Hello hello! Thank you for this question! In fandom circles NL can stand for "normal love," usually used to reference male-canon-character x female-canon-character shipping in a fandom. Popular twst_NL pairings include the Shroud parents, Puffy x Eliza and one that hasn't reached EN yet 👀

I checked with the definition available on pixiv to make sure ( https://dic.pixiv.net/a/twst_NL ), and it is explained that Twst is in an unusual situation because the identity of the prefect is being kept so vague. Normally a ship with a fan character would fall under the twst夢 and/or twstプラス (or twstプラスB) tags, but as the prefect is canon to the game and could be interpreted as female, some fans of the male-canon-character x female-prefect dynamic use the twst_NL tag for their work ^^

Hello hello! Thank you for this question! ^^
Sometimes scenes that seem to have been removed are actually just placed elsewhere in the story, but I do know that, if there is a necktie interaction between Riddle and Yuuya, it is not in its original place!
The scene that originally contained the necktie interaction (which was faithfully recreated from the same scene in the game) can be read here:
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1748254938587922856
It was rewritten so that the prefect meets with Ace and Deuce, not Cater and Riddle, though Riddle is discussed ^^ It was changed into an opportunity for Yuuya to reflect on Riddle's true intentions vs. how he is being perceived through the lens of his past mistakes. Am currently rereading the novel and will be on the look out for this scene, to translate if it does appear!

Hello! Yes, there is a theory that maybe Savanaclaw had been meant to be Book 6 (before the Diasomnia arc) and was moved at the last minute.

This topic was touched upon in a thread about Lilia back in January
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1610011750379958273

But the summarize:
The theory is trying to explain a few things that some people have felt to be “off” about the game:
1) Why Diasomnia’s cast had a significant role in only Book 2, with minimal roles in Books 3, 4, 5 and 6.

2) Why Lilia disappears during the climax of Book 2, saying, “stay strong until I return,” but never comes back.

3) Why Azul and Riddle were featured so prominently together in the prologue (Octavinelle would have become Book 2 and released simultaneously with the Prologue and Book 1).

4) Why Lilia had to be the person to drive Leona over the edge in Book 2.

5) Why Savanaclaw was originally listed in between Ignihyde and Diasomnia on the official website back in 2019.

6) Why there seem to be hints that Leona will have a significant role in Book 7 (this is another, separate theory unto itself).

Similar to how Riddle’s character was rewritten mid-production after everything had been approved ( https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1626491706081439747 ) the theory goes that Yana got a better idea while the game was already being being made and things shifted about last-minute changing what was originally intended to be a struggle between two princes into Book 7’s current form (which is still in-progress and has yet to be truly revealed).

Book 2 being the original Book 6 would explain a lot about the curious things listed above, or maybe the Savanaclaw arc is actually, precisely where it had always been meant to be!

This theory might just be trying to fill in blanks left from various other technical issues that we will never know about.

The game was initially announced for a 2019 release, for example, but did not come out until March of 2020 (this pamphlet from August of 2019 promises the game ""this winter"").
https://twitter.com/twst_jp/status/1158302119876685824

And Yana has often referenced the struggles they faced during production.

Malleus and Sebek were not even in the game until over a month after it had gone live
https://twitter.com/twst_jp/status/1252493135629807616

While Lilia and Silver were not introduced until over two months later--
https://twitter.com/twst_jp/status/1264814046911459328
--so there was definitely some scrambling for the game to meet its 2020 release.

In the end, the story we have is Savanaclaw in Book 2 and that is that :>

But it is exciting to think that Idia and Leona—with their mirrored brother issues—might be teaming up together in Book 7!

Great question! I put together everything we have seen of Deuce's unique magic on the NA server and it seems that it might only store and repay magical damage, not physical damage.

The very first times he uses it, one of the members of the gang that attacks him and Epel is actually a former student mage who dropped out of magic school. The fight starts out with sound effects like "slam" and "crack" which might insinuate a physical beating, but when Deuce refuses to fight back the gang member starts to mock him and we get flashes of light with "fwish" and "zoom" sound effects, along with the sparkles that Twst generally uses to denote magic use in-game.

That is when Deuce's unique magic kicks in for the first time: after he has taken magical hits and he gets truly desperate (because Epel has been attacked).

The second time Deuce's unique magic comes up he is able to explain it himself: Vil asks how he can have so much magic in reserve (using the word 魔力 in Japanese, for "magical power") and Deuce answers that it isn't his magic at all: it's Vil's power (also using the word 魔力) that Vil hammered into him.

Later Deuce explains that his counter attack against Vil was only as powerful as it was because Vil had hit him with such potent magic to start with, very heavily insinuating that he only retains magical damage, so this unique magic probably can't be used in something like a fist fight.

(The whole reason the gang member from the beach just happened to be a mage school dropout was potentially to establish this fact.)

As for whether or not he heals magically after using his unique magic, that doesn't seem to be insinuated anywhere in-game.

On NA Deuce comments that he feels "relaxed" after the fight with Vil, but this is not in his original dialogue. His original line is closer to "I'm so nervous that I've actually calmed down," with no reference made to whether or not he's recovered any more than anyone else.

Deuce being able to magically heal himself afterwards seems like it would be a big enough effect for someone to comment on, but no one ever does, so we cannot be sure. All we get is Vil that saying that no one had been able to give 100% after exhausting their magical reserves.

(Deuce's unique magic has come up a third time on JP server where it follows the same pattern of 1) hoarding magical attacks and 2) no apparent healing effects after the fact, though someone probably would have mentioned it at the time.)

Of course! Any of the things I make and share are free for anyone to use, it is just Twst's words on Twst screenshots ♪ What a neat idea for a presentation, best of luck!

It would be so exciting for more people to become interested in Twst JP/NA and all their nuances! :>

It would be so exciting for more people to become interested in Twst JP/NA and all their nuances! Best of luck with the project!

(You probably have everything you need already, but just in case, here are all the language talk/dialogue comparison threads!)

(these four are old)

Wish Upon a Star (to be rewritten soon)
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1556750150600499200

Fairy Gala (to be rewritten soon)
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1577403038092124160

Savanaclaw Vignettes (to be rewritten soon)
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1559449734099525633

Silver Vignettes (to be rewritten soon)
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1567968388869410817

--

Prologue
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1590081137451626496

Book 1 part 1
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1597863769233059840

Book 1 part 2
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1600229554596892672

Book 2 part 1
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1599502933145849856

Book 2 part 2
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1599677128416821250

Book 3
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1611096603858984961

Book 4
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1620885550780796935

Book 5 part 1
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1625404317317627904

Book 5 part 2
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1625768566275588097

Book 6 part 1
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1648061857901731840

Book 6 part 2
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1648420271777529856

Beanfest part 1 and 2
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1622339465137262592

Phantom Bride
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1617261749090283520

Terror is Trending
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1586087469639823360

Spectral Soiree part 1
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1595533326919823360

Spectral Soiree part 2
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1595594320127488000

Spectral Soiree part 3
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1595645004621393921

Spectral Soiree part 4
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1595690847605227520

Firelit Sky part 1
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1604024314759876608

Firelit Sky part 2
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1604749541357813761

Tsumsted
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1635040371741974528

Harveston
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1649149160711663616

Fairy Gala Remix
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1655483941032452097

Deuce’s Honorifics
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1612183040469630976

Cater Vignettes
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1592101115855634432

Cater’s Siblings
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1571230787944710144

Cater’s Clothes
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1587184446481911808

Cater Changes Compilation
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1619606139053944836

Trey Vignettes
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1603316454010388481

Ruggie’s “You”
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1646423580283142145

Azul Vignettes
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1614721728189706242

Floyd/Trey Birthdays
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1589540742913232898

Scarabia Vignettes
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1635375432408403969

Jamil’s “Master”
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1573403261436329989?s=20&t=YIFXbUDU9eRyzcNghmwktA

Firelit Sky Jamil Vignette
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1608735410771070978

Vill Vignettes
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1628304408017776641

Vil Halloween Vignette (feat. kaomoji localization)
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1578202759077433344

Vil’s “tell me something”
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1645886789306171392

Epel Halloween Vignette
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1579206549133672448

Idia’s Speech Patterns
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1647698478179708928

Idia’s Honorific Drop
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1643888042795745286

Lilia’s “Master”
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1581015055260602368

Eggs
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1587893103423127552

Player Pronouns
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1637546929445036033

-sama
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1594603268696510464

Furigana
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1630117822172119041

Unique Magics
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1637193500889604096

Honorifics
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1562904649908113409

NA-Only Dialogue Additions
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1623955231829823491

NA-Only Dialogue Additions: Insults Edition, part 1
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1606917542442065920

NA-Only Dialogue Additions: Insults Edition, part 2
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1607286405037981697

You are too kind, thank you so much!! It is so flattering to think that someone is interested to know, but I do my very best to keep this account neutral so that the information can (hopefully!) be enjoyed by everyone and not just everyone of one opinion or another :>

While favorite character/story arc talk would get into a grey area I hope it would be okay to share a list of merchandise recommendations instead!

I have all the books because my hobby seems to be just hoarding information like a dragon, so here is a rundown of what is what!

(This became a lot longer than it was supposed to be. This is part 1 of 5!)

“Disney's Twisted Wonderland” Official Guide + Character Sheets, Magical Archives, published 2020/9/30 (aka “the game guide”)
(Attached pictures are publicly available on Square Enix’s online store https://store.jp.square-enix.com/item/9784757567818_1.html )"
"The game guide is my personal #1 recommendation out of everything Twst-based that has ever been published.

It is not available digitally, very large (2cm thick) and very beautiful. Even if you cannot read Japanese there is a lot to enjoy about it visually with character sketches by Yana herself that are not available anywhere else.

The first 1/3rd is gameplay-based information that walks you through every chapter of the first four books, includes card information like buddy bonuses and vignettes.

The remainder is character information in order of dorm.

If I was forced to choose only one of the various Twst books available, this would be my choice.

“Disney Twisted Wonderland” Fan Book, published 2020/11/1 (aka “the first fan book”)
(Attached pictures are publicly available in the official press release https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000002863.000001719.html )

The fan book seems to get misunderstood among NA fans because of the name “fan book" but it does not contain any fan-created content.

Published by Aniplex, it provides much more general character information than the game guide, listed alongside information about the Disney movies that inspired each dorm.

Unlike the game guide it might be less enjoyable if you cannot understand the language, as all the visuals are official graphics that can already been seen in-game or screenshots from the animated Disney movies.

If language restrictions are not a problem then the fan book is great for information like the etymology behind character/place names, interviews with the voice cast and the composer and character trivia.

The first fan book is the most popular Twst merchandise on animate (ranking above the game guide at #3), so it seems quite popular amongst JP-server fans.
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1644252186082414592"

“Disney Twisted Wonderland” Fan Book vol.2, published 2022/12/8 (aka “the second fan book”)
(Attached pictures are publicly available on the animate Times website https://www.animatetimes.com/news/img.php?id=1674896835&p=1&n=1#title )

The second fan book had a troubled release.

Originally intended to be made available to the public in June of 2022, the book was in the pre-orders stage when it was abruptly cancelled by Kodansha.

It was made available for pre-orders again in October, and released without issue in December.
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1578663948777553920?s=20&t=S97_3GAEtTbOaXPZJeRb9Q

Much like the first fan book the second fan book also does not contain any fan-made content.

It provides walk-throughs of the game’s events (from Beanfest to the second anniversary) and occasional trivia (like Leona explaining how fairies refer to fire as “red flowers” much like King Louie does in Disney’s The Jungle Book, etc.), recipes for how to make food from the Culinary Crucibles and photos from the Twst exhibition.

Like the fist fan book it also uses only official graphics that are already viewable in-game, so I am not sure how enjoyable it would be if there is a language barrier.

It does not contain any etymology information or interviews.

Both fan books are available digitally as well as physically.

Thank you so much for this question—I did not realize that this theory was a thing, but it is!
From what I was able to find, there are a lot of people hung up on the fact that the prefect is aware of present-day-earth things like smartphones and holidays like Tanabata ( https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1556750150600499200?s=20&t=jhRGOIpgEKx7XfkHdHKiTg ) and yet they do not know who Mickey Mouse is. If the prefect really is a normal human coming from a country on present-day-earth where smartphones are prevalent, they would know Mickey Mouse.
(Ref: https://detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp/qa/question_detail/q12263037682 )

(In the novelization and the manga series all three prefects are literally 16-year-old Japanese high school students, but it is still to be seen if they know that Disney is a thing or if they exist in Disney-less AUs.)

The game goes out of its way to not assign too many physical attributes to the prefect, which one would assume is because it is meant to be a self-insert, but the prefect’s goal is to go home. To the player, this is the equivalent of our goal being to stop playing the game.

So the theory goes that wherever it is that the prefect wants to return to, it actually isn’t present-day earth. That would mean the prefect is not the player, and that opens the door to a lot of possibilities such as being another Disney character, potentially with a connection to NRC’s 8th dorm: Ramshackle.
(Ref: https://detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp/qa/question_detail/q13249490348 )

An abandoned dorm from Crowley’s time, it was presumably based on a Disney villain much like the Queen of Hearts or Hades, we just don’t know which one or what happened for it to be abandoned and filled with ghosts that no one wanted anything to do with.

Before the Glorious Masquerade event there were rumors it could be based upon Hunchback of Notre Dame (because of the gargoyles) and there are those who guess that maybe it was based on Captain Hook from Peter Pan, as a classic movie that seems to have been conspicuously skipped over.
(Ref: https://twstsoku.com/archives/12388428.html / https://twstsoku.com/archives/23727601.html )

Others, however, are guessing 1940’s Fantasia (for those who do not know, the magician in “The Magician’s Apprentice” is named Yen Sid, the backwards (or mirrored) spelling of “Disney.”
(Ref: https://twitter.com/jojo_mochi/status/1325106707677159425 )

It has been established that Mickey has a dream-connection to Ramshackle and seems to be occupying a room based on 1936’s “Thru the Mirror” (which is also referenced in Ignihyde https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1576134151903752192?s=20&t=6sTsXyRS0QM7klzNb2CFNw). Mickey also makes an appearance in Fantasia, as a magic user.
https://twitter.com/mirrormazeworld/status/1650029237217423361

And there is a place for the prefect in Fantasia: the composer, a human who is only seen in silhouette and interacts directly with an animated Mickey Mouse.

Back to the topic of the prefect being a type of Fae, user @minnminnzemito has written an amazing blog post on the topic (https://note.com/takotako095/n/ne5f379511dca) that they gave me permission to summarize and share in English:

They also make the connection between Fantasia and Ramshackle and theorize that both Grim and the prefect share the motif of the Chernobog (“two halves of one student”). Chernobog is referenced in-game as “the ruler of the monsters of Bald Mountain” and in Fantasia it disguises itself as an inconspicuous mountain when it isn’t hosting demon raves, much like prefect seems most unassuming. For now 👀

minnminnzemito explains that a shapechanging Prefect would make everyone’s interpretations in things like the official profile template recently released by #twst_jp ( https://twitter.com/disneygames_jp/status/1647805964375187457 ) canonically accurate: demons hardly need be restrained by things like what age/gender they appear to be.

In other theories it is guessed that the mastermind behind the overarching drama at NRC is either Malleus or Crowley himself, but this theory suggests that it is actually the prefect, and Crowley is acting at their behest (it is insinuated that the prefect may have lost their memories).

According to Wikipedia the Chernobog seems to have a complicated history and may or may not be an evil deity from the 12th century (its name literally means “Black God”), and #minnminnzemito says this may be hinted at by the names of the two prefects in the Twst manga, both of which have connections to the afterlife of two different religions.
https://twitter.com/minnminnzemito/status/1603714408412155904

(More about the names of the prefects in the manga here https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1628566979820032000 )

Bonus: #minnminnzemito has also created a compilation of all the hints we have received throughout the game as to what the prefect looks like (shared with permission): https://note.com/takotako095/n/n6999ac5dfd7c

Including being (perhaps significantly) smaller than Floyd with shorter legs than Vil, black hair and more.

I am wary about discussing this theory as there are many others who have put much more thought into it than I have, but I can certainly try with what I was able to find, and corrections are always appreciated :>

(The information in this thread was garnered and combined from these places:
https://numan.tokyo/game/Mptei / https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEHOFFHBjck / https://detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp/qa/question_detail/q10231144430 / https://70okugame.com/twisted-wonderland/kosatsu#c3 )

The basic theory is that everything we know is repeating in a loop in an attempt to either stop something from happening or to make something happen.

The game’s catch copy of “I will show you a true happy ending” (NA: “Let us show you the real happily-ever-after”) could be insinuating that there have already been less than happy endings, and we may have already seen one: while some theorize that the events of the prologue are showing us what is going to happen in the future, others say that it is both that and something that has already happened.

The theory goes that the battle with the chimera (who may or may not be an overblotted Grim) was lost and everyone (or just the prefect) is sent back to try again, thus the opening lines of the game narrated in Crowley’s voice.

(Note: I would have translated this as “I—they—you—only have a little time left. Whatever you do, don’t let go”, but the situation is so vague that anything is possible.)

(Here is a short comic insinuating that this time loop is Crowley’s unique magic (warning: blood, death, a Yuu design) https://www.pixiv.net/artworks/82046021#1 )

This theory seems to be largely inspired by Mickey’s comment that he has seen the same dream three times but he also says “your voice gets clearer and clearer every time.”

Since Mickey also shows up in Books 2 and 3 but we were not able to speak with him, it is possible that this is not actually hinting at two earlier loops, just earlier events within the same timeline. This does not dismiss the time loop theory and might mean that this is Mickey’s first time interacting with the loop, but there have been far more than just two or three timelines.

(This account pretends that Book 7 does not exist yet, so that is about as specific as I can get.)

The theory gets kind of wild with references to STYX’s simulation system, supposed inconsistencies with Ace and Epel, Crowley’s potential connection to STYX, etc, but one thing that everyone seems to agree on is: Leona knows.

Leona is extremely powerful and extremely private.

He has had a number of contracts with Azul who is also a powerful mage, and according to Idia he seems like “the kind of guy who always knows he’s dreaming.”

Yana has confirmed that Idia has a part in Book 7 and, with both him and Leona halfway out of their coffins in promotional art, people are wondering if Leona will be stepping up as well. https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1639005524212719621

(We know that Riddle’s current personality is a 180 degree change --from original plans and that this change was made pretty far into development, after everything had already been approved. https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1626491706081439747

There are also rumors that Leona’s Book 2 was the original Book 6, looking at older promotional information.
It is possible that—much like Riddle’s situation—Yana came up with a better idea than what originally been decided, and it required shoehorning Leona’s drama into an earlier Book in order to make it work.
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1610011768180584448

This would mean that Book 7 used to have significant space for Leona (there is a pattern of the previous Overblotter having a role in the next Book).

That space may have been rewritten for Idia, but it is also possible that Idia’s role was added separately and a role for Leona remains to some extent, which is why they went out of their way to say that Leona knows when he is in a dream.)

Theories vary from “Leona is 100% aware of what is going on, broke free from the loop and he is the only one getting older as he tries to save the world” to “Leona knows something isn’t right but not exactly what.”

The proof that people usually point to is his comment where he is unsurprised by Grim “always” eating black stones (which he shouldn’t know anything about), but the phrasing is so vague that he could just be making the connection between the stones and a potential blot-risk.

Another scene that is often referenced in the “Leona knows” conversation is this interaction with Jamil, where he accurately predicts Jamil’s attack on Kalim despite how rarely they interact before Book 6.

There are also the three white chess pieces on the chessboard in Leona’s bedroom that seem to correspond to the only three characters in the game with light cosmic magic: a white rook for Rook, a white knight for Silver and a white pawn for Kalim, whom Leona literally refers to as a pawn piece in chess during Tamashima Mina.

Leona also seems suspicious of Crowley, suspects what happened in Book 5 and is able to literally sniff out magic, which we have seen no other character capable of doing.

Leona is very perceptive in general: he is suspicious of Lilia in Spectral Soiree, calls him an old man when no other character outside of Diasomnia knows his true age, is the first to figure out that Malleus is pretending to be possessed and is able to tell when someone becomes injured and is trying to hide it in both Book 6 and an event.

This is not proof that Leona knows what is going on but it may be an argument for why it is likely that he knows more than he is willing to let on.

Some versions of the time loop theory say that the same prefect is being sent back over and over again to try and save everyone (which ties into the game’s opening), while other versions say that this is the prefect’s first time being summoned into a loop that has been going on for a long time without them, in an effort by someone (Crowley?) to change the ending of the story.

While not technically part of the game the Twst novelization seems to support the first pattern while the manga series seems to support the second, with new prefects showing up after the pervious prefect presumably fails.

Knowing Yana it is possible that the game is actually a third, entirely different pattern with the novel and manga exploring alternatives that were considered for the game but not used.

While looking around for different opinions on the loop theory I came across this observation which is not exactly connected but still fascinating:

When child-Idia releases “Subject ROS-3367A,” child-Ortho doesn’t call it a phantom.

He calls it a monster.

If we compare the growling in the prologue to the ROS-monster and tie it into the theory behind the chimera itself, this may be hinting that Grim killed Ortho.

Thank you so much for your kind words!! I definitely do not think I know a lot about the characters (I originally started the character facts project because I have a poor short-term memory and wanted reference sheets just for me), but I really appreciate the kindness ♡

I have come across some theories on accident but I usually avoid them because sometimes people are correct, which can be so amazing, but then I have spoiled myself!

But this was a great opportunity to look into what is out there at the moment and these are my top four favorites (no Book 7 spoilers): (disclaimer: none of these theories are of my own creation!)

Theory #4: Ruggie was supposed to overblot in Book 2, but Leona intentionally took over his blot to spare him.

In Favor: Ruggie used a lot of magic throughout Book 2, culminating in a potion from Azul for Ruggie to overclock himself and overcome his own magical limitations, which seems like it should be a big deal for blot accumulation.

But he never seems to suffer any consequences to his physical or mental health while Leona, one of the most objectively powerful characters in the game, overblots after using his unique magic just once (and we see him use King’s Roar a lot more during Book 6 in much more physically challenging conditions while being limited by the blot escaping the Underworld and using the thunder spear three times, twice by himself while Riddle and Vil both received help).

This would tie into the theory that 1) there is a time loop happening where everyone is reliving the same incidents over and over again and 2) Leona is aware of the loop to some degree (re: Idia’s “Leona’s probably the kind of guy who always knows he’s dreaming”): Leona may have already experienced a scenario where Ruggie overblotted and has been taking on Ruggie’s blot in every loop since in order to keep it from happening again.

Looking at Ruggie’s backstory, all the effort he put into Book 2 and why, and how badly he was hurt when Leona crushed his dreams, Ruggie has just as much trauma and uses just as much magic (if not more, since his gets superficially enhanced) than any of the others, and using their unique magics on too many people at once is exactly what lead to overblot for Riddle, Azul and Jamil. (Credit for this theory to this person on Yahoo! Answers: https://detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp/qa/question_detail/q13231307863 )

Against: Looking at the timing of the blot animations they only appear after Leona has gone through something emotionally taxing, regardless of whether or not Ruggie has been using magic (an animation appears after Ruggie trips someone down the stairs in the beginning, but no magic precedes the 2nd or 3rd animations and the 4th is after King’s Roar), so it is definitely Leona’s blot. This doesn’t mean that he isn’t also accumulating Ruggie’s blot, but if we’re basing things on what is happening on-screen, then this theory is a little weak.

Theory #3: Rook is a bird beastman. Credit to @MoonlightEquin1 (who is amazing) for this theory! https://twitter.com/MoonlightEquin1/status/1625355253951664128?s=20

In Favor: Just to reiterate the content of the thread, Kifaji is our first look at what a confirmed bird-beast-person looks like, and that is: a lot like a non-beast-person.

We know Rook is also from Sunset Savanna (and, as mentioned in the thread, a rook is a type of bird) and he has unusually excellent eyesight, even getting called "eagle-eyed".

Lilia says he has “good eyesight for a human,” but the fae characters all refer to anyone who is not also fae as “human” or “children of men,” including Azul and Leona.

Rook has the line “I am a man” on NA but not on JP; it was added to his dialogue in the NA adaptation and is not something he has ever actually said.

Rook is also big on hunting, mostly focusing on the school’s beastpeople but also the humans, mermaids, ghosts and Malleus.

He also likes archery, which may be a reference to Disney’s Robin Hood (where the titular character wins an archery contest by dressing up like a bird).

Rather than assigning a fish-based name to Rook as he does for most of the other students, Floyd refers to him as “Seagull.”

A quick google search says there are eagles who will attack lion cubs and, while perhaps a stretch, there are also birds such as magpies and crows who are attracted to shiny objects, and Vil will occasionally fill the room he is in with sparkles.

Against: No real strong arguments against this one yet, and there is this great thread comparing Rook to Tarzan (not an argument against the bird theory! It is clear that many Twst characters are combinations of multiple different sources rather than being literal, 1-to-1 recreations of a single person or thing).
https://twitter.com/yoyovoyovoyo/status/1461574344136478724?s=20&t=c5u0hBvaKVRy6QHeRpoElA

Theory #2: Crowley is Malleus

In Favor: I like this one because it makes me laugh. We get a direct comparison between the two during Halloween when Crowley physically restrains Malleus from blowing up the campus, and there are obvious physical differences (besides their heights—Crowley is only 185cm while Malleus is 202, with horns) such as skin tone and ear shape, but we have seen Malleus control the weather, return Vil’s youth and many other things, while even Cater is capable of making a clone. It seems like disguising himself from himself would be a small task for one of the world's top mages, and it would explain why Crowley is consistently forgetting to invite Malleus to meetings: as far as he is concerned, he is already there.

(Credit for this theory to this three-year-old Reddit thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/TwistedWonderland/comments/i41en8/twisted_wonderland_theory/ )

Against: The two sprites share poses, there is the tropical shirt (not the same shirt but it sets a precedent), Crowley always wearing a hat…the main problem with this theory is that it seems too obvious, like a misdirect to distract from whatever is actually going on.

In Crowley’s introduction he says he has been entrusted with the school by its chairman. This chairman may actually be Malleus (which is a trick that Yana has pulled before, in her manga), so Crowley may be following his orders like Diablo obeying Maleficent in Sleeping Beauty.

1 Favorite Theory: Grim is twisted from Dinah.

This is my favorite for being so obvious that I have never stopped feeling stupid for not making the connection.

Oo this is a great question I had never thought of before!

Cater's line in both the manga and the game is “連携攻撃が超強力”, which just means that their coordinated attacks are really strong. (“Word is, they work so well together on the field that other teams don’t know how to counter them.”)

There seem to be three theories:

1) There is a thread on twstsoku from January 2022 of people guessing that, since we don’t really know the specifics of how Spelldrive is played, it is possible that it involves players on the ground.
https://twstsoku.com/archives/88azmyhx.html

A lot of us probably imagine something like the broom-based sport of another certain magic school when we imagine Spelldrive, but it is possible it involves players who aren’t on brooms.

When explaining how the game is played in Book 2, in fact, no one mentions the necessity of brooms, just that “You need magic to play. Not only do you move the disc with magic, but you use it to attack and defend, too. The flashier the magic, the better—it’s how players show off their skills!”

Also, despite Leona being the described as a top-level Spelldrive athlete (after Malleus) to the point that he is recognized during Halloween as a famous Spelldrive player rather than a prince, in Book 6 we learn that Epel is said to be a better flyer than Leona.

This may insinuate that Spelldrive prowess might be less dependent on flying than it seems.

While Jack is repeatedly described as an adept Spelldrive athlete, for example, I wasn’t able to find anyone commenting on his flying abilities, and he is in the track-and-field club.

If there are athletes on foot in Spelldrive games, it is possible that Jack is one of them.

This would seem to be backed up by the rhythmic game in Book 2 where Ace and Deuce play against Leona’s team on foot, using magic against broom-riding players (they are also on foot in the manga).

But this scene does not depict a “real” Spelldrive match and it is equally likely that, having just started their first year at NRC, there might be a rule against Ace/Deuce/Grim riding brooms without teacher supervision, or maybe they just don’t have brooms on hand in the stadium to use because they are not official Spelldrive players (unlike Cater, who represents Heartslabyul in the games, which would be why he would have a broom available), etc.

It is possible that Leona’s team is allowing an exception to the “must be on a broom” rule in Spelldrive (if such a rule exists—we do not know!) for this scene.

There is also Leona himself, leaping in from off-screen without a broom.
He might have jumped off his broom off screen (which would be difficult to animate), but he still dismounts mid-game in order to defend the goal, insinuating that it might not be necessary to remain on one's broom the entire time.

2) Also mentioned in the twstsoku thread is Cater specifically saying that Floyd and Jade’s “coordinated attacks” are what make them so strong.

While the rhythmic again might not be strictly following the usual rules of Spelldrive we do see Ruggie sharing a broom with someone at some point, so maybe the twins are able to coordinate their attacks with one another while being flown by others, or Jade on Floyd’s broom?

3) If brooms are a requirement in Spelldrive it is possible that Jade just spends entire games hovering nearer to the ground than other players, and his “coordinated attacks” with Floyd via magic are really just so effective that they are able compensate for his poor flying skills through teamwork.

While Floyd may also be a poor flyer, he says he is better than both Jade and Azul.

Octavinelle is said to be more on the academic side of the spectrum than the physical side, so it is also possible that Floyd and Jade are simply the top athletes that the dorm has even when their lack of flying ability is taken into account (and Leona does not seem to consider them enough of a threat to send Ruggie after them).

After the tournament, all we know is that Diasomnia came out on top and Scarabia came in last.

I agree with the NA translation, but! I definitely understand how there might have been some confusion!

Originally Mickey does not say “my dream room,” he says “this dream room,” which is very important.

Seeing the word "this" (この) might have led a few translators to think, "'this room' is the room in Ramshackle, so Mickey must be describing what he saw in Ramshackle."

Much like English, Japanese differentiates between things close to/belonging to you (this, この) vs. things close/belonging to other people (that, その), but unlike English the difference is a little stricter.

Mickey uses この for "this room," which can only mean the room where he is. If he had meant the player's room, he would have said その, for "that room."

Since English can be more flexible with "this" and "that," it is possible that people saw "this room" in Japanese and interpreted it as what "this room" means to the player, not what it means to Mickey.

From a Japanese-language perspective, however, "this room" is the one occupied by the speaker (Mickey), not the one occupied by the listener (the player).

(There is no hidden meaning in Mickey originally saying "this room" instead of "my room" and, in fact, it would have been more confusing if he'd said "my room" in Japanese, as we don't have confirmation that he is communicating with us from his bedroom at all. It could have been interpreted as he saw the boy in a yet another room, different from where he is now. His original line is possibly specifying "this room" in order to avoid that confusion.

In fact in his original lines he says there is a sofa in the room, changed to chair on NA...hadn't thought anything of it at the time, but it's possible that

1) JP was mistaken and it was meant to be a chair, corrected for NA

or

2) Mickey isn't actually in his bedroom. He is somewhere else, but NA wanted to rewrite him as being in his bedroom where a sofa normally wouldn't be, so it was changed to "chair" to fit the new, NA-exclusive narrative. Very interesting, either way!)

The idea that the boy was in the player’s room is further debunked by Mickey’s follow-up line when he says that he wishes the player could come to see him on "this side" (こっち側, with "this" being from the speaker's (Mickey's) perspective, while the listener's side (Ramshackle) would be そっち側), too (も in Japanese), just like the boy with silver hair!

It seems like Azul might not drop honorifics themselves (i.e. before correcting himself in his Halloween vignette he still refers to Silver as “Silver-san”), or drop his polite phrasing!

It is a little difficult to tell because a lot of what makes a sentence polite comes at the very end and Azul corrects himself midway, but it does seem like he keeps everything polite all the way through.

For those who may not know there are many ways (in addition to honorifics like “-san”) to keep your sentences polite when speaking Japanese. The Octatrio is a great way to see this in action: Jade and Azul both speak in polite forms, while Floyd uses casual/slang forms of the same words.

Jade and Azul use honorifics with everyone except each other (and Floyd), and they also use formal language with each other (and Floyd) which is how we get problems on NA like the “sir” situation that rearranges their dynamic. They are just as polite with each other as they are with anyone else.
https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1616526963069554688

When Azul does drop his polite speech patterns, it seems to be moreso because something has surprised him than because he realized mid-sentence that he is saying something he shouldn’t.

Azul is described in the game guide as “not good at dealing with the unexpected” like Riddle and Deuce, which may be why he has this problem. As Azul usually expresses himself very politely (like Jade), when something shocks him and he slips into casual/slang expressions, he can sound more like Floyd.

He does! :> He talks very much not only like someone out of a period drama, but like an old fashioned otaku, who are infamous for using pronouns like "sessha," honorifics like "-shi," and even the same kind of laughter that Idia uses.

For a very brief explanation: the Japanese language has many pronouns ( more pronoun talk here: https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1637546930917249024 ) and Idia switches between two of them: He uses "sessha" in general and will shift to "boku," usually when he starts to panic.

"Sessha" used to be mainly used by samurai, but it was adopted by people who identity as otaku several years ago.

"Degozaru" is more difficult to explain...if you are an anime fan, you might be familiar with the word "desu."

It is used to end sentences in a polite way, but it is not like you have to use it or people will think your sentence hasn't ended yet ww It is a politeness marker.

"desu" has a few variations depending on how polite you want to be. The most casual form of "desu" is "da."

We get a great example of someone intentionally adopting "da" to change the atmosphere of what they're saying in Phantom Bride, when Vil uses it and creeps Leona out ww

"degozaimasu" is a formal "desu." You use it at work while talking to customers, for example.

To rank them:
"neko-da" (that's a cat) informal
"neko-desu" (that's a cat) polite
"neko-degozaimasu" (that's a cat) formal

They don't change meanings--just formality!

The "-shi" honorific that Idia uses (NA writes it as "Mr." sometimes, but not always) comes up in modern-day situations as a way to refer to a third person who is neither associated with your group nor with the group to which the person you are talking with belongs.

In this listing of speakers at "Nikkei xTech Expo 2022," for example (pictures attached to Twitter response) all of the speakers who are associated with Nikkei xTech itself have no honorifics, because they are a part of that group.

The guest speakers, however, are listed with "-shi."

"-shi" also comes up in news articles, like this coverage of Anime Japan 2022's announcement. The two people mentioned are not associated with the news site itself, so they have had "-shi" added to their names.

"-shi" was also used by samurai and adopted by otaku a while back.

Q: So why don't news sites and stuff just use "-san"?

A: Since "-san" is a respectful honorific, that would kind of be saying "All of us are deferring to this person," which is bad for things like newspapers, which need to represent people and facts neutrally.

"degozaru" is something of an outlier and is not used in normal conversation.

I read that it didn't show up until the Edo period (1603-1867), again used by samurai and again adopted by self-described otaku a while back.

While technically Idia is speaking archaically he is also just speaking in outdated otaku/net slang, which is how he was localized for NA!

(And Idia does self-identity as an otaku in-game)

I do not know anyone who speaks like this (not to me, anyway ww) so I searched "why do otaku use '-shi,' 'sessha,' etc, and it seems a not uncommon question, generally responded to with a lot of sarcasm because this is the internet ww

The best answer was, "because it's fun" :>

(If you are learning the language and intimidated by Idia, no worries! Here's a twstsoku thread about no one understanding him ( https://twstsoku.com/archives/mvu4kk9d.html ) this glossary of the terms Idia uses, defined ( https://kamigame.jp/%E3%83%84%E3%82%A4%E3%82%B9%E3%83%86/page/210908868820105707.html ) and his VA saying he doesn't always understand his own lines https://twitter.com/YuuRei20/status/1577028067989417986 )

This is a great question! For those who may not know, Rook's nickname for Jamil is actually "Monsieur Multi," not "Monsieur Pyramide" as seen on NA.

The reason for his original nickname possibly comes from the multiple sides of his personality, as Rook is complimenting the "smoldering soul" inside of his "cool exterior" in the same sentence.

The original word used, マルチ, is quite literally the English-language word "multi," just written in katakana instead of romaji.

As for why NA decided to change this to "pyramide," as with most changes on NA, we do not know!

It is possible that the thought process was "multiple sides -> what has multiple sides -> pyramids?," but it may always be a mystery :<

This is a good catch! Vil does often use "choudai”!

Choudai has multiple uses in Japanese that can be translated into a myriad of things in English.

The simplest use of choudai is similar to the English-language “give me.”

It is not a particularly polite word.
You would not use it at work around your superiors, for example.

It is often used by children who have not learned the nuances of needing different levels of politeness for different situations, kind of like the English-word “gimme.”

In Twst the children that visit campus during Halloween say it when asking for more candy—this is a great example.

Floyd also says it in a more child-like use of the word.

Ruggie uses it with Epel during Vargas Camp because he is both older and the senpai.

It is kind of a word you use when you are confident that you will not be refused, more like a command than a request.

Ruggie uses it again during Vargas Camp when asking Epel for compliments after they’re done.

In this situation, English doesn’t need the word “give” at all to communicate the same meaning.

Vil also uses choudai in this way when asking Epel to give him another chance (after Epel says he wants to take over Vil’s role during their performance at the VDC).

Looking at all these examples together, in English they could technically all be phrased using the same word just like the original dialogue (“gimme” would be a little odd in Vil’s situation, so maybe “give me”?)—that is one of the things that choudai can do.

Another thing choudai can do is signify that a verb is being performed in a way that will benefit you or the group that you are a part of.

English does this same thing in the form of “for me/for us,” as in, “Open that door for me/us,” “do me/us a favor and open that door,” etc.

The Japanese language generally does not use subjects, so whether a verb is being performed for one person or a group of people will depend on context, and words like “choudai” are a big part of why!

Instead of “do this for her/me/us/them” and specifying pronouns/groups all we do is change the word that dictates whether something is being done for a group that we are a part of or not.

Instead of “verb performed by us, for you,” we can just say “verb”, followed by a word like choudai (or ageru or itadaku or kudasaru or kureru etc) depending upon who the unspecified people are.

Vil uses choudai in this way more than any other character: his line, “move out of the way” in Silver’s PE vignette, for example, could also be written in English as “do us a favor and get out of the way.”

One way to look at it is nearly every time Vil gives a command, he says, “Do me a favor and…”.

Vil: Do me a favor and listen.
Eliza: Help us out and celebrate
Vil: Do your part and wear it
Vil: Pull you weight and show me

(There may be other, better ways to express this in English💦just examples!)

Vil’s voice command for his “Mira Mira” app was not translated literally on NA, but it was consistently localized as “Tell me something"--no continuity problems here!

(probably written as this because Vil saying “Do me a solid and talk to me” would have been strange)

Very important: just like how “choudai” is a not-very-polite way to say “give me,” it is also a not-very-polite way to ask people to do favors for you.

There are other words that mean the exact same thing and are used the exact same way as choudai, but are more appropriate depending on your situation (morau / kureru / itadaku / etc).

Q: So if “choudai” is impolite and largely used by children who don’t know any better, does that mean Vil is being rude or childlike?

A: Nope! Like everything with language, it is not black and white. Vil uses it in the way of someone who expects to be obeyed without question.

He can do this because he is in a position of authority in the school, but I don’t think we’ve ever seen him say it to someone older in a position of authority that he respects, like Trein, for example.