[X] Pass on buying something for now.
[X] Craft A Spell (Memory: Escaping, Glyph: Water, Purpose: Repositioning. Name: "Fluidity")
[X] Plan Making Preparations for the Future
-[X] Find Akemi
-[X] Pay Off A Contact
-[X] Look Into Void Glyph With Kira
-[X] Work At Animate
-[X] Talk with the strange spirits you've met.
-[X] Make sure your internet security is good. (DC 22)
[X] Pass on buying something for now.
[X] Craft A Spell (Memory: Changing, Glyph: Water, Purpose: Disguise. Name: "Disguise")
[X] Plan Making Preparations for the Future
-[X] Find Akemi
-[X] Pay Off A Contact
-[X] Look Into Void Glyph With Kira
-[X] Work At Animate
-[X] Talk with the strange spirits you've met.
-[X] Make sure your internet security is good. (DC 22)
Speaking of buying things... @MrKermie, would it be possible to use a glyph we buy this turn on a spell crafting action that's also happening on this turn?
[X] Pass on buying something for now.
[X] Craft A Spell (Memory: Escaping, Glyph: Water, Purpose: Repositioning. Name: "Fluidity")
[X] Plan Making Preparations for the Future
-[X] Find Akemi
-[X] Pay Off A Contact
-[X] Look Into Void Glyph With Kira
-[X] Work At Animate
-[X] Talk with the strange spirits you've met.
-[X] Make sure your internet security is good. (DC 22)
Please follow Ashen Cross's example, everybody. Separate your lines, and vote for the current week stuff so I can get an idea of where everybody stands on each thing.
[X] Plan Making Preparations for the Future -[X] Find Akemi
-[X] Pay Off A Contact
-[X] Look Into Void Glyph With Kira
-[X] Work At Animate
-[X] Talk with the strange spirits you've met.
-[X] Make sure your internet security is good. (DC 22)
[X] Pass on buying something for now.
[X] Craft A Spell (Memory: Changing, Glyph: Water, Purpose: Disguise. Name: "Disguise")
Alright, so don't panic— the vote isn't over yet, this is just another thing.
Specifically, this is about Akemi. She has the same past that you have, so she has both the stat buffs and a gun, identical to yours and with the [Instant Kill Mooks] trait.
She also has the Tech Bane trait, which makes her worse with dealing with tech equipment… which includes the gun. Which, when broken, would cost an exorbitant amount of capital to repair.
So, you know that her kit is incohesive, I know that her kit is incohesive, and so does [REDACTED].
So, I'm going to give you a trade off. In the top of this thread, there is a poll. If voted for, I'll have [REDACTED] help change out Akemi's weapon and fighting style during week 2. Think of this as a more early benefit of picking [Aid From A Friend.]
To put them all down in order:
The Gun:
The default option, granted by her assassin background. The one I was going to go for, before I realized that it doesn't work with Akemi's stat spread.
Surprisingly easy to upgrade.
Can instantly kill mooks.
D20 damage is stupid for early game.
Durability still scales off of technical, so might break.
Sword:
Don't ask where [REDACTED] got this for Akemi. Just… don't.
Doesn't have the same damage or IK potential as the gun, but it replaces her basic attack.
This makes her a lot more consistent over a longer battle.
Also upgradable, but somewhat harder to upgrade.
Magic:
Buffs Akemi's Magical, letting her deal A Lot more damage. However, it will also debuff her Physical by a small amount.
Opens up Double-Element and Double-Memory Glyph certification for Akemi a lot more easily.
Hand to Hand:
Buffs Akemi's Physical, letting her take A Lot more hits. However, it will also debuff her Magical by a small amount.
Unlike the others, this one still carries over its benefits to out of transformation, which allows her to kick butt even when affected by anti-magic.
Alright, so don't panic— the vote isn't over yet, this is just another thing.
Specifically, this is about Akemi. She has the same past that you have, so she has both the stat buffs and a gun, identical to yours and with the [Instant Kill Mooks] trait.
She also has the Tech Bane trait, which makes her worse with dealing with tech equipment… which includes the gun. Which, when broken, would cost an exorbitant amount of capital to repair.
So, you know that her kit is incohesive, I know that her kit is incohesive, and so does [REDACTED].
So, I'm going to give you a trade off. In the top of this thread, there is a poll. If voted for, I'll have [REDACTED] help change out Akemi's weapon and fighting style during week 2. Think of this as a more early benefit of picking [Aid From A Friend.]
To put them all down in order:
The Gun:
The default option, granted by her assassin background. The one I was going to go for, before I realized that it doesn't work with Akemi's stat spread.
Surprisingly easy to upgrade.
Can instantly kill mooks.
D20 damage is stupid for early game.
Durability still scales off of technical, so might break.
Sword:
Don't ask where [REDACTED] got this for Akemi. Just… don't.
Doesn't have the same damage or IK potential as the gun, but it replaces her basic attack.
This makes her a lot more consistent over a longer battle.
Also upgradable, but somewhat harder to upgrade.
Magic:
Buffs Akemi's Magical, letting her deal A Lot more damage. However, it will also debuff her Physical by a small amount.
Opens up Double-Element and Double-Memory Glyph certification for Akemi a lot more easily.
Hand to Hand:
Buffs Akemi's Physical, letting her take A Lot more hits. However, it will also debuff her Magical by like, 7.
Unlike the others, this one still carries over its benefits to out of transformation, which allows her to kick butt even when affected by anti-magic.
Ooooooh options......
Hmmm yeah im feeling we should drop the gun. Hand to hand soumds good but that hit to magical oof.... I would love a magical assasin Boxer (i just described Tifa from FF7) but probably aint wort it. Sooo sword or magic. Early balance or easier casting later.... Eh as much as the saying goes that B***es love cannon they also love sharp pointy things lets go with swords. Now.... short sword? Rapier? Snakesword? Greatsword? , Lightsaber/katana? Dualblades? Now im feeling like looking for examples of Girls with swords or swords and put them here... sorry in advance MrKermie!
Ooooooh options......
Hmmm yeah im feeling we should drop the gun. Hand to hand soumds good but that hit to magical oof.... I would love a magical assasin Boxer (i just described Tifa from FF7) but probably aint wort it. Sooo sword or magic. Early balance or easier casting later.... Eh as much as the saying goes that B***es love cannon they also love sharp pointy things lets go with swords. Now.... short sword? Rapier? Snakesword? Greatsword? , Lightsaber/katana? Dualblades? Now im feeling like looking for examples of Girls with swords or swords and put them here... sorry in advance MrKermie!
[REDACTED] will try to put in the work if you pick sword, so there'll be some small upgrade paths if you pick that for Akemi: think bigger sword (FF), transforming sword (not just a katana or longsword, it can also be a greatsword), or gun sword (RWBY).
(There will also be multiple upgrade paths for all other options, [REDACTED] is nothing if not adaptable. Think glyphless magic, and martial arts techniques from something as absurd as Baki.]
(also, are you guys getting tired of me putting the Friend's name as Redacted? Because it's just as tiring for me.)
First the Short sword! This co,e from a little indie game I played and love call Crystales for the switch. The main character Crysbel is a time mage. Healing via time magic, seeimg past, present and future at the same time, desintagration via aging, imsta kill via time magic,speed buffs and slow debuffs, sending enemies to the past or future to weaken (or strenghent them) and time stopping. Shes really Magical girl coded actually. And no spoilers but not everything is at it seems).
[REDACTED] will try to put in the work if you pick sword, so there'll be some small upgrade paths if you pick that for Akemi: think bigger sword (FF), transforming sword (not just a katana or longsword, it can also be a greatsword), or gun sword (RWBY).
(There will also be multiple upgrade paths for all other options, [REDACTED] is nothing if not adaptable. Think glyphless magic, and martial arts techniques from something as absurd as Baki.]
(also, are you guys getting tired of me putting the Friend's name as Redacted? Because it's just as tiring for me.)
At this rate even when we learn their name theyre gonna be called Mr/Ms. REDACTED, by the fans.... or you could call them (First name) REDACTED (last name). Actual Mr/Ms REDACTED.
I am a bit leery of any of the stat enhancers for Akemi, since they drop the other stat as well (Magical drops Physical and Physical drops Magical, even if not by much, so I'd prefer the sword, so that she has a usable weapon. We already have a gun of our own, so once we hook up, Akemi not having a gun is not going to be that much of an issue.
Scheduled vote count started by MrKermie on Jul 4, 2024 at 4:43 PM, finished with 36 posts and 9 votes.
[X] Plan Making Preparations for the Future -[X] Find Akemi -[X] Pay Off A Contact -[X] Look Into Void Glyph With Kira -[X] Work At Animate -[X] Talk with the strange spirits you've met.
-[X] Make sure your internet security is good. (DC 22)
[X] Finding Our Feet -[X] Find Akemi -[X] Pay Off A Contact -[X] Look Into Void Glyph With Kira -[X] Work At Animate -[X] Craft A Spell (Memory: Escaping, Glyph: Water, Purpose: Repositioning. Name: "Fluidity") -[X] Talk with the strange spirits you've met. -[X] "Safely" "Prototype" something with Nakayama.
[X] Plan Making Preparations for the Future, Escape Spell -[X] Find Akemi -[X] Pay Off A Contact -[X] Look Into Void Glyph With Kira -[X] Work At Animate -[X] Craft A Spell (Memory: Escaping, Glyph: Water, Purpose: Repositioning. Name: "Fluidity") -[X] Talk with the strange spirits you've met.
-[X] Make sure your internet security is good. (DC 22)
Sorry @Fabricati and @Ashen Cross but PetroleumMedium, veekie, and ScorpioSting already voted for Fluidity, it just didn't merge with the other votes. For that reason, I will be having Fluidity win in spells.
Oof. That Akemi roll. On the other hand, our Internet Security is not quite cutting edge, but you'd need a purposeful/dedicated hacker to break into it successfully, I hope. And we very much cleaned up our Animate act and were the model employee for this week.
Author's Note: This is a chapter intended to be read between 1.4 and 1.5. It covers exactly how Rei (and by extension, this Quest) gets her first personal Spell, Flowing Fluidity.
It's also an excuse for me to worldbuild the Glyph system. Enjoy!
"What's in it for me?"
Kira rolls her eyes. "You don't seem like the type of person who needs too much money, so why don't we make a deal? I'll craft you all the Spells you might want from the reject materials I have, since you clearly live a dangerous life. In exchange, you'll get help with your weird mystery Glyph." She puts her hand out.
Dammit, she figured all that out just from being with you for ten minutes? She's too smart for her own good. But the deal's way too good for you to pass up.
You shake her hand. "Deal."
It's as if lightning reverberates through the room. Kira seems to smile deviously, as if you've just made a contract with the devil. "Hahaha! Finally, I'll get to research something interesting!"
I think that you're just overthinking this.
She puts her finger to her cheek; it looks like she's thinking.
"Why don't we make you a Spell first? You seem awfully doubtful of my capabilities in Magic, so why don't I prove you wrong. And besides, I always prefer to fulfill my end of these deals first."
You raise your eyebrows. "…Why not? It seems like you're awfully confident about this."
With that, Kira reaches out, and grabs your arm. She leans back a bit, and taps on the couch frame, right behind the cushion you're leaning on.
Suddenly, a compartment in the wall flips over, revealing two deactivated Glyphs. In their deactivated state, they just look like metal disks with a Fire and Water symbol on them, which is surrounded by a lined circle. She tosses both of them over to you.
Kira smiles. "Alright, think of these two Glyphs as your starter pack. The rest, you can buy from me, for discount prices at that."
"For real?" You narrow your eyes. "I can just buy Glyphs from other people, you know…"
Kira just shakes her head. "That won't work, most people will just sell you premade Spells with Glyphs and Runes already set, and most civilian-use spells— Cantrips— will just get you the power equivalent of a Four-Hour Energy. You won't find pure Glyphs at a cheaper price than me. Hand me my phone?"
Since she can't do it, you reach over to grab her phone from the other side of the couch. You quickly glance at it— it's black (obviously, this woman wants to color code her whole life) and there's a cute witch hat sticker underneath the clear case.
"Hey! Stop staring at my stuff!"
She stretches out over the couch and snatches it from your hands. She puts in a passcode, before swiping over to an app.
"Alright, I can do a lot of things for you, and build you some Spells that you can't find on the normal market. What would you want?"
She then starts scrolling through what is clearly a google doc filled with the most deranged ideas.
"Fifteen Hour Energy equivalent?"
"Weirdly specific, no."
"Canceling out your need for oxygen?"
"I'm not a pro swimmer."
"Well, then what do you want? I'm not psychic."
That really gets you thinking. What do you need?
Well, we have Fire and Water to work with. Aside from that, we have to consider both our combat style and its weaknesses.
We can't transform without using that Void thing, so we'll be assuming that we'll be fighting with a very aggressive and self destructive style, which counteracts some of the benefits my combat strengths give you.
So, we'll have to make a spell that allows us to move more fluidly— something that can make up for the loss of the aerial gymnastics I'd normally use.
"Fluidly"… Atry, you're a genius!
"Why don't we make a spell that can increase my flexibility, by like, turning me into water?"
Kira looks up from her phone, and straight into your eyes. You can practically see sparkles.
"Ohh… we are gonna be friends. Alright, sit tight right there."
Kira pulls out a few magnifying glasses, before scooting over and trying some Glyphs on herself. She leans in, and with a flick of her hand activates an [Identifying] Glyph, her eyes glowing blue.
"Alright, first off we'll be implanting the Glyph. I'd imagine you want this to be an Internal Spell, so that people can't just take this off you, right?"
You nod. External Spells are used by the average civilian, and are usually just Cantrip-level. However, that's too dangerous for you— if you try that, it might get taken away from you, since they'll be contained in the form of a physical object.
Kira takes the Water Glyph, and presses it to your arm. You hiss— it's been a while since you've gotten a Spell implanted into you, and the cold metal feels unfamiliar.
You feel the energy of the Water Glyph flow into you— it feels like jumping into a pool on a hot summer day, like being submerged in cold water, like getting a drink after a day in the desert. The Water symbol glows on your left arm now, and the used up Rune Disk weakly falls to the ground.
Kira grabs her phone. "I've gotten my phone jury rigged for this. Now, close your eyes, and think of a memory that relates to your intended purpose. I'll transform it into the Rune you'll need."
"And this is very important— for Rune transformation, the memory has to be Vivid. I'm thinking like, you remember the sensations that you felt, the exact words you said."
"Alright, don't worry about me. I've got something in mind.
You close your eyes.
In the distance, there's a mansion, tucked all the way at the top of a grassy mountain. It's the safehouse for the Assassin's Guild: your parents, trainers, and watchers.
And both you and Akemi are running down that mountain. You stumble and start to roll down the incline, but suddenly, a hand reaches out to grab you. It's Akemi!
She yanks you back up and motions for you two to move into a small clearing. There's some trees and brush covering you. It's a temporary hiding place, but it won't hide you for long.
"Chances are the Guild bots will switch to heat vision mode as the sun goes down." Akemi gasps, trying to catch her breath. "So…"
Akemi looks away from you. She's doing that thing she does again. Whenever she's planning one of her schemes, she always looks away, and it always seems like she's not quite there, not quite aware.
"We've got to go our separate ways. It'll be harder for them to catch us."
"Are you sure about that? You know that neither of us know much about the civvie world."
"I know, but it's our best shot. Only come and try to find me if you're in big trouble. I'm talking active threat to your life."
"So, see you never?"
"Yeah. Hopefully."
You lock gazes one last time and nod, before getting up and running away in opposite directions.
You open your eyes. In front of you, shimmering words hover in front of your eyes.
a mansion, tucked all the way at the top
stumble and start to roll down the incline
not quite there, not quite aware
getting up and running away in opposite directions
You put a hand to your head. Damn, it hurts. And while you still have your same memory, it's clear that it's less vivid now. If it was in 4k before, now it's closer to 1080p. Still clear as day, but going back to it feels less emotional, less terrifying.
Kira grabs the words out of the air, before gently pressing them once more to your arm. The words stretch and turn, before turning into words on the Glyph. Then, the glowing blue glyph symbol disappears.
"I've personally named the spell "Flowing Fluidity," Kira says, "Try it out. Shout the name in your head."
You take a deep breath. "Atry, can you try to do this for me? I'm just wondering." you think.
Sure, why not.
Activate First Spell Protocol, Flowing Fluidity!
The Water symbol, which had previously disappeared, burns back to life on your left shoulder. You stand up, and walk up to the nearby mirror.
You touch your hand to your face. It seems semi-transparent now. It looks like below your skin, you can see the pattern of ocean waves rippling. You take another deep breath, and walk back over to the center of the room, Kira's gaze landing squarely on you.
And you leap into the air, touching the ceiling. You land on your feet, run around the apartment, and do a flip over the kitchen counter. it feels like you can't be stopped, not by anything. Not by your body, not by your bones, not by anybody. You vault back over the counter, and as you go back over to the couch, it feels like your feet are sliding off the floor.
Kira can't seem to get the grin off her face. "Incredible… it's like you're an octopus! This is awesome!"
You will it in your head, and suddenly, the spell stops, along with the momentum you had. The power flows out of your veins, and the Glyph mark on your arm stops glowing blue.
But the power's clearly staying with you. This new spell is yours.
Fluidity Of Water
DC 35, Active
3 Uses Remaining
This Spell transforms your body underneath the Rider suit into a partially water based body. It gives you higher speed, cloaks you in a clear bluish aura, and lets you both dodge and take attacks easier.
On success, for 2 turns every single enemy must roll for a higher target DC. (60 instead of 40.) On higher successes, (DC 60/90) Physical damage is halved, and the enemy hit DC gets even higher. (Instead of 40, it'd be 70/80). However, you gain a weakness towards Ice. After successful casting during combat, gain a bonus action, with possible +10 modifier.
You may then gain the option to [Run Away] during combat, if this is in your inventory or already active, which does exactly what you think it does.
Critting (Nat 95+) will just make you pretty much intangible, but you will still be weak to Ice, so watch out for that!
Failure on this spell, (which would currently require you to roll a 17 or lower, btw) will instead fizzle out these effects immediately and inflict you with the Drowning status effect in your next combat/turn.
(Can be upgraded with the Air, Fire, or Void glyphs.)
Author's Note:
I'll be back in about 1-3 days, everybody. In the meantime, you enjoy your new spell.
