Welcome one, welcome all, to the Moonstone! Please enjoy today's special, Pumpkin Ghoul Pie with, may I suggest, a cup of Franken Spice Coffee while I do my best to entertain you with tonight's story.
This issue covers September 2024 and includes the Community Design Contest, various Collections, and more. We also feature interviews with content creators MortuaryDarling and KMD, delving into their personal and creative journeys. Additionally, we highlight the contributions of community artists and enthusiasts, showcasing their dedication to Dead by Daylight. In Edition 3, a blue gleam shines from a dark basement... Mikaela Reid has been chosen as the spotlight! Various community artists and lore enthusiasts pay homage to her throughout the newsletter.
NEW CONTENT OVERVIEW
WHAT EVERY ARTIST IN THE COMMUNITY WAITS FOR ALL YEAR!
The Design a Cosmetic Contest is BACK and we've gotten another peek into the wonderfully creative minds and ideas of Dead by Daylight players!
This year, the Devs have upped the amount of winners to three (3) per category which then brings us to TEN (10) finalists to be voted on by players. This is a new system of choosing which community created cosmetics appear in the game.
With that being said, let's take a look at the finalists!
Which ones will be coming to a Realm near you?
- SURVIVOR OUTFITS -
Design by luvrev
Design by razz_pazazz
Design by Fairy Kun
Design by luvrev
- KILLER OUTFITS -
Design By Ivana Krovinova
Design By urouroutsuro
Design By Bernardo Balladares
Design By Ivana Krovinova
- BADGES -
Design by Yuki Yamato
Design by rayasunshiney
Design by Melissa Jokela
Design by Yuki Yamato
- BANNERS -
Design by DatWashi
Design by elf
Design by Lee
Design by DatWashi
"So... a little intermission here - right at the start, I know... but still! The High Priestess Adiris has demanded that we showcase the designs that didn't quite make it to voting. So take a look at the gallery below and make sure to show these artists some love!" ~ Azula.
By @14rynx
By @wyrmze
by @SaturnsNebula01
By @14rynx
And hey, while you're here, check out this amazing Music Concept For SAW Chapter 2 for Saw II, by Alex Wyng! It features “The Detective” Mark Hoffman as the killer and Peter Strahm as the survivor!
OKAY, now that seems to be all of the new content covered! Let's move on to th-
WAIT, WHAT'S THAT???
HADDIE KAUR - FLOWER OF LIFE
After the contest, Behaviour revealed they had a finalist spot chosen for Haddie Kaur! Though, it had to be passed up on when they couldn't contact the artist. A couple days later, they posted to their socials looking for the artist!
and... THE ARTIST WAS FOUND! This beautiful concept is by TracyRezn1k on TikTok and the best part is... it is now CONFIRMED to be coming to the game.
It will be officially implemented later on through a collection similar to Artists of the Fog.
Way to go Haddie Hive on the quick search!
Perks and you
So, I originally started making icons for the Zero Escape franchise as a one-off because I wanted to make an icon for Zero-III, but then that spiraled into an entire project where I made an entire set. I still wanted to make more so I went down the list of games I'd really really liked and had some personal attachment to. Binding of Isaac was the next obvious choice because of my other notable projects, but then Darkest Dungeon, LISA, Prey, and finally Disco Elysium came down the line as well. All of them came from pure motivation. If I think of an idea and I like it, the piece will turn out great and in record time. The downside however, is that if I'm not feeling a piece I struggle really, really bad. This became mostly notable in the Isaac and Darkest Dungeon packs since they were so big, losing motivation made some icons hell to work on. I think if I'd paced myself better then I wouldn't have had that issue, but that's way easier to say looking back on things. The three final sets I'd made, Prey, LISA, and Disco Elysium were all filled with pieces I'm still proud of because I kept the load small, I didn't overload myself with work from my early planning phase and I was OK with cutting plans that I wasn't feeling anymore.
Of course, the process of making icons is something I'd describe as chiseling. First I make a sketch, then I sketch over it to try and make it more "dbd" if possible. Then the most important part, I put down the white space over the entire diamond canvas and begin to erase bits and pieces until I've got the sketch replicated in shape and linework. The rest of the time was a long process of tampering with lines, adding scratches, and making lots of edits to make it readable at a smaller scale.
The three pieces of advice I'd give to beginner artists in this scene:
Keep your workloads smaller and feel free to cut pieces you don't want to make anymore. The first few times you're trying a style it may not be up to your expectations, but keep trying it and keep learning and you'll begin making pieces you're proud of.
The start is always the hardest part. Make sure that if a perk has tokens or a timer or deactivates at all that you keep that in consideration when making the perk.
You do NOT want the perk to go outside the bounds of the frame if it can turn off and you always want tokens to be visible.
Written by @Fiend173
Eyrie of Crows
A small selection of some amazing art made by the community! Picked by the inky hands of the Artist herself.
Be sure to send them some love!
By Rubyray
By @yasuyukisat
By @bluerainni
By @ailisolren
By @hexmoondrop
By @Jelliottie
By @Antheia3D
By @corvophobia
By @MarsoArt
MIKAELA REID | LORE DIVE
Mikaela Reid is an anomaly. As time has gone on, new original Survivors have tended to be related more directly to their Killers. From Jeff and Yun-Jin who knew their Killers personally to Élodie uncovering the skull of the Twins’ mother centuries after her death, the stories of the two have only gotten closer… and then we have Mikaela, who was released with no Killer at all. The Entity's world was becoming more filled-out than ever as the emergent threat of the Black Vale crept into every new release, and then quite out of nowhere between two licensed Chapters, we got someone who was by all accounts fairly normal, at least until her Tome came out.
Mikaela isn't given a tragic backstory full of Entity manipulation; she grew up in a small American town we learned later was Greenville and spends her time hand-making body products and herbal remedies when she's not working at the Moonstone coffee shop. Her backstory is relatable almost to a fault: the struggle of the young professional to escape the service industry and become independent and self-employed is emblematic of the story of many, many young millennials, the kind of people who make up much of DBD’s audience. This made it very easy for her to accrue a dedicated group of fans who relate to her story and it helped a casual reader start to care about what happened next; when the Entity came to call.
When Mikaela began having a series of worryingly vivid nightmares, she and Julian hatched a plan. He watched her while she slept until a dark fog coalesced and the two found themselves fighting for their lives against an unseen force… and then it stopped, vanishing into the gloom as if it was never there. Mikaela wanted to review the footage Julian had recorded but before she got the chance, Julian simply vanished without a trace. The darkness was closing on her, but she was undeterred. He’d be fine, right? Maybe he’d be at the Moonstone tonight, stop worrying so much. She took to the stage at the Moonstone Cafe on their Halloween story night and… well, you know the rest.
Even from Day 1, Mikaela was someone who didn’t have their life together yet, whose irrepressible creativity allowed a side hustle to graduate into a new job and who used horror stories to cathartically escape the safe but somewhat mundane world of Greenville, and even though the trappings of a Tik Tok witch were definitely divisive it’s hard to argue Mikaela didn’t resonate with a lot of people to make her by far the most popular original Survivor of her time.
Then we got her Tome story, and things started to get really interesting.
Mikaela’s Tome zeroed in on what was, in my opinion, the best part of her lore: her time writing horror stories alongside her best friend. (To be clear I’m talking about Julian here, not the other best friend she got a couple of years later who sprouted up from the concrete with no mention of her in any of Mikaela’s stories before.) It has been established for years that people sensitive to the Entity’s presence, or who live in areas where the Entity’s realm bleeds through into the physical world, can receive visions from the Entity’s world or from other universes altogether, which their brain might translate into stories, dreams or hallucinations. Many characters in Dead by Daylight can perceive these overlaps: Haddie Kaur and Carmina Mora both unlocked this power through severe emotional trauma, but true to Mikaela’s lighter tone her Tome turns this eerie otherworldly power into just another part of her mundane life. She does not run away from the Entity’s horror that visits her in her dreams, but chooses instead to run towards it, as a strange, almost cathartic escape from normal life at the Moonstone and as inspiration for the horror stories she writes in her spare time. She saw the Trials first hand, seeing the suffering of the Survivors and the savagery of the Killers, and she saw not a bloodcurdling horror that makes you run under the bed and hide, but a thrilling adventure and a chance to see interesting new people in life or death situations… much like we, the players, do every day when we boot this game up.
More than most Survivors in recent years, Mikaela was built from the ground up to be relatable to a large chunk of players, and judging by her exceptional popularity that plan seemed to have worked. Her story kind of has something for everyone: people who engage with Dead by Daylight’s cosmic lore can enjoy how she perceives the overlaps and her direct brush with the Entity, but even if you don’t care about that stuff you’re still left with a fun and relatively low-stakes character who doesn’t need to relate explicitly to any Killer to be charming and worth rooting for.
We don’t always need complex relationships and a Pepe Silvia diagram of multiversal connections to make a good character; Mikaela shows us that all we need is a story worth reading.
Written by @PixelbushYT
"I didn’t need to set out searching, because almost as soon as I had entered the building, so had two others. Both men, whose names I came to know as David King and Dwight Fairfax...or Fairweather. Or something. The men seemed to know each other and, lucky for me, they seemed to be more familiar with the set-up of the building than I was. They’d been here before."
Some years ago, an acclaimed documentary filmmaker disappeared from Hellshire Penitentiary here in Nebraska. There were no eyewitnesses, and no evidence left behind – save for an old, broken dictaphone. Although this dictaphone cannot record audio or even switch-on, recently, it has started to play back macabre recordings of mysterious tales from some unholy realm. These tales are something akin to murder mysteries, only ‘murder’ seems to be the least mysterious thing about them. Apparently, the voice on the dictaphone is that of the same filmmaker who disappeared from Hellshire all those years ago. I have taken to transcribing her words in hopes that I will one day find a way to help her. These are her stories.
These are the Zarina Kassir Mysteries.
[CONFIDENTIAL]
This document is to be viewed by no one but the top council members: Riley, J., Alexander, B., Wesley, C., and Tye, D. Failure to adhere to this warning will result in immediate termination of position, and immediate incarceration in solitary confinement. Furthermore, if the contents of this document are shared, the perpetrator is to be sentenced to death, effective immediately.
“I’m scared to go outside,” writes one homeowner online. “A group of teens was found dead in my sewers! They were staying together for Christmas break, and now they’re gone. How am I expected to sit here and relax when numbers don’t do anything?!”
“Horrible, just horrible,” writes a retail worker at DogDay Saloon. “I have to walk to a neighboring store to use the bathroom because ‘the customers come first, and we shouldn’t put our needs above them.’ Well, I sure as hell ain’t going to walk out there at night!” The building outrage has led to the formation of a new neighborhood watch.
“It is not about taking money or privacy away from people, and I want to make it clear, our intentions are peaceful,” says Doug Daniels, a member of the watch. “People want to feel safe in their homes, and it has been made increasingly evident that the police aren’t helping with that.” Daniels routinely goes on hikes for fun, but the recent incidents have raised concerns for his well being. “My girlfriend, she calls me occasionally just to make sure I answer the phone. Sometimes she doesn’t even say anything, she just listens to me before saying ‘I wanted to make sure you were home.’” The local parks have been closed to the public, and a mandatory curfew has been put into effect. These measures, although well intentioned, have posed issues for young adults who feel as if they are missing out on life.
- CREATOR SPOTLIGHT -
KMD
A personality core that plays Dead by Daylight and rambles about it online he/him, polish, hi!!!
Do you think it’s important to switch up content for your audience? I think some variety could always bring in some fresh air to your platform, but it's very important to consider one thing: If the variety video/stream/whatever blows up, will I be willing to create more content similar to it? If not, you probably should not do that, as that will trap you in a content bubble for probably the rest of your career.
What is the biggest challenge in remaining consistent? Definitely trying to balance out my real-life career pursuit, social life, family relations and the channel, alongside keeping my mental health in check. My ADHD isn't really helping me out with this either, as sometimes I just physically cannot force myself to go live or to write a script/bulletpoints.
What do you think you excel at - whether it be quietly or loudly? I think that I am excelling at keeping my socials nice and clean. I really like keeping all of the little columns in profile settings filled and up to date, and going through settings to make them look and work the best they can. Other than that, I can appreciate myself for how much I learned with over 4 years of experience in content creation.
What does a day-to-day look like for you? Since DBD has a lot of topics and news every week, around 12pm I sit down and write down some bullet points about the topic I want to discuss, doing my best to share my opinion while also providing some comedic value. Scripted videos take from a few days to a month to complete. A stream day looks like most of my other days, since I set up my stream like, 15 minutes before it's supposed to start. I always forget to put TTV in my name 😭. My concept creative process is explained in my concept segment.
Are there any other areas of content creation you would like to branch into? I would LOVE to be more consistent on YT Shorts and TikTok, but whenever I bring myself to create some of them, I give up after the next stream. 😅
What is a fun fact your audience may not know about you already? I have a second channel! It's called CrimeNet Archive, and it focuses about the lore of the Payday franchise. I also want to become a composer for video games in the future. For now I've created some fan-tracks for Dead by Daylight and Payday.
How do you feel you have impacted the community? I think I have definitely influenced the community in awareness about Portal's potential for a DBD chapter. Portal, especially the first game, is a horror IP and I will die on this hill.
How do your relatives and friends feel about this job? Most of my family has an attitude of "that seems like a cool hobby" I think. However, I can't appreciate enough how supportive my older sister is. I remember how one time she asked about my socials and gave me some words of advice, as she had a succesful YouTube channel before. She was also really helpful with finding my thumbnail style, since she has experience in graphic design!
What is your dream collaboration for Dead by Daylight? Looking at my channel branding and my most viewed video, it's pretty obvious that my dream license is Adam Sandler's Eight Crazy Nights...
It's Portal. Of course it's Portal. I have made it very public that if GLaDOS comes to the game, I will be striving to become "that GLaDOS main".
I am also really angry that it got replaced on the license survey.
By Teletubbies. TELETUBBIES.
Alongside their interview, KMD was given a speed
round of WOULD YOU RATHER questions.
What will they choose? Let's find out!
Find yourself in HADDONFIELD or BADHAM?
KMD: "Considering that in one of these places I wouldn't be safe in my sleep, I think Haddonfield would be a much safer place. Also, The Shape is the arguably worst killer in the game, so... I possibly could survive! If he doesn't have tombstone..."
ESCAPE from THE NEMESIS or THE MASTERMIND?
KMD: "As much as I find Wesker fun to face, Nemesis looks silly if he misses a tentacle. Also, he is a joke in RE3make, so Nemesis it is."
BE IN A DIRE SITUATION WITH THALITA or RENATO?
KMD: "Based on the skill level gap between Renato and Thalita mains... I'll take Renato."
MAKE USE OF SHADOWSTEP or CIRCLE OF HEALING?
KMD: "Shadow Step actually affects how a chase could play out and is a priority to take out whenever a Survivor runs into it, so I would definitely use this compared to the sad state CoH is in."
PICK FLOWERS WITH CHARLOTTE AND VICTOR or WATCH CARTOONS WITH THE HILLBILLY?
KMD: "I am a big cartoon guy and Max definitely needs some company."
So the order of my work in creating concepts depends on what exactly I am “concepting” on. If I theoretically was to create an original killer, I focus on the power first and foremost before any kind of design draft. If I am making a licensed killer (so like, most of the time-), I either do a rewatch of their source material and do a quick research on the wiki. I personally try to stick a bit more niche properties, because I personally feel like the less popular or hyped a license is, the more you can come up with, or at least more rewarding it feels when you finish.
For me, when creating a power, accuracy to the source material is first, and strength is second. I will use GLaDOS here as an example. She is known mostly for her use of neurotoxin, and her secondary lethal option is the turrets, so I tried my best to include it in her kit. Due to the fact that in the Portal games turrets take a short while to kill you, I decided that they will work similarly to The Trickster's Laceration, injuring you after being fired upon for 6 seconds, which rewards placing turrets in loops to block off one side of a tile. To scale her power level after finishing the draft of the turret section, I gave Survivors a Marked state after getting shot by a turret, in which doing any interaction reveals them with Killer Instinct, which can be removed by staying healthy for half a minute or getting hooked.
Neurotoxin was a bit tougher, since it takes way too long to kill the player in Portal. I decided to create something similar to The Skull Merchant's (Rest in Peace my beloved) Drones. Getting sprayed 10 times causes an injury, neurotoxin gas clouds slow you down, and the Hinder increases with every spray before resetting the value at 10 sprays. It's a more violent version of Clown with Skerchant mechanics.
When creating perks, I ask myself two questions:
-
What do I feel is missing from the perk library? What kind of perk would I run, but cannot?
-
What is the main theme of my character that I could convey in the perk design?
-
What is currently annoying me in public matches?
Both Portal 1's and GLaDOS’ main themes are control, helplessness and manipulation, so I decided to convey that in their perks.
Perfect Creation was made because I felt that we don't really have perks made purely to support other perks besides Undying. The first draft of it was gaining value out of basic attacks, but realizing that killers like The Wraith exist in the game, I decided to make it so that any way of injuring a Survivor besides an M1 gives you value, so for example, Deep Wound bleed outs or grabs count.
We all know that items are really strong and can turn a guaranteed win into a loss. Hex: Loss Aversion was made to mitigate that. It balances out a big repair speed penalty by being a hex, and being easily countered by letting go of your item during repairs. It used to apply the penalty to everyone, even if they are not holding their items, but they teammates are, but decided to change it, so it doesn't encourage griefing.
I was always fascinated by the idea of False Generators, and since GLaDOS is known for lying a lot, creating False Generator: Fabrication was a must in my eyes. It encourages spreading out on Generators and progressing them together, punishing stacking on them by applying a tremendous amount of regression.
Add-ons are take it or leave it. I prefer to not make them since I see it as a bit boring, has no point for me, since you can't actually play the character and not many people care about seeing them in concepts anyway.
Whenever I finish up the meritoric part of the concept, I reach out to WheatDraws to commission icons and to possible voice actors for the narrator.
Thank you so much for reading this little segment. If you enjoyed this section, make sure to check out my concepts over on YouTube. The next one is going to be very, very interesting.
HEX & BOON CANDLES
Hi my name's Terrence and I make candles! I've played Dead by Daylight since 2020, and about four months ago I had the idea to create candles inspired by the magic of DBD. So the only name that would make sense for my business would be Hex & Boon!
The wax I use is a soy blend with rapseed and mineral wax, although I am trying to transition to a blend of soy, coconut and beeswax! I use cotton wicks, and for the whipped candles I whisk soy wax until it fluffs and then ice them with a piping bag and nozzle. Once finished, all of my candles cure for at least 7 days to maximise the fragrance throw.
Since the beginning I had the visions in my mind that I would start with three whipped candles inspired by a Hex, Boon and an Invocation. However my skills at the start weren't great and so they did look terrible! But I've worked hard for many months, and the candles you see today are exactly how I envisioned them to be.
CHAPTER ONE: DEVOUR
It was difficult at first to pick the names of the candles as there are lots of hex and boon perks that exist. For my first hex candle, I went with Devour because that word alone tells a story of destruction and darkness. This candle is scented with tonka and tobacco, giving it a rich and spicy aroma.
CHAPTER TWO: CIRCLE OF HEALING
For the boon candle, Circle of Healing was the standout from the beginning. With destruction comes healing, and I wanted to make a candle that's the opposite of Devour. This candle smells like a spa with notes of pine, eucalyptus, jasmine, woods and amber. It really does smell like a relaxing spa, and something I hope Mikaela Reid would be proud of!
CHAPTER THREE: INVOCATION
Then we have the Invocation candle. Like the powers of Sable Ward herself, I wanted to create a mysterious scented candle which was alluring and enigmatic. The design is inspired by Sable, with the golden eye reminiscent of the one on her mug. This one smells like incense, specifically Nag Champa, with notes of frangipani, lily and orange flower onto a woody base of sandalwood, patchouli, musk and vanilla.
In addition to the whipped candles, I also created a crystal candle collection inspired by the totems of DBD themselves. I wanted to create something that resembled the broken totems, and I hope I achieved that.
Cursed is an earthy amber scent, whilst Blessed is an energising fruity aroma of plum and saffron. Finally Cleansed is a very natural lemon and lavender scent.
CURSED
BLESSED
CLEANSED
I'm so excited to embark on this creative journey and hopefully provide some light in the community. I have so many ideas for the future (including coffee scented candles inspired by The Moonstone Cafe), and I hope you can follow along with me!
CLICK HERE TO SHOP!
CLICK HERE FOR TWITTER!
BUILDS. PERKS. STYLES.
Written by @SHADERSOP
With the upcoming update 8.3.0 sees the rework of several Perks and some Killers. This edition won’t focus on the specifics but the noteworthy portion is that auras and healing Perks are going to be even stronger.
These builds focus each individually on a portion of this, and at the end I’ll showcase a Killer build that tries to counter one or more pieces of each of the Survivor builds shown here.
Each of these builds will feature one or more Perks from our star of this edition, Mikaela Reid. We will attempt to synergize her Perks with others to create fun play styles with unique game plans that deviate from the traditional meta.
The OMNIBOON Build
First up, we have the revered, feared, and insanely dangerous OMNIBOON. The OMNIBOON (which must be written in full capitals at any and all mentions of it) takes the four strongest Boon Perks in Dead by Daylight (sorry Dark Theory) and puts them into one supercharged totem!
Boon: Circle of Healing and Boon: Exponential both serve as awesome healing Perks, designed to reset your team in even the most dire of situations. Boon: Circle of Healing allows, when active, for altruistic healing speeds to be doubled, and for anyone within range to have their aura revealed. This makes it a support-based healing Perk where Survivors can gather around a safe area and reset each other.
This pairs very well with Boon: Exponential which allows, when within range, Survivors to recover twice as fast when in the Dying state and allows them to fully recover from the Dying state as well. Combining this with Boon: Circle of Healing allows the area around the Boon to be a safe space for resets.
What happens though, if the Killer comes near that area? Well, that’s where Boon: Shadow Step comes in. Boon: Shadow Step hides your scratch marks and aura from the Killer when within range. The Killer will have a much harder time tracking you, thus making this little reset safe-haven even safer.
These Perks often come into play during 3-Gen scenarios, so it’s important for you and your team to know what to tackle. That’s where Boon: Illumination comes in. This perk allows you to see all Chests and Generators across the map, therefore giving your team a solid idea on what exactly they should be pressuring to keep the Killer on their toes!
The DOUBLE-HEAL Build
This Double-Heal build comes with a bit of a game plan. It features Wicked, Resurgence, Solidarity, and most importantly Boon: Circle of Healing.
The game plan for this build is effectively to get yourself hooked in the basement initially. Once this is done, you can use Wicked to self-unhook and get the hell out of there.
Next up, you’ll want to catch someone who’s in the Boon: Circle of Healing range, you can put the Boon in a more high-traffic area to increase these odds at the risk of the Killer being able to snuff it without giving up too much pressure.
Once you find that special someone, heal them. When you heal them, you’ll not only do it at an increased speed thanks to Boon: Circle of Healing, but you’ll also instantly heal yourself thanks to the combination of Resurgence and Solidarity. Thus, as the name implies, effectively healing both yourself and another Survivor at the exact same time.
This comes with the added benefit of providing the Killer less information, as they don’t get the opportunity to interrupt an ongoing reset unless they just happen to stumble upon it.
The ALL-SEEING Build
This Double-Heal build comes with a bit of a game plan. It features Wicked, Resurgence, Solidarity, and most importantly Boon: Circle of Healing.
The primary way you want to start this build is by finding a Totem and cleansing it. This will activate not only the Clairvoyance, but also the Inner Strength. This is what sets you up for getting good value.
To start, Clairvoyance for the uninitiated when active will show you all Chests, Exit Gates, Generators, Hooks, and the Hatch within 64 meters. This is further increased to 80 meters due to the additional 16 meters provided by Open-Handed. This basically gives you map-wide knowledge on how to progress the game.
Next up, Inner Strength and Lucky Star combine nicely, as you can use Lucky Star both to escape the Killer in a chase (it happens more than you think) and heal yourself at the same time! This has the added benefit of giving you information about the whereabouts of your fellow Survivors and showing you the closest Generator’s aura without using Clairvoyance.
This build is a good all-rounder, and if anybody gets any significant and consistent value out of the builds here, it’s probably going to be this one.
The KILLER'S COUNTER
This build focuses solely on creating a fun and unique build to counter popular elements from the builds I gave above, while also mixing some of the newer elements of the upcoming 8.3.0 update in to stir your minds towards build creation in the wake of a new meta. This build contains Agitation, Shattered Hope, Iron Maiden, and Deathbound. Let’s go over each of them:
Agitation on its own is a great Perk, but it also happens to be a phenomenal counter to Wicked, from our Double-Heal build. Survivors when using Wicked commonly like to force basement, and while you can leave them down there to think about what they did, if you much prefer to hook, then Agitation should be able to barely scrape you by towards one with the increased movement speed, countering Wicked entirely. This has the bonus of making sure Wicked doesn’t come back, as if you slug, what stops the Survivor from doing the same thing again and wasting more time?
Iron Maiden works to counter the All-Seeing Build to some capacity, where Survivors can heal themselves with Inner Strength, but are Exposed once they leave, keeping them vulnerable. Remember, scratch marks and breathing are not suppressed by Lucky Star, so Iron Maiden gets free reign over Survivors running the All-Seeing build.
Shattered Hope is a very simple counter to not just the OMNIBOON, but also to any Boon perks that have been popping up more and more in matches. It breaks any Boon totems you snuff entirely and also reveals auras within the range, turning Boons into useful activatable aura reads.
Deathbound works to not just counter resets in general, but also to counter both the OMNIBOON and the Double-Heal build. It makes the healer suffer from Oblivious until they’re hooked again, and also reveals the location of the Healer once the heal is completed. This serves to trade resets for not just information, but potential free hits due to the presence of the Oblivious status effect, and sufficiently punishes a lot of fast team resets.
Overall, this build is a little niche, but it’s definitely fun to run and the surprising amount of value one can get from even just Deathbound and Iron Maiden is exceptional.
HATCH or HOOK?
FALL FASHION | September 3rd
AZULA: THEEEEEE MOST MEOWMEOW ANGEL TO EVER MEOWMEOW. I LOVE HER SO BAD AND IT'S SO CUTEEEEE. The sweater pairs so nicely with her Christmas skin too!!! I love Yun-Jin and I love this skin! I think the hair is really cute too and it's nice to get something that isn't her default bob that's just been mildly tweaked (though I DO love her default bob). I think the beret is so cute, and the boots are nice. Kinda plain - same with Feng I think I would've changed that to something slightly thicker or has more presence. I definitely wouldn't have them as just white boots - even a colour change to a brown could make a big difference. I think the skirt is the weakest part of the outfit despite the plain boots but it's not bad - I would also colour shift it to a brown. I LOVE YUN-JIN!!!!!
Hatch.
DWEET: ADORE this skin, and I am a super fan of how simple and casual it is. I really eat anything autumn up so this is completely up my alley in that regard. The beanie is the cutest, her earrings are so fun and I love the sweater with the lace sleeve. The one thing that isn't my favorite is the skirt and boot combo! I would've loved brown boots and a different skirt, maybe denim? Nonetheless a for sure
HATCH.
LUKE: Similar to ‘Casual Holiday’, this outfit finds a comfortable middle ground between Yun-Jin’s idol style and functional seasonal fashion. We know Yun-Jin as a fashionable character with an appreciation for style, so these exacting shades of grey and earthy orange are exactly what we’d expect her to pull from her closet when fall rolls around. Paired with the round, fluffy earrings and greying gogo boots, this outfit plays a dual role: it’s just as perfect for a stroll through the park in autumn as it is for a dance through the leaves as they fall.
HATCH.
AZULA: Very, very cute. I always believe that layering fabrics is critical for colder weather designs and it's done really nicely here. The coat is ESPECIALLY very cute, and the leg warmers! I think I would've pushed the shapes a little further though and given her big boots but that's just me.
HATCH.
DWEET: LOVE this sort of look on her! It's still very cutesy and fitting for Feng Min, and she rarely gets casual things like this so it's a nice change. The one downside is I find it very hard to combo with since most of her other stuff is rather flashy / non-casual. Though, this is a great start and I hope we get similar fashion in the future.
HATCH.
LUKE: The incorporation of pixel art into knitwear is so perfect for Feng that it really makes me smile. However, I start to lose my appreciation of this outfit when Feng turns around and I see the ribbons in the hair/the pastel teddy bears embroidered on the jacket. These details are infantilising, and give the look a vintage kid’s playroom aesthetic that feels stuffy and excessive. For that reason, I can’t let Feng off the
HOOK.
AZULA: Very cool, very traumatic. I'm 100% sure that Anna Huntress would start freaking out if that thing came shuffling over to her.
HATCH.
DWEET: What a gruesome skin! Imagine THAT coming at you while you're just trying to enjoy a Pumpkin Spice... but yeah I am a huge, huge fan of this animalistic direction for The Dredge! I've seen a lot of similar fan ideas so it felt like a concept that would eventually be capitalized on and it was indeed executed very well. Also, the orange leaves strewn about seal the deal for me.
HATCH.
LUKE: Deer, oh deer. The Dredge never misses when it comes to cosmetics, and this reanimated roadkill is no elk-ception. It’s often forgotten just how scary deer can be, but this cosmetic is a stark reminder with the ingenious addition of an antler for a weapon. The dead-behind-the-eyes deer head is already terrifying, but paired with a fleshy neck and overhanging organs, the entire monstrous creation is a macabre masterpiece. You better serve it, cervid.
HATCH.
Fire Moon Festival | September 17th
AZULA: I THINK THIS IS VERY CUTE! I'm very glad that they've opted for a hairstyle that can really show off her elf ears, and as always I love the layering in the outfit. I think it's very very extremely cool. Another neat detail is how they changed her lute! I also like the attention to detail on this one - it doesn't feel overly designed.
HATCH.
DWEET: Rather over the top in colors and shapes, but in Aestri's case, it actually works perfectly! You really get that fantastical feel and I can easily imagine the type of setting she'd be wearing this in. I also really appreciate that, while not from our world, her being in the Fire Moon Fest collection suggests / confirms this sort of background for her in her own realm. Something which has been only speculated before!
HATCH.
LUKE: This outfit is great for our resident maximalist Aestri! The patterns are bold but work together nicely. With a solid colour scheme and plenty of textured elements, this outfit really works. I am not a fan, however, of the moon on the front, one half on either side of the overhanging fabric. A symmetrical shape would have worked better here if anything. Under all the detail in this outfit, the flat hairstyle also looks a bit lifeless. While I am glad the hair shows off Aestri’s signature ears, I imagine that on Baermar this hair will be an unpopular choice. Despite my misgivings, the cohesion here earns Aestri a
HATCH.
AZULA: I like the base of the outfit, but the colours just are not doing it for me at all. The mask is super cool though!
HOOK.
DWEET: Really love this type of outfit on Jake, of which he has a couple others. Not finding that this one stands out as much in his wardrobe besides the mask (which has some unlikely connotations!) but it is still pretty cute on him. I wish the pinks were switched out for the reds which are what make the Fire Moon Festival most memorable to me! Maybe we can get a rift recolor in the future with that.
HATCH.
LUKE: After some research, I learned that the masks on this outfit are Hahoetal, but I am not educated enough to fully understand the significance of these masks in the context of the entire outfit. As a whole, the colour scheme here really suits Jake, and the cuffing of the sleeves and trousers is cohesive. Similarly to Aestri’s, I don’t care for the placement of the moon motif on the back of the outfit, which could have been bigger and more central, eliminating the empty space. Despite this, I still love this outfit and give it a
HATCH.
AZULA: This is an exceptionally cool spirit skin. I adore the very dominant colours and how they genuinely work really nicely together. The headpiece is gorgeous.
HATCH.
DWEET: This one seems simple yet also very beautifully executed in its design throughout! The kimono is a huge staple in Rin's style so I'm always excited to see how the wear is pulled off in a new skin and this one hits the mark. I am super keen on the patterning in particular and it is elevated by the cut of the kimono. I think I'd enjoy this head more if it wasn't as glowy as it currently is, because the makeup is SO complementary to her.
HATCH.
LUKE: : I love this design. The makeup here is especially gorgeous and draws attention to the many expressions on The Spirit’s face. I adore the incorporation of the fan and crescent moon in the hair, but I think I would prefer if the hair behind this wasn’t loose and flowing upwards as in Spirit’s default; I wonder if a fully styled updo might have been better to show off the accessorisation. Although the katana is undoubtedly one of the less memorable designs in Spirit’s arsenal, its brightness works with the rest of the outfit
HATCH.
Gameplay Expo | September 24th
AZULA: It's not giving Yui to me. At all. I think every single item here looks like it belongs in Feng's wardrobe and I'm not particularly keen on it for Yui. Maybe something more techwear inspired would've been better for her for this collection.
HOOK.
DWEET: Unfortunately, this skin isn't for me... I can definitely see why Yui fans would appreciate it though since it is a new look for her but it I guess it's not something I would've imagined her in. Though, I think the skirt can be recolored to work under different themes rather easily so maybe that can happen in the future!
HOOK.
LUKE: : I am bored by this outfit. It seems that when in doubt, a jacket and short skirt are the go-to for female survivor cosmetics, and it's a tired format. On top of that, the needlessly asymmetrical socks are a cliché at this point in DBD. Taking away the predictable tropes, this design still doesn’t grab me. The magenta and dark blue don’t really complement each other, and the top beneath the jacket is dull, with a design that doesn’t draw attention. I am, however, interested in the black and white striped gloves and wonder how this outfit would look with more of that design incorporated. Ultimately, it's a
HOOK.
AZULA: This one is quite strange to me because I can VAGUELY see what they were going with here. I'm not a fan at the short sleeves and then the partial bagginess of the pants... the headpiece is the worst offender. The colours also don't quite work nicely together as I'd have hoped.
HOOK.
DWEET: Seems like pieces she already has in her arsenal just with random colors thrown onto them. For Nea, its fitting since she is outwardly expressive and loud but it doesn't offer anything new in my opinion. Not to mention the hair looks oddly styled and stuck in windswept chaos. With all that being said, it actually isn't even near my bottom 5 cosmetics for her!
HOOK.
LUKE: “How do you do, fellow kids?” This design is strange. I adore trousers, but the swimsuit, under a t-shirt, under a sleeveless, cropped vest is not a combination that I can wrap my head around. Furthermore, this hairstyle has a lot of volume considering it has been dyed and is sitting under a baseball cap (maybe it’s a wig…). If I were a Nea player, I likely wouldn’t buy this outfit altogether, because it doesn’t feel believable or exciting
HOOK.
AZULA: I guess. There's nothing that's a game-changer for me to swing it into hatch. I think it is a good skin I'm just not particularly overwhelmed at the execution. The head area is most certainly the strongest part of it - because if it was changed to default Singularity head it would just look like Singularity with an arcade machine on its back...
HOOK.
DWEET: The HEAD is such a standout! The melting flesh from the skull into the peering robotic nest is disturbing and reminds me of an 80s horror sci-fi flick when paired with the hunk of an arcade machine on his shoulder. Despite the head being so cool, the two other pieces fall flat since they're not too visually different from his default which is a running theme in Singularity cosmetics I've noticed. Maybe I just lack the eye for distinguishing between fleshy technological forms, but I would never realize someone was running a combo with anything but the very cool head and for that its a
HOOK.
LUKE: The description for this cosmetic refers to the Singularity’s confusion at how this body came to be, and I think we all share that confusion. The arcade machine theme here is fantastic and I love the skull head, but those two ideas don’t really mix. I would have much preferred the arcade machine be incorporated into the head, and a lot more arcade machine details be feature on the body and limbs. Take away the top section of this outfit and it is essentially unrecognisable, so sadly I will have to give it a
HOOK.
AZULA: LMFAO.
HOOK.
DWEET: This skin has the same trend from this wave of the Collection in that it doesn't offer anything new in its respective characters closet. On the brightside, there's a high potential for mix and match with his other Outfits. Trickster is already a flashy, neon character so his inclusion in this theme feels natural and like a very safe choice, letting him just meander around in a close-to-home theme.
HATCH.
LUKE: I don’t always understand design choices like this for the Trickster, which feel far more costumey than fashionable. However, since this is the Gameplay Expo collection, I can let that slide considering it may be cosplay inspired. The spiked hair and incorporation of metal chains and rings here give the outfit a slight punk, slight glam rock edge, and the black, checkered details deliver a bold finish. As The Trickster is so tall, these big shoulder pads also make him look broader and more frightening, which is a nice touch for a killer design.
HATCH.
THAT'S ALL FOR NOW!
Thank you so much for reading the third edition of The Tabloid of Adiris. It means a lot to us.
Please let us know if there is anything we could include or do better!
Next edition is planned for November 1st.
If you would like your work featured within this newsletter, do not hesitate to drop us an email or a message! We would love to showcase all types of fan creativity.
With thanks to...
EDITORS: @EffieGlasss / @dvveet
COVER / MASCOT ART: @EffieGlasss
CONTENT CREATOR SPOTLIGHT: @kmdonyt
HATCH or HOOK: @zadtwt / @th4lassa / @EffieGlasss / @dvveet
FAN ART: A LOT OF U THANK U!! (All hyperlinked on their posts!! Too many to put here!)
BUILDS, PERKS AND PLAYSTYLES: @SHADERSOP
LORE with the LORE GUY: @PixelBushYT
PORTRAIT / PERK PACKS: @Fiend173
FANMADE MUSIC: @AlexWyng