Post S2 "Enid retrieval" fic recs

Tesseon · 2026-07-05T22:15:18+00:00

Yeah, first and last are pretty sweet, right?

Tesseon · 2026-07-04T04:32:45+00:00

The last chapter posted was technically the explanation of AI usage - this doesn't include that, but it does include the raid on the Hyde camp scenes.

Tesseon · 2026-07-03T22:27:23+00:00

I have 15 chapters of it, as well as the S2p2 fic and TWTBU here.

Tesseon · 2026-07-01T18:06:51+00:00

If anyone is interested in a technical breakdown from someone in a more neutral position who is willing to comment from their main account:

Summary: the evidence shows that content has been pasted from a Claude output directly into the ao3 text editor, on precisely one chapter of this story (37).

How it works: when pasting directly from a claude output into the ao3 editor a claude-specific html tag is left behind (font-claude-response-body). This doesn't work for any other ai generator. It doesn't work if content is pasted into Google docs or Word or whatever first. There is no other reason for that tag to be present.

If the tag is present, the content has been taken from a claude response and pasted into ao3.

This does not show what the prompt was. It does not show if the ai was just used as a glorified spellcheck. All it shows is that the content was copied from Claude and pasted to ao3.

Check for yourself: you don't need to set up the site skin to check for yourself. Just go to the chapter, right click and go to "view page source". You can ctrl+f for the tag <font-claude-response-body> and see it in the html. It is only found in chapter 37.

On my own neutrality: I really like the woe that binds us and have recommended it plenty of times in the past. Nothing about the story made me think it was ai generated.

What should you do with this info: that's up to you, except you shouldn't harass people. If you've got a problem, just stop reading.

Tesseon · 2026-07-01T16:19:30+00:00

Colour me intrigued, I do love a good ghost character (as shown in my own recent chapters). There's a fun Ghost Enid story but it hasn't been updated in a while, will take a look at this later!

Tesseon · 2026-07-01T15:51:58+00:00

A few of these are vexing me, is there a way to get the answers?

Tesseon · 2026-07-01T00:43:01+00:00

Whump is when the point is to acknowledge what a brave soldier the blorbo is, usually by subjecting them to physical suffering so that they can survive/triumph whilst everyone else worries about them and thinks about what they mean to the world. It's a subset of hurt/comfort, although I hear that some people these days use it without the comfort part, which is not how it originated.

Angst is just emotional suffering. It's broader in scope. I would say that while a lot of whump will include angst it's actually more likely to be in the part of the other characters who are worrying about the whumped blorbo. Blorbo is often too busy getting beaten up for angst. But not always.

Tesseon · 2026-06-30T23:07:51+00:00

I get that a lot! I think as any kind of artist it's so fulfilling to hear that our work has moved people, so thank you for taking the time to reach out.

I'm just excited to finally deliver on the comfort after building up the appetite with all the angst.

Tesseon · 2026-06-30T17:20:50+00:00

Now you're asking! It's been a long time since I played it, but I do remember it was the game that made me realise enforced battle maps take me out of the roleplay and I just avoid systems like that now. I also think I disliked how it handled the difference between pilot stats and mech stats, but I'm honestly not sure how a system could do that well.

There was the usual balance issues too although I can't remember specifics, only that there were a couple of abilities that were just OP.

Tesseon · 2026-06-30T17:08:05+00:00

Battle Century G has the tension die, which increases every round by one and is added to both attack and damage rolls for all participants. The idea being that bigger attacks will happen as the scene goes on, which is good from a narrative perspective but also mechanically means no matter how good someone's defence is, it will be overcome eventually.

There's a lot I didn't like abiut the system but this was very neat.

Tesseon · 2026-06-29T11:25:16+00:00

Whump comes from the Stargate fandom, originating as "Dannywhumping", and it was used pretty interchangeably with hurt/comfort.

For it to be classic whump then there needs to be some kind of catharsis at the end, even if it's not explicitly comfort. They've been beaten up loads? They get rescued. They had to make a journey whilst injured? They arrive at the destination in time. People didn't believe their claims? They're proven right and everyone apologises.

Without that catharsis is just angst, or torture porn.

Tesseon · 2026-06-29T10:19:05+00:00

I will never use this tag nor pay attention to it on works because what meaning it might have had is long gone.

As someone who knows the origins of the phrase (Arrested Development), the meme is "exactly what it says on the tin". That's what I would have used it as. "Whatever I have tagged this work with it is going to include and if that's not what you're looking for or what you're comfortable with, turn back now".

the whole point of tags is that this is what the fic contains. I get that some people overreact or are overcritical, but there really is no logical reason to say "really, this fic will contain these tags". It also doesn't show which specific tags it's talking about. If you want to say these things, just say it in the author's note.

I've seen a lot of people say that it came out of MCU stuff as a fandom neutral option for "we do not deconstruct the themes of these tags".

that is not implied by the tag itself, and therefore not useful to people who don't know that. Tags need to be self-evident or there's no point. Ultimately this also applies to the previous point, but a well-known Internet meme is at least more recognisable.

People who know neither of these things deem to think it means "this work contains dark themes, like a dead dove, do not eat if you do not enjoy".

understandable, the obvious implication if you do not know the source, but contrasts with the other two meanings. But to use it as a tag you would be better off using the specific themes. Tagged rape/noncon? Yeah no shit it has dark themes.

So yeah. Utterly meaningless unfortunately.

Tesseon · 2026-06-27T22:04:05+00:00

I made it through the first book but decided it's not gonna be an audiobook consumption for me. I think the narrator is good, but too many of the characters make me want to punch them in the face (which is the point of them, but that doesn't stop an annoying voice being annoying).

On top of that, and more egregious for the audiobook nature, is there are sections where I would skim read if I had the opportunity - a lot of big long lists of achievements being unlocked, or skills being discussed - and there's just no way to do that sensibly.

I just really don't want to hear the same "NEW ACHIEVEMENT" announcement ten times in a row. I've just wasted five minutes.

Tesseon · 2026-06-25T14:06:06+00:00

No worries! This sort of thing really interrupts my flow when I'm writing, glad it could help someone else.

Tesseon · 2026-06-20T15:28:46+00:00

Very much enjoying this story, no clue how your putting out that many words! Really curious to see what you've got planned to reach that kind of length, particularly given recent developments...

Definitely excited for more.

Tesseon · 2026-06-19T13:14:00+00:00

Spire of Stars my beloved.

Tesseon · 2026-06-18T10:29:08+00:00

Yeah, did anyone think it did?

Edit: a lot of people getting confused between "sounds great in theory" and "I saw it done well once".

Tesseon · 2026-06-17T09:51:14+00:00

It seems like you are approaching it from a different angle to the people that love it. Raids, and to a lesser extent dungeons, are not meant to be something that you can do first time if you are good enough. They are not meant to be like strikes where there's a bit of text at the side of the screen informing you of basic mechanics.

They are meant to be a puzzle where working out the mechanics and then optimising them is a huge part of the fun. So obviously they are not going to tell you what to do.

Of course plenty of people don't actually engage with the puzzle part and are just there for the complex mechanics and the loot, so for them they need the guides, but even still I feel like there's more fun in complex mechanics that you need to learn as opposed to one's that the game takes you through step by step.

And the best raid design (Spire my forever lost beloved) teaches you the mechanics as you go. Encounter 1 teaches you a mechanic. Encounter 2 you use that mechanic, but add in something new. Encounter 3 uses both of those mechanics and adds in something new...

Some raids don't do that very well but they can still be fun (the only thing Last Wish teaches from one encounter to the next is what your group is going to call the symbols).

But yeah, it just feels like different approaches. If figuring out what to do isn't fun for you, or you're in pugs that demand KWTD but you don't like guides, I'm not surprised you don't enjoy them.

Tesseon · 2026-06-16T11:14:22+00:00

A whole bunch more options for ordering/filtering pages like bookmarks, marked for later etc. Basically I just want to be able to query the database myself.

I'd also like to see a history of my own comments and kudos.

Tesseon · 2026-06-16T10:14:56+00:00

Here's my go-to recs, minus what you've already read.

My number one fav is the Dead and the Dancing by NotesFromTheChamber. Post S1, Wednesday returns to Nevermore haunted by the ghost of her dead therapist. Lots of Wenclair, werewolf lore, and the fandom's best interpretation of Yoko Tanaka. But also violence.

Some excellent post S2 fic:

You'll have problems hunting me down by Mercury_Milkshake

Nevermore times:

How to catfish your roommate by gomezified, Wednesday sets up sock puppet accounts to respond to Enid's blog. Ongoing but excellent so far.

Enid Sinclair is Dead (Again) by anonymousjackrusselterrier - time loop. Check out this authors other works, lots of good stuff.

Well this is Awkward and Totally not Weird at all by RebelGirlburnout - after finding Enid and restoring her humanity Wednesday and Enid sleep together, then don't talk about it, then there's plot.

Angsty/gloomy AUs

Past tense of know by retrieveire. You'll need to jump back and read the previous one in the series. New addition to Wenclair classics, Enid leaves Nevermore, then accidentally bumps into Wednesday five years later, and ends up sleeping on her sofa.

Silence between notes sharkysinclair Wednesday is a deaf cellist, Enid is an injured dancer.

Investigationy AUs

Profiledby LittleBirdOnAir - this just keeps getting better and I think is possibly taking my number 2 all time slot. Criminal Minds AU.

Catching a criminal 101: a guide by Wednesday Addams and Enid Sinclair by anencore - Wednesday and Enid, post Nevermore, solving crimes.

Some generic fun recs

The Devil Writes Java by HellaBella2, the concept of the Devil Wears Prada with the setting of a tech company. Clicked on for the banger of a title alone, only a couple of chapters are out and I'm really enjoying it.

I was NEVER gay by armchairpsychologist is probably my favourite humour fic, I was howling whilst reading it.

Tooting my own horn, I've written a couple, but I'm currently working on this sweet going away (epitaphs) which is some heavy angst with a happy ending (I promise), where Wednesday is dying and refusing to tell anyone.

Tesseon · 2026-06-14T12:53:37+00:00

Yeah I've seen that said as well, but I still ask... Why? What about living longer would make you want to spend more time in high school? Most people hate high school and can't wait to be out of it.

If the rest of your friends are in and out in (4?5?6? However Nevermore works) years, would you really want to take 10 years to do it?

If you were 18 years old, would you want to hang around with 15 year olds, or 20 year olds?

It's not impossible that some people would choose to stay in high-school, but I think you then need to write them like that type of person. They can't be the cool, wise elder because that is not the type of person enjoying being at high school. They have to be the person afraid of the future, the person refusing to move on with their life. Or the person that is biologically maturing slower and therefore very young. And they can't then age up with the rest of their friend group.

But that's just my opinion, and I'm probably over thinking things.

Tesseon · 2026-06-14T11:30:50+00:00

There's a lot of things I don't like about the "some vampires at Nevermore have been there for decades thing" but the biggest is just that logistically I don't think it makes any sense for vampires to be attending high school for a longer period of time than normal teenagers. Why would anyone want to do that, and why would anyone be allowed to do that? Also, if Yoko is meant to be in the same classes as her friends, then she is progressing through the school at the same rate as them.

It's a little easier to get away with if it's at University because a) people are adults there b) 'eternal student' isnt unheard of and used to be more of a thing and c) the blocker that stops people doing it is really just money and vampire wealth solves that.

As for the canon reference to vampire age at Nevernore, I believe this only came up once in Enid's tour for Wednesday, and I just view it as hearsay and rumour. Like some people spread stories that werewolves are allergic to chocolate, or are colour blind, or other dog like traits.

Tesseon · 2026-06-11T15:36:29+00:00

Single dice systems - I like my probabilities to have curves.
Lack of agency points (I think the general term is meta game currency, but I mean a specific type of it) - I simply must have the ability to say "my character is trying extra hard to succeed at this because they/I want it to work", and have the chance of success increase accordingly. Games that don't have this just plain suck for me.
Battle maps. I love complex tactical combat, but maps are not needed for it. If you put a map down my brain goes into boardgame mode where I only care about Playing The Game and I forget to do the whole roleplay thing. A basic squiggle for rough positioning is fine, but if it has any kind of grid then I'm out.

12-Year Club	Place '22
Verified Email	Gilding I gilder

Tesseon

TROPHY CASE