Alright, I’ve personally been wondering what other people’s opinions on this would be, so

*I know IBS isn’t a true expansion but it’s got its own mastery line so I’m counting it

i was putting this in the tags but it got so long that it was basically an entire post anyway so. okay. listen to me. hear me out:

I know Champions was bad. I know Champions was really, really, agonizingly bad, and because they dripfed it to us over months you never got used to it because UGH. GOD. NEW SUPPLY MISSION. every 3 weeks or whatever and it just was not fun. You were always being freshly reminded of how bad Champions was. The character writing is bad (No asura except Taimi has basically anything to say about Primordus, and she's portrayed as basically just being ridiculously hysterical about it?? They've been smoothing her down over time but it was real bad here.), DRMs were fucking miserable, I think DRM CMs are still bugged, and Dragonstorm is Okay but there's only so many times you can watch Jormag puke in their brother's mouth and hear CHAMPION!! HELP ME!! THIS POWER!! IT'S TOO WILD!! before you're just going BenAffleckWithACigarette.png about the whole shebang. IN THE MEANTIME, FIRE ALAR[sniper rifle shot rings out. i crumple bonelessly to the ground]

Here is the thing. Here is the horrible truth I realized when I did Seasons of the Dragons:

The rest of Icebrood Saga was good. (Cut for length. I, uh, I kinda went on about this & about why I think SotO is so bad. Sorry. I have strong thoughts and feelings. When I said 'length', by the way, I meant it,)

I know European Starlings are not everybody’s favourite in America (for good reason, and I know it is not the bird’s fault), but can we for a moment sit down and admire their most beautiful plumage?

Is anybody else still crying over Inkpot Gods in 2023 or are you normal

flight

patreon poster for june

How many have you read?

The BBC estimates that most people will only read 6 books out of the 100 listed below. Reblog this and bold the titles you’ve read.

1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen 2 Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkein 3 Jane Eyre – Charlotte Bronte 4 Harry Potter series 5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee 6 The Bible 7 Wuthering Heights – Emily Bronte 8 Nineteen Eighty Four – George Orwell 9 His Dark Materials – Philip Pullman 10 Great Expectations – Charles Dickens 11 Little Women – Louisa M Alcott 12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles – Thomas Hardy 13 Catch 22 – Joseph Heller 14 Complete Works of Shakespeare 15 Rebecca – Daphne Du Maurier 16 The Hobbit – JRR Tolkien 17 Birdsong – Sebastian Faulks 18 Catcher in the Rye 19 The Time Traveller’s Wife - Audrey Niffeneger 20 Middlemarch – George Eliot 21 Gone With The Wind – Margaret Mitchell 22 The Great Gatsby – F Scott Fitzgerald 23 Bleak House – Charles Dickens 24 War and Peace – Leo Tolstoy 25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams 26 Brideshead Revisited – Evelyn Waugh 27 Crime and Punishment – Fyodor Dostoyevsky 28 Grapes of Wrath – John Steinbeck 29 Alice in Wonderland – Lewis Carroll 30 The Wind in the Willows – Kenneth Grahame 31 Anna Karenina – Leo Tolstoy 32 David Copperfield – Charles Dickens 33 Chronicles of Narnia – CS Lewis 34 Emma – Jane Austen 35 Persuasion – Jane Austen 36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe – CS Lewis 37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini 38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres 39 Memoirs of a Geisha – Arthur Golden 40 Winnie the Pooh – AA Milne 41 Animal Farm – George Orwell 42 The Da Vinci Code – Dan Brown 43 One Hundred Years of Solitude – Gabriel Garcia Marquez 44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney – John Irving 45 The Woman in White – Wilkie Collins 46 Anne of Green Gables – LM Montgomery 47 Far From The Madding Crowd – Thomas Hardy 48 The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood 49 Lord of the Flies – William Golding 50 Atonement – Ian McEwan

51 Life of Pi – Yann Martel 52 Dune – Frank Herbert 53 Cold Comfort Farm – Stella Gibbons 54 Sense and Sensibility – Jane Austen 55 A Suitable Boy – Vikram Seth 56 The Shadow of the Wind – Carlos Ruiz Zafon 57 A Tale Of Two Cities – Charles Dickens 58 Brave New World – Aldous Huxley 59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time – Mark Haddon 60 Love In The Time Of Cholera – Gabriel Garcia Marquez 61 Of Mice and Men – John Steinbeck 62 Lolita – Vladimir Nabokov 63 The Secret History – Donna Tartt 64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold 65 Count of Monte Cristo – Alexandre Dumas 66 On The Road – Jack Kerouac 67 Jude the Obscure – Thomas Hardy 68 Bridget Jones’s Diary – Helen Fielding 69 Midnight’s Children – Salman Rushdie 70 Moby Dick – Herman Melville 71 Oliver Twist – Charles Dickens 72 Dracula – Bram Stoker 73 The Secret Garden – Frances Hodgson Burnett 74 Notes From A Small Island – Bill Bryson 75 Ulysses – James Joyce 76 The Bell Jar – Sylvia Plath 77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome 78 Germinal – Emile Zola 79 Vanity Fair – William Makepeace Thackeray 80 Possession – AS Byatt 81 A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens 82 Cloud Atlas – David Mitchel 83 The Color Purple – Alice Walker 84 The Remains of the Day – Kazuo Ishiguro 85 Madame Bovary – Gustave Flaubert 86 A Fine Balance – Rohinton Mistry 87 Charlotte’s Web – EB White 88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven – Mitch Albom 89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle 90 The Faraway Tree Collection – Enid Blyton 91 Heart of Darkness – Joseph Conrad 92 The Little Prince – Antoine De Saint-Exupery 93 The Wasp Factory – Iain Banks 94 Watership Down – Richard Adams 95 A Confederacy of Dunces – John Kennedy Toole 96 A Town Like Alice – Nevil Shute 97 The Three Musketeers – Alexandre Dumas 98 Hamlet – William Shakespeare 99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – Roald Dahl 100 Les Miserables – Victor Hugo

5 i am a disgrace im calling bs on anyone who claims they read ulysses tbh

22 full reads. I have read more, but I just didn’t finish them, ex. Dracula and Count of Monte Cristo

I’ve read 13 so far

I’ve read 10

MOST ICONIC BIRD CALL BRACKET: ROUND TWO: EASTERN WHIP-POOR-WILL vs. COMMON RAVEN

IN THE BLUE CORNER, please welcome to the ring the elusive enigma, the EASTERN WHIP-POOR-WILL!

with its stunning camouflage and haunting call, this bird is a sight and sound to behold - if you can find it. this nocturnal nightjar is named after its unique call, a high-pitched, trilling "whip-poor-will." local new england legends say that the whip-poor-will can capture the souls of the departed. all in all, this is a mysterious competitor with a haunting backstory and a distinctive call. don't miss your chance to witness the power and prowess of this feathered fighter!

IN THE RED CORNER, this mysterious bird from the north will have its opponent singing nevermore. let's give a warm welcome to the COMMON RAVEN!

with its jet black plumage and sharp beak, this bird exudes power and intelligence. known for its ability to imitate sounds and its intelligence, the raven is a formidable foe in the ring. its most common call is a deep, resonant prruk-prruk-prruk that's different from any other corvid. but don't think that's all this bird has in store for you - wild ravens boast a vocabulary of 30 different calls, most of them used for social interaction. this bird is also a devoted partner - if a member of a pair is lost, the raven will reproduce the calls of its lost partner until it returns. this competitor's strategic attacks and clever maneuvers will keep you on the edge of your seat. get ready for a battle of epic proportions as this feathered fighter shows off its skills and takes down the competition!

MOST ICONIC BIRD CALL BRACKET: ROUND TWO: CANADA GOOSE vs. BLUE JAY

IN THE BLUE CORNER, from wetlands, fields, and golf courses across north america, give it up for the mighty CANADA GOOSE!

as anyone unfortunate enough to tangle with this beast knows, this is a fearsome bird that commands attention in the ring. not just content taking on other birds, canada geese are also known to attack humans, hissing and charging at anyone who gets too close to their goslings. less terrifying than that hiss is their characteristic honk, a throaty, hoarse noise that is primarily made by males of this species. don't miss your chance to witness the power and prowess of this feathered fighter. the canada goose is here to show the world that it's the top bird in the ring, and it won't stop until it's claimed victory!

IN THE RED CORNER, please welcome to the ring the brilliantly blue, the bold and brash, the blue jay!

the blue jay may be a corvid, but it's flashier and louder than its crow and raven cousins. this bird has striking blue feathers and a gull-like shriek that is unlike any other. the blue jay is a master of intimidation, using its piercing gaze and raucous calls to strike fear into the hearts of its opponents. this competitor is even known to imitate the calls of different hawks well enough that it's difficult to tell what bird it's coming from - something the blue jay is certainly smart enough to use to its advantage. this bird is a true champion and is here to take on all challengers!

MOST ICONIC BIRD CALL BRACKET: ROUND TWO: MALLARD DUCK vs. RED WINGED BLACKBIRD

IN THE BLUE CORNER, from ponds across north america, it's the magnificent MALLARD DUCK!

with its striking green head and neck, contrasting brown body, and elegant wings, this bird is a true beauty in the ring. but don't think this is just a pretty bird - the mallard duck is a force to be reckoned with. a noisy species, the mallard makes the deep quack that's typically associated with most other ducks. the mallard is the genetic ancestor of most domestic duck breeds. whether on land or in water, this bird knows how to dominate the competition. the mallard duck is here to show the world that it's a force to be reckoned with in the ring, and it won't stop until it's claimed victory!

IN THE RED (winged) CORNER, get ready to witness the most thrilling match of the evening with the striking and fierce RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD!

with its striking red and black feathers and piercing call, this bird is a true showstopper. it's known for its melodious songs and aerial acrobatics that will leave you breathless. but don't let its beautiful appearance fool you, this bird is a fierce competitor with a will to win that's unmatched. get ready to witness the ultimate showdown as the red-winged Blackbird takes on all challengers in a battle of speed, strength, and agility. it's time to let the feathers fly and see who comes out on top in this epic matchup!

MOST ICONIC BIRD CALL BRACKET: ROUND ONE: WILD TURKEY vs. COMMON GRACKLE

IN THE BLUE CORNER, we have the grim gobbler, the harbinger of the harvest, the wild turkey!

weighing in at up to 11kg/24lbs, this heavyweight of the bird world is not to be underestimated. unlike its domesticated cousins, this bulky combatant is an agile flier, able to soar into the trees to roost at night. you'll recognize this unforgettable bird by its famous gobble, a noise loud enough that it can be heard up to a mile away. its opponent better be ready to reap what it sows, because the wild turkey is fighting to win!

IN THE RED CORNER, it's time to make some noise for our next competitor. hailing from backyards across north america, it's the one and only common grackle!

with a piercing gaze that can intimidate even the most seasoned wrestlers, the common grackle is a force to be reckoned with in the ring. it's a master of intimidation and knows how to use that to its advantage. this bird's call is metallic and harsh, being compared to a power line buzzing. so get ready, because the common grackle is here to prove that it's the baddest bird in the business. are you ready to witness the power of the grackle?

Forest of Tiveden National Park in Sweden

MOST ICONIC BIRD CALL BRACKET: ROUND 1: MOURNING DOVE vs. WHITE CROWNED SPARROW

IN THE BLUE CORNER, hailing from your local park, we have the feathered fighter, the flying phenomenon, the mourning dove!

the mourning dove may be mourning, but it's ready to bring the pain to any opponent that steps into the ring. one of the most abundant birds in north america, this opponent is named after its doleful, unassuming call, a series of soft coos. this bird may be gentle, but don't let its soft demeanor fool you. this bird is a fighter!

IN THE RED CORNER, we have the king of the ring, the white crowned sparrow!

with its striking black and white head and sweet melodic calls, this opponent is truly a sight to behold. but this bird is here to show it's not just a pretty face. it's not just here to compete, it's here to win.

The living will come, the dead will go, the dead will come once more. Back and forth evermore.

I thought the earth remembered me, she took me back so tenderly, arranging her dark skirts, her pockets full of lichens and seeds. I slept as never before, a stone on the riverbed, nothing between me and the white fire of the stars but my thoughts, and they floated light as moths among the branches of the perfect trees. All night I heard the small kingdoms breathing around me, the insects, and the birds who do their work in the darkness. All night I rose and fell, as if in water, grappling with a luminous doom. By morning I had vanished at least a dozen times into something better.

(mary oliver, sleeping in the forest)

1. A Primer for the Small Weird Loves - Richard Siken / 2. The Crane Wife - CJ Hauser / 3. Automat - Edward Hopper / 4. Red Doc> - Anne Carson / 5. Melancholy - Edvard Munch / 6. The Village (2004) / 7. So We Must Meet Apart - Gabrielle Bates and Jennifer S. Cheng