LARP! Southern Michigan May 2014

Ah, larping.

Dawny asked me to put up the pictures, so here they are!

Remember: click for full size!

Just a quick explanation of races: 

wylderkin are essentially anthropomorphic beings. Wylderkin is the colective name, but there are many types of wylderkin. They distinguish their species by slapping the word -kin on after the animal name. ie: Bear-kin

Saar are essentially anthropomorphic cats. They do not always possess ears, tails, etc. There are different clans of Saar and their histories are extensive. (seriously, someone went to town on those. just look up Saar)

Gypsy is an actual race of powerful humans. Race. Not a class.

Now, the following pictures are from a mod (quest) that involved clearing a path of undead. It took three and a half hours. We were also near a swamp, it was hot, mosquito everywhere, and I had food poisoning. Yay!

It was actually ironic because I kept getting hit by nausea spells from this one undead guy. xD

Left to Right

Jeyou (Rabbit-kin)

Trellis (dryad)

Spoons (raccoon-kin) [TheJazzPony]

Neo "Shiny" (human)

Saara (quetzal-kin) [me]

I survey my minion horde!

In the front there we see Csero (saar) [Lief963]

Between Csero and Shiny, we see Binks (gypsy).

Die friggin undead!

Spoons and Saara charge at a zombie attacking Neo!

Totally ready for action!

I always keep my back guarded.

Csero slices and dices.

Another day, another village road saved! The weary adventurers head home.

Now this is a different mod we were on where we had to attack a cave of giant bugs. Ugh. No pictures of the cave battle as it took place indoors in cramped quarters. But here are some pics of outdoors.

That green guy in the background was a bug. it dead now!

The guy standing nearby was Momo (another raccoon-kin). 

And that completes our party list. Momo had left in the afternoon before we went on the undead mod (yes, my pics are out of order). He was tons of fun!

So all in all, we had Jeyou, Binks, Saara, Spoons, Csero, Trellis, Shiny, and Momo. We were a happy group!

Saara concentrates to fix and recharge her arcane armor. Trellis and Momo stand guard. 

The party takes a break before heading into the cave. Jeyou fixes Momo's armor. Saara takes another refit break.

And that concludes the Larping photos. Hopefully I will get photos up of just the costume. I did promise a post on how to make cheap costuming.

Peace out for now minions!

Shifty Shifting Shapeshifters

Hmm, a help post! Yay! Here is a little blurb to guide you on the path through roleplay! Whee!
Though I'm pretty sure you guys reading this already got this down pat. You're all pretty inventive.

SHAPESHIFTERS
Mostly because the past three sites I've been on (Forgotten Souls Evermore, Tempting Fate, and Our Playground World) all feature shapeshifters as a playable race.
When people think of being a shapeshifter, they automatically think 'werewolf'.
It's kind of an engrained thing. We think werewolves because werewolves are the most common type of shapeshifter in media.
And then when you run around shifter sites, you see some other very common form choices: dog, cat, fox, tiger, and hawk/eagle/falcon. If sites allow it, then of course dragon and phoenix are along the lines of the above mentioned.
What is it with these animals that we are always so ready to pick them? Are they really the best forms possible?
I know that they are intriguing, and you can be strong, cool, and 'mysterious' all at once with one of these forms, but what are some other animals that are friggin sweet?
Let's step outside the box and take a look!

Mandrill Baboon

The mandrill baboon is a vicious predator. Yup. Predator. Though not your typical meat eater, these bitches are the natural enemies of leopards. LEOPARDS! Freaking jungle cats are scared of these freaks. They look mean and tough when snarling in your face like this bad boy. But otherwise, their pretty blue and red faces are kind of sweet.

Venezuelan Poodle Moth

This pokemon... oh wait, I mean uh, this mythical...

Oh, it's a moth.

Well, this adorable cutie is just on of the sweet little creatures you could possibly shift into. Though pretty much useless, it is adorable.

Boomslang

Thinking of being dangerous? Instead of a wolf, try a boomslang. Though small and lithe and not that creepy looking, this beauty's venom inhibits the blood from clotting properly, and causes the victim to bleed out of every hole and pore in their body.

Much more effective than teeth and claws.

Blue Shark

One of the stars on Shark Week, this bad boy will gorge itself on its prey until it throws up, then keep on going back for more. Imagine facing off against one of these bad boys.

Sugar Glider

Another cutie. Yah... be a sugar glider...

I'm sure there are plenty of cute and useful animals out there... Oh!

Maned Wolf

Don't just be a boring-ass grey wolf, be a maned wolf! Beak that werewolf stereotype! Maybe your character is from Brazil or something.

Honey Badger

I'm just gonna leave you with this lovely and hilarious video explaining all the reasons why you want to be a badass honey badger!

Oh I'm just gonna stop there and tell you to youtube HoneyBadgerNarrates. He makes all animals sound amazing. Just pick one of those.

Of course there are plenty of amazing animals all around the world to turn into besides what he lists wether because they are cute or creepy or friggin badass.



ROLEPLAY
On a roleplay note, nothing major to report. Mercury is growing into one big freaking project, but that's only cause I keep getting inspiration. Hopefully more people will join. I need to invite more people >.>
Were Myths is also starting to grow some.
Aisthesis is plodding along...
My other sites are just kind of there. I don't really care either way as they are not my focus.


NOTE: I will be gone over the weekend. No updates from me till Monday. Hopefully I will get a crafting post published tomorrow. Monday I will hopefully get to post up pictures from the LARP ^^

Peace out minions!

Grad

I'm graduating this year.
Breathe in, breathe out.
I can't wait to be free of the high school shackles and an official college student. Even though it means I have to pay for my college now. *sigh* But it's nice knowing I won't have that crutch anymore.
I apologize to those who actually like high school.... oh, who am I kidding. I honestly did not like high school one bit. Loved my math teacher. But otherwise, high school was full of awful memories, crappy/creepy children that crawled out of the woodwork, and a lot of useless drama. So bye bye highschool, hello LIFE!

Anyway.

I got my Senior photos taken by the amazing JazzPony a few weeks ago. Here are a few all of my favorites!

(terrible squinty friggin sunlight in my eyes AGGH!)

Yay! Senior photos!

Okay, I'll post something worthwhile tomorrow.

Peace out minions!

Mental Disorders, RP Help, and Sitelies

So my friend Phoenix and I are on the subject of mental disorders in RP characters. I thought this was interesting, because mental disorders are hardly ever played out in rps, or they are just done very poorly.

Phoenix joined my site Were Myths (more info below) and her character is a Were with Multiple Personality Disorder (MPD).
We were character plotting because my character (we'll call him Fred) is going to be her character's (we'll call him Bob) older brother. Fred also caused Bob's MPD. Fun.
But while we were talking, some things I noticed she mentioned about Bob's MPD that I think are common misconceptions of the disorder. I also included a few other things I believe are common misconceptions (I had these too before I learned more about MPD):

1. The personalities are based on emotions
She mentioned that two of Bob's MPs are fear and anger. A personality cannot be fear or anger individually. They may be a result of that emotion or triggered by that emotion, but they are not that emotion personified. The personalities could also heavily express those emotions, but they can express other emotions as well. They may start out as little clouds of emotion, but they will eventually develop into their own personality with different thoughts, viewpoints, behaviors, etc.
2. The personalities are very different from one another.
While there can be defining characteristics that set one apart from the other, the personalities can also mirror each other or be exactly the same.
3. It is very obvious someone has MPD.
No. And I am saying this as someone who knows. Someone I Know (SIK) was diagnosed with MPD just a few months ago. They had it since they were a kid. They are now a teen.
4. The personalities all are trying to protect the person. OR All the personalities are bad. OR All the personalities are good.
No. This is another extreme from "they are all different" to "they are all one thing". The personalities can be good or bad. They could try to protect the real person by using destructive behavior or could protect the person by merely taking over and seeing the bad things instead of the real person.
THEY CAN ALSO HARM THE PERSON. SIK was badly injured by one of their personalities once, and I mean BADLY.
5. My character has three personalities. That's a lot.
No. Most people with MPD have about 40. SIK currently has 10 KNOWN personalities. They probably have more that aren't showing themselves yet.
6. MPDs don't have names. That's a myth.
FALSE! SIK's guardian personality named itself Seven. The others have not revealed their names yet.
7. MPDs are super smart and powerful and stuff.
Debatable. The personalities are limited mostly by the real person. Personalities are also created by a break in the real person's psyche. This break is an actual trauma to the brain. The personalities are usually stuck at the same age level that the trauma happened. Some may grow and adapt as the real person grows and adapts, but some tend to stay at that level. (I believe Seven and 'the bad one' are stuck at age 8).
8. People who suffer from it don't know it.
Some are aware. Some are not. Most of the time, they have to be told about it. There are also those who may be able to talk or hear their other personalities talking to them.

Here is a link about how to treat these people.
Here also is a link about more on MPD (Note: they say that most people have 10, but the psychologist who treats my friend says the number is 40)
Also a note: I do not know everything about this disorder. Just some basic facts 3


So that was a blurb about MPD. Aren't mental disorders interesting? I mean that seriously. Granted, I thank God I do not have one. It can be terrible for those who do. But it is an interesting thing to explore in writing. Especially since so many people get things wrong about them, I think it's time a few people get it right.

And that brings me to my next point: I've been thinking about adding RP Help stuff to this blog. Just little paragraphs or links to other blogs that can help advance our rp experience, from stuff like a description on MPD to other stuff. Thoughts?


And now, Sitelies: all the sitely stuff.


Were Myths. I mentioned it before. It is now open. Again. Got two members (including Liam) and my friend Frosty will probably be joining (and she'll probably join Mercury too)


That's all for now. Peace out minions!

It's Spring

It's officially spring! The last snow we had was about two weeks ago. Considering the rise in temperature, I think it's safe to say that spring is here. Yay!

So, some updates!



Real Life Stuff
Graduation's coming up! Yay! :3 I'm also gonna be signing up for fall classes. Current classes are drawing to a close, so the pressure is on. Expect me to be absent for some time longer due to this.

I've also been working hard on a costume for LARPing. TheJazzPony and I are going to an event in Minnesota in two weeks. But instead of working, we're gonna be playing! I'll put up pictures and give more details when the costume is done.

So, a movie is going to be filmed in my little hometown. My best friend starred in the play that the movie is based off of, and the company is hoping to cast her in one of the lead roles. I might be showing up as an extra! I will keep you updated on this as well.

This month is going to be insane. As I said above, classes are coming to an end. Firefighting class officially ends on Wednesday *sad* but we still have to practice for State Certification. So excited! Meantime, other classes are piling on the homework. I'm also going to that LARP, graduating, getting a driver's test, getting a job, etc. Summer is going to be crazy too. Whoot!


The Thief Thing
Well, the site owner shut down that site. Guess that solves the issue.


On to rooooooooleplay!

ROLEPLAY
AISTHESIS
Activity picked up, but the plot speed is fluctuating. Mostly because of me being busy >.> Still, the war will continue as planned. People are making more characters in preparation for the plot. I am also working on revamping the main site and getting all the stuff updated as well. There's a bit of downsizing and rewriting information to make things more organized and concise. Hopefully this will help us attract new members.
EVANESCENT PENUMBRA
It is officially closed to make way for my new major project, one I've been diligently working on for the past four months...
MERCURY
My beautiful pre-apocalypse, steampunk, pseudo-fantasy roleplay! Dawny, Star, and JazInfinit all joined. Northy, Tavi, and Mania are thinking about it. Hopefully I can get a bunch of my other online buddies scattered about to get on there. :3 It has not opened for rp just yet. I want to get some more info on there and have more pre-planning done before its opening.
UNDER BELOW GROUND (and) SKYRIM (and) DARK EASTER RISING (and) The Hunger Games
Yah, the roleplay is kind of slow, again, due to my absences. Plus, on Dark Easter Rising, it's just Mania and I anyway...

WORKS IN PROGRESS
WERE MYTHS
The second site I ever made is going to be reopening YET AGAIN. >.> I know I promised Liam at least a year ago that I was going to remake it, and I'm finally keeping my promise [hehehe.. yah] Let's see how long it lasts this time.
INFINITE SORROW
The most time consuming site ever! I might start work on this monstrosity again in the near future. I am definitely re-inspired [not a real word] to do it anyway.
STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS
A revamp of my old Star Wars VII site. Kind of came about by my latest obsession with the Clone Wars show. This is a work in progress, and it will be sitting in the background for one of those times IF one of my other big sites ever dies and crumbles away.
OUR PLAYGROUND WORLD
I definitley have enough inspiration and stuff in my head to make a full blown site, but I think I'm going to keep it small for simplicity's sake. Mania is interested in it. Yay! I have no idea when it's coming out though.
VANQUISH
Yet another site that won't see the light of day until one of my others dies. It's about clones and bounty hunters and originals fighting clones, and if it feels like a Star Wars thing, well, that's where I got part of the inspiration. So yah.
[untitled]
The weird site of [untitled], aka "the cloud people site" is one I've been working on longer than Mercury, but I haven't really been talking about it. I might be bringing it out as well, since it exists in a verse similar to Mercury's (although these two sites will never collide). It takes place on an older, alternate Venus.

Okay, confused yet? Here's a basic rundown!

Order of release of sites:

1. Were Myths
2. Our Playground World
3. [untitled]

Only for after-site-death:

1. Star Wars: The Clone Wars
2. Vanquish

And sometime that might be in a few years...

• Infinite Sorrow

Alright, that is roleplay for yall in terms of my rps. As far as where else I'm rping, nothing terribly interesting has been happening due to my absences, so I don't have much of an update on that topic.

MORE REAL LIFE STUFF AND SOME INTERESTING STUFF I FOUND

1. Audrey Hepburn: I read an article somewhere that "people only remember this famous actress for just that: acting, but they don't remember all the other amazing stuff she did". Honestly, go google Audrey Hepburn and read the wikipedia article. She was one amazing girl. I was always a big fan of hers, so finding out her life story just blew me away.

2. The Adventures of Prince Achmed: I found this while stalking Mania's tumblr. The Adventures of Prince Achmed is the first animated film in recorded history. Created by a German housewife and her two friends, this film is done completely with shadow puppets and stop motion animation, taking up a period of three years to make. I started watching it this morning, and I was blown away. The movements are mesmerizing! The puppets are insane! A must see for anyone and everyone. If you have netflix and can rent DVDs, then you can get it that way. Otherwise, watch it free online HERE. It is a silent film with some words in German, so you may want to use google translate. Or just read the Arabian Night's tale of Prince Achmed and then watch the film for the sake of watching it. I did the latter and was still involved with the story. I gotta finish it yet, but even after the first five minutes I was captivated.

3. I have been reading a lot on boredpanda lately ( I think I mentioned this before), and there are two articles that are most interesting to me. Here and HERE. Go look at those. It will only take five-ten minutes.

Thanks for reading everybody! Peace out minions!