[UPDATE 2/11/2022] PSA on Komugitsune/DemonMadness

(Please tell me to delete if I'm clogging!)

It took me a while to find this thread because, honestly, I kept overlooking it when reading and rereading Yolk's statement. While I was not directly affected by Aug's actions the way the mod team and multiple other members were, I just wanted to add in that I wholeheartedly believe everything stated to be true - stomach twistingly so. To Min and Yolk, who bore the brunt of both his abuse as an admin and subsequent attempts at character assassination, I continue to express my deepest apologies that this went on for so long. And to the rest of the mod team, my words can do little to salve it, but I'm sorry that you were also tricked, manipulated, and fooled by a man so many others have rightfully pointed out is in the end nothing more than a con artist. I loved being a part of northernruins for the short duration I was active, and enjoyed supporting many fantastic artists who deserved better than to be part of Aug's money-churning operation. Because the fact is that yes, northernruins was, for all the amazing work Min, Yolk, and so many others put in both as staff and as part of the community, cobbled together from stolen ideas, art, and cultures. And, above all else, stolen labor from those who deserved to be fairly compensated for working what would be a full job if not for his refusal to even think about compensation.

Even now, it sickens me knowing how I supported him, and his patreon - a patreon which, mind you, was billed as being the official northernruins patreon while all the profits went only to Aug. Knowing what I do now, though, it's hardly a surprise; he's ​particularly gifted at omission based manipulation: the racefaking, letting people assume he was east asian based on his brand alone. The assumption that the mod team was being compensated, or at least the ones who weren't volunteers. The question dodging. But in my mind, all of that pales in comparison to how he was willing to - or at least THREATENED to - call the police on Min and Yolk at a time when anti-asian hate crime is at a high. Just remembering it makes my blood boil. Not to mention the toll the stress put on Min's health, as well as the effects on everyone who was forced to overwork over the past few years for an admin who'd rather spend (at one point) more than two month's patreon money on gacha games instead of paying his staff.

As far as his racism, well, let me preface by saying that I'm white, and therefore was never affected by it myself. However, the fact that he - as mentioned above - endagered the asian staff while profiting off of specifically asian and indegenous cultures (using them for worldbuilding fodder, the designs he supposedly "made," and an overall false and performative sense of "diversity" on his part with his ocs) is sickening. Also sickening was his insistence that racism would not be tolerated while simultanesouly shutting down black memeber's concern with racist statements made in-chat. And instead of adressing it, he took a bland and insensitive "no fighting" approach then brushed it under the rug with every other concern anyone tried to bring up to him. He was also guilty of simultaneously (as stated by multiple members and staff) playing his own disability card to gain sympathy and get subjects dropped while making ableist comments about other members' disabilities; a hypocristy that flavors many of his acts.

I feel like I'm dragging on, and everything I've said here rounds back to what others have already and extensively covered. Just know that, for the former members and mods of northernruins, I'm happy to support you in your future endeavors, and sorry for the oppurtunities you might have missed sinking so much time into an arpg standing on rotten roots. If there any designers whose designs I've purchased that would rather handle the despeciesing of their designs personally, I am happy to commission you once you've had time to recover. Any others, I will be changing up myself. While I did have one myo slot left in northernruins (aspirith), I will not be seeking a refund at this time - I have a day job, and I would prefer that others get refunded first, if Aug does in fact issue refunds.

Sorry for rambling on so much! - Bat

Not to downplay the seriousness of their behaviour with people in the art community in the thread so far, but I'm pretty concerned that like it hasn't become a bigger issue that this person is dating people who are underaged or barely legal, and have a track record of it?

I'm sorry, what is/was Northern Ruins? I'm so out of the loop here

dirtriot Personally, I am not sure what else can be added on my end but you are completely right that it should be a bigger issue. I think the reason why it may not have been focused on currently is that people are bringing forward mainly personal testimonies. However, that should not downplay the fact that Aug has evidence of engaging in underage dating.

purrsuasively Northern Ruins was an ARPG centered originally around the closed species known as Ordivirns by komugitsune/Aug. Other closed species were Tuvi, Nimburreid, and Aspirith also by komugitsune/Aug. While he made the species and gave some concepts for the ARPG, most of the work for the ARPG was derived with no (or very little) compensation from the mods (details in slides).

Ne-wt Thank you for showing this!

fortuneyolk thank you so much for explaining! I haven't been active in the art community much lately and I remember komugitsune as wyvernbites. gonna look more into this now for sure 

Ne-wt I was so confused at first bc I didn't know what Northern Ruins was and absolutely nothing showed up on-site. :( Were they just trying to avoid accountability here?

dirtriot I'm uncertain as what to say irt: Aug dating people who are so much younger than him, but I will say that he did a very good job at convincing us mods that his exes were always in the wrong. I remember being genuinely convinced that the ex he supposedly had a restraining order against must've been someone horrifically abusive, as I even remember Aug wanting to do an Northern Ruins event in celebration of "escaping" that relationship. Knowing what I do now paints things in a very different light.

Hi Heels here! I’m just here to let people know if they received a Ordivirn that I designed they’re free to despecies it! You may edit my art but please let me know beforehand! I was never really active after I started getting more hours at my irl job but I still felt as the pressure of the group, especially how much work everyone puts in. Because of that I would keep on apologizing to Aug I wasn’t doing enough or anything at all due to my irl life and everything going on in it. Thankfully I wasn’t in a bad state as Min or Yolk was but I put my health and mental well-being at risk when I took it upon myself to help him out with this “miscommunication” which it was never and it was far bigger than I expected. I was on a social media hiatus for a good month and you can imagine my shock when everything burst into flames, I just got back man! Most of this just comes to show not him as a leader of NR but as a person as well.

Aside from my own experience as a mod in NR, I looked up to him both as a person and a artist. He betrayed the mods by lying to us and fabricated so many things about others. Slandering even his own friends to get a more dramatic side for his story. Even threaten to press charges and call the cops on his “precious” friends. He hurt so many people I care about, the mod team he creates became my found family. The fact that he tried to use his disability card when the entire mod team, in fact, are disabled in some form as well is ironic.

Sorry if I sound rambling, I’m very overwhelmed with everything life is tossing at me now so hopefully it make some sense at least! And please if you can drop Min or Yolk a Kofi! They deserve it! q _ q

Heelies It is so upsetting to hear that! I'm sorry you and all the other mods had to put up with all this. I didn't know any of this was going on until today :<

He sounds extremely manipulative and abusive and I'm glad you & other mods are ok!