Persona Series Au - Tumblr Posts

Persona 5 Tactica revived the Persona 5 fan in me and now I'm making it everyone's problem by rambling about this original Persona story idea I made some time ago

It's just as the title of this post says: I watched a playthrough of Persona 5 Tactica and fell in love with the Persona franchise again which sort of reignited my will to think about this original Persona story idea I've been cooking for some time now.

I call this story "Persona Crossroads" (title still work in progress)

The gist of it is that after the P5 cast's journeys, the real world has been merged with the Cognitive World so many times that the barriers between the two have become fatally weakened. This becomes a problem when humanity begins wishing once more, hoping and praying that they could become the heroes of their journeys, to embark on a great adventure, and to live in a world, unlike the one they live in now. This wish ended up creating a being known as Anansi, a non-malevolent deity who decides to assign themself the role of narrator, who creates another being named Eris to be the evil to oppose humanity.

As Eris does in Greek Mythology, this Eris creates sheer c h a o s. I don't have all the details yet, but what I have so far is that the wildcard of this journey and their team go to Eris' realm with the help of all the previous persona users to fight her off and return the world to normal, except this ends up being a trap that results in the Real World and the Cognitive World to be merged into one once more and there's nothing any of them can do about it as people get attacked by shadows on the streets.

One of these people getting attacked turns out to be the current wildcard's younger sibling who- in a twist of fate, awakens to her own persona! Except it's not a mythological figure or a character from literature! It's... Raiden Ei? As in the dango-loving Electro Archon from the video game 'Genshin Impact'??? (Originally I was gonna make it Bayonetta, and then I was going to make it Venti, but Ei made more sense for her) which is kind of funny since not long ago, the wildcard's own persona evolved into the rumoured Raiden Makoto from the same game... and then they have an epiphany or something where they realise that there's no way to separate the Cognitive World and the Real World at this point in time and the only way they can pull it off is to wait for the people's wish of peace and normalcy to become strong enough to summon another god to help them separate the two worlds. So what the Wildcard does next is put their sibling into a Sleeping Beauty-esque sleep where they will awaken once the time to reach out to this new god is right.

All of that... was just backstory stuff lol. The real story doesn't take place until... like... 200 years later. In the future, being a persona user that fights shadows is basically a profession now... albeit a bit of a rare one since it's still uncommon for people to awaken to one, so instead of opening schools solely dedicated to training persona users, pre-existing schools will offer Persona Programs to newly awakened Persona users to teach them the ropes.

One such school, Kousaten High, end up being the ones to find the new wildcard's body and once they awaken (with amnesia for plot convenience), they are enrolled into the school's Persona Program where shenanigans ensue.

The funkiest part about it all is that because their story takes place in the future, all the characters' personas are characters from modern media lol

I'll probably talk about the story idea more later lol

Persona designs I made for Persona Crossroads some time ago

While I was cooking for my Persona Crossroads story idea, I was also working on some persona designs for the persona users in the story!

These are just drafts however, and I can't say for sure if any of these guys will stay in the final story since I'm reworking their users, but since these guys have been doing nothing but sitting around in my computer, I might as well show them off X))

This one is my design of Ghostbur from the Dream SMP if he was a Persona. I will admit, this one is probably one of my favourites alongside his user, so he's probably staying on the keep list ^-^

According to my notes, he inherits Nuclear skills, reflects Psy, absorbs Curse, resists Nuclear and Wind, and is weak to Water (yes I added Water into this), Ice, Slash (and brought back the three types of physical lol), and Pierce.

I understand that that's not how starter personas work, but...

but yeah. Instead of making Ghostbur's attributes the typical persona way, I wanted to assign them in a way that reflects actual attributes of the character Ghostbur. Inherits Nuclear because boom boom, reflects Psy because of his selective amnesia, absorbs Curse because I don't remember (probably having something to do with Alivebur?), resists Nucleur because of persona laws and Wind because... also can't remember, and is weak to Water and Ice because they melt him, and Slash and Pierce because his (and Alivebur's) deaths were from being stabbed by swords and pierced by arrows!

The design was heavily inspired by catzgam3rz's Limbo designs!

I also made a Revivebur counterpart to Ghostbur :))

For... um... reasons.

According to my notes, he inherits Nuclear and Psy (Because boom boom and child manipulator), reflect Psy (don't remember why lol), absorbs Curse (dk why lol), resists Nuclear and Wind and is weak to Slash and Pierce, so... Ghostbur, but better.

Moving on to a non-Minecraft character, I also drew Aesop Carl from Identity V as a persona (specifically his Rorschach Physician character from the White Tombstone fan game). This particular persona was designed to be a navigation persona which ngl, felt kinda tough to make. I'll admit... he's visually not the favourite child XPP

Back to turning Minecraft characters into personas, here's Scott from Empires SMP season 1! This one... is probably tied as my least favourite alongside the next one XPP The idea of it was nice, but my execution was... not as nice.

According to my notes, Scott inherits Ice and Bless (because of canonical ice powers and being the champion of the good stag god), reflects Ice, absorbs Bless, and is weak to Fire, Curse, and Slash (because stabby stab)

And I also made his brother, Xornoth! Looking at him again, I think it's safe to say that Scott loses the visual competition XPP

Him and persona Scott were meant to be opposites in both design and attributes.

Xornoth inherits Fire and Curse, reflects Fire, absorbs Curse, and is weak to Ice, Bless, Slash, and also Psy (because mans spent 99% of season 1 possessed by an evil stag god)

And also here are some gross unfinished concept art for persona Bayonetta.

Originally I was going to go with the look she has for most of the first game, but I decided to leave that for a third awakening instead and use her old look for the first awakening, but even though I had a vision I was satisfied with, I just... couldn't make it work -_-

If I were still going with Bayonetta as the protag's persona, I probably would have used Ernesto from Tactica as reference XPP

Tho I did really like the idea of her coming out of a coffin... would make a wicked awakening!

According to my notes, her attributes were that she inherits curse and pierce (because witchcraft and gun), resists Curse, Bless (thanks to dear old dad), Pierce, and Wind (because these witches have never been taught the concept of gravity), and is weak to... Water and Earth? I do not know why I chose those weaknesses for her...

The Persona 6 leaks scared me into thinking about Persona Crossroads again, so here's some tea about some characters in the AU:

It's as the title says. The leaks scared me into acting, so here's a few summaries about some of the characters are in the story! I changed quite a bit about the lore since I last talked about this au and since stuff...

ARILETTE

The protagonist of this story. Arilette is an amnesiac youth discovered by the research group stationed at Kousaten Academy, who displays an abnormal amount of Cognitive Excess found only in Persona Users. As a result, they have been placed under the care of the teacher handling Kousaten Academy's Persona Program in the meantime.

As the protagonist, Arilette is of the Fool Arcana, and the persona they awaken to is "Venti" (Yes, I changed the protags persona again, lol)

POLARIS

Arilette's senpai in both grade and seniority at Kousaten Academy's Persona Program. Polaris is a kind-hearted individual who helps Arilette settle into her new life at the school. Many people who spend time with Polaris easily find themselves at ease as they are what Takashi would call "Comfort-friend material". Polaris also seems to be close friends with the school's head cognitive researcher...

Polaris is Arilette's Star Social Link, and their persona is named "Ghost Nebula" (Not married to the name yet. Polaris was originally Ghostbur's user, but with all the drama that went down with Wilbur, I figured it'd be better if I changed it. Ghost Nebula is sort of a parallel to Ghostbur, but without being Wilbur lol)

TAKASHI MATSUMURA

Another one of Arilette's senpais in both grade and seniority at Kousaten. Takashi is a student with an unapproachable and intimidating demeanour. Most students are afraid to talk with him as he seems unwilling to spend excessive time around them, the only people he seems to tolerate is the program's teacher and Polaris. Arilette themself only met him once before becoming an official student of the program, though despite their demeanour, Arilette had the vague sense of something heavy weighing on Takashi's shoulders

Takashi is Arilette's Emperor Social Link (tho that's up for change), and his persona is named "Littlewood"

YUJIN VUONG

A youth that Arilette encounters on an assignment in Tatsumi Port Island. The nature of his existence is one that would have been a conundrum during the Martyr Makoto Yuuki's time, or perhaps not. When the group gets caught up in a fight, Yujin awakens to his persona and takes the reins as the team's navigator.

Yujin is of the Tower Arcana, and his persona is named "Antarcticite"

HOAI VUONG

The decision to bring him on the team was not one any of Kousaten Academy's Persona Program's members were happy about, but it was a necessary evil.

Hoai is Arilette's Devil Social Link, and his persona is named "Phosphophyllite"

HISAO KATAYAMA

The head researcher stationed at Kousaten in all things involved with Personas, Shadows, and the Cognitive World. Hisao is currently engaged to the teacher in charge of the Persona Program and possesses a unique sense of fashion and a joyful disposition. Although xe seems all too happy to talk about xyr research and the history of previous persona users and cognitive beings, xe also seems reluctant to divulge about xemself...

Hisao is Arilette's Magician Social Link.

CHIHIRO AKEMI

A mysterious girl who always seems to show up right when Arilette needs her the most. For someone as friendly and mindful as Chihiro, it's almost odd to see her look so dead on her feet all the time.

Chihiro is Arilette's Wheel of Fortune Social Link.

AODH FUJIHARA

A third-year from another school that Arilette works part-time with. A sass master with a big-sibling friend streak. Even though they don't realise it yet, there will come a time when they'll have to confront their past, and it all starts with the deep dark secret in their basement.

Aodh is Arilette's Moon Social Link.

AKATSUKI SHIRAHAMA

The owner of a popular cat gaming lounge. He's highly protective of his roommates, and often jokingly referred to as their mom. After a bad shadow attack hits the city, Akatsuki seems restless about something, as if he's expecting the shadows to jump out at him at any moment.

Akatsuki is one of Arilette's Hanged Man Social Links.

MAGNOLIA SAKURAI

One of Arilette's classmates and Akatsuki's roommate/charge. A polite girl with an interest in robotics and athletics. She always seems to have something on her mind...

Magnolia is one of Arilette's Hanged Man Social Links.

KICHOU SHIRAHAMA

A foreigner whom Akatsuki claims to be his younger sibling, Kichou lives in the apartment above the gaming lounge with Akatsuki, Magnolia, and their fourth roommate. Excitable and bubbly, Kichou has a knack for picking up small details others don't notice... impressively so...

Kichou is one of Arilette's Hanged Man Social Links.

HIKARI AKITA

Akatsuki, Magnolia, and Kichou's fourth and final roommate. She has a stern disposition and a love for puzzles. If Akatsuki is the mom of the roommates, then Hikari is the dad.

Hikari is one of Arilette's Hanged Man Social Links.

SYLVIE

A powerful witch said to live in the woods. Only desperate people plead with her and those who dare do so often walk away worse than they did before. Authority members have tried apprehending her, but none have managed to find her home, at least, none who weren't welcomed by her. While investigating a commission, Arilette manages to stumble and meet the witch and her servant, the former of whom doesn't seem thrilled at having her time wasted. Despite the numerous curses Arilette knows Sylvie could inflict on her, there's only one thing Sylvie requires from her: a wingwoman to help her get together with her servant.

Sylvie is one of Arilette's Lovers Social Links.

LEILANI

Sylvie's reluctant servant. An amnesiac who adorns herself in silver jewellery and who was cursed by Sylvie to forever serve her. Why Sylvie doesn't just order Leilani to date her, Arilette doesn't know. All he knows is that Sylvie is attracted to Leilani, and Leilani is weary of Sylvie. According to Sylvie, Arilette is the first human in a long time that Leilani's been overly protective of, enough to resist whatever curse Sylvie placed on her. Good grief, if Arilette's freedom didn't depend on wing manning for these two, this would be a bee's nest he wouldn't poke.

Leilani is one of Arilette's Lovers Social Links.

ASNEFIKO

The 'i' in their name is silent. Asnefiko is the eccentric owner of an antique store and a part-time novelist. When Arilette goes to see them, they often talk about stories and novel ideas, a few of which intrigue Arilette more than they'd thought. Asnefiko also seems to have a soft spot for Polaris, but Polaris doesn't seem to know them...

Asnefiko is Arilette's Aeon Social Link.

LUKE

Arilette's Velvet Room Attendant. Arilette wonders if they've met prior to her becoming a guest...

I... haven't decided on Luke's arcana yet lol XDD

A drawing I made of Arilette and Chihiro :))

Aren't they cute?

Not 100% sure about their designs yet, but I'm still pleased with the thought I put in them :))

Scared into acting again, here are some shadow/persona designs I made for Persona Crossroads:

I saw a news article thing for P6 show up on my phone's newsfeed and got scared into acting once more, here are some more persona and shadow designs I made for Crossroads (which I sort of scrapped since I don't want it to be done in the P5 Tactica art style anymore XDD)

First up we got the myth, the legend, Bayonetta!

I actually got pretty far into making the art digital, but as much of a shame as it is, I just wanted an art style change XDD The final Bayonetta design will probably still look similar tho owo

I used Ernesto from P5T as inspo for the gun feet X33 I don't really have much else to talk about regarding her design since it mostly sticks to her canon outfit in Bayonetta 1.

Next, we got Karl Jacobs' TFTSMP character.

I really wanted to lean in on the whole In Between-Other Side-XD's World idea, tho I ended up not finishing the colouring since I got stuck on what to do with the hair lol XDD

The bottom coat part is inspired by a fanart I saw by Cute Studio (I believe their username was...) and the inside of the coat and the hands sprouting from the ends of Jacobs' scarf is a reference to all the versions of him that can be found in the In Between. The last notable note I can think to mention about his design is how his halo is meant to sort of... evoke the imagery of a clock? If that makes sense lol.

I wanted him to look super ominous since Jacobs' was supposed to be a boss.

Unexpectedly, up next we have the illusive, rumoured Istaroth from Genshin Impact!

It's a weird choice since we've never had a confirmed appearance for her, but back in my old notes for Crossroads, Istaroth was supposed to be one of the characters' personas, so yeah, I made her lol.

Her design was inspired by art of her drawn by gierosajie-art and littleblueberryartist! Originally I had her standing, but realised the pose of her sitting down with her hands in her lap to be more iconic.

And here we have Mari from OMORI! :DD

I think I mentioned it before, she was originally supposed to be part of a system of personas that's like... a bunch of personas in one personas because their user was a person with DID. Still not sure if I'm keeping the concept yet, but if not, then she'll just be a shadow roaming around.

Her hair was inspired by a fanart made by k0re_drawings on Twitter. I just loved how they drew her hair in a way that looked like snapped violin strings! If I redesign her tho, I think I might use a drawing by an artist called Hiko (I think) as inspiration. Mari doesn't really look like Something, but if you look at her from the back, the resemblance is there, I swear!

And next we have the Electro Archon herself, Raiden Ei! :DD

This was designed when she was still supposed to be Arilette's persona and I truly regret not making her skin look like shadows :\\

Her outfit is basically just her normal outfit without some of the asymmetricalness and some extra ornaments and armour inspired by the Raiden Shogun boss and a small handful of fanarts. I love how her bottom half has the vague silhouette of a butterfly :))

And last but not least, we got the Anemo Archon, Venti! :DD

So... I don't like his design ._. It's too much. I tried using various fanarts as inspiration to try and make his outfit a lil cooler, but it's just... so... much ._. (I do love the touch of Celestia in his corrupted form owo)

Even tho the name of the persona is Venti, I decided to make his look resemble Barbatos so I could pull a Third Ascension and make it look like his bard outfit while naming it Barbatos owo

That's all I got lol

Guess who was scared into working on posting about Persona Crossroads again? This one!

I saw a video on YouTube talking about leaks for Persona 6, and as you can guess, I felt pressured and wanted to post about Persona Crossroads again xuu

I was hoping that I'd have finished persona Venti's design by now, but it's been kicking me in the butt lately, so here are some of Arilette's outfits instead XDD

I want to say that these are the final versions of Arilette's winter casual, summer casual, and cognitive outfits, but who knows? I might change them again because I'm indecisive like that XPP

Arilette's associated flower is the poppy flower, so I included them in all three outfits.

The cloaks in Arilette's casual outfits were a gift from their teammate so they like to keep it on regardless of weather.

And you can probably also tell but the cognitive outfit gave me the most trouble. Originally, I was going to make it butterfly-themed, but then I changed it to be bird-themed to match Venti. Even after that, I kept getting frustrated trying to make the outfit look good so my heavy-handed drawing kept coming through x-x

I'll probably post Arilette's school uniform on a later date XPP