Heart of the Eclipse, New Art, New Discord
New week, new blog, and this one is going to be particularly full of content! Not only do we have the end of the first half of Tearna’s Journal, but we’ve also got some new art and a new Discord! This one has the potential to be a bit lengthy, so let’s get into it!
Heart of the Eclipse
After venturing across most of the planet, Tearna and her friends finally find themselves on the doorstep of the Crisis’ Epicenter, the old Eclipse Capital. Throughout her journey, she has constantly run into reminders of the war that nearly destroyed their world, forcing her to come to terms with all that was lost and the slow rebuilding for all her people. Now, she comes face to face with the center of the destruction itself, and she has to come up with a way to frame it in a manner that won’t break the still recovering spirits of her people, all the while wrangling with the monuments of destruction. Before they can explore the ruins, however, they must get permission from none other than one of the Archons, one of the venerated protectors of her people. Will he actually approve her mission, and just what will they find awaiting them in the Heart of the Eclipse?
Throughout the first batch of short stories, there have been numerous encounters involving old clockwork technology leftover from the Crisis. The Crisis itself has hung over these stories like a shadow, constantly rising again and again even in places where one wouldn’t expect it. In a way, her journey has been tainted by this constant shadow, and thus it makes sense that venturing to the heart of it would be the perfect climax to finally bring an end to these Clockwork reminders!
It feels weird finally getting to this point. This story has come a long way, and it’s been a great challenge to make special bookmarkers for each one. However, we aren’t done yet! With the Clockwork Crisis finally behind her, Tearna’s story will continue with a greater emphasis on creature encounters and the interactions amongst her expedition! We’ll see her relationship with Kai and Bren grow, see her step into a role she wasn’t expecting, and, finally, bring her expedition all the way back home to Orden, where it all began! Stay tuned! We got quite a number of months of short stories left! In fact…
The Maldrezzan Coast
Let’s talk about the next short story! The Maldrezzan Coast refers to the coastline along the southern part of Falador, close to the port city of Maldrezza. This coastline is quite tropical and full of exotic critters, but, more than anything, this will serve as a palate cleanser for the next chapter of her story! In this story, Tearna will get the chance to explore sandy beaches, shallow waters, and finally get a breath of warm air, much to Bren’s overwhelming relief. If you want imagery of a tropical coastline and exotic creatures, then get ready for a vacation to the Maldrezzan Coastline!
Sapphiria in the Karasi
On the art side of things, the Karasi piece for Sapphiria is finally done! In a future storyline, she’ll end up finding herself in this large desert, and this piece quite literally reflects a moment of that future chapter! See for yourself!
In this image, you can see Sapphiria basking in the sandy glory of the Karasi, something that may not appeal to most, but greatly appeals to her! The area she finds herself in is actually none other than the City of Nerkossa, the desert’s jewel. This city, as explored in Tearna’s journal, is partially built on the side of a massive rocky formation in the heart of the desert. Some of the buildings are perched on the sheer rock face, but most follow a long, winding road leading up to the peak of this isolated mountain. Courtyards like the one Sapphiria finds herself in are quite common, and it’s perfectly positioned underneath a massive rocky arch to give plenty of shade!
Speaking of desert themes, you’ll notice that Sapphiria has a new belt in this shot to hold some of her equipment, though, most of her gear is currently sitting in a… hotel… Yeah, that’s what I’m going to call it for now to avoid spoilers. What I want EVERYONE to notice however, is Atom. LOOK AT HIS LITTLE HAT! In all seriousness, he hates the sand, so this is a part of the poncho/desert attire Sapphiria has made for him to help protect him from the sand. Is it effective? Not really. Does Atom need to know? Definitely NOT!
Discord
Alright, art and stories aside, let’s talk community. It was recently requested by a viewer on my twitch channel to create a Discord to support my slowly growing community. While I wasn’t sure if I was large enough to have a Discord, I went ahead and created one, so here it is! https://discord.gg/v4EBVDhJVF If you wish to discuss art, Ark, or any other types of games or fun topics, feel free to pop in! It’s quiet now, but it can only grow loud through the addition of new voices one at a time!
Big Event
This is worth mentioning as an aside. This weekend, on the 22nd, I’ll be doing a giant 14 or 16 hour stream for Ark: Crystal Isles. It’ll involve a few friends as a continuing part of the friends and family server I’m hosting, so feel free to stop by and say hey! I do my best to respond to chat as much as I can! Unless you’re a bot… If you’re a bot, you’re getting banned.
Where the Speedruns at?
Still existing! I promise! They are currently taking a backburner as the Ark stuff picks up steam once again, but I am planning on breaking out some new speedrunning content soon. My current focus has been on practicing and learning Forest Naval and Distant Spring in Pikmin, so once I feel more confident with them, I’ll return, probably with a -20 time or something wild like that. I would love to do more with it, but, unfortunately, that is literally all the time I have to spare!
The Sapphire Verdict
Yes, another checkin with this. The big cut pass is nearly complete and will probably be done in the next two weeks. At this point, I believe we are well over 100,000 words cut and are most likely closing in on 200k. My plan is to pass this off to a developmental editor if possible at the end of this cycle, and then they’ll cut it down further. I am near positive there is more to cut, but it’s really, REALLY hard when I’m as close to it as I am. Hopefully they’ll be able to get me closer to the milestone I need to reach in order to get published!
Conclusion
I think that covers all the major things for the time being! Enjoy the Heart of the Eclipse as well as all the other content I’m flinging out there! There’s a lot more where all of that has come from! Next week, we’ll talk a little more about the Maldrezzan coastline and probably some story bits from the Sapphire Verdict since that’s getting pretty close now. Until then… Cheers!
The Flying Fennec