#archetype – ancient gear

[ygo-monster-type-tournament]

Round 1c, Match 7: Sportsdragon vs. Ancient Gear vs. Aesir!

Sportsdragon Keeper // Ancient Gear Catapult // Odin, Father of the Aesir

[the-mercurial-star-o-vesper]

MGS3 arguably has the most relevant symbols of what I call the MGS Cycle (MGS1, MGS2, and MGS3... and MGS5. Though MGS5 is more like a supplement and less a cyclic element. )--

--The reason MGS4 doesn't count, is because it breaks the narrative cycle, by convoluting its characters, turning the symbols meaningless, and well, ending the story without use of the cycle motifs--

MGS3 is a kind of map legend to the MGS Cycle motif. It breaks down the basic archetypes into their most obvious selves. EVA represents the Love Interest, Ocelot still dominates his archetype as the double-triple-crosser, the Sniper character in the End, the Ninja in the Fear, the in-over-his-head science-tech type found in Sokalov...

Ecctra, ecctra.

But the one prominent one that's important, that MGS3 puts in your face Look-Here Blazing-Signs because it is that important... and that's who the Boss stands for.

The Boss appears out of the fog of her first introduction, like a legend out of the fogs of myth. She is constantly praised as not just a Legend, but The Legend, the Mother of Legends even. She is the mentor, to where even Big Boss is but a student.

( Character analysis? She is also a broken women that has had literally everything robbed from her, including cognition, but still marches forward regardless. She is the embodiment of the saying that one can control nothing in life but their attitude. Quite frankly, I got real sick of hearing people praise her and questioned how come nobody is trying to actually Help her. She says things that come out of left field and don't make a whole lot of contextual sense, like she's not always present, and that's saying something given that we're in Metal Gear. The only time she ever seems to truly focus and is present is when she's on mission--Yes she was a legend, we know, but fuck, she needed Help, not Praise. What the hell is wrong with the MGS3 Cast. )

The Boss is represented by a snake, yes, given she leads the Cobra Unit and she is arguably where Naked Snake himself gets all his icons (which he will later drop as Big Boss), but she is also represented by the Horse.

And not just any Horse either... though we do see her literal horse, which is why this narrative symbolism is even being considered.

And Remember that MGS3 is when we get introduced to Chinese elements through Eva, just as Ocelot introduced / introduces Wild West elements.

One of the more important Chinese Horse symbols, is the Idea Horse or the Horse of Will. It is the embodiment of the indomitable human body and spirit, and often paired up with the Monkey of Mind, or the embodiment of the unfettered human mind.

There was a famous Chinese story that ran with these exact motifs--and that's Journey to the West.

Only instead of Sun Wukong (Who is arguably the more fitting of an setting filled with Hollywood Action Films that MGS likes to mimic), MGS embodies and centers around one of the other disciples--Bai Long Ma, the White Horse Dragon, and representative of the Horse of Will.

( And that's not getting into how horses and snakes are often combined mythologically anyway )

Through both narrative motifs, ancient literary symbols (The Horse), and of course, MGS cycle archetypes (The Snake), the Boss represents the indomitable human will.

There is, in fact, no opponent in the MGS Cycle that we face, that represents that archetype, though it is the most important archetype of all MGS.

Because we've faced them as an opponent before, but we have played them as a player character.

And that's Solid Snake.

ADDENDUM: THE REASON MGS IS (MEANT TO BE) A CYCLE

The reason I call it the MGS Cycle, is because it is a repetitious story, inspite of background elements.

The Indomitable Will (Solid Snake) is at the end of his trials of Self, and takes his last trial of self--Facing the Building Blocks of Life and History experienced (MGS1 whose key word is Gene, the literal building blocks of Life and all villians in MGS1 will claim that the steps experienced in their history has made them who they are), and facing down his worse self, his shadow, (Liquid Snake).

A new trialer begins their trials of self (Raiden), which starts facing what makes up their mind (MGS2 keyword is Meme--is your mind real, or is it merely made up of what you're informed is real), where the rookie asks himself what is real, what to believe, what led him to this point, and facing himself lest he fall into delusion.

The Indomitable Will, seeking to break the cycle to allow the world to remain as it was, mentors the new trialer (often through grueling methods) as he takes on his new trials.

Now the mentoree (Jack / Naked Snake), strong through his teacher's teachings, after succeeding his Trial of Mind, he now must face his Trial of Reality (MGS3's keyword is Scene, the World is a stage, now that you know you are real, is the world you're in real?) as the warrior he was built to be. Unfortunately, this trial involves facing off against the Indomitable Will who has already taken all her trials (The Boss).

... and the Mentoree fails, because by defeating the Indomitable Will, he breaks his own will in the process and, wins the mission but fails the trial. He becomes an aspect of the trials for the next Indomitable Will to face down.

This is how the cycle, by its motifs, works. If MGS4 had followed the set narrative cycle, it would've resulted in Raiden killing Solid Snake, just as Naked Snake killed the Boss, and setting Raiden up to become the next "Big Boss" archetype.

... And then the cycle starts over.

MGS5 is an odd supplement, because its worth more if you place its story motifs between MGS2 and MGS3, rather following after MGS4. It details how the Indomitable Will, in spite of its rebellion against the cycle, would get re-entrenched into the cycle. The Boss, for all her will power, is, for some reason, insanely shackled by loyalty to something that she knows means her harm. MGS5 shows the metaphorical shackling--how do you shackle the Indomitable Will? By forcing it into a false form.

[howlingday]

siguiendo con yugioh!au (personalmente prefiero pokemon pero gx llamó mi atención)

Qrow lo veo con un deck tipo archfiends debido a su pasado como bandido y su reputación, así mismo el efecto de desgaste de tus puntos de vida hace alusión a su semblante desventajosa, además creó que tendría cobertura con algunas cartas de joey debido al tema de la suerte y el asar aunque capaz que esto pega más con clover, en otro punto gx tiene un deck no-canon de vodka perdón "salsa picante" según la censura

El caso de penny es complicado debido a la cantidad de archetypes de máquinas aunque se me hace divertido que tenga el deck de syrus de vehicroid, debido a la naturaleza de niña curiosa de penny sería adorable como su deck se conforma principalmente por cosas salidas de bob the builder además debido a que varios de ellos dehecho contienen efectos problemáticos refleja también su otra naturaleza de androide de batalla, aunque definitivamente si habló de naturaleza de batalla entonces tendría a cyber dragon

Iroonwood definitivamente tendría un deck ancient gear, esto aparte de su prótesis también refleja sus características militares asi como la historia de atlas de tanto avanzar como quedarse estancado en el pasado

Por último cómo otra nota talvez jaune tendría una actualización de su deck con los neo space, debido a que estos provenían de un mundo aparte me parece lógico que se encuentren en ever after, además en lugar de curious cat podríamos tener a yubel

Continuing with yugioh!au (personally I prefer pokemon but gx caught my attention)

I see Qrow with an archfiends type deck due to his past as a bandit and his reputation, likewise the effect of wearing down your life points alludes to his disadvantageous appearance, he also believed that he would have coverage with some joey cards due to the theme of luck and roasting, although maybe this works better with clover, at another point gx has a non-canon deck of vodka, sorry "hot sauce" according to censorship.

Penny's case is complicated due to the number of machine archetypes, although I find it funny that she has the Vehicroid Syrus deck, due to Penny's curious girl nature, it would be adorable how her deck is made up mainly of things from Bob the builder also because several of them actually contain problematic effects also reflects his other nature of battle android, although definitely if he talked about battle nature then he would have cyber dragon.

Ironwood would definitely have an ancient gear deck, this apart from his prosthesis also reflects his military characteristics as well as Atlas' history of both advancing and staying stuck in the past.

Lastly, as another note, maybe Jaune would have an update to his deck with the Neo Space, because these came from a separate world, it seems logical to me that they are in Ever After, also instead of Curious Cat we could have Yubel.

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

Previously

Huh. I never realized the "hot sauce" was actually sake. Pretty funny censorship! But, yeah, I can see Qrow having similar cards due to his battle with alcoholism, and his use of Dark monsters, including Archfiends, is also fitting due to his role as the sort of shadow ops of Ozpin. I can even see him pulling out something old school like Archfiend Emperor, The First Lord Of Horror simply to utilize it's one of many special effects.

Actually, if we follow the Chibi logic, we could also give Penny some Insect cards, like Naturia Mole Cricket or Atomic Firefly. You could even take a step further with Inzektor cards, like Inzektor Exa-Beetle, or a monster that gains attack based on the monsters around it, like Insect Queen gaining ATK for every Insect on the field, or Humongous Hive Hegemon - Zexstagger, which also gains ATK AND can special summon Insect monsters from your graveyard or hand.

I can definitely see General Ironwood having military specific cards, as well as cards that are very similar to airships. Ancient Gear also works with his allusion to the Tin Man. In fact, Ancient Gear fusions would also allude to Atlas' use of robots AND their willingness to sacrifice for a supposed "greater good". That said, I would say his most powerful card would be Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem, acting as a menace of titanic proportions only matched by the might of the most technologically advanced kingdom on Remnant.

To be honest, I never finished GX. Partially because the ending wasn't dubbed and also because I don't even remember where GX stopped off. But I've heard plenty about how bad Jaiden got for no reason because of Yubel, which would be a pretty neat parallel with the Curious Cat.

[dailycharacteroption]

Jinyiwei (Investigator Archetype)

In the real world, the Jinyiwei, or “Embroidered Uniform Guard” was a secret police organization founded in the 14th century by the Hongwu Emperor in order to root out corruption and insurrection from within, able to overturn and ignore the judicial proceedings to arrest, interrogate, and punish anyone in the kingdom, including nobility and even the emperor’s own relatives.

Ostensibly this body would help preserve the empire with only the Emperor themselves to answer to, able to arrest and prosecute politically untouchable figures should they become enemies of the state.

Buuuuut if you’ve ever heard the term “secret police” in regards to world history before, you probably know how this goes. At best, the Jinyiwei were used as assassins to eliminate rivals, and at worse, were just as corrupt and capable of abusing their own power.

Who knew a paramilitary group answerable to literally only one man would be a bad idea for everyone?

However, for all it’s real faults, the Jinyiwei we’re describing today is a bit different than the real thing. For one, the Mandate of Heaven is actually real with gods and divine dragons granting power and authority to rule empires.

However, corruption remains, and the Jinyiwei of the Lung Wa empire was created to counteract and root out this corruption that drove the bureaucracy of the nation into the dirt, but in the end they failed, falling to corruption itself until the empire fractured and crumbled, robbing them of any authority.

But why the original Lung Wa Jinyiwei are long gone, there are those across Tian Xia that take inspiration from them, and seek to emulate them as they stand against the corruption that poisons governments and ruins nations.

Such dedication grants these investigators a bit of divine power, which they use alongside their keen minds to bring justice to the land, even if they aren’t quite as unimpeachable as their ancient predecessors.

The result is a sort of fusion of investigator and inquisitor, as we’ll soon see.

Careful consideration and insight, as well as the blessing of the divine is what fuels these investigators. As such, their inspiration is powered by their wisdom rather than intelligence, and instead of using alchemy they cast spells, drawing magic from the same arsenal as inquisitors.

Like the Jinyiwei of old, they understand that corruption and deception can be anywhere, and are especially skilled at noticing lies, forgeries, and disguises, as well as that which is hidden, be it a person or secret containers and doors.

Their suspicion also guards them against the magics of deception, enchantments and illusions, helping them avoid falling under their sway and pierce the false reality they create.

Finally, their divine mandate goes so far as to allow them to unleash divine judgement as inquisitors do, albeit somewhat less skillfully.

With the combination of the inquisitor spell list, geared towards information gathering, buffing, debuffing, and divine wrath; as well as their knack for discovering all types of deception, this archetype plays a bit more of a support and combat role than the vanilla inquisitor before even taking talents into account. As such, A combat build seems like a good choice here, one that can learn about the enemy and set up spells and tactics beforehand to take them down.

As written, the lore states that these individuals are not part of an organization, extrajudicial or otherwise. As such, their desire to follow such a path and endorse such ideals may be considered a relic of the past, and what that means will vary by nation and by individuals. Some may mock them as deluded fools clinging to ideals and a nation that no longer exists, others may honor them as a symbol of better days, or revile them as echoes of a past that needed to burn or as the shadow of a threat to the new order. Or, you know, in your setting their organization may still exist, and may or may not a blight upon the people in the way that secret police tend to be.

Through terrible coincidence and just bad luck, the party has accidentally slain one of the sacred white-antlered deer that only the emperor may hunt, and now they are on the run, chased by the mask-wearing secret order that answers only to His Holy Eminence.

A chance encounter can change your life, and so it was with Jinga, a monkey goblin who stumbled upon an aging old hermit on his island home who taught him about the great empire and how he was once one of it’s secret guardians, blessed by the gods. Jinga looked up to him so much that he studied his ways and received the divine blessing, leaving home to offer his services. He never fully understood, however, that the empire had fallen long ago.

The nation is on the verge of falling, consumed from within, all at the hands of those who should have been it’s protectors. Indeed, the Talisman Police, named for the divine tokens of their role they wear, have been corrupted from within and seek to usurp control. Is their leader a fiend in disguise? Merely power-hungry? It matters not. All that matters is that they must be stopped.

[a-gnosis]

06: Zeus of the family

"Because of his position as head of the divine family of Olympian deities, Zeus was the archetype of the patriarchal father. In myth, Zeus' many amorous alliances with mortal women produced heroes, who gave rise to aristocratic families."

"Zeus' importance to fathers may also explain the unusual votive offerings uncovered in the hilltop sanctuary at Messapeai near Sparta. The sanctuary of Zeus Messapeus contained weapons, armor, and athletic gear, but these were far outnumbered by crude, handmade clay statuettes of males with huge, erect phalloi. The site was frequented mostly by men, who may have sought Zeus' aid in becoming fathers."

Ancient Greek Cults: A Guide by Jennifer Larson

"Zeus, the 'father of gods and men', embodies a male fantasy of supreme power and unlimited access to sexual partners; his sexual potency is closely tied to his identity as progenitor and king. Zeus helps to populate the cosmos with deities and humans through his activities as husband, lover, seducer, and rapist."

Greek and Roman Sexualities: A Sourcebook by Jennifer Larson

[shadowron]

The Troll Decker, a Better Troll Archetype for Shadowrun (1st Edition)

Goblinized Teenage Angst and Art by @skullchicken

I cite the ancient texts:

“Suppose you wanted a Troll Decker.” (Charette, Hume, & Dowd, 1989)

So it will be.

It can’t be easy being a troll in 2050.

And despite several advances in the field since 1989, neither is pimpin'

But some "normal" children changed as they grew older, joining the ranks of the so-called Orks and Trolls. These either grouped with their own kind or mated with great-hearted souls who could see past the physical shells. The offspring of such unions were sometimes normal and sometimes produced the new racial types. Not all the "normal" children remained that way, however. Many suddenly underwent gobllnlzation at puberty, and the trauma and its associated maladjustments cycled again through the community. (Ibid.)

Reader, think back to when you went through puberty, and just what a messed-up bag of acne and stress you were. You found solace in the online world, where you could create an image and persona of yourself that was closer to the True You than anyone you knew in your real miserable life.

Then, while waiting for pizza rolls to cook in the microwave, you start goblinizing. Instead of sprouting a few inches, you sprout a few feet. Instead of zits, you have sudden dermal bone deposition and grow fragging horns. And yes, you have the munchies like you wouldn’t believe, but this doesn’t explain the doubling of your body weight.

Suddenly your pre-teen moping seems pathetic – you imagined yourself a hideous monster before.

But now this.

This is our Troll Decker.

Attributes:

Body: 6 Quickness: 2 Strength: 5 Charisma: 1 Intelligence: 4 Willpower: 2 Essence: 5.3 Reaction: 3

Skills:

Computer: 6 Computer Theory: 6 Computer (B/R): 6 Electronics: 4 Etiquette (Street): 2

Cyberware:

Datajack Headware Memory (50 Mp)

Gear:

Microtronics Tool Kit Fuchi-Cyber 4 (Response Increase 2, Active Memory 550 Mp, Storage Memory 1000 Mp) Programs (All at Rating 6): Bod, Evasion, Masking, Sensors, Analyze, Attack, Browse, Deception, Decrypt, Evaluate, Medic, Mirrors, Relocate, Shield, Sleaze, Slow, Smoke

Contacts:

Decker Dwarf Technician Elven Decker Troll Bouncer

[dungeonmalcontent]

The Living Grimoire Expansion

Grimdark & Dangerous: The Living Grimoire Expansion is a smaller book that holds a variety of content. The big chunk of content is the living grimoire class.

Living grimoires are similar to wizards, in that they record their spells on a tangible medium. However, unlike wizards, that tangible medium is alive. This medium can be your own body or the body of a creature that you create. You can record your spells with arcane ink to create tattoos, you can record them on implanted arcane items (piercings, body augmentations, cybernetic type modifications), or you can build a construct companion that contains your magical secrets. These three types of methods of spell storing medium constitute the three subclasses that a living grimoire can choose from. Apart from choosing the medium on which you record your grimoire, you can also stylize your grimoire with a series of aesthetics. These aesthetics determine what kinds of spells you prioritize and what flair they bring to your magical skill set. When you use a variety of aesthetic spells in conjunction, the style and coordination of the grimoire makes progressively more stylish spells more potent.

Beyond the living grimoire class, there are several subclasses that almost made it into the core G&D book, but without the living grimoire class the vibe was just not there.

The manabound grimoire soul is a subclass/archetype for the manabound class introduced in G&D. Manabound are burdened rather than blessed with the capacity to perform magic as their magic overwhelms their bodies. The grimoire soul archetype is geared to be more of an eldritch knight, using the magic in their bodies as both armor and weapons. Grimoire souls can use cantrips as part of their martial refinement abilities, leave shattered mana around you after a manaburst to create difficult terrain, and tag targets for high impact spells by other players or by a mana burst.

Monks get the way of ancient writ, a martial artist that secrets away esoteric knowledge. Again, rooted in the themes of the living grimoire class, the way of ancient writ arms monks with a variety of cantrips that they can then weave into their martial arts. These monks also unlock greater secrets of time and space as they grow in power, bending the fundamental powers of nature and magic to their will.

Rogues are masters of secrets, and the secret keeper archetype emphasizes this. Imagine an arcane trickster rogue, but what if they were closer to a warlock than a wizard. These rogues learn eldritch invocations and can whisper secrets into the hearts of other creatures to debilitate them.

Warlocks get three new invocations along with the grimoire keeper patron archetype. The grimoire keeper is a master of arcane secrets and you, as their warlock, become their grimoire. This pact grants you a more durable body, a boost to magical power based on the patron's aesthetics, and the ability to substitute part of your own body as spell components. When you grow powerful enough, you become a valuable resource for your patron and they can be compelled to protect you when you knock on death's door.

This expansion book includes five feats. Arcane aptitude, which allows you to attune to an extra magical item; arcane secret, which allows you to learn spells outside of your class; ink adept, which allows you to permanently add a spell scroll to your body that can be recast; ink finger, an odd feat which improves pickpocketing and writing related abilities (it's better than it sounds, trust me); and the living grimoire initiate, which is a spellcasting initiate feat for the living grimoire's special brand of magic.

There are two backgrounds, tattooist and arcane resonator. The tattooist background is fairly self-explanatory. The arcane resonator describes someone with a natural talent for understanding magical items and constructs without classical training; a natural artificer talent, if you will.

The following magical items are also included:

Effervescent Ink - a magic ink that works similar to the magic mouth spell

The Gouge - a powerful magical pen that can be used to create special curses

Living Grimoire Fragment - a repository of arcane knowledge preserved on a formerly living medium

Mercurial Implement - Similar to an all-purpose-tool but more versatile and always at hand

Pitchblack Pigment - similar to nolzur's marvelous pigment, makes holes and smoke clouds

Shard of Ioun's Writ - a shard of ioun's pen, can be added to, improves spell attack dc

Soul Siphon Crystal - better pearl of power with a price

Tinkerplate - modifiable material that can make shields or armor, perfect for artificers

This book comes complimentary with purchase of Grimdark & Dangerous. Grimdark & Dangerous is currently 50% off for the month of October. Snag a copy along with The Living Grimoire while it's cheap.

[villabella12]

@arcvmonth Day 28 Extra Prompt: Doodlebook - Uh Uh Uh!

This isn't basically a fanmade card but instead a fanmade deck, usually for my ocs as a follow-up for Day 28. Look Im not the best at creating a deck archetype but here's the concept of how they work (won't be listing the entire names of each monsters)

Prym Rose (Raya's Deck)

The Prym Rose Archetype are a series of monsters which heavily focuses on quickly Ritual Summoning Prym Rose Celestial Dragon (Raya's Ace) and other Ritual Monsters, either tributing monsters from her or her opponent's field, banishing an Extra Deck monster, or simply banishing a monster from the graveyard. The entire deck is a bit anti-pendulum since half of the monsters, including Prym Rose Celestial Dragon, negates all pendulum effects and instead of sending them to the Extra Deck, it sends them instead to graveyard (excepts Zarc's Deck)

There are certain monsters that allows Ritual Summoning just by tributing them and/or monsters in the field whose level equals or exceeds said Ritual Monster, although it strictly won't use an Ritual Monster as a material

There is one specifc weakness however, and that all can be defeated using the effects or doing battle damage by the Fusion, XYZ, and/or Synchro monsters, but certain spells and/or traps will protect it

Lore: The Prym Rose, or Prymnaris, are a huge King-Arthurian-Style Civilization that are protected underneath the kingdom's main source, The Prymnarite Crystal, serving as a protection barrier from enemies outside the Kingdom's walls. The princess, Joan (Prym Rose Princess Paladdin), doesn't take her position too seriously and instead went on to become the squire of the General Knight, Lance (Prym Rose Advance Nobleman), only to become 5 steps ahead of him and goes into wild misadventures with her friends.

TwinNight Symphonia X (Maria's Deck)

The TwinNight Symphonia X is a musician-themed deck that heavily revolves around Special Summoning level 5 or higher monsters from the deck, hand, or graveyard in order to perform a XYZ summoning, mainly Ibong Adarna The Divine Phoenix of Light (Maria's Ace) by using 3 Level 7 Winged-Beast type monsters and using their effect to return as many cards as possible to the opponents hand and gaining 200x ATK for how many cards the opponent have on their hand. The deck doesn't consist any Rank-Up Spells but instead having to pay LP in order to perform a Rank-Up XYZ Evolution either from the field, discarding a card from hand, or banishing said monster from the Graveyard.

Eris Adarna The Dark Phoenix of Corruption is a difficult card to summon to the field as it requires 4 XYZ materials from the graveyard with the same level (Level 7) in order to perform "Phantom XYZ Summon" though it is also possible using a Spell or Trap.

It's impossible to determine what its weakness is, but it's possible that "Speedroid", "Ancient Gear", "Supreme King", and "Superheavy Samurai's" are its weaknesses but it has yet to be comfirmed

Lore: The TwinNight Symphonia X are a mega-band that tours around the world through their indescribable music. Often paired with the Melodious, Performapals, Perfomages, and Abyss Actors, the band is phenomenal with their perfomances, giving the audiences the show of a lifetime with their melodies.

[lorem-text-backup]

The Past through the Lens of the Future.

Cuthbert Beckett has long been a renowned member of the archaeological community. Having made numerous contributions to the International Archaeological Society of Naples, the European Association of Archaeologists, the Society for American Archaeology, and many more, his impact on the field of archaeology is undeniable. Even so, the elusive archaeologist and historian rarely boasts about his accomplishments. As such, despite his reputation in archaeological and historical circles, he remains a mystery to the rest of the world.

We at Night Owl sat down with him in hopes of getting a glimpse into his exciting life.

"I was always interested in questioning what is considered to be 'common sense' by most people."

Born and raised in England, even in his youth Beckett had a tendency to question what was taken for granted by the people around him. It's no surprise, then, that as he grew up, he became enthralled by history; a science known as much for its diachronism as for its innumerable inconsistencies, as truth blends with legend and legend turns into myth.

His career began in Oxford, where his passion for discovering the truth drew the attention of a then-renowned scholar, who took the young Beckett under his wing and introduced him to his studies. In the following years, Beckett studied meticulously under the guidance of his new mentor, even travelling with him to France, where he remained for a few years before ultimately returning to England.

Of course, for a man such as Beckett returning home rarely means settling down and -encouraged by his mentor- he started his own journey, which would take him the world over.

"[During excavations] I feel pretty much the same as any archaeologist would: like a kid in a sandbox full of really, really precious toys."

Since his time as a student in Oxford, Beckett has inadvertently built a quite the reputation for himself as a paragon and a paradigm to historians and archaeologists everywhere.

His work has taken him all across the globe and back countless times, and his passion for his field of study doesn't seem to have any intention of diminishing, as even today, the struggles involved in the unearthing of humanity's past have the look of fascinating puzzles in his eyes. Of course, much like with a literal puzzle, the illustrious archaeologist's patience is tested every day, as is expected for someone in his field.

Patience, however, isn't the only skill Beckett has developed during his long career.

In the words of the man himself, "[…] the most useful skill I learned over the years is making connections."

Despite the archetype we have in our minds of Indiana Jones or Lara Croft bravely venturing into ancient tombs with nothing but their trusty gear, an archaeologist's job is a social one.

For a start, any good archaeologist has their sources; people who tell them about possible sites, guide them in their search for specific artefacts or even go on-site with them to assist in properly interpreting their findings.

Furthermore, excavations themselves are in no way solitary operations. From professional workers who prepare the dig site and do the actual digging, to specialized architects who draw the layouts of each site, to fellow archaeologists who work together during the excavation, a large number of people have a hand in bringing ancient discoveries to light.

Beyond that, there are museum curators and government officials who oversee the excavations, journalists and interviewers (that's us!) who report on the various operations, and, of course, fellow archaeologists who collaborate to put together the individual pieces they've discovered to reveal the real picture of each 'puzzle'.

As you can see, archaeology is by no means a solitary sport, so along with their investigative skills, professionals must also hone their social skills.

Finally, we all know the old saying, 'Learn from your past.' Be it due to his work, his own experience, or a combination of the two, that is Beckett's advice to our readers.

"If our kind paid more attention to the matters of the past, they'd see the patterns that form in [our lives] over the centuries, and that would definitely help them […] It will be a hard road to walk, but it is worth it."

Eliot Wilde, journalist and writer for Night Owl and host of Night Owl FM

[warriorpax]

This has nothing to do with roleplay, but I’ve been eyeing YuGiOh for a while (I mostly play Magic the Gathering atm) and I’m wondering if you can recommend a deck archetype that’s easy to start out with. Ancient Gears had my eye right now because it’s exactly my aesthetic but I’m unsure how difficult it is to pilot.

Alright, SO-

First of all, I'm honestly honored that someone came to me for advice on beginner-friendly decks in Yu-Gi-Oh, so thank you for that.

Secondly, word of warning...I'm a fucking ape when it comes to this lmao, so if I give you bad advice here, I do genuinely apologize for that, PLEASE don't storm my house with torches and pitchforks? Thanks! lol

NOW, as for actual deck suggestions... these are going to be from my personal experience of using these, or my personal experience of playing AGAINST these (mainly in "Yu-Gi-Oh! Master Duel"). These will be put under the cut for those that wish to just keep scrolling and don't want to read through a wall of text of my dumbass blabbering on lmao.

One of the first ones that really come to my mind are the "Branded" series of cards, which tends to end up being one of the sort of go-to engines for a number of decks (One of the most common of which being Branded Despia). These can be identified by using the monster, "Fallen of Albaz," who is basically just a Superpolymerization on legs, to go into a lot of fusion-oriented plays. So, if you wish to begin with fusions, Brandeds are one I definitely would recommend to begin with.

Another deck I could recommend, if you really want to embrace your inner Pharaoh Atem, would be Dark Magician, due to how much overwhelming support it has, and still gets to this very day. Follows the "KISS" rule, or "Keep It Simple, Stupid." Typically, your main goal is to have a board ending on "Dark Magician the Dragon Knight," Dark Magical Circle, and Eternal Soul set, which you will activate as soon as you get the opportunity to, that being as early as the next turn's draw phase. This effectively shuts down any lame-brained attempts of trying to shut you down, as both Dragon Knight and Eternal Soul will be stuck in a loop of defense. Dragon Knight protects all of your spells/traps from destruction and targeting, and since it's name changes to "Dark Magician" while on the field or in the graveyard, it'll become unaffected to literally every effect that your opponent has to pull out of their ass due to Eternal Soul's continuous effect, and can be summoned back to the field by Eternal Soul if it gets destroyed by battle or it gets tributed for a Kaiju summon (you can ask me about THIS mechanic later on if you'd like to know any further information on that, which I recommend as it's better to know about the mechanic than to experience it firsthand and not know how it happened)

As for Ancient Gears...I would only recommend you build this if you're willing to make some VERY big investments, as it's really at it's "best" with other earth-attribute (or element), machine-type monster archetypes (such as Machina monsters and Infinitracks). While Ancient Gears also has a lot of fusion-centered mechanics - in fact that's 90% of the Ancient Gear archetype - in my experience, you're going to be using Ancient Gears with decks that utilize other extra deck summoning mechanics...A LOT.

However, you CAN make a purely Ancient Gears deck work if you've got better deck building skills than whatever I've got going on in my head, and got a lot more passion for it and ambition than I do. Really just depends on how you'd prefer that.

So, TLDR; I recommend Branded and/or Dark Magician (because you CAN in fact combine these two decks together) for a beginner deck, and I suggest that you do a lot more research on the Ancient Gear archetype if you wish to build an Ancient Gear deck, whether that be purely Ancient Gears, or combined with something else that can also work.

I hope to god that made sense and I didn't just make myself look like a complete and utter fool, lmfao, and I hope that this was at least SOMEWHAT helpful for you in becoming a Yu-Gi-Oh duelist.

[team-frightfur]

Day 23: Back At Class, They Never Taught A Thing 

@arcvmonth​

This feels weird and will probably never happen again but whatever.

Headcanon/Fabrication dump time because I’m procrastinating on Sleep. Blame Kubera.

Now you hear headcanon/fabrications and I bet that you think “ooooh character headcanons, right?” Wrong! These are logistical headcanons! And now I’ve lost you! (There are character headcanons woven in but this is mostly just boring).

...Ok you can all have (1) free character headcanon each.

Yuri is not inherently obsessed with gardening. He actually started because he assumed, given The Professor named him ‘Yuri’, it was expected of him. Nowadays, he uses gardening to vent.

Serena is a closet fan of Shonen. Her taste is, unfortunately, not very discerning. She’s heard of Sailor Moon, but cannot watch without wanting to strangle Usagi.

Since rations normally don’t include candy, Sora had to win a 32 child battle royale to take his candy into Xyz. The other students find the noises he makes insufferable.

Dennis...I got nothing lol.

Anywa, back to logistics, this is all Real in Dramaturgy. To the degree that it may as well be a Dramaturgy expos dump. There’s even some small spoilers in strikethrough! But most of it isn’t spoilery.

Political Status.

Academia is an Independent City State encompassing both Port City on the mainland and the island of Academia. (Synchro’s City is also a City State, while Heartland and Maiami are normal cities). Academia has full sovereignty, but is still beholden to international law.

Appearance.

The Volcano has been repurposed for geothermal energy. 

Unlike Duel Academy, Academia has 9 dorms. 3 Obelisk Blue dorms, 3 Slifer Red dorms, and 3 Ra Yellow dorms. This is because of Academia’s three tracks: the Leadership Track, Duellist Track, and Disciplinary Track.

Tracks.

The Leadership Track is for training commanding officers. Students in the leadership track are ranked based on team survival rate, grades, anonymous review, and military achievement. Those in the Leadership Track are often promoted out of the Duellist Track, but not all leaders are duellists. Edo is ranked Obelisk in both Leadership and Duelling. Meanwhile, both Sora and Yuri were blacklisted from the leadership track, Sora for having poor emotional control and Yuri for having an antisocial personality.   

Those who rank highly in the Leadership Track (colonel and above) can travel through the dimensions without restriction. However, they do not have their own Archetypes.

In the Duellist Track, students are ranked based on grades, carding rate, victory rate and physical ability. The duelling track is also mandatory, so even leaders and disciplinary officers will have a duelling rank. 

Obviously, not all good duellists are good leaders and not all good leaders are good duellists, but since promotions often entail leadership responsibilities, promoting based on pure strength could be disastrous. On the other hand, Academia had to reward strength, if not, their students wouldn’t apply themselves. Their solution was to rank duelling separately. 

The highest rank of duellist is ‘Special Agent’, which is Yuri, Dennis and Sora’s rank. Uniquely, while every duellist ranked below Special Agent must use the standardised Ancient Gear deck, Special Agents may develop, request and print their own Archetypes. 

Many Academia classes focus on Ancient Gear decks. Since these classes are useless for Special Agents, they can be dropped.

The Disciplinary Track trains students to investigate, apprehend and reeducate deserters, traitors, and troublemakers. Members of the Disciplinary Team are handpicked by The Professor. As a result, among Academia students, becoming a disciplinary officer is considered tantamount to earning The Professor’s trust and respect. Sora’s dream is to become a disciplinary officer. Ryo is the top ranker in this track.

Dennis is a genius who ranked high in all 3 tracks. Hypercompetent. Sora and Yuri are only ranked highly in Duellist. Serena would be a Special Agent as well, but she’s not ranked.

Expulsion.

Academia students who underperform have two fates. If they’re orphans or factory children, they can be confined, disciplined or carded. If they have family, however, Academia will instead expel them. Expelled children are considered stupid and challenged.

Biopolitics.

Wars take bodies, so how does Academia get them?

Firstly, all children in Port City are legally required to attend Academia, so most duel soldiers are essentially conscripted. Only a small percentage of students are international students whose parents just don’t care.

Yuri wasn’t known by Port City conscripts, so he can’t be from there. He also arrived by boat, so he isn’t an Academia native. Thus, Yuri is rumoured to actually be an international student. No one has asked. 

This begs another question! How does (1) city have enough bodies to take on All of Xyz!?

Aggressive pronatalism. I’m so sorry. 

Basically, give one child to Academia, and they’ll offer low interest loans. Offer two and they’ll give you free healthcare. Offer three and they’ll give you lifetime employment. Offer 4 and you get a house. Et cetera. 

Academia will take any ‘child’ between 2-16, but the vast majority of students are 7 or 13. This is because their parents want to, like, raise them. Orphanages, however, send the children at 6 per Academia policy (Academia wants them potty trained and literate). Serena is an orphan.

Finally, some parents view their children primarily as bargaining chips. Consequently, they have children purely for the sake of handing them off. Although they’re regarded as abhorrent, Academia nonetheless rewards their behaviour. They make bodies, after all, and due to their parent’s open inhumanity, their children are often highly loyal to Academia. To such rejected children, there are only two options: 1.live in Academia or 2.go back to the parents who threw them away. It’s easy to see which option they’ll pick. For one, the children literally only know Academia. For another, they’re highly ranked and respected due to their early start.

Economics

Third question! How do they fund this insane pronatalism? 

In Academia, only 80% of students are deployed in Xyz. 20% are deployed in Fusion, where they work as independent mercenaries for other nations. Academia maintains a stranglehold on Real Solid Vision and, as the OG dimension proved, Real Solid Vision is canonically better than tanks and fighter jets. As a result, competition for Academia’s services is fierce and lucrative.

Timeline

Final question, how did the The Professor set this up in 3 years? The answer: In Dramaturgy, he didn’t. 

The Professor has been visiting Fusion for 15 years, but only left permanently 3 years ago. At first, he’d only visit for a few days, then a few weeks, then a few months. To be frank, Reiji expected his disappearance. Still, he wanted to believe he was wrong.

“But Team Frightfur, the universe is canonically only 14 years old!” 

Yeah, that’s another thing I decided to ignore. In Dramaturgy, all the dimensions   have complete histories. The reason Leo, the Yuboys, and the Bracelet Girls were all born at this specific juncture is because the date coincides with Zarc and Ray’s births in the OG dimension.

[ygo-monster-type-tournament]

Round 2c, Match 4: Ancient Gear vs. Armed Dragon!

Ancient Gear Catapult // Armed Dragon LV7

[deathlessathanasia]

“Finally, Zeus Soter was an important god of the household. With other deities such as Hygieia (Health) and Agathos Daimon (the Good God), he traditionally received the third libation at symposia. The first libation was poured to Zeus and the Olympian gods, who represent the cosmos; the second to the heroes, who stand for the city; and the third to Zeus Soter, the patron of home and family. In his Suppliants and Oresteia, Aeschylus alludes several times to Zeus Soter as the deity who upholds the authority of the male head of the household, and the physical integrity of the home itself, which were felt to be interdependent.11

Because of his position as head of the divine family of Olympian deities, Zeus was the archetype of the patriarchal father. In myth, Zeus’ many amorous alliances with mortal women produced heroes, who gave rise to aristocratic lineages. Thus he was worshiped as Zeus Patroös (Ancestor) by Dorians, who traced their lineage to his son Herakles, and more generally as a god of familial bonds. At Athens, Zeus Phratrios and Athena Phratria presided over the enrollment of boys into the phratries, or brotherhoods, that guaranteed their status as legitimate offspring of citizens. Shrines of individual phratries sometimes had altars dedicated to the pair. But most widespread of all were Zeus’ many domestic cults. Zeus Herkeios (of the Courtyard) received sacrifices on behalf of the household at an open-air altar. An anecdote from Herodotus (6.67–68) illustrates the role that Zeus played as the guarantor of the male line. When confronted by his enemies with claims that he was illegitimate, the Spartan king Demaratos sacrificed to Zeus and brought his mother a portion of the entrails. Placing them in her hand, he beseeched her in the name of Zeus Herkeios to tell him the truth about his parentage, and she complied. Zeus Herkeios is attested as early as Homer (Od. 22.333–37), who mentions that Odysseus and his father sacrifice to the god outside their ancestral home. Zeus’ importance to fathers may also explain the unusual votive offerings uncovered in the hilltop sanctuary at Messapeai near Sparta. The sanctuary of Zeus Messapeus contained weapons, armor, and athletic gear, but these were far outnumbered by crude, handmade clay statuettes of males with huge, erect phalloi. The site was frequented mostly by men, who may have sought Zeus’ aid in becoming fathers.

Zeus Ktesios (of Possessions) was a humbler deity. In Athens, it was customary for the head of the household to wreathe a two-handled jar with wool tufts around its “ears” and “from its right shoulder to its forehead,”and to empty into the jar a mixture of pure water, olive oil, and various fruits and grains, referred to as ambrosia. The finished jar stood in the storeroom as a “sign” of Zeus and acted as a charm to increase the household goods. That the ritual has many points of contact with funerary customs suggests a relationship to domestic ancestor cults. Though he had public altars in some cities, Zeus Ktesios was primarily an intimate, family god. The orator Isaeus (8.16) tells of an Athenian who admitted only family members to the sacrifice for this god, though his practice was not necessarily universal.”

 - Ancient Greek Cults: A Guide by Jennifer Larson 

[magpiejay1234]

Anyway, let's do Level 12 Fusions.

For Yuri, since he already has Predapower with 3600 ATK, most likely the Level 12 will use Greedy Venom as basis, which will give it 3800 ATK. Using Predapower instead will give us 4400 (2800+800= 3600, so 3600+800 = 4400), which will be the same Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem, which, while higher than Z-ARC, would make sense in context, especially since its overall stat total will be lower.

For ARC-V era Level 10 monsters that can get Level 12 variants, we have:

**Goyo Emperor

**Earthbound Servant Geo Grasha

**Chaos Ancient Gear Giant

Not counting Edo's Deck, as legacy characters' ARC-V Decks are not counted in favour of their original ones, despite Edo being the cover character of Booster Sp: Destiny Soldiers.

Invoked Elysium, from this era, but not an animé card, is also likely, much more so than the others. Invoked cards were from Yuri's set, Booster SP: Fusion Enforces, so chances are Level 12, and Level 11 Invoked will happen sooner than later, especially since OCG Stories is covering Aleister's early years as of this post.

All three mentioned above were introduced in Season 2, except Chaos Ancient Gear Giant which was briefly shown in Season 1 flashbacks. Since most of those non-legacy Decks have a Level 12 card in them, these can get theirs too, though Geo Grasha already has Red Nova indirectly.

****

Sora, and Dennis simply cannot get a lot of support, because they have too much cards remaining from the animé/manga. Unless those are gradually covered, new higher Level Fusion support will be very, very limited.

Serena is also unlikely get further higher Level monster, except maybe a Level 11 Fusion Parasite version of Leo Dancer, and its subsequent purified form. Other Bracelet Girls do not have monsters above Level 8, so Serena has to wait for Rin, and Yuzu.

Tyler Sisters are eventually going to get new support, as it has been the case for most previous Duelist Pack legacy themes. However, they will likely be delayed, as there isn't much of a logical step beyond Augusta, and Pet Liger, outside of Fusing the two together, and Rush Duels will likely eventually have their own version of Amazoness.

Battle Beast is likely to get a Level 12 Gladiator Beast eventually, but the archetype generally preferred mid-Level Fusion Monsters. So this one will likely take some time.

****

For honourable mentions:

**Shaddolls, and Gem-Knights cannot go above Level 11, but they can go to Level 11 due to their association with Tierra, and Zefraath, though it is unclear how this would work, or how this would affect the associated archetypes.

***Though Gem-Knights are Masumi's Deck, due to their prominent role in Duel Terminal's storyline, they can get support whenever.

**Kachidoki will probably have his Shura retrain earlier than expected, which might mean another Shura retrain might end up happening later down the line, once more of Ryozanpaku School cards are printed.

****

Other notes:

**Roget's Howitzer might eventually get an upgrade, and Roget's Deck might match the Synchro Fusions of his subordinates. This is unlikely to reach to Level 12, but it might feature more Level 10 Ancient Gear monsters.

**Sora is unlikely to reach Level 12 before Level 10, so he might get a Nightmary analogue for his animé Deck, before his remaining manga monsters are covered.

Edit: It is Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem, Japanese name is the Antique Gear Ultimate Golem. Corrected from Ancient Gear Ultimate Golem to Ultimate Ancient Gear Golem.

[dailycharacteroption]

Retrograde Revision 1: Acrobat Archetype for Rogue

(art by Robyn Bond on Artstation)

 So, some of my peers on tumblr (whom I should really talk to more) sometimes go back and redo old content on their blog in an attempt to apply modern reflection and a more defined writing style to them and bring them into the modern era.

So that’s what I’m doing this week! I’ll be taking a whole week’s worth of entries from the blog’s past and redoing them, starting with my first entries back in… 2014?

Good heavens, has it almost been 10 years? It’s amazing how much of your life can change, and how much stays the same.

In any case, let’s jump right in. I won’t be doing all of my previous entries with this series, but up to a certain point when I started properly using paragraphs in them rather than the hot mess I started out with.

Our first entry is the Acrobat, an entry with literally 3 short paragraphs in the body before the adventure hooks. Definitely in need of expansion.

Without further ado, let us begin!

The human body has a fascinating relationship with physics. After all, our bipedal gait essentially means that we controlled-fall our way through our lives, to say nothing of our efforts to go beyond the limits of our bodies and go real fast, whether it be by taming fast animals and riding them or inventing wonders of engineering that go fast, sometimes in directions usually reserved for birds and marine animals.

But before we were runners, riders, and fliers, our ancient ancestors were jumpers and climbers. That lovely opposable thumb we use to engineer and build and affect our environment started out as a way to hold on nice and tight to tree branches, while the limbs themselves were powerful, able to help launch them from branch to branch, all things we can see in the rest of our primate cousins.

So what do you get when an arboreal tree climber switches to being mostly on flat land with the brain and limbs to alter their environment and most importantly, understand it? A lot of things, but the thing we’re focusing on today is how some humans develop the art of jumpling, climbing, and balancing into an art form.

Enter the profession of the acrobat! Death-defying leapers, tumblers, and balancers who perform such deeds not just to prove they can, but also give a thrill to onlookers who have not perfected these arts. It is very dangerous work though, and such individuals spend years honing their bodies and minds to finally do these things without the safety nets or cushioning pads. But even then, accidents happen.

The Pathfinder acrobat, which has it’s roots in one of the old subclasses of rogue from the early days of the hobby, uses their skills not just for performance, but also for more directly practical uses. Turns out a lot of doors (or more accurately windows) open up to you when you can just climb and leap to places that are possible entryways, but are less secured because nobody without that training would ever consider them a method of ingress.

They might be performers that moonlight as thieves, or they might be “second story specialists” in their local thieves guild, or they might simply be enthusiasts in the acts of running, jumping, and climbing that apply their skills as spies and sneaks. Either way, they are masters of going where others can’t and avoiding notice purely because nobody every looks up.

 Agility is a must for acrobats, so they train with and/or modify their armor to remain flexible in it, bolstering their ability to perform physical activities while wearing protective gear, and making them even better when not wearing it.

A bad fall can spell the end for such daring leapers and climbers, so they develop good instincts and reflexes for catching themselves at the last moment, though even that can fail.

This archetype favors rogue talents that provide additional advantages to balancing, leaping, and climbing, as well as those that let them use their nimble moves in other situations such as combat.

A fairly simple archetype from the early days of Pathfinder, but still a good one. Obviously these rogues never want to be seen or engage in combat in the first place, but aside from building for their utility in moving about swiftly and with agility, definitely try building them with tumble checks, flanking, and using their mobility against foes in mind. Most importantly, use the environment whenever possible.

 Being any sort of athlete requires paying a lot of attention to the needs of your body, so I can imagine that there is actually a curious dichotomy with acrobats in their relation to risk. Certainly all are daredevils, but many may not take certain risks if they would ruin their ability to perform, while others throw caution to the wind.

  The arid desert steppes of Vollak are home to the indigenous catfolk population called the Mlei Mlei. Extremely distrustful of outsiders, the Mlei Mlei specialize in unique ambushes wherein each member of the war party anchors themselves to a piton driven in the rock, rappelling down and running along the walls of the canyon expertly, staying just out of reach as they deliver attack after attack.

 High above the clouds, the flying city of Urbrisk is in constant competition between mages, flying warriors, and the thieves guild, all vying for mastery over the city’s airspace. For their part, the thieves guild keeps up, mastering stolen trinkets of flight, and moving so swiftly they barely seem to touch the ground.

 The local lord, paranoid about thieves, guards his keep with cunning traps and locks, keeping his most prized possessions in a tower too high to be climbed… Or so he thought until they went missing. He commissions the party to retrieve his property, and capture the nimble thief so that he can avenge his wounded pride.

[bossa-61240]

'Sup my mind is being consumed by Yugioh and Music so I'm gonna talk about the archetypes I play and link playlists that I jam to while playing those decks on master duel.

Elemental HEROs/Masked HEROs: So obviously HERO decks move quick as all hell, so my brain gravitated to the vocal tracks from various video games where quickness is a key factor. In addition to the game songs, this playlist includes a handful of hard rock / metal tracks that reminds me of the multi monster beatdown style of the HEROs

Link

Cyber Dragon: Obviously I had to swing with like mostly electronic music, but I went with stuff that's super nostalgic for me because Cyber Dragon was the first archetype I really played and enjoyed. I also grew up with GX reruns on the CW, so music from that period of my life is just kinda linked to Cyber Dragon in my mind. Even with all that it just turned into a nostalgia playlist halfway through.

Link

Ancient Gear: In my experience (limited as it is since I just started playing AG), AG is slow and hits hard. For whatever reason, this screams dad rock to me. So this playlist has like Survivor, Thunderstruck, Livin' on a prayer, and so on

Link