#plus attacks from snakes and other land creatures

[twisted-wonderland-but-gayer]

There's probably discrimination between fresh and saltwater merfolk, maybe between different depths of the sea too

I can imagine there's a rule of

If you blink and see a merfolk swimming towards you looking for a bite, that's a seafolk.

If you blink and you see a mer that wasn't there before, that's a freshwater folk.

If you blink and wake up in heaven, it was a swampfolk

[meowuff]

Third part of the "Changeling/Mimic Sky Kid Creature" Series

HIDDEN FOREST

I am happy to present you the Creatures living in the dark and misty depth of the hidden forest!

The hidden forest is a dark and vast maze of trees, shallow rivers and many caves to explore. The heavy rain and the sun being hidden behind dark clouds and gigantic trees cause the forest to be cast in a constant dimness.

The dark habitat and the constant rain reminded me of the rainforest so what better adaption for the little critters would it be than the one comparable to amphibians?

Most of their features are inspired by frogs plus a bit of a snake like behaviour here and there.

The Frog-Kids live in every nook and cranny of the hidden forest. They climb to the highest top of the trees, crawl through the many dark caves scattered throughout the realm and swim through the shallow rivers and ponds formed by the constant rain.

If not being on a hunt, Frog-Kids wander the land as pairs, picking one companion during their young years and staying with their choice for the rest of their life. Together with their chosen second half they patrol the woods, climb the hills and trees and sleep together in the shallows of the rivers and ponds.

Because of the constant rain, the capacity of normal hearing got quite useless, the continuous pattering of water drops drowning out most of the sounds. As consequence, the Frog-Kids ears changed over time to help filtering out the most important noises. They are most comfortable to move around on all fours, making it easy to jump onto higher places or into the water quickly, if someone would be walking into their paths.

If they do decide to walk on two legs, when disguised as normal Skylings, they tend to walk hunched over, keeping their arms in the front to fall back on all fours at any moment.

Compared to an average tall Skyling, Frog-Kids are often half a head or a full head taller than them. Combined with them rarely wearing moth clothing, it doesn't pull any attention to them, thanks to the fact that vets or butterflies tend to change their hight during their journey. As a result, they are being perceived as one of them.

Due to the generally wetter environment and their adaptation to spending quite a lot time in the water, their hands and feet developed webbing. As consequence of this, they are incredible fast swimmers, unbeatable if you would try to escape them if you are unlucky enough to fall into the murky waters.

Because of the webbing, their gloves are not able to properly hide those features and you'll be able to see the webbing even through their disguise.

Because of the generally dark atmosphere in the rainy forest, the Frog-Kids especially pick out Skylings with dark clothing and masks to steal their disguises from. The dim colours letting them blend in better than the brighter orange-beige of the moths.

They are not able to wear any capes as those tend to melt in the rain of the Hidden Forest, it being one of the reasons that this realm is known to be dangerous to venture through for young Skylings.

Additionally, the absence of the cape is causing older, more advanced Skylings to feel a need of protection if they cross paths with the Frog-Kids, and they tend to stay on the ground to help them, making it easier for the Creatures to guide them into uncharted parts of the forest, just to either eat them or leave them lost in the dark as entertainment.

Even if Frog-Kids are venturing the Forest as a pair, if it´s about hunting for food, they exclusively do it alone. It is not just being more efficient but also prevents any competitive behaviour between themselves, which could cause a fight about resources and end in attacking each other.

The Frog-Kids have no teeth but instead use their long and extendable tongue for hunting. Their jaw, similar to that of a snake, is able to dislodge and widen their mouth significantly, making it easy to swallow their victims whole.

The tip of their very strong tongue can light up brightly, comparable to the few lanterns scattered around the forest. When hunting, they usually position themselves higher up on one of the mushrooms growing on the trees and let their tongue lure some unsuspecting Skylings to them, which just think they found a light source to recharge their own light.

As soon as the Skylings get close enough, the Frog-Kids tongue shoots out and envelope their pray. Once they have you in their grasp, it is impossible to wiggle your way out of it again. Just seconds after capturing you, they swallow you whole and digest you over the next days.

Their diet consists of Skylings exclusively, but due to the way of consuming them, they keep their hunts for them to more or less once every 2 weeks.

Frog-Kids are sinister, dangerous beings. If you are encountering a single one, it means they are on the hunt for food. If you cross paths with a pair of them, it means they want to have some fun getting you lost in the darkest, unknown corners of the Forest. Either way, meeting any of their kind is a bad sign for moths as well as vets. If you venture the forest during the night and see a bright light slightly moving between the trees, it is advised to keep your distance, even if your own light is at its lowest. After all, you´ll never know for sure if you´re not being watched from above, observed to turn your back and open up a chance to snatch you from the muddy floor of the forest...

Signs to distinguish a Frog-Kid from a Sky-Kid:

no cape

webbing between thumb and hand visible

walking around lightly hunched over

wearing dark masks and clothes

skin color is a musky dark green

> Reference of the Hidden Forest <

[inventors-fair]

Many Fangs: Snake Winners!

Our winners this week are @bergdg, @bread-into-toast, an @lanabutnotdelray!

@bergdg — Nasulja, Refuse Blightfang

This is one of those strange Commander cards that makes people ask a lot of questions, or at least try to work around the obvious stuff. To clarify: I like that. Firstly, the Snake in question in the first trigger? Doesn't have to be a snake that you own/control. Obviously you're the person making the snake tokens in the end, but still. Secondly, the activated ability gets around timing restrictions. So like—there are a lot of wild builds that this card can go for. This is absolutely a Commander card for those reasons, and I think that it's...feasible-ish for this to be in Standard? I mean, it could be, but I'm kidding myself, look at this thing. It's awesome.

Cursory cards that come to mind: Seed the Land 100% Orochi Hatchery as well. Kaseto loves these tokens, and hoo boy, Felix Five-Boots is a fun buddy. This could very much be a token deck too in the right shell, or just general Gonti-like criminal stuff. Small unblockable creatures are a little weak in Commander sometimes but I think that there's enough control to make it go around in these colors. Like, I already have my Atraxa deck so I don't think I'd build another Sultai Commander, but someone's gonna have fun with this for sure. Is this Ikoria, like the other Blightfang is? I had a line here about the typo in the name but I'm glad that got fixed lol

@bread-into-toast — Constrict

K.I.S.S.? More like H.I.S.S.! Ahem. Yeah, no, simple is effective, and this is an odd case where there's not much precedent for specific toughness-damage attacks. The Scryfall tag is "buttfight" and I really don't know why MTG doesn't do more of it. As far as the mechanics go, I think there's been enough precedent to say that this card is the baseline green-damage card for contemporary removal. "Bite" effects are totally great, easy slots, awesome for aggro, great with trample. What's the benefit of the toughness, then, or what does that change? Arguably not too much! It's a mindset thing more than anything, so frankly, you've already got that checkmark done. (Planeswalker punching in this day and age is also fair all things considered, should mention that.)

Now it's lore and flavor time. Giant snakes on Tarkir is, of course, freakin' rad. Big fan already. Are they big enough to hunt dragons? That's the real question. But it's not about the hunt, is it? Look, I'll level with you: if I was a CinemaSins-style asshat, I'd say that the dragons are big enough to pluck up the snakes like birds to worms. Counter to that, though, what if the dragons had to go where there was less visibility, or in the water, or in territory where they're less suited to the poisonous atmosphere. Can't see a snake coming, and then bam, their firepower is choked out. But this card is green, and the theme is insurgency... That's the really cool part. The old Sultai vs. Silumgar, "insurgency" in green to show that there's the fight for the old ways. The one color that's supposedly missing shows what strengths the so-called Dragonlords lack. Like... That's subtle, sneaky, and a reward for Vorthoses. Big fan of your work there. 

@lanabutnotdelray — Hythonia, Mother of Vipers

I'm well aware that I didn't put gorgons in the "favorite snakes" poll, because gorgons are not snakes and I'm standing by that. It's impossible to have gorgons not be associated with snakes, though, and it's for that reason (plus, y'know, the good card) that I'm happy to put Hythonia here. There's a special mechanical sweet spot for cards that are ostensibly designed for Commander that can fill a mythic slot in a draft set. Sometimes it's obvious, but sometimes it's reasonable to have the multicolor integration. How many gorgons are you gonna get in any given set? Not that many, but one is enough. A six-mana investment that can turn creatures to stone is powerful but far from broken, and the potential synergies that go with it are neat as well.

There was one core set card, I don't remember what, that got a creature back from either player's side of the battlefield the next time it died. It's that effect in black, that return-to-me, that makes the second ability so fun. What's even more powerful is that the mana investment you get from even having just Hythonia out means you'll lose a blocking gorgon to destroy something, but you get a deathtouch blocker in return. Obviously it's not going to save you from evasion or other destructive effects, but like, it's that kind of decision-making skill that means you'll have to find exactly what you want to do step-by-step to ensure that you're executing your turns (and your opponents' creatures) properly. She's cruel, she's decisive, and she shows her little pets what happens if strangers try to hurt them. Solid as stone.

Runners are a-slitherin' behind~ @abelzumi

[thecreaturecodex]

Redback Gorger

Image by Johnny Duddle, © Simon and Schuster

[Sponsored by @glarnboudin. An Awfully Beastly Business is a series of chapter books for young readers, set at a nature reserve for monsters. I read the first of them, and it was okay I guess. I'm definitely not in the target audience for them, but likewise if I was eight to ten when they came out, I could see myself having fixated on them. The redback is the cover monster of the second book, Sea Monsters and Other Delicacies, in which the villains hope to use it as the centerpiece of a seafood feast of exotic monsters. In order to avoid giving the redback just an adjective name, I resorted to the "adjective verber" formula beloved of Magic the Gathering and 4e D&D.]

Redback Gorger CR 17 N Magical Beast This creature resembles an octopus with the face of a frogfish. It has a craggy exoskeleton covering its body, studded with red plates along its back. It has eight tentacles, each of which is as thick as a tree trunk and lined with suckers that ooze a black resin. Growing from its head is a very long, flexible appendage ending in an eyeless blue snake’s head.

Redback gorgers are among the rarest of sea monsters—rarely is there more than one adult per ocean basin on any given planet. They are long-lived ambush predators—they spend most of their time resting or slowly swimming along the abyssal plains, then move higher into the water column to hunt. Although their jaws and tentacles are strong, they prefer to incapacitate their prey by injecting it with a super-cooled venom, carried in the fangs of their false head. The false head can smell, hear and sense heat, and can strike around cover. The redback gorger feeds primarily on large fish and small whales, which it paralyzes with its venom and then swallows without a struggle.

Despite their massive territorial requirements and rarity, redback gorgers can communicate through infrasound vocalization, similarly to whales and elephants, and use this to demarcate territorial boundaries and determine fertility status. Redbacks mate only once or twice in their long lives, but produce around a million tiny planktonic eggs during each mating event. The vast majority of larval redbacks are eaten while still tiny and planktonic.  On the rare occasions a redback gorger appears on the surface, it may probe its surroundings with this false head, giving the impression that a sea serpent or plesiosaur lurks below the surface instead of a much more dangerous predator. They can survive on land for brief periods, but only emerge onto land as an act of desperation.

Redback Gorger              CR 17 XP 102,400 N Gargantuan magical beast (aquatic) Init +6; Senses darkvision 60 ft., Perception +18, tremorsense 60 ft.

Defense AC 32, touch 9, flat-footed 29 (-4 size, +2 Dex, +1 dodge, +23 natural) hp 283 (21d10+168) Fort +20, Ref +14, Will +14 DR 10/magic; Resist cold 20,electricity 20, fire 20; SR 28 Defensive Abilities deep dweller, fortification (50%)

Offense Speed 30 ft., swim 50 ft. Melee bite +27 (2d8+10 plus grab), sting +27 (2d6+10/19-20 plus poison), 8 tentacles +25 (1d8+5) Space 20 ft.; Reach 15 ft. (30 ft. with sting) Special Attacks critical envenomation, swallow whole (AC 23, 28 hp, 4d6+16 bludgeoning)

Statistics Str 30, Dex 15, Con 27, Int 2, Wis 20, Cha 16 Base Atk +21; CMB +39 (+43 grapple); CMD 62 Feats Blind Fight, Combat Reflexes, Critical Focus,Dodge, Improved Critical (sting), Improved Initiative, Iron Will, Mobility, Multiattack, Power Attack, Spring Attack Skills Climb +15, Perception +18, Stealth +0 (+12 underwater), Swim +23; Racial Modifiers +12 Stealth underwater SQ water dependency

Ecology Environment any ocean Organization solitary or pair Treasure none

Special Abilities Critical Envenomation (Ex) If a redback gorger succeeds on a critical hit with its sting attack, it injects two doses of its poison simultaneously. Deep Dweller (Ex) A redback gorger is immune to cold and pressure damage due to water depth, and can move vertically through the water column without penalty. False Head (Ex) A redback gorger’s sting attack can move around obstacles, allowing it to ignore any cover except for full cover. Poison (Ex) Sting—injury; save Fort DC 28; duration 4 rounds; effect 4d6 cold damage and 1d6 Dex drain; cure 2 saves. Tentacles (Ex) A redback gorger’s tentacles are treated as a single secondary attack.

[paperanddice]

Isonade

A gargantuan, snake-like sea monster, the isonade is a being of brutal destruction. Over 45 feet long, with many barbs and hooks studding its long tail and a massive, circular maw that dominates its head, it can lay waste to coastal settlements. Battering them with brutal weather, luring residents to the water's edge with animals bearing strange riddles or promises of power and wealth, it is unknown for sure how many isonade there even are. Most believe it is a singular creature, possibly the last of its kind, while others believe there are multiple or even a full pod of them working together.

Inspired by the Tome of Beasts 1. This post came out a week ago on my Patreon. If you want to get access to all my monster conversions early, as well as access to my premade adventures and other material I’m working on, consider backing me there!

Pathfinder 2e

The isonade patrols the waters of sunken Azlant, possibly connected to the alghollthu as a creation or a creature that traveled up from the flooded darklands below during Earthfall. The hopefully single monster can only patrol the area so fast however, and so decades or longer may pass before it returns to the same area to discover what has changed.

Isonade Creature 14 Unique Gargantuan Aquatic Beast Water Perception +24; darkvision Languages Elven, Thalassic (can't speak any language) Skills Athletics +27, Medicine +24 Str +9, Dex +2, Con +8, Int -2, Wis +4, Cha -1 AC 33; Fort +28, Ref +22, Will +24 HP 300 Speed swim 100 feet Melee jaws +27 (magical, reach 15 feet), Damage 3d12+19 piercing and Grab Melee tail +27 (magical, reach 25 feet), Damage 3d8+19 bludgeoning plus Knockdown Primal Innate Spells DC 32 ; 7th hungry depths, hydraulic torrent; 5th control water (×3); 2nd animal messenger (at will); Primal Rituals DC 32; control weather Breach [2 actions] The isonade Swims up to its swim Speed, then Leaps vertically out of the water up to 50 feet, making a Strike against a creature at the apex of the jump (this lets it attack a creature within 65 feet of the water's surface). After the Strike, the isonade splashes back down. It can use Grab on this Strike. Capsize [1 action] (attack) The isonade attempts to capsize an aquatic vessel of its size or smaller that it's adjacent to. It must succeed at an Athletics check with a DC of 36 or the pilot's Sailing Lore DC, whichever is higher. Swallow Whole [1 action] Huge, 2d10+9 bludgeoning Rupture 25

13th Age

The isonade is a taste of what creatures the Iron Sea sets to invade the land. Small enough to survive in the rivers of the Fangs, it is a terror that can find its way between the different rivers to continue its devastation no matter how many times some brave hunter tries to track it down.

Isonade Triple-strength 7th level troop [huge beast] Initiative: +9 Colossal Bite +12 vs. AC (1d3 engaged enemies) – 40 damage. Natural Even Hit: Unless the target succeeds at an immediate normal save (11+) , they are swallowed whole (see below). Miss: 10 damage. C: Tail Sweep +12 vs. AC (1d3 nearby enemies) – 30 damage. Natural Even Hit: The target pops free from any enemies they’re engaged with. Miss: 5 damage. R: Breach +12 vs. PD (up to 4 nearby enemies in a group) – 25 damage and the target is dazed. Effect: The isonade pops free from any enemies it was engaged with, and moves to engage all targets of this attack. Miss: 10 damage. Swallow Whole: A creature swallowed by the isonade is stuck, hampered, and takes 8d8 acid damage at the start of each of the isonade’s turns. The swallowed creatures is unable to attack or affect anything outside the isonade (and vice versa). Dealing 40 damage with a single attack to the isonade from within it forces it to make a normal save (11+), spiting up all swallowed creatures on a failure. Swimmer: The isonade is extremely slow and clumsy on land, at least compared to its movement in water. The only mechanical effect of this is that it takes a -5 penalty on disengage checks and it can’t use breach. AC 23 PD 22 MD 17 HP 290

[cheapsweets]

The unassailable Taerfleg

My response to this week’s BestiaryPosting challenge from @maniculum

For a change I focused initially on the anatomy and worked out the rest of the composition later, which is why the adult Taerfleg looks a little stiff. I also continued my trend of drawing baby animals so tiny you can barely make them out (when I was thinking about developing my own drawing style, this wasn't what I planned... 😅)

Jinhao shark fountain pen with a fine, hooded nib, with Monteverde Raven Noir ink, over initial pencil sketch.

As ever, reasoning under the cut…

The Taerfleg is covered in prickles. It bristles, when it is enclosed in its prickles and is protected by them on all sides against attack.

Okay, so first question, what are prickles? The most defined explanation refers to plants, where technically speaking, a 'prickle' is a spiny process, but whereas thorns are modified branches/stems, and spines are leaves or parts of leaves, a 'prickle' is an outgrowth of the epidermis or skin or the plant (so, technicaly, roses have prickles, not thorns... learned a thing today!).

While I don't imagine that the authors of the bestiary (or if we're being honest, the translators) are going to be particularly fussy in terms of these exacting biological definitions, it gives me a place to start - the spiky bits of this animal are related to its skin rather than say, spiky bones or osteoderms.

For as soon as it senses anything, it first bristles then, rolling itself into a ball, regains its courage behind its armour.

Okay, armour, and curling up into balls... What kind of (land) animals have armour? Tortoises and crocodiles do, but aren't so roly poly unfortunately. Armadillos, pangolins, and all sorts of lovely bugs like isopods and pill millipedes definitely fit the bill. We just need to work out what kind of creature this is though, since its never specified whether the Taerfleg is a beast, a serpent, or something else...

Given the above note that 'prickles' are processes of the skin, rather than bone, we can eliminate crocodilians and turtles, as well as things like armadillos, which leaves us with squamate reptiles (lizards and snakes), potentially with prickly scales. I mean, I suppose these prickles could be modified hairs on a mammal, but surely the author of the entry would be more specific if that was the case, right? ���

Plus given I interpreted the previous entry very conventionally (well, as conventional as tiny subterranian birbs can be) it's nice to stretch and draw something a little different...

The Taerfleg has a certain kind of foresight: as it tears off a grape, it rolls backwards on it and so delivers it to its young. It is also called [redacted]. This animal, thinking ahead, protects itself with twin ventilation ducts, so that when it thinks that the north wind is about to blow, it blocks the northern one, and when it knows that the south wind is giving warning of mist in the air, it goes to the northern passage to avoid the vapours blown from the opposite direction, which will do it harm.

One of the things that prompted a lot of the other design decisions was trying to work out exactly how it removes the grapes from its spines when it delivers them! I wondered about long necks (for instance, some tortoises) or tails, but ended up giving it reasonably long limbs and a bit of flex. I wasn't sure how well the grapes would survive being transported this way, so they're looking a little shrivelled...

Also, have some baby Taerflegs, one of which is munching down on a grape, the other is practicing curling into a ball, since I had to put that in the picture somewhere!).

I also read this as it digging burrows, based on the ventilation ducts. I didn't want to just duplicate what I'd drawn last week (with the cross section of the burrow), so we have the northern ventilation shaft blocked with grass and straw (I'd considered if it might block the shaft with its body, but that didn't seem likely given that the vapours would 'do it harm', and I didn't think that a weird lizardy thing would appreciate the cold draft on its posterior...

Note from this challenge - I really need to work out how to draw the interior of caves or tunnels...

So, I've taken inspiration from a lot of different creatures here. Ironically, despite picking up a copy of Charles Knight's animal drawing at the suggestion of @silverhart-makes-art (thank you, it's rad and really interesting, though I'm still on the lookout for some of the other suggestions I received too!), not a lot of use for this particular drawing, but it will definitely be useful in future projects.

One of the main inspirations here are girdled lizards, particularly the Armadillo girdled lizard (which has the greatest scientific name ever, Ouroborus cataphractus) - a spiky lizard that curls itself into a ball. Incidentally, another member of this family is the genus Smaug.... 🐉

Initial armadillo-inspired plating was superceded by pill millipedes (as most armadillos can't make a full ball); I also used the three-banded armadillo as the basis for the anatomy, but made a lot of changes along the way, particularly after I decided to make it a reptile - tortoises were considered briefly, but mostly monitor lizards (in part at least because they get big enough that I could find some good reference photos online!).

Digging claws on the forelimbs are largely from echidnas, I wanted the spiky bits to at least partially reflect the prickles on roses, back facing so they don't get in the way when its crawling through tunnels or vinyards, and there was also a lot of inspiration from Scolosaurus in the general vibe and the head (what? Dinosaurs are cool!).

Overall, interesting challenge, learned some things, have a few new things to learn, mostly had fun :)

[valnes941]

Satellite of Cybertron/Chapter 2

Ora vetita. Forbidden Land.

Everyone in Festus Fax knew not to venture into the cyan jungle. Everyone knew that wild lands were dangerous, but this corner of the Manganese Mountains was particularly dangerous.

It was difficult to accidentally violate the boundary of this forest zone - one couldn't help but notice the river, beyond which stretched a mysterious green vegetation. Those who were attentive would notice changes in the shape of the same metal ferns even before crossing to the other bank (their leaves-photocells acquire a more jagged and indented edge). In the forbidden land itself, the first thing that begins to weigh on the processor is silence. Not only audible, but visual as well. The crystalline trees were consistently different still shades of green - here you won't see the colouration of a plant, from so light it appears white to almost absolute blackness, change over time, displaying the full spectrum of blue. You won't see the peaceful ripple of the cable vines, reminiscent of the quiet beating of a Cybertron sparkler. There is no glow of cyberflies, no buzzing of insectatrons, no flapping of avinoid wings, no clatter of mech-animal paws. Only the occasional whistle of the wind, making the reluctant greenery rustle like an old, rusty instrument.

But we must not let our guard down! Such ‘emptiness’ is only characteristic of the border. If you go further than necessary, you won't know when you might be attacked by an arachnotron or some kind of cyber-cats (like a couguareider, a turbofox, or a pack of cyber-dogs). And that's not counting the crazy petro-rabbits, annoying roboto-possums, ubiquitous glitch-mice, and deadly poisonous razor-snakes.

Yes, of course, such slag is commonplace in these parts, but one must remember the true lord of the forbidden land.

Cronid.

This isn't some poor fallen or mindless terrorcon. Though they all trace their lineage back to the Great Destroyer, the latter two can be dealt with without the Chaos Guardians. Theoretically. There are rumours of both someone other than these warriors being able to defeat these monsters, and of these same warriors having to call in reinforcements. These are all rumours, however.

The creature that had taken up residence there would be impossible for a normal Cybertronian to deal with. The fact that many hunters returned unsuccessfully, miraculously retaining their active, only confirms this. Fortunately, the Unicron spawn only leaves the forest on certain days when Primus' power comes to the surface, but then it's so weak outside its territory that even a spark can deal with it. Alas, the creature is well aware of the latter, too.

Calling the same Guardians is a dead end. Getting to the nearest large settlement where you can send a message is a feat. Plus, there's no guarantee it'll get through.

That's how we live. We don't mess with cronid, and cronid doesn't mess with us.

Well, except for that weird two-wheeled explorer from the Temple of Knowledge. He visits the creature's territory every day, and surprisingly, he's still active. Seems to be a good indication of how having an alt contributes to survivability.

It's already starting to tell time. No, seriously, he goes out means it's time for everyone to get up, he yells at the whole neighbourhood means it's evening, he comes back means it's bedtime. Liber's a weird mech, but everyone's used to him. It'll be a shame if he leaves.

Oh, there's a scream. Looks like it's time to wrap things up.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Liber said hello to the guards, entered the village, and walked contentedly into his temporary home. He looked round the only room in the place: it was in Kaon-style, but he didn't need much. A platform, a table, and a chair. Quickly sitting down on the latter, the mech pulled out a book with a case and began updating the notes he had recently made. He needed to hurry before the light coming from below, directly from Primus' core, went out, marking the coming of night.

His brush didn't stop for a click, which wasn't surprising - the information was still fresh in his mind. He excitedly began to reread the new chapter. Who would have thought that a creature as terrifying as a cronid could live in harmony with a creature as beautiful as a lilleth.

Lilleth is the smallest representative of avinoids (belongs to the pennavinoid subgroup), even the largest individuals do not exceed the size of a minicon. They prefer a solitary or paired lifestyle. They are known for their fragility and beauty. Completely transparent at first glance, their corpus is able to scatter light and shimmer in a special way, giving the observer to admire all possible colours. Logically, they are extremely secretive, it is usually difficult to find even one.

However, what did he see today? A flock of lilleth circled around the cronid, greeting him at their nests. Nests that at the moment contained eggs even more fragile than their creators.

Who in their right mind would have guessed that the Destroyer's offspring could be so gentle and careful?

By the time Liber had finished, the lights in the room had gone out completely. All he had to do was lie down on the platform for a recharge cycle.

What new things he would learn tomorrow?

[cjsinkythoughts]

Suits, Dresses, and Heels

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Avenger!Reader

Word Count: 4000

Warnings: !FATWS SPOILERS!, Cursing, More Mentions of PTSD, Gun Violence, Slight Mentions of Drinking, Club Dancing (You’re all gonna hate me for that part, but I’m not sorry)

A/N: Here’s Part 4.2 - The Second Part to Episode 3 - as requested. This is a little more scene-by-scene, but there are some off-screen moments. I’ll be posting Part 4.3 (which will have the rest of the episode) later tonight.

There’s a bit more information on Reader, but not as much as the last chapter. Sharon comes in during this part, so you get to see her and Reader’s relationship.

Also, I have mixed feelings about Zemo at this point. Not in the story, the Reader’s not a fan as you learned previously, but for me personally, he’s surprised me a couple times by coming back and helping.

Anyways! Thank you so much for reading! This isn’t beta’d so excuse any mistakes! Check out my other parts before you read! Thank you again! Stay tuned, loves!

FATWS MASTERLIST

cjsinkythoughts MASTERLIST

!SPOILERS UNDER CUT!

The dress was far too tight for your liking, and showed way too much skin. Not that you didn’t like being a tease every once in a while, but for this mission, you’d rather have more cover and movement.

You had to admit though; Zemo had nice taste. The dress fit deliciously - which made you wonder how he got your size. The color and cut was devastatingly flattering. Plus, he let you do your own makeup.

Being the only female, you were in a separate area of the jet getting ready. Once you were done, you made sure to knock, even though you’d walked in on Sam changing too many times to count while on the run and had seen Bucky answer the door in nothing but a towel. It was mainly for Zemo’s sake, just a warning that you were walking in whether or not they were ready.

“Damn, girl! You clean up nice!”

You rolled your eyes at Sam, painted lips quirking up as you studied him, shooting him a wink. “You should try a mirror, Sammy.” You turned to Bucky to find him staring wide-eyed and slack-jawed at you. “What do you think, Buck?”

His mouth snapped shut and he cleared his throat, eyes exploring the dips and curves your body. “You…” He blinked once. Twice. His tongue darted out to wet his lips, his intense eyes making you heat up, before he shook his head. “You look good.” He rushed out, before spinning on his heel shoving past Sam who was snickering.

“Where’s Zemo?” You noticed he wasn’t in the main area of the plane when you walked in.

“Rearranging our ride once we get there.”

You huffed, fixing your hair. “Oh God. We’re really doing this.”

“Yup.”

“Okay.” You looked down at yourself before looking up at the boys. “Something’s gonna go wrong, isn’t it?”

“Absolutely.”

“No doubt.”

Giving a slight groan at their simultaneous answers, you nodded. “Let’s try not to screw up too badly, boys, alright? I at least want to live long enough to see Peter graduate.”

Sam rolled his eyes with a scoff. “That kid’s a punk.”

“You’re a punk.” You shot back.

Bucky raised his hand. “I second that punk thing.”

“For which one?”

“Both of them.”

You chuckled as Sam gaped at Bucky, who shrugged innocently. The former assassin tilted his head in your direction to shoot you a grin and a wink, making you laugh more. Shaking your head, you go to make a joke when Zemo walked in.

“It’s time. We’re landing now.”

And just like that, the teasing atmosphere dissipated, leaving you anxious and regretful.

*******************

You walked by Bucky, arm linked with his metal one, listening as Zemo told Sam about his “character” he was to play.

“He’s a known womanizer - always has a gorgeous lady on his arm.” Zemo gestured towards you. “It’s the only way they’d let in a woman.”

“Aren’t we going to see a woman?” You questioned, gently patting Bucky’s metallic bicep when his hold on you tightened.

“Which makes it more imperative that you don’t act threatening. Women don’t make the same mistake men do; they don’t underestimate other women.”

You nodded. He had a point there. Bucky faced you, a frown on those pretty lips. “I don’t like this.” He mumbled.

“You think I do?” You whispered back. “With you being him again? Even if it’s just pretend? And need I remind you whose idea this was?”

“I know, I know. Just…” He sighed. “Promise me you won’t get hurt on purpose.”

Your forehead creased. “Why would I-?”

“To protect people. You always do. And I get it, I do. It’s why you started this in the first place, but…save yourself first, this time, okay?”

“Buck-”

“Promise me.”

It wasn’t often you could see the fear in his eyes, hear it in his voice, but you could then. Unable to do anything else you nodded, a soft, “okay” falling from your lips. He nodded back, pressing a kiss to your head, before letting you go as a car approached.

Bucky helped you in - the heels you were wearing were no joke - before sliding in himself, Sam getting in on the other side of you. “And you two can’t be…” Zemo gestured to the two of you as the car started moving, eyeing your still connected hands. “Doing that.”

“This isn’t my first theater production.” You snapped at him. “We’ll be fine.”

He raised his hands in surrender, turning back to look out the windshield. Once you arrived, you gave Bucky’s hand one last squeeze, before accepting Sam’s hand to get out on his side, linking your arm with his like you were doing with Bucky earlier.

“I finally get to see one of your performances, baby.” Sam grinned at you.

You smirked back. “Best seats in the house, too, Smiling Tiger.” He groaned at your jest, nudging you playfully with his elbow as you giggled.

“This way.” Zemo cut in, jerking his head in the direction you’d be going. You took a breath, steeling yourself, before the three of you nodded at each other and followed his lead.

You found the fellas reactions amusing, their heads turning to study and scan everything they could see. You were more subtle in the way you analyzed your surroundings, feeling a bit more at home in this situation than, say, fighting super soldiers on top of semi trucks.

Your jaw tightened, as did your grip on Sam’s arm, when Zemo started speaking Russian, the four of you pushing through a crowded bar. Sam ran his fingers over your arms, giving your hand a little squeeze, silently reassuring you.

It was a bit obvious Sam hadn’t done much undercover work, put he stayed in character and you were impressed. Especially when the bartender started cutting up the snake, which you had to look away for because if there was one thing you couldn’t do…it was snakes. You nearly gagged when Sam reluctantly downed the drink. 

Bucky eyed you, lips pursed in a way you recognized as him trying to hold in a smile. That made you feel a little better, hiding your own smile by turning into the crook of Sam’s neck. “Not. Funny.” He growled through clenched teeth, lips not moving.

“Kinda is.”

He grumbled under his breath, before the two of you tuned into the conversation between Zemo and a thug that came up, learning about the apparent power broker of Madripoor, which you a bit of from your time undercover there.

Sam held you tightly when Zemo turned to Bucky, knowing what was about to happen.

You didn’t like it. You didn’t like how easily aggressive he became. You didn’t like the little smirk Zemo gave as Bucky attacked. You didn’t like the cellphones being pointed in his direction. You didn’t like it.

“Didn’t take much for him to fall back into form.” You gave Zemo a warning glare, a shaky breath leaving you.

He’d been doing so well. At least, for someone who had been through what he had. Especially considering it’d only been a few months since he’d been pardoned - half a year since everyone came back. You knew bringing Zemo on board had been a bad idea, but-

A squeeze to your hand pulled you out of your thoughts. You let out an inaudible sigh of relief as Zemo allowed Bucky to let the man he was choking go.

“Selby will see you now.”

One step down. You hoped that would be the hardest part, but you knew it most definitely wouldn’t be.

“You good?”

Bucky sniffed, giving you two a curt nod, before following Zemo. You bit your lip. “That wasn’t really an answer, was it?”

Sam shook his head. “No. No it wasn’t.”

Selby wasn’t exactly what you were expecting, but you’d come to expect that. You stayed on Sam’s arm, giving the guards coy smiles and playing with the fake nails you had on in faux-boredom.

When she purred at the man besides you, you and Bucky glanced at each other, with you resisting the urge to scrunch up your nose. “And who is this gorgeous creature?”

Your eyes snapped back to Selby, giving her a slightly bashful smile. “Celeste Addams. Pleasure.”

“Trust me, dear. The pleasure is all mine.” Alright, you thought as she scanned you with a smirk. She was swinging for both teams. You could work with that. “What’s the offer?” She looked back to Zemo.

Zemo gave her the offer - information about the super soldier serum for the Winter Soldier and the code words to control him. Your blood boiled as Zemo touched Bucky, fingers grabbing his chin. You swore, once this whole thing was over, you would kick Zemo’s ass. You should make a list, just to keep track of all the things he’d done, and no doubt would do, to piss you off. That way he’d know why exactly you were beating his ass.

A name came up, Dr. Wilfred Nagel, along with the knowledge that the super soldier serum was, in fact, in Madripoor. You and Sam met eyes. Second step down.

But before they could get anything else, Sam’s phone buzzed. You ducked your head, closing your eyes, mumbling “fuck” when you saw it was Sarah. Sam’s responses just made you inwardly cringe even more.

“The bank, yeah. We laundered so much mo-” He chuckled nervously. “Yeah. They’ll come around.”

Is he fucking serious? For the love of God, Sammy…

And then she called him Sam. Next thing you knew, Selby was shot and you, Bucky, and Sam were taking out a guard each, you growling at the fact that you couldn’t use your legs because the dress was too damn tight.

You had no choice but to trust Zemo’s lead, but word traveled very quickly here, and less than a minute after walking outside, you were getting shot at.

“C’mon!” Bucky grabbed your arm, pulling you besides him.

“Can you not right now?!”

“I can’t run in these heels!”

You glared at Sam, the killer six inchers on your feet feeling like hell. “Hell no! You did not just say that in front of me!”

“You started it!” You scowled at him, following Bucky into an alley, only to duck as shots rang out. Chest heaving, you looked around for the source of the bullets that killed the men chasing you.  Your “guardian angel” as Zemo put it.

She soon appeared in all her stunning, blonde badass glory. “Sharon?”

Sam quickly explained the situation, trying to get her not to shoot Zemo who she had a gun pointed at.

“I stole Steve’s shield, remember? I also took the wings for your ass,” she pointed the gun at Sam, then Bucky, “so that you could save his ass, from his ass.” And the gun was back on Zemo. She shot you a smile. “And your ass is looking beautiful as always.”

You grinned back. “Thanks. You’re not looking too bad yourself.”

As she spoke, your lips turned down. You had tried calling her after Germany, but it always went to voicemail. First thing you did when you got back was try to get everyone pardoned, but it was a process. And then you found out about Wanda and ever since…

Sharon was your first real friend. She was only a couple years younger than you and had been one of your first partners during your time with SHIELD. And the fact that she’d been on the run for years now, even with the Blip, her family not having seen or talked to her since…that was exactly why you couldn’t take a break. She was family and you found there was nothing more important than family. But when she needed you, you were out searching for someone who didn’t want to be found.

How were you supposed to choose between two sisters? How could you cope with the fact that you chose the wrong one?

“Sharon, we need your help.” She laughed at Bucky’s statement. “Please,”

She glanced at you and you nodded. “I’d appreciate it, Share.”

She gave a sigh before nodding. “This isn’t over. I have a place in High Town. You should be safe there for a while.”

She turned and started walking, and you were about to follow, when you remembered something.

Spinning around, your fist connected with Zemo’s cheek, Sam and Bucky shouting in surprise while the man stumbled back. “Don’t you fucking dare touch him like that ever again, or I will break every bone in your body.” You threatened, your expression twisting into a scowl as you grab his hand and bend it awkwardly. He grunted but didn’t move, knowing one wrong turn would break his wrist. “Do I make myself clear?”

“Crystal.” He ground out.

You pushed a little more, making him wince, before letting go and rounding back to Sharon, who was smirking at you. “Let’s get moving.”

“Yes, ma’am.” She jerked her head back over her shoulder to where a car was waiting, leading them over.

You quickly followed after her with Bucky on your heels and Sam dragging Zemo along. Speaking of heels, as soon as you got in the car - getting shotgun for the first time ever at Sharon’s insistence - you prodded the stupid shoes off your feet.

“Nice kicks.”

“Yeah.” You scoffed. “Unless you’re trying to kick.”

“Did you rip the dress?”

“I was tempted to.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll get you in something more comfortable. And you’ll look just as good. Not that you wouldn’t look good in literally anything.”

You chuckled, giving her a look. “Let’s not test that theory.”

She smiled back, nodding. “Fine. I’ll let you pick something out.”

Sam huffed, crossing his arms best he could, being squished with the two other fully grown men in the back seat. “Women.”

The two of you exchanged looks, rolling your eyes at the three pouting guys. “Men.”

*****************

“I’m gonna go check on the boys. But I’ll be right back.”

You nodded, looking through her closet. No dresses. And absolutely no heels. Flats, if you had to, but you’d definitely prefer sneakers right now. You decided on shorts and an off-the-shoulder blouse, grateful for the looser clothing.

“They’re idiots.”

You laughed and looked over at the door as Sharon entered. “Yeah. I know.”

“Cute.” She commented on your outfit, sitting on her bed. “They explained the situation. Sam said if I help, he’d clear my name-”

“Sharon.” You sighed, biting your lip. “I tried. I really did. I-”

She shook her head, smiling at you reassuringly. “No, I know. It’s why I’m not mad at you. Sorry I didn’t call back. How’ve you been?”

You shrugged. “Fine, I guess.”

“Even with the whole ‘Cap is back’ thing.”

“Walker’s the government’s pet. He’s not Captain America. He’s not…”

“Steve?”

Looking up at her from the ground, you nodded. “Yeah.”

“Do you miss him?”

You smirked, wagging your eyebrows at her. “Do you?”

She rolled her eyes, tossing a pillow at you. “It’s kinda weird now, isn’t it?”

“Maybe a little. But I can’t blame you. Have you seen him shirtless? Good God.”

Sharon laughed, shaking her head as you joined her on the bed. “How come it’s always you getting wrapped up in these things?”

“I have no clue.” You chuckled, crossing your legs underneath you. “First I’m answering a phone call from Bucky at five in the morning and next thing I know, I’m being kicked off of semi trucks, breaking criminals out of prisons and running in six inch heels.”

“You answer Bucky’s calls at five in the morning?”

You gave her a look. “Sharon-”

“No, no. Hey. That’s cool. Some girls like bad boys, some like jocks, others like nerds. You like super soldiers from the 40’s. Everyone’s got a thing.”

A playful shove turned into a pillow fight, which turned into a sparring session, during which you pin her on her back. “You’re getting better.” You complimented, getting up.

She glared at you, taking your outstretched hand and letting you pull her up. “I guess that’s why you’re an Avenger.”

“That’s still weird to say.”

“Why? You’ve been an Avenger since, what? Ultron?”

You nodded, straightening your clothes. “Officially, anyways.”

“Right. Because you were there for the Battle of Manhattan as the secret seventh superhero.”

“Yeah…I miss it. The anonymity. I’m pretty sure I’m one half the Senators’ speed dials.”

Sharon frowned, brows pinching together. “What about the other half of the OG? Where are they?”

“Thor’s in space, Bruce is MIA - which I can’t really blame him for - and Clint’s retired with his family.”

“You think he’s gonna stay retired?”

You shrugged. “I hope he does. He’s been trying to retire for years. He deserves it. Knowing him, though…probably not.”

Sharon crossed her arms, nodding at you. “So that leaves you.”

“Yes it does.”

“Do you ever think of taking a break?”

You gave a half-sigh, half-groan, making her smirk in amusement. “It’s…come up a lot recently. I dunno. I think I’m burning out, anyways.”

“What makes you say that? I was watching you guys with Selby. You’re still one of the best I’ve ever seen.”

“I-I’ve been having…problems.”

Her eyes narrowed, her hands setting on her hips like a mother about to scold her child. “What kind of problems?”

“Just flashbacks. Of different things. It happens at random times. Certain triggers; something someone says or does, or something I smell or hear.”

“PTSD?”

“Something like that.”

“Has it affected you in the field?” Hesitating to answer was answer enough and she nodded. “Then…maybe it’s time you do start considering retiring.”

You snorted, shaking your head. “At 36? There’s no way.”

“C’mon. It’s not too late for you to settle down. Go one a few dates. Meet someone. Maybe have a couple kids-”

“Woah, woah. Slow your roll.” Your features scrunched up in incredulity. “Pump your breaks. No one said anything about marriage or kids.”

She rolled her eyes. “I’m just saying…think about it. I heard even Bucky’s been on a few dates.”

It was your turn to narrow your eyes at her, hearing the suggestive tone in her voice and seeing the eyebrow raise. “Yeah. He has. A few. I told him to. Told him it might be good for him to, I dunno, get back out there.

“Or, you could just…go out there with him.”

“Not you too! Have you been talking to Sam?”

“Is it Steve? Is that what’s stopping you? Because you know he’d just want you to be hap-” She stopped as he phone vibrated, grabbing it and reading the text. “Company’s arriving.” She pointed a finger at you. “You got very very lucky. This conversation isn’t over. I’m not dropping this.”

You bit your cheek and nodded. “Alright, mom. Can we go party now?”

She breathed out a laugh and nodded. “Yeah. Let’s go party.”

**********************

“Hey, gorgeous! There you are!”

You smirked at the boys as they met you near the top of the stairs, eyeing Sam and Bucky appreciatively. Damn, could Sam pull off a turtleneck. And Bucky in black and skinny jeans? Sharon sure had good taste. “Today’s the day for attractive outfits, huh, gentlemen?”

“I’ll say.” Bucky hummed, glancing at your own outfit. “You look beautiful, doll.”

“You look very dashing yourself, Barnes.” You grin, pulling at the lapels of his black blazer and fixing the collar. You smoothed your hand down the front of his shirt, looking up at him with an eyebrow raised when he caught your wrist, keeping your palm over his heart.

He clenched his jaw, taking a breath, before letting it out, almost dejectedly, and letting your hand go. “Um,” He cleared his throat, hand falling down by his side. “Did, uh, did Sharon say anything more about these friends of hers to you?”

“Nope.” You shook your head. “Just told me to enjoy the party.”

“I guess we should go enjoy the party, then.” Sam nodded towards the stairs, where the music was floating up, her guests already pouring in.

You made your way downstairs, looking around the room. Sharon sure did know how to throw one, that’s for sure.

People were pushed together, dancing to the beat of the music, drinking, with colored lights flashing every which way. Bucky’s hand found yours almost instantly, and you smiled at him. “C’mon.”

“What?” His eyes were wide as you dragged him towards the groups of people dancing. 

“Dance with me.”

He shook his head violently. “I-I can’t.”

“I thought you used to be a dancer?”

“Used to. And I was a swing-dancer. Not…” He gestured around to the people bobbing up and down, moving their bodies with each other.

You waved dismissively, pulling him closer. “All you need to do is feel the beat. I’m sure you can do that, can’t you, Mr. Tough and Scary Assassin?”

He licked his lips, looking around nervously. You brought his hands to your hips, making his eyes snap back to yours, your own arms winding around his neck. You started moving rhythmically, nodding your head to the music, smiling up at him and giggling at the adorable concentration on his face.

“You, uh, you go to parties like this a lot?”

“I specialized in undercover operations, remember? I practically lived at these places for some of them.” He licked his lips, his grasp on your hips tightening. “Loosen up a little.” You laughed, catching his jaw between your fingers and making him look at you instead of the crowd surrounding him. You scratched at the scruff, speaking softly, but loud enough for him to hear. “It’s just me.”

He nodded and, slowly, a bit hesitant, started moving his body with yours, relaxing his tense muscles the longer you two danced.

“Nice hit, by the way. With Zemo earlier.”

You shrugged, turning in his arms, biting your lip when he pulled you closer, your back to his chest. “I didn’t like the way he grabbed you. It was unnecessary. I was thinking of making a list, actually.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah.” Your arms wound around his neck again, your head falling back to his shoulder. “Of things he’s done so far that warrant’s me beating his ass once this is done.”

He chuckled, warm breath tickling your cheek, thumbs tracing circles on the bare skin just above the waistline of your shorts. Your own fingers had found home in his hair holding his head where it was, his lips centimeters away from your ear. “Share it with Sam. I’m sure he has a few things to add.”

Your breath hitched as his metal fingers danced along your bare navel, arm tightening around your waist. “I’m sure he does…I thought you said you can’t dance.”

“I guess I just needed to warm up. I’m a bit rusty after eighty years.”

“Don’t seem that rusty to me.” You breathed out, turning your head to look at him. His tongue ran across his lips again, his eyes glancing to your own.

“Hey, guys!” The world and your situation came crashing down on you, the music you didn’t realize you’d been tuning out, along with the crowd’s boisterous laughter and cheers, rushed back to yours ears. The little bubble with just you and Bucky shattered. You both stepped away from each other; you cleared your throat and pushed down the heat that had nothing to do with the hundred bodies in the one room, while Bucky rubbed the back of his neck, the tips of his ears red with no help from the colored lights. Both of you were panting lightly, avoiding eye contact with the other three staring knowingly at you. Sharon nodded her head, gesturing behind her. “I found him.”

Sam nudged Bucky - who was staring at you, his jaw ticking and his throat tightening as he swallowed thickly - before jabbing his thumb in Sharon’s direction. “Here we go.”

You nodded, eyeing Bucky with a small smile. “Here we go, Buckaroo.”

[astaroth1357]

Brothers React to a Demigod MC 

So, I've gotten some interest to do a Brothers follow-up to a previous request of mine (Undateables React to a Cute, Badass MC), however, I've thus far refused to write one. Honestly, this HC actually plays on a trope I personally dislike and had it not been a request I would have never done it to start with. I just can't see any reasonable way a non-magic human can beat a bunch of demons, I just can't, and that hinders my imagination quite a bit. …But someone who’s not so human? That I can get behind. Fair warning, I grew up with the Percy Jackson series so that’s going to paint quite a bit of how I see modern demigods. Ready for things to get super-ultra fanfic-y for a bit?

Intro:

The day to kidnap bring the exchange students to the Devildom has finally come and the demons have all gathered in the Council Room to open their portal to the human world. Really, things started without a hitch - the portal opened with and their future student dropped down out of it and landed on the floor… before they suddenly leapt up, pulled out a weapon, and lunged at them!

… This isn’t your normal human, it is?

Lucifer

Oh Devil, this couldn’t have been any farther than what they wanted… They were looking for a human and they managed to pull out a halfling! A divine halfling no less!! Why wasn’t this in their file?!

Look, Lucifer might not be on good terms with his father, but even he knows he had it better than any children of the pagan gods… The levels of petty vindictiveness that run through that bunch are literally the stuff of legends...

After he and Barbatos were able to restrain the MC before they hurt themselves or anyone else, Diavolo explained everything to them and gave them a pardon for attacking the Demon Prince on sight… After they identified themselves and their parentage, Lucifer knew they were in for some shit…

He and Diavolo had to iron out an apology letter to their godly parent for days just to keep from saying anything that could accidentally cause a second Troy or worse... It was a mess...

But on the bright side, the “human” came pre-prepared for fighting monsters and demons, which honestly took a bit of a load off his shoulders. That’s less responsibility for Mammon - and in his experience, the less responsibility Mammon has, the better things usually turn out.

… Though their ability to actually hold their own in a fight did make things complicated sometimes - like whenever he was their perceived opponent... 

He wasn’t expecting to have to manage a being that was actually capable of meeting him toe-to-toe on the battlefield and it did hinder his intimidation factor to some degree…It was hard to be threatening to someone who’s likely faced worse than you could ever offer.

In the end it probably worked out for the best, as a live exchange student is better for Diavolo than a dead one - but man did it get on his nerves until they made their pact together… Be scared of him, dammit!

Mammon

The first time he tried to threaten the human, they straight up pulled out a weapon and looked like they were ready to whip his ass!! Didn’t they know he wasn’t being serious?? 😫

He really didn’t know why he had to be on babysitting duty, anymore... This huma-er demigod could handle themselves just fine!

When he first ditched them with Levi, he later found out they managed to cleanly toss his brother over their head and make a break for it all by themselves! And Levi’s no pushover either!!

Later, he saw them getting ambushed on their way back from school and they soundly knocked out about five demons before he even caught up to them… and he’s, like, fast and stuff… 

Their strength is kind of unreal at times, but he could tell they were still far from a mindless killing machine. They were more or less a normal person, they had wants and dreams like anybody else, but they just happened to be a long stronger than the average mortals around them. 🤷‍♀️

After he eventually got to know them and a bit about how their life worked, he felt a little bad for them... Who wants to be hunted down just for being born?

After learning about their struggles, Mammon ended up resolving to help keep them safe (even if a part of him knew they didn’t need him that much).

I mean, if the whole world’s against you, then you can use all the help you can get... right?

Leviathan 

Levi found out exactly one thing about them within the first two minutes of meeting them… their reflexes were killer.

After Mammon ditched them on Day One, he tried to drag the human to his room to tell them his genius plan but they broke out of his grip and threw him flat on his back like was just second nature! 

He was stuck on the ground for a full minute, trying to process what just happened, while they ran off into the House all alone…

Did he just get tossed around… by a human?? Was he really that pathetic!?!

Finding out later that they were actually half-god certainly helped out his self-esteem because, man, if he had lost so easily to a human of all things... He might have just never left his room again…

Levi pretty much kept his distance from them until they finally made a pact together and then he discovered that the MC wasn’t so scary after all. If he’s being honest, being in the same house as a demigod was actually kind of cool...! 

Like, it was almost exactly the plot of the show: “Wait, I Thought I Was the Son of a Pagan God So What Am I Doing in a Christian Hell??” but their MC seemed to know a lot more about fighting than the protagonist of that show ever did…

Plus, because he never had to worry about their safety, he had even more excuse to never leave his room. Win-win!

Satan

A demigod, eh…? He had done plenty of research into human world mythologies in his spare time, frankly he thought the old gods had died out - but it seems they were still up and kicking… and making babies for whatever reason? Horny bastards...

Satan's original interest in the MC was purely academic. It’s not everyday that you get to meet someone of such a unique heritage and he fully intended to learn if all the legends about their greatness were true… and well...

He could say that the MC was certainly different than how he pictured humans being. He’d never met very many before, but from what he could gather they were a weak race that really got by on wit and persistence… However, nothing about the MC was weak.

Their aptitude for combat was surprisingly sharp, both in skill and reflexes. He had once blown up at them in anger and not only did they dodge his swipes but they got in a good few hits themselves with a nearby lamp… He never once thought a mortal could give him a black-eye but, somehow, they pulled it off. 🤷‍♀️

Combine their physical skill with what magical gifts were granted to them by their godly-half and they were a force to be reckoned with… Even Solomon seemed to hesitate and think more about his actions around them (which is saying something for a sorcerer of his strength).

It’d be fair to say a part of him grew to respect the MC long before they ever made their pact and that respect only grew afterwards. If he had to be bound to any master, human or otherwise, he’d rather it be one that he could right about consider an equal not only as a friend, but in strength as well.

Asmodeus 

A demigod…? Oooo, he hadn’t come across one of those since he bedded Aeneas all those centuries ago… Such a gorgeous man, got all his looks from his mother~! 🤭

Asmo was probably the most interested in their godly heritage, but it felt like he was treating them like a zoo exhibit for a while… Something pretty and new to look at, but not exactly someone he wanted to know personally...

He openly and readily admitted that watching their little demigod in action got him hot and bothered (or well, more hot and bothered than usual ) but it didn’t take him to see they weren’t interested at the time…

He decided that he just had to have a pact with them after they saved him from Henry 1.0! It was before he noticed the giant snake and he was lurching back to strike, but the human swept in to knock him out of the way. They probably could have made mince meat of the creature themselves if Levi weren’t begging for them to spare his former pet...

Post-pact Asmo treated them with a lot more respect… but also still fanboyed over their fighting skills hardcore. 

Like, their body had to be fit to keep up with all those monsters, right?? What was their training routine? Could he watch?? Oh please say he can watch!! He just can’t get enough of that fighter’s physique…! 😍

Beelzebub 

So… the human isn’t a human but only part human? And the other part is a god? Does that make them any sturdier than normal humans…? Call him curious…

Beel was probably one of the few brothers who was legitimately weary of the MC from the beginning… He can get a certain feel for a person pretty quickly and something about them just felt…frankly, kind of dangerous.

But they also intrigued him a little… Beel’s used to being one of the strongest demons in any room he walks into (not a boast, just a fact) so for him to get that feel from a mortal was pretty impressive. A part of him just wanted to test them… you know?

So. He did. He asked them to help him train his martial arts one day and even with his awareness, he was not expecting the results that he got.

The MC was strong. Very strong. They were not only able to keep up with him and dodge his blows, but they were able to predict his moves and counterattack in kind. They didn’t even need to tell him that they had actually been fighting for their life for years, he could tell. They had a skill you don’t get from practice matches...

After that point, the two would go to each other to train and keep their skills sharp… but also just to spar for fun. Their fighting styles made a pretty good match and they bonded pretty damn quick because of it. 

If anime tells us anything, when you find a good fight buddy, you stick with them. Even if one’s part god and the other is a demon. 🤷‍♀️ 

Belphegor 

A demigod is still human enough to hate, sorry MC. Not that he knew about their godly heritage at first…

Really, he should have been a little more suspicious of how easily they seemed to take to life in the Devildom... Weren’t demons supposed to scare humans? Why did they seem so comfortable down here...?

His confirmation only came when he tried to enact the final part of “Use the MC to Escape the Attic!” plan and take their life to seal the deal… but oh boy, was he outclassed real quick… 

The MC had already socked him in the jaw by the time he got his full demon form out and then they threw him across the room by the tail… the TAIL!! And it hurt like a bitch, too!! Even during the full blown fight that followed, he could tell they were holding back and it pissed him off something fierce...!

Why was the MC so strong?!? Humans weren’t supposed to be strong!!!

His brothers heard all the commotion and the Lilith confrontation ended up happening up in the attic between a somewhat beat-up Belphie and a barely-scratched MC. Had Beel not come to his defense on instinct, it might have turned out worse for him in all honesty… Something about that human just wasn’t right…

He only found out about their god-half after everything settled down and he promised not to try killing them again (not that anyone thought he could...) and that put some things into perspective. So the Lastborn Ruler of Hell isn’t as strong as one mortal demigod…? Ouch. Okay, fine then... Whatever...

He does think it’s too bad he missed them beating the crap out of the rest of his brothers, though (minus Beel)... That would have been fun to see. 😔

So I tried to keep this one God-parent neutral, but I’ve upgraded this to its own series! Check it out if you’re interested! 😊

Demigod MC Series: Intro, Aphrodite, Hermes

[grailfinders]

Fate and Phantasms #224

Today on Fate and Phantasms we're building the least powerful member of the Critical Role cast, Trinke-, no, sorry, this is Sitonai. She's a Beastmaster Ranger to pick up Shirou and terrify dragons with icey arrows. Yep, this is a mono-ranger build. Have fun.

Check out her build breakdown below the cut, or her character sheet over here!

Next up: Fighting oni in daylight! Drinking sake in moonlight! Never backs down from a real fight! She's the magifender girl!

Race and Background

Sitonai's a mix of gods and humans which would normally make her an Aasimar, but she's also a tiny child, so Custom Lineage it is! This gives her +2 Wisdom, Darkvision, a small size body, and the Resilient feat for another point in Wisdom and proficiency in Wisdom saves. I know having an 18 in wisdom looks scary, but we have like, one spell that uses our spell save, so that ought to calm down your DM.

She's also an Outlander for proficiency in Survival and Athletics. We're not focusing on strength here, but you can roll a polar bear around like a katamari, so that's something.

Ability Scores

You're two gods and a famous hunter in a single body, so your Wisdom had better be pretty freaking high. After that is Dexterity, you're good with a bow and arrow. Charisma is next, you're still a cute kid, at least in appearance. Your Intelligence is next, Sitonai was smart enough to at least try to kill the snake while everyone else cowered. Your Constitution isn't amazing, but we're dumping Strength. You're two gods and a famous hunter stuffed in the body of a homunculus child, after all.

Class Levels

Starting off in ranger gets you proficiency in Strength and Dexterity saves, plus Animal Handling, Nature, and Perception to be an expert hunter. Plus, you get a Favored Enemy that you have advantage on when it comes to survival and intelligence checks involving them. Giant snakes are definitely Beasts, so let's start there. On top of that, you're a Natural Explorer of the Arctic, giving you double proficiency on intelligence and wisdom checks related to the tundras. Also, you have several benefits while traveling in that terrain that basically means you can't get slowed down, lost, or ambushed, and gathering food is easier. Most D&D campaigns don't care about that, but if yours does, they're probably going to throw you in the tundra anyway so it's nice to start off here.

Second level rangers get a Fighting Style and Archery is a good choice for people good at archery, adding 2 to all your ranged attack rolls. You also learn some Spells this level that you cast with your Wisdom. Pick up Absorb Elements to protect yourself from the elements and Hunter's Mark to protect yourself from enemies. By killing them with an extra 1d6 damage every time you hit them. Specifically you, not Shirou. Though tbh I'd allow it, it's not like Beast Master is powerful to start with.

Oh right, you're a Beast Master btw. This gives you a Primal Companion, creating a magical Beast of the Land that looks like a creature of you choice. It has to be medium, but you can always pick a small Polar Bear, or even make the build more accurate than the servant and pick a Sled Dog. They use your proficiency bonus for their AC and damage rolls. Oh hey, and Shirou uses your spell attack and saves for his Maul and Charge attacks, neat. They move during your turn, but they can only take the dodge action unless you command it with your bonus action. Alternatively you can save your bonus action to make it attack with your attack action, losing one of your attacks in the trade. Also, if it dies you can spend a spell slot to bring it back after a minute, or just wait until you finish a long rest. You also gain a Primal Awareness of the land, letting you cast Speak with Animals for free once per long rest, or, y'know, like a regular spell. Tell Shirou what a good boy he is. You also get Animal Friendship, helping you calm down other wild animals.

Use your first ASI to bump up your Dexterity for more accurate and deadly arrows and small swords. We can't have Shirou getting all the fun, can we?

Fifth level rangers get an Extra Attack per attack action, and you can now cast second level spells. Pick up Lesser Restoration to protect yourself from status effects and Beast Sense because it's free with Primal Awareness.

Sixth level rangers get another Favored Enemy and Natural Explorer terrain, so pick up Dragon to emulate the the obvious balance patch they gave you to help in the final boss fight of your event and Grassland so you can navigate all two environments in Skadi's lostbelt.

Seventh level beast masters put their animals through Exceptional Training, so you can command the beast to Dash, Disengage, or Help on turns where it doesn't attack. Shirou's attacks also count as magical as far as resistances are concerned.

Another ASI, another chance to level up our Dexterity. You also gain Land's Stride, letting you ignore difficult terrain and damage from nonmagical plants. You also get advantage on saves against magical plants. Just plants though, erupting earth is still a you problem.

Ninth level rangers get third level spells, like Speak with Plants from Primal Awareness. We're mostly here for Elemental Weapon, the only cold damage-dealing spell in the entire class outside of Absorb Elements. Yeah. It adds 1d4 damage to every attack you make with it though.

Tenth level rangers become a Natural Explorer of Forests, so... that's nice. Also, you can now Hide in Plain Sight, spending a minute to create camouflage that gives you a +10 to stealth until you move again. Just... wear white. That's all you have to do to blend into snow.

Eleventh level beast masters can invoke a Bestial Fury in their charges, letting them attack twice with an attack command. Also, you can cast Protection from Energy to protect yourself from the cold for even longer.

Use this ASI to max out your Dexterity for the strongest arrows imaginable. Or are they?

Thirteenth level rangers get fourth level spells. You get Locate Creature from Primal Awareness, but dragons and giant snakes aren't hard to find. The real prize here is Guardian of Nature, which comes in two forms. Both transform yourself for up to a minute, but primal beast speeds you up, gives you a longer-range darkvision, lets you make Strength based attacks with advantage, and deal an extra bit of force damage on a hit. Meanwhile, the great tree option gives you temporary HP, advantage on constitution saves and Dexterity and Wisdom based attacks, and the ground around you becomes difficult terrain for enemies while you're standing on it. The latter is effectively your Snow Fairy and Kamuy Yukar skills rolled into one; your enemies freeze a bit if they get too close, slowing them down, and you get a solid boost to your attack power. That's not to say the former option is useless, but we'll get to that in a bit.

For your last Favored Enemy, pick Celestials if you want to pick a fight with Skadi again or Fiends if you're going for more of a Oniland Sitonai. Either way you can also Vanish to hide as a bonus action, and you can't be tracked by nonmagical means.

At fifteenth level you can cast Stoneskin on yourself to gain resistance to nonmagical physical damage. I don't know who you're fighting at level fifteen who doesn't have magical damage, but you should probably stop picking on them. The big draw of this level is that you can now Share Spells with Shirou, so any spell you cast on yourself can also affect him if you're both within 30' of each other. Going back to Guardian of Nature real quick, this means you can now cast the Tree version of it on yourself and the Beast version of it on Shirou for the best of both worlds

Remember how I said we could make your archery better? This ASI lets us do that by picking up the Sharpshooter feat. If you take a -5 penalty to hitting a ranged attack, you can add 10 to the damage roll. Advantage effectively counts as a +5, statistically speaking, so this is practically free damage with Guardian of Nature up.

Seventeenth level rangers get fifth level spells. You can Commune With Nature to discover landmarks and the like, or you can use Swift Quiver to deal even more damage, spending your bonus action to attack two more times per round.

At this level your Feral Senses let you fight creatures you can't see, so you don't get disadvantage when trying to hit them. You also can see invisible creatures within 30' of you if you're not blinded or deafened.

Our last ASI is going towards grabbing the Tough feat for an extra 38 HP now and two more the next time we level up. Also, pick up Greater Restoration. You're a god, gods don't get petrified.

The capstone level of ranger turns you into a mighty Foe Slayer, adding your wisdom modifier to an attack or damage roll... against your favored enemies... once per turn. Yep. Druids get immortality, you get +5 damage per round. Yaaay.

Pros and Cons

Pros:

Despite how much I rag on the ranger, you're actually pretty good at dealing damage consistently. With four attacks from swift quiver and sharpshooter, you can pump out plenty of damage each turn, a pretty consistent 4d8+60 damage for up to a minute. Alternatively you can charge yourself and Shirou up with Guardian of Nature for permanent advantage on all your attacks (still four per turn), or use Elemental Weapon to add a little chill to your fight if you're against something that resists piercing damage.

Shirou might not be powerful, but for you he's invaluable. As someone to block incoming enemies, shirou helps keep them from getting past the front line and into melee range with you, which otherwise could be a serious issue.

You are an expert survivalist, with skills and abilities focused on traveling in inhospitable climates and avoiding capture/capturing other people. In a low magic setting, you're the go-to person for survival campaigns.

Cons:

Very few people play survival campaigns. End of tweet. If they come up you're over-prepared, but otherwise you have a ton of abilities that just won't matter that often.

Riding around on Shirou sounds amazing and half the reason we took custom lineage was to be small enough to do just that, but it's still a bad idea. While you certainly can use a scimitar for a hunting knife, you're mostly focused on dealing damage with a bow and arrow. Shirou needs to get into melee range to fight, you like to stay out of melee range, not a good time for anyone.

SO many of your spells need concentration, which you're not good at. Not being able to use Elemental Weapon in conjunction with your other abilities is physically painful to me. It also means you'll drop spells a lot if you get hit. Another reason to keep Shirou in front!

[dailycharacteroption]

Aquatic Beastmaster (Hunter Archetype)

 A good while back we looked at one of two aquatic-themed archetypes for the hunter, the pelagic hunter. Today, we look at its counterpart, the aquatic beastmaster.

While the pelagic hunter boasted connections to otherworldly and supernatural aquatic creatures, this beastmaster instead favors much more mundane, but nevertheless powerful and evocative underwater beasties, plus perhaps a bit more flexibility in choice of companion, as we’ll see below.

Their focus on natural animals of the deep may lead to them being considered more trustworthy than some pelagic hunters, as they are less likely to be seen as servants of krakens or aboleths. Of course, whether they are or not is an entirely different story.

 Drawing upon various aquatic species, these hunters have their own list of animal foci to use, including the crab, which bolsters swimming and grappling; the dolphin, which focuses on identifying weaknesses and exploiting them; the eel, which lends it’s agility; the manta ray, which wards against detection and poison; the octopus, which mirrors the crab in utility; the orca, which bolsters physical might; the shark, which tracks blood in the water; the sea snake, which lashes out at those that leave themselves open and avoids similar opportunistic attacks; and the turtle, which gifts the hunter or companion with the protection of its shell.

As travelers of the deep, these hunters exclusively work with and understand aquatic creatures, even simple ones, and understand them the best.

In a similar way to many druids, these hunters know all the tricks of creatures of the deep, and can resist many of their abilities with ease.

While not as fantastical as the pelagic hunter, the aquatic beastmaster does have some appealing aspects. For example being able to take a non-aquatic companion should that suit their build for whatever reason. Additionally, in an aquatic adventure, having a big bonus to a lot of saves can be a godsend. That being said, it is somewhat disappointing that two of their animal focus choices are literally the same (honestly, the octopus could easily be redone as a bonus to stealth or disguise).

 This archetype is already a nice choice for any aquatic hunter characters you’d like to run, but the lack of companion restriction means it could just as easily be someone that lives on land as well, such as an old privateer and their seagull companion, or a coastal watchman whose sea lion companion guards the underside of the pier just as they watch from above.

  Though the story of how it got there is long and interesting, Wyrm’s Rest, a merfolk village built around the remains of a great wyrm red dragon is today better known as a trading outpost and hunting lodge of sorts. There, merfolk rangers and hunters swap rumors and stories of great beasts, and train with their companions to hunt them.

 Secluded away from the rest of the world, the orang-pendaks of Rovoe Lagoon keep to themselves, but they are no strangers to conflict, and long learned how to turn to the sea for aid, particularly against aquatic invaders like sahuagin, many patrols and raiding parties of which have been devoured by the apefolk’s giant crabs.

 The glittering schools that surround the shipwreck of the Perserverance are not fish, but animate ships in bottles that gather in miniature armadas. They are, however, aggressive to larger creatures, particularly aquatic humanoids, so many hunters warn others to steer clear of the ship.

[noblecrumpet-dorkvision]

Encounter: Ilesstra, the Venom Chemist

This is a boss/miniboss that my players will likely be facing at some point in the future, but I thought I would share because I anticipate that it will be fun. I’ve started building encounters to be a bit more puzzle-like, forcing players to recognize patterns, move around the battlefield, and make tactical decisions. This miniboss highly interacts with her lair, so I’ve included an image of it to illustrate it. The PDF for the statblock and the lair image will be available on my Patreon, but I also will have the stats, lore, and tactics here to show you.

Ilesstra, the Venom Chemist

Ilesstra is an alchemist and poisons expert that works with a criminal syndicate. She experiments with poisons in her sewer lair while brewing toxins for her employers. She is a type 1 yuan-ti malison with a hooded cobra head and wields a poisoned dagger.

Her lair is rigged with pipes that can billow out poison gas, a bit of insurance should her patrons decide to try and get rid of her but foolishly face her head on. The gas can fill one of the three "lanes" in her lair, and she can choose which one and which type of poison to use every time.

The yuan-ti has a giant pet crocodile whom she has inoculated with her poisons, rendering him immune to their effects. The crocodile wanders in the waters of the sewers, only leaping onto land to grab intruders or defend his master.

Statistics

Medium humanoid (yuan-ti), neutral evil

Armor Class 16 (natural armor) Hit Points 104 (16d8 + 32) Speed 30 ft.

STR 16 (+3) || DEX 14 (+2) || CON 15 (+2)

INT 14 (+2) || WIS 12 (+1) || CHA 16 (+3)

Skills Deception +7, Stealth +6 Damage Immunities poison Condition Immunities charmed, poisoned Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 11 Languages Abyssal, Common, Draconic Challenge 9 (5,000 XP)

Innate Spellcasting. Ilesstra's innate spellcasting ability is Charisma (spell save DC 15). She can cast the following spells without material components:

At will: animal friendship (reptiles only), mage hand, poison spray (11th level) 3/day: suggestion

Magic Resistance. Ilesstra has advantage on saving throws against magical spells and effects.

Shapechanger. Ilesstra can use her reaction to polymorph into a Medium snake, or back into her true form. Her statistics are the same in each form. Any equipment she is wearing or carrying isn't transformed. She doesn't change form if she dies.

Ravaging Poison. Whenever Ilesstra deals poison damage with her poison spray spell, her bite, or her dagger, if the target is already poisoned, they take the maximum amount of poison damage possible on the damage dice.

Actions

Multiattack. Ilesstra makes one bite attack and one dagger attack.

Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit 5 (1d4 + 3) piercing damage plus 10 (3d6) poison damage.

Dagger. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft. or 20/60 ft. range, one target. Hit 5 (1d4 + 3) piercing damage plus 10 (3d6) poison damage.

Poison Gas. If in her lair and in her yuan-ti form, Ilesstra magically pulls a lever to cause one of the three vents on one of the walls within 30 feet of her to spill a 15-foot wide, 30-foot long line of poisonous gas into the chamber. Each creature within the area must make a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or suffer one of the following effects of her choice.

Malice. Each creature that fails their saving throw becomes poisoned for 1 hour and is blinded while poisoned in this way.

Essence of Ether. Each creature that fails their saving throw becomes poisoned for 8 hours. Creatures are unconscious while poisoned in this way. Each creature will awaken if it takes damage or if another creature uses their action to awaken them.

Distilled Othur Fumes. Each creature that fails their saving throw takes 21 (6d6) poison damage and becomes poisoned. Poisoned creatures must repeat the save at the start of each of their turns. On each successive failed save, the creature takes 10 (3d6) poison damage. After three successes, the creature is no longer poisoned.

Legendary Actions

Ilesstra can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. Only one legendary action can be used at a time, and only at the end of another creature's turn. Spent legendary actions are regained at the start of each turn.

Envenom. Ilesstra makes one bite or dagger attack or else casts poison spray (11th level).

Serpentine Escape. Ilesstra transforms into a snake or back in to her yuan-ti form, then moves up to her movement speed without provoking attacks of     opportunity.

Poison Gas (Costs 2 Actions). Ilesstra uses her Poison Gas action.

Kamou

Kamou is Ilesstra's pet crocodile. Although he is huge, his narrow form lets him easily move about his master's lair as well as in the water below it. Kamou has the statistics of a giant crocodile except that it is immune to poison damage and the poisoned condition. It also has the following feature as a reaction:

Guardian's Bellow. If Kamou can see Ilesstra and she is targeted with an attack by a creature, Kamou can use his reaction to bellow menacingly at the attacker. If the attacker can hear Kamou and is not immune to the frightened condition, the attack is made with disadvantage.

Ilesstra’s Lair:

Her lair is a 15 x 55 ft stone platform surrounded by eight rounded niches roughly 15 x 15 ft. The niches have grates above lightly obscured sewer water., but the western niches are open with no grates, just exposed sewage piping of varying size. She has a workbench containing vials of various chemicals, barrels and crates of reagents, and four low tables with shackles for holding live test subjects in place to experiment on before feeding them to Kamou.

When Ilesstra uses her Poison Gas action, the gas fills one of the three indicated horizontal “lanes” of her choice (see the image below). The gases emanate from pipes on the western side of the chamber, each near the ceiling (10 feet above the water,  8 feet from the floor level).

A creature can attempt to clog a pipe using cloth or some other creative method using an action and a DC 16 Sleight of Hand check. Alternatively, a pipe can be bent shut by a creature attacking it with a blunt object. Each pipe has AC 18 and 20 hit points. Reducing it to 0 hit points causes enough damage to prevent gas from escaping it.

The center of the chamber is a stone “island”, 2 feet above the water’s surface. The water, through pipes large enough for Kamou to squeeze through, encircles the stone platform, although Kamou can still only enter or exit the water via one of the three western cells.

Tactics

Ilesstra is slippery, using her Serpentine Escape to get out of tight spots and escape into the water through grates. She tries to poison trespassers using her Poison Gas. Once one, preferably two, creatures are poisoned, she will enter combat to take advantage of her Ravaging Poison trait.

As a Yuan-ti, Ilesstra can cast suggestion. This can prove useful when trying to get enemies away from her or to trick them into getting out in the open or targeting Kamou or a pipe instead of her. Heck, she could even suggest that one of the vials on her little workbench is actually a potion of giant’s strength and definitely not a vial of wyvern poison (it is).

Kamou will do his best to grapple intruders and drag them into the water or hold them in the open for Ilesstra’s Poison Gas to affect them. He tries to distract heavy hitters from attacking his master using his Guardian’s Bellow reaction.

[inventors-fair]

Animal Planet - Full Commentary

Like I mentioned earlier, there were a lot of great entries this week. Full commentary below the cut. - @teaxch​

@bread-into-toast​ - Indomitable Tardigrade

Tardigrades are famous for their ability to live through anything, and indestructible plus protection from everything covers almost every effect in the game that might remove a creature, with only non-targeted non-destruction removal getting through. I also like temporarily gaining indestructible on a tardigrade more than I like it on some other creatures that have gotten it as a replacement for regeneration (Drudge Sentinel, Icehide Troll), because Tardigrades really do become indestructible, rather than just putting themselves back together.

@deg99 - Anikole-Watusi

The flavor text is doing a lot of work on this card, helping justify an ability that otherwise would be a bit incongruous. With a reasonable statline at base rate, the card is less reliant on the second ability than the similar Stormwild Capridor, and it’s also threatening enough that preventing it from being bolted or fighted to death is valuable even if you have no ways to trigger it yourself.

@demimonde-semigoddess​ - Beetle Colony

The design of this card is interesting in that it is both a card that you don’t want to play in a deck with no forests, but also has incidental added value if your opponent is playing forests. (You could play the card in a deck with no forests, with the intent of only ever using the last ability, but that’s pretty far below rate, so I don’t think it makes the cut if you’re on that plan.)

The big boundary-push on the card is that it’s an aura that taps, and one that goes on a card type that people often tap pretty casually. Tapping enchantments appeared in Future Sight as a thing that Magic hadn’t done yet, but otherwise haven’t appeared. I’m not sure that this card crosses the threshold of what it would take to be worth breaking that rule on its own (as opposed to being an additional upkeep trigger or something), but it would be reasonable in a set that included other tapping enchantments.

@dimestoretajic​ - Bara, Friend to All

This is a strong tech piece; a fair number decks across a range of formats have few, if any ways to deal with a card like this mainboard. It’s fast enough that it’s not practical to go under it, it requires specific pieces of removal to handle, and even if it is handled eventually it can often put an aggressive deck effectively out of the game. (That said, most decks do have answers for something like this in the board, although not reliably great ones.) This might be safe in a product that skips standard, but it’s not totally clear whether this is something that would make it in a commander-focused product. (It’s not too powerful for Commander as a format, but it’s not something that all commander-product decks have many good ways to deal with.) I’m also not sure whether this could go in a product meant to be drafted. If this was introduced into certain non-rotating formats, it could certainly be an interesting role-player.

@fractured-infinity​ - Cunning Cuttlefish

There’s currently no shapeshifters in Magic that use this technology in quite as straightforward a way as this - Cryptoplasm might come the closest, with Dimir Doppelganger also playing in that space. This was one of a few Cuttlefish entries this week, and shapeshifting with controlled size is a pretty clever way to implement a Cuttlefish’s abilities. This card also allows for some shenanigans if you control an evasive creature and a creature with a saboteur effect. I wasn’t initially sure whether this should only last until the end of the turn, but precedent suggests that it’s fine for it to persist.

@ghoulcaclulator64​ - Snake-Head Larva

Morph and saboteur abilities go together naturally, enough so that Headhunter, Silent Specter, and Haunted Cadaver all play in this space. For its morph cost, this card has a fairly brutal saboteur effect, and it’s appropriate to put it at rare for that reason. That said, as long as it only connects once, it’s pretty fair, and if the other morph cards in the set obey the KTK-forward soft rules about the size of creatures with cheap morph costs, then it can at least be blocked safely.

@gollumni​ - Zhalfiran Zebra

This card homages two existing cards, Master Decoy and Zhalfiran Decoy, rather than alluding directly to something that the animal is known for outside of Magic, which is a novel twist on the prompt. The card entering the battlefield tapped presumably references those two cards needing to tap to use their abilities. It reads a little oddly in a vacuum, as it’s not a drawback that appears often on white cards, but the connection to the second ability helps to to feel part of a piece. I do think that there’s room to push this card a bit - even at common, sorcery-speed tapping for one turn isn’t worth a huge amount.

@grornt​ - Nude Defenders

Surprisingly one of three cards this week that made use of the Skulk mechanic, Nude Defenders is a spin on Rat Colony that’s more insular and that has less power, but gains the aforementioned mechanic. I’m not sure whether Skulk plays well into the fantasy offered by the rest of the card of building up a large group of creatures that are themselves individually large, however. It still has some utility in that it can help get a last few points of damage in and generally prevent very large creatures from blocking (the Defenders in many circumstances will at least trade, rather than just getting eaten), but the two parts read as negative tension.

@helloijustreadyourpost​ - Clever Octopus

The second of the skulk entries this week. It’s clear what this card is doing - it steals small objects when it attacks (including things like food and treasure, which octopuses value) - but executing that ends up requiring a lot of text. I see the value in keeping your opponent from sacrificing whatever it is you target with the ability by preventing sacrifices of artifacts entirely, but most card just accept the fact that sacrificing a permanent is an answer to abilities that would steal it. I think that the extra text may be worth it here because the set of things that the octopus can steal includes a lot of things that can easily be sacrificed, but it’s on the line.

@hypexion​ - Abyssal Angler

I really like this design overall. “Creature that can force a creature to attack, but also must block the attacker” is a combination of abilities that I was a little surprised doesn’t already exist on a creature, given the very clear story it tells. I’ve gone back and forth on whether or not I like the subtle drawback of the ability being mandatory; if your opponent has only a 4/4, you must commit your Angler to blocking that creature if it’s untapped, which is a missable but relevant interaction. It does tell an interesting story of an Anglerfish in over its head, however.

@i-am-the-one-who-wololoes​ - Battle-Ready Emu

It’s hard to do a card with a single short line of rules text that’s both novel and a complete and understandable reference to a real-world phenomenon (or event, in this case), and I think this card pulls it off. In many environments, the Protection is largely trinket text, but as evergreen colored artifacts allow Wizards to print more and better equipment at lower rarities, it’s something that has a growing chance of mattering.

@jsands84​ - Eclipse of Moths

Cards that allow your opponent to escape part of their effect by paying a certain color of mana aren’t common, but I like this more than Quenchable Fire for two reasons. First, the hybrid cost to buy out of the effect means that more, but not all, decks have the option to do so. Second, the repeatability of the effect means that the cost can legitimately add up over time. There are shades of the not-so-popular Rhystic mechanic, but I think in small volumes it’s fine, especially when tied to clear flavor, as this is.

@juggernaut-is-a-metalhead - Decaying Waverider

I wasn’t completely sure what to make of this card; the card mostly holds together, except for the art (although the dog is very cute), and doesn’t seem to be a top-down representation of the animal depicted, unless I’m missing something. Skulk and the ability to destroy cheap things on ETB is an interesting combination, as depending on your opponent’s curve, this might remove the only creature that can block it. 

@loreholdlesbian​ - Coveted Rabbit

This is a strong design for a card that goes in a deck with spells that target your own creatures, specifically because it itself is a creature. The simplest execution of the mechanics of this card would be to just make the foot itself an equipment card, but this implementation allows you to up the creature count in an aura- or combat-trick-heavy deck by being a creature itself.

@misterstingyjack​ - Beaver Dam

The bulk of the power of this card is vested in its last ability. Being able to pitch lands for business is worth a lot in the late game, and the defensive nature of the card as a whole helps support a longer-game plan. The rest of the card tells a nice and flavorful story as well. +0/+1 counters aren’t a tool that’s used any longer, and I’m not sure if this card crosses the threshold for making it worth bringing them back; the card could use another counter type and scale with the number of those counters, if +0/+1 counters weren’t being used.

@nicolbolas96​ - Protective Mother Boar 

I’m not sure if there are any “mom will fight you if you hurt one of the other ones” cards that represent the mother creature itself rather than the baby, which is an interesting point of novelty. This card represents potentially quite a lot of face damage, but cleverly uses the Crested Sunmare trick of tying a powerful effect to a tribe that tends to be used for limited filler rather than for serious constructed shots. (Although the number of Constructed-interesting boars has gradually crept up over time.)

@nine-effing-hells​ - Aposematic Display 

Menace and Deathtouch as a combination mean that blocking the creature is very costly, so there’s some synergy there - your opponent will generally treat the creature as unblockable. (Which is completely fair for the card’s cost - in blue, auras that make creatures unblockable can cost a single mana.) What I mostly want to talk about is the interaction between menace and the last ability. Because of the nonobvious way those abilities interact (if your opponent has only one creature that can block the enchanted creature, they don’t have to block it, but if they have two or more, then the targeted creature and another creature both have to block the enchanted creature), putting the two abilities on the same card is probably a complexity flag, but the card is uncommon. The specific combination has the interesting (but not necessarily desirable) effect of making Menace a drawback a significant fraction of the time, as the second ability is nullified entirely as long as your opponent doesn’t leave up two or more blockers.

@reaperfromtheabyss​ - Sandfish Skink

I didn’t think much of the ability at first, but the more I thought about it, the more impressed I was with its flexibility. It spoils a range of combat tricks, it lets the Skink block a large creature and then swap to a small one, and it allows the Skink to block things it wouldn’t normally be able to block. There’s a lot packed into a simple ability, which makes for an impressive design.

One small note - it should probably be limited to targeting attacking creatures that are attacking you or a creature you control. While I believe the game rules can handle the circumstance where you target one of your own attacking creatures, the Skink itself, or a creature attacking another player in a multiplayer game, it’s probably better to sidestep that entirely by limiting the legal targets.

@snugz​ - Bombardier Beetle

This is an interesting design, and another in the category of cards that seem like they should already exist. The big question with this card is: Is it green? Almost all similar effects (with a fixed amount of damage) are red, and in practical terms the ability functions a lot like Double Strike, but only against creatures. Not every card needs to be in the color that’s number one in something, but this ability feels borderline in Green, which doesn’t have a long history of creatures being able to one-sided fight nonfliers without external help. (That said, I guess the fact that it’s blocked or blocking is sort of like it’s fighting?)

@starch255​ - The White Whale

This is a wrath attached to a large body, with a bit of a twist that players o-ring one creature each instead. Putting a card that some players will interpret as a Whale tribal card in a color with no Whales might disappoint some players slightly, but it’s a pretty on-flavor way to keep the card from affecting itself or other copies of itself. This is currently one of the easiest to cheat out/reanimate/blink wraths in the game - it’s pretty standard for creatures that wrath on ETB to only get that effect when cast from hand, or to require some additional investment or action.

@typical-davinci-impersonator - Leyline Cuttlefish

This is already a bear, so the card is basically serviceable in limited even if the ability doesn’t end up mattering, but I’m assuming that this exists in an environment where color matters. Depending on the way that color-matters is implemented, there’s an argument that this could maybe cost 1 instead, but given that 2/2 for 2 isn’t a statline that colorless gets much, the ability can be pretty marginal and this is still an interesting card. Being directly tied into what Cuttlefish can do in a very literal way limits the environments where it makes sense as a card, but makes it quite resonant if there were a reason to print it.

@walker-of-the-yellow-path​ - Blue Glaucus

I had to look this one up - for the benefit of anybody who’s in the same boat, this is a slug that preys on jellyfish-like creatures and actually stores their stinging cells in its own body for defense. It’s also immune to the stings of some such creatures.

The card has a lot going on, and a lot of it is novel, although most of the text directly references the abilities of the actual organism. The third ability is interesting in that it can be proactively built around, although Deathtouch creatures more often die on your opponent’s turn than on yours, making the mana potentially more difficult to use.

I’m not totally sure that the creature needs morph, but morph + deathtouch is a good combo, so it’s reasonably justified if the set it appears in already has morph.

@wolkemesser​ - Magical Hat

If I had done Honorable Mentions this week, this would definitely have made the cut. It’s super rare that such a clear and clever story can be told with just one relatively straightforward line of rules text. I respect the decision to leave off flavor text even though cards with three lines of rules text almost always have it; the card doesn’t need any help explaining what’s going on. I had a hard time gauging the rate on this card, but I think it’s within the band of fair.

[thecreaturecodex]

Avarice Wyrm

Image © @chimeride​

[Il Guerrin Meschino is an Italian romance from 1410 that features a lengthy interlude in Fairyland. The cave is the domain of the Sibyl Alcina, and Meschino goes there to ask who his real parents are (finding them is the main goal of his quest). I’ve spoken before about how fairies and Fairyland are variously interpreted in medieval and Renaissance Europe trying to fit them into Christian cosmology. In Il Guerrin Meschino, Fairyland is a sort of refuge from Hell, where souls that would be damned if they die flee to never age and put off judgement until the Last Judgement. But they still suffer, as from Saturday to Monday they are transformed into monsters representing their sins. This creature, which is described as “worms that resemble very large scorpions, with three mouths for biting and one, which was much larger, for eating” is what happens to the greedy. To strengthen the dragon connection (as worms = snakes = dragons), I gave it the dragon type and a breath weapon.]

Avarice Wyrm CR 8 CE Dragon This creature is serpentine, with three claws like those of a scorpion—two on muscular arms, and one on the tip of its tail. Its broad head has tiny eyes and a wide mouth with flat teeth.

Draconic parents tell their wyrmlings cautionary tales of the avarice wyrms—draconic hatchlings that were so greedy that they turned on their own parents and stole from them, being cursed to a creeping, animalistic form. Whether or not that is the true origin of the avarice wyrm is uncertain. But they are supremely greedy creatures, and are constantly on the lookout for new treasures to steal and victims to rob.

An avarice wyrm typically opens combat with its breath weapon, hoping to take out its foes quickly and easily. They have no compunctions about killing innocents, and may pause to finish off a dying but not dead enemy if it will make looting them easier. Once they close to melee, they attack with their snapping claws and gnashing bite. Their claws can snag treasures off of an enemy, and their bite can even steal magical effects. Avarice wyrms can see magic auras, allowing them the opportunity to target their thefts, and often flee from combat if they obtain some item they particularly desire.

Avarice wyrms sometimes live in communal nests, but these associations are based on strength in numbers rather than out of any kindness or familial bonds. The nest may have a shared treasury, but each member likely keeps particularly favored items hidden, and fights over choice goods are not uncommon. Avarice wyrms of any color or elemental affinity may mate with each other, and their offspring are usually, but not always, of one of their parent’s colors.

Avarice Wyrm   CR 8 XP 4,800 CE Large dragon Init +3; Senses arcane sight, blindsense 30 ft., darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, Perception +15 Defense AC 23, touch 13, flat-footed 19 (-1 size, +3 Dex, +1 dodge, +10 natural) hp 105 (10d12+40) Fort +11, Ref +10, Will +11 DR 10/magic; Immune cold, paralysis, sleep; SR 19 Offense Speed 30 ft., swim 30 ft., climb 30 ft. Melee 3 claws +13 (1d8+4), bite +13 (2d4+4 plus eat magic) Space 10 ft.; Reach 10 ft. (5 ft. with bite) Special Attacks breath weapon (30 ft. cone, 8d6 cold, Ref DC 19, 1d4 rounds), pilfer Spell-like Abilities CL 10th, concentration +12 Constant—arcane sight Statistics Str 19, Dex 17, Con 19, Int 10, Wis 14, Cha 14 Base Atk +10; CMB +14; CMD 28 (cannot be tripped) Feats Blind-fight, Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Iron Will, Mobility Skills Appraise +15, Climb +20, Knowledge (arcana) +11, Perception +13, Sense Motive +13, Spellcraft +11, Stealth +12, Swim +20; Racial Modifiers +4 Appraise Languages Common, Draconic SQ draconic lineage Ecology Environment any land and underground Organization solitary, pair or nest (3-8) Treasure double standard Special Abilities Draconic Lineage (Ex) An avarice wyrm is descended from a true dragon, and has a breath weapon and energy immunity based on this association. Choose a dragon type, or roll on the following table:

black—breath weapon 60 ft. line of acid, immune to acid

blue—breath weapon 60 ft. line of electricity, immune to electricity

brass—breath weapon 60 ft. line of fire, immune to fire

bronze—breath weapon 60 ft. line of electricity, immune to electricity

copper—breath weapon 60 ft. line of acid, immune to acid

green—breath weapon 30 ft. cone of acid, immune to acid

gold—breath weapon 30 ft. cone of fire, immune to fire

red—breath weapon 30 ft. cone of fire, immune to fire

silver—breath weapon 30 ft. cone of cold, immune to cold

white—breath weapon 30 ft. cone of cold, immune to cold

The avarice wyrm shown here is of silver lineage. The save DC for the breath weapon is Con based. Eat Magic (Su) A creature bitten by an avarice wyrm is subject to a targeted dispel magic effect (CL 10th). If this successfully dispels a spell, that spell is transferred to the avarice wyrm for its remaining duration. Pilfer (Ex) If an avarice wyrm strikes a single opponent with two or more claw attacks in the same round, it may make a disarm or steal combat maneuver as a free action without provoking an attack of opportunity.

[paperanddice]

Gigantic snakes over 60 feet long with iridescent black scales, the andrenjinyi are a select few children of one of the spirits present at the start of the world. Born from scales cast off of the great Rainbow Serpent, these lesser nature spirits hold sway over the land in several ways. They represent the sky, rain, and quite often have an interest in birth and fertility.

They might as well be gods to many regular people, with their power over nature and weather in particular. One that establishes itself in a region can influence those who live nearby in immense ways, and often nearby people wind up offering it ritual and obedience in exchange for benevolent use of its power. As a guardian the andrenjinyi can assure the safety of the community, as few creatures will dare challenge it, but it sets specific edicts with harsh punishment for failure, a hanging blade that could fall upon the people depending on it.

One particularly interesting feature of the andrenjinyi is its gullet. Creatures it swallows are transformed into beasts, which the andrenjinyi then releases to populate the area surrounding its home. A lake with a menagerie of unusual creatures (often in mixed gender pairs) may mark the presence of one of these great serpents, and approaching closer without the proper rites and offerings could be quite dangerous.

With their low numbers, each lost andrenjinyi is irreplaceable. As such, they have become more cautious with this new world, only living in isolated regions beyond the reach of the major powers, and if severely injured by an actual threat they will attempt to use their rainbow arch to escape to safety rather than fight to the death.

Originally from the Tome of Beasts 1. This post came out a week ago on my Patreon. If you want to get access to all my monster conversions early, as well as access to my premade adventures and other material I’m working on, consider backing me there!

Pathfinder 2e

Andrenjinyi Creature 15 N Gargantuan Monitor Amphibious Perception +28; darkvision, tremorsense (imprecise) 120 feet Languages Common, Celestial, Jotun, Sylvan Skills Arcana +26, Diplomacy +27, Intimidation +29, Nature +26, Religion +30 Str +9, Dex +4, Con +8, Int +5, Wis +7, Cha +8 AC 39; Fort +29, Ref +23, Will+26; +1 status to all saves vs. magic HP 282; Immunities mental; Resistances acid 20, electricity 20, fire 20 Speed 60 feet, burrow 20 feet, climb 20 feet, swim 60 feet Melee bite +30 (magical, reach 15 feet), Damage 3d12+15 piercing plus Improved Grab Melee body +29 (magical, reach 15 feet), Damage 3d6+13 bludgeoning Divine Innate Spells DC 33 ; 8th dispel magic (×3), hydraulic torrent, sudden blight; 6th flesh to stone; 4th shape stone (at will); 2nd speak with animals (at will); 1st create water (at will); cantrips (8th) spout Divine Rituals Spells DC 33 , 8th control weather, reincarnate; 6th commune; 4th plant growth; Rainbow Arch (2 actions) (divine, teleportation); Requirement The andrenjinyi is touching a pool of fresh water large enough to hold its entire body. Effect The andrenjinyi can teleport up to 1 mile to another body of fresh water it knows of. For 1 minute after it uses this ability, a ranbow manifests between the origin and destination point. Swallow Whole (one action) Huge, 3d8+9 bludgeoning, Rupture 25 Thrash (2 actions) The andrenjinyi makes a Strike against each creature within its reach. It can Strike up to once with its bite, and any number of times with its body. Each attack counts toward the andrenjinyi's multiple attack penalty, but the multiple attack penalty doesn't increase until after it makes all the attacks. Transmuting Gullet (free action) (divine, polymorph) When a creature ends its turn swallowed by the andrenjinyi, the andrenjinyi casts baleful polymorph on that creature (save DC 33).

13th Age

Andrenjinyi  Huge 8th level spoiler [beast]  Initiative: +11 Great Maw +13 vs. PD - 50 damage Natural Even Hit: The target is swallowed if it’s smaller than the andrenjinyi (see below). Miss: 25 damage. C: Thrash +13 vs. AC (1d3 random nearby enemies) - 30 damage. Miss: 15 damage. Limited Use: The andrenjinyi can make this attack as a free action if it has no enemies swallowed after using its standard action during its turn. Swallow Whole: While a creature is swallowed, it is stuck, hampered, and unable to attack or affect anything outside the andrenjinyi’s stomach (and vice-versa). The andrenjinyi makes a transmuting gullet attack against any creature that ends its turn swallowed. There are two ways to escape. Cut Yourself Free: If a creature inside the andrenjinyi makes a single attack that deals 40 or more damage, it can climb free. All weapons are reduced to d6 damage dice if they were higher. Crawl Out: When the andrenjinyi is staggered, you can try to climb up the andrenjinyi’s throat as a standard action. Roll a hard save (16+), on a success, you crawl into its mouth and it spits you out somewhere nearby. When the andrenjinyi is reduced to 0 hit points, all creatures it’s swallowed can climb out of its stomach as a move action. [Special Trigger] Transmuting Gullet +13 vs. MD - The target transforms into a tiny animal until the end of its next turn. While in this form, the target is weakened, hampered, cannot cast spells or use powers, and deals half damage with all its attacks. Natural 18+: The transformation is permanent, until removed by a ritual or other powerful magic. Burrow, swim, and climb walls. Rainbow Arch: As a standard action, the andrenjinyi can teleport to a nearby or far away source of fresh water. It may attempt to teleport to a similar spot up to a mile away, leaving the battle entirely. It rolls a hard save (16+). On a success, it immediately leaves the battle, carrying any creatures in its gullet with it. AC 24 PD 21 MD 19 HP 410

[peterstanslizzie]

Reacting To: Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts (Season 3 Episode 2)

Episode Title: Code Word Milkshake

Spoiler Warning: Kindly proceed if you’ve already seen the episode or are able to handle spoilers 

1. OMG! A K-pop song? That’s so cool! It sounds like BTS lol. And the song is pretty catchy too 🎵; “Dive into my ocean of love”. It’s such a bop! We see the mutes (even the Mod Frogs) fangirling HARD. But what animals are these guys supposed to be? Are they dolphins? But why do they have horns? And apparently abs as well: 

2. Aww but the leader of the group, Hyun Soo (as revealed in the subtitles) soon gets paralyzed by a dart and is kidnapped after signing fan autographs. And of course, it’s the doing of Dr. Emilia as she’s seen testing a serum sample on Hyun Soo. Again, I’m impressed with her ability to be so stealthy. However, she’s finding it difficult in getting the right formula for the genetic serum since none of the samples she’s used so far has worked on the kidnapped mutes. BTW, Jamack talking to Hyun Soo is hilarious. 

3. In Timbercat Village, Kipo is planning with HMUFA a mission to find Emilia, rescue their friends and retrieve Song’s research journal. Oh, did Asher get a haircut? If so, they look really nice.

4. Our boy, Benson wants Troy to come along because he feels safer when he’s around. How precious! I’m  happy he gets to go on a mission with Kipo for the first time too. It’s nice to mix groups up sometimes. And it looks like it’s just gonna be a human/hybrid-only mission because the mutes won’t be able to handle Emilia’s sonic emitter. Dave is upset that he won’t be able to tag along with them. I think it’s a good thing to sit this one out because he does have a tendency to die during their missions lol.

5. They manage to hitch a ride on a couple of dragonfly mutes due to Kipo coming up with the codeword, “Milkshake” to keep situations calm.  Random but okay. As they’re flying over the sea, they spot a ship, which definitely belongs to Emilia since we hear Zane asking Greta to turn on the sonic emitter as some mysterious sea creature was circling around them. Because the dragonflies are not immune to the sound, this causes them all to fall into the water

6. The group tries to climb over the ship to get a peek of the situation aboard and they can see the burrow humans enjoying their time there, splish-splashing in a giant pool paired with a crazy slide and everything. 

7. Dave lets Lio and Roberto know that he wants to have a boys night out (BNO) with them. But it’s clear that he’s doing this because he still feels salty about not being included in the stealth mission. Roberto looks like he doesn’t want to go out but Lio is down to hangout with Dave-o lol. 

8. Back on the Dr. Emilia’s ship, Kipo and gang try to find her lab but they almost got spotted by a blonde human girl, who apparently is able to hear Hyun Soo  sing through the cafeteria vents and thus, wants him to sing for her. Kipo and Troy actually recognize her from their old burrow. She’s actually Hoag’s daugther, Doag! I can’t believe he named his daughter that lol. Anyways, they were all actually friendly with one another, so we shall see if she’s willing to help them or not. Doag really likes dancing and we see her dancing around to Hyun Soo’s singing. She then does a split and spots them. Well, she doesn’t look alarmed actually. 

9. Meanwhile, Dave and Lio are playing cards but afterward, they went to check out the so-called “community bonding” session between Timbercats and the Umlaut snakes. At first, it seems like they are having a huge argument but they’re actually just writing a song and having a couple of debates. It’s song-break time. This time, the song is called ‘Friendship Alliance’. How fitting. After the performance, Lio says he wants to go to bed but Dave isn’t done yet and wants him to check out his secret stash of explosion berry cola.

10. Doag explains to the group that Dr. Emilia has been treating them nicely so far but they want her to know the truth about Emilia who has been trying to kill Kipo since she was a baby. Plus, according to Troy (and Benson from earlier on), she didn’t eat his Benson’s pancakes. Troy is way more upset about the part about the pancakes, which of course he has to be since it’s his boo’s pancakes. But my goodness, Doag’s voice is like nails on the chalkboard. Don’t you agree? 

11. I think it’s hard for them to convince her that Dr. Emilia is a bad person, especially since they don’t have any real evidence to show. Emilia is like a savior to these humans. Fortunately, Doag wants to help them rescue Boom-Boom, Jamack, Camille and Hyun Soo regardless. 

12. She takes them to Dr. Emilia’s lab, which isn’t very hidden like they said lol. The door’s locked but Troy, the skilled magician was able to pick the lock no problem. Benson is impressed and he actually addressed him as his boyfriend! Cute!

13. They enter the lab and we see all the kidnapped mutes trapped in their individual mute-proof cells. Aww the way Jamack called Kipo, Burrow Girl was so sweet. He has come a really long way with her since Season 1 huh? I don’t know what’s up with Boom-Boom but she(?) doesn’t look too good, almost unhinged. So, Hyun Soo is known as a Dolphicon! I guess that’s short for Dolphin and Unicorn. That’s explains the horn. I actually like the name “Wall Siren” for him as well. Despite only speaking in Korean, Hyun Soo does seem to understand English when Doag asks him “who are you?”. I feel like the introduction of Hyun Soo is like paying homage to Kipo’s animation studio, Studio Mir, which is in fact South Korean. 

14. Kipo proceeds to then break them out of their cells. Doag declares she’s going to help them escape. I actually hope there’s a chance that she would be part of Kipo’s group officially. She seems cool, mostly lol. Wolf also finds Song’s research journal but before they could make their escape, the traumatized Boom-Boom looks at the needles Dr. Emilia has been using on her, freaks out and drops her nectar bombs on them, which causes the whole lab to explode.  Boom-Boom needs therapy for sure. Ughh…Wolf also accidentally drops the journal and leaves it behind the lab. That book is probably destroyed. 

15. Back at Timbercat village, I assume Lio had already drank the cola before he is super hyped. Yumyan also joins in on their shenanigans and he gives them the idea to steal Molly’s axe and put it in an axe bush (is that what Yumyan said?). Also, is this supposed to be a pun or something?

16. Doag puts Hyun Soo in their getaway boat but it’s weird since he’s a dolphin and can just swim in the water instead lol. They’re supposed to leave now but Kipo wants to face Emilia now. I say she’s making a bad decision here. Dr. Emilia then arrive with Greta and Zane but Wolf takes out the latter two easily. The rest of the humans come out to the deck to see what the ruckus is all about and Emilia tries to play coy and innocent with them. 

17. Hoag notices that his daughter isn’t around. Our heroes try to explain to the humans that Dr. Emilia is the bad guy; They told about how Song is the Mega Monkey and how she got her to attack and destroy their home back in Season 1. And they explain that she mind-controlled Song to kill her own daughter. 

Even grandma can deliver a beatdown on someone lol

18.The humans are reluctant to believe them because it does sound very farfetched. But c’mon…they should know by know that Las Vistas is a messed up place; Anything can happen. Also, don’t they remember the Mega Monkey saving them from getting gilded in Season 2. Suddenly, Hoag makes an attempt to paralyze Kipo with one of the darts but she quickly reacts and knocks him out. The humans see this and they get mad at her. Eventually, Kipo and the others make their escape. Finally. 

19. Back to Lio and Dave. We find out towards the end that Molly actually killed Dave 5 times for the stunt he pulled on her lol. Anyways, the both of them are glad to have this bonding session with one another since Kipo isn’t around. 

20. Our heroes reach land but Doag wants to go back because she knows her dad is worried sick about her. And so, Hyun Soo and I guess the rest of his groupmates are bringing her back there. Aww, she should’ve stayed but I understand why she wants to go back to the ship. But to be honest, somebody should’ve thought to give her a communicator or a walkie-talkie or something because at least they can know what Dr. Emilia’s next move is. Perhaps they don’t really have to think too much into it since the journals has been decimated and all…or is it?

21. Wolf, I hope you’re happy you dropped the journal lol. Dr. Emilia figures out that Kipo is X. Wait, I’m trying to remember if there any mention of X in the previous episodes. Anyways, I wonder what she’s going to do with the fur Kipo left during their last confrontation. I guess since Kipo is a human who also has the DNA of apex predators, Emilia is going to play with her recombinant DNA and figure out a way to reverse the effects of the mute DNA so that only the normal DNA will be present? I dunno….

22. Last note/tiny bit of criticism: Is it just me or do you guys sometimes think that some of the character designs look a little wonky in this episode? Sometimes, I felt like Kipo, Benson and even Troy look a little off in some frames. Anyways, that’s the end of my review of episode 2. Stay tuned tomorrow for my review of episode 3. Thanks for reading everybody!