#BANDIT KINGS OF ANCIENT CHINA

[retrocgads]

USA 1990

[appealingtonobody]

[wally-b-feed]

[retroscifiart]

Bandit Kings of Ancient China (video game by Koei, 1989). Box art by Noriyoshi Ohrai

[newkatzkafe2023]

Wukong x Mulan reader? Nuff said

OH SH*T THAT IS AN AMAZING IDEA🤩🤩🤩

(Lmk Wukong) He remembered meeting you clear as day. He was on the journey to the west protecting his master when they were attacked by bandits. When Wukong was already down to business, that's when he met you as you joined him on taking out the large group, and he was super impressed with your combat abilities. When you finally met, he was shocked to see a female monkey in armor matching his and when you told him you were also training and trying to find immortality just to see if it's real. Wukong had found his dream woman that day

(MKR Wukong) Ohhhhhhhhhh you have his rebel heart in quite the nasty Chokehold and he loves it. A woman who knew how to throw hands like and have knowledge in combat, bot to mention you were beautiful and go out of your way to protect others and do the right thing. Wukong admired you determination and strong heart, but their was people like (cough the monk cough) saying that your were a woman and shouldn't be out here fighting and instead looking for a husband. Instead of being annoyed or angry you smirked and hugged Wukong's arm saying that you found the perfect candidate. The look on the monkey kings face was priceless.

(HIB Wukong) You were Fierce and determine as you are beautiful and Kind. That's what Wukong's thoughts were when he met you for the first time, you were like the other women in China. So that was already interesting but you never let anyone tell you, what you can and cannot do just like he never let heaven do that to him. Your also so Empathetic and understanding of those with struggles and lack of confidence, especially when you told Luier and Silly girl that they are stronger then they know. Wukong was a goner and madly in love with you😍.

(NR Wukong) He was on his needs, when he first met you. A Fierce, sexy, beautiful woman who can kick his ass six ways towards sunday. Wukong was in insanely in love with you, you were so beautiful and determine and he felt bless for meeting you. Now he never thought a woman shouldn't be fighting if anything he thinks it would be a Breath of fresh air especially when he remember the BS standards ancient china had, but anything to him you are just a pretty rose with some sharp thorns.

(Netflix Wukong) Don't think he looks down at you because you were a woman, because this dude looks down at everyone. Though he's gonna pay dearly for it, especially when he had challenged you to a friendly sparring match. Though that was a mistake because he found himself being knocked right on his ass not even five minutes later, And Wukong was rightfully baffled. Although Wukong was now interested in you and wonders what else you can do.

(BMW Wukong) Hearts were in his eyes when he first met you, it was so hot to have a female monkey fighting him. Not to mention you are fierce, Intelligent, determined, and you never let anyone tell you what you can and cannot do. You had the king's heart gripped tightly in you delicate looking paws. Wukong knew immediately that he needed to put a ring on those adorably sharp fingers before someone gets wise and he will regret it for the rest of his immortal life and you will certainly make him work for it😉🥵🤤

(Destined one) He was actually blushing a lot. He didn't know how to respond to this as he's not as social, but you were a whole enigma to him because you were pretty and could kick his ass. He has no idea how to respond or process any of this especially without sounding offensive Luckily, you were so kind and understanding of him and never pushed him to do something to make him uncomfortable. The Destined one thought you a beautiful example of balance, and you both grew closer as the time goes by.

FEEL FREE TO REBLOG🇨🇳

[jeffgerstmann]

You are going to play every nes game except the rpgs and then you're gonna look at the list of rpgs you have to slog through and give up

Once the baby starts sleeping through the night again I'll hopefully be able to get back to doing some nighttime bonus episodes like I did for Dragon Warrior and Nobunaga's Ambition. I might be missing a few but here's what I have for games that are probably long/slow enough to need their own bonus episode:

Crystalis

Final Fantasy

Dragon Warrior 2

Hillsfar

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons: DragonStrike

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons: Heroes of the Lance

Ultima Exodus

Bandit Kings of Ancient China

Gemfire

Genghis Khan

L’Empereur

Nobunaga’s Ambition II

Romance of the Three Kingdoms

Romance of the Three Kingdoms II

Startropics

Startropics II

Faxanadu?

Dragon Warrior 3

Dragon Warrior 4

Wizardry

Wizardry II

[saki-693]

Drafts of Kanki & Shio from Kingdom by Yasuhisa Hara.

I do love them. I do love how they had genuinely tender, loving and healthy relationship. They connected deeply even after Shio was perished. Kanki's feelings for her were intensely strong, like, he can build pile of bodies for her (literally), but also they were very...pure🥺

By the way, somehow I have an image that Kanki'd like to keep his top off😂

Kingdom story sets up in ancient China based on historical facts, the era always had war and strong feudalism, but no social welfare and human rights, not even concept of them. Obviously, Kanki & Shio were living cruelly tough world. They were kids with no protector and social status when they were lovers.

Young Kanki was dying on mountain path, he said he had nowhere to go. Shio was, ex-servant who trafficked and abused, but escaped from there, founded a clan with kids with similar situations to help each other, and protect younger children. Shio & her clan members build small and peaceful village. Kanki was saved by them, then Shio, her clan and their village became "homeplace" to him. Kanki also saved her from messed up adult-bandits by killing them, when they came to her village, not only they killed and hurt her clan members, but also tried to assault her. He told Shio and her clan members it is NOT RIGHT that they were being mistreated - those kids had to "get used to" being abused to live, because they were powerless - later, he devised a way of defending themselves.

Kanki & Shio had each other's back, they were understanding each other very well, including their suffering. They shared similar spirits, both of them had tender hearts with caring and sympathy for others, also they had abilities to take action. Kanki especially had empathy for the pain of others. The mistreatments Shio & her clan members suffered under absurd feudalism world full of people who ignored those innocent kids, were the root of his rage.

However, his "humane" spirit was the element why he became "inhumane".

According to Shio's clan member, Kanki changed after Shio was perished. She was butchered by the order of a castle-town lord as an example to Kanki, because he was conspicuous in the lord's area. The reason, the way of her gruesome death were just condensation of absurdity and cruelty of feudalism society, which is thing Kanki was angry about. After the incident, he left his beloved's clan, and started building his own bandit-clan. After years of growing, it became as big as army. Then, he attacked the castle-town of the lord, beheaded all of humans inside the castle by his own hands as the vengeance of his beloved. However, even after this successful revenge, he was never convinced of Shio's cruel murder. That drove him into the dark path of intense rage and never-ending vengeance against the world.

Later Kanki became a general of Qin country, because of his strength in battles. He never lose since he was a bandit leader. Eventually, he even became one of the Great General of Qin, which is a top member of the army. General Kanki was well know for his strength, but also notorious for his cruelty. He had no hesitation to kill not only enemies, but also surrendered soldiers and general citizens. He's willing to use inhumane tactics to win, committed massacres in some battles. Even the king of Qin* got angry at his actions. (*Qin king is the one who ordered invasion war, and he was mad at Kanki because he slaughtered too many "surrendered" soldiers. But of course, killing tens of thousands of them "in battle" is considered as great victory......🤔 Kingdom story tells how messed up war is, very well). However, Kanki didn't do that for Qin and the king. He never had loyalty to them, even said he does not care if the country is dying. He had no great cause. He had no ambition. An executive of Kanki-clan said "We had nothing before, but we obtained many things now" - I'm pretty sure Kanki got nearly everything compared to young age. Property, fame, social status, some authority etc. - "But why is Kanki still so thirsty?" was the line the executive said after that.

Kanki's motivation was always rage. Intense rage against the world that mistreated and butchered his beloved and loved ones. That never changed.

His army, most of Kanki-clan members were also definitely not peaceful people, some members said they have no military discipline, loyalty, and even betrayals happened often 'cause they're group of bandits.

Surprisingly, despite his cruelty and the nature of his army, the story shows Kanki was not a type of leader who bound his men with fear and violence. Many clan members, especially executives, purely adored him. They considered they were saved from terrible life by Kanki, because they've enjoyed living since they met him. Some executive members said Kanki is family to them. The story even showed genuinely funny moments between them, and Kanki-clan actually had "silly" type of members. For Kanki, at first he just build his clan for vengeance of Shio, but in the end, the members became family for him too. He actually wanted to take his "rootless wonderers" family along to homeplace, after he was convinced of everything, after he made world pay the price of mistreatments Shio & her clan members suffered, and of course, Shio's gruesome death. However...those aren't going to happen while he's alive, because, who can be "convinced" when your beloved one had been murdered?

The battle of Hika was the first battle Kanki lost, which means his last battle. He lost a large number of his army, and was almost driven to the point of certain defeat. He never gave up fighting and winning until the very end, but also he showed unexpected side this time. Despite he's been a general willing to sacrifice his own troops to win, he let the protagonists & some of his clan members escape by using himself as the decoy. He even ordered one of an executive to stay alive, to organise remaining Kanki-clan soldiers after his death to prevent them from living terrible life again.

Shio's gruesome death sent Kanki down the dark path. However, at the same time, he did not lost her completely. Kanki held Shio as the last light in the depth of his spirit. This is the reason why Kanki-clan members adored him, and they could be family in the pure sense. We can see the light in his spirit clearly through his last fight.

In the death, Kanki & Shio could finally reunite. There's no words like "we finally meet again" between them. They were talking like there's no time and distance gap, they had conversations just like they had been together all the time. She led him and his family(died Kanki-clan executives) to their homeplace, a peaceful village she and her clan members build, a place they called "sanctuary".

Okay. I do love them. I do love their relationship, and I do love the truth that Shio gave "home" to Kanki when she was alive, but also gave "family" even after she's gone. I do love how Kanki held his beloved as the last light in the depth of his spirit. I really love how character like Kanki, a coldblooded warlord, just wanted to live with beloved one & loved ones in homeplace without being them mistreated. In addition, Kanki was actually did not despair of the world completely. He couldn't, because he met Shio, loved her, and kept holing her as the light. That's why he was staying in intense rage, not despairing and emptiness.

These complex elements of Kanki & Shio's story are, the reason why I love them, but also, the reason why I can't stop crying for them. That's really distressing that Kanki's "inhuman" actions came from rage, and it came from his "humane" spirits and love. His cruelty tells more than anything else that how much pain and rage he was feeling since Shio had been murdered, which is how deep his feeling for his beloved were. He knew the pain and suffering of having beloved one taken away from you better than anyone else, and yet, he committed massacre, again and again. His actions are just creating heavy chain of grudge and vengeance (and actually, Kingdom story shows that in great way). But I think, he may understood what he was doing exactly, because he never defended or justified his actions, not even said "I do it for you", he only said "I'm just angry on by own". Another interesting thing is, Kanki was the one who said " 'Invasion war for peace' is just big genocide and big plunder, that never ever can unite people's hearts" to the protagonists and the king of Qin. He saw the world too well since he was a kid - that never changed even after Shio was perished. Those elements make me think, Kanki also may be aware or unconsciously feel nothing can convince him about the beloved's murder, and vengeance journey leads him nowhere. I imagine the existence of Shio was way bigger to Kanki than we think. Not only she saved his life, gave love, family and homeplace to him, I think she also was the light and hope of cruel world, literally. As I mentioned at the beginning, Kingdom story sets in strong feudalism society with no social welfare and human rights. The lords who mistreated and butchered Shio and her clan members were not charged with any crimes. Parents can sell their children without being convicted. Orphaned children had to become servant, or starve to death. General people either turned a blind eye to mistreated vulnerable, or accepted those things 'cause they were all too common. In such world, Shio and her clan members genuinely helped each other, and protected younger kids. They didn't turn blind eye to more vulnerable children despite they also had been though horrible times. They really had tender, sweet hearts. It's just...it is just not right that people with kind hearts suffering the most at the hands of cruel people, because of social structures, power relationships or other messed up reasons (I understand it's fictional story, but also I feel the themes and story of Kingdom has universality that translates into reality). I do not defend what Kanki did, but I can empathies his anger.

The beauty of Kanki & Shio's story is, they were connected deeply beyond death. I really love how Kanki kept holding her as the light of his spirit, and Shio led him to their homeplace. Kanki and his clan members may need to go to Hell, but I hope Kanki & Shio can spend tender, peaceful time together after their death😭

[archoneddzs15]

Sega Saturn - Suikoden Tenmei no Chikai (Bandit Kings of Ancient China)

Title: Suikoden Tenmei no Chikai / 水滸伝・天命の誓い

Developer/Publisher: KOEI

Release date: 17 December 1996

Catalogue No.: T-7624G

Genre: Simulation

I wonder just how many games there are with Suikoden in the title? There sure seems to be enough of them coming from Koei alone. This is yet another Chinese war simulation. Personally, all these games look identical to me but then again, I guess someone who's into these war simulations would think that all 2D Fighters look the same. Still, there is fun to be had in here, I suppose, since this is a 32-bit upgrade for a game that played well on the Amiga and NES. It's not easy to find complete and not cheap, but well worth it. If you lean more towards wargames, this is certainly a title for you.

[killingdazekrp]

settled on december 6th 2021, approximately 5 months after the zombie outbreak overtook the country of south korea. 

Located in Yeongju, South Korea within the province of North Gyeongsang. Due to it's distance from Seoul and other larger cities, despite being a city with a relatively small population itself Yeongju dilapidated much slower than much of the rest of the country. For the first two months of the outbreak, citizens were able to survive with a small military force by sheltering in place within the city hall. However much like the rest of the country and later the world, the zombies would reach the territory and penetrate the defenses no matter how strong. Survivors within the area scattered into several different locations and eventually, an ambitious few would bravely attempt to settle at buseoksa temple seeking refuge with the winter months ahead. Yeongju has four seasons a year, but the temperatures often veer more on the subtropical side. Meaning the summer temperatures are often hotter than the national average with heavier rainfall and intense humidity. As a result, the winters are much more forgiving, although freezing conditions will still occur. Shelter was a must, and they settlers did all that they could to turn the pre-existing historical structures into something inhabitable enough to get them through the frost.

When the weather had become more suitable for construction work, the process of repurposing the shelter into a large scale community moved relatively smoothly considering the abundance of resources nearby. In the matter of six months, the population of residents grew and a community with it's own way of life was finally established. What was once a peaceful place of worship was no a bustling safe haven, one that even after many challenges and set backs, has yet to be overtaken to this day by any band of raiders or hoards of the undead.

Buseoksa Temple was founded in the year 676 (though the structures now standing are from the 14th century) by Buddhist monk and scholar Uisang from the ancient kingdom of Silla. The tale of how Buseoksa Temple came to be, according to folklore:

A Korean folk story states that when he was young, Uisang fell in love with a beautiful girl, Myo Hwa ("Delicate Flower") but she was chosen by the king of Silla to be sent as a gift to the Chinese Emperor thus thwarting their relationship. This turned Uisang to the religious life and he became a monk. Myo Hwa in desperation tried to commit suicide on the journey in China by throwing herself in the river. However, she was rescued and nursed back to health by a family who subsequently adopted her. Many years later she met Uisang on his travels to China but he explained that he was now a monk and could not go back with her to Silla as she wished. However, he said he would visit her when his studies in China were complete. This he did ten years later. Unfortunately, Myo Hwa was not at home so Uisang left her a note and hurried to get his ship back to Silla. Myo Hwa returned and realized she had just missed him and ran down to the sea to try and catch him before he left. The ship however had already left the shore and in desperation she leapt in the water. As she hit the water she was magically transformed into a dragon by the strength of her love and she was able to follow the ship back to Silla. Safely arrived in Silla, Uisang went on to found Buseoksa, a temple in the Gyeongsangbuk-do (North Gyeongsang) mountains. The temple name means "Floating Rock" and is derived from an incident in which Myo Hwa, as a dragon, scares away some bandits by magically raising a boulder into the air. She is said to have transformed herself into a rock to continue protecting the site and her lover, Uisang. (Story related by Mu Soeng Sunim, 1987).

information has been sourced from wikipedia regarding the setting to save the admins time with lore building!

[experienced12]

Bandit Kings of Ancient China cover art.jpg 

[womenofwonder]

RWBY characters races for AUs set in our world.

How I’m going to do this: three things. The first, the city they live in Remnant. This is the least important because that leaves us with only five…maybe six places compared to our world’s hundreds of countries.

The second will be the original of their names, which they’ll have to keep in the AUs, meaning that they need some culture background for them.

The third will be their fairy tale origins.

So to start, Ruby Rose:

She lives in Vale, which is similar to France (I’ll explain why in another post maybe), but technically grew up in patch, a small island off the coast of Vale. I have no idea about Patch’s culture as we hardly ever see it, so I’m going to skip this one. We also don’t know if either Summer or Taiyang was originally from Vale.

We know Taiyang is Chinese from his name, so I’m going to say she’s half Chinese. I also wrote a western au once and really love the idea of Taiyang being an Asian Redneck…so I think I’m going to say Ruby is very, very southern just because that would be adorable.

But if you don’t want that idea I generally see Taiyang being either Asian-American or Asian-French, or Asian-British if your doing a HP AU. Summer is harder to pin down, but Red Riding Hood was originally an Italian fable, so I’m going to have her be Italian or Italian-American.

Weiss:

Weiss is German, although making her simply white America/British would work. I could see her being Russian too in some AU because Atlas fits well as Russia. For American works, Pennsylvania has quite the German population and coal mines, so that works pretty well for her.

Blake is really complicated. From Remment Australia which is culturally SEA (south East Asian), has an English name but parents with a Hindu-inspired names, but neither looking vaguely Indian. I’m going to assume her family are immigrants (as they are in cannon I think) to Australia, maybe even changed their name to help them fit in. Immigrants from where? Well, India is an option, but I like to think Malaysia. They have a large Indian and Chinese population, and I like to think Blake is a mixture of Chinese, Malay, and Indian ethnicities, from Malaysia and immigrated to Australia. And if you think this is crazy or unrealistic, you haven’t seen anything yet. The sheer mix of cultures I’ve seen growing up as an ex-pat is insane. This isn’t too crazy.

For Yang, we already have Taiyang as an Asian red-neck. Or at least I do. Raven and Qrow are going to be a little harder to pin down, but I’m think bandits getting replaced by mafia. Which mafia? I don’t know, take you’re pick. Branwen is Welsh, but I can’t think of a Welsh mafia. Coming from Mistral I would see them as being Triad, not Yakuza because Raven’s gang is famous for being less than coordinated.

If you need a logical reason for Yang having blonde hair, Taiyang could be only half Chinese, half blonde (blonde is race right?).

Either way I see Raven operating in an American city like New York or Detroit.

This would mean Yang is fully Chinese ethnically.

JNPR:

Jaune’s name and inspiration are all French. However his mother does come from Mistral (I think), so I do see him being half Chinese, but nationally French. It’s also funny to imagine him with a French accent.

Pyrrha: she’s Greek or maybe Greek-American with her parents being recent immigrants. Argus seems to Remnent-Greece and her name and fairy tale are greek.

Nora: she should be Scandinavian. I feel like in a MCU AU she’s Thor’s daughter. But she also grew up as a street rat in Mistral, which is hard to fit in our world. Therefore I’m going to have her in America, the great melting pot (and also America seems to be more like Mistral than any other Remnent king with our state system), and she going to ethically Scandinavian but knowing nothing of her culture due to her upbringing.

Ren: obviously Chinese, but I might have him be American-Chinese to fit his story nicely in with Nora’s.

Others:

Coco: we’re all ignoring that she’s based off Coco Channel, so let’s make her a LA girl

Velvet: Australia, because of the accent. Or maybe English because that is her story origin

Fox: he’s difficult, because tribes are pretty rare in modern AUs. But his story could work for various things. He’s one of the few black characters so he could come from practically any African tribe (I’m currently going with Hausa because it’s one of the few I know anything about). His name is based off ‘the fox and the hound’ which is a rare American story, so he could also be from a Native American tribe if you want the AU to be more American-based.

Yatsuhashi: Japanese, this one is thankfully easy.

Sun: Chinese. He comes from a tribe as well, but I can’t think of any nomadic Chinese tribes except the Uyghurs. Making Sun a Uyghur doesn’t make much sense but it will serve to piss off certain people on the internet. And now this is going to be taken down, isn’t it? Oh wait, this is tumbrl. This is anarchy. It won’t. Forgot why I liked this place for a second.

Scarlet: sorry for the rambling there. Anyway, Scarlet is definitely English. “I hope I don’t get sand in my shoes.”

Sage: well, he’s black, but other then that we have nothing to go one. He’s also from Mistral but that doesn’t really work? If Mistral is America as well as China I guess we can make him African American. Or whatever else works best for the AU. He might be Indian too now that I think of it. Or even Maori. Really options are limitless here.

Neptune: Yeah, so probably just American, but does have both a French last name and an Italian first name. So probably ethically American (aka white mutt). Also he lives near a port, I think I’m gonna gone with him being from Tacoma Washington because I am.

Flynt: African American

Neon: Japanese-American because of her meme (it started as part of Japanese pop song on YouTube, the latter of which is America summed up in one invention)

Oscar: Hispanic-American, he just looks it. And I’m guessing he lives in Kansas for obvious reasons. His last name isn’t Hispanic but their could be a lot of reasons for that. Or he could be Native American (Pawnee, Cheyenne, and Osage are all Native American tribes in Kansas).

Penny: well if she’s still a robot she probably stays white, but if you want her human in this AU she might end up being half black as Pietro is, although she also could just be adopted. I guess the later makes more sense, huh? I figure she’s American, with her dad working with a ‘well meaning’ but ultimately corrupt government. Probably living in DC, as that has both the government and the poverty issues.

Emerald: oohh, boy. This is hard. Sustrai is Basque, and Aladdin is a French addition to an Arabian story, she herself is dark skinned with anime features that are super unhelpful for this sorta thing.

I have three ideas. Brazilian, mostly as there’s no South American themed RWBY characters I can think of, and it’s diverse enough that someone looking like Emerald would fit. Secondly, for American centered stories she’s just an orphan with no idea of her ethnicity. Or she could be African, Indian, Pacific Islander, or Hispanic or some mixture between those four. It’s honestly really hard to tell. In my fanfic she’s from Suriname and ethnically 1/4 Indian, 1/2 Creole, and 1/4 Javanese.

Ilia: Sioux (Native American). Ilia means a lot of things in a lot of different languages, and Amitola mean rainbow in Sioux, so I decided to just stick with that.

Mercury: American, white mutt American. I’m guessing New York or Philli for where he grew up, it seems like a place where he’d be comfortable

Neo: the new novel reveals her father lived in vale (btw I haven’t read it, I’m just getting this off the internet) and her mother was a assassin who’s origins aren’t known. She doesn’t really have a fairy tale. So I’m going to go with British or French (thank RWBY thoughts for the first one) although in an American AU she works as just a white American.

Robyn: depends on what Atlas is in this AU, but probably German or American.

Qrow: I already mentioned he’s probably Chinese due to being from Mistral. It’s a bit weird to think of him as Asian, but not as weird as it to think of Raven as white, so I’ll take it. Although I do like the idea of him being American Irish, that’s fun.

Winter: whatever Atlas is in this AU, German or American, although British and Russian would work well too.

Maria: Mexican

Salem: If you want a AU where she’s just a normal person then New England or Italian for her story origin

Watts: British

Tyrian: uh…I have no idea, but he looks white. And he kinda has a British accent? I want him to be southern for the accent tho. Probably just another crazy American

Cinder: her fairy tale is French but her origin is Chinese. Also, Cinderella doesn’t really have an origin, it’s an ancient story with every culture having at least one Cinderella story. So I’m going to say Chinese.

Hazel: American, from the Midwest. He’s darkish so maybe he’s a POC? Part Native American or Hispanic? Idk or really care I can’t stand Hazel

Roman Torchwick: American-Italian, he runs/works for the mafia

Ozpin: American because of the whole wizard-of-Oz-thing or French, because he seems to have come from Vale.

Glynda: American or French for the same reasons Ozpin is

Oobleck: Jewish American (because Dr. Seuss was)

Professor Port: Russian, due to his fairy tale, or English, due to his style

Taiyang: already said he’s a red-neck Asian.

Raven: depending on whether you want her to be white or not, either Chinese or Irish American, like I already said.

Cordovin: Karen

Ironwood: again, depends on Atlas in the AU. Either American or German…maybe Russian

Clover: Irish-American (or German, obviously the ace-ops depend on where Atlas is. I’m just going to do the rest of them assuming Atlas is American because Germany isn’t that diverse)

Harriet: African-American, I guess. It kinda messes with the story because Harriet is supposed to be privileged, which doesn’t really work in this AU, but she’s also obviously black.

Elm: Just normal American, maybe greek-American because of the Aesop fable themes

Vine: Tibetan based on his design

Marrow: either African-American or Pakistani/Indian-American. (I’m personally going for Pakistani)

Klein: english. All butlers are English. It’s a rule.

Pietro: African-American

Johanna: Pakistani or Indian American

Fiona: Jewish-American (kinda random but while she’s obviously white she also needs to be a minority for the Faunus thing to work)

May: normal upper glass American/German

Ghira: Half Malay, Half Indian, from Malaysia but immigrated to Australia later in life

Kali: half Chinese, half Indian, but also from Malaysia

Adam: much like Fiona I’m going to assume he’s Jewish due to him being white but still needing to be a minority. German or American, again, depending on where Atlas is. Or he could be Chinese, even though it doesn’t work with his name, due to the theory that he was trafficked much like Cinder. I’m going with ethically Jewish though

Sienna Khan: Indian

Huh, I actually finished that. I’m pretty sure I was accidentally racist multiple times and apologize in advance,

I’m exhausted and starving and not thinking straight. But anyway, here it is. Your very messy guide to modern RWBY AUs. I swear this was insane to sort out.

[retrocgads]

USA 1990

[nomorepixels]

Bandit Kings of Ancient China

©️ Koei 1996

Image sourced from mobygames.com

[weiidafeng]

ARTEFACT: GREAT PHOENIX (偉大 鳳, Wěidà fèng)

(For a refresher on Artefact's in general, see HERE)

STORY

One of Tong's two Artefact's, and his main one, the Great Phoenix is a bladed stave with a storied past. Having been forged during the twilight years of the Xia Dynasty, the Great Phoenix was first wielded by Cheng Tang, first king of Shang, and was the very Artefact used to strike down the last Xia ruler, King Jie. From Cheng Tang onward, the Great Phoenix was wielded by each succeeding Shang ruler, until it made it's way into the hands of Shang's last king, Zhou Xin (the infamous King Zhou), where it was sold to finance the decadent lifestyle both he and his favorite consort were drowning in.

For years afterward, the Great Phoenix would show up in the annals of history in the ownership of various figures; generals of Peerless nature, sorcerers, bandits, and at one point, it would even find its way into the hands of China's first Emperor, Q.in S.hi H.uang. Inevitably, however, the Great Phoenix would be acquired by the Divine Transcendent S.ima Hui, founder of the Eight Enigma's, and from him, it would be bestowed upon Tong during his youth.

OVERVIEW

Being an ancient Artefact that has accumulated thousand's of year's worth of energy from it's previous owners and countless years of usage, the Great Phoenix is one of the most powerful Artefact's one can attain. Due to it's age and the power it possesses, the Great Phoenix has achieved sentience, and is one of the more difficult Artefact's to achieve Full Attunement with, being known for having quite an attitude, but this task was not insurmountable for Tong, who had fully attuned himself to it by age twenty, after a mere four years of possessing it.

Generally, however, when wielded by it's imprinted owner, the Great Phoenix passively enhances the usage of that owners wind / air magic, and depending on their level of attunement, an owner may also be allowed the usage of one or two unique spells (a specialized funnel-like spell and a special barrier). The Great Phoenix's blades also allows it to be used as a very effective melee weapon, being sharp and durable enough to carve through steel if swung the right way. These boons pale in comparison to the Great Phoenix's true power, however...

TRANSCENDENT POWER

The Great Phoenix possess a Transcendent Power of the Technique Variety called Relentless Whirlwind (無情旋風, Wúqíng xuànfēng), and it affords an owner who has achieved Full Attunement further enhancement of their wind / air magic, and also bestows upon them the usage of a very unique spell;

Aspect of the Phoenix / Wind Form - A unique ritual spell that when activated, sends magically charged air rushing around Tong that eventually forms an ethereal-esque, avian themed armor over his body, while a pair of likened wings and five long tail-like feathers sprout from his back.

-- Phoenix Armor: The magical armor covering Tong's body via Aspect of the Phoenix provides extra protection from attacks of all kinds, and can even perfectly reflect attacks back at opponents.

-- Phoenix Wings: The wings sprouting from Tong's back via Aspect of the Phoenix allow Tong to move at immense speeds and also affording him the ability to launch deadly projectile attacks consisting of magically charged air (magically charged air that is far deadlier than any of his usual wind / air based spells, even those already enhanced by the Great Phoenix's passive power). These aforementioned projectile attacks can pierce, as well as cause explosions of great magnitude.

-- Phoenix Feathers: The five tail-like feathers sprouting from Tong's back via Aspect of the Phoenix allow him enhanced effectiveness during melee combat, acting as five extra weapons that he can use to both fend off melee attacks and launch attacks at foes in melee distance. These five tail-like feathers, like the armor and wings afforded to Tong via Aspect of the Phoenix, consist of magically charged air, but when striking a target, they come off as immensely serrated, being capable of inflicting horrendous, deep, slashing wounds. These tail-like feathers, thanks to the air pressure around them, also carry great force when striking, easily being able to shatter stone and smash through steel, let alone the bones in someones body upon contact.

NOTES

-- The Great Phoenix's Transcendent Power, Relentless Whirlwind, and it's associated ritual spell Aspect of the Phoenix, are probably the greatest tools that Tong has access too without invoking his Contract with Fengbo-- his power from invoking his Contract with Fengbo is far, far greater, but the Great Phoenix's power is immense in its own right, and would be a terrible sight for most foes. Using the Great Phoenix's Transcendent Power and associated ritual spell also hurt Tong far less than invoking his Contract with Fengbo, so there is that as a plus, too.

-- Despite being able to stack the passive enhancement of wind / air magic afforded by the Great Phoenix and the same effect afforded by his Contract with Fengbo, Tong cannot activate the Great Phoenix's Transcendent Power AND invoke Fengbo's powers at the same time-- he can only ever do one or the other, because the Great Phoenix will no longer recognize Tong as it's owner when he has taken that form ):

[rockislandadultreads]

New Modern Fantasies based on Classic Mythology

Half Sick of Shadows by Laura Sebastian

Everyone knows the legend. Of Arthur, destined to be a king. Of the beautiful Guinevere, who will betray him with his most loyal knight, Lancelot. Of the bitter sorceress, Morgana, who will turn against them all. But Elaine alone carries the burden of knowing what is to come--for Elaine of Shalott is cursed to see the future. On the mystical isle of Avalon, Elaine runs free and learns of the ancient prophecies surrounding her and her friends--countless possibilities, almost all of them tragic. When their future comes to claim them, Elaine, Guinevere, Lancelot, and Morgana accompany Arthur to take his throne in stifling Camelot, where magic is outlawed, the rules of society chain them, and enemies are everywhere. Yet the most dangerous threats may come from within their own circle. As visions are fulfilled and an inevitable fate closes in, Elaine must decide how far she will go to change fate--and what she is willing to sacrifice along the way.

She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan

To possess the Mandate of Heaven, the female monk Zhu will do anything “I refuse to be nothing…” In a famine-stricken village on a dusty yellow plain, two children are given two fates. A boy, greatness. A girl, nothingness… In 1345, China lies under harsh Mongol rule. For the starving peasants of the Central Plains, greatness is something found only in stories. When the Zhu family’s eighth-born son, Zhu Chongba, is given a fate of greatness, everyone is mystified as to how it will come to pass. The fate of nothingness received by the family’s clever and capable second daughter, on the other hand, is only as expected. When a bandit attack orphans the two children, though, it is Zhu Chongba who succumbs to despair and dies. Desperate to escape her own fated death, the girl uses her brother's identity to enter a monastery as a young male novice. There, propelled by her burning desire to survive, Zhu learns she is capable of doing whatever it takes, no matter how callous, to stay hidden from her fate. After her sanctuary is destroyed for supporting the rebellion against Mongol rule, Zhu takes the chance to claim another future altogether: her brother's abandoned greatness.

Sistersong by Lucy Holland

535 AD. In the ancient kingdom of Dumnonia, King Cador's children inherit a fragmented land abandoned by the Romans. Riva, scarred in a terrible fire, fears she will never heal. Keyne battles to be seen as the king's son, when born a daughter. And Sinne, the spoiled youngest girl, yearns for romance. All three fear a life of confinement within the walls of the hold – a last bastion of strength against the invading Saxons. But change comes on the day ash falls from the sky, bringing Myrddhin, meddler and magician, and Tristan, a warrior whose secrets will tear the siblings apart. Riva, Keyne and Sinne must take fate into their own hands, or risk being tangled in a story they could never have imagined; one of treachery, love and ultimately, murder. It's a story that will shape the destiny of Britain.

[cali]

BEWARE!! BANDIT KINGS OF ANCIENT CHINA