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It's Tough to Be a God Caller (RWBY/Pathfinder Quest)

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[x] Hope Enduring
[x] Hope Rewarded

Either of these I think. Endless defiance against the Grimm, or the promise that the tide can turn, the future can change and that good actions matter.
 
[X] Hope Enduring
Sing of the Mendevian Crusades and the soldiers that never faltered. Sing of the Knights of Lastwall and the battles that continue today. Sing of the endless tides of evil and sound the clarion call, joining the Adventurers and Heroes that answer.
 
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Hope Enduring
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    • [ ] Hope Enduring

    "There are those who would claim that the magic of music is found solely in the stories it tells. They tie rhythm and rhyme to harmony and art to claim that meaning and power alike comes solely from those that hear it. And they are wrong."

    It only takes a moment to pull your attention away from yourself and the constant distractions, an ever present and constantly ignored song rising in volume as all else fades away.

    "The birds sang for each other long before we were here to listen. The singing and dancing that comes with spring, the constant hum of bugs in summer, the haunting echoes of autumn and the silence of winter, a constant cyclical symphony that will continue on long after we're gone. And mere beasts are not the only players for this song. The trees and flowers sing in their own way, too low for us to hear. The ebb and flow of river and ocean, the patterned yet anarchic dance of the winds, the rise of mountains and the roar of volcanoes. Each one integral to the vital symphony of the world.

    Remnant sounds different to Golarion. It's quieter and more subdued, and the undercurrent of danger has a nature that you don't recognise.

    "And all of that together, the song of this world and everything on it, is but a verse in the song of the cosmos. The sun and moon and every star in the sky have their own voices, their own part in the elegant dance of the cosmos."

    It's lonelier than Golarion. No hungry god of destruction trapped within the world, no other worlds nearby with their own songs to harmonise with.

    "We are so small in comparison. One short life is nothing when compared to a star or a world. Yet we have our own place in the song, as vital as any other."

    You fall silent for a time, listening with your soul as much as your ears as you try and find the right place. For the songs of Golarion and Remnant alike can be divided in two, one natural and all encompassing and the other artificial and all consuming.

    You listen to the echoes of winter from the south, to the acceptance of the rotting stumps and the humble acceptance of some distant hibernating beast. You can taste fear and sorrow and tense, tangy anticipation in equal measure, despite a ready influx of sickly sweet joy and anger and constant, rapid activity.

    It's scary how familiar it is. Kenabres had more fear and fury in the mix because of the constant threat of the Worldwound. What threat lurks outside of Vale that could compare to an endless army of demons? How can such a grand city feel the same way that you did when you buried your first sister?

    Your voice is low and raspy as you sing, a slow accepting elegy blending seamlessly into the background. Tamarie deserved better than she got, swallowed up by a chaotic tide and torn apart by too many foes to count. Her spear twitches angrily in your hand, an element of defiance added to the song.

    You grow louder as Eltira joins in. You sing of grim acceptance, of a slow grinding war that tainted everything that touched it. You sing of national goodwill turning to political plays for glory, of righteous and valiant soldiers being replaced by the careless, the craven and the greedy, of the suspicion and fear that shattered a grand alliance into a hundred feuding factions.

    Eltira's song rises in counterpoint, a resonant anthem for those who fought on regardless. She sings of noble Terendelev, of valiant Queen Galfrey, of her former summoners and a dozen other righteous souls. Individuals that joined together, that kept the fight going for almost a century. The heavenly choir of the Wardstones, the grim march of the Hellknights, the dedication of the Pathfinders and countless knights and soldiers.

    As your song becomes confident and proud Eltira's splits in two. You sing of treachery defeated by valour and unity, of swift victories that were slowly ground into bitter dust only for to return as death was suddenly brought to those thought invincible and immortal. Eltira sings quietly of those who fight alone and loudly of armies and nations. It's strange to recognise the creeping whisper of Tar-Baphon wind through the grim crescendo of the Whispering Way, or to hear of Queen Galfrey's ascension to Divine Herald contrast with the crusading armies marching south to fight once more, but utterly undeniable.

    --

    For the first time since she abandoned her parents to join the White Fang Blake is crying.

    She doesn't know how long she's been sitting here and staring blankly through someone she's still not sure she can call a friend, how long it's been since Eltira stopped glaring at her to somehow split her shadow in two and sing as both a cat and a panther. The world around her has faded away, replaced by a hauntingly familiar dreamlike vision of the past.

    Blake can't help but weep because she knows this song in her bones, has been singing since she was young. A song of oppression and the fight against it, echoing equally loudly from a little girl clinging to a sign her mother made and from a masked monster that abandoned any pretense at justice long ago. She hears her friends take up the song, RWBY clashing with Adam and sees every possible ending. Even as she tries to focus on the vision of victory, of them all standing safe and sound in their dorm the faces blur and fade. The White Fang twist and turn into Grimm as more Huntsmen rally to fight them. Mechashift weapons and guns become humbler bows and blades, the history of Remnant playing in reverse.

    But through it all, through the crushing despair of seeing Beowolves prowl through empty towns and the soaring joy of children playing in idyllic fields, she knows she isn't alone. There's something else there, a tiny whispering refrain. A tiny green shoot in a wasteland of ash. A forgotten and abandoned horse carrying its weary master home. A humble faunus with gossamer golden wings hobbling away from a burning village, a rescued book in one hand and a weeping child in the other.

    Things can change. You can make them change. And until you do, I'll be waiting. No matter how long it takes. I'll keep your dream alive.

    A promise that echoes through the ages.

    --

    At some point Eltira's song shifted. Somehow she sang the chorus loud enough to echo through the forest while directing each and every verse at you. Old lessons repeated and given new meaning by Remnant's chorus, new lessons hidden within alongside hints at truths you only faintly recognise.

    What spells do you learn from Eltira's song?

    [ ] Spells drawn from Spirits and Beasts
    Evolution Surge - You flood the target with energy from the world around it, compressing centuries of evolution into a single moment. The result is beneficial and determined by your surroundings as much as it is by their character.
    Speak with Animals - You can ask questions of and receive answers from animals, lending them your own intellect and awareness.

    [ ] Spells of Instinct and Emotion
    Blinding Fury - You curse your enemy with your outrage at being attacked, stoking them into a blind rage. Whether they pursue you above all else or strike at any and all is unpredictable.
    Thundering Challenge - You shroud yourself in a powerful predatory aura and amplify your voice. Your roar demands your enemies come forth and fight or turn and flee.

    [ ] Spells to Heal and Cleanse
    Clear Mind - Drive mental contamination from the target's mind and protect them from further intrusion.
    Vital Beacon - Channel the energies of Creation's Forge through your body and soul, becoming a beacon of vital energy.
    --

    If you have questions about the spells or anything else make sure to ask.
     
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  • Threadmarks
    • [X] Spells drawn from Spirits and Beasts
    Evolution Surge - You flood the target with energy from the world around it, compressing centuries of evolution into a single moment. The result is beneficial and determined by your surroundings as much as it is by character.
    Speak with Animals - You can ask questions of and receive answers from animals, lending them your own intellect and awareness.

    This seems like the option that I think fits a rogue the best. Also happy that I was correct about endurance relating back to Blake and the Faunus struggle.
     
    [X] Spells drawn from Spirits and Beasts

    Utility good. Also, neither Thaumaturges nor Summoners really want to be the primary target of any enemy. Thaumaturges want to pile onto an enemy focused on someone else, and Summoners like to let their eidolons take the brunt of things.
     
    Thaumaterge said:
    Utility good. Also, neither Thaumaturges nor Summoners really want to be the primary target of any enemy. Thaumaturges want to pile onto an enemy focused on someone else, and Summoners like to let their eidolons take the brunt of things.
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    The class comparisons are useful, but don't get too stuck on them. Telka alone with no magic is a worse fighter than Blake right now, but she's all about piling on advantages in battle. Eltira provides an obvious flanking buddy that loves having someone set up an ambush, the two of them fighting together means Telka can drop Darkness right on the enemy and be unaffected, and Shadow Web and Blindness are more direct debuffs.
     
    I forgot to close the votes - which is handy because I also didn't notice that there was a tie until it was broken.

    Btw, the bonus cantrip you get with Speak with Animals and Evolution Surge is Gouging Claw. It'll be useful if you ever lose your spear.
    Scheduled vote count started by shepsquared on Apr 1, 2024 at 8:40 AM, finished with 10 posts and 8 votes.
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