Lunatic Talks - Tumblr Posts

How do you do, fellow humans?

Hello there.

"Tonight I could be with you

Or waiting in the Wings

Lift your heart with soaring song

Cut down the puppet strings."

– Bauhaus "Spirit"

We are the Arcana art-fanteam. We're make our own arts, texts, headcanons and so on. Main themes: the Courtiers; M6: Julian, Nadia, Portia are faves. With love to the Renaissance, classic arts, goth music, BDSM, medicine and just for fun.

Let us introduce ourselves:

Artists: ChilledoutBeast /she/, Wasteofplace /she/

Translator: Sabinasabapplebutt /she/ (all over 20 y.o.)

Editor: ApostleJay /them/he/ (34 y.o.)

and Master: LunaticSun /he/them/ (30 y.o.)

This blog is keeping by each member of team, but mainly by Lunatic Sun. You can ask us any question.

And let there be Mayhem!

art by: Lunatic Sun

Nota Bene: in this blog Valdemar and Vulgora are strictly non-binary and any attempt to make them /f/ or /m/ characters is not allowed.

Nota Bene 2: In every headcanon on this blog, every art and every story Quaestor Valdemar is still AroAce.

Nota Bene 3: As a neurodivergent person, who know all these things from insides I (Lunatic Sun) ask you to note this remarks carefully.

"We love our audience". ©

The role of music in «Nec Deus Intersit»

Our story begins with a scene of the concert, held by a mysterious unnamed singer. I — the author of the story, Lunatic Sun — have decided to leave this character nameless. The music is the most important thing here. But the singer has two very specific, well-defined prototypes, and the music isn't fictional either. Let me tell you a story about it.

There was a 2.000 word limitation for each story, so I needed to cut all the classical melodies descriptions short. I imagined that during the concert the singer would start with some lyrics at first, and then the orchestra would join him.

The first chapter of «Nec Deus Intersit» is dedicated to the memory of Klaus Nomi. I also added special thanks for the inspiration and gratitude to Jakub Józef Orliński. You may guess that these two personas and their voices are interwoven in the image of the fictional singer. I’ve wanted to pay tribute to the talents of both of them for a long time.

Klaus Nomi is noted to have a very tragic story and a huge talent. I'd love to think that in a world of the Arcana he would be perceived as a magnificent mysterious man, just like he was in his real life. I believe his talent was beloved even by such a demanding and old creature with an excellent taste in arts as Valdemar.

N.B.: I'm absolutely sure that Valdemar is completely charmed by the music. There is a mention of them singing as they leave the Dungeons in the Julian’s route.

If you'd like to learn more about Klaus Nomi's recordings and learn his story, you can visit his official channel or watch the documentary «The Nomi Song» (2004) by Andrew Horn.

Jakub Józef Orliński (Polish opera singer, countertenor) amazes with his vocal skills. Just like Klaus Nomi, he has a strong part of drama in his singing. You can find his official YouTube channel here.

***

And now let’s have a look at the music mentioned in the scenes, in the order of its appearance.

N.B.: I believe that Julian (looking to the Heartsong festival as a canon) with all his love for the opera wouldn't be able to stay untouched by this music.

Vivaldi: Il Giustino, RV 717, Act 1: "Vedrò con mio diletto" (Anastasis)

In my humble opinion, this particular performance of this Vivaldi’s aria is truly unsurpassed. Jakub Józef Orliński has a really strong emotional voice, and even if you are not familiar with the Italian language, there would be no language barrier at all. This is what I call a fabulous drama.

Vivaldi: Le quattro stagioni, Concerto No. 4 in F minor, Op. 8, RV 297, "Winter" (L'inverno): Allegro non molto

The second piece is «Allegro non molto» from Vivaldi’s group of violin concertos «Four seasons». Surely it has been performed numerous times before, but my heart belongs to Anne-Sophie Mutter due to her energy and agility. In her version you can feel all the expressiveness Vivaldi put into his work. In my perception of the «Nec Deus Intersit» story this masterpiece should sound just like that.

Henry Purcell: King Arthur, Act 3, Scene 2. "What Power Art Thou?" (The Cold Song)

Let’s have a look at the piece that sounded after the intermission and that excited Julian so much.

It's «The Cold Song» from the semi-opera «King Arthur» by Henry Purcell. The Cold Genius sings this aria when his eternal peace is disturbed by Cupid.

It was Klaus Nomi who made this song — originally performed by basso voices — so popular with the countertenors. Countertenors, in my humble opinion, added more drama to this song. Moreover, it made it possible to rethink the image of the Cold incarnation itself — instead of the ancient elder, as it was in the opera, there is an ancient, immortal and sexless being who rejects this world and prefers eternal sleep in the ice.

Here you can find a revolutionary performance by Klaus Nomi (particularly dramatic if you know his story).

And here is a performance by Jakub Józef Orliński.

Hasse: Oratorio Sacro in Due Parti: Sanctus Petrus et Sancta Maria Magdalena. "Mea tormenta, properate"

Furthermore, in the next chapter Valdemar mentions the aria «Mea tormenta, properate» from the oratorio "Sanctus Petrus et Sancta Maria Magdalena" by Johann Adolph Hasse. Here again — a performance by Jakub Józef Orliński.

Valdemar pointed out that the message of this aria suits Julian perfectly. This is not accidental, if you have a look at the text:

Mea tormenta, properate,

Ubi sunt flagella et caedes, ubi sunt flagella et caedes?

Crucem quaero, crucem date

Volo mori, o Deus in te, volo mori, o Deus in te, o Deus in te…

(Translation)

My torments, hurry,

Where are the scourges and their lacerating teeth?

I want to be crucified, crucify me,

I want to die; oh God, in you I want to die.

How would the entire concert sound? Every time I imagine it a little bit differently, especially if I hear the perfect (in my humble opinion) performance of some classical pieces. The concert may include "Adagio from concerto №3 in D minor, BWV 974" and "Sarabande" by George Frederick Handel, "From beyond" and "Death" by Klaus Nomi, "Music for a while" by Henry Purcell. But the works mentioned above are quite special and essential to this story. It was the music which was the main source of inspiration in some ways. So, if someone decides to listen to them, most likely, they will not regret.

I still pay my respects to Klaus Nomi and Jakub Józef Orliński.

art: Chilledoutbeast/LunaticSun (main line/back+colour)

The old sketch of human (or not?) Valdemar.

Because of their antiquity, I came up a headcanon about their origin. So, what about a country near the great river and with the great pyramids? Many lands of the Arcana world have references from India, Arabic region or Mongolia – so, Ancient Egypt? Why not? I can't decide, maybe this is ancient Zadith? There is nothing about Zadith in the canon, just a note in the ArcanaWiki:

"The homeland of Asra's parents, Zadith lies across the Malvent Strait from Vesuvia. This is a country where both science and magic are highly respected. Those who combine both disciplines are known as alchemists."

I think this short description is suitable for the heritage of such civilization as Egyptian.

I’m sad that the history of the world is so poorly developed, but I still love the lore so much. And I’d be happy to read (only from the original writers), say, a brief history of the world. But since there's no any history, I'm taking the liberty (and, a bit, my history degree) to assume: Zadith is the inheritor of some ancient civilization like the Ancient Egypt.

I'm not good at naming, so I will provisionally call it "Deshret" – Egyptian word for "red land, desert". Valdemar spoke about "millennia of existence", describing their antiquity, so I'm pretty sure: they have been born as a human in the ancient kingdom, like the Ancient Egypt. Also, note that red beetle brooch at the neck: similar motives were common in the Ancient Egypt. And, I think, Valdemar had this beetle brooch long before the Plague.

Okay, maybe developers in Portia's route (flashback scene with Prospero and foundation of Vesuvia) just showed Valdemar to us as we know them, because of developing another (kinda "more ancient") sprite and costume for the short scene is not viable. But anyway: we have what we have. What if we imagine that "red beetle brooch" of the Courtiers is rooted not only in the Red Plague? What about a, merely my headcanon, the Egyptian "scarab" motif?

So, there's the old traditional sketch I have. When I drew this pic, I imagined Valdemar just after their first deals with the Devil. Just look at their eyes.🫀

And – of course, they are in the tomb. Maybe as a priest? Who knows, fellow humans.

Don't be shy. Drop the whole Valdemar x Julian playlist

With pleasure, if you're curious, but let me compile it first.

I prefer to group tracks by categories and explain why I HC this way. Maybe, I'll keep going to drop it slowly. :D

/Lunatic Sun/

P. S. Maybe, my co-author can drop the whole playlist… I need to ask him.

Doctor №069 was napping on the couch in his room in the Dungeons. Hearing Quaestor's footsteps nearby, he sleepily responded:

– Behold, my Death cometh…

(based on a true story, sorry not sorry. Thank Apostle Jay for inspiration)

P. S. Beware: I'm (not only me) the uncompromising shipper Valdemar/Julian from the first time:

And because of this:

You've been warned. The right of appeal is eliminated.

Julian likes to call Valdemar "my personal 11th plague", that's all. Period.

/according to canonical information about Jewish references to Devorak family and my headcanon about kinda Egyptian origins of Valdemar*. Yes, this is Biblical allusion, if you want to know./

P. S. I would like to add: Valdemar usually responds "Surely, doctor №069, Egypt fights back", but there's no "Egypt" as it is in the Arcana world. But if there is a Temple district in Vesuvia and if there are many confessions similar to existing IRL, events in "the Book" definitely can have similar lines.

P. P. S. Valdemar is well familiar with "the Book" contents. Indeed.

*P. P. P. S. Here are some considerations in this regard, with more details.

Ahem. How can I start the conversation? OK, I'll try. How do you do, fellow humans?

Tonight I would like to talk about the setting of the Arcana game. Or, more specifically, its atmosphere, about background illustrations that people usually don't notice and/or don't usually talk about.

I love the Arcana background CGs so much. To be honest, those CGs are what got me into the game.

A little story: 4 or 5 years ago I saw an advertisement of the Arcana for the first time. And when I saw those ads on Instagram, it was so horrible and tasteless, imho. These cringe ads rather repelled me instead of attracting me. I saw it and forgot about it, but then…

Some time later, I started looking for background references for my text-based roleplay and found some beautiful illustrations. I didn't use these illustrations for my text roleplay. Besides, I soon forgot about my roleplay. :D and, in Google, I looked at the descriptions under the illustrations I found: "the Arcana game". I was intrigued. Then I downloaded the game. A few moments later I remembered those stupid ads, but I decided to take a chance.

And then, after the Prologue, I was absolutely fascinated. It had nothing in common with those commercials. The game itself was more beautiful than I'd ever imagined. And here I am :D and here we are.

Back to the background graphics. I am personally humbled and grateful to the original artists for these backgrounds. We love the characters – there's no doubt about that. But this setting and atmosphere wouldn’t be what it is without these illustrations.

I usually refer to photos that I think have "the same vibe" or "this place fits the world of Arcana" when I want to expand the world of the game on my own. Like headcanons, fanfiction, et cetera, you know.

Next I would like to show my selection of such photos. All photos from Instagram, not the Pinterest, as this is the most convenient method of attribution.

And all of these images, you know, I am NOT using for any commercial purposes. Crediting is in the order of the images.

⏬

Okay, let's go. It's not that I'm HCing any specific locations. I can only give a very rough idea of the "location area". You'll see the notes, I hope. Credits and links below. Credits are clickable.

graciousopulence (the main source)

1. clivenichols

2. nationaltrust*

3. bonvoyagecleo

4. gamma_f

5. rcmccloskey

6. designboom*

7. amarosanchezdemoya

8. curly.beard

There are some images that conjure up more specific associations for me.

© devonchurchland*

To be honest, this photo became the indirect reason for this post.

I saw this today and the theme song from the game immediately started playing in my head (can you guess which one?). At the same time, I remembered some of the scenes that take place in our storyline. A lot of the action takes place in the Temple District. Just because… why not? especially when you and your co-author are historians obsessed with religion, lol.

I imagined this picture very vividly:

One of the churches in the Temple District. Silence. Julian sitting in an empty church, deep in thought. Watching how the strip of light from the stained glass window slowly creeping across the floor and the benches, then how the flames of the candles flickering.

He reflects and looks away, shyly, from the instruments of passions and the images of martyrs.

No, he is not religious at all. Just... impressionable. He is only impressionable in that he probably thinks most of the time that he has not yet been struck by lightning because of his impure intentions. Poor boy… 🫀

Ahem. Sorry. I think I got carried away. :D Just look at this last item.

© dumbartonoaks*

Leave your comments and share your thoughts, requests, etc. Ask is open.

Something behind the scenes.

Me and my co-author:

*see this magnificent tea set*.

Apostle Jay:

- This is the tea set that Valdemar and Nadia drink tea from on Fridays*.

/*HC based on the comic "Valdemar Schedule" from the Nix Hydra era and, in fact, the scene in PSL where Valdemar drinks tea/

Me:

- And Nadia periodically asks to borrow the tea set for, say, unpleasant conversations with unpleasant ambassadors.

Apostle Jay:

- And now I imagined Julian like this:

Me:

– "Quaestor, tell me, is there really cyanide in my cup?" asks Doctor №069 with a sly glance over the cup.

"Don't flatter yourself, young man. You've just pulled on the marzipan too hard," answers Valdemar with a calm expression and sets the cup on the saucer with a thin, light clink.

Julian's reaction:

Apostle Jay:

- HOW DID YOU GUESS I LOVE MARZIPAN?!

Me:

- Oh, really, how did I guess that? :}

I choose first, of course.

I just have the strongest gender envy: I want to be able to turn my body into an ẻ̷͕̎͆̐l̵̠̼̀̕ḏ̶͕̟͔̈́̏̊͒̉ͅŕ̵̞͇̞͛͊i̸̳̱͙̳͚̽̊̄̓́t̶̝̰͓̯̉̈̋̇͜c̴̢͍͈͍̈́̉ḧ̷̟̲͓̩̑͠ ̷͉̯͂h̷̗̟͉̍̈́ỏ̵̱̇̀̀͜͝r̶̪̣̞̾̚͜ṛ̵̨̢͍̠͛o̵̗̥̦̰̮͗͝͠r̵̨̔͊ whenever I damn want, and be someone who technically no longer has the sex assigned to them at birth/any kind of specifically human genitalia. And if knowledge is your goal, then immortality starts to make sense.

Nothing else. Other things I already have. :D

/L.S./

P. S. Jay will join the percentage of those who chose the second option. Others don't care enough.

calling all valdemar fans

I got into WIPs, but there are finished drawings, so in this case my conscience is clear. :D

So, how it started:

How it's going:

(The "Sketch>Finished Art" team, I'm with you guys. Seriously, I really think that coloring is not my strong suit. However, I myself love the dark palette more than the bright one, but I just appreciate the contrasts that WasteOfPlace usually adds.

Like here.

Or here.

However, this is no reason to stop drawing on my own. I don't like to bother my team with my own petty whims. :D /L. S./)

And I hope Anon with the "Valdemar x Julian playlist" request is still here. Someday I will drop the whole playlist, I promise.🫀

(I am synaesthete and I love the dark-blue palette of early Apocalyptica so much. "Not strong enough" is not "the early Apocalyptica™ era", but indeed the Julian POV.)

I came and brought some headcanons.

Since I don't like making headcanons about MCs, and the whole concept is not for me, I'm doing... a side character based on my favorite musicians instead. Who, in my opinion, fit into the Arcana world.

And I'm sure: "Blackmore's Night" is one of them (my beg pardon, I'm an old fan). Since I feel the same aesthetic and the same atmosphere, let's go.

1. This is where I feel the STRONGEST "Girl Power" vibes. What about, say, the "Nadia/MC" route? Portia can be here too (I mean, girl party in a storm on a cliff overlooking the ocean? YEAAH!).

2. I don't know why, but here I feel "Asra/MC" (suddenly!) vibes more than anything else. So, why not?

2.1. "Asra/MC" (or just Azra themselve), so-why-not-2:

So: "The Rowdy Raven". It's easy to imagine R. Blackmore and K. Night as musicians playing in the tavern. Maybe their patron arcana in the Arcana world are also "The Lovers", like Aisha and Salim. I don't think the patron arcana can choose the only person (or couple like "the Lovers" do). I guess "being chosen by the Arcana personification" is not an exclusive offer. It's rare? Well, yes. But I think it's much rarer to be exclusive. It depends, I guess.

Anyway, this is my own headcanon about side characters, which is just giving me a special ambiance as I see it. I like such non-binding vignettes, say:

1. Dancing in the "Rowdy Raven" to this song. Maybe this is a bit of an anachronism ("Lorelei" is a poem by Heinrich Heine, 1824 or even Clemens Brentano's poem "Lore Lay" on 1801) for the "Renaissance" setting of the game, but as long as there is tango (as the most obvious anachronism) in the game itself, this is allowed too.

(Imagine all those old sailors dancing under Mazelinka's leadership. She's sure to have many stories to tell about beautiful sea maidens: she was married to one of them. But with a happy ending. 🖤)

2. Oh, well, it's pretty simple. I think it was one of Julian's favorite songs. Especially for the "sentimental mood" ('cause he is a sweet sentimental boy, you know).

3. This is so obvious that I won't say any more.

I've been listening to them for over 15 years. It's kind of a "band of my youth" and maybe someone will discover "Blackmore's Night" for themselves, idk. Just say something if you want. I always appreciate little vignettes about the whole world (not the "MC with /put your LI here/…" type), but such content is rarely seen here.

Finally, my favorite:

/Lunatic Sun/

/Lunatic Sun on the line, as you might guess/

Okay. Not the first time I have seen such an opinion in the fandom, but the first time it looks like a full consideration. Well.

As someone who knows a little more than a few articles on the first page of Google, perhaps I'll take the liberty of... clarifying the issue. I probably won't be kind enough because I'm so annoyed by these hot takes.

To be clear, this isn't much about the canon or Julian himself. My speech is about the whole image of BDSM on this "Opinion.jpg".

I can understand that you don't know much about BDSM and this is not your cup of tea. I understand that it is not for everyone.

But please. Please, tell me, someone, any of those people with such hot take.

Why do you think that if you are into BDSM you have no alternative? If you are a masochist, you can only be horny because of pain? Thank you for not EVERY pain, I have heard such… opinion.

Okay, can you explain to me, sadistic/dominant person, who am I? Maybe I want to torture everyone I have a relationship with? I have no alternatives? Perhaps I have more macabre intentions? Come on! "The "Sadist" sounds terrible! Maybe he/she/them will kill someone one day, they definitely can't live without torturing someone!" Welcome to the "As Vanilla Says..." TV Show!

The description of masochism as a disease (DSM-V, I mean) includes distress, "psychosocial difficulties" because of their masochistic sexual attractions.

And there's no "healthy relationships" in the clinical recommendations for rehab, iykwim. (✨Oh, love, the most beautiful miracle, heals all!✨ Sorry not sorry. Bruh.)

As I said above about sadistic affections, "sexual sadism disorder" as a disorder has this description:

"The individual has acted on these sexual urges with a nonconsenting person, or the sexual urges or fantasies cause clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning."

I sincerely hope you got that.

As a sadist and dominant, I don't want to kill your grandma, humiliate my partners 24/7 without their consent/for my own pleasure or whatever. Masochists can be horny without pain (If a masochist can only be aroused by pain, it's a disorder). Also, masochists can dislike some kinds of pain (even the "safe" kind, not the taboo or something extremely hard), and if I, as their sadist, ignore their ban/request, this behaviour will automatically make me an abuser and rapist. This is not my goal as a sadist.

BDSM is not a judgement.

There are many practices and the same person, whoever they are, can have many behaviours. Even in the area of "kinks and sexual attractions". And the devs surprisingly correctly described Julian Devorak as a masochist, okay? Not in the "disease way", but in the "kink way".

In conclusion, if you claim the golden standard of healthy relationships beyond "dialogue", "support" and "freedom to be yourself in a mutually respectful way", you seem to have no idea about healthy relationships (I mean, indeed, if you exclude BDSM as something harmful or sick from your "Golden Standard ™"). And yes, BDSM relationships must have the "mutual respect". Because the other way is pure violence. Or silly fantasies about such violence like the-film-that-shall-not-be-named.

Sorry, but. ApostleJay on the line.

As a masochist, I would say that this thing works quite the opposite.

Yes, masochist can assotiate pleasure with pain - and it could be a coping mechanism. But it forms right into your brain and couldn't be turned back. Actually, it could be the other way - masochist may open up in healthy relationship and finally be themselves) There are different forms of masochism: some people enjoy degradation, some of them don't, some prefer the sensation of pain, others like to obey - it's not always about sex.

So I would insist that Julian is definitely a masochist and submissive as fuck :))

/oh, I don't usually post like "the daily throughs", but I'm really mad about this "Opinion.jpg"./

This gif again because… because now it's me as fuck.

/Lunatic Sun/

(An angry Dom doesn't like stigmatised bullshit towards BDSM. My patience was long, but now it's over.)

"I think I figured it out," grumbled Doctor №069 as he scrubbed another dissection table.

"This superstition that if you scatter poppy seeds in front of the undead, they will start counting them. Because of you, Quaestor!"

"You are extremely clever for your vapid head, Doctor №069," Valdemar grinned, carefully placed their polished scalpels.

(Based on a true story. Thanks to ApostleJay for such fun)

Here is some information to consider... ⏬

Note: this belief is more common in Eastern Europe, and no, I absolutely don't like headcanons about "Russian Ilya". Also, I remember the Devs' speech: Jeff Goldblum is a reference for Julian. Who is Jeff Goldblum? A Jew. But his family was from Eastern Europe and there were so many Jewish towns. Nevivon looks like one of those towns. For example, the kitchen in Nevivon (*"the Warm Welcome") is divided into two areas: meat and dairy. What is this? The basic principle of kashrut. "But Julian was born near Nevivon"? Yes. But Tasya said (to the Lishka; again, definitely not "a common Russian name", "Lishka" sounds much more like something Czech) about the treasure that is only passed on through the female line. An elegant homage to a specifically Jewish cultural thing, iykwim.

Also, the whole image of Julian is a stereotypical Jewish image in European culture: he's redheaded, a doctor, a violinist*, etc. Sorry not sorry.

(*Technically he is a vielle player, but the vielle is a precursor of the violin. And: no, there have never been any vielle players in Russia, except the modern times, represented by rare baroque ensembles.)

Definitely not Russian, diminutives like "Ilyushka" are not specific to Russian language, Portia is not a common Russian name (neither are Pasha and Ilona, her mother). And... have you ever heard of, say, Antonín Dvořák, the famous Czech composer of the 19th century?

BTW, ApostleJay and I have a theory about Portia Devorak. Nothing special, we're just guessing about the reference: Portia, the female protagonist in "The Merchant of Venice". Why not, since the game itself has enough references to classical literature.

At last: I once saw a Julian-kinny boy here. And he said he wanted to learn Russian to be more like a Julian. Poor boy, if you ever see my speech, here is my unsolicited advice.

Please don't learn Russian to be more like Julian. Learn Yiddish. It will be much more in character.

(Czechia? Maybe Bohemia? I need Julian singing "Bohemian rhapsody", IMMEDIATELY!)

I can't post anything because I didn't draw in September and had an operation on my jaw. I'm fine, if someone want to know, but I don't know when I'll draw again, October is a month full of worries.

At the beginning of this year I had planned to draw 1 or 2 artworks per a month, but life has made its own adjustments. ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯

/© Lunatic Sun/

In the meantime, take a look at this picture. Absolutely Julian coded!