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It would also make sense timeline-wise: if the colonists were going to name anything 'the Pernese Alps', it would be the big mountain range they first settled on. (Of course, if they were American, they'd probably be the Pernese Rockies, with Benden being in the Pernese Appalachians.)

I did think very much of you when deciding to post it. ;) Sadly I think the base image is a bit low res to be worth printing out, and I can't find a better version. Still, it worked much better than I expected!

hS

I want this on my wall. ^_^

This is, what, the High Reaches, you reckon? Rough terrain, primarily coniferous trees indicating higher latitude/altitude climate...?

~Neshomeh

But first, a technicality. Since everybody can follow the link and read the story, you published an unbetaed mission. We don’t do this, unless we’re quite confident that we don’t need a beta, and only few of us can get away with that.

When you ask for betas, you should not link the story, but you should give us some hints, like word worlds involved or "no canon knowledge required", so that we can determine whether we feel qualified to do the beta reading. You should then wait until volunteers tell you their e-mail address and then send them the link to the story.

HG

Tiger staggered down the corridor. The dizziness spell Martin had put on him meant he couldn’t walk in a straight line, which was the whole point.

When Martin had first told him to pretend to be drunk in order to spy on the girls, Tiger had thought it was a very bad joke. But it appeared he was serious. To Tiger, it was self-evidently a completely horrendous idea, because the girls weren’t stupid and they knew he wasn’t stupid.

He didn’t have much choice: it was either obey orders or launch a leadership challenge, which was also a horrendous idea: Martin was three years older and stronger than Tiger and dividing the group in half would be handing victory to the girls.

Which was why Tiger was now trying to act as stupidly as possible. He banged into the wall. “Stupid wall!” he slurred. “Take that!” He kicked the wall. “And that! And that!” He kicked it with the other foot and then punched it, trying to keep a straight face.

His toes actually hurt now. That was going to leave a bruise, probably. He continued along the corridor, stumbling and wobbling on his clumsy feet, until finally he reached the end and the girl sitting on the plastic chair. He recognised her as Penelope Turner, who was in the same year as him.

“What’s the password?” she asked, although she looked extremely confused.

“Pashword?” Tiger asked. “I don’t need no pashword!” He swung his fist in a clumsy blow he normally would have scorned.

Penelope, of course, dodged it without any difficulty whatsoever. She turned her head to the door behind her, opened it a crack, and called “Tiger Moon’s here! And… I think he’s drunk?”

Tiger forced open the door and stepped inside. “Die!” he shouted, stomping towards the nearest girl and drawing his sword.

For the next few minutes the scene resembled one from a comedy. Tiger stepped towards the girls clunkily and made half-hearted attacks which were all easily dodged. He fought the urge to burst out laughing.

Eventually the girls managed to organise themselves and he was surrounded by a wall of raised swords. Normally, facing these impossible odds, Tiger would take the sensible option and surrender, but being “drunk” he couldn’t do that. He charged towards one of the oldest girls there and was immediately hit by a Halting Spell, completely taking away his ability to move.

Well, that was stages one and two of the plan, “pretend to be drunk” and “get captured”, successful. Now all he had to do was spy. And hopefully not have to endure his sister’s evil gloating.

Cheers!

Ix watched with folded arms as Charlotte continued pouring the tequila into her very tall glass of margarita mix. "Lottie..."

"Why not?" Charlotte asked, turning to fill Ix's glass after she'd emptied half the bottle into her own. "I've seen you drink this stuff before, and it's not like you weigh that much more than me."

"No, but..." Ix bit her lip. "I mean, I would have preferred you start on cider or something..."

"It'll be fine," Charlotte said, handing Ix the glass and raising hers in a toast. "Come on, cheers—here's to my first time having alcohol as a human!"



"I looove you."

"Yes, Lottie... I love you too."

"I really love you!"

Ix sighed, but smiled as she wrapped an arm around her extremely giggly wife. "I really love you too."

Charlotte's eyes went wide and she pushed her glasses up her nose, leaning in as she put a hand on Ix's cheek. "Do you have a girlfriend?"

Ix bit back a laugh. "I'm married, actually."

Charlotte's smile immediately vanished and her lower lip quivered. "You are?"

"To you!" Ix said quickly. "I'm married to you—no, Lottie, hon, please, don't cry—"

Charlotte buried her face in her hands and began bawling. Ix rubbed her back uncomfortably for a moment before summoning a box of tissues to them, offering it to her sobbing wife.

"Next time," she said quietly, barely audible over Charlotte's crying, "we're sticking to butterbeer."

I have no idea why I messed up the title of the episode. Oops.

I have been sitting on my thoughts about this episode. I feel like I will need to ruminate and process even more to truly wrap my mind around it. It definitely was... Intense. To summarize my thoughts without spoilers, I really enjoyed what I saw, but can't help but feel... Disappointed? No, that's way too strong of a word. More... conflicted about certain plot points, that I'm not sure is fair to be conflicted about. Still, a beautifully animated episode of television that thrilled me from start to finish. If you are at all invested in Steven Universe, I not only recommend it but recommend going in as blindly as you can.

Now, for my thoughts that require a bit more detail, and with it, spoilers.

THIS IS YOUR SPOILER WARNING. SERIOUSLY, IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT THAT YOU JUST WATCH THE EPISODE SPOILER FREE. I DON'T NORMALLY SAY THAT, SO KNOW THAT I'M SERIOUS.

"It's over, isn't it?
Isn't it?
Isn't it over?"

This episode feels like a series finale. In all likelihood, it isn't. There is a movie confirmed for release sometime in the fall, and I think there was confirmation of a sixth season, though I can't find it. Yet, it still feels like a finale, not just to season five, but the show as a whole. The Diamonds are beginning to heal as a family unit, and become more open-minded about those who are different. Steven has finally accepted that he is not Rose Quartz the rebel, nor Pink Diamond the dictator. He is, truly, Steven. Just Seven. We even have the corrupted gems of Earth, the greatest regret of Rose Quartz, finally healed. There are a few open spots in our understanding of the universe, but as far as the story of Steven Universe, the artistic point of the series, every single plotline is closed. Where could we possibly go from here?

I have been stewing on this episode for a while. As much happened throughout that merits discussion, such as the exploration of a broken family through the Diamonds, or the dangers of perfectionism shown through White Diamond, or just how slick the new gem designs are, (My favorite is Lapis. Love the Atlantian, Greco-roman thing she has now) There is one moment that I just can't get past, and have been ruminating on this whole time.

"You won and she chose you,
And she loved you and she's gone."

Pink Diamond is dead. Rose Quartz is dead. The personality that once inhabited the pink diamond gemstone is completely overwritten by that of Steven. In the climax of the episode, White Diamond pulled out the gemstone from Steven's body, demanding Pink Diamond re-form and stop lying about who she is. Yet, when the construct emerges from the diamond, it is not in the shape of Pink Diamond. It is not in the shape of Rose Quartz. Instead, we see Steven. The first shot is a split-screen perspective, showing White Diamond's room from human!Steven's eyes. He is weak and drained. He can't even stand, with all the energy taken from him. He may even be dying. Eventually, from the other side of the screen, which has been blurry and grey for now, is from the eyes of the pink projection from the gemstone. Here, it cannot be more clear. Steven and his gem are two halves of the whole system. If you were to describe him as a fusion, then it is a fusion in the same way the various cells in your body have fused together to make the organism that is you. Yet, just in case the audience had any lingering doubt, White Diamond insists that Pink stops messing around and turn back into her proper form, the way she should look. And what does gem!Steven say in response?

SHE'S GONE!

My mind reeled at this. Throughout the series, we had little hints that Rose was inside the gemstone, sleeping perhaps, protecting Steven subconsciously, but there. Dreams that were more than simple memories, but packed with symbolism and warning. There were moments you could practically hear her voice alongside Steven's as if she spoke, if not through him, then at least alongside him. Like the recursive Pearl's deep within her psyche, I thought that, if Steven were to dig deep enough, he might finally have that long-awaited conversation with his mother. He might, for once, get answers from the source. Perhaps, just share a hug. I never wanted Rose or Pink back for real, not a permanent character or anything, but to simply know that she's there. For the chance at that mother-son heart to heart, I've wanted for so long.

"SHE'S GONE!"

There is no more Pink Diamond. At most, all that's left are fragments of memories. Tiny bits of what once was, but truly is no more. If we are to use a hard drive as a metaphor, the gemstone that stored Pink Diamond the person was reconfigured, wiped clean for the new Steven. There may be lingering pieces of code, but nothing concrete, nothing that you could call a full file. To say I was taken aback is an understatement. In a world with this much magic, with the ability for the dead to walk again, with whole different persons within persons, to have Steven's mother be actually, truly, for real gone, with no possibility of ever re-surfacing... It hit me like a ton of bricks. I staggered back just as White Diamond did.

Thinking more on it, I don't know what I expected. The show has said this much the entire time. "Steven, we can't both exist. I'm going to become half of you. And I need you to know that every moment you love being yourself, that's me, loving you and loving being you. Because you're going to be something extraordinary. You're going to be a human being."

Yet, with all of the little hints of a person inside him, to have all that storytelling potential just gone? I felt robbed. Yet, in a way, isn't that what losing a parent is like? Why death hurts so much? Everybody has further stories they can tell. Everybody has questions that only they can answer. Yet, one day, they will be gone. And there's no amount of meditation, or seances, or wishing, or begging, or pleading that's going to bring them back. You want to go back and talk to them one last time. You try to see the little pieces of them inside their descendants. You want to have just one last moment. One last time to say, "I love you."

But you can't.

She's gone.

Forever.

And you have to learn to deal with that.

I have more thoughts on this episode, and I look forward to discussing them with you all. This is a heavy episode with a lot of meaning crammed into it. I chose to interpret this sequence as the final nail in Pink Diamond's coffin. Others have interpreted this as a metaphor for a trans individual confronting their past and abusive, close-minded family. But for now, that's all I have to say.

If I could begin to be, Half of what you think of me, I could do about anything, I could even learn how to love...

That ought to keep you safe. =]

In 5e DEX is also used for melee weapons with the finesse property. The DEX cleric I'd make would be an assassin for some obscure sect of a major religion. I feel like the Church of the Silver Flame could use more internal security.

Today, Steven Universe has aired their season five finale, Battle of Heart and Mind. An hour long special, this episode puts an end to this long, emotional season full of twists, turns, metaphors and head-scratching lore implacations. I know many of you at least casually watch the show, and I was curious as to your thoughts. How did you like it? What do you feel about certain revelations? Is Peridot best gem? I truly want to know your thoughts, if you would care to share them.

I have a Google doc full of free-to-use D&D characters, and they include:

- A tiefling who was found and raised as an elf by a desperate noble to try and give him a claim to an empty throne. While she was accepted as the rightful ruler at first, the plan eventually failed, and now she's on the run from people who want to kill her.
- A half-elf who is actually a cat, turned by magic into the daughter of an elven-and-human couple who desperately wanted a child but couldn't seem to ever successfully have one. If she dies, she'll reincarnate somewhere (because nine lives), but she still has to grow up before she can be in her previous state again. (I haven't yet checked that ability against the game and what's reasonable, though.)
- My OC leader of the Talons of Tiamat, who is a scary little halfling woman. Wow, unexpectedness.

I'm also working on an attempt at a homebrew campaign, with the help of my more experienced friends. It has a few NPCs in it that are kind of similar "this'd require some figuring out how it works, but it's entirely plausible so yay" in terms of abilities.

-Twistey

...an issue meaning that they might not want the Cyclopaedia to be moved for content reasons?

Hmm. Better, cough, murder the Lord of Darkness, I mean delete his page, cough, anyway. It and he are both an eyesore.

And update Twyla's heraldry.

Please? Thank you. :D

-Twistey
P.S. I have a pic I drew of Twyla, is there any way I could get that integrated into the Cyclopaedia?

For those who missed out, here are links to all the depravity. NSFW and NSFB, as usual.

Game One

Game Two

Game Three

Game Four

Game Five

~Neshomeh

*hoists tankard of root beer*
Here's to more!

Could be some universal-but-not-official rule where it's like "This feat only works if you're primarily a caster." Or something.

Meanwhile, in the process of making my own Order of the Bumblebee parody, I'm finding this quite useful because my caster selves' cast stats represent what I at the time felt was my greatest/most useful trait out of all the D&D ability scores.

-Twistey

But I'll take him only if neither of you want it.

-Twistey

Because it's Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and what better way to celebrate the life of a man who stood for social justice, peace, and equality than to play a game that pokes fun at all the ugliness in the world? {= D

Link here, password is "dream".

Note that game chat is disabled due to some legal trouble Pretend You're Xyzzy got in, but feel free to join us in Discord's dedicated CAHQ voice chat. {= )

~Neshomeh

Although I do think Log Horizon is the more interesting setting to think about the implications of, I just find SAO more entertaining to watch.

Funnily enough, the 'Aliceization' story arc (the currently airing series of SAO) has the setting shift more into the Log Horizon style, with the 'NPCs' being fully real people that can actually die.

-Irish

... then I can also recommend Grimgar: Ashes and Illusions. It's a short anime, only 12 episodes I think, and setting wise it sort of falls between Sword Art Online and Log Horizon - it's set in a world that has game-style mechanics, as opposed to literally being a game, but there's no MMO style resurrection. If you die, you die.

And the characters are protagonists rather than 'heroes' - when they arrived in their new world they lost the memories of their old lives; starting with no equipment and limited funds. At first they have to work together as a group just to take down single goblins.

The story style is a bit more like Log Horizon, but focuses on small group politics/interactions rather than larger scale dynamics, and is mostly about how difficult it is to survive in the world when everything costs money, and the only regular source of income is monster hunting.

Also, the artwork is fantastic.

-Irish

See, I like the story of Lord of the Rings, and I own both the book and the films - but I am far more likely to watch the films than I am read the book.

Part of that may just be the particular edition of the book I own: a hardback of the full trilogy in one, so it's roughly the size, shape and weight of a breeze block, and I've always done a lot of reading while travelling - not exactly practical with this book. But another part is just the writing style is pretty heavy going,and sometimes feels like it takes actual physical effort to read through. The films are just a lot more easily accessible, and I find them entertaining enough.

But I am aware that the books came first, and that the films cu a lot of stuff out, and made a lot of changes.

I think I was lucky with the films in that I liked the story, but hadn't read the book for ages, so I just didn't pick up on the changes (which sadly wasn't the case for the recent Mortal Engines).

-Irish

(Spoiler: None of these prompts were actually created while I was drunk, only one while I was tipsy)

So I was at a Stag Do this weekend, and that *may* have slightly affected my thoughts on the theme for this round of prompts (in case you couldn't guess)

Prompt 1: One of your characters is on a Stag/Hen Do and does something embarrassing.

Prompt 2: One of your characters has alcohol for the first time.

Prompt 3: One of your characters has to fake being drunk.

I'd like to thank Akrinor and doctorlit for help with these prompts, and Calliope and Delta for their suggestions.

You've more than deserved it.

(although it really doesn't feel like 5 years ago that I was a newbie and you'd just joined, it feels like AGES)

I think we can safely assume that we're all the better for you being here.