#summoning sphere customs

[snejkha]

A gnoll custom for  @exi-burrow // Thank you so much//

#my dumb art #commission #commissions #character design commissions #summoning sphere customs #fullbody commission #fullbody commission ref #gnoll #exi-burrow

[omgkalyppso]

When Étoile needs some peace of mind, is there an activity they like to do or a place they like to go?

Do they involve others or do/go alone?

Thank you so much for the ask!

I let this get away from me for a bit so I was like "I'll just cut out all of THIS and make it its own post" and then tried to rein in what I was trying to say, and then it got away from me again! So. fdskghdksfjgh

magical self harm mentioned. fictional character death mentioned.

For the most part Étoile wouldn't mind their friends or partners being around them when they need some peace of mind. Depending on their level of frustration, they might even need to talk it out or hear someone else's problems to put their own in perspective. Otherwise they're very social. They'll take part in louder activities (drinking), more physically exerting ones (dumb challenges, like climbing), or other nonsense you'd expect from a more rowdy character, like Karlach. They also enjoy social comforts, like just being near someone while they pray or meditate or what have you. And that's where things might start to get tricky.

Auril is an extreme god, and sometimes when Étoile seeks guidance from her, they might intentionally "burn" their hands by holding Ray of Frost for an extended period while reciting their prayers, and comparable expressions of devotion which invoke Auril's cold domain. Unlike Loviatar, the pain isn't the purpose of their divine connection, their practices could make people just as uncomfortable to sit around due to lack of custom.

I think a lot about these sections of the Church of Auril wiki pages:

When an individual wished to become part of the clergy, they had to undergo a ritual called the Embracing. This ritual required the applicant, in only boots and a thin robe, to spend the evening exposed to a raging blizzard. Holy symbols of Auril were painted all over the applicant's body. The applicant was forbidden to use any sort of magic to protect themselves from the cold. Those who survived until morning were deemed worthy by Auril and accepted into her Church.

.

Clerics of the Frostmaidan were bestowed a natural immunity to cold which was identical to the effects of the resist cold spell. Powerful clerics had the innate ability to duplicate the effects of the ice storm spell, and summon ice para-elementals. Clerics of Auril had access to the spells of both the Time and Wards spheres. Unlike rank and file clerics, specialty priests of Auril were unable to turn the undead.

But there are also times where they need to be alone, whether in prayer or just in silence. There may come a time where they feel "alone, together" with Astarion, but that's actually years off.

Étoile does have hobbies, but I can't picture them doing them for the sake of centering themself / finding peace of mind. I can't imagine them being able to focus on reading either — maybe meditation, but that's really conditional.

Anyway. The spawn they follow into the Underdark find ways to severely irritate, confound and distress Étoile. Which leads me to my two other answers to this question. While Étoile may visit Halsin's Moonrise Village, their mountain in Impiltur, and other locales post-canon, they have two semi-permanent homes for the foreseeable future: one in the Underdark, and another in Baldur's Gate. I haven't yet decided whether the Szarr Palace should be in the Lower or Upper City in my headcanons, but it's only a temporary residence for any of the "vampires" (Astarion and his siblings) in my post-canon (more intended as a place for staff and spawn), and they will have their own residences in the city otherwise. Wherever I decide to place the Palace will influence the number of those homes and whether they are in the Upper or Lower City.

Étoile would probably be tempted to have the windows taken out of any residence in Baldur's Gate to allow Astarion (et al) free reign of the space even in daylight, but Astarion would refuse to live in a fucking box, so shutters and curtains and the the security of a coffin for reverie would have to suffice. Étoile would have a room or three depending on the size of residence, two of which would cause Astarion some anxiety: a bedroom, rarely used in place of the master bedroom but still providing the possibility that they expect conflict between them (this is not the room's primary or intended purpose), and a study, which is where they would go to be alone when necessary to find peace of mind (reading and writing letters; some to intentionally be never sent), in which Astarion is welcome, but scrutinized if he goes in alone.

Astarion has his private spaces also but it takes him longer to grow accustomed to not having space that's going to be stolen from under him or shared / invaded by family and masters.

Étoile's third room would be one dedicated to Auril; kept politely clear of where Astarion rests because once they place something of her likeness in there, the room radiates cold. I imagine this room goes questioned by those who know of it, because why have this inconvenience and then not spend more time in there / why would this not be Étoile's default place to go to to find peace of mind — to which their answer would be, if they'd wanted that then they would have stayed on their mountain.

In the Underdark, I have such a specific vision of what their settlement turns into. It wouldn't be anywhere near as grand as I'm picturing after only 6 months into the epilogue, so in those early days, Étoile would just go for a walk, pace the border and their boundaries and find a high point in an outpost to look out over their community.

With magic, Menzoberranzan and the Sword Coast easing the way, House Ienith is technically a functioning town two years post-canon and is maybe a third of the way to being finished to a level of construction that makes it a desirable place to live. But by this time there is a working library with a window overlooking a town square where Étoile can unwind and spy on the vampiric wizards and scholars in their studies. And, more importantly, a river has been diverted to have a channel flow beneath the town and then curved back into the river as a source of renewable water. It's neither fresh nor clean without magical intervention, but with a few runes it feeds wells, kitchens, laundromats and bath houses, the latter of which is the alternative somewhere for Étoile could go for peace of mind.

I picture a private, fully stone room, candles unlit, three days below ground (Advanced Darkness), with a recessed pool of water that grows deeper the further you walk into it. Grotesques and murals carved into the walls. Whether the water is warm (hot) or cold, I think Étoile and their dark vision would enjoy the tranquility.

#oc tag: étoile #long post #baldur's gate 3 spoilers

[ldlorangecountylocksmithonline]

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#locksmith

[springvaletales]

((Session 58 is here!))

Once again, I have no plans. I have a convention this weekend, a wedding overseas next weekend, and a custom order to complete, and I spent exactly -4% of my free time in between all that planning for tonight I was making .pdfs of in-universe plant field guides that was clearly more important.

So we’re going to steal some plot points from a few video games and BS some world lore to see what the players do with it.

New World Lore: Dream magic and spells that affect dreams are usually reserved for priests, the gods, and those who deal with them; not because of any sort of barrier or power gap, but because Skaadi is the ‘Mother of Dreams’ and most people usually respect her sphere of influence.

This will put a new, tasty spin on Bagelby’s brand new dreamscape spell, too~

None of this ‘respecting the gods’ BS is gonna fly with Vatun, however, as he is a god himself, and will disrespect his siblings at the drop of a hat.

BUT before we get to that, we have to deal with the exploding cult camp that we left on pause last session.

I had each of my players roll 1d4, averaged those results together, and spun a wheel four times.

It landed on ‘no’. Other results were ‘yes’ and ‘go straight to the plot do NOT pass go’.

The cultists were incinerated by the explosion; the party saw a blinding flash that turned night into day, and then it was all smoke and magic green ashes.

Ena, standing at the edge of the crater, still poised as if she were leaning on someone’s shoulder with her elbow: “…oops?”

Koira: “We…might have to explain this to the guard.” Thiori, shaking his head: “No we don’t.”

So much for the plan to take prisoners, huh?

Bagelby: “So….where are the cultists?" Ena: “Dead.” Thiori: “DEAD dead.”

Once the party got back to town, I had them run into Fezik Il’hound, an elven member of the Queen’s Guard sent by Captain Astaroth to retrieve reports from both the party and Koira about the Sunfell camp they were sent after.

He’s fairly certain of the answer already, given the massive explosion outside of town.

Fezik: “I am not Warforged. That is just how I am.” Asahi’s Player: “Ooooh! So he’s autistic!”

He is also carrying with him a collapsible magic spinner wheel - complete with lights and clicking noises - which he proceeded to set up right there on the road and spin.

It landed on the ‘Bastard Summoner’, which is a metal letter opener forged in the shape of a goose head holding a knife in its beak.

It summons Honk - Bagelby’s Player’s PC from the same campaign as Koira and Dynamite - for two hours twice a day…but only if Ena licks the blade, first.

Me: “Who is going to roll stealth for the rat?”

The stowaway rat in the slime pocket crushed its stealth roll, and was not detected when Asahi reached into Bagelby’s slimy pocket to lob a slug at Fezik’s head when he refused to explain what the ‘Bastard Summoner’ did.

She missed, and the slug hit a light post.

Asahi: “Tell Astaroth to go fuck himself!” Fezik, over a block away: “I will add it to the queue, ma’am.”

Ena actually tried to study her new magical item, but rolled a 9, and decided to just lick the blade and try to use it.

She summoned Honk, the Bastard Goose, who immediately pecked her in the face.

Ena chased Honk through the streets for the full two hours before he poofed away in a puff of feathers. Asahi left her to it and went back to the inn to sleep.

That night, the party went to sleep in their rented beds, and woke up in the center of a Feywild clearing; on one side of the clearing was a large banquet table, covered in desserts and alcohol, with Vatun - god of Chaos and Trickery - seated at the head of the table.

Vatun, through a mouthful of cupcake: “Please! Sit down! We have business to discuss!” Bagelby: “You’ve offered me slime and I will sit.”

Bagelby: “I am a minor. I don’t find contracts legally binding.”

"The only person with self control is no longer with you and you’re messing with a Trickster god.”

Thiori is still wearing the sexy dress in the dreamscape.

Vatun wants the party to confront and stop a local wizard who has been messing with dream magic and stealing his schtick by terrorizing the sleeping city folk with goat-themed nightmares.

Thiori: “You want us to enforce magical Copyright Law…?” Vatun: “Yes! Do you know how many queues I had to stand in to get the federal offices in every major country on all four continents to approve my paperwork?! This cannot be allowed to slide!”

Bagelby did most of the negotiations, and nearly took on the quest for a boost to his own dreamscape spell and a lifetime supply of Feywild slugs.

Thankfully, Sir Carl Jaeger spoke up to negotiate a replacement to the slugs.

Thiori: “I would like the ability to cast Otto’s Irresistible Dance. Just. To make someone dance. Uncontrollably.” Vatun, God of Chaos and Trickery: “That sounds dumb as fuck and I love it. I can’t wait to see what you do with it!”

Ena asked for one extra Eldritch Blast but also to be able to do it for non-lethal damage.

Vatun agreed purely because he’s seen her Eldritch Blast her brother in the face (Michael was fine - the Taker’s warlock’s can’t harm each other), and he wants to see her do it more.

Vatun: “To other people, not your brother. He’s been through quite a lot, I think.”

Vatun then offered Sir Carl Jaeger twenty unrestricted minutes in the dreamscape with his missing squire, which he agreed to instantly.

With a snap, the party woke up back in the inn. To her dismay, Ena - who had been devouring the pastries at Vatun’s table the whole meeting because “dream calories don’t count” - was hungry.

We’ll pick up next session the next morning, where the party may or may not discuss their shared dream and god-given quest!

#OOC #Quarantine D&D

[cryptidsncurios]

@mielmoto sent: despite being better informed than the average tourist which might wander into the conjurer's domain, the little pink faeling is not immune to wide eyes and curiosity, taking in the decorations and ambience with inquisitive delight... and more senses than just her sight, of course; fingers just as intrigued as eyes reaching up to touch some bauble on the shelf. it's another beat before Honey realizes the owner-and-proprietor stood nearby, no doubt watching as she nosed about. ❝ —oh! hi! sorry, I, like, totally got lost in my own little world there for a second— your whole set up here is amazing; SO, like, magical. ❞ largely impervious to shame, it seemed; she doesn't shy at being caught so much as she sparks with excitement, hands coming together near her chest. ❝ which I sorta guessed it would from the pretty invitation, but it's even better than I could have imagined— thank you for having me!! Oh! duh– I'm Honey, by the by! which, like, I guess I probably should have led with, but, c'est la vie. ❞

Kuja’s primary intentions were typically not seeking out partnerships from newcomers when sending out such grandiosely-composed invitations---fine, expensive lilac silk paper with gorgeous gold leaf borders, his personalized summoning hand-written in an enticing, deep, suspiciously blood-hued ink with a peacock feather quill, perfectly curlicued lettering quite literally hypnotic to those that gazed upon it. No, it was really more of a test, to see if any new arrivals he could sense were worth even the meagerest speck of his attention. And, often, he found he had utterly nothing to worry about.

For here, within his magical parlor---The Conjurer’s Cove---Kuja was peak Salem royalty. Tourists and locals alike were instinctively drawn into his immaculately-tailored, otherworldly sphere, like butterflies fluttering to a most intoxicating bloom. Their utter shock and awe upon entering his domain was consistently beyond what any other estate’s purveyor had ever experienced, crystalline glamour and sparkle in abundance, the ethereal magician providing every sorcerous artifact one could possibly imagine.

And he---Kuja the Conjurer himself---was truly the shining star of the Cove, always decked out in shimmering attire and glimmering jewelry, with hair of silver decorated with gems that flickered in the soft golden light---proving to be a presence that one could see all the way from the very entrance, even when he sat in the very back, upon his velvety throne and behind the sprawling counter, tarot cards always spread to intrigue any who might become hungry for a reading.

A true reading, of course---not like those that some of these tasteless charlatans would deliver, meandering about, babbling historical falsehoods, and catering to the uncultured masses.

However, upon subtly tilting his chin upward from his current spread to behold his newest guest with perceptive azure eyes, he was stricken by two things:

One, that this was certainly no normal mortal---that there was most definitely a power there, fluttering underneath the girl’s skin that he could clearly sense. Something to be respected---at least, a little bit.

And two, that her syntax was appalling.

However, he would comment upon neither observation; instead, eyes lidded into an expression of studious regality, his aura exuding an soothing sort of charm as he spoke in a sultry purr---similar, though not exact in this situation, to that which he utilized to lull his customers into falling underneath his spell:

“You may call me Kuja, the proprietor of the enchanting abode before you,” then a beringed hand extended with a delicate flourish to the humble wooden chair before the shoppe counter, so that his guest would be seated across from him. “Please, do take a moment to rest your weary bones. The day has come to its end, and so I would be delighted for us to become better acquainted, Miss Honey.”

#mielmoto #ic: the reaper most capricious #au: a little wicked #[[ oop got carried away with this one :^) hieee ]]

[jessjustplay]

I replayed Final Fantasy X and absolutely loved it!

February 2, 2022

Game: Final Fantasy X HD Remaster First Time/Replaying: Replaying Game Time: 55 hours Console: Nintendo Switch Started: December 17, 2021 Finished: February 2, 2022

I can’t remember the last time I played the HD remaster from beginning to end. I finished the original game on the PS2 a lot, but I can't remember finishing the HD remaster. *shrug*

Playing (and finishing) this on the Nintendo Switch was SO MUCH FUN! I don't have a TV so I played on the tiny Switch screen which was a bummer at times because I would have loved to see the HD glory on a big screen... oh well, one day!

I don’t normally get all of the ultimate weapons for the characters, but in the past I have made it a priority to get Yuna’s ultimate weapon because I #love her.

However, I didn’t get Nirvana this time around! I really could not be bothered with all the side quests and time needed to get her ultimate weapon. And you know what? #noregerts (intentionally misspelled)

I bought Yuna a weapon at the Calm Lands (forgot the name) and that held up well until I went to Zanarkand and got the Magistral Wand by using the destruction sphere. It has half MP which I very much needed!

I modified it a bit using the Customize option. I added Magic +10% and Alchemy (doubles potency of healing items). As for Yuna’s armor, I scored a Ring after a battle, or I bought one, with HP +20% and three empty slots. I added Auto-Med (automatically cures status ailments using the appropriate item), MP +30%, and SOS Protect.

That was what I equipped her with for the final boss fight the first time, but quickly learned I needed Stoneproof! So yes, I fought the final boss twice because I died the first time around from petrification. #sadface

During my first attempt, I made the mistake of using every character and summoning Bahamut during the first version of the final boss. I also had Lulu as version 2 of the final boss showed up which was a huge mistake because Lulu is very slow and I could not get a turn with her! But I learned from my mistakes and sure enough, my 2nd attempt went a whole lot better.

I kept Yuna, Auron, and Kimahri as my three main fighters. I only brought Tidus in once when the final boss’s overdrive gauge was about to get full. By getting Tidus to talk to him, I was able to deplete the final boss’s overdrive back down to 0. Whew! That saved me a lot of headache.

I decided to not use the other characters because they are a waste of time and put you in more danger (I learned this the hard way – ahem, Lulu…)

Kimahri, Auron, and Yuna are a great combo and they are actually my top 3 favorite characters so I had no issues with this. I had Auron and Kimahri learn the Zombie Attack ability which helped a ton and I also gave Yuna and Auron armor with Stoneproof which was an absolute game changer. I only had Stone Ward for Kimahri but that was better than nothing.

Here is a recap of the weapons and armor my characters had (only including the 3 I used to win the game):

• Yuna: Magistral Wand (Half MP Cost, Magic +10%, and Alchemy) and Defending Ring (Stoneproof and Zombieproof) • Kimahri: Knight Lance (Strength +3%, Strength +5%, and Strength +10%) and Soft Armlet (Stone Ward and Alchemy) • Auron: Hunter’s Blade (Piercing, Strength +10%, Strength +5%, and Sensor) and Defending Bracer (Stoneproof and Poisonproof)

I didn’t use any aeons during the first version of the final boss which was super smart. During my first attempt, I brought in Bahamut to defeat him, but this dude did like 80,000+ damage so it was a waste using him during the 1st version of the final boss. During my 2nd attempt, I defeated the first version with a lot of Doublecast Flares, Zombie Attacks, and pure physical attacks, then I brought in Bahamut to deplete a big chunk of version 2’s HP and it was a much smarter move. I’m sure if I had the other aeons they would have been more powerful (maybe?) but Yuna’s magic was at 90 and Bahamut was PLENTY ENOUGH for me.

Here are my final stats!

I’m glad I could defeat the final boss without any of the ultimate weapons or extra aeons. I did level up a lot at the Omega Ruins but I didn’t get far in there since I didn’t want to be far from the save sphere (since the enemies dropped some great items!) The Omega Ruins is such a good place to level up though!

Overall, I enjoyed the game so much. I hadn’t played it in years and even though I didn’t feel like doing all the side quests, I had a lot of fun replaying the game.

There are some things I would do differently (mostly, NOT move Rikku over to Lulu’s area on the sphere grid – such a waste of a time) but I think I did pretty good during this play through.

I don’t think I’ll be playing Final Fantasy X-2 right away because I am going to start Final Fantasy VIII. I think the break from Spira will make me miss it and want to play X-2 even more. 🙂 I’m excited!

#final fantasy x #final fantasy #finished

[toku-explained]

The Full-Power Demon Son

Decker: Above Red City on Mars, a spacial distortion opens, and the Spheres emerge and attack. On earth, Asumi Kanata works at the Asumiya Rice Cracker store run by his grandparents and as he has a delivery to the spaceport, gives a lift to a customer heading to Mars as her grandson was just born. Seven years after the final battle (Demonothor or Evil Trigger?) The Neo-Frontier era is in full swing, and TPU are launching from Sorafune Spaceport a team to establish a second Mars colony, seeing them off is unstructor Murahoshi who is greeted on his way by Kaizaki (whom I will just say probably isn't the same character played by the actress also named Sawa, but given both characters are connected to Dyna I wouldn't rule it out completely, unlike Tesshin and Nanase), many graduates of his Space Development Team are joining him, and the trainees in Spade Development and Monster Response are there to see them off and guard. Kaizaki is with the Monster Research Lab, and her and Murahoshi's teams are seeing their budgets slashed, which he is bothered by while GUTS-Select had had it's arsenal automated, he wants there to still be a defence force ready, they cannot guarantee Ultraman will show up this time. Kanata sees a ship take off, and hopes his parents are well on Mars on vacation, seeing one of the students, Kirino desperate to get there, he insists she take a rice Cracker, before fellow trainee Ryumon collects her. The broadcast of the attack on Red City is transmitted, and portals appear above Sorafune, Sydney, New York, from each emerges a GranSphere which releases swarms of Spheres, TPU fight back, backed up by Nursedessei and GUTS Falcon, but the Gransphere, and the ones in Paris, Giza, each emits an energy field. Kanata struggles to save a woman under rubble, Ryumon and Kirino helping, as the Sorafune Gransphere summons Spheresaurus, which disables the automates systems on GUTS Falcon and Nursedessei. Spheres abduct the other soldiers, and Kanata makes a reckless attempt to distract the Spheres and is also caught. Within the void, Kanata finds his will and is contacts by the Giant of Light Decker, which requests his body to fight, granting him the D-Flasher, and the Decker Flash Type Dimension Card, Ultraman Decker emerges from the Sphere, destroying it. He fights through the Spheres and defeats Spheresaurus with a Solgent Ray, and seeing the barrier being placed around earth, flies into space to confront the Spheres, but is repelled back to earth by the Gransphere, as Earth is fully contained within a Sphere. He awakens, the D-Flasher vanishes, but the Dimension Card Holder remains, and Murahoshi asks him to consider if he has the will to protect. A conflicted Kanata is encouraged by his grandfather to do what he has to, and so as the training of Ryumon and Kirino's class is moved from Space Development to Monster Decence, Kanata joins their class.

Revice: Revi & Vice barely hold off Giff's next attack, and the demon summons an army of surround them. Over Demons arrives and holds off the forces, allowing Revi and Vice to get Sakura, Genta, and the Karizaki's away, though Daji has already vanished, Over Demons sees that Akaishi is dead and leaves, only for Giff to revive him, as Akaishi promises to continue regressing humanity, Giff leaves telling him he had his chance. Ikki and Buu-san have gotten Genta to Weekend for treatment, but Daiji still hasn't come back, Yukimi suggests having their traditional Sukiyaki when Daiji returns, Ikki realising this is another memory he's lost. Hiromi approaches Daiji, not for a lecture, but let's him know it is okay to make mistakes, what he does after is important, but that is down to him. Ikki tells Vice that losing memories is hard, but he'll bear it, as at least everyone else keeps their memories of him. Akaishi begs Giff to allow him to be of service. Daiji looks at the Crow ViStamp and recalls Kagero's last words to him, concluding he can't turn back for him either. Despite his critical condition, Masumi calls Ikki and Vice to Weekend, to along with the remaining leadership and George hear his last words. He regrets being the source of everything, having injected Genta with Giff cells, bit his greatest regret is the fact that he transferred his Akuma into George, a desperate action to keep a connection when he though he would die to Vail. George storms off as Masumi apologises for the fact his Akuma likely influenced George's personality, and for gathering the downtrodden to Weekend, though no one else blames him, before reports come off of Akaishi within ARARAT. Akaishi sadly notes he will have to destroy this peace, and starts attacking, as Weekend arrive Giff transforms him again, Hikaru and Hana intend to handle him as they all change, Hiromi starts evacuating people as Revi and Vice stop Giff retreating. Despite their strength, Over Demons, Jeanne and Aguilera cannot overpower Akaishi, who gloats that sacrificing his immortality has given him even greater power and made him far too powerful for the three of them. Hikari has been training to defeat Akaishi, and asks the others to hold him so he can use all his Genomixes, starting with Batta. Giff isn't reacting much to Revi and Vice's attacks. Daiji arrives, Akaishi glad to see his successor. Daiji tells Hiromi he cannot change his path and waste Kagero's loss, becoming Holy Live and defeating his Troopers when they won't stand aside. Over Demons continues, straining as he adds Condor, and as Hana and Sakura are defeated goes to act early, but Revi intervenes so he can keep going, as he adds Scorpion and then, promising to remember his parents' sacrifice, adds Anomalocaris. Unleashing his full power as Over Demons, he fights to defeat Akaishi, successfully overpowering him. Having overpowered the Demons Troopers, Holy Live, knocks Hiromi aside, and walks up to Akaishi, reaching out for him, before delivering a finisher, noting he cannot save humanity. Akaishi does, amused, and as Giff overpowers Vice, Daiji asks to make a covenant with him.

Donbrothers: Haruka's aunt bemoans the prevalence of smartphones taking away the romance of sneaking off to call from a phone booth, but Haruka just thinks that sounds like unnecessary hassle, and is annoyed by Hanamura continuing to message her. A team comes to tear down a phone booth, only for EngineKi to appear and attack, making everyone disappear. The Donbrothers are brought to fight, but their attacks pass right through, before it disappears. Haruka spots a girl in the Phone Booth. After being returned home, she rides back to the booth, the girl, on being seen asks to be friends, introducing herself as Sagiyama Minako, and scaring Haruka, after Haruka rides off Minako disappears. Haruka gets back home to find Minako there, and slowly realises she's a ghost and is there to ensure they really do get to be friends, but she then leaves as it is the time Shinzo might call. Haruka brings Minako to Kijino and Saruhara at Café Donbura, they can see her if they hold their breath, and learn she is kept from moving on by her attachment to Tadokoro Shinzo, her Pen Pal who started calling every day, but right before they were going to meet she was in an accident. Minako has had Haruka make a drawing based on her image of Shinzo, even of it has been 50 years, but in quick succession sees Shinzo in Taro, the Master, and Inuzaka. Sonoza scares a man reading First Love Hero, who leaves the volume behind. Kijino finds a business card for Tadakoro Shinzo in his contact book. Haruka meets with Minako after she's had dates with the others, she had a good time with Taro and Inuzaka, but the Master just attracted attention from every other woman at the park. However, she has concluded Shinzo is the only one for her and intends to keep waiting. Kijino brings Shinzo to Donbura, he does remember Minako, his first love, and wants to help, but they're concerned about presenting the frozen in time Minako with the reality of Shinzo today, but Haruka has a plan. At 6 PM, Shinzo calls the phone booth and they start talking, the group watching, but before things can settle another crew arrives, leading Minako to produce EngineKi again. The Donbrothers start fighting, InuBrother arriving late. Jiro arrives as well, but is attacked by Don Murasame, whole EngineKi grows to EngineKing, forcing the others to form Don Onitaijin as Minako continues to talk with Shinzo, who tells her he can't make their date, as Don Doragoku uses Ninnin Alter to fend off Don Murasame. The two promise to meet in the next life, and Minako's regrets cleared, EngineKing is defeated, and she moves on. As the phone booth is taken away, Haruka gets more messages from Hanamura, and calls him to tell him to give it a rest, only for his mother to pick up.

#toku explained #kamen rider revice #avataro sentai donbrothers #ultraman decker

[rakumel]

Raku Plays Her Faves, FFX Edition: Update

Followup to this post. Getting very close to the end of the game now folks, and I’ll probably wrap it up soon because I’m getting antsy about trying the sequel, which I own now but have never played before. It’s been fun this time around; I’ve already leveled up everyone way past the point I did last time, and have even unlocked abilities on the Sphere Grid that I’ve never tried, with mixed results. Some were absolutely worth the trouble (Full-Life, Copycat), others not so much (Nab Gil). Anyway, some quick updates for the things I went over in the previous post:

- Every character now has their fully unlocked Celestial weapon. Wakka especially has been tearing shit UP, but pretty much everyone can take out even the toughest regular enemies in just a hit or two.

- Especially those damned Great Malboros.

- In addition to the ultimate weapons, I’ve been bribing certain monsters with money to get their item drops, which can then be used to customize some pretty kickass armor. It takes a lot of currency, but by this point I’ve got a lot of it, and there’s not much else left to spend it on anyway. Turns out, making that armor is pretty crucial if you want to take on the optional superbosses. And speaking of which...

- After smiting Dark Valefor for the crimes of being an uber-powerful jerk and getting in the way of my errand-running, I’ve been slowly working my way through the Dark Aeon hitlist. So far I’ve defeated Dark Ifrit, Ixion, and Shiva. The main thing that’s annoying about these battles is that every time a character attacks, the boss counterattacks with enough power to instantly KO that character. So what you have to do is automate the process of reviving your characters; otherwise, you’re constantly wasting turns just trying to keep your party alive, never mind getting any damage in. Fortunately, you can do this: remember that kickass armor I mentioned in the last point? That’s basically what it does. Bless you, Auto-Phoenix. And thank you, for not being that awful to obtain, which is more than I can say for some other auto-abilities.

- A special note about the battle against Dark Shiva: it was the very first time I got to see Zanmato in action. If you’re not familiar, Zanmato is the strongest attack of the aeon Yojimbo, and it can instantly kill anything - including bosses, which are normally immune from that kind of bullshit. That’s the short version - apparently there’s an insane list of factors that determine if he’ll even use it. In the past I’d never bothered because Yojimbo’s more or less a money sink. You can’t directly control his actions or teach him any skills like you can the other aeons; he basically does what he wants depending on how much you pay him, how well he and Yuna get along, etc etc see link above. And I’d never had enough spare cash on hand for it to be worth the trouble.   Even during this current playthrough, I hadn’t used Yojimbo much. I’d basically summoned him in this particular battle just to take Dark Shiva’s overdrive attack, which was coming up on the next turn, so that I could keep my party alive. But since the game gave me the chance, and I actually had a good deal of spare change for once, I said, “Fuck it, why not” and handed over what was probably far too much gil, just to see what that amount would do. It got Yojimbo’s fucking attention, is what it did. And credit where due, he delivered. Just like that, the battle was over, and the party got run out of town by the same enraged Guado mooks that chased them off the last time. They may have been a serious threat then, but now, with every character stat boosted and equipped with their best weapons, those guards weren’t shit.

- The slug boss that gave me absolute fits last time? Finally defeated it! (Take that, you smug old bastard, hahahahaha) (Actually, once you’ve caught 10 of everything in the game he’s surprisingly chill, says something like “I knew I picked the right people, I’m a good judge of character” Sure, Jan.)

I doubt I’ll bother to unlock Nemesis, which you do by capturing 10 of every fiend in the game AND defeating every single one of the old man’s monster creations - all the area conquests, all the species conquests, and all his original monsters. That’s just...too many bosses. Not that I’ll be abandoning the monster area completely - there are some items I’d like to farm that are either extremely difficult or even impossible to get otherwise.

I’ll probably keep going down the list of Dark Aeons, maybe even unlock Penance, though I imagine from here on out the battles will be even worse. Did I mention we had to face Dark Ixion twice? I don’t mean I tried two times to beat it, I mean I beat it once, then walked a little further down the Thunder Plains and encountered it a second time, which meant I had to battle it all over again. The game makes you do this. Had we not paid Yojimbo to insta-kill her, Dark Shiva would have been a hassle because her attacks instantly remove the Auto-Life status, aka the very fucking thing I need to keep everyone alive in case I mess up my timing. (If everyone in the party dies at the same time - which they will, if caught in an aeon’s Overdrive attack - having Auto-Phoenix on their armor won’t help. That’s where the Auto-Life spell backup is necessary). I can only imagine what bullshit they’ve concocted for the rest of the Dark Aeon fights.

I don’t know if I’ll have the patience or time to farm all the items needed to do it, but I’d also like to make two sets of armor for each character. One set, I’ve talked a little about already; it automates some functions like healing, reviving characters, casting protective spells, and so on. It’s the serious set, the Phoenix set, that I’ll be bringing to each Dark Aeon fight so my party can stay alive long enough to actually do some damage. The second set, I may not make for each character, depending on how much trouble the required items are to farm. But very quickly I’d like to mention that every character is naturally capped by the game at 9999 HP and 999 MP - even if your characters’ totals should be higher than that, due to extensive use of the Sphere Grid, those numbers are where they’ll stop.

Unless...they’re wearing armor with the Break HP Limit feature, which increases the limit from 9999 to 99,999. (And yes, there is a corresponding Break MP Limit, but honestly 999 MP is more than enough, so it’s really not necessary.) So yes, I’d like to try making it (or winning it, there’s a rare chance it drops from some bosses) just because I can. It absolutely isn’t required to finish the game - I didn’t have any the first time I beat it - and in some people’s opinion, it just shouldn’t be bothered with at all. And I can see why - if an enemy can hit for 9999 damage, chances are it can hit for much higher than that, so a few thousand more HP isn’t going to make any difference.

But hell, I just want to see it because big HP numbers are cool. And, well, it’s another thing I’ve never done before. Of course, there’s always the possibility that’ll I’ll realize, as I’m trying to find an elusive monster to bribe items from for the umpteenth time, that past me had the right idea after all and just go straight to the final battles. But I won’t know unless I try, and that’s kind of what I’m doing across all my video games this year - trying new games, and trying new things in games I’m familiar with.

#raku plays her faves #I actually did get a sneak peek at upcoming dark aeon bs #and boy howdy #I thought having to defeat dark ixion *twice* was bad #there's an upcoming dark aeon battle where you have to win not once #not twice #not three times #but FIVE FUCKING TIMES #FFX I WAS JOKING ABOUT THE BULLSHIT #YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO PROVE ME RIGHT #but there is a silver lining even to that #leave it to the internet to find a way to take advantage of this bs situation

[snejkha]

Deep sea inspired custom for  @spellb1nder // thank you so much//

#my dumb art #commission #commissions #fullbody commission ref #fullbody commission #summoning sphere customs #spellb1nder

[fulgensun]

So, there’s like this little guide to FFX called ‘Yevon’s Dogma and People of Spira’  which is peculiar in its genre. It’s not a strategic guide, nor it has trivia and stuff taken from the various Ultimania. It is official and quite rare for what I saw, I guess its structure is partly the reason for it. It’s basically a little book written from the perspective of a future inhabitant of Spira, in-character. An old scholar or teacher, most likely, noting on this book (to be later published for the whole ‘future Spira’ to read) of a distant past time, where Summoners would fight against death and destruction incarnate, Sin. 

This writer/scholar mentions how Spira must be grateful for the sacrifices and efforts of Summoners if it now lives in peace and prosperity, in a sort of positive propaganda kind of way. It mentions:

The Spira we live in today is a peaceful, conflict-free society. Who brought this peace? Needless to say, it was the High Summoner Yuna, who defeated Sin several decades ago.

He mentions her guardians too, naming them and giving them a little ‘title’, much like legendary heroes are often sung. An example is Rikku, who is named and then called also ‘the bridge between Al Bhed and humans; or Lulu, whose ‘beauty enchanted the whole Spira’. Tidus is mentioned too as ‘the boy who talked a lot and fast’, and together with Auron, the author says their whereabouts became unknown (this book was written when X2 and all that followed was not even considered possible or plausible; Will actually tells us Tidus’ whereabouts become well-known later on, as he moves to the capital and becomes a blitzer while still being regarded as a Legendary Guardian). Anyway, it is cool to think about this; Spira did not forget the ones who saved it and that protected Yuna as her loyal Guardians. I guess, the reason is to be found in what he later mentions:

Children sing their story by heart even nowadays, decades after their pilgrimage took place.

I was so impressed when reading that. My heart also melted a little, haha. It’s reality mixing with legends - you don’t expect them to be faithful to the real facts, but that’s how stories do live on despite the passing of time. The author says even children, the latest generations that have never ever known what Sin and most likely the dogma of Yevon were, still admired them, seeing them as heroes, as legends and well-known stories.

#[ the book is interesting ngl and has very good elements ] #[ also about the customs of spira. the idea of family and marriage in the past ] #[ and tales of summoners the history books will never remember ] #[ since they failed ] #meta tag. #[ still need a meta tag ] #[ how about. maybe. ] #[ searching for the videosphere guy in luca ] #[ who recorded tidus megaphone moment ] #[ and have him give us that sphere ]

[dndeed]

Crit Role Miniature Rollout: C3E11 Chasing Nightmares

With Andrew Harshman

An archive and analysis of the minis used on CR.

Lots of action and plot development this sesh! New villain, new miniatures, new moon, and new questing horizons. Plenty of plastic and resin on display this episode, let us analyze the new models.

Buy yourself a chisel and bark at the moon, it’s time for Crit Role Miniature Rollout Campaign 3 Episode 11!

Chest and Trove 5E Condition Rings

Dwarven Forge Dungeons

Dwarven Forge Dungeons of Doom

Dwarven Forge Chair

Dwarven Forge Castle Stone Stairs

Dwarven Forge Dungeons of Doom Cages

Dwarven Forge Dungeons of Doom Vaulted Open Arch Wall

Dwarven Forge Powerstone Charger

Dwarven Forge Dungeons of Doom Bars Insert

Dwarven Forge Pathfinder Plaguestone - Alchemy Poisoner's Bench

Dwarven Forge Dungeons of Doom Vaulted Large Curved Walls

Pathfinder Battles Crown of Fangs: Court of the Crimson Throne Torch Pillars

Terrain Crate Round Table

Terrain Crate Torture Rack

Terrain Crate Debris Barricades

Dungeon Lair Chair

Hirst Arts Large Crate

Halaster’s Lab Candles and Summoning Circle

Tiny Furniture Dark Magister Workplace (barrel on top shelf iteration)

Arcknight Spell Effects

Custom Campaign 3 Party Minis

D&D® Icons of the Realms: Spell Effects: Mighty Conjurations Arcane Eye Spiritual Weapon - Warhammer

Volo & Mordenkainen's Foes #27 Boneclaw

Night Below #42 Trained Carrion Crawler

Mythic Odysseys of Theros #03 Oracle

Monster Menagerie #20 Werewolf

Flaming Sphere - Blood War #27 Living Flaming Sphere

Monster Menagerie 2 #001 Giant Rat

Assorted scatter terrain

The Heroes

At last, there’s our boy! Chetney’s miniature looks amazing. Quite the imposing pose. And the paint looks very good from over here.

Like the rest of the party figures, Chetney’s werewolf form appears to also be custom. A very nice werewolf mini, Joe Manganiello would surely approve. But you know what would take this wolfmangnome to the next level? The werewolf’s shorts should really be the same colorful pattern as Chetney’s beanie. Ah what fun that would be. 

The Villains

Nightmare King Volo & Mordenkainen's Foes #27 Boneclaw Mini image sourced from minisgallery.com

Zoinks Scoob, it’s a BUH-BUH-BUH-BUH-BONECLAW! Spoopy. Say, this is a pretty good model. With impressive table presence that makes for an intense looking boss monster, despite the rather flat paint. And for some reason the boneclaw’s skirt looks like it’s made of black pudding ooze:

Screenshot from C2E116

The Nonplayer Characters

Gurge Human Form Mythic Odysseys of Theros #03 Oracle Mini image sourced from minisgallery.com

Wildman Gurge is lookin’ fit. And he’s got that sweet championship belt. No wonder he’s famous, this man’s got an impressive aesthetic. I like this character and I like this miniature.

Gurge Werewolf Form Monster Menagerie #20 Werewolf Mini image sourced from minisgallery.com

Well will you look at that, Matt Mercer picked two miniatures with matching poses. That’s clever as all get out! Well played dungeon master. Not an especially engaging werewolf miniature, but I’ll give it a pass for the pose matching. Spectacular. Inspired mini picks.

Test Subject Monster Night Below #42 Trained Carrion Crawler Mini image sourced from minisgallery.com

A carrion crawler with a beanie, what fun! A bit puzzling, but fun. When I started collecting prepainted D&D miniatures, I kept encountering this model and not purchasing it. Cuz like, when I’m building a miniature collection, I don’t want a trained carrion crawler. I want a buck wild, ferocious carrion crawler! Kind of a curious sculpt with limited uses. But it just so happens that one of those uses is in a fey villain’s secret laboratory. Another great miniature pick.

Closing Thoughts

The mini rain is here after a three episode drought and it feels so refreshing! Now that all the PCs and their miniatures have been revealed, I expect some promotional miniature photos to appear on the Critical Role social media pages. Excited to get a closer look see at these fine figures.

See ya next sesh!

#critroleminiaturerollout

#critroleminiaturerollout #criticalroleminiaturerollout #cr #critrole #criticalrole #crspoilers #dwarvenforge #dndminis #critrole3 #cr3 #criticalrole3 #critical role #dungeonsanddragons

[thydungeongal]

I've recently re-evaluated my relationship with Final Fantasy 7

See, at some point I became convinced that FF7 had aged badly owing mostly to its graphics but I recently revisited it and... I don't know, from a gameplay standpoint I almost feel like it's aged the most gracefully of all the PS1 Final Fantasies

The materia system is imo one of the best character customization systems across all of Final Fantasy simply because it interacts with multiple systems in the game, including equipment, active abilities you have in combat, passive stat boosts to the numbers running behind the combat, and allowing for innumerable combos. In terms of my favorite character customization systems in Final Fantasy games, only 5's job system and 10's sphere grid compare to the materia system in how fun and engaging it is.

And the combat is downright snappy: FF9 had these long camera pans at the start of every random encounter and the combat animations sometimes took so long that in my experience sometimes your group's ATB gauges would fill up during a single enemy attack. I love FF9 but replaying it feels like a chore because a lot of combat animations have long setups before the actual attack takes place.

That's not to say that 7 is completely without sin: the unskippable summon animations which would only be addressed by 8 and 9 are FF7's most egregious issue, and giving the final boss an attack that also has an approximately minute-long cutscene attached is also kinda bad.

[nerdythebard]

#27: Athena, Goddess of Wisdom

She had to make her appearance eventually, Gods and Goddesses.

Athena is probably one of the most famous deities. Daughter of Zeus, born despite his schemes, ready to defend the people and Olympus. Contrary to Ares's bloodshed, she represents strategy, military wisdom and careful planning. Spoiler alert: we're not making her a Battle Master ;)

Next Time: HAVE YOU EVER HEARD THE JAGUAR CRY TO THE BLUE CORN MOON!?

Let's see what we need for the SMITE version of Athena to appear in our D&D game:

Ultimate Defender: Even bigger protector than Artio, Athena is a Guardian with High Crowd Control and High Defence.

Reach for the Sky: Athena uses long-reach attacks and her Ultimate allows her to appear by her companion's side for some extra protection.

You and what Army: Athena can summon the Defenders of Olympus to form a shield wall around her, as well as taunt and goad enemies into fighting her.

---

I know I've done this before many-a-times, but I really have no choice here. Athena is a guardian, she has the divine blood of Zeus in her veins... I have to make her a Protector Aasimar. We get a +2 Charisma and +1 Wisdom, 60 feet of Darkvision, resistance to necrotic and radiant damage, ability to speak Common and Celestial, the Light cantrip, and Healing Hands, which lets us recover Hit Points equal to our level once per long rest.

We're going to take the City Watch background, which gives us proficiencies in Athletics and Insight, two languages of our choice, but we're actually going to customize it and replace the Watcher's Eye feature with Legal Authority from the Inquisitor background. This allows us to become a representative of the law, pass judgments and sometimes even carry out the sentence. Basically, we can now tell those who attempt to invade Olympus

ABILITY SCORES

Strength will be first, our weapon is a spear and those are not labelled as finesse. Next is Constitution, we need to be able to take hits. Follow that up with Wisdom, it's kinda our thing, especially when it comes to strategy.

Charisma will be next, it's important for a good leader (and a proud crafter). Dexterity is a bit lower than I would like it to be, but in SMITE Athena is not the quick-and-nimble type. Finally, we're dumping Intelligence. We really need other abilities more, plus it wasn't a smart decision to punish Arachne for winning a competition.

CLASS

Once again, I'm putting a small twist on the prediction and I think this is the first time on the blog we're doing this.

Level 1 - Paladin: We start with the divine warrior. Paladins get a d10 Hit Dice, [10 + Constitution modifier] initial Hit Points, proficiencies with light armour, medium armour, heavy armour, shields, simple weapons, and martial weapons. In the artwork, we see that Athena is not turtled-up in armour, so giving her a half-plate in addition to a spear and a shield seems like a good option. Our saving throws are Wisdom and Charisma, and we get to choose two class skills (Intimidation and Persuasion).

We start by getting Divine Sense, which informs us of any celestial, fiends, or undead within 60 feet of us. We know the type, but not what the creature actually is.

Lay on Hands is similar to our racial ability, Healing Hands. We have a pool of healing energy, equal to [our Paladin level x5] which restores itself at each long rest. As an action, we can touch a creature and restore its Hit Points by whatever points we have left in the pool. Alternatively, we can spend 5 points to remove one disease or poison from the target.

Level 2 - Paladin: We get Divine Smite. Whenever we hit a creature with a melee weapon attack, we can burn a spell slot to add extra 2d8 radiant damage (+1d8 for each spell slot above 1st-level to a maximum of 5d8). Damage increases by 1d8 if the enemy is a fiend or an undead.

We also get to pick a Fighting Style. To fulfil Athena's role as a guardian, we're once again going to pick Interception. Whenever a creature within 5 feet of us is hit by an attack, we can use our reaction to reduce the damage by [1d10 + our proficiency bonus]. We must be wielding a shield or a simple/martial weapon.

Paladins also get Spellcasting. Charisma is our casting ability, and we do not learn cantrips or rituals. Paladins have access to their full spell list and can each day prepare [Charisma modifier + half of Paladin level rounded down] spells. We start with two 1st-level spell slots:

Divine Favour bathes us in divine light and power, allowing our weapon attacks to deal extra 1d4 radiant damage for 1 minute (concentration).

Heroism increases your allies' morale. Until the spell ends (1 minute, concentration), one willing creature we touch is immune to being frightened and gain Temporary Hit Points equal to our casting ability modifier at the start of each turn.

Shield of Faith surrounds one creature of our choice within range (60 feet) for 10 minutes (concentration), granting it a +2 AC bonus.

Level 3 - Paladin: With Divine Health we are now immune to disease. We also get to pick our subclass, our Sacred Oath. Athena is a devoted protector of her city and the gods, so making her take the Oath of the Crown, to uphold the spirit of the nation and service to law seems fitting. We start by getting some Oath Spells; those are always prepared for us and don't count against the total number of spells known:

Command forces a Wisdom saving throw onto one creature within 60 feet of us, as we utter a single-word demand. On a failed save, the target is compelled to execute that command to the best of their ability at the beginning of their next turn. The command cannot force the target to harm themselves.

Compelled Duel forces one creature within 30 feet to turn their attention towards us and fight one-on-one, provided they fail a Wisdom saving throw. For the duration (1 minute, concentration), the compelled target has a disadvantage on attacks made against targets other than us and must make a Wisdom saving throw when attempting to move more than 30 feet away from us.

We also gain access to the Cleric's Channel Divinity. Once per short or long rest, we can use one of the two effects listed below:

Champion Challenge acts similarly to the Compelled Duel spell, as it prevents creatures who fail a Wisdom saving throw to move further than 30 feet from us. The difference is, this ability affects every creature within 30 feet radius.

Turn the Tide lets us use our bonus action to bolster the injured. Each creature of our choice within 30 feet of us regain [1d6 + our Charisma modifier] Hit Points, provided they have no more than half of their Hit Points.

Level 4 - Paladin: Time for our first Ability Score Improvement. We will, however, take the Spear Mastery feat instead. We gain a +1 to attack rolls made with our spear, the damage dice of the spear change from a d6 to d8, we can use our bonus action to extend the spear's reach by 5 feet until the end of our turn, and finally, we can prepare ourselves for a charge. If a creature that we can see within 20 feet of us gets within our spear's reach on its next turn, we can use a reaction to make an attack against it that deals additional 1d8 damage. If the creature used Disengage before, we're not getting the opportunity.

We can also grab another spell: Protection from Evil and Good grants one willing creature we touch protection from aberrations, celestials, elementals, fey, fiends, and undead. Attack rolls against the target are made with a disadvantage, and the target cannot be charmed or frightened by the aforementioned creatures.

Level 5 - Paladin: With Extra Attack we can now attack twice instead of once during a single Attack action.

We also unlock 2nd-level spells and gain two spells from our subclass spell list:

Warding Bond ties up to one target within 60 feet of us. For 1 hour the target gains a +1 bonus to AC and saving throws, and resistance to all forms of damage. Additionally, whenever the target takes damage we take the same amount of damage.

Zone of Truth creates a 15-foot-radius sphere at a point within 60 feet of us for 10 minutes. Creatures inside the sphere must make a Wisdom saving throw or become unable to lie as long as they remain within the sphere's boundaries. They are not compelled to answer, however.

Level 6 - Paladin: We get our first Aura option. With the Aura of Protection, whenever a friendly creature within 10 feet of us must make a saving throw, it gains a bonus equal to our Charisma modifier.

We also get another spell: Magic Weapon transforms our non-magical weapon into a magical one, for the purpose of overcoming resistances and immunities. Until the spell ends (1 hour, concentration), we also get a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls done with the weapon.

Level 7 - Barbarian: Surprise! I believe it's the first time we jump into the rage machine. I can already hear you saying 'Ares should've been a barbarian!'. Maybe. Maybe not. Hear me out, though: Athena's rage is cold and calculated. Precise and bottled up, to be unleashed only when necessary.

Multiclassing into Barbarian doesn't give us any new proficiencies or skills, but we do get the Unarmoured Defence. When we're not wearing armour, our AC equals [10 + our Dexterity modifier + our Constitution modifier]. Unlike Monks, we still get this benefit even if wielding a shield.

We also get access to the Barbarian's key feature...

As a bonus action, the Barbarian can Rage and gain the following benefits (provided they're not wearing heavy armour):

Advantage on Strength checks and Strength saving throws

Bonus to damage rolls (+2; changes as we level up) for weapons that use Strength

Resistance to bludgeoning, piercing and slashing damage

The rage lasts for 1 minute (unless we dismiss it earlier, are knocked unconscious, fail to attack a target on our turn or taken damage during such) and while it's on, we cannot cast spells. For now, we can Rage twice before taking a long rest.

Level 8 - Barbarian: We gain Danger Sense, to better detect hostility. If we're not blinded, deafened or incapacitated, we have an advantage on Dexterity saving throws for effects we can see, such as traps and spells.

We can also forget about defence when making a Reckless Attack. When making our first attack on our turn, we can choose to do it recklessly. This gives us an advantage on melee weapon attacks that use Strength on our turn, but until the end of our next turn, all attacks made against us also have an advantage.

Level 9 - Barbarian: We can now Rage three times per long rest.

We also get to pick our second subclass, our Primal Path. And this is the moment where we get our Athenian warriors with the Path of the Ancestral Guardian. With Ancestral Protectors, we can call upon spectral warriors of the past which hinder the attacks of the first creature we hit while Raging. Until the end of our next turn, the target has a disadvantage on all attacks that aren't against us and when other creatures attack the target, they gain resistance to the damage type of the attack they make.

Level 10 - Barbarian: Halfway through the build and we're getting another ASI. We're gonna raise our Dexterity by 2 points.

Level 11 - Barbarian: Normally, we would've gained Extra Attack here, but we've already got it from our Paladin levels and they do not stack. We do, however, get Fast Movement which increases our movement speed by 10 feet provided we're not wearing heavy armour.

Level 12 - Barbarian: We can now Rage up to four times per long rest.

We get a new subclass upgrade. With Spirit Shield, our ancestral spirits now provide aid to those we defend. While we're raging, and a creature we can see within 30 feet of us takes damage, we can reduce the damage by 2d6.

Level 13 - Barbarian: At this point, our Feral Instincts are so sharp we have an advantage on our Initiative rolls.

Level 14 - Barbarian: Time for another ASI. Let's round up our Strength and put the other point into Dexterity.

Level 15 - Barbarian: Our additional damage while raging now becomes a +3.

We now get a Brutal Critical. Whenever we score a critical hit (Natural 20), apart from doubling our weapon damage die, we roll one more of the same die and add it to the score.

Level 16 - Barbarian: At this point, our Spirit Shield reduces the damage dealt to our allies by 3d6.

We also get another subclass upgrade. With Consult the Spirits, we can now use our ancestral warriors to cast either the Augury or Clairvoyance spells without a spell slot or material components once per short or long rest.

Level 17 - Barbarian: With Relentless Rage, we can now fight despite death. If we drop to 0 Hit Points while raging (and don't get damaged enough to insta-kill us), we can make a DC 10 Constitution saving throw and gain 1 Hit Point on a success. Each time we use this feature after the first, the DC raises by 5 and resets after we finish a short or long rest.

Level 18 - Barbarian: We get the final ASI of the build and we put two points into our Dexterity. We can also now Rage five times before rest.

Level 19 - Barbarian: Our Brutal Critical increases to two additional dice when scoring a Natural 20.

Level 20 - Barbarian: We end with Barbarian 14, which ends with another subclass upgrade. With Vengeful Ancestors, we can truly pull the Uno Reverse Card. When we use our Spirit Shield (which now reduces damage by 4d6), besides just reducing damage, the spirits now deal force damage to the target, equal to the damage prevented.

---

And that is Eda Athena, the Owl Lady! Let's see what we got:

To start off, we're a tank with many protection options for both us and our allies. With increased movement, advantages on initiative and damage-dealing rolls, plus some protection spells, we can easily lead and strategize.

With a half-plate and a shield our AC is 17, we have a +2 to our Initiative, 40 feet of movement, and an average HP of 175.

Unfortunately, our spell repertoire is not great, negative modifier to our Intelligence (if you want to fix that, be sure to hunt for the Headband of Intellect), and no ability maxed to 20.

---

Okay, I think this is not a bad build. As always, treat these as suggestions and modify your own builds as you please. I hope you've enjoyed yourselves and I'll see you in the next one!

- Nerdy out!

#smite #hirez smite #protector aasimar #aasimar #dnd build #dnd #d&d 5e #dungeons and dragons #greek gods #athena #paladin #oath of the crown #barbarian #ancestral guardian

[sergeantsporks]

I Won’t Let Go (or Run Away)

Gen, General Audiences

Nari won’t fight Skrael alone. Douxie won’t let it happen.

Based on this post by @archies-litterbox . I have never watched Pacific Rim and don’t know what drift compatibility is, but the idea of Douxie co-piloting Nari’s titan Vibes With Me.

@alovesongshewrote

Ao3

“No. You have a titan.”

Nari’s eyes started to glow, and her titan rumbled up.

She looked so… ethereal. And terrifying. And… a little bit sad. A titan fighting for them, a titan fighting against them—either way, she was alone.

So when Claire opened the shadow portal for them to get off the titan, Douxie didn’t go through it.

“Hey, c’mon! I can’t keep this open, I’ll need all of my magic for the titan’s portal.”

Douxie shook his head. “I’m not going to leave her alone again. I promised I would protect her.”

“Douxie,” Nari murmured, “You cannot share this with me. It is my burden.”

Douxie took Nari’s hand once more. “No more running, Nari. This is my fight, too. You are my fight.”

The world lit up, and he was huge, he was powerful, he could crush forests with his steps and destroy anyone who got in his way. Douxie let out an exhilarated laugh, lifting one arm and watching it crack stone with the force it came down with. He was unstoppable, he had the power of raw, untamed magic at his disposal and he was a god!

Nari’s hand in his anchored him to himself, reminded him who he was. Douxie. Punk-Rocker. Customer Service Expert. A master wizard. Certainly not a god.

Claire’s shadow portal surrounded them, transferring them to a forest. Nari leaned forward, and Douxie followed her lead. The titan ran forward at full tilt towards Skrael.

What if…

Douxie used his magic to light his regular hand on fire.

The titan fist he swung towards Skrael’s titan was wreathed in blue flame.

Skrael howled, whirling around to face them. “What—Impossible! You cannot pilot a titan!”

“Not alone!” Douxie responded.

Nari’s hand squeezed his, and she brought their other fist careening towards Skrael. The ice titan dodged, but barely.

“You cannot contain such power,” the ice demigod taunted, “It will consume you, and spit you out!”

“I won’t let it!” Nari howled. Vines shot out, reaching towards Skrael. With a thought from Douxie, they glowed blue and sent off a sleeping spell that made Skrael’s titan sway on its feet. Another punch from Douxie’s fiery fist sent the ice titan reeling.

Maybe Skrael was right about this consuming him—the scale of magic it took for the whole titan hand to light was exhausting, and Douxie could feel himself starting to fail.

A blow from Skrael sent them skidding to the side, and Douxie’s hand slipped out of Nari’s, instantly severing his connection to the titan. He fell, tumbling off of the titan towards the distant ground.

Falling.

Again.

“Douxie!”

Nari lunged out of her titan’s control sphere, holding onto a vine with one hand and grasping Douxie’s hand with the other. A vine snaked out, lashing their wrists together.

“Don’t leave me,” Nari begged.

Douxie gave her hand a squeeze. “No more running,” he murmured weakly, “I’ve got this—I can do it.”

The vine in Nari’s other hand retracted back into the titan, pulling the two of them up. They resumed control just in time to scramble out of the way as Skrael charged towards them. They whirled around, and Douxie lit his hand on fire, ignoring the wave of dizziness that swept over him. They slammed the fiery fist into Skrael again, knocking him back into the mountain. Nari’s vines stretched out again, and again Douxie set off another sleeping spell. Almost—there—

And then, all at once, there was blinding, horrible pain in his side, a freezing, stabbing sensation that seemed to freeze the blood in Douxie’s veins. He and Nari screamed in unison, their voices blending together into a harmony of agony.

Through the blizzard of pain, Douxie saw Nari raise their hand and stab Skrael back.

And then they were falling away, still connected by the vine at their wrists.

And by their hands, clutching each other.

Xxx

Claire screamed as the titan fell, running forward, stumbling over rocks and roots, but making her way to the fallen titan. Skrael was gone, reduced to dust, and she staggered over the pilot’s area of the earth titan. Douxie and Nari were still there, a barely-conscious Nari cradling a passed-out Douxie in her lap, their hands still linked and a vine wrapped around their wrists. Ice was spreading up their bodies from their sides, and their breaths were visible, little clouds in what was otherwise warm air. Claire skidded down next to them, checking Douxie for a pulse. It was there, but barely—and it was getting slower.

“Nari, you have to let go!” Claire begged, “You have to let him go—he’s dying!”

Nari shivered violently. “D-dy—”

The vine slowly retracted, and she started to pull her hand out of his.

Douxie’s hand clenched harder, and his eyes opened just a fraction. “N-no m-more r-r-running,” he chattered.

Claire felt Jim’s hand on her shoulder, but she was more focused on the wizard in front of her. “Douxie, please—”

“Sh-sharing the curse,” he murmured, his eyes unfocused, glowing slightly. Pulses of blue magic were rippling over his skin and spreading to Nari, slowing the ice down, only for a second, but each pulse prevented the ice from killing him just a moment longer. “S-stronger to-together. Camelot.”

“I can’t get you there, Douxie, I’m spent, that titan portal took too much—please, Douxie, I can’t lose you!”

He reached out with one hand and brushed Claire’s face. “Magic i-is emo-emotion. Use—use your fear. It—it doesn’t control you—you c-cont-trol it.”

Claire gripped his hand. “Come on,” she howled at the air, “I’m not going to lose him! ONE! MORE! PORTAL!”

It flickered, small, unstable. Shadows pressed at the corners of Claire’s vision, whispering and tugging at her soul, and she pushed them away.

“YOU! OBEY! ME!” she screamed, and the portal opened, swallowing them up and dropping them on the floor of Arthur’s throne room.

Xxx

Douxie staggered to his feet, pulling Nari along with him. He stumbled to the table with the gems in it, overshooting and spilling to the floor.

“Hngh—no—"

Blackness pressed at the corners of his vision—he was using so much magic, had used too much to fight Skrael and now it was all he could do to keep Nari and himself alive—but he summoned his staff, using it to haul himself up. “The gems,” he gasped, “They—” He scrabbled for one, prying at it with his fingers, but he was shivering so hard he couldn’t get a good grip. “Claire! Grab that yellow one!”

Claire pulled out a pocket knife and pulled it out. Douxie grabbed it, hobbling to Merlin’s study.

“What’s going on?!” Claire demanded.

“It’s—the gem—different gems hold—power—”

“Like the triumvirate stones?”

“Yeah—this one—fire—” Douxie grabbed a hammer, and handed a chisel to Nari. “Right—right there.” She held the chisel in place, and he slammed the hammer down on the gem.

Too hard, too hard, Merlin’s voice chided in his head, to shape a gemstone, you must be gentle, but firm.

But he didn’t have time to be gentle—he hit the gemstone again, and a surge of power flooded out, filling his veins with fire. It joined his own magic, and he and Nari floated up.

“Nari, now!”

He didn’t know how he knew she could save them—he just knew, the titan bond still joining them. He just felt it, deep in his soul, that their magics combined could stop the spread of Skrael’s curse.

Nari was chanting something in a language he didn’t know—or maybe he just couldn’t figure it out because everything was getting fuzzy, and now Nari’s magic was the only thing keeping him up. Her magic pulled on his own, and the power of the gemstone. They were surrounded by a maelstrom of flowers and vines made of dancing blue flames.

And then they were collapsing to the floor. He still felt cold, but the deadly ice no longer crept through him.

Nari pressed her forehead to his. “Share the curse, share the burden,” she murmured, “Thank you, Douxie.” She got up. “Bellroc still remains, and they will remake the world in fire. My task is not finished yet.”

Douxie grasped for her hand. “No!” he protested weakly, “We barely managed to defeat Skrael—you can’t—”

She giggled, holding out a hand. A flower made of ice formed. “I survived. I have assumed Skrael’s powers. I think—I think it will be enough. Not as good as you and I, but… enough. You cannot accompany me this time, Douxie. Stay here and rest. You are not a demigod—even together, piloting the titan cost you too much power. You cannot fight in this shape.”

Her face kept flickering in and out of focus, but Douxie clutched her hand as tightly as he could. “You can’t go—I have to go with you!”

Nari held up their linked wrists. The vine dissolved into green and blue magic, making a glowing, connecting thread that faded out of sight. “You do not have to be close to be with me, Douxie. We are linked like the moon and the tides—even separated by the expanse of space, they still know each other, are still affected by each other. You will be with me. Now rest.”

She tapped his forehead with one finger, and the world went black.

Xxx

“Shhhhhh, Steve, be quieter, you’ll wake him up!”

“He’s been asleep for ages, just wake him up already!”

“We told you, piloting the titan took a lot out of him. Regular wizards just aren’t built for it, and besides, he used a lot of magic in the fight—let him sleep.”

Douxie yawned, stretching. “Morning,” he mumbled. Everything was sore—and his whole body felt weak—but fuzzbuckets, he hadn’t gotten this much rest in, well, ever.

He tried to sit up, but a wave of dizziness washed over him, and he lay back down.

His friends all crowded around his bed. Jim was clutching Excalibur in his hands, and Douxie gestured to it. “Hey! You did it!”

Jim nodded, beaming. “We weren’t sure we could do it—I figured out what the ninth configuration was, but we needed you.”

“Me?”

“Yeah! And we were thinking ‘well, that’s it then, unless Claire teleports his unconscious body over here’ and then this—this glowing blue ball of light appeared, and it split into eight pieces and hit each of us, and then we… I don’t know, it just felt sort of… comforting? And hopeful? And then the eight of us were able to pull out Excalibur. I think… maybe you unconsciously sent out some magic?”

Claire gave him a warm smile. “You knew when we needed you. And you pulled through.”

A bolt of panic shot over Douxie, and he sat upright, ignoring the fatigue. “Nari! Where’s Nari?!”

“She’s fine,” Jim promised, “She was amazing—she fought Bellroc’s titan and got it down so we could face Bellroc, and then Toby used the anti-magic ray, and we… we finished the fight. Together.” He chuckled, rubbing the back of his head. “Even with their titan out, Bellroc put up a heck of a fight—it took all of us to finally take them down.”

“And—where’s Toby?”

“He’s okay, too. A few broken bones—he got pinned under rubble from the titan. But Nari got out of her titan and to him in enough time to save him. Guess what?! She found Strickler, too! He fell from the explosion and went under the ice! It froze him and sent him into a kind of hibernation, but she pulled him out. She’s resting now. Two titan fights in a row plus healing Toby and finding Strickler really took it out of her.”

“She grew a whole garden in the courtyard,” Aja breathed, “It’s beautiful—I wonder if she could make one for me back on Akaridion 5?”

“But after she wakes up, she’s going to use her empathy magic to find coordinates for Archie,” Krel volunteered, “And then we’ll just wormhole in!”

“And… the Chronosphere?”

Blinky gave a short nod. “In Camelot’s vault. Saving it for a rainy day. We saw the ninth configuration in it, and Claire managed to see and prevent Bellroc from stabbing Jim, so I suppose it served its purpose. Meddling with the powers of time is a dangerous endeavor.

Douxie nodded. “I know that one for sure.”

The powers of time moved on their own, in one direction. Forward. They managed to open a wormhole to the Hong Kong trollmarket, so Archie and Charlemagne could come and go as they pleased. Mrs. Lake became Mrs. Strickler-Lake. Jim refused to change his name.

Douxie still felt stabbing icicles in the night sometimes, waking him up from the pain.

Winter always filled him with dread.

And he almost always felt cold.

But Nari would always come—every time he started feeling just a little too frozen, every time he jolted up in the night, she was there.

And other times, he could sense her feeling the same, and he would be there for her. They shared the same curse, the same chill in their bones.

But they also shared the same fire. The same determination.

And that was enough.

#watch me make this thing dissolve into a fix-it-fic real fast at the end there #toa #tales of arcadia #rott #nari #douxie #my writing #toa fanfiction

[malamiteltd]

Decided to post something here, just to see how it goes. I haven’t really used Tumblr much even though I put an account together. This feels a bit random...

SKETCH TUCKER'S MOVES LET'S GO

(Pretty much prefix each of these moves with "Tokaru-")

1. BEAM

The first ability Sketch stumbled upon before he even realized what he was, it's considered a base-level move. Summoning power to his "third eye," it's released as a quick burst, with just enough concentration to give it a straight trajectory. It can travel a good distance, but its spontaneous nature leaves damage output a little lacking. Still, it's a go-to for a quick ranged counterstrike. His wife Heather would make this the move she'd develop further in strength.

2. BUSTER

One of Sketch's signature moves, the Buster concentrates his power into a condensed sphere, which is then fired at the intended target; when it makes contact with something or someone, the Buster explodes, making it one of his most powerful moves. With a little extra focus, he can use psychokinesis to steer the Buster's trajectory, but that makes him more prone to surprise attacks as he's less focused on other happenings. Heather made this skill her go-to quick move, opting to fire small Busters rapidly instead of creating one large one, but she has a very strong alternative version that's quite devastating. But that's for some other time, I think.

3. KINESIS

As mentioned earlier, Sketch (and the rest of his kind) have a degree of psychic ability, including psychokinesis. This move is summoned kinda like the Buster, except instead of a concentrated energy ball, he summons a spark. Whatever the spark hits, Sketch can then manipulate with constant focus; with greater focus, he can practice more intricate control over more complicated things, especially people. More often than not, it's good for picking up and throwing heavy stuff, or disabling certain threats.

4. BARRIER

Sketch's power isn't just used for offense. He can quickly create a spherical field of energy to nullify or at least weaken threats -- how well it works is somewhat dependent on the level of concentration used for it. The tradeoff of this ability is, naturally, that Sketch cannot attack while using this move, so once he feels ready to strike, the Barrier has to be taken down. He has to be confident that the time is right to do so, while at the same time not exhausting all his energy on defense.

5. SABER

Another of Sketch's signature moves, and one of the only moves Heather hasn't been able to master. It's summoned like the Buster, but the energy ball is distorted to create a point, and psychokinesis is used to "wield it" -- it's typically situated near the hand to simulate it being held, but it is free-floating, and with added focus can swing on its own without physical motion. The Saber itself is quite damaging, though its effect is moreso a powerful "burn" than a proper cut. That said, it's still technically Sketch's most powerful ability, and despite the restricted range it is more than capable of bringing down the toughest of customers.

6. STRIKER

This is a move that Sketch's granddad Dan Tucker came up with, but after seeing the move in action Sketch managed to figure out how to do it very quickly. The move summons energy towards the hands and/or feet, and when a physical attack is performed, the energy is flung out like a wave. It doesn't travel as far as the Buster or Beam, but it's enough to extend the range of damage. Naturally, though, it's strongest when it's done WITH physical contact damage, adding extra oomph to punches and kicks when readied.

----

So yeah, I just felt like putting this infodump somewhere. Don't know how often I'd do this, but hey... there's a chance this could be a place I'd visit more often in the future. Hopefully if I do, I'll have my thoughts assembled better than this. Preferably less out-of-the-blue and erratic.

-- Malamite Ltd.

#tokaru #sketch tucker #the utopian legend #malamite ltd

[dwellordream]

“After birth, the midwife and the attendants devoted their attention to the infant and its postpartum mother. Usually, they prepared food intended to strengthen the parturient; a chicken was often slaughtered for her. In order to guard her and her child from any lurking evil spirits, she was never left alone. Immediately following birth, the baby was washed, sprinkled with salt, and swaddled. Salting, a widespread custom among Jews and Christians, as well as in other societies, was understood as a protective measure. The practice of swaddling was also widespread. Babies were wrapped in large cloth diapers in a way that was believed to help shape their bodies.

The newborns remained with their mother and her attendants during the weeks following birth. If the newborn was a boy, he was separated from this group of women for the first time on the day of his circumcision. On this occasion, his father first formally recognized him as his son. After the circumcision ceremony, the infant was returned to the sphere and care of the women. Female infants remained with their mothers. There is no definitive evidence concerning their naming, a topic that will be taken up later in the book. The parturient rested in bed (known as the Kindbett) during the period following birth. 

Sources from the fifteenth century mention a lying-in period of five to six weeks, but we have no evidence from the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. In any case, it is clear that the first weeks after birth were spent with women who took care of the new mother and supervised the infant’s welfare. This brings us back to some of the issues raised at the beginning of the chapter. The process of birth did, in fact, take place in a female environment. Women were actively involved in all stages of birth. We do not know where the men were and what roles they played. On the other hand, when we turn to sources describing the ideological and religious understandings of birth, only men are present, while women are conspicuously absent. 

These two glimpses into medieval life seem somewhat disconnected. However, as this chapter has demonstrated, although men were not present at birth, they were part of birth and their interest in what went on within the birthing chamber was intense. Although their involvement was of a very different nature, they too played a part in the dramas of pregnancy and birth. Men prayed for their wives throughout pregnancy. First they prayed that their wives would conceive, then for the conception of a boy and for a healthy pregnancy, and finally, for a safe delivery. 

The wish for male offspring was also central in men’s involvement. Sources also point to several male authorities who provided advice concerning pregnancy and birth. We read of R. Judah the Pious instructing women on which women should accompany them to the mikve. It is possible that some men had a say in their wives’ choices of attendants. Rashi tells us that it was accepted practice for the husband to pay the midwife’s fee. Men were charged with summoning the midwife when the moment of birth arrived, and some of the chants and formulas used to protect women during birth were taught to the midwives by men.

In addition, patriarchal society expected women to give birth to male offspring. We have no idea how women felt about this, although it is likely that, given the educational ideals of their period and society, they too wished for male offspring. We can conclude that although the father remained outside the birthing chamber, his presence was felt within. The midwife was a mediator between the waiting men and the mother, both during and after labor. She took care of the expectant woman and conducted business with the father. She supervised the birth and related its proceedings to the men waiting outside the door, bearing the good news when the right time came. 

If the baby was born dead or died at birth, or if the mother herself died during childbirth, it was she who informed the waiting father. Although the midwife was often the one who informed the father of the sex of the newborn, some sources accept her testimony as to the hour of birth, but do not allow her testimony on the sex of the baby. Perhaps they feared that a midwife might declare that the newborn was a boy in order to pacify a waiting father, and this might cause troubles afterward. In any case, this division of midwives’ responsibilities accords with the other issues examined. She was to be trusted on practical matters (such as the time of birth), but not with the determination of the sex of a child. 

When a son was born, she mediated between the female and male space in an additional way. According to R. Gershom the Circumciser’s book, it was the midwife who prepared babies for the circumcision ceremony. The circumciser is a second mediating figure. As will be discussed in detail in the next chapter, he turned a male infant into part of the male community. He entered into the female space both before and after the circumcision to check his patient. This relationship is supported by the text discussed above, in which the circumciser’s manual includes a chapter devoted to midwifery techniques. This may be an attempt to supervise this area in which women were the practitioners.”

- Elisheva Baumgarten, “Birth.” Mothers and Children: Jewish Family Life in Medieval Europe

#mothers and children #elisheva baumgarten #history #pregnancy #jewish #medieval