iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

Always has been 🔫🧑‍🚀

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

My dad read me The Hobbit as a bedtime story when I was a kid. I can't imagine him reading me LotR.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

I agree, it is fun! And I didn't think it affected scores much if at all — I won a match during a Fallout themed event and was later told my allusions to the FNV DLC "Dead Money" had gone completely over the judges' heads. My point being it's an appropriate thematic event.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

write a genre parody for my big chance at a championship, particularly if for something like Star Wars that I'm not deeply versed in beyond the OG Trilogy. Just to throw that out.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

Note: this, of course, excludes events like @xwf99.bsky.social 's May the Fourth where everyone is encouraged to write a Star Wars parody. That's a show gimmick. Probably not a great show for major title matches or feud blow-off matches tho. I'd be annoyed having to drop what I was doing and

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

Ultimately the Genre Parody isn't necessarily bad. It can be fun, creative, and clever. BUT it's tricky. The devil is in the details. Execution is everything. As an element of a RP there's limitless potential. As the RP on its own, it's got serious issues. Be thoughtful.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

What I mean by this: The more outlandish and caricatured or deliberately wild and off base, the more someone can say "clear satire of your character, shouldn't be taken seriously." The more "your character just in period clothes", the more godmoddy it starts feeling.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

And this is where things are fuzzy and gray. Because KJotRI *is not* Jonathan Bacchus, but he also *is*. And this is now thorny territory where players can get pissed and judges can feel caught in a rock and a hard place. Played to the point of absurdity, most will laugh, but when it's subtle?

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

Or he made him an absolute cretin or a sniveling coward. Or he wrote a long section of KJotRI getting the ever living shit kicked out of him by King Kieran or humiliated or whatever. You can probably see where the slippery slope is going. It's all fun and friendly until used maliciously.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

A badly written Genre Parody is a trick that allows a RPer to put words or actions in an opponent's character without consent. Most people don't mind when this is frivolous — I've never been bothered by Kieran having "King Jonathan of the Rascal Isles". But suppose he made KJotRI a Nazi.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

"Thinly veiled godmodding" There's two meanings, but for efedding's sake, we're only focusing on "using another player's character without permission". And one of the most overlooked elements of Genre Parody is how they skirt this with a veneer of fiction and satire.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

"Well what if the genre parody is a clear analogy for the match featuring a big battle with the foe?" This actually leads to...

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

But a *pure* Genre Parody doesn't do this because it's wholly focused upon a fantasy world. Bonecrusher's Western genre parody isn't about Bonecrusher — it's about Sheriff Bonecrusher. Is this persnickety? Maybe. But the distinction is important. The genre parody isn't rooted in anything.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

and through his fantasy, we could interpret it as the self-aggrandizing, self-mythologizing fantasy of a narcissistic wastrel. In his dreams, Kieran is a grand and cunning ruler. In reality, Kieran is a messy punk who couldn't be further from that. *This* is relevant. *This* is Kieran's psyche.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

@kieranfuking.bsky.social wrote a long running genre parody series seeing himself as a literal King and others in XWF as rival royalty in a "game of thrones". But Kieran paired this with "reality" — we saw the actual Kieran as a contrast. This made the genre parody sections fairly revealing to him

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

"Irrelevance" A pure Genre Parody isn't actually about the match. It isn't about the opponent or even about your character. It's not canon and doesn't actually give any insight on anyone, only fictional stand-ins inspired by these characters. Emphasis on "pure", as I have a counter example.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

Paired with more serious scrutiny of the opp, they're inoffensive. But as the *totality* of the RP, they're hardly worth considering as quality match relevance or genuine insight. They're essentially a Straw Man forgoing research in favor of pure amusement. A lovely box with no contents.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

"My opp is a boxer as a gimmick, so I'll write a Rocky satire." "My opp is a time traveler, so I'll write a Doctor Who parody." "My opp has a black beard, so I'll write a pirates RP." These are shallow to the point of only scraping the surface — "bio shoot" cousins (which I discuss later).

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

"Implied laziness/shallowness" A central part of writing an effective RP for efedding is demonstrating knowledge of the opponent and match preparedness. Typically this is done via a shoot which articulates a critique of the opponent. Bad Genre Parody substitutes this for CD aesthetics.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

So what's the issue? Why do they make the list? Genre Parody, in the hands of a bad writer, have a few major problematic elements: -Implied laziness/shallowness -Irrelevance -Thinly veiled godmodding. We'll go over each of these.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

This will be divisive as, for all the other tropes, this particular kind isn't *inherently* bad. I, myself, have written Genre Parody RPs. They're pretty damn fun when done well and a solid, fun idea for one-off events where a standard story isn't viable. @thesebempire.bsky.social does them well.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

If you join UCI, you get to beat me up, just saying

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Reposted by Bacchus (OOC)

Spencer Adams @badmonadams.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

// But really, come be part of our fed. The community is fucking dope.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 19/08/2026

Of course I immediately get busy. This resumes when I have time

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

#5 The Genre Parody You're against a guy, and you have no idea what to do. You don't know them well, but you know their gimmick is a soldier. And you *have* seen "All Quiet on the Western Front". What if you just did *that*? After all, entertainment über alles, yeah? Enter: The Genre Parody.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

TL;DR In efedding, romance should be a tool, not a genre. And even if a genre, it requires more than just romance. It's sugar. And nobody actually likes eating nothing but mouthfuls of pure sugar. And your sugar isn't different from other sugars unless mixed.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

Treat romance as a vehicle for exploring your character, not just a vehicle to write romance. If you just want to write some cutesy fluff, write it in a private doc you don't share. It's fine, we're all consenting adults here, no judgement. But for a competitive RP? That doesn't fly.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

At best, readers groan at HSWPP. At worst, they hate it and find it voyeuristic (if not feel like the writer is lowkey creepy). Because ultimately nobody but you cares about your character smooching if there isn't a reason for it. If I want that, I'll read Danielle Steel or Chuck Tingle

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

When writing romantic scenes, ask yourself the following question: "Is this scene furthering anything or is it just a scene?" Is something important discussed? Is there any revelation? Do we learn more about the characters? Or is it CD for the sake of CD?

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

Lack of tension or disagreement or conflict is emotionally hollow. It's surface level. And unless you're an incredibly talented or clever writer, surface level is dull because there's no meat for us, the audience, to sink our teeth into. We love characters through knowing them.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

That's not to say there's no room for shipping or romance in efedding. I write romance plenty. But interesting romance is difficult and requires dynamics and chemistry, which require minor conflict either between the characters or them against an adversary.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

Why is this bad? It's boring for a reader. It's been written just for the writer to showcase a romance (or friendship) with no depth. It's kissing and cuddling or it's just fluff dialogue. In short, if there's no conflict, nothing is happening. It's just sort of indulgent.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

This is a bad trope because nothing is actually accomplished for the story. If there's any emotional storm clouds, they're fleeting — assuaged by a shoulder rub and a pep talk. But usually there isn't even that. A true HSWPP isn't relevant to the match or story. It's just feel-good.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

HSWPP is exactly what it sounds like: a cute little scene of bonding where everyone is just having a gay ol' time without a care in the world. Often it's romantic but doesn't *need* to be. It doesn't even have to be a picnic — two guys at the bar talking sports is still HSWPP.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

With no conflict, a scene just exists. It doesn't really drive the plot, it's just a slice of life. A good writer can tell us a lot with this and maybe even drive internal conflict or have it be subtext. But what if someone doesn't even want that? Just domestic bliss? That's where HSWPP happens

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

#4 Hallmark Smiling White People Picnic (Yes I mixed two up) RPing of any medium will have people ship their characters, sometimes with other players, sometimes NPCs. And in shipping, people tend to shy from conflict. This is escape, right? The problem: conflict drives stories.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

If you go there — yes, you — you will deserve exactly what you get.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 16/08/2026

Eh, this wasn't good faith apologia. It was "Guess what Reddit, 70-80% of Americans agree on this, you're all in a liberal echo chamber."

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 16/08/2026

Yep, can't use the IC account

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 16/08/2026

unfortunately, the rest of that thread is an absolute waste dump of transphobia apologia.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

This wasn't inspired by any particular individual, don't worry. That said, this is why I like Bsky — it's quieter

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

Your RP lost because it didn't begin with the ritualistic invocation of the muse.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

It's very easy for this hobby to not be fun, huh

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

Just write. If your opponent posts before you, don't read it. Don't have your friends read it. Just knuckle down. Because if you read them, it *will* get in your ahead and affect your work. And it always noticeably sucks more than your work would've been.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

In an old fed I was in, there was a guy notorious for response shooting and winning. So what happened? When folks faced him, they started waiting until seconds before deadline to post. And that wasn't fun for anyone. It created a strategy which shouldn't exist in efedding.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

Shoot is a demonstration of your knowledge on an opponent. It's a show of research and comprehension of their psychology. Response shooting eschews this for lazy defense. Just don't ever fucking do it. It's insulting to your opponent. It's bad sportsmanship. It's metagaming.

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

A savvy writer should have a sense of their opponent. A savvy enough writer can even *get ahead* of their opponent. The converse is that posting 1st can be beneficial if you've got the foresight — I've seen shoots where I've thought "this would look like response posted 2nd". Posted 1st? Oh fuck

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Bacchus (OOC) @vliooc.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

Because Person A now can respond to your response. In back-and-forth formats? It's actually not an issue and basically the intention. But in a one-on-one, allowing this will lead to resentment among fedders and eventual drama. It's flat-out poor sportsmanship.

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