Strolling confidently into the Battledome’s command center, Cfp approaches the main console, setting down a small brown bag and several cups of water. From a nearby desk, a low impressed whistle released from Annabeth Chase. “By the gods, that’s a beverage with no alcohol in it.” The user smirks, taking the first of many drinks that day. “No booze today, Annabeth. This one’s gonna take some focus.”
Cfp opens the bag and spills its contents, the relative silence breaking with the sound of clattering dice onto the table. He snaps his finger, and the dice reassemble into neat piles, with thirteen different colored twenty-sided dice close at hand. He picks one up, a brown die with orange engravings in it, and tosses it at Annabeth.
“Here, that’s Luke’s. You can roll for him.”
The demigod, startled, reluctantly sets the die down at her station. “That’s sick, even for you.”
The user laughs, shrugging as he snaps a bowl of popcorn into existence. “Hey, at least he’s getting off the streets now.” He pops a piece into his mouth, before cracking his knuckles and beginning to type out a message.
To whom it may concern, this letter is to provide an advance notice that…
Across the city of DFederal, various televisions in homes, bars, and offices light up, another royale beginning to occupy the citizens' attention.
Wiping sweat from his brow with a towel, Patroclus leads the rest of the patrons of Santa Lifta in a hearty cheer as the symbol of a greataxe appears onscreen, the shape of a man in full armor behind it. He presses a few buttons on the treadmill, before a stream of the battle replaces the Prince music video playing on the small screen. His workout partner, a somehow larger Norse man, gives a bellowing "Godspeed, rabbit!" when a complicated set of gears and a small shadow follow it up.
Five brothers sit at crammed on a couch, with the spectral sixth invisibly standing behind them. As a lute appears, a confident woman's silhouette at its rear, the Hargreeves siblings sit in tense silence – save for Klaus, who gives an irreverent salute as he takes the last swig of his drink. "I think she'll do great. It's about time one of us got a decent house to live in," he says, getting up for another. "Luther still snores."
The Iceberg Lounge bustles with activity, the excited but quiet ambience exploding as Sara Lance and the assembled Legends whoop when their teammate's shadow appeared. This is met by good-natured boos from Trevor Belmont and his intern, with Yuji somehow managing to cheer louder by himself than the half dozen adults when a drawn bow and arrow and the shape of his friend play.
In New Latveria, a scowling elf and his temporary, equally stoic partner listen to the live recording as Cfp lists the warriors. The latter quickly changes the channel as their target walked by, both to jolt his companion's attention and not to be caught "engaging in bloodsport" by the Wolf guards accompanying them.
Outside the bounds of the city and its native plane, the embodiment of darkness and shadow itself spared a momentary, unending glance to what was occurring, seeing the battle's beginning and end in a second. The Dark Powers then returned their attention to their guests, as a long-nosed man in a tuxedo, a man with greasy long grey hair in a jean jacket, and Leo continued making small talk.
In bright, bold letters – appropriately accompanied by Cfp's best attempt at a captivating voice – the Dungeons and Dragons Royale! First Edition! announced the newest battle for the city to see.
Players[]
| “ | I live for the simple things... like how much this is gonna hurt.
— Rocket Raccoon
|
” |
An Earth raccoon bred in the High Evolutionary's lab, Rocket Raccoon was born with an exceptionally high intelligence and the ability to speak. Though initially just an experiment in the High Evolutionary's scientific quest to create the perfect species, Rocket's enhanced intelligence amused the High Evolutionary, who put him in the same quarters as fellow experiments Lyla, Teefs, and Floor, whom Rocket became friends with. Rocket's rapidly growing brain soon becameha a source of jealously from the High Evolutionary when Rocket perfected gene mutation. The High Evolutionary choose to destroy Rocket and his friends as "flawed specimen", and during Rocket's escape attempt he killed Lyla. The High Evolutionary's guards killed Teefs and Floor, leaving Rocket to be the sole escapee after maiming the High Evolutionary and fleeing in a stolen ship. Disillusioned by being experimented on and his friends dying, Rocket became a nihilistic mercenary and thief, eventually meeting the tree giant Groot, who became his sole friend in the galaxy. In 2014, Rocket and Groot encountered the thief Star-Lord and Thanos' daughter Gamora. Initially hoping to earn the bounty on Quill's head, all four individuals were arrested by the Nova Corps in the struggle and sent to the prison known as The Kyln.
Along with inmate Drax "The Destroyer", the ragtag group of scoundrels escape the Kyln, and become the adventuring team known as the Guardians of the Galaxy after stopping the Kree terrorist Ronan the Accuser from destroying the planet Xandar with the Power Stone. The Guardians become involved in multiple intergalactic incidents, from stopping Ego the Living Planet's intergalactic conquest to aiding the Avengers in defeating Thanos the Mad Titan, before Rocket was rediscovered by the High Evolutionary. Rocket is severely wounded by the High Evolutionary's newest creation, Adam Warlock, on their new home Knowhere, where he dreams of Lyla, Teefs, and Floor forgiving him. The rest of the Guardians save Rocket's life after learning his backstory, but Drax, Star-Lord's half-sister Mantis, and Gamora's sister Nebula are left stranded aboard the High Evolutionary's spacebound laboratory. Deciding to rescue his family, Rocket and the remaining Guardians storm the lab, with Rocket confronting the High Evolutionary as the laboratory crashes. Rocket decides to let the High Evolutionary live, and rescues all the animals remaining in the High Evolutionary's lab. Secure in his newfound family, Rocket becomes the new leader of the Guardians of the Galaxy.
| “ | You have priceless batteries and an Atomic Bomb in your bag. If anyone's gonna have tape, it's you!
— Star-Lord
|
” |
Rocket uses an incredibly large arsenal that gives him multiple types of weapons for any situation.
- Laser Cannon
- Rocket's preferred weapon of choice, a comically large rifle that shoots both lethal regular lasers and ion pulses that can stun superhuman individuals like Gamora and Star-Lord. The rifle has a heat scope that lets Rocket shoot via his own sight or in infrared.
- Collapsible Blaster Rifle
- In a pinch, Rocket's backpack also holds a collapsible laser rifle, which he can deploy in seconds from its miniature form to rifle size. The laser blasts of this rifle are powerful enough to destroy's Ego's stone clones, though those are brittle enough for steel weapons like Gamora's sword or Drax's knives to destroy as well.
- Dual Blaster Pistols
- Rocket carries a pair of laser pistols on twin holsters on his leg holsters.
- Bag of Tricks
- Rocket has a shitload of miscellaneous gadgets and weapons he pulls out of his backpack. These include several small bombs that also function as lasers, propulsion mines he can manually trigger, dart traps, sticky bomb tasers, and conceivably whatever he could cobble together with parts in the field.
- Translator Implant
- Rocket has a translator installed so that he can understand every language he hears.
- Aero-Rig
- Rocket's jetpack is contained in a thick disc he wears on his chest, which can be expanded into a cuirass-like vest that can propel the user into the air like a jetpack.
| “ | The name's Rocket. Rocket Raccoon.
— Rocket Raccoon
|
” |
Misc.
- Superhuman Intelligence
- Rocket's brain was modified and tinkered with in his creation, giving him an exceptional level of intelligence for engineering. Even as a child with very little formal study, Rocket was able to, at a glance, determine what the flaw in the High Evolutionary's gene splicing machine was, and he was able to fly a rocket ship in his escape instinctually. As an adult, he spends his time tinkering, and was able to craft ingenious devices in minutes just by cobbling together different parts on the fly. This intelligence carries over to strategy, able to cobble together an escape plan from the Raft in seconds after Groot started the escape before Rocket could finish his initial plan.
- Raccoon Physiology
- Rocket is a genetically modified raccoon, but he still has all the abilities of a raccoon. He has night vision, enhanced smell and hearing, and razor sharp claws and teeth that let him viciously tear into others. He's also a good climber, traveling through tree canopies or industrial crevices with quick speed and agility.
- Heart of Gold
- Despite his gruff, misanthropic personality, Rocket has a heart of gold buried beneath his attitude. Especially after joining the Guardians, Rocket has a soft spot for the innocent and the vulnerable, willing to help them when the chips are down, with plenty of complaining along the way. He doesn't extend this to anyone else, with even his found family of the Guardians often at the receiving end of his sarcastic and degrading comments.
- Kleptomaniac
- Rocket is a klepotomaniac, and operates under an incredibly selfish mindset. His creed is that if he wants something then he has a right to take it, whether or not someone else already has it. He has a borderline obsession with mechanical limbs, such as Bucky's metal arm.
X-Factors
- Strength - 10
- Rocket is surprisingly strong for a raccoon, capable of punching out an adult human he took by surprise and lugging around several comically large weapons into every fight. That being said, he's still a raccoon; his size alone limits what he can rely on his physical strength to do.
- Dexterity - 18
- Rocket's raccoon physicality makes him a shifty fighter, relying on his small size to use a combination of stealth and surprise to jump his enemies in a fight. He was able to effortlessly scurry around in trees during his ambush of the Ravagers, and his jetpack helps out his mobility to keep him in the air.
- Constitution - 12
- Rocket's a tough bastard, with the mental fortitude and stubborn grit to power through superficial injuries and keep up the fight. However, he's not a tank; he can get tossed around like a ragdoll if an opponent manages to catch him, and he was nearly killed from a single blast from Adam Warlock's energy beams.
- Intelligence - 20
- It nearly goes without saying, but Rocket's greatest asset is far and away his intelligence. He's not only an incredibly smart engineer and inventor, but his ability to come up with strategies on the fly and improvise a plan makes him the ideal candidate to lead the Guardians after Quill's retirement.
- Wisdom - 14
- Rocket's tactical intelligence might be impressive, but his emotional intelligence and stability is a little lacking. While he's perfectly capable of devising a strategy, he's not the best at understanding others or thinking rationally. He's ultimately a guy who goes to extreme measures to convince himself he doesn't have a moral compass, and that can impact his decision-making.
- Charisma - 8
- Rocket's a sarcastic, mean-spirited, selfish, bombastic mercenary with a chip on his shoulder, a short-fuse, and more trauma than fur. He's not good at dealing with people at all unless they're his friends, and relies on intimidation or deception to get what he wants socially, even though he's not really good at either.
| “ | Sing, Goddess, of the rage of Peleus' son Achilles, the accursed rage that brought great suffering to the Achaeans...
— The Iliad
|
” |
Son of the king of Pthia Peleus and the nymph Thetis, Achilles was the prince of the highly trained and skilled Myrmidons, a crew of Greek hoplite warriors. Peleus entrusted his son to the care of Chiron, a centaur and legendary teacher of heroes. When Achilles grew up, Thetis confronted her son, offering him two choices: a quiet, happy, and long life with a good family, or a fierce and violent one full of glory that would end with him dying young. Achilles chose the latter. His destiny arrived shortly after as the Trojan war began with the abduction of Helen of Sparta, King Agamemnon called the Myrmidons to arms. Although Thetis tried to prevent him from leaving, Achilles sailed to the beaches of Troy to join the fight.
As the war dragged on into its tenth year, Agamemnon chooses to make a concubine belonging to Achilles, Briseus, his own. Achilles, insulted and infuriated, ordered his Myrmidons to stop fighting, and the Greeks lost much ground without them. Achilles' closest friend, Patroclus, decided to take Achilles' place and lead the Myrmidons into battle. He donned Achilles's armor and drove back the Trojans, but was killed by the Trojan champion Hector. When he learned what happened, Achilles flew into a rage. He slaughtered countless numbers of Trojans on his search for revenge, finally slaying Hector outside the gates of Troy. Achilles would meet his prophesied end shortly afterward, dying before Troy's fall in battle and sent to the Underworld for his great deeds.
| “ | And once the god had made that great and massive shield, he made Achilles a breastplate brighter than gleaming fire. He made him a sturdy helmet to fit the fighter’s temples; beautiful, burnished work, and raised its golden crest, and made him greaves of flexing, pliant tin.
— The Iliad
|
” |
Achilles wields some of the finest weapons and armor of ancient Greek heroes, befitting his status as the pantheon's greatest martial warrior. His equipment includes:
- Xiphos
- A Mycanean short sword, double-edged and roughly two feet long capable of thrusting and potentially hacking. A sword at one time wielded by his father, Achilles' xiphos is otherwise a mundane bronze sword.
- Spear of Achilles
- A dory spear, a three meter long spear with a leaf-shaped blade and a butt spike. Achilles' spear was said to be so heavy that no other man could lift, while its length allowed him to pierce both armor and man with ease in his hand. It was also capable of being used as a javelin, one with which Achilles rarely missed.
- Armor of Achilles
- A divine set of armor forged by the god of smithing Hephaestus himself, Achilles' divine armor was invulnerable to mortal weapons and likely from the gods themselves. It consists of a massive aspis shield with intricate designs upon it, a breastplate, a well-fitted crested helmet, and greaves.
| “ | You – I hate you most of all the warlords, loved by the gods. Always dear to your heart, strife, yes, and battles, the bloody grind of war., What if you are a great soldier? That’s just a gift of god.
— Agamemnon
|
” |
| “ | My rage, my fury would drive me now to hack your flesh away and eat you raw – such agonies you have caused me.
— Achilles
|
” |
Misc.
- Rage of Achilles
- Filled with an almost divine battle rage, Achilles' bloodlust and anger when incited was a marvel to behold on the battlefield. It took little to set him off on the battlefield, carving through thousands of Trojan soldiers and champions through sheer willpower that often took the intervention of the gods just to get him to relent. In spite of this, Achilles' rage was a honed one - he could express enough discipline not to fly into anger among his comrades, while his rage was focused enough to not impact his skill.
- Master Combatant
- Trained by Chiron and honed by years of experience, Achilles is a master of spear, sword, and hand-to-hand combat. The combination of his divine physicality and his hard-trained skill meant that no man had ever defeated him in martial combat, with the closest anyone getting being Hector landing a cut against his shield (not to be confused with his armor).
- Prideful
- While Achilles wasn't foolish, his anger often manifested itself as pride. When Achilles was insulted by Agamemnon taking his concubine, he refused to fight and was prepared to abandon the war entirely. Upon the death of his close companion Patroclus, Achilles dueled with Hector and insulted the gods by refusing the holy burial rites out of sheer spite. His entire motivation for getting into the Trojan War was to satisfy his desire for a glorious and early death, even when promised a long, peaceful life instead.
- Glory Seeker
- Like many Greek warriors of his time, Achilles sought glory in battle above all else, even at the cost of his own life or strategic value. Martial prowess and displays of it were virtue, and proving it was often Achilles' sole or primary motivation for any action he took.
X-Factors
- Strength - 20
- Achilles' strength was legendary, from lifting an unliftable spear to regularly killing fully armored soldiers with his bare hands. His godly physicality even stood up to the gods themselves, with a river god being unable to knock him down and Zeus dispatching gods to hold back his rage-filled hunt for Hector.
- Dexterity - 20
- In addition to his strength, Achilles was notoriously dexterous and fast, keeping pace with the centaur Chiron in races and dodging spears in the chaotic tide of combat with ease. He was a proficient spear-thrower as well, rarely missing, and slaying foes before they could even comprehend he was there.
- Constitution - 18
- While Achilles was ultimately mortal, he displayed an inhumane level of stamina and natural endurance powered by his rage. In addition to this natural hardiness, Achilles wears an indestructible set of armor that protects him from nearly any blow, meaning most blows would have difficulty getting to him in the first place.
- Intelligence - 10
- Achilles was raised by Chiron, who taught him basic Greek art such as poetry, music, and medicine, plus an ample respect and knowledge of the gods. That being said, Achilles could never be considered among the most intelligent or clever of the Greek heroes, relying on his martial skill and physical prowess to see him through his trials rather than a sharp wit.
- Wisdom - 6
- Achilles lacks discipline, prone to anger and pride that has saw him fail before. His vanity kept him from participating in much of the final days of the Trojan War, jeopardizing the entire campaign over a matter of individual pride. While he can occasionally show kindness to his fellow soldier, his heavy disdain for those he comprehends as even close to his level get nearly as much scorn as his explicit enemies, while his culturally engrained drive for battle as virtue limits his decision-making.
- Charisma - 8
- Achilles may be near-worshipped by the Greek soldiers on his side, that's less due to his natural charisma and more due to the reputation earned through the slaughter of the Trojan War. In a vacuum, Achilles' rage and pride makes him a figure heavily disliked by those such as Agamemnon that are unpersuaded by battle prowess.
| “ | When something seems too good to be true, it's usually anything but.
— Allison Hargreeves
|
” |
One of 43 children miraculously born from a woman with no prior signs of pregnancy, Allison Hargreeves was adopted by inventor and secret alien Sir Reginald Hargreeves in an experiment to utilize the most unique powers to create a team of children superheroes. With her power to control others via vocal commands, Allison was dubbed Number 3, developing a childhood attraction to her adoptive brother Luther and friendship with her other brother Klaus. When she was still a child, Reginald forced her to her powers on her brother Viktor to believe that he had no powers, a secret she held into her adulthood. While the team of superheroes, known as the Umbrella Academy, was initially successful for a decade, the combined "Jennifer Incident" and Viktor's tell-all book eventually caused the family to disperse, with Allison becoming a celebrated actress and marrying a man named Patrick and having a daughter, Claire. When Claire was four, Allison used her powers to stop one of Claire's tantrums, which was witnessed by a horrified Patrick. Allison and Patrick divorce, with Patrick gaining sole custody of Claire, when Allison learns that Reginald has died.
Initially suspected to be suicide, Allison and the rest of the Hargreeves learn that Leonard Peabody, a former fan of the Academy that was publicly humiliated by Reginald, had murdered him. During their investigation, Viktor learned about Allison's role in his power suppression, causing him to slit her throat non-lethally in a rage. The family also learns from their time-traveling brother Five that Viktor, now reawakened to his powers, would cause the apocalypse by blowing up the moon. Failing to avert the apocalypse, the entire family teleports back in time, though are scattered, where Allison is teleported to Dallas in 1961, becoming part of the Civil Rights Movement and ensuring that the assassination of John F. Kennedy goes down properly instead of culminating in nuclear war. Five teleports them back to their time, only to find the timeline altered. With her daughter erased from the timeline, Allison has a mental breakdown, allying with this timeline's version of Sir Reginald to destroy and reset the world to get her daughter back. After realizing the effort would kill her siblings though, Allison decides to kill Reginald and reset it herself. In this timeline, the Hargreeves family is born without powers, with Allison reuniting with her daughter Claire and Raymond, a man she married during the 1960's.
| “ | I heard a rumor...
— Allison Hargreeves
|
” |
Allison's power is called "rumoring", essentially a vocal command-based form of reality warping. When she speaks to an intended listener or listeners while using her powers, she can force them to do what she says in the way she intends. She can force the listener to undergo physical changes, such as rumoring Fei to become paralyzed by telling her she couldn't move, as well as emotional, such as forcing Luther to wanting to sleep with her. Her powers have a degree of powerful reality manipulation to them; when she told Viktor he was ordinary, Viktor's powers were suppressed and forgotten about for his entire childhood and into his adulthood, and were powerful enough that Viktor was not mentally capable of having self-respect beyond mere competence.
Individuals that get rumored don't seem to remember it without visible signs of it happening, as Viktor nor a racist cop know they were rumored with mere spoken commands. Allison's commands cannot be ignored, to the point that a man poured hot coffee onto his hand for several seconds to comply and Sloane's nose started bleeding when she could not give an answer that would comply with Allison's request.
Despite the inherent power of her abilities, Allison herself is not immune to such effects, as during her fight with Lila she had her powers used against her to "stop breathing" and nearly choked to death.
| “ | Destroy the world, kill Pogo, almost kill me, and for what? So we can all run around and clean up your mess? I'm sick of it. Every time I build a new life for myself, you end the world and take it from me!
— Allison Hargreeves
|
” |
- Skilled Actress
- Even without her rumoring powers, Allison was a skilled actress, capable of building a persona for herself during the 1960's and memorizing vast amounts of informations for roles.
- Skilled Hand-to-Hand Combatant
- Allison is a skilled martial artist, trained in hand-to-hand combat and maintaining a peak physical condition into her adulthood. She's able to defeat highly trained opponents like the Swedes, a trio of assassin siblings, and Cha-Cha, one of the best assassins of the Temps Commission. She is able to hold her own against Lila Pitts for a brief period of time, putting Lila in a headlock before Lila turns her powers against her.
- Superficially Kind
- If Allison isn't forced to choose between what she wants and the right thing, Allison is usually a kind, generous, and empathetic individual. She helps take care of her brother Klaus with little expectation of reward, and almost immediately joined the Civil Rights Movement when she arrived in Dallas. She is someone who wants to be a good person, even if her desires occasionally supplant that in dire circumstances.
- Selfish
- Thanks to the high manipulative abilities of her powers, Allison does not react well when she cannot get what she wants. At her worst, Allison was willing to betray all her siblings and kill an innocent man to get back to her daughter, and forced Luther to try to sleep with her after he admitted he was falling in love with someone else. She regularly used her powers on her daughter and get parts as an actress, abusing her powers to resolve relatively minor annoyances.
- Strength - 12
- Allison is just a normal human when it comes to her physical abilities, although she keeps herself in great physical shape, able to fight a trained assassin like Cha-Cha or Lila evenly. She was able to wield a pool cue effectively as a weapon and snap it over her knee without faltering.
- Dexterity - 11
- Allison is just a normal human when it comes to her physical abilities, although she keeps herself in great physical shape, able to fight a trained assassin like Cha-Cha or Lila evenly.
- Constitution - 12
- Allison is apparently a normal human in terms of durability, though she has survived through a lot of tough bouts, such as a drag-out brawl with Cha-Cha or living through having her throat slit by Viktor, though she had to heal like a normal human did for the latter.
- Intelligence - 14
- Though Allison received a fine education from Hargreeves, she's not nearly as smart or technical as her brother Five. She does have a lot of esoteric knowledge from her acting career, such as being able to identify how long a body has been dead due to her preparing for a police procedural show.
- Wisdom - 12
- Allison likes to appear to be one of the level-headed members of the family, and frankly when unchallenged she's able to keep a calm head and act with empathy towards others. However, Allison also has a record of pent-up anger and a selfish streak, and can act rashly when her back is up against the wall.
- Charisma - 20
- If there was ever one of these X-Factors to take past the maximum 20, it would be Allison's charismatic abilities. Thanks to her rumoring, she doesn't even need to rely on her charismatic personality or acting talent to convince someone; if she wants something done, she can simply make the listener do it.
| “ | My resolve will never falter!
— Sophitia Alexandria
|
” |
The daughter of a baker in Athens, Sophitia Alexandria became a servant of the forge god Hephaestus when he bestowed her with exceptional skill and talent. With his blessing, Sophitia went on a quest to destroy the demonic sword Soul Edge. Finding its wielder Cervantes de Leon, Sophitia destroyed the sword at a terrible price. The shards of the weapon pierced her body, but she was saved from death by the ninja Taki. After she returned home and found love in the blacksmith Rothion, Sophitia was given another quest by Hephaestus. He gave Rothion a magical ore, and forged her a new pair of magical weapons, tasking her to free those who have become possessed by Soul Edge's evil.
With her new arms, Sophitia explored the lands in search of those corrupted by Soul Edge, often defeating possessed villagers and curing them of their malfestation. As she fought those corrupted by Soul Edge's influence, she heard of the Azure Knight, Nightmare, the newest wielder of Soul Edge. Traveling to Ostrheinsburg, she found Nightmare missing and encountered the knight Siegfried instead, who fought Sophitia believing she was attempting to claim Soul Edge for herself. Besting him in combat, she used her magic to cleanse Soul Edge's lingering influence over Siegfried, who changes his quest from protecting Soul Edge from others to finding a way to seal it away permanently. Though unsure if she was meant to, Sophitia felt that her quest had been completed, praying for Siegfried before returning to her homeland, marrying Rothion and returning to her family's bakery.
| “ | Amazing, it feels so light! It's even better than the battle gear I was bestowed with last time.
— Sophitia, shortly after beating the shit out of her husband
|
” |
| “ | O gods, empower me!
— Sophitia
|
” |
| “ | No need for forgiveness. I am here to save all from evil.
— Sophitia
|
” |
Misc.
- Devout
- Above almost all else, Sophitia is a devout and faithful follower of her god, Hephaestus. She's willing to travel across the world twice over on a quest for Hephaestus, including on the days before her wedding, and accepts his orders without question.
- Altruistic
- So long as it doesn't impede her quest for Hephaestus, Sophitia is kind and generous, going out of her way to save those infected with malfestation rather than killing them and going on her way. She extends this kindness to former enemies, forgiving the malfested immediately after they are cured or letting Siegfried take up her quest.
- Insightful
- Sophitia is an insightful and emotionally intelligent woman, able to read the behaviors of strangers and act as a good judge of character. She was able to offer reassuring words to Kilik despite having never met him before, and knew she could trust Siegfried to continue her quest of guaranteeing Soul Edge's destruction.
X-Factors
- Strength - 14
- Sophitia is a tough and skilled swordsman, and can hold her own against large bruisers like Siegfried with ease. That being said, she doesn't rely on her raw strength to win her bouts, instead taking a different approach in her fighting style.
- Dexterity - 16
- Sophitia's usage of a small shield and short sword mean that she relies extensively on her dexterity in a fight, dodging and parrying in a bout instead of blocking. She is able to perform an Angel Step dash to close the space swiftly, and she delivers quick, precise strikes rather than sweeping blows.
- Constitution - 14
- Sophitia's armor and natural hardiness make her tough to put down, letting her take hits from malfested villagers, Siegfried, and Cervantes. She doesn't have a lot of other feats though, aside from the general sturdiness of being a fighting game character.
- Intelligence - 10
- Sophitia isn't dumb or foolish, but she's also a baker's daughter; she has no stated formal education or schooling, and most of what she knows was gained in the field or through divine knowledge. Despite this she's a capable investigator, tracking down Siegfried off of little more than rumors and her wits.
- Wisdom - 16
- Sophitia has a good eye for people, able to read intentions and personalities of those she meets upon meeting them.
- Charisma - 10
- Sophitia doesn't get a lot of chances to show off her charisma or persuasive abilities, though she's clearly likeable enough to get married. That being said, she's also stubborn and devout, two traits that have occasionally led her into fighting through a problem rather than talking it out (Like with Siegfried or her sister).
| “ | I choose to protect people from those who would prey upon them.
— Vixen
|
” |
A member of the Zambesi tribe in Africa, Amaya Jiwe became the superhero Vixen after inheriting the Anansi Spirit Totem from her mother, using it to protect her village. During World War II, Amaya was recruited to join the Justice Society of America, where she began dating team leader Rex Tyler and encountered the time travelers known as the Legends. When Society leader Rex Tyler was murdered, a vengeful Amaya snuck onto the Waverider and attacked the Legends, convinced they were responsible for his death. After a brief fight, the Legends were able to prove that the Legion of Doom was responsible, and she joined the team to avenge Rex's death. She was able to avenge Tyler's death by defeating the Legion of Doom, and returned to her time period after a brief relationship with Nate Heywood.
After returning to 1942, Amaya felt her totem begin to corrupt her, and she became reluctant to use it due to the bestial nature starting to overcome her. She reluctantly rejoined the Legends after Sara reaches out to her for help with a time-displaced saber tooth tiger. Amaya reveals her totem's condition, but overcomes it with the help of new Legends recruit
| “ | This totem harnesses the ashe, or the life force, of the animal kingdom. It was passed down to me from my mother and from hers before that.
— Vixen
|
” |
A mystical item of the Zambesi people, inherited by Amaya from her grandmother and mother to help her in her goal to protect her tribe. The Spirit Totem allows its wielder to channel the abilities of animals found throughout nature. She usually does this by invoking the avatar of a given animal for a brief time, but she can maintain the constructs if she concentrates to give them tangible form in the physical world. The abilities she can use are varied and powerful, from simple physical enhancement like gaining the strength of a gorilla or agility of a tiger, to more unique abilities, such as turning invisible by channelling a chameleon or becoming immune to the elements by channelling a seal.
With the totem, she also has the ability to empathize with animals, communicating basic emotions and ideas to animals like getting a T-Rex to leave her alone, and create energy shields to protect herself or others.
Amaya cannot use the powers of the totem if she loses it.
| “ | Don’t deny the animal. But don’t let it control you either.
— Vixen
|
” |
- Expert Martial Artist
- Vixen is an incredibly accomplished martial artist and hand-to-hand combatant, regularly beating Nazis, samurai, and gangsters in a fistfight. Her skill allows her to compete evenly with Malcolm Merlyn and Sara Lance, both two master fighters trained by the League of Assassins, thanks in part to assistance and her spirit totem powers respectively. She is also a weapons master, displaying accuracy with knife throwing and firearms and expertly using bladed weapons like katanas and knives with ease.
- Paragon
- Vixen isn't just a good person, but a person who strives to lead by example and inspire goodness in others, and she expects her allies to either do the same or at least follow her morals. She will always try to do the right thing by helping innocents, protecting the weak, and defeating evil-doers, with the morality of the times, rule of law, or opinions of her allies never swaying her from this. She doesn't let this get in the way of sound strategy, as she's willing to be deceptive for the mission and make sacrifices for the greater good, but outside of these circumstances she believes in right-or-wrong and will act accordingly.
- Protective
- Despite her desire to be a good person, Vixen also has a bit of a vengeful streak in her, often forgoing the usual mercy she extends others when her loved ones have been hurt. She was willing to kill the Legends with no hesitation when she suspected they killed Rex Tyler, and once she learned of her village's future became much more vicious against those that attacked her village.
- Strength - 18
- While Vixen's own physical condition is merely that of a peak human athlete, the Spirit Totem does her several favors in this regard. She can enhance her lifting and punching power to that of animals such as elephants, gorillas, and bears, making her one of the Legends' main bruisers thanks to her ability to slug it out with raw strength.
- Dexterity - 14
- Vixen's a trained acrobat and gymnast, and is skilled in stealth and infiltration, but once again her Spirit Totem is where she really shines in this respect. She can become as fast as a cheetah or dolphin depending on the terrain, or climb walls as a spider. Amaya's granddaughter also used the totem to fly, but Amaya herself has never seemed to use this power.
- Constitution - 12
- Vixen is ultimately a normal human underneath the Spirit Totem, and is only above the average thanks to some miscellaneous abilities that help her in esoteric situations like maintaining her body temperature or breathing underwater.
- Intelligence - 12
- Amaya isn't inquisitive in the academic sense, often leaving the intellectual thinking to Ray or Nate. Where her knowledge does lie, such as in military operations or the spiritual history of the totems, she is incredibly knowledgable, and is a natural explorer of the world. She is curious, just about people and customs rather than books and knowledge.
- Wisdom - 16
- Despite her professional personality, Amaya has an immense sense of empathy and intuition. She has a natural curiosity for both people and animals, and showed the self-awareness to admit her faults and when to restrain her sense of right and wrong for the sake of a mission.
- Charisma - 12
- Amaya can initially come off as stand-offish, with her firm moral compass and her sense of professionalism making her distrusted by the more chaotic and improvisational Legends. Once she gets to know her allies, she could relax, but getting to that point takes awhile. She's also, despite her heroic nature, a good actress and liar, effortlessly mixing into the various time periods the Legends travel.
| “ | Ethan. Me. All the unclaimed. Don't let it...don't let it happen again.
— Luke Castellan
|
” |
The son of the god of travel Hermes and the mortal May Castellan, Luke Castellan was raised by a mentally unstable mother. Running away from home as a young child, Luke eventually found two companions in Thalia, the daughter of Zeus, and Annabeth, daughter of Athena. The trio ventured across New England until they encountered the satyr Grover, and were taken to Camp Half-Blood at the cost of Thalia's life. Once at Camp Half-Blood, Luke proved himself popular, displaying a natural skill as a swordsman and leader, but witnessing the apathy of the gods to their mortal children turned into a grudge, which was exploited by the returning titan Kronos.
By the time Percy Jackson had arrived at Camp Half-Blood, Luke had changed sides to serve Kronos, who vowed to help him destroy Olympus. Attempting to trick the gods into a war with each other by stealing Zeus' lightning bolt, Luke's plan was thwarted by the young Percy and his friends Grover and Annabeth. Luke had revealed himself a traitor, and fled to Kronos' side as his mortal champion. For the next five years, Luke aided in the eventual rise of Kronos, culminating in serving as Kronos' physical host after taking on the Curse of Achilles. During the Battle of Manhatten, Kronos led the monster army against the forces of Camp Half-Blood. Luke and Kronos confronted Percy, Annabeth, and a resurrected Thalia on the top of Olympus. Just as Kronos was about to kill Annabeth, she reminded Luke of their promise to protect each other. Immediately regretting his decision, Luke killed himself in order for Kronos to be stopped once again.
| “ | Backbiter, Luke called it. An appropriate name. Now that it is reforged completely, it shall indeed bite back.
— Kronos
|
” |
| “ | But Hermes was the god of communication, roadways, and commerce. Maybe that meant he had some power over the Internet. I could really use a divine Google hit right about now.
— Luke Castellan
|
” |
As a son of Hermes, Luke possessed powers both typical of demigods and more eccentric abilities of the god of thieves. In addition to the superhuman strength, durability, and reflexes that allowed Luke to fight monsters like cyclopses without any training, Luke was notably fast even by demigod standards, with his greater speed and skill allowing him to defeat Percy Jackson even when the latter was augmented by water, and could even run on air.
Additionally, Luke is a master thief. In addition his natural talent for stealth, infiltration, and deception, he possessed a supernatural talent for thievery, stealing from the gods themselves thanks to his innate talent for stealing. He had the ability to learn the exact mechanism of any lock just by contact, and could open them just by concentrating on them for a few moments.
| “ | Good-bye, Percy. There is a new Golden Age coming. You won’t be part of it.
— Luke Castellan
|
” |
- Will Power
- Luke has an exceptionally strong will power and sense of self, able to take Atlas' place to hold up the sky, which drained both his physical and mental strength, and could duel with Thalia Grace, the daughter of Zeus who grew up with him and knows how he fights, to a standstill. His will power even let him take over his body from Kronos' possession, albeit briefly to strike his weak spot.
- Committed
- Luke is committed, above all else, to his cause, seeking to destroy the gods that refused to help their children and help make sure no other demigods were left abandoned by him. Though he has an incredible soft spot for his friends like Annabeth or Thalia, he will never hesitate in a decision if he thinks that it will help achieve his goals. He tries to limit collateral damage of mortals and his fellow demigods where he can, but not to the degree that he won't put his mission first.
- Master Manipulator
- Luke is an incredibly smart manipulator and strategist, acting as an undercover agent for Kronos in Camp Half-Blood for a year despite the presence of the god Dionysus and his lifelong mentor Chiron. Even after he was exposed, he was able to manipulate his fellow campers like Silena Beauregard into working for him through a mixture of charm and blackmail, and recruited dozens of demigods to Kronos' army, composed of various monsters just as likely to eat them as fight alongside them.
- Strength - 16
- Luke's a gifted swordsman and fighter, and has the physical strength to back that up. He was strong enough to fight cyclopses as a preteen.
- Dexterity - 20
- As a son of Hermes, Luke is naturally fast and agile, never even wearing armor thanks to his agility and reflexes. Even with Percy was augmented by water, Luke was a faster swordsman, forcing Percy on the backfoot throughout the duel thanks to his overwhelming speed.
- Constitution - 16
- Luke's a demigod, so he's naturally more hardy and resilient than a mortal human. He was able to survive falling down a cliff and walking far enough away not to get caught, and he could survive blasts of lightning from Thalia only winded.
- Intelligence - 12
- Luke relied on the intelligence of Annabeth throughout most of his life, but he wasn't an idiot. He had a working knowledge of Greek mythology as a matter of survivability, and as the son of Hermes he is supernaturally good with money.
- Wisdom - 14
- Luke's a solid strategist and tactician, with a good mind for reading people and his environment to twist them to his advantage. Though he's somewhat volatile due his intense hatred for the gods and deeply buried guilt at the costs of his mission, he always keeps a cool head even when his plans stop working.
- Charisma - 18
- Luke has a natural presence and charisma that makes him very good at manipulating other people. He is magically enhanced by his divine heritage to be a convincing actor and liar, bolstered by his ability to identify what people want and use it to get what he wants. He's both got the presence to be convincing and the intelligence to apply that charisma to his own goals.
| “ | I think this "power" of mine is what I wanted all along. The power to protect everyone...I understand now. I'm not supposed to use it to become more self-reliant...I'm supposed to use this power to protect people...Yukiko, my friends, my family, this town...and you.
— Chie Satonaka
|
” |
A stubborn but passionate second-year student at Yasogami High, Chie Satonaka is a tomboy and best friend of her wealthy classmate ~~and best girl~~ Yukiko Amagi, meeting the local heiress when offering to help take care of the latter's dog as a child. Their second-year begins with meeting two transfer students from big cities, Yosuke Hanamura and Yu Narukami. As a means of bonding, the group minus Yukiko decide to learn more about the new urban legend Midnight Channel. The three soon discover the Midnight Channel is a portal to the TV World, with Chie entering upon learning that Yukiko fits the pattern of recent murder victims just as she disappears. Chie storms into the TV World, where she faces her Shadow Self, her most negative personality traits personified. Chie eventually comes to term with her Shadow, awakening to her Persona and becoming a founding member of the Investigation Team.
Over the course of the year, Chie helps the group discover the truth of the Inaba serial killer, with Chie often serving as the team's muscle. To further this role, Chie resolves to become stronger and begins a strict training regime she invites Yu to join. As the two grow closer, Chie comes to realize that the reason for her strength isn't just improving herself but protecting the ones she loves. Chie decides that upon graduation, she will join the police force, solidifying her friendship with Yu by giving him a training wristband.
Chie's got some stuff.
- Glasses
- A special pair of glasses created by Teddie, that let Chie see through magical fog and obscuring effects as if it were clear.
- Stella Greaves
- Magic boots made from the hides of Shadows and forged by local blacksmith Master Daidara. These boots increase Chie's already impressive Strength even further, making her physical attacks do more damage.
| “ | Don't miss this heavenly glory!
— Chie Satonaka
|
” |
Chie's awakened Persona is Haraedo-no-Okami, inspired by the Shinto goddesses of purification. Chie's Persona places heavy emphasis on physical attacks, with a somewhat weak magical ability but high health and physical damage, as well as absorbing ice damage for healing and having an immunity to Light (radiant) damage.
- Bufudyne
- Heavy Ice damage to 1 foe. Costs stamina.
- God's Hand
- Severe Physical damage to 1 foe. Costs health.
- Agneyastra
- Heavy Physical damage to all foes 1x to 3x. Costs health.
- Dragon Hustle
- Increases all allies' Attack, Defense, and Hit/Evasion rate briefly. Costs stamina.
- Power Charge
- Chie's next Physical attack does 250% more damage. Costs stamina.
- Evade Fire
- Moderately increases Chie's ability to avoid Fire attacks. Passive.
- Ice Boost
- Slightly increases the strength of Chie's Ice attacks. Passive.
- High Counter
- Moderate chance that a physical attack is reflected back to the attacker. Passive.
| “ | There's parts of me that I'm not really proud of either. Horrible things that I'm really ashamed of. They don't matter! Listen! I will always be there for you! That's a promise! Cuz you're my friend!
— Chie Satonaka
|
” |
- Extrovert
- Chie is loud, energetic, and incredibly friendly, approaching Yu on his first day of school as if they'd known each other for years. She'll openly tease her friends and crack jokes during conversations, to the point of occasional foot-in-mouth syndrome.
- Righteous
- Chie has a fierce sense of justice and protectiveness, wanting to become a cop when she grows up and an unbreakable will to protect her friends from harm and pain. Her friendship with Yu is driven around this desire, spending the year practicing her kung fu to better protect those she cares for.
- Emotionally Young
- Chie is, at the end of the day, still a teenager. Even after developing a firmer sense of self by the end of the year, Chie's prone to letting her anger get the best of her in a lowkey situation or letting unexpressed jealousy lower her self-esteem over time.
- Strength - 16
- Despite her appearance as a wiry, acrobatic tomboy, Chie packs a significant punch, with her kung fu fighting style and Persona's enhanced strength allowing her to slug it out with Shadows as the team's main frontline fighter (except for Kanji, but no one uses Kanji).
- Dexterity - 18
- Even more than her martial strength, Chie incorporates acrobatics and flexibility into her fighting style extensively, and her agility additionally makes her hard to hit.
- Constitution - 16
- Chie's Persona relies heavily on drawing from Chie's endurance for its more powerful attacks, so fittingly Chie has a lot of health to rely on in a fight. She also knows how to preserve said magic thanks to the strength and speed of her attacks, and has a few magical abilities to either reflect physical attacks or evade fire attacks, her one weakness.
- Intelligence - 8
- Chie's not notably dumb as a student, but her fast-paced mind means she's not usually the one to make the same observations Yu, Yosuke, or Naoto do, often leaving the thinking to her friends unless something falls within her narrow range of interests.
- Wisdom - 12
- Despite her occasionally saying something insensitive or recklessly plowing through a conversation, Chie is also aware enough to recognize when people are feeling down around her and rectifying any mistakes she's caused. Her sense of justice and desire to protect can also occasionally cause her to overextend herself, putting herself in unnecessary harm if not tempered by her friends.
- Charisma - 10
- Chie's got a very strong personality, but that personality is one of friendliness, humor, and excitement, so it usually endears her to people that aren't assholes. She's not quite the slick talker like Yu, but overall is neither boring nor persuasive in any significant measure.
| “ | Vengeance will be mine!
— Scorpion
|
” |
Raised into the Shirai Ryu, Scorpion began life as the renowned ninja Hanzo Hasashi, having brought his ways to Japan from China. One day, he was tasked by the sorcerer Quan Chi to steal the Map of the Elements. During this mission, he was killed by Sub-Zero, whom Quan Chi tasked to do the same thing. To make matters worse, the sorcerer killed his clan soon after as payment to Sub-Zero. Resurrected as a specter, Scorpion swore vengeance against his killer, believing him solely responsible for the Shirai Ryu’s demise, which he achieved in the Mortal Kombat tournament. During the second tournament, Scorpion received word that Sub-Zero was somehow alive, though he would swiftly discover that this assassin was Sub-Zero's younger brother who had taken the same codename. The two fought and Scorpion was defeated, though gained the opportunity to flee when Sub-Zero was ambushed by Lin Kuei cyborgs.
During the Netherrealm War, Scorpion continued to serve Quan Chi, though regained his humanity during the final stages and abandoned his master. Scorpion returned to Earthrealm where he became a staunch ally in its defense and rebuilt the Shirai Ryu. He would also reconcile with Sub-Zero, leading to an alliance between their respective clans. As members of this new alliance, Scorpion got to enact his revenge against Quan Chi after Sub-Zero revealed the truth of the Lin Kuei's dishonor to him. As he took Quan Chi's head, Scorpion was unable to prevent the sorcerer's summoning of the Elder God Shinnok. After Shinnok's defeat, Scorpion works with Sub-Zero to help stop the time traveler Kronika, who summons a past version of Scorpion to fight alongside her. Scorpion is killed when he is ambushed by D'Vorah, but gets a chance to tell his past self to let go of his revenge and anger, dying in his own arms.
| “ | GET OVER HERE!
— Scorpion
|
” |
Scorpion is a weapons master, especially those that were used during his time as a ninja. His primary arsenal consists of:
- Kunais
- A pair of sharp knives attached to several feet long chains, the kunais are Scorpion's primary weapon. He often utilizes the kunais in a variety of ways, from swinging them around for mid range combat to grappel lines to straight up stabbing things. He can also ignite them on fire for extra damage.
- Katana
- Scorpion wields a custom katana designed for maximum carnage and blood spilling with a razor-blade tsuba, or hand guard, and a serrated blade. Scorpion is a practitioner of Mugai Ryu, a philosophy that is contradictory to his personality, that relies on swift but powerful sweeping attacks in mid-melee. He also carries a tanto, but rarely uses it in actual combat.
| “ | I am Scorpion. The fire to your ice.
— Scorpion
|
” |
| “ | You killed me two years ago to this day, but I have returned from the depths of the Netherrealm to avenge my death. I could kill you now… But unlike you, I have honor.
— Scorpion
|
” |
| “ | Hanzo Hasashi is dead. I am Scorpion.
— Scorpion
|
” |
- Vengeful
- Scorpion is defined almost singularly by his desire for vengeance towards those who have wronged him. Although he has apprehended the murderers of his family by this point, this tendency to hold grudges is what fuels his most powerful attacks and can often blind him in the heat of the moment.
- Stealth Expert
- As a trained ninja, Scorpion is highly skilled in traditional stealth and infiltration. He was able to infiltrate the building of rival ninja clans multiple times, and he often uses subterfuge and tricks in combat.
- Strength - 16
- Scorpion's a fighting game character, and thus his strength is immediately apparent even if he's not known as a bruiser like Goro or Shao Kahn. His blows can still break normal steel weapons, concrete pillars, or simple wooden structures, as well as grapple with the previously mentioned bruisers respectably.
- Dexterity - 20
- Scorpion, as a ninja, is a naturally acrobatic and dexterous fighter, with his training as a ninja letting him use a nimble, precise fighting style and giving him stealth skills that make him a deadly foe if he catches someone unaware. This doesn't even take into account his teleportation, which makes moving around the battlefield a non-issue for Scorpion.
- Constitution - 18
- Though Scorpion is no longer undead and thus incapable of dying, he's still taken quite a few heavy hits over the years only to get back up with a vengeance. Magical blasts, superhuman blows, and mundane firearms have all gone against Scorpion, only for the former wraith to keep trucking through.
- Intelligence - 10
- Scorpion is a capable peacetime leader of the Shirai Ryu, but other than that he shows no significant amount nor lack of intelligence.
- Wisdom - 10
- Scorpion's matured a bit now that he's gotten his vengeance, but he's still quick to anger and unrelenting in his principles and bonds. He was willing to toss aside the reputation of the Shirai Ryu and its new alliances just to kill Quan Chi, and when he got the chance to do so he fought him rather than execute him just to satisfy his vengeance.
- Charisma - 8
- Scorpion is a loner and a stoic, rigid warrior, whose obsession with vengeance makes him a reluctant ally to any. He's able to lead the Shirai Ryu into a careful peace with their ancient rivals the Lin Kuei, but this is more due to Scorpion's position and history rather than his powers of persuasion.
| “ | What makes us obligated to meet such perfection or such absurd demands? Is your entire life a job? I don't give a damn about "men" this or "woman" that! You can keep that shit to yourselves! I love myself when I'm pretty and all dressed up! And I love myself when I'm being strong!
— Nobara Kugisaki
|
” |
An aspiring sorcerer from the small village Morioka, Nobara Kugisaki joined the Tokyo Academy in part to potentially reunite with her childhood friend Saori, as well as pursue a career in modeling and live life in the big city. One of her first assignments has her meet Yuji Itadori and Megumi Fushiguro, working alongside the former to expel a cursed spirit in Roppongi. The trio then travel to a detention center in West Tokyo City, where they are all nearly killed by a special grade cursed spirit were it not for the intervention of Sukuna. Nobara and Megumi are led to believe that Itadori actually died, and meet the rest of the students of the Tokyo School in prepartion for the Kyoto Goodwill Event, a three-day event where the Tokyo and Kyoto schools compete and train.
While at the Goodwill Event, Nobara and the others learn that Itadori is alive, with her being shocked and forcing an apology out of him. Over the course of the event, Nobara develops a rivalry with Kyoto students Momo, a young girl with a flying broom, and Mai, the sister of her friend Maki Zenin. She defeats Momo but is knocked unconscious by Maki during the battle, being incapacitated during the attack by intruding special grade cursed spirits. Days later, she and her friends discover a cursed spirit inhabiting Yasohaci Bridge, where they are also ambushed by the brother spirts Eso and Kechizu. Although she is nearly killed, Nobara successfully works with Itadori to defeat the brothers, personally killing Kechizu as she develops her own Black Flash technique.
| “ | A straw doll?
— Child
|
” |
Nobara uses the primary items for equipment:
- Hammer
- Nobara's primary weapon is a metal hammer decorated with a heart. She can use it as a melee weapon, hitting with enough force when combined with her cursed energy to harm demons and break stone. Her primary usage of the hammer is to launch her nails for projectiles, and to hammer nails into her straw doll targets.
- Nails
- Nobara's primary method of attack involve numerous nails as projectiles, utilizing her cursed energy to levitate the nails and launch them at incredible speeds. They are the primary instrument for infusing her cursed techniques.
- Straw Doll
- A straw doll, which she uses with her cursed techniques. When the straw doll is attached to a part of an object, she can use her cursed energy to carry over damage over to its origin similar to a voodoo doll. The item to create the link can be as small as a single thistle of a broom or as large as a cursed spirit's detached arm.
| “ | Too bad for you, though. That makes me the worst match for you! Let's play a game of chicken!
— Nobara Kugisaki
|
” |
Nobara is a highly skilled sorcerer with large natural reserves of cursed energy, negative feelings converted into raw energy for Nobara to use with her attacks. Nobara's usage of her cursed energy is primarily done through her Straw Doll Technique, involving releasing cursed energy from her body and channeling it through construction nails. This includes using them as projectiles, which are powerful enough to penetrate stone and be launched several feet at a flying target, or through two very specific techniques.
Her Resonance technique involves her using her cursed energy to create a link between her straw doll and a severed part of the target, and hitting a nail into the straw doll to cause large black spikes to erupt from the victim's chest.
Her Hairpin technique causes nails previously launched and infused with cursed energy by Nobara to explode in a powerful wave of cursed energy.
| “ | There are only so many seats open in my life, and I don't want my heart to be swayed by anyone who's not sitting in one of them.
— Nobara Kugisaki
|
” |
- Determined
- When Nobara sets her mind to something, nothing short of death itself will stop her from trying to complete it. Her stubbornness has allowed her to power through incredibly dangerous and painful scenarios, beating a demon in a game of life-or-death chicken and taking on the more experienced Mai Zenin without hesitation.
- Direct
- Nobara is a very direct and confident person, often taking charge of a scenario and forging ahead regardless of the situation. This isn't to say she's reckless - her aggressive and boisterous nature hides an always level head - but she's more likely to charge into a scenario than spend too much time thinking in circles.
- Expert Improviser
- As expected of a jujutsu sorcerer, Nobara is a skilled improviser, regularly utilizing her powers and creativity to ensure she's able to defeat cursed spirits if they get away. Her creativity can be seen in her utilizing her cursed techniques to utilize her nails as both projectiles and traps, often thinking well ahead of her enemies in the moment.
- Superhuman Physical Condition
- Thanks to her sorcery and training by Maki and Panda, Nobara's physicality has been honed to a superhuman or near superhuman level.
- Strength - 14
- Nobara has the strength and athleticism to compete with cursed spirits, and she frequently uses her hammer in melee as well as for her ranged attacks. Even with a rubber toy mallet, she was able to dent Momo's face and nearly knock her unconscious with one blow.
- Dexterity - 16
- As she prefers to stay at mid range for a fight, Nobara possesses a notable amount of agility and speed. She's capable of using small nails in trees as footholds to parkour into the air, and she was able to land gracefully on her feet even after getting hit in the head with a flying broom.
- Constitution - 18
- Nobara is a sturdy and tenacious fighter, persevering against blows from cursed spirit that would kill a normal person. Her willingness and ability to fight to the last breath has let her survive numerous fights, notably turning a cursed spirit's technique against them by stabbing herself with nails multiple times and sharing the damage in a game of life or death chicken.
- Intelligence - 14
- While Nobara doesn't seem to have the analytical intelligence of her peer Fushiguro, she's still an effective jujutsu sorcerer with a working knowledge of cursed energy and magic. She's also fairly smart outside of that, able to read people well, but she's also liable to get into shenanigans with her friend Yuji.
- Wisdom - 16
- Despite her brash nature, Nobara possesses a calm mind that can execute thorough plans and improvise rapidly on the field with ease. She can read her opponents' personalities and weaknesses very quickly, and maintains an environmental and battlefield awareness that makes her a dangerous foe to take on in a direct fight.
- Charisma - 10
- Nobara's got the typical issues of an anime tomboy, in that she's fairly headstrong and direct to a fault. She's not a mean person necessarily, but her bluntness makes her liable to offend the thin-skinned easily and can make becoming friends and allies with her initially difficult, though once she gets attached to someone she's an incredibly loyal and dedicated ally.
| “ | Freeing future generations from a city ruled by Templars. You know, Jacob Frye, you might just be right.
— Evie Frye
|
” |
The daughter of British Assassin Ethan Frye and elder twin sister to fellow Assassin Jacob Frye, Evie Frye took quickly to the teachings and ways of the Assassin Brotherhood after her mother's death. Unlike her more carefree and headstrong brother, Evie relished in following in her father's footsteps. After Ethan's death in 1868, the Frye twins developed a reputation for effectively but carelessly accomplishing their missions. Eventually, an opportunity to go to London and directly confront the Templars arose and, wanting to preserve and continue her father's legacy, Evie reluctantly agreed to accompany Jacob to London on a whim. When the twins arrived in the city, they were greeted by the city's Assassin leader, Henry Green. While Jacob set about assassinating key Templars and forming an allied street gang in the Rooks, Evie focused on learning about an artifact located in London known as the Shroud of Eden.
During her research, Evie assassinated Lucy Thorne, the right-hand woman and primary enforcer for Crawford Starrick, the Grand Master of the Templar Order. Soon after, Evie and Jacob discovered the location of the Shroud, working together to defeat Starrick after he acquired the Shroud, killing him after they manage to remove the Shroud from his neck. With the Shroud safe, Evie married Henry and moved to Green's home country India while Jacob rebuilt the London Assassins. For twenty years, Evie and Henry built up the Indian brotherhood, until old friend and London Chief Inspector Frederick Aberline contacted her about Jacob's disappearance. Evie returned to London, where she learned that one of Jacob's Assassin apprentices had turned on the order, killing Jacob's contacts as Jack the Ripper. She eventually catches Jack, saving her brother and killing Jack. She remained with the Assassins for the rest of her life, training recruits such as her grandneice Lydia.
| “ | For every mission, there is a right way and a wrong way. Barging thoughtlessly into combat is, more often than not, the latter.
— Evie Frye
|
” |
Evie carries a wide variety of weapons on her person, somewhat discreet thanks to the laws around open weapon carry. In addition to the weapons she carries on her, she's a skilled knife fighter and brawler, able to use daggers and brass knuckles as well as her brother.
- Hidden Blade
- The iconic weapon of the Assassin Order, the Hidden Blade is a gauntlet that can produce a small, steel blade. The weapon is ideal for assassination and surprise, but its small blade means that it can easily snap if not used precisely. Evie carries a pair of Hidden Blades, one on each arm. Her Hidden Blade has also been modified with a rope launcher, which can shoot a rope with a grapple hook at a point Evie sees to make traversing the rooftops of London easier.
- World's Greatest Cane-Sword
- Evie's primary melee weapon is a walking stick which incorporates a small blade in its head, with the rest of the cane acting as the sheath hiding the blade. This cane sword was earned after Evie and Jacob became respected friends of bookie Robert Topping, with this sword being a red cane with a marble white hilt in the shape of a vulture.
- Model 3 Revolver
- A fancy silver revolver, basic in design. The revolver is double-action, with a six-round cylinder. Evie is a skilled markswoman, and carries 15 bullets on her at a given time.
- Throwing Knives
- Knives for throwing. Evie carries 28 on her person.
- Smoke Bombs
- A smoke bomb. She carries seven smoke bombs on her at a given time.
- Voltaic Bombs
- An early type of stun grenade built of Alexander Graham Bell, which creates a small burst of electricity in an area when thrown. Evie carries seven on her at a given time.
- Lady Melyne's Gown
- A white cloak suit worn by someone known as Lady Melyne, which lets Evie look fly as fuck and also increases her ammunition capacity.
| “ | Something only we can see...
— Evie Frye
|
” |
| “ | A true master of stealth can blend into any environment. If I remain still, my enemies will have no idea I'm about to strike.
— Evie Frye
|
” |
- Master Assassin
- Having been raised in the Assassin Order her entire life, Evie is a master assassin and is proficient in all the skills such a job requires, such as stealth, infiltration, investigation, and combat.
- Inquisitive
- Evie possesses a natural curiosity and inquisitiveness, willing to learn new techniques and technology from her allies and allowing her perceptive curiosity to identify things in the field not immediately apparent as an option.
- Cautious
- Evie is a thorough and dedicated planner, and preferred to consider every possible avenue and risk before going through with her plan. Though she can improvise in the field when necessary, Evie's cautious and meticulous nature occasionally got the best of her due to a reluctance to act causing opportunities to slip by.
- Strength - 12
- As an Assassin, Evie has to remain in strong athletic condition to perform the free-running and fighting she performs. However, she doesn't embrace brute strength and brawn as a combat strategy, relying on her speed or stealth instead.
- Dexterity - 20
- Evie's an accomplished freerunner and assassin, which means relying on her dexterity is a requirement. She is a master of stealth, sleight of hand, and acrobatics, able to move across the London rooftops with ease even without her grapple hook.
- Constitution - 12
- Evie is ultimately a normal human, though she is one in peak physical condition. An unlucky stab or a particularly high fall will kill her just as it does anyone else.
- Intelligence - 16
- Evie is at her heart a strategist and a scholar, and thus possesses great intelligence and ability to learn. Though she relies on her allies for the more scientific creation, she's a skilled planner and is studied.
- Wisdom - 14
- Evie's intelligence applies to her strategic ability as well, able to quickly read an individual or craft a plan based on her perceptions. Her Eagle Sense in particular helps with this, identifying enemies, allies, and important items with just a glance.
- Charisma - 12
- Evie's a charming enough lady, but she doesn't possess the natural showmanship or presence of her brother, nor does she seek the limelight as an Assassin. She's a capable actress, able to deceive her way past basic guards, but prefers ultimately to work from the shadows then risk exposure.
| “ | I'm here to set things right. Also? To look dashing. That part's less difficult.
— Dorian Pavus
|
” |
Born with a prodigious gift for magic even by the standards of Tevinter and the wealth of House Pavus' luxury, Dorian Pavus bounced from Circle to Circle in his youth until he wound up in Minrathous, where during a drunken stupor he was found by Magister Gereon Alexius. The magister was both impressed and amused by Dorian's intellect and wit, and took him on as a personal apprentice. The two developed a rapport as they research the possibility of time magic, and Dorian began to flourish as both a nobleman and a mage. However, when Alexius' son Felix was corrupted by the Darkspawn taint, Dorian left the Alexius estate as his mentor became obsessed with finding an impossible cure. Throwing himself into his youthful debauchery, Dorian was briefly held captive by his family in an attempt to get him to marry his betrothed, before wandering the Tevinter Imperium for two years as a political outcast and radical.
Eventually, Dorian makes his way to Ferelden, where he meets the Inquisitor and joins the Inquisition, seeking to aid them in closing the Breach and stopping the Venatori, a cult of Tevinter supremacists who seek to put the Elder One in power over the world. Dorian learns Alexius has since become a Venatori, and stops Alexius from using their research to remove the Inquisitor from history with time magic. After the Inquisitor closes the Breach, he and Dorian learn who the Elder One is, the ancient Darkspawn magister Corypheus. Dorian's father comes to Ferelden, begging his son's forgiveness for his behavior, and Dorian reluctantly begins the process of making amends. With Dorian's aid, the Inquisition eventually defeats Corypheus and the Venatori in Ferelden. Dorian becomes the official ambassador to the Inquisition from Tevinter for two years, before departing to take his father's place in government to push for reforms.
| “ | That staff's in pretty good shape, Dorian. Do you spend a lot of time polishing it?
— The Iron Bull
|
” |
- Wrath of Lovias Recreation
- A staff created from a schematic lifted from the Wrath of Lovias staff, created to better suit Dorian's talents. The staff is made from dragon bone, shooting weak bolts of fire magic as its default attack. It also lets Dorian do more damage while flanking a target, and creates a layer of armor to protect Dorian to a certain limit every time he hits a creature with a basic bolt from the staff.
- Refined Battlemage Mail
- A set of light armor created from a schematic acquired in the Frostback Basin. The robe is created from royale sea silk, and gives the wearer a 15% chance of coming back to life with half health after being knocked unconscious.
| “ | Help for the mage, please!
— Dorian Pavus
|
” |
Dorian is an accomplished mage, with a specialty in necromancy as taught in Tevinter. In addition to his necromancer spells, Dorian is specialized in hard-hitting single-target spells to overwhelm an opponent and instilling fear in them with his magic. Dorian knows the following spells:
- Necromancer Tree:
- Horror, with Terror active
- Spirit Mark, with Wisps of the Fallen active
- Walking Bomb, with Virulent active
- Haste
- Death Siphon
- Blinding Terror
- Power of the Dead
- Simulacrum
- Inferno Tree:
- Flashfire, with Blazing Trails active
- Storm Tree:
- Chain Lightning
- Energy Barrage, with Energy Bombardment active
- Lightning Bolt
- Stormbringer
- Conductive Current
- Gathering Storm
- Static Charge
- Spirit Tree:
- Barrier, with Elegant Defense active
- Dispel, with Transmute Magic active
- Guardian Spirit
- Peaceful Aura
- Winter Tree:
- Winter's Grasp
- Fade Step
- Mana Surge
| “ | Living a lie... it festers inside you, like poison. You have to fight for what's in your heart.
— Dorian Pavus
|
” |
Misc.
- Pampered
- Dorian has lived a life of luxury and pampered wealth, even taking into account the year he spent with the Inquisition. Even as a Tevinter pariah and exile, Dorian's taste for luxury and the finer things in life are important to maintain, though he's insightful enough to at least recognize his privilege and need for it.
- Kind
- Despite the bluster and biting wit, Dorian is a genuinely good and kind person, approving of those that are charitable and righteous even if he himself pretends not to be at the surface level. He'll gladly kill an enemy in the heat of the battle, but whether it be his homophobic father or the Venatori Alexius, Dorian is always willing to offer a redemptive hand if he thinks there's a chance.
- Candid
- After his treatment at the hands of his father, Dorian refuses to engage in deception or disguise in a social situation ever again. This specifically applies to how he presents himself, though; he's willing to take part in the Inquisitor's infiltration plan for Redcliffe or subtle politics at the Winter Palace, but he will defiantly refuse to jeopardize his sense of self or his identity to do it. He'll gladly be an exile targeted by assassins for the rest of his life then live one more day pretending to be someone he's not and wears his convictions proudly on his sleeve.
X-Factors
- Strength - 8
- Lol. Dorian readily and freely admits he's got arms built like noodles and can barely carry himself through a day's hike.
- Dexterity - 10
- Dorian relies on magical wards and shields to avoid damage, and thus has no acrobatic or dexterous feats to speak of one way or the other.
- Constitution - 12
- Dorian is sturdy for a mage, having dealt with his fair share of demons, evil magisters, and monsters during his time with the Inquisition, though once again he relies significantly more on magical protection rather than his body's hardiness.
- Intelligence - 18
- Dorian is the definition of an inside kid, having spent his entire life either studying magic in libraries or experimenting with it to go beyond its known limits. He helped discover how to perform time magic, as well as manipulating the Fade to tweak his magic into unorthodox battle techniques.
- Wisdom - 12
- While Dorian's upbringing in the Magisterium means he's generally an insightful person when it comes to complex social encounters, it's actually the simpler, down to earth moments where his lack of social awareness shows itself. He tends not to realize how snobby he can sound until it's too late. His pampered existence in particular can alienate him from most people without a common interest or the same privileged background, such as elves or military veterans.
- Charisma - 18
- Dorian's personality is genuinely captivating, able to make friends in a tavern as easily as a ballroom or a battlefield thanks to his quick wit and friendly disposition. He tends to come off strong early and often, which can be offputting for particularly serious individuals, but beneath the surface he's both able and willing to adjust out of a genuine desire for connection.
| “ | I'm Volo of the Ginkgo Guild, the go-to choice for any of your mercantile needs here in Hisui!
— Volo
|
” |
A well-traveled member of the Ginkgo Guild of merchants, Volo is an archaeologist and adventurer obsessed with the ancient histories of the Hisui region. Allegedly a descendant of the ancient people of Sinnoh, Volo's studies in his youth taught him about the mythical creator Pokémon Arceus. Faced with the trials of life and dissatisfied with Arceus' silence, Volo instead reached out to Giratina, the ruler of the Distortion World. Using Giratina's power, Volo creates a space-time rift, failing to summon Arceus but instead a youth from the future. The rift rattles the Noble Pokémon that help guard the Hisui region, destabilizing their local environments and Hisui itself. Deciding to investigate the stranger that arrived in Hisui, Volo acts as a friendly merchant and mentor to the trainer, aiding them in their quest to pacify the Noble Pokémon.
The youth becomes a hero, who eventually pacifies the Pokémon but fails to close the rift, summoning Dialga and Palkia. Eager to see history unfold, Volo introduces the hero to Cogita, his old mentor on Hisuian mythology. He accompanies the hero to seek the Red Chain, assembling it and guiding them to the Temple of Sinnoh, where the hero manages to close the rift. Volo shuttles them off to collect the Plates, ancient stone tablets associated with Arceus. Once the hero collects them all, Volo meets them at the Celestica Ruins, where he reveals his true identity and his goals: using the Plates to summon and then subjugate Arceus, then using Arceus to destroy the universe and remake it in his image. Volo challenges the hero to a Pokémon duel, with Giratina even showing up to aid Volo, but neither the trainer nor Giratina prove a match, with Giratina abandoning Volo. The scholar laments his failures, before vowing to discover all of Hisui's secrets and conquer Arceus, regardless of how many centuries it takes.
| “ | Someday, I'll solve every riddle in the legends of Hisui's Pokémon. And on that day, I'll stand before Arceus at last...No, I will CONQUER it! No matter how many years, how many decades, how many centuries it takes me!
— Volo
|
” |
Volo has a roster of six Pokémon that he uses in battle, held in Pokéballs. Despite his generally callous personality, he apparently treats his team well, as both Togekiss and Lucario require high friendships to evolve.
Each Pokémon can perform their moves normally, Agile Style, or Strong Style. Agile Style lets the Pokémon move faster in exchange for damage or length of time depending on the move. Strong Style increases the damage or duration of a move in exchange for slowing the Pokémon down. Both Agile and Strong Styles put a heavier strain on the Pokémon.
Volo's Pokémon fully recover if they spend a full eight hours resting without doing battle.
Spiritomb- The Forbidden Pokémon, a Ghost/Dark type Pokémon possessing a stone to make up its corporeal body. Spiritomb is immune to Psychic and bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing damage. Its moves are Shadow Ball (a ball of Ghostly necrotic energy that may reduce a target's defenses), Dark Pulse (a pulse of dark energy that always hits), Extrasensory (a mental Psychic attack that lowers speed), and Hypnosis (a move that makes a target drowsy, making it less likely to attack and increasing damage it takes).
- Arcanine
- The Legendary Pokémon, a Fire/Rock type Pokémon that is a large canine that relies on powerful physical attacks. Arcanine is weak to getting hit by rocks, water, and Ground/Earth based damages, but is resistant to Normal (non-magical physical attacks), Poison, Ice, and Fire attacks. Its moves are Raging Inferno (a powerful Fire attack that drives Arcanine into a frenzy until it misses an attack), Rock Slide (a bunch of rocks fall onto the target), and Crunch (a chomp that may reduce the target's defenses).
- Lucario
- The Aura Pokémon, a Fighting/Steel type Pokémon that uses its martial abilities and mental aura to do battle. Lucario is weak to Fire type attacks, as well as Earth-based attacks, but resists Normal (non-magical physical) and Ice attacks. Its moves are Bullet Punch (Lucario strikes with an attack that incases his fist in steel briefly and boosts his speed), Close Combat (a flurry of blows that temporarily reduces Lucario's defenses), Bulk Up (a defensive move boosting his defenses and attack power), and Crunch (a chomp that may reduce the target's defenses).
- Roserade
- The Bouquet Pokémon, a Grass/Poison type Pokémon that uses its flowers to defend itself. Roserade is weak to Psychic, Fire, and Cold attacks, but is resistant to Electric attacks and cannot be poisoned. Its moves are Petal Dance (scattering magic petals that do significant damage that drives Roserade into a frenzy until it misses an attack), Poison Jab (a Poison attack that may poison the target), and Spikes (yeeting some spikes that do damage over a period of time: 12 seconds Agile Style, 18 seconds normal, and 24 seconds Strong Style).
- Garchomp
- The Mach Pokémon, a Dragon/Ground type Pokémon that uses its incredible speed and power. Garchomp is incredibly weak to Ice-type attacks, but is immune to Electric attacks and resistant to Fire and Poison attacks. It can use its claws to use Slash or Dragon Claw (both have an increased critical hit rate), Iron Head (briefly incasing its head in iron before headbutting and lowering the target's speed), and Earth Power (creates small eruptions of earth beneath the target that may lower its defenses).
- Togekiss
- The Jubilee Pokémon, a Fairy/Flying type Pokémon that has traveled with Volo the longest. Togekiss is weak to Electric, Poison, and Ice attacks, as well as metal weapon attacks. Togekiss can fly. Its moves are Calm Mind (a defensive move that increases Togekiss' offensive and defensive abilities), Air Slash (a slash of pure air that lowers the target's speed), Extrasensory (a mental Psychic attack that lowers speed), and Moonbeam (a blast of lunar magic that might lower the target's damage).
| “ | Of course, if I create a brand-new world, then the Hisui region that we currently exist in will be undone and returned to nothing. You, everyone you know, and all the Pokémon living here will vanish in an instant, as if you'd never been.
— Volo
|
” |
- Scholar
- Volo's thirst for knowledge and exploration is paramount to his being. He will jump at the chance to obtain new information, whether it be about strange beasts or ancient lore.
- Manipulative
- Volo has a dispassionate and analytical perspective of pretty much everyone around him, making him skilled at subtly and effectively manipulating others. He doesn't lie if he doesn't need to per se, but he'll gladly bend the truth if he feels it necessary and views everyone else as tools to use later.
- Obsessed
- Volo is a bit of a fanatic, diving entirely into his scholastic pursuits and eventually his goal to destroy and remake Hisui. His determination makes him willing to destroy the entire universe just for a chance to meet Arceus and reshape it to his liking.
- Strength - 10
- Volo is a normal human that goes on adventures, but relies on his Pokémon to do all of his fighting and exploring.
- Dexterity - 10
- Volo is a normal human and thus has no notable feats of dexterity, though he does possess Pokémon that can fly or leap great distances on their own.
- Constitution - 10
- Volo is a normal human and thus has no real notable feats of constitution, aside from his trips around the Hisui region and its varied biomes.
- Intelligence - 16
- Volo is a scholar and historian, and thus not only has a great amount of academic knowledge at his back but the ability to acquire more of it. He's spent his entire life pouring over mysteries and legends of Hisui, and using that knowledge to deduce even more information.
- Wisdom - 14
- Volo is a deceptively cunning individual, able to subtly and effectively manipulate the hero into going on quests for him. However, he also has a tendency to monologue as he gets closer to accomplishing his goals, and when he's fairly cocky, which results in getting agitated when his goals fail.
- Charisma - 18
- As Hisui's premier merchant and a secret cultist, Volo is very good at persuading others to listen to him and then lying to them to get what he wants. He's very good at hiding the fact that he's the one responsible for bringing the hero into the world, and can monologue with the best of them when the ruse is up.
| “ | Khajiit are not known as mages, so J'zargo has much to prove.
— J'Zargo
|
” |
A khajiit apprentice at the College of Winterhold in Skyrim, J'Zargo is one of the school's three new apprentices, alongside Onmund and Brelyna Maryon. Unlike his fellow students, J'Zargo is disappointed and irritated at the slow pace of study in the school, criticizing their teacher Tolfdir for not utilizing a practical demonstration when the Dragonborn arrives at the hall. J'Zargo at first dismisses his newest peer, but participates in practicing the wards after a demonstration. Satisfied with their magical ability and training, Tolfdir finally relents and leads the students on an expedition into Saarthal, a Nordic ruin, where the Dragonborn becomes separated from the rest of the group. J'zargo and the other two students meet up with the Dragonborn after they discover the tomb of Jyrik Gaulderson.
Once they return to the College, J'Zargo admits he has grown impressed with the Dragonborn as a peer, clearly above the other two students and capable of competing with J'Zargo. To test his new peer and his own enchantment abilities, J'Zargo gives several scrolls of his modified Flame Cloak spell to the Dragonborn to test their effectiveness on the undead. The Dragonborn goes into the catacombs beneath the College to do so, learning that the scrolls are effective against the undead because they cause them to explode. Although disappointed by the unintended immediacy of the explosion, J'Zargo is still pleased with the results of the experiment. As thanks for the Dragonborn's help, J'Zargo chooses to accompany the adventurer on his travels when called upon, bringing his talent for destruction magic with him.
| “ | J'zargo is awaiting word on how well the scrolls work.
— J'Zargo
|
” |
J'Zargo has the following magic items on him:
- Flame Cloak Scrolls
- For 30 seconds, opponents in melee range take fire damage. Targets on fire take extra damage. The scrolls are especially effective against the undead. Due to the potency of these scrolls, undead will explode and damage everyone nearby after dying, including J'Zargo. He carries ten on his person.
- Elven Dagger
- J'Zargo uses an elven dagger as his primary weapon, a single edged dagger forged from moonstone and enchanted to do frost damage that weakens the target's stamina.
- Expert Robes of Destruction
- J'Zargo wears Expert Robes of Destruction, which decrease the mana cost of his Destruction spells and increases his mana regeneration.
- Nahkriin
- A Dragon Priest mask that increases J'Zargo's base mana reserves, and decreases the cost of Restoration and Destruction spells.
| “ | Ah, this is good. But J'zargo will know them first. It is good to finally be around mages who may be able to keep up with J'zargo.
— J'Zargo
|
” |
J'Zargo is a skilled practitioner of magic, constantly trying to improve himself and his talents. He is skilled enough to even come up with his own variation of the Flame Cloak spell.
The following spells are the ones that J'Zargo knows:
- Heal Other
- A restoration spell that heals the target a decent amount. It cannot heal undead creatures, atronachs (elementals), or machines.
- Turn Undead
- A restoration spell that causes undead creatures/characters up to level 13 (basic zombies) will flee for up to 30 seconds.
- Steadfast Ward
- A restoration spell that increases armor's effectiveness by creating a magical shield, and negates a small amount of incoming spell damage and effects. The ward does not protect the Dragonborn from physical damage.
- Soul Trap
- A conjuration spell that allows J'Zargo to capture the soul of a slain enemy into a soul gem. This will be useless for this fight, and is only included to avoid a VC.
- Fury
- An illusion spell that causes exceptionally weak foes to attack anything nearby for 30 seconds.
- Flames
- A destruction spell, the user projects a continuous stream of fire. Targets on fire become more susceptible to damage. The flame has a short range, but passes through enemies, so it's possible to hit several enemies at once.
- Frostbite
- A destruction spell, the user projects a continuous stream of frost. It slows enemies down and drains their stamina. The frost has a short range, but passes through enemies, so it's possible to hit several enemies at once.
- Sparks
- A destruction spell, the user shoots a continuous stream of electricity at a target. The sparks drain magical energy as well as health. The spark has a short range, but passes through enemies, so it's possible to hit several enemies at once.
- Firebolt
- A destruction spell, the user throws a fireball at a target. Targets on fire become more susceptible to damage.
- Ice Spike
- A destruction spell, the user throws a spike of ice at a target. Targets hit by the ice spike slow down and have their stamina drained.
- Lightning Bolt
- A destruction spell, the user throws a bolt of lightning at a target. Targets hit by the lightning bolt have their magical energy drained as well as health.
- Magelight
- An alteration spell, the user throws a small ball of light. When it makes contact with any solid object, people included, it stops and floats in mid-air, acting as a source of light for sixty seconds.
- Paralyze
- An alteration spell, the user throws a ball of magic that can paralyze any that fail to resist it for ten seconds. It is an expert level spell, so it tends to work on anyone that isn't already exceptionally powerful.
| “ | There is much for J'zargo to be sure of. There is skill in magic, there is charm, and there is a strong will. J'zargo will be succesful, of this there is no doubt.
— J'Zargo
|
” |
Misc.
- Arrogant
- J'Zargo is an arrogant dick. He constantly boasts about his (slightly deserved) magical prowess, and puts down almost all of his fellow students at the College of Winterhold. Although he acknowledges the areas he needs to improve, he often flaunts his own talents, magical and otherwise.
- Ambitious
- J'Zargo is a competitive and ambitious wizard, willing to do anything within reason to advance his skill in magic and knowledge. He is willing to steal from his classmates and perform unethical experiments if it means he can improve his magical power.
- Craves Knowledge
- J'Zargo, despite the above mentioned traits, is also aware of his own limitations. Because of this, J'Zargo is constantly trying to learn and improve his magical ability.
- Khajiit Physicality
- As a khajiit, J'Zargo can see in the dark thanks to night vision, and has a pair of sharp claws that can be used in a pinch to defend himself.
X-Factors:
- Strength - 11
- J'Zargo is surprisingly fit for a wizard, in that he's just not out of shape. He's surprisingly proficient with heavy armor and weapons, though he still prefers using his magic over fighting in melee.
- Dexterity - 12
- J'Zargo is a little more dexterous than the average humanoid thanks to his khajiit physicality, though he's also not outstanding in this regard either.
- Constitution - 14
- Living in Skyrim forces J'Zargo to be a bit sturdier than the average khajitt, and he's tough enough to take blows from the various monsters that he fights alongside the Dragonborn like dragon's breath, blows from trolls, and magic spells, though not as long other followers of the Dragonborn built for such combat.
- Intelligence - 18
- J'Zargo's a talented and intelligent wizard, knowing many more spells than his fellow students and capable of creating his own variations of spells, something the rest of the wizards do not seem to have accomplished. His personality also benefits his intelligence, as he is constantly finding ways to either experiment with magic or learn more about the world around him.
- Wisdom - 14
- J'Zargo's humility doesn't often show in his personality, but his high opinion of himself doesn't keep him from acknowledging his shortcomings and potential for growth. He's deferential to his teachers and the Dragonborn for their greater knowledge over him, and has enough common sense to back away in a fight if something he can't beat gets too close.
- Charisma - 8
- J'Zargo's most famous trait is his dismissive arrogance of others, publicly showing his superiority complex and talent regardless of his opinion of others. He only respects those who have proven greater than him or those with the formality of social rank to wield over him; without those factors, the only opinion that matters is J'Zargo's, and he intends to give it even when not asked.
Big Bad Evil Guy[]
| “ | I am the Ancient, I am the Land. My beginnings are lost in the darkness of the past. I am not dead. Nor am I alive. I am undead, forever.
— Strahd Von Zarovich
|
” |
The immortal and ancient dark lord of the small valley of Barovia, Strahd von Zarovich was once a simple prince and conqueror. After the death of his father, King Barov, Strahd continued in his father's footsteps, waging war against the Zarovich family enemies. Strahd eventually destroyed the last of these enemies in the mountain valley that became his domain, Barovia, settling there. Eventually, peacetime grew boring for Strahd, and thus began to scour his lands for wizards and artisans, both to impress his mother and satisfy his ego by building Ravenloft, a magnificent castle named after his mother. Though his brother Sergei, a warmer and kinder man not scarred by war like Strahd, arrived, Strahd's mother Ravenovia died while traveling.
Soon after his mother's death, Strahd learned about the villager Tatyana, a beautiful Barovian woman with noble lineage. Despite lavishing her with gifts and attention, Tatyana fell for Sergei instead. At first, Strahd's pride prevented him from acting, but when Sergei and Tatyana's wedding day arrived he was broken. He reached out to the Dark Powers, killing Sergei and drinking his blood. Horrified by Strahd, Tatyana flung herself from Ravenloft's balconies rather than marry him. Strahd's guards attempted to kill him for his violence, but his pact with the Dark Powers was honored, with Strahd returning as a true vampire and killing his treacherous guards. Dooming all of Barovia with his acts, Strahd learned that Ravenloft, Barovia, and all its inhabitants were sealed away in a demiplane, cursed forever to remain trapped by its deadly, ever present fog.
Powers & Abilities:
- Shapechanger: So long as Strahd isn't in running water or sunlight, he can transform himself into a bat, wolf, or cloud of mist at will. He can also transform into a cloud of mist when he's rendered unconscious or killed (provided he isn't in running water or sunlight) to escape to his coffin where he reverts back to his vampire form, where he is paralyzed for one hour until his regeneration begins again.
- Spider Climb: Strahd has the ability to climb on surfaces as if he were walking on flat ground.
- Healing Factor: In the event Strahd manages to get hurt, he can regenerate from superficial wounds instantly and more severe wounds over seconds, so long as he isn't in running water or sunlight and he hasn't been damaged from holy magic or holy water.
- Vampire Physicality: As a vampire, Strahd possesses superhuman strength, durability, and agility, in addition to a multitude of magical abilities and weaknesses. He is resistant to non-magical weapons and necrotic damage, and can see in total darkness up to 120 feet as if it were night vision. His fangs and claws are laced with his vampiric magic to enhance his already superhuman blows, with his fangs draining the very life from his victims to heal him. His vampiric gaze allows him to magically charm even the most strong-willed into being his friends and protector until 24 hours pass or they are hurt by Strahd or his allies. He also possesses some weaknesses of a vampire, such as sunlight sensitivity, a weakness to running water, and a stake through the heart that can render him paralyzed until removed.
- Vampiric Charm: Utilizing his vampiric gaze and magic, Strahd can attempt to charm a single humanoid into believing he is their friend and protector. The range on Strahd's charm is 30 feet, and he can use it in his bat or wolf shape as well. Strahd's charm targets the humanoid's wisdom, and lasts 24 hours. If Strahd or an ally of his harms the creature, it can attempt to break free of the charm. He can charm as many individual humanoids as he wishes, and there is no limit to how many times he can try to charm the same creature.
- Master Wizard: Strahd is an incredibly skilled mage, using the countless centuries trapped in Barovia to study the dark arts and arcane powers. His magic is incredibly difficult to resist, with a specialty on subterfuge and long term disorientation. His ability to manipulate the Weave requires rest and concentration, thus giving him a limited pool of magical resources. If a spell requires concentration, he can only maintain one at a time. As a Wizard, Strahd can prepare up to 14 non-cantrip spells 5th level or lower from this list when he awakens each day, though has the following spells prepared as a default:
- Cantrips (cast at will): Mage Hand, Prestidigitation, Ray of Frost
- 1st-Level Spells (4 slots): Comprehend Languages, Fog Cloud, Sleep
- 2nd-Level Spells (3 slots): Detect Thoughts, Gust of Wind, Mirror Image
- 3rd-Level Spells (3 slots): Animate Dead, Fireball, Nondetection
- 4th-Level Spells (3 slots): Blight, Greater Invisibility, Polymorph
- 5th-Level Spells (1 slot): Animate Objects, Scrying
- Children of the Night: Once a day, Strahd can conjure several swarms of bats or rats at will, or several wolves if he is outside, which remain at his side for an hour under his command.
- Lair: While in Ravenloft, Strahd can use his mastery of his castle to phase through walls, magically lock or unlock its windows and doors, summon a Specter to attack a creature and disappear right after, and force a creature's shadow to come to life as a Shadow and act under his command.
- Expert Warrior: Even excusing his mastery of magic and his vampiric powers, Strahd is an exceptionally talented martial warrior. He's a master with the sword, and led his armies into victory after victory in his conquests. Including his various powers, Strahd has defeated hundreds of adventurers that have wandered into his land, with his centuries of experience allowing him to plan and overwhelm any threat in a pure martial contest.
- Master Strategist: Strahd is a master manipulator and strategist, having spent his entire existence since becoming a vampire inviting or trapping adventurers into Barovia just for his own amusement. No one enters Barovia without his permission, and few leave without it. Even the most experienced and skilled vampire hunters like Van Richten are left at Strahd's mercurial mercy, playthings to amuse him. He controls the citizens of Barovia with an iron fist, and is often several steps ahead of any adventurer that comes into his domain due to his strategic brilliance, innate understanding of people, magical abilities, and clever, subtle usage of the citizens of Barovia. At least 100 adventurers over the course of Strahd's existence have fallen to his manipulations.
Minions[]
| “ | I have slain thousands of men. I will slaughter thousands more to preserve the von Zarovich legacy.
— Rahadin
|
” |
The dusk elf chamberlain and right-hand of Strahd, Rahadin is the faithful servant of the vampire, having served the von Zarovich family for half a millennia. After being exiled for refusing to serve a weak and corrupt dusk elf prince, Rahadin aided Strahd's father Barov in conquering the kingdom. Pleased by Rahadin's betrayal, Barov appointed the elf an honorary member of the Zarovich family, and he has faithfully served Barov and then Strahd afterwards.
His loyalty to Strahd was tested when a former lover of Strahd, Patrina Velikovna, arrived, with Patrina hoping to seduce the recently ascended vampire lord. When the woman was stoned by her dusk elf family for consorting with Strahd, the vampire lord ordered Rahadin to enact his punishment. The elf did so on his own, killing the female elves to keep the remaining male elves from breeding. His loyalty in Strahd affirmed, Rahadin continues to serve Strahd forever.
Equipment:
- Scimitar: Rahadin wields a scimitar, a curved blade with a light weight and ideal for slashing. He is an expert swordsman, carving his way past armor and attacking with notable speed.
- Poisoned Darts: Rahadin carries multiple darts on his person, laced with poison.
- Studded Leather Armor: Rahadin wears a set of studded leather armor, light enough to let him dodge most attacks and durable enough to protect against those that do manage to hit him.
Powers & Abilities:
- Deathly Choir: Any creature within 10 feet of Rahadin not protected by the specific Mind Blank spell hears the screams of the thousands killed by Rahadin. Every six seconds, Rahadin can force the screams to overwhelm those that hear these screams, forcing them to take psychic damage from his mere presence. The deathly choir is so powerful that only Mind Blank can protect a creature, and even the reality warping of Wish cannot protect those near Rahadin.
- Fey Ancestry: Rahadin is particularly resistant to being charmed, and cannot be put magically to sleep.
- Innate Spellcasting:
- Misty Step: Rahadin turns into mist and teleports to a spot within thirty feet of him that he can see. He can cast Misty Step or Phantom Steed three times a day.
- Phantom Steed: Rahadin creates a horse-like conjuration that listens to his every word, existing for one hour before disappearing. The spell takes 1 minute to cast. Rahadin can cast Phantom Steed or Misty Step three times a day. Additionally, as a ritual spell, Rahadin can spend ten minutes casting the spell to use it for free.
- Magic Weapon: Rahadin enchants his scimitar into a magical blade, making it more accurate and doing more damage. The spell lasts for one hour. Rahadin can cast Magic Weapon or Nondetection once a day. Magic Weapon requires Rahadin's concentration to maintain, which can be broken when he takes damage and fails to maintain his fortitude (which he is proficient in doing).
- Nondetection: Rahadin touches a willing creature or object, making them unseeable through magical spying or divination magic for eight hours. Rahadin can cast Nondetection or Magic Weapon once a day.
- Mask of the Wild: Rahadin is an expert at stealth and ambushing, capable turning near invisible even when only lightly obscured by foliage, heavy rain, falling snow, or other natural phenomena.
- Expert Swordsman: Having served as a loyal enforcer for the Von Zarovich family for five hundred years and lived an unknown hundred before that, Rahadin is the most feared and skilled warrior in Strahd's employ, second only to the vampire himself in battle prowess and strategy. His superhuman speed and skill allows him to strike multiple times in seconds, and he rarely misses.
- Superhuman Physical Condition: Thanks to his elven physicality, Rahadin has superhuman abilities, able to travel 35 feet in six seconds and swinging through plate armor with ease.
- Expert Enforcer: Unlike the rest of Strahd's employ, Rahadin is as intelligent as he is vicious and skilled. He is a particularly charismatic individual, proficient in using his insight to deceive and intimidate with his mere presence. His perception is near perfect, able to make minute observations about his environment even when not paying attention to it.
Not a minion per se, but the Heart of Sorrow is a giant crystal heart located in the central high tower of Castle Ravenloft and suspended in the air at its peak. This large crystal heart is tied to Strahd's life force, and takes any damage for Strahd until he closes his link or the heart is destroyed. The heart regains all its life at the dawn, provided it still exists.
The heart itself is defended by its tower, which awakens when the uninvited enter it and attempts to kill them by shaking them off the stairs and to the bottom of the tower. The tower itself is 380 feet tall, with the heart being at the 190 foot mark. Furthermore, sentient halberds line the walls of the tower, which will try to kill any intruders in the tower as they ascend.Monsters[]
At any given moment while exploring Castle Ravenloft, a cast member may encounter the following monsters:
The mad women and men of Barovia that have formed a pact with Strahd and the Dark Powers, these people have exchanged their servitude for magic and longevity. Trained by and allied with Baba Lysaga, the coven of witches within Strahd's castle prowl his halls when they're not conducting rituals in their tower. A Barovian witch is often accompanied by their familiar, usually a cat but also capable of shapechanging into a snake or toad that can assist them in battle. They possess darkvision, able to see 60 feet into total darkness as if it were dim light. Barovian Witches are weak spellcasters on their own, but when three or more join together they become significantly more powerful, gaining new spells and more difficult to resist spells.
When alone, a hag knows the following spells:
- Cantrips: Mage Hand, Prestidigitation, Ray of Frost
- 1st Level Spells (4 slots): Ray of Sickness, Sleep, Tasha's Hideous Laughter
- 2nd Level Spells (2 slots): Alter Self, Invisibility
When in a coven (three or more hags together within 30 feet of one another), the hags use the following spells, with all hags sharing the spell slots but with more power and more difficult to resist:
- 1st Level Spells (4 slots): Identify, Ray of Sickness
- 2nd Level Spells (3 slots): Hold Person, Locate Object
- 3rd Level Spells (3 slots): Bestow Curse, Counterspell, Lightning Bolt
- 4th Level Spells (3 slots): Phantasmal Killer, Polymorph
- 5th Level Spells (2 slots): Contact Other Plane, Scrying
- 6th Level (1 slot): Eyebite
Not creatures per se, but Strahd's house is decorated with fine armor, paintings, mirrors, and other set dressings for a castle. Naturally, some of these decorations are traps. Some are mechanical, such as a suit of armor flinging out its weapon or a vampire mannequin rigged to fly over individuals and scare them because Strahd is a dick. Some are magical, such as rugs that attempt to smother any non-undead that step on it or an illusion of Strahd that pretends to attack individuals, because Strahd is a dick.
For every adventurer bold or unlucky enough to venture into Barovia, another of Strahd's spawn has been born. Strahd relishes in corrupting these adventurers, turning them into his bloodthirsty spawn to patrol his castle and wreak havoc in Barovia. The vampire spawn is not a true vampire, unable to resist Strahd's commands. Spawn possess the same weaknesses and resistances as Strahd, as well as many of his vampiric abilities such as climbing on walls and darkvision. They use their claws to slash or grapple targets, after which they feed on their blood with their bite, taking away vitality until the target rests for eight hours.
Strahd can turn a humanoid player into a vampire spawn. The process on how to do so is vague, but it is a possibility.
The Vistani are a culture of people that once rescued Strahd when he was mortal and a young man, endearing them to the vampire forever afterwards. Due to this, the Vistani are the only individuals allowed to leave Barovia, and in turn they occasionally bring adventurers into Barovia when Strahd gets bored. Some of these Vistani wander in Strahd's halls, pretending to be escapees who in reality will kill when Strahd makes his presence known or following the party if they manage to leave. They wield maces and light crossbows, and can curse a creature once a day with a curse, or the Evil Eye.
- Curse: A Vistana looks at a creature within thirty feet and curses it. A Vistana curse is permanent and lasts even in death, unless the target is the recipient of a Remove Curse spell, a Greater Restoration spell, or a similar powerful anti-curse magic. When a curse ends, the Vistana takes psychic damage dependent on the severity of the curse. Resisting a curse requires relying on one's wisdom. Weaker curses include preventing a target from performing a task associated with fine motor skills such as tying rope or playing an instrument, a sinister but purely cosmetic change, or a nonmagical item disappearing. Stronger curses include imbuing the target with vulnerability to damage of the Vistana's choosing or granting disadvantage on using abilities or resisting effects reliant on a certain ability (the X-Factors). The strongest curses are rendering a magical item unusable by its current user or turning the target blind, deaf, or both.
- Evil Eye: A Vistana can target a creature within ten feet by giving it a bad vibe look. Resisting the Evil Eye requires relying on one's wisdom. The Evil Eye can be used to charm an animal or a humanoid, or paralyze a humanoid for one minute. If the target succeeds, the Vistana is blinded for six seconds. A creature that resists a Vistana's Evil Eye is immune to the Evil Eye of all Vistani for 24 hours. The Evil Eye cannot be used against until the Vistana has rested for one hour or eight or more hours.
Wights are intelligent undead humanoids, wandering Strahd's castle as armed and armored corpses. In addition to wielding a longsword and longbow, the Wight can perform a Life Drain attack that drains the target's innate health unless they have the constitution to resist. Their life force returns after resting for eight hours. A creature cannot fall unconscious if damaged by the Life Drain - it kills them outright and resurrects them as a zombie one day later under the control of the wight. The wight can have only twelve zombies under its control at a time.
The wight is resistance to necrotic damage and bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical attacks that aren't from silvered weapons. The wight is immune to poison damage, and cannot be exhausted or poisoned. The wight can see in total darkness as if it were dim light up to 60 feet. Wights also possess sunlight sensitivity, where their attacks and ability to perceive via sight are at disadvantage while in sunlight.
The valley of Barovia is host to a number of other monsters, including the following:
Worshipers of Mother Night and Strahd, these wild druids loyally serve the master of Barovia and the hag Baba Lysaga. They utilize a corrupted druidic magic to twist the land to their whims and act as agents and mages in Strahd's arsenal.
In addition to every druid having some training in medicine, nature, and perception, every druid wields a quarterstaff and can cast spells.
Spells:
- Cantrips (at will): Druidcraft, Produce Flame, Shillelagh
- 1st Level (4 slots): Entangle, Longstrider, Speak with Animals, Thunderwave
- 2nd Level (3 slots): Animal Messenger, Barkskin
The soul of a once-living creature, both citizens of Barovia and the adventurers that have had the misfortune of entering Barovia, that haunt the lands in their afterlife. A ghost is resistance to acid, fire, lightning, thunder, and nonmagical bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing damage. A ghost is immune to cold, necrotic, and poison damage, as well as being charmed, exhausted, frightened, grappled, paralyzed, petrified, poisoned, prone, or restrained. Ghosts can also fly.
A ghost can perform a withering touch, with does necrotic damage to a creature within melee reach of it. Additionally, a ghost can freely move through other creatures and objects with slowed speed, but takes damage if it stops moving within a creature or object. A ghost can freely travel into the Ethereal Plane, a realm outside the physical realm, but can see into the Material Plane up to 60 feet.
A ghost can perform a Horrifying Visage, which strikes fear into every non-undead creature within 60 feet of it for one minute unless they've the wisdom to resist. If a creature fails to resist by a significant amount, it also ages 10 to 40 years. The creature can attempt to end the frightening every six seconds, and if they break the fear they are immune for the next 24 hours to further attempts by the ghost.
Finally, a ghost can attempt to possess a creature within five feet of it, unless it has the charisma to exist. The ghost possesses the creature until the creature is killed or knocked unconscious through damage, if the ghost willingly ends it, or if the ghost is turned through holy magic. If a creature resists or the ghost ends the possession, the creature is immune to getting possessed by that specific ghost for 24 hours.
A revenant is a soul of a mortal that met a cruel and undeserving fate, clawing its way back to seek revenge. Unlike most of the undead in Barovia, the Revenants do not serve Strahd, only wandering the lands and attacking those who attack them. A revenant regenerates its wounds every six seconds unless it takes fire or radiant damage, which pauses the regeneration for six seconds. Revenants are immune to effects that frighten undead through holy magic. Revenants don't wield weapons, relying on their fists and a vengeful glare that can paralyze a creature for six seconds or until the revenant attacks.
Revenants are resistant to necrotic and psychic damage, and immune to poison damage. They are also immune to being charmed, exhausted, frightened, paralyzed, poisoned, or restrained, and they possess darkvision that allows them to see into total darkness as if it were dim light for sixty feet.
Scarecrows are sentient straw constructs brought to life by Baba Lysaga. They wander the forests, killing anything they find. They possess razor sharp claws that can instill fear in those not wise enough to resist, and can target a creature within thirty feet of it to a similar effect. A creature frightened by Scarecrow's terrifying glare is also paralyzed for six seconds.
Scarecrows are vulnerable to fire damage, but resistance to bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage from nonmagical attacks. Scarecrows are immune to poison damage, and cannot be charmed, exhausted, frightened, paralyzed, poisoned, or knocked unconscious. Scarecrows possess darkvision, which allows them to see into total darkness as if it were dim light for sixty feet.
The Vistani are a culture of people that once rescued Strahd when he was mortal and a young man, endearing them to the vampire forever afterwards. Due to this, the Vistani are the only individuals allowed to leave Barovia, and in turn they occasionally bring adventurers into Barovia when Strahd gets bored. Most of the Vistani wander the roads and woods of Barovia, looking for easy marks to dupe, steal from, or pillage, though they can be convinced to act as guides for excessive prices. They wield scimitars and light crossbows, and can curse a creature once a day with a curse, or the Evil Eye.
- Curse: A Vistana looks at a creature within thirty feet and curses it. A Vistana curse is permanent and lasts even in death, unless the target is the recipient of a Remove Curse spell, a Greater Restoration spell, or a similar powerful anti-curse magic. When a curse ends, the Vistana takes psychic damage dependent on the severity of the curse. Resisting a curse requires relying on one's wisdom. Weaker curses include preventing a target from performing a task associated with fine motor skills such as tying rope or playing an instrument, a sinister but purely cosmetic change, or a nonmagical item disappearing. Stronger curses include imbuing the target with vulnerability to damage of the Vistana's choosing or granting disadvantage on using abilities or resisting effects reliant on a certain ability (the X-Factors). The strongest curses are rendering a magical item unusable by its current user or turning the target blind, deaf, or both.
- Evil Eye: A Vistana can target a creature within ten feet by giving it a bad vibe look. Resisting the Evil Eye requires relying on one's wisdom. The Evil Eye can be used to charm an animal or a humanoid, or paralyze a humanoid for one minute. If the target succeeds, the Vistana is blinded for six seconds. A creature that resists a Vistana's Evil Eye is immune to the Evil Eye of all Vistani for 24 hours. The Evil Eye cannot be used against until the Vistana has rested for one hour or eight or more hours.
The Setting[]
A treacherous valley filled with monsters, and surrounded by a magical fog that traps the warriors in this demiplane. Attempting to leave the fog will cause the warrior to die, as the fog is limitless and poisonous. Unlike the real module, the fog will also trap the warriors on the eastern side of the map, meaning the only places of note are the Village of Barovia and Castle Ravenloft.
Castle Ravenloft's northern, eastern, and southern side are protected by a large cliff with dense trees. The only entrance into the castle is the western drawbridge, which Strahd can control from anywhere within the Castle or its grounds. Castle Ravenloft can be neatly placed into several layers:
- The walls of Ravenloft, which consist of the gate towers and front courtyard exterior of the castle
- The Main Floor, where Strahd entertains his guests. It includes a banquet hall, a chapel, and various nooks and crannies that lead to hidden passageways.
- The Court of the Count, where Strahd conducts and plans his evil shenanigans.
- The Rooms of Weeping, the floor with Strahd's personal quarters.
- The Spires of Ravenloft, the various parts of the castle that lead outside to ramparts and towers.
- The Larders of Ill Omen, the servants floor.
- The Dungeon and Catacombs, the dungeon and catacombs.
The Village of Barovia is a small settlement on the outskirts of Ravenloft, occupied by the depressed and frightened villagers that make up Strahd's occupants. Most of the houses of Barovia keep their doors locked and their voices silent, save the merchant who sells mundane adventuring gear and an inn that may host the unlucky travelers that arrive in Barovia.
The warriors will be randomly scattered throughout the Svalich Woods, with only Strahd knowing where each warrior begins. It is fair to assume that each player could exit the Svalich wood in 6 hours if uninterrupted and taking the ideal travel route.
Notes[]
- Full votes require well-written edges with a minimum of three complete, well-written sentences total per ranking.
- Votes with little to no reason, bias, or irrelevant information will not count at all.
- All votes must contain proper grammar and spelling.
- All votes must clearly express a winner/tie to ensure proper tallying of votes.
- These requirements are abstract; I reserve the right to count or discount votes depending on their individual merit.
- My rebuttal policy is as follows; an initial valid rebuttal will force a warrior's placement down by one, tying them with the warrior immediately below or above them. The first counter-argument, if adequate, will restore the warrior's placement to its spot in the original vote unless the vote's author places them somewhere else. Going forward from there, all rebuttals and counter-arguments will only affect a warrior's placement if I believe it does so adequately.
- I reserve the right to be the sole judge of whether a rebuttal or counter-argument is adequate to effect a vote's value.
- I will communicate a vote's status primarily through Discord, or through commenting if you do not use Discord. Any requests for non-Discord communications shall be made on my talk page, not in the comments.
- Rebuttals will no longer be accepted on the final day of voting, unless the initial vote is completed one day before the deadline. Rebuttals for those votes are acceptable until the day after voting ends. Counter-arguments against these rebuttals will not be accepted after the official deadline unless that vote's status determines the winner.
- If a rebuttal only expresses a disagreement and does not point out an explicitly wrong or erroneous aspect of the vote, it will not reduce a warrior's ranking. I reserve the right to determine whether such a rebuttal meets that threshold.
- Arguing for a specific ranking will render a rebuttal invalid; regardless of where the comment states the warrior should be in the rebuttal, they will only fall or rise a single placement spot.
- An example: John places Vixen in 5th and Chie Satonaka in 4th. James posts a rebuttal against Chie Satonaka. Chie Satonaka then ties for 5th with Vixen. John's reply can either put Chie back in 4th, or do some normal placement swapping.
- Voting ends at 11:59 PM EST on September 29, 2024.
Each player has the goal of killing Strahd. There is no reward or punishment for teaming up with others, but only one may land the killing blow and win. Strahd cannot just be killed in battle, but must additionally be killed while resting in his coffin, located within Castle Ravenloft.
Strahd's goal is to be the last one standing. The only preparation Strahd has is knowing the initial location of each player and a five minute head start to their arrival.
The X-Factors listed are not to be taken as literal stat scores as utilized in the gameplay of Dungeons & Dragons. They are to be treated as regular X-Factors with approximate scores, simply on a 1-20 scale rather than a 1-100 scale.
- Winner
- If a Player, be the character that kills Strahd. If Strahd, be the last one standing. Strahd and a player can tie for winners if it is a mutual kill and there are no other players.
- Second Place
- Any players still alive once Strahd is killed that did not kill Strahd, or the last player eliminated if Strahd wins.
- Strahd
- If Strahd does not win, he places on the lowest available spot. Because the winner must be the one who kills Strahd, Strahd cannot tie with a player.
- 4th to Last
- A warrior who dies will be take the lowest available ranking. A character becoming a vampire spawn shall be considered a death in rankings.
If Strahd wins and Rocket is the last to fall:
- Strahd Von Zarovich
- Rocket
- Et Cetera
If Rocket wins and Achilles, Allison, and Sophitia are still alive:
- Rocket
- Achilles, Allison, and Sophitia
- Strahd Von Zarovich
- Et cetera.
If Rocket and Strahd kill each other, and no one else is still alive
- Rocket and Strahd Von Zarovich
- No second place awarded.
- Et cetera.
If Rocket and Strahd kill each other, and Achilles, Allison, and Sophitia are still alive.
- Rocket
- Achilles, Allison, and Sophitia
- Strahd Von Zarovich
- Et cetera.
- Rocket - Between Guardians of the Galaxy Volume II and Avengers: Infinity War
- Achilles - The Illiad, after Achilles' withdrawal from the Trojan War
- Allison Hargreeves - During the events of The Umbrella Academy Season 3, just before the final scene
- Sophitia Alexandra - SoulCalibur VI, after the events of her Soul Chronicle
- Vixen - DC's Legends of Tomorrow, after the events of Season 3
- Luke Castellan - Percy Jackson and the Olympians, between the events of The Titan's Curse and The Battle of the Labyrinth
- Chie Satonaka - Persona 4 Golden, between the winter ski trip and the True Ending
- Scorpion - Between the events of Mortal Kombat X and Mortal Kombat 11
- Nobara Kugisaki - MAPPA anime series, between the events of Season 1 and Season 2
- Evie Frye - Assassin's Creed Syndicate, after the main story
- Dorian Pavus - Dragon Age: Inquisition, after the events of Trespasser
- Volo - Pokémon Legends: Arceus, after the events of the post-game story
- J'Zargo - The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim
- Strahd von Zarovich - The Curse of Strahd, Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition (2014)
Battle[]
Session 1: Into the Woods[]
Agil Frontuva takes a deep breath, drawing back the string of his bow with the calm and experienced strength of a lifelong hunter. His quarry remains unaware of him, nibbling on what few pieces of green exist in this valley. The hunter gives a silent prayer of thanks to Mother Night, blessed not just with his mother’s soul upon her death but the keen elven eyes that let him see in the dark.
He exhales, slowly, loosing the arrow just as the first drops of rain patter onto his hooded frame. The stag turns its head towards the noise just as the arrow pierces his side, burying its head firmly in the stag’s heart. The beast takes a few feeble leaps away from Agil before collapsing, dying.
Ignoring the nagging chill of the rain, Agil approaches his prize, hunting knife drawn. The thundering sky bellows above him, yet he still kneels down, solemnly putting the beast out of its misery as he slices the blade across its throat. Finally, a flash of white light blinds Agil’s vision as lightning demands his gaze.
Blinking several times, Agil looks up in horror as he realizes his doom: Castle Ravenloft, which was before a constant but distant symbol of terror barely visible from his small cabin near Vallacki, loomed over him. “No, I’ve kept my distance. I always…” He says, half to himself and half to his gods above, gazing at the empty battlements.
And, illuminated by the very skies he commands, a figure stands upon its ramparts. His cape billowing behind him, his eyes boring into Agil, his fanged mouth a sculpture of dispassionate justice. Yet even in night, the shadow cast by this figure seemed to surround Agil, darker and colder than any winter evening of his thirty-five years. The shade of his lord swallowed him, snuffing out the moon itself with his presence.
Another flash of lightning blinded Agil, and when his vision returned, the figure was gone. Agil got on his knees, tossing his bow aside and screaming over the thunder. “Please, my Lord. I am Vistana! I am one of your chosen people! I did not know!”
To answer his pleas for mercy, a husky voice whispered in his ear, “You have hunted upon your Lord’s land. The sentence is death.”
The pain was quick, instant, and fatal, as Agil felt a blade slice the back of his heel. He whimpered, cowering and falling to turn behind him, seeing nothing. Rising with a struggle, Agil grabbed his bow, limping towards the west. “Please forgive me my Lord! I did not know! I did not know!”
Agil ran, back to his patch of dirt, back to his cabin, back to his home; the sound of thunder and lightning at his side, and the howling of wolves from behind.
As he strolled his castle’s battlements, Strahd von Zarovich sighed in boredom. Though Strahd had not known the pleasure of taste in centuries nor the pains of hunger ever, he knew that starvation could lead reasonable creatures to unreasonable actions.
But he was lord of these lands. If his subjects were to respect each other, they must respect him; and to respect him, Strahd must enforce his laws over all without mercy or anger. Agil’s mother had been a fine seamstress and his father a capable leatherworker. They were good and honest workers, and until this evening they had raised their son to be so too; but Strahd’s law was the law.
“A useless loss.” He thought to himself, peering once again into the haunted woods beneath him. Whispers breach his mind, disrupting the silence, and to focus, Strahd ceased the storm, the weather returning to an eerie, empty night.
“Have you brought more to me?” he mused, muttering a few ancient words to look through the eyes of his servants in the woods. “When will you learn the futility of these adventurers?” He settles upon a raven, plucking out meat of a discarded stag’s carcass, compelling her to take flight.
As the raven took to the sky, Strahd gazed over the vast darkness of Barovia. A glimpse of light from a campfire caught his attention, and the raven descends, settling onto a branch. Strahd watched with clinical curiosity at the assembly of Vistani crowding around the warm blaze, unaware of the eyes of their lord.
“Did you hear about the new visitors that Arrigal is bringing? Enough for a whole caravan!” a younger woman says, eyes alit with mischief reflecting the dancing flames.
“Pfft, he says that every time. Every giorgio he brings, that’s another ghost for the march,” An older one says dismissively, tossing another log onto the pyre as he drinks from his wine bottle.
“Still, who knows? That many outsiders ought to be entertaining.” The third replies, picking at his nails. “At the very least, it’s more stories for the campfire.”
Strahd, resigned to his role, merely sighed from atop his castle ramparts. He dismissed the raven, looking over the Svalich woods. “Very well, then. Let us see if they can succeed where others have always failed.” With that, he turned his back. The thunder, the lightning, the rain, and the howling of wolves began anew, a symphony of noise for the newest victims of Barovia.
The mists dispersing as suddenly as they had appeared, Amaya Jiwe stopped her careful, disciplined walk through the woods. Momentarily stunned by the rapid change, the veteran hero took a deep breath; years of training in the Zambesi plains and U.S. spec ops took over, and she observed her surroundings with a calm, intelligent eye.
The dark woods were briefly illuminated as the misty shape of a bat surrounds her, sounds undetectable from her human ears slowly filtering through to her. Off in the distance, the distinct sound of a crackling fire and the snarling of creatures caught her attention, as well as a voice ordering commands. With a temporary goal in place, she follows the sounds.
After a quick and quiet trek through the forest, Amaya breaks the tree line to see a dozen decomposing, shambling corpses in a clearing. Atop a fallen log, a youngish man gave her a nervous wave as a strange flying white creature hovered around him.
“Hello! I seem to have myself in a bind!” Volo yells, as his Togekiss breaks right and slashes its wing in a diagonal, a blast of air solidifying into a blade before it sliced the leg off an approaching zombie. As the leg fell to the side, the zombie hopped forward, with the missing limb soon following behind it.
The superheroine leapt into action, breaking into a sprint as a spectral rhino surrounded her. Amaya barges through the horde on the other side of Volo, tossing several zombies into the air as she charges. Arriving beside him, she skids to a stop, backhanding an approaching zombie to cave in what fragments of skin and bone it had left on its head.
With the stranger protecting his flank, Volo hollered another command, “Togekiss, Moonblast!” The flying Pokemon conjured a glowing pink ball, then launched it at another zombie, blowing a hole through its chest. The undead shambled forward, and Volo grimaced in annoyance as Togekiss hit it with another blast, taking it out at the legs.
Hitting an approaching zombie with a gorilla-powered palm strike to send it hurtling backwards, Amaya grimaced as the corpse stood back up, undeterred. She thought for a moment, searching for guidance from the ancestors or her memories. Her mind wandered to an argument Nate and Mick got into on the Waverider about movies. While she didn’t care whether the one in London or Pittsburgh was better, she did remember the rule they kept talking about.
“Aim for the head!” she yells back to Volo, quickly going up to a zombie and smashing its head with a double hammer fist. The zombie crumples, down for good, and Amaya gives a confident nod before making short work of the horde.
"Aha! Excellent deduction!" Volo replies, retrieving Togekiss and unleashing Lucario. The Aura Pokemon leaps into battle, a flurry of kicks and punches in Close Combat dispatching the remaining zombies. Sighing in relief, Volo laughs as Vixen turns to him. “Wow, talk about good timing!” He offered a hand, placing his other hand on the Pokeball on his hip to retrieve his Pokemon. “My name’s Volo! I’m a merchant with the Ginkgo Guild.”
For her part, she gives a soft smile that doesn’t reach her eyes, before a tight grip wrapped around her ankle. Vixen looks down at a zombie who refused to die, which was mere seconds away from biting her. Instead, the creature’s already slow speed turns glacial as ice surrounds it, before freezing solid entirely.
“Nasty things, those zombies. Refuse to stay down, and almost ruining those wonderful boots too,” a voice stated from the trees, before Dorian Pavus revealed himself to the two other adventurers. “Shall you do the honors, or shall I?”
Vixen, smirking, raises her foot and stomps, shattering the zombie into icy shards. “I can handle myself, stranger. Who are you?”
“Straight to the point. Normally I would expect a bit of gratitude for the person who just saved you from a rather nasty undead infection. But, given the circumstances, I’d wager some caution is appropriate.” The mage replies, stowing his staff and giving a slight bow. “Magister Dorian Pavus, of House Pavus, at your service.”
Amaya rolled her eyes, with Dorian’s smirk only growing at her annoyance. “Amaya. Just Amaya.” She looked between the two men, clearly judging each of them. Dorian’s smirk softened into a gentler smile.
“If I may be serious for a moment, I know we’re all supposed to be after the same thing. Or, rather, the same someone.”
“But that doesn’t mean we have to fight each other. Not now, anyway. If at all,” Amaya finished, nodding at Dorian. “There is safety in numbers…”
Interrupting the conversation, Volo raised a finger. “I do hate to interrupt the introductions, but perhaps we could walk and talk? I don’t think we’ll be alone much longer.”
The sound of howling wolves confirmed Volo’s suspicion, and the two others nodded in agreement. “You seem quite the frontierswoman, Amaya. Perhaps you ought to lead the way.”
As they turned their backs on him, Volo’s smile slipped into a thin frown. He’d hope the zombie that “slipped” his vision would’ve taken care of one competitor ahead of schedule, but it seemed he’d have to be more careful for this. Especially if the others proved as annoyingly friendly.
“Wait for me!” He’d say, voice raising in false anxiety as he gave his hefty backpack a jingle and kept pace with the others.
Rocket whispered a string of curses beneath his breath, ruining his attempt to move subtly through the woods. Lifting his injured foot from the root that had stubbed it, Rocket readjusted his grip on his blaster rifle and scratched his posterior. The sound of yelling caught his ear, replacing his annoyance with caution.
Reluctantly laying his rifle against a tree, Rocket scurried up, hopping from branch to branch to investigate. Unholstering one of his pistols, Rocket looked down at a large human covered in primitive metal armor, yelling louder than the three wolf-like people in front of him.
Achilles, catching the shaking of leaves above him, snarled back at the growling werewolves, retrieving his spear from their slain packmate. "Your master sends dogs to fight me? By the gods, I will feed him the bones of you hounds for this insult."
A werewolf digs her claws into the ground, preparing to lunge, only for Achilles to move first, the demigod leaping through the air. The monster can only raise her hackles in surprise before Achilles' spear finds its mark, impaling her through the heart. Her mate attempts to avenge her, swinging his claws across the shield on Achilles' arm, sparks flying. The demigod roars, swinging the shield into the werewolf's face, sending teeth, spit, and blood flying from his jaw as it collapses, unconscious and unlikely to wake again.
"Pathetic mongrels! Pups to the slaughter!" Achilles boasts, unfazed as the last werewolf leaps onto his exposed back. She snaps at Achilles' head, fangs cracking down upon his helmet as he attempted to shake her off. The warrior dropped his weapon and shield, grabbing the werewolf by the scruff of the neck. With his godly strength, he threw her onto the ground, ready to land the finishing blow, only for two blasts of light to emerge from the sky, taking his kill as they burned through her chest.
“Real impressive, pal,” Rocket said, making himself known as he cautiously lowered the now-smoking blaster pistol to his side. If this madman could take on these beasts by himself, he’d make a good meat shield for this job.
“A talking rodent? With a bow that shoots beams of Helios?” Achilles asked, yanking his spear from the werewolf’s body. “Yet another minion of this Strahd Von Zarovich, sent to vex me?”
“Hell no, I ain’t no one’s minion, human,” Rocket yelled back with an indignant shrug. “You call me ‘rodent’ one more time and it’ll be your turn to get two plugs to the back.”
“Watch your tongue, beast,” Achilles threatened, tensing his knees as he prepared to leap. “Still, if you do not work for my foe, then you are my competition. And I will not share this boon with any.”
Rocket laughed, jumping from the tree and holstering his pistol. “Cool it chrome dome. Don’t be tossin’ away a favor when you get one for free.”
As he observed the strange creature before him, Achilles’ glower eased. “I have heard the gods send their favor in animals. Who is your divine master, creature?”
“Uh…Kev Vin Bay Con.” Rocket offered, hoping that all that muscle didn’t reach his brain.
“Hmm…a local god, then. Very well – you shall aid me in my quest, rodent. What shall I call you?”
Smiling at his luck, Rocket strolled towards his abandoned rifle. “Rocket. We’re gonna have a lot of fun.”
In yet another corner of the woods, Luke Castellan looks solemnly into the small campfire he’d built. He’d already been making good time, falling into a familiar groove back as he wandered aimlessly, slaying the occasional werewolf or zombie. As much as he hated the bastard, Luke was thankful his deadbeat of a godly father was the god of travel and not something more useless like “metalwork” or “festive greeting cards”.
A rustle in the darkness interrupted his musing. He calmly stood, wrapping his hand around the grip of Backbiter as a young woman – maybe a year younger than himself at most – emerged, a hammer in one hand and three nails in the other.
“Stay still, stranger," Nobara demanded, cursed energy building within her. The blond teenager remained standing, his piercing blue eyes contrasting with his sickly pale skin. Even as he just looked at her, Nobara faltered as he seemed to look through her, causing her to involuntarily flinch before steadying herself.
"You haven't tried to kill me yet," Luke offered, Backbiter in hand but dangling loosely at his side. "Which means you and I can help each other. Sit down, relax. I won't hurt you."
The tense standstill was interrupted further still as another teenager entered the firelight. "Thank goodness! Finally, some friendly people!" Chie says with a grin, only to raise both her hands in surrender when they turn on her. A glowing blue tarot card appears in front of her, as the large, armored form of Haraedo-no-Okami appeared behind her.
After seconds that felt like minutes, all three teenagers begin to laugh, relaxing as they lay their weapons aside and power down. Chie smiled and took a seat by the fire, rubbing her hands together for warmth. "Jeez, ten minutes in the woods and we're all trying to hurt each other. That's crazy."
"You can't be too careful," Luke replied, sitting back down. After looking the other two over, Nobara sat as well.
"I bet I would've won, though."
"As if!"
The demigod watched the two other girls, a smile creeping on his face. Annabeth used to be just as excitable as this Chie, while Nobara's cool confidence reminded him of Thalia. Before he could keep wandering further down memory lane, Nobara snapped her fingers in his face.
"What's your name, dude? Are you even listening to us?"
"Luke. Luke Castellan," he said, seeming to satisfy Nobara as she left it alone.
"Now, have either you two had any luck finding food? I'm starving!"
Chie's grin fell into a sullen frown, the rumbling of her stomach answering for her. "I'd give up my left arm for a beef bowl or a grilled steak. Maybe even my copy of Trial of the Dragon."
"I set up some snares awhile ago, maybe they've-" Luke started as he stood up, only for Nobara to hush him.
"Trial of the Dragon?! I love that one," Nobara said, moving closer to Chie. "Have you seen it, Luke?"
The boy shook his head, an amused smile on his face, and the girls started to talk over each other, praising whatever this movie was. Shrugging, Luke sat back down, listening and talking with his new companions into the night.
Trekking through their woods, a clan of five mountain folk druids silently march. Their lord had told them of new adventurers in this valley, and the mountain folk did as Mother Night's champion commanded.
The lead druid, Podrick, held up a raised fist, bringing the clan to a halt, as a bat fluttered into view. He pointed his hand at the beast, muttering ancient druidic words, before speaking to the bat. "What have you seen?"
"A tall folk, but not like you. I can take you to her."
"You shall," the druid commands, and the bat flutters off. The clan begins to chant, moss-covered bark forming around their skin. Prepared for battle, they march, unaware of the crouching Evie Frye observing from the shadows.
"Best not get involved," she thinks to herself, stepping backwards and away from the druids. As she slinks away, the scent of fire and death overtakes her, forcing Evie to stop and cover her mouth to suppress a cough. Her vision shimmers into shades of blue, her Eagle Sense highlighting the last of the druids leaving in red.
She looks above her, where the scent seemed to come from, spotting a figure lit in green perched in the trees. "On the other hand…"
Unaware of the Assassin, Scorpion watches the druids process through the forest. He teleports down, quietly hiding behind a tree as they walk by. He loosened the chain of his kunai, preparing to launch his ambush should he be discovered, and watched as well.
"Up ahead, she rests." The bat says, now hanging from a branch from the very tree Scorpion hid himself with. The druid nodded, pulling out a handful of plump grubs as the bat's rewards, leaving the creature to fly off with its feast.
"Ludvic, Vanesa, go ahead of us. Kill her quietly," the lead druid commands. "We shall wait here if she attempts to flee or fight. Glory to Lord Strahd."
The two druids nod, taking a few steps forward, only for a cloud of ash and brimstone to obscure them. Scorpion, his suspicion about these minions of his target confirmed, thrust his kunai into Vanesa's throat, letting go of the blade as the druid chokes on her dying breath. Scorpion spins and delivers a swift, fire-infused blow to Ludvic, stunning him, before grabbing him by the chin and skull and violently snapping his neck
The druids panic, with a pair forming small balls of fire in their hands. Unimpressed, Scorpion pulls on the chain of his kunai, bringing the dagger back into his hand, before throwing it at a druid. The kunai strikes true, slamming into the druid's skull, before Scorpion teleports past Podrik and beside the other druid, drawing his katana and slicing open the druid's stomach in one smooth motion.
Podrick, the last man standing, loudly chanted as he brought his hand along his staff. The weapon glows in golden light, and he points it at Scorpion. "You will not find me as easy to best, outsider."
"Stay your hand, demon!" a voice calls out, and Scorpion instinctively teleports back several feet, narrowly avoiding a downward slash from Sophitia as she dashes into the fray. "I know not why you fight, but I will not let you kill in cold blood again!"
Scorpion teleports, swinging his katana, and Sophitia raised her shield, deflecting Scorpion's fiery blade. She stabs her short sword forward, missing the wraith as he teleports behind her, sweeping the leg and knocking Sophitia on the ground. He thrusts his katana down for the killing blow, but Sophitia rolls and deflects with her shield, sending the blade into the dirt.
She quickly rises as Scorpion abandons his weapon, the wraith delivering a sudden combo of kicks and punches. She jumps backwards from each blow, before dashing in when Scorpion misses an uppercut, slamming her shield into his chest. She follows up with several quick slashes, with Scorpion only narrowly dodging each. Sophitia finishes her combo with a downward slash, defiantly yelling "For the gods!" as her sword slams into Scorpion, who raises a pair of kunai to catch the blade. "You fight well, but none best the Shirai Ryu!"
The pair stay locked in, neither relenting, before a blast of concussive thunder shakes them both. The two fighters separate but hold their ground, turning to see the frustrated druid with his staff raised. He mutters another incantation, causing vines to sprout around the pair and entangle them.
"Now that you have exhausted each other, I shall bring you both to-" the druid taunts, before a cloud of smoke surrounds them all. The coughing of the druid is quickly silenced as the warriors hear a quiet pop. The smoke and vines dissipate, revealing Evie, one hand wrapped tightly around the druid’s mouth and the other pressed against his neck. Evie removes her hand, sheathing her Hidden Blade as blood flows freely from the fatal wound. She lays the dying druid down, pulling down her hood and looking at the surprised warriors. "Are you done fighting, now, so that we may make proper introductions?"
Sophitia sheathes her sword first, a small smile of embarrassment on her face. "My apologies, sir. I did not realize what fight I had been walking into."
"Save your apologies, girl. Any servant of this Strahd is my enemy, and any ally in that fight shall be protected."
"I'm glad that's settled," Evie stated, already bending down to search the pockets of these travelers. Though she didn't expect anything as helpful as a correspondence or journal, she at least hoped to find out more about where she was and the people she'd be dealing with.
"You would loot the dead?" Sophitia asks, to which Evie shrugs as she discovers her prize. She jingles a small sack in her hand, the clink of gold apparent. "They're not going to use it." Scorpion grimaced, but silently joined as well, collecting some coin himself, a pouch of berries, and bundle of salted meats.
"We should move and find shelter," Sophitia offers, looking at the corpses and offering a silent prayer to Hades. Her less scrupulous companions stand and nod, with Evie standing and activating her Eagle Sense.
"I can handle that." She offered, following the glowing trail highlighting the path ahead. "I'm Evie Frye, by the way. A pleasure, and not just given the circumstances."
"Sophitia Alexandra, servant of Hephaestus and wife to Rothion."
"I am Hanzo Hasashi, of the Shirai Ryu. I can see the symbols on your robes, Evie. What order claims you?"
"'Servant of Hephaestus'?" Evie asked, avoiding the question. "I've seen some queer things lately, but gods of antiquity? I'm surprised there are any who still worship them."
Scorpion remains silent, awaiting more, while Sophitia briefly catches the distraction. Deciding it would be better not to push for now, she continues. "Why would I not? Hephaestus has been graceful with me; a fine husband and good health for me and my loved ones. Do you not worship them?"
In spite of herself, Evie smiled and looked back at Sophitia. Given the clinking of Sophitia's armor, stealthy traveling was unlikely. It was best to get to know her new companions while she had the chance. Besides, she could use the conversation.
Allison Hargreeves suppresses a groan of frustration, taking one awkward step after another as she follows a cliff's face. Her boots barely kept her feet drier than damp in this wilderness, let alone help her climb a mountain for a better view. The pitch black darkness didn't help either, she thought as she tripped over a rock she hadn't seen. Landing clumsily on the ground, she finally yells out her frustration and slams her fists into the dirt. "Stupid! If I find out Viktor or Five had something to do with this…"
"It seems J'Zargo has found a companion," a purring voice says from nowhere, before a bright orb of white light illuminates the woods and reveals the Khajit, leaning on the cliff face that Allison had been moving her hand along for support. Allison immediately scoots back in surprise, ordering "Back off, furball!" J'Zargo, to his confusion, immediately walks backwards and hits his head on the stone wall.
"What magic do you use to control one as wise and intelligent as J'Zargo?" he asks, each hand crackling with elemental magic. Allison, seeing the attacks, brings one foot up before launching herself at J'Zargo, whose spells go wide as she tackles them both back to the ground. She puts him in a chokehold, but lets go as J'Zargo reaches back with his claws, slashing at her forearms.
"Enough! I heard a rumor you calmed the hell down!"
J'Zargo goes limp in her grip, allowing her to resume the chokehold. "I think we got off on the wrong foot, J'Zargo. Why don't you help me out?" The Khajit's eyes glaze over, before a friendly smile appears on his face.
"J'Zargo agrees. It is better to work together for survival, he thinks."
Allison lets go, offering a hand up. "There we go. I'm Allison."
The wizard brushes himself off as he takes her helping hand. "J'Zargo. This one was going to explore an abandoned cabin he found, but J'Zargo heard your scream, so J'Zargo came to see if you were friend or foe."
The actress laughs, putting a friendly hand on his shoulder. A talking cat man should be stranger, but after Pogo and Christopher, Allison couldn’t really be too surprised anymore. "Well, I'm definitely a friend. No harm in checking it out."
J'Zargo waves his hand, creating another orb of light, and leads the way. Just as J'Zargo described, a dilapidated cabin emerged from the woods. Though the door was had fallen down beside a long abandoned chair and mushrooms grew upon its paneled walls, the roof seemed fine, and that was enough for now. Before either could step inside, the sound of gentle crying catches their ear. The two look at each other, before J'Zargo's fists begin to crackle with lightning. He steps forward as Allison grabs the chair, breaking its leg off. "Careful, Allison. This one will lead the way to protect you."
She rolls her eyes as she bends down, grabbing her improvised club. Out of the corner of her eye, a splotch of red catches her attention. Dismissing it, she follows J'Zargo inside, catching up to him as he stares at a small, hunched over shape. Even in the darkness, Allison recognizes the crying of a small child. Judging from her height, she couldn't be older than five or six, just like Claire.
Her instincts taking over, Allison drops the chair leg. "Shush, shush," Allison coos, going up to the girl. "J'Zargo, go start a fire. She's shaking like a leaf," she orders, looking back as she bent over. Seeing the khajit still standing with his magic ready, Allison glared. "Goddammit, help her."
Placing a hand on her knee, Allison reached out to the child's shoulder. "Why don't you tell me where your parents are?" She asks, going to place her hand on the girl's shoulder. Allison gasps as her hand phases through the child, who turns to look at her would-be savior.
She faces Allison, a smile on her bruised face matching the long, deep cut across her spectral throat. Drops of ghostly blood solidify as the young, dead girl reaches out, wrapping around Allison in a hug. She gasped as the child grabbed her, any warmth from her coat and pants freezing away in the child's grip. "Please don't tell my ma and pa that I let you in." She begs, staining Allison's shirt with more blood from her crimson tears. "I'm not supposed to let strangers in. Even the nice ones like the last man that came in."
"Of course not sweetie," Allison said through chattering teeth, looking at J'Zargo for help, only to see him absent-mindedly spraying flame into a long-abandoned firepit. She tried to pull herself away from the ghost, but the little girl held on tightly, far stronger than one her size or age.
"You're not going to hurt me, right? The last man said he wasn't going to hurt me, but then he did. He said my pa was mean to him, so he had to be mean to me."
"J'Zargo, help m-" Allison starts, before the ghost grabs her throat. Despite the intangibility, the girl's grip was as cold and solid as ice. "You said you weren't going to hurt me. I can tell you're lying. And ma says you shouldn't talk if you're going to lie."
The ghost tightens her grip, and Allison's skin begins to dry up as the withering touch of the ghost drains her. She tries to swat at the ghost, her hands phasing through the intangible body in vain. Allison's struggles end as the ghost flares with blue energy, extracting the last of her life, tossing the corpse aside.
J'Zargo's mind returns to him, and he quickly turns the Flames back at the ghost, who merely walks forward through the magical fire. "Why does this not work? Undead should always fall to J'Zargo's magic!" The ghost does not respond, instead floating briefly into the air. She lets out a screech, blood from her throat flowing like a river as it cascades towards J'Zargo. Steeling himself despite the fear gripping him, J'Zargo creates a Ward in front of him, blocking the blood, and tosses a ball of holy light at the ghost. She screams again, this time out of fear, and she phases through the wall.
He turns to flee as well, sprinting out the door. Fearsome as J'Zargo was, some undead even he could not face alone. He stops as a piercing pain slams into his shoulder, forcing him to stop as he steps outside. Looking at the wound, several needles and thorns protrude from the wound. He looks up, as the trees surrounding him turn into people.
The needle blights wordlessly prepare another volley, launching a hail of thorns and wood at the khajit, who hastily raises another ward. "Do not think J'Zargo will fall so easily!" He forms a spike of ice in one hand and fire ball in his other, dispatching two needle blights in quick order before more emerge.
"Mister, why are you being mean to the trees?" a small voice asks, forcing J'Zargo to turn around, spotting the girl again. She reaches out with her hand, hoping to destroy him as she did Allison. J'Zargo backs up, pulling out a scroll, and casts his Flame Cloak spell. The incantation finishes just as she grabs his wrist, causing both caster and target to explode in a blast of fire.
Knocked to the ground, J'Zargo weakly groans, looking up to see pieces of ethereal dust where the ghostly girl once stood. "J'Zargo has done it again, excellent." He boasts just as the remaining needle brights surround him. The wooden monster raises its arm, allowing J'Zargo only a moment of realization before it swings, sharpened claws quickly digging into his throat and silencing the khajit forever.
Content with their work, the remaining monsters disperse, seeking out others to destroy. A few moments later, a pair of large dire wolves emerge, sniffing at the body of J'Zargo. One ignores it, entering the cabin, while the other grabs J'Zargo's leg. After waiting briefly for its companion to return with Allison's body, the pair trot away with their prizes. The master would be pleased.