Medusa With The Head Of Perseus, Luciano Garbati, 2008

Concept: Star Trek style quasi-utopian deep space drama, except all of the ship’s non-human crew members are really obviously based on particular sci-fi horror tropes.

The chief physician is an amorphous mass of tentacles and teeth that’s infested the entire medical bay, transforming it into a quivering nightmare of meat and viscera. It speaks with a conspicuously posh accent; the human crew members affectionately call it “Doc”.

The head of security is a lurking, probably humanoid something-or-other that’s mostly imperceptible in the visual spectrum, save as a faintly shimmering distortion in the air. Her lack of visibility is treated as a running gag, with the most frequent bits involving a. other crew members not realising she’s in the room until she speaks up, and b. her making reference to various unlikely anatomic features which, of course, the audience cannot see.

The ship’s computer is a blatantly rampant AI that speaks in a chorus of voices. It tends to talk in cryptic, pseudo-religious metaphors which contrast to humorous effect with the mundanity of the topic at hand, and sometimes wanders off on rambling philosophical tangents that require whoever it’s speaking with to remind it to get to the point. You can tell when it’s paying attention to a particular part of the ship because the lighting turns blood red.

The lead science officer is just a huge fucking spider.

(The captain is an apparently ordinary – albeit extremely photogenic – human. We don’t find out what their real deal is until the season finale; what’s revealed firmly establishes them as the freakiest one of the lot!)

Bear with my shitposting. Here is my current Paisley playlist. https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1CgXup19ksY1bZaey7tbCn?si=dwuqRVIdRSa_JG8fZhbNoQ Infinite Mirror - Lite. Originally I didn’t think I would put this on the playlist but this is what trial and error sounds like when I think of Paisley. Pushing limits, reinterpreting notes, making new ones. He’s got a knack for illusions, and there’s something about this which makes me think of the potential times he would have tried something new, had it work, and then spent countless hours trying to replicate it, asking the Khoursirian for help. Man O To - Nu. Coffeehouses, warm evenings, second-rate wine, singing with friends on the docks, picking fights alongside them, running from the ones they couldn’t win, that half-impressed , half-cautious smile on dad’s face when he saw those tricks of the light, and those days spent talking to the Khoursirian. It’s a sweet and nostalgic look back on a youth well spent in Capital. Flight Over Venice 2 - Jesper Kyd. I mean, come on. The entire AC2 sountrack could fit Rioja, but there’s something about this piece which really fits The Stays. Feeling’s Gone - Cat Empire. Everything went to shit in Capital, and the kid who would become Paisley left. It’s not like everyone at home is gone, and these Helltroopers seem like a decent lot. In some other life, he probably thought in those earlier years, perhaps he would have liked to be a bard. He can sing as a soldier, though, and he’ll always have the knack and his spellbook, and with company like this, that’s good enough. Brother - NEEDTOBREATHE. The kid who became Paisley was no stranger to being “the sensible one,” even if only in comparison to his goon squad. Who would have thought a bunch of young folk with hangups become mercenaries? Guess someone has to be the adult in the room, even if this hypothetical adult has to occasionally fight hooligan instinct. Randy Dandy-Oh - The Dreadnoughts. Gotta love the way a room sounds singing. It has to be some unique quality of soldiers to know how to carry a tune. Whisper - The Dear Hunter. Who knows, maybe he could have been important if he didn’t sign on to The Chain. He doesn’t really care, though. Everyone here must have made stupid decisions to end up in the Fuck Up Squad. Even if the scholars don’t remember the name of the man who is now Paisley, the Chronicle will. The Tragedy - Pax Cecilia. Blackbottom really shook things up. Dozens of Helltroopers dead, the contract left unfinished, the officers all on board that boat which got away. Time for a few hard, straight-faced weeks of picking up the pieces and getting everything back together. Brothers In Arms - Dire Straits. This is next to The Mercenary by Iron Maiden on songs that have become inseparable from the Chain of Acheron in my head.

The Chain of Acheron, Helltrooper Bark

Tiefling

Glamour Bard

Traveler, Author, Mercenary. Prior to joining the chain, Bark hitchhiked and drifted the timescape, writing and spreading tales of “his” exploits. He’s fond of his guitar for spinning his tales but will use the harmonica to cast a quick spell.

He decided to join the chain after what happened in alloy, seeing opportunity for adventure. After encountering Ajax with the rest of the chain, Bark feels closer to his company than anyone from his previous lives. Given the name Bark for his surprising lack of skill in combat. Despite being a less than average fighter, Bark keeps morale up among chain members and has made many friends.

https://www.reddit.com/r/mattcolville/comments/axlq5p/spoiler_the_cult_of_nails/ I’m sorry followers, but I may never shut up about Nails. I was thinking about this idea as well, and honestly it’s my favourite possibility opened up by the Nails scene.  I just really like the idea that circumstances beyond his own control quickly turned Nails into a developing god, and whether Sweet’s sacrifice to save his friend’s humanity truly stopped his ascension or not doesn’t matter, because belief is what makes gods and saints, and the common soldiers of The Chain eventually make prayers to Nails to look out for all of them, like he always tried to do in (mortal) life, and to Sweet, as a saint representing the foolhardiness and self-sacrifice that members of the Chain praise.  The comment where someone said “A lesser deity of mercenaries and lost causes,” fits too well, and in my mind, Sweet’s sacrifice was what kept Nails’ humanity from diminishing; the moment where this infantile deity was no longer the universal threat Omega Nails, but he became Silver Eyes, deified protector of the Chain.

Halloween, but make it Gay 🎃🌈

I couldn’t find any gay Halloween merch that I liked, so I made my own!

Drew these designs for this week’s speedpaint in order to both celebrate Halloween and shine a light on the fact that it’s LGBT history month! 

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(If you like the look of these designs, you can pick your favorites up over on Redbubble!)

(DON’T EDIT OR REPOST TO OTHER SITES)  //  FULL SIZE VERSIONS ON MY DA (<-link in my blog header)

theyre disease-proof mutants that treat diseases of all kinds (including magical ones) the girls are separated into different specialties after training, as follows:

Crows- specialize in treating non-magical ailments of the common folk and prevent spread with the help of vultures. Are generally better at triage than other plague doctors

Owls- specialize in treating magical illnesses. The owls are who you call when the whole village has been put under a curse

Eagles- better at long-term treatment plans for individuals rather than huge outbreaks. Have sweets on hand at all times for bratty nobles

Vultures- Ensure a disease, magical or not, doesn’t spread by any means possible  

other characteristics of plague doctors from their mutations include: -living for less time than your standard person -unusual ability in magic or physical strength (sometimes both) -endurance -a lot of love to give

au where uncle aaron doesnt die but he has still just found out his favorite nephew is spiderman so now hes just kinda like :/ damn i guess i gotta be a superhero now

its like batman and robin if batman were the sidekick. hes just sort of following miles around dragging his scrawny little butt out of tight spots and yelling encouragement. 

Chain OC idea (again)

Fetter

Vanirman Monk (subclass tbd)

She’s on the taller side (not for a Vanirman but sure compared to the rest of the world), and fit af. Honestly though, she’s pretty average for a Vanirman, the only variation being her somewhat darker hair.

A woman of few words, she almost exclusively uses Chain Sign - theories vary as to why: can’t speak common, doesn’t have a tongue, is just fucking with everyone, etc. Nonetheless she manages to be plenty expressive and get her point across. 

She is a very big fan of the general adage: better to ask for forgiveness than permission. Independent by her own nature and her upbringing in the north, she respects rules that come from a place of strength and wisdom, but doesn’t care for authority for the sake of authority.

While no stranger to a fight, she’s slow to provoke with a generally easy-going attitude. She prefers to prove herself against forces far beyond her - nature itself.

Along with her general martial prowess, she’s well known for being an adept mountain climber and spelunker, having learned on the harsh glaciers of the north. She can often be found free climbing whatever happens to be around: cliffs, chasms, castles, and whatnot.

Unusual for a Vanirman, she favors fighting with her fists and improvised weapons. She’s particularly fond of using chains and pitons (which she has on her for scaling particularly intense slopes), and has frequently been known to use the chains as wraps to make her strikes that much more devastating.

She also doesn’t wear armor, but exclusively wears long sleeves (but you still see hella muscle definition tho). Rumor is that she has intense tattoos twisting up her arms that she’s hiding, but most people think that’s ridiculous.

Joined the Chain to see more of the world. She particularly respects the variety of skills the various members of the Chain display.

(Probably an Advancer/Green Boot cause I think she’d make for a good scout in addition to assailant).

sometimes people try to tell me that scientists are paragons of rationality and I have to break it to them that I have yet to work in a lab that didn’t have at least one weird secret shrine in it