#Lv. 5 Overlord: Unparalleled command of Bravery and DETERMINATION

[duskwingmoth]

Deltarune doodles, AND introducing DeltaRin

Fake game design ramble under the cut:

With the Player having finally claimed their Vessel, you are given the choice of whether to return Kris's SOUL to them, as it had been trapped within the Vessel up until then, or absorbing it for yourself to become even more powerful -- a whopping 5 levels are added to the Vessel -- which removes Kris from the party entirely. As Susie had her arm broken in the Light World, she will also not fully participate in Battles, and if you absorb Kris's SOUL, she will leave as well. This forces you to fully recruit Noelle. Ralsei will still be with you, but he will be deeply unhappy.

If, like in these doodles, the Player gives Kris back their SOUL, they become a unique party member. They will not FIGHT outside of specific battles, and their ACTs now all cost TP and are initially significantly less effective without you. The reason being that if they don't outright refuse (and DEFEND instead) Kris's ACTs are very likely to fail. the failure rate and TP cost both lower as their opinion of you improves.

The plus and minus signs beside the dialogue choices correspond to Kris's opinion of the Player, the idea being that since the Player no longer directly controls Kris, you must build their opinion of you, which aids in building their self-esteem. Specific ACTs check specific values for their TP and success modifiers but will still have a baseline that factors in all values.

Flirting, for instance, requires Kris to have fairly high opinion of you in general, particularly WHITE, CYAN, and ORANGE, for it to succeed. In the case of flirting, however, this refusal is the one and only time they do so, and your response dictates whether they will permanently refuse such ACTs or will keep trying with the faith of you and Susie behind them. (Both non-cruel options will significantly increase the enemy's SPARE percentage as well, as they will be inspired by your leadership. A one-time boon, but a fun detail.)

If Kris refuses an ACT, they give you two reasons why that directly correspond to their opinion of you and the ACT's checked value. If they fail, you are given a vague idea of which value to improve. And if Kris succeeds, their WHITE value increases.

All of the choices you make in Kris's presence will affect their opinion of you, as well as some that they don't directly see or hear if it's reasonable that they will find out about it. Boosting or lowering all other values by at least 1 will also boost or lower WHITE by at least 1, with the increase becoming gradually larger as their opinion grows. Having their opinion at an overall high level is what turns the Good Ending into a Better Ending, or even a Better Ending into the Best Ending. You will have brought Kris back up from the low, low place they had to be to trade their SOUL away for possession, giving them the willpower to face life as themself again.

You can, of course, always skip all this nonsense by picking "Proceed", and other such domineering or cruel choices. But remember that you must accept the possibility of pain and seizure.

The facets that make up Kris's opinion all range from -255 to 255, for a total possible maximum value of 1,785, and are:

RED | Control - Your lingering command over Kris's will. This likely starts higher than the rest. Increasing it lowers Kris's WHITE value, and low values increase how much their WHITE value can increase per boost. Initial value is affected by how many times you have chosen unkind dialogues, how many times you have chosen to FIGHT outside of certain Battles, what route your playthrough is on (Normal, Aborted Weird, or Weird), and your progression through the Sword Route, prior to separating from Kris. Can never go below 0.

CYAN | Temper - How patient Kris thinks you are. Initial value varies depending on how few times you have skipped through dialogue, how many times you've moved between rooms, how many items you have obtained, how many Battles you have participated in, and how optional scenes you've triggered, prior to separating from Kris.

ORANGE | Confidence - Your perceived bravery. Initial value can be boosted by giving the Vessel the gift of Bravery, and varies depending on how many times you have grazed during an enemy's turn without getting hit, prior to separating from Kris.

BLUE | Trust - How much Kris believes in you as a leader. Initial value can be boosted by giving the Vessel the gift of Ambition, and varies depending on how many team ACTs you have performed and how many Darkners you have recruited to Castle Town, prior to separating from Kris.

PURPLE | Smarts - How intelligent Kris thinks you are. Initial value can be boosted by giving the Vessel the gift of Mind, and varies depending on how many times you have avoided damage during an enemy's turn, how many times you have 0%-to-SPARE'd an enemy within one turn, how many quiz questions you answered correctly in Chapter 3, and how many puzzles you have solved without significant error, prior to separating from Kris.

GREEN | Gentleness - How caring Kris thinks you are. Initial value can be boosted by giving the Vessel the gift of Kindness, and varies depending on how many enemies you have LOST, how many times Kris has used a healing item, and how many nice choices you have made both in and out of dialogue to other characters, prior to separating from Kris.

YELLOW | Resolve - Kris's understanding of your willpower and moral code. Initial value varies depending on how few times you have chosen FIGHT outside of certain Battles, how many times you have successfully performed perfect inputs when possible, how many times you have revived a party member from being Downed, how many secret bosses you have encountered, what route your playthrough is on (Normal, Aborted Weird, or Weird), and your progression through the Sword Route, prior to separating from Kris.

WHITE | Friendship - How much Kris values your company in Castle Town and the Light World. Initial value is weighted very low, but is affected by your Vessel's favorite food and how you felt about your Vessel at creation, and can be positively improved depending on how friendly you were to Susie, Ralsei, Berdly, and Noelle, as well as how many unique dialogue boxes you have seen in Castle Town and the Light World, prior to separating from Kris. Likely begins with a negative value, especially in an Aborted Weird or Weird Route playthrough.