1. 23:30 16th Jun 2013

    Notes: 78

    Reblogged from auronlu

    Tags: FFXFFXII

    auronlu:

    gamerspirit:

    arubboth:

    http://www.rpgsite.net/news/2454-square-enix-success-for-ffx-hd-could-pave-the-way-for-more-hd-remakes-including-ffxii

    OH MY GOD ITS LEGIT

    Why can’t I be a ridiculously wealthy billionaire so I can call Squeenix and be like “Hello yes how many copies of FFX HD do you need to sell in order to consider making more remasters? because I’d like to order that many”

    Called it. ;)

    This would make me very happy. Especially if they fixed the squished noses and Vaan’s Amazing Painted-On Abs.

     

  2. 18:54 15th Jun 2013

    Tags: Anonymousffxiiasheal cid margrace

    Anonymous asked: Do you know other sites in where I can find AshexAl-Cid fics? I think there are just 2 in fanfictionnet and I couldn't find more of that pairing.

    There are a handful of Ashe/Al-Cid stories on Archive of Our Own (seven under the tag as of this posting, two of which are by me). Here’s their relationship tag. Unfortunately, I don’t know of any other stashes of Ashe/Al-Cid fic, but if anyone else does, please point me in that direction! It’s such a great ‘ship.

     

  3. 00:35 14th Jun 2013

    Notes: 1

    Tags: zenfallonrepliesffxiial cid margrace

    zenfallon replied to your post: Ashe/Balthier for shipping meme.
    Speaking of Ashe/Al-cid (semi-off tangent), Pendency wrote something suuuuper awesome with these two in her (expansive holy crap) archive. I kiiinda forgot the title.

    I ship Ashe/Al-Cid so much, and so few people write it, that I have almost certainly read it, although I don’t remember offhand. You know that joke about reading all the fic for your OTP? I am pretty sure that I’ve *literally* read all the fic for Al-Cid/Ashe, unless there’s a secret stash I don’t know about. I don’t know why more people don’t write it, or about Al-Cid at all, really.

     

  4. 00:15

    Notes: 2

    Tags: imadra-blueimadra blueffxiishipping memepenelobasch

    imadra-blue asked: Penelo/Basch (I dunno your feelings on it at all, so will be surprise!)

    When or if I started shipping it: Alas, you have hit on one of my auto-squicks — age differences, when one of the characters in the ship is a teenager or younger. So the nearly 20 years between Penelo and Basch is too much for me, and I have never particularly shipped them.

    My thoughts: On the other hand, I might change my mind if Penelo were aged up. Because there are aspects of them that could work together.

    What makes me happy about them: I think, once she’s a little older and he’s done playing Judge Magister, they could find common ground quite nicely.

    What makes me sad about them: They are in such different places in life (the soldier/advisor to royalty vs the budding sky pirate), and that could be hard to reconcile.

    Things done in art/fic that annoys me: As mentioned, the age difference — specifically, the maturity difference — is something that would ping me out in fic that’s set during or right after canon.

    Things I look for in art/fic: I would look for post-game fanworks that show them finding a space for each other in their lives.

    Who I’d be comfortable them ending up with, if not each other: I ship Penelo with Vaan and Larsa (again, aged up) and also these three together; I also like Penelo/Vaan/Balthier and have a soft spot for Penelo/Reks. My primary Basch ‘ship is Ashe/Basch (the age difference doesn’t bother me so much here, probably because Ashe seems so mature to me), and I also like Basch/Vossler and Basch/Fran.

    My happily ever after for them: As described above, I think, under “what I look for in fanworks”.

    What is their favorite non-sexual activity? The fact that I have a hard time thinking of something is an aspect of why I don’t ship it so much — what connection do they have, outside their shared mission? I’m sure they could grow to find something, but nothing comes to mind.

     

  5. 23:58 13th Jun 2013

    Notes: 4

    Tags: zenfallonshipping memeffxiiashebalthier

    zenfallon asked: Ashe/Balthier for shipping meme.

    when or if I started shipping it: First playthrough of FFXII, when they had that conversation on the Phon Coast and he reveals his true identity to her. I instantly loved the dynamic they started developing, and have considered it my FFXII OTP ever since.

    my thoughts: The princess and the pirate is practically a cliche, but I don’t care — it just works so, so well.

    What makes me happy about them: This is going to sound so corny, but I feel like they complete each other. He is her open door, and she is his place to land. Each has fought the demons of their past, and though they’ve chosen different ways of dealing with them, they can each respect the other. 

    What makes me sad about them: They have such different needs in life: Ashe with her responsibilities, and Balthier with his need to not have responsibilities. Making that work long term would be incredibly difficult.

    Things done in art/fic that annoys me: Conveniently forgetting those differences, or overcoming them too easily. I especially hate any fanwork that has Ashe blithely giving up her throne, because I find it so out of character.

    Things I look for in art/fic: Resolve those issues in a way that makes sense for both their characters, or even don’t resolve them — acknowledge them and deal with the tension they cause.

    Who I’d be comfortable them ending up with, if not each other: I love, love, love Ashe/Al-Cid — actually I ship Al-Cid/Ashe/Balthier in every combination, including as a threesome, almost as hard as I do Ashe/Balthier alone. I also like Ashe with Basch, Rasler, Fran, and Vossler. Besides Al-Cid/Balthier, I ship Balthier with Vaan, Penelo, and the three of them together.

    My happily ever after for them: “Reconcilable Differences” is my favorite future for them — Ashe married to Al-Cid but with the understanding that she will maintain a relationship with Balthier as well, and the three of them eventually fall into a happy stable triad. (Readers of my Alistair/Aeducan stories may sense a theme.) Another outcome that I like almost as well is Ashe not-naming Balthier as her unofficial consort.

    What is their favorite non-sexual activity? Mark hunting. She’ll make arrangements to be away for a day or so, he pops by on the Strahl, and they’ll spend the time going after marks and just being away together. 

     

  6. 13:00 4th Jun 2013

    Notes: 36

    Reblogged from vieralynn

    Tags: FFXIIBaschfanart

    image: Download

     

  7. 12:28 31st May 2013

    Notes: 21

    Reblogged from sevdrag

    Tags: ffxiilarsabalthier

    sevdrag:

    livvyplaysfinalfantasy:

    There’s something about the way Larsa says the word “excellent” that makes him sound a lot like Vayne. Or maybe it’s just my imagination.

    But yes, we can tell right away that Balthier immediately recognizes Larsa, even if Larsa doesn’t seem to recognize Balthier. I think everyone I’ve talked to has different headcanon for why Balthier knows Larsa, but my guess would be that it has something to do with the giant Solidor symbol that Larsa’s wearing on his chest.

    LARSA, I ADORE YOU

    Me too. Also, I think it’s pretty clear that the recognition is mutual. Larsa isn’t the only runaway with a family resemblance.

     

  8. 09:44 30th May 2013

    Notes: 133

    Reblogged from auronlu

    Tags: reblogging for commentarybalthierffxii

    auronlu: livvyplaysfinalfantasy: It’s true that Balthier had very little connection to the bulk of Final Fantasy XII’s actual plot, especially when comparing him to, say, Ashe. However. Balthier is one of the most complex protagonists in the entire Final Fantasy series, mostly because of his crippling internal struggle. The more the party learns of the secrets surrounding the nethicite, the more he realizes that he’s nothing but a scared twenty-two-year-old kid. There’s a strong duality between Ffamran mied Bunansa and Balthier throughout the entire plot, a duality that he’s constantly fighting to resolve. That being said, Balthier knows that people rely on him, including Vaan and Ashe and even Fran; no matter what may be going on inside his head concerning his own identity and his father, he has to keep up appearances for his friends. If you don’t like him, that’s okay; I mean, he’s selfish, racist, and egotistical. There are plenty of people out there who don’t care for him. But that definitely doesn’t negate his worth as a character, and it doesn’t mean he’s two-dimensional. Wow. Once again proof that what has struck one fan forcibly may be invisible to another.* Balthier has constructed an entire persona to escape his past, yet in some ways he IS his past, trying to atone for it and be a better judge than the judges, as Reddas does. Add in the fact that Balthier tries to present himself as ten years older than he is, and that he must’ve been something of a genius and prodigy to have become a judge so young (although yes, some of that must’ve been a plum job offered because of his father, which must’ve been infuriating), and you’ve got a very complicated backstory and set of motivations. (As Livvy astutely notes, he’s actually a scared 22-year-old kid inside.) Plus there’s his grudging mentorship of Vaan, which turns out to be quite serious, since he leaves his precious airship in Vaan’s hands. If Balthier were really the arrogant and superficial prat that he seems to be at first glance, Fran would never have “deigned to partner” with him. As I noted recently, what I find most fascinating about Balthier is that everything he does could be taken as a deliberate act, self-deception, or the true core of the man shining through, and usually it’s a blend of all three. *(I am wistful that Livvy seemed to have missed out on some of the complexities of Lulu in FFX, e.g.)

    auronlu:

    livvyplaysfinalfantasy:

    It’s true that Balthier had very little connection to the bulk of Final Fantasy XII’s actual plot, especially when comparing him to, say, Ashe.

    However.

    Balthier is one of the most complex protagonists in the entire Final Fantasy series, mostly because of his crippling internal struggle. The more the party learns of the secrets surrounding the nethicite, the more he realizes that he’s nothing but a scared twenty-two-year-old kid. There’s a strong duality between Ffamran mied Bunansa and Balthier throughout the entire plot, a duality that he’s constantly fighting to resolve. That being said, Balthier knows that people rely on him, including Vaan and Ashe and even Fran; no matter what may be going on inside his head concerning his own identity and his father, he has to keep up appearances for his friends.

    If you don’t like him, that’s okay; I mean, he’s selfish, racist, and egotistical. There are plenty of people out there who don’t care for him. But that definitely doesn’t negate his worth as a character, and it doesn’t mean he’s two-dimensional.

    Wow. Once again proof that what has struck one fan forcibly may be invisible to another.*

    Balthier has constructed an entire persona to escape his past, yet in some ways he IS his past, trying to atone for it and be a better judge than the judges, as Reddas does. Add in the fact that Balthier tries to present himself as ten years older than he is, and that he must’ve been something of a genius and prodigy to have become a judge so young (although yes, some of that must’ve been a plum job offered because of his father, which must’ve been infuriating), and you’ve got a very complicated backstory and set of motivations. (As Livvy astutely notes, he’s actually a scared 22-year-old kid inside.) Plus there’s his grudging mentorship of Vaan, which turns out to be quite serious, since he leaves his precious airship in Vaan’s hands.

    If Balthier were really the arrogant and superficial prat that he seems to be at first glance, Fran would never have “deigned to partner” with him.

    As I noted recently, what I find most fascinating about Balthier is that everything he does could be taken as a deliberate act, self-deception, or the true core of the man shining through, and usually it’s a blend of all three.

    *(I am wistful that Livvy seemed to have missed out on some of the complexities of Lulu in FFX, e.g.)

    (Source: finalfantasyconfessions)

     

  9. 12:23 27th May 2013

    Notes: 5

    Tags: ffxiiauronluvocabulary fic memebalthierffamran mied bunansafic

    image: Download

    Strikhedonia - The pleasure of being able to say “to hell with it” You all really liked this prompt. ;) Fortunately, so do I. —- Before anything else — before liberating the Strahl, before the name change, before penning then discarding half a dozen letters addressed to Cid, before the decision to leave had even been properly made —  Ffamran Bunansa got rid of his helm. He stood on the roof of Draklor Labs, all he had learned while snooping in his father’s office pounding at his mind: Cid’s distant raving, the damning research notes, the shards of manufacted nethicite on the desk. Only hints, but the portents were dark, ominous clouds gathering in the ceiling of the laboratory. Still locked in hateful black armor, he pulled off his helm and shook his head, letting the wind rip through his sweaty hair. He held the helm at arms length and looked the black metal face in the eye; the empty eye sockets stared back, as devoid of answers as any puppet, any pawn.  No more. He opened his hand and let the helm fall, watched as it plummeted to the ground, not looking away even as it became a tiny speck, imagining he could hear the splash as it landed in the river below. And then he turned away, facing into the wind and already feeling lighter for having shed the scrap of armor, while the escape plan took shape in his mind.

    Strikhedonia - The pleasure of being able to say “to hell with it”

    You all really liked this prompt. ;) Fortunately, so do I.

    —-

    Before anything else — before liberating the Strahl, before the name change, before penning then discarding half a dozen letters addressed to Cid, before the decision to leave had even been properly made —  Ffamran Bunansa got rid of his helm.

    He stood on the roof of Draklor Labs, all he had learned while snooping in his father’s office pounding at his mind: Cid’s distant raving, the damning research notes, the shards of manufacted nethicite on the desk. Only hints, but the portents were dark, ominous clouds gathering in the ceiling of the laboratory. Still locked in hateful black armor, he pulled off his helm and shook his head, letting the wind rip through his sweaty hair. He held the helm at arms length and looked the black metal face in the eye; the empty eye sockets stared back, as devoid of answers as any puppet, any pawn. 

    No more. He opened his hand and let the helm fall, watched as it plummeted to the ground, not looking away even as it became a tiny speck, imagining he could hear the splash as it landed in the river below. And then he turned away, facing into the wind and already feeling lighter for having shed the scrap of armor, while the escape plan took shape in his mind.

     

  10. 10:13

    Notes: 29

    Reblogged from auronlu

    Tags: ffxiibalthier

    image: Download

    auronlu: livvyplaysfinalfantasy: Still one of my favorite Balthier quotes. In context, he said that so harshly that I hadn’t noticed that it was a declaration of his life philosophy. Or is it? Is he a true cynic, or is he using cynicism to hide his own disillusionment and inner idealistic self? Is he acting on selfish impulse, or is he pretending to be the carefree sky pirate simply because it’s the only way he can fight for justice in a corrupt legal system — by becoming an outlaw? I’m never quite sure which parts of Balthier are a deliberate act, unconscious self-deception, or the true core of the character. I like that about him.  Bolded for truth!

    auronlu:

    livvyplaysfinalfantasy:

    Still one of my favorite Balthier quotes.

    In context, he said that so harshly that I hadn’t noticed that it was a declaration of his life philosophy. Or is it? Is he a true cynic, or is he using cynicism to hide his own disillusionment and inner idealistic self? Is he acting on selfish impulse, or is he pretending to be the carefree sky pirate simply because it’s the only way he can fight for justice in a corrupt legal system — by becoming an outlaw?

    I’m never quite sure which parts of Balthier are a deliberate act, unconscious self-deception, or the true core of the character. I like that about him. 

    Bolded for truth!