We've Lost A Lot To The Onslaught Of Enshittification But I Can Think Of None More Brazen Than Discord

Personally I think that battle sims like showdown would still be a thing in the pokemon world. Cuz like picture this: you are ten years old and the only Pokémon you have access to is the elderly family Sunflora. You love Sunny to death but also literally every media you consume involves Pokémon battles and champions and cool ass fights. Sunny is too old to fight and your neighbor’s Gothita is too young. One day on the playground your friend tells you about this cool website that lets you battle pokemon on the computer. Later that night you boot up the family computer and instantly realize that this website lets you play as GROUDON (!!!!). There’s no going back from there.

Alright, it's two AM, and I need to ramble, so forgive me if this is awful. Yes, this will contain lore spoilers for the following game.

ULTRAKILL.

It is by far my favorite shooter of all time, and I like to put in at least one or two cybergrind runs every day (my record, considered modest in comparison to many of the far more skilled ULTRAKILL players, is wave 42) and I am at least half-decent at it, something I am quite proud of.

However, I don't know if anyone else realized this, so I need to share.

Gabriel's monologue in 6-2 was an emotional, riveting and overall incredible addition to the game (thank you, Gianni). However, one part of it made me stop in my tracks and think.

"Limbo. Lust. All gone. With Gluttony soon to follow."

This line hit me with such guilt and regret. "Wait... was this my fault? I didn't want this." And I didn't know why, but I think I've figured it out.

We didn't just go deeper. We, and all the other machines, have GENOCIDED the layers. We, as V1, (and V2, just ahead of us) cleaved a path of gore to sustain our need for blood, and the lesser machines? They followed us, picking off the scraps. Machines had already been in hell, feeding off of the lesser husks, but we condemned the layers to die as the survivors were picked off.

And then we defeated Gabriel. The guardian of the lower layers. No machine had made it past him yet. We opened the floodgates, and in our selfish quest for more blood, condemned the lower layers to the same fate as the first three as the streetcleaners, sentries, drones, swordsmachines, and mindflayers picked off the scraps.

The souls, they were already suffering, enacting their punishments... and perhaps the souls on the lower layer deserve it, that much is true. But Limbo? Lust? No, we'd already killed all humans off in the robot revolution. They'd already been forced to suffer at our hands.

And we just killed them again. We couldn't even let them find some form of peace in their somewhat sour afterlife. We did this.

Minos was right. Perhaps our punishment should be death, for our crimes are too great to be forgotten.

Perhaps we let the blood dry up.

I’ve kinda wondered what would happen if you took little trope inside jokes or realizations off the internet and made them into full games. For example, this is Tumblr after all. What would happen if someone saw our many, many ramblings about humans being space orcs and made a full game off of it? What would it look like?

For me, if I had to design a “Humans Are Space Orcs” Game, I think I’d do it as an MMORPG. I think I’d actually start it off as a completely human-free game, where you get to choose an alien species to play as (with various benefits and drawbacks) being part of this gargantuan intergalactic collective of species and peoples and planets. There’d be classic “go out and do stuff adventures,” but I think I’d also take stuff from the idea behind that MMORPG called “Albion Online” where everything is a player-built economy, and have highly expansive routes you could take for crafting things. Though now that I think about it, that might just be “EVE: Online” but with aliens. So there probably would be a lot more options in terms of alien ships and weapons and parts and all that.

However, the “humans are space orcs thing” would come in a form of one of those crazy expansions and events MMORPGs do. I’d have a sector of this one galaxy be hyper-dangerous, known as the “Dead Sector,” not because it’s lifeless, but because that’s what it does: make you dead. Quickly. A high population of gargantuan interstellar space worms, death worlds, all that jazz. Entering it would yield high resources, if you could make it out alive.

However, in this expansion, would enter THE HUMAN RACE and all the marketing would make them sound like they were weird and foreign and strange. They wouldn’t be playable yet, that would only be unlocked after the next major update, when they’ve really started to proliferate across the galaxies. But the whole “story” of that update would be learning about the humans and their culture, exploring Earth and slowly dawning upon the realization that oh my god these people are fucking insane.

That’s how I’d do it, anyway. It’d probably be fun.

Rock types and Ground types are heavily intertwined in both public perception of them and in biological terms (referencing several species, namely from the far East in regions such as Kanto and Johto), as many argue there was no need to separate them at all, and in fact, exist as the same typing. Yet, that glosses over the reason why they were separated in the first place. 

Granted, both typings control and manipulate inanimate earth, or generally parts of the Earth’s crust. However, considering the two the same declines both types the nuance which gives them distinction. Yes, species of both types often have tankier, more defensive battling styles, sometimes even coming paired with overwhelming offensive capability. However, it’s what part of the earth that is manipulated which provides the distinction, as well as some biological factors regarding the aforementioned defensive capabilities.

Rock types focus on what is completely and utterly solid. Stone, crystals, fossilized remains, or in one particular case, tar, of which this is the main exception. Rock types embody these solid, sturdy traits and require serious offensive power to either crack their rock bodies or pierce their thick, stone-like hides. Meanwhile, Ground Types control earth, but the more particulate kind, sand and soil being the primary examples. Ground types are just as defensively oriented, but are more bulky with their flesh as opposed to the natural armor of rock types. For example, a Coalossal may be covered in large coal blocks that shield it from harm, but a Seismitoad is bulky and has a thick layer of fat to help absorb direct hits.

What’s especially interesting is how this makes the two, at least in a defensive standpoint, complete opposites of one another. Rock types, with their thick armor, are more adept at shrugging off more piercing, slashing, or energy-based hits, while taking severe damage with blunt collisions that could crack their armor. Meanwhile, Ground types with their bulkier builds are better made for countering those same blunt attacks, while slashing and piercing, as well as energy-based attacks, do significant damage. 

Despite the differences, this is still a heavily debated topic in the scientific community, and yet another reason as to why the typing system is in desperate need of maintenance and reform, as to better classify all Pokemon within its bounds. 

shoutout to the gay couple at the grocery store where i work that were staring at the shelves and shelves of cereal brands, looking so concerned, and the one of em that whispered "this is the hardest decision of our lives"

So I've been playing Deep Rock Galactic a lot lately (for those unaware, it's a horde shooter game about space dwarves in an alien planet) and it's got me thinking.

Space dwarves, in this universe, exist. Obviously. So do elves, because the dwarves constantly mention "leaf-lovers." Space elves. The voice over at Mission control is likely a human, owing to the lack of a beard and very different accent/tone. Goblins are also implied to exist via voicelines, though it's only like one or two mentions (via insults in case of friendly fire).

Now, of course, this is just one game. There have been other cases of elves or dwarves or similar-looking creatures in sci-fi, such as Warhammer 40k, with the Eldar, and the Orks.

But it's the first instance (that I am aware of) where true fantasy races, with no augmentations, reached technological advancement high enough not only reach space, but develop their own intergalactic or at least interstellar civilization.

If all the classic fantasy races went to space, what would they all be doing?

The dwarves would be miners, obviously. Like in DRG, they'd like their weapons, have an eye for precious metals and gemstones, and love mining and underground locales. It's in their blood.

On the other hand, the elves might be more nature-centric. They might be more dedicated to protecting planets that are full of life from expansion and industrialization, mostly by humans, as humans do what humans do: expand, conquer, wage war, all that jazz. They showed this to a certain degree in DRG's seasons 1 and 2, with a gargantuan rival incursion. While it's not stated who runs the rival company, it's likely humans, due to how advanced the tech is, and the fact that they only use tech. No living organisms are sent down into the planet's caverns.

Orcs? They'd probably continue to wage war. Question is, would they be like the Orks of Warhammer 40k, with eyes only to destroy and conquer other peoples, or could they be hired? Say, "we'll give you a shit ton of gold and riches and in exchange you go kill off anything bad on this planet, ok?"

That's just my ideas, though. Who knows, maybe DRG will expand upon this lore in later seasons (I sincerely hope they do).

A little bit of a color palette thingy

Hooboy alrighty

Elias, Talia, Hera, AND Reagan posting

These lovely things are characters belonging to myself and @ophionswill

Their story takes place entirely within the Pokemon worldbuilding project Ophion has been working on! He's been posting about it a bit, so I suggest taking a look :-)

Alright, so, uh, hi! Intro post time.

I'm Ophion, he/him, and I am a gargantuan fucking nerd. I love good worldbuilding or interesting concepts, and because of that I have often found myself obsessing over tv shows, games or movies with awful fandoms. I liked their ideas, don't judge me.

My main hyperobsession is Pokemon, though (yes, I'm neurodivergent. ADHD diagnosed, high probability of having autism as well). Probably because I'm a biology nerd, and I'm studying Bio in college right now. I play a shit ton of video games, and read a LOT of fanfictions. Mostly the ones trying to tell a good, cohesive story, though. You could hold me at gunpoint and you could not force me to read anything unsavory.

I'm mostly planning on posting my worldbuilding ideas for either those media bits or personal worldbuilding projects. Or just inane ramblings somewhat related to those things.

You've been warned.

Bug types (a personal favorite type of mine) are often underestimated, due to the plethora of weaknesses known to it and very few advantages, which are mostly only useful in specific battling rings or matchups. However, this is partially due to the way that standardized battles are structured in order to create fairness in our League Circuits and Conferences. One-on-one, up to three-on-three battles are all sanctioned by the league, and the amount of Pokemon has be equal on either side. However, this has created significant weaknesses for a couple of Pokemon types, which can be exploited. For example, rock types thrive in this environment, being fully capable of defending themselves on their own, as many rock types live solitary lives finding food and caring for themselves, only living with other members of their species when they are a mated pair, or are caring for young.

Bugs and Dark types are the polar opposites of this. They are often considered frail, having low defense stats in most cases, and often cannot survive long-term, one-on-one engagements. They are not meant for this kind of battle, instead, where they excel is teamwork and numbers.

Bugs are in roughly 90% of species, social Pokemon. They might exist in a small swarm of 3-10, or in a massive hive with thousands of members. Bug Specialists are limited to their 6-Pokemon capacity, often having to focus on bugs that are naturally strong, or are more suited to solitary lives, such as Scizor, Pinsir, Volcarona and Drapion (yes, this isn’t technically a bug, but since it suffers with the third type problem, I’m including it). However, a truly talented bug specialist might have a range of 7-10 Pokemon all suitable and trained for the standardized arenas of the Leagues, while on a personal space, having tens, if not hundreds of smaller bug Pokemon that all work as a part of a trainer-fostered “hive,” as a community, to be unleashed upon a series of targets on a whim.

This has been witnessed several times by bug specialists in the present and the past. A more modern example is Elite Four Aaron of the Sinnoh League. When members of the Sinnoh League were dispatched across the region to try and wipe out any Galactic Bases (the most notable of which is Sunnyshore Gym Leader Volkner, who wiped out an estimated 75% of all bases eliminated by the League on his own), footage of Aaron’s battling style was unveiled to the public: he did not use his signature team as his only fighters, instead unleashing a gargantuan swarm of an estimated 10,000 bugs to infest the base (comprised of Yanma, Ninjask, Ariados, Combee, Venomoth and Beedrill), systematically eliminating anyone (save for civilian hostages) found inside. 

So next time you see a bug, don’t underestimate it, as while it may be weak on its own, the swarm might be in another nearby bit of trees, listening for the cry of distress that will invoke the wrath of the collective.

Poison types already had a bad rap before the Rocket Age, despite what many seem to claim. Poison types are widely considered to be an “evil” type, among Dark and Ghost types, for the reason that many species of poison types naturally have “toxic” personalities. These species are considered reclusive, territorial, and in some cases, sadistic, taking enjoyment out of the suffering of their prey or enemies under the influence of poisons, toxins, or venoms.

However, this is a stereotype that has been unfortunately applied to all poison types, regardless of demeanor, especially after the infamous Rocket Age, where the grunts primarily used specific normal and poison type Pokemon, which were known for reproducing easily, or were extremely common at that point in time (Grimer and Muk being prime examples, as many cities at this point in time were struggling with pollution and litter). As a result of this, and several other terrorist organizations to sprout up in the following years, such as Galactic and Flare, poison types gained a horridly bad rap that the public could not shake off.

Despite this, poison types, while often considered difficult and mostly suited for highly skilled trainers, are mostly comprised of loyal Pokemon, if not completely average Pokemon, that simply use poisons, toxins or venoms in their arsenal. For example, one of the most loyal and incredibly beginner-friendly Pokemon is the Nidoran lines. If you bond well to a Nidoran, it will often carry young trainers through at least their first few badges, if not well into the League (there have been quite a few documentations of Indigo Conference participants having Nidokings or Nidoqueens on their rosters).

Another incredibly beginner friendly Pokemon is Gulpin and Swalot. These Pokemon have gelatinous bodies, which are not actually poisonous at all. Instead, their poison comes from their incredibly potent stomach acids, which is one of the highest grade acids on the globe, with a pH of 0.04. Despite this, all you need to win a Gulpin’s loyalty and affection is a steady diet of basically any kind of food or organic substance that tastes remotely good (most of the time, they’re not picky, though they do appreciate better tasting foods). As many have described them, they are a budget Snorlax. Be warned though, while Gulpin are mostly safe, Swalot does upgrade its poisonous capabilities by sweating out excess stomach acid it generates, which can be weaponized.

But the point stands, poison types are incredibly versatile, and do not deserve the reputation they have garnered by human factors.