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A Simple Transaction I

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Simple and Good v3

Thematic Earth
-Enrolled + Excellence: Superhero - Archmage (a genius polymath and extremely versatile magus, basically a Dr. Fate expy without the reliance on a helmet. While baseline spells and enhancements are already incredibly formidable, has an especial strength in ritual casting for epically powerful permanent effects)
-Auditor

Drawback: Enforcement of Ruin

Enrolled + Excellence is three orbs before discounting, so I assume if one were to pursue purely immediate power it would not be much shy of Titan-level. The Archmage is a utiltiy-focused pick with enough combat power to stay secure and relevant on a global scale; though given time to prepare he can be just as deadly as the Metaphysician... at least, such was true before his awakening to Dreamcraft.

Now even his slightest cantrips strike with catastrophic force; the pronouncements of an instant can carve canyons, sunder nations or turn invading armies into newts. With proper time and preparation? His arts of personal enhancement suffice to surpass the Olympian in speed and might; summoning circles that once strained to call down deific avatars now bind entire pantheons to leal and unswerving service.

The idea is simple: a broad and Excellence-boosted enrollment already allows you to do most things; Auditor makes those things incredibly powerful, and eventually lets you do anything.
 
Nameless One

Thematic Earth
-Titan
-Excellence (Titan)
-Thrice-Great (Archmage, Intellectual Titan, Divine)

Drawbacks: Usurpation's Chosen, An End to Silver, Enforcement of Ruin

Each build must address two fundamental needs: safety and scaling. Versatility and drawback mitigation are also highly desireable. This build represents safety plus scaling in perhaps its most essential form: an Excellence-boosted Titan would be difficult to slay or impede even for the Olympian's like, while each Facet I attain is another 4-orb custom Benefit stacked onto my existing powers. In total then, this build eventually attains 16 orbs' worth of power within as short as ~1.4 years, if I commit to using Thrice Great's preordained Facet methodology.

With my safety largely secured by Titan, my Facets can be optimized to be as versatile and greedy as possible. Even at baseline, a Titan Facet expressed as Archmage would yield world-shaking power; Excellence ramps this considerably more. Intellectual Titan makes me a Luthor-level superintelligence with access to comic book superscience, allowing me to discover, create and exploit synergies between these three Facets to go even further beyond.

Finally, Divine (Progression) multiplicatively accelerates this growth, ensures my capabilities will never hard- or softcap, and allows me to extend direct benedictions to mine allies for even further cross-system synergy.

Solomon Ripoff

Thematic Earth
-Enrolled + Ideal Education (The Magician)
-True Architect
-Excellence (True Architect)

Drawbacks: Usurpation's Chosen, An End to Silver, Enforcement of Ruin

As per the Discord info, one of the functions applying Excellence to True Architect can produce is the ability to advance in the Architecture without any risk of madness.

This build is basically "Sol, but not lazy," though it does have to contend with several potent external threats. Still, that's what the Educator's for! With his protection and guidance married to our considerable Thematic abilities and capacity to advance relentlessly in the Architecture, Diamond Eyes aren't far away...
 
Rihaku said:
Solomon Ripoff

Thematic Earth
-Enrolled + Ideal Education (The Magician)
-True Architect
-Excellence (True Architect)

Drawbacks: Usurpation's Chosen, An End to Silver, Enforcement of Ruin

As per the Discord info, one of the functions applying Excellence to True Architect can produce is the ability to advance in the Architecture without any risk of madness.

This build is basically "Sol, but not lazy," though it does have to contend with several potent external threats. Still, that's what the Educator's for! With his protection and guidance married to our considerable Thematic abilities and capacity to advance relentlessly in the Architecture, Diamond Eyes aren't far away...
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Honestly probably one of the better builds. But I am curious what else Excellence on Architect could do if you devoted it to power or more importantly potential rather than safety.
 
While I have absolutely no idea how to properly manage 5 orbs worth of drawbacks here, something birdsie mentioned about my mecha pilot build left an impression. That my Oneirodyne would develop faster than any other including maybe the ones that belong to auditors.

So it's probably ludicrously bs growth if I drop inner magic and take Auditor, the pilot role works the same as in the 6 orb version of my build I posted earlier. Like, use Auditor to buff the knight of honor analog in my role and my oneirodyne's abilities?



Mech Pilot(8 Orb Version)

Location: Thematic Earth

Enrollment(Role: The Pilot)(1 Orb, discounted from Thematic Earth)
Oneirodyne(Shepherd Class, 2 Orbs)
Excellence(Oneirodyne)(1 Orb)
Ideal Education(1 Orb)
Auditor(3 Orbs)

Drawbacks:

Keter Theli(+3 Orbs)
Enforcement of Ruin(+2 Orbs)
 

Architect of Myth​
[ ] Yoria -
[ ] The Pattern (1 orb) -
[ ] Architect (4 orbs) -
[ ] Thrice Great (3 orbs) - Architect (Camouflager, Builder, ???)
[ ] Enforcement of Ruin (+2 orbs) -
[ ] Keter Theli (+3 orbs) -

If an Architect provides personal insight into the world the Camouflager is a near inversion, instead the Camouflager obscures themselves from the world. The builder, then, actualizes insight and seeks to create rather than merely understand the Architecture. The Pattern, meanwhile, prevents degradation of sanity, ability, and perhaps, in time, the World of Yoria itself.

The immediate danger of Ruin is ameliorated by being camouflaged, while the Pattern provides some measure of physical and supernatural protection. In time the Thrice Great Architect grows frighteningly potent, enough, perhaps, to unmake the Adversaries Fate of Doom upon the world. The Dragon, of course, will be a frightening force.

Dreadstar - Ineptitude
[ ] Hard Mode: [+3 Points, +1 Seals] -
—
Basic Roles -
[ ] Supreme Commander [+0 Points] -

Supreme Commander World Roll:
[ ] Choice: 1 Point -
[ ] Alternate: 2 Points - Solarpunk (HI)
1. Exalted (Gunstar Autochthonia)
3. Cthulhutech
19. Overlord
—
Drawback Shoppe -
[ ] Nemesis [+5 Points] -
[ ] Hero's Journey [+7 Points] -
—
Binding Casino -
[ ] 4: Procession. [+3 Seal]
[ ] 10: Debt. [+1 Seal]
[ ] 3: Jackpot. [+2 Seal]
—
Allies
[ ] Qilin [5 Points] - Artificer Elf (EFB)
[ ] Hidden Dragon [1 Seals] - Titanic Cultivation
—
Panoply
[ ] Arcadian Scroll [2 Points] -
[ ] Dread Sword [7 Points] -
[ ] Feather of Favor [2 Seals] - Justice
—
Self
[ ] Exponential [4 Seals] III: Three Save Slots
—
Quests:
[ ] Enemy Mine [0 Seals] - Strategos / Runes of Kalym
[ ] Overlord [+0 Points, Special] -
[ ] Epic [+2 Points]:
[ ] Valiant Blessing -
—
Credit: 17 P 07 S
Debit: 17 P 07 S
—
Strategy:
N/A
qwolfs threw 3 10-faced dice. Reason: Ineptitude Casino Rolls: Total: 22
9 9 10 10 3 3
qwolfs threw 3 21-faced dice. Reason: Supreme Commander World: Total: 23
19 19 3 3 1 1
 
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[ ] Yoria
[ ] Auditor (3 Orbs)
[ ] Thrice Great (3 orbs)
[ ] Usurpation's Chosen (+1 orb)
[ ] Enforcement of Ruin (+2 orbs)

The idea is that my first Facet, made through Auditor, of course, would give me a magic aimed not at making dreams into reality, but preserving them, protecting wonder from that which would bring about its destruction. Applications of this power would include the negation of anti-magic, protecting supernatural powers from effects that unravel or disrupt them, ensuring supernatural capabilities work regardless of the ontology I dwell in and the like.

My intended use for this power is to secure the weave of magic against the efforts of the Adversary, I also hope that my regular Auditor Dreamcraft will suffice to make permanent repairs to what damage has already been done, those same repairs then being further preserved by the powers of my Facet. Meanwhile, I'll be trying to learn as much Sorcery as possible, see if I can get myself a Mantle somehow, and use my Dreamcraft to banish the Adversary's influence wherever it may appear.

Enforcement of Ruin likely makes the Adversary into my opponent. Given how Defeating the Darkness goes, it seems to me that it's somewhat indisposed to direct action, so I'm hoping its efforts to destroy me take the form of sending its minions at me. If not, then it was a good attempt.

Usurpation's Chosen sucks in its own way, and represents another risk, but I hope I can get it out of the way early by triggering it intentionally, and hope the complications that arise from my betrayal aren't catastrophic.

All that aside, what's this about the discord server where all that information is being stated?
 
Sauron the Savage
"I don't want to fight a war against entropy and the downfall of wonder. I want to turn people into dinosaurs!"

Take the Plunge [30 Tokens, 20 Insights]
Drawbacks: Fool's Gambit (roll: Tyranny), Epochal Nemesis, Far Delve III, To War, Steward's Bane, Refine The Dross III, Artifice Bound, Hierarch II, Wrack and Ruin.

Shogun: Harm Cognition + Honing the Mind
Surgeon: Away!
Emissary: Pathos

All Arcanist Advancements:
Imago Emblem - Emblem: Mastery [10 Years of Practice, start with Aberrant Rune + Disjunction Rune]
Sacrifice Camaraderie - Emblem: Savant [Aberrant Rune]

Aberrant Savant: Monstrosities may be customized to fit your preferences for theme and ontology. Their abilities are far more versatile and robust against Nullity and other changes in Ontology (such as the initial stages) of Wrack and Ruin. Monstrosities may be allowed to proliferate for a massive increase in the amount of findross generated per casting. May implant Sequences, or a second Rune into an already mature Monstrosity. May attempt to forcibly implant a simple Rune into an enemy at combat relevant speed.


Sacrifice Restraint - Emblem: Savant [Disjunction Rune]
Disjunction Savant: Derive the component elements of a Rune without forgetting its original form. Foundational elements of Runes may have larger inferential distances (Elemental -> Fire, Water, Air, Earth, Void, Substance, Cyclic Interference, Nature). Capable of countering magics with substantially greater power than the caster through use of precise vocabulary and grammar in the High Arcana.



All Egotist Advancements
Crowned Halo: Highborn
Uttermost: Utter Binding: Triple Yang Path
Magic System:
Law of the Jungle
Domains: Union, Essence

Apex Predator
The social consequences of resorting to intimidation in place of persuasion (or manipulation) are reduced by an order of magnitude. Bellicose threats are simply the way you communicate, and are less likely to be seen as immediate provocation.

Red of Tooth
The user may drain the essence of foes by consuming any part of their physical or metaphysical corpus. The user's own form and abilities will mutate to reflect the nature of their foe's power. A creature that is fed upon, but not slain, will be much more susceptible to mutation until their stolen power is restored or regenerated.

Red of Claw
Users may, through an instinctive process, transform their own body and abilities to better match their current circumstances. A novice could change their physical form from a lithe jaguar to a venomous serpent with a day of effortful meditation. An adept could reconfigure a lifetime of experience with bladed weapons to the cutting wit of an expert attorney. A master could weaponize the laws of probability themselves, growing clumsier so as to stumble into ever more favorable circumstances. Users find this effect most versatile when reaching for a weapon in a context that they are ill-prepared for.



Stats:
31 All
3. WIS
43 INT for the purposes of using and researching Foremost Runes.

Primary Threats:
First: To War specifies that you "sincerely involve yourself... in a manner consistent with your values and/or interests... as a full if junior member." It is conceivable but not inevitable that a junior member would be given an order, which is a failure state given the Doom of the Tyrant. To War could be dropped along with Crowned Halo (Highborn) but that would be a shame given Sauron's enthusiasm for creating monstrosities with the best possible base materials.


Second: Hierarch II puts Sauron the Savage up against an apex Banished One who has had a decade of preparation. That gives them an edge of ++++ INT and as much as +32 WIS during the planning phase (depending on how Mentation Rune interacts with Emblem: Mastery). On the other hand, Sauron's physical attributes, Luck, Protection, and intellect applying magic are all substantially above the ambusher. Additionally, the obvious shutdowns for a High Arcana powerset will be disarmed by Disjunction Savant + reliance on Aberration's Monstrosities. At 41 INT and 31 WIT, Sauron could have spent the Mastery Emblem's 10 years of practice simply hammering out contingencies with the Harmonization Rune.

Beyond the Harmonization Rune, I think that the Law of the Jungle does a good job at leveraging Sauron's wide stat base from the Yang Path and the Crowned Halo's population of prey test subjects.


Third: Wrack and Ruin + Artifice Bound + Steward's Bane pair poorly with Crowned Halo. In light of the Epochal Nemesis opposing me across multiple theaters, it is somewhat tempting to swap out the Highborn Halo advancement in favor of Engineer (Mutagens) and try to grow potential test subjects from scratch.


Ultimately, if this build survives the initial Hierarch Ambush it can offer a ton of value to the Arcanist's side of the war. Its monstrosities will provide increasingly specific flavors of findross, while (eventually) providing a meaningful counterweight to the Surgeon on his chosen field of specialization. Alternatively, its extreme focus on Nullity and magic-agnostic abilities would be a good foil to the Arcanist (given an extra eternity to scale up. This option would definitely involve dropping To War.)
 
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Birdsie said:
:-: :-: :-: Hatred Internalized CYOA :-: :-: :-:
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Body: Dragon of Night
Mind: August Sophos
Spirit: Elemental Circle of Animosity, Dream of Betterment
World: A Simple Transaction I
Rihaku said:
The Furthermost Reaches
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The Furthermost Reaches
Colour: Violet, Red
Verse: Last Laugh, Bolt from the Blue, Step Up, Stitch in Time
Trinkets: Sigil (Step Up)
Curse Broker: Blight (The Waning)

The crux of this build is simple: with TWO amplifier magics, you can combine them both and thereby bootstrap to godhood in record time!

Red may lack the ability to empower Progressive Wave or other spiteful sorceries at base, but given the expansion of scope that the Wave provides it shouldn't be impossible (or even necessary) to clear this hurdle.

This is compounded by the other magics provided: the Verses, destructive and corrupted draconic power, august's spells and rituals.

Eventually, the Dragon of Night may overwrite their destructive nature with the touch of Genesis found within the Circle, enforced by hatred absolute of mundanity and entropy.

A Dragon of Dawn and wielder of the Progressive Wave is perhaps the truest antithesis to the Waning itself.

--------

Rihaku said:
Ineptitude
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Ineptitude: Dalliance Mode
Insertion: Supreme Commander (DC Comics)
Drawbacks: Paramount (2p 0s)
Binding Casino: Jackpot => Procession, Perchance, Jackpot again, somehow. (2p, 6s)
Self: Arcadian Scroll, Exponential III, Feather of Favour (2p 0s)
=> Feather Of Favour: Grimoire of Unreality, Thrice-Great
Quest: N/A

Frankly, Dalliance Mode is a blessing here. Though I did get absurdly lucky with the Casino, frankly.
 
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Honestly how is the score on the votes right now?

To me it seems really close with a small lead towards "Vengeance" but maybe that's wrong or something.

Again at this point I'm basically ready to accept whatever wins.
 
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Adhoc vote count started by Leviathan on Oct 26, 2024 at 2:41 PM, finished with 1482 posts and 97 votes.
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Thanks for showing the score again.

Well I kind of doubt there will be a big change to it in the future at this point...I mean maybe some new votes might still appear but for now it looks like we will see if Vengeance works out or not.
 
This doesn't include things like argumentation and omakepower, which have overcome 1-2 vote gaps before, IIRC
 
Well either way I wouldn't really know how these change the result considering I have no idea how many omaka creators are on one side or the other etc.
 
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jvbri said:
I haven't read Sect, and don't recall participating in anything related to Glowfic. I do occasionally comment on other forums, maybe you've seen me on QQ or something?
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I'm not on QQ, and I don't think I remember anyone from the public thread I've read on there (Twisted Pinwheel). Maybe from Tilt, a kvt thread, or something by Octobre?
(Also I'd like to know why you're voting Vengeance, if you care to share.)
 
HoratioVonBecker said:
I'm not on QQ, and I don't think I remember anyone from the public thread I've read on there (Twisted Pinwheel). Maybe from Tilt, a kvt thread, or something by Octobre?
(Also I'd like to know why you're voting Vengeance, if you care to share.)
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Maybe you're confusing me for someone else?

As for my reason, does one need a reason for revenge?
Ok, more seriously, this quest started with Vengeance (or maybe it'd be more correct to say that one of the first decisions made in it was Vengeance?), it feels appropriate to me that it likewise ends with Vengeance.
 
jvbri said:
Maybe you're confusing me for someone else?
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Not impossible. But your name seems really familiar, and it's pretty distinctive.
jvbri said:
As for my reason, does one need a reason for revenge?
Ok, more seriously, this quest started with Vengeance (or maybe it'd be more correct to say that one of the first decisions made in it was Vengeance?), it feels appropriate to me that it likewise ends with Vengeance.
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I mean, I didn't get here in time to vote on it, but I was split between Forsaken Mask and the thing we actually went with. With later revelations - most particularly, how hopeless this goal is given how risk-averse almost everyone else was during the Maiden vote - it's choosing to abandon Hunger's family and possibly his alignment with the Accursed, in favor of a literally 1% chance of doing more curse mitigation.
And, like, the Rihakuverse's philosophy of numbers is stupid. Largely because large finite numbers are actually possible to talk about meaningfully, whereas word games about post-post-transfinite powers lack the clarity needed for moral weight. But it's tolerably obvious that the numbers at stake are large enough for a +1% expected value of Accursed curse mitigation to be worth sacrificing many universes, let alone one family, if your value system does moral calculus.
The chance of alignment drift to the point of renewed hostilities is probably below 50%.
But, like, the biggest impact we can predict Hunger actually having on greater reality, is how his story goes. And I don't like stories of people who sacrifice themselves and their loved ones on risky gambles. Free Hunger has a stronger sword praxis than his last incarnation and literally infinite time. He may not need pressure like the Procession to inevitably hit High Cursebearer. It's also a gamble, certainly, but it seems to me a safer one in several respects.
 
I voted freedom a while ago, and still want to see it win. It would really be the better ending for Hunger, if he could bring himself to choose it, even if Vengeance probably made a more interesting story.

I'm mostly trying to remember how the Accursed's restrictions work. I know he's limited in interfering in his Cursebearer's stories, because that would be contributing to escaping his curses... but if Hunger abandons the need to enact Vengeance personally, removing the Hidden Ones from his story... will the Accursed just casually resolve the incident? He's implied to be no fan of beings like those.
 
I came up with this a good while ago - here's the ultimate superbuild that ~wins* everything, not that it'll help you since only Rihaku and I can take it.

Infinite Morning - Super Seraphic Singularity
Location: Arranor +3
Magics: The Essential Gift -3
Benefits: Chosen One: Essential Gift -2, Seraphic Countenance -3
Artifacts: Keter -3
Drawbacks: Three Wishes +1, Hamartia (Greed) +1, Ark's Golden Gloom +2, Thaumiel +3
DLC: Power Word: Bird +1 Embar

Brief Explanation:
*Your innate Essentialism has overall parameters (capacity, restoration, talent) equivalent to Denlah's. Although this doesn't mean you'll instantly become as strong as the King of Arranor, it does set you on a path of success.
*With Chosen One, you now instead have all such attributes at a tenfold of Denlah's; the reserves and comprehension of a tenfold prodigy in most circumstances will outstrip even those of some archwizards. The ability to surpass the limits of the art means you'll eventually be able to cast with the vaunted aspect of Life, and perhaps others. Even a naive, brute cantrip channeling a minor dross of Fire into a destructive beam would be terrifyingly strong by the standards of most adept essentialists.
*Now, with Keter, your talent far surpasses Denlah's own. Limits will be shattered sooner, grand and paradigm-altering spells invented early on to provide the most benefit, not to mention the charisma and cajoling skills needed to peddle for salts and training artifacts at maximally advantageous rates!
*All of that? Is nothing. Once your Countenance is shed to reveal the Seraph underneath, consider the terror: a hundred Denlah's worth of essence, equivalent to a conclave of the world's strongest archmagi casting in concert, guided by a laser-sharp mind with a flawless talent for the art's finest and subtlest aspects. Your calculation shall grind all foes underneath its weight like obdurate clockwork, lucubrations fueled with ever-greater reserves of mental salts, as wonders undreamt are attained.

I won't bother describing the sort of spells you could cast with this.

Regarding drawbacks, assuming you avoid Sulevast discovering what you've done over here and eating the penalty imposed on him to attack early - should be easy to sever that Reciprocal link with enough spellcasting, though - and that you can deal with Thaumiel skillfully - which should be easy once you've researched enough spells...

You're essentially a god.

...Turns out breaking the cap limit on embers is stupidly good.

*Not really, but gives you a hell of a start.
 
HoratioVonBecker said:
And I don't like stories of people who sacrifice themselves and their loved ones on risky gamble
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While again I would be fine with Freedom winning I am kind of opposite of you, at least in this case..I find the idea of peace quite boring and predictable for a "gain powers" story but eh whatever...

On the High Cursebearer stuff...you do know that Freedom Hungers odds are less then 1.0 % in a Omniverse with people who can kill people who can kill people that can blink away infinite multiverses right? like its implied that the forebearer is literally the singular being who ever achieved, this the only one.

Of course 1.0 % is also very low but its real luxury compared to Freedom's chances.
 
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