden. โฆ that wasnโt much of a fun fact, was it? sorry, I think the blood loss might be catching up to me. Itโs not as bad as it looks though? It really could be worse. Well. I guess itโฆ technically is worse?
hero! hero, iโm back- why are you updating the pinboard again? - Minori
Min! Itโs good to see youโre back. Although your timing is uhmโฆ wwwell. haha. things mightโve gotten a bit worse while you were awayโฆ but thatโs more of a me problem to deal with
okay, to be fair. itโs math. who even LIKES math?????? you have to be sick and psychotic to be a genuine math enjoyer. Yeah, I said it. SICK and TWISTED, even!!!
Yโknow? Thatโs a GREAT question actually Iโm. kinda wondering that myself now. Itโs like. I assume so??? Itโd be kinda wild if im stillโฆ whatever it is it got changed to. but I also wouldnโt be surprised if itโs still the same??? Like I get the feeling if Cal changed it back a certain SOMEONE wouldnโt like it so. Whatever. Whatever! Who cares, I never cared actually
point is: your guess is as goooood as mine. I mean I guess I could just ask Cal?????? YOU can ask Cal????????? Someone can ask /j
okay, to be fair. itโs math. who even LIKES math?????? you have to be sick and psychotic to be a genuine math enjoyer. Yeah, I said it. SICK and TWISTED, even!!!
itโs a gameโฆ with berries. and a hole. thatโs it. thatโs all youโre getting. if you wanna know more for the nice price of $8, all the answers can be revealed <3
Essence Skin Reveal โก The Rite of Farewells .. Within Grief's Hands
โ THE RITE OF FAREWELLS โ
Nobody grieves the wicked. History only remembers you as a bird found dead outside its birdcage. But, don't you wonder what those birds looked like when they were still alive?
Hello, and welcome to "The Rite of Farewells" essence skin reveal! I'd like to thank everyone who participated! I had particular fun with this one, since it's been such a long time since I've gotten to do one of these...
And I will admit, I did spoil all participants a bit more than I usually do. You'll see what I mean in a few moments, but first... what everyone came for, right? The skins, the skins! What does each muse look like now, following Lyrith down into the Rite?
( Please note: Not all the original slots were filled. What you see below is what slots I did manage to fill! Should some of the previous slots get filled, I'll update this post. )
S-Tier: Thorn Briar (Leviathan and Lyrith played by: "The Deliverer", Phainon Elysiae, and "The Finality", Mathรฉo Blanchet // @m1ss-detective )
"I can make you better. I can make you right." - Lyrith
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"Thorn Briar" is an essence s-tier costume depicting the main antagonist of the Rite of Farewells event, featured in his corrupted divine vessel (1st form; Leviathan) and his true form (2nd form; Lyrith). He is played by Taegan's Mathรฉo Blanchet (more commonly known as "Finality") and Phainon of Aedes Elysiae, the latter of which is canonically related to the true identity of the original universe Lyrith. In addition to the forms switching every time a special skill in the kit is used, Thorn Briar's Lyrith form comes with a special interactive emote that can be used by both survivors and hunters called "Flower Crown".
Lyrith is the original god of the Rite of Farewells universe, as well as the creator of the white lily flower. However, as he fell from grace and was corrupted by human sin and mortal death, all his white lilies were turned into dead drop roses and dead drop spider lilies. Lyrith's divine vessel would eventually corrupt into Leviathan, with Lyrith's divine consciousness separating from the vessel. (Leviathan is essentially the corrupted empty doll Lyrith left behind.)
With Lyrith's (and Leviathan's) design, I wanted to expand upon his duality as an antagonist, both in physical character design and in character motif. Leviathan's color scheme is mainly black and red, as the outwardly corrupted and stereotypically "evil" counterpart. His motif features a lot of the dead-drop rose plant, as well as the motif of the spider and skeletal remains. He is the outwardly villainous one, detailed with two sets of devil horns and a spade tail. Meanwhile, Lyrith's color scheme is noticeably lighter and more innocence-invoking with mainly white, gold, and blues. Paired with the several types of flowers found in his flower crown and decorating his hair, Lyrith's long hair, long dress, and butterfly accent pieces give off a very young, childlike innocence to his character. The thorn briar wings by Lyrith's sides act as his "tail", capable of moving on Lyrith's command.
Lyrith's outfit is actually based upon his original concept art, which I'll show off down below if you're interested in it! But Lyrith's essence design is actually completely lore-accurate. To make a long story short, Lyrith's dress and flower crown were given to him by a young child named Aeilene over 200,000 years ago. Meanwhile, his staff and the butterfly lining and pearls were all gifts from land dwellers 200,000 years prior to his corruption. Many of these items were corrupted alongside Lyrith and were effectively ruined/changed in the physical plane, but in Lyrith's alternative form on the alternative plan, they are part of Lyrith's consciousness and effectively preserved as a result.
However, despite Lyrith's physical appearance and motifs, Lyrith is very calculating and cold. He is responsible for the many events of the RoF storyline, including the death of the Frostmoon Goddess, the death of the Deliverer (Coronation), and the spiritual fracture of Lunaes (Nocturne Night), just to name a few. He is also responsible for the physical distortion of "Guest" (Without Tomorrow), and is overall a very petty and vengeful creator after his corruption. In fact, Lyrith is SO powerful and deeply connected to the land he had created that his corruption quite literally tore the Isle of the Rite apart and caused the land around it to decay beyond repair.
Leviathan, on the other hand, is the corrupted divine vessel Lyrith's consciousness used to reside in. After Lyrith's consciousness shattered and separated from his physical form, Leviathan formed from the human corruption, inhabiting the empty vessel. It carries out the will of Lyrith's vengeful spirit subconsciously, observing the Isle of the Rite and punishing the humans in his name. Despite this, Lyrith retains no loyalty to his old vessel, even going as far as using the thorny briar to tear it into pieces, effectively killing it.
Exclusive S-Tier Accessory: The Last Lily
The white lily slowly faded out, replaced by the more well-known "dead drop rose". Now, only one white lily remains, preserved within timeless glass.
Lyrith and Leviathan's exclusive s-tier accessory is The Last (Spider/White) Lily, which takes the form of either a red spider lily or a white lily, depending on which form is active. This accessory is also the only accessory that is technically non-canon to the character it is associated with. Technically speaking, it is a representation of their influence through the Isle of the Rite through their respective flowers.
S-Tier: To Where Grief Flies ( Dove played by: The Mechanical Designer, Contract Kuzentsov )
"I will mourn the wicked... even if it kills me." - Dove
** can be acquired through the "Birdcage" package in the shop.
"To Where Grief Flies" is a shop s-tier costume depicting the main protagonist of the Rite of Farewells event. The s-tier costume (alongside the s-tier accessory, "Ode to Love") can be acquired through the "Birdcage" package in the shop. She is played by my own Contract Kuzentsov! She has two forms, although it isn't as drastic as "Thorn Briar" is.
Dove is the current protagonist of the Rite of Farewells universe. She is associated with the Angel Dove, who is commonly known as the griever bird. In the event lore, Dove is a normal girl whose death brought her to the Isle of the Rite, although Dove herself has forgotten this fact. Throughout the event, she is determined to return home. However, as she travels through the Isle's different parts, she meets different people who shape who she becomes by the end of the story.
However, the journey catalyzes and changes during the first death, in which Dove discovers the River of Time and its ferryman, a man named "Guest", as well as the endless timelines of the Rite. Determined to save everyone, Dove willingly travels through the River of Time with "Guest" to enter certain points prior in the timeline in hopes of preventing the others from dying.
Dove's character motif is that of "grief", as in her name. She is extremely emotional and gets attached easily, and grieves people in a way that is self-destructive in its own way. Yet, due to the erosion of the Rite after Lyrith's corruption, Dove's grief is much more powerful than it initially seems, as it can quite literally break the laws of the timelines. She grieves both the dead and the living, and has a deep love for those she's come across. She also has a deep determination to protect those around her, both in the physical and in memorial, believing everyone deserves a chance to be mourned, even if they were "wicked".
Her character design is inspired not just by doves, but also by angels. She is dressed in all whites with a white winged hairpiece, light blues and pinks complementing the light cream/white on her outfit. Her hair is a stark contrast; however, it brings much more attention to her outfit and headpiece. She floats, similar to angels and birds. In her second form, she gains a set of double halos, as well as golden leaves in her hair and a long pink veil. In this form, her eyes are also open, instead of being closed. Something something metaphor about no longer being afraid anymore.
Exclusive S-Tier Accessory: "Ode to Love"
You once told them that you'd always love them, despite the terrible things that happened. That ring is proof of such a pure resolve.
Dove's exclusive s-tier accessory is the "Ode of Love" ring. Canonically, this accessory is the physical manifestation of the love derived from the pain and the grief in her journey. (Contract wears the ring on her finger, no matter if she's equipping the "To Where Grief Flies" costume or a different costume.) It was created by Couture using the powers of "Starborne".
A-Tier: Nocturne Night ( Lunaes played by: Night Watch, "Ithaqua" // @/ask-idv-night-watch -- @m1ss-detective )
"Show me how deeply you can grieve." - ????
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"Nocture Night" is an essence a-tier costume depicting one of the several characters of the Rite of Farewells. "Nocture Night" depicts Lunaes, a folklore god from the Rite's past, known for guiding lost souls to rest. However, in current times, he takes up the mantle of a lighthouse keeper on the Isle of the Rite. He is played by Taegan's interpretation of Ithaqua, the Night Watch.
Lunaes is technically the only original folklore god who remains alive in the current era. In the event lore, he resides in the most dangerous, darkest, most corrupted and decayed parts of the Rite, utilizing his cleansing fire to keep wanderers in the night safe. He oftentimes keeps to himself, only answering basic questions and keeping everyone at arm's length. It's later revealed that the main cause of his self-imposed isolation is due to his fractures, causing him to spiral out of control and eventually become consumed by it, shattering completely and ceasing to exist as "Lunaes".
As Dove's journey continues, a dark truth about Lunaes is revealed. Lunaes' spirit was fractured by Lyrith during the fall of the Frostmoon Goddess, causing Lunaes to fracture in reality. Because of Lunaes' fractured soul, his lifeline within the timelines foresaw by the River of Time was distorted and corroded. While Dove can save everyone else due to their lifelines remaining intact, Lunaes ended up being someone Dove would be unable to save. In every possible timeline, whether he is killed, kills himself, or is consumed by his own agony and ceases to exist as Lunaes, there is no timeline in which Lunaes survives Dove's journey.
Lunaes' character motif is that of "passion", specifically fiery passion. His main color is blue, due to blue fire typically being recognized as the color of the hottest flame. Additionally, his palette included black and deep greys as well as elements of blue butterflies and the phases of the moon, due to his connection to the Frostmoon and the region of land he resides within being dark and gloomy. His costume starts off as the lightest blue, and as more ciphers are popped, the darker blues slowly appear until the lightest blue is replaced by the darkest blue. He also has dead drop roses in place of his left eye and on his collar, as dead drop roses are the local flower found in the land. Beneath the roses is supposed to be Lunaes' left eye; however, what is underneath the roses in his unshattered state is unknown. (He is, however, canonically only able to see with his right eye, so it's safe to assume that whatever is there isn't a working eye.) In his shattered/consumed state, however, the roses fall off due to Lunaes losing his physical form, revealing a completely white eye in its place, most likely replicating the eye from before Lunaes was fractured by Lyrith.
Lunaes' outfit is mainly designed with his environment in mind. The part of the Rite where he resides is very cold and snows often, as well as always being very dark and having dense fog, meaning I had to design him to traverse through the cold often, as well as giving him a portable light source, and a weapon that doubled as a walking staff. (Lunaes uses his staff to grip onto things, pulling himself up eroded cliffs, and more.) Canonically, Lunaes uses stilts to reach high-up places such as trees, cliffsides, and certain places within the lighthouse. Therefore, Ithaqua's stilts are based on Lunaes' canonical stilts that he keeps inside his lighthouse.
Oh yeah. Due to him having fire as his ability, Lunaes made his coat fire-resistant. Oftentimes, he uses the coat to protect wanderers or guests when something in the forest goes astray, and he needs to burn it away.
Canonically, this man does nothing but die. However, here are the most notable ways he dies through the timelines.
He is consumed by agony and shatters completely, ceasing to exist anymore as Lunaes. This death branches out into two paths, either where he exists as his shattered self and becomes one of the many monsters in the Nocture or where he burns up entirely and ceases to exist altogether as Lunaes or as his shattered self.
He kills himself as he's shattering, preventing him from becoming his shattered self.
He kills himself as Lunaes, Halos, Dream, and Mel in a giant forest fire he created.
He kills himself (mid-shatter) and Dove in a giant forest fire, burning both of them to ash.
He is impaled by either Dove or Dream while he is still Lunaes.
He is poisoned by Dove with Mel's help, but he technically does not "die" in the traditional sense. It's closer to being completely asleep, effectively preventing him from shattering. This death is not reversed by Dove.
Lunaes is one of the only two characters to avoid being killed by Lyrith; however, this is due to Lunaes being out of commission by the time everyone else gets to the point of being killed by Lyrith.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: "Ablaze"
There's nothing left to save. It's already been reduced to ash.
Lunaes' exclusive a-tier accessory is his gloves, but specifically his gloves set ablaze. Canonically, you can see how this accessory ties into Lunaes. I hope. However, the more interesting aspect of his gloves is the actual accessory effects, depicted in the doodle to the right side of Lunaes' reference. Basically, the a-tier accessory (when equipped on "Nocture Night") brings Lunaes' shattered form into all of his effects, such as Ithaqua's dash or Ithaqua's wind. When used on non-Lunaes' skins, it just kind of sets Ithaqua on fire, giving all his skills a burning blue flame effect, as well as the carry animation, depicted in the middle upper right.
Basically, when Lunaes uses his skills, he temporarily transforms into his shattered version during the skill's duration before reverting to his regular form. It shows the inevitability of Lunaes' death in a way.
A-Tier: The Frostmoon ( Halos played by: The Keysmith, LeRoy Smith // @manor-tea-time -- @/asystemerror )
"You must understand what it's like to be saved, but unable to save others. Only then does your grief bloom as bright as the Frostmoon itself." - Halos
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"The Frostmoon" is an essence a-tier costume depicting one of the several characters of the Rite of Farewells. "The Frostmoon" depicts Halos, a folklore god from the Rite's past, known for the worship of the moon and protection of the forest. However, Halos is simply a direct blood descendant of the real Frostmoon Goddess and not truly a folklore god. She is played by Al's IDV OC, LeRoy Smith, the Keysmith.
Despite being called a folklore god, Halos isn't a true folklore god. Rather, she is the direct blood descendant of one. Saved by Lunaes after the Frostmoon fell, Halos dedicated her life to continuing what her ancestor had started, as well as trying to find a way to repay Lunaes for saving her that day. In the event lore, Halos is the first person Dove meets after awakening in the Isle of the Rite, traveling to the main land of the Rite with her. Later, the two girls reunite when Dove has to travel through the land of the Nocturne, the land where Lunaes resides. Taking it upon herself, she guides Dove there. In the original timeline, Halos is killed by Lunaes while protecting Dove and Dream when he shatters for the first time. (Itโs unknown what happens to that timelineโs Lunaes, but itโs safe to assume he died.) This death is what strikes Dove and causes her grief to overflow into the River of Time, giving her access to time through her own pain of losing a friend. Due to Dove rewinding time and preventing Lunaes from getting to the point of shattering, Halos original death is overturned, resulting in her surviving her original death node.
Halosโs character motif is that of โpeaceโ or โtranquilityโ. Her main color, similar to Lunaes, is blue, however while Lunaesโ blues have their origin in destruction, Halosโ blues have their origin in peace and moonlight. Through the storyline, Halos brings those around her a sense of peace and relief, acting as a calming and caring source in the chaos. She Carrieโs a sense of both responsibility and desire concerning those around her, wishing to protect them all the way she was once protected a long time ago.
In a similar fashion, her costume was designed with flowiness and openness to it. Being a comforting and supportive force, I wanted her costume to reflect something more open and visible as compared to Lunaes and Dove, whose clothes hide themselves, making them appear to be more closed off. However, as a pseudo goddess, I wanted Halos to retain an aura of elegance, beauty and importance as well. Therefore, I kind of gave her outfit a lot of layers, a lot of lighter portions and overall sometimes fit of a worshipped and well revered goddess. Which is what she ttttechnically is.
Halos dies a few times through the timelines and nearly dies in others. The deaths and near deaths are as follows:
She is killed by a shattering (but not fully shattered) Lunaes for the first time, protecting Dove and Dream.
She is killed by Lunaes alongside Dream, Mel, and Lunaes himself in a giant forest fire that she is unable to escape from.
She is nearly killed by Lunaes' shattering, but is dragged to safety by Nether. Nether dies instead of Halos.
She is killed by Lyrith's thorn briars.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: "Phases"
The Frostmoon blesses your journey. Love will always watch over your growth.
Halosโ exclusive a-tier accessory is the Frostmoon Phases, shortened down to simply โPhasesโ for convenience. Canonically, it is the physical manifestation of Halosโ unique abilities she gained from the Frostmoon. In addition to having a deer form she can switch between freely, she has control over water. However, her control over water is limited and considerable weaker compared to Netherโs control over her lightning or Lunaesโs control over his cleansing fire.
A-Tier: The Price of Pride ( Mel played by: The Opera Singer, Sean // @/yaboimitzu )
"The price of pride means nothing to me." - Mel
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"Price of Pride" is an essence a-tier costume depicting one of the several characters of the Rite of Farewells. "Price of Pride" depicts Melbourne, or simply Mel, a survivor of one of the worst societial collapses during Lyrith's corruption. Mel was an academic professor in the past, teaching a class about alchemy and magic research before the collapse. In the current day, however, he spends most of his time by himself, absorbing himself in the pursuit of forbidden knowledge. He is played by Mitzu's IDV OC, Sean, the Opera Singer.
After meeting Lunaes for the first time, Dove travels to the remnants of Startorch Academy in order to seek out old books about the myth of the River of Time. She ends up running into Mel while there, forming a friendship with the prior professor as he shows her around the academy. Mel sees his late wife in Dove, both being curious and sweet souls. Despite this, he holds a certain level of contempt towards her because of this. To him, her presence feels like reopening old wounds. With Mel's guidance, Dove learns more about the history of the Rite and even introduces Mel to things he never knew, such as the River of Time being a real place. Throughout the event lore, the two bond and become closer.
Mel's character trait is that of... well... I mean, you probably could have guessed it, but his character trait is "pride." Although not too outwardly present like some other character traits, Mel is extremely smart and well-informed, and he constantly seeks out more knowledge. Oftentimes, he can come off as cold or uptight and sometimes even prideful (both of himself and his abilities), though in truth, Mel is simply scared of being hurt again emotionally, and closes himself off as a result. The only one he allows himself to feel comfort in is his puppy, Penny. She was named after his late wife, whose name was Penelope.
His outfit, similar to Lunaes, is designed with the environment in mind. Being in a dark, snowy area, Mel is required to dress warmer than most others. Underneath his massive coat, however, a bit of his professorial profession shows through. He wears a white sweater over his brown turtleneck shirt and a green vest with deep grey pants. He presents himself constantly in a clean, neat, put-together manner. His outfit is meant to express structure and reliability, being someone you can trust. Additionally, he's also coordinated his outfit to match with his dog, Penny, giving her a green neckscarf.
Mel has been killed the least amount of times out of everyone, with the exception of Comett.
He is killed once by Lunaes, alongside Halos, Dream, and Lunaes.
He is killed once by Lyrith's thorn briars.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: Letters to Nowhere
โMy Cecelia, my darling... I miss you every day. Even if we never see each other again, I hope you know I've always appreciated the lease on life you've given me.โ
Mel's exclusive a-tier accessory is "Letters to Nowhere", a notebook filled with letters he had written to his late wife following her passing. Canonically, it captures his grief and his journey as he's forced to live without her, as well as giving insight into his day-to-day life. All his letters are addressed to "my Cecelia", since Penelope's favorite flower used to be the Cecelia flower. It's called "letters to nowhere", since he knows that these letters will ultimately never go out, they will never be real, and ultimately, they will always stay by his side until the day they may be able to meet each other again.
A-Tier: Without Tomorrow ( "Guest" played by: The Unknown, Heifu // @/idv-ask-the-unknown -- @klai-16xoxo )
"I've been here before. Why is that?" - "Guest"
**can be acquired through the "See You Tomorrow" package in the shop.
"Without Tomorrow" is a shop a-tier costume depicting the ferryman of the River of Time, a young man named "Guest". "Guest" is later revealed to be the remains of two prior residents of a prior timeline of the Isles of the Rite known as the Isle of Woe. The a-tier costume (alongside the a-tier accessory, "A Real Heart") can be acquired through the "See You Tomorrow" package in the shop. He is played by Klai's OC, Heifu, although he is specifically played by his IDV counterpart, The Unknown.
"Guest" takes the role of the ferryman who escorts Dove across the River of Time as a rare spoken guide. He, similar to his prior timeline counterpart, has amnesia and cannot remember much of his past. He can only traverse upon the River of Time and see where it takes him. He is canonically unable to leave his ferryman boat when he leaves the River of Time. This is later revealed to be because "Guest" does not belong to this timeline, and his physical body is incapable of accepting him on in-time land. If he steps outside of his boat for too long, his physical body starts to decay and cause him intense pain and discomfort. Because the area where the River of Time resides, also known as the Catacombs, resides outside of "time", he can freely traverse it without issue.
Canonically, โGuestโ travels with a small hand-sewn doll named โLilyโ. Lily was with him when he woke up in the ferryman boat originally, and he feels a strange sense of familiarity towards it and a strange warmth. Itโs revealed that Lily is what remains of two people from a previous timeline, someone that Lyrith himself had personally killed and erased from existence permanently for unknown reasons. Both Lily and Guest are different combinations of what little of them escaped intact, combining into one person and one small doll.
โGuestโโs character motif is that of death, as he is made up of the remnants of two prior residents that persisted after their deaths. This is further pushed by the physical presence of red spider lilies on his attire and in/on his skin, since red spider lilies usually signify death in the Isle. Lilyโs name also originates from the flower.
โGuestโโs outfit is directly inspired by the two characters he is the remnants of. In addition to that, the human skeleton motif also crossed over into โGuestโโs new design. On multiple parts of his outfit, you can see the different bones in the human skeleton, including the chest, hand, legs and feet. The reds, while a part of the original designs his is based on, also double as the โmusclesโ overtop the bones. (Although, thatโs only somewhat in theory.)
Canonically, "Guest" cannot be killed in any manner, due to not having vital organs.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: A Real "Heart"
A "heart" given by someone who no longer exists. The roses are as fresh as the day he tore them out of his chest.
โGuestโโs exclusive a-tier accessory is the heart-shaped dead drop rose bouquet that he inherited from a past life. Originally (in canon), those roses replaced someoneโs heart when they didnโt have one. However, when they were ultimately broken and erased from existence, all that was left of them were the scattered roses. In the current day, โGuestโ has all the roses preserved in a heart-shaped bouquet.
B-Tier: Star Bakery Owner ( Comett played by: The Baker, Beth Anastazja // @ask-idv-baker -- @/beth-bethar00 )
"Welcome to the Star Bakery! I see you've completed some commission, Miss Grief lady!" - Comett
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"Star โ Bakery Owner" is an essence b-tier depicting one of several characters of the Rite of Farewells. "Star โ Bakery Owner" depicts Comett, one of the three owners of the local bakery on the Isle of the Rite, the Star โ Bakery. Comett is the owner of the bakery on paper, gaining ownership over it after their guardian, Lilith, disappeared one day. She is played by Bethany's IDV OC, Beth, the Baker.
When Dove goes to the town of Woe for the first time, she enters the Star โ Bakery while exploring the town. There, she meets Comett for the first time. Comett and the Star โ Bakery acts as something similar to a reputation system afterwards, tracking Dove's progress and how friendly she's become with the town. Canonically, Comett is what pushes Dove forward while on the Isle of the Rite. She is the reason Dove meets many townsfolk, such as Meliodas and Nether. Despite being younger than most (Comett is 15), she's very caring and rather mature. This is attributed to the events that occurred before Dove arrived on the Rite, such as her original guardian going missing, the death of "Coronation", the decline of "Cluttered Stars" health, and more.
Comett's character trait is that of "community". Through the canon story, Comett is one of the few characters who are capable of bringing everyone together. She uses the bakery as a spot for everyone to gather, chat, and overall have a community together. She considers everyone in the town to be family of some kind as well, believing they are each extremely important to her. She also tends to be grateful to those around her, especially Meliodas, for taking it upon himself to care for Annahime after the fall of "Coronation", in which she was seriously injuried in.
Comett's outfit is based on the original outfit of Comett's original counterpart. It takes part inspiration from the original counterpart, but it also takes part inspiration from the kidcore aesthetic, with lots of yellows, pinks, and a giant, puffy coat. I wanted her to look very soft and very cuddly, someone you could get a nice and warm bear hug out of. Heh. Bear hug. Bear. Similar to her sisters, she also wears gloves and a scarf with bells on the ends.
Canonically, Comett dies in several timelines and is critically injured in others. Dove has experienced timelines where Comett is critically injured, but Dove has not experienced any of the timelines where she dies. The timelines in which Comett is critically injured are:
When attacked by Lyrith's thorn briars. She is saved by Nether, who is killed instantly by Lyrith.
When attacked by "Coronation"s corrupt corpse. She is saved by Meliodas, but they're both severely injured in the process.
When she dives into the River Styx to save Dove after she gets pushed in by false "Halos". She nearly drowns, but she manages to get them both to the surface in time.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: Star Purse
It's like a Mary Poppins bag, if it were somehow even smaller, and star shaped.
Comett's exclusive a-tier accessory is her star shaped purse. Canonically, it's one of those plush purses with a small pouch inside it. Usually, Comett carries around small items in there, like gummy bears, keys, picks, flashlights, and more. It's similar in concept to the "Mary Poppins bag", where it's deceptively deep.
B-Tier: Verse and Vow ( "Couture" played by: Reverie )
"You can't rewrite the ending if you don't have a feather pen! You can borrow mine!" - "Couture"
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"Verse and Vow" is an essence b-tier depicting one of several characters of the Rite of Farewells. "Verse and Vow" depicts "Couture", a recent arrival to the town of Woe. She resides in the town as a record keeper. She's played by my IDV OC, Reverie.
"Couture" is one of the many residents of the town of Woe, mainly being a record keeper of sorts. She has a deep interest in the history of the Rite and enjoys traveling around the Rite whenever she's got the chance. However, she can be a little airheaded at times. She believes in the concept of fate, designating it as a "romantic" thing as opposed to scary, frightening, or any of the other ways one might describe the concept of fate. Couture is also capable of breaking the fourth wall, since her main role is that of the storyteller and archivist in the lore. Her true form is that of "the audience", kind of like you guys. Yes, she would talk ships with you guys. She's a dork.
Couture's character trait is that of "romance". To her, she believes every interaction is "fated by the stars" in a way, she believes there is no such thing as a coincidence. She is a hopeless romantic at heart! She believes Dove's dedication to saving everyone is another sign of a "romantic story" and a "love like no other" and wants to do her best in helping Dove achieve it.
Couture's outfit was based upon the dress code on the town of Woe, combined with the colors of romance and love. She sports a similar outfit style to the townsfolk who live there. Her design is meant to blend in and complement everyone else in the town while keeping design elements unique to her specifically.
By the end of the event lore, Couture ceases to exist, having sacrificed herself to utilize "Starborne"s full power to grant everyone a different ending.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: โStarborneโ
โThank you for giving me the courage to rewrite this story.โ
"Couture"'s exclusive a-tier accessory is her "Starborne" feather pen! Canonically, "Starborne" functions the same way as "As We've Written", in which it's a physical record of the events of the story. Most times, when "Couture" writes, she is seen using her "Starborne" feather pen. It writes in colorful ink.
Canonically, "Starborne" has the power to overwrite the timelines and create new endings, due to being originally created by Lyrith, causing it to have an immense amount of power. So far, the only person capable of using "Starborne" at its full power was its creator, Lyrith. It is also connected directly to the River of Time, which is what gives it the ability to technically turn back time.
B-Tier: Beyond the River ( Nether played by: Castorice Styxia )
"I always wish we had more time to say goodbye. You can't follow me beyond the river." - Nether
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"Beyond the River" is an essence b-tier depicting one of several characters of the Rite of Farewells. "Beyond the River" depicts Netherite Mei, more commonly referred to as Nether. She was the former royal retainer to "Coronation" in the past; in the current day, she is a gardener and a graveyard attendant. She is played by Castorice of Styxia.
Nether used to be the royal retainer and assigned swordswoman of "Coronation", a young man with ichor for blood. Prior to his death, she spent most of her time by his side, both as his guard and as his friend. However, following his death, she had become displaced and felt lost as to her purpose in life. For her, she had been trained from the first moment she could remember to protect and serve, and now that there is no longer someone for her to serve, she felt a great deal of confusion, sorrow, and generally felt lost. In an effort to cheer her up, Meliodas suggested she keep a garden.
After Dove's arrival, Nether offers her services as a prior retainer. While escorting her between the different areas in the Rite, Nether and Dove become closer, where Nether accidentally lets her confusion about Meliodas slip. They had been friends prior to her friend's death, and even then, she had always felt strangely about him. However, due to both her position and her personal shyness, she never got that level of personal with anyone. Has she unknowingly had a crush on Meliodas for over 2000 years? Yeah!
Nether's character trait is that of "loyalty", but also that of "guilt". Being a loyal retainer and protector, she had dedicated her life to using her gifts to keep those around her safe. Yet, when she fails to keep them safe, she feels an immense sense of guilt. She often believes she has no worth if she cannot protect others, and something without worth and honor has no place in warm circles such as the town of the Woe. However, she knows that if she disappeared one day, it would make everyone sad, especially Annehime, who sees Nether as a motherly figure. She struggles a lot with her self-image and her self-worth, but stays by the side of those she cares about nonetheless.
Nether's outfit is based on her profession as a gardener. She dresses simple and light, but respectful as well. It also draws inspiration from her Japanese heritage, with the kimono sleeve and her footwear. (Additionally, her a-tier accessory also takes inspiration from her heritage, although that headpiece was a gift from her friend "Coronation".) Her color scheme is majorly purple in association with her innate abilities with lightning.
Nether dies a couple of times throughout Dove's journey, each one reversed when Dove reverses the timeline. The most notable times are:
When she fights "Coronation"'s corrupted corpse and wins, but ultimately dies from ichor poisoning her body.
When she sacrifices herself to prevent Comett from getting impaled by Lyrith's thorn briar.
When she sacrifices herself to save Halos from the fire caused by Lunaes' shattering, when the force of the explosion knocks Halos out.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: "A Gift From a Friend"
โThis gift isnโt for my retainerโฆ but rather for my dear friend and greatest partner, Nether.โ
Nether's exclusive a-tier accessory is the hairpiece her friend and the person she used to guard gave her for her birthday. Canonically, it was just a fan headpiece; however, he has added a pair of fake purple flowers that he had come across on one of his solo travels, due to them reminding him of Nether's eyes, as well as two strings of pearls. He had gotten her this gift, as a friend rather than her master/leader because he had genuinely cared about her and wanted her to have something special and truly unique just to her. Nether keeps it inside the box that he had gifted it to her in, in an attempt to preserve it and keep it safe. However, sometimes she does wear it in her hair.
When equipped by Nether, she will wear it in her hair where the large black bow is. When equipped by non-Nether skins, Castorice will wear it on her back instead, usually attached to the bow on her dress.
B-Tier: Daydream ( Meliodas played by: The Gogo Dancer, Tatya Baudelair // @tatya-time -- @/littlegloriosa )
"To hell with unavoidable goodbyes. I'm not letting you sacrifice yourself because you feel guilty." - Meliodas
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"Daydream" is an essence b-tier depicting one of several characters of the Rite of Farewells. "Daydream" depicts Meliodas, the owner of the Daydream Hotel, a famous large hotel in the town where most of travelers stay at while traveling the Isles of the Rite. He is played by Emma's IDV OC, Tatya Baudelair, the Gogo Dancer.
Meliodas is first introduced when Dove first enters the town of Woe. He offers her a room in his hotel for the night due to her helping Comett with something upon her arrival there without having to be asked to. Eventually, the two of them become friends when Dove offers to help Meliodas with a hotel event, acting as a waiter bringing food to guests' tables. Meliodas later on joins Dove's journey as she prepares to confront the god of the Rite. In response, Lyrith resurrects the old corpse of "Coronation" as a challenge to the townsfolk of the Woe.
Meliodas's character trait is that of "protection". He generally acts like a guardian to those around them and provides safety and protection in any way he can. From running a hotel to offer food and shelter to quite literally taking bullets and getting impaled for people, he's the definition of protective! He wants to see those he cares about safe and sound, and he doesn't really care what happens to him in the process. He cares in a way much deeper and intensive than anyone else.
Meliodas' design is heavily based on his own personality. Flamboyant, strict, yet blasey and chill. He prefers to be free, to be able to move around freely, to captivate presence but not demand it. He's kind of chill, but like... in a hot girl shit kind of way. In the best way possible... he was designed to be completely comfortable in his own skin and unafraid of the world around him. That's why his shirt is open, and he wears a ton of jewelry. He's shiny but not quite flashy... he can control a room, but he doesn't need to command it. Respect makes up his presence, not fame or control, even though he can have it easily. In addition to this, he wears a shoulder pad with a flowing scarf similar to Annahime. He does this out of respect to the Star family, showing a certain level of gentleness and thoughtfulness to those around him. He also has a butterfly-shaped belt buckle out of respect for Nether and her butterfly motif.
He is also one of the only two characters to enter the River Styx, the River of passed on souls, and make it back out alive. He is also the only character to directly prevent someone else from dying in a timeline besides Dove.
Meliodas dies several times during the timeline of the event.
He dies after being impaled through the chest by "Coronation"s corrupt corpse.
He nearly died in the past after pulling Annahime out of the River Styx when she nearly died. However, he survived by his own strength.
He is killed by Nether's Slash of Euythmia alongside Coronation while holding "Coronation" down, sacrificing himself to save the rest of the town of Woe.
When Nether nearly passes from ichor poisoning, Meliodas risks his life again by going into the River Styx to drag her out. (He does not die, due to already having faced the River Styx once before and emerging stronger from it.)
He dies being strangled by Lyrith's thorn briar.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: Dango Snack
A soft, chewy, sugary treat. Perfect for shutting assholes up and bribing rowdy children.
Meliodas' exclusive a-tier accessory is a pair of dango snack skewers. Canonically, these dango snacks were handmade by Meliodas himself as treats for Annahime and all the small children on the Woe. He dabbles in cooking and baking on his off-time, and often gives out food to the homeless and the less fortunate. But he's most infamous for the tri-color dango he carries around.
B-Tier: "Your Color" ( "Dream" played by: The Librarian, Elaine Schreiber // @idv-thespians -- @/eucharist-eulogy )
"You can't save everyone. There's no way to. Someone has to die." - "Dream"
**can be acquired through the Rite of Farewells essence.
"Your Color" is an essence b-tier depicting one of several characters of the Rite of Farewells. "Your Color" depicts "Dream", an entity that resides in the town of Woe. She places herself as Dove's main companion throughout the story, and often tries to keep Dove on the right track.
"Dream" is one of the first people Dove meets after awakening in the Rite. She positions herself as Dove's companion when they meet, offering her a tour around the town and introducing her to all the residents of the town. Throughout Dove's journey, she sticks by her side, trying her best to guide her and keep her safe. However, she takes issue with Dove using the River of Time to save everyone (herself included), as she believes that death is inevitable and Dove shouldn't waste her efforts on something that she cannot change. While she only wishes the best for her, she can be cruel and harsh with her word choices.
In truth, "Dream" also shattered a long, long time ago, doing something similar to Dove in the current day and age. She had to pull herself back from the brink of insanity, and is constantly worried about the same thing happening to Dove. Not many people can will themselves back from completely shattering like she had, and even then, you're never quite the same ever again.
"Dream"'s character trait is that of "transcendance". Her entire character revolves around the fact that she has transcended death itself and transformed into an entirely different person. She has grown and changed and quite literally morphed into something beyond human. In a similar fashion, she's transcended the known limits of the natural world, and she's broken the rules in a way that she can't repair. She transcended limits she never wanted to, and now she can't find a way to turn back.
In a similar fashion, "Dream"'s outfit is representative of her changes from a normal human to a shattered being. Her entire premise is something inhumane, something ethereal, something quite literally out of this world. I wanted "Dream" to give off almost... uncanny vibes. She's mysterious, yet she glimmers and glistens. She is dressed in dark colors, yet the purples in her outfit make her stand out in the perfect way. Her outfit is inspired by the deep sea, where the most mysterious and odd creatures are usually found. She invokes a deep-sea fish aesthetic with her colors and the silhouette of her outfit.
Dream canonically dies once in the timeline, as well as once prior to Dove's time. Those are:
When she gets trapped beneath a burning tree during Lunaes' quadurpale kill.
When she shattered originally, the human part of her died and ceased to exist all together. However, she managed to pull herself back together and rebuild herself as the "Dream" we know in the current day.
Exclusive A-Tier Accessory: Stunner Shades
She thinks they make her look cool. The shards keep scratching the lenses though...
"Dream"s exclusive a-tier accessory is her Stunner Shades. Canonically, they are the sunglasses "Dream" used to wear before she had shattered. It's the last thing left of her when she was still human, and she wears them to feel a little closer to the version of herself she lost along the way. She does genuinely believe they do make her look cool and badass.
And that's everyone's references complete! I'd like to thank everyone who joined off the bat for trusting me enough to lend me their characters and their muses! I had a lot of fun doing this after not doing one for so long. I was afraid I wouldn't do everyone justice, so seeing everyone here is just... such a treat to be honest!
Honestly... I've already done more than I usually do for these essences, but I wanted to really challenge myself with this essence to make something worth remembering! So this time, inspired by my friend Al's Music of the Night essence, I also gave a shot at adding some lore-related accessories!
But, you might wonder what else I did if it wasn't just costumes, accessories, and tier cards? Well... I did say I wanted to try something different, something challenging! Therefore, I present...
"Welcome to my garden, dear brother. You should stay a while! I'd prefer it if you stayed forever."
I had always wanted to try my hand at one of those Identity V style crossover title screens where there's the essence high-tier and the person who got the high-tier on the same artwork together... this is what my attempt looked like, although its moreso in my style rather than the Identity V artstyle? Anyways, the point IS I tried my hand at it for this essence, and I had a lot of fun with it! (I actually streamed part of my sketching it out <3)
Might try to make more... maybe I will in the future, but for this collection, this is the title screen concept! Been told it might make a cool wallpaper, but someone never got me back on that. (/j)
Loading Screens: Lunaes, Halos, Mel, and "Guest"
What do you see in those blue flames? A friend? A foe? Or something... different?
The other thing I really, really wanted to try my hand at making were those transition/loading screens when you load into a quick/rank match! I figured I'd give it a shot with my 4 a-tier skins, and I had the idea to make them all blue. (And it made for fun lighting practice too!)
I only made 4 of them (again, as a test) to see how it came out, and honestly? Super cute, I enjoyed it a ton. It was nice to be able to draw the a-tiers again after the initial time, too.
Skin Package - Birdcage Poster (Dove)
"I love all my friends! They are what give me the courage to fly free from this birdcage."
This is the package "poster" for Dove's skin, To Where Grief Flies! Every shop skin has one of these posters, and I figured it'd be neat to make one of them myself... or uh, two of them, since I had two "shop" skins! I also included Contract's "Ode to Love" accessory. I thought the idea was cute to have both skin and accessory in the poster.
Skin Package - See You Tomorrow Poster ("Guest")
"See you tomorrow... I've always liked that idea; it's not a farewell, but rather an invitation for more to come. I'll see you tomorrow."
This one is the other "shop" poster, although this one is for "See You Tomorrow"! He ended up being the a-tier who went into the shop, since usually I have at least one a-tier who ends up in the "shop". I wanted to include his roses and whatnot, as well as his boat, so it focuses on "Guest" inside the tunnels on the River of Time! It's a simple poster, but I think it looks nice.
And, if you think about it, now Klai doesn't have to spend all her life savings to get Heifu's costume! She's just gotta sink like... 50 bucks to buy his package from the shop.
Original Concept Designs: Lyrith, Nether, Couture, and Comett
I did mention original designs/concepts, and I have three (four?) of them here! These are the original designs/concepts for Lyrith, Nether, Couture, and Comett!
For Nether and Couture, you can see their full original designs there. Not much really changed? Well, not much for Nether. Couture got a few changes haha.
For Lyrith, you can kind of see his design stayed similar, but he definitely got an upgrade! I fleshed out the dress a ton more and reworked his flower crown more! (I also gave him horns and adjusted the markings on his neck.) Lyrith's original design came from the Halloween Concept I had for 2025, which is why it's a different title there entirely. This entire essence is based on the Rite of Souls AU from my Halloween series, actually. Not sure if you guys knew that.
And then there's Comett. Comett is based on our little pal in the corner there! RoS Tribbie! Similar to Lyrith, Comett got an upgraded design based on the original design there. Replaced the rose with a scarf, gave her a hat instead of the rose headband, adjusted her sweater, etc.
Doodles and Mock-Ups:
And finally, my doodles and my mockup drawings! My doodles are from when I was at work for 7 hours and dying inside haha. That's why the quality is..... honestly kind of low and scribbly. You'll all be pleased to know I've bought a proper sketchbook now, since I quite literally did not have a physical one since August 2025-ish. It's mostly Dove since her design was the one easiest for me to remember at the time (it was right about the time I finished designing her character reference sheet.)
The one on the bottom left is my poster mockups! Originally, I was gonna have the title screen be Contract and Dove, with Dove's second form peering from outside the birdcage, but I ended up going with Lyrith and Phainon instead... but the behind-the-scenes is interesting nonetheless, right? Right. I also have the shop poster mockups for Dove and "Guest". They both had their changes to them, but I overall think they came out super cute.
I also had my mockup for the loading screens. I ended up ignoring that completely KJSNDFKSJEFNDKSJFND.
And the last one I have here was... Leviathan. I don't remember what this sketch was for, to be honest? It coooould have been for the essence poster? I don't know! But, it looks cool. I think? I don't know. Him and that damn bonefish, sassy bitch duo.
Okay. I'm done, dare I say, after two months of work? I did it! Obviously, I'm not done with it, but I am at a point where... I think I'm happy enough to share everything in full! I'm very, very proud of myself and what I accomplished in time passing! I also like the lore bits I got to add into the text sections for each... outlining the characters and who they are within universe... it really gets you thinking, you know?
I hope everyone else likes it too? I hope everyone else is at least somewhat pleased, god i'm gonna sob if you guys aren't. I might actually die. perish. explode. become one with the confetti.
Kidding, kidding! Or am I?
It's been so long since I've done one of these, I'm at a quite literal loss for words right now. This never happens! Like, ever! Unless you compliment me, but I'm literally incapable of taking a compliment, so I don't think that should count.
Okay! That's it! Hopefully, you guys got some kind of kick out of this! Bye!
