#reblogging for reference

[fiberartsash]

Decided to change my username because I like Alice but it doesn't quite feel like me. So hey, I'm Sasha (but you can call me Sash), they/them, nineteen, nice to meet you.

[tessasilverswan]

pinned post except it's for me bc the in-blog search function is fucking useless and i want to find the stuff i tag for that purpose specifically

and these are for you if you're reading:

[very-gay-poet]

you deserve everything good in life, and i mean it. i am so glad you’re here

I have no idea how to respond to this since I can't even read this without crying thank you so much anon

[wilhelmina-murray-harker]

Wil presents: A non-exhaustive list of various jobs Fairy Tail characters could have in AUs that are based on their powers/personalities that is mostly for myself but that others are also free to use and add to if they wish

Natsu

Firefighter (duh), arsonist (illegal), fire eater, chef, hibachi chef, explosives/fireworks/pyrotechnics engineer, mad scientist (fire variety), expert on dragons/dragon mythology, blacksmith, welder

Juvia

Swimmer (duh), marine biologist, diver, mermaid (the people that perform as them), plumber, swim instructor, ship’s captain, seamstress, meteorologist

Lucy

Author (duh), journalist (also duh), model, editor, astronomer, worker at an observatory, locksmith (bc the keys and my sense of humor), fashion designer, mythology expert

Wendy

Doctor (duh), pilot, flight attendant, EMT, therapist, performer, ornithologist (person who studies birds), camp counselor, physical therapist

Gray

Ice sculptor (duh), hockey player, mountaineer, ice climber, stripper (sorry not sorry), glaciologist, ski instructor/professional skier, figure skater

Erza

Fencer, stunt double, stunt trainer, martial arts specialist, knight (maybe it’s an old timey AU idk), historical reenactor, life coach, security guard, federal agent, police officer, blacksmith

Gajeel

Mechanic (duh), metal sculptor, blacksmith, locksmith, handyman, piercer, tattoo artist, biker (is that a job?), police/military officer, security/prison guard, musician, chef

Levy

Editor (duh), rapper, lyricist, writer, librarian, English teacher, professor of practically anything, translator, archaeologist, historian, museum curator

Jellal

Astronomer (duh), astronaut, therapist, private investigator, teacher, astrophysicist, house husband, diplomat, government official, spy

Lisanna

Veterinarian (duh), wildlife rehabilitator, zookeeper, volunteer/owner of a humane society, zoologist, expert on mythical animals (some sort of professor, probably), waitress, chef

Mira

Tavern keeper (or however you say that in modern terms), bartender, waitress, model, instagram influencer, makeup artist, actress, chef, restaurant owner, teacher, singer, stripper, dancer

Elfman

Bodybuilder (is that a job?), personal trainer, wrestler, weightlifter, gym owner, therapist, wildlife rehabilitator, wildlife biologist, veterinarian, nurse, baker, affirmer of trans men

Sting

Electrician, lighting designer, physicist that focuses on light, priest/rabbi/imam/other religious leader, youth pastor (yes this is its own section), model, business owner, CEO, firework engineer

Rogue (god this was hard)

Shadow puppeteer, ghost buster, paranormal investigator, stage manager, spelunker, mechanic, detective, archaeologist, casino dealer, night school teacher

Yukino (ugh this was also hard)

Astronomer (duh), locksmith (see above with Lucy), government/military official, teacher, astrologist, worker at an observatory, family counselor, Build A Bear employee

(updated 8/7/22)

[ly0nstea]

This is mostly for my own self-reference but I thought if I'm gonna write it down I may as well post it and see what people think. It's mostly my ideas on how firebending works, but it also touches on how the Fire Nation developed certain things and why they act the way that they do. I'm trying to keep this canon-compliant, but atla is very light on how bending actually works so I'm not too worried, idrc if I go against the comics because most of my fic ideas end up making them and Korra not really able to happen anyway so if I contradict it no massive deal, i only really care for the Beginnings two parter.

So, jumping right into it, the source of fire bending, the way I see it is that Fire Bending is driven by your personality, an 'inner flame' so to speak, which is why Zuko's bending was so weak post-DotBS, he had no significant drive, his flame dyed down and so did his flames. The specifics of where the fire comes from is emotion, not all are equal though, the most significant being anger and joy, this is why firebenders lash out with flames a lot when they're angry, because the act of creating flames causes them to get angry, and if they get too angry, they're unable to control those flames, the same could be said about a firebender shooting flames when they get really excited/happy. This is also why the most popular source was anger, it was powerful and easy to harness, as well as easy to control. You can give someone something to be consistently angry at, it's harder to give someone something to be consistently very happy at, it's a lot easier to get angry than it is to get happy. However, like a Pavlovian response, if you always get angry when you bend, you'll instinctively get angry whenever you bend, even if drawing from other sources, this applies to other emotions ofc but anger is the most dangerous one because it can easily escalate fights to lethal proportions.

Next is the Sun, and Sozin's Comet, I don't believe that the comet simply gives power to the firebenders just for the sake of being a flaming rock, with that logic earthbenders would get a boost too. So, my idea is that the Comet and the Sun are spirits, similar to Tui and La, (as Tui and La spin in a circle, the comet spins around the sun, orbiting again and again) we know celestial bodies can be spirits (and even people, Yue) so it's not that out of the question, we also know that spirits can influence people (and are equally influenced greatly by their own emotions, see Hei Bai), so I think the Sun spirit and Comet spirit both affect the personality of their benders, emboldening them, the Comet is only more noticeable because it is so close to the earth, but we know fire benders are also stronger in the day. To back this up, I want to look at Sozin's Comet's parts 3 and 4, specifically the fights we see between the 3 main firebenders, Zuko and Azula in the Final Agni Kai, and Ozai and Aang.

We see them act, for lack of a better term, bolder in the comet. Zuko taunts Azula to use her lightning, an act that would surely kill him, and Azula falls for his bait, they're both absolutely certain if their abilities, (Azula to hit Zuko, and Zuko to dodge). One thing to note, Azula is generally seen as at most neutral to killing, azula never goes out of her way to cause a death, even in situations where it could be easily justified to herself, and to people around her. Ozai also acts brashly, but specifically, I want to talk about after the fight, Spirit bending is an act that can possibly destroy a soul if it goes wrong, however after the fight ozai is still competent enough to speak clearly, recognise Suki's taunts, and reply to them after he expending more than all of his energy in the fight itself, and around the end of the comet he collapses.

Then there's Azula's mental state. Between Boiling Rock and Sozin's Comet we only see her in the attack on the air temple, where she is still very competent, she can command, fight, taunt, she's definitely different, more brazen with remarks like "I'm about to celebrate becoming an only child", (possibly explained by the closeness of the comet), but it isn't until the comet fully arrives that she snaps, because when the comet emboldens a person it doesn't only strengthen the good parts of a person's personality, it also highlights the bad parts, and when the comet arrived azula was particularly vulnerable to those negative aspects, which quickly took over her. Which is why I do think a post-comet azula would most likely be quiet and burnt out from how over the top her body and mind went, instead of plateauing and maintaining her Sozin's Comet level of mental unwellness.

Next is how this affected the development of the Fire Nation, specifically their honour based society. Naturally, Fire Benders would be seen as the strongest early on when people gathered in tribes as they could not only hunt better, cook the whole tribes meal at no expense, elevating their status to leaders. Now, firebending being driven by personality leads to essentially the person with the strongest or 'best' personality is on top, and one of the most apparent measures of the quality of one's personality is Honour. Honour is a measure of integrity, of who you are, how trustworthy you are and in the Fire Nation, how good your bending was. This would naturally lead to the most honourable being on top, and those below them wanting to imitate that level of honour, and thus a society that prided honour was born, this inevitably leads to tests of honour like Agni Kai's. This would also lead to anyone who wasn't a Machiavellian level liar to be cast out as being caught in a lie is incredibly dishonourable, which would leave the fire nation fairly free of corruption, until someone like Sozin finds a way to make dishonour honourable.

Or something I dunno, might add more later as the idea develops

[oh-nostalgiaa]

Question Prompts

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[kimabutch]

Rusty Quill Gaming FAQ

I get a lot of asks about Rusty Quill Gaming, and I thought I’d put all the answers in one spot!

What is Rusty Quill Gaming?

RQG is an actual-play Pathfinder podcast where comedians, improvisers, gamers, and writers play a long-running campaign in an original setting. The Dungeon Master is Alexander J Newall, and the players are Ben Meredith, Lydia Nicholas, Bryn Monroe, James Ross, and (a later addition) Helen Gould. As of April 2020, there are 150 episodes. Episodes drop at 4pm GMT every Wednesday.

The story follows a mercenary group in a steampunk-fantasy version of 19th century Europe ruled by dragons, which abounds with real-life historical figures such as Oscar Wilde, Amelia Earhart, and Albert Einstein. The eclectic mercenaries travel Europe and beyond to unravel the origins of the Simulacrum, a magical automaton that can replicate itself — and on their journey discover world-shattering conspiracies. The story touches on themes of scientific ethics, free will and difficult choices, coping with loss and failure, and the boundaries between life and death. The campaign is very roleplay-heavy, with an intricate plot and complex, interesting characters. It’s got hilarious comedic improv, but also doesn’t shy away from heavy, complicated topics. 

Although there’s only one main campaign that has been ongoing since 2015, there are also a number of specials in which the cast (and other special guests) play one-shots using other game systems, which don’t relate to the main campaign in any way. 

Where can I listen?

It’s available on all major podcatchers, or you can access episodes on rustyquill.com. 

Where do I start?

I recommend starting with episode 1 (RQG 1 - Hello!), as it’s the beginning of the campaign. If you want to learn more about the mechanics of Pathfinder and the game setting, you could start with the first episode on the feed (RQG 0 - Metacast! Character Creation), but it’s not necessary to understand the story. 

Be warned that the prologue (RQG 1-17), while good, spends a fair bit of time introducing the audience to Pathfinder and the concept of TTRPGs more generally. Battles, in particular, are a little more drawn out than you might be used to. I promise that over time, and particularly after the prologue, they stop explaining mechanics so much and get much more into roleplay. If you’re really struggling with the early episodes, you could try listening to the Season One Recap (found right before RQG 54 on the feed), listen to the recap of the prologue, and jump in at RQG 18.

What are all the different types of episodes on the feed? Which ones do I need to in order to follow the main campaign?

There are 200+ episodes on the feed that can be broken up into several different types:

Main campaign: Any episode that is titled “RQG # - Title” is an episode of the main story, and should be listened to in order, ideally from the beginning (RQG 1 - Hello!)

Sidequests: There are three sidequests, “Bertie’s Sidequest” (between RQG 39 & 40), the “Ancient Rome Sidequest” (between RQG 126 & 127), and “Roman Rogues” (between RQG 157 & 158.) Although set in the main campaign’s world and involving at least one character from the main campaign each, they’re called sidequests because they don’t actually move the main plot forward, and don’t have all the central player characters in them. However, they contain events or characters that are referenced or relevant to the main plot, and they’re all extremely good, so you’ll want to give them a listen!

Metacasts, Mailbag/Q&As, and Season Recaps: These involve the cast talking about the series out-of-character, answering questions, or giving advice to people seeking to get into TTRPGs, or who want to improve their games. Many of them are very good, funny, and interesting, but they’re not required listening by any means. 

Specials: Besides the odd announcement on the feed, pretty much everything else is a special. These don’t relate to the main campaign at all, though they’re very good!

What’s the LGBTQ+ representation like?

Good! A number of the player characters are LGBTQ+, as is at least one member of the cast. I would say that sexuality, whether queer or otherwise, isn’t a big part of the story — there’s very little romance, or even established romantic couples — and there aren’t many discussions of gender, either. However, the representation is good, and the cast is very sensitive to matters concerning LGBTQ+ people. 

When does it get sad? How much of it is sad?

If you’ve heard fans talking about RQG, you’ve probably heard that it can get very, very sad — it’s often-repeated, by the players and the fans alike, that the DM Alex is a monster “but we respect his craft.” The story does go to some extremely heavy places, particularly starting around (mild spoilers) episode 40. 

The cast handles difficult themes with sensitivity and a lot of mutual trust. There are content warnings for many episodes, although there may be triggering things not covered by the content warnings — many fans, including me, will be happy to warn you about specific topics if you ask!

Additionally, while there are sections of the story that are particularly sad, rest assured that there’s always laughter and lighter moments, too! Every single episode has made me laugh out loud, and there’s a lot of love and many soft moments between the characters. You will run the full gamut of human emotions while listening. 

Do I recognize [X voice] from The Magnus Archives?

Rusty Quill Gaming is from the same production company as The Magnus Archives, and every cast member of Rusty Quill Gaming has been on TMA in some capacity. Alex (the DM) is Martin, Ben (Zolf) is Elias, Lydia (Sasha) is Melanie, Bryn (Hamid) and James (Bertie) are statement-givers in MAG 100, and Helen appears briefly in MAG 136. 

Where can I discuss RQG with people?

While there’s a fairly active community on tumblr right now, a lot of fans (and some of the cast and crew) hang out in the official Rusty Quill discord, which you can access via the website! You can join even if you’re not caught up — if you put your episode number in your nickname, people will avoid spoiling you! I also run a fairly small server where we theorize about the plot and discuss the worldbuilding; feel free to DM me for an invite if you’re caught up on the series. 

Lastly, there’s an RQG wiki that you can find on fandom.com! While it’s very much a work in progress, it’s a great source for episode summaries, character info, setting descriptions, and much more. It’s got tons of spoilers on it, so I wouldn’t recommend visiting until you’re caught up. Please give it a look and, if you want, contribute to it! 

[mnemehoshiko]

When Systemic Hatred of Women Online Goes Unnoticed, What Does it Say About Us?

DISCLAIMER: This article is intended for educational and research purposes only. It has been published to shed light and correct…

1) not written by me but 2) why mneme is so fucking tired after 4+ 3) the article literally only touches the tip of the iceberg of the harassment i’ve been sent over the past 4 years BONUS: DATA ANALYSIS