#arcadia rip off

[showrunnerihardlyknowher]

using arcadia rip off for my gamedev course, needed to make some concept art of the ranger cabin and craigery. have the warm up doodle.

[showrunnerihardlyknowher]

minor redesign for the 3rd billionth time

[showrunnerihardlyknowher]

I need to hear about one of Craig's attempts to rizz El'ara 🤲🏾

Oh, Craigery.........

One time, he attempted to pick some flowers for her. Girls like flowers, don't they? And considering how much she's in tune with nature, this seemed like the most obvious way to get on her good side. Y'know, like gifting measuring cups to a baker.

The realm has all sorts of interesting, beautiful flora, so he wanted to find the ones that reminded him the most of her. Ones with big, black pistils like her eyes, ones with curling white petals like her hair, ones covered in speckles like her fur pattern. He thought he did pretty good!

Until he presented them to her and she immediately scrunched her nose up at his display. Oh, so he just went around destroying more of the foliage for what? For nothing? For these flowers to now wither and die an early death when they could have been used to feed the earth? What a waste of resources. Of course humans would choose to destroy beauty instead of letting it flourish.

Craig: 🙁

El'ara: By the way, prolonged contact with the sap from Abysicas causes rashes. As is evident by your hands, at the moment.

Craig: ☹️

it's fine she made him a salve later that day to put on his hands. not that she cares or anything.

[showrunnerihardlyknowher]

Florence was (understandably) down bad for Solanis, yes. But, did he return the feelings in the same capacity or did he just think it was adorable because of that whole 'superior being' factor? Obviously cared for her a lot in some way but what is that way? (*"I do love your mother, but she's more like a pet to me"* Omni man type beat?)

Dropping off the face of the earth again, gotta get some plans in motion (phase 1, step 2: get a car is almost complete) ✌🏾

Alas, it was very much an unrequited love on Florence's side 💔 They definitely had a much closer bond than Solanis has had with other humans due to how much she devoted herself to him (and also because she so naturally meshed into this lifestyle) but no, he was not in love with her the same way. Loved her wholeheartedly, of course, just not romantically. He doesn't feel that way about humans.

It is kinda in the same vein as Omni man ngl, especially because he lives so much longer than humans that they're basically just a bunch of pet hamsters in comparison. But he still loves each and every one of them, he thrives while being a provider and feels his purpose is to nurture them, such lowly little things that they are.

[showrunnerihardlyknowher]

I'm back because I sat still doing nothing for too long so my mind said

Here are my questions

1. Solanis' garden is a recurring thing that keeps being mentioned yet I don't think we've seen much of it. What kind of garden is it?

2. With the death of several people in his garden turning him to go and get a body count, I'm assuming these deaths were within a short time frame, either back to back or all at once?

3. So, going back to his garden, what is it? Why does he have humans just chilling there sometimes? And if the deaths happened with like just a snap of some fingers, has someone/something ever try to destroy his garden? Is he particularly protective of his garden, what is its purpose? There's something with the garden I can just feel it. (There's nothing there)

4. Were the deaths related to his garden somehow or was the threat specifically after those particular humans? Was it an accident or intentional?

5. Is he immortal? Does he have any kind of powers that would garner him having followers, or do they just follow him out of gratitude for helping them?

6. The other threats that lurk within the realm, besides the 'natural' stuff, are they in the same league as Solanis and El'ara?

7. Was Florence an actual witch or was that just with the time period that she lived through, "oh she's sus, she's not like other girls, SHE MUST BE A WITCH!"

8. Are there any specific details that have to be met in order for someone to accidentally enter the realm? Like, does it only work for a certain set of people who've been through stuff, is it spiritually related, or just pure happenstance that someone can enter the realm?

9. Back to the garden because I'm just obsessed with it at this point and need to know if I'm onto absolutely nothing; if the garden were to be burned down, just destroyed or damaged in any way, would it have any effects on Solanis? Besides most likely pissing him off. Is he connected to the garden?

I'll be back with more questions after my brain shuts down for the day, running on fumes and I'm pretty sure I lost my train of thought with some of these questions. ✌🏾

--

Beautiful questions, beautiful questions ✍️

His garden isn't just like, y'know, a flower bed or something. It's more so just the general term for the area he inhabits, which is actually the ruins of what could be considered "his (former) kingdom", an abandoned paradise that's been gradually reclaimed by nature since less and less humans have inhabited it as the centuries pass. But the overgrowth doesn't bother him in the slightest, which is why he tends to the sprawling flowers and trees and shrubbery.

It's true there are hundreds, if not thousands, of people buried in his garden, but that's simply because people have been living there for millennia. You're naturally going to build up quite the body count over a couple thousand years. This is actually the basis of one of his more common legends -- that he grows his flowers from the dead, which is why he lures so many humans to his garden. In reality, he only buries them when they die on their own accord so that they may be returned to the earth as all life is, and from that they grow into something lovely for him to mourn over.

Humans used to be extremely commonplace in his garden, given that it was once a paradise for them. He was their adoring provider and protected his little "kingdom" fiercely. No one has ever tried to fully destroy the entire thing, but if they did, I doubt they would succeed the moment he comes swinging his sword in defense. By now it's mostly ruins as previously mentioned through natural means. The garden is his home, and the resting place for his previous humans, and the sanctuary for any future lost humans -- so yes, he is still protective of it regardless.

Most of the deaths that occur in his garden are completely natural complications from old age or health issues. Some have died tragically young, some have been born there and died there ninety years later, some only survived a short while after being taken in before succumbing to something previous. While there are plenty of natural remedies he's able to use that certainly don't exist outside of the realm, there's some injuries or illnesses that simply can't be treated with the resources here.

He's a type of immortal -- he'll only die if he can be killed, and good luck finding anything strong enough to kill him. It's uncertain if he has any powers or abilities but...there is something "off" about him. He has/had a litany of followers for various reasons: some thankful and devoting themselves to him, some who believe worshipping him will grant special blessings if he's pleased, some who just want to join his way of life of living in harmony with the natural world, etc.

Yep! There are plenty of other creatures like El'ara and Solanis out there, especially deeper into the realm. They're crossed between all kinds of species and evolved to various environments, and range in sizes, intelligence, morality, so on. Those two happen to reside closer to the realm's threshold, El'ara because she's a guardian meant to guide lost humans back and Solanis because he wants to be closer to humans, so they're more on the outskirts compared to where other similar species frequently roam.

Not a witch! Just unfortunately an young, unmarried woman who didn't follow the Puritan beliefs as strictly as her community demanded and had an "obscene" amount of knowledge relating to medicinal botany through her own studies and teachings from the indigenous locals. We can't have such a godless wench creating science with those heathens, can we?

Not specific per say, but there are some people who have a predisposition to be able to find the barrier easier. Like with El'ara not being an exact reincarnation of Florence, but still possessing her essence, there are humans out there who are made up of parts that used to belong in the realm, and that can create a pull within them that feels the need to "go back" without really knowing why. Other times it's dumb luck that you happened to make the exact wrong turn and the perfect misstep and now you're at the boundary. For those who actually know about the realm, they can seek out the boundary themself if they know how to look for it or map it out, like Craig. Then there's the unlucky ones that get too close to the line and caught in a type of trance that lures them over.

It would depend on the severity of the damage and whether it was done intentionally or an unfortunate disaster. He doesn't mind the natural decay, kingdoms aren't meant to last as nature does not like to be conquered, and he knows eventually it will be rebuilt and fade and rebuilt again -- he's seen enough civilizations in the realm already to know its the circle of life. But if it were to be destroyed all at once, he would be heartbroken to say the least. It would take him a good while to mourn the loss of everything since it was just as much a memorial to his humans as it was his personal space. Eventually he would have no choice but to move on, just like how he can't allow himself to wallow in grief every time one of his beloved humans died. Now if it was intentional, and especially if he had any humans living there at the time...it might be time for Genocide 2: Electric Boogaloo--

I will also throw in this lil tidbit about Solanis and his garden: He's not connected to his garden in any spiritual sense or something, it's not like you can destroy the garden to weaken him and go for the kill. It's more like a kid sitting in a field happily playing and cuddling a bunch of bunnies, and you would be wise to let him stay contented where he is, unless you want to risk him doing something else with what he's capable of.

[showrunnerihardlyknowher]

Cliff notes because my focus is shot to shit rn

• that one post, "Forgive me I beg" I could not protect you.

•Humans were sacrificed to him at some point

•Is the main (only?) reason why people go missing in the forest, actively luring (kidnapping) people

•I think in the very first post you had of this au with Solanis, that mini little animation that plays with the different people over the years and eras, some of them do n o t look particularly thrilled to see him

•^ same post -> "You came back. You came home" (return to spawn point or where your progress was last saved *past life*???)

•Has (had) followers

Is my guy the mascot for a cult?? What is he that would cause people to sacrifice others to him??

Obvi sweet and overall caring guy but you did mention he's a slight yandere (right?) which would make sense given that he's apparently the cause of these numerous disappearances all for the reason of wanting people to stay with him in the garden (THERE'S SOMETHING THERE I TAKE IT BACK).

I'm losing my train of thought I'll just wait until whenever you see this message and whatever your response is to the series of questions I've asked, I think I've already found the answers to some of them but would still like to see what you have to say

Closing thought: Bro is the problem

I will gladly feed into your conspiracies and say that you are onto something about sweet boy Solanis--

I am gonna be 100000% upfront though that a few of my earlier thoughts about him are not exactly retconned at this point, more so just recontextualized now that I've had time to marinade over the AU. Some things aren't as extreme as I initially vibed out, but other things..............>;3c

Here's what I'll say about Solanis: we (the audience and the characters) simply just Do Not know a lot about him, and what we DO know is not very flattering. We're relying on ancient translated texts and lost ruins to help paint a picture, most of which speak about the genocide and its aftermath. The fact that he also never speaks about any of this and is quite avoidant of the topic whenever Craig tries to go snooping doesn't help his case either. It isn't clear how much of these legends are based on facts or overexaggerations of things that happened thousands of years ago.

But where there's smoke, there's fire, frankly. The stories are enough for several types of cult followings over the eras that have slowly (but not completely) pittered out. It's enough for the former ranger to write multiple notes and journals about how he does not trust Solanis and to be wary of his intentions, which Craig barely heeds anyways.

What we do know is this:

Not all the humans in his garden have come unwillingly

Solanis' race is not recorded for being a kind one

Solanis has committed a genocide thousands of years ago for unknown reasons

Those lost in the forest seem inexplicably drawn towards the garden in their wandering

Solanis can be persuaded to return lost humans back to the threshold, but he does not give back his sacrifices

There is still at least one active cult worshipping what they believe is Solanis' true legend and power

Solanis very much does not like Craig and Ginny exploring the realm looking for insights about him (both personal and historical) based on previous notes they've found, will stop them from poking their noses too deep, and refuse to elaborate on anything they ask relating to it

[showrunnerihardlyknowher]

Who's older Solanis or El'ara? And if Solanis is older by a substantial amount, is there a possibility that he may have encountered her when she was still human all those years ago?

Solanis is much older than El'ara. He's been around for thousands of years whereas she's only around 500 years old.

And he has indeed encountered her when she was a human! She's appeared on this blog a couple of times already :)

Her name was Florence, and she was one of his most devout followers in the garden after he saved her from being drowned as a witch in the 1600s. She was also down so bad for him.

[showrunnerihardlyknowher]

What would a pissed off solanis do?

he would definitely NOT singlehandedly commit a genocide...again.