An Azure Dream (BlazBlue) - OOC and Sign-Ups (Closed)

Mr.Ownage · Aug 11, 2019

"And so he gave his life into the Blue...
So that the ideal world could be born."

"Tis has but come at a great cost...
For God has forsaken this world."

Welcome to "An Azure Dream", an RP based on the world of BlazBlue, specifically following the events of BlazBlue : Centralfiction. While the theme and the world it takes place in are indeed based on BlazBlue, An Azure Dream (AAD from now on) follows an alternative take on the story after the ending of Centralfiction, and thus, prior knowledge of the series or the story isn't necessary, but recommended. BlazBlue veterans may note that there may be inaccuracies or changes compared to canon material, but these are also partly due to the purpose of making the RP easier to grasp, and also due to the timeline(s) being complicated in their own right. However, this won't affect the RP in any major way, so feel free to jump in even if it's your first time hearing of BlazBlue! Speaking of veterans, if you don't mind lending a helping hand (mainly with story and geography matters), I'll gladly accept the help of a Co-GM, who, if they'd like to, may also play a Mentor (detailed below).

AAD takes place post "BlazBlue : Centralfiction", with a bit of a twist : Ragna, Terumi, Izanami, Hakumen, Nine, and the Original Units, along with Takamagahara, are nowhere to be found, and seithr (Magic Element: a dark, misty substance that's lethal in higher concentrations) has taken over most of the world once more, restricting humanity to the Hierarchial Cities (cities built at great heights to avoid seithr, since seithr is heavier than air), this event having become known as "The Second Shift". Ragna the Bloodedge, formerly a criminal with the highest bounty in Novus Orbis Librarium (or simply NOL or Library for short) history, is now revered as a hero in some parts of the world, while the rest is holding him responsible for the reappearence of the ever-so-lethal seithr. Worse... utilizing the disorder regarding this crisis, both the NOL, and their greatest enemy, Sector Seven, have decided that it's time to make their moves, and an open war between the two "factions" could result in catastrophic damage, espicially in the city of Kagutsuchi, one of the most prosperous of the Hierarchial Cities.

In AAD, up to 5 players may take part in these events, taking on various roles. Will you be a vigilante working against crime and hunting down the most dangerous criminals? Are you one of said dangerous criminals? Are you an interdimensional traveller from another world, caught up in the ongoing crisis via an accident? Perhaps you're an undercover agent for one of the factions in hopes of helping the higher-ups achieve their goals?

While major characters cannot be played, they will take on an important role, partly due to their powers and status, but more importantly due to the fact that they can be chosen as Mentors. Essentially acting like a companion, Mentor characters will accompany you along your journey, helping you with insight, backstory, or just plain-old fisticuffs and magic. Take note, however, that depending on your arrival/starting location and chosen backstory, not all characters can be chosen as Mentors. This also means that players who do pick a Mentor will usually be at a great advantage over those who do, so it's advised (but not necessary!) to pick one. Mentors also provide some changes to stats, and if you spend time with them, they may teach you special abilities, usually parts of the combat style they use, or something different entirely! To be exact, each Mentor will provide a Special Ability, and, depending on time spent with them, most will eventually provide a Kindred Ability, and a powerful or very useful Ultimate Ability later on.

In essence, the goal in this roleplay is to achieve a resolution : whether that be the victory of one of the factions (NOL, Sector Seven), the fall of both, or even the destruction of the world. The characters arrive at or a few days after 2200 AD, February 8th, the day of "The Second Shift" (except Residents, who have experienced it), and the rest is up to you.

Current Player List :

Rules (subject to change!)

Follow general rules. (obviously)
Respect other players.
Respect GM and Co-GM decisions. If you feel that there was an unjust course of action, bring it up and it'll be discussed.
As a small deviation from the typical course of action, smaller notes and observations may go in the IC thread in brackets, at the bottom of your post, if necessary. Anything else, including improving your stats and skills go in the OOC thread (except for special abilities from Mentors which are achieved in a different way)
No autos (an attack that leaves no chance for the target to respond), but at the same time, don't abuse this for invulnerability either (always avoiding every type of attack). Autos are allowed only against NPCs obviously far below your power level, such as ordinary civilians.
Accept that your character may recieve serious injuries, or even perish during the course of the game : don't make troubles out of this and (espicially when it comes to Astrals) don't abuse the systems and potential loopholes to save your character from everything.
There's no time limit for posting, but doing so at least once per week would be best. Please inform the others if something comes up and/or you need to take a break (during which time, either someone else can control your character, or they'll be controlled as an NPC)
If questions or doubts arise, feel free to ask : there's no "wrong" or "bad" question, after all!

The combat and stat system we'll be using is as follows. The goal is to minimize luck by not including dice, and rewarding correct thinking, actions off observations, and of course, utilizing your stats and options to their fullest. This is still a concept, mainly, so suggestions to improve on this are greatly appreciated!

Stats : Each character will be given 50 points to spend on the following stats : Strength, Intelligence, Charisma, Field and Agility, along with a special stat : Aptitude. You will be able to gain more as in-game days pass.

-Strength governs your physical strength and defense : the higher your Strength that is, the easier it is for you to dish out damage, and to block physical or weapon-based attacks. It also doubles as your Stamina.
-Intelligence is self-explanatory : the higher it is, the easier it is for you to learn and remember new things, to notice suspicious things and to notice weaknesses in battle styles. Note that even with low Intelligence, the character can still be smart in everyday situations, but will have troubles in learning about the BlazBlue world and adapting to yet-unseen styles.
-Charisma governs how well you can talk to others, simply enough. The higher your Charisma, the easier it is to get people to do what you need them to do, and having a high Charisma is important for intimidating people as well.
-Agility governs your movement speed and nimbleness (which, in turn, governs your ability to avoid attacks during fights).
-Field is your magic defense and in tandem with Strength, also governs your success rate in clashes, your ability to tech during combos, and with your Overdrive/Burst regeneration rate (explained later).

As a rough estimate, a stat of 5 means you are average at the respective stat, 10 means you're quite good, 15 means you're very good, and 20 means hardly matched proficiency in the respective area (you can leave dents in walls with 20 Strength, move with ninja-like nimbleness at 20 Agility and so on). Having high stats alone does not make you invulnerable, nor will it guarantee that you'll defeat more powerful Mentors, however, as some can have stats way beyond 20 (in the form of incredible strength, for example) or they have weapons or abilities that let them fight high-stat characters with ease. Overall, in the early game, don't expect to be able to beat Mentors, espicially the more powerful ones. However, by mid and late-game, your stat growth, along with found items, if you do, will allow you to compete with or even surpass most Mentors.

Aptitude works a bit differently : it governs your ability to handle various types of magic and its branches, mainly Ars Magus (a form of magic created via fusion of sorcery and science : also called Magic Formula) and Ars Armagus (Magic Formula Weapon : a weapon boosted with Ars Magus) along with grimoires (essentially, converters, that allow more efficient usage of seithr and Ars to humans), and your ability to endure attacks from such items and seithr-based moves. Aptitude also governs how often and for how long can you use your Barrier Ars (a powerful defensive option). It always starts at a certain level depending on your chosen species, but unless mentioned, it starts at 3, and can be improved over-time. You cannot spend any of the 50 points on Aptitude, and the highest you can raise a stat to at the start is 20, but as days pass, you'll be able to raise them even higher. Stats can never be negative : for example, if a Mentor gives a -3 to your Charisma, your Charisma wouldn't actually become -3, but rather, you would need to spend 3 points on it before you can work on raising it beyond 0.

Combat, in general, will follow a mainly narrative structure with Stat Checks, which are essentially just that : if your character takes a certain course of action, a stat check is to be done, and the action succeeds if the corresponding stat is at the level of the stat check, or lower by two at most. If it's lower by three or four, the action is a partial failure, if by five or six, it's a failure, and if by seven, eight or more, it's a serious failure :

If blocking is a partial failure, you will take "chip damage" : damage through your block, except if you block with the Barrier Ars (a form of Ars that summons a barrier to block attacks with). If blocking is a failure, then you will recieve even more chip damage, again, except if you use Barrier Ars to block. If blocking is a serious failure, the attack will go right through your block if you don't use the Barrier Ars, and you'll take a serious hit to the Barrier if you use it instead.
If attacking is a partial failure (against evasive or highly armored/far more powerful characters), then your attack will do less damage. In the case of a serious failure, your attack may be as effective as a mosquito bite, or miss entirely. A clash that is a failure will allow the enemy to go through your attack and hit you directly, while a serious failure might even damage/destroy your weapon, and inflict incredible damage. Partially failing a clash will simply give the opponent the advantage to attack.
If dodging is a partial failure, the attack in question might graze you. Failure will suffer in somewhat more damage, while a serious failure is essentially like taking the attack head-on, sometimes with even more damage taken.
The rest of the actions (as seen below) : waiting, retaliation and Astral, can only end in success or failure.

In its most basic form, there's six types of actions possible in combat : Clash/Attack (Clash if the opponent is attacking, and Attack if you do so first), Block, Dodge, Retaliate, Wait and Astral.

-Clash/Attack checks usually involve a close range attack via unarmed or armed combat, or a long range attack via Ars, a Drive, or projectiles. Attack, by itself, utilizes Strength for checks, while Clash utilizes Field and Strength alike. Projectile attacks utilize Field, whereas Ars and Drive-based attacks utilize Aptitude only, and Field and a bit of Aptitude, respectively.
-When blocking, there's three sub-options you must include : whether you block low or standing, whether you block with or without your Barrier Ars, and whether you jump to block or not (also known as Chicken Blocking). Blocking without the Barrier Ars requires only Strength checks, but allows unblockable and powerful attacks to go through your guard. Trying to block an overhead attack low will bypass your guard and vice-versa, but attacks will usually have signs to indicate what type of attack it's going to be. Lastly, Chicken Blocking allows you to negate mixups, but some attacks are unblockable in the air, even with the Barrier Ars, so make the decision count. Field is also utilized for blocking with the Barrier Ars, and air-blocking is only possible via said Ars.
-When dodging, the basic options available are : jumping, backdashing, sidestepping and rolling, but you may add custom Dodge actions if you'd like to. All Dodge checks utilize Agility only, but certain attacks are great against backdashers while they falter against jumpers, and so on. Each attack's property will be noted in the respective stat check. If you dodge, and perform an action that an attack catches, you'll fail the check regardless of your Agility stat!
-Retaliate is a special action that is essentially the usage of an invulnerable attack or a Distortion Drive as the enemy is making their move. You will usually beat out such attacks this way, but beware that the opponent can feint (move towards you and pretend to attack, only to block), leaving you wide open for a punish! In such a case, your only ways out are to rely on your Mentor or to Burst.
-Waiting is a potential option against certain maneuvers and attacks, mostly against counter attacks, but waiting is really an extremely situational option that will, apart from counter-moves, rarely work out. Use it at your own risk.
-Lastly, Astral Heats can be performed anytime, but have a massive cooldown afterward, and you'll suffer a huge penalty to every stat check for a while, so you need to be absolutely sure you won't be entering combat again for a period of time. Astral Heats' stat checks can never exceed 10, making them quite useless if the enemy is still able to fight, but have a +50 bonus against weakened targets, essentially guaranteeing their success if you can keep the fight up for this long.

To allow this system to work, the players would need to think about the action their character would take (such as blocking an attack, dodging or clashing with it), then scroll down and view the stat check corresponding to the action they have chosen. Obviously, this cannot be enforced, but to avoid cheating, I'd like to ask players to ONLY scroll down to the stat checks AFTER reading through the actions and deciding on what will their character do beforehand, and to ONLY view the appropiate stat check. If you've read and understood this, please include "Ars Magus? Science is true power!" (without quote marks) at the bottom of your character sheet post.

As an example :
Player sees an enemy readying up for an attack, and decides to try dodging it. He decides to try backdashing. After a few moments, the enemy's attack is executed : a very fast, forward moving attack. Player's character has an Agility stat of 13, a Field stat of 12 and a Strength stat of 6.

Field Check : 10
Strength Check : 12

Strength Check : 8
Barrier Ars Required (Guard Crush)

Agility Check : 15
Catches Backdash

Let's break down what is going on here, one step at a time. Since Player chose to dodge, he would ONLY open the Dodge tab, and check the results. Since Player's character has an Agility stat of 13, he would technically succeed with the dodging attempt. However, since the forward rush has the ability to catch backdashes, Player is hit for full damage of the attack, but it's unlikely that there would be further repercussions of this, since the attack lacks Launch or Stagger properties. If he decided to try clashing (meeting an attack with one's own), it would fail, since the character's Strength stat is way below the required level. His best option would have been blocking, and even then, he would have required usage of the Barrier Ars, or he would get guard crushed (and left wide open for a followup). Alternatively, he could have tried to Retaliate via an invulnerable attack or a Distortion Drive : since the opponent was already mid-rush, it's unlikely that they could have recovered in time to block either option. In short : there's never a definite golden path against attacks, all methods are viable as long as you adapt and choose correctly!

This system works the same regarding Mentors, with the exception of their stats being hidden from the players, except for the Co-GM. If you decide to attack a Mentor, create checks of the same type as shown. Note, however, that the upper bound of your check cannot be higher than your own stat (you can't create a Strength check that requires 18 Strength to succeed if your character only has 17 Strength, for example, except for Special Moves). Player versus Player combat can be done either via the stat check system, or via a custom system to the participants' liking.

We will be also using a Combo System, although with much less length and complication to them as in BlazBlue itself (which is extremely combo-centric) :

You may be able to perform a Combo by landing attacks that create a Launch, Guard Crush, Bounce or a Stagger, these are called Combo Openers and allow you to connect some additional hits. Beware, though, the longer the combo goes on, the less damage it will deal, and the easier it is for the opponent to escape via Teching or Burst.
To escape a combo, the defender can Tech or Burst. Bursting can be used anytime, except when being hit by a Distortion Drive or an Astral Heat, but have a very long cooldown to them. On the other hand, Teching allows you to get back on your feet if you were launched, or shake out of stagger if you were hit by one. Teching can only be done from the second hit onward of a combo and is depedent on Field : to tech a combo's second hit, the defender requires as much Field as the opponent's Agility. Every follow-up hit requires 4 less Field to Tech from. Techs leave you airborne and vulnerable to anti-airs, however, and the combo is untechable if the second hit is a Distortion Drive. Note, though, that all Distortion Drives are Combo Enders, and thus, following them up is not possible in any way, except for a Distortion Drive Duo (for simplicity and balancing reasons, even moves that can be followed up in the games, such as Hazama's Jayoku Houtenjin, have this "cannot be followed up" property)
- For example, if the attacker has an Agility of 18, and the defender has 11 Field, the attacker's second hit requires 14 Field to tech out of, the third requires 10, the fourth 6 and so on, allowing this defender to tech after the third hit.
- Because of this, it's worth investing in Field to make sure you won't get hit by devastating combos easily.
  - At the same time, teching at every opportunity is not a good idea : characters with dedicated anti-air moves may expect you to tech, and punish you with such a move as you do for even more damage!
  - Furthermore, recieving a "fresh" hit after teching deals more damage than if the same hit was a part of the combo : Hit > Hit > Hit > Hit deals less damage than Hit > Hit > Hit (Teched) > New Hit.
To ensure smooth transitions of combos and combo states in the PbP format, input your entire combo, and an action you'll resort to if the opponent techs. (for example : "x decides to go for a gut punch followed by an uppercut to launch the opponent, and afterward, slam them down into the ground. If the enemy techs, fall back to create some distance"). Note that you can't do autos with this method : you may only resort to this after you've landed a Combo Opener.
Such combos may be also performed on blocking opponents to chip away at their guard, or, if they use it, their Barrier Ars. This is known as pressure. Beware, though, since ending pressure with some specials can be unsafe, and ending it with Distortion Drives or Astrals is always unsafe (except with certain special abilities from Mentors).
In battle, you get as many uses of your Barrier Ars as you have Aptitude points, divided by two, and rounded up. As an example, if you have 3 Aptitude, you have 2 uses of Barrier Ars. This will be referred to as Barrier Uses.
- Barrier Ars is the only way to block in the air and to lessening/avoiding taking chip damage, so always keep your usage in mind!
- Certain Mentors will give you Aptitude penalties : regardless of your Aptitude level, the minimum of Barrier Uses you can have is 1 (even if you have 0 Aptitude, you have 1 Barrier Ars Use).
- Each blocked normal attack will drain one use of the Barrier Ars, regardless of how many hits that attack has. However, since normal attacks are blockable even without the Barrier, this is pretty wasteful unless using it as a last resort.
- Each blocked Special Move or weapon attack will also drain one use, or 2 if the block regarding them is a serious failure : many weapon attacks can only be blocked with the Barrier Ars, so save some uses against them!
- Each blocked Distortion Drive will drain 3 uses of your Barrier Ars, while Astrals drain 5, once again, this is a constant number and won't differ due to hit counts.
- Blocking a pressure string with Barrier will drain 1 Barrier Use, and another 1 if it contains a Special Move, or 3 and 5 in the case of a Distortion and an Astral, respectively. No further Uses can be drained in a single string.
  - This means that a maximum of 7 Barrier Uses can be drained in a single string : Hit > Special > Astral, but doing so is very impractical and applies the usual penalties.
- If the latest attack causes your Barrier use count to drop to 0, or below 0, you'll suffer a Guard Crush and be left wide open to follow-up hits (except Astrals), so be careful. After you recover or are hit from the Guard Crush state, you'll recover 2 Barrier Uses.
  - An exception to this rule is if you have 1 or 2 max Barrier Uses : in these cases, the current pressure chain can end without causing a Guard Crush (except if it's a Distortion Drive or Astral), but you won't be able to use Barrier afterward.
  - Due to a Guard Crush leaving you wide open for follow-ups (except in the case of Astrals and Distortions), sometimes it's better to just block without Barrier and take the minor chip damage instead.
  - If an Astral or Distortion Drive causes Guard Crush, both characters will recover at the same time : the move in question won't be punishable on block, but it won't allow the attacker a follow-up either.
    - Once again, an exception to this is a character that has Tager's Executive Order ability, which will allow a followup after a guard-crushing Distortion Drive thanks to lessening the recovery on them, allowing "unblockable" setups.
- NPCs utilize Barrier Uses the same way, but to help you determine what the current state of their barrier is, their barrier's color will change as damage is sustained (green = many uses left, yellow = weakened, orange = close to breaking, red = about to break). Unlike players, however, some Mentors may use their raw strength instead of Barrier to block/autoguard attacks.
  - With all of this in mind, early-game, you won't be able to tank many hits and it's best to leave fighting to Mentors, but late-game, you'll have plenty of options to make your moves.
The maximum combo duration (that is, how many attacks can you add in the combo) is your Strength or Agility level, whichever is highest, divided by five and rounded down. The maximum possible combo hits is always 4, including Distortion Drives, while during Overdrive, this raises to 6.
- As an example, Stagger -> Hit -> Launch -> Distortion Drive is a legal combo, but 4 hits and a Distortion Drive is not (without Overdrive).
- As another example, if a character has 10 Strength and 16 Agility, then they would get 3 combo hits, since Agility is higher than Strength, and 16/5 = 3.2. If Agility is 19, it would still only grant 3 combo hits (19/5 = 3.8, which, rounded down, is 3).
- Take note that "stat bonuses during checks" do not affect the combo limits : if you have an Agility of 17, and a Mentor grants +3 to all Agility checks, you are still counted as having 17 Agility (3 combo hits) for combo purposes, not 20 (4 hits)!
A very easy and practical combo is to land a combo opener and immediately transition to your Distortion Drive to deal guaranteed, unburstable damage.
Essentially, you must invest in either high Strength or Agility to perform longer combos, which, in turn, leaves you vulnerable to other methods of attacks (such as Ars, or fast attacks if you focus on Strength/powerful attacks if you focus on Agility), so make sure to pick tradeoffs benefitting your character and playstyle!

Certain attacks are Invulnerable, but have a heavy cost to them : Invulnerable attacks will automatically beat out anything thrown at them without the need of a stat check (and are done via Retaliate) but if they happen to be blocked, the opponent can do the same to you : they get a free attack/combo on you, at which point, your only way out is to Burst, so use them wisely! Usually, Distortion Drives and Astral Heats are such invulnerable attacks, but each attack's properties will be noted. If mentioned otherwise, you may assume that a Distortion Drive is invulnerable. (Note for veterans : for the sake of simplicity, Rapid Cancels and Heat gauge will not be involved).

Lastly, there's Active Flow and Overdrive to cover :

Active Flow : Increases Field, Strength, Aptitude and Agility by 25% (rounded down), will be "automatically" triggered if you keep on the offensive during a battle. If you've used a Burst during the fight, however, Active Flow will be locked for that battle and cannot be used until the next.
Overdrive : Grants a massive increase to the stats mentioned in "Active Flow" by doubling them, except for Charisma and Intelligence, for their duration (usually a few seconds, or a turn or two in RP time). This means that, via creating a character with a stat that has the maximum level of 20, and they enter Active Flow and Overdrive, these stats can reach a whopping level 50, minus Mentor and species bonuses. Also enhances user's Drive and Distortion Drives. Can only have Overdrive if the character in question has a Drive.

To prove that you've read and understood all of the prior information, please add, after the other phrase : "None shall stand before Jormungandr!", again, without quote marks. You must include both such phrases for the signup to be considered valid.

Now for the fun part : the character sheet!

Name :
Species : (by default, you may choose from Human, Beastkin [human-animal hybrids, essentially], Murakumo Unit [a robotic body with great combat capabilities, but minimal free will, must be part of a faction to pick this], Vampire [beings that drink blood and are vulnerable to sunlight and silver, but are quite strong] and Custom [if you'd like to be something else : anything except big monsters and gods are acceptable])

If you choose to be Human, add 5 to your Charisma (in brackets, to indicate that this is a species-related bonus). If you choose Beastkin, add 3 to your Agility, 2 to your Strength, and subtract 2 from Field. If you choose Murakumo Unit, add 5 to Strength, Agility and Field, and subtract 5 from Charisma and Intelligence. Lastly, if you choose to be a Vampire, add 4 to all stats except Charisma and Aptitude, add 2 to Aptitude and subtract 8 from Charisma. Custom species don't earn specific bonuses. Human-like entities fall under Human and earn the same bonus.

Gender : (In BlazBlue canon, there has never been a male Murakumo Unit, but feel free to go for it if you'd like to!)
Appearence : (Image or text alike are okay, but text should be descriptive enough to provide a clear image of the character)
Personality :
Age : (in years, date of birth optional)
Likes/Dislikes :
Skills : (such as being able to work very well with machinery, but really, anything your character would be notable for goes here)
Weapons : (cannot use the main Nox Nyctores or Ars Armagus, nor any Grimoires at the start, but otherwise, anything not overpowered is acceptable, up to three max. Throwing and disposable weapons count as one for this limit, though use common sense for their quantity [you may bring multiple instances of a grenade at the price of one, but obviously you can't bring a thousand TNTs])

Backstory : Either Resident (have been living in the BlazBlue world at the time of the crisis), Traveller (a sort of interdimensional traveller, pretty self-explanatory), Accidental Visitor (something caused you to end up in this world, go wild with this one!) or Custom (if you feel I've left something out). You may also add the reasons, if any, of your character deciding to take part in the events (whether that be gain for themselves, or to ensure the conflicts end peacefully etc...)

Occupation : This isn't exactly "occupation" in a strict sense, but more like what your character is/would be doing to get by with. Be aware that certain Mentors like certain archetypes to work with, and will refuse to work with some (mainly Criminals)! The selectable options here are :
Freelancer : People who work on their own, or with an ally or two, wandering the cities and taking up on whatever jobs, opportunities, or otherwise events they may find.
Vigilante : People, who, either of their own good will, or thanks to a sense of justice, hunt down criminals, mainly those with large bounties on their heads, to make living more comfortable for everyone else. Or just for the profit. Or for both. Either works, though Vigilante in an "occupation" sense is more for people who do it for the rewards.
Criminal : Robberies, murders, thefts, and so on. Criminals don't mind breaking the law and jeopardizing others for bragging rights.
Undercover : People who perform various activities in secret, mainly espionage and surveillance. Best selected if you're willing to work for a faction, but you may do undercover work for the city folk, low-rank people and certain Mentors as well.
Employee : Despite the troubles that seithr has caused around the Hierarchial Cities, the cities themselves are still bustling with life. At least... some of them. Whether you work as a teacher, or in a restaurant, there's something out there to keep you in the game. And there's also the option for office work, but who would settle for that?
Military : The backbone of any great country or faction. For when nothing else works. (You must be a part of the NOL to be Military).
Special : If you're someone that breaks the mold, select Special and write away. (Certain Mentors require you to pick "Special" to be with them, this will be noted for them)

Faction : NOL, Sector Seven, or City Folk. City Folk means you are not part of any faction, and pursue (mainly) your own agendas.

Special Moves and Passives (optional) : The attacks that are unique to your character. Anything from Hadoukens to Shoryukens and things along those lines go here, as long as they are performed via energy/chi. Anything else goes into Ars instead. Special Moves can force Stat Checks by a maximum of three levels higher than your level in its respective area (for example, if you have 17 Strength, you may create a check that requires 20 Strength to block [of course, with the "two less rule"] All Special Moves cost 2 points, or 5 if it's an unblockable attack such a grab or a "ground pound", or if it applies an immobilizing status effect (sleep, stun etc...). Add any special properties the attack may have, such as Launch, Stagger, Bounce, Guard Crush, Poison, Stun or similar. "Super move" type attacks go into Distortion Drives.

You may also add Passive abilities : abilities that are not actively used as skills, but either things that are always active, or activate automatically on certain situations (such as increasing damage dealt when near death). Alternatively, you may use Passive abilities to increase and decrease stats (except Charisma, Intelligence and Aptitude) to "exchange" your stats, at the cost of 2 points like usual, and requiring the net worth to be +2 as well. For example, Armor, one of the simplest such passive abilities, adds a +5 to your defensive (when blocking) Strength checks and applies some defense against weapons, while also applying a -3 to your defensive Agility checks. Unlike Special Moves, though, which you may create new ones of as the game progresses, you cannot create Passive abilities past the start, so think twice about investing in passives, or leaving the points for other things!

Ars (Optional) : Ars Magus, certain "spells" that make your life easier. Note that Ars is a fusion of sorcery and science, not raw magic, so you cannot perform magic beyond the specific purpose of your available Ars. For example, having a fireball Ars will allow you to do fireballs, but nothing else regarding fire.

Everyone recieves Barrier Ars (to block big hits and Distortion Drives) and Burst Ars for free, along with Overdrive Ars (noted below) if you decide to bring a Drive. Any other Ars will cost 3 points, or 5 points if it's an elemental or space based Ars. Ars can be anything from a small boost of speed to an energy grapple, or even short-range teleportation. Time-based or healing Ars cannot be used, nor can instant-kill attacks or maneuvers be used as such. You cannot use "canon" abilities of other characters as Ars (except as Special Abilities for certain Mentors) : you will be notified if your Ars would fall under this. The effectiveness of Ars, and the ceiling of what you can do with Ars, depends on your Aptitude (roughly, the starting 3 is average, while an Aptitude of 10 would allow, for example, a teleportation Ars. At Aptitude 20, you may have Ars that resemble spells, such as sheets of flames and the like).

Certain characters are able to damage or disable usage of Ars. If Barrier Ars is blocked this way, you won't be able to block attacks from weapons and strong characters.

Stats : (all of them start at 0, except for Aptitude, which begins at 3 normally, and cannot be raised via points. Include species bonus in brackets. You have 50 points to spend, except if you decide to have a Drive, noted below. Special Moves and Ars also require these 50 points, and any spent on those cannot be spent here. It's easier to keep track if you apply Mentor and species bonuses after spending your points, and include them in brackets)
-Strength :
-Intelligence :
-Charisma :
-Field :
-Agility :
-Aptitude :

Example : If a Mentor gives +3 to Charisma, you are a Human (+5 Charisma bonus), and you spend 5 points on Charisma, write it as : Charisma : 5 (+5 Human Bonus, +3 Mentor Bonus)

Drive (optional) : Certain people are able to manifest a Drive, thanks to the power of the Azure, otherwise known as the Blue, that lies deep within the Boundary. This is an ability unique to each person that can wield a Drive, and it's usually born from a strong soul, or via approaching the Boundary, the latter method risking transformation into a hideous form. Drives range from elemental attacks to weather control, utilize nearby seithr, and the effectiveness of your Drive's usage (if you have one) depend on your Field and Aptitude stats. Having a Drive costs 10 points, or 20 if it's a space or area (including weather) controlling or buff-based Drive. Time-based Drives cannot be used, with the exception of a time-slowing and a time-stopping Drive at 25 and 30 points, respectively, both requiring the limitation of being unable to attack others during it, even during Overdrive. Drives can be even an underling that works for you, be that a human-like, mindless doll, or a robot (as an example, Izanami was also a Drive manifestation, and two Mentors have robotic dolls as their Drives), likewise at the cost of 20 points. This ability can only be used at its full potential during Overdrive, and a person can only have one Drive.

As mentioned, usage of a Drive consumes nearby seithr, and will eventually begin using the user's soul as "fuel" if there's not enough seithr nearby, so they need to be used with caution.

Overdrive (optional) : Essentially a "limiter removal" Ars Magus that allows you to utilize your Drive to its fullest potential for a limited period of time, as mentioned in the Combat System section. While Overdrive is active, Distortion Drives become enhanced, all stats except Charisma and Intelligence temporarily double, and you may use your Drive even if there's barely any seithr around. However, utilizing Overdrive comes with a risk, since you won't be able to use it again, nor Burst, for a long period of time, and Overdrive itself lasts only for a few seconds at most. You cannot have an Overdrive if you decided not to have a Drive. (anyone who has a Drive recieves this in the form of "Overdrive Ars" for free, along with its stat-doubling effect, but if you'd like to go in deeper detail in how it improves your Drive, you may add it here). Overdrive has a duration of Field/2 seconds (10 seconds at 20 Field, usually, a few turns in combat), which may extend by up to double this duration by being near-death or almost defeated.

Distortion Drives (optional) : Your character's super moves, Distortion Drives are invincible, flashy, very powerful attacks that can easily turn the tide of a battle if used correctly. Distortion Drives will leave you tired after performing them (regardless if they hit, miss, or are blocked), and you'll suffer a penalty of 5 towards any stat check afterward for a short while, so use them wisely. There's no cost to bringing a Distortion Drive, but you may only have a maximum of two of them. Distortion Drives can range from anything like a single, powerful hit, to a huge combo, or a massive increase in speed. They have moderately long cooldowns, and can force stat checks with a maximum of five levels higher than yours in the respective stat. Unlike Overdrives, you may have Distortion Drives even if you have no actual Drive. Mentors may also provide you with Distortion Drives as part of their "relationship abilities" : these don't count towards or against the cap. Also, performing one Distortion Drive will put both on cooldown if you decide to bring two. For the sake of both simplicity and balance, unlike in BlazBlue, there's no way to combo after Distortion Drives in any way (except if you use a Distortion Drive Duo), and all Distortion Drives are invulnerable, but unsafe on block (even those which are not in the games).

Astral Heat (optional) : When you really need something defeated or killed, you turn to this. Astral Heats are fancy, extremely powerful attacks that have the ability to outright defeat targets with a single usage of them, usually lethally. However, Astral Heats leave you wide open for punishment if they fail, will incur a penalty of 10 towards any stat check for a while, and are really difficult to land on opponents that can still fight well. Astral Heats' stat checks can never exceed 10, but they have a +50 bonus towards Field and Strength checks if the opponent is in a weakened state, almost always guaranteeing their success if you can wait for the enemy to be weakened beforehand. As great it would be to be able to use Astral Heats repeatedly, they have a massive cooldown, so only go for them if they'll surely finish the battle at hand!

(NOTE : Astral Heats MUST be a single hit, that, if it connects, transitions into the finisher. You cannot have unblockable or grab-type Astrals, nor Astrals that do anything other than the initiating hit before it lands, but it is allowed to be a projectile, a fast moving attack, or a low/overhead attack)

Arrival Location, Starting Location and Selected Mentor (Arrival Location for non-Residents only, Mentor optional) : If you've been able to read this so far, then congratulations, there's only two more hurdles for you to pass! Select a location to start from, and optionally a Mentor, but be aware that certain Mentors may not select certain occupations to work with, and each Mentor has their own specific starting location (your Arrival or Starting Location must coincide with the Mentor's in-question to pick them)! Arrival Location is the location your character arrived at (for non-Residents only), while Starting Location is where the character is when the RP starts. You may also add how your character has met the chosen Mentor here (they seeked the Mentor out, the Mentor found them during a walk in the city streets, etc...). Up to two players can choose the same Mentor, if they'd like to.

Distortion Drive Duo (optional) : The actual final part of the sheet to fill, Distortion Drive Duo (for veterans, essentially the equivalent of Cross Tag Battle's Distortion Skill Duo) allows you and your Mentor to utilize Distortion Drives one after the other. The damage output of a Drive Duo comes close to the output of Astral Heats, and are guaranteed to deal its damage unless interrupted by an outside source, but these :
-Require you and your Mentor alike to be able to perform a Distortion Drive (not being hit or under the effect of Ars restrictions, not having used a Distortion Drive recently)
-Require you to have an attacking Distortion Drive available : Distortion Drives that target, heal or buff yourself or simply apply a debuff on the enemy are not compatible for Distortion Drive Duos (neither as starter, nor as ender)
-Cannot be performed without a Mentor, or without the chosen Mentor available (you can't perform Distortion Drive Duos with Mentors you haven't chosen, nor with other characters' Mentors)
-Will apply the usual penalties of Distortion Drives on miss, hit, or block alike (only for the person who initiated their Distortion Drive)
-Can only be performed after you have improved the relationship with your Mentor to the level where Kindred Ability is unlocked (or would be unlocked, for those who don't provide such an ability)
-Can't be used right off the bat : it's unlocked via story progression, the first step being that the character in question asks the Mentor to practice a tag-team attack (the Duo Drive).

The most basic Distortion Drive Duo simply involves the Mentor doing a Distortion Drive of their own, after which you follow-up with yours, or vice-versa, but feel free to let your creativity fly here : it is the only limit in a Distortion Drive Duo!

If you have any problems or doubts regarding the setting, on how to fill the character sheet or how certain actions are going to work, feel free to ask about it! Likewise, suggestions in improving the combat system are also greatly appreciated!

Potential Arrival and Starting Locations	Available Mentors
The 1st Hierarchial City of Ookoto - NOL Headquarters (NOL faction only)	Kagura Mutsuki, Hibiki Kohaku
The 6th Hiararchial City of Yabiko - Rail Station
The 6th Hierarchial City of Yabiko - Factory (Sector Seven faction only)	Kokonoe Mercury, TR-0009 "Iron" Tager, Azrael
The 7th Hierarchial City of Kazamotsu - Lakeside Port
The 8th Hierarchial City of Wadatsumi - Wadatsumi Castle Ruins
The 13th Hierarchial City of Kagutsuchi - Cathedral (NOL faction only) Circus Kagutsuchi Port Orient Town Bascule (the city's outskirts) Lost Town (below the city) Ronin District (accessible via Monorail) Monorail Sewers	Hazama, Jin Kisaragi, Relius Clover Carl Clover with Nirvana Litchi Faye Ling Taokaka, Jubei Bang Shishigami, Amane Nishiki Arakune
The 15th Hierarchial City of Torifune (NOL faction recommended) - Military Academy	Tsubaki Yayoi
Alucard Castle (Special Occupation only)	Rachel Alucard, Valkenhayn R. Hellsing

"You wanna tag along? Sure, I don't see why not... I just hope you can keep up with me."

Kagura Mutsuki, the Black Knight, is a colonel of the NOL, mainly doing administrative and commanding work, but more often than not, he steps out into the battlefield himself to show he's more than just a grumpy officer. He's also quite the ladies' man : suave and smooth, though fighting is more of his forte than talking. He mesmerizes opponents via his Drive, Black Gale, by mixing up his usage of stances, and attacks from said stances, making it difficult for the opponent to guard against his onslaught.

Notably, Kagura is also a powerful individual : having been able to move around and attack even while under the effect of Gravity Seed, a spell that restricts movement via gravity. He's also wise and cunning, having been able to defeat Azrael by noticing the weakness of his fighting style (which Kagura compared to a childlike tantrum) and tiring him out.

In battle, Kagura has tons of options for breaking the enemy's guard wide open. From his Neutral Stance, he can go for the Dragon Blast that has him punch his deployed sword forward, allowing him to tank an incoming hit, or open the enemy up with the Dragon's Claw grab, which is unblockable (although it can be jumped away/over from). Alternatively, Dragon Slaughter keeps opponents from jumping away, by kicking the sword upward in a rotating motion. This will launch opponents, giving enough time for Kagura to follow-up with a Distortion Drive for massive damage.

His Downward Stance allows usage of the Dragon Strike overhead smash, which he can mix with the lightning-fast Dragon's Blade sword slide which hits low, either attack being able to combo into his Supreme Dragon's Inferno. Dragon's Dual Strike dissuades opponents from jumping away with a hit that reaches above Kagura, followed by a bouncing smash that hits low. Finally, Forward Stance allows usage of Dragon's Fang, a forward-advancing low hit that launches the opponent, Dragon's Mirage, a fake-out that hits from behind, and Sky Dragon's Fang, a very offensive attack that destroys projectiles and leaves the enemy staggered for a followup.

If the stance tricks are not enough, he can utilize his Distortion Drives to bring the pain multiple times fold. His Supreme Dragon's Inferno lets loose a wave of fire, effective against opponents that are too close for any other option, and is also fast enough to combo after many of his stance options. The Dragon Lord's Striking Fang is Kagura's main damage-dealing Distortion, which has him slam the sword into the ground to let loose a big pillar of purple energy. Lastly, his Astral Heat, Black Dragon's Sky-Rending Blade, allows him to finish a weakened opponent by bringing down the sword on them in a very Kagura-like way, complete with surging energy.

While certain Sector Seven and NOL members have been working together, including Kagura, Hibiki, Kokonoe, Tager and Makoto, during the events before "The Shift", these two factions are now once again competing each other : the NOL wishing to have as much influence over the Cities as possible, while Sector Seven intends to use science to help humanity, and take down the NOL and their regime. With a heavy heart, Kagura steps into the action, disheartened due to having to fight his former allies, but not unwilling to do so.

Stat Bonuses :
STR : +3
INT : +1
CHA : +3
FIE : -1
AGI : +2
APT : -1

Likes : Freelancers, Vigilantes
Won't work with : Criminals, Employees

Special Ability : Black Gale : If your character fights with a sword, Kagura may teach stance-based combat, similar to the one he uses.
Kindred Ability : The Ladies' Man : It probably won't actually get you ladies, but it's close enough. Charisma stat checks no longer need to be performed "against" female characters : you'll pass all of them.
Ultimate Ability : Nice and Easy : Now that's some fine talk there, my friend. Charisma stat checks are automatically passed against anyone.

"If this is Lord Kagura's wish... I shall put my back into it. Don't be dead weight."

Kagura Mutsuki's secretary, Hibiki Kohaku assists Kagura in his administrative work around the office, but just like him, he also often goes out into the field, performing mainly assassinative tasks, tasks for which he's well-equipped for. With his Drive, Double Chase, he can send out shadow clones and use fast movements to move in for the kill. Beneath his cool facade lies a side that desires nothing but to become a weapon used for killing. Both of his Distortion Drives are more suited for mid- and long range, but Shadow Dance "Hidden Phoenix", a rapid dance attack from a blade projectile, is perfectly viable as a close range reversal as well. Black Thunder "Nue" allows Hibiki to descend upon the opponent in the blink of an eye, dealing great damage via an overhead slash, while his Divine Nightfall : Raven utilizes clones to confuse the opponent, followed by Hibiki dealing the finisher with lethal slashes from all directions. A sneaky Astral Heat for a sneaky person.

Naturally, these moves are not always available, but good usage of his special moves definitely allows Hibiki to rob the enemy of any initiative. Soaring Slash and Soaring Slash : Revolution start the exact same way, via a rush at the opponent, blades in front, but the former ends by hitting the enemy directly with them and yanking the blade out, while the latter crosses up the opponent before a Launching upward slash, allowing Hibiki to follow up with Shadow Dance for great damage and essentially forcing the opponent to guess which way to block. Double Wing Cyclone has Hibiki rise upward while slashing around himself as an invincible reversal, which, like any other of its kind, is really punishable if blocked. Perhaps his most powerful tool is the Soaring Kick (which, despite the name, has no actual kick involved), a leap from which he can transition into various attacks : Piercing Feather allows him to keep opponents pinned via throwing knives, keeping him safe if blocked, and chipping away at barrier at the same time. Thrashing Claw is an offensive option which has Hibiki attack with an overhead slice that bounces the enemy for a follow-up. Pulverizing Fin is Hibiki's well-known anti-air Izuna Drop, where he piledrives any unfortunate airborne enemy into the ground, allowing him to keep initiative. Lastly, Catastrophic Strike baits the opponent into hitting him, and if they do, he'll immediately retaliate with a staggering attack that allows him to follow-up.

Dual Wing Smash : Heaven and Earth is a more interesting usage of his Double Chase ability, allowing Hibiki to summon an illusionary clone, and rush forward along with it, confusing the opponent and impeding their ability to know which way to block. Void allows Hibiki to send two clones forward while actually staying in place himself, another great way at testing the opponent's habits in combat or their reactions to a sudden maneuver. Lastly, Piercing-Muzzle Blade is a "divekick" with a small sword held out front : great as a movement option and as a combo ender alike.

Hibiki has no interest towards the outcome of the ongoing events himself, but since Kagura is fighting for the sake of the NOL, Hibiki joins the fray on the same side, willing to have this task carried out no matter the requirements.

Stat Bonuses :
STR : -1
INT : +2
CHA : -3
FIE : +2
AGI : +3
APT : +1

Likes and Won't work with whoever Kagura commands him to. Poor guy...

Special Ability : Precision : Gain the ability to use everyday, sharp objects as lethal throwing weapons. If you're already capable of doing this, Hibiki's training will enhance the damage and speed of throwing even further.
Kindred Ability : Otherworldly Reflex : Gain a +3 on every defensive Agility check.
Ultimate Ability : Dual Wing Smash : Heaven and Earth : Gain a lesser ability of Hibiki's shadow clone technique via an illusionary Ars : sending out a shadow clone along with you to attack. Heaven is an overhead attack, Earth is a low sweep. If the opponent guards incorrectly, you automatically win the check.

"I don't want to hear any of your bullshit! You do as I say, got it?!"

Kokonoe Mercury, daughter of Jubei and the now deceased Konoe Ayatsuki Mercury, otherwise known as Nine, a half-human half-cat beastkin. Her inventions and scientific breakthroughs are truly mind-blowing, but she just can't be bothered to actually go out and do some work herself, preferring that her creations and underlings do that instead. She's also the one who saved Iron Tager from an attack that almost cost him his life.

If she ever goes out on the field herself, Kokonoe uses various gadgets, such as a drill on a metal rod, robotic gloves, missiles and bombs to show that science is true power! Her special moves include Flame Cage, which launches a fireball that keeps the opponent pinned down if it hits, and can be moved around via Gravitons. Banishing Rays shocks the opponent on hit, and keeps Kokonoe somewhat safe on block, allowing her to follow-up in the former case. Planar Haze uses a device to teleport forward, or to a Graviton if one is on the field. She also has the option to bring things up close and personal with Bunker Buster, a rush attack that has Kokonoe hit the opponent with metal gloves, plant a bomb on them, then punch them away.

While her Drive, Graviton, is a potent field control tool via manipulating gravity, her greatest ace up the sleeve is her most powerful Distortion Drive, Super Dreadnought Exterminator, which summons a Giant Tager to fire a beam from its chest, inflicting incredible damage. If the circumstances don't allow setting it up, Flaming Belobog is a great alternative for close-range combat, which fires a powerful, huge fireball to greatly damage those too close for comfort. Jamming Dark summons a powerful black hole that transports the opponent to above Kokonoe if they get sucked into it, leaving them wide open for follow-ups. Lastly, on the opposite end of the polar spectrum, Absolute Zero allows Kokonoe to freeze opponents with her freeze gun, before following up with a burst from a Gatling gun. If it's her first time utilizing this in an encounter, the follow-up Crime of Greed is a definite blast for the target as they get to be a part of some fireworks thanks to an out-of-nowhere missile.

Since the NOL has been acting shady recently, at the expense of Sector Seven influence, Kokonoe has decided to investigate them, and find a way to put them out of commission once and for all.

Stat Bonuses :
STR : -2
INT : +5
CHA : -3
FIE : +3
AGI : -3
APT : -2

Likes : Freelancers, Undercover (for Sector Seven)
Won't work with : Vigilantes, Employees, High-rank criminals

Special Ability : Ars-Neutering Field : Science is true power! All Ars-based attacks suffer from a -3 penalty when used against you.
Kindred Ability : Graviton : Replica : You've earned Kokonoe's trust to carry a replica of her Graviton into the field of battle, which is a small machine that exerts a powerful gravitational pull. While under the effects, everyone nearby (including you!) suffer -4 to their defensive Agility checks, and movement becomes harder (except for you).
Ultimate Ability : Absolute Zero/Crime of Greed (Distortion Drive) : Not exactly an "ability" only, since you'll need a (provided) freeze gun to perform it. But this special move, consisting of a freeze gun attack into a gatling gun burst is definitely powerful! Automatically transitions into Crime of Greed if you haven't used a Distortion Drive recently for even greater damage, and some minor fireworks.

"Depending on someone to watch my back... doesn't feel bad at all."

Iron Tager, also known as the Red Devil, and by his codename, TR-0009 Tager, was originally a high-ranked, professional soldier, who suffered mortal wounds during an attack on Sector Seven territory by the NOL. Kokonoe has rebuilt him as a cyborg, deeming it the only way to save the man's life. The procedure worked, resulting in the creation of the cyborg now known as Iron Tager, who recieved his nickname of "Red Devil" thanks to his new appearence. He now obeys every command of Kokonoe, but even he questions them at times.

Using magnetism as his Drive, coupled with powerful grabs that ignore the enemy's guard, Tager is easily dealt with at long range, but no one can shrug off a "GIGANTIC TAGER!" once he manages to close the distance. Gigantic Tager Driver and Wedge Catapult are both powerful grabs, the former essentially being a backbreaker, the latter being an invulnerable, but slow attack that throws the opponent up in the air and leaves them open for a follow-up. Sledge Hammer allows Tager to deliver a powerful hit while plowing through the opponent's projectiles, while Atomic Collider makes sure that they won't be jumping around for long, being an unblockable anti-air grab. Spark Bolt, his only ranged option, can only be seldomly used as it requires a charge, but allows Tager to instantly turn the tide of battle around, even more so since it causes a lengthy stagger on hit and magnetizes the enemy (in the games, it wall-bounces instead, but wall-bounce wouldn't make physical sense).

His Magna-Tech Wheel utilizes electricity and fast spinning as a Distortion Drive to deal massive damage, along with a possible follow-up punch, Tera Break, if MTW didn't cut it. His Genesic Emerald Tager Buster (GETB for short) is an incredibly powerful grab, capable of putting even strong opponents out of commission in a single go. Lastly, his King of Tager Astral Heat has him grab the opponent, ascend into the sky, then come crashing down as a meteor, of course, the opponent taking the impact of this.

Under Kokonoe's orders, Tager steps out into the field once more to observe the NOL and its branches, interfering if necessary.

Stat Bonuses :
STR : +3
INT : +3
CHA : -2
FIE : +2
AGI : -2
APT : -2

Likes : Freelancers, Vigilantes, Undercover (for Sector Seven)
Won't work with : Criminals (unless ordered to do so by Kokonoe)

Special Ability : Special Regimen : Tager knows what spots to hit to further your effectiveness. Distortion Drives have lower cooldown and don't apply stat penalties.
Kindred Ability : Extend Field : Power up! You recieve one free Burst per encounter, and a permanent +2 to your Field via fine-tuning Ars.
Ultimate Ability : Executive Order : Your enemies won't get off their hooks anymore! Distortion Drives become safe if blocked (the opponent won't be able to deal a free hit on you), and Astral Heats won't apply their stat penalties if they happen to fail. Distortion Drives allow you a follow-up after they cause a Guard Crush, allowing you to perform semi-unblockable setups.

"What use do I have for such a small puppy? I know now... I can feed them, grow them up, then get to fry a big fish!"

Azrael, also known as the Mad Dog of Sector Seven, is an extremely powerful soldier "working" for Sector Seven. However, he rarely obeys orders, and instead, prefers to pursue his own interest : fighting. Azrael's power is second to none, and is, in fact, so immense that he is bound to a limiter called "Enchant Dragunov", and he also deliberately holds back in battles to prevent his "fun time" from being over too early. With his limiters released, he's able to go toe-to-toe with just about anyone, including Ragna with his Azure Grimoire activated, if he was still alive, and the Six Heroes.

His appearence alone suggests that he's a powerhouse not to be messed with, and he proves that with his special moves. Gustav Buster is a fast-moving rush attack aimed at the gut that staggers on hit, allowing Azrael to keep up the pressure. His famous "rekka" series, Tiger Magnum > Cobra Spike > Leopard Launcher are a fast succession of attacks : a gut punch, a high kick and a spinning punch with incredible force that causes groundslide. Leopard is punishable if blocked, but Azrael can end the pressure at Tiger to stay mostly safe. Growler Field allows him to absorb an incoming projectile, and then launch his own in the form of a fireball, the Phalanx Cannon, that causes a knockdown on hit. Sentinel Dump has Azrael jump forward and smash into the ground with his weight, keeping him at advantage, but its slow startup can be interrupted. Lastly, Panzer Strike is his main reversal, jumping knee-first upward, hitting any unfortunate opponent nearby, followed by smashing them back down. Like all other reversals, it's greatly punishable if blocked.

His Drive, The Terror, allows placing weakpoints on opponents : upper and lower weakpoints, with low attacks applying a low weakpoint, and high attacks applying upper weakpoints. These allow Azrael to cause launches, bounces or staggers via certain attacks, allowing him to dish out massive combos and damage. Via his Overdrive, he can apply these even on block. His Distortion Drives also have great synergy with these points : Black Hawk Stinger becomes unblockable with both weakpoints active (crouching unblockable with low weakpoint, standing unblockable with high weakpoint), while Scud Punishment temporarily applies and keeps both weakpoints active. His Astral Heat, Patriot Apocalypse, provides a glimpse into Azrael's true power via a punch that causes a volcano-like explosion!

Azrael was once imprisoned into a dimensional prison, from which he escaped by tearing it apart with his own bare hands. Following the events of BlazBlue : Centralfiction, he was put back in there, thanks to Ragna's actions, and Kokonoe made sure he couldn't escape until his presence was needed again. Seeing that the time has come, Kokonoe reluctantly lets him free once again, hoping that he will defeat anyone who could be a rival to Sector Seven.

Stat Bonuses :
STR : +3
INT : -2
CHA : -1
FIE : +5
AGI : -5
APT : +3

Likes : Anyone, as long as they can provide him satisfaction
Won't work with : Too weak characters (STR < 13, including Azrael's bonus)

Special Ability : Savage Dog : You're no chew toy! Your Distortion Drives become unblockable, but become even more punishable if they completely miss, and have a longer cooldown.
Kindred Ability : Unstoppable Force : Give them all you've got! Earn a +3 (on top of Azrael's bonus) on any Strength check.
Ultimate Ability : Colosseo : Now that is something! Automatically pass all Clash checks, regardless of your stats!

"A partner, huh? This is ought to be interesting..."

Hazama is an artificial human, originally having been created to be the host vessel for one of the series' main antagonists, Yuuki Terumi. Ever since Terumi's death, Hazama has more or less returned to his "normal" self, but having a serious encounter with Hazama is not a much better fate than having one with Terumi. While nowhere as powerful, Hazama is nevertheless sadistic, and always enjoys beating his opponents to a pulp.

He hides this behavior under the facade of an everyday officer, which is quite easily done, since no one dares to speak up against him, and he's also the Captain of the Intelligence Department of the NOL, which means that there's not much out there that he doesn't know. He also has a liking towards boiled eggs, and his personality and attacks greatly resemble snakes (sly, cunning, manipulative etc...).

His Drive, Ouroburos, further alludes at his snake-like being : allowing him to utilize chains with a snake-headed tip to attack from a distance, and is able to reel himself around with them as a movement option, the weapon used to do so also being a Nox Nyctores. His Distortion Drives cover all areas very well : Mizuchi Rekkazan is a long range attack that drags the opponent in for some slicing and dicing, Jayoku Houtenjin is Hazama's infamous super split kick that sends any unfortunate target towards the heavens, while Orochi Burensou lets loose Hazama's true colors (orginally, his Terumi part) for a barrage of stomps after a grab attack, great for bypassing guards. All of these moves are greatly enhanced during his Overdrive, Jörmungandr. Lastly, his Astral Heat, Senkon Meiraku, summons a giant snake of energy to deliver a fatal bite.

Hazama also possesses the Bleu Grimoire, or, more accurately, is said grimoire himself, a more "advanced" version of Ragna's Blue Grimoire, also known as the Azure Grimoire. If the situation goes dire, he can remove the restriction via Code SOL (Soul of Language) to elevate his powers far beyond the level that others' Overdrives can achieve for a short period of time. It also absorbs the life force of those nearby while active.

With his major troubles, such as Ragna and Terumi, being out of the picture, Hazama sets out to put the Hierarchial Cities under complete NOL rule, not minding if "sacrifices" or bloodshed need to be made along the way.

Stat Bonuses :
STR : -3
INT : +5
CHA : -6
FIE : 0
AGI : +3
APT : +4

Likes : Freelancers, Criminals, Undercover (for NOL), Vigilantes
Won't work with : Anyone else

Special Ability : Exclusive Ars : For when Hazama actually begins to value you somewhat. You will no longer take damage from his life-absorbing field.
Kindred Ability : Tension Drive and Venom Sword : A lasting memento from Terumi. Land attacks to decrease the cooldowns on your Distortion Drives (for BB veterans, this is essentially the RP equivalent of Terumi's high heat-gauge-gaining Drives). He'll also teach you Venom Sword, an energy attack in the shape of a snake's head.
Ultimate Ability : Ars Bypass : Is tinkering with stuff like this safe? Nevertheless, Hazama adjusts your Overdrive, allowing you to become much more powerful (the equivalent of Unlimited forms in BlazBlue) instead of enhancing your Drive, and unlocks new Distortion Drives, but you'll suffer a -3 penalty to Strength and -5 to Field outside of Overdrive, and nearby seithr is consumed faster. Can be toggled on or off by asking Hazama to do so.

"I'll handle this one. Stay in my way, and you'll die!"

Jin Kisaragi is a Major of the NOL, and also Commander of one of the NOL's Divisions, with a heart and fighting style quite literally as cold as ice. Jin is cold, uncaring, and borderline sociopathic towards everyone, however, when around Ragna, his behavior greatly changes to reference one of twisted, brotherly love : the tone of his voice rises, he often laughs maniacally, and feels compelled to kill him, sort of like a yandere. However, this isn't due to Jin's personality itself : instead, the change in personality is caused by his Nox Nyctores (Arch-Enemy Event Weapons, the ultimate form of Magic Formula), his sword : Yukianesa, which has a will of its own, as well as the Power of Order, a power that counters something to maintain the world's balance. When around Ragna, the Power of Order compels Jin to kill him, since Ragna was the Black Beast which has been ravaging the world for years during the time loops.

Having learned his fighting style in Torifune, also known as the Military Academy, Jin is no pushover in combat : while he lacks raw power compared to others, the Power of Order, his finesse and his ability to control ice via Yukianesa and his Drive (Frostbite) work together to great degree, making him a very formidable opponent for just about anyone. His Distortion Drives consist of his signature Ice Wave (Touga Hyoujin), a powerful anti-air and reversal move in the form of Moonsong (Hiyoku Getsumei), and a counter attack against reckless targets, Winter's Riposte (Yukikaze). His Astral Heat, Arctic Dungeon (Rengoku Hyouya) encases the opponent in ice, who is then shattered into hundreds of fine pieces.

And then there's moves such as his infamous Musou Shenshouzan, also known as the "Ice Car" (named such since he jumps on an icicle to ride it forward for a low attack) or "Nissan" for a reason, Sekkajin, a close range attack that leaves the opponent staggered for a follow-up, Rehhyou, Fubuki and Hirensou, all being good reversals that are invincible, cover an anti-air angle and do both, respectively, and Hishouken, which sends a blade of ice at the opponent : great for giving the opponent something to deal with, or to test their movement and reaction habits.

With Ragna absent, Jin has been recently feeling bouts of sadness and a feeling of emptiness. He decides to wander around the Hierarchial Cities in pursuit of entities that might disrupt the world's balance, but also with the secondary goals of increasing NOL influence as much as possible, and protecting his childhood friend, Tsubaki Yayoi.

Stat Bonuses : +1 to all stats

Likes : Vigilantes, Military, Employees
Won't work with : Freelancers, Criminals

Special Ability : Intimidate : A cold heart easily gets what he wants. Earn a +4 on any Charisma check, and it becomes easier to threaten people.
Kindred Ability : Greatest Blade : Finesse wins over raw power any day. If you use a sword, Jin teaches you his refined fighting style, allowing you to win stat checks in swrodfights easier, and adds +2 to your Strength and Agility (even if you don't use a sword).
Ultimate Ability : Yukikaze (Distortion Drive) : Jin teaches you his Winter's Riposte Distortion Drive... at least, the counter part of it, done via a defensive Ars. What you do with the opponent afterwards is up to you.

"Fascinating.... I may have found a way to further my goals, after all..."

Relius Clover, also known as The Puppeteer, is a mysterious man who is always on the move, pursuing his own agenda. He was once able to see into the Boundary, and realized the "truth" : people are nothing more than souls, taking on the form of glimpses of the Blue. Ever since, Relius begun viewing people as nothing but tools (excluding himself, oddly enough), going as far as remaking his wife, Ignis, into his personal combat doll, a "Detonator", and implating his daughter, Ada's soul into the Nox Nyctores known as Nirvana, who was previously a soulless automaton.

He rarely has permanent partners : his "partnerships" are formed and broken as he sees fit, even having jumped between the NOL and Sector Seven as the events around him dictated. Relius' only lasting partner is Hazama, and along with him, he seeks to re-create Ignis as the Master Unit, to allow him to rebuild reality in his own image. With the disappearence of the actual Master Unit, this task would be impossible for any normal person, but thanks to data still available deep inside the Boundary, Relius is determined to have his utopia come true, no matter the cost.

His moveset is mainly based around Ignis, thus, he is extremely weak of his own, but he still has nasty tricks up his sleeves and mantles : he can summon mechanical arms from his cape, a spiky gear or a large fist from the ground (Geara Lugia and Id Lauger, respectively), and his Distortion Drive, Req Vinum, summons gears to grind away on the opponent, albeit at the cost of leaving Relius wide open for a punish if it's blocked or misses. His other two Distortion Drives, Vol Tedo and Duo Bios utilize Ignis for a powerful blow and a series of attacks designed to keep the opponent pinned down, respectively. He's not entirely defenseless without Ignis, but more powerful Mentors can force him to retreat without problems. His Astral Heat, Altar of the Puppet, uses Ignis to deliver a deadly finishing blow after grabbing the enemy. (Note for veterans : This is much different than Relius' actual Astral Heat, but there's no explanation on how that one actually works, so I went for something different)

Relius grants only a Special Ability (no Kindred or Ultimate Ability), but he has better stat bonuses than other Mentors, and may agree to lend you Ignis if need to be for special operations, or in the case of an emergency.

Stat Bonuses :
STR : 0
INT : +5
CHA : +4
FIE : +3
AGI : -2
APT : +1

Likes : Anyone willing to work towards his goals
Won't work with : Anyone else

Special Ability : Mind Screw : Mind-attacking Ars that forces painful memories or thoughts to arise, causing extreme mental strain on the target. Proficient usage may completely break any unfortunate soul this is used on.

"I know the ways around Kagutsuchi... I can help you... if you promise to help me take down my father."

Carl Clover, the son of Relius Clover and Ignis. Harboring extreme hatred towards his father for what he did to Carl's sister, Ada (having put her soul into Nirvana), Carl has been searching for Relius for a long time to bring him to justice, but so far, he had no success in doing so. He still continues his "hunt" to this very day, wielding the Nox Nyctores, Deus Machina : Nirvana (orginally made by Nine and controlled with magic), a combat doll similar to Relius' Detonator, Ignis, albeit with the difference of Nirvana being fully sentinent. Since Nirvana has Ada's soul in her, she's devoted to ensuring Carl's safety, even if it requires her to go against his orders. Carl often gets into trouble with the "grown-ups", mainly Noel and Litchi, who deem him too young to fight, but he's eager to prove them wrong.

Like Relius, Carl's moveset mainly revolves around his doll, Nirvana (in the form of his Drive, Automaton), and is extremely weak without her at the ready, even more so than Relius. Carl can still attack with various, steampunk-like small robots, however, such as a knight with a lance, or a small doll sent at the opponent's feet to trip them (Cantabile). Carl's only reversal option is his Laetabilis Cantata Distortion Drive that summons a huge gear to grind on the opponent. His other Distortion Drives are Rhapsody of Memories, which is a barrage of punches from Nirvana to pin an opponent down, and Fermata, a super powerful punch that's great as an anti-air. His Astral Heat, Deus Ex Machina, utilizes Nirvana to cause a massive explosion, at the cost of deactivating her for a long while (yes, he uses his pre-Chronophantasma Astral).

Nirvana herself comes with a wide variety of moves, perfect for pinning opponents down and breaking their guards. She can do a low, spinning sweep, a powerful overhead punch, and a clap above her head as an anti-air move. Her special moves include Con Tenerezza, a powerful two hit move that pulls the opponent in, Con Brio, an attack with her nails elongating diagonally upward, Volante, a projectile, Con Fuoco, a drill attack, Con Anima, a grab, and La Campanella, to quickly teleport Nirvana to Carl, if need to be.

Nirvana's greatest strength comes from her structure : it takes lots of effort to knock Nirvana out of commission, and her nails are made of a material that is able to temporarily disable the Magic Formula (Ars Magus) usage of its targets.

From father to son, Carl doesn't grant an Ultimate Ability, but he does provide a Kindred Ability, and he may lend you Nirvana if the situation deems it necessary (though due to her sentinence, this may be a harder task than in the case of Ignis).

Stat Bonuses :
STR : -3
INT : +3
CHA : 0
FIE : +3
AGI : -2
APT : +3

Likes : Freelancers, Employees, Vigilantes
Won't work with : Military, Criminals

Special Ability : Vivace : A "dashing stride" via evasive Ars that allows you to pass through attacks and people like they weren't there. Can be used in place of any Agility check, winning you the check even if your Agility is far below the required level. Low cooldown, but leaves you open for a short time (recovery), allowing a keen opponent to punish you for it.
Kindred Ability : Duet : It takes two to tango. Allows you and Nirvana to attack the opponent together, even allowing unblockable setups if everything is executed perfectly. Also, the cooldown on your Distortion Drive Duo is lower.

"Managing the clinic with only one assistant can be such a pain... may I recruit you as one?"

Litchi Faye Ling, teacher and clinic owner in Orient Town, Kagutsuchi, elegant, refined, beautiful and smart : she's the embodiment of the perfect woman. However, like most people in and around Kagutsuchi, her tale is not so light-hearted : ever since her colleague and love interest, Lotte Carmine, got too close to the Boundary and transformed into Arakune, she has been travelling across the world in an effort to find a cure, not minding fighting and hopping across both factions along the way. As an example, when Hazama mentioned that the NOL has the methods to cure Arakune of his transformation, that was enough to persuade her into joining it (albeit temporarily).

Following the events of Centralfiction, in this take, she has returned to work in and around her clinic, and Lost Town, where the Kaka clan (a clan of human-like cats), including Taokaka and Jubei reside. Her heart still sullen due to the fact that she was still unable to cure Arakune, she once again sets out to have this dream come true, having to carefully balance work time at her clinic, and going out in the field for surveillance and searching for a way to have her beloved back.

Litchi is lacking compared to the more powerful individuals of the world, but she's certainly no pushover. Her Drive is essentially the rod she uses, Mantenbou, which can be thrown, moved around, similarly to telekinesis, and can be even sent flying at the opponent and back to her like a boomerang. Notably, it also has a very useful ability in and out of combat : being able to change size, and to an extent, appearence (it can be thick for various attacks, or can be short and wide to be used as a stool). Her various techniques make use of the staff, such as the defensive Straight Through, a spinning staff attack called The Four Winds, and a stylish toss of the staff in the form of Ren Chan. That's not all she's capable of, however, as Litchi is also adept at martial arts moves, and she's more than capable of fighting unarmed, a fact further proven with her chainable Three Dragons techniques. Along with that, she can rapidly move towards the rod via Reach : Kong on Kong, and advance with an explosive rush of Chi energy via Kanchan. She's also able to stand on top of the rod (Reach : Last Chance) and initiate various attacks from there, including her rapid kick barrage Astral Heat, Nine Gates of Heaven. Her Distortion Drives include All Green (usable either when staffed or when unarmed), a sudden, powerful explosion of flames, All Terminals, a stylish combo after a rushing palm attack, and Thirteen Orphans, which temporarily brings the rod to life : turning it into a stick figure that throws punches, keeping the opponent locked down, before finishing with a rising cyclone attack. Her Overdrive, The Great Wheel, makes the rod rapidly spin, and she can send it forth as a wider rod to keep the opponent pinned during her sequences.

The power to animate Mantenbou comes from Litchi's "pet panda", Lao Jiu, who is always hugging onto her hair. It taps directly into the Boundary, leeching power for Litchi to use, at the cost of slowly eroding her mind, which is probably what caused her to be so compelled towards saving Arakune.

Bang Shishigami, a ninja, is in love with her, and has tried to get close to her heart multiple times, only to fail every single time so far.

Litchi doesn't provide an Ultimate Ability, but her stat bonuses are not as radical as most of the other Mentors', and her respected status allows easier interaction with the city folk (of Kagutsuchi).

Stat Bonuses :
STR : -2
INT : +1
CHA : +2
FIE : +2
AGI : +2
APT : -2

Likes : Freelancers, Employees
Won't work with : Criminals, Vigilantes, Military

Special Ability : Kanchan : Litchi teaches you her Kanchan technique, allowing you to bypass an attack and retaliate with one of your own : a dashing movement followed by Chi energy from the palm. Moderate cooldown
Kindred Ability : Noble Heart : Kindness is key. Gain a positive reputation with the city folk (of Kagutsuchi), and gain discounts at stores, espicially her clinic.

"No fair! Good guy promised to feed Tao if Tao became his companion... whatever that means, meow!" (oh god...)

Taokaka is a member of the Kaka clan, living in the Lost Town beneath most of Kagutsuchi, where seithr can be densely found, but in quantities that's not yet harmful for humans and Kakas alike. Taokaka is only interested in two things : food and sleeping. She's the type of person who forgets the names of people around her just after three seconds or steps, having to rely on nicknames to remember them. Her intelligence is abysmal (in Calamity Trigger, she set out to assassinate Ragna, but she assumed that the bounty was about someone named "Rawgna", so she instead became "friends" with him, as he fed her), and she's willing to be friends with just about anyone who is willing to feed her... which usually comes with a hefty bill.

Taokaka's only noteworthy ability is her Drive, Dancing Edge, which allows her to "shoot" herself claw-first at opponents, like a torpedo, and grants her great aerial mobility. Her Distortion Drives include Hexa-Edge, which is a barrage of claw attacks, while I'mma beat the crap out of you! is a jumping grab that cannot be blocked, but misses crouching opponents. Unison Meow! (Aerial Dancing Edge) has Tao claw at the opponent from the air, launching them for a follow-up of Dancing Edge attacks from all directions, before divekicking them to the ground.

Surprisingly, Tao is also capable of using Ars, thanks to being part of the Kaka clan, which was a genetically created race using Jubei as the base. This ability surfaces in the form of her Almost Becoming Two, Meow! Overdrive, which creates an "afterimage with mass", effectively doubling her strikes for a short duration.

Stat Bonuses :
STR : +2
INT : -3
CHA : -3
FIE : +2
AGI : +6
APT : +2

Likes : Good people willing to give her food
Won't work with : Bad people, people who hurt Kakas

Special Ability : This one is a Tao special, Meow! : She means her fast movement. Oh well. Gain a +2 on any Agility check (like you need it...) and lowers the cooldown of your Distortion Drives a little.
Kindred Ability : Big punch, Meow! : Use when blocking an attack. If you do, retaliate with a move or Special Attack immediately out of blockstun, pushing the opponent away (equivalent of Counter Assault).
Ultimate Abiity : Almost Becoming Two, Meow! (Distortion Drive) : A lesser version of Almost Becoming Two, with a duration of only a few seconds at best. It's her fault... she's capable of using Ars, yet she's incapable of explaining how exactly she does it. It's still useful in a pinch. Gain a 50% increase in Strength and Field for Clash and Attack checks, and the ability to keep the opponent pinned for short pressure strings.

"You managed to keep up with me.... impressive, kid."

Jubei, also known as Mitsuyoshi, or the One-Eyed Twin Lotus, is a cat beastman (human-like animal) who wields the Nox Nyctores, Mucro Somnio (Dream Blades) : Mushashi, a pair of kodachis that can "cut what normally can't be cut" (although what this means is never explained). He's a very-well recognized figure and just about everyone in the Hierarchial Cities knows of him, and he was also the tutor and mentor of Ragna, having trained him in his childhood, both in ways of fighting and etiquette. Not only he's also very versed with Ars, and is really knowledgable, but he was also the husband of Konoe Ayatsuki Mercury (Nine), and a part of the legendary Six Heroes, who have fought and defeated the Black Beast decades ago.

In this alternate take on the story, Jubei and Valkenhayn are the only remaining, still alive members of the Six Heroes (since Trinity, Terumi, Nine and Hakumen are gone). Jubei is way past his prime, but he's nevertheless still a force to be reckoned with, being able to easily beat reckless opponents via his speed and finesse. He lacks a reliable, invincible Distortion Drive, but Thousand Hands : Roaring Pillar and Twin Guardians : Mourning Shore are still great rush and overhead attacks, respectively. His Drive, Shiranui, puts his movement advantage to great use with extremely fast, dashing attacks that leave Shiranui Marks on opponents, allowing him to "teleport" to the enemy when executing either of his Distortion Drives. This is further enhanced with Fudou : Shaurenjin, Jubei's "install" super, which taps into the full potential of his movement, upgrading his Drives and close-ranged attacks.

Little do the others know that his right eye is actually his late brother's, Tomonori's eye, which has the ability to percieve the true form of someone, in particular, Terumi, this aspect of which was utilized to weaken him. Jubei puts this to use in his Asura : Thunderbird Rising Astral Heat, using said eye to reveal the weak spots of the enemy, and eviscerate them in a brutal, yet refined flurry of slashes.

Jubei currently mostly spends his time in the Lost Town, in the Kaka village, tending to the needs of the people, training and teaching the children, and trying to put some sense into Taokaka. He's aware of the currently ongoing crisis, and while he wants to end it, he doesn't want to take part in it himself, and thus, he's waiting for an opportunity to turn things around for the better.

Starting with Jubei means you'll take a significant hit to your Aptitude, as Jubei limits your abilities until he can trust you, but you'll start with much more Intelligence, and over time, he'll let you utilize the full extent of your abilities again, removing the Aptitude penalty.

Stat Bonuses :

STR : -5
INT : +7
CHA : -5
FIE : +2
AGI : +5
APT : initially -5, will increase to +3 over time

Likes : Anyone with a sense of good will and justice
Won't work with : Criminals, evil people

Special Ability : Detector : Keep the mind fresh, and reap the rewards. You'll be able to see the concentration of seithr in an area (useful for casting and knowing when the opponent would be unable to cast Ars Magus).
Kindred Ability : Finest Stroke : Ragna and Jin have got their teachings from a legendary teacher, after all. Clash checks become easier to win, and you can inflict Critical Hits by punishing attacks or Distortion Drives, greatly increasing damage dealt.
Ultimate Ability : Fudou : Shaurenjin (Distortion Drive) : Never turn down a master's teachings. You'll be able to use a lesser version of Shaurenjin, greatly enhancing your Agility and making such checks much easier to win for a limited time. Usual Distortion Drive rules apply.

"I, Bang Shishigami, am greatly honored to have you by my side! In the name of Tenjo, we will bring justice to all evil-doers!"

Bang Shishigami, a firm believer in justice and honor, is a ninja from the Ikaruga Federation, having devoted himself to fight in the names of justice and the former empress of Ikaruga, Tenjo Amanohokosaka. Once the Ikaruga Civil War came to be, however, the Ikaruga Federation (which was situated in the Hierarchial City of Ibukido) was destroyed by the NOL (due to openly rebelling against them and declaring indepedence), and Tenjo slain by Jin Kisaragi. Bang, however, survived the war, and moved into the Ronin District of Kagutsuchi, residing there ever since, meting out justice to any evildoers along with his subordinates, who, embarrassingly enough, cry way too easily.

Bang didn't have a big role in the story until the point where it's been realized that his weapon, the giant 55-inch nail carried by him, Phoenix : Rettenjo, is actually a Nox Nyctores that's capable of activating Kushinada's Lynchpin, a device that's able to neutralize the flow of seithr in a gigantic area (even the entire world). It was utilized to its full extent to defeat Izanami and Terumi, and is unknown what happened to it afterwards.

In this take of the after-story, Bang has returned to the Ronin District with Rettenjo, wandering the area to help people in need whenever he's able to. Having also heard of the conspiracies surrounding the NOL and Sector Seven, he decides not to be a part of it, and to only interfere if absolutely necessary.

In battle, Bang is not on par with the more powerful people of BlazBlue, but his mobility and smarts more than make up for it. He fights with a variety of Nails (poison, explosive and normal nails), and is able to place them on the battlefield as Bumpers, to perform fast movements off them. The arts he has learnt while working with the Ikaruga Special Forces is what he's notable for, however, with a moveset that's well designed for opening up the opponent's guard, including the Double Palm Thrust, the Void Tempest Kick grab, and various powerful punches and kicks. His Drive, Burning Heart consists of flaming punches and kicks that unlock Fu-Rin-Ka-Zan seals, which are utilized during his Overdrive of the same name, allowing him to perform Bumper Dashes at alarming speeds. His Distortion Drives include Daifunka, where he pummels the opponent with a combo and sends them smashing into the nearest wall, Ashura, which creates a flame pillar to attack, following up with a dive attack using a clone, and Hurricane Fury, when all Fu-Rin-Ka-Zan seals are unlocked : a teleport followed by a grab that's easily avoidable, but great when used as an attack call-out. His Astral Heat, The Ultimate Bang has him use Rettenjo to impale the opponent as an unblockable attack, then punch the nail with incredible power.

Bang often takes his talking into dramatic levels, but he's nevertheless respectful (among other things, he eventually forgave Jin for slaying Tenjo), espicially towards those of good will. He is also romantically interested in Litchi Faye Ling, but so far, she has rejected his proposals.

Stat Bonuses : +2 to every stat except Aptitude and Field (to which he provides no bonus or penalty)

Likes : Those who work in the name of JUSTICE!
Won't work with : Criminals! All evil must perish!

Special Ability : Burning Heart : Not requiring any sort of higher magic that most other Drives do, Bang is able to teach you moves that, like him, unlock Fu-Rin-Ka-Zan seals on hit.
Kindred Ability : Vanishing Ninjutsu : Movement-enhancing Ars that allows you movement so fast that it resembles a teleport. Has very short range, however.
Ultimate Ability : Fu-Rin-Ka-Zan (Distortion Drive) : From Bang, truly. You gain the ability to perform a lesser version of FRKZ, including the same movements, but at a somewhat slower speed, and unlike Bang, you need all four FRKZ seals to be able to use it.

"The spirit of dance always flows better the more people are a part of it! I'll gladly accompany you along your journey!"

Amane Nishiki, despite what the name (Amane is a feminine name) and appearence suggest, is actually a man, whose main goal is to wander around the world to recruit people into his dance troupe. He has attempted to do so with Carl Clover, to so far, no avail.

While it is easy to expect Amane being nothing more than a goofy dancer, this is far from true. Amane is an Observer, also known as the Perfect Bystander, having succeeded Rachel in the title and status in-canon. As an Observer, Amane is able to watch what happens in any point of the world at any given time, he was able to reboot the Takamagahara Unit during the events of Centralfiction, and also ensured that nothing of Ragna was left in it, ensuring a proper sendoff.

In this alternate take on the story, instead of having succeeded Rachel, Amane is an Observer alongside Rachel. Deeming the ongoing conspiracies between the NOL and Sector Seven as "breaking the peace and harmony", he decides to utilize his Observer status to its fullest, and to wait for an opportunity to end the ongoing feud. He doesn't belong to either faction, and thus, is willing to go against whichever he deems more evil.

In combat, Amane is definitely no pushover. His Drive, Spiral, allows him to utilize his clothing as painful weaponry, in the form of drills. While unlikely to inflict fatal blows, the pain they can dish out is immense, espicially at higher levels, easily neutralizing opponents if they are unable to keep up with his dance. His mobility is above average thanks to Zettou, a hop either towards or away from the opponent. Spiral also allows Amane to attack from longer ranges by shaping his clothing into various shapes, mainly cranes and ribbons. Hariken allows him to take a stance that rapidly advances drill levels, reflects projectiles, and allows a drill attack from directly below opponents. Gekiren summons a hand of cloth to grab opponents out of the air, but is easily avoided by staying grounded. Raibu is an advancing multihit attack, Ginga launches a small tornado that knocks opponents skyward on hit, and Gosei is a multihitting dive attack lead via a chrysanthemum flower. His Distortion Drives overheat his Spiral, disallowing their usage for a short period of time, but are powerful depending on the level they are executed at. Seijuu Rensou Kyaku is a rush attack that launches the opponent up via a burst of petals on hit. Goukai Rasen Renpa sends out a wave of drills to chip away at the opponent's guard, and his Astral Heat, Jakutoku Meika : Gouhahouyou traps the opponent in a flower, then turns them into a childlike version of themselves for a limited time, long enough to let them be or to do whatever is required with them.

Stat Bonuses :
STR : +1
INT : +1
CHA : +2
FIE : -3
AGI : +3
APT : -1

Likes : Freelancers, Employees, Vigilantes
Won't work with : Military, Criminals, Undercover

Special Ability : Flow of Dance : Some actually useful application of dance-like moves. Gain a +3 on any Agility check.
Kindred Ability : Choujin Kaihi : Zettou : Amane's hop via movement enhancing Ars. Use it to close or create distance, or to pass any Agility check, except when near walls or against anti-airs. Moderate cooldown.
Ultimate Ability : Cranes in the Wind : Dancing takes on a whole new meaning. Gain a +2 on any check when attacking in tandem with Amane, and nullifies the stat penalties after Distortion Drive Duo.

"Y.... al... t.... me....? Be.... re.... Bound... ry... too.... dan....us.... rns... ou... too... but... if yo... wi... ling... t... to.... ke... risk..." (You... an ally, to me? Beware... Boundary.... too dangerous... turns you too... but... if you're willing to take risk...)

Arakune was originally a human being going by the name "Lotte Carmine", a scientist that worked for Sector Seven. He and Litchi Faye Ling were not only colleagues, but were also in love with each other. On one occasion, however, thanks to his obession towards getting to know about the Blue as much as possible (and in his pursuit of finding something that Kokonoe would reward him for), he briefly entered the Boundary, turning into a grotesque being as a result, with his only interests being seithr, the Blue, and, while he was still alive, Ragna's Azure Grimoire. Even now, as a host of thousands of bees and insects inside of him, Litchi's love towards him has not faltered, and she has been trying to find a cure to reverse the transformation ever since, even going as far as hopping between the NOL and Sector Seven to make ends meet.

Despite his new appearence, his intelligence has not diminished in the slightest, but due to his obsession for the Blue, and his new form, he has trouble speaking normally, or thinking of anything other than the Blue. With time and effort, though, communication about other topics may become possible.

In this take of the story, Arakune once again resides in the sewers and lower areas of Kagutsuchi in search of prey. He has knowledge of the events going on between the NOL and Sector Seven, but without help, and in this form, he doesn't dare venture outside. However, his loyalty is still that of Sector Seven, and he's willing to help them if he could somehow convince them that he's not a soulless monster.

Arakune's Drive, Crimson, puts the bugs and his monstrous form to good use, allowing him to summon insects upon Cursing the enemy via drive attacks. (Note for veterans : he operates based on his Calamity Trigger Drive : the Curse instantly fills, but goes away if he's hit). With said insects, he can dish out massive damage, and keep the opponent pinned for longer periods of time, allowing him to move in for low/overhead attacks or a grab. He has a really evasive combat style pre-curse, which is enhanced by a double airdash, his If P then Q teleports, and the ability to turn mostly invisible via Equals 0. Zero Vector sends out a cloud that curses the opponent on hit, and Wall Teleport allows Arakune to teleport behind the opponent, at a distance, if he's backed to a wall. His current form works wonders for his Distortion Drives as well : f inverse turns him into a gargantuan, spider-like form to fire a laser above him, and f of g allows cursing the opponent from afar by summoning bugs directly below them. f equals allows Arakune to summon a caterpillar-like bug during Curse, essentially limiting the opponent's options to blocking. Lastly, his Astral Heat, n to infinity turns him into a giant eyeball and has him rush forward, letting bugs consume the opponent on hit if it succeeds.

Stat Bonuses :
STR : +1
INT : +3
CHA : -3
FIE : -1
AGI : +2
APT : -2

Has no special likings regarding characters : he greatly appreciates help from anyone who is willing to provide him with some.

Special Ability : Absorbent : In his pursuit of the Blue, Arakune has awakened a power that you can utilize to a lesser extent. Heal minor bruises and cuts via seithr. Won't work on anything larger than that, or mental attacks.
Kindred Ability : Aerial Superiority : While he can't exactly perform them himself, he's capable of teaching it. Gain access to an airdash, a double jump, and a fastfall via movement-enhancing Ars.
Ultimate Ability : Puddle Travel : Through extremely careful measures, Arakune can put his form to a new use : he can split into two, and send you from one end to another. Potentially painful and/or lethal consequences may arise if this is interrupted while being performed.

"Is that so...? Well... if you insist... we could be allies in this wicked conflict... but you must swear that you'll never try to double-cross me, got it?"

Tsubaki Yayoi, descendant of the Yayoi family of the Twelve Originators (the Duodecim), a young, mature woman who values honor and integrity above everything else. The Yayoi family in particular also places utmost importance on their bloodline : as direct results, the bonds between the family members are close-knit and strong, but with each generation passing by, the family is slowly withering away. Their blood is also the only key that can open the Sealed Armament : Izayoi, Tsubaki's weapon of choice, taking on the form of a book and a matching short blade, but it's able to change shape if desired. It's also an Ars Armegis (a Magic Formula Armament, which utilizes a grimoire).

Tsubaki can be described as a "model" person : the embodiment of hard work and honesty. Starting from her years at the Military Academy and lasting even into her years of service at the NOL, she has been always working at her fullest to achieve her goals, be that great results at the Academy, or fulfilling the task at hand during her service. She even values work over friends at times, as shown when she was once given the order to assassinate Noel, a close friend of hers, which, after some pondering, she accepted to do so (albeit failed). Following this, she has had quite a tragic fate : losing her sight due to overusage of Izayoi (which "steals the light from the user's eyes"), and being conflicted as to which side she is on (her friends, or the NOL). She has been even forcibly put under Izanami's influence, but with the help of her friends, she was broken free from her fate and has regained her light.

In this alternative take on the story, Tsubaki has returned to the Military Academy once again, but having serious doubts regarding the NOL after the events regarding Izanami. Hearing of this conflict was definitely a heavy burden for Tsubaki, since she's forced to either stay on the sidelines, or to betray the organization she has formerly worked for so tirelessly and honestly.

In combat, Tsubaki is a very dangerous combatant thanks to the Izayoi's unique ability, the Immortal Breaker, which is the power to kill even immortals by planting the thought of death directly into the target's mind (this ability didn't work against Izanami, since she was death herself, nor against Jin, due to his Power of Order) in its awakened form, the Weaving Zero : Izayoi, which takes on the form of battle armor and a longer blade. In its unawakened form, Tsubaki can use Install stocks to enhance her various attacks, these include Sanctus Aequum (a dashing attack with a shield in front), Sanctus Veritas (an upward sword attack), Agnus Dei (an overhead hammer attack), Benedictus Rex (an invulnerable rising uppercut), Aequum Eleison (a wing attack from the air that sends out a projectile) and Lux Aeterna (a dive attack that can combine with the previously mentioned projectile for a flashy and damaging attack). Said stocks are acquired by charging, which leave her open to attack, but can turn the tide of battle if allowed to charge. Her Distortion Drives, Confutatis Maledictis and Macto Maledictis are a powerful attack and an "install super" that allows continuous usage of enhanced attacks for a short while, respectively. Her Astral Heat, Requiem Aeternam, impales the opponent with a massive spear if the initial rushing hit connects.

In her awakened form, Izayoi, she no longer uses install stocks, instead, utilizing Gain Art stocks to chain her attacks into each other, said attacks including Mirage Thruster (teleports), Aegis Blade (an upward-aimed anti-air attack), Crusade Seraphim (very fast slashes either forward, upward, or as a low), Sonic Saber (a sword-like projectile), Valkyrie Astrea (a Gain Art-exclusive attack that leaves the opponent open for a follow-up), many of which can be cancelled into Strike Fall for a fast, sudden overhead. Her first Distortion Drive, Justice Phorizor is a fairly orthodox attack which creates a big sword of energy for a forward thrust which is powerful and swift, but lacks anti-air capability. Her Slaver Trans-AM is a bit more complicated : summoning two bits that attack alongside Tsubaki, keeping the opponent pinned for offensive tactics. Her Astral Heat, Judge of Destiny, puts the Immortal Breaker to good use by launching the awakened Izayoi forth in the shape of a massive spear with wings to deal the coup de grace, immortal or otherwise.

Stat Bonuses : +1 to all stats

Likes : Military, Vigilantes, NOL members
Won't work with : Criminals, Freelancers, Undercover, those belonging to Sector Seven

Special Ability : Turn the Tide : Block an attack at the same time it's about to hit to lessen the cooldown on your special moves and be able to retaliate easier (equivalent of BB's Instant Block)
Kindred Ability : Disarm : A special maneuver taught by Tsubaki that can be done with most weapons to disarm opponents with a graceful motion. Will work against Armagus and Nox Nyctores users as well, but not against people far beyond your Field and Strength level.
Ultimate Ability : Zenkai (Eclipse) Barrier : While the full potential of this barrier is only available to the users of Izayoi, a lesser version is nevertheless possible to teach. Cast this on yourself or on others to protect them from being observed (viewed by Observers from anywhere in the world), but you'll suffer Aptitude penalties and fatigue with every use of it. While active, you'll also get less favorable results in stat checks. Can also be used to turn yourself invisible via reflecting light, at the cost of causing you to go blind for the duration.

"Oh, I see you've brought us some tea. I hope it's going to be better than your last try. What a horrid, putrid mess that one was..."

Rachel Alucard is the head of the Alucard Castle, and to add to that, she's also a Vampire, and an Observer, a being who is able to watch what is happening at any point of the world, in any given moment. Rachel has accumulated enough strength to be immune to a vampire's typical weaknesses of sunlight and silver, and she's also immortal. She was also able to cause Event Interferences by changing targets' states from "existing" to "non-existing" in pursuit of realities that benefit her, but since she is an Observer, she wasn't supposed to interfere with the world like she has, and thus, has lost most of her power. She is also not of the fighting type, instead preferring to sip on her tea and eat delicately prepared scones by her butler, Valkenhayn, while observing what happens around the world, though with the disappearences of Ragna and Terumi, she has much less things to actually worry about.

Despite her loss, she's still more than able to defend herself with her familiars and powers : the cat-like Nago, the bat-like Gii, both of which able to shapeshift into various weapons (such as an electric cat chair and football-shaped "seeds", Tiny Lobelia, respectively), her electrifying frog, "George the XIII", her "Impish Gypsophila" pumpkin, her "Ivy Blossom" swarm of bats, and of course, her ability to manipulate lightning and wind (via Sword Iris and her Baden-Baden Lily Distortion Drive, and the latter via her Drive, Silpheed). Her Tempest Dahlia Distortion Drive sends various objects at the opponent via wind to cover her, while her Astral Heat, Clownish Calendula, vaporizes the opponent with a gigantic bolt of lightning.

Rachel is also really knowledgable regarding the world around her, and very few people, if any, know more than she does. She was also the owner of the "ultimate defense", the Tsukuyomi Unit, and also conversed with Takamagahara on occasions. Having lost the former, and the latter having disappeared for unknown reasons, the possibilities have once again turned endless, but there's no going back via time loops or Event Interferences anymore. Each of her steps will need to be tread lightly if she wishes to keep the stage she loves so much ongoing. In this take on the story, Rachel is determined to take matters into her own hands, and do her best to protect the world with whatever methods available. After tea time. Naturally.

Despite being an immortal vampire, Rachel is not beyond enjoying human pastimes every once in a while : having once bathed in a Kaka hot spring with others, as an example (Ragna, Noel, Litchi and Taokaka, in Alter Memory).

Rachel is somewhat unique compared to other Mentors : you need to elaborate on the Backstory section and add why would she want your character by her side, of all people. With great power comes great troubles, as well : Rachel can never have enough butlers, after all... (if you choose Rachel, set your "Occupation" to Special)

Stat Bonuses :
STR : -3
INT : +6
CHA : -10 (Surviving her lectures and serving her is quite... mind-numbing, to say the least)
FIE : +3
AGI : +2
APT : +4

Likes : Those who devote themselves to her and Valkenhayn (Special)
Won't work with : Anyone else

Special Ability : Guardian Angel : Call, and she shall come... if she's not busy drinking her tea, that is. You will be able to telepathically communicate with Rachel, even if she's in the Castle, and vice-versa (IC, mark telepathic communication with italics)
Kindred Ability : Silpheed : Nowhere close to Rachel's Drive, but it'll do. Rachel will teach you a weaker version of her signature Wind-manipulating Drive.
Ultimate Ability : Bystand : The gift of foresight is one not to take lightly. You will be able to, just like Rachel, observe any point of the world at any time. Except the Castle, oddly enough.

"Shush, child! If Madam Rachel hears you complaining about your current status, it might be a fate worse than death that she'll mete out on you!"

Valkenhayn R. Hellsing, courteous and devoted butler of Rachel Alucard, a werewolf, and a part of the legendary Six Heroes. Valkenhayn rarely ever leaves the castle, or the presence of Rachel, and when he does, it's usually in the pursuit of the perfect tea leaves, or so that he can climb down a gigantic valley, full of monsters, known as the "Valley of Death", and use a.... microwave to prepare scones for Rachel. More accurately, he prepares the scones at home, waits for them to cool down, then re-heats them using said microwave to make them "heavenly". He would never dare to be just a minute late regarding Rachel's tea times, and he's willing to do whatever it takes to make sure that Rachel is always satisfied with his work, regardless of the type of errand. In his youth, he worked with Relius, having been a part of a group known as the "Immortal Breaker" (no relation to the Immortal Breaker ability), and he was impatient and easily angered in contrast to his current, calm nature.

Valkenhayn was the only person among the Six Heroes that was able to fight the Black Beast unarmed, thanks to existing outside of reason, like the Beast itself, probably since he's a werewolf, but it's also implied that he was made via sorcery.

In combat, despite being and looking old, Valkenhayn still retains a large part of his strength from his prime, and it shows in his fighting style. His kicks and punches are as refined as savage and powerful, easily being able to break human limbs if he desires to. Further augmenting this strength is his Drive, Werewolf, which allows Valkenhayn to partly or fully transform into a wolf, often utilizing the partial transformation while punching or kicking to increase the power behind these strikes. In his human form, he is more power-oriented, and while he lacks ranged options, his Nacht Jager shoulder charge allows him to quickly close the distance, and once in, he can keep the pressure up via his attacks, including the low-hitting Schwarz Jagd. If the opponent becomes predictable or leaves themselves wide open, the Nacht Rosen uppercut is perfect as a punish, launching the opponent and leaving them wide open for further attacks.

In werewolf form, his style changes to mobility over power, and it's this dynamic between forms that makes Valkenhayn dangerous. While he lacks a larger variety of moves, his Konig Wolf attack, where he sends himself flying at the opponent like a drill, is versatile enough to cover most situations. Himmel Wolf allows him to deliver a painful bite via a grab, and Rasen Wolf allows quick bursts of flight-like movement. His Distortion Drives utilize the wolf form to the fullest as well : Sturm Wolf being a powerful flurry of attacks finishing with a savage kick, while Konig Flug is a divekick that transitions into a followup on hit. His Astral Heat, Blut Vollmond, kicks the opponent skyward via a backflip kick as Valkenhayn transforms into full-werewolf mode, then gracefully claws the opponent to pieces.

Valkenhayn's role remains mostly the same in this take of the story : serving Rachel and doing whatever she requests him to do. However, thanks to the disappearence of the Units, and the brewing feud between the major factions, Valkenhayn will have to go extra steps to ensure the safety of the people and his mistress. (like with Rachel, selecting Valkenhayn requires you to set your "Occupation" to Special)

Stat Bonuses :
STR : +3
INT : -2
CHA : +5
FIE : -2
AGI : +3
APT : -2

Special Ability : Firm Conviction : Hold firm in your beliefs! For the first time per encounter, you'll be able to block an unblockable attack or powerful blow, except for grabs.
Kindred Ability : Adrenaline Rush : Never give up! Once per encounter, you can extend Overdrive beyond its usual time limit or hasten your Burst regeneration rate in exchange for extreme fatigue and pain afterward.
Ultimate Ability : Death Warrant : There's no kill like overkill. Gain the ability to chain your Distortion Drives into your Astral Heat, at the cost of being in an Astral Heat-able state yourself if it fails.

Extra Notes :

In BlazBlue, and as such, in AAD, the currency used is Platinum Dollars (abbreviated as P$). There's no exact conversion rate compared to real-world money, but in-canon, Ragna's bounty of P$ 90,000,000,000 (90 billion) was said to be "enough to buy a small country".
Stat growth and initial points allocation is very Mentor-heavy : early-game, it's unlikely that PCs would be able to defeat Mentors in direct combat, and thus, those who haven't chosen a Mentor are at quite a disadvantage. Furthermore, there's not many points to be spent on stats if options like Ars, Special Moves and Drive are included.
- However, stat growth will allow late-game characters to surpass certain Mentors, and players who have no Mentor gain points somewhat faster to compensate.
Since seithr has taken over most of the world, the only visitable locations are the Hierarchial Cities and their sub-areas (such as Kagutsuchi's Ronin District or Cathedral, Torifune's blocks, Kazamotsu and the Coliseum etc...). Airships (referred to as magic ships or "Ars Magus Vessels") and Monorails handle travel between the Cities and sub-areas : airships are also the only way, barring flight, to travel between Cities.
- Since the mass of seithr obscures vision, and NOL vessels may open fire on foreign flying objects, flying is not really a safe way to go between Cities (unless you are a part of the NOL, of course)... do so at your own risk.
Arrival and Starting Locations don't need to be the same : you may arrive and start at any location (though in a narrative sense, it would be hard for a character that does not know about the BlazBlue world to arrive in the 1st City, and make their way to the 13th). If either the Arrival or the Starting Location matches a Mentor's availability location, you may choose them. However, neither Arrival nor Starting Location can be selected as locations that are faction-exclusive if you are not part of said faction.
An example filled-out sheet may be posted on request, if necessary. It's just an example though : the order of filling the sections out or the allocation of points doesn't need to (and shouldn't, really) match it.
Additional notes may be added if necessary, of if requested.

Mr.Ownage · Aug 11, 2019

The world map won't exactly follow these to the letter, but it's still useful to get a general idea of where are sub-areas located and what to expect.

Map of Kagutsuchi : Alucard Castle only accessible by Rachel Alucard (Area 28 = Sewers)

Ikaruga Federation Area : Cities 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9 and 10th. Ibukido has been destroyed in-canon and cannot be travelled to.

Torifune (15th Hierarchial City) rough layout, for those who'd like to start there (Military Academy is located here)

You may post now.

always_confused · Aug 11, 2019

Good grief! I understood the basics of the fight system, but I don't think I understood anything else beyond that!

So uhh...if anyone is going independent, I wouldn't mind teaming up.

Mr.Ownage · Aug 11, 2019

always_confused said:
Good grief! I understood the basics of the fight system, but I don't think I understood anything else beyond that!

So uhh...if anyone is going independent, I wouldn't mind teaming up.

I can relate to that feeling of seeing too much information to process at once

But I trust that if a re-read or two is given, there won't be any issues. Combat is essentially about selecting a course of action, and how to take that action (such as blocking with or without barrier, or dodging by jumping or sidestepping, etc...), seeing and adapting to the outcomes, and repeat.

A lot of bullet points are either explanations on things, or exceptions, which I'll be keeping track of to lighten the load. If it would help, though, I can put up a condensed version to make it easier to look at.

Bass11 · Aug 11, 2019

Hmm, I going to see if I can recreate a character from Veritas. Chi/Energy attacks can be elemental based without needing a Drive right?

CyanDies · Aug 11, 2019

Veritas is a name I haven't heard in a while my man but also interested! Will need to reread the system five times over to get a basic handle since everything beyond basic stats and the combo system sorta flew over my head. Over all, how close will this follow Centralfiction? Since that's probably my biggest hesitation given I only recall a handful of plot points in something resembling chronological order.

Bass11 · Aug 11, 2019

Nice to see a fellow reader of Veritas, I'm going to see I can make EOTL in this game.

Mr.Ownage · Aug 11, 2019

Bass11 said:
Hmm, I going to see if I can recreate a character from Veritas. Chi/Energy attacks can be elemental based without needing a Drive right?

CyanDies said:
Veritas is a name I haven't heard in a while my man but also interested! Will need to reread the system five times over to get a basic handle since everything beyond basic stats and the combo system sorta flew over my head. Over all, how close will this follow Centralfiction? Since that's probably my biggest hesitation given I only recall a handful of plot points in something resembling chronological order.

First off, thank you both for the interest and welcome aboard! I look forward to seeing your ideas in complete form (while I myself don't know of Veritas, it certainly seems interesting)

And now, to answer your questions :

-Yes, Chi/energy based moves don't require a Drive to use, though that also means they won't be directly enhanced by Overdrive as Drives are (Overdrives enhance stats and the Drive : naturally, the stat boost boosts such Chi based attacks as well, but not on the same level as the Drive, if that makes sense). If your character really relies on Chi, it might be better to include it as a Drive instead.

In simpler terms, Chi can be used either as Special Moves or a Drive, but will only recieve direct enhancements/improvements from Overdrive if it's used as the latter (and characters without a Drive cannot use Overdrive). Also, since the 50 starting points are likely not enough for large-scale movesets without cutting down on stats or a Drive, it's feasible to include a part of a fighting style as Special Moves at the start, and to learn the rest as the game goes, since extra points will be recieved over-time.

-Regarding CyanDies' question, pretty much the only part that this RP will follow Centralfiction in is regarding the ending (Ragna returning everyone's dreams to the Blue, essentially erasing himself and the Origin's grace from the world etc...). Some canon events, such as the destruction of Ibukido (Takamagahara destroyed it via Takemikazuchi to try preventing Mu-12's birth) and the Ikaruga Civil War, have happened, and their consequences will be seen in the RP (Ibukido isn't a visitable location, as an example), but otherwise, backstory knowledge isn't really necessary (I essentially revamped the way Ars functions, as well : in-canon, humans wouldn't be able to use them at all without grimoires, Jin is again an NOL Major, major antagonists are not present, roles within factions, mainly Sector Seven, are changed and so on).

In short, there won't be really anything missed without knowledge of the backstory (nor will the events here follow canon), but knowing some about the characters might make the Mentor selection process easier (of course, unless the player in question would like to go indepedent).

Bass11 · Aug 11, 2019

Mr.Ownage said:
-Yes, Chi/energy based moves don't require a Drive to use, though that also means they won't be directly enhanced by Overdrive as Drives are (Overdrives enhance stats and the Drive : naturally, the stat boost boosts such Chi based attacks as well, but not on the same level as the Drive, if that makes sense). If your character really relies on Chi, it might be better to include it as a Drive instead.

In simpler terms, Chi can be used either as Special Moves or a Drive, but will only recieve direct enhancements/improvements from Overdrive if it's used as the latter (and characters without a Drive cannot use Overdrive).

So what you're saying is that Chi attacks can be supplemented by having a drive, whether it's due to the stat boost Overdrive provides or the increased power said drive provides. While it is tempting, I think I'll forgo the drive.

Mr.Ownage · Aug 11, 2019

Mhm... in essence, all attacks are supplemented by Overdrive, since it temporarily doubles the combat stats, which, in turn, enhance all of a character's attacks, allowing it to be a powerful tide turner if used correctly. But since only Drive moves are directly enhanced by it, only the raw power of non-Drive attacks are raised, not their properties being enhanced.

By all means : not bringing a Drive is also an option, which also frees up 10 points (extra points in stats, or 5 Special Moves if none of them are unblockables : that's a nice amount!), but keep in mind that Drives are not gainable past character creation, so choose wisely.

Bass11 · Aug 11, 2019

Mr.Ownage said:
By all means : not bringing a Drive is also an option, which also frees up 10 points (extra points in stats, or 5 Special Moves if none of them are unblockables : that's a nice amount!), but keep in mind that Drives are not gainable past character creation, so choose wisely.

That's fine, I'm probably not gonna start out with a lot of stuff since the main theory between the fighting style I'm trying to recreate, EOTL or Enlightenment of Thunder and Lightning, focuses on quality not quantity. Hmm, mentor bonuses allows you to break the beginning stat cap right?

Mr.Ownage · Aug 11, 2019

Bass11 said:
That's fine, I'm probably not gonna start out with a lot of stuff since the main theory between the fighting style I'm trying to recreate, EOTL or Enlightenment of Thunder and Lightning, focuses on quality not quantity. Hmm, mentor bonuses allows you to break the beginning stat cap right?

That's going to be a really intriguing sight to see if you're going for it...

Yes, they allow you to do so, but, depending on which stat(s) you want to boost that high and with which Mentor, that would be 20 points investment in a single stat if you're going for that. And most of the Mentors who provide high stat boosts also have a high penalty in another area to "compensate" for it, or lack better Mentor abilities. Also, over-investing in a stat like that might leave you lacking other areas. As an example, Carl has a pretty good stat growth, but the abilities are not spectacular or as useful as, for example, Rachel's, who, in return, applies a whopping -10 to Charisma. Or if you go for a high Strength and high Agility build, that would allow you to have an advantage in most fights, but the lack of Field will leave the character weak against clashes, and combos against them are going to hurt.

I'm interested to see what you're going to build, though.

CyanDies · Aug 11, 2019

Honestly when first looking at what I've got to work with, Yet Another Kamen Rider(tm) is a tempting choice. Also the more I read, the more I realize that I'm going to have to fib a lot of what I know to get a backstory written up.

And Mentor-wise, I've a few ideas but the Kamen Rider both intersects greatly and terribly with one character so I'm tempted to just try to go for another one.

Might have the basic parts of the sheet done by tonight though.

Mr.Ownage · Aug 11, 2019

CyanDies said:
Honestly when first looking at what I've got to work with, Yet Another Kamen Rider(tm) is a tempting choice. Also the more I read, the more I realize that I'm going to have to fib a lot of what I know to get a backstory written up.

And Mentor-wise, I've a few ideas but the Kamen Rider both intersects greatly and terribly with one character so I'm tempted to just try to go for another one.

Might have the basic parts of the sheet done by tonight though.

I myself probably won't be around to see it for a while (since it's getting somewhat late here, and I'll be away for most of tomorrow), but we'll see how things go.

About Mentors, taking one is not a necessity (you may go solo if you wish, and a solo character gets extra points somewhat faster to compensate), though highly recommended (since they'll assist you during combat, provide useful Abilities that cannot be used anyhow else [Mentor abilities cannot be picked as passives/Specials], and can also share information about others, the environment and so on)

Bass11 · Aug 11, 2019

Passive abilities are quite hard to decide due to lack of examples, given that they're pretty open ended.

Mr.Ownage · Aug 11, 2019

Bass11 said:
Passive abilities are quite hard to decide due to lack of examples, given that they're pretty open ended.

I found it hard to put a definite limit on passives, since, as you've mentioned, there's a lot of things which may go as a passive ability, and I didn't want to put on limits that would restrict creativity in this regard. Instead, I've decided to have passives either be :
-A sort of beneficial effect that activates if certain conditions are met, such as a temporary stat increase when nearly defeated, or increased combo damage and so on.
-Stat exchanges that have a difference of two between them, via decreasing one stat and increasing another, except Charisma, Aptitude or Inteliigence (if you subtract the lower stat from the higher stat, the result is 2, essentially, as an example : Agility -3, Strength +5).
-Something custom, which I'd look at to determine if it's good to go.

Thus, I felt it would be better to look at passives on a case-by-case basis instead, though if it's a small boost during certain conditions, or a stat exchange, it's very likely going to be accepted.
On the other end of the spectrum, passives that would be definitely game-breakers, such as the ability to bypass stat rules entirely, or gain immunity to Distortions/Astrals, would definitely be a no-go.

Floom · Aug 11, 2019

Hoooo boi

This looks immensely interesting, but I'm not terribly familiar with Blazblue as a setting. I'll try to remedy that with a wiki crawl, as well as another read through of the system just to make sure I didn't miss anything, and then I'll try brewing something up.

Mr.Ownage · Aug 11, 2019

Floom said:
Hoooo boi

This looks immensely interesting, but I'm not terribly familiar with Blazblue as a setting. I'll try to remedy that with a wiki crawl, as well as another read through of the system just to make sure I didn't miss anything, and then I'll try brewing something up.

Hello and welcome aboard!

Familiarity with BlazBlue is not necessary, at least the backstory part, since many things are altered here compared to canon. It's useful if you look this and that up, but not a must. It helps if you're familiar with terms, though (mainly Hierarchial Cities, Ars Magus, Ars Armagus, Nox Nyctores), but no extensive backstory knowledge is required.

Knowing some about the characters might help make the Mentor selection process easier, though, if you decide to have one. If there are any other questions, feel free to ask.

Floom · Aug 11, 2019

Mr.Ownage said:
Hello and welcome aboard!

Familiarity with BlazBlue is not necessary, at least the backstory part, since many things are altered here compared to canon. It's useful if you look this and that up, but not a must. It helps if you're familiar with terms, though (mainly Hierarchial Cities, Ars Magus, Ars Armagus, Nox Nyctores), but no extensive backstory knowledge is required.

Knowing some about the characters might help make the Mentor selection process easier, though, if you decide to have one. If there are any other questions, feel free to ask.

Thanks! I'll still do some reading, if only because I kinda went cross-eyed at all the terminology, and having a decent idea of the setting might also help me come up with a character. But for now, to the wiki.

Bass11 · Aug 11, 2019

Quick question what other phrase are we suppose to add before the one mentioned in the combat primer?

CyanDies · Aug 11, 2019

I've been reading and given Kamen Rider being what it is- is there a certain minimum of damage a character needs to take before being put into a weakened state or is it more or less free form? Also forgive me if I just skimmed over this bit if it's there: can I create some type of Passive/Drive/Ars/Special Move that can convert base stats(or at least bonuses derived from them) to other types of checks or rolls?

edit: nothing wrong here-

Mr.Ownage · Aug 11, 2019

Bass11 said:
Quick question what other phrase are we suppose to add before the one mentioned in the combat primer?

I can't tell its exact location, since that would defeat its purpose, but to give a hint about that, it's a bit above the stat check examples (in the same section), between quote marks. It should be noticable.

Then again, after the first person, the others can just copy those from a completed sheet, so what do I know...

Bass11 · Aug 11, 2019

Finished, I think?

Name : Gangryong Ma
Species : Human [+5 Charisma]

Gender : Male
Appearance :

Personality : Though he is portrayed as fairly unintelligent, he shows an aptitude for battle and street smarts that seem well-suited to his underdog status as a criminal. However, he is mouthy and disrespectful and has a penchant for making enemies. He loves fighting and dreams of being the strongest. When Gangryong fights he's quite brutal and will continue to hurt his opponent even if they're already knocked out. Gangryong does show compassion towards those he considers his friends. He states he has no desire to fight to protect anyone and only fights so he can be the strongest.
Age: 18
Likes: Fighting
Dislikes:
Skills: Street Fighter, E.O.T.L, Taunting
Weapons: None

Backstory : Resident
Gangryong Ma has only one wish in life and that is to be the strongest, it was this wish that led him to learn the art of E.O.T.L and meet his master, Lightning Tiger. And though only with him for a short period of time before Lightning Tiger's demise the lessons that he instilled within him still last to this day. Forgoing the use of Ars and Grimoires he seeks to prove himself against the world with only his fists and his mastery of E.O.T.L.
Occupation :
Criminal : Robberies, murders, thefts, and so on. Criminals don't mind breaking the law and jeopardizing others for bragging rights.

Faction : Sector Seven

Special Moves:
Thunder Fist [5] - A technique where the user takes the pure metal energy and by applying proper breathing and ki manipulation separate it into positive and negative charges. Then collide it in their fist, creating lightning. Stun
Thunder Break [2] - A technique by only creating a negative charge while using the enemies positive charge used to guard against Lightning Fist to create a lightning effect. Guard Break
Electric Yo-yo [5] - A technique with the basic theory of "Static Electricity" and it works by changing the voltage of the users body and uses the flow of Ki as a current to shock the enemy. The user generates a negative charge on the left hand while inhaling and create a positive charge on the right hand while exhaling. Until the user lets go the victim will be continuously shocked, making this a killing technique. Grab

Passives:
E.O.T.L [2] - E.O.T.L, also know as Enlightenment of Thunder and Lightning, is a martial art uses the "quality, not quantity" approach, as the art relies on having a very refined and pure Ki even if not much in amount, instead of enormous quantity of unrefined Ki, the breathing method is the key to purifying the Ki to be used, similar to how only pure uranium can be used to create an atomic explosion. The breathing method of E.O.T.L amplifies the presence of the metal element of Ki in the atmosphere and collides it with a medium, creating lightning. EOTL had long gotten rid of the traditional movements and forms and has instead been taught so that each successor could incorporate EOTL into their own fighting styles as a way to advance the art. Due to the Metal elements presence in the body the user's body is very tough.
Brawler [2] - Before learning E.O.T.L the only tutoring Gangryong had in fighting was through experience and it shows.
Dirty Fighter [2] - No trick is too dirty for this street fighting champion.

Ars (Optional) :
Barrier Ars
Burst Ars

Stats : (all of them start at 0, except for Aptitude, which begins at 3 normally, and cannot be raised via points. Include species bonus in brackets. You have 50 points to spend, except if you decide to have a Drive, noted below. Special Moves and Ars also require these 50 points, and any spent on those cannot be spent here. It's easier to keep track if you apply Mentor and species bonuses after spending your points, and include them in brackets)
-Strength : 20 [+3 Mentor]
-Intelligence : 3 [-2 Mentor]
-Charisma : 4 [+5 Human, -1 Mentor]
-Field : 15 [+5 Mentor]
-Agility : 0 [-5 Mentor]
-Aptitude : 6 [+3 Mentor]

Distortion Drives:
Lightning Flash - A technique where the user gathers electricity on three points around the hand and discharges it with a punch.

Astral Heat: N/A

Starting Location and Selected Mentor:
The 6th Hierarchial City of Yabiko - Factory (Sector Seven faction only)

"What use do I have for such a small puppy? I know now... I can feed them, grow them up, then get to fry a big fish!"

Azrael, also known as the Mad Dog of Sector Seven, is an extremely powerful soldier "working" for Sector Seven. However, he rarely obeys orders, and instead, prefers to pursue his own interest : fighting. Azrael's power is second to none, and is, in fact, so immense that he is bound to a limiter called "Enchant Dragunov", and he also deliberately holds back in battles to prevent his "fun time" from being over too early. With his limiters released, he's able to go toe-to-toe with just about anyone, including Ragna with his Azure Grimoire activated, if he was still alive, and the Six Heroes.

His appearence alone suggests that he's a powerhouse not to be messed with, and he proves that with his special moves. Gustav Buster is a fast-moving rush attack aimed at the gut that staggers on hit, allowing Azrael to keep up the pressure. His famous "rekka" series, Tiger Magnum > Cobra Spike > Leopard Launcher are a fast succession of attacks : a gut punch, a high kick and a spinning punch with incredible force that causes groundslide. Leopard is punishable if blocked, but Azrael can end the pressure at Tiger to stay mostly safe. Growler Field allows him to absorb an incoming projectile, and then launch his own in the form of a fireball, the Phalanx Cannon, that causes a knockdown on hit. Sentinel Dump has Azrael jump forward and smash into the ground with his weight, keeping him at advantage, but its slow startup can be interrupted. Lastly, Panzer Strike is his main reversal, jumping knee-first upward, hitting any unfortunate opponent nearby, followed by smashing them back down. Like all other reversals, it's greatly punishable if blocked.

His Drive, The Terror, allows placing weakpoints on opponents : upper and lower weakpoints, with low attacks applying a low weakpoint, and high attacks applying upper weakpoints. These allow Azrael to cause launches, bounces or staggers via certain attacks, allowing him to dish out massive combos and damage. Via his Overdrive, he can apply these even on block. His Distortion Drives also have great synergy with these points : Black Hawk Stinger becomes unblockable with both weakpoints active (crouching unblockable with low weakpoint, standing unblockable with high weakpoint), while Scud Punishment temporarily applies and keeps both weakpoints active. His Astral Heat, Patriot Apocalypse, provides a glimpse into Azrael's true power via a punch that causes a volcano-like explosion!

Azrael was once imprisoned into a dimensional prison, from which he escaped by tearing it apart with his own bare hands. Following the events of BlazBlue : Centralfiction, he was put back in there, thanks to Ragna's actions, and Kokonoe made sure he couldn't escape until his presence was needed again. Seeing that the time has come, Kokonoe reluctantly lets him free once again, hoping that he will defeat anyone who could be a rival to Sector Seven.

Stat Bonuses :
STR : +3
INT : -2
CHA : -1
FIE : +5
AGI : -5
APT : +3

Likes : Anyone, as long as they can provide him satisfaction
Won't work with : Too weak characters (STR < 13, including Azrael's bonus)

Special Ability : Savage Dog : You're no chew toy! Your Distortion Drives become unblockable, but become even more punishable if they completely miss, and have a longer cooldown.
Kindred Ability : Unstoppable Force : Give them all you've got! Earn a +3 (on top of Azrael's bonus) on any Strength check.
Ultimate Ability : Colosseo : Now that is something! Automatically pass all Clash checks, regardless of your stats!

Distortion Drive Duo: N/A

Ars Magus? Science is true power! None shall stand before Jormungandr!

Mr.Ownage · Aug 11, 2019

Bass11 said:
Sheet

I've read the sheet, and for a first go, it's excellent, though I noticed a few things with it :
-As you haven't included the chosen Mentor and starting location, I had to look over the Mentors to see which one matched up with the stats you've provided. Correct me if I'm wrong, but you seem to have chosen Azrael (judging by the stats, and the Sector Seven faction choice, by this I would also assume that your starting location is Yabiko - Factory). He provides only -1 to Charisma, though, not -2.

-At first, I almost ran the stat calculations with the provided numbers, but then I noticed that you already accounted for the species and Mentor changes (Field 15 means you've spent 10 points on Field, and added the other 5 as the Mentor bonus). However, no matter how I try to add/subtract them, the stat total is 50, the allowed points. And then there's the passive (2 points) and the Special (5, since it's an immobilizing move), but I can't seem to find the remaining 10 you've mentioned. Drives don't actually add 10 points if you don't bring one : I meant that characters who don't have a Drive can have those 10 points spent elsewhere (in which case, apologies if that caused confusion).

These are the small issues I have found, but it's great otherwise.

Bass11 · Aug 11, 2019

Mr.Ownage said:
I meant that characters who don't have a Drive can have those 10 points spent elsewhere (in which case, apologies if that caused confusion).

I misread that all stats start at 0 and instead put all stats start at 3 due to the aptitude thing. Also fixed the other things. Fixed the other, other things.

An Azure Dream (BlazBlue) - OOC and Sign-Ups (Closed)

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