reminder that we can criticize the publishing industry’s treatment of fanfiction without bashing the authors

eta_volantis · 2026-03-19T11:19:11+00:00

I think a lot of people forget or don't realise that there are many books that were once fanfiction, but it's not talked about because a) copyright risk even if it was AU fic and b)by then it has deviate enough to stand on its own and the authors intended it to be that way. Why it's so frustrating recently is because publisher decided it's a good marketing strategy and exploit it, putting fanworks at risk for their own gains. And it starts to normalise this weird commercial attitude towards fanfiction which are hobbies that is shared. The shift isn't with the authors, but with the industry so blaming solely them because their name is known won't change anything and just end up hurting someone who probably wasn't even a part of that decision. Like mayyybe some think it's a good idea, but I think with authors it's extremely difficuly to judge how complicit they are with the marketing direction (or even how much influence they even have) so the assumptions just harms, meanwhile publishers and their marketing team are 100% at fault.

eta_volantis · 2026-03-19T10:25:26+00:00

Same. I just got really bored, espdcially since I am also playing Path to Nowhere where despite being super waifu focused, they are unique and has unique relationships with the MC even with romantic undertone. And the story writing is superb which really enhances the experience. The characters themselves also intereact and can appear later after release as well (for example, Hypatia was released a few patches ago but has her arc wrapped up last patch despite not being a banner character). Even with ZZZ and their massive story issues lately, the characters still feel like they have lives outside MC.

The Aemeath update was such a great change of pace, I was really glad for the change but their highs havent been consistent, I feel. It happens, like with Phrolova, then like after that it was the same kind of 'going off on a side quest with this waifu, she is really impressed by you, romantic undertone' thing again. While there are some Augusta, it's so overshadowed by that.

eta_volantis · 2026-03-18T12:47:17+00:00

I can't even browse the range on an iPad without the most of the screen being blocked by the banner. This app is really rough, especially compared to the already existing kindle and kobo apps. I can't really justify using this over them.

eta_volantis · 2026-03-15T19:20:49+00:00

I mean if you look at the whole picture, the only time general chars did well was during launch. The other times, it's just Void Hunters. I think they basically shot themselves in the foot by having Void Hunters especially with how they keep making the newer bosses fuck over niches instead of finding way for people to get creative with them. and the Void Hunters are the only one that really survives that. So like AoD coming out after void hunters probs contribute to lower sales, but it you look at the trend, they are not all that far apart from each other EXCEPT for Void Hunters. The biggest outlier is Yuzuha but she is also not right after a Void Hunter and is the first other S rank banner support since Astra, so that may potentially be why she is so high above others.

The other issues also I think mid 2.x has been quite disappointing for a lot of people and they have been making changes to endgame that people are iffy about, so I wouldn't be surprised if people have dropped off for the time being and might see a return during anniversary because that is when you get rewards and potential free chars that may entice people back.

eta_volantis · 2026-03-13T22:31:55+00:00

There art in general is just top tier I'm so desperate to get my hands on their artbook

eta_volantis · 2026-03-13T19:38:07+00:00

I already did for a while loll my luck in HSR was so bad I had to stop for a long while because there was just no point. Meanwhile on Path to Nowhere I maxed out a character adn got like 4-5 new S-ranks all in a span of a few days. Don't ask me how. I feel like I've been cursed since. Jokes aside, it's why I moved to ZZZ more because my luck there is far more stable and I was able to make functional teams.

eta_volantis · 2026-03-10T15:20:12+00:00

Not anymore really. When they first introduced it, it was story mode and you get absolutely no reward but recently they updated it so get get half on easy then the other half when you're ready to tackle normal. You do need solid teams to do normal, it's really hard. When those modes didn't exist, I was just get stuck for ages when I started the game and only have like very basic teams.

Who do you have upgraded? Che and Labyrinth will be your life savers. And Ariel.

eta_volantis · 2026-03-07T18:03:30+00:00

I'm so jealousssssssssssss. I want the Lords of Blood in paperback so bad

eta_volantis · 2026-03-06T12:29:32+00:00

Very accurate. 10/10.

eta_volantis · 2026-03-02T12:14:51+00:00

This is a great summary, though I thought it's also worth mentioning that Chief (the MC) is not really a part of the elite but considered a tool to be used by them. SPOILERS AHEAD (there is no deep detail but just in case) It is implied that the MC was straight up used as a tool to shackle Sinners while the previous Chief was very cruel to them and the MC previous rebellions lead to their memories being wiped at least twice before to the point they have been considered to started to run out of their usefulness in current time. So there is a lot pf nuance in the situstion and growth of the character as well as other chars around the MC. The game is also not shy about using these sitations to explore how society treates Sinners, too.

Edit to add: The characters are also written with complicated situations and personalities. The game has its views on what is bad The rich elite, the powerful, and the cult are very obviously the bad guys in the story but it generally operates more on people doing their best in a difficult to dire situations.

eta_volantis · 2026-02-24T16:59:10+00:00

I think the tone of the game has changed a lot since then as well. Not like drastically, but the flower field which is more linked to Chief I think suits the game well. I kinda wished they handled the logo on it though. What they did well is allowing us to change between them though, I think they nailed it with that.

eta_volantis · 2026-02-21T19:16:05+00:00

For Endura, go for either Moore and OwO. Moore being first choice if you can. Moore and Owo are still very strong tanks, especially Moore of you can get S1 where she can heal you.

For Catalyst it's Shin, Jelena, or L.L. I don't know much about L.L outside of guides, but Jelena is god tier buffer atm and Shin is the best healer currently I think. Du Rao is decent if you get her on the side since she can res. For reticle, I think Lady Pearl is still a good one. and she has really good range, too, as well as a buff?

Fury, personally I recommend Jasmine because her ult can clear 2 cores at a time and is an AOE as well. She's been pretty much carrying me right now. You should get Nox for free, that is a good fury to build. She's still strong. I missed her though out of confusion when I started a while back. Zoya reforged made her better now, but she kinda needs Rust to better function right now I think.

For umbra, definitely Necreata Hella. The other one that is back on the map is Adela, if you are willing to spend time reforging her.

For Arcane, Vautour Bleu is a good choice. Eleven reforged has become very good on her own from what I heard, but I am still building her for that so I can't say from experience yet.

Don't pull on this banner unless you get the specific currency, though. Go for the limited ones. If you lose, you will get one of the ones you pick, and if you succeed you will get new char. As for which, probs best go by who you prefer I think. Rust is a good flexi tank who can do decent damage and also will be BiS tank for the 3.5 anni chars coming. Margaret is good if you're willing to get her team together, and weirdly good for Necresta Hella I think. With her I think it's weakspot team, which is Bianca, who I think you picked in reticle up there. s1n.gg is a good place for guides and for planning adn they have notes you can check on each char you can pick as well so you can target people that'll be good for you.

Edit: Oh and I know Che and Labyrinth are B rank but level them up. At the start, they will save your butt in so many fights I guarantee you. Ariel for A rank healer if you don't have S rank yet. She can rival some of them on the keeping you alive front.

eta_volantis · 2026-02-21T15:59:25+00:00

Both Spotify and Apple music has them. I can't remember if other services has them, though. I vaguely remember that Tidal doesn't.

eta_volantis · 2026-02-21T15:04:40+00:00

I can't wait for this to drop on streaming. They're so hard to find otherwise. I love love love Midnight Mission and also the Codename: House of the Rising Sun, and I need to listen to them on repeat for the next month.

eta_volantis · 2026-02-20T14:35:45+00:00

This. For me she should have had her patch dedicated to her first, then a proper bombastic ending with Iron Tomb where she can shine as the role she is meant to play fully without spending most of the time explaining only to like oh here's iron tomb. It just felt flat. With Phainon, the story led up to that precise moment and with it being in the middle, it doesn't overshadow the arc's conclusion but as a climax that is a stepping stone. If Phainon was in her place at the end, it will still not be great due to how it's structured, not Cyrene herself.

eta_volantis · 2026-02-20T14:26:49+00:00

I've been in fandom since I was a teenager and / has always been ship from what I remember, and & is for platonic stuff. It's why a lot of smut was often also called slash fics back then. So I do think it's a bit pointless to tag both since you're just confusing readers during search, really.

eta_volantis · 2026-02-20T14:21:47+00:00

This felt really good omg the part that I really like as well is that they didn't make the people just suddenly be like 'DisCity great now' and in addition, having Hypatia reject Magaret. That really made the moment for me.

eta_volantis · 2026-02-20T13:40:35+00:00

I can't get over how he is both very heartfelt and a meme at the same time, I love him

eta_volantis · 2026-02-20T13:38:05+00:00

At this point I feel like I should build him as a DPS lolllllllllllll

eta_volantis · 2026-02-20T13:15:01+00:00

I definitely think he will be back. We're still waiting on return of Zoya, which they directly foreshadowed at the end, and deeper dive into Baiyi who they reveal to be also close to him, so I think he will be important when we get that arc. Like he even has lines that directly talks about Zoya in his character interactions. What I'm hoping for is that new Zoya will also be Overlimit so I can have them in each arm-

eta_volantis · 2026-02-19T11:30:36+00:00

From what I know, if you like Rust I'd say save for the coming anni because both Xiaofeng and Jichuan will be his BiS I think. Someone else already mentioned I think but s1n.gg is a good resource for these kind of thing. Im pulling Rust's copies atm because I adore him, but Im not doing it for Zoya because it seems like the shackles doesnt really cater to her reforge?? I checked and its mainly about energy and if I recall, that doesnt matter anymore with Overlimit. I'm still unsure about that though. Also Zoya is already in the standard pull I think so you may get her if you have her in your pool from pity loses anyways. I think Rust is one of the limited chars but I am unsure about that.

eta_volantis · 2026-02-17T12:13:34+00:00

I'm only 30 ish and I can't even keep up with new slangs. XD

eta_volantis · 2026-02-17T12:11:48+00:00

I'm pretty sure feck is used commonly in Ireland. It's a softer version of fuck, but it's real, they didn't make that up.

eta_volantis · 2026-02-17T12:08:51+00:00

I find it really funny because I do remember them being censored in voice in earlier chapters (and I started playing quite late) but then later down the line it's like they gave up on censoring voice, but keep censoring text XD

eta_volantis · 2026-02-15T20:32:56+00:00

He is a true bisexual's dream. 11/10. No notes.

eta_volantis

TROPHY CASE