Latest Posts by a-zalea-garden - Page 8

I feel like spelldons pretty musically inclined like his sister except he's more in the alternative genre (is alternative music even considered alternative in the mh universe?) so when he starts writing songs about Valentine Vals all like

Advice from an (Amateur) Archer on Writing About Archers and Archery

Admittedly, I don’t have the widest range of experience when it’s come to archery. I’ve only been shooting for a year now, and the time that I do take to shoot have long months between them. Still, I think it’s important to outline the basics for anyone who wants to write an archer in their book and wants to save themselves the embarrassment of having the archer do something that an archer would never do in a million years.

- Archers usually unstring their bow after battle. Unstringing a bow is exactly what it sounds like: removing the string from the bow’s limbs. Usually, archers then wrap the string around the now-straightened bow so they don’t lose it as easily. Archers unstring bows because everytime the limbs are bent by the string, there is a large amount of tension in the limbs. If the string is on too long and the bow has not been shot for a while, the limbs will start to wear down and lose their power, resulting in an archer needing to buy new limbs or an entirely new bow.

- Archers always retrieve their arrows after battle. Arrows are expensive and take a long time to make, so archers want to conserve as many arrows as possible. Sometimes they have a repair kit with them at the ready, in case they find an arrow with a loose arrowhead or broken fletching that can easily be repaired. 

- Training arrows are not the same as battle arrows. Training arrows have thinner shafts and usually blunted tips so they can easily be removed from targets. Thinner shafts break more easily, and the blunted tips – whilst they can pierce skin – usually won’t get very far in the flesh. They’re also easier to make. Battle arrows are thicker, and their heads are pointed at the tip and have two pointed ends at its sides. This arrowhead is designed to easily pierce through flesh, and is incredibly difficult to pull out because its two pointed ends snag onto flesh. If you want to pull it out, you’d have to tear the flesh away with it, which can lead to an even larger wound.

- Arrows are fatal, and one can incapacitate a soldier for the rest of his life. Arrows are not easily snapped off like you see in movies. The draw weight is too strong, and they can sometimes be as strong as bullets. They will pierce through bone and tendons, which do not easily heal. Furthermore, if you want to remove an arrow, you either have to go through surgery, parting the flesh away from the arrowhead so it doesn’t snag onto anything, or you have you push – not pull – it all the way through the body.

- Bows are not designed for hitting people with in close combat. The limbs are specifically made to flex. Imagine hitting someone with a flexing piece of wood. If you hit with the middle of the bow, it still does very little because there is no weight behind the bow, and so you might as well be hitting them with a pillow. It might be annoying to the opponent, but it won’t save you. Archers need a secondary blade in close combat. They cannot strike people with their bows and expect to win.

- Draw weight affects speed, range, and impact. Draw weight is measured in pounds, at least in America, and it is measured in how much weight must be pulled when you draw back the string. A high draw weight means stiffer, thicker limbs that can shoot further and hit harder. But, this is at the cost of speed. A low draw weight means thinner, more flexible limbs that can shoot smaller distances and have low impact, but can be shot faster. Before you acrobatic fanatics immediately seize the smaller bow for its speed, understand that a bow’s advantage is in its range. No one can hit an archer from 300 meters away with their spear or sword. The archer has complete dominance over the battlefield in this way, and their arrows can kill anyone who gets too close. Not hurt. Not annoy. Kill. And a higher draw weight means a better chance of piercing through specific armor, then flesh, then bone. A lower draw weight means less range and, even worse, a lower chance that the arrow would even pierce through armor if the arrow even hits its target. 

- Bows will always be outmatched in close combat against any other weapon. Bows take too long to draw and shoot, and at such close range, the opponent has an easier chance to dodge oncoming arrows. I already explained that the bows themselves cannot be used to take down a foe. 

- Bowmen on horseback are utterly terrifying. Archers usually can’t move from their spot because range is more important than mobility, and at such a long range, you usually don’t need to move from your spot anyways. Bowmen on horses, however, are closer to the battle, and worse, they are faster than almost anyone on the battlefield. Not only are they difficult to hit, you have no way of predicting where they will shoot next because they can circle around you in confusing ways. If you want an interesting archer character, I’d advise trying these guys out.

- Never underestimate armor and padding. Arrows will never be able to pierce through plate armor because its curved surface will always deflect oncoming arrows. Arrows can pierce through maille because maille is made out of metal rings that can be bent and can fall away. However, padding usually lies underneath, which is surprisingly durable and can stop an oncoming arrow, as well as absorb some of its impact. Because of this, make certain that the archer is focusing on gabs in the armor. To know this, you MUST study armor. Gabs usually lie where the joints are because soldiers need those gabs open so they can move. Typical gaps lie in the neck, the armpit, the inner-elbow, the knees, and the palm of the hand. Impact is also an archer’s friend. A war arrow shot by a hundred pound bow, hurtling at incredible speeds and gaining momentum the further it travels, can evoke serious damage. To be hit by one of these arrows will feel more like being hit by a horse than being hit by someone’s fist. 

I love how the entire Kieran Valentine faction of the Monster High fandom activated yesterday. Literally everyone came out of the shadows and it was great

Also: Happy (3 days late) 10th anniversary of the initial release of Why Do Ghouls Fall In Love!

tbh the implications hunter is cloned after rascal’s previous owner makes his face in this scene so much funnier and more interesting.

like he and luz are both going though emotional whiplash looking at hunter , but for incredibly different reasons.

Consider for a moment if, due to the fact that they were both in Lord Stoker's household at some point, Kieran and Elissabat had a somewhat familial relationship. What if at some point they're reunited and they call each other Lissie and Ren-Ren because they're siblings who have to at least somewhat annoy each other. What if Elissabat is the older sister and Val is the younger brother. Just suspend your disbelief and consider it for a moment.

Everyone is just ignoring that Valentine’s mother literally threatened to kill him

Question, is it ever addressed why no one ever refered to Kieran Valentine by his first name?

How to draw: Not white characters

How to draw a Black person

How to colour Black people skin tones

How to draw dreadlocks

How to draw African hair

How to draw curly hair

How to draw braids

How to draw braids part 2

How to draw cornrows

How to draw Bantu knots

How to draw two strand twists

How to draw an Asian person

How to colour darker skin tones with alcohol markers

How to draw hijabs/traditional Muslim hair coverings

How to draw a hijabi girl

All links and art provided by @ itsajart on TikTok

Before you go “mY aRt sTyLe iS dIfFrEnT tHoUgH” you can moderate it and play around with your style to get it to fit.

CELESTIA LUDENBERG, GODDAMMIT

Okay but like Kieran Valentine as “What Else Can I Do?” from Encanto

Finally got around to watch Encanto and I’ve come to the conclusion that Camilo smiles like knife cat

Do you see this shit, casita—

When your friend messages you about Monster High as you’re writing a Kieran Valentine fanfic

i dont want to be masculine in the way a girl is masculine i want to be feminine in the way a boy is feminine.

Anyone who thinks Valentine’s mother is a good parent please explain why because I interpret her as the opposite and I’m genuinely curious

"Why are you invested in this minor character with no real canon content" I can't help it if I have good taste

Everyone is just ignoring that Valentine’s mother literally threatened to kill him

A little thing I noticed while reading

Valentine says in his diary that:

Now, using the origin of his first name, which is an Irish (Gaeilge) name meaning “little dark one.” Looking at the fact his name is Irish, and (given his age) he would have been born c. 410 (c. 23 years before St Patrick started his conversion), we can relate him to the Ulster Cycle with little issue.

I doubt the Monster High team dug this deep, but Kieran’s line can be seen as a parallel (or just a reference to) to a feature of the warrior queen, Mebh of Connacht. She is called a sexual goddess and her name means “entrancing” or “she who intoxicates.”

It is said that Mebh could only be satisfied in bed by 7 men, or Fergus mac Róich (another character) once. Garrett Sander said that Kieran would be able to thrive off of true love, which is where Spelldon comes in.

We can compare that to the line above by saying the 2000+ women he’s charmed (yes I did the math) couldn’t satisfy his needs as an emotional vampire, but Spelldon could once.

Thank you for coming to my Ted talk.

Okay I know this isn’t monster high and I’m really late and someone might have already said this but:

Overhaul’s whole thing was hating quirks and thinking they were sicknesses. Chrono has a mutant quirk and worked as his right hand man.

For Kai, Chrono’s quirk was a physical reminder of quirks and something Hari couldn’t just turn off. Hari’s hair was a physical reminder of everything Kai hated

Long lost concept art of Spelldon Cauldrenello

Smh I can’t believe mattel didn’t use this.

A quick little reminder that Spelldon and Valentine gossip with each other

🙏cmon bagel don’t let me down

I feel like Mrs. Goblin would have the same energy as Persephone from Hadestown and I love it

Anyways, Mrs. Goblin is Aphrodite

Spelldon and Valentine’s ship name is either Love Spell or Pig Latin

Yes I think I’m hilarious

Yes I’m probably not

i’ve rewatched this approximately 500 times now.

@dead-gay-wizards is crazy talented. go like this on tiktok.

There is an old belief in Serbian villages and small towns that certain pumpkins (and watermelons), when left outside during a full moon, will turn in to a vampire.

Happy Halloween, everyone!

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STOP the fucking song and back it up to the start we didn't think about the right thing at the right time our head music video is all messed up what the fuck guys come on

It just hit me that Valentine’s (who canonically loves animals) love interest is the son of a witch notorious for turning people into animals

I don’t know what to do with that information just putting it out there