#the hex

So, that was something. I think what's most striking to me is the difference in quality between the KIM chat and everything else surrounding the chat. For the amount of effort and detail that obviously got put into the F&F characters, the setting and the vibes of the update, I was pretty surprised by how little F&F play was actually in the campaign chat.

I was excited when it looked like they would lean into the KIM system, and envisioned maybe some one-off chats with Amir as the Fablemaster. Or, perhaps, some group chats where the party tries to scheme without the Fablemaster having eyes on things. The KIM system provides a really neat platform for storytelling, and yet it felt like it was given barely any thought.

Lastly, Amir's characterization was just strange. Drifter and Amir have had some pretty intense conversations about trauma and fears, and for Amir to use what is obviously one of Drifter's darkest traumas as the basis for a cartoonish villain in a tabletop game feels very OOC. And then to put that little jab at the end about Amir not actually liking being a Fablemaster? After how excited he was when you get everyone to play? After he put that little one-off together for Drifter? After people reset their games to try to ensure they got all the Hex members to join the game? That almost felt like DE saying, "Don't expect anymore of this."

So it's not a surprise to me that Amir is the first to start cracking. As a speedster, he probably perceives time and the world around him move at a snails pace. The loops subject him to endless monotony, when his mind craves constant stimulation.

kraken honorary fol member. chandrelle's mug under the cut because itd be misogynistic to silence her that way

I love how much attention to detail went into these. The STACK of candy and coloured markers Aoi brought, Quincy's dice tower and the direction the chair faces showing us how he usually sits, the comical amount of coffee cups around Lettie's area and one of her pet mice sitting in the mimic figurine, the way Arthur has his dice lined up in a neat orderly line and being a heavy drinker as evidenced by the empty beer bottles under his seat, Eleanor's little dice tray and how her note-taking pens + pad sit on her left implying she's left handed, the empty character sheet with the lotus origami which I have to assume is the Drifter's.

And of course, a peak at the DM's screen 👀

Like they didn't need to do all this. They could've just given everyone the same generic scattered dice asset with pens sitting in the same spot next to their character sheets, but instead it's quite personalized. There's so much about the Hex you can glean simply from how their personal space is arranged. And all this to say, these are biomechanical supes who decided to be a little whimsical and sit down to play the in-universe equivalent of DnD because one of their friends asked them to.

Arthur being his typical grumpy self yelling to get of the comms.

Eleanor talks about loving yourself and if you don’t she will unhappy.

Lettie cooks dinner and yells out to come get dinner too Amir, he squee’s in joy.

Quincy leaves a supporting like message for us that the hex support us no matter where we are in the future, present or past.