Orionpax09 update

 My apologies as I do not mean to pile on  sad news. But a DeviantArt I was an acquaintance with whom did Eva woman Superwoman  from time to time Orionpax09 has passed away according to the people he worked with on a game called Time Tenshi. I don’t know if anyone else knows him but I figured this would be a nice place to talk about them if anyone did know him. I hope otherwise everyone is doing well.  Edit Assuming this is correct he has apparently not died and just simply had a mental breakdown I didn’t tell anybody to the point where his partners on a project thought he actually did die and report them as such.
 

I am one of the crazy SOBs who started that "Coreline" settign that he has some stories posted for in the DeviantArt page. Much better author than I, that is for sure.

I'm also one of the crazy SOBs that have been part of the "Superwomen of Eva" setting since day one. Betaed some stories, mostly the DC sub-verse, and gotten art for it.

The whole Coreline setting went to hell in a handbasket because crap that was written very early on, pure child's stuff, was taken as ammo for filibusters that painted some beloved characters in a very bad light and, well, being honest the whole mess gave me PTSD. I really, really hoped that he would eventually finish the stories he had left unfinished so we could bury the hatchet.

Didn't wanted to touch that thing with a eleven-foot pole because of said PTSD.

...it'll never happen now. Burying the hatchet. There's just no words for the shock I am feeling right now.

...guys, I really think we should not leave his Eva fics unfinished. It's like... well... finding out that Jack London did not finished a novel. It's just not right.

Other two DA members, mercblue22 and Nescaro as well al me convinced him to join us for play City Of Heroes some time ago and so he came and do it until one day that told mercblue22 that was feeling some pain on his legs and was last thing we knew since then.

And that was surely months and months ago and since then he didn't came back we all 3 got the feeling that something was wrong but since no official word of what happened couldn't say anything.

Now that's official (not sure of when happened exactly but if is from when his last message to mercblue22 a long time has passed) just add my condolences to family and relatives of him. Sure will be missed from all ones that know him the one who's writing this and other COH 2 partners as well...

Wow, I am just in SHOCK and HEARTBROKEN with this terrible news from my friend Albais that my good friend, OrionPax, has passed away. -_- I knew something bad happened to OP last June, but I was holding out on hope that he just lost interest with online and moved to something else. (Thank you tsuper for letting us know what happened to OP, even if the news is grim...)

We chatted regularly on discord and I convinced OP to play with me and my friends Albais and Nescaro the classic superhero MMO, City of Heroes early in 2021. He tried it and he was hooked as much as we all were in COH, it was something that really appealed to him guys. But, for me, OrionPax will be known for his fantastic craftsmanship in the many superheroine/supervillainess costumes that he created and provided for all of us to enjoy in DAZStudio/Poser/etc. As a 3d artist, I used his costumed time and time again as he created some of the finest costumes out there. From Wonder Woman to Rampage, Sensational She-Hulk to She-Ra, to Mighty Isis, to JEM's earrings, to Giganta, Livewire, Stunner, to Cheetara to Cutey Honey and many, many more. I know OP had his hand in many things, from Time Tenshi to his incredible 3d arts that he made at DA using his costumes, to even creating his fantastic She-Ra fic, which stayed true to the 80s She-Ra cartoon.

Orion Pax was one of a kind guys, someone that you could go to, to discuss superheroines in comics as well during times of trouble and he would do his best to give you the best advice possible. And it breaks my heart to know that throughout all of this, that I couldn't do anything to help him when he needed help the most. (as he helped me many times before) As Albais said, the final chat that I had with OP was on discord last June, and he was not feeling well. I knew that something was wrong guys, as OP mentioned to me that he has health issues and some days really took a lot out of him.

I just looked on my Discord and on June 27th of last year, he mentioned to me that his was feeling sick that night, and even apologized for it. I told him that we would chat later so he could get some sleep, hoping that he had maybe a slight flu or something. I never realized that would be the last time I would ever hear from OP. Days turned to weeks, weeks into months and no word on OP. I tried messing him a few times on Discord to see if he was okay, checking up on him, but, no response. I tried not to think the worse, hoping that OP as okay and stepped away from online to work on his game/other projects. But something in the corner of my mind kept thinking that something happened to OP. And today, it was verified by tsuper that my fears were confirmed, damn.

He was really heartbroken about losing his mom too as he cared for her but the Michigan health care system failed them as she was not able to receive proper care after she was in a car wreck a few years ago. (someone hit her) OP did his best to care for his mom on his own, but her passing really took the heart out of him guys, deep down, and I felt it when he would talk about his mom and how much he missed her. -_-

This fantastic forum was formed so people from all walks of life could come and enjoy superheroines, whether it be transformations, feats of strength of admire their beauty. But during times like this, it really hits home guys when we lose one of our own and it takes confirmation of a close friend or confidant to let us know of that person's passing. Orion Pax was someone that I have great admiration and respect for, and always have since I met him years ago. I know that he would want us to keep enjoying the great superheroines/supervillainesses here as well as his costumes/stories that he made of them. Rest in Peace OrionPax, your legacy will live on in the costumes that I use in my comics, which I will dedicate to you, my friend. May you be reunited with your mom in heaven buddy, enjoy your time together. Thank you for everything that you have done for me, my good friend, you will never be forgotten...

I was another acquaintance of his. I can't believe it. I knew he was going through rough times but I really hoped he'd pull through.

Yes, so did I Jimbob. I feel awful with the news of OrionPax09's passing. He was such a great person, and content creator, I hope that those of us who use OP's costumes in our 3d comics honor him so that he receives the recognition and admiration that that he truly deserves.

Does anybody knows what was his real name?

Anthony Lombardini according to his Instagram

Oh wow,
I always thought that OP's name was 'Roger Smith.' We did business a few times where he created for me and a friend the Black Scorpion, the Heroine. And his Paypal setup and all of his e-mails to me were from 'Roger Smith.' I guess since Anthony was listed at his Instagram page, then that was OP's real name. I am not 100% sure though guys...

I was thinking about something here, and I believe that I’ve been watching superwomen content in the last 20 years and maybe a little bit more.

This kind of news makes us remember that despite our “secret identities” in these forums or websites always will be a person with dreams, sufferings and a life to live, and all that we can do is wish to everyone to track this way as nice as possible.

I’m not the kind of person which expresses so much here specially because of the language but I would like to share this feeling

So... is he Smith or Lombardini? Because trying to find obituaries for either in the state of Michigan is really being a problem.

...don't even know the exact day he passed. I mean, his bosses gave the news, but they only said he died, not the date...

...this is just great (said with extreme sarcasm). I had a really crappy last pair of years regarding being friends with him, but he was friends all the same. Now I can't even attach a proper date to when I should be mourining him.

This is a very strange update I have to do. But it’s coming to my attention is possible that Orion pax hasn’t died but instead essentially just had a mental breakdown and didn’t tell his employers or at least his partners he was working with some indie game at the time he just left. Understand this is me saying this after being contacted from somebody on DeviantArt saying this and someone else showing a private message they got. My frustration is meant because how hard is it to write one post she’s going hey I’m taking a break or something like that to let it go on for so long that people actually say that you died is a bit ridiculous

This just gets weirder and weirder. Like I know Orion was a troubled guy but if people think you are dead you should say something unless he legitimately wanted everyone to think he was dead and had no intention of ever speaking to any of us ever again. I know he frequently got very emotionally upset about stuff far beyond his control like politics and what not but sheesh.

I doubt the people that massage me have a reason to fake but due to some one I know actually dying I felt extra mad

Just playing devils advocate here, but if someone gets a breakdown so bad they decide to say nothing to reassure people they are not dead, its a pretty awfully severe breakdown indeed.

Hello everyone,
Some good friends of mine who knew OP via online told me about these recent posts, and I don't know whether to feel HAPPY OR ANGRY, over them. When news came out about OP's passing, I was very sad because I knew what he went through with his mom's passing and such. I even posted a 'RIP' post at my DA page to let all of his fans know what had happened and so many came out to pay their respects to him, for the stellar work that he did, via 3d/stories. Now, seeing that OP 'might' be alive, just suffered a mental breakdown, I really don't know how to feel about this.

Yes, I really hope that it is true, that he is alive and still with us, that would be the most incredible news that I heard this year! However, laying low and seeing all of the 'RIP OP' posts here and at DA, and not coming out to explain that he was still here, just taking a personal leave from online -he didn't have to go into detail- well, that part is hard to swallow. I have been one of OP's biggest fans, I love the magnificent 3d superheroine costumes that he created, and he is a crafty storyteller as well as many have pointed out, but, just saying nothing, even if he was experiencing a mental issue, just does not sit right with me guys.

I have a pretty large fanbase online as I have been associated with Superheroine TFs for over 13 yrs here now, via 3d comics at DA or hosting multiple 'Dungeon of Female TFs' Yahoo groups, and even in the face of adversity such as this, could I ever leave my friends and fans wondering if I was still alive or not. I have put in place people that I talk to online to deliver the message should I leave this Earth unexpectedly, just so my friends and fans know about me and are wondering if I am still alive or not. And I know not everyone thinks like this, after all, this is online and well, some people don't hold friends in high regards, like I do here.

So, I do hope and pray that OP is with us still and one day he comes out at his DA page and explains why he choose to allow this to go on without saying a word. Yes, he does not not owe an explanation to any of us, but it would be nice to let us know that he is alive and has chosen to either leave online for good or take a break from the riggers of 3d/story creating.
I felt that I had to say something on this topic guys, since I was the one leading the charge to remember OP when news broke of his passing. I will continue to look at comments guys, please keep us informed those who might have news on OP, so that we know any updates on OP. Also, a BIG thank you to tsuper for the update too!

Guys, life is hard enough. Try to go easy.

Oh yes, I totally agree Harmony, it is. I hope that Orion is with us and he will be welcomed back with open arms by me, whenever he does decide to come back! ^_^

If you feel that in the post you are about to read I am unfairly judging you, it is entirely possible that is true. I am much more involved in the mental health community than I am involved in this community and I barely know any of you. What I do know is that there are responses here that directly shame OP for their behavior in response to a mental breakdown when nothing is known about the cause or severity of their recent mental health struggles. There are exceptions in the response to what I'm about to talk about, but they are very brief whereas the accusatory messages are quite lengthy.

Unless the phrasing came directly from OP as a description of what happened to them, I have to say I do not like reading the phrase "simply had a mental breakdown". As someone who has experienced more than a few mental health difficulties throughout my life, including more than one mental breakdown, it is not something "simple". In the best case that "simply" was chosen to illustrate that it is less severe than death, it's an unnecessary word as every reader can easily make their own judgement call on that without attaching a relatively judgmental sounding term to what can be a significantly traumatic experience. Informing online communities I am involved with, even in significant ways like some of the online writing groups I regularly post in is my absolute last consideration when I have gone through this sort of experience. And if those close friends I did have the wherewithal to inform, or more likely had told my family to inform, did share anything about my experience I would consider it a breach of my trust and privacy. Would I rather leave it that I was dead? Sometimes, yes, depending on the severity of what I was going through. But there's a very real likelihood I would not see the posts suggesting I was dead because I would be offline recovering, and my friends would not bring them to my attention because I may not be in the right headspace for a discussion of my own death.

Mental health difficulties and the shame and stigma that get attached to them are still extremely severe in many communities and areas. I have had times in my life where I would prefer people thought I was dead rather than risk exposing my mental health struggles to them and the overall response here to this story really makes me wonder how much progress is going on. Depending on the severity of the situation, it may have been months before OP was ready to look at most of their online communities and discover there was a death rumor about them. It appears, from the posts here, they would have gotten severe backlash if they simply posted "I'm not dead, I just took a break from online." several months after the original death rumor appeared unless they explained why they hadn't posted that message back when the original rumor surfaced, and they may not be ready or willing to share any part of that explanation. But these responses would shame and persecute them into feeling that either they have to share or they have to leave.

 

Who are you replying to? I think my frustration should be elaborated on. My balls down to as there is no reason he couldn’t say I have to take a break from my mental health nothing stopped him from doing that. She was working with somebody else on the game I think it was time tenshi2 They were the guys are reported that he was dead. And again maybe someone could be lying on the impossible but given the people in another talk to me about this they generally don’t seem to have any real reason to lie about it. Association balls down to why you even let it get to this point in the first place when all you had to say was I’m taking a break it’s not hard.

tsuper wrote:

 Association balls down to why you even let it get to this point in the first place when all you had to say was I’m taking a break it’s not hard.
 

You cannot speak for someone else how difficult their suffering is.

Anyway that's my final 2 cents on this. I don't even know the parties involved but the amount of shaming and speculation upset me.

I apologize but my frustration boils down to no communication from Op and for when I saw the email confirming he was alive it was him complaining about politics and that he can’t live off of his hobby. It’s hard to sympathize with a guy that’s essentially complaining about nothing I’d be very different if he had recently lost a loved one or had been diagnosed with some sort of disease. Both of which could’ve been the case but I didn’t see. But all I saw was grown man having a temper tantrum because politics make me mad. Quitting is fine but getting to this point where I have to apologize for  some guy who faked his death is a bit screwed up. I apologize most of my frustration boils down to I actually really lost someone that I cared about so funny out some guy’s not dead but just having a hissy fit was my problem. I can look for the email from him if you’d like that I personally feel we’re probably good as it is. Again my apologies I’m essentially venting my frustrations here because it really does grind my gears due to losing someone.

@tsuper I was replying to the whole topic, not any specific post and as I said right at the start of my post it was entirely possible I would be judging people to harshly. I apologize for directing anger into my post that may have been unnecessary, I was basing it on OP having had a "mental breakdown", which, to me, is very different than the explanation you gave from OP in your latest post. It would appear from your more recent posts that you have more direct information on the situation than I believed. In your original post you implied your information was second or third hand. Your latest post makes it sound like you've received OPs actual explanation from their absence, though perhaps not directly from OP themselves so I guess that's still second or third hand. I definitely understand the anger over a fake death story when you're dealing with an actual death. I'm not sure, from the information here, if OP is the right target for that anger as it doesn't sound like they started the rumor of their death. Being frustrated with them for not saying they were leaving, sure.

I'm still confused how a departure from the community, or even not responding to development partners, turned into news of their death. If I leave an online community quietly, I certainly wouldn't expect to come back to find news of my own death in that community. If OP, or someone who was directly connected to them enough to be seen as a reliable source, intentionally said they were dead, then being angry with them is certainly appropriate. Otherwise, this should go back on whoever started the rumor (not you @tsuper, whoever your source was) to NOT post about someone's death unless you have access to an actual credible source (a published obituary, direct news from immediate friends or family)

I do still believe much of what I said needed to be said, perhaps in a different tone, as it was not just a single post from a single individual that felt like shaming someone for their mental health struggles. This is my last response to the topic, only posted because I believed that a) there was new information that needed a response and b) based on that new information I owed an apology for my anger

@tsuper I ask that you please do not post the original email you received, as no matter what reason or explanation is contained within there would be a breach of privacy there as the sender did not send it to us, but to you.

Sorry I should’ve said it was a public post I made it sound like I got the email personally I did not. I have talked to the guy that got it.