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Sanzang seems like a good pick for a Caster servant - the issue is she probably wouldn't answer the call to a "normal" HGW. She's got buddhist magic, a bunch of busted magical artifacts from her disciples, and her most powerful weapon is the power of FIST, which means she doesn't have the traditional caster drawbacks.
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Nov 9, 2021 23:07
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Gilles de Rais showed that even a half-assed Caster can do some serious damage if not chained by a master obsessed with the pride of a Magus.
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Nov 9, 2021 23:09
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Marluxia posted:He certainly was a problem, but the issue is all of the power came from the book he had, not himself. He's kind of an one trick pony. If you can deal with his book, he has nothing else, he's not even a real magus. The other problem is one that the series itself isn't shy to say: Gilles is extremely unsubtle as a Caster, and draws attention for miles when he gets serious. And that makes him A Problem, because the Mage Association and the Church would really prefer to not have people banging on their doors asking why Cthulhu is tearing up a bay in some random Japanese town, as well as potentially uncovering their secret Murder Death Kill. Materant fucked around with this message at 00:22 on Nov 10, 2021 |
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Nov 10, 2021 00:19
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Eeepies posted:There was a lot of talk previously about how Casters are meant to lose in Holy Grail Wars, because their skillsets aren't really for dueling 1v1. Why would your brain fry? it's not like trying to understand the concept of a servant containers' lines of death. A Master has dreams/nightmares of their servant's history, and a fundamental infodump of who they are and what they can do when they summon them, they don't directly control them like they're a remote controlled toy.
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Nov 10, 2021 01:16
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cdyoung posted:Why would your brain fry? it's not like trying to understand the concept of a servant containers' lines of death. A Master has dreams/nightmares of their servant's history, and a fundamental infodump of who they are and what they can do when they summon them, they don't directly control them like they're a remote controlled toy. I think they're referring to how the level of Magecraft this Caster is casually performing would literally fry your body (because magic circuits can do that if you overload them!). Reality Marbles are so High Level poo poo that the only natural users of them are loving demons made from imaginary element; and everyone else who uses them is either a Servant, a thousand year old vampire, the freak of nature in terms of magecraft that is Shirou Emiya and Satsuki Yumizuka.
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Nov 10, 2021 01:24
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GiantRockFromSpace posted:I think they're referring to how the level of Magecraft this Caster is casually performing would literally fry your body (because magic circuits can do that if you overload them!). Explain Waiver and Iksander's reality marble.
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Nov 10, 2021 01:27
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cdyoung posted:Explain Waiver and Iksander's reality marble. Last time I checked Iskandar was a Servant  (also his NP is weird in that it's a collective RM from various Heroic Spirits who shared his dream.)
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Nov 10, 2021 01:31
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GiantRockFromSpace posted:I don't remember her being unsummonable in a standard HGW besides the fact she's clearly Asian (I don't think that's a spoiler) and the Fuyuki Grail bans Asian Servants because, official "the Holy Grail is a Western relic" but unofficially "no fame boosts for Servants in Fuyuki". And in most other HGW that rule is done for which leads to hilarious poo poo like Apocrypha where they have a metagame and bans like "No HGW in Greece because the mages kill each other for catalysts before the war even begins". Casko's not summonable in a normal HGW because she's in one of the categories that weren't supposed to be allowed at all (which were anti-heroes, counter guardians and I think monsters in general), but Einzbern's fuckery with the grail in the 3rd made the rules start to break down. Red Man and Medusa aren't supposed to be summonable either, for instance. There's another reason she possibly shouldn't be summonable regardless, but that's touching on spoilers.
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Nov 10, 2021 02:00
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Lord Koth posted:Casko's not summonable in a normal HGW because she's in one of the categories that weren't supposed to be allowed at all (which were anti-heroes, counter guardians and I think monsters in general), but Einzbern's fuckery with the grail in the 3rd made the rules start to break down. Red Man and Medusa aren't supposed to be summonable either, for instance. There's another reason she possibly shouldn't be summonable regardless, but that's touching on spoilers. Medea as well since she's outright a Villian, and Evil attribute heroes were also not summonable until the screw up in the 3rd war.
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Nov 10, 2021 03:51
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Gilles being the first example of it if I recall.
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Nov 10, 2021 05:31
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MonsterEnvy posted:Gilles being the first example of it if I recall. Angry Mango was first, being said 3rd war screw up.
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Nov 10, 2021 18:34
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Draga posted:Angry Mango was first, being said 3rd war screw up. I assume they mean the first evil servant summoned by the compromised rules after the 3rd war.
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Nov 10, 2021 20:18
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Lord Koth posted:Casko's not summonable in a normal HGW because she's in one of the categories that weren't supposed to be allowed at all (which were anti-heroes, counter guardians and I think monsters in general), but Einzbern's fuckery with the grail in the 3rd made the rules start to break down. Red Man and Medusa aren't supposed to be summonable either, for instance. There's another reason she possibly shouldn't be summonable regardless, but that's touching on spoilers. Oh right forgot about that... but to be fair I don't think that rule is followed anywhere else? Apocrypha is a timeline where Angry Manju was never summoned and yet you can summon the likes of Semiramis and Jack The Ripper who are very much not pristine, proper heroes. Hell, the Fuyuki grail specifically summons Anti-Heroic Wraiths with the Assassin class, and it's not like it's a class feature given FGO gave us heroic Assassins.
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Nov 10, 2021 20:45
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GiantRockFromSpace posted:Oh right forgot about that... but to be fair I don't think that rule is followed anywhere else? Apocrypha is a timeline where Angry Manju was never summoned and yet you can summon the likes of Semiramis and Jack The Ripper who are very much not pristine, proper heroes. Hell, the Fuyuki grail specifically summons Anti-Heroic Wraiths with the Assassin class, and it's not like it's a class feature given FGO gave us heroic Assassins. That's because that war was reverse engineered from the ritual used in F/SN, since it also allows for 14 servants to be summoned, so some of the rules were removed to make it easier to fill up the expanded ranks.
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Nov 10, 2021 21:20
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If memory serves, the Fuyuki Grail was also explicitly programmed to only summon an incarnation of Hassan-i-Sabbah. In Apocrypha, this was removed because enough Hassan summons had occurred that the class itself was disadvantaged by the exposure of the entire line's identities and abilities.
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Nov 10, 2021 21:33
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NyoroEevee posted:If memory serves, the Fuyuki Grail was also explicitly programmed to only summon an incarnation of Hassan-i-Sabbah. In Apocrypha, this was removed because enough Hassan summons had occurred that the class itself was disadvantaged by the exposure of the entire line's identities and abilities. Also because the meta evolved from "Killing all other masters with Assassin" (Apocrypha Sub Grail Wars are mentioned to not always have the seven Servants or other usual staples) to "Truce to kill Assassin's Master first", which caused the class' place in the tier lists to plummet. Yes this is an actual thing, Apocrypha Lore is both the dumbest and the best lore of the franchise and it's criminal it's so unknown (like the fact the FSN cast are busy doing a harem anime centered on Shirou but with wrestling). Anyways, the "actual rules" really ultimately only apply to Fuyuki, because despite what people say Nasu doesn't constantly contradict their rules, they just know when to bend them if it gives more creative freedom and funnier stories.
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Nov 10, 2021 21:39
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I know that the Fate series is famous for genderbends, but turning Lewis Carroll into a little girl wearing a latex gothic lolita dress takes the cake! 
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Nov 10, 2021 23:09
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cdyoung posted:That's because that war was reverse engineered from the ritual used in F/SN, since it also allows for 14 servants to be summoned, so some of the rules were removed to make it easier to fill up the expanded ranks. As I recall the Grail War in Apocrypha having 14 servants is specifically a whole new thing even though there have been tonnes of grail wars around the world at this point.
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Nov 10, 2021 23:36
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Crasical posted:I know that the Fate series is famous for genderbends, but turning Lewis Carroll into a little girl wearing a latex gothic lolita dress takes the cake! The cake remains exactly where it is.
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Nov 11, 2021 03:13
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Give FGO a chance to update a couple more times. Black Alice will seem tame in comparison to some of the new Servants, I'm sure.GiantRockFromSpace posted:Yes this is an actual thing, Apocrypha Lore is both the dumbest and the best lore of the franchise and it's criminal it's so unknown (like the fact the FSN cast are busy doing a harem anime centered on Shirou but with wrestling). Professional wrestling. And I'm still waiting for this spinoff.
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Nov 11, 2021 04:53
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GiantRockFromSpace posted:
And UBW route ending was already harem anime but with wrestling, I'd want that spinoff.
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Nov 11, 2021 05:01
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Omobono posted:Is Apocrypha the one with Sakura Edelfelt, adopted sister to world's most elegant hyena Luvia? Correct, as the Grail getting jacked in the 3rd War means that Zouken had no reason to adopt Sakura, so the Edelfelts took her. It also has Shirou staying with his biological family and Rin's dad starting a mixed magecraft/martial arts school to try and reach the Root another way. This is just in the Apocrypha Materials, mind you, Fuyuki is entirely a non-entity in Apoc proper.
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Nov 11, 2021 06:09
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BisbyWorl posted:Correct, as the Grail getting jacked in the 3rd War means that Zouken had no reason to adopt Sakura, so the Edelfelts took her. It also has Shirou staying with his biological family and Rin's dad starting a mixed magecraft/martial arts school to try and reach the Root another way. What happened with Kirei out of curiosity. Did he just decide to be miserable for the rest of his life, as the 4th Grail War not happening means his father would be alive, and he would not meet Gilgamesh the one who convinced him to indulge in his darker impulses.
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Nov 11, 2021 07:14
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I imagine he opened a restaurant that serves fantastically spicy food
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Nov 11, 2021 09:35
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MonsterEnvy posted:What happened with Kirei out of curiosity. Did he just decide to be miserable for the rest of his life, as the 4th Grail War not happening means his father would be alive, and he would not meet Gilgamesh the one who convinced him to indulge in his darker impulses. He might also still be marred and Carin might have had a father figure so she doesn't do her Gravekeeper duties without a skirt on, you know, like a sane person. Omobono posted:Is Apocrypha the one with Sakura Edelfelt, adopted sister to world's most elegant hyena Luvia? I think that spin off was one of their april fools gags.
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Nov 11, 2021 13:09
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cdyoung posted:I think that spin off was one of their april fools gags. No, Sakura Edelfelt is from Apocrypha Materials: Zouken Matou gets wrecked in the 3rd Grail War so when Tokiomi has to give Sakura away he gives her to the Edelfelts because the relationship is better (maybe because the Edelfelt Master did not elope with the Tohsaka one?) and their magic thing is Having Two Heirs so she becomes Luvia's little sister.
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Nov 11, 2021 13:48
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cdyoung posted:He might also still be marred and Carin might have had a father figure so she doesn't do her Gravekeeper duties without a skirt on, you know, like a sane person. But his wife was dying anyway.
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Nov 11, 2021 18:34
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cdyoung posted:He might also still be marred and Carin might have had a father figure so she doesn't do her Gravekeeper duties without a skirt on, you know, like a sane person. Her dad's Kotomine, if he's around I think sanity is going to steer clear of the neighborhood even harder just in case.
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Nov 11, 2021 18:54
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Update XXIX - On the verge of a dream Music: First Chimeric Lunar Sea - Second Floor  Alright, time to tidy up some loose ends while we wait for the end of the week.  Like finding that drat missing spot on my map.  I don't get anything for it, mind you, I just don't like not having a full set of yellow numbers.  Turns out, it was just past where we caught Alice on the first day we were here! Music: Battle - First Chimeric Lunar Sea  On top of that, being one point off from a new skill annoys the hell out of me.  So I go and grind out an extra level to get that taken care of.  A relaxing end to the week, after the clusterfuck it started with.  Music: School III  Much better.  Music: School IV    I am SO ready. I've got my two cipher keys and I know the real name of my opponent's Servant. All right, let's rock this round!The question now is, how many of these people are going to die tomorrow?   How about you? Have you found out the real name of that little girl's Servant yet? Do everything you can now, or you will regret it later.I really like the setup of the NPCs in this game. When you start out, the place is packed. But as we keep going, the place gets emptier and emptier as more people die trying to reach the Grail. ~ *Snicker*... Hey, listen. I came across my opponent in the Arena, pretended I was weak, gave a false real name, and ran away. I'm excited for tomorrow. *Snicker*... She's basically a walking, talking doll... Way creepy. Good luck, you'll need it.By Week 7, the only people left in the building will be Hakuno, our final opponent (who will almost certainly be Leo), the Servants, and the handful of NPCs that oversee everything. Everyone else will be long dead. ~ I don't get you. I don't want to talk to anyone. Especially before a fight. Pay at least a little attention to what's going on around you, huh? If you don't, you might unwittingly be setting your Servant up for a gruesome demise. Open the Status option in the terminal menu and then press the L button or R button. You can also view your Servant's skills by pressing ■.  If there is anything you need to do in the Arena, do it now or your termination awaits you.  Myself? I have the machinations in place to win— My victory is assured by nature. That's all there is. I stop off to get that new skill, but we'll have to wait a full five levels before we get the next. Considering Caster is already two levels above the recommended, we might end up going all of Week 4 without a new skill.   In a change of pace from her other skills, Mantra: Aphotic Cave gives Caster a much appreciated defensive option to help patch over her own paper thin durability.  As much as I regret it, I'd rather not have flowers offered in my memory. If you survive long enough to face him, he'd cut you in half, too. Good luck with that.~ Have you figured out the real name of your opponent's Servant yet? I know everything about my enemy now. My battle tomorrow should be a cakewalk.   And here you go, as promised! My beloved incense burner! ~ Behold the power of maturity! Um...never mind. Now, to have some of that Old Janx Spirit...Music: Down to Dawn  The incense burner adds a bit more color to our private room.  We also hit the requirements for another hidden chat!  Hmm... The feeling of cold, hard, cash; I can never get enough of it. Granted, it's only virtual money, but I'm still glad to have it! I know you don't care. And neither does the Moon Cell, so don't expect any acknowledgment of your solvency. Seriously, is the Moon Cell an investment banker? It's like we'll only mean something when we're rich! Well, enough of that! Master, it's time to go shopping! Crass consumerism for the win! The requirement for this one involves obtaining a total of 100K PPT over the course of the game.  Music: School IV  They seemed pretty dinky when they attacked me in the Arena. So, I'm psyching myself up for the Elimination battle by practicing archery here. Getting all of your preparation done early will let you focus on more important things.~ Hey! I finally got to taste the mana of the gods themselves! The super-spicy bean curd! The exquisite scent! The subtle play of flavors! The way the spices enhanced the bean curd! I-It made me weep with its perfection... I can now die with nary a regret! He isn't kidding, we can actually buy Mabo Tofu today! Strangely, you can only buy it today, it'll vanish once the day ends.  So I get a small stockpile going.  I also buy the Silver Earrings while I'm at it. I'm not going to use them, but I like having one of everything. ...so, what the odds of the foodie making it to next week, now that he happily tripped a death flag?  I will survive...for both of us. Alice is by the Arena entrance. Music: Stops  Sound: Heartbeats   ...I-Is something wrong? You look all scowly. Alice looks puzzled. I blurt out what's in my head. Are you, the mirror's—Music: Fear  The answer catches me by surprise. My heart clenches in my chest. She's not Alice. She's Alice, Servant of the girl named Alice.       This is disorienting. I'm not even sure which one I'm talking to. —Mirror images. The two of them are mirror images of each other. Reflections. Alice's dreams take shape in the mirror world. Story dreams, where her Servant is the protagonist. ...So that's it. Her Servant is the protagonist of her stories. No, a fanciful character turned warrior. The girl is grinning up at me, like none of this fazes her. Okay, to clear things up a bit, Alice isn't Alice in Wonderland, she's Alice's own perception of her fairy tale stories. Alice, being a slowly dying war orphan, naturally self-inserted into the fairy tales she read as a form of escapism, so Alice appears as an identical copy of her. Presumably, if someone else summoned Alice, her appearance would match their mental image of whatever stories they read.   Ooh, I can't wait! Alice waltzes off, a smile playing innocently on her face. —Can I defeat her? But if I don't win, I'll be the one to disappear. I glance at the Arena door expectantly.  Man, this week has been surreal.  Let's just finish the day real quick. Music: First Chimeric Lunar Sea - Second Floor  Now, I could just turn around and head home.  But I do have a new skill to play with. Music: Battle - First Chimeric Lunar Sea  Aphotic Cave is the priciest skill to date.   When going against Attack, Aphotic Cave is worse than a normal Guard, taking more damage and not firing off a counter after. While it can block a Break, that's still a waste of MP. Aphotic Cave, as the description states, is meant to be used on enemy Skills. It blocks more damage than a regular Guard when used on a Skill, and also refunds 50 MP to boot! If you use it to block a Noble Phantasm, the refund shoots up to a massive 100!  On the damage side, Caster is quickly reaching a point where she can reliably deal 300 damage a hit. After a few more levels, I'll finally start increasing her Magic.   All that's left is to face Alice. Music: School III  Let's send this dead person to the afterlife where they belong. You might not want to hear this, but that girl thinks that what we call reality is a bad dream. Next time: The Elimination Battle BisbyWorl fucked around with this message at 11:39 on Feb 13, 2023 |
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Nov 13, 2021 09:03
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In Grand Order, Alice's true form is a book for the record, although she prefers staying as Alice. (I've left their true name out obviously) I don't know if Alice ever comes up in GO, probably in one of Alice's interludes but without actually naming her.
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Nov 13, 2021 10:23
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Omobono posted:I don't know if Alice ever comes up in GO, probably in one of Alice's interludes but without actually naming her. Alice does often mention Alice in GO, but not by name. Alice is something of an unforgettable friend to her. It's a testament to how good friends they were that their form just sorta is the Alice form in GO. However, mentioning their true form is probably a bridge too far, given we're still not entirely sure what to define Alice as. The game hasn't come entirely clean about that yet.
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Nov 13, 2021 15:50
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Materant posted:Alice does often mention Alice in GO, but not by name. Alice is something of an unforgettable friend to her. It's a testament to how good friends they were that their form just sorta is the Alice form in GO. BisbyWorl posted:Okay, to clear things up a bit, Alice isn't Alice in Wonderland, she's Alice's own perception of her fairy tale stories. Alice, being a slowly dying war orphan, naturally self-inserted into the fairy tales she read as a form of escapism, so Alice appears as an identical copy of her. Presumably, if someone else summoned Alice, her appearance would match their mental image of whatever stories they read. I was referring to this part of the update. Gudako can see Alice as a book, but they prefer to stay in Alice form.
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Nov 13, 2021 16:23
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Omobono posted:I was referring to this part of the update. Gudako can see Alice as a book, but they prefer to stay in Alice form. This is related to one of her personal skills that she has at A+.
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Nov 13, 2021 17:47
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Update XXX - Walpurgis night - VS Caster Music: None  I turn toward the voice coming from behind me. He wears the clothes of a priest, which in the end only makes his snide tongue more jarring.  Come to the first floor when ready. You can do something trifling like stop by the commissary if needed. Apparently finished, he opens the door and lets himself out. In preparation for the Elimination Battle, I should go to the chapel and the commissary. Or, I could go to my personal room and sort out my information on the enemy Servant. And then, once that's in order, I'll go to where Kotomine is.  Another week, another ritualized deathmatch in the pursuit of a wish granting object inside a computer. You know, the usual. Music: Down to Dawn   It would be good to review all the things that have happened this week, one by one. First, there was the "friend" who turned out to be a monster. I thought it was...  a Berserker. Right. From the ferocious intensity that Alice's friend displayed, I was positive it was a Berserker. Next, Alice erected a Reality Marble in the Arena. It was a Reality Marble so large it blanketed half the Arena. It had the ability to...  Remove you from existence. That's right, Alice proclaimed that inside of it, people would forget their names- Then they'd forget they existed entirely. It was scary. However, if I was to believe that the monster was her Servant, then the Alices would be twin Masters. According to the rules established by the Holy Grail, there can be only one Master per Servant. So then, how could there be two Alices AND a summoned monster? The answer to that puzzle is... The first one has no unique response, which is a real missed opportunity. One of the Alices is the Servant. Touko Aozaki pointed out to me that Berserkers are incapable of using Reality Marbles. Then, while I was researching in the library, Alice herself said that the Jabberwock wasn't her Servant. Here's my thought— "It's all the same thing." The Jabberwock. The Reality Marble— They're part of the Noble Phantasm created by the other Alice.    Which makes sense if she's been dead, probably a long time. Alice is stuck in a dream, always trying to grant her own last wishes. Alice's Servant's identity is best described as the channel through which Alice's dreams manifest— That's right, Alice summoned a physical manifestation of nursery rhymes as her Servant! Ain't Fate grand?  Maxwell's Demon - Maiden's Empire: Queens Glass Game posted:"A story without end,  Transformation (A+) posted:"I will change, I have changed. Metamorphosis (A) posted:"This is the ability to merge one's own body with the body parts of others. The higher the ranking of this skill, the further away one becomes from being considered a true hero. But it do-do-doesn't matter doesn't matter that kind of stuff doesn't matter at all! This is the only entry in Rhyme's Info Matrix that has non-italicized text.  Character Background posted:"A nursery rhyme is a children's refrain. Video: Week 3 Elimination Battle Music: None  Alright, time to go kill a child for the second time. ...man this Grail War is hosed up.  Remember, the only way to leave the Coliseum is to win. If you are ready, I will open the gate. Enter the Coliseum The way to the Coliseum is now open, young Master. I wish you the best of luck and hope that you will return. Remember: It's kill or be killed.  Music: Duel - Prelude to Confrontation       Play hide and seek.  Yeah, Alice gets to be the mommy, and Alice gets to be the daddy. What about the lady? A bad guy? Uh-huh, a bad guy. A mean, mean person who's got evil plots.Rhyme's true nature recontextualizes her behavior during the entire week.  Uh-huh, that's what I think. The bad person is gonna get in our way and ruin everything.She's the one pushing Alice to act in ways that will kill the enemy Master, but she goes out of her way to make Alice think that she's just playing to keep her from catching on. No, I don't wanna have anything in the way. I don't wanna say bye to happiness. What do we do...? Alice had no say in joining the Holy Grail War. She died a lonely, miserable death and the SE.RA.PH wouldn't let her soul rest.  ...Wouldn't that hurt them? There's no honest malice in this, Nursery Rhyme is just keeping her charge safe in an environment that no child should ever wind up in. You're smart! Everything's okay since it's just pretend. And if it doesn't work the first time, then we can play hospital.~ Play tag. Alice wants to play hide and seek! Alice is the best ever at hiding! Even from the lady...? Yeah! Even from the lady. Yeah! We're really good at hiding from people. The lady wouldn't ever find us, even if the lady looked really, really hard. And then, we're gonna cut off her head when she is looking for us. ...Are we really? Uh-huh. Cuz anyone who's bad at games gets their head cuts off. That is the rule in Wonderland, 'member? But... We can't do that and hide at the same time. Right, cause if no one finds us, we'll be lonely. ...Uh-huh. We'd be really lonely! So, we'll just beat up the lady if she can't find us.Rhyme hasn't broken her smile for any of this, even as she talks about having us killed. She's probably panicking underneath, when you think about it. It was implied that Alice's prior two opponents got erased by the Nameless Forest, and Rhyme could spin them not showing up again as them not wanting to play with Alice anymore. Here, they'll have to kill us outright, and that can very easily break the facade she's trying to keep up for Alice's sake. ~ Play house. Alice wants to play tag! I'm gonna chase the lady!I haven't been mixed up my transcriptions, by the way, they've been blatantly ignoring what we have to say. Uh-huh. When somebody runs like a bunny, I wanna chase them down. It'd be sad if the lady got away. We need to run fast, fast so the lady won't ever get away. Alice loves running. Alice couldn't run for a long time. Alice will run and run...but can we catch the lady? We can! We can! And when we do, off with her head! Aren't you gonna be scared to cut off her head? Sometimes even little girls hafta be scary.Moral of the god drat week, right here. Then, we gotta make the lady really scared of us. Uh-huh. Let's make the lady so scared of us that she cries a pond.As much as she'd hate the comparison, I'm noticing some similarities between Rhyme and our Caster. Both got a Master that are completely unprepared for the Holy Grail War, and both keep their Master's spirits up with a constant smile. The problem is that while Caster makes no bones about how we'll have to kill to survive, Rhyme is intentionally keeping Alice in the dark, and that's just not sustainable in the long run. ~~  While everything here gets the same result. Please don't cut my head off. Yup. Alice is talking to Alice right now. That's right! Alice only talks to Alice. I thought you were the same as us. The exact same as us! I thought Alice wasn't going to be lonely anymore! If you don't like me, then I don't need you, lady! Alice is the only one Alice needs. She's the only Alice for Alice. You're not my Alice, lady. You're in the way now. If you get bored, you can talk to me instead.  Let's have a lot of fun! Don't run away again, 'kay? I don't want to play with you. Are you angry, lady? Is it cuz you have a tummyache?   You can join us today, lady. Fun, fun, fun! I'm super happy.~ ...We're in a war, Alice. War? Nuh-uh, Alice doesn't like that. We only like playing. It's so much fun to play with Alice. I'm super-duper happy. Alice loves to play with Alice. I'm super-duper happy. Lady, you're not our friend, but we'll play with you just for today. We'll all have fun together. Let's be happy together.~ I don't want to get hurt. Alice doesn't like getting hurt, either. Yes, Alice knows all about being hurt and lonely. Alice hates it so much! That's because it's been forever since Alice hurt all the time. You understand that, lady. Don't you? Because you are a lot like Alice.Full amnesia versus long term memory loss, but I get your point. ...how long has Alice been dead, anyways? See? So, even though you're not the only Alice for Alice, we can have fun together today, lady.~~   Music: Duel - Kill Or Be Killed  We're fighting at the giant ice castle, naturally.  The twins start circling us. Uh-huh, we haven't had so much fun in a long, long time. Alice is happy and says thank you too!   You forgot already? It goes like this:  "May dreams of dark embrace your heart Night's curtain does descend."          Aww, you still act like the heroine at your age, OL-D LA-DY~ Shh, you can't just say that, Alice! You have to keep that to yourself! Ahahaha... Okay! Time to absolutely obliterate you! The fight against Alice is annoying as hell, as it takes a lot of work for her to use Rhyme's Noble Phantasm. Namely, she'll only use it at the end of the eighth round. 8 rounds equals 42 actions, but with Caster's damage output, Rhyme can only survive around 22. This means I'll have to stall in order to see it.  So I start stalling.  Dragon Skillet is an offensive cast from Alice that has an added Stun effect vs Break.  While White Queen's Enigma is a buff skill that lowers our magic resistence if she lands a Break.  Keeping her alive for 8 rounds is going to take a lot of work.  And a whole lot of these.  Yup! Very fun! Let's have even more fun!   Plains of Winter has an added Stun against Attack.  We get our first refund from Aphotic Cave.  Two rounds in, and she's already taken a good chunk of damage.  Me not investing in Caster's Magic is paying off here. A Curse skill will deal far less damage than a normal attack, and I can follow up with Guard for a safe draw right after.  Only dealing half damage will give me a good bit more leeway.   Frenzied March Hare is Rhyme's last skill, and has an added Stun vs Guard. However, Aphotic Cave is a Skill, not a Guard, so it can be used without getting stunned. Between the two of them, Alice and Rhyme have a skill to stun all three basic attacks, just like our own Caster. Right down to the Fire -> Break, Ice -> Attack, Wind -> Guard animation design.    March of the Black Tea is Alice's other Code Cast, giving a small heal and making my life a little bit easier.  We're over halfway there.   Don't worry, Alice. Even if it gets dark, we'll be eternal.Two more.  Are you angry?One more.  And there, Rhyme's icon is lit.  You're right, Alice! Let's seal this girl in eternity!You might have noticed that there's no NP marker on the turn preview, even though the entire thing with a Level E Matrix is always showing you the enemy's NP.  There's a very good reason for that.  We're at the end of the round, but they still haven't used it.  That's because they get a special seventh action just for their NP!    The damage is low, since there's no way for you to mitigate it.  That's because Maiden's Empire fully heals Nursery Rhyme on use. And since the seventh action ignores all modifiers, there's no way to stun her out of it. If you don't kill her in eight rounds, she resets the fight in her favor, end of discussion. Now, you might think that's complete and utter bullshit, but there's a catch to this.  Nursery Rhyme is a tale, a story, a book.  You can reread a book as much as you want.  But a book, by its very nature, can never change.  Paul Atreides always becomes Muad'dib and fails to prevent a jihad in his name.  Snape always kills Dumbledore.  Alice always falls down the rabbit hole and finds herself in Wonderland.  And Nursery Rhyme is the only boss in the game with a 100% fixed attack list.  The game itself hints at this, if we go back to her Info Matrix page:  Maxwell's Demon - Maiden's Empire: Queens Glass Game posted:"A story without end,  But every book has to be put away eventually.   And the barrier goes up. Music: Goodbye  Ohh... It's over already. ...Why? Servant Alice firmly grasps Master Alice's hand. They cling to each other, their voices plaintive.   That was all we needed. Forever and ever, just like this. That was all we needed. Why does it gotta end? Why did they take our happiness away? Why... Alice gives a small smile. I don't 'member very well, but I am probably already dead. My body isn't in that hospital anymore. Alice is like a box with nothing inside of it. There wasn't ever anything there since the beginning. Yep, even back in the hospital, there was no Alice left inside Alice. No one noticed Alice. I was alone. It hurt. No one treated Alice like a person. It was the same after Alice came to Wonderland, too. Alice was so, so alone. That's why I know that my home here and my Alice will all go far away soon...  I'm not about to break a young girl's heart as she's actively (double?) dying I'm not a monster.  Yes. Uh-huh. You always paid attention to Alice, lady. Thank you, Alice. For being my friend. For always, always being with me. And thank you, lady... For seeing Alice. For playing with Alice.  Farewell, Alice. With a sound like the crumbling of sugar, Alice glitters for a moment. And then, she's gone. Even if I'm summoned in the next War, I won't be the Alice I am now. I am always someone's fanciful creation.And then she showed up in Fate/Grand Order. As Alice. Mobile games, gotta love 'em. The real Alice is a mystery. But, being Alice's Servant made me happy... Right before she crumbles away, a single drop falls from her eye.  And she fades away.  All that remains is a ribbon. Music: Stops  But even that doesn't last. Farewell, Alice. ...The licorice girl chases after her sweet Master.  Next time: The aftermath BisbyWorl fucked around with this message at 11:47 on Feb 13, 2023 |
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Nov 15, 2021 10:54
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Update XXX.I - Witch's mark Another week,  Another thrown match just to see if anything interesting happens.  One hit.  Two. That's actually lower damage than Robin, now that I think about it.  Three. Although Rhyme might have bottom tier Agility.  Four.  And dead.   Music: Game Over  Every death cutscene has started with this so far.  Nope, we can't. You can only play with the same person once—that's the rules! Time for the next Master.  Yup! Alice belongs to Alice. Together forever. The twins run off.  But Alice turns back for a moment.  Only to keep on running, conveniently keeping her from seeing us actually die.  But, she turns away quickly, bored. Their innocent laughter echoes as the two girls disappear. It's the end. After that, all fades into nothing— 
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Nov 15, 2021 10:54
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Information Matrix - Caster (True Name Revealed) Maxwell's Demon - Maiden's Empire: Queens Glass Game posted:"A story without end, Jabberwock posted:"Names to be uncovered and places still unknown. Nameless Forest posted:"Ackroyd and Celluloid, Transformation (A+) posted:"I will change, I have changed. Metamorphosis (A) posted:"This is the ability to merge one's own body with the body parts of others. The higher the ranking of this skill, the further away one becomes from being considered a true hero. But it do-do-doesn't matter doesn't matter that kind of stuff doesn't matter at all! Territory Creation (A) posted:"The smallest door, the maddest tea party,  Character Background posted:"A nursery rhyme is a children's refrain. Nursery Rhyme posted:Nursery Rhyme is not a hero in the traditional sense. Rather, it is a general term for any picture book that has managed to manifest itself into a corporeal existence. Battle lines Battle start I'll let you play with us just this once!~~ Command select  Haha, this is fun, right Alice? Yup! Very fun! Let's have even more fun! (High health)~ Please don't disappear right away. (High health)~ Well then, bye bye! (High health)~ Aww, the sun's going away... Don't worry, Alice. Even if it gets dark, we'll be eternal. (Low health)~ [Mister/Miss], are you angry? Are you angry? (Low health)~ [Mister/Miss], do you hate me? Do you hate me? (Low health)~ Don't say such mean things to us! (Low health)~ I don't like pain! (Low health)~ It's nearly time for the tea party, Alice! You're right, Alice! Let's seal this [boy/girl] in eternity! (NP ready)~ Now, welcome to Alice's Tea Party! ahahAHAHAHA!! (NP survived)~~ Round start I'll chop it off! (Commands confirmed)~~ Normal attacks Well? (Attack)~ That hurts... (Guard)~ I did it! (Counter)~ Disappear! (Break)~ This is fun, Alice! (Extra Turn)~ Do you hate being hurt? (Extra Attack)~ Now we can keep playing! (Healed)~~ Hit reactions Ow! (Damaged)~ How scary. I... hate adults! (Enemy Extra Attack)~ Aha, they got us. Why are you getting in our way!? (Consecutive enemy Extra Attack)~ Will we disappear...? (Defeated)~~ Skills Alice is fine as long as Alice is here. (White Queen's Enigma)~ I think some kids would be happier turned into pigs. (Frenzied March Hare)~ I want to chase you like you're a rabbit! (Plains of Winter)~ Cooked nice and delicious! (Dragon Skillet)~ Forever... forever... happiness! (March of the Black Tea)~ Through rainbow fields in a gator's gait, king without a checker's mate, lost in the mirror's maze on a sunny day, blow the rabbit faraway! (Maiden's Empire)
BisbyWorl fucked around with this message at 08:52 on Feb 26, 2023 |
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Nov 15, 2021 10:54
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Nursery Rhyme does actually show up in another form in FGO: during the Heian-kyo chapter she's summoned as Minamoto no Raikou's Servant and takes the form of a japanese child (or Raikou as a child, not sure) because Raikou in Fate has some hosed up issues about motherhood. She even looks like she could be Kaguya so she still fits the child stories theme.
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Nov 15, 2021 11:20
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BisbyWorl posted:
Chant with me. Chuuni fox! Chuuni fox! Chuuni fox!
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Nov 15, 2021 13:21
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BisbyWorl posted:
There's a plausible explanation for that, but it involves spoilers.
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Nov 15, 2021 16:24
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TheDavies posted:There's a plausible explanation for that, but it involves spoilers. Is it a CCC spoiler? Because Grand Order is straight up ignoring* the rule that Servants should not remember past summons (so she remembers Alice) and Rhyme can shapeshift. *They give lip service but it's de facto ignored.
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Nov 15, 2021 17:09
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