June 2022
- Junelezen 1 - Introduction
- Junelezen 2 - Calamity
- Junelezen 3 - A Realm Reborn
- Junelezen 4 - History Repeating
- Junelezen 5 - Eorzea Defended
- Junelezen 6 - Dreams of Ice
- Junelezen 7 - Warrior of Light
- Hoppy New Friend
- Happy Hippo
- Junelezen 8 - Heavensward
- Junelezen 9 - Floor the Horde
- Arkasodara
- Junelezen 10 - Gaol Break
- Junelezen 11 - Orthodox Mayhem
- Scribble Pop Crystal Art Party
- Little Hippos!
- Junelezen 12 - Five Minutes of Fate
- Junelezen 13 - Stormblood
- Junelezen 14 - Crimson Footprints
- How to Emoji?
- Junelezen 15 - Solar Cycle
- Junelezen 16 - Lunar Cycle
- Junelezen 17 - More Heroes
- Junelezen 18 - Shadowbringers
- Junelezen 19 - Between Two Worlds
- Junelezen 20 - Paradise Found
- Junelezen 21 - Uncanny Valley
- Junelezen 22 - Journey to the Past
- Junelezen 23 - Warden of Light
- Hippo Cart By The Sea
- Junelezen 24 - Endwalker
- Junelezen 25 - Rise Up Through the Night
- Junelezen 26 - Divine Intervention
- Junelezen 27 - On Wings of Hope
- Four Years of Mummery!
- Junelezen 28 - Carrying Our Song
- Collection
- New Threads
- Junelezen 29 - Fast Within Your Arms
- Junelezen 30 - New Adventure
Junelezen 1 - Introduction
Posted on: June 1, 2022
While I’ll do my best to fit prompts to Amon, he’s no current WoL - nor are any of the characters I write. Some of the WoL-type prompts don’t fit him so well… so let me introduce the three possible Elezen I might choose from this month: Amon, Tad and Ben!
Junelezen 2 - Calamity
Posted on: June 2, 2022
Those who survive a calamity must live with the aftermath.
It always pains Amon to see what’s become of his once-home - what he considers the desolation of Mor Dhona.
Junelezen 3 - A Realm Reborn
Posted on: June 3, 2022
Amon's realm was reborn after his fall in Syrcus Tower, whereupon he found himself in Gridania with nothing but the (rather unfashionable) clothes on his back. In this new life, he found had to earn everything without the aid of his old position, technology or magic.
Junelezen 4 - History Repeating
Posted on: June 4, 2022
“Why do I feel like I’ve seen this all before… in my dreams?”
I embrace the canon in which my Amon has had dreams of being Hermes in Elpis - and has likely has dreams of the first End of Days.
Ironically enough, in the very first chapter I wrote of Spot of Mummery back in 2018, Amon also suffered with vivid dreams - though in my story, they were of Xande and Allag. It fits too well, and it’s neat to explore.
Junelezen 5 - Eorzea Defended
Posted on: June 5, 2022
Amon hasn't quite gotten into the "defend Eorzea" mentality yet - maybe one day - so have my main, Benjamin instead!
While he’s not the WoL, I’m sure he’s crossed paths with them before, and likely provided assistance where he could.
Ben’s known as that strange phenomenon that tends to pop up in places when there’s a need. He’s also known as someone who finds a way to (gently) get positive results, so he’s sometimes called upon by Grand Companies to assist with things - such as watching over wayward Allagans who could stumble into trouble.
No one knows his motivations or why he’s there to help - Ben just is Ben. :)
Junelezen 6 - Dreams of Ice
Posted on: June 6, 2022
My Amon doesn't really have connections to Shiva that I could think of, but he does have Glass Dance, the Blue Mage skill you cap from her!
Junelezen 7 - Warrior of Light
Posted on: June 7, 2022
Tad is my Azem/WoL but from the Allagan age. He didn't discover he was the WoL until after the Calamity of Earth, however. He's still not so sure what to think of it all.
Junelezen 8 - Heavensward
Posted on: June 8, 2022
I couldn't think of anything Amon-related for this prompt, so have an annual pic of him and his Pegasus friend flying heavens ward. :)
Junelezen 10 - Gaol Break
Posted on: June 10, 2022
There was once a time when Amon was prohibited from going to Mor Dhona or anywhere near the Crystal Tower by the Gridania Council. Of course, he'd try to sneak out there for his own business - and sometimes he got caught red handed.
This doesn't happen anymore, but it's the closet thing to a gaol break I could think of when it came to Amon.
Junelezen 11 - Orthodox Mayhem
Posted on: June 11, 2022
Who thought it was a good idea to give Amon access to the alchemy stations in Radz-at-Han?
Scribble Pop Crystal Art Party
Posted on: June 12, 2022
It's been a while since I've visited an art party. Had a fun night!
Featuring @palastel and @popotocrate.
Junelezen 12 - Five Minutes of Fate
Posted on: June 12, 2022
Amon finally gains access to Syrcus Tower (coming soon). What he chooses to do with it in those first five minutes determines his fate.
Junelezen 13 - Stormblood
Posted on: June 13, 2022
Stormblood always reminds me of red and fire (probably because of the loading screen logo). So have Tad burning all the things!
Junelezen 14 - Crimson Footprints
Posted on: June 14, 2022
Leaving his mark on the world for better or worse.
How to Emoji?
Posted on: June 14, 2022
The official FFXIV English Twitter account was inherited by Tweetingway today. Teaching Tweetingway to use emoji might be Amon's most diabolical plan ever.
Junelezen 16 - Lunar Cycle
Posted on: June 16, 2022
There's only one mysterious Lunar Elezen on my roster. :)
Junelezen 19 - Between Two Worlds
Posted on: June 19, 2022
Though I haven't written the story of Amon going to the First - yet! - it is coming soon! Soon as in trying to do it next week.
Amon sometimes finds himself struggling to choose between the First - which is a realization of all the hopes that Syrcus Tower represents and a place where the Allagans don't have such a bad wrap - and the Source - where Amon is not as welcome due to his history and the whole Fandaniel thing.
It's easier for him to live his fantasy life in the First where no one knows the stories of Amon of Allag. But his real home is the Source, and he can't deny that either. It's quite a conflict.
Junelezen 20 - Paradise Found
Posted on: June 20, 2022
A world in which the Crystal Tower stands at the center of civilization with a city built at its feet? Not Allag, but the closest thing to it. Paradise found.
Junelezen 21 - Uncanny Valley
Posted on: June 21, 2022
When you find a "clone" of your clone - in the Gold Saucer, no less.
My FC has an ongoing joke about the rude Elezen in the Gold Saucer near to Masked Rose and how much he looks like Amon.
So rude - trying to take up the whole bench!
Junelezen 23 - Warden of Light
Posted on: June 23, 2022
Sorry, Amon. That doesn't make you a Warden of Light.
Junelezen 25 - Rise Up Through the Night
Posted on: June 25, 2022
This is not based on a true story, but it sure made for a fun shot!
Junelezen 26 - Divine Intervention
Posted on: June 26, 2022
Amon may not always appreciate his younger cousin's involvement, but Tad is truly a vehicle of divine intervention.
Junelezen 27 - On Wings of Hope
Posted on: June 27, 2022
Sometimes, Amon's a healer. Unless it's PVP - then it's White Mage laser-blasts for life! :)
Four Years of Mummery!
Posted on: June 27, 2022
It was four years ago today that I chose Amon as my FFXIV role play character and launched the creative project that would become Spot of Mummery. While it originally started out on the Tumblr platform, the content is now in the process of being hosted on my own personal website – a project I began undertaking last year.
In older anniversary posts (Year 1) (Year 2) (Year3) I talked about the fact that RP with Amon didn’t start out so smoothly. In fact, the first attempt at writing a Tumblr for him failed and I almost deleted the character because I thought I’d probably never use him for anything.
Endwalker Lore Bomb!
This past year has been an interesting one due to changes in canon and lore developed by FFXIV – this is always a risk you run when you write for an NPC, of course. But if four years ago, you’d told me that the mid-boss NPC I’d picked to RP would have a backstory associated with both Ascians and the Ancients, I probably would have laughed.
After all, when Spot of Mummery began, Crystal Tower wasn’t even a required raid for MSQ. In fact, most people I interacted with as Amon didn’t know who he was because they’d never stepped foot in Syrcus Tower! I fondly recall helping a number of them unlock the raid and run it the first time just because folks wanted to give Amon a beatdown. :)
That being said, I had a pretty strong emotional reaction when Endwalker dropped a lore bomb on the character I’ve been lovingly developing for three and a half years at that point. I wasn’t sure what to do about it at first – but thankfully a number of folks approached me with concern and encouragement, and I was able to find some work-arounds that allowed me to squish my story into the cracks of lore in a more or less acceptable way.
Forging Ahead & Journaling
I’m really excited that after four years, Amon has finally reached the First and has access to the Tower in the Forge Ahead storyline. Having Amon make connections in the First has been in the plans for many years, and will help to continue his development in new ways.
I want to try to encourage myself to write more in the future, and so I’ve decided to find a fresh new spot with a blank slate. I’ve started a Journal of the First for Amon on Dreamwidth.
Dreamwidth is no Tumblr, and that’s absolutely fine with me. I’d like to spend more time writing and less time scrolling or being distracted by things associated with social media. Going back to an oldskool Live Journal type environment will hopefully let me clear my mind and think more about the creation process.
While I still want to write the Forge Ahead main story, I’m hoping that approaching content from a smaller-scale journal posting format will encourage more consistent writing. Of course, all of the journal writing will be added to the archive on the main website as well.
About Tumblr Specifically
With Tumblr, I struggle with a like-dislike relationship that I consider quite often. I’m fond of a number of folks there, but have had my scrapes and unwanted drama with a couple folks that tend to sour the platform for me. I won’t go into much more detail on that, but it’s a reason I’ll likely be easing off posting at Tumblr going forward.
Tumblr also doesn’t work all that well for me in a technical sense anymore – the sheer amount of filtering I have to use just to get a satisfactory content experience causes the site to drag, sputter and often refuse to load. Sometimes just clicking the like button on a post takes three tries. Not to mention we’ve seen cases of individuals who have had their Tumblr blogs deleted for no true reason as of late, which does not instill confidence.
So that tells me that it’s probably time to move on for good when the site itself can’t serve up the content I want to see without heavy filtering that causes lag. I’m a bit sad to leave behind some of the connections I’ve made over the years that I can’t find in other places, but I guess that’s the nature of social media.
On To Other Adventures!
As I move original Tumblr content month-by-month, the main website will remain the home of the Spot of Mummery story and project going forward. For a while, I tried to build a WordPress account, but given the changes WordPress.com is making to their packages, I’ve decided against that. I’d prefer to own my own content, and building my own site is the best way to do that.
I also have a Pillowfort for Amon, but the platform still has trouble keeping FFXIV community interest even though it’s ripe for the sharing there. I’m going to keep trying to support it, though, because I like what it’s trying to do.
Twitter has been a strong source of interaction with folks for the past couple years – Amon’s account just broke 2,000 followers, which is crazy to me. I foresee it as being the social media outlet for this project going forward.
Aside from that, I’ve been posting images at Instagram – though I haven’t been super active in the community there. I’ve been trying to build up some archived galleries at DeviantArt as well, though with all the work on the blog moving, I’m inconsistent at posting there.
I’m hoping in the next few months that I can get the original blog content completely moved to the main site. And from there, who knows what’s next!
Journaling for sure!
Thanks again for anyone who’s been along this ride for all these years. It means so much that people enjoy interacting with and reading about my version of Amon.
Until next year – take care! ♩♪♫♬
Collection
Posted on: June 28, 2022
I finally got a proper case for my collection. They didn't all fit in there, but I'm still pleased.
Junelezen 29 - Fast Within Your Arms
Posted on: June 29, 2022
You knew I had to have an Amon/Scylla picture somewhere in this month.
Junelezen 30 - New Adventure
Posted on: June 30, 2022
While most have already explored the First, Amon has just arrived there in his story. Time for a new adventure!