(DC/WW1 AU) Diana of Themyscira

[Guiding Bolt]

Reserved for character sheet.

 

[Guiding Bolt]

The year is 1916 and the world is on fire.

The Great War rages across Europe with no end in sight. The blood of half-a-million dead soldiers threatens to flood the Somme and with each passing day that number grows. Far from the lines of battle, Allied commanders balk as their plans for a triumphant offense drown in the blood of their men, and across the lines in Berlin the Central Powers thanked God for the Irish treason that had warned them of the offensive.

Farther still from the Battle of the Somme is Themyscira, Isle of Paradise and home to your people, the Amazons. Shrouded by the ancient magic of the Oracles and by the blessings of Athena, your Aegean home has not been untouched by the war. For months, wreckage of ships and planes from the Gallipoli Campaign have washed upon the Themyscrian shores and brought with them the dead or the dying soldiers of British and Ottoman empires.

The mood across Themyscira has grown darker with each passing week. The painful precognitions of the Oracle Sappho have returned, and each day she seizes, shakes and screams within the Palace Gardens against the wretched future she sees. The hands of the Fates have been torn from their usual path, but the great violence and bloodshed across the world clouds the Oracle's visions.

You have trained for decades in the art of war and in the subtler arts of the Amazon. You will not stand by and watch as Man's wars tear apart the fabric of fate. With the aid of Polemarch Euboea, you have found four potential causes of Sappho's visions to investigate and bring to justice before fate is permanently sundered.

In Bavaria, a mad scientist called Arcane has made pact with some of Tartarus's most foul creatures and began to work dark magics on behalf of the Central Powers. Diabolic empowerment, necromancy and blood magic are all believed to be at play. Mass sacrifices dedicated to the new warlock have created a haze of blood and magic across the Süddeutschland and weakened the veil between the realms.

In Belarus on the Eastern Front, German forces experiment with new and volatile chemical weapons at unprecedented rates. While some seem mundane, others provoke truly horrific—and seemingly arcane—effects on those afflicted. Swathes of bodies are found completely exsanguinated and survivors scream of "the fanged men" only seen inside the dark clouds of gas.

In Libya, central-powers funded Senussi forces have made significant gains against British and Italian colonial forces after a third of the British force was found petrified within the sands of the Libyan desert. There have been reports of "monsters" and "demons" among the more superstitious soldiers, and many matches the description of the witch Circe's enforcers.

In Navarre, a series of meteor showers has left the region without power and in social disorder. Although it has been weeks since the meteor showers ended, the region has yet to return to normalcy, and there are rumors that there were more than just meteors that crashed into the Earth. Police forces affiliated with the Spanish Carlists have imposed martial law over the region.

Of course, you could also move directly to the war's western front and to the Somme. While you might not have any immediate leads on supernatural occurrences in the area, getting into the thick of the war has its own benefits.

You will first investigate…

[] Bavaria.
[] Belarus.
[] Libya.
[] Navarre.
[] The Somme.


In preparation for your journey, Polemarch Euboea has outfitted you with powerful items from within the Amazon reliquary. Choose three of these items to take on your journey. Euboea has trained you to expert level in their usage.

Include only the underlined portion of the option in your vote. Vote by plan. The artifacts not chosen here may or may not exist in the Amazon reliquary in the future.

[] Amulet of Harmonia: An artifact crafted by Hippolyta long ago, the Amulet of Harmonia bestows minor regeneration to the wearer and reveals the weaknesses of those they fight. The Amulet is an essential component to many divine spells.
[] Bracelets of Submission: The standard artifact of all Amazons, these Adamantium bracelets are able to deflect bullets, beams and battle-axes. They symbolize loyalty to Hippolyta and attract the ire of her enemies wherever their wearer walks.
[] Gauntlet of Atlas: A cursed gift of the Greek Gods to the Amazons, the Gauntlet of Atlas bestows immense superhuman strength but draws out the rage and anger in its wearer. The gauntlet brings immense physical power, enough to crush graphite into diamond, as well as the eager eyes of Ares.
[] Lasso of Lightning: Claimed as a spoil of war from the minions of Ares long ago, the Lasso of Lightning is a joint creation of Zeus and Ares. The holder of the Lasso of Lightning is capable of electrokinesis, and the Lasso of Lightning can force a bound person into a rage.
[] Lasso of Truth: Crafted by Hippolyta and Metala and blessed by Athena, the Lasso of Truth forces anyone bound within it to obey the commands of the wielder. Even the Gods of Olympus are subject to its power when bound.
[] Sandals of Hermes: These indestructible sandals bestow the power of flight to the wearer and greatly increase their speed. If worn by one with the favor of Hermes, they can grant true superspeed in addition to their powers of flight.
[] Spear of Lona: Reclaimed from the depths of the Pacific long ago, this Polynesian spiritual spear brings with its powerful Barrier magic. The initial magic this artifact grants is defensive-minded, but it is possible to learn more varied magics. Choosing this artifact brings the attention of the Polynesian Gods.
[] Staff of Storms: Once a powerful Atlantean artifact, this magical staff was seized in the last Amazon-Atlantean conflict. It grants powerful hydrokinesis and flight, but there are more powers to be discovered within this artifact. Atlanteans and their allies will kill to see this item reclaimed.
[] Surtr's Black Sword: Taken long ago in a conflict against the Nordic Valkyries, this powerful artifact allows the wielder to grow to massive sizes or shrink to miniscule ones. The sword is unbreakable and condemns those slain with it to Hel. Choosing this artifact brings the attention of the Norse Gods.
[] Swords of Fan: These twin swords were recovered from the depths of the East China Sea long ago. Though they are both unbreakable, their true power comes in unlocking the spiritual energy of their wielder for cultivation. Choosing this artifact brings the attention of the Heavenly Realms.
[] Tiara of Themyscira: The tiara of Hippolyta's heir bestows immunity to mind control, protection from scrying magic and resistance to a plethora of magical effects. Those that wear it live in interesting times.


As you move forward into the Patriarch's world, you may need to bring with allies. For the sake of subtlety and to avoid alerting your unknown enemy to your quest, you think it's best to bring a maximum of two companions with you. There are many Amazons who would be happy to accompany you as a bodyguard and friend, and there are some survivors from Man's world who could be persuaded to help you in your travels.

Choose up to two companions from the following list. You may choose one, two or zero companions, as you desire. Vote by plan. Include only the underlined portion of the option in your vote.

[] Steve Trevor, an American-born volunteer pilot for the Allied Powers. Trevor has few combat skills, but is an excellent pilot and loyal to a fault. Trevor is completely out of his depth when it comes to magic, but he's willing to work with you and sees it as his best way to make a positive impact in this war.
[] Barbara Ann Minerva, an American-born archaeologist shipwrecked on Themyscira. Minerva is skilled in hand-to-hand combat and is deeply knowledgeable about worldwide esoteric lore. Ever since she was healed on Themyscira, she has obsessed over your people and will do anything to gain their favor.
[] Hans Von Hammer, a German-born pilot for the Central Powers. Von Hammer is a skilled pilot and an exceptional swordsman. He has an extreme view of honor and respect in combat. Von Hammer seeks to return to the war once his debt to your people has been repaid.
[] Sadeh, an Amazon healing savant. Though young for an Amazon, Sadeh is already considered to be the premiere healer of Paradise Island. She would like to accompany you on your journey in order to do her part to "heal the scars of war." She has sworn herself to pacifism and will only fight in self-defense.
[] Orana, a glory-hungry Amazon warrioress who seeks to prove herself as a worthy Champion of the island. Orana is exceptionally skilled in combat and carries one of the artifacts of Themyscira with her. While one of the most powerful companions, Orana is prone to acting independently from you.
[] Menalippe, one of the chief priestesses of Themyscira and a competent oracle. Though her visions are not as strong as those of Sappho, she too can see the coming danger in the world. Menalippe's foresight is an invaluable tool and she may be able to isolate the cause of Fate's disturbance.

 

[Guiding Bolt]

This is the promised Christmas Vote Consolidation. Based on the votes and discussion that have taken place, I've created three potential builds for the players to choose between. As a bonus for the good explanations players have made for their choices in their build-plans, these builds have slightly more resources made available to them than the original vote options had.

[] Greek Lightning
Artifacts: Surtr's Black Sword, Lasso of Lightning, Sandals of Hermes, Tiara of Themyscira
Companions: Barbara Ann Minerva, Sadeh
Theatre: Libya
Form of Transportation: Sadeh's Magic

Through the combination of the Lasso of Lightning and Sandals of Hermes, Diana is able to do a passable Zeus impression, flying above the battlefield and raining down whip-guided bolts of lightning. The size of the lightning brought down through the Lasso of Lightning scales with Diana's size and skill. Through their combination of shrinkage and flight, the Sandals of Hermes and Surtr's Black Sword provide Diana with excellent infiltration abilities. The speed granted by the Sandals of Hermes also alleviate one of the greatest weaknesses of Surtr's Black Sword: the speed granted by the Sandals allows Diana's Giantess forms to operate at normal speed, rather than losing speed with her growth in size.

Surtr's Black Sword and the Tiara of Themyscira create a pairing that excels at fighting witches, warlocks and the undead. The Mind Control immunity granted by the Tiara allows Diana to no-sell the powerful hypnosis abilities of witches and vampires, while the Soul-Cutting abilities of Surtr's Black Sword allow Diana to fight and destroy undead and magical constructions through mundane means. There's no need to worry about wooden stakes or silver bullets when you can send cut souls straight to Hel's prisons.

Power Summary: Flight II, Speed I, Electrokinesis III, Rage Induction I, Size Transformation II, Soul-Cutter I, Magic Resistance I, Mind Control Immunity II

Because of the selection of Surtr's Black Sword, the Nordic Pantheon will become immediately active in the world and may interfere in World War I. Independent actors across the Nine Realms will begin their plots.
Because of the selection of one or more Greek Artifacts, the Greek Pantheon will become immediately active and may interfere in World War I. Of the Greek Pantheon, Ares, Hermes and Zeus will take special interest in you because of the artifacts selected.
Because of the selection of Libya as the theatre of war, the Kemetic Pantheon may become involved in the war. They are not immediately active, but this is the route where they are most easily interacted with.

Before her ship wrecked on the shores of Themyscira, Barbara Ann Minerva had planned a research trip within the Libyan and Egyptian deserts. Her planned trip would have taken her to explore several archaeological dig sites that have been abandoned due to the conflict in the region in a less-than-legal fashion. From research conducted by her colleagues, she believes that there may be ancient and esoteric items buried beneath the sands of these sites. Minerva is far too infatuated with Amazon culture to break off and explore these sites alone, but she would be overjoyed at the idea of heading to the sites with Amazon protection and willing to split any artifacts or loot she finds.

Sadeh will provide the primary form of transportation for the trip, using ritual magic to teleport the group along a network of fixed magic points. Sadeh is excited at the prospect of working to heal the petrified in the Libyan Desert, but it will take her some time to fully cure the petrified divisions. She will be happy in any camp where she can sit back and do her healing work, but she isn't excited by the prospects of tomb-raiding or of fighting against the actual monsters that have been spotted throughout the desert.

[] Diana Xianxia
Artifacts: Amulet of Harmonia, Swords of Fan, Bracers of Submission, Tiara of Themyscira
Companions: Barbara Ann Minerva, Sadeh
Theatre: Bavaria
Form of Transportation: Sadeh's Magic, Barbara Ann Minerva's Connections

The Swords of Fan unlock Diana's energy for spiritual cultivation, providing an unending path forward of growth and development at the cost of low initial benefit. However, the combination of the Bracers of Submission, Tiara of Themyscira and Amulet of Harmonia provide Diana with an extremely defensive set of tools to protect herself in those early times. Through cultivation, the Amulet of Harmonia's powers of minor regeneration can be developed into full-body regeneration and limb-regrowth. Through cultivation, the Divine affinity granted by the Amulet of Harmonia can become true Divinity. Through cultivation, the reflection of the Bracers of Submission can move past physical forces to the reflection of conceptual forces and threats. Through cultivation, the Tiara of Themyscira's protection from magic can turn to a complete barrier against the supernatural.

The Bracers of Submission allow Diana to deflect bullets and most close-combat attacks, while the Amulet of Harmonia provides regeneration for the few attacks that do make it through. The Tiara of Themyscira provides protection from magic and mind control, nulling one of the greatest weaknesses to traditional Wonder Woman builds. Offensively, Diana must rely on her Shatterpoint sight and her superhuman physique. The Swords of Fan are unbreakable and have great potential for cultivation, but initially they are no stronger or sharper than ordinary swords.

Power Summary: Shatterpoint I, Regeneration I, Divine Magic Affinity I, Spiritual Cultivation III, Mind Control Immunity II, Magic Resistance I

Because of the selection of the Swords of Fan, the Heavenly Realms will become immediately interested in Diana and Themyscira. Cultivators will appear around the world at an accelerated pace. The Jade Emperor awakens.
Because of the selection of one of more Greek Artifacts, the Greek Pantheon will become immediately active and may interfere in World War I. Of the Greek Pantheon, Athena and Harmonia will take immediate interest in you.

Barbara Ann Minerva is excited to travel to Bavaria and especially to Ingolstadt, the perceived seat of Arcane. She studied briefly at the University of Ingolstadt in her youth and is familiar with several of the professors there, including Dr. Wayne and Dr. Seltsam, both of whom she holds in high regard. She finds the concept of the risen dead terrifying (if a bit fascinating) and is eager to use her years of studying legends and rumors to help you destroy them. Minerva can use her connections in the region to secure you lodging at different universities, clinics and socialite dens, as long as you don't openly antagonize the Central Powers (though she knows some hideouts if you do).

Sadeh will use the primary form of transportation for reaching the continent in Austria, but the group will rely on ground transportation afterward to stay under the radar. Sadeh views destruction of the undead as its own form of healing and is willing to engage in combat against the various forms of undead present, though she won't fight against any living opponents or any creatures whose nature is indeterminate (like vampires or demons, who tread the line between living and dead). She is excited to see the libraries of avant-garde and world changing medical research in Ingolstadt.

[] Amazon Brigade
Artifacts: Amulet of Harmonia, Bracers of Submission, Tiara of Themyscira
Companions: Orana (Gauntlet of Atlas), Sadeh, Menalippe
Theatre: Bavaria
Form of Transportation: Menalippe and Sadeh's Magic

Diana sacrifices direct personal power and instead outfits a full four-woman Amazon squad for combat. The Bracers of Submission, Amulet of Harmonia and Tiara of Themyscira provide an extreme defensive presence for Diana and allow her to take on a role as the group's defensive-center through their mixture of deflection, magical resistance and minor regeneration. Offensively, she combines the super strength of the Amazons with the Shatterpoint sight provided by the Amulet of Harmonia to be a credible front line threat.

Orana is a credible front line fighter on the same level of Diana. Though she lacks Shatterpoint, the raw power granted by the Gauntlet of Atlas makes her nigh unbeatable in physical combat. Menalippe is an expert ranged fighter with her enchanted bow and arrow, but her true utility comes in her Illusion magic and scrying, capable of providing levels of invisibility to the entire party while advancing in unknown areas. Sadeh provides in-combat and out-of-combat healing power; combined with the Amulet of Harmonia, Sadeh's concentrated healing can give Diana incredibly durability in combat to anything that doesn't instantly kill her or sever her limbs.

As a full four-woman Amazon squad, Diana's group benefits from Synergy (Amazon). Progression for one member of the party provides slight bonuses to all members of the party.

Power Summary: Synergy (Amazon) III, Shatterpoint I, Regeneration I, Divine Magic Affinity I, Mind Control Immunity II, Magic Resistance I

Because of the selection of one of more Greek Artifacts, the Greek Pantheon will become immediately active and may interfere in World War I. Of the Greek Pantheon, Athena and Harmonia will take immediate interest in you and Ares will take immediate interest in Orana.

Sadeh views destruction of the undead as its own form of healing and is willing to engage in combat against the various forms of undead present, though she won't fight against any living opponents or any creatures whose nature is indeterminate (like vampires or demons, who tread the line between living and dead). In this strictly Amazon-setting, Sadeh is willing to help teach Divine Magic (Healing) to Diana while in safe conditions. Sadeh is much more open about her concerns and her ideas in this full Amazon group than she may otherwise be and is distrustful of any attempts to include non-Amazon presence in the group's internal plans.

Menalippe is interested in tracking down various witches throughout the Süddeutschland that she has had prior contact and experience with for information on what is going on in the region. While her illusion magic is powerful against the living, it is ineffectual against many of the undead forces expected to be encountered in the region. In this strictly Amazon-setting, Menalippe is willing to help teach Divine Magic (Oracle) and Divine Magic (Illusionist) to Diana. Menalippe trusts magic users and her past connections in the region more than she trusts brutes and warriors.

Orana views this excursion as a chance to prove herself worthy of the title Wonder Woman. She is an extremely competent warrior, but she is extremely prideful and has a low view on the value of non-Amazon life. Orana has very few ways to resist magical interference and will rely entirely on Menalippe and Diana for protection against magical opponents. Orana will demand an active role in decision making and in the party's choices and is willing to split from the party if she doesn't get her way; however, she is extremely loyal and diligent to those who can win her support.

Happy holidays. Vote will remain open until sometime this weekend.

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