#estovakia | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

commodorebuzzkill · 6 years

Text

An analysis of Ace Combat 6′s story line.

So, for all the Ace Combat fans on Tumblr, here’s a ludicrously far reaching analysis of the pretend historicity of Ace Combat 6′s setting. So, using the term historicity in a setting where you can build a flying boat with kilometer wide wingspan, or a giant railgun that could give a sci fi series set 400 years in the future a shrinky winky, you might be saying the commodore has his head up his ass but, hear me out. The story line begins with the good guys, the Republic of Emeria, being invaded by the bad guys, the Federal Republic of Estovakia. The setting itself is interesting in presentation in the fact that we get to know the Estovakian culture, and mindset of their people, far more than you do that of your comrades. You don’t really get to know much about Emeria at all. Are they a fair and open democracy? We know they had a king way back in the middle ages who made a golden statue, do they have a king or queen now like Britain? We don’t really get to know much about them. The Estovakians on the other hand are deeply fleshed out in that respect. We learn that their culture was shaped by a great cataclysm resulting from a comet called Ulysses crashing into their country and reduced its infrastructure to ruin. Order returned when the military gained control of the country and the Generals came to power, vowing to bring their once great nation back to prominence. The nation of Estovakia feels intensely familiar to any student of more recent world history, bringing to mind nations in the Balkans, or perhaps the modern day Russian Republic. So they regard their neighbor Emeria with envious eyes and decide to invade.

Is this lack of information about the party we as the player belong to a flaw? No, not once you consider the major theme of the story. It’s the people who really matter, not a nation or an individual’s patriotism or self sacrifice. We as a player feel connected to the conflict not because we love everything Emeria stands for, but because we are made to care about the people who call it home. We meet Melissa before the first level even starts, and see her happy life get destroyed in an instant when the King’s Bridge is blown up in the opening salvo of the Estovakian attack on the Emmerian capital of Gracemaria. In the following cut scene, we learn that her daughter’s school bus was destroyed during the battle, and her husband, a fighter pilot, was among the airmen who died during the invasion. Everything she has, her home, her child, and the love of her life are all taken from her. “I walk on. I am unable to think. All I can do is follow the others. Ever since I came across the twisted wreckage of my daughter’s school bus, my soul has left me.” She says, as she trudges along with other refugees. If you don’t care about Melissa at this point, you are clinically dead. She is our emotional proxy for the story. Not a pilot trying conquer the military might of a determined enemy, but a woman who’s life has broken apart, and spends the story trying to gather whatever scraps remain, searching for her daughter. Ace Combat 6′s story is fundamentally humanist in nature, which is what makes it and the other games in the series wonderful in my opinion. Apparently, a lot of Ace Combat fans hate this game, but I’m not one of them. To me, it’s one of those games that has aged like wine. It’s every bit as beautiful now as it was in 2007.

#ace combat 6: fires of liberation #perhaps and unpopular opinion #This game's score is fantastic.

9 notes · View notes

aceb133 · 7 years

Text

Wholesome Week 2, Day 4: Roll for Initiative

Because what’s more wholesome than D&D?

Long-ish story below!

With a weary sigh of resignation, Marco knew it was the end.

He’d done everything he could to prepare for this moment. He’d learned to wield a sword and hold a shield. He’d spent a lifetime honing his abilities and his reflexes. He’d recruited followers and allies. And he’d even considered multi-classing into Monk.

But, as he watched the die roll across the table, he knew none of that mattered now.

“A two!” Alfonso shouted, raising his arms in triumph. “You fail to dodge the dragon’s powerful flame breath! In an instant, you are incinerated to a crisp, your burned armor serving as a warning to future adventurers to come.”

“Ah, lame!” Ferguson said, collapsing in his seat. “Marco, dude, I told you that your character needed more dex.”

“Well it’s not like that would’ve done anything when I can’t roll anything higher than a ten!” Marco said. “That lousy die has been trying to kill me all night!”

“And at last, it has succeeded.” Alfonso said sagely.

Marco groaned, and leaned back in his seat. He’d spent two weeks coming up with this character, writing an elaborate backstory, coming up with an ideal level progression, and even scoping the internet for a cool character portrait. It was supposed to be his marquee character, the one he’d reminisce about in the decades to come. And his reward for all that work, of course, was managing to get killed in the first encounter of Alfonso’s new campaign.

Staring at the ceiling, he could do nothing but shake his head. Frankly, he should have seen it coming.

“Well Ferguson,” Alfonso said, “I believe you have initiative.”

Ferguson picked up a die, and contemplated it for a moment. “Well, with my comrade in arms deceased, I have no other choice. I cast Magic Miss-“

Suddenly, the door burst open, and Marco twisted his head. To his surprise, Star, Jackie, and Janna walked in, each one sharing identical looks of disgust.

“Star! Jackie!” Marco said, standing up in a panic. “I thought you guys went to the movies!”

“We did.” Janna said. “The sewer line underneath the theater blew just before the opening credits. There was… urgh, I don’t even want to talk about it.”

“That sounds incredibly gross.” Ferguson said. “Say, did you bring any popcorn back?”

Star ignored him, and walked over to where the trio was sitting. “Marco, you didn’t tell me you were playing a game tonight,” she said, looking over the piles of rulebooks, character sheets, graphing paper, and dice. “Or… is this a game? I see dice, but I don’t see a board anywhere.”

Jackie followed close behind, and Marco caught a flare of recognition in her eyes. “Oh dude, is this D&D? I’ve always wanted to play that!”

“Wait, you want to-I mean, really?” Marco said, caught in the transition between embarrassment and relief.

“Yeah, we used to play every week.” Ferguson said proudly. “I had a level fourteen warlock, myself. He could kill a man with a stare.”

“Used to?” Janna asked, leaning against the wall. “What made you stop?”

Alfonso shrugged. “Oh, you know, school and stuff. And plus, Marco started hanging out with Star a lot more, so we couldn’t find time to play.”

“Marco, you should have told me!” Star said, her voice laced with concern. “I’m so sorry I broke up your alphabet game!”

Marco shook his head. “Nah, Star, don’t worry about it,” he said. “It’s not your fault, it just kinda happened.”

“I have got to make it up to you, though!” Star said. “Are you playing now? Could I join?”

Marco turned to Alfonso and Ferguson, who both shrugged.

“It’s not like the campaign’s going anywhere now, what with you being dead and all.” Ferguson said.

“Plus, I do have a one-shot I’ve been wanting to run.” Alfonso added.

Marco smiled. “Well, I guess that’s a-“

“YES!” Star said, hopping over a chair and sitting down at the table. Quickly, she turned back to Jackie and Janna and waved them over. “Come on! Let’s all play, it’ll be fun!”

“Oh man, totally!” Jackie said, and walked over to sit next to Marco. Janna merely shrugged, but pushed herself off the wall, grabbed a chair, and sat down next to Star.

As the players shuffled to make room around the table, Star looked down and closely examined the array of playing materials before her.

“So, how does this work?” she asked, picking up Marco’s twenty-sided die.

“Well first, you gotta make a character.” Ferguson said. “I’m Fergon the Wise, an elvish mage from the lost city of Gracemeria, who seeks to restore the lost Talisman of Estovakia.”

Star’s eyes twinkled at Ferguson’s description of his character. “Wow”, she said, “That sounds so cool! How do I make a character?”

“Well first, you have to roll for your ability scores.” Alfonso began.

“Uh-huh.”

“Then, you have to pick your race. Each race gives you a modifier to your ability score, and some have special abilities.”

“Okay,”

“Then, you pick your class, which, depending on your level, determines your base attack bonus, your fort, reflex, and will saves, and your abilities available at each level.”

“Yeah…”

“It also tells you how much health you have, and how many skill points you get per level. A druid, for example, gets four plus your intelligence modifier, multiplied by four.”

All of the enthusiasm had drained from Star’s face, and she looked as though she was only moments away from falling asleep on the table. “Urgh, this sounds like math. Aren’t games supposed to be fun?”

Marco shrugged apologetically. “I mean, there’s a bit of math, but it’s really not hard. And plus, when you’re actually playing the game, it’s a lot of fun!”

Reaching across the table, he picked up a copy of the player’s handbook, and began to open it. “Here, I can help you-“

Star smiled, and stood up. “No thanks, Marco, I’ve got a better idea.” She then pulled out her wand, and Marco’s eyes grew as wide as dinner plates.

“Star-“

Star pointed it at the player’s handbook Marco held in his hands, and wand began to crackle and glow with magic energy.

“STAR NO-“

“Mystical Game Adventure Transform!” Star shouted. For an instant, nothing happened-and then, the entire room vanished in a brilliant flash of light.

----------

Marco groaned as he slowly returned to consciousness. His head was pounding, and his body was sore. As he struggled to open his eyes, he scoured his groggy brain for any memory of what had just happened. The last thing he remembered was Star casting some kind of spell-but everything after that was darkness.

As he opened his eyes, he was instantly blinded by the sun above him. Instinctively, he reached out his hand to shield his eyes-and suddenly, noticed his hand was covered by an armored gauntlet.

Jolted to full consciousness by the sight, Marco scrambled to sit up, and looked down at himself. His body was fully covered in a combination of leather armor, metal plate, and chainmail, and on the ground next to him was a long, steel sword.

“Oh Star, what did you do this time?” Marco said aloud, and startled himself with the sound of his own voice-far deeper and rougher than it had been only a few minutes prior.

Slowly, Marco stood up, examining himself. Right away, he noticed that he was at least a foot and a half taller than he’d been previously, and his face was covered in a short, rough beard. He could feel new muscles bulging against his armor in his arms and chest, and the armor itself-though obviously heavy-hardly felt like it weighed him down at all.

Leaning down, Marco picked up the sword, and examined it closely. It was a straight, double-edged blade, with a series of elaborate runes engraved down its length. Near the base, an elaborate portrait of a dragon had carefully been carved from the metal, its talons poised and ready to strike.

Marco stared. He knew exactly what this sword was-The Dragon’s Tooth, a two-hundred year old artifact passed down over generations from father to son. And, as a +2 Flaming Longsword he’d come up with for his D&D character, the only place it should’ve existed was in Marco’s imagination.

Panicking, Marco looked around frantically, searching for any sign of Star or his other friends. He appeared to be in some kind of swamp, a dank, murky area filled with the sight and sound of thousands of flying insects, chirping birds, croaking frogs, and other unseen creatures.

“Hello?” he said, looking around desperately. “Star? Jackie? Ferg?”

Suddenly, he heard a high-pitched scream coming from behind him. Clutching his sword, Marco turned and raced through the brush, his eyes darting all around as he searched for the source of the noise.

Then, as he emerged into a clearing that was little more than a raised patch of damp, black dirt that rose above the fetid swamp waters around it, he stopped. Backed up against an ancient willow tree was what appeared to be a fat old elf, with a tall cap as pointy as his ears and a long, wooden staff lying beside him. Marco noticed that the elf hadn’t noticed him approach, and seemed obsessed with marveling over his own long, white beard.

Marco approached cautiously, his sword at the ready. “Ferguson? Is that you?”

The elf turned, and beneath the wrinkles and whispers Marco could easily see the contours of his friend’s face. “Marco! Is that you?” Slowly, the elf got up, brushing the dirt and filth off his long, threadbare robe. “You look awesome!”

“Thanks,” Marco said. “You look… uh…”

“Awesome too, right?” Ferguson boasted. “Just check out this beard! And that hat! I’m like some kind of wizard!”

“I think you are a wizard, Ferg.” Marco said. “Star’s spell must have somehow turned us into our characters in Al’s game.” He looked around the swamp, searching for any sign of recognizable landscape. “Though I certainly don’t remember this area. We ever go to some kind of swamp?”

“I do not believe we have.” Ferguson said, shrugging. “Maybe we’re in that one-shot he kept talking about running?”

“Maybe.” Marco said. “Do you remember what-Ferg, look out!”

Shocked, Ferguson spun around, and saw something emerging from the bog behind him. Slowly, a rotting head began to emerge from the muck, followed quickly by a set of withered arms and an emaciated torso. The mere sight of the rotting corpse sent a wave of nausea through Marco, and he staggered back at the horrific apparition.

“WHAT IS THAT THING?” Ferguson shouted, hiding behind Marco.

“I don’t know, it must be some kind of ghoul or something!” Marco replied. The creature was now freeing its legs from the muck, and its dead, rotting eyes were locked on to Marco. As it took its first step forward, its jaw dropped open, and it unleashed an unearthly howl.

This was more than enough for Marco. Shouting incoherently, he lunged forward with his sword, swinging it into the creature with all his might. As the tip of the blade cut across the creature’s chest, a ribbon of flame curled out from the wound, and the creature staggered back, howling with pain as its chest caught alight. Immediately, Marco swung again, and this time the blade cut straight through the creature’s festering neck. The flaming body dropped to the ground as the head went flying back into the swamp, landing in a nearby pool with a deep sploosh.

Breathing heavily, Marco stood there for a moment, not quite believing what he had done. Then, Ferguson ran up from behind him, and patted him on the back.

“Dude, that was so awesome!” Ferguson said. “You were like ‘slice’, and that monster was like, ‘bleagh’, and you were-“

“Ferg, hold it.” Marco said. Looking around the swamp, he could see bubbles rising from the waters around them, and dark shapes beginning to emerge from below. “I don’t think it’s over yet.”

Marco raised his sword, and scanned the area around them, just waiting for the first monster to make its move. “Which, Ferg, what spells do you have prepared?”

“Spells?” Ferguson said, momentarily confused. “Oh, spells! Well, I should have, uh… oh shoot, where’s my character sheet…”

“Seriously? You can’t even remember what spells you have?” Marco shouted. Heads were already beginning to pop out from the waters below, and Marco knew there was no way he could take on that many monsters by himself.

“Dude, I’m sorry, I can’t perform under this kind of pressure!” Ferguson shouted back.

Marco groaned, and took up a defensive stance, his eyes darting across the swamp. These ghouls were emerging more quickly than the last, and the first of them were already beginning to stagger ashore.

Suddenly, Ferguson snapped his fingers. “Wait! I know what I’ve got!” Grabbing his staff from the ground, he confidently pointed it at the nearest creature and bellowed with a powerful voice, “I cast magic missile!”

A small part of Marco didn’t expect anything to happen-but his fears were quickly dashed when a red ball of energy burst out from the staff and exploded against a ghoul’s chest. With a ragged roar of pain, the ghoul collapsed backwards into the swamp, quickly sinking back below the surface.

Ferguson whooped, and raised his staff. “Yeah, take that you monster!”

“It’s not over yet!” Marco shouted, and turned to see a pair of ghouls approaching from his left. Running forward, he slashed his sword at the first ghoul, keeping a firm clutch on the grip with both hands. The edge bit deeply into the monster’s arm, spraying both Marco and his opponent with a stream of black, congealed blood. Before Marco could attack again, the other ghoul shuffled up and swiped at him, raking his chest with a set of wicked, curved claws. Marco gasped with pain as the sharp claws cut through his leather armor and into his chest, leaving a series of painful, bloody streaks.

Stepping back, Marco slashed again with his sword, striking against the first ghoul’s leg. With a groan, the ghoul fell to the ground, flailing slowly. Then, sidestepping the other monster’s next attack, he slammed the pommel of his blade into the back of the creature’s head, sending it crashing to the ground Before it could react, Marco flipped his sword and stabbed it downwards, plunging it directly into the undead monster’s brain. The creature shuddered once, and exhaled a shallow, rasping breath, and died.

Looking up, Marco saw Ferguson continuing to blast ghouls emerging from the swamp, sending them crashing back into the water. But Marco knew there was only so much they could do by themselves-there were dozens more creatures emerging from the swamp, and it was only a matter of time before they were overwhelmed.

Suddenly, a massive impact against his back sent Marco crashing to the ground. Rolling over, he saw another ghoul standing over him, its mouth open and dripping putrid saliva. Before Marco could react to the new threat, however, the ghoul’s head was severed from its body. As it collapsed to the ground, the headless corpse revealed the form of what could only be Star Butterfly standing behind it. She looked older and stouter than she typically did, and the few parts of her body that weren’t covered in massive animal skins were adorned with tattoos and scars. In her rough, calloused hands, she held a massive battleaxe, and she growled ferociously as she spied the oncoming horde of ghouls before her.

Marco propped himself up on his elbows, hardly believing what he was seeing. “Star?”

“Marco?” Star said, confused. It took a moment for her to recognize the man on the ground in front of her, but the second she did her face broke into a massive, toothy grin. “Marco! You look… different.”

“Thanks.” Marco said, and raised his hand. Star grabbed it, and Marco winced as his hand was crushed in her powerful grip. She quickly pulled him to his feet

quickly pulled him up, nearly ripping his arm out of its socket and crushing his hand in her powerful grip. “You look-“

“Ripped, right?” Star said proudly. “Man, I don’t know what kind of game this is Marco, but it’s pretty fun so-duck!”

Marco instinctively dipped his head down only moments before a pale, fetid arm swung above it, swiping through his hair. Turning back and raising his sword to face the ghoul, Marco dashed forward and stabbed the creature in the chest, setting it aflame. Raising his boot, he kicked the creature in the stomach, freeing his sword and sending the ghoul crashing to the ground.

“Sick move, Marco!” Turning again, Marco saw Janna and Jackie approaching, their own weapons raised. Jackie was clearly a ranger of some kind, clad in a dark-green tunic and holding a pair of short swords in her hands, with a longbow strung across her back. Like Ferguson, she had pointed ears, though they didn’t seem quite as pointy or as prominent. Janna, meanwhile, looked about the same as she always did, with the exception of the pair of curved daggers she held in her hands.

“Oh, uh, thanks, Jackie!” Marco said awkwardly.

Star elbowed him in the arm, grinning. “Hey, save some for the rest of us, huh?”

“GUYS? A LITTLE HELP?”

Looking up, Marco saw Ferguson backing up nervously, facing down a half-dozen ghouls that were lurching towards him. Turning back to Star, Janna, and Jackie, Marco smiled, and raised his sword.

“Alright guys,” he said, “Let’s play some D&D!”

#wholesomeweek2 #star vs the forces of evil #svtfoe #dungeons and dragons #D&D #fast writing bad writing #fanfic #man it's been too long since I've played a good ol' game of D&D #Marco Diaz

53 notes · View notes