#or armor

[mounted-archer]

Cracked up during the Citadel DLC when a coffee mug is worth like 300XP and just imagined Shepard taking a quick gulp of someone’s lukewarm cup of coffee

[orbiiance]

this guy's real cool. real neat.

[a-dauntless-daffodil]

There were probably other reasons for giving Vaggie a spear VS Lute with her sword, but it still makes me so very very very happy, from a character angle

Spears get called the king of the battlefield for pretty good reason- when you’re on a battlefield specifically, a long pointy stick is VERY good at killing people without letting them get close enough to kill YOU (extra useful if you’re not tall and don’t have much built-in reach). It’s also great for formations, a weapon that that becomes TERRIFYING when it’s a in a group. If a row of spears holds their ground, keeps their nerve, and TRUSTS each other, then they can break a cavalry charge (and WHERE did Vaggie learn to trust people...?)

Spears aren’t infallible tho, obliviously. Get past the pointy part and you’re pretty much golden… if the spear person isn’t holding a shield in their other hand

(Charlie with her shield covering for Vaggie in the finale battle my beloved…!)

Swords, they’re a more diverse group. Lute’s falls into the Versatile category- it can do many things fairly well, but not as good as something specifically dedicated to the task would be, while being easy to carry around. It’s even got a nice bit of hand protection! For dueling or personal everyday defense Lute’s sword is a great pick.

But for the battlefield? It would normally be a back-up weapon. Normally, getting that close to your opponent while carrying NOTHING ELSE would be a bad idea if, say, your opponent might be carrying a spear, or a longer sword, or any combo of side arm + shield. If on the other hand you don’t expect your target to put up much of a fight- because they’re terrified and running from you- or armed with weapons that can’t hurt you- If, in effect, you treat this like a HUNTING trip, and all you need to do is deal the killing blow… then a sword like Lute’s makes perfect sense.

What I’m trying to say is:

Vaggie uses a weapon that says she took fighting alongside her fellow exorcists SERIOUSLY, as a GROUP activity, and she was focused on being as effective as possible. (one of Adams best girls, out there in front where a spear belongs, killing thousands)

And Lute? Lute’s weapon only makes sense in a fight that’s PERSONAL- or in a battle that’s already tilted in her favor.

(bonus: in terms of metal needed and skill required, a sword of Lute’s type will generally be Much More expensive to make than a spear would be. In that sense, it’s a more ‘elite’ weapon, while a spear is more… shall we say.... Replaceable.)

[kirric-the-fan]

Pirate au ficlet: Armour.

(This is one of those fics that pings hard between fluff and angst.)

Follow up to this drabble here (can also be read stand alone).: As Julieta updates a pregnant Pepa on the ship's business for the day, Pepa realises she seems particularly distracted. They have a talk about the best way to protect Isabela.

Warning: Mentions of stabbing as a thing that can happen to pirates.

--

It wasn't a hammock that took the corner of the cabin, but something more solid. A wooden half-egg shape filled with cushions and a very pregnant Pepa who had just collapsed into it moments before. She laid back, relishing the weight off her feet, and the peaceful steadiness the free-hanging seat brought. Closing her eyes, the perspective changed, and it was the cabin that swung, and not her. It was nice. She found herself about to drift off when there was a knock at the door, and a familiar voice called out. "Pepa? Can I come in?"

Pepa sighed. She pushed herself upright, shifting a bit more to try and remove the uncomfortable lump that was now sticking into her back. It was bad enough the little one was running a one child war against her innards: she did not need the same from outside. "Sure."

Julieta let herself into the cabin, a pile of papers in her arms and already talking about ships business, not seeming to notice Pepa's struggle to reach behind her. Her voice washed over her head.

Pepa kept searching for the uncomfortable culprit. She could feel something: cushions, a blanket and- Pepa squirmed, something popped, and she finally found herself eye to eye with the grey cloth toy that had been menacing her kidneys.

"Julieta!"

Julieta started, cut off.

"Can you give Luisa her donkey back?" Pepa held out the teddy, a rather worn looking grey flop of a donkey. The tactical phrase a mother might have used would have been 'well loved'. "That's the third time this week I've sat on it, and it keeps staring at me if I try to put it on the shelf."

"Oh." Julieta blinked and looked at the toy. "Oh. ... No."

"Juli-" Pepa whined.

"She gave it to you as a gift." Julieta leaned forward and added, rather unnecessarily, ‘for the baby,' then straightened up again. "Gifts don't get returned, not unless you want to look her in the eye and explain why. And," Julieta continued further, cutting Pepa off as she tried to interrupt, "stay around to comfort her afterwards for inevitably breaking her heart." For such a strong girl, Luisa had a soft soul. She was very kind, but she still wasn't great at taking rejection of that kindness.

Pepa let out a frustrated grumble. "It just keeps appearing. Everywhere I turn…" She shot daggers at Julieta as her sister stifled a laugh.

"Sorry. It just reminds me of a certain little mouse that kept following me around when I was carrying Luisa."

One of Bruno's creations. At least when they'd both been pregnant, they could convince the various good luck charms to stay elsewhere. Nice and high and out of sight to keep watch for them both. But no. 'It's just for you, It's got to be close!'

"Maybe Camilo could look after it for a bit?" Pepa perked up at Julieta's suggestion. "He could keep it safe until his sibling arrives. Your cabins are right next to each other after all."

Pepa blinked. "Right." That might work. It was soon now, and for all the love she already had for this child, she couldn't wait for it to be over. The child was already an active one: She could swear they were moving around more than the ship sometimes.

Julieta pulled the donkey out of her hand, and set it aside, before launching straight back into business, Pepa quickly realising she was lost as Julieta rattled on.

"Julieta!"

She stopped again.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Pepa confessed. "Too many donkeys. Wasn't paying attention."

"But I didn't mention the- oh."

Pepa offered what she hoped was an apologetic grimace at her sister as she tried to gather herself.

It was odd though. Julieta was usually much more alert to this sort of thing- how Pepa was feeling. In fact, she usually picked up on it straight away. Pepa watched her shuffle through her notes again, and quietly cursed herself for not paying attention either. She definitely seemed distracted.

"Alright. From the top. And-" Pepa winced a little- for a change, nothing to do with the baby, "-I'll be listening this time."

It went a lot smoother, the two finally skipping through the list of jobs with ease.

"-and that seems to be it," Julieta rounded off.

"Finally." Pepa flopped her head back with a sigh. She may have just been sitting there, but running the ship was hard, and she could really use a nap right now.

"I'll leave you to get some rest."

"Mmm."

Julieta paused, her usual line to the door on hold. "Oh, by the way," she started, nonchalantly tapping at the armour on her chest, "you don't happen to remember where you ordered this from?" Her fingers laid a drum beat, bouncing hollow off the hard leather that covered the top half of her chest.

Pepa quirked an eyebrow at that, and looked around. "Finally getting tired of getting stabbed?"

Julieta scoffed, batting against her sister's arm. "No! I'm thinking of getting something for Isabela," she explained. "She's getting older now, so she's going to be out on more missions and fights, and I just thought she could do with something to keep her safe."

Oh.

Pepa remembered now. The last skirmish had not gone well. They'd fought them back, but Isabela had been hurt, almost taken beyond what Julieta's gift could do.

"-that's all," Julieta hurried to finish, the casual wave of her hands just a little too tight, a little too quick. "Maybe it could be a nice birthday present. We could even have a matching set!"

Oh…

Pepa's heart fell.

"It's not going to work."

"What? What do you mean?"

She pushed herself forward, a hand on her head and grounding herself against the floor. "You can't just slap some armor on someone and say, 'you're safe now'. It doesn't work like that."

"It would at least help stop her getting stabbed."

Pepa shook her head slowly. "No. It would stop her being afraid of being stabbed. And you know what that means? It means she'll throw herself into even more danger than before."

"You don't know that. Isabela's more sensible than that, she'll-"

Pepa's eyes stayed fixed on her sister. "Yes," she said quietly, weight hanging on the back of her words, "I do."

Julieta opened her mouth: looked like she wanted to argue. Pepa stopped her.

"Okay, I'll break it down for you." Her tone became sharp, hard. Matter of fact. Cutting, but some wounds needed to be made. It was better in the long run. "One: Isabela's powers can keep her out of the fight while still fighting. If she thinks she needs to, she can just pull herself out of the way easily enough. She already has a sword. You put her in armor, what do you think's going to happen?"

"I-"

"Two: you've seen how she moves. You've complained to me enough times about how restrictive your armor is, and there's barely any of it at all. Do you really think Isa will ever be comfortable in the same?"

It was true. The way Isabela twisted and turned in and over the ropes, an acrobatic dance, she could never retain the same range of movement as she did now.

"Three: She's headstrong. Even with her recent experience, she wouldn't agree to it anyway. It would be wasted."

"I didn't agree to mine, at first."

"You had a reason to come round to it." 

Pepa leaned back and sighed again. "We'll push her to do more training. Less focus on the sword, more about the long range stuff. Maybe if we phrase it as keeping watch..." Pepa pondered.

"She's not going to like that."

"She's going to have to deal with it. I'll make it orders if I have to."

Her words came harder than she intended, and Pepa couldn't bring herself to meet the tense shock of her sister, the sheer waves of disagreement and fight that poured off her, not at first. She steeled herself, and looked up.

Julieta looked so hurt.

She knew that look.

Her heart softened, but she held her ground. "I know you want to protect them, but sometimes that means thinking further than just wrapping them up in steel."

Silence. Julieta didn't answer, and finally looked away.

The two sat there, the ship creaking around them.

"Do you remember when Agustín tried on that helmet we found?" Julieta eventually said, changing the subject. "The shiny one, with all the flaps?"

Pepa snorted, stifling the laughter with a hand. "Dios mio: the way his moustache stuck out? Just two little-" she put her fingers over her lip and wiggled them, making Julieta laugh too. Pepa crossed her eyes and started making funny noises, mimicking her brother-in-law and drawing peals of laughter from her sister. She doubled down on her efforts until Julieta was doubled over, tears in her eyes, half-heartedly begging her to stop as she laughed.

The door burst open, Félix falling through and quickly picking himself up again, a ten-year-old Camilo clung onto his back. "We saw rainbows!" Félix declared, somewhat out of breath, leaning heavily against the door as he tried to catch up.

Camilo's little head poked up above him, beaming at them with a toothy grin, "and we want in!"

(Want to know more? Mosey on up to my pinned post here for links to more pirate AU thoughts, stories and drabbles! Also, got a question for the au? My askbox is always open!)

[windup-dragoon]

⌛ do they go shopping for clothes often? how long do they usually need?

Useless Details Meme! @miss-laney

⌛ do they go shopping for clothes often? how long do they usually need?

KIRI HATES SHOPPING FOR CLOTHING. Why do people pay so much for fabric??? Fabric that usually ends up torn or just looks bad on her???? She will only force herself to go shopping when her wardrobe begins to thin and even then it’s bare minimum as to what she buys. With the exception of small clothes of course, those are more of a necessity. But a dress? No way. The feeling of standing out or not really fitting the style of a dress/outfit/attire really keeps her from buying anything out of the ordinary. 

[rockshortage]

todd owes me a legendary weapon

[corvidexoskeleton]

I keep mostly to myself in fo76 because I don't wanna ruin your vibes by waltzing in and stomping everything... but let me know if you actually wanna play together instead of just doing our own thing while on the same team :')

Im mostly just trying to level up rn bc actually running around and doing stuff is a major pain in the ass until like. Level 45+. So I'm just tryna grind. Unfortunately for me, I have very little consideration for my character's well being, and that means I die frequently