I know Alchemy is protochemistry but why did it fester into how the public sees it today as a synonym for magic? Is it just because that's how the uneducated masses saw it when it was practiced? Or did the alchemists present it that way on purpose? Both?
Eh it didn’t “fester” into anything. Alchemy has always kinda been adjacent to magic, depending on the author your reading. Some are mystics, some aren’t.
Thing is, the more mystical alchemists tended to actually be more correct about the laws of physics in the long run, because they approached alchemy from the perspective of things like “how did god build the universe” which made them consider things like universal laws.
So after the explosion of alchemical literature in the late medieval era, it was a pretty natural inclusion into western magical though. The Golden Dawn did magical readings of alchemical works, and built a pretty significant chunk of their magical system on alchemical symbology.
Angsty Dragon Age 2 comic part 2, starring Fenris and Hawke. Part 1 is here.
THIS IS THE PART THAT HURT REALLY BAD *ugly crying*
Okay, so I romanced Fenris during my first DA2 playthrough as a female warrior Hawke. Unfortunately because I was pro mage and anti slaver (because I’m not a monster), I couldn’t swing his approval or rivalry one way or the other, so when the final confrontation in the Gallows occurred, I couldn’t convince him to join me to help the mages. It was super tragic! I’m still crying over it. These freaking Bioware games have destroyed my life, lol.
obsessed with characters being saved against their will. being knocked unconscious and carried away from a danger they won’t stop trying to fight. being shoved through a portal somewhere far away and safe right before it closes. trying to self-sacrifice only to have the exact person they’re trying to save swap their places at the last second. getting the only cure to the disease or curse bc the person administering it loves them too much to give it to anyone else, including themselves. being thrown to safety right as they had accepted dying. someone else they thought had gotten to safety running back to drag them out of danger. it’s so fucking tasty
To YOU it’s bad writing. To ME it’s a very nuanced piece of work that explores subtle intricacies without outright saying it. And also it’s bad writing
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