Original Quadrants

In Homestuck, there exists a society of aliens known as Trolls. These trolls have a different romance system than humans do; instead of having only one type of relationship, there's four. This romance system is known as the **Quadrant System**.

!! Minor flashing lights warning in the Vacillation portion of this page. The GIFS are quite flashy. View at your own risk. !!

## The Chart

The Quadrant System, and the four types of relationship, are denoted by the four types of playing card suits. You have the heart ( ♥ ), spade ( ♠ ), diamond ( ♦ ), and the club ( ♣ ). The quadrants are put into a chart where each symbol takes up a corner, and they are divided by the different qualities that they share. There are four qualities: Red romance, Black romance, Conciliatory, and Concupiscent.

Red Romance ( ♥ & ♦ ): The top two quadrants on the chart, the heart and the diamond, are considered to be Red quadrants. This means that the relationship is considered positive and loving, where the participants care for each other and love each other.

Black Romance ( ♠ & ♣ ): The bottom two quadrants on the chart, the spade and the club, are considered to be Black quadrants. This means that the relationship is considered to be negative and hateful, where the participants are constantly fighting and shouting. This does not mean that the relationship is toxic or abusive however, as the trolls in Homestuck have a much more aggressive and mean-spirited way of life. In human relationships, a black quadranted relationship should follow specific criteria of what is and isn't allowed to avoid causing genuine pain and hurt, and to avoid becoming toxic / abusive.

Conciliatory ( ♦ & ♣ ): The right two quadrants on the chart, the diamond and the club, are considered to be Conciliatory quadrants. This means that the relationship is platonic and not romantic or sexual (at least in how humans view relationships.) These quadrants are meant to pacify and control more aggressive trolls (or humans) and to make sure that nobody kills anyone.

Concupiscent ( ♥ & ♠ ): The left two quadrants on the chart, the heart and the spade, are considered to be Concupiscent quadrants. This means that the relationship is romantic and/or sexual, and the purpose of the relationship is to create offspring and to provide a companion for life (or for however long the relationship lasts.)

## Matespritship

### Participants

2

Matespritship is the first of the four quadrants and it's symbol is the heart ( ♥ / <3 ). It's relationship status is as a Concupiscent Red quadrant, which means that it is a positive, loving romance that exists to reproduce. Matespritship is basically the troll version of a normal human relationship. It is positive and loving, and more often than not serves to reproduce. Homestuck quotes the relationship type as:

"When two individuals find themselves in the flushed quadrant together, they are said to be MATESPRITS. Matespritship is the closest parallel to the human concept of romance trolls have. It plays a role in the trolls' reproductive cycle, just as it does for humans."

This quadrant is pretty straight forward and doesn't need that much explanation to understand it. The link [1] to the official Homestuck page on Matespritship can be found at the bottom of this page.

## Kismesissitude

### Participants

2

Kismesissitude is the second of the four quadrants and it's symbol is the spade ( ♠ / <3<). It's relationship status is as a Concupiscent Black quadrant, which means it's negative and hateful, but is meant to reproduce.

Kismesissitude is an important relationship to have in the trollian society because the trolls are a very angry and aggressive society and often cause damage to one another. Having a relationship like a Kismesissitude can be helpful for some trolls because the quadrant serves as a way to help release some of those bitter feelings in a socially acceptable manner. Both Matespritship and Kismesissitude are valuable components in a troll's life and in trollian society, but it's a fair assumption that the Kismesissitude relationship holds more weight or has a bigger importance in a troll's life due to their violent nature.

Homestuck quotes the relationship type as:

"When a pair of adversaries delve into this quadrant, they become each other's KISMESIS. As one of the concupiscent quadrants, it plays a role in procreation as well. There is no particularly good human translation for this concept. The closest would be an especially potent arch-rivalry. For instance, human players would never be able to adequately diagnose the relationship between the queen and her archagent. But troll players could immediately place it as a dead ringer for kismesissitude. They would think we were all pretty stupid for not getting it. And they would be right."

It's known to be common to have conflicting emotions when it comes to having a Kismesissitude or pitch feelings for someone. Part of having pitch feelings for someone is admiring them, but still despising them because of their flaws or negative quirks. To have a successful pitch relationship with someone, you must be able to point out traits and qualities that you admire or like in your Kismesis, especially if the relationship were to ever vaciliate. Remember, the relationship is still meant to reproduce and therefore, having purely hateful feelings towards your Kismesis isn't proper and will result in an unbalanced or toxic/abusive relationship. Some level of love or admiration must exist for a Kismesissitude to remain proper.

When it comes to violent relationships such as the Kismesissitude, there are rules that you have to follow to make sure that it remains proper and healthy. Here is a list of **Do's and Don't for Caliginous Dating!**

**DO / THAT'S OKAY!**: Scratching, biting, nonfatal injuries, death/harm threats, teasing, mocking, defending partner(s) when they are threatened, caring about partner(s) well being, messing with partner(s)' head, insulting, viewing them as less of a person, enforcing your own superiority over them, plots to bring harm or to kill them, hateful makeout sessions, not wanting partner(s) to die or be hurt badly.

**DON'T / THAT'S NOT OKAY!**: Partying when partner(s) are removed from your location, actually TRYING to bring fatal harm to or kill them, attempting to change or alter them in a physical or mental way, attacking or removing signs of your partner(s) while they're not with you, harming their Matesprite(s) or Moirail(s) or friends at any point in time, bringing fatal harm or killing your partner(s), treating partner(s) like an animal or garbage (unless it's a kink thing and mutually agreed upon), refusing to look at or talk about/to partner(s) at all times, being happy about partner(s) death or mortal wound, taking pleasure in pain caused by someone else, depriving partner(s) of basic needs or wants pointlessly, refusing to be near partner(s), refusing to hateful makeout sessions with partner(s), spending no time with partner(s) yet still claiming quadrant status, using/turning partner(s)' loved ones against them, preventing partner(s) from seeing their Matesprite(s) or Moirail(s) or friends or other loved ones, holding onto past wrongdoings / keeping grudges way after they've been resolved for the sole purpose of the quadrant-ship, allowing others to bring harm to or attempt to kill partner(s), observing with glee while partner(s) are on the brink of death, being an asshole to them in general for no good reason.

The link [2] to the official Homestuck page on Kismesissitude can be found at the bottom of this page.

## Auspisticism

### Participants

3

Auspisticism is the third of the four quadrants and it's symbol is the club ( ♣ / c3< ). It's relationship status is as a Conciliatory Black quadrants, which means it's negative and hateful but is meant to pacify and console.
This quadrant is the only of the original four quadrants to involve three participants, but that is for a specific reason. Unlike the other traditional quadrants, Auspisticism relies on the existence of another relationship or feelings, specifically that of a Kismesissitude or pitch feelings. Auspisticism basically piggybacks on the Kismesissitude. The way that the relationship works is simple to understand: you have your Kismeses or pitch partners, but they are more violent or volatile than they should be, so the relationship requires a third party to step in and defuse the situation before it goes awry and someone kills someone.

Homestuck quotes the relationship type as:

"This quadrant involves a particular type of three-way relationship of a black romantic nature. Falling on the conciliatory side, it has no bearing on the reproductive cycle, except for indirect ramifications. When two trolls are locked in a feud or some otherwise contentious relationship, one can intervene and become their AUSPISTICE. The auspistice mediates between the two, playing the role of a peace keeper, preventing the feud from boiling over into a fully caliginous rivalry. Since such lesser feuds are quite common among trolls, there is a significant need for auspisticing parties. Without them, too many ashen feuds would become caliginous, and begin to conflict with other exclusive kismesis relationships, leading to a great deal of social complexity and sore feelings (even more so than black romance usually involves). Without auspisticism, the result would be widespread black infidelity."

Because of the conditions that a Kismesissitude must follow to remain a viable relationship, some Kismesissitude relationships require an Auspistice at all times to make sure that it doesn't become unhealthy or too violent. Also, it is possible to be in both a Kismesissitude and an ashen relationship at the same time without having contradicting relationship overlay. It is also questionably possible to be both an Auspistice in one ashen relationship, and to have an Auspistice for your pitch relationship at the same time.

The link [3] to the official Homestuck page on Auspisticism can be found at the bottom of this page.

## Moirallegience

### Participants

2

Moirallegience (occasionally Moirallegiance or Moirallegence) is the fourth of the four quadrants and it's symbol is the diamond ( ♦ / <> ). It's relationship status is as a Conciliatory Red quadrant, which means it's positive and loving, but is meant to pacify and console.

Much like the other conciliatory relationship, a Moirallegience is meant to help console violent trolls. The quadrant has been referred to as being similar to "platonic soulmates, but with a specific social purpose." A moirail's purpose is to help quell the violent urges in an angry troll and to help soothe them. A good moirail will also compliment the personality of their partner, and offer a very balanced, unique relationship that only they can create.

Homestuck quotes the relationship type as:

"This quadrant presides over MOIRALLEGIENCE, the other conciliatory relationship. A reasonable human translation would be the concept of a soul mate, but in a more platonic sense, and with a more specific social purpose. Trolls are a very angry and violent race. Some are more hot-tempered and dangerous than others, to the extent that if left to their own devices, they would present a serious threat to society, or even to themselves. Such trolls will have an instinctive pale attraction to a more even-tempered troll, who may become their MOIRAIL. The moirail is obliged to pacify the other, to function as the better half. The two partners in a strong pale relationship will serve to balance and complement each other's emotional profiles, and thus allow their other relationships to be more successful. It's often ambiguous especially among young trolls whether a bond formed between an acquaintance is true moirallegence, or the usual variety of platonic involvement. Furthermore, romantic intentions of a more flushed nature can often be mistaken for paler leanings, much to the frustration of the suitor."

To humans, the existence of the Moirallegience quadrant may seem to be useless or fundamentally incorrect, because humans don't have quite the same need for a moirail as trolls do, but humans can still find use in a pale relationship. Although to the untrained eye, a Moirallegience may just look like being best friends or really close friends with another person, this is untrue. Someone can have both close/best friends and a Moirail without the two relationships contradicting with one another. The use of a Moirallegience in human relationships would almost reflect that of a caretaker role but two-sided, with both sides of the relationship putting effort and care into making each other the best version of each other that they can. A Moirail can also be a good influence because they can stop their partner from doing stupid things that might put themself or others in harm's way, or otherwise is just a pointless decision.

It's also very common in trollian society for the lower blooded troll to wear the blood color / caste color of the higher blooded troll. This showcases the relationship to everyone else and promotes a sense of security. It tells everyone else "hey, I'm quadranted so you can't hurt me without feeling the wrath of my Moirail."

The link [4] to the official Homestuck page on Moirallegience can be found at the bottom of this page.

## Vacillation

Troll romance is complicated, and more often than not, there's conflicting feelings and emotions being held by the participants of a relationship. Because of this, it often changes the structure of the troll's relationships and it may even change the type of relationship altogether. This is what is known as **Quadrant Vacillation** or just **Vacillation**. Because of the complexity of trollian relationships and the quadrants, vacillation is very common within relationships of all types. There are four specific types of vacillation that are prominent in Homestuck, or are common enough to be worth talking about.

### Type 1

The first type of vacillation is incredibly common and is known as Matesprit/Kismesis Double Reacharound, or more simply a RedBlackrom Vacillation. This type of relationship is featured in Homestuck and is showcased in the GIF to the right (above for mobile users.) Featured in the GIF are two young trolls, Equius and Robot Aradia, and it shows the two of them switching back and forth from being in a Matespritship and a Kismesissitude. Vacillation like this occurs when one member of the relationship holds positive or Red feelings, and the other member of the relationship holds negative or Black feelings. To deal with this imbalance in feelings, the relationship will change back and forth to accommodate both types of romance.

### Type 2

The second type of vacillation isn't showcased in Homestuck, but is common enough to be worth talking about. In the GIF is a type of group relationship known as a Quadrangle. It is made up of two Matespritship pairings and two Kismesissitude pairings. As shown in the GIF, person A and B are Matesprits, as are person C and D. Person A and D are Kismeses, as are person B and C.

However, the group vacillation happens when one group changes their relationship type and therefore causes a ripple effect to happen which changes the relationship type of the others in the group. As seen in the GIF, relationship AB becomes a Kismesissitude, which then forces both relationship AD and BC to become Matespritships, which then forces relationship CD to become a Kismesissitude. Because someone cannot be in more than one of the same type of relationship at once, if you're in a group and the group vacillates, either you vacillate too or you end the relationship. It is a complicated but strict system.

### Type 3

The third type of vacillation is another type of group vacillation and this time, it's more complicated, but not that complicated. This type of vacillation is shown in Homestuck with three particular trolls (as seen in the GIF), Vriska, Tavros, and Kanaya. The way that this example works is very similar to that of Type 1, being primarily a RedBlack vacillation, however this type is different because it adds the Auspisticism quadrants on top of both Matespritship and Kismesissitude.

In a similar fashion to Type 1 vacillation, two trolls harbour different feelings for one another and continually switch between being Matesprits and Kismeses'. These two trolls, Vriska and Tavros, have a very rocky and unstable Kismesissitude though, and they require the presence of an Auspistice, this being the third troll, Kanaya. The presence of the Auspistice isn't always needed, as sometimes they can hold a pitch relationship long enough to survive until they switch quadrants. The need for an Auspistice is never needed for a Matespritship pair (at least not this particular pairing). This cycle of vacillation will continue indefinitely until the two main trolls end their relationship.

### Type 4

The fourth type of vacillation is the most complicated as it features all four types of quadrantships and a whole load of trolls. This is another group vacillation that is showcased (or at least partially showcased) in Homestuck. It features 5 seperate trolls, those being Feferi, Eridan, Vriska, Tavros, and Kanaya.

In the GIF showcased, it starts off with two seperate relationships: Feferi and Eridan in a Moirallegience, and Vriska and Tavros in an ashen relationship with Kanaya as their Auspistice. Both relationships break, and Kanaya enters a Moirallegience with Vriska. Both relationships flip as one side had flushed feelings for the other, before they both break. Eridan enters a Kismesissitude with Vriska, which then switches to an ashen one with Kanaya as their Auspistice, before the relationships break again. Feferi reenters a Moirallegience with Eridan, and Vriska enters a Kismesissitude with Tavros before it flips back and forth between a Matespritship and Kismesissitude. When Vriska and Tavros are in a Kismesissitude, Kanaya enters as their Auspistice, and the cycle restarts.

I told you it was complicated.

## Links

[1] The link to the official Homestuck page on Matespritship.

[2] The link to the official Homestuck page on Kismesissitude.

[3] The link to the official Homestuck page on Auspisticism.

[4] The link to the official Homestuck page on Moirallegience.