Green Flame Rising (Exalted vs Dresden Files)
- Thread starter DragonParadox
- Start date
- Crossover Fantasy
- Pronouns
- She/Her
So, if this is "the Forsaken Sister," what do you want to bet Gard and her sisters will want to know that she's on the side opposing their current boss? We don't even have to reveal anything we got with our Crown. We just have to message Gard with something like "hey, investigating the Nazis who shot up that exchange with your boss. One of the people working with them is a red-headed woman who pings to my senses as the same type of magical creature you are, drives around a fancy European car with a license plate registered to a "Katrina Hoff." Do you know her?"
And then when she starts fishing for more information, which she almost undoubtedly will, we just tell her we put a magical tracker in her car's GPS, and boom, we now have backup from one of her sisters against her, or possibly more depending on how much of a priority a rogue Valkyrie is for Odin and Company.
Whether a baby Infernal can take on a Valkyrie is an unsolved question, whether a baby Infernal and another Valkyrie can take on that Valkyrie is a no-brainer.
So, reasons why to not do this? Besides that backup will take time to arrive, so we need to survive the initial engagement, of course. But I have zero problems tattling on the rogue Nazi Valkyrie to her sisters and letting them solve the problem.
And then when she starts fishing for more information, which she almost undoubtedly will, we just tell her we put a magical tracker in her car's GPS, and boom, we now have backup from one of her sisters against her, or possibly more depending on how much of a priority a rogue Valkyrie is for Odin and Company.
Whether a baby Infernal can take on a Valkyrie is an unsolved question, whether a baby Infernal and another Valkyrie can take on that Valkyrie is a no-brainer.
So, reasons why to not do this? Besides that backup will take time to arrive, so we need to survive the initial engagement, of course. But I have zero problems tattling on the rogue Nazi Valkyrie to her sisters and letting them solve the problem.
- Location
- Germany
I think it's extremly unlikely that we can avoid all fights except those we feel comfortable we are going to win.
It's still a game and a story, only getting easy victories does nothing but damage the tension and investment.
It is unlikely (to me) that any backup we call could arrive faster than half an hour or so (unless Ways make it possible and the beings we call are sufficiently motivated). The fight is unlikely to last longer than several minutes.
I have something like that in my plan (using what we know of her to make it so she can't allow us to leave, to trigger CCC). Also, we could just tell them more directly who she is, we know her true name, and there's little reason to hide that knowledge from at least quasi-allied people.
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
Good plan for what to do next here, I would definitely go for some backup as opposed to attempting to solo a Valkyrie who we have no idea of the full capabilities of.
Biggest issue will definitely be surviving until then, of course.
- Pronouns
- She/Her
I meant it as an out-of-combat thing for a way to effectively neutralize her without having to fight her 1v1. Sometimes all you have to do to mess up someone's day is to give information about them to their enemies.
And we don't have a way to explain where we got her true name without bringing up the Crown, we don't trust them enough to tell them about the Crown, and the other Valkyries probably know her true name anyway, and that's literally the only information we have that we can't explain as having gotten some other way. It's giving away very sensitive information about ourselves to Marcone and his people without getting any major advantages in return. That's not worth it to me.
Why do we need to explain where we got her name from? "I know it, end of discussion".
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Because they're going to want to know how we know, and I feel like being paranoid about this, and again, we don't really gain anything from revealing it, because her sisters probably already know her true name. It feels to me like a lot of risk, and I can't conceive of any possible reward. You can do it your way if you want, but I'm not voting for it.
They may want a lot of thing. We are doing them a favor, by locating their lost asset / sister / enemy / whatever. They don't get to ask how we know. Or, rather, they get to ask, but we are not obligated to answer.
OK, looks like are going to try to bluff Katrina.
- Pronouns
- She/Her
On an unrelated note, I was re-reading the description for our Shintai, and… it's literally a Dark Magical Girl Transformation Sequence. The whole thing, from the description of our armor growing out of our body to the flash of light that starts the transformation and dies down right as the transformation finishes. It's a Magical Girl Transformation Sequence, and I literally just noticed.
Like, "Dark Magical Girl, Molly Carpenter, Glorious Apocalypse Princess! Champion of the Fivefold Courts of Fate (or whatever we go with)! In the name of the Sun, I will punish you."
I just had to share that.
Like, "Dark Magical Girl, Molly Carpenter, Glorious Apocalypse Princess! Champion of the Fivefold Courts of Fate (or whatever we go with)! In the name of the Sun, I will punish you."
I just had to share that.
- Location
- Germany
Okay, this was our chance to take out a possibly major player at a point where she is very unlikely to be prepared for us.
Instead we let her finish her business, which will propably include Matthews either rejoining the club, or dying.
I regret sleeping at night, because the idea that we should avoid confrontation to "prepare" just because Dresden usually does so is simply not fitting to our build.
We are not a Wizard to gather information on a specific foe and and face them with several tricks specifically prepared for them.
We are a two-trick gal, who can sword good and die hard. Later we will have more options, but we will never buy Charms just for one specific foe.
Applying these virtues works best in a quick and strong attack, before giving the enemy (who does work by Dresden-rules in terms of preparing) the time to get information on us and have some tricks tailored to our abilities next time we meet.
Surprise and violence are our allies and we told them to get lost.
Instead we let her finish her business, which will propably include Matthews either rejoining the club, or dying.
I regret sleeping at night, because the idea that we should avoid confrontation to "prepare" just because Dresden usually does so is simply not fitting to our build.
We are not a Wizard to gather information on a specific foe and and face them with several tricks specifically prepared for them.
We are a two-trick gal, who can sword good and die hard. Later we will have more options, but we will never buy Charms just for one specific foe.
Applying these virtues works best in a quick and strong attack, before giving the enemy (who does work by Dresden-rules in terms of preparing) the time to get information on us and have some tricks tailored to our abilities next time we meet.
Surprise and violence are our allies and we told them to get lost.
Yzarc
The Spark of Madness
In all fairness, while I did choose attack now, we specked utility instead of combat and have very few, read none, survive combat, charms and only a handful of attack charms.
If we fight, we have to get by raw stats and a few utility charms. So I can see where they are coming from.
Alas, as this would have been good place to pop the shintai.
If we fight, we have to get by raw stats and a few utility charms. So I can see where they are coming from.
Alas, as this would have been good place to pop the shintai.
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- Location
- Germany
Yes, there's a reason why I consistently voted for combat-charms, even though each vote went to utility. This situation would be a lot safer to handle if we had some agressive options.
At least some more soak and a ranged offensive Charm would be nice.
But we still have a sword that will hurt literally anything and 18+Stunt Melee Dice to use it.
That is something that takes a very powerful and paranoid mage to survive for a round.
In this case the demi-goddess with a warrior's portfolio can propably match us, but avoiding fights we aren't sure we'll win is just boring, so I'd do it anyway whenever the choice comes up.
Besides, Shintai makes for a nice emergency-option and the possessed car is at least one unknown trick we could have applied.
Winning Vote
Arc 2 Post 23: Whisper on the Wind
Whisper on the Wind
22st of July 2006 A.D.
"Look and touch..." you tap your finger on your chin, the nail clinking on the ice cold metal of one of your piercings. "Those words are closer than one would think to some people at least, aren't they?" She had burst out of the house for some reason so you might as well admit fault, even if it is the fault of snooping. "Interesting people."
Lost 1 Essence
The glare you get in return would be enough to curdle milk on its own. Your heart gets just a little faster, phantom flames in the chill place where your sword is drawn from. There's a part of you and it's not a small one that wants to fight, not in public in broad daylight obviously, but a little taunting goes a long way you've found.
"I have found the difference easy enough to distinguish, one is of the eye which only the craven or the timid would avert and the other is of the hand which only the foolish raise lightly," the woman speaks with the same blooding intensity, like the storm in her eyes. "You do not seem craven, are you a fool?"
"One often knows the limits of their courage, but not even the wisest knows the limits of their wisdom until by deed they reach them," for once you quote Usum word for word. Dealing with corrupt immortals feels very much like his wheelhouse. It is only when you see her storm-grey eyes narrow a little that you realize the banter is half a threat as well. The limits after all could be hers as much as they are yours.
Lost 1 Essence
"I did not mean to interrupt your business," you add in a slightly softer tone. This one is even true, you had not after all intend to get caught and have her come out to confront you.
As you speak a wind passes through the grass, rustling and furtive, the leaves on the trees do not move and you cannot feel it against your skin, yet in its whisper you can hear all too well an urgent message. It is Matthews voice in the wind and yet it is not, as though he is borrowing the voice of some other ethereal presence "Get out while you still can girl, go to a place where you have allies behind you and wards around you. This isn't a fight you can win and she will hunt you..."
A breath echoes, a tremble in a voice far off. "She's asking questions about Gorfel, she will ask about you as well soon and I'll have to tell her. They have Cindy."
Kidnapping a little girl, well you guess that settles the 'is Katrina evil' question definitively, you think, carefully keeping the flash of anger off your face. Though would she just be doing it for information? It seems to you that just the threat would be enough to get the old man to talk when he would have no reason to protect you or Harry. They want him to do something and that something cannot just be 'join up' not if they are the least clever over the long run a compelled servant is an enemy in the ranks, they need him for something soon.
"And I did not mean to interrupt your business of the day," Katrina says, seemingly deaf to the voice of the spirit, confirming that it had been meant for you alone. The implication is obvious, 'best be on with it.'
She does not want to get bogged down in an irrelevant conflict. Only it is more relevant than she knows and Matthews is about to tell her so, not that you can blame the man.
What do you do next?
[] Leave as instructed, if she plans to confront you on some lonely stretch of road you will know precisely where she is and have control of her car
[] Try to persuade Matthews to turn the tables in Katrina, you can find Cindy afterwards with the Crown (Charisma+Empath Excelency still in effect)
[] Write in
OOC: Even without stunts things worked out pretty well so far.
[X] Leave as instructed, if she plans to confront you on some lonely stretch of road you will know precisely where she is and have control of her car
- Location
- Germany
Perfect, now fighting would not only serve the pleasure of itself or to rid the world of a force of evil and us of a foe.
Now fighting can also save a life.
Please take the chance now.
Waiting even a bit means she will know more about us than now, the odds will only get worse.
Now fighting can also save a life.
Please take the chance now.
Waiting even a bit means she will know more about us than now, the odds will only get worse.
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- Location
- Germany
[X] Try to persuade Matthews to turn the tables in Katrina, you can find Cindy afterwards with the Crown (Charisma+Empath Excelency still in effect)
-[X] Regardless what Matthews decides to do, strike now while you still have a bit of surprise on your side. If there's a chance, get the demon in her car to distract her by ramming during the fight.
-[X] Regardless what Matthews decides to do, strike now while you still have a bit of surprise on your side. If there's a chance, get the demon in her car to distract her by ramming during the fight.
Just to be clear do you want to flare up the hell sword out here in public if Matthews does not go for it or try to follow her inside somehow?
- Location
- Germany
Out here, where we can use the car.
Inside only makes sense if we have Matthews support.
