[∞] Hard Mode: Begin with 3 Points and 1 Seal. [∞] Strategos [7 Points, 1 Seal] (Devil-Tiger with Sidereal Advisor, Even Further Beyond)
[∞] Humiliated [+3 Points]
[∞] On the Run [+3 Points]
[∞] Impulse [+5 Points] (Touch)
[∞] Nemesis [+5 Points]
[∞] 5: The Chariot. [+0 Seals]
[∞] 8: Mutilated. [+1 Seal] 4: Procession. [+2 Seals]
[∞] 7: Perchance. [+1 Seal]
[∞] 1: Null Pointer. (Hero's Journey) [+1 Seal] [∞] Reflection [2 Seals] (Bearer of the Runic Armor) [∞] Party [1 Seal] (Reflection (Bearer of the Kalymitous Blade)) [∞] Kalymitous Runes [6 Points] [∞] Feather of Favor [2 Seals] (Turbocharged Kalymitous Runes) [∞] Linear [8 Points] III (Brahmapralaya)
[∞] Epic [+2 Points, Requires Hard or Dalliance Mode]
-[∞] Blessing of Fibonacci
The Bearer of the Runic Armor
[∞] Hard Mode: Begin with 3 Points and 1 Seal [∞] The Optimizer [+2 Points]
[∞] Paramount [+2 Points, Special]
[∞] Humiliated [+3 Points]
[∞] On the Run [+3 Points]
[∞] Impulse [+5 Points] (Touch) [∞] Hero's Journey [+7 Points]
[∞] 2: Void Dragon. [+1 Seal] 4: Procession. [+2 Seals]
[∞] 10: Debt. [+1 Seal]
[∞] 8: Mutilated. [+1 Seal]
[∞] 3: Jackpot. You receive $1,000,000 and may make no further rolls in the Casino. [+2 Seals] [∞] Sword of the Evendark [2 Points] [∞] Kalymitous Runes [6 Points] [∞] The Shining Armor [9 Points] [∞] Feather of Favor [2 Seals] (Turbocharged Runic Armor, Turbocharged Sword of the Evendark) [∞] Linear [8 Points] III (Ceaseless Unyielding) [∞] Exponential [4 Seals] III (Save Slots)
[∞] Epic [+2 Points, Requires Hard or Dalliance Mode]
-[∞] Blessing of the Lone Wolf (Kalymitous Runes + Shining Armor = Runic Armor)
The Bearer of the Kalymitous Blade
[∞] Hard Mode: Begin with 3 Points and 1 Seal. [∞] The Paladin [5 Points]
[∞] Humiliated [+3 Points]
[∞] On the Run [+3 Points]
[∞] Impulse [+5 Points] (Touch)
[∞] Wicked [+5 Points]
[∞] Hero's Journey [+7 Points]
[∞] 7: Perchance. [+1 Seal] Procession. [+2 Seals]
[∞] 9: Arcane. [+1 Seal]
[∞] 6: Forgotten. [+1 Seal] [∞] Kalymitous Runes [6 Points] [∞] The Dreadsword [7 Points] [∞] Feather of Favor [2 Seals] (Turbocharged Kalymitous Blade) [∞] Linear [8 Points] III (Sword Saint) [∞] Exponential [4 Seals] III (Realm of Evening)
[∞] Epic [+2 Points, Requires Hard or Dalliance Mode]
-[∞] Blessing of the Lone Wolf (Kalymitous Runes + The Dreadsword = Kalymitous Blade)
New and revised Atinashasyeshvara build!
Notable Differences:
Atina's role is now Strategos (Devil-Tiger) rather than Hyperion (Dr. Apocalypse).
Kalymitous Crown has been replaced with Kalymitous Blade (Runes + Dreadsword).
Linear III (Age of Apocalypse) has been replaced with Linear III (Brahmapralaya), which is mostly just a name change since Atina is no longer Dr. Apocalypse.
The Armor-Bearer's role is now The Optimizer rather than The Paladin, purely to save on points.
The Armor-Bearer no longer has Perilous, because it was dumb for the Save Slots-user to have Perilous.
The Armor-Bearer now has Paramount instead of Wicked, and has a Turbo-Sword of the Evendark in addition to the Runic Armor.
The Crown-Bearer is now the Blade-Bearer.
The Blade-Bearer's role is now The Paladin rather than Hyperion (Galahad), purely to save on points.
The Blade-Bearer now has Wicked instead of Paramount.
The Blade-Bearer's Hero's Journey is no longer mitigated, again just to have enough points to pay for everything.
Plus, Atina himself has access to Unity of the Closed Fist (or an equivalent sorcery), so in a pinch he can fuse with the Armor-Bearer and Sword-Bearer, and maybe also with his circle of dragonbloods or his secondary souls.
Huh! Well, it will work fine then, though you'd probably still not be getting all of the nuclear energy out during normal combustion?
-e2
Rolling for Atina's Nemesis...
She's a fellow Strategos, which is inconvenient.
Motherfucker, of course she gets Null Pointer and Jackpot. So she's got 6 Seals to work with, or 5 after paying for Strategos.
-e3
Okay, so here's what I've got for the Nemesis's full build:
Normal Mode
Strategos (Gardens of Enoch)
Drawbacks: Mosswort, Paramount, On The Run, Impulse (Taste)
Bindings: Null Pointer (Suborned (Qilin)), Jackpot
Allies: Grand Master (Solomon), Qilin (Hidden Dragon {2})
Panoply: Sword of the Evendark, Feather of Favor (Comprehensive, Turbocharged Static)
Self: Static
Quest: The Turning
Well, I might as well go beyond just thinking about Ineptitude and post a potential build. Here's hoping the Casino has mercy.
Alright, looks like I get Debt, Perchance, and Arcane, which I'm swapping out for Procession. Certainly much better than I feared, and it gives me enough Seals for a build I was hoping to make.
[ ] 4: Procession. [+2 Seals]
[ ] 7: Perchance. [+1 Seal]
[ ] 10: Debt. [+1 Seal] +1 Seal for First Roll Bonus
[ ] Sword of the Evendark [2 Points]
[ ] Stone Rings [7 Points]
[ ] Feather of Favor [2 Seals]
-[ ] Turbocharge Gamer, Free Turbocharge Static
[ ] Static [2 Points]
[ ] Exponential III [4 Seals]
-[ ] The Gamer
--[ ] Stat System: Demon of Dreams CYOA
[ ] Overlord [+0 Points, Special]
[ ] Epic [+2 Points, Requires Hard or Dalliance Mode]
-[ ] Blessing of the Lone Wolf
--[ ] Combine Stone Rings and Feather of Favor
Going Hard Mode so that I can get Epic and the corresponding boost to the Feather of Favor.
I originally wasn't quite sure who to insert into, waffling between Koji, Kazuma, or trying to scrounge up someone else with a name starting with "K". Ugh, having a hard time picking who to insert into. Gonna put some spoilers below where I wrote outs some thoughts about characters:
Credit to iibgar123 or contextualizing Deltarune as an isekai, that was very creative and I can honestly see it. You're going in, possessing someone's body to go on fantasy adventures, and I believe so far the story is working on the premise that the Soul you play as is from another world; needing a connection to be forged and a host body to incarnate into, and there were some dialogue options that seem to suggest you know things about characters you'd only be able to know by being aware of Undertale, so it probably counts as an isekai? If it doesn't, I can choose someone else, but Kris genuinely brings a lot to the table.
Judging by what we see in game, it appears they have at least one save slot of their own, though it is liable to being overwritten if someone with more Determination comes along, and they also appear capable of wielding Determination to create Dark Worlds. Granted, both of those things come with the caveat of "may only work due to their universe's unique metaphysics, but eh, hopefully the unbounded gamer system I'm paying for helps with ensuring powers work everywhere. And if you gain the Player's/Red Soul's capabilities as well upon entry, that's a guaranteed three save slots, plus the various other capabilities it'd bring.
Actually, I suppose that raise the question of how being inserted actually works. Judging from the Kirito and Koji examples, powers/capabilities/features that someone has pre-isekai are gained upon insertion, with an insert retaining Kirito's sword skill or Koji's talent for optimization. And judging by Katarina, having a post-insertion name starting with a K is enough to qualify, and I would assume both the original body's and original insert's memories both get wiped as Katarina would have both and it's specified you don't have your insert-target's episodic memories. So judging by the above, you could get the abilities of Kris and the Red Soul without having to deal with either of them contesting your control, which'd be nice.
Granted, I'd be running a bit of a risk by hopping into a world whose story isn't completed yet, who knows how wild future chapters will get. But eh, turbo-static should probably serve to keep me safe, hopefully.
I'm a bit leery about isekai-ing into Koji, but free points are free points. On the emotional side, well, Koji's already made friends with Miala and met Kirito at the point of insertion, so it kinda feels bad to take over Koji's body. Hopefully I'd be able to grow fast enough that creating a backup of Koji's memories right before I got inserted and then recreating a body/soul/etc. for him becomes feasible soon.
On the more practical side of my hang-ups, there's Argent, Cardinal, and Aincrad itself. Argent's been keeping an eye on Koji because of the whole SupMan thing, and some random schmuck taking over Koji's body and thus getting that connection to the Horror King probably doesn't seem like a good thing, from Argent's perspective. Gonna have to rely on Stone Rings enforced indifference and/or Turbo-Static defenses for that one. Maybe if I'm lucky and/or the Stone Ring's apathy-inducement is high enough, I'll even be able to keep the Silvered Blade!
On the subject of Cardinal, if I remember right it's supposed to institute a mini-Apocryphal on you if/when you swap to the Pillar System, and that meshing with Perchance really wouldn't be a good time. Granted, that's limited to what the Cardinal System can actually throw at you, so Turbo-Static should allow me to survive it, and I suppose it'd make for good EXP grinding. Actually, I suppose that raises the question if I'd even get the Pillar System from inserting into Koji. I'd have to have SupMan grow enough to get offered it, but a turbo-boosted Gamer System could very well include a Gamer's Mind strong enough to remove SupMan. Huh.
And on the topic of Aincrad, I think it was noted as being fairly difficult to leave the universe? I think that came up one time when we were talking about what to do about the Horror King, if I recall correctly. Given one of the main points of my build is to acquire more powers via the Stone Rings effects, a delay getting out of Aincrad could be a distinct setback. Plus, well, there's motivation to get out of your starting place as soon as possible, given your Nemesis knows your build and thus which universe you start in.
Honestly, I think Kazuma is a pretty great insert target. Given he dies and gets sent to a new world, there's not anyone who's going to miss the old him after you take over, which is nice because you won't have to feel guilty about it.
Depending on when exactly you get inserted, you can either try to pick out a cheat weapon/skill/ability that synergizes with your build from among those Aqua offers, or get Aqua herself and have a (nerfed) Goddess giving you buffs, heals, and resurrections. Assuming you possess adequate social-fu to befriend her and impart some common sense or wisdom, she could legit be a good ally to have, and you wouldn't even need to pay for it!
Plus, Kazuma's luck is supposed to be fairly absurd, which should be a good bonus for any build you make.
Eh, in the interest of getting on with this, I'm just going to go with Kazuma for now. Might change later, I dunno. Stone Rings means I've gotta look back through some options.
Edit: I've found someone else that fits within Subject K's restrictions, gonna make a new post to talk about that. New post that goes into detail on that here:
For drawbacks, I'm taking Nemesis and Paramount, as they're two of three needed pieces to be able to access Epic, and I don't want to have to deal with Wicked or Hero's Journey. Gonna have to roll for Nemesis later, here's hoping I survive.
Honestly, I got pretty lucky with my Bindings, was able to roll enough I found agreeable to afford the two Seal purchases I wanted. Depending on how the 'currency equivalent to 2500 hours of work for one of your capabilities' is calculated, it could be decently easy to pay off? If the currency total is set when you first insert, then given my weak start it should be possible to scale fairly quickly and pay off the debt pretty fast with a vastly increased money-making ability. Of course, if the debt is dynamically changing based on your current level of strength, that makes it much more difficult to pay off.
Let's see, it's 20% interest per year, compounded daily, so that means my debt total should be multiplied by about 1.0005 per day. At the starting point of 2500 hours, seems like paying 2.75 hours worth of currency each day is enough to make the debt shrink. Of course, that'd quickly become unsustainable as I grew stronger: if you exceed the average level of your starting world too much, there flat out might not be enough currency to pay you in the world. Thus it becomes necessary to quickly and proactively pay down the debt which will likely involve both working many more hours per day than the minimum needed and doing crime to gather wealth as quickly as possible. Eh, if all else fails I'll just have to work as a bouncer, both pays down the debt and gives EXP.
Perchance should be surviveable? The force behind it is specified as being fairly fair, so even if it is making things more interesting it shouldn't be beyond what I can handle. And looking at the Binding, it seems there's a built in incentive to help any Cursebearers I meet, given more Cursebearers active means more support for the ones who took Apocryphal means the Curse is vanquished quicker.
On Procession, it seems we're all in agreement: just don't die. Easier said than done, certainly, but just don't plan for failure.
Sword of the Evendark is one part of my 'don't die' strategy. Primarily bought for the scaling stealth, anything that makes it more difficult for threats to find you is great. Plus, it helps give you an advantage over your Nemesis: to kill you, they have to find you. To find you, they have to invest enough in anti-stealth to beat your stealth. With the Sword, your stealth scales for free with your powerlevel, while a Nemesis would presumably have to invest time into raising their anti-stealth. Thus, you get a bit of time-advantage over them. The combat advantage might end up being useful too.
Stone Rings are actually a genuinely great item. Sure, the powers are great, and the scaling defense buff is nice, but the anti-smite power is amazing! Really helps calm worries about higher beings poking you, plus it opens up more isekai options. Like, I think there were at least a couple options I found that had a main character with a "K" name, but also had the character be personal isekaied by a god, and so weren't particularly viable for insertion because, well, said god probably wouldn't be happy when they see you've stolen the spot of whoever they were originally watching. With this, that isn't a problem, so more choices are viable for insertion.
And then there's Feather of Favor, the reason why I'm playing on Hard mode. Turbocharging my Gamer system for maximum progression, and using the free turbocharge on static for a massive boost in defense at the cost of a slight bit of progression. Heck, might actually be faster in the long run, given I wouldn't have to focus on training my defenses nearly as much.
Static is bought specifically as a target for the free Feather turbocharge. It's noted as a pretty cost-efficient purchase, presumably balanced out by the downside, and that makes it a good target for a Feather turboboost, given that the Feather both boosts effects and reduces downsides. using a boost on Static lets me take advantage of both those properties, where an option with only upsides would only get the advantage of the Feather's boost in power.
Went with Gamer for the unbounded potential. I just want the option to keep growing, y'know? I remember liking the stat system for the Demon of Dreams CYOA, was just organized nicely. Here it is:
Taking Overlord as a Quest because I want that positive Perchance. With Stone Ring's enforced indifference, the Overlord probably won't swat me like a bug before I'm ready to take them on. Given I'm currently going with Kazuma, I suppose it'd be on brand for the Overlord to be a Demon Lord of some sort.
With Nemesis, Paramount, and Procession, I've met the conditions to unlock the Epic Quest, and I'm going Lone Wolf for the Panoply Fusion. Specifically, I'm fusing the Feather of Favor and Stone Rings into the Rings of Favor. Grey rings of polished stone flecked with subtly glimmer pockets of orange light. Tried to think of some additional effects for the Rings of Favor:
The powers granted by the First Ring are treated as if under the comprehensive boost of the Feather of Favor; gaining a 0.2 ISH boost and progressing at 50% speed outside the world in which they were gained.
Powers turbocharged by the Feather may progress in a manner akin to those granted by the First Ring if they could not do so already, or gain an equivalent boost in progression if they are capable of such.
Should the wielder find themselves in contact with beings of vastly greater power or capability, they will be granted more consideration or leeway than they otherwise would be.
Essentially, first point makes powers stronger and lets me train them off world, second gives progression to Static and a bit more progression to Gamer, and third makes it so if the apathy/disinterest field fails then I'm less likely to get smote. Third point was inspired by how we could take the Feather of favor as Justice instead of a boost to options, and thoughts on how that'd potentially combo with the Stone Rings, even if i didn't choose to use the Feather as such.
Gonna roll for nemesis now. Rolled a 6, so looks like my Nemesis' baseline build is as such: Medium: Paladin of Pure Silver* + Linear II + Exponential II. Given I've taken Paramount, my Nemesis is much more willing to take drawbacks and can roll in the Casino twice, so I'll have to try and expand on that build.
...And looks like they hit Debt and Jackpot. Good for them. Will try to add to their build. Given how good those bindings are for them, might need to rework the build more significantly, we'll see.
Think I've got something that retains the spirit of the original build: Paladin, Humiliation, Impulse (Taste), Linear III, Exponential III (Logos), Feather of Favor (Turbocharge Logos), Overlord.
...I think I just die. No, but seriously, they're an uber thrice-great with Paladin Koi's statline as an initial start to their advancement engine, plus a 28 BP advancement that can be put towards one of their thrice great domains or Koji's Int to boost thrice great progression speed. Naturally, they have the Horror King as their Overlord, who they will summarily ignore in favor of trying to wreck me.
I've got a couple silver linings here. The first is that their higher initial power should make paying off their debt harder, as they're already beyond most of their surroundings. The second is that Aincrad is fairly difficult to leave, I feel like I remember it being dismissed as a viable option for what to do about the Horror King. So while a boosted thrice great can probably do it, hopefully it'll take my Nemesis a bit.
Here's a build I whipped together real quick on discord.
Man & Mountain
Hard Mode
Hyperion (Reed Richards)
Drawbacks: Paramount, Humiliated, On The Run, Impulse (Touch), Nemesis, Wicked
Bindings (rolled on random.org): The Chariot, Mutilated, Void Dragon Procession, Null Pointer (Mosswort), Perchance
Allies: (none)
Panoply: Stone Rings, Shining Armor, Feather of Favor (Turbocharged Mountain Plate, Turbocharged Static)
Self: Static, Exponential III (Save Slots)
Quest: Epic (Blessing of the Lone Wolf (Rings + Armor = Mountain Plate))
Rolling for Nemesis build...She's the Hyperion+Solomon build.
Rolling for Bindings...Jackpot off the bat (ignore the Void Dragon roll). So she has 2 bonus seals.
Man & Mountain Nemesis
Normal Mode
Hyperion (Simon the Digger)
Drawbacks: Paramount, On The Run
Bindings: Jackpot
Allies: Grand Master (Solomon)
Panoply: Shroud of the Briarthorn, Feather of Favor (Comprehensive, Turbocharged Static)
Self: Static
Quest: The Overlord
She could take more Drawbacks, but I think with her long-term gameplan she'd prefer to just grind rather than suffering under Wickedness or giving Man & Mountain a free ally.
*If you take no Allies, you may combine any two Panoply items in a manner similar to the Advurent Blades and Sword of the Evendark, with correspondingly magnified effects.
My build Atinashasyeshvara has two turbocharged Lone Wolf items, the Runic Armor (Kalymitous Runes + Shining Armor) and the Kalymitous Blade (Kalymitous Runes + the Dreadsword). There's also the Mountain Plate from my Man & Mountain build which you probably have already seen.
Well, I might as well go beyond just thinking about Ineptitude and post a potential build. Here's hoping the Casino has mercy.
Alright, looks like I get Debt, Perchance, and Arcane, which I'm swapping out for Procession. Certainly much better than I feared, and it gives me enough Seals for a build I was hoping to make.
[ ] 4: Procession. [+2 Seals]
[ ] 7: Perchance. [+1 Seal]
[ ] 10: Debt. [+1 Seal] +1 Seal for First Roll Bonus
[ ] Sword of the Evendark [2 Points]
[ ] Stone Rings [7 Points]
[ ] Feather of Favor [2 Seals]
-[ ] Turbocharge Gamer, Free Turbocharge Static
[ ] Static [2 Points]
[ ] Exponential III [4 Seals]
-[ ] The Gamer
--[ ] Stat System: Demon of Dreams CYOA
[ ] Overlord [+0 Points, Special]
[ ] Epic [+2 Points, Requires Hard or Dalliance Mode]
-[ ] Blessing of the Lone Wolf
--[ ] Combine Stone Rings and Feather of Favor
Going Hard Mode so that I can get Epic and the corresponding boost to the Feather of Favor.
I originally wasn't quite sure who to insert into, waffling between Koji, Kazuma, or trying to scrounge up someone else with a name starting with "K". Ugh, having a hard time picking who to insert into. Gonna put some spoilers below where I wrote outs some thoughts about characters:
Credit to iibgar123 or contextualizing Deltarune as an isekai, that was very creative and I can honestly see it. You're going in, possessing someone's body to go on fantasy adventures, and I believe so far the story is working on the premise that the Soul you play as is from another world; needing a connection to be forged and a host body to incarnate into, and there were some dialogue options that seem to suggest you know things about characters you'd only be able to know by being aware of Undertale, so it probably counts as an isekai? If it doesn't, I can choose someone else, but Kris genuinely brings a lot to the table.
Judging by what we see in game, it appears they have at least one save slot of their own, though it is liable to being overwritten if someone with more Determination comes along, and they also appear capable of wielding Determination to create Dark Worlds. Granted, both of those things come with the caveat of "may only work due to their universe's unique metaphysics, but eh, hopefully the unbounded gamer system I'm paying for helps with ensuring powers work everywhere. And if you gain the Player's/Red Soul's capabilities as well upon entry, that's a guaranteed three save slots, plus the various other capabilities it'd bring.
Actually, I suppose that raise the question of how being inserted actually works. Judging from the Kirito and Koji examples, powers/capabilities/features that someone has pre-isekai are gained upon insertion, with an insert retaining Kirito's sword skill or Koji's talent for optimization. And judging by Katarina, having a post-insertion name starting with a K is enough to qualify, and I would assume both the original body's and original insert's memories both get wiped as Katarina would have both and it's specified you don't have your insert-target's episodic memories. So judging by the above, you could get the abilities of Kris and the Red Soul without having to deal with either of them contesting your control, which'd be nice.
Granted, I'd be running a bit of a risk by hopping into a world whose story isn't completed yet, who knows how wild future chapters will get. But eh, turbo-static should probably serve to keep me safe, hopefully.
I'm a bit leery about isekai-ing into Koji, but free points are free points. On the emotional side, well, Koji's already made friends with Miala and met Kirito at the point of insertion, so it kinda feels bad to take over Koji's body. Hopefully I'd be able to grow fast enough that creating a backup of Koji's memories right before I got inserted and then recreating a body/soul/etc. for him becomes feasible soon.
On the more practical side of my hang-ups, there's Argent, Cardinal, and Aincrad itself. Argent's been keeping an eye on Koji because of the whole SupMan thing, and some random schmuck taking over Koji's body and thus getting that connection to the Horror King probably doesn't seem like a good thing, from Argent's perspective. Gonna have to rely on Stone Rings enforced indifference and/or Turbo-Static defenses for that one. Maybe if I'm lucky and/or the Stone Ring's apathy-inducement is high enough, I'll even be able to keep the Silvered Blade!
On the subject of Cardinal, if I remember right it's supposed to institute a mini-Apocryphal on you if/when you swap to the Pillar System, and that meshing with Perchance really wouldn't be a good time. Granted, that's limited to what the Cardinal System can actually throw at you, so Turbo-Static should allow me to survive it, and I suppose it'd make for good EXP grinding. Actually, I suppose that raises the question if I'd even get the Pillar System from inserting into Koji. I'd have to have SupMan grow enough to get offered it, but a turbo-boosted Gamer System could very well include a Gamer's Mind strong enough to remove SupMan. Huh.
And on the topic of Aincrad, I think it was noted as being fairly difficult to leave the universe? I think that came up one time when we were talking about what to do about the Horror King, if I recall correctly. Given one of the main points of my build is to acquire more powers via the Stone Rings effects, a delay getting out of Aincrad could be a distinct setback. Plus, well, there's motivation to get out of your starting place as soon as possible, given your Nemesis knows your build and thus which universe you start in.
Honestly, I think Kazuma is a pretty great insert target. Given he dies and gets sent to a new world, there's not anyone who's going to miss the old him after you take over, which is nice because you won't have to feel guilty about it.
Depending on when exactly you get inserted, you can either try to pick out a cheat weapon/skill/ability that synergizes with your build from among those Aqua offers, or get Aqua herself and have a (nerfed) Goddess giving you buffs, heals, and resurrections. Assuming you possess adequate social-fu to befriend her and impart some common sense or wisdom, she could legit be a good ally to have, and you wouldn't even need to pay for it!
Plus, Kazuma's luck is supposed to be fairly absurd, which should be a good bonus for any build you make.
Eh, in the interest of getting on with this, I'm just going to go with Kazuma for now. Might change later, I dunno. Stone Rings means I've gotta look back through some options.
For drawbacks, I'm taking Nemesis and Paramount, as they're two of three needed pieces to be able to access Epic, and I don't want to have to deal with Wicked or Hero's Journey. Gonna have to roll for Nemesis later, here's hoping I survive.
Honestly, I got pretty lucky with my Bindings, was able to roll enough I found agreeable to afford the two Seal purchases I wanted. Depending on how the 'currency equivalent to 2500 hours of work for one of your capabilities' is calculated, it could be decently easy to pay off? If the currency total is set when you first insert, then given my weak start it should be possible to scale fairly quickly and pay off the debt pretty fast with a vastly increased money-making ability. Of course, if the debt is dynamically changing based on your current level of strength, that makes it much more difficult to pay off.
Let's see, it's 20% interest per year, compounded daily, so that means my debt total should be multiplied by about 1.0005 per day. At the starting point of 2500 hours, seems like paying 2.75 hours worth of currency each day is enough to make the debt shrink. Of course, that'd quickly become unsustainable as I grew stronger: if you exceed the average level of your starting world too much, there flat out might not be enough currency to pay you in the world. Thus it becomes necessary to quickly and proactively pay down the debt which will likely involve both working many more hours per day than the minimum needed and doing crime to gather wealth as quickly as possible. Eh, if all else fails I'll just have to work as a bouncer, both pays down the debt and gives EXP.
Perchance should be surviveable? The force behind it is specified as being fairly fair, so even if it is making things more interesting it shouldn't be beyond what I can handle. And looking at the Binding, it seems there's a built in incentive to help any Cursebearers I meet, given more Cursebearers active means more support for the ones who took Apocryphal means the Curse is vanquished quicker.
On Procession, it seems we're all in agreement: just don't die. Easier said than done, certainly, but just don't plan for failure.
Sword of the Evendark is one part of my 'don't die' strategy. Primarily bought for the scaling stealth, anything that makes it more difficult for threats to find you is great. Plus, it helps give you an advantage over your Nemesis: to kill you, they have to find you. To find you, they have to invest enough in anti-stealth to beat your stealth. With the Sword, your stealth scales for free with your powerlevel, while a Nemesis would presumably have to invest time into raising their anti-stealth. Thus, you get a bit of time-advantage over them. The combat advantage might end up being useful too.
Stone Rings are actually a genuinely great item. Sure, the powers are great, and the scaling defense buff is nice, but the anti-smite power is amazing! Really helps calm worries about higher beings poking you, plus it opens up more isekai options. Like, I think there were at least a couple options I found that had a main character with a "K" name, but also had the character be personal isekaied by a god, and so weren't particularly viable for insertion because, well, said god probably wouldn't be happy when they see you've stolen the spot of whoever they were originally watching. With this, that isn't a problem, so more choices are viable for insertion.
And then there's Feather of Favor, the reason why I'm playing on Hard mode. Turbocharging my Gamer system for maximum progression, and using the free turbocharge on static for a massive boost in defense at the cost of a slight bit of progression. Heck, might actually be faster in the long run, given I wouldn't have to focus on training my defenses nearly as much.
Static is bought specifically as a target for the free Feather turbocharge. It's noted as a pretty cost-efficient purchase, presumably balanced out by the downside, and that makes it a good target for a Feather turboboost, given that the Feather both boosts effects and reduces downsides. using a boost on Static lets me take advantage of both those properties, where an option with only upsides would only get the advantage of the Feather's boost in power.
Went with Gamer for the unbounded potential. I just want the option to keep growing, y'know? I remember liking the stat system for the Demon of Dreams CYOA, was just organized nicely. Here it is:
Taking Overlord as a Quest because I want that positive Perchance. With Stone Ring's enforced indifference, the Overlord probably won't swat me like a bug before I'm ready to take them on. Given I'm currently going with Kazuma, I suppose it'd be on brand for the Overlord to be a Demon Lord of some sort.
With Nemesis, Paramount, and Procession, I've met the conditions to unlock the Epic Quest, and I'm going Lone Wolf for the Panoply Fusion. Specifically, I'm fusing the Feather of Favor and Stone Rings into the Rings of Favor. Grey rings of polished stone flecked with subtly glimmer pockets of orange light. Tried to think of some additional effects for the Rings of Favor:
The powers granted by the First Ring are treated as if under the comprehensive boost of the Feather of Favor; gaining a 0.2 ISH boost and progressing at 50% speed outside the world in which they were gained.
Powers turbocharged by the Feather may progress in a manner akin to those granted by the First Ring if they could not do so already, or gain an equivalent boost in progression if they are capable of such.
Should the wielder find themselves in contact with beings of vastly greater power or capability, they will be granted more consideration or leeway than they otherwise would be.
Essentially, first point makes powers stronger and lets me train them off world, second gives progression to Static and a bit more progression to Gamer, and third makes it so if the apathy/disinterest field fails then I'm less likely to get smote. Third point was inspired by how we could take the Feather of favor as Justice instead of a boost to options, and thoughts on how that'd potentially combo with the Stone Rings, even if i didn't choose to use the Feather as such.
Gonna roll for nemesis now. Rolled a 6, so looks like my Nemesis' baseline build is as such: Medium: Paladin of Pure Silver* + Linear II + Exponential II. Given I've taken Paramount, my Nemesis is much more willing to take drawbacks and can roll in the Casino twice, so I'll have to try and expand on that build.
...And looks like they hit Debt and Jackpot. Good for them. Will try to add to their build. Given how good those bindings are for them, might need to rework the build more significantly, we'll see.
Think I've got something that retains the spirit of the original build: Paladin, Humiliation, Impulse (Taste), Linear III, Exponential III (Logos), Feather of Favor (Turbocharge Logos), Overlord.
...I think I just die. No, but seriously, they're an uber thrice-great with Paladin Koi's statline as an initial start to their advancement engine, plus a 28 BP advancement that can be put towards one of their thrice great domains or Koji's Int to boost thrice great progression speed. Naturally, they have the Horror King as their Overlord, who they will summarily ignore in favor of trying to wreck me.
I've got a couple silver linings here. The first is that their higher initial power should make paying off their debt harder, as they're already beyond most of their surroundings. The second is that Aincrad is fairly difficult to leave, I feel like I remember it being dismissed as a viable option for what to do about the Horror King. So while a boosted thrice great can probably do it, hopefully it'll take my Nemesis a bit.
Your Nemesis doesn't know your build (or they would build to counter it specifically), only your starting verse!
Even baseline uncapped Gamer makes you immune to SupMan's mental influence, as its Gamer's Mind is also uncapped! At least for the low ISH contexts we're talking about here.
Panoply: Feather of Favour (Turbocharge Exponential II and Static), Crown of the Ancestor (Enchantment), Sword of the Evendark
Self: Exponential II (Functional set uncapped), Static
Quest: Accept diminishment
I'm assuming that turbocharging Exponential II should give me a substantial starting power boost to my attributes and proficiency in the set, as well as further improving my growth rate and ultimate potential and granting the set versatility equivalent to D&D magic.
Similarly, turbocharged Static: reduces the degree my progression is slowed by 90 percent, grants even more durability as well as reducing more abstract forms of harm, and finally gives me a single save slot similar to Exponential III.
The only immediate problem is the Paramount demon lord, but the Crown should be enough to handle them.
For Immortal Feast:
Ambrosia: Welkin Arts, Unleash
Nectar: Blue Welkin, Pale Welkin, Gold Welkin, Dark Welkin, Unleash x4.
The Welkins are the coolest and most enjoyable to use of all the magics here, and it's not like I'll ever not be using all of them so I won't get rusty. A 1.2 ISH boost is probably worth more than a few extra lives, and I should have the speed to actually make use of it in the time I have.
I was trying to make a build that could keep Save Slots relevant long term (deep into the Grim Procession), but I didn't find a way. Instead it centers around Lone Wolf's combination ability.
The Dread Hand of Justice
Hard Mode: +3 P, +1 S
Role: The Optimizer +2 P Drawback Shoppe - Impulse (Scent) +4 P, Paramount +[Null] P, Wicked +5 P
Binding Casino - Procession. +3 S, The Chariot. +0 S, Debt. +1 S, Mutilated. +1 S
Panoply: -Sword of the Evendark -2 P -Turbo-charged
-Advurent Blades 4 P - Dreadsword -1 P - Turbo-charged The Shining Armor -9 P Feather of Favor -2 S -
Self: Exponential -4 S III: Three Save Slots
Quests: Overlord +0 P, Epic +2 P, Blessing of the Lone Wolf (Dreadsword + Shining Armor = Dread Justice)
Credit: 16 P, 6 S
Debit: 16 P, 6 S
Net: 00 P, 2 S
The Engine of this build is the attribute draining ability of the Advurent Blades. Through stacking multiple Turbo-charges on the Dreadsword the goal is to expand this remit to essence, the sum total valence of a being, which is then fed back into the wielder and their Panoply. This is then combined with the Armor, ideally allowing this effect to be applied for most harm caused by Dread Justice (expansion of the poison effect of Evendark).
The approach for growth is simple, damage the most powerful acceptable target you can find (made simpler by Wicked), drain their essence to empower yourself and your armor, repeat. Save Slots give you multiple attempts, allowing for extremely rapid growth in the early game. Save Slots will inevitably become unreliable as threats grow greater, but Dread Justice should be able to empower itself indefinitely by draining the ISH of ever more terrible foes and realms. I suspect that eventually the Grim Procession becomes so unreasonably unfair that even this can't keep up, but given that the Forebear, and Haeliel haven't gotten rid of it yet that isn't a reasonable goal to aspire to.
The main drawback of a Lone Wolf build, lack of companions and long term relationships, is compensated for by the Armor's AI and it's Love blessing. The armors AI and defences should allow you to retain a functional mental state for quite a while. The initial danger of the Overlord is compensated for by growing very fast using high risk strategies which Save Slots make possible. Wicked scales to your Purchases and you don't have companions so that's unchanged, you could switch Wicked out for Nemesis but this build is intended to survive in the Grim Procession so that wasn't an option. That just leaves the Procession itself... try to hold on long enough that someone saves you, I guess.
I have trouble conceptualizing just how much potential and growth speed the different options provide, but this build should be solidly reliable. Non-Paramount Nemesis should be mostly manageable, especially if you can get in a hit or two early. How much more it can manage I don't know. Presumably this isn't a build you can expect to escape the Procession with, but I'm not sure any build can boast of that.
Nectar: Blue Welkin, Pale Welkin, Gold Welkin, Dark Welkin, Unleash x4.
The Welkins are the coolest and most enjoyable to use of all the magics here, and it's not like I'll ever not be using all of them so I won't get rusty. A 1.2 ISH boost is probably worth more than a few extra lives, and I should have the speed to actually make use of it in the time I have.
You are correct that this build is one of the ones that really can utilize higher levels of Unleash! This build doesn't have a very good growth-rate, since you only have Unleash's extremely slow increase in potential and the extremely difficult task of discovering or creating higher heavens than the All-Encompassing Night, but in return for that you have absolutely achieved immense immediate power, including a diverse array of abilities and extreme (if brief) elevation.
Anyway, here's another Ineptitude build that I made, that focuses on getting the most out of Feather of Favor's comprehensive boost. It was also originally built to comply with Accept Diminishment except for taking Hyperion, so it also doesn't take any big drawbacks.
The All-Gifted Child
Normal Mode
Hyperion (Nameless Yong)
Drawbacks: Mosswort, Suborned (Grand Master), Paramount, Humiliated, On The Run, Impulse (Taste)
Bindings: Mutilated, Forgotten, Perchance
Allies: Grand Master (Chiron)
Panoply: Sword of the Evendark, Arcadian Scroll, Shroud of the Briarthorn, Feather of Favor (Comprehensive, Turbocharged Static)
Self: Static, Exponential II (Uncapped Functional Set)
Quest: The Overlord
Honestly, most of what's cool about this build is combining Eternal with Thrice-Great. Eternal lets you spam Magnum Opus artifacts, lets you sacrifice 100000% of your blood for Blood Diagrams (which Comprehensive Shroud lets you regenerate in milliseconds), and probably lets you pursue All-Paths without needing an artifact to let you store power endlessly. Having (more than) 9x canon Nameless's cultivation talent is also a nice bonus though! And having the Functional Set handle the standard JRPG function means I can focus all of my Diagrams on more esoteric stuff and helping reinforce my scaling.
Roll 2: Void Dragon is unpleasant, but not unworkable.
The Magician's Nephew:
Hard Mode
Insertion: Subject "K": Digory Kirke, from Book 1 of the Chronicles of Narnia
Drawbacks: Humiliation, Impulse (Taste)
Bindings: Void Dragon
9 points, 3 Seals
Stone Rings, Meal Ticket 2
Feather, Exponential 1
I'm bending the rules about whether a surname qualifies as a given name. Anyway, onwards and upwards!
Digory is a regular English schoolboy living in a world where witchcraft is real enough to construct rings for interdimensional travel. He has a friend, Polly, who accompanied him first to the Wood between the Worlds, and then to the apocalyptic wasteland of Charn. Over Polly's objections, Digory rang a bell and woke Jadis the Witch who then chased them into the inchoate Narnia. The Wood between the Worlds had countless pools, an entire cosmology unlocked by the innovations of Digory's Uncle and the interdimensional rings. I intend to visit all of them.
The strategy: secure immediate safety by deferring any kind of threat above street-level for 120 years with Meal Ticket 1, and then guarantee survival for up to 500 years (total) with Meal Ticket 2. In the mean time, spending one year per pool confers a "high-tier power" of the native world, which can be improved upon by spending additional time in that world. From the Feather, I will take the Justice Remittance, and receive the power of unbounded progression, growth without limit or surcease. With Exponential 1, my rate of Progression is tripled.
The Void Dragon roll makes Earth essentially uninhabitable to me, but the Stone Rings' native power of alchemical tinkering should allow me to craft magic-adjacent solutions for nearly any problem. Combined with a year of study in the magitech wasteland of Charn (without waking Jadis) I am confident that I will be able to devise accessibility workarounds for future adventures.
This build has tripled Progression with a 500 year guarantee of survival paired with an incentive mechanism that grants "high-tier powers" just for long-term exploration. The costs are extremely minor: "slapstick gags", inability to taste, and confusion by mundane technology are an extremely minor price to pay!
Rihaku alluded to Nameless maybe not qualifying for Hyperion, so here are two more builds inspired by this basic premise.
Invader Devil
Normal Mode
Strategos (Devil-Tiger with Lunar Mate, Even Further Beyond)
Drawbacks: Mosswort, Suborned (Grand Master), Paramount, Humiliated, On The Run, Impulse (Taste)
Bindings: Mutilated, Forgotten, Perchance
Allies: Grand Master (Chiron)
Panoply: Sword of the Evendark, Arcadian Scroll, Shroud of the Briarthorn, Feather of Favor (Comprehensive, Turbocharged Exponential II)
Self: Static, Exponential II (Elevated Exaltation)
Quest: The Overlord
Favored Paladin
Normal Mode
The Paladin
Drawbacks: Mosswort, Paramount, Humiliated, On The Run, Impulse (Taste)
Bindings: Mutilated
Allies: (none)
Panoply: Sword of the Evendark, Arcadian Scroll, Shroud of the Briarthorn, Feather of Favor (Comprehensive, Turbocharged Exponential II)
Self: Static, Exponential II (Solar Exaltation)
Quest: Accept Diminishment
You dine amidst sordid and sundry immortals now, like a hungry spark dancing on the thermals of an inferno. Do not tarry and do not linger, lest you tumble into the flames and be consumed.
As dinners go this leaves much to be desired! For instance, I prefer the line between visitor and victual to be clearer. The specifics are left to the reader's imagination, but the introduction insinuates that what's going on is horrible, some Lovecraftian bacchanalia where worlds and souls are consumed as appetizers by things with all-consonant names.
There aren't any drawback options, because this isn't a negotiation. The player is something acted on, not an agent. The empowerment consists of table scraps, an incidental ember cast from the bonfire of the Feast proper. Better to have that than nothing at all. Better to know, than persist in ignorance until it's Earth's turn on the chopping block. For that reason a debt is owed.
Great Maker
Second Sign (Describe) -2A & 2N
Forged In Fire -1A, Mother-Maker -2N
Diachronic Alchemy -1A, Chronicle of Kairos -1N, Chronicle of Aion -3N
Sympathetic Strings -1A, Perfect -0N, Major -1N, Minor -1N
Safety in multiplicity. Surrounded by allies, listening to the clank of hammers and basking in the heat of the forge, one could almost forget. Describe denies the Maker this luxury, stripping away excuses for ignorance. Time dilation accelerates mastery of the Second Sign, which in turn allows for deeper study of alchemical formulae and observing the outside world. Perfect acts a proxy to acquire reagents that can't be locally sourced and investigates potentially-apocalyptic oddities, in addition to being a phylactery. If you want something done right...
Minor's a constant presence and smith's assistant, joined by an increasing number of automata. Major's called upon for breakthroughs or taxing transmutations. Ultimately, the Great Maker's goal is the creation of an aligned intelligence housed in a magnum opus that can freely calculate epichronic formulae. A series of such workings might insulate the forge-realm from the catastrophes that loom large in Describe's sight, or whatever fate led to the Maker's predecessor being forgotten. Then comes Earth, if there's anything left to preserve.
Yellowstone
Forged In Fire -1A, Unquenchable -2N
Diachronic Alchemy -1A, Chronicle of Kairos -1N
Unleash -3A & 6N
Safety in strength. Unleash and Unquenchable accumulate power over time. Therefore, maximize the amount of time spent charging. Disdaining a human guise and the heights of alchemy, Yellowstone broods in a volcano lair until it's time to erupt with unimaginable power like the build's namesake. Much has been sacrificed to attain the mere possibility of momentary relevance, though temporal manipulation lengthens bursts of virtuosity and shortens the ensuing diminishment.
Unlocking Steelstrength is prioritized so that work can begin on a panoply. Forged at the height of Yellowstone's power, each piece will be a treasure pantheons might war over. The final dram of Nectar's reserved as a precaution rather than spent on Unleash. It's unclear how survivable recoil of -2.1 ISH would be, even if it only lasts 86.4 ns. Too far into the negatives and Yellowstone might be blown apart by a passing breeze if Unleash is spent on bodily enhancement. Enormous reserves of metabolic heat will be required to survive recoil as-is.
You've hit the nail on the head when it comes to the sort of vibe I was aiming for with the introductory text! And two very nice FIF builds. Great Maker definitely has a smoother ride, and has a faster initial take-off, but if Yellowstone manages to balance on the knife's edge and survives long enough, Unleash-backed growth extends to ultra-high power-levels much more easily than Describe does, which slows down considerably once you achieve mastery.
You've hit the nail on the head when it comes to the sort of vibe I was aiming for with the introductory text! And two very nice FIF builds. Great Maker definitely has a smoother ride, and has a faster initial take-off, but if Yellowstone manages to balance on the knife's edge and survives long enough, Unleash-backed growth extends to ultra-high power-levels much more easily than Describe does, which slows down considerably once you achieve mastery.
Yeah, they embody different reactions to the Feast's revelation. The Maker goes, "Welp, life's genre turned out to be cosmic rather than existential horror. Better bunker up." Yellowstone is more the 'murder the gods and topple their thrones' sort, but has few illusions about the feasibility of the task.
Roll 2: Void Dragon is unpleasant, but not unworkable.
The Magician's Nephew:
Hard Mode
Insertion: Subject "K": Digory Kirke, from Book 1 of the Chronicles of Narnia
Drawbacks: Humiliation, Impulse (Taste)
Bindings: Void Dragon
9 points, 3 Seals
Stone Rings, Meal Ticket 2
Feather, Exponential 1
I'm bending the rules about whether a surname qualifies as a given name. Anyway, onwards and upwards!
Digory is a regular English schoolboy living in a world where witchcraft is real enough to construct rings for interdimensional travel. He has a friend, Polly, who accompanied him first to the Wood between the Worlds, and then to the apocalyptic wasteland of Charn. Over Polly's objections, Digory rang a bell and woke Jadis the Witch who then chased them into the inchoate Narnia. The Wood between the Worlds had countless pools, an entire cosmology unlocked by the innovations of Digory's Uncle and the interdimensional rings. I intend to visit all of them.
The strategy: secure immediate safety by deferring any kind of threat above street-level for 120 years with Meal Ticket 1, and then guarantee survival for up to 500 years (total) with Meal Ticket 2. In the mean time, spending one year per pool confers a "high-tier power" of the native world, which can be improved upon by spending additional time in that world. From the Feather, I will take the Justice Remittance, and receive the power of unbounded progression, growth without limit or surcease. With Exponential 1, my rate of Progression is tripled.
The Void Dragon roll makes Earth essentially uninhabitable to me, but the Stone Rings' native power of alchemical tinkering should allow me to craft magic-adjacent solutions for nearly any problem. Combined with a year of study in the magitech wasteland of Charn (without waking Jadis) I am confident that I will be able to devise accessibility workarounds for future adventures.
This build has tripled Progression with a 500 year guarantee of survival paired with an incentive mechanism that grants "high-tier powers" just for long-term exploration. The costs are extremely minor: "slapstick gags", inability to taste, and confusion by mundane technology are an extremely minor price to pay!
It was pointed out that I didn't take a Quest. What I would actually do myself is drop Exponential to pay for the Default quest. But what I'm going to write up here is a stab at the 'Epic' quest because why not. Void Dragon constrains the Shining Armor, which is a real drag. So here is the build:
The Magician's Nephew:
Hard Mode -> Epic Quest
Insertion: Subject "K": Digory Kirke, from Book 1 of the Chronicles of Narnia
Drawbacks: Humiliation, Impulse (Taste), Nemesis, Wicked
Bindings: Void Dragon, Procession
Quest: Epic
26 points, 5 Seals
Arcadian Scroll, Shroud of the Briarthorn, Dreadsword, Feather of Favor, Meal Ticket, Stone Rings, Exponential 4
Blessing of the Phoenix
Wicked + exploring a vast cosmology of loosely related worlds means that I'm already on the Procession, even before my first death. I've added the Arcadian Scroll for safe-passage around the more eldritch threats, while Shroud + Dreadsword make combat into another viable Progression track. Unfortunately, this pretty much abandons the fun gameplay loop of going on holiday for a year in each new world. Instead it's more like I'm an assistant Cosmic Janitor, trying to survive a year under the radar in each world. Rings here are going to take a hard backseat to the usual Hunger/Emperor Red style of stabbing things to steal their power. The measures required to meet an Epic quest really put constraints on what kind of builds feel viable :\
Blessing of the Phoenix was taken because it made the math easy on Seals, and because I'd like the chance to undo my decision to take a build with Wicked.
The strategy: secure immediate safety by deferring any kind of threat above street-level for 120 years with Meal Ticket 1, and then guarantee survival for up to 500 years (total) with Meal Ticket 2. In the mean time, spending one year per pool confers a "high-tier power" of the native world, which can be improved upon by spending additional time in that world.
I think this works really well, it's a very comfy build. Is there are reason you didn't want to pick Turning? I don't think Aslan or his dad would mind much and getting into the land beyond if you die shouldn't be unreasonably difficult.
Lord of the Forges
Welkin Arts (Blue Welkin, Pale Welkin)
Crystal Conduit (Adamantite)
Forged In Fire (Steelstrength)
Sympathetic Strings (Perfect, Major, Minor)
"I am obsessed with Rings; my kind, we've always crafted such baubles, and commanded reality to do our bidding with their power. "
A short personal build for Fib's CYOA, these are what I'd pick were I actually given the options presented. There's a noticeable synergy, here: Crystal Conduit to create resources that more eagerly lend themselves to reality-shaping artifice, and Major to further transmute and cow them into a pure and exalted form, to draw from them an essence unlike anything else; and then, all that remains is my talent, raw and unbridled; passionate and great, to craft a Magnum Opus; a crown, composed of six dark orichalcum tuning forks acting in resonance with my own adamant horn, to draw ever-more upon the magical energies of the newfound reality.
As with Orm's build, the Minor summon acts as the eternal assistant, bringing resources, ferrying items. My Perfect can either be an avatar and envoy within the outer world, whilst I continue to adventure in the forge-realm and construct my armies of automata. The Welkin Arts have noticeable synergy: control over the spirits of air, flight, and enhanced senses lend themselves very well to both enhancing my control over temperatures, so as to craft better steel, and to exploring caves, to find better crafting resources. Streelstrength, over time, accumulates into even greater personal might and strength; amplified by the Pale Welkin's control over my own form.
And then I'll craft some Rings of Power and give them out to people I like. Not one Sauron, but two! Middle-Earth better prepare itself, because now I've got magic and I ain't afraid to use it. How atrociously forebodingly smacktastic!
I think this works really well, it's a very comfy build. Is there are reason you didn't want to pick Turning? I don't think Aslan or his dad would mind much and getting into the land beyond if you die shouldn't be unreasonably difficult.
My primary concern with Turning was that 50 hours per month in Charn might have driven me to wake up Jadis / provoke the local authorities in those preliminary worlds.
However, in light of the mistake with Feather of Favor, I will use the turbocharge option on the Rings for faster access to local abilities. Tweaking the nose of the locals isn't really that big of a problem if I can dip out in a few weeks/months Turning, then, might start as a low-level advocacy campaign to improve the lives of people in the worlds I visit. As the Meal Ticket wears off, the scope of my quest could change to addressing systemic issues in any given locale. I especially like that I get to keep Exponential so that the turbocharged Ring abilities can be trained at 3x speed.
One possible failure mode is if the requirement broadens to reforming the entirety of Narnia, and its reflections/afterlives/post-Rapture copies as well. Aslan's Country is not a democracy!
Thanks for bringing up Turning as an alternative to the Default quest!
Quartet: Nia Teppelin (-2 Points)
-A Party: Lord Genome, Yoko Littner [-1 Seal]
Panoply:
Stone Rings (-7 Points, Turbocharge)
Feather of Favor [-2 Seals]
Self:
Exponential III: The Gamer [-4 Seals]
-Attribute System: Hunger's System
The idea is simple enough. Use the Stone Rings to train off Spiral Power's downside, the Spiral Nemesis, then make peace with the Anti-Spiral and lead the universe into a shining era of halcyon splendor. My Nemesis can chip in too, if she ever gets over the chip in her shoulder! A Simple Transaction: Overwhelming Power is Friendship!
The Turbocharged Stone Rings provide a significant measure of both personal safety and anonymity, hopefully slowing or stalling any progress down the Procession. I don't really intend to ever leave my origin multiverse if I can help it, and a friendly Anti-Sprial means we're pretty much top dog in our ontology. Uncapped Gamer + Uncapped Spiral Power is one hell of a drug.
The Elder Ring:
Oh, Elder Ring... one can scarcely perceive it!
As per the Stone Rings, but:
Outer Face
*Apply the effects of Legendary (+1 ISH in raw power, ----------Mental Stability) to the power one gains from inhabiting a universe.
*The Mental Stability penalty only applies when actively using the power and can be trained off like any other drawback.
*While further increasing the raw power or finesse of existing capabilities is no easier, training to reduce the drawbacks or costs of any power or technique is considerably faster: one to two orders of magnitude depending on severity, with harsher drawbacks being quickly mitigated into a tolerable state.
*Sleeping, relaxing, and participating in recreational activities may now count as high-quality training for the wielder's purposes; this may be applied up to eight hours a day towards any pursuit he prefers, so long as he lives in a way congruent with his own values and meaning.
Obverse Face
*As a mortal human, the wielder's physical, mental, and spiritual resilience is upgraded to equal that of his entire world, drastically improving his capacity to handle and resolve injuries, mental instability, and spiritual corrosion. If he was already tougher than an ordinary human, his durability improves correspondingly further. This effect scales up perfectly without limit.
*The wielder gains the benefits of the Defining Advancement, Stranglethorn, which further multiplies the durability granted above.
*Should the wielder somehow come to the direct attention of beings who the Stone Rings would manifest apathy within, they are, while remaining generally non-interventionist, considerably more likely to respect him, negotiate with him as an equal, and/or treat him as an inevitable aspect of the universe that cannot and should not be eroded, destroyed, or fundamentally altered.
While I throw together my build over on the Immersion side of the CYOA, I guess I can drop another onto the pile over here as well.
Funny story: I didn't choose the Blessing, I rolled for it. The dice made the plan this time.
Meiotic Indemnity
[Ude] Hard Mode (+3p/+1s) [Ude] The Optimizer (+2p)
[Ude] Perilous (+1p); Paramount (+2p); Humiliation (+3p); On The Run (+3p); Nemesis (+5p); Wicked (+5p) [Ude] Signing Bonus (+1s); 3. Jackpot (+2s)
[Ude] Quartet (-2p) – Ichiko; Party (-1s) – Anna, Takeshi [Ude] Stone Rings (-5p) [Ude] Static (-2p); Linear II (-4p); Exponential III (-4s) – Realm of Evening; Exponential II (-3s) – Uncapped Set; Exponential II (-4s) – Exigent Exaltation; Exponential II (-5s) – Exigent Exaltation 2
[Ude] Enemy Mine; Overlord; The Turning; Epic (+2p) – 8. Blessing of Greed (-13p/+13s)
Exigents are from 3rd edition, they're sealed gods in a can. Mine is Cybertron - with the power of EE2, diminished in name only. Should combo well with Optimum Prime; it supplies versatility, UFS x10 offers power, and the Realm provides breathing room.
Speaking of: Static only reduces Progression to 1/4, not crafting speed. Combined with ridiculous defenses, I serve as a universal transducer in any number of apocalyptic weapons. Access to Kayaba-tier technological supremacy and whatever Rank-oriented dream magic just being in the Realm of Evening provides ensures I can produce them.
To whomever my Nemesis is, I wish them the best. Because I'm no Paladin, and I don't do 'plucky rebellions'.
