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grailfinders · 3 years

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Fate and Phantasms #171

Today on Fate and Phantasms we’re making the Berserker of El Dorado, a.k.a. the CEO of Amazones, a.k.a. yet another reason why Type Moon should stop designing teenage characters. Like several other servants from Agartha her true name is hidden when you meet her, so expect spoilers below the break.

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

Next up: The reason they call him that is because you have to resist punching him in the face.

Penthesilea, queen of the Amazons, is a Zealot Barbarian for a whole lot of anger issues and godly boons.

Race and Background

Penth’s the daughter of a god and also fuckign terrifying, so that’s why she’s a Fallen Aasimar. When she fell she got +1 Strength and +2 Charisma, as well as Darkvision which explains the black sclera, Celestial Resistance to radiant and necrotic damage, Healing Hands to keep her golden body in top condition, and the Light Bearer cantrip. Your weapons are glowy, this’ll take care of that for now.

You’re queen, but a queen of the amazons, so modify that Noble background to get History and Intimidation proficiency.

Ability Scores

If you want to be the daughter of a war god you’d better be able to war good, so make sure your Strength is as high as possible. Your Dexterity also better be good, I know jumping is strength-based, but running around in half a suit of armor is dex based. It definitely doesn’t look like armor, but it’s spiked, and a +2 to dexterity will let you use medium armor efficiently. After that is Charisma, you’re a shrewd businesswoman and also fucking terrifying for anyone vaguely greek. Your Wisdom’s also pretty solid, you’re good at sniffing out Achilles, and you’ve got an even keener business sense. Constitution isn’t that solid, you’re kind of a glass cannon, but you’re still pretty solid. Finally, dump Intelligence. Half the time you’re a raging ball of teeth and spikes, the other half you’re a CEO. Neither of those make me want to put much faith in your smarts.

Class Levels

1. First level barbarians start of strong (pun intended) with Rage, beefing up as a bonus action for advantage on strength checks & saves, damage resistance, and a bonus to attack damage. You also get Unarmored Defense, making running around in that outfit a slightly less bad idea. Or it would, if your constitution modifier wasn’t +0.

You also get proficiency with Strength and Constitution saves, as well as two barbarian skills. Athletics because you’re literally an amazon, and Perception to help you find that damnable greek hero.

2. At second level, your Reckless Attacks will help you pierce through that jerk’s magic skin, giving you advantage on all attacks for the round, at the cost of taking attacks at advantage. To be fair, your AC’s probably like 12 right now, so it’s not like it makes him more likely to hit you.

You also get a Danger Sense, giving you advantage on dexterity saves you can see coming, like a fireball. Or a giant careening chariot. Either or.

3. Your brand new Primal Knowledge gives you proficiency with Survival. It’s a dog eat dog world, and now you know how to cook that dog. You also get a Necrotic Shroud as a bonus action, adding necrotic damage to your attacks once per turn for a minute and when you transform you scare the crap out of people nearby if they fail a charisma save. You can transform once per long rest.

On top of your divine blood activating this level, your divine blood activates this level, making you a Zealot barbarian. Your Divine Fury adds even more damage to your attacks once per turn while raging. Pick either necrotic or radiant damage, I’m not your mother, it’s your choice. You also become a Warrior of the Gods, so now reviving you doesn’t cost money. You don’t have a guts skill, so this’ll come in handy.

4. Use your first Ability Score Improvement to become a Dual Wielder, letting you attack with both sides of that giant mace thing using your bonus action. It also gives you +1 AC while dual wielding, that’s nice. Some barbarians have to die to attack with a bonus action, and you got it as a feat.

5. If you want to attack even more, Extra Attack lets you attack twice with your action, so now you can attack three times per turn. Your Fast Movement also adds 10 feet to your movement speed to catch up to that carrot.

6. Your Fanatical Focus lets you re-roll a failed save once per rage. Your golden rule means it’s hard to mess with your body, and this will help with that.

7. Seventh level barbarians get a Feral Instinct, giving you advantage on initiative checks. You can also ignore being surprised if you rage immediately on the first turn of combat. You also get an Instinctive Pounce, moving half your speed when you start a rage. Your rival is basically a manic the hedgehog humansona, so you’ve got to be able to keep up.

8. Use this ASI to bump up your Strength for more damaging and accurate attacks.

9. Ninth level barbs get Brutal Criticals, giving you an extra die of damage when you deal critical hits. Shockingly, giant metal balls hurt when slammed into people. Wild.

10. Tenth level zealots have a Zealous Presence, spending a bonus action once per long rest to inspire nearby creatures to get advantage on attack rolls and saves until your next turn.

11: Eleventh level barbarians get a Relentless Rage to avoid death while raging. If you pass a DC 10 constitution save, you drop to 1 hp instead of 0 and the DC goes up by 5. When you finish a short rest, it goes back to 0. I guess you do have a guts skill after all.

12. Use this ASI to grab the Mobile feat for even more movement speed and the ability to ignore difficult terrain and opportunity attacks. Achilles is really going to have to step his game up here.

13. Another level, another Brutal Critical, making your critical hits even more brutal. Don’t really have a joke for this one, it’s pretty self-explanatory.

14. Fourteenth level zealots can Rage Beyond Death, meaning you can’t die until you stop raging. Damage that takes you to 0 hp still starts the death save train a-rolling, but you don’t die until your rage ends, and even then only if you’re still at 0 hp. It’s a good thing you don’t have the ability to heal yourself right before your rage ends, or that would be busted. Wait...

15. Fifteenth level berserkers get a Persistent Rage, so now your rage only ends if you want it to, or if time runs out, making you immortal for a full minute of combat. Or until someone casts Sleep, a first level spell.

16. For this ASI we’re getting a little experimental with Flail Mastery, a feat from an old Unearthed Arcana. Technically it only applies to flails, but if you can convince your DM to use UA this old you can probably convince him to extend the definition to morningstars too. Anyway, you get +1 to attack rolls, can use your bonus action to negate a shield’s defenses on your attacks for the turn, and your opportunity attacks force a strength save, on a failure the creature gets knocked prone, which eats up half their movement. Not a big deal for a halfling, very big deal for Achilles.

17. Did somebody say Brutal Critical? I did, just now. Speaking of, you get another one of those, meaning your critical hits now deal double the amount of dice plus three extra.

18. Your Indomitable Might means all your strength checks are now at least your strength score, which is pretty freaking good. It’d be even better if we could bump that up higher though...

19. Your last ASI is going towards your str- no, sorry, it’s another feat, now you’re Menacing. This rounds out your Charisma, doubles your proficiency in Intimidation, and you can replace one attack from your action with a contested Intimidation v Insight check against a humanoid. If you succeed, the target is frightened for a turn. Really we’ve just been giving you better versions of the Berserker class features. Shame we couldn’t get that strength up one last time though.

20. Just kidding! Primal Champions get +4 to their strength and Constitution, and your maximum for both scores increases by the same amount so you don’t have to worry about capping out. You also get unlimited rages, so just pop a new one whenever the old one’s about to run out.

Pros:

Your race, plus all those feats you took, give you a lot of options in the middle of combat, even while raging. You can heal yourself, scare people, attack... okay, it’s three things, but that’s two things more than most berserkers.

By the end of the build, you have unlimited rages, and you can’t die while raging. Tack on your healing hands at the end of a battle, and you’re effectively immortal to anyone not packing Sleep. It’s a first level spell, so a lot of people will be packing it, but by the time this combo comes together most people will be using 9th level spells, so they’ll probably overlook it.

You’re also pretty speedy, even compared to other barbarians. 50′ of movement speed and the ability to ignore difficult terrain will make it hard for your to get space between you and it. Even moreso when your opportunity attacks knock it flat on its ass.

Cons:

Before you become an immortal rage machine, you’re pretty squishy thanks to your low constitution score. I mean, squishy compared to other barbarians. You’re still rocking almost 200 HP and rage protection, but it means you’re not quite as tanky as Herc. Until you hit level 20.

We picked up a lot of Feats in this build, so that’s a good part of the reason why your ability scores are so low compared to other builds. Your fighting style only cares about strength and charisma, but if you get in a business meeting you can’t scare your way out of you’re going to have a rough time.

You have absolutely no way of dealing magical damage. You might be able to eke out some chip damage with Divine Fury and Necrotic Shroud, but if you go up against something with resistance or immunity to nonmagical weapons you’re going to have a bad time. It’s lucky you’re not super pissed at someone who literally has that as their defining feature, huh?

#fate grand order #fgo #DND #D&D 5e #berserker of el dorado #Barbarian

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fishoutofcamelot · 4 years

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I saw your r recent contribution to the post about hard vs soft magic systems and I agree wholeheartedly. You also mentioned having a bunch of worldbuilding and stuff about the magic system, and I was wondering if you'd be willing to share some?

(For reference, this is the post in question)

Certainly! While the worldbuilding/magicbuilding hellscape i was describing in the notes is actually in regards to an original-content wip I've been working on, i also have a LOT of headcanons regarding the BBCM magic system too! (Do not ask about my wip's magic system, because i won't be able to shut up about it)

WARNING: long post ahead and mobile won't let me include a cutoff/read-more line. If you're not interested, get ready to scroll down like your life depends on it (and it does).

So! First things first. Here's what we know about the BBCM magic system:

Magic requires spells, most of the time. This seems like a no-brainer, but still an important distinction. There are a lot of magic systems that don't require vocalized spells - Avatar: the Last Airbender, Fullmetal Alchemist, and Ninjago, to name a few. Spells are rather common for wizard/witch/medieval fantasies, and are typically used to control and channel the intent of the magic. This suggests that the magic of BBCM is some kind of force or energy that needs spoken commands to control.

Spells are repurposed words from Old English, aka the language of the Old Religion. (Let's ignore the obvious anachronistic nightmare of the fact that Old English is exactly the same language they would've been speaking in this time period.)

The use of a spell causes someone's eyes to flare gold, plus that fancy wooshing sound effect that Arthur miraculously never hears. This suggests that magic somehow changes your physiology, although it could be also just be a side effect of channeling.

However, magic doesn't always require a spell. Though never fully explained, it appears to be something only innate magic users are capable of - Merlin, Morgana, Mordred. It is something less controllable than spellwork, typically governed by moments of strong emotion rather than logical intent.

The show consistently flip-flops between the idea that magic is something you're born with, and that Merlin is rare for being born with magic. It's never clarified just how someone acquires magic. Gaius asks Merlin where he studied, suggesting that it's something you can learn, while Balinor claims that you either have it or you don't. Though not confirmed fact, i suspect it's similar to how it works in the show Supernatural. There, some witches are natural-born, while others are taught (and some get their powers from spooky demon deals).

It has a life-for-a-life policy. Basically like the Law of Equivalent Exchange from Fullmetal Alchemist, a life cannot be created without another one being sacrificed first. This rule only canonically applies to creating life/the Cup of Life, and any other possible applications aren't addressed.

This rule apparently doesn't apply to animals, as Merlin brought a dog statue to life without killing anyone (that we know of), and Valiant's shield had three live snakes in it. However, it's possible that lives were taken as payment in the process of animation without Merlin's knowledge, but it never happens on screen so we don't know. So either a) animals don't have souls to exchange in the life-for-a-life policy, b) they do but it happens off-screen, or c) those animated animals aren't actually alive.

The Cup of Life infuriates me from a magicbuilding perspective. Ignoring the obvious question of how it came into the druids' possession, its existence isn't clearly defined. Does it require the fancy rain ritual that Nimueh gave it, or was she just extra? Why does drinking from it give you life, while bleeding into it makes you undead and also mindlessly obedient to the sorcerer who made you as such? Were there life-for-a-life consequences for creating an immortal army? Wtf happened on the Isle of the Blessed to allow Merlin to "master life and death", and what does that even mean? All valid questions that never get answered.

Spells sometimes need need a 'source'. Think the staff from "The Tears of Uther Pendragon" and Morgana from "The Fires of Idirsholas." It is unclear what makes these spells different/special.

There is a power hierarchy. Some spells are too powerful for some practitioners to cast, although the reason for this is unclear. Does it drain you of energy/life force? Do you exhaust/overwork your magic muscles? Do you get a little pop-up that says 404 Magic Not Found? Unclear.

Magic is something that can be trained and improved. For example, Morgana gradually became more powerful over time. Merlin naturally had a lot of power straight off the jump and just had to discipline it, but he's a ~special~ case so he doesn't count.

There are some subsets of magic that are definitively born traits. Morgana is a Seer, possessing this capability even before her magic manifested. Likewise, Merlin is a dragonlord, which he inherited from Balinor. Although Balinor did mention that it wasn't a sure thing he would have the ability until he faced a dragon, so there may be some variation in whether or not someone lucks out in the Magic Gene Pool. This may suggest that natural-born magic is hereditary, as both Morgana and her sister Morgause had it. Vivienne and Gorlois both probably didn't have it, otherwise you'd hear Uther bellyaching about it, which raises the question of where they got it? A grandparent, perhaps? Maybe they both carried a recessive magic gene or something...

Unless you're Merlin, magic can be taken away by the Gean Canagh. It's not explained how this is possible, though, as it's never explained how you acquire magic in the first place. But Merlin never lost his magic because he's "magic itself" which if you ask me is just a deus ex machina wrapped inside a headache wrapped inside a heaping load of chosen one bullcrap. But it's canonical lore, so we have to consider it.

Despite my previous complaints, i actually find the idea of Merlin being "magic itself" rather intriguing. Is he a creature of magic, like a dragon or a questing beast? Is his body made of magic, like how a statue might be made of clay? Does it run through his veins like blood? If this is the case, then why didn't he suffer more severe ramifications for losing his magic? Why didn't it kill him? How did it restrict his magic in the first place? Placebo effect? The fanon explanation is that he's "the living embodiment of magic" but that makes my bullcrap richter scale shoot off the charts because that makes NO sense whatsoever. "Son of the earth, sea, and sky?" What does that MEAN?

There is a vivid link between magic and the Old Religion, which has its own beliefs and rituals and deities. Primarily, the Triple Goddess. The Triple Goddess is actually an existing deity in Neopaganism and Wicca. This also suggests the existence of the Horned God, another entity from neopagan lore and her masculine consort/counterpart, but that is never confirmed.

WHO. OR. WHAT. IS. THE. FREAKING. DOCHRAID. She's described as a creature of magic, which suggests that humans/humanoids can be creatures of magic, fueling my theory that 'Emrys' isn't human.

Destiny exists. It is unclear who creates/writes destiny, who controls it, who or what is privy to knowing about it, and what that means for the concept of free will.

The crystal cave is a thing, i guess. It's the heart of magic, is haunted by Taliesin, and is filled with prophetic crystals. I actually skipped the episodes that involve this stuff because i disliked them, so i don't know much about the Crystal Cave. Apparently ghosts can manifest there tho???

The veil is a thing too. It is unclear how some spirits can retain their human figure and mentality, like Balinor and Uther, but others become dorocha. I imagine its also like Supernatural - being a ghost for long enough will drive you insane, and though it takes a while all spirits eventually turn into dorocha.

Creatures of magic exist. These are normal creatures who have magic imbued into them somehow.

Okay, i think that's everything we know. It seems like a lot, but keep in mind that all of those rules are VERY nebulous. But that at least gives us a jumping-off point!

So here's my working theory/headcanon.

Magic comes from a connection to the spiritual energies of the Triple Goddess. Kinda like a third eye, and for the sake of simplicity that's what we'll call it. The druids have adapted a way of life that revolves around faith and magic, likely in an attempt to cultivate and one day attain this Third Eye. Like Gaius, who trained with the High Priestesses, you can study and practice and discipline yourself into acquiring it.

Magic is a cosmic force owned by the Triple Goddess, accessible to anyone with the Third Eye link. Imagine the Triple Goddess as a milkshake and the so-called Third Eye as a straw. The studying and training that people dedicate their whole lives to is basically just looking for/building a straw.

However, some people are just naturally born with a straw in hand, but require practice and study to be able to properly use it. Or like Morgana, it takes a few years for them to even find it/activate it.

Spellcasting is essentially just sucking through the straw, and the vocalized spells gives that Magic Milkshake some purpose/intent/shape.

The bigger the spell, the more Magic Milkshake is required. Some people have bigger/wider straws than others, so magic comes easier for them. But with enough training and practice anyone can widen their straw/strengthen their straw-sucking muscles to cast with the big leagues.

The Gean Canagh devours your straw/Third Eye. Perhaps you have to rebuild a new spiritual connection from scratch, or perhaps it permanently severs any and all connection to the Triple Goddess. Like getting excommunicated from the Church, only worse.

The Crystal Cave was/is the Triple Goddess's home, but she's out of town on a business trip atm so she left the spirit of her most loyal follower, Taliesin, to look after the place. It's super powerful and has all those cool crystals because it's hella steeped in her magic juices.

While most magic users get a standard-issue straw, others get Fancy Premium Membership Straws. Normal joe shmoes like Gilli have plastic straws, while a Seer like Morgana has a metal one or something (can you tell this metaphor is starting to get out of hand?). Those Premium Straws are only hereditary in nature. So there's a Seer Straw, or a Dragonlord Straw, or a Disir Straw, but it's also not a sure thing you'll even inherit it at all. It's all luck of the straw draw.

Creatures of magic aren't just animals that possess straws, though. They've been made/produced using magic rituals and processes and spells. Like Nimueh's afanc, nathairs, wraiths, shades, etc. So probably like a thousand years ago, some especially powerful shmuck came by and invented dragons. Which leads me to an important question: WHO THE HELL THOUGHT THE DOCHRAID WAS A GOOD IDEA.

Im reluctant to say these creatures were invented by the Triple Goddess, though, for reasons I'll get to in a moment.

So this still leaves the whole Cup of Life, life-for-a-life policy thing to be explained. I do believe that the policy is universally applicable to the creation of souls, and i do believe that animals have souls too. But individuals get their souls exchanged for those of equal value. So every soul has a certain weight to it, and you need to exchange souls of equal weight to create one. So when Merlin brought the dog to life, some random dog somewhere dropped dead against his knowledge.

Creating undead armies involves killing them and then resurrecting them. That's what 'undead' means. Zombies. So yes, to raise an immortal zombie army, Morgause's spell probably caused a bunch of people around the world to mysteriously drop dead.

Which leaves two last things to explain: destiny and Merlin.

Destiny is, i think, a combined effort between human choice and supernatural predeterminism. That is, for the most part humans make their own choices, but there are occasions where the Triple Goddess has to step in and do some course correction. Uther starting the Purge was free will, but Arthur and Merlin's destiny was an act of divine damage control. The Triple Goddess sets destiny into motion and informs a chosen few about it.

Okay SO. That leaves Merlin. And this is the bit im kinda excited about.

The Triple Goddess is a reservoir of power, a cosmic force of spiritual energy intrinsicallu linked to the fabric of the universe. People can spiritually reach out and tune into/channel her supernatural frequencies. But as a milkshake cannot suck itself through a straw, the Triple Goddess likewise cannot cast a spell. She can influence destiny, but she can't physically cast any magic on her own. That's why she didn't create the creatures of magic.

So a few years ago, Uther hecked up big time. And people of magic, the Triple Goddess's followers and acolytes and straw connections, were dying in droves. I can imagine that all those Third Eye tethers snapping en masse was painful for her to go through. She relies on the tethers to remain connected to the real world, and if all the tethers snap then she will be cut off from Earth altogether. And Earth requires magic to continue existing/thriving, so that's kind of a no-no.

So, the Triple Goddess knew that the only way to save the world was through divine intervention. Thus began the destiny of the Once and Future King and Emrys. She knew humanity is bigoted so there was bound to eventually be a repeat of Uther, so she made OaFK resurrectable, so they could keep him on the bench in case anyone ever needs him again.

Where does Merlin/Emrys fall into things?

Well. The Triple Goddess knew that saving her people and the world would require an immense magical undertaking, something no ordinary magic user would be able to pull off. But she has the power, if only she could use it. But a human can. So the Triple Goddess decided to be reborn into the body of a dragonlord's son. Merlin. Emrys. Magic itself.

Of course, this whole Being Born As A Human Thing is tricky, and as anyone familiar with reincarnation knows, you don't usually recall your past lives. So she became Merlin, unaware that he was ever the Triple Goddess. (Although she did add a clause saying she'd be destined to remember her past life eventually, which got hecked up for reasons ill explain later)

That's why so many creatures of magic/magic users recognize Merlin by his presence, why thr druids carry such reverence for him. Whereas the sidhe and other individuals don't recognize him, because they are blinded by heresy. They may have a spiritual connection to the Triple Goddess, but do not use her magic as she intended, and she's too busy wearing jaunty scarves to excommunicate them herself.

Why get the Once and Future King involved when she could just save everyone herself? Well, the Triple Goddess prefers to let the humans keep their agency and save themselves, and would rather remain in the role of protector/helper. Its just her nature.

But if that's the case, then why did Arthur's destiny fail? It's simple: Kilgharrah.

Remember what i said about the Horned God, counterpart to the Triple Goddess? Yeah, that's Kilgharrah. Like the Triple Goddess, he's another power reservoir, but he's jealous because people worship her and not him. He is against everything she does and actively seeks the destruction of the Triple Goddess's magic/influence for Jealous Evil Reasons. To stop him, the Triple Goddess enlisted some of her followers to bind him into the body of a dragon (perhaps this is how dragons were created) so he would never be able to do that. Years later, the Purge happened and "Kilgharrah" got locked away, further cut off from his power.

When Merlin walked in, unaware that he used to be the Triple Goddess, Kilgharrah seized his chance at revenge and manipulated Merlin into setting him free. Then, once free, he decided to lay claim to the power vacuum left by the Triple Goddess's quasi-absence. He began controlling destiny in whatever limited capacities he could, using magic of his own to permanently bury Merlin's knowledge of his past life. Then he ensured that Arthur would die and the Triple Goddess's magic would never return. But since he doesn't have FULL control over destiny (his powers are still limited by his dragon form, after all), he couldn't rewrite the bit where Arthur gets benched in Avalon. He's probably conspiring with the sidhe to ensure Arthur stays trapped there forever, or else he would've come back a long time ago.

As for how the Gean Canagh took Merlin's magic...well, yes, it devoured his Third Eye straw, but those are created by a strong spiritual connection to the Triple Goddess. And since he's literally the big TG himself, all he had to do was find himself again (by returning to his old home, the Crystal Cave) to recreate a new one.

Over the last 1500 years, Kilgharrah/the Horned God has been steadily accruing followers and worshippers in the hopes that one will become strong enough to release TG's bonds on him. Then he can kill her once and for all and claim full dominion over the universe, with the sidhe to support him.

I imagine that's how Arthur's resurrection would happen - Arthur and the rest of the dead Round Table are in Avalon when they learn about the treachery and plot to kill Merlin/take over the world, and spend the next few hundred years fighting their way out of Avalon.

Okay, I think that just about covers it. God, that was long. Any questions?

#i should probably write a fic for this huh #bbc merlin #merlin bbc #merlin #bbcm #ask #magicbuilding #fish post

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tirorah · 3 years

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Road to Berlin – The Strike Witches Magnum Opus?

Hello! It’s been a long time. I don’t plan on returning to Tumblr long-term—it simply stole away too much of my time and energy, and I had to do what was best for myself. However, I thought I’d pop in for a very special message.

You see, Strike Witches’ third season, Road to Berlin, has now reached its halfway point. And I need you to watch it.

“Strike Witches?!” I hear you say. “That weird show about girls with no pants that you’re obsessed with for some reason?”

Yes, exactly! Hold on, don’t run away yet! Sit with me for a spell and allow me to explain my boundless love for this silly, emotionally gripping show. Allow me to tell you why it might affect you in the same way, and why Road to Berlin may be the best offering yet.

Welcome to the 501st Joint Fighter Wing

If you’ve heard of this anime, you’ve undoubtedly heard of (or witnessed) its rather infamous claim to fame: a group of teenage soldiers fighting strange creatures in an Alternate Universe World War 2 Europe, flying around with guns and magic-fueled leg machines, and none of them are wearing any decent trousers.

That takes some getting used to, doesn’t it? I’m not going to deny that. But while Strike Witches’ rather peculiar design decisions are inescapable, there’s one thing you need to take into account: Season 1 aired all the way back in 2008. And over those thirteen years, it’s evolved into an experience unlike anything its roots would suggest.

Strike Witches has always been a strange beast. It has a large cast and divides its activities evenly between (light) war drama and slice-of-life shenanigans. And there’s fanservice, lots and lots of it! But the show’s emphasis on risqué camera work, and how that camera work is handled, highly depends on which entry you’re watching.

You see, Strike Witches is strangely ambitious. It could’ve easily taken its bizarre concept and pushed that to its limits, bringing in as much fanservice as possible and playing a simple story in the background as window dressing. But it was never satisfied with just that. Even early on in Season 1, the show deals with heavier themes like pressure, trauma and loss.

And then there are the characters, the undisputed stars of the show. Twelve strong and all with different backgrounds and personal quirks, they may at first seem like TV Tropes come to life. And certainly, sometimes they are. However, as the series progressed, things started to change. Even Season 2, arguably the lightest and silliest of all entries, featured material that built on character development and character growth earned in its predecessor.

With the movie and a trio of OVAs to round out the cast a bit more, the stage was set for Road to Berlin.

The Difficult Road Ahead

When this season was first announced back in 2018, two things stood out to me. First of all, the key visual and promotional video released along with the announcement were much more similar in style to the movies and the OVAs, featuring serious-looking characters and stormy clouds. Secondly, for the first time in Strike Witches history, an entry received a subtitle. Yes, the OVAs were named Operation Victory Arrow, but that was merely wordplay to spell out “OVA.” It wasn’t wholly serious.

Road to Berlin, however, is deadly serious.

Let’s start with an overall theme. The vaunted 501st Joint Fighter Wing has had some major victories, but much of the continent is still under occupation by the Neuroi. The Hive over Berlin is the Wing’s new target, but the journey there is fraught with obstacles. Plans are thwarted and delayed by Neuroi more powerful and far craftier than their 2008 counterparts.

And as the opening song tells us: “We all have flaws.” The Road to Berlin isn’t an entirely literal road; it’s also a metaphorical one. The push to Berlin is their hardest battle yet. Victory can only be achieved if the characters face and overcome their weaknesses. But they’re not alone.

Friendship Is Power

As the characters have long since been established, there’s greater room for growth not just in one character, but also in how that character interacts with others. Road to Berlin chose the best possible route and decided to emphasize character dynamics. Episodes don’t focus on a single character anymore; they focus on relationships, and those relationships are at their peak here.

There’s a newfound maturity to the writing in Road to Berlin, a gentle touch that allows the characters to breathe and be more than their foremost traits. You get a sense that the characters have grown from their experiences; they feel different, more well-rounded, but they still behave exactly as they should. This is difficult to get right, and while I’m sure there might be a few eyebrow-raising moments here and there, the overall result is a cast that continues to improve every week.

Chekhov’s Gun

Underpinning the character work is a highly intriguing execution. Road to Berlin delivers subtle setups and satisfying payoffs in every episode. The pacing is also seriously tight. No moment is left unused, every opportunity for additional development is taken. Even the script itself doesn’t like to waste time; it explains things here and there, but it rightly assumes you know who the characters are and what everything means, so it doesn’t bother with many unnecessary lines.

On top of all that, this season is reaching new heights in confidence and sheer audacity, and it uses that to deliver something truly special. There are interactions here that I never could’ve imagined, twists that genuinely caught me off-guard, moments where I had to sit back and digest what I’d just witnessed.

Not a single episode has been predictable thus far; I’ve had more surprises than I can count. In fact, before I started watching I made a bingo card on a whim, filling it with trends and running gags I’d spotted over the course of the series. Some of those bingo spaces have already been proven wrong, and others are in question. Road to Berlin has done such a spectacular job at simultaneously defying and exceeding my expectations that I honestly have no idea where this journey will take me.

The Fault in Our Stars

Okay, hold up, stop the hype train! I admit, I’m a massive sucker for Strike Witches. One could say this somewhat clouds my judgement. Shocking, I know. So, to make this enthusiastic recommendation fairer, let’s dig into something that I hope to see an improvement on.

There is some terrible imbalance in screen time going on here. I know I said earlier that the cast is great, and it is amazing, but some characters have definitely been favored over others. Yoshika is the main character, of course, so it’s not unreasonable for her to have a large role. Similarly, characters like Minna, Gertrud and Shirley have more experience and higher ranks than the others, which means they have an easier time fitting into scenes.

So, who’s gotten the short end of the stick?

Let’s start with Lynne. She hasn’t had as much of a presence as I’d hoped. The primary reason for this is Shizuka, who’s taken up the role of newbie to the squadron and is often paired with Yoshika because they’re working together. As each episode focuses on the relationships between a select few characters at a time, the others are often relegated to minor roles, and poor Lynne hasn’t had an episode to highlight her yet. I’m sure her moment will come eventually.

I don’t know if the same thing applies to Minna. She’s mostly stuck behind her desk again, it seems, and while she’s definitely had some scenes, her role as Wing Commander hasn’t allowed her as much wiggle room as some of the others. What I want to see from Minna is more time to be a nurturing mom to her girls. The thing is, I’m not sure how they’d accomplish a Minna-centric episode. I suppose they could pair her up with Mio, but even then, I’m uncertain where to take her. It seems redundant to have her be worried out of her mind over Mio again, and she seems to be keeping it together pretty well so far anyway.

In a trend so merciless it’s almost comical, Sanya and Eila seem forever doomed to the peanut gallery. They started out with few lines and have pretty much remained in the background since. Of course, a big factor to it all is their role as the night patrol, which naturally separates their activities from everyone else’s. It’s my current prediction that their relationship is next in line to be showcased. The quality of that episode will likely hinge on how their personalities are tuned, but there’s potential for something great.

And most shocking of all, Mio—She Who Has Practiced Plot Armor Ten Thousand Times—has had the most infinitesimal role of all. I’m of two minds on this. It appears that Road to Berlin has realized that having Mio fly into battle without a shield or Striker Unit is silly, and this is good. On the other hand, Mio is an iconic and beloved character. She deserves some screen time as long as she doesn’t overshadow the others. For now, she seems to be relegated to strategizing and logistics, although I have a hunch that a way to circumvent her newfound vulnerability has already been set up. Time will tell if this ends up being utilized.

Journey’s End

In closing, Road to Berlin highlights the best of what Strike Witches has to offer. It’s striding boldly forward, eager to dazzle us with its animation and audio, grinning as it challenges our preconceptions about where its characters can go and what they can do.

The path to this greatness can be tough. Watching Strike Witches means accepting a number of strange concepts, which can give quite a few viewers a rough start with the series. However, if you made it all the way here and haven’t given Strike Witches a try yet, I sincerely implore you to make the attempt. If you allow the characters to sweep you off your feet, then Road to Berlin could be the apex of a most satisfying viewing experience.

Especially if its second half is as impressive as the first. I, personally, have high hopes. There’s no sky this show can’t conquer.

#strike witches #road to berlin #anime #yes I made a bingo card in Excel #I'm a passionate fangirl with ample Microsoft experience #oh right #I should point out that I changed my name from NeandaFFnet to TirOrah #as I don't use that old handle anymore #sorry for any confusion caused

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bestworstcase · 3 years

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more than once you've said "the tts fandom can't write x character, or can't write y character," but have you considered that maybe they can write them fine, you've just built up your desired interpretations of these characters? you give off this condescending attitude, like ONLY YOU can write tts characters accurately, ONLY YOU understand them, & any interpretations that don't in some way align with what you think are WRONG. this has become more apparent as you've worked through bitter snow

let’s discuss king frederic, and how he is often characterized in fanworks vs how he is characterized in the show.

now... i think we can all agree that frederic is at best a mediocre father and a not especially good king, that in his worst moments he steps over the line into emotional abuse vis a vis his treatment of rapunzel, and that the avoidant head-in-the-sand approach he takes to the black rock problem in s1 causes widespread pain, unnecessary panic, and does not improve the situation whatsoever.

he is widely disliked in the fandom for very good reason

however! it is difficult, though hardly impossible, to find fic where frederic acts or speaks... like frederic, for one very simple reason: the fandom, by and large, as a group, writes frederic as an angry, abusive man who blows up when he is confronted with the many, many things he does wrong. often this takes the form of a character, or characters, getting up in front of him and rattling off his list of crimes, real or perceived, followed by him basically throwing a tantrum.

canon frederic, to put it bluntly, does not do that.

exhibit a: caine’s confrontation of frederic in before ever after.

caine sets up exactly the scenario that in the average tts fanfic would end with frederic yelling / blustering / furiously denying the accusations, plus she does it while rounding up all his guests and putting them in cage to haul them off and, presumably, kill them somewhere. like. the stakes are life or death and this is an extremely stressful situation for everyone involved.

and this is how that conversation goes down:

FRED: Release my guests immediately!

CAINE: What’s the matter, Fred? Am I ruining your perfect day?

RAPUNZEL: ...The Duchess?

CAINE: Oh, honey. I am no Duchess.

RAPUNZEL: I don’t understand.

CAINE: Of course you wouldn’t, Rapunzel, but try to follow along. This is all your fault.

RAPUNZEL: What?!

CAINE: You see, after your untimely... disappearance, your father locked up every criminal in the kingdom... including a simple petty thief. My father. I saw him thrown into a cage and hauled off like some animal, never to be seen again. So... I thought I’d come back, and return the favor.

[the wagon rolls in]

CAINE: Load ‘em up, boys! Your turn, Your Majesty.

[Frederic moves to shield Rapunzel; Caine snickers.]

CAINE: Oh, come on, you didn’t think we’d leave our prized pig in the pen, did you?

RAPUNZEL: [as Caine’s gang drags Frederic toward the wagon] Dad—

FREDERIC: Rapunzel, stay back.

RAPUNZEL: But—

FREDERIC: No. There’s nothing you can do. As your father and your king, I command you to stay put.

there are two key points that i want to make here, because they diverge significantly from the way frederic is characterized in analogous scenarios in fanfics, like, 90% of the time.

1) fred doesn’t get angry. he doesn’t bluster or yell. he orders caine to release his guests, and when she refuses, he gets quiet. he does not interrupt caine’s rant, he does not even try to deny her accusations, and he doesn’t stomp around escalating the situation even while caine is prancing around waving a sword in his daughter’s face or literally poking him in the chest.

he stays calm.

2) fred’s primary, overriding concern is for rapunzel’s safety, and the safety of his guests. not his own. he does not struggle when caine’s men lead him away. he protests on behalf of his guests, but not himself, and he attempts to physically shield rapunzel from harm before he is dragged away. he doesn’t waste his breath trying to argue with caine, but he does tell rapunzel firmly not to put herself in danger trying to rescue him.

now... there are plenty of ways to interpret why frederic behaves this way, and my personal take is certainly not the only possible one. but the behavior itself, the staying calm in the face of a crisis, while someone is in his face threatening him, his family, and his guests and making pretty charged accusation, is a) objectively playing out on the screen and b) directly at odds with the way frederic most often acts in fanfics.

exhibit b: mood-swapped frederic blows up just like fanon frederic constantly does

and this is the only time we ever see frederic lose his temper like this in the entire series. again, this is not a matter of interpretation: this is just plainly what happens on the screen. when he is in his right mind, frederic is not a “scream accusations, whip out a sword, and impulsively declare war or attack someone because he’s mad” sort of person, and to say that he is really like that, deep down, is just as silly as trying to argue that cass really is a peppy, soft-hearted, affectionate pushover, or that eugene really is too riddled-with self-doubt and anxiety to make any decisions, or that rapunzel really is a grouchy, moody, misanthropic person. the mood potion makes everyone act like fundamentally different versions of themselves; their behavior is, literally, out of character for their normal, not high-off-their-asses-on-a-magical-potion selves.

exhibit c: the angry mob in secrets of the sundrop

like with caine, this confrontation kicks off with a premise that should be pretty familiar to anyone who reads any fic featuring frederic at all, ie everybody is pissed at frederic and there is literally an enraged mob screaming for justice in the throne room. and that goes like this:

[everybody shouting in angry panic]

FREDERIC: People... [raising his voice to be heard] Citizens, please! Listen to me!

[Max rears and whinnies to get everyone’s attention, and the shouting dwindles away.]

FREDERIC: I will not lie to you any longer. Corona is in grave danger. The queen has been taken; over half our royal guard lie wounded; and these black rocks draw ever closer.

[the shouting begins to pick up again]

EUGENE: Uh, sir, hi, yeah—if there’s a ‘but’ in this speech, you probably want to cut to it right now.

FREDERIC: But I look at you, and I don’t just see subjects. I see friends, family; strong, brave individuals who have stood by each other, side-by-side, and have never, ever backed down from a fight! Today, we face a danger like none before. As your king, your friend, and as your brother, I ask you to fight one more time. For Corona!

again, key points:

1) frederic does not deny, bluster, shout down, or otherwise attempt to refute the basic point that he bungled the black rock situation. he did bungle it, and he knows that [this scene is preceded by him spelling out the full extent of his failures to rapunzel and openly admitting guilt]. through his behavior, he demonstrates that he accepts culpability for the situation and implicitly accepts the legitimacy of the crowd’s anger.

2) he raises his voice only so he can be heard above the shouting, and as soon as folks quiet down, he drops to a reasonable volume again. his mood is grim, but he isn’t angry. he projects calm.

3) eugene is nervous about frederic losing control of the crowd and accidentally causing a riot or something; frederic is not.

4) instead of denying the crowd’s anger, frederic tries to reframe the problem for them: yes, things are bad, but they are strong and brave and we can all work together to put things right. he doesn’t shout them down; he seeks to inspire them.

and 5) when frederic says “we face a danger,” he means that. the very next thing he does after giving this speech is go straight to the frontlines to fight in the same battle he’s asking everyone else to join in. he's not asking them to do anything he isn’t willing to do himself.

which... i would argue even more than the caine confrontation in BEA, is diametrically opposed to the way the typical fanon frederic would respond to an angry mob situation, because the typical fanon frederic is a very angry, aggressive man, and that... simply isn’t who frederic is. he’s calm, he’s knows how to work a crowd, he knows how to use his authority to achieve his goals without browbeating or threatening.

even when he does get angry—such as his instinctive reaction to arianna’s kidnapping, when he jumps first to “we will invade old corona”—he doesn’t yell or stomp around or throw tantrum. he gets stiff and rather cold and makes an impulsive judgment call... but then he takes some time to brood by himself, calms down, talks things out with rapunzel, admits his failures, and doesn’t follow through with the impulsive order he made in the heat of the moment.

like... flat out, he is not an angry man.

and it’s frustrating, when i go to read fanfic and frederic is overwhelmingly characterized as this hapless angry shouty abusive person, because it is breathtakingly far removed from how he acts in canon, and i like frederic as a character. i find him very interesting, and it’s not fun to read fics where everything that makes him interesting is taken away and replaced with this sort of one-note Shouty Angry King/Bad Dad Whom Everyone Hates. and that applies, unfortunately, to a very large number of the types of fics i like to read (namely, long canon exploratory or canon divergent fics, etc)

anyway,

i am perfectly happy to read interpretations of the tts characters that do not mesh well, or are even wholly incompatible with, my own.

but i do expect, as a minimum, characters to behave more or less the way they behave in canon unless there is a clear reason for them to be different. i expect varian to be nerdy and chaotic and a bit of a disaster, for example. i expect adira to be aloof, blunt, and perhaps a touch arrogant. i expect cassandra to be ambitious and frustrated and prone to self-sabotage and envy. i expect lance to be laid back and eugene to be a bit vain. i expect the captain to be gruff and very tight-laced. and i expect frederic to act like a politician who is in control of his feelings but sort of cowardly at heart, because that’s how frederic acts in the show.

i hold myself to these standards too. a ton of my editing process is “hm does this character really talk like this? is this how they would react to this situation?” and then going through and rewatching scenes or whole episodes and trying to find roughly analogous emotional beats or situations to sort of gauge whether i’m hitting the mark or not; it’s very difficult and i work hard on it and do not always succeed... and this does make me a bit picky about characterization in fics i’m reading, yeah, because it’s... always at the forefront of my mind. and then yes i post about it here, because this is the hyperfixation landfill where i dump my tts-adjacent thoughts.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

of course, you’re welcome to unfollow me if you do not enjoy reading what i post. it’s important to curate an online experience that you enjoy! if my general demeanor irritates you, you don’t need to inflict yourself with it.

#thank u for your input anon <3 #Anonymous

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headlesssamurai · 4 years

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My Lazy, Poor, Stupid Person’s Attempt to Paint Tabletop Miniatures

by headless

This has nothing to do with covid-19 really, it’s just something I reckoned I’d share. For several years I’ve played Dungeons & Dragons, and occasionally others like Call of Cthulhu and Delta Green, or Shadowrun. Though, I say ‘play’, when I mostly run games as a Dungeon Master. It’s one of those “hobbies” that is a lot of fun for someone like me, but requires a ton of dedication, so it isn’t always easy to get a dedicated group together.

Anyhow, I generally homebrew settings and adventures, never really been too big on running pre-written games, even if some of them are fantastically written. And one of the most frustrating things is I some times want to have a miniature on the battle grid that looks a certain way. This is hardly a big deal, since miniatures are just markers meant for reference in combat encounters, the real image of the characters is in all of our heads.

Still, I sometimes want to have something especially specific, a lot of the players in my current group appreciate cool looking miniatures, and seeing as I’m usually hard-up for cash, I can’t always buy pre-painted mini-figures, unless I get a good bulk deal on ebay or something.

One of my recent attempts to acquire bulk miniatures came a few years back when I realized during the 4E days, Wizards of the Coast had released boxed board games themed with the D&D style, which all came with a great deal of unpainted miniatures; these came in sets like Wrath of Ashardalon, or The Legend of Drizzt, with lots of themed minis for the board game’s scenario.

Anyhow, I’ve had a ton of these unpainted miniatures forever and use them often for nobody-NPCs and other characters the players run across. Lately, however, the group I’ve been running in a campaign for about eleven months (usually weekly), ran across a problem where their dragonborn ranger Grixxis was captured by and then negotiated his away out of the clutches of this ancient entity who calls herself Gorgoth (who appears to be a pale, beautiful young woman, but probably isn’t; even the not so arcane-y Grixxis intuited that much). She was actually impressed that he resisted her Sleep spell, and offered him a deal, she’d let him go but he needs to complete a task for her in the next seven days, and if it isn’t completed in that time frame his soul will be bound to her forever.

The task was to go to a mountaintop and retrieve something that resides there, though Gorgoth did not explain what the object was, so the party set off to find this mysterious mountain. The journey led them to an area of bad wilderness where no one lives, and where roving bands of orcs constantly hunt and war with one another, so only a few people know anything about that region. The party ended up hiring a guide, who was a wood elf exile named Skaya. They seemed to be intrigued by her because she’s living in a city which is currently at war with wood elves, so there’s a lot of prejudice and racism against her kind. Skaya does have facial tattoos that indicate she’s been exiled from her tribe and therefore no longer truly considered by her people to be a wood elf (their worst form of punishment in this universe), but still, the party seemed immediately fascinated by this single NPC among the potential seven or so they might’ve hired for this expedition.

Anyhow, my players have only gotten truly invested in one other NPC they’ve met before this; a small little orc toddler named Gruuba who they saved from a bunch of slave trading bandits early on in the campaign. I’ve had difficulty finding a good miniature for Gruuba too (because she’s really small and scrawny), but since she’s at the same developmental level as a human six year-old they try to keep her out of combat scenarios (despite Gruuba’s excited insistence that she enjoys using clubs “for smashings”). Since the party have begun to really enjoy Skaya as character, the longer they’ve slowly, slowly gotten to know more about her stand-offish personal history, I really wanted to get a miniature for her that reflected my image of her better than the one I’d been using.

So, even though I got basically no experience doing so, I bought a miniature from Reaper Miniatures, and after looking up a few tutorial vids for beginners like me, I set about trying to paint my first mini-figs.

Two things, if you’re looking into this yourself; First, I’m not totally unartistic, I write creatively and I sketch with pencils and ink. Painting’s fairly new to me, but it’s not like I have absolutely no artistic talent. I also solder a lot of really small wires and components in my normal daily job, so I may have better muscle control for this sort of thing than some people. I only mention this because I may have had a few advantages in this undertaking. I just don’t want to make people overly confident, keep things in perspective. So whatever your level of expertise at this, if you want to start just try to patiently measure your expectations, and don’t get discouraged if your first results aren’t so great. All things improve with time.

And B. if you’re poor, lazy, and stupid like me, there’re ways to get around that. This video I watched gave me a good rundown of the basic steps which are; - scrub the plastic down with some dish soap, luke-warm water, and a toothbrush; allow at least 1 hour to dry (I let them sit for a day because I’m paranoid), and be sure there’s no lingering moisture before you start painting - get a good primer or base coat on the model before you start adding other colors; lighter base coats allow more colors to show up easier, while darker base coats tend to make the colors you paint over them darker - stay calm and take your time - try to paint the colors that’ll go under other colors first, like, if a barbarian dude is shirtless but’s wearing a few pieces of armor, paint his shirtless skin first, then paint the armor he’s wearing second because it layers over better that way - use thinner paints and multiple coats of a color to get an even final color instead of one thick coat - allow each coat of paint to dry for 10 - 20 minutes before applying the next coat - learn about washes, pigments, and inks, because they’re awesome - get a decent varnish for a final protective coat, matte varnishes make the model look dryer and flat, gloss varnishes make the model look shiny and wet, if you do a coat of gloss and a coat of matte varnish it equalizes it pretty good

And this video here sort of laid to rest my fears that I’ll need to spend $600 on paints and washes and stuff. The very helpful lady in that video explains how she uses generic acrylic paints from the craft store (I got mine at Wal-Mart) to paint her Warhammer miniatures, and she even offers a method of making your own washes from a combination of paint and flavorless mouth wash. It’s genius. So try not to stress too much about buying the really nice brand name paints, because it’s not necessary, those paints just have an optimal mix I think, otherwise they’re the same damn thing as generic acrylic paints. Also, you’re just trying to learn, so unless you really, really feel like emptying your bank account, just use the generic stuff.

I started out painting something I didn’t care about. I wanted my miniature for Skaya to look badass and awesome, so I wanted to start with some practice miniatures. Grabbed a few from those 4E board game sets and gave it a shot. But I had also recently gotten hold of a Goliath Barbarian miniature from the Player’s Handbook Heroes sets (also from the 4E days) a rare find, since it usually goes for like $60.00 by itself. Randomly found some dude on ebay selling an unopened box set for $20.00, so I got a wild elf druid and a human berserker along with it. So I started out touching up the goliath’s armor to make it look more like armor and less like weird blue stuff.

Here’s a before-and-after for him (I didn’t take photos of them before because I wasn’t anticipating this, so I just found examples from around the web):

Next I tried a re-paint. A friend of mine had recently guest-played in my campaign and created a half-drow monk (his backstory was fantastic), so since nothing like that exists, I took a Soulknife Infiltrator miniature seen here:

And repainted it to sort of look like his half-drow Monk of the Open Palm:

I finally had the courage to do a full paint, so I grabbed the Dragonborn Elementalist from the Wrath of Ashardalon box, and painted her up with reddish scales (I’m one of those who thinks dragonborn should have physical attributes of their heritage).

In the box her name’s Heskan. I definitely used way too much wash on this one so she looks super shiny.

I then took the orc archers in that same box, and not really paying too much attention this time, quickly painted them, because I lack many orc archers:

At this point, I felt it was time to finally paint Skaya, the wood elf exile. I used the Reaper Bones model Deladrin, Female Assassin ($1.99) for Skaya’s mini.

And taking way more hours than I did on the others, which were only about 1-3 hours each, when you count waiting for the coats to dry, I managed to sort of make her look like Skaya, I guess:

After this, the fact that it wasn’t complete and utter shit, which is what I expected, I was encouraged. So I tried to do out party’s tortle cleric, named Daruuk of Chult (who oddly speaks with a Slavic accent, so that’s how people from Chult sound in our campaign), for whom we’ve lacked an accurate mini-figure for some time. I bought a pack of Spikeshell Warriors ($2.99) from the Reaper Bones line.

But Daruuk characteristically wields a large shield and a warhammer, so for some reason I got super detailed and bought a pack of loose shields from the Reaper Bones line ($0.99), then bought Halbarad ($1.49) a human cleric.

I clipped off Halbarad’s hammer at the hilt, then I trimmed the spikes off of the spikeshell warrior’s club, and used a dremel to carfully mill a hole inside the shaft of the spikeshell’s club, then pinned the hammer inside and secured it with gorilla gel. I used an actual cork board pin to push the shield onto the spikshell’s offhand after cutting off his turtle shell shield in order to pin it before gluing, then clipped off the rest of the cork board pin. Somehow, this ended up making the shield look meaner because it now has a like pyramidal spike sticking out the center. After allowing the glue to dry I painted him up, and my attempt at Daruuk the Death Cleric turned out thus:

I guess his hammer looks sort of Acme-level cartoony, but he’s a giant 350 lb. turtle-man who talks like Omega Red from X-Men The Animated Series, so I’m okay with that. The spikeshell also fits well with the razorback sub-race feature I allowed Daruuk’s player to homebrew for himself. I was really proud of this one.

Finally, because I’m an insane asshole who is getting obsessed with my new hobby, I decided it was dragons or bust. So I bought a pre-primed unpainted Young Blue Dragon from WizKids ($13.99).

And spent, like, three days meticulously testing different paint layers to see how they come out. I tried to paint her in the tradition of blue dragons as they appear in the art of Forgotten Realms material, but gave her a somewhat darker cast, and added metallic blue layers to her claws and spinal ridges. I still need to paint her base, put some highlights on her eyes to accentuate the glowing effect and add my washes to give her a final layer of dimension, but here’s how she came out so far:

Behold, Stormfang! Mistress of Thunder...

Anyhow.

This is super long and I wonder if anyone will bother to read any of it. But just wanted to put this out there. From a dude who, if you asked me a year ago if I thought I could do this, I’d have said I’m too stupid, poor, and lazy. I still think of myself as all of those things. The real pros use crazy detailed techniques with like seven layered highlights on their models, and airbrushes and all kinds of other madness. I use maybe three coats total and I don’t get too worked up if I make a mistake here and there, and I haven’t spent more than maybe fifty bucks total across six weeks, and most of that was wasting paints because I was still learning how to mix different shades.

So if you got something you feel like you’ve always wanted to do but are too stupid, poor, and lazy to figure out, just go for it yo. I managed to crack out these bastards and I still think I suck, but it’s way better looking than I expected. For real though, you should see some of those Warhammer players, they got mad crazy god skills at this stuff compared to me. But your level of skill isn’t the point. The point is to have that moment with that thing you did, and look at it, and just go “Yeh, I did that” when at one time you never believed you ever could.

There’s always going to be somebody better than you, but even they, like all of us, are still learning.

侍 headless

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break-six · 4 years

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D&D Fate builds Character-Mash Kyrielight Class-Barbarian

Starting stats

Strength-12 Dexterity-14 Constitution-15 Intelligence-10 Wisdom-13 charisma-8

1st lvl human Barbarian

Starting gear-Warhammer(just for the offensive stats of her shield)

Note:see if your dm is cool with swapping out "simple weapon or 2 hand axes" for a shield,if they arent take one of the options to sell and then buy a shield as soon as possible.

Proficiencies- athletics,investigation,history, perception

1st lvl,unarmored defense-AC = 10+dex and con modifier

Note:if you get the shield at the start you should have 17 starting ac

1st lvl,rage-resistance to all physical damage,+2damage on str attacks ,advantage on strength checks/saves. Only when not wearing armor

2 rages per long rest (3 rages at 3rd lvl,4 at 6th and 5 at 12th)

2nd lvl,danger sense-advantage on dex saves it you can see it

Mash is a very heavy defense based servent,from the start is equipped with many ways to help stay alive

2nd lvl Reckless attack- advantage on attacks while in rage but enemies have advantage against you

3rd lvl primal path, path of ancestral guardian- ancestral protectors (shield of rousing resolution) when raging the 1st enemy you hit on your turn has disadvantage against all other targets except you,the enemies target (that's not you) also has resistance to all damage

4th lvl feat- shield master (duh) when you have a shield you get the following

-when you take the attack action you can use a bonus action to shove a creature within 5 feet of you with your shield

-if you aren't incapacitated you can add your shields AC to dex saves made against a spell or other effects that only effect you

-if your subject to an effect which allows you to make a dex save for half damage, you can use your reaction to take no damage,putting the shield between you and the effect

5th lvl extra attack- attack twice a turn

5th lvl fast movement-speed increase by 10 when not wearing armor

6th lvl-Spirit shield (Wall of snowflakes) while in rage if you can see a creature within 30 feet of you take damage you can reduce the damage as a reaction for 2d6 (3d6 at lvl10 and 4d6 at lvl 14)

7th lvl feral instinct- advantage on initiative roll and you can act normally when surprised only if you rage before doing anything else

8th feat-tough, hit points increase by 2 per lvl this applies retroactively, as well as every lvl you get onward

9th brutal critical- additional die for extra damage on crits (2 extra die at 13th lvl)

11th lvl relentless rage-if you drop to 0 hp while raging you instead drop to 1 hp if you make a con save of 10 (increases by 5 every use until short or long rest)

12 lvl ability score improvement-dex and wis

14th lvl vengeful ancestors (lord Camelot)- any damage you spirit shield blocks is sent back to the attacker using force damage

Note:both lord chaldeas and lord Camelot have been shown to not just block but deflect back Excalibur Morgan, not unluckily it would deflect other attacks

15th lvl persistent rage-rage only ends early if you choose or are incapacitated

Both Mash's physical and mental endurance have increased over the course of many battles, new creative ways to defend others have been made as well

End notes: I'm back!

It was weird to have made such a defense heavy build,who ever your party has will probably have to work at compensating for it,atleast they'll be safe!

I purely threw investigation in because of her love of Sherlock Holmes and all the detective stuff

I apologize if any of this comes out messy I am both tired and a bit rusty with this,at this point

#mash kyrielight #best kohai #dnd character #dnd fate builds #d&d character #fate grand order #fgo #mashu kyrielite

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blue-maiden4 · 4 years

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OPINION OF POKEMON SWORD/SHIELD

Now that I’m finally done with the game I can give all my honest thoughts and opinions about it!

I repeat: THIS IS A PERSONAL OPINION SO DON’T COME AND THROW HATE OR SOMETHING JUST BECAUSE YOU DON’T AGREE WITH IT

Oh, and there’s gonna be spoilers of the game

Now let’s begin with this thing that is going to be super long! (Putting it under read more)

First of all, this game was a wild ride. I really had fun during the whole adventure! I really don’t know where to start....

Soundtrack

Dear lord they really outdone themsleves with it! It was amazing! It’s impossible for me to pic a fave ❤❤❤. From the battle themes to the overworld music, they made the whole journey better (though now that I think about it the did an outstanding job with the battle themes, they literally fill you up with hype and make the battles exciting)

Nevermind, my fave would be the Second Phase of the Eternamax Battle.

Gym Challenge/Pokemon League

I. LOVED. IT.

At least the gym battles and torunament. They really knew how to include the Dynamax dynamic in them and made battles more exciting, add the whole ambience where you can hear the crowd screaming and cheering, and you get awesomeness.

And the idea of making a tournament where you have to battle the other challengers (the ones that made it to that point) and then gym leaders (some of them) before facing the champion, it just so original and like in the Anime.

I really hope they keep doing this in future games because it is better than only facing up four strong trainers and then the champion.

And did I mention how they make the Gym challenge a big deal? Seriously, people are ACTUALLY checking on you since the battles are apparently transmitted on TV or something, and people are rooting for you.

This region really gives Pokemon battles the importance it deserves, considering is one of the main aspects of the game and it’s world in general.

Difficulty

The game surely improved in this aspect (maybe not that much, but it’s better than in S/M), but they need to work in the AI.

Now, if I only I hadn’t accidentaly over-leveled my team, my pokemon would have probably been between level 52-60 (I always do some grinding before the League, so I’m not extremely under-leveled)

And when I refer to accidentally, I actually mean that I used the EXP candies which made my team reach level 70. (Just so you know, the champion’s pokemon are from LV 60-64)

So, if you want to make the game a little bit harder, don’t use the candies, and if you do, don’t use too many of them, espcecially the M and L ones.

Rivals

-Marnie: She got so little development, so I can’t really say that much about her.

-Bede: He is such a jerk, but I ended up liking him, he had some nice development. (He’s finally doing what he wants and at least accepting a little bit more his role as a Gym Leader)

-Hop: FINALLY! A FRIENDLY RIVAL WITH GOOD DEVELOPMENT! At the beginning he was annoying (just a little), but after he gets depressed ‘cause Bede said he put his brother to shame and blah blah blah, I really felt bad for him and wanted to hug him (And beat the shit out of Bede). And then after I defeated him on the tournament and looking how he was sad/angry but then accepted it, damn I seriously wanted to hug him even more. Then there is the post game, where we see the peak of his development, where he finally chooses his own path, but is still going to keep on battling....I’M SO PROUD OF MY BOY

Wild-Areas

They better keep the whole thing of the Pokemon roaming on the routes, ‘cause it’s awesome. But the way Pokemon appear as you move through the place....It’s so weird. They pop out of nowhere, there isn’t even like a slight animation or something. Though the same thing can be said for every section in the game. (I crashed TWICE against the Onix in Motostoke, cause I forgot where it was and with this pops out of nowhere thing well....)

I also find it weird how some Pokemon that are found in the water just jump out of it and that’s it (but this doesn’t apply to all of them luckily)

TM’s &TR’s

Okay, I’ve got mixed feelings with this one.

Now, remember how they made all TM’s reusable? Well, now only some moves are TM’s and the rest are TR’s.

And what exactly are TR’s? They are the same as Tm’s excpet that they can only be used ONCE and the only way to get them is as rewards of a Max Raid.

Honestly, this pissed me off (and it still does), but since Max Raid’s gives you Exp candies and objects that can be sold for money (like Star pieces, Nuggets, Comet shards...) it makes the search of some specific TR’s less painful (still it’s annoying, you have NO IDEA how long it took me to get the Ice Beam TR, and there’s a lot more moves that have become TR’s and that are the most useful and strong)

Poke-camp (or whatever it’s spelled)

Seeing your team interact with each other it’s fun, sadly it seems that my WHOLE team is ANTISOCIAL so I’ve never got to see that much how they get along -_-.

Story

Now this is one of the game’s flaws.

The story well...you literally know nothing about it ‘til the end of the game. You practically keep going with the adventure and then boom! Stuff happens.

Though I’m gonna say the Eternatus arch was cool, they at least executed well that part, heck it was the most epic part in the game but that was the only thing, but the story in general wasn’t well executed.

Graphics

They only need to improve in some of the animations and the look of some things. Other than that, the game looks good.

Pokedex

I’m gonna talk more specifically about the cut of some Pokemon.

First, you are all exaggerating. The cut of Pokemon wasn’t that bad, for heaven’s sake, I didn’t even feel it at all!

Yeah it sucks what they did, but it’s nothing that can’t be fixed in the future.

And the Pokemon that can be found within the game aren’t that bad, some of the new Pokemon are really good as well.

(I can’t believe they made zigzagoon a good Pokemon, seriously, once that little guys evolves into Linoone and Obstagoon, it becomes a BEAST in battle)

Dynamax

At first I didn’t know how to feel about this mechanic, but I can say they knew how properly implement it in the game. (Though it is really OP, if you ask me)

I think that’s all, but I’m sure I left out some stuff

These games are good, and people are just throwing hate for stupid reasons (well maybe they’re not that stupid and have a point). But the game has potential that only needs to be improved.

I personally give it an 8/10 (or 7.5/10)

#pokemon #pokemon swsh #pokemon sword and shield #pokemon sword spoilers #pokemon sword #pokemon shield #personal opinion

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writtenbyhappynerds · 4 years

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Unit 9: Don’t Like, Don’t Read

Welcome to the last unit of Fanfiction 101. We saved this for last because it is most applicable at this time. As well as the notion of, “don’t like, don’t read,” we are going to discuss criticism as a whole, commenting, secondary readers, and plagiarism. Let’s jump into it.

There is only one true example where the idea of, ‘Don’t like, don’t read,’ is a valid claim and that is in fetish fanfiction. If you are writing smut or fanfic that is meant to serve a specific fetish/kink, then put that in the description and then you can inform the reader that if it isn’t their cup of tea they shouldn’t read it. That is the only time this comment is valid because not everyone is actively seeking out Johnlock BDSM or inflation porn. Everything else, from opinion pieces to serious fanfiction is fair game to be critiqued because we as writers are putting it out on a public platform. If you put something online it is unrealistic of you as a writer to expect no one to ever try and tell you what could be wrong with it. It is also on us as writers to acknowledge that every idea we have isn’t a gem. They’re not all winners, and a story that you’ve written perfectly in your head may not translate well on paper. It is on you to grow and adapt the narrative to become even better.

Criticism is not a bad thing. There is a difference between constructive criticism and hate, and hate is usually along the lines of, “this is stupid. You’re a terrible writer.” Because we post things on a public platform we have to be able to take criticism, which gives you the opportunity to grow as a writer. Feedback from your audience allows you to become better at your craft because writing is not a talent. It is a skill, and it is one that improves only by rewriting and editing over and over again until you get it right. I understand that it’s sometimes difficult to get feedback though because it requires work on the reader’s end as well as the author.

To readers, if you are anxious about commenting or feel bad about critiquing someone’s work in a public post, message them privately. The authors are hungry for criticism. Every comment on Fanfiction 101 I have replied to; for everything from the comments on the exams to the comments on the units themselves because clarifying and aiding and taking in feedback makes not only these courses, but my writing capabilities better. I understand how readers think and the positive comments of, ‘This is amazing!’ or ‘I like this already’ are nice to see but they don’t tell the author how to make a story more enjoyable. Personally, if I critique someone’s story I’ll message them privately, tell them I’ve read one of their pieces, and that I have some notes. Now, sometimes it goes over very well and you feel a friendly bond with the person whose work you’re critiquing. When I comment on a piece, it’s because I want it to succeed and I want it to be even better than it is. Sometimes, you get blocked, as I recently did, because the author isn’t emotionally available to accept that there are issues with their work. It happens. It’s water off a duck’s back, and you move on knowing you did what you could to try and help. This leads me to a specific aside:

It is not okay to make fun of another author’s work. To all my readers, do not say that you won’t name a specific work to protect the identity of the writer, but then give me enough context clues that I can find the fanfiction on Google. That is not okay. Making fun of someone else’s fanfic is just mean. I was writing and posting fanfic when I was a sophomore in high school. A lot of fanfiction writers are young kids/teens, and they don’t deserve that. I will come for you if I see you making fun of someone’s fanfic. That isn’t constructive. It isn’t helpful, it’s just mean.

Your fanfiction may sound really great to you the writer because in your head you can see it play or pan out. Sometimes you the author can see the whole narrative in your head and it’s just a matter of putting it down on paper. I’ve been there. I see you. I myself usually write endings as quickly as I can so I have an event or thing to work towards. However, your audience isn’t reading your fanfiction with all the context you’ve given each scene in your head in mind. There is a solution. I detest the term ‘beta readers.’ The lovely lady working on Fanfiction 101 has read every story I’ve ever written that’s been publicly posted since the beginning. This is because she has read a lot of fanfiction, and knows what’s been done before and what hasn’t. I would never designate her as a beta reader because her voice and input in these stories help shape them just as much as I do writing them. Hence, she has and always will be, the Editor. The first person to read. Your first reader or critic doesn’t need to necessarily know what fandom you’re writing for. When your editor knows the fandom, they can provide a second set of eyes regarding the continuity or characterization of the main cast. When I tried to write Agents of SHIELD fanfic back in the day, I got my ass handed to me on both those things time and time again by the Editor. There are several questions you can ask your first reader. To apply them, they are questions we will ask you about Fanfiction 101:

1. When did you feel that the narrative was lagging? This can help you find the more boring sections. As far as self-editing goes, your readers will feel what you feel. If you feel that something is dragging, the readers can pick up on that. If you don’t care about what you’re putting out you can’t expect the readers to care.

2. Did you notice any inconsistencies in the characters or the plot, times, or places? Consistency is key. If you have stated a truth or law of the world or principal for a character you should stick with it.

3. How did the balance of dialogue and description feel? Or, for stories like Fanfiction 101 the balance of examples and information. Some stories are dialogue-heavy, others are description-heavy and there should be a happy balance to avoid the dreaded, ‘show-don’t tell.’

4. Did you ever get confused as to who is speaking? This can help you figure out if you need to make a character’s voice more distinct, or if you need to add additional tags to let the reader keep track.

5. Were there any parts that confused or frustrated you? If so, what are they and why? On the flip side, are there any parts that made you laugh or that you enjoyed, and why?

Take one of these questions and answer it in your own words in the comments. This can give me and the Editor feedback on how to improve our writing. These questions aren’t written law. You don’t have to ask them when your secondary readers look over your work. However, someone who is not you should be reading your stories before you publish. You’ll catch lots of mistakes and flaws that way. Look to the people you trust; the people who will tell you what’s good. If you’re uncomfortable with having someone read your stories, read them to yourself out loud. You will catch your own mistakes, much like you’ll catch uncomfortable dialogue. If you desperately need a secondary reader, slide into my DMs. The Editor and I will happily take a look.

Super long author’s notes or author’s notes in the middle of work are unprofessional and tiresome. If you do intend on having author’s notes, limit yourself to a maximum of 3 sentences. The readers are not going to read author’s notes that are incredibly long, and the Editor and I have encountered author’s notes that are longer than the actual chapter. That’s too much breaking of the third wall. Notes like, “didn’t have time to check the spelling/grammar lolzr sorry!” Get Grammarly. It’s free. Notes in the middle of the text take the reader out of the immersion and show me as a reader that you aren’t confident enough to convey what you want to. My Immortal is filled with author’s notes smack dab in the middle of the text. Don’t be like My Immortal. If we’ve taught you anything, be better than My Immortal.

Finally, let’s talk about plagiarism. Fanfiction is copywritten work. Sometimes very very popular stories will be copied almost word for word. Or, the premise is the exact same and only the character has changed. This is not okay. It’s fine to read a story and be super impressed, but you don’t have the right to copy someone’s work. Another thing that isn’t cute is pretending you have no idea what someone’s talking about. If your story opens with the main character fighting a Minotaur and killing it with its own horn, don’t lie to the audience and pretend that you’ve never read the Percy Jackson series. The readers are not stupid, don’t treat them as such. If you are inspired by another work or story, link the original at the end.

So that’s it. Next week we will post the final exam of Fanfiction 101. It’s comprehensive, covering all 9 units. The Editor and I want to first and foremost thank everyone for sticking with us and coming back every Sunday to see what we have to say. From two people who have read and written a lot of fanfiction, we wanted to share our knowledge and help whomever we could with simple mistakes and errors. Thank you, for reading. Our final exam is next week, and we will have one more post to discuss the future of Fanfiction 101. We’ll see you then.

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calleo-bricriu · 4 years

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What I want to see is what over 100 years old Calleo and his cards have to say about Voldemort.

The hell do I need cards for that for? I could just tell you outright but, then, I’m sure you’d be back at me going on about how that’s no fun at all.

In the distant past, they’d described him as a bullheaded, reactionary wank cloth who’s prone to having violent tantrums when he doesn’t get his way–I’m condensing that down rather a lot but that was the gist of it; perfectly charming sort until he gets the idea that you think he’s roughly as interesting as watching paint dry.

But, hey, people change and maybe when he’s ready to try again he’ll have improved somewhat.

Which, in his case, would more than likely manifest as just becoming more wildly unpredictable with his meltdowns and moods but, you’ve asked my cards, not me, so here we go.

I wonder if he still does that thing where he tries to go as long as humanly possible without blinking because he could do it indefinitely with a little transfiguration and charms work.

Where was I?

Ah! The cards.

(( Larger resolution image is here. ))

Hermit’s pretty self explanatory; he’s been isolated, and should you find him and ask him he’d likely tell you that it was on purpose and/or for the purposes of enlightenment, introspection and contemplation–hopefully around why he didn’t account for basic defensive Blood Magic but, most likely not that. I know I don’t like to dwell on it when I miss something basic, I like to forget I did that and move on while also keeping it tucked away in the back of my head so I don’t do it again.

I’m going to go ahead and ignore that, all around, when the Empress shows up it she often signifies a pregnancy and considering Voldemort, unless he gets incredibly creative with trying to get himself back into a body (or just possesses the first thing he can manage that’s human) is not likely the sort to be able to get pregnant, which leaves the third option of someone else…letting him…do that to them.

It can also mean that he’ll just make an effort to be a little more creative and inspirational to anyone stupid enough to show up for a second round and with his recruitment efforts but if I had to have the mental image of somebody not only fucking Voldemort but letting him knock the up so the rest of you–and I say the rest of you because I don’t know specifically which one of you asked for this reading so you all get to suffer.

And I don’t think it’s that second one as the Ace of Cups revolves around beginning again which, fair, if you’re half-resurrecting yourself–but it primarily focuses around fertility and pregnancy. Someone is going to let that man knock them up.

Ew.

Getting away from that horrifying set of mental images, the Eight of Wands indicates he’s going to be about as good at being patient and planning things out (complete with contingencies or alternate plans in case the main one fails) as he was the first time around which is to say, not at all. However, since the Ministry is staffed largely by what I can only assume are tranquilised bonobos in suits, nobody here is going to care. Or notice. I’ll notice, I’ve already noticed, but I have enough benzos from Muggle doctors that I legitimately do not care.Or, if they do notice, they’re going to pretend they haven’t so all the progress speed, action, momentum, all that nonsense, is only going to seem speedy to the people who haven’t been paying attention.

The rest of us will have seen it slowly coming since roughly 1982.

He’s got abandonment issues head to toe based on the Eight and Five of cups, which is a large part of what makes him dangerous as, instead of focusing on the cups that haven’t been knocked all over the place and using those to rebuild, all he’s likely to focus on will seem, on the surface, to be a political revolution but that’ll just be a thin and fragile veneer covering the fact that he’s a desperately lonely, fundamentally unhappy, nearly always frightened basket case and that manifests (as it often does) in violent outbursts and an undercurrent of wanting to make everyone else suffer the way he feels he was made to suffer.

That’s not even all that uncommon, you can see it to a much lesser degree anywhere in Knockturn if you stay there long enough or visit often enough.

Queen of Swords is likely to turn out to be his most dedicated defender, coming from a point of power obsession and pity, though if she’s got any brains she won’t ever mention she pities him as it might get her killed, and wants nothing more than to shield and protect him, keeping him from harm; also indicates that she’s married–well, it mentions it in the inverse as a divorce, which would make sense if she’s one of those sorts that were pushed into a family alliance sort of marriage that she never particularly cared to be a part of to begin with.

And, at some point, he may be able to shake off all that flailing about to somehow manage to convince the general public that he’s not that bad, and he’ll do so through gratuitous shows of generosity, charity, investing in community (the community he envisions, at any rate; some of you will have to be his diversionary scapegoats, after all), and while everyone is distracted by someone who’s likely to be able to walk into the Ministry and buy them off with false gratitude, making them feel valued, paying them well, displaying what comes off as fairness unless you scratch the surface, he’ll get to work doing what he wanted to do in the first place.

And what does he want to do in the first place? Get himself into a position where he’s well liked, respected, viewed in a positive light, as a good leader, as someone who is successful, committed, has clear goals, and will lead the Ministry to greater things. This is someone who wants to be loved without having to leave himself vulnerable in the process.

For awhile, he’ll get it, and it’ll seem solid.

It won’t last, however, not for long, because that Eight of Swords is going to leave him feeling trapped, restricted, and lashing out at anyone or anything who he even suspects of holding dissenting views through harsh punishments, executions, imprisonments, persecution, “trials” in front of the Wizengamot that were rigged from the start, and at that point he’ll be at two distinct paths he can take.

I do love the Two of Wands for letting things go in different directions.

First potential path: If he goes that route, he’ll be able to leverage what little political and social capital he’ll have left after that mess I just described and, with a little creativity, should be able to pull it all back together in a way that cements his socio-political views as the new, accepted norm and any rebellion against it won’t be able to gain the following it’d need to challenge him for decades to come.

Second potential path: Nine of Swords circles back to the Eight of Swords, only more intense. Terror, not just fear, seeing enemies everywhere, being the subject of gossip, the narrative of which he will not be able to control as it will be a moving and largely invisible target that is perfectly willing to martyr itself if it means his downfall. As a result, he’ll fall further and further into paranoia, nightmares, despair, and stress, leaving him with an inability to cope with the reality of the situation which will only circle back to him lashing out at anything that comes within range, regardless of who or what it is, and when he hits his breaking point he isn’t likely to survive it.

The card between those two paths, as I was curious as to which route the deck thought he’d take, is a reversed Star.

Hopelessness, despair, the inability to take responsibility for one’s actions being what led them to where they are, lack or loss of trust in those around him and in himself, feeling as though everyone, even his closest followers, are plotting against him.

Considering that, I suspect he’ll go the second route to hang out with the sword filled guy in an egg costume.

Let’s see if one overarching card will give some closure here, shall we?

Regret, refusing help from those who legitimately want to give it (back up a bit and re-read the bits that mention paranoia) because, as surprising as it may seem, there are people who genuinely do care for him–in their own, strange way–disillusionment, becoming even more self-absorbed and depressed, focusing on the fantasy in which he’s–apologies, but I’m going to jump back to how two of my former Archivists often described him–seen as something greater in terms of charisma, success, skill, and political success than Grindelwald.

I watched that mess rise to power and fall from it spectacularly, and my memory has more than enough clarity to state with certainty that the only things I’ve seen that Voldemort is better than Grindelwald at are:

1) Keeping himself out of prison.

2) Being ballsy enough to apply for that Defence Against the Dark Arts position looking the way he did when he got that interview. He had to have known what he looked like, unless he doesn’t cast a reflection anymore and nobody told him how off he looked. Just to note, it’s not that I think he’d have been unqualified for the position so much as he may have come off as only wanting it to use as a recruiting platform which is–one of those things you really need to hide until you’ve got tenure, or at least a signed contract.

3) Being repeatedly thwarted by children yet still having followers willing to both overlook it, stand there with a straight face while he probably blames his wand for it (because they all do, you find any Wizard over 60 that has a spell fail and the first thing you get is some variation of, “I swear this has never happened before! It must be the wand acting up!”), and continue to follow him despite the fact that all they’d really have to do is walk away and start telling people what he’s really like and it’d kill any chances of recruiting anything with any skill or ability to follow through.

4) Talking to snakes, allegedly. Not entirely sure how useful that skill would be but I suppose snakes probably have some interesting things to say now and again.

At any rate, Four of Cups almost guarantees he’s going the Nine of Swords route so it’ll get a bit hairy for awhile but whatever grip he gets on anything is going to be tenuous at best and even holding onto it with both hands his reach is likely going to exceed his grasp.

I never like to see raw talent wasted like that, and he does possess a great deal of raw talent as well as the intelligence to have made it, with right people around him, into something spectacular; it’s just been–misapplied and left in the hands of people who never did have his interests at heart, and it’s easy to take advantage of a kid like that. See it all the time in Knockturn.

Pity, really.

#v: ftbawtft #probably around #1994 #voldemort #(Old Calleo has Negative Fucks to Give about round three with a dark lord)#hp rp #tarot #divination

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crashdevlin · 6 years

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Bottle: Ch. 2 What I Aim For

Ch. 1

Author’s Note: Originally posted to ao3 (This is an edited and improved version), I work in info from the comics (Like Hawkeye was married to Mockingbird and Red Skull had a disappointing daughter) and I took a few liberties with what the scepter could do (but not really because the Mind Stone was used to create the Twins so what I did is not that far-fetched). This is a lot more angst than I realized when I wrote it, but it’s compelling angst.

Summary: Cassandra Campbell is a Stark Industries lab tech with dubious genetics and a history with the new Director of SHIELD. She’s been working in New York since right before the Chitauri invasion. What does she have to do with Loki, and what will happen when he returns? Starts post TDW and continues to the end of AoU.

Pairing(s): Phil Coulson x OFC (Past), Loki x OFC (Non-con), Clint Barton x OFC, Steve Rogers x OFC

Word Count: 4272

Story Warnings: So many, worst (to me) are bolded. Younger woman/older man relationship, non-con, mutilation, torture, mind control, PTSD, depression, alcoholism, forced abortions, bad things (non-con) in a church, insomnia, memory manipulation, eventual consensual oral sex (female and male receiving),

Chapter Warnings: non-con (past), mutilation (past), torture (past), PTSD, depression, alcoholism

"So, what are you?" Clint asked over his beer after they’d been sitting at the bar for a few minutes.

She didn’t look over at him. "What do you mean?" Cassie bit her lip.

"Loki doesn't go for human women. He thinks he's a God. He wouldn't have…” Clint looked forward, trying not to hurt her feelings as he continued to speak. “...claimed you if you weren't something special. And you seemed a bit too interested in your blood while you were in that fever dream."

Cassie sighed and downed the rest of her beer. "You were SHIELD so I guess I'll tell you. My father was a superhuman. Like Captain America, but... you know, more German.” She waved at the bartender and pointed at a bottle on the shelf behind the bar. The bartender moved to pour her a glass. “I wasn't anything special before Loki touched me with that staff. SHIELD did 10 years of extensive testing, but after... I'm the heir Hydra wanted me to be. I've been hiding it for a year. I'm not human, anymore. That's probably why he, you know, marked me." She finished.

"How'd that heal?" Clint asked, putting his hand up to order another beer.

"It scarred about as much as you can expect. If I wasn't science savvy, it would have been worse. Couldn't really go to the hospital without bringing about an investigation. I imagine all of your wounds were mental."

"Yeah. Mostly. Nat helped me with those… and shooting the ass with an exploding arrow helped a bit."

"Wish I could have seen that." She took a drink of her rum.

"Kinda." Clint finished for her. She nodded. "So, what did he say to you to make you go lab crazy?"

"He told me to live my legacy.” She cleared her throat. “Then he left and I was filled with this urge to recreate the serum that turned simple Steve Rogers into Captain America. I'm just glad I failed."

"I almost killed all of my friends and the one person I care the most about. I'm pretty happy I failed there."

"Well, cheers for failure." She offered her glass to him and he lightly touched his rim to hers.

He sighed and turned to look at her. "So, you hide well. You'd never know from looking at you that you're a super soldier."

She shook her head. "Not a soldier. Just super.” She chuckled, without humor. “But I appreciate that. It's a lot harder than it seems. Took me weeks of breaking beakers before I got used to my strength."

Clint gave a humming noise. "Maybe you should talk to Banner, he knows a lot about living with unnatural strength. He might even be able to help turn you back."

"No. I don't think so. It's not like he can go in and take Red Skull out of my genetics.” She shook her head again. “Besides, I'd really like for Captain Rogers to never know I exist. Two Avengers already know whose daughter I am, I don't need a third to know."

"Just think about it... or maybe you could tell Stark. He's pretty much a genius."

"I think I'd rather just drink a lot. Drink until I can't remember where my scars came from.” She downed the rest of her rum. “I mean, I don't see my liver shutting down any time soon. It was running at 100% last time I did my panel."

"Well, then, we're gonna need shots."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cassie wished she was drunk. Unfortunately, with her body working in optimal conditioning and her purse out of cash, she was only tipsy as Hawkeye walked her to her apartment building. He, however, was plastered.

"I feel like I should be walking you home, Barton." She said, softly.

"I'm fine. I'm’n Avenger. I can walk home drunk in New York City." He said, slurring slightly and tripping over her own feet, as they made it to her building.

She sighed as she talked herself into something completely out of character. "No, come on, Clint. You don't have a bow or a gun on you. You probably couldn't reliably shoot either of those things, anyway. I've got a pretty comfy couch and it's not like you've got work tomorrow. Just come up." She urged.

Clint looked up at the door to her apartment building where she was standing, then sighed and followed her into the building and let her help him up four flights of stairs. She grabbed a pillow off her bed and a blanket out of her closet and carried them to the couch. "Be careful with that blanket. It was a gift."

"From an ex?"

"From Phil Coulson." He nodded in understanding, before bending over to fumble with the laces on his boots. "Well... have a good-"

"Could I see it?" Cassie turned back to him. He had his shoes off and was sitting on the edge of the couch. "The scar… what he wrote?"

She swallowed, nervously, and shook her head a little. "I haven't... no one's seen it."

"Can't bottle everything forever. Can't keep your shirt on forever." He said, flippantly.

"I can keep it to myself." She whispered, and she planned to. She didn’t plan on anyone seeing her shirtless ever again and the idea of someone seeing her scars filled her with panic.

"But you shouldn't." He said, nonchalantly. Cassie couldn't help but be amazed at his drunken wisdom. It didn’t take away her fear, but it was just blase enough to force her to rethink it.

She swallowed, taking a steadying breath as she pulled the zipper of her jacket down. Her hands shook a bit as she fumbled with her blouse buttons. When she got her blouse partially unbuttoned, she let her arms rest over the fabric of her bra as her shirt hung loose and she sat on the edge of her wooden coffee table in front of Clint. He reached forward and she cringed slightly as he let his rough fingertips dance lightly across the scar tissue spelling ‘MINE’ across her left breast.

"He thought he was going to win and you would be just his." He said, before reaching up to trace the Asgardian runes along her collarbone. "What's the Viking scratches mean?"

"Um." Cassie had to battle her embarrassment and the anxiety coursing through her in order to speak. No one had seen her shirtless since Loki, no one with her consent since Phil. "This one is Lies... Deception, according to my Viking runes book. It'd be closest to Asgardian alphabet. This one is, like, King or God."

"His name?"

"His title, yes."

Clint reached over and rubbed a calloused hand lightly across her cheek. "At least he didn't scar your pretty face." He whispered before lightly slapping her cheek and lying back and covering himself with the green knit throw.

Cassie allowed herself to chuckle at her own expense as she walked into her room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cassie woke up at 6 am and quietly dressed for work, applying modest makeup before quietly leaving her room to start a pot of coffee. As she opened her door, a scent of bacon and coffee hit her. She'd been expecting to find Clint still asleep on the couch, but instead she found him leaning against her fridge, eating a BLT.

He smiled at her around a mouthful of food. "There's some bacon left in the pan. Coffee's ready."

"Thank you." She smiled politely at him.

"Best hangover cure ever." He said, gesturing with the sandwich.

"I know." She responded, nodding as she grabbed a mug from the mug tree on the counter. "It's mostly the sodium and the bread. I used to do that every Sunday morning.” She pulled open her fridge, having no trouble moving the archer out of the way with the door, and grabbed her french vanilla creamer. “I drank a lot once they finally let me out of the Fridge. I had a lot to celebrate... back then."

"Bet you haven't needed a BLT in a year."

She shook her head as she put the creamer back in the refrigerator. "No matter how much I drink. Just a bit of coffee gets me going."

"You know, there are laser treatments for scars now.” He popped the last bit of his sandwich in his mouth. “I'm sure Stark would pay for it if he knew Loki had done the damage... in Tony's own house." Clint said, brushing crumbs off his hands.

Cassie fought the urge to rub her hand across her scars. "Yes, but that would require questions and answers and an investigation and Stark wondering what happened to the security footage.” She took a drink of her coffee. “I'd rather just ignore it all and keep my shirt on."

"But you look so much better with it off." He said, with a small smirk.

Cassie could feel her cheeks flush deep red as she looked down at her coffee. "Was hoping you'd forgotten that part."

"I try not to forget grabbing a beautiful woman's chest."

She reached past him and grabbed 3 rashers of bacon from the pan. "You really are laying it on thick, huh? You keep making me blush, Barton, I really will look like my father." She said, forcing a bit of her old self to the surface.

"Sorry. Default." He said, with a chuckle. "Had to be charming or I never would have gotten girls."

"What, girls didn't find archery and arrow-making sexy when you were younger?"

"Do they now?" He asked, incredulously.

"Well, some badass archer helped save New York from an alien invasion. It's gone up a bit in popularity."

"I thought Iron Man and Captain America saved New York?"

"They do get a disproportionate amount of the publicity." She mused, her face returning to it's normal pale color again. She took several gulps of her coffee and turned to away from him.

"Maybe next time aliens attack, it'll be me and Nat with the glory."

"Maybe." She responded, placing her empty mug in her sink.

Clint leaned down next to her ear and quietly said, "Maybe it'll be you. You are a super now."

She turned and shook her head. "I don't know how to fight. The first Chitauri to find me would be the one to kill me."

"A little Ops training and you'd be fine."

She put her hand on his chest and gently pushed him away so she could walk out of her little kitchen. "I've kinda always seen myself as a Science and Technology person in SHIELD terms. Not really Ops material."

Clint scoffed. "You know, Ops agents aren't stupid. You can't be stupid and do what we do.” He put a hand up to quiet her next comment. “And before you bring up education, I have street smarts."

She bit her lip and raised an eyebrow. "I got my GED in the Fridge and I'm less than a year from my Bachelor's in Biology. You have none of that and you've been out in the real world your whole life."

"What do I need all that for? I'm a superhero." He said, smirking.

Cassie laughed as she grabbed her purse. "Okay, well, I gotta head to work. This isn't the best neighborhood and I only have the one set of keys, so if you could just... pull one of your superhero tricks and lock up when you leave."

"No.” He said, simply. “I'll pull one of my thief tricks for you, though."

She couldn't help but smile in amazement. "I think I'd like to have a conversation about your past one day, Clint. Unfortunately, I'm about to miss my train, so that day is not today."

"My number is in your phone. Call when you want a drink or conversation, or some Ops training."

"You don't quit, do you?"

"I always hit what I aim for, Campbell. You should know that about me." He winked at her as she headed for the door.

"Noted, Hawkeye. I'm out."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Cassie returned, her door was still locked. She walked to all of her windows and found each of them locked except the small window in her bathroom. She opened it to double check that there was no fire escape under it.

"Wow, he must've been a great thief." She muttered.

"He was. Until he grew a conscience and joined up with the Strategic Homeland blah, blah, blah." The voice coming from behind her stopped her dead. She felt frozen as her heart rate went through the roof, then immediately leveled out thanks to her enhancements. She forced herself to turn and look into her bedroom. She could feel herself shaking as she stared at Loki, standing in her bedroom next to her dresser. "Did you miss me?" He said, with a smirk.

Cassie's adrenaline called for her immediate response as she settled on flight, running for her bedroom door. She slipped, hitting the floor as Loki appeared in front of her. "Did you think I carved your skin for fun, Joanna? Did you think I would not be watching you, that I would not be coming back for you?"

She hugged her knees to her chest, intent to make herself as small as possible. He knelt down next to her crouched form. "You are mine. You have brought 2 men to your home within the last spin of your Earth. You will bring no more.” He demanded. “Not Clinton, not the SHIELD agent, none of the young males who fantasize about you in Stark's tower. You are mine. Do you understand me?"

"Yes." She whispered. "I understand." When no more threatening words came, she looked up to see that she was alone. Her mind racing, she pulled her phone from her pocket and started scrolling through her contacts. She got to an entry listed as 'Hawk' and dialed out.

"Clint... I think I'm losing my mind." She said, as soon as the call connected.

"What happened?" He asked, concern ringing through his words.

"I just had an LSD-grade hallucination.” She took a deep breath and scratched the back of her neck. “Loki was here. He was in my room. He told me that I was his and that he'd be coming back for me. He was so pissed off that you'd been over. Clint... I've never... it was so real."

"Look, I'm sure it's just stress.” He said in his calmest tone. “Do you want me to come down there, check the place out?"

"No!" She responded quickly and a little too loudly before covering. "No, he's not... he's not here. I would really like to be not here, too, though. Can I take you up on that drink offer?"

"Sure. There is a place near the Tower. Meet me at Stark's and we can head there together?"

"Thank you, Clint."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The prickly feeling on the back of Cassie's neck went down a bit as she approached the Tower and saw Clint leaning against the wall. "Hey."

"Hey. You okay?" Clint asked as she approached.

"Yeah.” She lied. “So, where are we headed?"

"Block East. Dive bar." Clint pointed down the street.

"Thank God. Let's go."

They walked in silence, Cassie just basking in the feeling of safety being around the hero gave her. Clint opened the door to the bar and held it for her. She walked in and wrinkled her nose at the smell, but walked to the bar, anyway. Clint ordered four shots of rum and handed two to Cassie, before leading her toward the back corner.

As soon as she could see the corner booth, she recognized the back of Tony Stark’s head sitting with his back to the wall. She turned, hoping to quietly leave, but Clint put his hand on her shoulder. "You don't have to talk to him, but I recommend it." He said, seriously.

She sighed and sat down in the booth across from Tony. She downed her two shots rapidly and reached for one of Clint's. Tony’s eyebrows raised as he looked at her. "Robin Hood says you have issues. You know, issues that I should care about as an Avenger, not as the guy who puts money in your wallet."

As Cassie downed the third shot, she closed her eyes. She couldn’t tell her boss this story while looking into his eyes. "When Loki showed up at the Tower, he hypnotised me with that staff. He... raped me and carved my chest up with Asgardian text but worse, he broke my DNA.” She slicked her lips and shook her head, trying to defeat the tears trying to form under her eyelids. “He unlocked whatever part of my father was inside of me. I've been hiding it for a year and tonight I think the stress has finally broken my mind because I saw him. I saw Loki and he was so pissed that I was trying to have a life again."

"So, what, you haven't donned a spandex suit and started working to clean up the Bronx, yet?" Tony quipped.

"Excuse me?" Cassie asked, her eyes opening in surprise.

"You don't see it this way, I'm sure, but this is a gift.” Tony assured her. “To hide it away and never use it is cowardice. Your father was such a horrible person that he stopped being human so that he could be more horrible. You've been running from his past since Hydra created you. Now, you have an opportunity to make up for his villainy, and your sister's, for that matter.” Cassie blinked at him for a few moments before Tony continued. “You're smart. I mean, you work for me, so that's a given. Now you're genetically revved up, you'd be a perfect addition to the Avengers."

Cassie shook her head. "There's two problems with that. The Avengers are a group brought together during a time of emergency by Nick Fury, who happens to be playing dead. And I can't work-"

"I can call the Avengers." Tony interrupted. "And if this is about Stars and Stripes, you'll be fine. You'd be surrounded by other superhumans, me in my suit and Katniss over there. Even our resident Russian has reason to keep Rogers on the straight and narrow, so you'd never have to worry about it. There is no reason for you to say 'no', here, and if you are seeing Loki, maybe he's not really dead. Maybe he tricked Thor with his out-of-character sacrifice, which actually makes a lot more sense when you think about it. Maybe he thinks you belong to him and he's coming to take what he wants and you better know how to defend yourself this time. No time like the present to start training."

She took a few deep breaths to steady herself. She had just assumed she was going crazy. She'd never considered that Loki might actually still be alive. She turned to Clint. "You really do hit what you aim for." She said, humorlessly.

"I did warn you." Clint said with a shrug.

"And you're gonna need to move into the Tower. Can't have an Avenger living in that shithole in the Bronx."

"You want me to move into the building where I spend 10 hours of my day working?" She asked, incredulously.

"It'd make for a shorter commute. Besides, it's not that bad. There are some one-bedroom condos on the floors beneath the Penthouse that I added for Avengers and employees in need. Since you would kinda count as both right now..."

"Sir. If I may speak as one Avenger to another... you talk too much."

"Pepper says that, too. I guess I really do like the sound of my own voice. Come on. One of you drink that and we'll head to the Tower. I have way too much money to let Avengers sit here and drink rat piss."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cassie stepped into the elevator next to Tony, who’d driven her to her apartment in a small, fast Maserati and helped her retrieve the things she wanted to take with her to her new place. She'd been in this elevator almost every day for months, but she'd never noticed that the buttons stop at 50.

"Okay, Jarvis. Take us to level 69."

"Right away, sir." A British-accented voice came through the speakers.

"Oh, so, that's how you get to the top of the building." She mused.

"Assuming I don't fly, yeah." Tony confirmed. A minute later, the doors opened up and Tony stepped out, Cassie following. "Which apartment is biggest?"

"6906, sir, by 152.8 square feet." Jarvis answered.

"All right. Print her up a card and give her access to the voice controls in the elevator. This one is yours." He said, opening her door and stepping inside.

Cassie stepped inside, setting the photo album and knit blanket that she'd retrieved from her apartment on a small table in the entrance hall. Her boots thudded on the hardwood floors as she walked into the apartment's living room. A small brown leather sofa and a recliner were arranged around an oak coffee table and in front of a wood and glass entertainment center. She could see a soundbar and a stereo alongside the 55 inch flat screen tv. The white shag rug under the coffee table was immaculate. She spun around a bit.

"Gas range in the kitchen. French door fridge. 1200 watt microwave. Some other stuff Pepper picked out. She tells me that we're gonna be dropping off some food in the morning. Some more of your clothes. This is all yours now. Only me, you, and Jarvis can open the door. Utilities paid, cable, WiFi… and this." He said, pulling a small metal orb with a tiny black button on it. "Loki comes to call, push the button and roll it to the middle of the room. It takes instant 360 panoramic pictures of the room and sends them to my tablet, suit, and phone. Wherever I am, whatever I’m doing, I will see what's happening. Hopefully, I'm not in my own fight at the time."

"Thank you, sir. I feel a lot safer here. And I'm not just talking about the pimp I lived next to who was always trying to recruit me."

"I could comment, but I'm choosing not to. Get some sleep. You have a lot to do in the lab tomorrow. And when you get done there, come down to B3 and Barton can start your training."

"Yes, sir."

"'Tony' is fine. Just not in front of the other lab rats."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cassie lay on top of the comforter in her new queen bed and wrapped the knit blanket around herself. She fell asleep quickly, considering she wasn’t drunk like she usually was, but she woke an hour later to see Loki standing in her bedroom doorway.

"My words just flow past you like dust, don't they?" He said, walking to the foot of her bed. "I came to you and reminded you to whom you belong, something I ought not have to do as I etched a daily reminder into your bosom. But I did it anyway, as assistance in you not further enraging me. Yet, the very first thing you do is call to Clinton. Then, you vacate the place I have allowed you to reside and lay here. Were I not so cynical, I would say you came here because of the wonderful memories of our oh so short time together. Alas, I am a realist and I can only assume that your new living arrangements have more to do with protection garnered from the metal man upstairs, than fond nostalgia for me."

Cassie grabbed the orb from under her pillow, pushing the button as she sat up, and discretely rolling it to the foot of the bed. "Please, don't hurt me."

"Hurt you? What gave you that idea? I don't want to hurt you, Joanna. Just like everyone else on Midgard, I just want to rule you."

Cassie looked around, hoping for Tony to show. "But I'm not like everyone else, am I? You didn't... carve any of the other Midgardians. You didn't.. I saw the footage of Germany. You barely looked at anyone there, except that old man who refused to kneel. You found me kneeling, cowering, so it wasn't the challenge. What is it about me, Loki? Why am I yours?" She asked, putting her hand over the scars on her chest.

"Because you're going to give me my army… and strong children, half superhumans, half Gods, who will succeed me.” Her eyes widened at the assertion. “You will be the Queen I never could have gotten on Asgard. The whole 'human Queen, halfling progeny' thing will make me a much more likable ruler to you Midgardians."

"You... what?" She asked, confused.

"I don't call you 'queen' lightly, Joanna. In my many centuries, I've only ever offered that term to you. You will be my queen, the creator and leader of my armies, until such time as your human blood rebels and leaves you cold."

"You made that decision in the two seconds it took you to pull me out from under the lab table?" She squeaked, an angry confusion forming in her chest.

"Oh, no, of course not. I knew about you before I ever stepped foot in this monument to Stark's narcissism."

"How?"

"Your new friend, Barton, knew all about you. He told me everything I needed to know, Joanna."

"That's not my name!" She shouted, swiping at him with her hand. He disappeared right as Tony opened her bedroom door, repulsor beams ready.

"You okay?"

#fanfic #avengers fanfiction #agents of shield fanfiction #angst #slight fluff #loki (marvel)#non-con #torture #alcohol as a crutch #steve rogers #clint barton #the avengers save the ofc

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grailfinders · 3 years

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Fate and Phantasms #133: Scathach (Assassin)

Today on Fate and Phantasms, we’re once again make Cu Chulainn’s teacher and professional old ha- I mean badass, Scathach! This time she’s an assassin, turning heads at the beach before turning them just a little bit more to snap their neck.

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

Next up: If love’s a crime, she’s guilty! (She’s also guilty of arson, but she swears it’s unrelated.)

Race and Background

Like the other summer servants, we’re not changing your race and background that much. You’re still a Half Elf, giving you +1 to Dexterity and Intelligence, as well as +2 to Charisma. You also get Darkvision, Fey Ancestry that makes you harder to charm and impossible to put to sleep, and Skill Versatility in two skills- We’ll get more of your beachy stuff later, so for now grab Athletics and Religion.

Like last time you’re still a Sage, giving you proficiency with Arcana and History.

Ability Scores

Scathach’s one of those people who’s good at everything, so we’ve got to turn to point buy for this one. Set your Charisma to 14 to set off a beach panic when you show up. Your Dexterity and Intelligence are both 13- Surviving fights in a bikini requires the former, but you’re also good at carving runes too. Your Wisdom and Strength are 12: Strength is necessary for a spear, but you’ve got daggers to tide you over for a bit. That being said you’re still pretty smart, even though it’s summer vacation. Finally, your Constitution is 10. We just need everything, and something had to fall in last place.

Class Levels

1. Fighter 1: First level fighters get a fighting style, and Thrown Weapon Fighting makes using thrown (or kicked) weapons less painful for you, but more painful for everyone else. You also get a Second Wind once per short rest for a bit of healing.

Finally, you’re proficient in Strength and Constitution Saves, as well as Acrobatics and Intimidation. Your star pupil still has physical and mental scars from your teaching style.

2. Wizard 1: The fighter levels makes your weapons better, but you still need an AC that isn’t bad, and that’s what we’re here for. First level wizards get first level Spells that they can cast and prepare with their Intelligence, as well as an Arcane Recovery, letting you recharge spell slots on a short rest with a total level equal to half your wizard level rounded up.

For cantrips, you get Sword Burst to summon multiple Gae Bolgs, and True Strike to be slightly better with just one. You get more spells than this, but your important ones are Mage Armor, to make your AC less bad, and Charm Person for more beach panic.

3. Wizard 2: Your second level of wizard makes you a Bladesinger once more, giving you performance proficiency, as well as a Bladesong. A number of times equal to your proficiency bonus per long rest, you can start a bladesong that lasts a minute. While active, you can add your intelligence modifier to your AC and Concentration saves, get 10′ extra walking speed, and have advantage on dexterity checks. That means your AC, with bladesong and mage armor, is now 16. Not bad for a bikini.

4. Wizard 3: Third level wizards get second level spells. Enhance Ability will help make up for how MAD this build is, and Magic Weapon will make your Gae Bolg a little more special.

5. Fighter 2: Back in fighter now, this level gives you an Action Surge, letting you take a second action in a single turn once per short rest. Multitasking is useful.

6. Fighter 3: Third level fighters get a martial archetype, and the Rune Knight will give you plenty of rune magic that won’t bother with spell slots. You become a Rune Carver, letting you learn two runes at this level and apply them to weapons, armor, or other objects at the end of a long rest. These runes grant benefits to whoever wields them, and they last until your next long rest.

Right now you get the Stone rune, enhancing your darkvision and giving you advantage on insight checks. Also, once per short rest you can invoke the rune, forcing a wisdom save on a creature nearby. If they fail, they’re charmed for up to a minute, becoming incapacitated and having 0 movement. It’s not quite stunned, but you have effectively removed someone from the game until they succeed on their save.

You also get the Cloud rune, giving you advantage on Sleight of Hand and Deception checks, to make this assassin build more... assassiny. You can also invoke this rune once per short rest to redirect an attack within 30′ of you.

Finally, you gain Giant Might, spending a bonus action to transform yourself for a minute a number of times per long rest equal to your proficiency bonus. You become Large, have advantage on strength checks and saves, and deal an extra 1d6 damage once per turn.

7. Fighter 4: When you finally get your first Ability Score Improvement, spend it on some more Strength for better stabbing.

8. Fighter 5: Fifth level fighters get an Extra Attack each attack action, giving you plenty of opportunity to test out that new strength. They say experience is the best teach. Well, second best.

9. Rogue 1: Yes, yes, it’s another 3-class build. As a rogue you get Persuasion proficiency, as well as Thieves’ Cant, a language. You also get a Sneak Attack, extra damage you can add to an attack with a ranged or finesse weapon once per turn. Thrown weapons are ranged, but if your DM doesn’t subscribe to the Red Hare School of Archery you can always just use a dagger. Remember, you don’t have to use dexterity for the attack, just make it with a ranged or finesse weapon.

Finally, you get Expertise in Acrobatics and Persuasion, making you a true gem of the beach, and also making scorpion kicking spears into people slightly less of an unrealistic fighting style.

10. Rogue 2: Second level rogues get a Cunning Action, letting you dash, disengage, or hide as a bonus action. Between this and your action surge, you can get a lot done in a turn.

11. Rogue 3: At third level, you become a Swashbuckler. Your Fancy Footwork makes it so creatures you attack can’t make opportunity attacks against you for the rest of the turn. Also, your Rakish Audacity adds your charisma to your initiative, and you can make sneak attacks against creatures if no other creatures are within 5′ of you or it, and you are in melee range.

12. Rogue 4: Use this ASI to bump up your Intelligence for a stronger bladesong and spells.

13. Rogue 5: Fifth level rogues can use their reaction to make an Uncanny Dodge when attacked, halving the damage you take. If you’re the only one in a campaign wearing a bikini, you’ll probably need that.

14. Rogue 6: Use your second round of Expertise to enhance your Arcana and History. Even in the middle of summer you’re not a slacker.

15. Rogue 7: Once again Evasion rears its head, meaning your failed dex saves now deal as much damage as someone else’s successes, and your successes do no damage at all. Again- bikinis won’t stop a fireball, it’s better to just not get hit at all.

16. Rogue 8: Use this ASI for more Strength again, giving you a more powerful Gae Bolg.

17. Rogue 9: Your final level of rogue gives you Panache, an action to make a persuasion check against a creature’s insight. If you succeed, one of two things happen: hostile creatures have disadvantage on attacks against people other than you, lasting up to a minute, until another ally jumps into the fray against them, or you two are separated. Nonhostiles become charmed for a minute or until your team does anything harmful to it. Nothing quite like sowing a bit of beach chaos!

18. Fighter 6: Finishing things off in fighter gives you another ASI, which we’re putting into Constitution for some more HP and and stronger runes.

19. Fighter 7: Your penultimate level grants you a Runic Shield, using your reaction to force a re-roll on an attack. You can use this a number of times per long rest equal to your proficiency bonus. You also learn how to carve a Storm Rune, giving you advantage on Arcana checks, and you can’t be surprised. As a bonus action, you can invoke the rune to enter a propehetic state. While in that state you can use your reaction to grant advantage or disadvantage on attack rolls, saves, or checks. Like all the others, you can do this once per short rest.

20. Fighter 8: Your final level gives you another ASI, and another boost to your Constitution. Again, not the flashiest way to end a build, but it’s always useful.

Pros:

Your runes give you a leg up on your skill checks, and even more in character, you can give those runes to others, effectively becoming their teacher.

Your swashbuckler skills and Cloud rune combine to make you effective at shutting down enemies, letting you affect the flow of battle as you see fit.

Sneak attacks are good, especially when you have multiple attacks to fish for them with. You can deal a pretty good amount of damage each turn if you want to.

Cons:

Without your bladesinging or magic, your AC is pretty bad. Turns out bikinis aren’t always the most practical outfit for adventuring.

The most in-character weapon you’ve got is a spear, and that only just barely works within the rules. If you’re willing to swallow your pride and just use daggers this won’t be an issue, but if you were okay not playing Scathach in your DND game you wouldn’t have read all this crap, would you?

This build is SUPER MAD. If you really wanted this build to get off the ground at all, it’d be best to save it for an incredibly unlikely set of die rolled stats.

#fate grand order #fgo #D&D 5e #Scathach #Fate and Phantasms #Rogue #Fighter #Wizard

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solarbird · 6 years

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The Armourer and the Living Weapon, Chapter 9: the safest way

This chapter is worksafe. [AO3 link]

Lena strapped herself into the pilot's chair and hit the fastest takeoff sequence she'd ever hit, jetting away from Oasis airspace at the best speed her flyer could manage. She checked tracking on Oilliphéist's flyer, headed towards Vienna, and found it still en route, as promised.

Next to her, Widowmaker sat, contemplative, calculating silently for several minutes. Finally, she turned to Lena and said, "I agree. It is the safest way."

Lena reached over and touched her hand, gently, then took it in her own. "I know this is a lot to ask. I know what it means. Thank you."

She pulled up Overwatch comms, and gave her lover another worried glance. "They sure aren't going to expect this..." She hit transmit, and thumbed the manual microphone switch. "Overwatch, Overwatch, this is Tracer Delta Echo Four Five, declaring emergency, do you read? Overwatch, this is Tracer Delta Echo Four Five, declaring emergency, do you read?"

Nothing. She repeated the call. Nothing again, until, "Tracer Delta Echo Four Five, this is Winston, Lena - is that you? Really you?"

Lena took a relieved breath. "At least he's answering." She hit comms again. "Winston, this is Tracer Delta Echo Four Five, we are declaring emergency. We are outbound from Oasis at best speed with good fuel supply. We have just got away from Moira O'Deorain and we need..." She swallowed. "We need destination and arrival protocol for any facility capable of immediate force quarantine on touchdown. Something that could hold me... and Widowmaker both."

"Understood. Do not approach Gibraltar under any circumstances. Please confirm - do not approach Gibraltar. We will fire. Can you provide a locator beacon?"

"Locator beacon active. Do not approach Gibraltar... confirmed and understood."

There was a long wait, and they were almost to Greek airspace when they finally got another response. "Tracer Delta Echo Four Five, this is Winston. Prepare to receive destination and approach information."

"Winston, Tracer Delta Echo Four Five ready."

The data streamed in. She looked at it twice, and then again. "Overwatch from Tracer... Winston... this takes us back to Oasis."

"Tracer Delta Echo Four Five, that destination is correct."

"But..."

"Tracer Delta Echo Four Five, this is Mercy. I have special facilities at Oasis."

"But... Moira!"

"You may not like to hear this, but... she was with Overwatch, once. We have an agreement. She stays on her part of town; I stay on mine."

Lena didn't like it - but the channel was valid, and the encryption was solid, and she swallowed, and accepted it. "Overwatch, Tracer Delta Echo Four Five acknowledged. Setting course and flight plan."

"Thank you," replied the doctor. "Now - tell me everything you know about the last two weeks."

-----

[day one]

Tracer and Widowmaker stepped out of their flyer, both with hands behind their heads, fingers interlaced, the unloaded Kiss on Lena's back, Lena's accelerator turned off, Lena's new pistols - and her old ones - in plain view, leaning on the wall next to the hatch behind them.

"Are you unarmed?" they heard, from behind the bright lights greeting them. Lena couldn't help but smirk a little, as she discovered Moira hadn't lied about her new vision - she could see everything, bright and dark, even if it was a bit low-contrast.

"We're unarmed, as agreed," she replied, looking directly at Dr. Ziegler. She leaned a little to her lover, and asked, quietly, "You always seen the world like this?"

"I imagine so, yes," Widowmaker replied, just as quietly. "Despite everything, it is... pleasant that we now share the view."

"Please stop talking, and walk forward single-file, Tracer ahead of Widowmaker. You will be sedated but will not be harmed. Do not resist, or we will open fire."

Winston watched the two women walk forward from behind the shields, catching the copper glint of Tracer's eyes in the spotlights' glare.

I failed you, Lena, he thought, shuddering. I guess the only question is... whether anyone in there will let me beg your forgiveness.

-----

[day two]

"Physically, we're focusing mostly on the brain and nervous system changes, of course. Both of their nervous systems have been extensively reworked - my staff and I think that would've required that week they're missing."

"And... psychologically?" Winston asked, trying to keep himself as clinical as possible, and only partially succeeding.

"Tracer" - Angela wouldn't call her 'Lena,' not yet - "has been taking a series of psychological profile tests and memory examinations. So far, she's giving the same results she gave before. But these would also be the easiest to fake."

"And Widowmaker?"

"We know far less. Obviously, she doesn't score similarly to Amélie at all, and biologically, she's ... not human. But we have the scans I took when we granted her sanctuary, and those are fairly detailed. We're seeing changes, but so far, nothing out of line with what they both described."

"Well, that's good, at least."

The doctor shook her head. "It's expected. No, if they've done anything not obvious, we'll have to dig for it. Probably quite deeply."

-----

[day three]

Widowmaker - very much not Danielle, not here - nodded. "So, physically, I seem to be largely the same as I was two weeks ago?"

"Yes," concurred the doctor, through 20cm of transparent barrier. "Other than the nervous system changes. Are you noticing any differences I have not yet found?"

The assassin smirked, and reached over for a pair of dice from one of the board games they'd been allowed in their room - at least, she thought, they're letting us be together - and rolled the numbers two through 12, then 12 through two, then odd numbers, then even, all in rapid sequence. "I could already do this, before, but it's much easier, and more reliable. They'll never allow me at the craps tables in Monaco again."

-----

[day four]

Tracer looked at the doctor and her friend Winston through copper eyes. "So I'm not bugged?"

"Or in any danger of vanishing," Winston replied. "I'm still studying what she did, both to you and to the accelerator vest, but on the whole, it's still all my work, just componentised." Keep it clinical, he reminded himself. Nothing... personal. Not yet. "I'd even thought of moving the core like she did, after Numbani, but I'm not certified for medical devices."

"Much of it is surprisingly conservative, for her," added Dr. Ziegler. "The lung function improvements are meaningful, but known technology, already applied to people with damaged brachial systems - the only advancement is that it's now part of your genetics, and will grow back if damaged. The eye work..."

"What she said about my retinas, was that true?"

Angela snorted. "Not entirely untrue - statistically, with your history, there is a ten percent chance of what she described. But I could repair it, outpatient, in under an hour - and grow you an entirely new retina in a day. It was an excuse."

Tracer nodded. "I could see everything, at landing. Even in the bright lights. I could see the lenses in the lamps, and I could see you, and the guards, in shadow... so... there's that, at least."

"That work is largely her own. But it's much the same as Widowmaker's - and you aren't 'bugged' there, either."

"Well, that's a start."

"As for the nerve conductivity... we're still studying that. Can you do Widowmaker's dice trick?"

The pilot smirked, picked up a bunch of dice from one of the games, and threw them into the air in front of her. She bounced them around on her fingertips for a couple of seconds, fingers moving at blinding speed, keeping them all airborne, until she let them land.

16 dice from a Boggle set landed in a line, spelling TRACER OWNS THE SKY.

"Luv," said the former test pilot, "You have no idea."

-----

[day five]

Lena and Widowmaker looked up from their dinner at a soft knocking at the clear glass wall.

"I thought they were finished with us for the day," said the sniper.

"So'd I," replied Tracer, nervously.

"Relax - it's just me," said a familiar voice - Winston's - over the speaker. "I'm not really supposed to be here, but I'm not really not supposed to be here, either, so..."

"Hey, big guy," Lena said, turning to the window, surprised when the room behind it lit up fully. "What's up?"

"I couldn't..." Winston looked at Lena's copper eyes, and managed not to flinch. I'll never get used to that, he thought. "I couldn't go another day like we have been," said the scientist. "I had to talk. Just... talk."

Widowmaker raised an eyebrow. "I would offer privacy, but obviously, I cannot."

"No... Am... Widowmaker, you're included. I failed you too, after all. McCree and I both. We were your backup, and we weren't there when we needed to be... in your case, twice."

"No," said Widowmaker. "Only once, for myself. Once also, I suppose, for Amélie, but - that was her."

The gorilla nodded. "Either way - an apology won't cut it, it's not good enough. I reached the apartment ... not even a minute too late. Maybe not even 45 seconds. But still too late."

"Wouldn't've helped," said the teleporter, "if you'd got there sooner. The video from Guillard wasn't even half of it. She and Moira would've taken you down in a second flat."

"Maybe, or, maybe not," he insisted. "I'm pretty hard to knock out - all this hair has some real advantages. A neck dart wouldn't even reach my skin."

"In which case, Oilliphéist may well have killed you," said the assassin. "She's fully capable, and was on mission - with her current conditioning, that would've overruled everything else."

He frowned. "She could try."

"Don't underestimate her, luv," said the teleporter. "We did, and, well, here we are."

Winston's head fell, and he chuffed, quietly. "I saw the flyer leaving - not clearly enough to get a registration number, but I knew you both had to be on it." He closed his eyes. "I tried to pursue, but..."

"Diplomatic vehicle?" asked the assassin.

"Yes."

"Figures," nodded the teleporter. "Given where we ended up."

"There's so much I'm not supposed to say... so much I wish I could say. But I can't. Not 'till Angela's team is done with you. But I can say I'm sorry."

Lena walked over to the window, and put her hand against the glass. "I know, big guy. It's not your fault - we all underestimated them both. But... thanks."

Winston put is hand up opposite Lena's, and said nothing.

"So... how's Jesse? Wids told me Moira left him alive."

"Or so she said, before I was sedated."

Winston did not grimace, or frown, but also did not smile. "Can't talk about that, yet. Sorry. I don't know why, but it's off limits."

"Well, for what it's worth, I have t'tell ya, from my end... I feel same as I ever was."

"As do I. I choose to think Emily's protection had weight. She certainly thought it did."

"I am desperately hoping all three of you are right."

"So'm I, luv," Lena murmured. "So'm I."

-----

[day seven]

"This is actually the eighth time we've let you out," the doctor said, breezily.

"Wot?" said Lena, confused. "I don't remember..."

"You wouldn't. I've been keeping you from making long-term memories. I'm sorry, but... we had to see how you'd react to a variety of scenarios. Just because I couldn't detect anything..."

Lena nodded, glancing over at Widowmaker, who was just putting on her boots.

"This time's for real, though. We've got a welcome-back dinner..." she looked at the woman who had been made from Amélie Lacroix, "...and in your case, a welcome dinner. You've helped bring Lena back to us, and we are grateful."

The blue assassin smirked, and then, relaxed just a little, and almost smiled. "I... admit I am surprised. But thank you."

The three women made their way outside the cell, and down the hallway, towards the dining hall. Angela's personal research institute wasn't an Overwatch facility - not technically - but it had a lot in common with one.

"Lena!" Winston bounded over to the small woman as she lead the way into the mess hall. "I'm so glad you're finally out. We've been so worried."

She hugged the big gorilla and fuzzled his hair. "Oh, us too, luv. When we found out we'd been out of it for over a week... hoo."

"I've gone over and over what she's done to your accelerator - particularly the distance-teleport functionality. It's not a bad solution, I have to admit. I could build a variant of it into our drop ships. As an area effect with main drive power behind it, you could teleport at will, as long as you stayed in range." He scratched his ear. "I wish I could've done it myself. But trying to rebuild the core into a medical-safe housing - well, like I said. It's not my area of expertise."

Lena grinned and noogied her friend, and looked around the table. Wow, everyone turned up! She ran from person to person, as Widowmaker stood in the background, a little afraid to come forward until Lena made her. "I can't believe you've all made it all the way out here - Ana, you too?"

"We're not so far from Egypt, and it was worth the trip," said the older sniper. "Hello again, Widowmaker. Or may I call you Danielle? Your codename has... unpleasant associations, for me."

"I am well used to it, so..." she shrugged. "If it makes you feel better, then I do not mind."

Halfway through dinner, Widowmaker realised she couldn't remember what she'd had to drink. She looked over at Tracer, externally calm, and asked, "...do you remember the first course?"

Lena blinked, and looked down at her food. What had she eaten? Wait. How'd we get here from containment? What... She blinked, scared, and looked around.

Dr. Ziegler sighed. "Ah, you've noticed. I'm sorry, Lena. I lied. This is the eighth scenario. You won't remember it either, but if it helps, it was the last. The next time will be for real."

-----

[day 11]

Over dessert, Tracer realised she couldn't remember what she'd had as a main course. She looked over at Widowmaker, suddenly afraid. "...do you remember the entree?"

Widowmaker blinked, and looked down at her wine. What had she eaten? And what is this wine? "...how... how did we get here from our cell?"

Dr. Ziegler nodded. "It took longer for you to notice than usual. I'm sorry, Widowmaker, but - I lied. We're testing your reactions to various Overwatch personnel in various situations, and this is the fifteenth scenario. You won't remember it either, but... if it helps, it was the last. The next time will be for real."

-----

[day 14]

"We've definitely beaten them back on our side," Tracer said into comms, Talon agents retreating to their ship. "They're in full retreat. Widowmaker took out their... uh... when they... um..." She shook her head and looked up to her sniper, three stories above, who was looking just as confused. "Hey..." she looked around. "How'd we get out of..."

Mercy flew over in full Valkyrie mode, healing field enveloping them both. "Tracer, Widowmaker - I see you've started dropping memories. I'm sorry; I lied, before. This has been a simulation; we're testing your reactions to various situations, and this is the 21st scenario. If it helps... we're done. The next time you wake up, it'll be for real."

-----

[day 15]

Over her latest pint, Tracer realised she couldn't remember how many she'd had. She didn't think it was that many, and she looked over at Widowmaker, confused. "...how much have I had to drink?"

Widowmaker blinked, and looked up from her sherry. She didn't usually drink sherry, but this wasn't bad. But... "...how... how did we get here from containment?"

Dr. Ziegler, sitting next to them, leaned across. "I'm sorry, Lena, but - I lied. We're testing your reactions to various Overwatch personnel in various situations, and this is the 24th scenario. You won't remember it, but... if it helps, it was the last. The next time will be for real. And this time, I actually mean it."

"...how many times have you said that?" asked Lena.

"I've lost count."

-----

[day 17]

"I've got a few more scenarios to run, but after that, I think I've done everything I can do."

Winston nodded. "She seems all right to me, given everything. Same old Lena." He'd started to let himself hope.

Angela leaned forward, looking down a little, and tapped a finger nervously against the conference table's white surface. "To me, as well... I think... But there is something my grandmother used to say, from when she worked in computer security, and it is - what is the expression? Chewing on me?"

"I thought your whole family were biologists or doctors," said Mei-Ling, surprised.

"Most of them," Angela replied. "It is something of a family tradition. But my father's mother was an early computer developer. And a long time ago, in the old days of the Internet, they had a saying - "you can never know, for sure, that you haven't been hacked. You can only know, for sure, that you have."

"And you think that applies here." Morrison pondered the implications of that.

"It clearly does. At least they were not held long - that limits what could've been done. I can say that I am confident they will not turn on us, at least, not quickly, but... we should not take ours eyes off either of them. Not for some time."

-----

[day 18]

Ugh, thought Lena, waking up on her and Widowmaker's bunk. At least it was shared. She reached over and touched her lover's shoulder. Two weeks. As cells go, it's comfortable, but I'm goin' nuts.

She heard a knock outside the cell, and the chime of the intercom. "Are you awake yet?" Winston said, over the speaker. "Or, I guess, really, are you... decent?"

Widowmaker blinked herself awake, and had the presence to reply, "Never, Winston - at least, not if I can help it. Are you bringing breakfast?"

"Lena, Danielle, please be serious," came Dr. Ziegler's voice. Danielle? thought the Widowmaker. "I am Danielle again?"

"Yes," returned the intercom. "You don't remember, but you said that was acceptable. I apologise for that - and shouldn't've used it before showing you the video. May we enter?"

Lena sat up, slowly, shook her head, and pulled on a tank-top. "Wids?" The blue assassin still had her bedshirt from last night, put it on, and nodded. "C'mon in - not like we could stop you anyway..."

The door unlocked, and it opened, and Winston and Angela did not step in. Instead, Winston had a big grin, the one he used when he was trying to be happy, and was, a little, but not as much as he wanted to be, contrasting against Angela's smaller, but more genuine smile. "Get your clothes and come on out. You're cleared."

"...What?" blinked Lena. "We've... checked out?"

Angela nodded. "I've done everything I can, and we've run you through ... a lot of scenarios that you do not remember. But I have video of all of them, so you can know all of what happened."

"Why... why don't we remember them? What'd you do?" asked the Overwatch agent.

"Kept you from forming long-term memories, so we could run each trial fresh. Welcome back dinners, nights out at a bar with the team and with individuals, emergency situations, even a few combat trials, to make sure you wouldn't change targets... a lot of tests. But nothing else was blocked - just the tests."

Widowmaker scowled, as Tracer nodded, slowly. "Hoooooo... that's scary, luv, gotta say it. But... if it's what y'had to do, it's probably for the best y'did it. Particularly," she said, stepping out into the hallway, "...given what I'm gonna to propose we do." She grimaced. "Despite who we'd be working with."

"You just viscerally dislike Dr. O'Deorain, don't you. It's a physical repulsion. I've never seen you react like that to anyone else."

Tracer snorted. "As soon as I met her. Can you blame me?"

"No." She shrugged. "I've always found her rather personable - it's her ethical standards I can't tolerate - but had she put me through the same things, I'm sure I'd feel the same way as you."

"I've never liked her," Winston added. "So I'm on your side of this one."

Lena grinned at her friend and exchanged a quick fistbump with the gorilla as Widowmaker appeared behind her at the doorway. "Must Lena still retain custody of my Kiss, while on site?"

"I'm sorry, but yes, and it remains unloaded." Tracer reached over, and squeezed Danielle's hand, as the doctor continued. "Also, Lena... for the moment, your pistols need to stay on the flyer. It's not that we don't trust you, it's that... well... we want to give that more time before deciding there won't be any surprises."

"Na, luv, I get it. S'long as nobody shoots at me if we get raided by Talon and I grab my guns."

"Do we have authorisation to resume contact with the outside world? Emily - Oilliphéist - is expecting to hear from us."

"Absolutely. Except for weapons, you're cleared for the facility. You may use the same transmitter as you used before."

"Thank you. Lena, we should do that."

"Yeh. Winston, you comin'?"

"Sure," said the scientist. "Breakfast first? The whole team is here. Everybody's waiting in the dining room."

Lena shook her head - that sounded almost familiar, somehow - and looked at Widowmaker inquisitively, and her partner shrugged. "Why not?"

"Then - yeah!"

#talon!emily #gingerspider #widowtracer #overwatch #tracemaker #tracermaker #widowmaker #angela ziegler #winston #emily oilliphéist gardner #oilliphéist #moira o'deorain #tracer #lena oxton

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cyberkevvideo · 4 years

Text

Throne of Night Theory Builds Extras Part 2: The Aquatic Drow and Companion

This build come about by pure coincidence. I had been searching around for more art by Michael and then I came across this. At the time it never dawned on me that it was without the Fire Mountain Games on it. All I saw that Michael’s name and website attached. As such, this is an extra build that wasn’t part of the “Throne of Night” AP. At least, it doesn’t appear to be. That didn’t stop me from coming up with a build though.

I honestly have no idea what this art was originally meant to go with. The site I found it on has since closed, but thankfully I found the art before it disappeared completely and was able to save it to my Pinterest folder so I could use it at a later date.

If anyone knows, please tell me the origin of this picture/what its intended use was. It’s really cool to look at.

After looking over the build, be sure to read my final words regarding how things may or may not go after this and “Throne of Night” in the future.

I will say that I do have one more planned entry for the “Throne of Night” AP, but it’s not regarding a build or anything like that. It’s something I’ve been putting together with other game designers and a few players. It was something far too big for me, so I invited others I trusted the opinions of. I’m not sure how long it’ll take before I do that particular post though. We’ve already been working on it for a week, and it hasn’t seen much conclusion so far.

As always, for space reasons, I’ll be cropping the encounter build.

All images shared here were done by the forever fantastic and amazingly talented Michael D. Clarke, aka SpiralMagus

I do not have a Patreon or a Kickstarter, but I do have a Ko-Fi page (linked) for those who are looking to support me monetarily. There is no pressure or obligation to do so.

Finally, before I get to it, I hope everyone’s staying safe right now.

When I found this picture, I had just started up the builds for Book 5, when the PCs were traveling the Sunless Seas, and I absolutely thought this was someone who would aid the party in discovering what happened to all the kidnap victims, and not a random picture that was meant to be used for something else entirely separate from this AP. Well, for the purposes of this build, that’s its new intended designation.

The best part is because this build is completely extra, that means it’s entirely for fun and doesn’t need to conform to the OGL rules that the others would have to. To publish sources outside the official company, you need special permission to use non OGL material, or reproduce everything in its entirety. For example, a feat that’s not OGL would need to be placed in a side bar on the same page, a nearby page, or at the back of the book. In my experience, when I first started, I unfortunately put a publisher or two in that predicament without realizing. I’ve since been told what consequences my actions have had with their books. It’s not necessarily a problem, but it does add unnecessary word counts to books that tight printing guidelines, so I knew there’s no way Gary would put himself in the position. But this? All bets are off, and it was fun to colour outside the lines, even if just a little.

I will say that had I not figured out that this wasn’t AP related, I had honestly considered doing a summoner build with the eidolon looking like a variant version of the hippocampus. Why? Because the drow had read up on them, they seemed cool, and she really wanted one. Instead, we get a druid and her actual hippocampus. I’m surprisingly happy about this change.

Despite this being a Book 5 build, she’s only a CR 15. The PCs are supposed to be level 14-16 during this time, and I didn’t want to make her so powerful that she’d be capable of possibly soloing encounters on the PC’s behalf. I mean, she is a controller type build with lots of summoning potential, and doesn’t really involved with fights personally, although she’s still capable in her wild shape.

Unlike the gug slave, who is meant to fight the party first, then be won over and unleashed upon its slavers, this drow is meant to be an ally right out of the gate. An ally that might be willing to share her discovery of a secret area that might just eventually lead to the sealed doors of the trapped demigod lich.

Slight tangent: Book 7 was going to be an “extra adventure” that was unlocked in the Kickstarter, where you discovered the demigod lich and apparently gained his phylactery and became a lich as well? Maybe stole the lichdom? I honestly wish I could say that anything regarding that encounter or discovery of location is mentioned anywhere, but sadly it’s not. At least not that I ever found. Just art for the phylactery, the lich, and the lich disintegrating? Losing power? You can see more of that in my Phylactery Guardian build. What was seen, however, was when Gary released the “world map”, there’s a spot all unto itself called the Hidden Sea. It’s my belief that that’s where the lich resides. Sadly, with the Fire Mountain Games site gone, so it the map. Thankfully, a much smaller, resized one was put up on /tg/, renamed “Underground Seas map.“

As for this drow’s story, she’s just a drow that loved the Sunless Seas, and felt drawn to it, and wanted to explore it during her younger years. A few years ago, she discovered a wounded hippocampus that had somehow been swallowed up by the above waters and dragged down the underground seas. She saved it, nursed it back to health, and they’ve been inseparable ever since.

QUILDAN BAENERVS (CR 15; 51,200 XP) Female drow aquatic druid 16 CN Medium humanoid (aquatic, elf) Init +2; Senses darkvision 120 ft.; Perception +8 DEFENSE AC 18, touch 13, flat-footed 16 (+4 armor, +1 deflection, +2 Dex, +1 shield) hp 111 (16d8+32) Fort +13, Ref +10, Will +18; +2 vs. enchantments Defensive Abilities deep diver, resist ocean’s fury +4; DR 8/slashing or piercing; Immune sleep; SR 21 Weaknesses light blindness OFFENSE Speed 30 ft., swim 30 ft. Melee +1 shortpear +15 (1d6+3/x3) Ranged mwk light underwater crossbow +15 (1d8/19–20) or +1 shortpear +15 (1d6+3/x3) Special Attacks wild shape (level –2) 7/day Druid Spells Prepared (CL 16th; concentration +22) 8th—earthquake, word of recall 7th—animate plants, heal, mass cure moderate wounds 6th—antilife shell, greater dispel magic, mass bear’s endurance, mass bull’s strength 5th—animal growth, blessing of the salamander, cure critical wounds, death ward, raise animal companion 4th—atavism, echolocation, freedom of movement, rusting grasp, thorn body 3rd—cure moderate wounds, greater longstrider, thorny entanglement (R-DC 19), water breathing (already cast on companion), wind wall 2nd—aquatic cavalry, barkskin, beast speak, resist energy, tar ball 1st—blend, bristle, goodberry, heightened awareness, speak with animals, wave shield 0 (at will)—detect magic, guidance, mending, read magic Spell-like Abilities (CL 16th; concentration +18) Constant—endure elements (cold only) 1/day—dancing lights, darkness, faerie fire STATISTICS Str 14, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 8, Wis 22, Cha 14 Base Atk +12; CMB +14; CMD 27 Feats Augment Summoning, Divine Interference, Evolved Companion (cold resistance), Monstrous Mount, Monstrous Mount Mastery, Mounted Combat, Natural Spell, Spell Focus (conjuration) Skills Handle Animal +15, Heal +13, Knowledge (geography) +8, Knowledge (nature) +10, Perception +17, Ride +14 (+16 to stay in the saddle), Spellcraft +6, Survival +14, Swim +14; Racial Modifiers +2 Perception, +8 Swim Languages Druidic, Elven, Undercommon SQ aquatic adaptation +8, amphibious, poison use, nature bond (companion), nature sense, natural swimmer, timeless body, wild empathy (aquatic or water subtype only) +10 Combat Gear lesser extend metamagic rod, wand of air bubble (5 charges), wand of cure light wounds (39 charges); Other Gear +1 wild studded leather, darkwood buckler, +1 short spear, masterwork light underwater crossbow with 20 bolts, mithral dagger, belt of incredible dexterity +2, cloak of resistance +2, headband of inspired wisdom +4, ring of protection +1, aegis of recovery, assisting gloves, elixir of vision, polymorphic pouch, spell component pouch, diamond (worth 5,000 gp), 236 gp SPECIAL ABILITIES Aquatic Wild Empathy (Ex) An aquatic druid’s wild empathy functions only on creatures that have a swim speed or the aquatic or water subtype; however, she can improve the attitude of any such creature with Intelligence 2 or less regardless of type, including mindless creatures. Deep Diver (Ex) An aquatic druid gains DR/slashing or piercing equal to 1/2 her level. This damage reduction also applies against spells and spell-like abilities that inflict damage by grappling or crushing (e.g., black tentacles, crushing hand). She never takes pressure damage from deep water. Poison Use (Ex) Drow are skilled in the use of poison and never risk accidentally poisoning themselves. Drow favor an insidious toxin that causes its victims to lapse into unconsciousness—this poison allows drow to capture slaves with great ease. Drow Poison—injury; save Fortitude DC 13; frequency 1/minute for 2 minutes; initial effect unconsciousness for 1 minute; secondary effect unconsciousness for 2d4 hours; cure 1 save. Resist Ocean’s Fury (Ex) An aquatic druid gains a +4 bonus on saving throws against spells of the water type or the exceptional or supernatural abilities of creatures with the aquatic or water subtype.

--drow’s name means “sea strider, blessed of the depths” --companion’s name means “water ally”

BRIZABBAN (CR —; — XP) Female hippocampus N Large animal (aquatic) Init +4; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, scent; Perception +12 DEFENSE AC 32, touch 14, flat-footed 28 (+4 armor, +1 deflection, +4 Dex, +14 natural, –1 size) hp 97 (13d8+39) Fort +12, Ref +13, Will +9; +4 vs. enchantments Defensive Abilities devotion, evasion, improved evasion; Resist cold 15 OFFENSE Speed 5 ft., swim 80 ft. Space 10 ft.; Reach 5 ft. Melee 2 bites +17/+12 (1d6+8), tail slap +11 (1d4+4) STATISTICS Str 24, Dex 18, Con 16, Int 3, Wis 14, Cha 11 Base Atk +9; CMB +17; CMD 32 Feats Blind-Fight, Combat Reflexes, Bodyguard, Endurance, Iron Will, Weapon Focus (bite) Skills Acrobatics +12, Perception +12, Stealth +4, Swim +15; Racial Modifiers +8 Swim Languages understands Undercommon SQ link, share spells, water dependency Tricks attack, come, defend, down, fetch, guard, heel, perform, seek, stay, track Gear +1 studded leather barding, amulet of mighty fists +1, cloak of resistance +1, headband of inspired wisdom +2, ring of protection +1, beast bond brand, bit and briddle, exotic military saddle SPECIAL ABILITIES Water Dependency (Ex) A hippocampus can survive out of the water for 1 minute per point of Constitution. Beyond this limit, a hippocampus runs the risk of suffocation, as if it were drowning.

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

And this concludes the planned builds for Throne of Night. Anything else would honestly be just the monster stats as they are, or something with a Simple Class Template, or the Simple Advanced Template. Sadly, it’s as easy as that. At least from what I can see.

If I do any other builds, it’ll be because I had some kind of epiphany and was asked/paid to do them.

Thank you for coming with me on this journey to theory build what may have been an amazing, award-winning, underground adventure path for Pathfinder 1e.

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aliceslantern · 7 years

Text

Nocturnal Memory, a Kingdom Hearts fanfiction--chapter 7

"Again."

He was tired. No, that wasn't the word for it. Exhausted, gross, frustrated beyond belief; Demyx wasn't sure how much more he could take of this. "It's not going to work. We've been at this for hours." The sun was high in the sky, and it was especially hot outside of the cavern in the rocky expanse. He hadn't yet had anything to eat or drink all day, and it seemed like the dryness in his mouth was soul-deep.

"Was I unclear, Nine? Again." Even gestured with his shield again. "If I did not think it was possible, would I be wasting our time?"

That was the closest thing to encouragement he'd heard yet. Between the heat and the strain—which in itself was odd, physically he wasn't doing much more than standing—he felt slightly faint. Maybe if he blacked out he could give up. But knowing Even, he would just revive him and force him to continue on; if so just to see what would happen.

Demyx tried to do what he wanted. The task itself was simple; strike the shield with water. But between his old injuries, his discomfort, the sheer dryness of the area and the heat of the day, it was almost impossible. Demyx wasn't drawing water out of thin air. It was there, hundreds of meters below ground. He couldn't say there hadn't been any progress made. He hadn't been able to feel that body of water before coming here, and now he could. The distant odd tingling just made him antsy.

Part of the problem came from the fact that he had never been taught to use his powers originally; he just sort of had, instinctively and effortlessly, like moving a hand. He'd been taught how to use other unrelated spells, but this? He knew it had something to do with some sort of pull, that there was some sort of accompanying pressure he would be able to feel. But for Demyx it had always been hard to manually wield water without the presence of his sitar, and who knew if—or when—she would return. He lowered his hands.

"Unless you are in unbearable pain, we must continue," Even said.

"I can't do this."

The words fell at his feet. "Look, we've been trying, but what if I just can't get my powers back? What if they're like my memories, and they're just gone?" The agitation was as hot and sticky as the sweat on his skin.

"Your memories are returning. Therefore, your powers must be able to return as well. It's simple logic that I believe even you are capable of." Even let his shield disappear and approached him. A crystal of ice appeared in his palms. "Hold this."

He let the crystal fall into Demyx's bare hands. It was frigid—far below freezing—and even in the heat it burned. He gasped out loud.

"Don't drop it."

"Or what?" Demyx asked.

Even seized his wrists. For an old man, he was surprisingly strong. "Feel the weight of it, the composition. Water is not much different. You are in pain. You are uncomfortable, frustrated. Use that frustration to feel out the shape of the molecule. Use the water in your own body, your own blood. I should not have to tell you these things!"

The ice was so cold that his eyes were watering. He focused on the pain, trying to listen to his body and his blood and all the other bullshit.

"Do you want to get frostbite?" Even snapped. "You don't have much time."

He was starting to feel feverish and dizzy. He swooned but did not fall; Even's grip prevented that. His voice sounded far away; he could still feel his hands burning.

"Good. Nine, follow it. Follow it and do not let go."

He wasn't in the fissures anymore, but in some sort of space that was made out of nothing at all, not even darkness. He drifted through it, not sure what to look for or what to follow, exactly. Something burned. He traced the source of the pain; it ran deeper than he'd anticipated. There were no shapes, no items, not even feelings or memories, but at some point Demyx bumped into something smooth and elastic. He reached for it and pulled, but it fought back. It didn't want to come with him and stung where he touched it. He pulled harder. Dug in his heels. He threw his whole being into it.

It snapped and he flew back into consciousness. He fell against Even. His lungs were burning and he struggled for air.

His hands were wet.

He looked down. There were white splotches on his palms from the ice, but he saw on the ground through dizzy eyes a puddle of water. He met Even's eyes, tasting nausea more than feeling it.

"Acceptable," he said.

"Can I take a break? Please?"

Even assented, and lowered him to the ground.

Demyx put his head in his hands. His hands were no longer hurting; in fact the skin was completely healed. His whole body was cramping. So much was flickering through him all at once. His powers were back. His powers were back. It was something he just knew. It was fact.

But because they were back it didn't mean things were easy.

Like a muscle, if powers were unused they became weak. He had to build his strength.

The rest of the afternoon they worked tirelessly. Demyx picked things up at a rapid clip, but it was all so much harder than it used to be. He could find and draw from local water sources. Most painstaking was learning how to manipulate it. Before, with his sitar, he'd barely had to do more than think of what he wanted before it happened, whereas now he struggled to get the water into a ball.

Not only that, but all the other subsidiary benefits of his powers had yet to return. Before, his powers had kept him consistently hydrated unless he was seriously injured or wounded. He'd been able to keep himself cool in warm environments, breathe underwater, and neutralize most toxins. But today… none of that seemed to apply.

Even finally allowed him to call it the end of the day when the sunlight started to turn pink. "You've made astounding progress," he said, and he actually smiled.

He was faint from hunger and exhaustion, but at the same time he wanted to keep pushing himself. I'm almost onto something. I know it.

Even patted his shoulder. "I think you need to rest," he said. "After all, there's still work to be done."

Food, water, and a shower improved things dramatically. He fell almost immediately deeply asleep. There were more fragments of things, but there was no death and no fire.

A woman singing a song in a language he could not understand. It was a lullaby—a nocturne. She was the blonde/brunette/redhead. He held her hand and looked way, way up at her. They walked through the tall grass together.

Night. An open bright sky and more stars than anyone could imagine. The smell of wool. Being warm. Being safe.

The word came to him before he was even fully conscious. Maybe he said it as he woke up.

Mom?

Nobody answered. His room was empty and small. Moreover, Demyx hurt all over.

Was that really…

Of course, he knew he hadn't sprung out of thin air. He had to have been born. But for some reason… he had never thought of having parents. Had never thought of being close to them. The woman he'd seen had been his mother. He got the idea that they'd been going somewhere. But where?

A deep bittersweetness filled him from head to toe. He found he didn't mind the soreness as he got up; it suited his mood. No dad, or other mom, or siblings. He was pretty sure that was how it had been. Pretty sure. But he couldn't be totally certain, and that was annoying. An itch he couldn't scratch.

Today Even didn't make him leave so horribly early, and he let him have breakfast. "You had to be under a good deal of stress," he explained to Demyx, who was hardly listening. "Not unduly so, but if you were comfortable and content there was no way you'd be willing to dig deep. You had to appeal to—ah—more primal reasoning."

Whatever. Wasn't too much stress supposed to be bad for him and all?

"I admit I was a bit dubious," he said. "But… you exceeded my expectations. And you are in one piece. It looks like Ienzo was wrong."

What did that even mean? "Wrong about what?"

"He believed that pushing you in that way could aggravate your… ah… condition." They stepped outside. "Your memories have been returning with very few ill effects. I had reason to believe that this would help you instead of hurt you. He disagreed."

"Did he," Demyx said dryly. "You guys talk about me an awful lot, huh."

Even's eyes gleamed. "It's fascinating to us, as scientists. And of course we want you to be whole."

He shrugged. "Sure."

"I admit I was pessimistic, at first. And there is still a good deal of risk involved. But I think that you might just be all right." The mathematical glee with which he said it made Demyx uncomfortable.

"Can we… change the subject?"

In terms of effort and fatigue that day and the next three were more or less the same. He was getting better—using his powers was getting easier—but at the end of the day he was incredibly tired and when he slept he was dead to the world. By the end of the week Demyx was in considerably better shape; he could manipulate the water with ease, though he definitely had limits. There was no limitless energy like there had been before. He was pretty sure that any use of his power burned straight from his metabolism, making him drained and weak after a while. Ethers helped, but they were expensive and using too many at once made him sick.

After that he didn't have much more of an excuse. He had to get to work for the committee. They sent a message for him and told him to meet one of them at the main entrance to the castle. He packed himself a small lunch and felt a lot like a little kid going to school. Now play nice with the others, and make friends, he imagined someone telling him. Doubtful that he would. He wouldn't mind working with Aerith, but if he got stuck with Yuffie…

Most of the time they used the service entrance, and early that first morning Demyx had to fight his way to the actual front. He got lost a few times. There was a map, but the map couldn't account for fallen pipes and collapsed passages. He was running considerably later than he'd intended when he finally got there and found Leon with a toolbox. Already the other man looked exasperated.

"I'm sorry," Demyx said breathlessly. "The castle is really a mess, and I got lost…"

"It's all right," Leon said tersely. "You're ready? Let's go." Demyx followed him into an older and decrepit part of town. "Nobody's lived here for over ten years," he explained. "When the world fell to darkness, a lot of the town was damaged or destroyed. You'll be working mostly on aqueducts and the reservoir. You'll most likely be working with someone else. The two of you will make any physical fixes you can, and then you can reroute the water sources. We might have to construct them from the ground up. It really depends. Cid's trying to put together a map now of places we know we can work with."

He nodded. "So… like… you must think it's interesting. Working with old Organization members," he said, as an attempt at conversation.

"I have no reason to distrust any of you. You've all been very helpful." But no change in his expression. "But I guess it's interesting, yes."

He shrugged. "Well, I was just wondering, because I know that… others… might not be as okay with it."

The shadow of a smile. "I'm guessing Yuffie talked to you?"

Demyx shrugged.

"We can't exactly afford to be picky about our allies," Leon said at last. "And don't worry about her. She won't actually hurt you. She'll come around." He looked out towards the staircase they'd just come down. "In fact, there she is now."

#nocturnal memory #demyx #kingdom hearts #kingdom hearts 3d #fanfiction

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