HEMO: Mutant (#626262)
TROLLTAG: tentativeCirque [TC]
SIGN: Cancap, Sign of the Sheltered
STRIFE: batkind
MODUS: Charades
LUNAR SWAY: Derse
MYTH. ROLE: Page of Mind
LAND: Land of Dreams and Darkness
TC: nahhh bro. im just gonna be here diving the FUCK out of this dumpster.
Many people yearn to find a PLACE IN LIFE, but few trolls struggle more than Gamzee Makara. With NO HIVE and only the CLOTHES ON HIS BACK to his name, he drifts from place to place atop his lusus (unaware that he's simply WALKING IN CIRCLES). His only other possessions are those he finds by DUMPSTER DIVING. Because of his lack of social life, he has the SOCIAL GRACES of a sack of potatoes.
Gamzee looks up to a group of fictional mirthamaniacs called the CIRCONQUERORS DU SOLEIL, modelling his drifting lifestyle and knack for RESOURCEFULNESS from their no-holds-barred approach to pillaging the galaxy as they see fit. He also enjoys annoying his friends with RIDDLES. Some day he aspires to be a COMEDIANTAGONIST, though his friends recommend he not quit his night job.
Gamzee's CHARADES Fetch Modus is as simple as it sounds: to retrieve an item, he must mime the item in a way his sylladex can interpret.
Gamzee's lusus is classified as the GRUFF ARCHCAPRA; a huge goat-like creature that, coincidentally, resembles a LARGE STONE BRIDGE. His hard, rocky body is completely IMMUNE TO THE SUN, so during the day Gamzee takes shelter under his long, concave belly. This officially makes Gamzee a TROLL LIVING UNDER A BRIDGE.
The Land of DREAMS AND DARKNESS is a cavernous planet shrouded in PINK MIST. It's not toxic, but inhaling too much of it will PUT YOU TO SLEEP in no time. Legend says the denizen, EPIMETHEUS, slumbers in the planet's core, toiling in an ETERNAL NIGHTMARE. Legend also says that LODAD is a world dreamed up by Epimetheus in the first place, so waking him up risks dire consequences.
Gamzee's ancestor is known as The NAMELESS. After attempting to OVERTHROW THE EMPRESS, he was punished by having his entire identity WIPED FROM HISTORY. His story lives on among elite CARNIVALIANTS, as The Nameless was close matesprits with the leader of all subjugglators.
This blog is now defunct -- I'll be keeping it up as an archive of my old thoughts and ideas, but my new revamped version of this AU will be over on my new blog! Give it a follow if you wanna see a fresh take!
since the og story has basically been lost to time, would it be alright if i tried to make a story of my own for this au? i really do adore your characters, and id hate to see them never get used for anything.
I wouldn't say the original has been completely lost to time -- I did manage to get the pages archived via the Wayback Machine. Check it out.
As for making a story of your own... eehh I'm gonna say no on this one, just because I'd rather keep my own work to myself.
Uh... Depends on how you define ‘dead’. To be fair, I never really made a story in the first place, this is just a bunch of character concepts and design doodles. I was never really writing a story in the first place.
It’s less ‘dead’ and more just... Kinda finished, I guess? Granted, all of the information is kept over on the MSPARP Forums Memo, I haven’t updated all of it here yet, and I dunno if I will.
I’d write down all of the canon ships here, but that’d take a while and also I’ve already compiled a chart over here. It’s possibly a little out of date (and far too tall to be any use, I might have to see what I can do about making a much smaller one), but it should give you a rough idea.
The most important thing to note is that Solrezi is canon and I don’t apologise.
ok, so i read the last ask, and a horrible fear had entered my mind: are you going to drastically change the story, or will you basically be retelling homestuck, but with some new occurences?
Oh, no, I’m not writing a whole new story, here. But I’m not 100% retelling the exact same story as Homestuck, either.
The thing about bloodswaps is that traditionally speaking (as in, how most people do it) is they run a complete parallel to Homestuck. This event still happens but with the characters swapped around, and it’s supposed to make sense because oh, this character USED to do this, but now it’s this OTHER character because they have the same blood and therefore the exact same personality. You know, the violet character initiating murderstuck, the cerulean blinding the teal and paralyzing the bronze.
However, that makes absolutely no sense to me, because not every oliveblood is a cat troll who loves roleplaying.
okay, I picked a bad example because Terezi canonically likes roleplaying already but you get what I mean
There are going to be some new elements and some old elements, so I wouldn’t really call it either answer, in all honesty. My logic for thinking things through this whole time has been: “okay, I have these characters with these personalities and these habits, what would happen?” However, it helps that I have a good baseline to keep me on track.
The main reason for wanting to take liberties where I can is because, you know, we’ve READ Homestuck already, if I just tell it word for word again, it’s not going to be interesting or challenging to make or read. But I can’t deviate too far because, you know, swapping characters around won’t change the existence of limebloods or anything.
I have no idea what answer you were crossing your fingers for, but rest assured that I’ll be doing what I can to opt to neither extreme.
Question, what will be the storyline for this au, if you ever make a fan adventure of course
Interesting question! One that hasn’t been 100% sorted out just yet. I have an incredibly vague understanding of who would live and who would die, but other than that, I don’t actually have that much sorted out? But that is something I can work on! I’ll get back to you on that one.
hey uhm!!! weird question but is it ok to kin with any of the characters?? cause im getting some.. strong feelings from terezi (and slightly jade but that might just be because i have a couple jade strider timelines), and i wanna know if its ok to. actually do that. if not ill try to avoid all that feel-y stuff if that makes sense. sorry if this is a bother btw!!!
Knock yourself out, honestly. I’m not nearly familiar enough with kinship to make an argument for or against so just do what makes you happy and comfortable and also don’t be a dick. That last part’s really important. Nothing to do with the question, just, life lesson there.
How did you decide what classpects people would be?
That’s a bit of a tough question because I did it so long ago, but I’ll try and see if I can make sense of everything.
First things first, I set a few rules for myself. Most importantly: no repeats. No canon classpects, no classes or aspects that anybody we’ve seen in that blood colour has had before. So for example, I couldn’t make teal Sollux a Doom or Mind player, because of original Sollux and original Terezi respectively.
And from there? I sort of just, tried to give them aspects and classes that seemed like they’d fit their characters. There’s a lot of overlap with the classes and aspects, so it’s not impossible to actually decide on a few solid choices. In the end, though, I just picked what hadn’t been done before in canon, and I think I got some really interesting results.
Chumhandle: terminalGroove
Symbol: Note Rest
Classpect: Bard of Doom
Planet: Land of Junk and Ghosts
Dream Moon: Prospit
Dave lives alone on an island. Unlike most people that would spend their whole lives on an island, Dave is a little hyperaware of all of the crazy shit that takes place in his life, though perhaps a little too much so. In an attempt to seem like he's completely aware of his situation, he tends to overanalyse completely normal things in an attempt to seem like he's above all of this spooky island business. Despite that, though, he does adhere quite strictly to traditions, as they give him a structure in life. He prefers to have ground to walk on, enhanced by his constant moments of vision-gazing in the clouds of Prospit in his sleep. When he's not trying to learn about the world around him through documentaries and reading up on the outside world, he's also seen being the dopest philosophical mindmaster there is.
On account of his grandpa, incredible talented inventor billionaire extraordinaire, he's got a knack for gadgets and miscellaneous doodads. He's not exactly a rocket scientist or anything, but when you grow up with such advanced technology and have nothing but free time, you can only be so stupid. Another use of his abundant free time is learning music - whatever instruments he can either get his hands on or synthesise with the power of science, he'll do his best to nail it down, to varying levels of success. He's got a real knack for learning, taking to whatever resources he can find to learn what life is like on the island, information that he's both grateful and ungrateful to know. Sure, it's nice to know, but it definitely gives him a sense of longing that he knows he's never going to relieve. It doesn't help that the visions tell him he's destined to go blind. Thankfully he can switch eyewear with a friend of his when the time comes.
BEHIND THE MEANINGS:
Chumhandle: ’Terminal’ refers to something at the end or extreme of something, linking closely to his aspect of Doom, as well as something that lasts indefinitely. ’Groove’ in the informal sense, means to dance to jazz music, though also refers to a long, narrow dip in something. His whole chumhandle has two meanings - that there's a groove (the dip) at the end of something - a reference to his death before he goes god tier (because prophecies), and that there's always going to be groovy music in some capacity. The groove never stops.
Classpect: Bards are usually laidback and relaxed until they’re forced to destroy with their aspects, which in this case is Doom, regarding death and limitations. Dave totally suits being a bard, really, he tends to stay on the calmer side of things. He also really suits being a Doom player, what with his relatively negative (compared to his friends) attitude about things and his interest in dead objects. As a musician, he’s very familiar with limitations and rules to follow (as music theory is a very prevalent thing), so as a metaphor, his challenge is to learn to break free of limitations and truly embrace freedom. Just like he escapes his island in the end, on account of the game.
Chumhandle: greenhouseGuru
Symbol: Swiss Army Knife
Classpect: Sylph of Blood
Planet: Land of Rhythm and Roses
Dream Moon: Derse
Jade is about the coolest kid in school, or at least, that's how she tries her best to act, even if it's pretty clear to anybody with an IQ higher than 100 that she's got a lot of silliness going on under that hood of hers. That isn't to say she's completely garbage at it, because she's got the best poker face on the block and she's always ready to drop a sick rhyme or two on the account of her mentor figure. She's always prepared for any given situation, given her love for bringing as many different tools around with her as possible at all times. Swiss Army knives happen to be her favourite, due to the sheer amount of weaponry packed in such a tiny little device, though her cards are usually slashed during encounters with her Bro in an attempt to force her to rely on pure improvisation.
As any Strider sibling should pick up on, irony is at the forefront of Jade's interests, even though she's still got a lot to learn. At the very least, she's taken to social media pretty nicely, adapting various facetious and ironic fronts on the internet, and an impressive amount of more earnest social media accounts she uses as a virtual, public diary. Or a place to riff off of pop culture. She also has a few advice blogs that she maintains surprisingly regularly, but given that she's got an amount of influence on society (a very minimal amount, but she'll take it), she supposes she's supposed to use that tool where she can. It's also common for her to be growing plants in spare yogurt cups she finds on the street where she can, each named after well-known and not-so-well-known rappers, of course, because of her interest in dropping some phat beats. She also likes to draw sometimes. Her popular "ironic" furry webcomic SWEET BRONY AND HELLA YIFF may or may not just be a way for her to secretly indulge in her fantasies, but sshh, don't tell anyone.
BEHIND THE MEANINGS:
Chumhandle: ’Greenhouse’ refers to a glass building where plants are grown if they need protection from cold weather. Ironically, the word 'GREENhouse' is in red. ’Guru’ is an influential teacher or expert, in reference to her role as guide or advice giver among her friends and fans online. Her high and mighty screen name is a slight reference to Dave calling himself 'turntechGodhead' in canon, since, as a Strider, there's probably a lot expected of her. This is her way of rising up to meet that challenge.
Classpect: Sylphs are helpful and keen to heal their aspect to the point of interference, which in this case is Blood, related to bonds and unity. Jade’s always been someone to help other people out of the kindness of her heart, and with the Strider toughness likely instilled in her from her youth growing up with Bro of all people, she’s a little bit more of a control freak when it comes to solving problems. Being a Blood player makes sense from her signature colour and her vast connections to other people, whether it’s strangers online or her own circle of friends. She’s always got just the right tool for the job, it’s just that sometimes she needs to let other people try and solve those problems instead of acting as the president all the time.
Chumhandle: goeticTabletop
Symbol: Bunny
Classpect: Mage of Rage
Planet: Land of Hue and Intimidation
Dream Moon: Derse
John is an avid evil mastermind in the making, with a love for the grim and mysterious. He's more than a bit impatient and has a habit of losing his temper perhaps a bit easily. Despite all of that, though, he's well-known among his friend circle as being a bit of a goofball, likely from his tendency to be as dramatic and over the top about everything as much as he can. John is simply the type of person that loves putting on shows for anybody who is or isn't watching, and he'll be damned if he'll be called anything close to boring. Entertainer is the perfect way to describe him, as a matter of fact, pulling out all the stops whenever possible to keep the spotlight on him and nobody else. He's not selfish, he just loves the attention.
Magic is a huge fascination of John's, of all various fantastical descriptions, but especially dark magic. In fact, almost anything dark of any kind appeals to him. He is, however, quite familiar with the common sleight of hand tricks that he can show off at any given party he attends. Unfortunately, he's not the best at it, at least, if the incessantly patronising comments from her mom are anything to go by. Movies are also something he loves to death, particularly horror and thriller films with darker tones. He's always had a love for supervillains, and may or may not be considering turning into one himself. As a joke, of course. It's just fun to play the bad guy sometimes. Especially if it's a part of one of the many Dungeons and Dragons campaigns he's made that he unfortunately can't fully explore due to the lack of participants.
BEHIND THE MEANINGS:
Chumhandle: ’Goetic’ refers to 'goety', in other words, black magic with evil spirits involved. This acts as a subtle foreshadowing to John's obvious future possession of the dark powers and even his eventually upgrade into Grimdark form. ’Tabletop’ refers to John's love of games like Dungeons 'n' Dragons, while also referring to the top of a table that a magician might use for tricks. Thus, the top of a table with dark magic, either because of his fantasy games or his magic tricks.
Classpect: Mages know the ins and outs of their aspect like the back of their hand through experience, which in this case is Rage, tied to fear, aggression and pessimism. As a Lalonde, John is a character that focuses a lot on presentation and conveyance. So when he's met with criticism, that doesn't sit well with him. On the flipside, though, as a magician, he's all about manipulating other people's perceptions of reality to create illusions for them to fall for, so with Rage, John knows the quite literal ins and outs. The lessons he needs to learn involve having to work with his aspect instead of simply interpreting the information. To go with the flow, and not against it.
Chumhandle: unlockedTrickroom
Symbol: Death
Classpect: Thief of Mind
Planet: Land of Trees and Prisms
Dream Moon: Prospit
Rose is and will forever be the perfect human being, at least in her opinion. Sharp as a tack and meticulous like a machine, accomplishing almost any given goal for her is simply a matter of when, instead of how. On account of good parenting decisions, she's steered clear of any external corrupting forces, instead preferring to keep to lighter-hearted and non-toxic forms of entertainment and knowledge, though that's not to say that she's in any way immature. When things don't go according to plan, however, that's when she starts to become unsure of herself and those around her, and as much as the intellectual in her would like to say that she uses these moments of improper clairvoyance as learning moments, she's far more likely to kick herself and deprecate until her life gets back on track.
Like most people of considerable brainpower (at least, in her opinion), puzzles are a huge weak point for her. Riddles and other such mind teasers are a cherished part of her life, likely stemming from the storm of newspaper crosswords and sudoku puzzles she's solved with her father in her youth. Chess is also a huge favourite of hers, so much so that many consider her a prodigy. At least, the people she's able to encounter in online matches, anyway, which unfortunately isn't as thrilling as the real thing. And, as any studious daughter of her father's would note, practical jokes are a very established tradition in the Egbert family line. With her quick wit and the competition of her dad, Rube Goldberg would shed a tear of joy at the concocted contraptions she can whip up. Literature is also a common pastime of hers, as if anybody would ever doubt that from someone so educationally and academically gifted.
BEHIND THE MEANINGS:
Chumhandle: 'Unlocked' serves to bring to mind locks and keys. Any avid gamer would probably be able to find connections between locks/keys and puzzles. It also references Vriska's planet, the Land of Locks and Labyrinths. Like canon Vriska (who doesn't have this planet, but still), Rose is a Thief. The two also coincidentally shared an aspect before (Light), and share the same one now (Mind). 'Trickroom' refers to Rose's subtle love of trolling and plotting pranks/traps and such. In reality it seems to just be a Pokémon move but what I had in mind was those puzzle rooms where you're locked in a room and have to escape. Thus, a puzzle. An unlocked trickroom is a solved trickroom, one that’s been escaped, Rose proudly claiming that she’s “solved” herself. The initials, UT, are a nod to Undertale (much like EB likely being a nod to Earthbound).
Classpect: Thieves act like they’re naturally gifted with (even if they need to learn to share) their aspect, which in this case is Mind, which focuses around decisions and consequences. Rose is a very confident and almost cocky individual, focused very heavily on cause and effect. As a chess player, she's well aware how small, seemingly inconsequential actions can have major aftermaths, though probably overestimates her ability to calculate these exact subtleties as a 13 year old girl with a love for pranks. Rose very much loves for things to go her way, according to plan (or rather, what she has in 'mind'), and when things don't, that's when she starts to freak out. Thus, her mission as a Thief of Mind is to allow life to take paths and courses of action that she didn't intend, or in a broader sense, learn to accept that not everything is predictable.
After far too long, the kid sprites have been revamped to look way more spiffy and actually somewhat close to their original counterparts. Their symbols and hair were the main changes, now way closer to how they are in canon.
These sprites are not public domain, please do not edit these or any parts of these for your own use.
