#stat vs foe

[mythaura-blog]

Development Update - May 2023

Hello hello folks, Miyazaki here! We've got a big update for this month--we've rolled out Mythaura's battle demo and are so excited for you to give it a try!

Topics covered include:

Battle Demo & Guide

Quarter 4 (2023) Rewards Reveal

Beast Creator Contest

New Homepage Splash Screen

More info available under the cut!

Battle Demo Guide

Welcome to Mythaura's battle demo! Here's a concise guide to help you navigate the 3v3 battles and make strategic decisions:

1. Battle Setup

The battle takes place between your beasts (on the left) and the enemy beasts (on the right) and ends when one side is defeated. For this demo, all beasts in this demo are level 1 and have average size for their species.

2. Beast Details

Click on the info icon in the corner of your beast's avatar to view its details. From here, you can read their abilities and see a breakdown of their stats.

3. Elements

Each beast has 2 elements, including a species element that is always shown. You won't know your opponent's secondary element.

For this demo, a beast's secondary element is currently randomized.

Check the elements page for more information on elements and for a breakdown of type effectiveness.

4. Turn Actions

Each turn, your beasts can perform one of the following actions:

Use an ability or surge ability.

Defend themselves or an ally.

Rest to regain stamina.

Once all players have submitted their actions, the round is resolved with the following priority:

Resting beasts rest first.

Defending beasts defend next.

Abilities are resolved.

Within each action type, the order is determined by ability priority, beast speed, weight (with lightest going first), and then randomly if all those values are the same.

5. Abilities

Beasts start with 4 abilities: one surge ability (species-based), one neutral ability, and one ability for each element. If a beast's species and individual element match, they will have 3 abilities.

Abilities with elements can be super effective or resisted, affecting the damage dealt. Pay attention to moves' effectiveness and your foes' abilities for better results.

Abilities incur fatigue and the fatigue cost is shown on the ability button.

Abilities will generally have a small chance to miss or be a critical hit. The chances of these can vary per ability.

Abilities have 3 types: Combat, Projection, and Support.

Combat: Attack vs Defense

Projection: Focus vs Barrier

Support: Non-damage dealing abilities

6. Surge Abilities

When a beast's surge meter is full, they can use their surge ability for a powerful effect. Surge abilities don't incur fatigue and never miss. After using a surge ability, the surge meter goes back to 0%. Please note that the surge abilities in this demo may be changed before the game’s official launch.

7. Defending

Beasts can defend themselves or allies, reducing incoming damage by 75% for that turn. This effect does not stack. Defending slightly charges the defender's surge meter and recovers a small amount of stamina.

8. Resting

Resting recovers a substantial amount of stamina and a small amount of health.

Remember, understanding abilities, elements, defending, and resting will help you make the best decisions during battles. We have provided an in-app form you can use to report bugs and provide feedback. Good luck and enjoy the demo!

Planned battle demo updates for the future:

A "quick queue" button that queues with the first available other quick-queue person and does not require a PIN

PvE Mode versus an ai battler

Timeout for move submission

Controller support

Weather effects

Ailments

Ability to set desired element from the queue screen

Better reporting and improvements to history, such as remembering when you discover a super effective element on a specific opponent

Quarter 4 (2023) Rewards Reveal

Our Quarter 4 rewards have been completed and are ready for their public debut! Thank you to the Ko-fi Sponsors who voted on the different Glamour and Companion concepts, we appreciate your support and feedback.

Q4 (2023) Glamour: Koi Pond

Q4 (2023) Companion: Blooming Jackalope

Q4 (2023) Solid Gold Glamour: Adult Basilisk

Special One-Time Companion: Radiant Golden Ossiflage

1x copy will be awarded to all previous and/or current Bronze, Silver, and Gold Sponsors

Sponsors of all levels may purchase one (1) additional copy of the Radiant Golden Ossiflage in our Ko-fi Shop.

Beast Creator Contest

We're back with another Beast Design Contest! We're looking forward to all the fantastic creations that this community comes up with.

Here are the parameters:

Each individual can submit one (1) Beast option for consideration

Any species fine (babies included)

Fill out Google form; provide both a picture and the preview code

We’ll pick three winners to have their Beasts featured on the front page for Quarter 1 (July 1 - September 30). Winners will also receive:

1x Beta Key

1x Quarter 4 (2023) Skin: Koi Pond

1x Quarter 4 (2023) Companion: Blooming Jackalope

These rewards will be applied directly to your account.

Submissions for the Beast Design Contest are due by June 15, 2023. The form will close at 11:59pm PST. Winners will be announced in the July 1, 2023 Development Update.

Homepage Splash Screen

Our wonderfully talented senior artist, Luci, created a scene detailing an early stage in a group of adventurers' journey in Mythaura. This perfectly captures the vibe of the opening series of introductory quests that players will undertake at the start of the game. We hope you enjoy the art, and hope that you look forward to playing through Mythaura's single-player story when we launch!

Mythaura v0.17

Updated homepage layout

Merged and finalized battle demo, fixing several bugs found along the way

Thank You!

Thanks for sticking through to the end of the post! We hope you love the battle demo and are looking forward to your feedback, which will help shape the nature of the game while still in its early development--leading to a lasting impact when Mythaura launches. Your help here is invaluable!

See you around the Discord!

[thecreaturecodex]

Sartan

Still from Return of Ultraman accessed at the Ultraman Wiki here

[I am coming to the Ultra franchise pretty much cold, and am watching it in isolation from its fandom except for my girlfriend @abominationimperatrix. One of the things that I gather from her is that the monsters that stand out to me from these series are rarely fandom favorites. Like, I'm not planning on statting up Black King or Gudon or Twintail from Return of Ultraman... but this ratty anthro Snuffleupagus was immediately on my list. Part of that is how grody and gross he looks. Part of it is he has an interesting power set, one that led to my conception of the flavor text. It seems that Tsubaraya Studios thought the idea of a ninja elephant was worth exploring long before it was a joke on RPG.net about D&D 3.0's skill system]

Sartan CR 17 CE Monstrous Humanoid This creature is as tall as a building. Its features are lumpy and misshapen, with bulging eyes and sparse, bristly hair growing from its head. It has a long, elephant-like trunk, clawed hands, and a short tail.

A sartan is an interplanetary thrill killer. They travel from world to world, using their powers of invisibility to spy on people and learn who their heroes are. They then seek these heroes out and kill them for no reason other than to challenge their abilities and to cause other people emotional suffering. Sartans are cruel and enjoy collateral damage in these assassination attempts. Some powerful entities attempt to hire sartans to work for them as assassins, but sartans care little for money. Only if a target interests them, or if the employer resorts to charm spells, will they take on one of these jobs.

A sartan usually only enters combat if it suits them, whether because they have found their target, they want to lure that target into the open, or if they just feel like committing some cruelty for fun. Their supernatural abilities are mostly defensive—a sartan is invisible unless it chooses to appear, or is actively locked in combat. They can become incorporeal, which they often do in order to have mundane weapons pass right through them. When it comes to actual violence, however, sartans do it the old-fashioned way, by getting their claws bloody or grabbing a foe with their trunks and squeezing it to death. Sartans value their own hides too strongly to fight to the death. They will usually attempt to flee a losing battle, but may come back for a rematch on their own terms. 

Sartan  CR 17 XP 102,400 CE Colossal monstrous humanoid Init +13; Senses darkvision 120 ft., Perception +24, scent, see invisibility

Defense AC 32, touch 12, flat-footed 32 (-8 size, +9 Dex, +1 dodge, +20 natural) hp 261 (18d10+162) Fort +15, Ref +20, Will +14 DR 15/magic; Resist electricity 20, fire 20 Defensive Abilities evasion, ghost form, natural invisibility, uncanny dodge

Offense Speed 60 ft. Melee 2 claws +23 (2d8+13/19-20), slam +23 (4d6+13 plus grab) Space 30 ft.; Reach 30 ft. Special Attacks constrict (4d6+19), leap attack, strangle, studied target (+4, swift action, up to 4 targets) Spell-like Abilities CL 18th, concentration +22 Constant—comprehend languages, see invisibility 1/day—find the path

Statistics Str 36, Dex 28, Con 29, Int 11, Wis 17, Cha 18 Base Atk +18; CMB +39 (+43 grapple and sunder); CMD 59 (61 vs. sunder) Feats Dodge, Greater Sunder, Improved Critical (claw), Improved Initiative, Improved Sunder, Mobility, Power Attack, Skill Focus (Stealth), Spring Attack Skills Acrobatics +27 (+39 when jumping), Perception +24, Stealth +28, Survival +24; Racial Modifiers +8 Stealth Languages Aklo SQ meteoric starflight

Ecology Environment any land Organization solitary Treasure standard

Special Abilities Ghost Form (Su) A sartan can become incorporeal as a swift action. In this form, it loses its natural armor but gains a deflection bonus to Armor Class and CMD equal to its Charisma modifier. It cannot make attacks in this form, but does gain a fly speed equal to twice its land speed with perfect maneuverability. It can resume corporeality as a free action. A sartan can remain incorporeal for a number of minutes up to its Hit Dice in a day. Leap Attack (Su) As a full round action, a sartan can launch itself an impossible distance, traveling up to 1000 feet in a single bound. This movement can be vertical or horizontal, and the sartan lands on its feet unharmed regardless of the height it travels. It can make a single melee attack against an opponent in its reach during any part of this movement. A sartan can use this ability once every 1d4 rounds. Meteoric Starflight (Su) Over the course of 1 minute, a sartan can turn itself into a Medium sized hovering rock-like object, then blast itself into space. In this meteoric form, it has hardness 8, can make no attacks, and requires no food, water or air. In this form, it can fly at a speed of 300 ft. with perfect maneuverability, and can survive in the void of outer space and fly with incredible speed. Although exact travel times vary, a trip within a single solar system should take 3d20 hours, while a trip beyond should take 3d20 days (or more, at the GM’s discretion)—provided the sartan knows the way to its destination. Natural Invisibility (Su) A sartan can become invisible or visible as a move action. Its invisibility is broken when it attacks. Strangle (Ex) Due to its enormous size, a sartan can only strangle when it is grappling an opponent of Huge or larger size. Studied Target (Ex) A sartan gains the studied target ability of a slayer with a level equal to its Hit Dice. It does not gain other slayer class abilities, such as sneak attack or slayer talents, unless it takes levels in the slayer class.

[monstersdownthepath]

Herald of Iomedae: The Hand of the Inheritor

CR 15

Lawful Good Large Outsider

Inner Sea Gods, pg. 292 (image from the Wrath of the Righteous video game!)

Among the most famous of the Divine Heralds is the first one we'll be looking at during Heralds of Hope Month. I say 'most famous' for a few reasons; he's one of the most active Heralds on the planet, what with that whole Worldwound problem going on in the north. There is rarely a moment's rest allowed for the Hand of the Inheritor in the tireless battle against the Abyss' expansion, so it's perhaps no small surprise surprise that he would eventually make a terrible and tragic mistake and end up the mercy of someone without any.

There's other reasons he's famous, in and out of universe, and those reasons are why he's no longer the Herald of Iomedae.

But this isn't talking about the now, we're still in the then! When he was at his strongest, healthiest, and least corrupted most devoted to the ideals of the Inheritor Goddess. Fittingly enough for the servant of what is essentially the Goddess of Paladins, the Hand is an angel blessed with the powers of a Paladin, built for and unafraid to put himself right in the middle of a pitched battle and cut his way through Evil like a hot knife while they struggle ineffectually to harm him. Like all angels, he's protected by a 20ft "nuh-uh" bubble that shields himself and all his allies from Evil creatures, granting them and him +4 to AC and to saving throws versus Evil creatures and effects, while also hedging out Evil summoned creatures and stopping any spell of 3rd level or lower from entering this sphere of protection, stripping many fiendish minions of their ranged options.

But of course, that's just what every angel can do. Let's look at what the Hand's unique powers have in store...

HAH, gotcha! The Hand of the Inheritor has no unique powers! I wasn't joking when I said he was basically an angel with Paladin class levels. ... except not really, because an angel with Paladin class levels would actually be much better than the poor Hand actually ends up being. But we'll get to that in a moment, so first, the positives!

Perhaps fittingly for a man who finds himself fighting alongside the front lines against demons, the Hand is just as useful bolstering his allies as he is actually leaping ahead of them into the fray. He has Aid, Lesser Restoration, Dispel Magic, and Magic Weapon all at-will, can grant himself or his allies Bull's Strength or Resist Energy 3/day, can swath the battlefield in a calming Prayer up to 3/day, and give everyone around him some extra stats and 18 temp HP with Burst of Glory 3/day. Any ally that falls in the midst of battle may be re-raised with his 3/day Raise Dead, but actually killing anyone he's trying to protect in order to draw out that resurrection is incredibly hard because of his 1/days: Death Ward, Dispel Evil, Greater Restoration, and Heal.

Killing HIM is even more annoying, because he's got 15 charges of Lay on Hands, which means +9d6 hitpoints for him as a swift action, IF you manage to get past his 32 AC. With such a menagerie of protective magic, you may think he's got no room for offense, to which I answer: 3/day Flame Strike, Holy Smite AND Order's Wrath to bring down on his foes from a distance, smiting entire crowds of them at once, and of course that's nothing compared to what happens when he gets in close. His 150ft flight speed lets him cross entire battlefields in seconds and settle down to begin Full-Attacking up to four times a round with his +2 Holy Longsword for 2d6+9 (+2d6 vs Evil) damage. Not only does he have a threatening sword, but his shield isn't just for defense, and he can indeed bash someone twice a round with his +2 Heavy Steel Shield for 1d6+5 damage. Anyone slammed by his shield is subject to a free Bull Rush attempt from the Herald as well, letting him reposition dangerous enemies as he needs.

Quite the force! But, sadly, that's about where everything of particular note ends. His Protective Aura is always on, and he's also got a 10ft Aura of Courage to grant his allies +4 against fear effects... But nothing else. Why, exactly, he lacks any of the other aura abilities a Paladin of his HD would have is a question I have no good answer for, and while he DOES have Lay on Hands (9d6 HP, 15/day), he lacks any Mercies to flavor the ability in any way or make it any more substantial... and, even more damning AND more baffling, he has no ability to Smite Evil. Given where he works, you'd think Mercies and Smite Evil would have been the second things Iomedae wrote on his sheet right after she finished giving him his gear.

Fun fact on that note, though: He wasn't originally Iomedae's Herald, he was Ragathiel's, and joined Iomedae's crusade after being awed by her skills and her sense of justice. She didn't even make him! But being the Herald of Ragathiel just makes his lack of auras, Mercies, and Smite Evil even MORE glaring, because Ragathiel has all of those.

There's also one unfortunate choice in regards to his skills that feels like a pretty big weakness: His impressive flight speed goes to waste with his lack of Fly ranks, meaning anything but a straight line is difficult for him to manage, and certain weather conditions or enemy attacks can severely impact his ability to remain airborne. He has more ranks in SWIM than in Fly! SWIM!

A lot of the Heralds in Inner Sea Gods have similar design choices, which is a huge shame, because that's where almost every Good-aligned Divine Herald is found! Whoof! His showing in the Wrath of the Righteous video game was significantly more impressive, with the ability to use Wall of Force and apply Smite Evil to entire crowds of enemies at once.

I'm not saying he's weak, no, he's actually a very powerful and stubbornly resilient melee beatstick that's outright immune to most demonic tricks and tools, but he's got some design flaws and odd choices that make it hard for someone like me to be interested in him. Perhaps this is why he's eventually superseded by someone with actual Paladin levels.

You can read more about him here.

[fehtism]

Hello! I just reinstalled FEH after a few years (I dropped off during Book 4), and someone pointed me to your blog for help with figuring out the newer skills because DEAR GOD

I’m going to start digging through your posts, but if you take requests(?), I’d really appreciate a breakdown of how Smol Chrobin’s kit works because it consistently takes me 2-3 teams to take them down in Tempest Trials, my old blue mage haters don’t seem to work on them, and I have no idea why or what I should be doing better.

hiiii thank you for your ask!

you seem to have encountered the problem of duo f!robin being Unfair.

luckily you have some things going for you !

1) the youngins cannot counter at 1 range, if you smack with a strong melee unit you should be able to take em out

2) a good far save can take One hit and get some good damage on duo robin

there are also quite a few things against you

1) threat range is larger than you think due to getting another action after using reposition + orders warping

2) has after combat healing + healing with flare

3) hits like a truck

4) stupid fast ... if you haven't played for a while most if not all of your units will get doubled

...

the tldr of young chrobin kit

after using reposition buffs self. gets atk/spd stat stack , extra damage , and canto 1. also after reposition debuffs any of your units within 3 rows and 3 columns . has tempo to make sure you get pranked by special. also has a really stupid "solve for X" stat stack formula which in short gives more stats if foe is equipped with low cd special. also gets bonus damage from multiple parts of kit.

for the long explanation ...

duo chrobin prf weapon has a stupidly long description so lets see if i can break it down in a way that makes sense

duo chrobin has a exclusive debuff called "hush spectrum". the effects of hush spectrum are as follows:

1) afficted units get -5 to all stats in combat

2) afflicted units get affected by scowl at start of combat. (scowl is special cd +1 at start of combat. this happens before your first attack and regardless of who initiates. this means even if you attack with a pre charged special you will not be able to activate it on your first attack. scowl does not affect aoe specials or defensive specials)

hush spectrum is a mid turn debuff and activates after duo chrobin uses an assist skill. this will occur practically every turn in practice due to duo chrobin getting a second action (similar to legendary chrom's "to change fate") after using an assist. using an assist will also grant special cd -1 to duo chrobin allowing them to easily precharge specials.

as for other effects of the weapon, duo chrobin gets 30% pierceable damage reduction on first hit (similar to skills like remote sparrow) as well as a bonus to all stats.

feh is making you do algebra here so the formula for the stat bonus is as follows:

X = 16 - (foes maximum special cd x2) min 8

in practice the stat stack is:

+14 to all stats vs foe with 1 cd special , +12 for 2 cd , +10 for 3 cd and so on.

important to note that the current weapon description is incorrect and states that this formula is for stat debuffs on foe rather than in combat stat buff for duo chrobin. the feh twitter account stated that this would be corrected in a future update.

as for the rest of the kit...

reposition is a standard movement assist

flare is a relatively new infantry mage locked special (released with brave soren in ... august ?) it has a dynamic effect based on the user's hp when special activates.

if hp is at or above 70%, increases damage based on 60% of foe's res stat. if hp is below 70%, increases damage by 40% of foe's res stat AND heals for 30% of max hp. unlike skills like sol and aether which heal for a percentage of damage dealt, flare heals a flat 30% regardless of amount of damage dealt.

the damage increase from flare is incredibly variable making it less reliable than specials like glimmer. however, flare is a high scoring special in arena and the healing has some use case.

duo chrobin has a prf A slot skill called "Fell wyrmscale." this skill has a bunch of effects that only trigger if units hp is at or above 25% at the START of combat. (meaning that if you start below 25%, heal to above 25% with flare, you still do not receive the effects). the effects of fell wyrmscale are as follows:

1) grants unit +8 to all stats in combat (woo ! no solving for X this time)

2) deals bonus damage = 15% of unit's atk (in practice this is generally around 8-12 damage)

3) fully pierces damage reduction when special triggers (does NOT apply to flat damage reduction from sources like laguz friend 4 or brave dimitri's weapon refine. also does not apply to defensive specials or to damage reduction from specials like armored floe/beacon. also does not apply to the damage reduction provided by emblem ike's engage effect)

4) heals 7 hp after combat

i miss when prf skills were simple...

duo chrobin's b slot skill is atk/spd link 4 which provides buffs to unit and minor debuffs to foe in combat after using a MOVEMENT assist (will not apply after using rallies) the effects granted by atk spd link are as follows:

1) grants visible atk/spd +6 buff. (this visible buff means that after receiving it, unit is ineligible to receive additional atk/spd buffs provided by sources like rally atk/spd+)

2) grants canto (1) to unit and ally targeted by the movement assist

3) inflicts atk/spd -4 and def/res -2 on foe in combat

4) (more solve for X sorry) grants + X bonus damage where X = highest bonus on atk+spd among unit and allies with canto (1) active. (in practice, X usually = 12) (bonus damage does not apply to aoe specials)

luckily, the C slot skill is rather simple in comparison. inf. null follow 4 grants null follow up effect to unit and infantry allies within 2 spaces. also grants unit "orders" warping (orders warping gets its name from the skill "ground orders" allows unit to warp to a space adjacent to any ally within 2 spaces.)

i am sorry that this unit is Unfair and i am sorry for the current state of feh. i hope this explanation is thorough but if there are any terms that i did not explain feel free to comment or send another ask.

[pathfinderunlocked]

Thread Severer - CR17 Construct

It's been so long since I tasted battle...

Artwork by NishatIDK on Zedge.

Thread Severer is an intelligent magic weapon that yearns for honorable combat. An ancient samurai's spirit was sealed inside this blade as a dying curse when an oni took the samurai's sword and killed him with it.

This works as a standalone boss, but if your PCs are really high level you could use it as a minion alongside a blade-wielding boss.

The weapon itself, after being defeated, is a +2 flying shock katana that has the Purified Steel ability listed below, and for which the blade itself (but not the wielder) is protected by a constant lightning shield spell. It has a caster level of 16 and a strong evocation and transmutation aura, due to the flying and shock properties. It can't be crafted and refuses to be sold, but for the game-balancing purposes of calculating a PC's wealth, you can treat it as if it were worth 134050 gp (the same as a +8 mithral katana).

As an intelligent item, it has stats of Int 14, Wis 14, Cha 10, has an Ego of 18, and its purpose is to battle honorably. It has darkvision and lifesense to a distance of 120 ft, and can understand and speak with the languages listed in its stat block. It's of lawful neutral alignment, and can inflict 1 negative level on wielders of other alignments, but it suppresses this ability against those who defeated it. It will force its wielder to make a DC 18 Will save any time they attempt to talk a foe down from combat, and if the wielder fails, Thread Severer becomes dominant for 1 day or until a critical situation occurs, typically compelling its wielder to challenge any apparent foe to honorable battle.

Fun fact, you can use a sunder maneuver during a bladed dash spell. Sunder maneuvers against magic weapons are generally a pretty bad idea compared to disarming or just killing the creature holding them, but considering that this monster is an intelligent magic weapon who is presumably interested in proving its superiority, I think a sunder maneuver is perfectly fitting. And it's a nice way to inflict a longer-term effect on the players that they might not be able to immediately fix just by sleeping for a day.

XP 102,400 LN small construct Init +7 Senses darkvision 120 ft., lifesense 120 ft., low-light vision.; Perception +20

DEFENSE

AC 27, touch 23, flat-footed 19 (+4 deflection, +7 Dex, +1 dodge, +4 natural, +1 size) hp 147 (18d10+48); force field (80 hp, fast healing 16) Fort +12, Ref +17, Will +14 Defensive Abilities enhanced deflection, hardness 14 (only when force field depleted) Immune construct traits Resist electricity 50%

OFFENSE

Speed fly 50 ft. (perfect), swim 50 ft. Melee (defensive stance) +2 katana +30/+25/+20 (1d8+12/18–20 plus 1d6 electricity) Melee (offensive stance) +2 katana +30/+25/+20 (1d8+17/18–20 plus 1d6 electricity)

Spell-Like Abilities (CL 15; concentration +15)     Constant—lightning shield     At will—greater bladed dash     1/day—greater bestow curse (target cannot recover hit points) (DC 18)

STATISTICS

Str 30, Dex 25, Con —, Int 14, Wis 14, Cha 10 Base Atk +18; CMB +27 (+33 sunder); CMD 43 (45 vs. sunder, cannot be tripped) Feats Arcane Strike (+4), Combat Expertise (see Wielderless Stance text), Combat Reflexes, Dodge, Great Fortitude, Greater Sunder, Improved Sunder, Iron Will, Mobility, Power Attack (see Wielderless Stance text), Sidestep (see Wielderless Stance text), Toughness Skills Acrobatics +25, Fly +38, Knowledge (history) +20, Perception +20, Swim +18 SQ katana attacks, wielderless stance Languages Common, Draconic, Giant

SPECIAL ABILITIES

Challenge (Ex) Once per day, Thread Severer can challenge a foe to combat, as a samurai. It gains a +9 bonus to damage rolls against that foe, but takes a -2 penalty to AC against creatures other than the target of its challenge. The challenge remains in effect until the target is dead or unconscious, or until the combat ends.

Enhanced Deflection (Su) It gains a deflection bonus to AC and a resistance bonus to all saving throws equal to twice its weapon enhancement bonus (+4).  These bonuses are already included in its statistics.

Force Field (Su) Thread Severer is protected as though by a technological force field, granting it 80 temporary hit points.  These temporary hit points regenerate via fast healing by 16 each round to a maximum of 80.  When the force field's hit points are depleted, it ceases fast healing, but the force field is not destroyed and continues to regenerate temporary hit points via fast healing each round until Thread Severer is defeated.  While the force field has at least 1 hit point, Thread Severer is immune to critical hits.  The force field is automatically reduced to 0 hp by disintegration effects.  This is a force effect.

Thread Severer's hardness does not apply until its force field is depleted. If an attack fully depletes the force field's hit points, excess damage is dealt to Thread Severer, but is reduced by its hardness.

Katana Strikes (Su) Thread Severer is considered to be a +2 shock katana sized for a Medium creature, which affects its attack bonus, damage, hit points, and hardness.  It effectively wields itself in combat, making katana attacks instead of natural weapon attacks.

Purified Steel (Ex) Thread Severer's attacks counts as silver.

Wielderless Stance (Ex) Thread Severer can shift between an offense stance and a defensive stance. While in its offensive stance, its attacks are treated as two-handed katana attacks, and it gains Power Attack as a bonus feat. While in its one-handed stance, its attacks are treated as one-handed katana attacks, and it gains Combat Expertise and Sidestep as bonus feats. Shifting stances is a free action that Thread Severer can choose to do at the beginning of its turn.

[autisticsupervillain]

Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to Stats Equalized!

The show where we equalize strength, speed, and durability to decide who would win a battle of hax, skill, and versatility.

This Month's Fighters...

Sollux Captor vs Cole MacGrath!

Sollux Fanart by @rabble-dabble

Conditions:

InFAMOUS 2 Cole without the RFI is used.

Scenario:

Cole assists in fighting off an Alternian Invasion of New Marias, bringing down one their battleships with a thunderstorm. Sollux survives the crash, having been kept prisoner onboard as a backup battery. Cole mistakes him for one of the invaders and attacks him.

Analysis: Cole MacGrath

Many years in the future, human civilization would meet its grim end at the hands of a monster known only as The Beast. Humanity’s last survivor, a man calling himself Kessler, would use his fantastical powers to travel back in time and prevent the apocalypse. Taking over a secret society called the First Sons, Kessler would use their research to amplify the powers of Conduits, humans with special powers, with an explosive device called the Ray Sphere. Setting the Ray Sphere in the middle of Empire City, one man would survive it’s blast and go one to become the world’s savior. The name of that survivor, of the man who would slay The Beast, is Cole MacGrath.

Even before awakening his extraordinary powers, Cole MacGrath was an impressive young man. A parkour prodigy, Cole has the streets, rooftops, and sewer systems of both Empire City and New Marias memorized like the back of his hand, even capable of outrunning police with his skills. He was an incredibly intelligent man as well, smart enough that his parents can easily pass him off as a teacher. He was a straight-A student during his four years of college prep, only dropping out when one of his professors began tormenting his friend Zeke. But, after the blast, he became something more…

Now gifted with extraordinary electric abilities, Cole became a living battery, capable of absorbing and manipulating electricity to an extraordinary degree. With his newfound powers, he can create a wide variety of bolts, missiles, grenades, and blades out of his electric powers, ranging from homing missiles to sticky grenades. He can also create Arc Restraints, electric chains designed to pin his opponents down.

In regards to his defensive abilities, Cole has a huge moveset to draw from. He can create shields that convert bullets into energy for him to absorb, glide through the air and telekinetically throw heavy objects by manipulating magnetism, regenerate from being riddled with projectiles, can fully heal himself and restore his stamina by absorbing electricity, and even restart his heart to come back from the dead.

This wide variety of powers is only scratching the surface of what Cole can do, which comes as a result of how his powers work. See, Cole can develop new powers in a wide variety of ways, such as by absorbing large quantities of energy, or even just by using his powers in creative ways during a fight. Throw these methods, he has developed and mastered both the above powers as well as the following ones. He can:

Create thunderstorms.

Throw tornados.

Drain electricity from storms.

Absorb ions from killed opponents to enhance his powers.

Amplify his speed immensely via Precision, causing foes who were previously only a blur in his view to move in slow motion.

Give himself unlimited energy and stamina briefly via Karmic Overload.

Heal crippling wounds with his healing pulse, an electric zap that amplifies the body’s natural healing abilities.

Can see visions upon getting new powers, teaching him how to use them.

Can see how a person was killed by touching their corpse, as well as see a path leading to their killer.

And suck the bio-electricity from a person’s body with bio-leech, a technique that requires he grip their face.

Can create electric grappling hooks.

And many, many more.

Of particular note is his Radar Sense, a sixth sense that operates independently of his other senses in an omnidirectional way, allowing him to see electrical sources, people included, as well as outline those with hostile intent towards him in red.

Keep in mind, these are all just his electricity powers. Upon reaching New Marias, Cole was able to use a device to transfer some of Lucy Kuo’s powers into himself, after which he gains additional ice based powers, allowing him to create ice missile, ice grenades, and ice spikes roughly the size of buildings, even using his ice powers to launch him skyward to create distance from his opponent.

Speaking of distance, he’s probably going to need it, as he isn’t a great melee fighter. He’s a skilled user of the Amp, yes, and he can hurt people as strong as he is, but he lacks any kind of martial arts training. Cole is a ranged fighter through and through. Thankfully, Cole has a wide variety of resistances to aide him against anyone who manages to get in close. Cole has repeatedly shrugged off ice and fire attacks, taking no damage when getting ragdolled by The Beast, who is a giant monster made of magma. He has successfully endured Sasha’s mind control, which was powerful enough to take control of all of Empire City even while weakened. He has survived being doused with acids and resisted being ripped apart by The Beast’s Black Holes, which break down and absorb matter on an atomic level. He, like all Conduits, are resistant to most forms of radiation and all forms of disease, including the Plague that would’ve wiped out the human race had it not been stopped. His powers can even ignore the resistances of others, such as where Cole killed Kessler and David Warner, two people who can absorb electricity on contact, with his electric attacks.

Even with all this though, he does have one major weakness: water. Large quantities of water will short circuit is body, killing him in a way he likely can't resurrect from. Even standing in neck deep water for 30 seconds will kill him, being able to withstand being drenched only for brief periods of time. Furthermore, cutting out the electricity in the areas around him will make him nauseous and give him a headache and he can’t touch most electronics or fire arms without making them explode.

Overall, Cole is a remarkably powerful master of electrokinesis and he’s remembered as one of the most powerful Conduits of all time for good reason. Respect the Patron Saint of Empire City.

Analysis: Sollux Captor

Doom. The Aspect of dispair. Those bound by Doom are fates chosen sufferers, predestined for a life of pain and misery. And there is no better example of that in all of Paradox Space than Sollux Captor.

Born on the alien hell world of Alternia, Sollux was born as a Gold Blood. The third lowest caste in Troll society. Thanks to his status, he was not only relentlessly persecuted, but he was predestined to serve as a living battery for the Empire's warships, guaranteeing a short life of pain and misery once he left the planet. Even on the planet, his life wasn't much better. Largely because a nearby highblood and local 8itch mind controlled him into killing his own girlfriend.

So yeah, as you can see, if you're bound to the Aspect of Doom, then life is just going to shit over you right from minute one. While all your friends are bound to primordial concepts that grant them cool superpowers, you're bound to a concept that forces you to hear the voices of those who are soon to die. Well, okay, I say that, but it's not all bad for poor Sollux. For one thing, being a SBURB Player does give him a few handy perks, like a video game style hammerspace inventory called a Specibus, or a leveling up system called an Echeladder, which goes up continuously as you do random things, ensuring that you're always getting stronger.

Not like Sollux needs much help with that. He's easily the most powerful psionic on the planet, arguably the strongest in history. As a direct descendant (or clone. Kinda. It's complicated.) of the Psiioniic, Sollux has inherited all his absurd abilities and psionic powers. This includes telekinesis powerful enough to lift buildings and eye lasers big enough to vaporize skyscrapers.

Sollux's telekinesis is so powerful, it can overpower and redirect meteors summoned by the Reckoning, including those the size of Australia. And that's on top of it's utterly ridiculous range, allowing Sollux to grab and throw meteors from the other side of the universe or blow up a laptop that was in a different timeline entirely.

But, as with all things Doom bound or SBURB related, it came at a price. Since Sollux was a SBURB Player, he was inevitably going to witness the end of his race, as it's the job of him and the rest of his friends to create the next universe while their old one dies. Furthermore, he didn't even get to live in our universe, because someone from the universe he and his friends just created traveled back in time to kill all of his friends. The pressure of having to hide from this god-like entity shattered his already fragile friend group, causing Sollux's rival, Eridan, to go on a killing spree. This resulted in Eridan vaporizing Sollux's eyes and killing his new girlfriend... right before Sollux gets dropped down a flight of stairs for unrelated reasons.

Man, Sollux is just the Spider-Man of the Homestuck universe. He certainly has about as many dead girlfriends. That isn't even counting the time he got forcibly fused with the person who killed his girlfriend (not Vriska, the other one). Yeah, needless to say, when your life sucks as much as Sollux's does, you become something of a grumpy dick. He's relentlessly cynical and pessimistic asshole, which is certainly not helped by his bipolar mood swings and short temper.

Despite this though, Sollux's luck did eventually begin to turn around. He's far and away the most competent hacker in Paradox Space, capable of hacking into a video game that alters the fabric of reality. Eventually, his first girlfriend came back to life as an immortal time goddess and they hooked up again, a little while after Sollux discovered he is now half-ghost. This means, not only does he not age anymore, but he's only half blind now, with only his living half being bound to his pre-existing injuries. So, not only is Sollux Spider-Man, he's also Danny Phantom.

So, no matter how badly life kicks him, Sollux is always going to rain down hell on whoever and whatever crosses his path.

Throwdown Theme:

Throwdown Breakdown:

This is an interesting matchup.

Sollux has an absolutely massive advantage in terms of range and scope. While Cole can cover entire cities in thunderstorms and tornadoes, Sollux can call down meteors from space all the way from the Outer Ring. Solluc can quite literally throw everything in the universe that he can lift at Cole. This is a fantastic way of separating Cole from his options, ripping entire buildings out of the ground to seperate him from sources of electricity and keep him from recharging. Given how similar Cole's powers are to those of a typical goldblood, I think it's safe to say Sollux would think to do this. Goldbloods are literally used as batteries to power spaceships, the idea of one drawing on power from technology isn't too far fetched.

On the other hand, Cole vastly outpaces in terms of versatility. Besides his telekinesis, Sollux's only other conbat applicable powers are eye beams and very specific procognition. And while said eye beams are fuck off huge, Cole is bringing a lot more to the table. Cole's shields, movement options, and healing powers give him a lot of ways to simply tank, dodge, or recover from a lot of the damage Sollux can deal. Frankly the image of Cole electric web slinging across the buildings being thrown at him is simply hardcore.

Most importantly, Cole does have a limited counter against his electricity sources being taken away. Precision Mode would let Cole move fast enough for Sollux to not track him, allowing him to get his hits in and reach sources of electricity before Sollux could react. The problem with that is that it chews through energy really fast, which won't work if Cole's already hurt for energy. Karmic Overload is basically a free instant refill, but in practical terms it's a one-off until Cole can farm more Good Karma for himself.

Meanwhile, Sollux's telekinesis counters a lot of things thanks to its scope. He can just disperse any storms Cole creates, send missiles and grenades right back, and throw sources of electricity into space where Cole can't reach.

However, Cole's similarity to other goldbloods could very well let Cole catch him off guard with some unique tricks. The ability to just revive from death at will because his body still had electricity in it would trip Sollux right up, Cole's weakness against water isn't something he'd ever even suspect (meaning throwing the whole ocean at him is right out), and stuff like Karmic Overload and Precision Mode would come right the hell out of nowhere.

But, ultimately, I think telekinesis on Sollux's scale is just too clean of a counter against Cole. It can get him out of Arc Restraints, throw Cole's projectiles back, get rid of his storm clouds, and even just... yeet all the city's electronics into space where Cole can't get them. Fight's over I guess.

There are certainly circumstances where Cole can win this. Namely by perfectly exploiting openings created by Precision Mode or resurrection. But they are much more circumstantial than Sollux's own powers.

This Throwdown's Winner is...

Sollux Captor!

[ts2cambremon]

Warfare/Combat Rules

INDIVIDUAL FIGHTING SCORE

STRENGTH: Fat (-2)/ Regular (0)/ Fit (+2)

AGE: Teen (-2)/ Adult (0)/ Elder (-2)

SKILL: if melee: Body skill points/ if range: Mechanic skill points

LIFESTATE: Human (0)/ Vampire (+2, +5 if previous victim)/Werewolf (+3, never tires if in wolf form, no weapons)/ Aliens (-2 vs non-humans, +2 vs humans)/ Robot (max armor points, never tires)/ Plantsim (can self-heal 1 wound)

ARMOR: None (-2)/ Leather (0)/ Chainmail (+2)/ Plate (+4)/ Mithril (+5)

WEAPONS: None (-2)/ Dagger, bow (0)/ Sword (+2)/ Claws (+2)/ Special sword (+4)

MAGES: add mage power (see Mage stats)

HELP: Dog (+1)/ War-dog (+3)

FIGHT!

Add to each fighter's individual fighting score the result of an individual d20 roll: the highest number wins the fight.

Depending on the context, the loser either dies or is wounded/spared. If the fight is won with less than 3 points difference, the winner suffers injuries:

won by 3 points: wounded makeup, -1 Body skill point

won by 2 points: wounded overlay, -3 Body skill points

won by 1 point: crippling injury, loss of all Body skill points

After each round, the winners can attack a new foe, but they are tired (-3 to the total fighting score)

If they are wounded (won the fight by 3 points or less, see above), they cannot fight another round unless they are patched up by a nearby healer.

(shout-out and credit for the combat rolls to OrionSolis at the Plumbbob Keep, their MCC rules have been a great source of inspiration!)

[sweatertheman]

I thought I'd redo this by giving Harry a huge buff, assuming all his stats are at their maximum efficiency.

Max Stats Harry is an Incredibly Unstable Detective God. He is incredibly smart, able to make complex calculations quickly, act and lie with ease, and call upon random useless facts, but also totally blinded by his genius, constantly side-tracked by art and poetry, and compelled to lie for pretty much no reason. He is a master of his and others' emotions, in control of himself through almost any situarion, excluding ones to do with his ex-wife, feel others' emotions acutely, see the future, talk to the dead, and manipulate almost anyone to do what he wants, though this causes him to seem insane, and feel compelled to abuse this power. He's an ex-gym teacher, fast, strong, able to take any physical pain, excluding exposure to the pale, in touch with his instincts, and really likes drugs, but also really likes drugs, and feels compelled to threaten people and destroy things for no real reason. He has the steadiest of hands, can react instantly, pick up on the most invisible of senses, put up a tough facade, understand machines intimately, and is really, really cool, but is also incredibly jumpy and egotistical, and unable to open up emotionally.

He's really, really not okay emotionally, as the strain of knowing so much, hearing so much, feeling so much is killing him. He can take the pain, and he can force himself to get up and detect every day, but the pain is still there. All it takes is one fuck-up, one reminder of his wife, one crack in his tough exterior, and he'll want to go and kill himself. For the sake of making the fight more fair, Harry is equipped with his pistol and 6 bullets, and the full set of Fairweather T-500 Vitreous Enamel armour.

As for God Tier Vriska, it's Vriska, in all her broken, piece of shit mass murderer glory. Flight via the use of some kind of pixie wings, semi-immortality excluding just or heroic deaths, probability manipulation, and mind control. Outwardly, Vriska appears cold, and like a massive 8itch. She mocks everyone, attacls everyone, kills everyone, all with the same asshole grin on her face. Her persona is that of someone with the utmost confidence in herself, someone heartless and vile, cruel and mocking, someone who enjoys killing, but not before squeezing every last bit of suffering out of her victims. With her mind control also comes mind reading. She is privy to what others feel and why and uses it to her advantage. However, on the inside, if I am understanding her correctly, Vriska is actually a rather insecure and broken teenage girl. She kills first to feed her giant spider guardian thing, and second because its part of her persona, the kind of person she has come to idolize as an Alternian. A cold blooded killer. In reality, she derives no real pleasure from any of her immoral acts. They serve only to drown out her insecurity. She's canonically a rapist, mind controlling the wimp boy into kissing her only to throw him aside when it makes her feel nothing. The most profound experience she ever had was when, shortly before her death, she reflects on the time she killed said wimp boy. She actually felt bad, which was something she didn't understand. She couldn't figure out why she killed someone she actually liked. Vriska is also a horrible strategist. She's impulsive and quick to act on emotion, driven solely by her urge to be in total control, and to appear powerful. This causes her to be tricked by Cue Ball Man into killing someone she was mad at, and into creating an unbeatable foe, simply so she could gain the noteriety of killing him herself. In short, she's a profoundly broken and empty monster, driven solely by an endless pit of insecurity, given unreasonable amounts of power she isnt able to use to the best of her ability.

Who would win in a fight?

[paperanddice]

Archdevil: Arbeyach

The archdevils in the Tome of Beasts have a similar issue as the demon lords did. Translating these powerful beings across systems reaches the breaking points of the different rule sets, as the power scales are strange. In Pathfinder, typical archdevils should be on the deity scale and thus beyond anything the system can support, so most of them won't get any creature stat blocks, instead just being statted out as gods. For 13th Age though, the scene is much stranger than the demon lords. All the arch-devils should be above the power of the regular devils, but the 13th Age pit fiend is a huge level 14 foe, the top of the standard power scale for the system. Even a weakening arch-devil like Arbeyach should be stronger than the greatest standard devil, so to stat them out requires going beyond the system's usual cap, which is a huge deal and a lot of effort. And stronger arch-devils would go further beyond it, so I think that even in 13th Age many of the archdevils are too powerful for proper stat blocks. Overall, the arch-devils may get much smaller treatment than the demon lords did.

But Arbeyach, as a weakened archdevil, will get a full creature stat block in both. He's the weakest of the archdevils, but still an exceptionally dangerous threat, and so only pretty high level parties can be expected to face off against the Swarm Prince and survive.

Pathfinder 2e

Arbeyach is the lord of decay, taking the form of insect hives. Locusts and worms are his imagery, but he has a deeply rigid and ordered mind and imposes that onto his followers and the world around him. He is exceptionally inflexible, even among arch-devils, and builds his realm in the model of a great hive, every single creature within it obeying a specific function and built to best follow it.

He is truly ancient, having come into being from a great swarm of vermin created by Baalzebub to devour some of the first mortal souls to reach Hell. These vermin fused to the soul energy, becoming something greater. Arbeyach was a vassal of Baalzebub for eons, before rising up and becoming a proper Duke of Hell through his victories and power. Over the eons however, his ambitions shifted and his views became more rigid and unyielding, unable to respond to changes in the universe around him, and eventually he weakened and was stripped of his title. Now barely stronger than a pit fiend, he must either grow or surely face destruction at the hands of a rival.

Arbeyach Creature 21 Unique, Large, Devil, Fiend, Unholy Perception +38; greater darkvision, true seeing Languages Celestial, Common, Draconic, Infernal, scent communication 120 feet, telepathy 100 feet Skills Athletics +37, Deception +40, Diplomacy +38, Intimidation +38, Nature +38, Religion +36, Society +35, Stealth +36 Str +6, Dex +5, Con +7, Int +4, Wis +5, Cha +7 Scent Communication (olfactory) Arbeyach can communicate through pheromones with spawns of Arbeyach and arthropods (insects, spiders, scorpions, and similar invertebrates) within 120 feet. Mindless arthropods and spawn of Arbeyach cannot attack Arbeyach while within this range unless magically controlled. He can attempt to counteract any effect controlling an arthropod or spawn within this range as an action with the concentration and olfactory traits (counteract rank 10, counteract modifier +36). AC 46; Fort +38, Ref +34, Will +36; +1 status to all saves vs. magic HP 465; Immunities fire, poison; Resistances physical 20 (except silver); Weaknesses holy 20 Aura of Virulence (aura, divine) 120 feet. Creatures in this aura lose all resistance and immunity to poison. Any creature not resistant or immune to poison inside the aura instead gains vulnerable 20 poison and has a -2 status penalty to all saves against poison. Frightful Presence (aura, divine, emotion, fear, mental) 20 feet, DC 44 Speed 35 feet, burrow 20 feet, climb 35 feet, fly 80 feet Melee jaws +37 (magical, poison, unholy), Damage 4d8+16 piercing plus 2d6 poison and Arbeyach Rot Melee claw +37 (agile, magical, poison, unholy), Damage 4d6+16 slashing plus 2d6 poison Divine Innate Spells DC 44, attack +36 ; 10th gate, massacre; 9th dispel magic (at will), divine decree (at will), toxic cloud (at will); 5th translocate (at will); Constant true seeing Divine Rituals DC 44; diabolic pact, wish (1/year) Arbeyach Rot (curse, poison, virulent) Mindless arthropods (insects, spiders, scorpions, and similar invertebrate) are hostile to a creature, and it can't recover from drained until Arbeyach Rot is cured. Saving Throw DC 44 Fortitude, Stage 1 Drained 1 and can't regain hit points except by magic (1 day); Stage 2 Drained 2 and can't regain hit points except by magic (1 day); Stage 3 Drained 3 and can't regain hit points except by magic (1 day); Stage 4 Drained 4 and can't regain hit points except by magic; Stage 5 Dead, and the creature's body transforms into a hellwasp swarm. Vermin Breath [2 actions] (divine, poison, unholy) Arbeyach exhales vermin that deals 17d8 poison damage in a 120-foot line (DC 44 basic Fortitude save). A creature that fails this save is also exposed to Arbeyach Rot. Arbeyach can't use Vermin Breath again for 1d4 rounds.

He still has some power from his time as a proper archdevil however, and is something of a god. While his followers are few and far between, as the Prince of Swarms cares little for mortals and their individual minds, some few can still find the power this former archdevil granted.

Areas of Concern decay, vermin Edicts bring order and structure to existence in every way, eliminate disorder Anathema undermine the hive, promote individuality Divine Attribute Constitution (Arbeyach is inflexible, you do not have a choice)

Devotee Benefits Cleric Spells 1st: ant haul, 3rd: insect form, 5th: subconscious suggestion Divine Font heal Divine Sanctification must choose unholy Divine Skill Society Domains cities, family, toil, tyranny Favored Weapon spiked gauntlet

13th Age

Arbeyach is an exile from wherever the devils originated from. Apparently formerly some great power within the devil's structure, he now builds a great hive on the outer edge of the Dragon Empire, creating himself a new basin of power. He hates the disorder and chaos of the world, rigid and unyielding in his vision, and all he sees must conform to the structure and order of his ideal world. Few devils support him, lending more evidence to his lack of authority within their system, but some number seem to have been exiled with him and find a spot within his hive. His true goal is to turn the whole world into a single hive under his control, removing all individuality and conflict, but without the full structure of the devil hierarchy aiding him he must do it himself. Of course, with how powerful he is still, few could hope to stop him anyway.

Arbeyach Large 15th level spoiler [devil] Initiative: +21 Creature of Legend Arbeyach can take two standard actions on each of his turns. He can’t use the same action twice on the same turn. Curse Bite +20 vs. AC – 75 damage plus 50 ongoing poison damage. Natural Even Hit: The target is also weakened as long as it’s taking the ongoing damage. A creature that dies while weakened this way bursts into an apocalypse swarm (see below). Miss: 50 poison damage. Diseased Claws +20 vs. AC (2 attacks) – 50 damage plus 20 poison damage. Natural 14+: The target also takes 20 ongoing poison damage. Contagion +20 vs. PD – Ongoing 75 poison damage and one of the following effects (determined at random): confused, stunned, vulnerable to all damage, weakened (save ends both). C: Vermin Breath +20 vs. PD (1d4 nearby or far away enemies) – 85 poison damage and the target is hampered (save ends). Natural Even Hit or Miss: An apocalypse swarm forms next to the target (see below). Miss: 40 poison damage. Limited Use: 3/battle, never two turns in a row. C: Cloudkill +20 vs. PD (1d4+1 nearby enemies) – 50 poison damage. Cloud: The cloud persists until the end of Arbeyach’s next turn. Any creature targeted by this attack takes 50 damage if it ends its turn without moving out of the cloud. At the start of each of Arbeyach’s turns, he can roll a normal save; on a success the cloud remains until the end of his next turn. If Arbeyach uses this attack while he has a cloud remaining from a previous casting, the previous cloud disappears. Apocalypse Swarm: An apocalypse swarm spawns where indicated by the power that creates it, obeys Arbeyach’s orders, and enters initiative 10 points after Arbeyach. See apocalypse swarm stat blocks at the end of this entry. Aura of Virulence: All attacks that deal poison damage made against nearby enemies are treated as if their natural attack roll was 5 points higher for the purpose of overcoming poison resistance. If the target doesn’t have poison resistance, the attack instead gains a +2 bonus to hit. Burrower, Flyer, and Wall Crawler. Devil’s Due (Grow Within): When you choose to add the escalation die to an attack against Arbeyach, he makes the following attack against you at the end of your turn as a free action. If you use the escalation die against him multiple times on the same turn, he does get to use this attack that many times. [Special Trigger] They Grow Within +20 vs. PD – 80 damage and an apocalypse swarm bursts out of the target. Miss: 20 damage. Fear Aura: While engaged with Arbeyach, enemies that have 216 hp or fewer are dazed and do not add the escalation die to their attacks. Resist Fire and Poison 18+. AC 30 PD 30 MD 27 HP 1330 Level 14 Apocalypse Swarm Swarm +19 vs. PD (1d3 nearby enemies) – 40 poison damage, and after the attack the swarm engages one of the targets. Natural Even Hit: The target also takes 20 ongoing poison damage. If the target dies while taking this damage, another apocalypse swarm bursts from its corpse. Flyer. AC 30 PD 30 MD 23 HP 130

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!

[shuttershocky]

Aurora is actually adorable and I really like her but she seems like she doesn't play any one role very well. How do I use her?

Well first off you get her to E2L50 Trust 100, because Duelist Defenders just plain don't work without a module. Their base trait that doesn't let them charge SP without blocking an enemy also blocks SP from supports like Saga, Ptilopsis, Liskarm, and Warfarin, and their huge ATK stats make them slap most foes too hard to even let them block for long so charging their skills takes an eternity.

With a module however, not only do they finally charge SP at a rate of 0.2/s unless blocking, you can finally use SP supports on them which actually makes them usable.

Now, Aurora's best role is as a physical nuker in a freeze squad. Her S2 has a modest ATK stat boost and inflicts chill, but it has an insanely high (300% at L7) damage bonus on a frozen enemy. Let's see how high:

These are Aurora's stats at E2L50. She gets +55 ATK and DEF with full Trust Bonus, for 898 ATK and 646 DEF.

This is her Skill 2 at level 7

With +60% ATK, Aurora hits 1436 ATK, and on Frozen enemies she deals 300% damage or 4310 Phys damage.

This shit is huge, it's Siege S3 with a full buffsquad levels of physical burst. Even enemies who are normally immune to physical damage due to massive DEF (Rat King and his Sand shield troops, Plastic Knight and lackeys, the spear zombies from Originium Dust) will still get nuked as long as they're frozen.

But if you'll notice, Aurora has 9 ammo, which means if she has to freeze enemies herself she has to waste precious ammo applying the chill, then freeze, and then nuking the frozen enemy. That's why you'll want either of Kjera or Gnosis backing her up to apply freeze first BEFORE you activate Aurora's skill, just to make the most out of her damage. It's quite a lot of investment into supports, but if you enjoy BEEG crits then you'll have a lot of fun with her.

TL;DR - Get her module to make your life easier, get one SP support (Saga easiest, Ptilopsis laziest, Liskarm situational, Warfarin for big damage) and one freeze support (only Kjera or Gnosis for now), then watch her go to town for 9 hits of giga crits that works even on normally phys immune enemies with 2000+ DEF. For obvious reasons, don't bring her vs freeze immune enemies.

[twstgameplay]

Cards and Magic/Spells Advice

🐙General Gameplay 🐬Tests/Exams and Battles 🦈Events and Story

Cards

☆ GENERAL INFO

Battle Terminologies and Symbols

ATK vs BAL vs DEF cards

Prioritize card level vs groovy vs spell levels

Should use perfumes to max limit break on one card, or multiple cards?

Are Dorm Cards “big releases”?

Does rarity affect how good it is?.

Friendship Level is not related to Magic 3 Unlocking

Should you uncap to gain Magic 3?.

☆ TIER LISTS

SSR Dorm/Event Cards Tier List

SSR Birthday/Union Cards Tier List

SR Cards Tier List

R Card Tier List

☆ LEVELING

What R cards are worth leveling up?

How to prioritize which cards to level

Which lessons to prioritize

Max Card level vs Max Spell Level

Does the increase from Friendship level prevent you from uncapping?

Level a few cards all the way vs Level a bunch of cards a little bit

How to maximize leveling as fast as possible

Current max level

☆ COMPARISONS

Dorm Riddle vs Dorm Azul

Lab Azul vs Robe Azul

Silk Jamil vs Dorm Trey

Birthday Vil vs Robe Vil

Lab Rook vs Robe Rook

Birthday Malleus vs Union Malleus

Dorm Azul vs Union Azul

Gala Leona vs Dorm Leona / Gala Jamil vs Robe Jamil

GM Idia or DW Idia

Dorm Riddle vs Halloween Silver

Birthday Riddle or Union Riddle

Dorm Malleus vs Dorm Riddle, Dorm Leona, Dorm Azul

☆ BUDDIES

Small vs Medium buddy bonuses

☆ CARD DISCUSSIONS

Good SSR for Leona DUO

Halloween Silver - S Tier

Shift of Opinion on Dorm Vil

Best Deuce for Dorm Rook?

Best Floyd for Dorm Jade

Usefulness of Birthday Kalim

Potential Dorm Malleus magic [1] [2]

What goes with Bday/Union Vil?

Broomquet Jamil’s effect

Good Leona for Halloween Silver

Camp Ruggie with Dorm Floyd?

Is Dorm Idia any good?

Good replacement for Beans Floyd on Defense Test?

Best DUO for Dorm Jamil

Best SR Idia

Magic/Spells

☆ MATERIALS

Get more mats outside of alchemy

Best ways to obtain textbooks

Mats required to level up to Lv.5

☆ LEVELING

Cosmic cards worth leveling

Benefits of increasing magic level

Magic level to Lv.5 vs Lv.10

Change in magic effects at different levels

Why max a spell to Lv.10 without gaining a new effect?

Spend mats to level one card’s magic to Lv.10 vs spreading it out [1] [2]

How long does it take to level a spell to Lv.10?

What to use Starshards on

☆ EFFECTS

Cards with Heals

Top Healers, Attackers, Defenders

Heal values are based on specific card stats

Can all BAL/DEF cards heal?

Cards that heal when leveled up

Attack Up vs Damage Up

Curse and Evasion

Is there any benefit of using Cosmic attacks on Cosmic foes?

☆ DUOS

DUOs of Birthday Boy and Union Birthday cards

How to unlock DUO attacks

Can DUO partners be changed?

Most optimal DUOs

[dantomasik]

Enishi vs Kenshin's Foes

The Final Arc of Rurouni Kenshin introduced us to a villain who seemingly did the impossible, defeating Kenshin. Yukishiro Enishi bested the greatest swordsman in the world, and he did so handily. His swordsmanship style seemed capable of perfectly countering Kenshin's every move, including his Ultimate Technique. Here's the thing. This does not make Enishi the greatest swordsman in the world. Enishi is so hyperfixated on revenge against Kenshin that it consumes his every waking thought, reflected in his sword style, Watojutsu, a self-taught Chinese style that is exclusively offensive/aggressive, with, as Enishi himself states, no defense because Kenshin took away the only thing he ever wished to defend.

This is the difference between his style and Kenshin's. Kenshin's Hiten Mitsurugi is built around pitting one against many, thus it specializes in groups. Enishi's Watojutsu is solely focused on obliterating one opponent, with that opponent specifically being Kenshin and Hiten Mitsurugi. This means it is considerably less effective against other styles and other opponents. So, I thought it would be fun to do a little mental exercise and pit Enishi against the various foes Kenshin has faced or who could pose a potentially deadly threat to him.

First off, let's do a quick summary of Enishi as a swordsman.

It's safe to call him a "master swordsman", meaning anyone less than another master swordsman doesn't have a chance against him. Thus, even his worst skills still have some merit. His offense is insane. Considering it's what he puts everything into, it's safe to call it his highest stat. His defense, meanwhile, would be his lowest stat. He frequently covers up for this by relying on his offense to counter and overpower any move that comes his way, but this doesn't work against being countered himself. His speed is also top tier, although (with one notable exception) most master swordsmen have relatively similar top speeds. He has a remarkable catalog of techniques for every possible move that could be used against him, and supplements many of them with kicks that add in that extra OOMPH. He also has what we can basically consider "mind over body", meaning his body won't register pain or injuries unless he wants it to. This grants him superb endurance, but against opponents who strike to kill, that only helps so much. Lastly, he has an ace in the hole in the form of his Frenzied Nerves that can render him nigh-unstoppable. How much he can utilize them is unclear, as they seem specifically linked towards his hatred of Kenshin.

Udo Jine

The earliest foe we could consider truly deadly, Jine fought for the Shinsengumi during Bakumatsu, killing many people, including quite a few people he wasn't supposed to kill, prompting his commanding officer to discipline him. Well, attempt to discipline him, Jine killed them too, then disappeared, resurfacing on the side of the Revolutionists. After the end of Bakumatsu, Jine would continue his massive killing spree into Meiji, sending letters declaring his intentions to prominent political figures. These targets would use their positions to hire guards & security, which Jine would happily slaughter. His fight with Kenshin is all about bringing out the manslayer he once was during Bakumatsu, the manslayer even Jine feared. With 10 years of killing under his belt, Jine's skills have remained as sharp as they were during Bakumatsu when legends were made on the edge of a sword.

Jine's style seems focused on killing a lot of people, mostly small-time thugs and police officers. This does not mean he cannot keep up with or even surpass Kenshin's level of skill. Jine spent most of their duels trying to make Kenshin fight harder, more like the killer he once was. He bragged he could kill Kenshin as he currently was in a matter of 1-3 cigarettes time. His Ultimate Technique allowed him to paralyze opponents or, alternatively, psych himself up into a nigh-invincible warrior. He is also a crazed psychopath who can shrug off most wounds, fears nothing, and experiences pure ecstasy while killing people. Without doubt a master killing machine.

Result: Maybe

This one is close enough that I feel like it could go either way. Enishi definitely has the willpower to shrug off Jine's Paralysis (hell, Sano did). In terms of fighting him, Enishi excels in countering attacks with stronger attacks. Jine's style is also purely offensive, but has the flexibility that Enishi lacks. We watch him turn a disruption instantly into a surprise attack on Kenshin, which would be utterly devastating against Watojutsu. As far as his Shin no Ippo power-up, I'd be curious to see it go up against Enishi's Frenzied Nerves, but have a feeling Enishi would win. Even powered-up, Jine lost to Kenshin's pre-Ultimate Technique battojutsu, meaning Enishi, who dodged the actual Ultimate Technique without his Frenzied Nerves, would absolutely be faster. Stronger, that's a different story, and we don't really know how much stronger Jine's power-up makes him, as he is defeated before it can land a blow. We did watch him casually turn a rock into rubble, though, so that's pretty scary.

Jine's ability to counter disruptive moves is ideal for taking advantage of Enishi's weakness, and since neither one cares who the other is, both will just try to kill each other until one dies. Both are durable as a result of having f***ed up brains that don't care about pain, both are quick, and both have powerful offense.

Shinomori Aoshi

Next up we have the leader of the Oniwabanshu, Shinomori Aoshi. This is a very different matchup from Jine. Aoshi has been fighting since he was a child, taking down other spies at 13 and leading the Oniwabanshu by age 15. He definitely qualifies as "gifted". Aoshi has proven himself one of Kenshin's strongest rivals, and has come unnervingly close to killing Kenshin multiple times.

Aoshi's skills are as deadly as they get. His single kodachi grants him an almost impenetrable defense, allowing him to then rain down martial arts blows on opponents. Coupled with fluid movements that are impossible to track, his opponents are left waiting for him to strike. As for his offense, he utilizes surprisingly few offensive sword techniques, but when he goes in for the kill, you die. Adding in his second kodachi only makes him deadlier. One factor that cannot be overlooked, Aoshi may not have superhuman durability, but that is because he is so rarely hit he doesn't need it.

Result: Loss

Enishi will lose to Aoshi. Enishi's insane offense can bash away at Aoshi's insane defense all day and never get a blow in. Enishi's greatest skill is in countering techniques with stronger techniques, but this works best against opponents with a wide catalog of offensive moves, rather than a single one designed for guaranteed fatality. His kicks can add a lot of damage, but Aoshi can dodge effortlessly. Plus, against an actual martial arts master like Aoshi, he'll get schooled like a kid in sparring class. Furthermore, when Aoshi moves in for the kill with either of his offensive techniques, Enishi's Ultimate Technique may get lucky against Kaiten Kenbu, but not against Kaiten Kenbu Rokuren. Enishi will be chopped into mincemeat. His Frenzied Nerves may help, but Aoshi's style is built around defense & evasion, using only a single deadly offensive technique (with variants depending on the number of swords used) that can turn a group of men into a pile of limbs in less than a second.

Saito Hajime

Former Captain of the 3rd Shinsengumi Unit, Saito Hajime is another strong contender for the title of Kenshin's greatest rival. They've been enemies since Bakumatsu, and their first fight in Meiji is truly terrifying to watch. They simply do not make swordsmen like Saito Hajime anymore. According to him, the skills that have allowed him to survive countless wars & conflicts are no longer even known in the present day. He has lived through more bloodshed than even other master swordsmen will see in their entire lives, and has superb endurance that comes not from any special technique, but from his sheer, unrelenting desire to bring Swift Death to Evil.

As for his technique, the way of the Shinsengumi was to hone a single attack to the realm of perfection, the methodology being that it is exceedingly rare to face the same opponent multiple times in life or death battles. If you have one move guaranteed to kill your opponent, why would you need any others? Saito's Gatotsu is the most powerful thrusting attack a swordsman can face. Can't be blocked or countered, it turns into a slash & kick if dodged, and it has monstrous destructive power. The only thing scarier than facing it, is facing it again after it's carved into you.

Result: Loss

Enishi simply has no chance against the Gatotsu. Powerful as his techniques are, none of them has destructive power comparable to it. And if Enishi cannot counter a move with something stronger, he dies. This is a short analysis because that's really all there is to fighting Saito. You either have a defense that can weaken the Gatotsu, or you lose. There is no counter against it, and Enishi would never come up with the defensive strategies that have allowed Saito's opponents to survive as long as they did.

I like to think this is why Enishi surrendered to Saito in the live action movie after kicking the sh*t out of all the police officers on the train. Once Saito takes his sword stance, Enishi either surrenders or he dies.

Usui, the Blind Sword

Kenshin never fought Usui, but Saito did, and that's good enough for me. Usui fought during Bakumatsu as an anti-Hitokiri, basically killing the killers. He had his eyes carved out by Shishio Makoto, but developed hyper-sensitive hearing and eventually became one of the deadliest members of Shishio's Ten Swords, with the understanding that he can attempt to kill people (and Shishio) as much as he desires.

Usui has two fighting styles, one utilizing his spear/mace and another combining a shortened spear and turtle shield. His defense & senses are powerful enough to disrupt the Gatotsu, allowing him to weaken his foes until he goes in for a killing stab. What his style lacks in power, it makes up in defense and calculated bloodletting.

Result: Win

Maybe it's just how quickly Usui melted under Saito's cruel words, but I'm fairly confident Enishi could destroy him. With his offense, especially punctuated by his kicks, he could most likely break down Usui's defense, which worked best against a single big technique like Saito's, not a variety like Enishi's arsenal. Add in that Usui's offense is mostly for weakening foes (a strategy that won't work on Enishi's mind over body), and he is simply a poor matchup for our angry white-haired friend.

Seta Sojiro

Remember when I mentioned there was one notable exception to master swordsmen having relatively similar top speeds? That exception would be Sojiro. With his style of "speed that does not appear in sight" he is without question the fastest swordsman in the entire series (even faster than Kenshin). His permanent smiling face offers no emotions to read, making his movements almost impossible to anticipate, and his skill with the sword can be considered equal to Kenshin's, which is terrifying. This teenage boy is a killing machine. His Ultimate Technique is called "You Die Instantly" (I'm paraphrasing, but only barely) and lives up to that threat.

Result: Loss

When you can't even follow your opponent's movements, that's when you die. Enishi might do well enough as Sojiro warms up, but once he reaches top speed Enishi will drop like a pile of limbs. Frenzied Nerves or not. You cannot counter what you cannot see, and if you can't defend yourself you just get cut to ribbons. That's all there is.

Fuji

The 30ft+ tall kaiju-esque swordsman Fuji fought Kenshin's master and lived. Fuji can destroy buildings with a single swing, and his destructive power & speed only increases once he takes off his armor. You basically need to be a God or a Battleship to fight Fuji.

Result: Win

Here's the thing, Enishi is fast enough to dodge Fuji. Even if Enishi had a defense it wouldn't work against Fuji's power, but with enough time and successful hits Enishi could wear the titan down. Will definitely take some damage from the sheer collateral of Fuji's swings, but that's what mind over body is for. Fuji might be the only master swordsman with a worse defense than Enishi, mostly because he so rarely fights anyone who doesn't sh*t their pants immediately upon seeing him.

Shishio Makoto

The assassin who succeeded Kenshin during Bakumatsu, Shishio Makoto didn't do it for morals, he did it to showcase his strength. After the revolution, he was knocked out by a blow to the head from his allies, then doused in gasoline and set on fire to make sure he stayed down. And then he didn't. That should give you a pretty good idea of how durable and driven Shishio Makoto is. His fight with Kenshin later includes both Saito & Aoshi (and Sano, briefly), and he is quite decisively kicking all of their asses on his own. Even after taking what was effectively a grenade to the face, even after going well passed the limit his body can tolerate, even after receiving Kenshin's Ultimate Ultimate Attack, Shishio kept getting up to continue fighting. He only stopped after his flesh literally ignited via spontaneous human combustion, reducing him to ashes.

Shishio is one of the most powerful swordsmen ever to live. His sword catches fire, his gauntlets explode, he can catch a sword with his fingertips if it's a technique he's seen before, he can out-react a point-blank Gatotsu, block Kenshin's Ultimate Technique, knock out Sano in a single punch, and take more punishment than anyone with 3rd degree burns all over their body should be capable of sustaining for an extended period of time. His sheer strength is only outclassed by Fuji, and that's only because Fuji is over 30 goddamn feet tall.

Result: Loss

Enishi is about to get a very rude awakening as to what a true devil is like. Enishi, for all of his strength & offensive prowess, still cannot hold a candle to Shishio. Even if his mind over body helps mitigate the nasty combination of burning & slashing wounds Shishio's sword inflicts, he will never overpower Shishio and never counter him. Furthermore, as Shishio proves capable of catching Kenshin's sword mid-attack when he attempts to use a technique Shishio has already seen, so too can any of Enishi's moves be countered. Enishi has no defense against gauntlet grenades, and even his Ultimate Technique won't work against Shishio's because crouching low to the ground won't prevent him getting incinerated by the downward slash. Even if Enishi could get in some blows against Shishio, his obscene amount of endurance will render it moot.

[askagamedev]

How do you balance players leveling up and getting cool new rewards that makes them stronger while keeping enemies strong enough to not be a boring cakewalk?

The way we balance expected player level to power level is... We create a math formula. Levels are mostly arbitrary discrete markers of player power. Conceptually, they exist to provide a reference point for players to understand how strong things are relative to each other. Their very presence establishes that all combat encounters in the game will happen in one of five bands:

Player vs Higher Level Foe

Player vs Evenly Leveled Foe

Player vs Lower Level Foe

Player vs Trivial Foe

Player vs Much Higher Level Foe

We start by establishing what kind of player experience we want these main types of combat encounters to feel like. How long should each of these encounters be? How many mistakes should we allow a player to make (e.g. getting hit) before getting killed in this kind of encounter? How long should enemies be expected to live? How many enemies at a time should the player be expected to deal with? How many enemies should there be before the player actually feels threatened? For the much higher level foe, we need to decide whether we want players to be able to defeat them at all. We need to figure out where the exact line is between a challenging-but-beatable Higher Level Foe and an impossible-to-beat Much Higher Level Foe.

Once we know what we want those experiences to feel like, we work our way backwards to define the variables we can modify for combat - damage, health, attack speed, defense, movement speed, and so on. We use these variables to construct a general combat formula that will satisfy all of our desired encounter band experiences for any set of input levels for player and foe. We use math to model how we want combat to go. The graph of the player's overall power against their level is called a "power curve".

Once we've established our formula, we can fill in the 'expected' stats for a bad guy of a given level. We will do similar passes for equipment, weapons, items, abilities, and so on and so forth. There should be a mathematical formula for the power of each thing so that we can always have a baseline expected experience. We can then fine-tune the individual attributes of any of these things if we want them to be weaker or stronger.

So yeah - system and combat designers are really a bunch of nerds who have to figure out how to turn cool imaginary combat into a bunch of math equations.

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[frankendykes-monster]

In 1996, 3D gaming was all the rage. Many arcade manufacturers upgraded their hardware, and the face of fighting games was to be forever changed. Capcom, despite competition from Sega with Virtua Fighter, and Namco with Tekken, stayed mostly with 2D. Their CPS3 board produced the highest quality 2D animation that had ever been seen at the time. The first game to be released on the hardware was Red Earth, or Warzard as it’s called in Japan. Warzard is drastically unlike most arcade 2D fighters, in that there are only four playable characters, and eight unplayable boss characters. Many of the characters have different names across versions.

Warzard plays much like other Capcom fighters like Street Fighter Alpha and Darkstalkers, featuring quick, combo-friendly action and six button controls. While the core mechanics are roughly the same, there are a few techniques that differentiate it quite a bit from its brethren. It’s Capcom’s only game to feature scaling a la SNK games like Samurai Shodown and Art of Fighting, which is almost a necessity, given the size of the characters. It also helps you keep a better handle on super jumps, since your character is visible at all times, instead of disappearing into the air with an indicator arrow a la X-men vs. Street Fighter and the other Versus games. There’s also an Ultimate Guard technique, activated by pressing a punch and kick button, which will temporarily block any attack without taking chip damage, and can also let you counter attack. In a nod to Virtua Fighter, you can also execute follow-up attacks when the enemy is lying on the ground, generally pretty rare in 2D fighters. Like the Mortal Kombat series, you can perform finishing moves such as decapitating your foe or even cutting him in half. This feature is somewhat limited since not all of the four playable characters can perform these “fatalities.” The only other Capcom titles that features these kind of moves are the Darkstalkers series. It’s very surprising when you cut an enemy in half, since there’s no indication, like the usual “Finish Him!”

In another interesting twist, Warzard incorporates some vague RPG elements by giving you experience points during battle. While being attacked by successive hits, the enemy will drop little experience crystals, which adds to your score. At the end of each match, you’re graded on technique, and granted even more experience. Once you reach enough, you’ll level up (to the max of level 32), which expands your moveset and upgrades your character’s rank. When you lose, you’ll also be granted a password, which stores your character’s stats. It doesn’t record your progress – you still need to start the game from scratch – but since you have moves and upgraded equipment, it’s much easier to progress through the game. Think of it as a “New Game +”, except you don’t have to beat the game to obtain it. It’s clear Capcom included this to help even the odds against the more challenging foes, as well as to give the single player game more replay value. You also gain experience from fighting against human players, which is proportionate to your opponent’s level. In addition to experience crystals, enemies will also drop chests, which can yield either food or magic orbs. Food obviously restores a bit of health, while orbs control your super attacks. Each orb contains one of six different elements, and much like RPGs, each character has certain strengths and weaknesses – Hauzer is fire-based, for example, so an ice attack will do a ton of damage. The orb element will in turn determine the type of damage dealt by your super attacks. Each orb also has its own unique super move, which is the same among all four characters.

The matches are not divided into rounds, but instead, you simply fight until one of the combatants dies. If you lose, the damage done to your opponent will not reset (it will only recover a little health), and you’ll begin fighting roughly where you left off. You don’t even regain full health after winning a battle – instead, it’ll increase based on how well you fought the battle. When you first play the game, the enemies are much more powerful than the heroes, not only in size and strength, but their health as well. There are also different paths and secrets to uncover. If you use more than 20 continues over the course of the game, you’re left with a fairly generic and unsatisfying ending. However, if you use less, you’ll be given given the opportunity to see a better one, which depends on the character. If you’re Kenji or Tabatha [sic], you’re presented with a simple “yes/no” choice, but Leo’s depends on whether you use a fatality move on the final boss, and Mai Ling’s is simply determined by using less than four continues. This is pretty rare for a fighting game, and offers considerable replay value if you’re into endings. There are a handful of hidden weapons to find, found through secret (and often difficult) methods. There are also two standard bonus games, where you destroy statues and cannons while increasing your experience points.

Graphically, while the animation isn’t as fluid as Street Fighter III, Warzard is pretty damn good. The extra power of the CPS-III is mostly used to animate the gigantic enemy characters, which looks fantastic. The details in the backgrounds are absolutely breathtaking, especially the desert where you see the wind blow sand in the far background. You have to admire the designers’ work, considering how hard it is to make pixel art, let alone animate it. The designs themselves are stunning. In the same way that Darkstalkers is inspired by monster movies, Warzard is inspired by world culture and mythology, bringing all kinds of legends together in a completely unique fashion without distorting them beyond the point of recognition (a la Final Fantasy and so many other JRPGs). There really hasn’t been a roster like this in any other fighting game, and there probably never will be. In a game that features men fighting monsters, you’d expect barbarian music with war drums. Instead, Warzard is a lot like Darkstalkers, using the same synth found in other Capcom games, with lots of fuzzy guitars and such. The music also has a lot of percussion, which is great of you have a sound system that has a lot of bass control. The intermission themes are especially dramatic, although the in-game music is a bit too laid back, despite some awesome stand-out tracks like Greedia and Leo’s Theme. There was a complete soundtrack released that contained an interview with the composer, Takayuki Iwai, who also worked on Street Figher Alpha 3, Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo, Cyberbots, and Plasma Sword.

Despite its innovations, Warzard flopped pretty badly in the arcades. The lack of playable characters is quite odd, especially since marketing tends to use the playable roster as a bullet point to advertise the game – cutting back the roster may seem like it’s more shallow than its contemporaries, and a throwback to the early days of Street Fighter and Fatal Fury. The lack of characters also completely ruins the game’s tournament aspect, which is ultimately what gives a 2D fighter legs and is especially important in the arcade world. It’s a game that’s intentionally unbalanced to promote multiple plays and level raising. However, you can’t really approach Warzard like Street Fighter – instead, think of it like a beat-em-up that features nothing but boss fights, and suddenly, the structure and mechanics totally make sense. The problem is, it looks and feels so much like Capcom’s other games that it’s hard to make the distinction, at least initially.

[fehtism]

legendary hinoka sure is a cool unit

armor effectiveness, true damage based on speed, and if she outspeeds then foe cannot counterattack making it pretty safe for her to dive most things with her high speed.

plus with deadeye she pierces damage reduction and should easily clear out any far save unit

wait what the hell

welcome to duo winter byleth, the newest most unkillable thing around.

now let's find out why the two byleths didn't die to one of the fastest and most dangerous nukes around.

first, before this combat their duo skill was used

this duo skill is probably the most straight forward part of this kit. it grants to unit and allies within two spaces:

- visible def/res +6

- svalinn shield (neutralizes armor effectiveness)

- 80% damage reduction for aoe specials

- hexblade status (calculates damage using lower of foe's def/res)

however, use of this skill actually wasn't necessary as the winter byleths live even through legendary hinoka's armor effective attacks

god sometimes this game feels like unstoppable force vs immovable object

the duo byleth's have weaving fighter as their b slot skill which is their source of damage reduction in this combat (because special is not charged)

very dense skill description let's break it down:

- somewhat negligible atk/def -4 debuff on foe in combat

- effectively defensive null follow up (as the duo byleths are too slow to ever be doubling on their own)

- 40% damage reduction on foe's attack UNLESS foe has offensive half null follow up or full null follow up, then it is 80% damage reduction on first hit (including brave hits) and 40% on follow up.

- 7 hp healing after combat

this damage reduction is entirely pierceable however legendary hinoka can only pierce the damage reduction when her deadeye special triggers. due to her ability to make a follow up attack, her 79 damage is reduced by 80% (79*0.2=15.8) and she only deals 16 damage.

but wait a minute... l!hinoka had her special charged at the beginning of combat... and with her absurd speed the duo byleths shouldn't be able to counter attack...

well the byleths have some really fun effects in their prf weapon, holy yule blade

another... dense... description...

well here are all the fun effects

- accelerates special cd

- +5 all stats (except spd) in combat

- additional bonus to all stats (except spd) in combat based on 20% of visible res

- offensive half tempo (unaffected by foe's skills that reduce unit's special charges)

- a super scowl type effect against foe's with damaging specials that trigger in combat. increases foe's special cd by an amount equal to amount of spaces moved up to 3 if unit wins res check (cannot be increased beyond maximum) however, when savior effect triggers value is treated as 3 regardless of foe's movement.

(i.e a unit with 1 cd on bonfire and moves 1 space before attacking has value increased to 2 before first attack)

- built in null c disrupt (ignores effects that prevent unit's counterattacks in combat) against ranged foes

these effects increase hinoka's deadeye charge from already charged to maximum cooldown (2) before her first attack. it also nullifies her weapon effect that prevents foe's counter attacks, which is why she dies after her first hit.

ofc the winter byleth's aren't completely unkillable but it sure does feel like it at times

haha . get pranked .

[pathfinderunlocked]

Chaos Witch Arachne - CR10 Aberration

A drider with fire powers, based on Quelaag from Dark Souls.

Artwork by MuHut at DeviantArt.  There’s an animated version, too.

Quelaag is a lava-spewing arachne from Dark Souls, which I previously released a CR19 stat block for.  This creature is meant to be a lieutenant serving under her, part of her brood.

Being a surface elf, this chaos witch is technically an arachne, not a drider.  Quelaag is her patron, and has corrupted her body into this form.  Chaos witches may start their lives as elves and gain this form after pledging themselves to the their queen, or may be born as flaming arachne infants, possibly after the eggs are forced to be carried by a burdened egg carrier.

Chaos Witch Arachne - CR 10

This monstrosity is similar in appearance to a drider, but with the pale skin of a surface elf, and with an abdomen that glows like heated metal.  Burning lava drips from a large fanged spider mouth just below where the elven torso connects to the spider body.

XP 9,600 Drider witch 3 CE Large aberration Init +3 Senses darkvision 120 ft., detect good, detect law, detect magic; Perception +17 (-2 if familiar not within reach)

DEFENSE

AC 25, touch 17, flat-footed 18; (+3 Dex, +1 dodge, +8 natural, +4 profane, –1 size) hp 125 (9d8+3d6+72) Fort +10, Ref +7, Will +13 Defensive Abilities divine chaos protection Immune fire, sleep SR 21

OFFENSE

Speed 30 ft., climb 20 ft. Melee +1 flaming scimitar +10/+5 (1d6+8/18-20 plus 2d6 fire), bite +4 (1d4+5 plus 1d6 fire plus poison) Ranged 2 fire bolts +9 ranged touch (2d6+4 fire plus vulnerable to fire, see text) Space 10 ft.; Reach 5 ft. Special Attacks fire bolts, hexes (gift of consumption, disrupt connection) (DC 16), spew magma, web (+9 ranged, DC 22, hp 12) Spell-Like Abilities (CL 9th)     Constant—detect good, detect law, detect magic     At will— continual flame, faerie fire     1/day—clairaudience/clairvoyance, dispel magic

Witch Spells Known (CL 9th; concentration +11)     5th (1/day)—flame strike (9d6+4 damage, DC 20)     4th (2/day)— volcanic storm (x2) (3d6+4 bludgeoning and 2d6 fire damage)     3rd (3/day)—fireball (x2) (9d6+4 fire damage, DC 18), trial of fire and acid (1d6+4 fire and 1d6 acid, DC 18)     2nd (5/day)—cure moderate wounds (x2) (touch +8, DC 16), web (x3) (DC 16)     1st (5/day)—ray of enfeeblement (x3) (DC 15), shocking grasp (x2) (touch +8, 6d6+4 fire damage)     0th (at will)—bleed (DC 13), dancing lights, ghost sound, mage hand, read magic, resistance Patron flame (functions as elements patron, but all patron spells deal fire damage)

STATISTICS

Str 15, Dex 17, Con 22, Int 19, Wis 18, Cha 16 Base Atk +7; CMB +10; CMD 28 (40 vs. trip) Feats Blind-Fight, Dodge, Combat Casting, Spell Focus (evocation), Weapon Focus (bite, scimitar) Skills Climb +28, Intimidate +16, Knowledge (arcana, dungeoneering, history) +17, Perception +17 (-2 if familiar not within reach), Sense Motive +6 (-2 if familiar not within reach), Spellcraft +19, Stealth +10; Racial Modifiers +4 Stealth Languages Abyssal, Draconic, Elven, Ignan, Undercommon SQ familiar alertness, profanity of the flames, undersized weapons, witch’s familiar Gear +1 flaming scimitar

SPECIAL ABILITIES

Divine Chaos Protection (Su) Once per hour, when a creature within 60 ft. of the chaos witch arachne makes any d20 roll, after the results of the roll are revealed, she can force the d20 to be rerolled with either a +1d20 or -1d20 bonus (her choice).  After she does so, she loses her spell resistance for the next hour.

Familiar Alertness (Ex) While her familiar is within arm’s reach, a chaos witch arachne gains the Alertness feat.  This is already included in her statistics.

Fire Bolts (Su) As a standard action, a chaos witch arachne can unleash 2 scorching bolts of divine fire from her outstretched hand.  Each bolt targets a single foe within 60 feet as a ranged touch attack (typically with +9 to hit).  If she hits the foe, the fire bolt deals 2d6+4 points of fire damage and leaves the target vulnerable to fire until the end of her next turn.

Hexes (Su) A chaos witch arachne queen can use the gift of consumption and disrupt connection hexes.  Her DC with these hexes is 16.

Magma Touch (Su) A chaos witch arachne queen deals an additional 1d6 fire damage whenever she succeeds on a melee attack, including her bite attack, combat maneuvers, and touch attacks.  This damage is already included in her melee attacks in her statistics above.

Poison (Ex) Bite—injury; save Fort DC 22; frequency 1/round for 6 rounds; effect 1d2 Str; cure 1 save. The save DC is Constitution-based.

Profanity of the Flames (Su) A chaos witch arachne gains a profane bonus to her AC and all of her damage rolls equal to her Wisdom bonus.  This is already calculated into her statistics and abilities.

Spells A chaos witch arachne casts spells as a witch 6 levels higher than her actual witch level.

Spew Magma (Ex) Three times per day, a chaos witch arachne can spew a large pool of magma over the ground around her.  Creatures within a 40-foot cone and within a 20-foot radius around the chaos witch arachne queen take 6d6 fire damage.  A DC 22 Reflex save halves this damage.   Additionally, the ground in that area becomes coated in magma, dealing 3d6 fire damage to any creature that enters the magma-coated area or ends its turn in it, with no saving throw.  A creature that leaves the area of magma continues to take 2d6 fire damage per round at the start of each of its turns for 1d3 rounds as it burns.  The magma fills the affected area to a depth of 2-3 inches and counts as difficult terrain. After 12 rounds, the magma hardens and is safe to touch.

After a chaos witch arachne has used this ability, she cannot use it again on her next turn.

Undersized Weapons (Ex) Although a drider is Large, its upper torso is the same size as that of a Medium humanoid’s upper torso. As a result, it wields weapons as if it were one size category smaller than its actual size (Medium for most driders).

Witch’s Familiar (Su) A chaos witch arachne has a scarlet spider familiar, which typically hides somewhere safe on her person and has total cover from all attacks.  It grants her a +3 bonus on Climb checks, which is already included in her statistics.  If her familiar is killed, she cannot prepare spells until it is replaced in the same manner as a normal witch’s familiar.