Happy Birthday @kanayamaryam999!

For Future Reference.

words for your fight scenes

Breathe

draw, expire, heave, inhale, puff, suffocate

Catch

intercept, tackle

Climb

arise, ascension, mount, scale, surface

Cut

amputate, ax/axe, bisect, chisel, cleave, crop, cut up, dent, dissect, engrave, etch, fell, hack, lacerate, mangle, molt, mutilate, notch, peel, scar, scratch, shave, shred, slash, slit, trim, whittle

Dispose

boot, chuck, disposal, dispose of, do away with, elimination, kick out, rejection, scrap, throw away, void

Drop

alight, crash, decline, descent, dive, droop, duck, fall, flop, fumble, go under, keel over, light, percolate, plumb, plunge, sag, settle, sink, slump, stoop, submerge, suspend, thud/thump, tumble, wilt

Hide

ambush, bury, camouflage, conceal, cover, cover-up, cringe, disguise, dissimulate, embed, ensconce, envelop, isolation, lurk, masquerade, palliate, screen, seclusion, sequester, shrink, shut off/shut out, sneak, withhold

Hit

applaud, bang, baste, batter, beat, blindside, boot, buffet, bunt, chip, clash, clip, clout, collide, concussion, crash, cuff, deflect, drive, flail, glance, hammer, jab, jostle, knock, lick, nail, peck, plaudits, pound, punch, rap, scourge, slap, smack, sock, strike, swipe, tap, thud/thump, tip, whack, whip

Hold forcefully

apprehend, cage, clasp, clinch, confinement, constriction, cramp, detain, embrace, enslave, fetters, grasp, gripe, hold, incarcerate, overpower, press, shackle, snatch, strangle, throttle, wrestle

NOTE

The above are concepts classified according to subject and usage. It not only helps writers and thinkers to organize their ideas but leads them from those very ideas to the words that can best express them.

It was, in part, created to turn an idea into a specific word. By linking together the main entries that share similar concepts, the index makes possible creative semantic connections between words in our language, stimulating thought and broadening vocabulary.

Source ⚜ Writing Basics & Refreshers ⚜ On Vocabulary Notes: Fight Scenes (pt. 1) (pt. 2) Word Lists: Fight ⚜ Pain

Very well thought out headcanons.

do u have any headcanons about hk characters and spellwork (who can use what, what's possible and what isn't, whatever) :V?

take all this with a pinch of salt as i am typing from my phone in the back of a van and i am very sleepy

anyone could learn to spellcast with Soul! in the same way anyone could become an astrophysicist. most people do not.

the Soul Sanctum, and the Pale King's use of Soul spellwork, was considered highly innovative. mostly spellcasting is something only a few people can do/bother learning, but in Hallownest the King encourages it and the Soul Sanctum is dedicated to honing the craft, which makes Hallownest weirdly ahead of the game compared to a lot of places. soul scholars were kind of like the educated elite. but also wizards. people talked

you could simplify and say you have two main schools of thought: the scientific approach (Soul Sanctum, Pale King) and the spiritual approach (Snail Shamans, Moth Tribe). the two ways of thinking are not mutually exclusive and often overlap though. both can be used to great effect

there are bugs out there who have done crazy high level things like the Soul Sanctum in less scientifically-themed contexts, definitely. this tier of fanatical spell meddling is rareish though

Soul is the word many bugs use for the life force inside all living things. and yeah, basically! it's not exactly your sense of self though that's different

Soul and Void are effectively infinite. harnessing Soul to cast spells involves channelling it through certain means and generally you only have certain limited reserves to draw from at a time (see Soul Vessels for example)

Soul Master and the rest of the scholars were fixated on surpassing that limit. kind of a "what if humans used 100% of their brain" situation

if you actually found a way to use all of one bug's Soul at once it would be like splitting the atom - incredible amounts of energy released at once, even from an average bug who isn't a spell user in the first place. Mistakes and Follies collapsed into themselves long before they got anywhere near that level. it's basically just not sustainable or doable. (soul master voice: but is it)

spellwork is also kind of like using a certain muscle a lot. if you cast a lot of spells it'll get easier for you. if you're inherently a gifted type who has a lot of potential for spellwork, but never use it or pursue it, you'll still be pretty bad at it and get tired quickly compared to someone with no inherent ability who practices every day

Void is basically like its own version of Soul. the two are different but if you scanned a Void being and found no traces of Soul that doesn't mean they're soulless, it means they have their own version. you're looking at it. it's Void

the average bug does not contain any traces of Void by nature and thus spellwork with Void is rare and very poorly understood. those ancient bugs who worshipped the Void however would have had some in their system. how? don't ask questions you don't want answers to

once upon a time, all Void is/was, in all traces across the world, part of one unit. once in the dawn of time etc etc. the world has changed since but it's fundamentally all the same to itself.

spellwork with Void is essentially using Soul to bind and command some Void to do what you want it to do. this is why shade spell upgrades cost Soul, it's the Soul making it do that thing.

mess around with Void too much if you're a bug and it will do very strange things to the body. it stains shell, it leaks from the joints and the eyes, it puts strange thoughts in your head. Soul is easier, safer, and better understood, and also isn't partly echoing with its own collective sentience.

not that this kind of thing deters a Snail Shaman. pretty sure if a Snail Shaman was given half the chance they'd learn to spellcast with anything. magnets. active plutonium. whatever. mind your business

if you know how to see Soul inside a body, and concentrate, living things generally appear as opaque glowing white cutouts. the Soul inside a living creature is saturated to the point of looking like a white shape in space. you can't see this usually because their body is in the way and it's sort of, tied into their cells or whatever

you can use spellwork to do pretty much anything, if you're clever. the sky is the limit. flashy stuff like attack spells, subtle stuff like enhancing your senses or letting yourself see things not usually visible to the eye, defying gravity, Whatever. almost anything you can think of. the main barrier is that it's difficult and taxing. the average bug doesn't bother

oh god i haven't even done Dream. okay a short rundown: Dream is different again. it's about the self, about thoughts, about the conscious and subconscious, about the mind. you don't so much spellcast with Dream as just kind of... manipulate and explore what's around you. connect with others. influence, sometimes. mostly understand. it's not technically spellcasting though and this post is getting long so i'll leave it there for now sdffgjk

The wet cat tree.

Even Ghetsis Pays his Taxes

*Scene in Pokemon Masters opens*

*We see a bunch of Unovans characters furiously working on papers. A whole range that includes, but not limited to, the player characters.*

*Enter scene: May, Brandon, Maxie, and Archie*

Brandon: Hey Nate! Are you ready for our Pokemon battle?

*Nate looks up*

Nate: Oh! I'm so sorry! I can't go! I have to pay my taxes first!

Brandon: ?

Brandon: You pay taxes?

Nate: Yes! I have to get it before next week! And since we're at Pasio, I'll to mail it overseas. If I don't get it done now, it could be late when it arrives!

Brandon: ?????

Archie: Now don't worry laddie. Isn't that true big of a deal. It will get there when it gets there. Nothing to worry about.

Clay: Nothing to worry about? You won't say that with the government hounding you down! Doing all investigating-

Maxie: Now, now. I understand that paying one's taxes are important, unlike someone here-

Archie: Hey! I pay them! Eventually...

Maxie: But you need not worry too much about being late. Everything sorts itself out. Now about that battle ...

*All the Unovans look at them in abject horror.*

Clay: You don't pay your taxes? And you're a freeman?

Grimsley: Not worry?! Not worry?!?!?

Hilbert: Brandon! May! Do you need help with your taxes? My grandma gave me tips so now I save so much!

Brandon: Wait? I need to pay taxes?!

May: Hold it!!!

*Silence*

May: Why are all of you so worried? Is the government that threatening if you don't pay your taxes?

*Ghetsis chooses that moment to walk on screen with his own sheet of taxes.*

Ghetsis: Child, even I pay my taxes on time. In full.

Rosa: Hey? Can I borrow a pen?

*Ghetsis hands her one.*

All the trainers from Hoenn: WHAT?????

*End Scene*

Why is this so true????

😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

If you could have any exotic pet, what would it be?

VD: Okay, I would say griffens would be so cool to have-

Razor: What about me??????

VD: No Razor, they kindly asked what kind of PET I would have, not pets.

Razor: But I-but I-

VD: Breathe fire. Not very practical.

Razor: But I roast marshmallows!

VD: Who roasted the pillows just last week?

Razor: I'm sorry! Please choose me!

Fuzzy Beak: Oooh! Butterfly! Pretty!

Penelope: I had the weirdest dream last night. An eagle swooped down from the heavens and killed 20 geese.

Odysseus, disguised as a beggar: Well, fair queen, clearly this means that your husband is coming home and will kill your suitors.

Penelope: If only there was a way to tell the eagle to hurry the fuck up.

Odysseus:

Penelope: *dumps a bunch of weapons at Odysseus’s feet*

Penelope: Clumsy me

What is with the Dreamers' Houses?!?! Part 3.7 Lurien's Spire - WHAT is WRONG with Lurien's Office?!?!

Welcome back! Do you remember the last part where I was talking about how Patriotic Lurien was with all the Hallownestian crests?

I was about to leave it off here, until I realized something strange. There are no King’s Idols in Lurien’s Spire. Mr.-Certified-Pale-King-Fanboy has no King’s Idol from which he would worship the Pale King. What kind of fan would not have an idol or picture of his king? Especially in his bedroom!

Again, I was going to leave it even after checking the Hollow Knight wiki. Tumblr/Ao3 artist Aspidike already wrote a whole comic on it after all, so why should I spend time on it?

Looking back on it, I really should have spent more time wondering why Lurien has no King’s Idols to worship the Pale King when HERRAH is shown to be more religious than him. The Spider Queen has a Shrine inside her den while Lurien doesn’t even have a single idol or a chapel!

I only began to look deeper at the lack of King’s Idols in Lurien’s Spire when I realized there is something else missing in the Watcher’s Spire. Take a look at the carpet in Lurien’s Office.

Why does Lurien have purple carpet that completely covers the floor? Even wrapping around the pillars leading up to his Office?  Why when everywhere else in his Spire has RED flooring and Hallownestian seals…

And that’s when it hit me. Not only are there no King’s Idols in Lurien’s Spire, but there is also nothing of the Pale King in Lurien’s Office a.k.a where he lays slumbering.

Look at Lurien’s Office again.

No painting of the Pale King, only that of the City. No massive window of the Hallownest Seal, only open windows.  There are Hallownest Seals on the banners…but no Monarach Wings.

Please, allow me to explain the importance of the lack of Monarch Wings. Take a look down below at the kinds of Hallownest Seals seen across Hallownest.

The above photo is a drawing as I suck at photoshop.

Design 1 or the Seal design is most reminiscent of the Pale King with his Monarch Wings, hence why it will be often referred to as the Monarch’s Seal in this essay.

Design 2 or the Crest design is the most often seen crest design across all of Hallownest. It is the center or base that Designs 1 & 3 form their own designs on. I often take it to mean Hallownest itself versus the Monarch’s Seal which brings to mind the Pale King.

Design 3 is the design, which to my knowledge, is only seen in the City of Tears, especially on the noble’s side of the City. Originally, I called it Plumage Design and pondered whether or not this was an allusion to the Pale King, but now I believe it is a homage to the White Lady. See the comparison down below.

Part of the reason why I am making such a big deal out of the different designs is due to the Medieval heritage the game Hollow Knight draws on. If kings, knights, and keeping your oaths to your lords is greatly important to the game, then having a coat of arms and its impact are not a stretch. We already saw this in Monomon’s portion of the essay when we realized that Monomon was the one in charge of the Teacher’s Archives. Due to the lack of Hallownestian crests (or anything of Hallownest) as well as symbols in the benches being Monomon’s mask, we concluded that the Teacher’s Archives was not part of Hallownest proper, but rather natural territory under Monomon’s direct charge.

Having three different Hallownestain crests is vital. While the standard Design 2 or the Crest design allows one to tell that the messenger is from Hallownest versus the Mosskin, Designs 1 and 3 allow us to tell if the message came from the Pale King or White Lady themselves. The common Hallownestian official might only bear the Crest Design while servants in the White Palace bear Designs 1 & 3. Though I bet the Queen’s gardeners only bore the Plumage Design.

With this in mind, let us turn back to Lurien’s Spire to see which crests he bears throughout.

These are all locations through-out the Watcher’s Spire containing different versions of Hallownestian crests. Now please compare these with that of Lurien’s personal Office and Final Resting Place.

Here is the ONLY Place I found the 1st design or Monarch Seal in Lurien’s Office… If you actually can count it since it’s OUTSIDE his office.

The two places where the Monarach Wings appear in Lurien’s Office are in two locations that are OUTSIDE his office. The first is on the Spire’s wall which is just typical City of Tears architecture while the second winged crest is on the elevator.  AKA, a standard design that is easily removed from the room.

What does this mean for Lurien, the fandom’s Pale King fanboy, with nothing of the Pale King inside his office? This is supposed to be Lurien’s personal space where there would be tons of Pale King merch and references. Yet, upon closer examination, not only are there no references to the Pale King, but Lurien went out of his way to hid any references to the White Lady as well! The purple carpet extends all the way down, hiding Design 3 or the White Lady’s crest!

Forget any blacklash from an shocked fandom, the lack of references to the Royal Couple in Lurien’s Office reeks of possible danger for the Watcher. Lurien is the 3rd most powerful bug in Hallownest, right underneath the Pale King and White Lady. Such massive influence needs to be massively watched and carefully checked to ensure that the Watcher doesn’t use that power against the Royal Couple. Yet the Watcher, in his own personal office, does not have any direct reference to either of them.

We do not know how the Royal Couple would feel that Lurien went out of his way to not show any direct alliegance in his private workspace and room. 

Now, I already know what you are thinking. Lurien’s canon dialogue in the Dream Realm. “For King Beloved…to sleep and serve…” It seems as if all of his dialogue is suggesting the exact opposite picture of Lurien’s Office, that he put the Pale King above everything…but the Pale King isn’t the only reason why he became a Dreamer. To quote Lurien’s last journel entry:

“Sleep beckons eternal and these words become my last. Though my gaze shall no longer fall upon this city, I will act forever in its protection. For King, for bug, for Hallownest, I head now to my rest.”

Lurien is a poet. 2)  His actions are for the forever protection of his City. 3) Lurien’s reasons for acting are not solely for the Pale King, but for bug and Hallownest. This is important as it shows Lurien separates Hallownest from the Pale King in his mind.

While Lurien DID say “For King Beloved”, there is nothing of Pale King inside Lurien’s personal Office. It seems like the care Lurien had for the Pale King was like the love Americans have for their flag, unwilling to let the flag touch the ground…but not going so far to have the flag inside their bedrooms…unless the love for the flag goes beyond patriotism to nationalism.

Finally, what does this lack of crests mean for Lurien’s character? I am afraid that I will have to dive into symbolism to explain as a certain Watcher doesn’t have much dialogue.

The lack of Monarch crest on the banners shows how Lurien always put Hallownest first, not the Pale King’s interests.  Lurien could have snuck in one of the bigger banners with the Monarch crests, but chose the smaller banner with Design 2 to hang instead. Symbolically, this shows how Lurien’s heart with the kingdom first.

The lack of the Plumage Crests was brought about by Lurien redoing the floors, turning the red floor to purple carpet. As seen before in previous essays, the color red is associated with the nobles and the majority of the Plumage Crests are seen on the noble’s side of the City. Meanwhile, the color purple is primarily seen in Lurien’s Spire AKA Lurien’s color. Just as purple takes from both red and blue to rise to higher wisdom, inspiration, and humility, so Lurien rises above the roots to see a bird’s eye view of the whole culture of Hallownest, not just the nobles who grow (pun intended) from the White Lady.

The open windows has its own symbolism as Team Cherry could have given Lurien’s Office those magnificent Monarch crest windows. Instead, they chose to not just have no seal, but almost no window. Practically, this means Lurien can easily reposition his telescope anywhere so he can see everywhere in the City. But what about symbolism? The answer is that Lurien can see everything CLEARLY and without basis. He sees what is truly there, not what the Pale King wants him to see or expects him to see. Lurien isn’t even plagued by his own personal weakness or anger that could cause the glass to fog up. He can SEE.

Yes, Monomon. You can stop listing all the things wrong with the City. Lurien already has your list and THEN some. 

Here we are at the end of this section and I cannot believe that CAREPT of all things would reveal how Lurien's loyalty is to Hallownest first, not the Pale King.

If you wish to read more of the Essay, click one of these links below.

Part 1.0: Herrah's Den : Here

Part 2.0: Monomon's Archives: Here

Part 3.0: Lurien's Spire: Here

Part 3.25: Lurien's Spire: Windows and Colors: Here

Part 3.5: Even More of Lurien's Spire. Here

Part 3.7: What is WRONG with Lurien's Spire? (You are here)

Part 3.8: Even, even More of Lurien's Spire: Secret Room: Click here

Part 3.9 Watcher Knight Boss Room! Here

Part 4.0 What We Know We Don't Know About the Dreamers' Houses: Click Here

Link to essay on Ao3: Here

If you have thoughts you wish to share, please feel free to comment or reblog! Especially with the above observation!

What is with the Dreamers' Houses?!?! Part 3.25 Lurien's Spire - Windows and Colors

Welcome back to talking about the Dreamers' Houses! Today we're discussing more about the Watcher's Spire and what it tells us about Lurien's character.

Last time, we talked about Lurien's Telescope and what it spoke of Lurien's character. Yet there was something else I noticed with the placement of the Telescope itself.

It is on the Left Side of Lurien's office, facing the Left half of the City. While some might state that this is because of classism, I am not so sure. Not when I noticed this particular detail.

We have three bugs with unique designs with unique dialogue. From the dialogue, it seems that they took up the duty of the Watcher's mantle, placed there possibly by Lurien himself. Of all the sides of the Spire, these three are also facing the left side. What could be on that side of the City that Lurien went out of his way to leave his Telescope facing the left side and appointed watchers to guard that side? 

Oh.

Wait.

Taken from ntvv.vn.

The entire Soul Sanctum and the Soul Master is on the LEFT side of the City. The same group responsible for THIS carnage.

 Tragically, that is not even half of the people butchered by the Soul Master. If Lurien had an inkling, however, of the Soul Master's doings, then he would keep watch over that portion of the City in order that he can find evidence of the Soul Master's wrongdoings. Unfortunately, as we all know, Lurien ran out of time to prevent the full tragedy.

That did not, however, stop Lurien from doing everything he could to stop the Soul Master. He left the Telescope and appointed not one, but three mini watchers to keep an eye on the Soul Master. Who knows how many notes and networks he left behind to the mini watchers as well that we never got a chance to read. What we do know is that Lurien made sure that every tool and opportunity to protect his City was left at the Pale King's disposal. Lurien wasn't just protective, he took preventative action and was willing to include others to best protect his City.

Though that begs the question of how many back-up plans Lurien had to protect the City.

Moving on, I could dive into how Lurien is one of the few bugs to have a statue in the whole of Hallownest. I could also talk about the sheer size of his Spire or the fact that Lurien, confirmed to be mortal, has a stone lore tablet that so far only the Pale King has. But I will not as fellow Tumblr user Eggbuggo already talked about that.  Don't worry, I found the post so you don't have to scroll down to March 2nd, 2023 to find it.

https://www.tumblr.com/eggobuggo/710665789135634432/i-think-lots-of-people-tend-to-forget-how-much?source=share

Instead, I will talk about the color of the Spire, or colors.

The City of Tears is mainly divided into two colors: dark blue for the Left side (commoners + business) and red for the Right side (noble houses). The Watcher's Spire, however, has three colors: Blue, Red, AND Purple.

For comparison, here is a picture of the left side of the City of Tears.

Vs. the Right side of the City.

The Watcher's Spire, meanwhile, has three colors.

The floor is red, the pillars and elevators are blue while the wall is purple.

What does this color design say about Lurien the Watcher? For starters, the Watcher has not one assigned color to his Spire, but tastefully uses all three. Even a person from far away can see the beauty in how Lurien creates a contrast with these colors. Considering that each side of the City is predominately one color, this speaks volumes on how Lurien did not side solely which one side of the City.

For example, there is no red or purple glow in the left side of the City. Compare these two images.

Vs.

The lamps inside the Watcher's Spire produce this violet/pinkish glow whereas the lamps on the left side of the City only glow white. Same glass shape, but different light.

On the flip, or right side of the City, the nobles seem to hide any blue inside their home unless it is completely necessary, such as the elevator shafts. Compare:

&

Vs. Lurien using the red as the floor, but decorating with the blue pillars and window frames. The contrast here is used as framing, creating something beautiful even if it is just a hallway.

I believe the color choice for the Watcher's Spire speaks the exact same thing of Lurien's character as the Spire's placement in the City of Tears. Lurien was the mean between extremes for the City. Not only is the Spire in the middle of the City where everyone can reach it, but the use of purple in particular, a color created by mixing blue and red, shows both a claim of connection, yet also distant from the citizens of the City. This is important as purple isn't predominantly seen anywhere else in the City of Tears.

One last thing regarding color, Lurien is also the only one person to employ both blue and red sentries. Except for the one Great Husk Sentry and the Winged Sentry in the Resting Grounds, the blue and red sentries are never seen together. Given the sole location of both the blue and red sentries in the same is the Watcher’s Spire, it speaks to Lurien’s character that he was able to bring those two sentries together. Unfortunately, we do not know if the Watcher was able to pull it off due to his high position, geo, or his personal character, but the feat is still remarkable.

We have reached page 18 of Lurien's section, so I believe it would be best to cut off here for now. To recap: Lurien is proactive to protect his City, even though he would lay dreaming forever. We notice this in the placement of items and people by certain windows. We also learned how colors reflect Lurien's character as the mean in-between the two extremes of the two sides of the City, especially the use of the color purple which is a mix of blue and red. While this creates a distinction between the Watcher and the other citizens of the City, Lurien is still able to bring the people together as noted in the kinds of guards patrolling in his Spire.

If you wish to read more of the Essay, click one of these links below.

Part 1.0: Herrah's Den : Here

Part 2.0: Monomon's Archives: Here

Part 3.0: Lurien's Spire: Here

Part 3.25: More of Lurien's Spire (You are here.)

Part 3.5: Lurien's Spire: Pillows and Patriotism: Here

Part 3.7 Lurien's Spire: What is wrong with Lurien's Office?! Here

Part 3.8: Even, even More of Lurien's Spire: Secret Room: Click here

Part 3.9 Watcher Knight Boss Room! Here

Part 4.0 What We Know We Don't Know About the Dreamers' Houses: Click Here

Link to essay on Ao3: Here

If you have thoughts you wish to share, please feel free to comment or reblog!