#[ shatter; petrel ]

[pureheartsandrainbowwings]

[ When it came to parenting, the Executives weren’t exactly perfect… ]

[ this isn’t relevant to the current arcs i just wanted to put them here :> ]

[pokemoncardcritique]

New request! Full Art Sidney from Fusion Strike. Thanks for your work! 🙇

SIDNEY

Illustrated by: Hideki Ishikawa

Thanks for another request! This full art card of Sidney chose a very unexpected location for the Elite Four member to find himself in! A grimy rundown restroom isn't normally where you'd expect to find a Pokemon trainer, especially one of his caliber, but it does match his role as a Dark type trainer. Trying to match that uneasiness of the dark type with a normal background could be tough, especially if you want to be subtle about it and not lean too deep into Dark type stereotypes like being straight up evil. Sidney is often pretty upbeat, but he is a bit of a punk, so the urban background does feel like a solid fit! I looked at the version of this card that isn't a full art and he's in a city at night, again making it feel like it's leaning a touch into his delinquent side even if it's just for looks!

This restroom is in quite a state though! The shattered mirror is a very good eye catching element to make it immediately apparent the kind of place he's in, but then the sinks are a bit yucky, there's a messed up light, and some paper shreds from torn down posters are still stuck to the wall. I do wonder what kind of place he might be. He's an Elite Four member, even wearing his Mega Bracelet here. Is he out there looking for trouble? My first thought is this is some poorly maintained public park restroom, other places like a gas station or stadium bathroom feel like they don't quite match this look or state. The real big question of this image though: there seem to be little flies near the light fixtures! Those little specks above Sidney's elbows, are they bugs attracted to the light? Did some real animals slip into Pokemon again? Maybe they're dust catching the light but it feels like insects buzzing around public park lighting is another park of this dark aesthetic…

Sidney being in a place like this does give me a bit of a Team Rocket vibe, like if you could enter a public restroom in a Pokemon game you wouldn't be too surprised to run into a Rocket Grunt. Maybe its because both Team Rocket's Petrel and Sidney have a big puff of hair on their head. Having his pose here focus on that little magenta flame of a hairdo was smart, emphasizing his most memorable design element! His expression is really good too, it has him fired up like usual but also feels a bit dangerous, especially considering the setting. That massive smirk really gives confident vibes, like he just challenged you to a Pokemon battle, but he's also leaning a bit casually because it is just for fun rather than a real danger. Maybe this is just the pre-fight bathroom break? I'm really trying to think of ways this isn't just Sidney looking for a fight in a public restroom! Could be he is just on his own I suppose, we don't see anyone else after all. Although maybe this is a case where you should think less about the implications, more like this was a posed photo shoot and the background is a fake one for an appropriate Dark type mood?

I do think the reflection of his back is a nice small touch, that extra mile that they didn't need to do, but did!

⬤

[ghostchanuwu]

Gen 2 stuff YAYYYY

------------------------------

Falkner, Bugsy and Whitney are the youngest Johto leaders and have a deep bond with eachother because of that (they have meetups every other day in Goldenrod, Bugsy always brings honey cookies because theyre all obsessed with them) Morty is like an older brother to them even though he doesnt hang out as much as he used to anymore

Eusine is a time traveler from an alternate time where Johto and Kanto were ravaged, he wants to find this time's Suicune to take it back with him briefly to have it purify enough water so that the region can start to rebuild (the Suicune in his time died, he was only able to travel to this one because Celebi took mercy on him) its why he is so obsessed with trying to find it (he is also on a timer since he had become ill from the severe strain hopping timelines took on him)

Jasmine is from Sunnyshore in Sinnoh and regularly invites Volkner (and Flint because of course) to have him help with renovating the Lighthouse along with setting up solar pannels around the city so that it can fully shift to using renewable energy (Volkner doesnt accept payment since getting to work with something that wont cause constant blackouts is payment enough) Sunnyshore and Olivine have gotten the nicknames of 'Sunnyvine' and 'Oliveshore' because of how closely theyre related

Pryce used to practice ninjitsu in an effort to preserve Mahogany's history but was forced to stop after being permenantly injured ironically fighting off a particularly powerful Gyarados, his mind was put slightly to ease when he found out that a certain ninja clan in Fuschia was still practicing it (he had given them every scroll and document he could and passed on his knowledge to Koga when he was younger so that it would be taught for generations to come) Pryce is still bitter because of it all (Blackthorn clan had brushed off the Gyarados attack as just simply an unfortunate event, Mahogany and Blackthorn have been at odds for centuries)

Clair is still brash as ever but now throws her anger at Lance and Blackthorn for lying to them all, she wants nothing to do with the clan anymore having had an epiphany that the clan either needs to change completely or be dissolved before the elders make another Lance, she eventually lets up on Lance turning that anger into empathy willing to help rehabilitate him (he became a shut in after Kanto having shattered for lack of better words, he needs to atone but also to unlearn a lot of toxic ideas he had been fed since he was a baby)

Gold and Silver help push Lance with bettering himself and getting a new perspective on life (Gold rekindling his love for battle and reconnecting with people wheras Silver even though he is far from perfect and going through his own stuff helps with unpacking what all has happened throughout his life into manageable pieces and works through that) Johto ends with Lance being the one to finally pin down where Suicune is catching it and sending it off with Eucine, he starts to do better after that having played a role in his home region from another time come back to life instead of destroying everything in this time

Kris and Lyra uncover a little group of supposed team rocket members that had broken off from the main Kanto branch after a major dispute having claimed that Giovanni strayed from their original goal and want him back (Proton, Petrel, Ariana and Archer are in charge but theyre too disorganized to do much damage to anything outside of the Radio Tower being taken over but that was stomped out since Kris and Lyra are a force to be reckoned with together)

[radiofreesanjak]

To those below who clawed their way above,

It is with joy and pride that I welcome the heroes of Free Sanjak to the omninet, glad that you join us to speak with your own voice. Though we have not met, and I have not had the honour of running the blockade myself, your deeds of valour and defiance have inspired me to follow your example and lead me to the path I walk today.

I hope that I may meet you in person one day, be it in your home on Free Sanjak or elsewhere once the blockade is shattered, but until them: know that your struggle has won the hearts and minds of countless people across the Orion Arm. Know that we will not stop until the siege of your world is lifted, and your people are safe from Baronic aggression. Know that you have friends who stand with you.

With love and admiration, Young Petrel Roland Levi of Makteba Karda. (@semi-loyal-wing )

You will have to run for us one day Roland, and I will be happy to greet you where you land for moonshine and smokes. In the meantime, channel your energy to our Ungrateful siblings elsewhere. There is a great much work to be done in the Dawnline Shore, in the Long Rim, in the backyard of the wretched Harrison Armory. In times of victory we allow ourselves to sing those songs but only with the knowledge that there is much work to be done, and so long as those who oppress us and their handlers who hold the leash yet stand, I cannot play but temporary songs of freedom.

Until then, I am satisfied just hearing how mad Khyradin gets every time they look up.

-Mistral

[tumblestonesa]

lets talk about johto era petrel.

he came to rocket for giovanni. he'd been fascinated by the man enough to leave his personal crimes behind to work alongside the other executives in rocket. it was entertaining, and that's all his life was really lacking at that point.

when rocket 'disbanded', he almost left. what entertainment was there to be had with giovanni gone to ground? and then he saw the state archer was in. and that? that was just enough entertainment to keep him around. how long until the usually perfectly composed man shattered completely, and what sort of explosion would it be when that happened?

he couldn't resist.

[teamrocketarcher]

Plates collected, mountain climbed (Everything hurts, but you don't remember injuring yourself on the way up. You dont think it matters anymore), you stand, ready for your plan to come to fruition.

You'll have Giovanni back. You'll have your family back, too. Things weren't the same after Zapdos and Petrel at the power plant, but you're going to fix everything. (What happened to Ariana and Proton? You don't remember that either. You miss all of them)

Arceus before you, you have been witnessed. And in that moment, battered, bruised and burned (why is everything hurting), you know that you have been found wanting.

In a moment, the plates shatter (you didn’t even know they could break), and suddenly the ground beneath your feet falls away. It was all for nothing, and you are lost to the distortion. You sacrificed everything and everyone for nothing.

[This cannot be how it ends. This cannot be how it ends. This cannot be how it ends. This cannot be how it ends. This-]

[10 points (a Perfect Score!) + 1.5x Plates of Arceus multiplier + 1.2x Perfect Score multiplier= 17 points, 34 points total]

[Congratulations! You have reached 30 points! The next dream involving Giovanni gets a 1.5x multiplier!]

[tumblestonesa]

"I know everything about him. John."

This is a careful tightrope to walk - he can't push John too far. As fun as it could be, he can't completely shatter him or else he won't be of any use. Pulling away a safety net, though, that could be useful. Even if John never fully believed it, doubt was one hell of a motherfucker.

And sometimes he doesn't want to be underestimated.

The immediate pullback is interesting for him too. This is why it's fun to mess with Beladonis - every new reaction added to the profile that sat in Petrel's real room. A damning, detailed psychological assessment of a conman studying a mark.

How long until John understood the truth about Petrel. That unlike so many here, he had never needed Rocket, that nothing was held over him to keep him here. Not blackmail, not devotion, not a series of unfortunate events or upbringing. Just a chance to play whatever part he wanted, when he wanted.

"How else could the boss be sure you were loyal?"

The way John's expression blanches as Petrel Naomasa speaks is enough to speak volumes. The way his stomach drops, the way his heart seizes. The way his hands shake, still tangled in Petrel's Naomasa's shirt.

His breathing stops. So does his brain.

Short circuiting. Trying to wrap around what he'd just heard, what it meant. If it was true. If it was a lie. If anyone in his life was really real, if anyone in his life was really genuine. If they were all just actors, all just there to spin him in circles and push him towards a goal. He knows he's catastrophizing, that it's impossible. But there have been several other impossible things in life, and he'd experienced each and every one of them.

There's no way he's telling the truth. There's no way Naomasa was just there to string him along. And yet.... it feels like him. It sounds like him. It even looks like him, aside from the clothes and blood. He knows it's Petrel underneath that mask, but.... was the... was it always Petrel?

It's startling how quickly rage is extinguished. How quickly he drops the other man, how quickly he backs up. Head reeling, hands scrubbing his face. It's not real. It's not. There's no way.

And yet he speaks the truth. Whoever this was, he's not lying about one thing. Masa was always good. The best, even. It was one of two rocks in his life, one of a scarcely few people who he could rely on. Through anything.

do you really think you deserve someone that good in your life? that there's even someone capable of being that good in the world?

it's true. there's no way. it was so good, but... he gets it now.

"You're bullshitting. Y'don't-- you don't know the first bloody thing about him."

[godconsume]

TAG DUMP.

》♛  ❛ verse : of sun and moon ┊  RAINBOW ROCKET 》♛  ❛ verse : the earth-shattering leader ┊  MAIN 》♛  ❛ verse : the phoenix will rise ┊  POST 》♛  ❛ the consumer of gods ┊  GIOVANNI 》♛  ❛ his loyal righthand ┊  ARCHER   》♛  ❛ the cunning executive ┊  ARIANA 》♛  ❛ the cutthroat executive ┊  PROTON 》♛  ❛ the playful executive ┊  PETREL 》♛  ❛ starter call ┊  MUTUALS ONLY 》♛  ❛ open starter ┊  MUTUALS ONLY 》♛  ❛ loyal do they stand ┊  POKEMON 》♛  ❛ the ones who shall conquer & bring the gods to kneel ┊  ROCKET

[bluemoondust]

AAA ok just sharing an idea. Yandere rocket exec (I’m thinking Proton) and yandere Lance for the same person. But Lance is corrupt, and helps team rocket occasionally. The darling goes to Lance for help after a frightening encounter with the rocket yandere, and of course he’s kind and comforting, offering to take them in and let them stay the night. They wake up to Lance and a grinning executive entering their room, staring them down.

👀👀👀👀👀👀👀

THIS

Oh man, just imagine the look of dread and betrayal on darling's face. I don't know why but I really like the trope of a yandere gaining their darling's trust, only for it all to shatter once they realize that they've been deceived.

You felt so safe around Lance, who had shown to be quite reliable, and even more so when he offered his assistance and a place to stay. Team Rocket is absolutely terrifying (I mention this when talking about the executives as yanderes) for many reasons. It's something you grew to know but you've never really had a face to face encounter with them.

Until that fateful day. Any of the executives can bring this amount of fear out of you because let's be honest, they are all scary in their own way. But oof— Proton is the worst offender since he gets off on seeing you terrified of him. The least petrifying of the four (but still scary) would be Petrel since at least he takes your feelings into consideration. While Archer and Ariana (she would be the second worst offender but at least she coddles you here and there) have sadistic tendencies, but not as much as Proton.

Which makes this quote on quote betrayal from Lance hurt even more. You trusted him. He said he would keep you safe. But why do you see him with the person who caused you this bone chilling fear? The one who made you shake and cry in his arms? This had to be a dream. This couldn't be happening.

Yandere Lance in this scenario of course still cares for you immensely, which is why he had to do this. I can see him feeling some form of guilt when he sees how hurt you look but a darker part of him likes seeing you with tears streaming down your face as you look up at him in fear.

Man I really like this idea!!!! I can just imagine the wide smirk on Proton's face once you wake up. As if he was telling you that no matter where you go or hide, he'll always find you.

[pureheartsandrainbowwings]

[ Sylvia seemed to hold back a snort at that, shaking her head. ]

Last time I trusted Celebi with anything, I accidentally awoke Lugia in some separate timeline. I think transporting one Silver is more than enough.

[ She made sure Argent got on first, the smaller redhead being her main priority at the moment. His home was much farther than hers was, for any mather. Once she had climbed atop Latias and the Legendary started to ascend, she sighed. ]

…about that. Noodle might have to wait a bit for that to happen…

[ A pinch to the bridge of her nose. It was ill-timed, considering the altitude change made her already aching eye hurt more, but she tried not to let it show. ]

Petrel… my Team is gone. Released. Wandering somewhere out in Unova, I’m guessing.

[ The thought of everyone in an unfamiliar region, left to their own devices made Sylvia’s stomach churn. Her mind soothed that she had raised them as best she could, that they wouldn’t abandon her, and yet that lingering inkling of her past self laughed cruelly, knowing Sylvia would be alone yet again. ]

Lord of Rebirth, be kind to these shattered wings…

[ The Legendary mumbled, flying on. Ula’ula Island shrunk beneath them, deep blue waves soon becoming all the trio saw under them. She wasn’t flying as fast as during their escape, but it was obvious she was still using her speed. ]

That sad excuse of a man won’t be nearing your team nor yourself any more, Sylvia. I can assure you that.

[ The teen cocked an eyebrow at that, before silently resigning that it was far too late for any more revelations about her old life. ]

Sorry, Noodle. But I could tell you and Argent about them. Not like there’s much else to do on this flight…

(Starter for @pureheartsandrainbowwings )

One moment Argent was yelling, typing in a blind rage on the shared gear. The next there was a flash from the shrine and he was falling. Before he could get his bearings, he crashes into cold, salty water. A smaller red flash under the waves before he resurfaced with a gasp, the slender body of his Dratini wrapped under his chest.

"Thanks Noodle.... Now, what the fuck was that?! Did that Onion seriously decide to just throw me in some random ocean because I was loud?!"

His head swiveled around, trying to see if he could recognize where he landed. He spotted a mass that might have been an island with a mountain far to his left, and another smaller mass to his right.

"Ok, first step get out of the fucking water. Let's pick a direction and go. At least the sun is warm"

Boy and Dratini worked together to swim to their destination. Neither noticed one of the formerly empty pokeballs on his belt ping with a successful catch

[pureheartsandrainbowwings]

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.

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[crossingplace]

tagged by: me. I MADE THIS BOOYA

tagging: @erleidn​  @astutior​  @liberons​​  

lines from poems by Stacy Szymaszek

bold the ones that apply to your muse, italicize the ones that your muse directs at someone else, strike out the ones that your muse disavows.

Character: ANNIE LEONHARDT

...manifest

defunct list of common names              proxy for the bearer              nor’wester buffets gear        reach into our canisters            drawn and sewn            into my lapels             assembly of illegal men             peril will not know           two Roman slaves              rain            the rage passes through our teeth            into interior pneumatic doors              my evening of moniker           stamped upon boxes of envelopes               blank ledger for you                with tin and amber stockpiled                     you prince

...shift at oars

water     relives     reservoir            boat     bottom     draft     displaced        lineal thought      backward body        no one knows the brains I am now             tree     an oar     origin          joints ruptured        soak in deep ink           wallpaper     remnant     flower     float    chandelier           brief case          hundred words logged          congestion of resin          forecasts final position        restless sleep            width of back       belted           sodium poultice             exhausts courtship            agora           drain a home of you            wind lashes fronds         cellophane          where a mammal bled            activity not yet diffused            weight of oyster in gloved hand he shucks            dented pewter         assonance      her aspect relocated           wind shatters plexi        phenomena foregone for me            shift at oars             new muscle        grown bone          never held you          case of dried apricot        gorge         I am summoned                capable a day           outlast forecast              coral reef         feeler                paper      cover      mallet      awl               fire-box                  androgyne

...auction

one sketch of the stormy petrel                 one set of clothes not to be worn during the voyage           one log of the harm that came           you miss a man so much         slop chest           small stuff        prayer book          a stitch through his nose           coin in his mouth             his custody           broken holy stone at feet          sailmaker stitches you inside a sail        last to touch        your craft             slipped starboard          pig on foot     does no good         to stay afloat           to assure identity           one pot of ink             one paragraph on a miscellaneous custom       quit the shore             pot of wood ash        box of blank cards          beef bone sculpture         deducted form            wages what you bid             seldom mentioned in leisure              his form forecastle slip         cliché poor guy . . .       the oath and the laugh boom         skylark          flicks a card in another’s face

[earthenbled]

TAG DUMP. PT 1.

》♛  ❛ verse : of sun and moon ┊  RAINBOW ROCKET 》♛  ❛ verse : the earth-shattering leader ┊  MAIN 》♛  ❛ verse : the phoenix will rise ┊  POST 》♛  ❛ rocket’s valiant leader ┊  SAKAKI  》♛  ❛ his loyal righthand ┊  ARCHER   》♛  ❛ the cunning executive ┊  ARIANA 》♛  ❛ the cutthroat executive ┊  PROTON 》♛  ❛ the playful executive ┊  PETREL 》♛  ❛ starter call ┊  MUTUALS ONLY 》♛  ❛ open starter ┊  MUTUALS ONLY  》♛  ❛ loyal do they stand ┊  POKEMON 》♛  ❛ the ones who shall conquer ┊  ROCKET 

[vaultsofthefirstage]

Brilliant Shattered Ice’s Cruel Wisdom (Orichalcum Artifact *****)

(This is a 3e conversion of the artifact sword of Brillian Shattered Ice found on Lords of Creation pg 148).

Born at the dawn of the Solars, the genius Twilight, Brillian Shattered Ice, took her name from one of the many fallen enemies of the gods. Its death formed a frozen wasteland of ice, cultivated and experimented on by Brilliant Shattered Ice herself as she turned the unmelting body of the fallen one and carved it both into her necklace and an unfinished blade. Her necklace became a sign of her victory and her genius.

Her blade needed more still. In her empire city of Tzatli, she took apart the frozen graces of several Raksha, melting them to a freezing broth in her saphire palace, dipping orichalcum until it was blanched white. Its temperature dropped, but its chill was nothing to her pale northern skin, even as she tempered the ice around the white orichalcum center and quenched it once more in the freezing liquid souls.

Broad and thin, Cruel Wisdom holds a single hearthstone socket. Frost seems to pour from the blade like wisdom pours from the mind of its artificer. She is a scientist first and warriors second, but her desire to test new sorceries and artifacts has more than once led her into the Deep Wyld to seek out suitable foes for her blade.

Attunement: 5m Type: Medium (+3 ACC, +12 DMG, +1 DEF, OVW 5) Tags: Lethal, Melee, Balanced Hearthstone slots: 1 Era: War of the Gods

Evocations of Cruel Wisdom

While wielding Cruel Wisdom, an exalt attuned to the daiklave adds her (Occult) to her Soak and (Occult/2) to her Hardness against damaging sorcerous effects and similar charms and abilities from demons and fair folk alike. The Twilight caste anima explicitly stacks with this effect. In addition, the wielder may add (Occult/2) to her Resolve against glamours, illusions, and shaping effects, which the sword cuts through with ease and grace.

Shattered Ice Slash

Cost: 2i, 1wp; Mins: Essence 1

Type: Reflexive

Keywords: Clash, Withering-only, Dissonant, Resonant

Duration: Instant

Prerequisite: Terrestrial Circle Sorcery

The chill that permeates her blade freezes magics so that they may be shattered like ice by her blade. By activating this charm, the wielder may reflexively “Clash” a Shape Sorcery action with a Countermagic action. In addition, this can be used to clash a glamour or illusion cast by a fair folk, overcoming it breaks the effect on the Exalt automatically, though other targets are still affected, if applicable.

Rather than dealing normal initiative damage, if she reduces the spell to 0 sorcerous motes or if she overcomes the fair folk’s glamour, the essence they wield is frozen, reducing their defenses by 1 until the end of the Exalt’s next turn. This evocation uses up the Exalt’s turn for the round, or causes her to skip her next turn if she has acted already.

Resonant: This evocation does not count as the Exalt’s action for the round. In addition, the Exalt is always considered to know the spell that they are countering as long as she is initiated into the proper circle.

Special Activation Rules: This evocation awakens automatically for any sorcerer not dissonant with Orichalcum.

Northern Wing and Claw Flight

Cost: -; Mins: Essence 1

Type: Permanent

Keywords: Resonant

Duration: Permanent

Prerequisite: None

Cruel Wisdom was worn on the waist of Brilliant Shattered Ice as she learned and mastered the secrets of flying beasts, both those found inside Creation and the enemies outside of it. The wielder may throw the daiklave as if it were a Medium Artifact Thrown weapon with the Lethal, and Thrown (Short) tag. It returns to its owners hand as long as an attack roll made with it is not a botch.

Resonant: A wielder who resonates with Orichalcum can thrown the weapon as if it had Thrown (Medium) instead. 

Special Activation Rules: This evocation cannot be purchased with experience points. It instead awakens at no cost the first time the wielder defeats a non-trivial flying opponent.

Circle of Frozen Meditation

Cost: 3m, 2i; Mins: Essence 1

Type: Reflexive

Keywords: None

Duration: One round

Prerequisite: Shattered Ice Slash

Frozen to the core, Cruel Wisdom finds respite in its own frigidity. Whenever the wielder successfully parries or resists a sorcerous, glamourous, or illusionary effect, the magic of that effect freezes, becoming a barrier of ice around the Exalt and her sword, allowing her to reflexively gain the benefits of a Full Defense until the beginning of her next turn.

Sky-Defying Cruelty

Cost: 4m; Mins: Essence 2

Type: Supplemental

Keywords: Dissonant, Resonant

Duration: Instant

Prerequisite: Circle of Frozen Meditation

Brilliant Shattered Ice held no exalt to be her equal. What she attempted, she succeeded at. Where she succeeded, others failed to match her. Whenever the Exalt Counterspells an opposing sorcerer, each 10 on her roll stores a sorcerous mote inside of Cruel Wisdom, stolen away from her lesser peer, which can be spent towards any spell she may cast. Sorcerous motes banked in her artifact are lost at the end of the scene.

Dissonant: Characters dissonant with Orichalcum cannot learn this evocation.

Resonant: Characters resonant with Orichalcum can draw more than just motes from the frozen blade, they can draw magic itself. The exalt may learn one spell from the Terrestrial circle that can be used only while she is wielding Cruel Wisdom. This spell takes on thematically appropriate elements (For example, Flight of the Brilliant Raptor instead becomes Flight of the Frigid Petrel, while a cirrus skiff sprinkles down powder snow as it flies). If she pays the spells experience point cost, she may draw out another spell from the daiklave.

Frozen Soul Blade

Cost: 2m; Mins: Essence 2

Type: Reflexive

Keywords: None

Duration: Instant

Prerequisite: Northern Wing and Claw Flight, Circle of Frozen Meditation

Spells frozen and shattered by their sword are nothing more than ice, for their true powers has been drawn into the blade. Whenever the Exalt successfully parries, resists, or clashes a spell, an attack made through a simple-charm, a glamour, or an illusion, she may draw (Opponent’s Essence) sorcerous motes into her blade which can be spent towards any spell she casts. Any sorcerous motes that remain at the end of the scene are lost.

Cirrus Striking Saber

Cost: 7m, 1wp; Mins: Essence 3

Type: Supplemental

Keywords: Decisive-only, Dissonant, Resonant

Duration: Instant

Prerequisite: Frozen Soul Blade

To master something is only the beginning of study - for others have secrets to learn. With unerring accuracy, her weapon finds these secrets, and steals them. This evocation supplements a decisive Thrown attack made with Cruel Wisdom, granting double 9s on the attack roll. If the opponent is taking a Shape Sorcery action, then the attack receives double 8s instead. In addition for each 10 that comes up in the damage roll, the opponent loses one sorcerous mote. If they do not have enough sorcerous motes or are not shaping, they lose that many motes instead. If they do not have enough motes or are incapable of manipulating essence, they lose as many sorcerous motes and motes as possible and then lose 1wp if there is still remainder.

Dissonant: A character dissonant with Orichalcum cannot master this evocation.

Resonant: Each 8, 9, and 10 on the damage roll drains a mote from her opponent.

Mystic Glacial Mirror Cascade

Cost: 6m, 1wp; Mins: Essence 3

Type: Reflexive

Keywords: Counterattack, Perilous, Decisive-Only, Resonant

Duration: Instant

Prerequisite: Frozen Soul Blade, Sky Defying Cruelty, Celestial Circle Sorcery

Resonant: This evocation can only be used by a wielder resonant with Cruel Wisdom.

Cruel Wisdom learns. Cruel Wisdom punishes those who do not. Such is the blade’s nature, for wisdom is cruel to the ignorant. Whenever the Solar parries any Simple-type charm attack, sorcery, glamour, clashes such an effect and wins, or successfully counter spells such an effect, she freezes the essence in the air and forms a barrage of striking icicles against the source out to Medium range. This is a undodgeable decisive attack made with Intelligence + Thrown. If she hits, the Solar rolls (Opponent’s Essence + Occult) dice of damage and does not reset to base initiative. If the effect was a sorcery, she deals 1 level of automatic damage if the attack hits for each circle of the spell.

This evocation can only be used once per scene unless reset by successfully casting a a spell from the Terrestrial circle whose sorcerous motes are at least partially drawn from Cruel Wisdom. The 2nd time this is used in a scene, this condition changes to Celestial circle. The 3rd time this is used in a scene, the Solar must cast a spell of the Solar circle to reset this effect.

In addition, when the Solar learns this evocation, she may draw a Celestial Circle spell from Cruel Wisdom as Sky-Defying Cruelty’s effect.

Cold Snap Spirit Mien

Cost: 12m (6m); Mins: Essence 4

Type: Simple

Keywords: None

Duration: One scene

Prerequisite: Mystic Glacial Mirror Cascade

With the Exalt’s soul, she proclaims her own triumph over the long slain Brilliant Shattered Ice. This evocation may be used whenever the Solar is at the iconic display of anima, immediately creating a vast blizzard drawn from her own soul. All beings except the Exalt are subject to an environmental hazard that deals 1L each round that ignores hardness. In addition, this extreme cold distorts and disrupts magic. Sorcery not cast by the Exalt herself requires (Essence) additional sorcerous motes to complete, while the charms of fair folk and demons require (Essence) additional motes.

If the Exalts anima ever falls below the iconic level, this evocation ends. If the Exalt later enters into iconic again, this charm can be reactivated for only 6m in the same scene.

Rolling Avalanche Perpetuation

Cost: -; Mins: Essence 4

Type: Permanent

Keywords: None

Duration: Permanent

Prerequisite: Mystic Glacial Mirror Cascade, Falling Icicle Strike (Exalted p.419)

As a rumble proceeds an avalance, the Exalt’s attack simply leads into something far more grand. After making an attack with Falling Icicle Strike with Cruel Wisdom, for each 10 on the damage roll, the Exalt adds an automatic success to a Shape Sorcery or Counterspell action taken on the next round.

Prismatic Permafrost Contemplation

Cost: 15m, 1wp, Mins: Essence 5

Type: Simple

Keywords: Perilous

Duration: One day

Prerequisite: Cold Snap Spirit Mien, Solar Circle Sorcery

The Solar’s genius is paramount to indestructibility. Brilliant Shattered Ice was said to wield her sword both as tool to experiment safely with her sorcery and a weapon for invading the Wyld through the use of this legendary evocation. By touching her blade to the ground, the Solar covers an area of up to 1 mile in a layer of frost that freezes it in place. Trivial opponents, scenery, and the like are frozen automatically, non-Trivial opponents with Essence lower than her own may pay 1wp to avoid this frost. Opponents with an Essence score equal or higher to her own are unaffected.

Being frozen prevents a character from acting for the duration, but provides some benefits as well. Anything covered by this frost can not be altered by supernatural means. A raksha’s rampage will fail to shape a single frozen leaf and the spell Benediction of Archgenesis will find the land impervious to its overgrowth.

In addition, a Solar who awakens this charm may draw a single Solar circle spell from her daiklave as Sky-Defying Cruelty.

[decarabiacampaign]

Main Quest 1 - Seeking a Scholar (CR 2-3)

Seeking the Scholar (Main quest)

1  - Investigate the location of the scholar

The party will eventually be led to the butcher as a potential lead, but must do sidequests to get to that point. The butcher will not reveal anything unless questioned.

Asking around about the scholar informs the players of the Revenant and Shardmind quests Revenant (CR 2):  The party learns of a reclusive old man, said to be quite rich from his two business partners who have since moved away. He lives in a manor north of town. Shardmind (CR 2):  One villager, upon being asked about a strange and reclusive petrel who moved in, says that that must be the strange woman who lives south of town

2 - Butcher/Modrons

A - The butcher is a fat and powerful man who has made a deal with the reclusive scholar known only as West, offering him animal body parts and carcasses in exchange for technology to cool his meat locker. He believes West to be a brilliant scientist who has overcome death itself - And has begun offering him human body parts to try and bring his wife back from the dead

He is canny, and knows that West has enemies (Especially the demon-aligned Decarabia,) and if the party confronts him about the scholar he leads them to the back of the store for "Privacy." The door cannot be opened from the inside without a key, kept inside his pocket.

Locked inside his meat locker, made cold with strange technology, and surrounded by hanging meat, and demands to know why they're looking for West. He accuses the party of being "followers of Decarabia," and attacks them with a butcher knife - But he can be talked down before he injects himself with the hypo. The area is covered in hanging meat, and misty with cold air, giving everyone a 20% miss chance and a penalty on attack rolls with one-handed and ranged weapons (The Butcher, working frequently in this environment, has Blind Fight

Butcher (CR 3, due to environment) Human Commoner 4Str 15 Dex 9 Con 18 Int 10 Wis 8 Cha 7 HP 33 (4d6+20) AC 10 (+2 armor, +1 dodge, -1 dex, -2 rage) Bab 2 Fort 5 Ref 2 Will 2 Feats:Blind Fight, Catch Off Guard, Skill Focus: Bluff Skills:Bluff +5, Profession: Butcher +6 Items:Butcher Knife // +4 1d4+2Iron Apron // +2 AC, ACP 0 Attack - Butcher Knife +7 1d4+3 Full Attack - Butcher Knife +7/+7 1d4+3 In combat: The butcher opens combat by stabbing himself with a hypo given to him by West as a move action (He prepared it ahead of time in case he had to do this.) The questionable potion bestows the spells Rage and Haste upon himself; this is included in the stat array above. He can move 60 feet.Due to the cramped meat locker he fights the party in, the party takes a -4 on attack rolls with one-handed, ranged, or non-peiricing weapons and everyone has a 20% miss chance due to the mist. This is an advantage to the Butcher, as he uses a meat clever that can be easily swung between the animal carcasses.

B-

If left alive, the Butcher can be spoken to and convinced that the party are not the followers of Decarabia. He explains that they are west's planar enemies and want him dead - Strange, otherworldly enemies that he can't understand. He suspects demon involvement, but does not know much

He eventually explains the location of West - At which point a deep and robotic voice speaks from a crystal, suddenly glowing red before shattering

"YOUR RELEVANT INFORMATION HAS BEEN ACQUIRED. YOU WILL NOW BE ELIMINATED."

The butcher, though injured, will assist the party as an NPC party member until they escape

If the butcher is killed, the party finds a logbook and can use that to track down the address. If read aloud, the crystal does the same as the scenario above

Decarabia’s plan here is twofold - Either the Butcher and the Party will die, or they'll be spurred to rush to West immediately. In the latter case, it allows Decarabia's forces to attack once the party has cleared out West's monsters and found the path inside. Decarabia himself is a chaotic "Viral Modron" dominated to serve the forces of chaos... Which he ironically does through ruthless, regimented and orderly tactics.

C - Modron Squad CR 2

A squad of Modrons slam open in the door, attacking the party: Three Monodrones (One flying,) lead by a Duodrone Commander who closes and blocks the door (The Duodrone can only command and prevent the door from opening; he can not attack unless a Tridrone commands him to.) This first encounter are especially weak for a modron squad, and are mere sacrifices summoned in and designed to distract the party while an identical squad sets the building ablaze outside.

D - Modron Squad CR 3

From behind the cover of the window crouch three Monodrones, one flying and hidden, lead by a Duodrone commander. When the Duodrone spots the party, he commands the monodrones to attack using crossbows, and commands the Flying Monodrone to report their status to Decarabia so he knows they are still alive.

The butcher shop, now ablaze, has one exit in a room that contains a counter and a large glass window with hanging meat (Which cooks in the fire.) The area around the shop is covered with a smokescreen to obscure the Modron's existence, and the squad will attack from range with crossbows once they see the party.

This, too, is simply a distraction to allow the messenger to escape. It can't be followed or properly attacked due to the smokescreen.

4 - Brain In A Jar (Arc Dungeon)

The party learns of his abandoned home, and must explore it to find evidence of the scholar - He resides in the cellar, life extended by strange technology.

The lab contains homonculi, sauhagin in an aquarium, flesh golems, and other weird experiments. Part dungeon, many are imprisoned. The party must also deal with hostile Modrons.

A dungeon to be detailed on a separate page.

[argxnto-blog1]

Vestigial | Silver & Petrel

Starter Call! | @scrubs-and-cigs

Days passed slowly, and without much purpose, though… Silver supposed he would understand what that felt like. He was eighteen now; that was just the natural course of things, wasn’t it? Especially when the goal that he had in mind was so narrow – destroy Rocket, and keep it destroyed. It was a fine and noble goal, he supposed – if there was ever a Rocket to quash. But it was a curious thing, that goal of his; it always hinged on an if. If Rocket were to show up, Silver would be there to take it down. But what if there was no usurpation? What if there was no scraped-up group of ragtag diehards trying their damnedest to build back the shattered concrete of Rocket’s reputation? What then? Live in relaxation? Surely, you think lowly of him; of course he couldn’t rest over the matter. For when there was something as quiet as a disaster like Rocket waiting around the corner, one could never rest too easy. Become lax, and a resurgence could awaken right beneath him while he slept. He had to remain ever-vigilant, and… certainly, stressed.

How could he not be, with the life he’d chosen to lead? It was waiting for an omen to run its course; there was no way to prevent such a thing; there was only ever a way to try to minimize the damage before it ran rampant and destroyed innocent people’s lives too extensively. There was no true peace over the matter; true peace would only mean that things would be too quiet – that Rocket was, perhaps, biding its time to rise again. It was only ever present danger, or the worry of near-present danger. This was… Silver’s life. And fretting over tomorrow only ever made the day wane over slowly, as if every tick of the clock was an eternity to watch it pass a single second.

He’d heard tell of a new sort of resurgence going around, but most of his digging would only ever lead him to high-told rumors told from hysterical, paranoid lips – but never, never did he allow himself to disbelieve these words, even if they were told by those who would cry wolf, so to speak. He investigated these sources thoroughly, each and every one of them, scouring the newspapers, searching the Internet. Obsessive, is what most would call him, but he would only ever consider himself persistently diligent, and nothing more. Perhaps he was obsessive, but Silver would never admit it.

His searches did not lead him far – in terms of information, as well as in distance. Whatever sparse information he could scrape up only led him… right back to Goldenrod, where he himself remained. But the city was large, and it was the site of one of the larger resurgences of Rocket seven years ago. Silver spent his free time after work searching around in between the time it took him to walk home, and when he would go home to sleep. Dinner was something he could live without; it helped with the bills, anyway. He was aware that primarily keeping his searches at night left him vulnerable, in a sense, so he always made sure to keep Wyvie beside him as he searched. The Weavile’s wide, wide eyes were able to detect creatures of the night, where Silver’s human eyes could not, and as well as being his friend, Wyvie became an inexhaustible resource. It was a tired night when Silver was finally clocked out from his little job at a call service tucked away in a little corner of the city; he grabbed his phone for the flashlight ability it would have, just in case the need would come of it, and kept Wyvie by his side, gripping his phone tightly. Where the information led Silver was to a rather unpleasant area of the city, and with his size and stature, he could only fear the worst for himself.

He searched into the late hours of the night, without even the moon above to show its face to illuminate him. Exhausted, he returned back Wyvie to his Luxury Ball for the Pokemon to rest, checked his phone one last time futilely for what was supposed to be clues and directions on where to search next. He rubbed the tire from his eyes, perhaps putting down his guard a bit too far for one who is in such a particularly harsh part of Goldenrod. Perhaps with a bit of focus, he could have keyed into the cues of the man approaching behind him, tall and lanky, with some sort of intention Silver never would have been able to tell.

Perhaps he could have, but he didn’t, regardless.