Nmweek Day 5: Medieval/fantasy Au

nmweek day 5: medieval/fantasy au

my thoughts: honestly, i just put dnd au because it's shorter and i immediately jumped to the idea of dnd when i saw this. i just like dnd to be honest. also it lets me info dump, so i will! i made edgeworth a pallid elf for a few reasons (though i now realize he kinda looks like a vampire), i cant remember them. for phoenix, i made him a phoenix of course. its cliche, but it works and i didnt feel like drawing a dragon born (phoenix's japanese name means dragon or something similar i think, which is why don tigre is a tiger, fun fact ^^). however, there isn't a phoenix race in dnd, i combined a fire genasi and aarakocra and id say it worked out well. also i made it bratfeen too because despite how ABSOLUTELY uncomfortable bratworth'a outfit looks, i think it looks cool and i think it works with the addition of point ears. also thank you to @spookydetective for doing the coloring AGAIN! thanks bestie, you're real cool

im on the last case of tgaa1 (i think) and i can say with 100% certainty that herlock just has adhd

i have seen NO ONE talk about this, but my god is it obvious

this is coming from an adhd haver btw

spoilers for tgaa/dgs maybe? this is just my theories. just me being sherlock holmes but worse. i haven't even finished the last case of the first game yet, im just trying my best here

okay so, these are my notes (ignore how it changes to red pen, i was using a multicolored pen and the black ink died. but hey, now it pops! it's important after all!)

Okay, so! First up is Susato's father, Professor Mikotoba. If memory serves, he said that he knew something while talking about Kazuma (and Herlock did the same) and LATER in the case the judge mentioned that Kazuma had a mission. Professor Mikotoba most likely knows a few people with lots of power, he said he went to london after all, he most likely met some pretty important people.

This leads me to believe that he knows something about kazuma's supposed "mission". And in the case with Natsume, Herlock mentions how London has a "dark past", and knowing how ace attorney usually runs its stories, that could be part of Kazuma's misson, he WAS a star student training to be a lawyer after all. Why not get the best of the best, right?

Now, what could happen due to a dark past? Isolation. And who, pray tell, was KNOWN for a FIVE YEAR ABSENCE from court? BAROK VAN ZIEKS! Again, knowing how ace attorney stories work, this supposed "dark past" that London has most likely aided in his sudden absence! And around that time is definitely when he got his title as "The Reaper of The Bailey".

Now, going back to Natsume, he says how "Everyone is always watching" and that there are "Ears (or eyes, I can't remember) in the walls". Now, what type of person is everywhere, London Bobbies. Who do they work for? Scotland Yard. Who does SCOTLAND YARD work for?! MAEL STRONGHEART.

In the case with Natsume, Herlock says that while London may be a beautiful place, the bigger the fire, the bigger the shadow (or something along those lines). What's the hottest part of a flame? The center. Who's at the center of law in London? Lord Strongheart.

Another thing; Kazuma and Barok have a lot of similar animations. The way the slam their hand on the table, they both have a sprite with their arms crossed, and even one where they're leaning against the table. Yes, Barok's is more for intimidation and Kazuma's is more from confidence (except for the animation of him leaning against the desk, he's just miserable in that one). But again, knowing how ace attorney writes their stories, similar sprites usually signify some sort of connection. Maybe with the dark past London has?

And about the ring on the end, I'm not too sure about it, but it was mentioned in my post about promise rings. However, it most definitely is important, as that seems to be the case with every detail in this game, no matter how small.

So yeah, that's my theory right there. Idk, just felt like yapping.

A general cane guide for writers and artists (from a cane user, writer, and artist!)

Disclaimer: Though I have been using a cane for 6 years, I am not a doctor, nor am I by any means an expert. This guide is true to my experience, but there are as many ways to use a cane as there are cane users!

This guide will not include: White canes for blindness, crutches, walkers, or wheelchairs as I have no personal experience with these.

This is meant to be a general guide to get you started and avoid some common mishaps/misconceptions in your writing, but you absolutely should continue to do your own research outside of this guide!

This is NOT a medical resource!!! And never tell a real person you think they're using a cane wrong!

The biggest recurring problem I've seen is using the cane on the wrong side. The cane goes on the opposite side of the pain! If your character has even-sided pain or needs it for balance/weakness, then use the cane in the non-dominant hand to keep the dominant hand free. Some cane users also switch sides to give their arm a rest!

A cane takes about 20% of your weight off the opposite leg. It should fit within your natural gait and become something of an extension of your body. If you need more weight off than 20%, then crutches, a walker, or a wheelchair is needed.

Putting more pressure on the cane, using it on the wrong side, or having it at the wrong height can make it less effective, and can cause long term damage to your body from improper pressure and posture. (Hugh Laurie genuinely hurt his body from years of using a cane wrong on House!)

(some people elect to use a cane wrong for their personal situation despite this, everyone is different!)

(an animated GIF of a cane matching the natural walking gait. It turns red when pressure is placed on it.)

When going up and down stairs, there is an ideal standard: You want to use the handrail and the cane at the same time, or prioritize the handrail if it's only on one side. When going up stairs you lead with your good leg and follow with the cane and hurt leg together. When going down stairs you lead with the cane and the bad leg and follow with the good leg!

Realistically though, many people don't move out of the way for cane users to access the railing, many stairs don't have railings, and many are wet, rusty, or generally not ideal to grip.

In these cases, if you have a friend nearby, holding on to them is a good idea. Or, take it one step at a time carefully if you're alone.

Now we come to a very common mistake I see... Using fashion canes for medical use!

(These are 4 broad shapes, but there is INCREDIBLE variation in cane handles. Research heavily what will be best for your character's specific needs!)

The handle is the contact point for all the weight you're putting on your cane, and that pressure is being put onto your hand, wrist, and shoulder. So the shape is very important for long term use!

Knob handles (and very decorative handles) are not used for medical use for this reason. It adds extra stress to the body and can damage your hand to put constant pressure onto these painful shapes.

The weight of a cane is also incredibly important, as a heavier cane will cause wear on your body much faster. When you're using it all day, it gets heavy fast! If your character struggles with weakness, then they won't want a heavy cane if they can help it!

This is also part of why sword canes aren't usually very viable for medical use (along with them usually being knob handles) is that swords are extra weight!

However, a small knife or perhaps a retractable blade hidden within the base might be viable even for weak characters.

Bases have a lot of variability as well, and the modern standard is generally adjustable bases. Adjustable canes are very handy if your character regularly changes shoe height, for instance (gotta keep the height at your hip!)

Canes help on most terrain with their standard base and structure. But for some terrain, you might want a different base, or to forego the cane entirely! This article covers it pretty well.

Many cane users decorate their canes! Stickers are incredibly common, and painting canes is relatively common as well! You'll also see people replacing the standard wrist strap with a personalized one, or even adding a small charm to the ring the strap connects to. (nothing too large, or it gets annoying as the cane is swinging around everywhere)

(my canes, for reference)

If your character uses a cane full time, then they might also have multiple canes that look different aesthetically to match their outfits!

When it comes to practical things outside of the cane, you reasonably only have one hand available while it's being used. Many people will hook their cane onto their arm or let it dangle on the strap (if they have one) while using their cane arm, but it's often significantly less convenient than 2 hands. But, if you need 2 hands, then it's either setting the cane down or letting it hang!

For this reason, optimizing one handed use is ideal! Keeping bags/items on the side of your free hand helps keep your items accessible.

When sitting, the cane either leans against a wall or table, goes under the chair, or hooks onto the back of the chair. (It often falls when hanging off of a chair, in my experience)

When getting up, the user will either use their cane to help them balance/support as they stand, or get up and then grab their cane. This depends on what it's being used for (balance vs pain when walking, for instance!)

That's everything I can think of for now. Thank you for reading my long-but-absolutely-not-comprehensive list of things to keep in mind when writing or drawing a cane user!

Happy disability pride month! Go forth and make more characters use canes!!!

take these doodbles i made

nmweek day 7: growing old

my thoughts: AUGH I CAN'T BELIVE I MANAGED TO DO THIS!! i really like this piece, and i have a few thoughts and feelings about it. also i am a firm believer of phoenix using a wheelchair when he's older (the one is the picture is an active wheelchair) and edgeworth getting a cane. also edgeworth has the little ribbon like thing like kazuma does and i did that simply because funny. also that IS the feenie sweater edgeworth is wearing and the two patches are meant to kinda represent trucy and apollo. another thing is that i feel like edgeworth picks up knitting later in life, and so i have decided the sweater phoenix is wearing was made by edgeworth. also RINGS!! MARRIAGE!!! i just like this a lot, it makes me happy. and about the line art, i actually just recolored the sketch purple and used it as the line art because i didn't feel like drawing line art or doing lineless so i didn't. all in all, i like this a LOT and im so happy i managed to do this!