>>31554279
WELCOME BACK JOKER

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>>31554279

HOLLOW SUN: 56.7%

http://pastebin.com/V6y9T0G0

RESEARCH:

> AUDITO ARRAY - COMPLETE

[X] SIEGEBREAKER CHASSIS
[X] PHOTON SHIELD GENERATOR
[X] TELEPORT HOMER

VOID ANCHORS:

ORIGINAL HIVE
THE TRIBUNAL

RED COMET GUIDE:

http://pastebin.com/7vzY4Zp2

UPDATES:

- Updated rules for the MNEMOSIS BINDER.
- Added ADVENT CASTER to the FOUNDRY.
- Added KOLEOS and ECHO REGALIA to the VAULT.
- Research for Chayot-class Hellions added.
- Added GOSPEL RELAY and REAPER CIRCUIT to Hellion Research.

Reaper Circuit sounds pretty swank.

Rolled 5

>>31554327

ooooo

New relics.

Last thread there were a lot of good points put forward for getting the lucifer bits.

Should we unlock them?

Rolled 5

>>31554327

>e) ADVENT CASTER - 30% COST

>Marked by the distinctive wings and crest of a Virtue-class Hellion, this ornate device - Meant to be maglocked to your pauldron - hosts a sophisticated communications suite. In it's most basic configuration, this device has a simple but essential function: When activated, you can transmit messages - Via subvocalization - to a Player you have successfully targeted.

>While this limits communication to within line-of-sight, and while the Advent Caster only has the capacity to transmit - Preventing the receiving Player from replying via the same means - there is a notable lack of signal decay. Communication via the Advent Caster is generally inaudible to other Players in the vicnity, though the broadcast signal can potentially be identified.

HOLE. LY. SHIT.

Evening OP. Hope work treated you well, and sorry I can't stay long.

>>31554327
>-REAPER CIRCUIT to Hellion Research.
Leveling Hellions? Absolutely evil. Consider this a vote for it and the Leech Module once we reach the Sun.

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>>31554288

(It's good to be back; My apologies for the hiatus. I've been busy with assignments recently - Fortunately, I've managed to complete them at last.)

A doll with a woman's face, her exquisite limbs in disarray. Midnight hair, fanned out in a shroud - Streamers of cloth coiled, like twisting serpents of fabric, around the ruin.

Her lips curve in a slight, secret smile.

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

A multitude of grasping hands, reaching out towards the smoke-streaked heavens of a crimson sky. There is a violence to their motion, an avarice - Fingers with too many joints clawing their way towards the distant glimmer of light.

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

Faces.

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

Figures, veiled and shrouded in gauzy white. They gather, in impressionistic strokes, beneath the shadow of an eclipse. A black silhouette lifts a crooked cross, as it leads them in prayer.

They have the blank, featureless forms of puppets.

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

A gloved hand clutches a sword's hilt.

Skeletal fingers clutch them both.

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

It's quiet, now, where you are. The late afternoon sun casts a bloody, sweltering glow across the horizon, as the cold wind picks up - The leaves of Asuna's sketchbook rustling, turning with the whisper of paper-on-paper.

Her art has evolved - If that's the word for it. Her book holds an odd dozen sketches, in black and white - With the distinctive lines and arcing curves of her work. There are tricks of perspective and shading, that draw and ensnare the eye; But the images-

...They're disquieting, to say the least.

There's a surreal edge to each drawing, as if she was trying to capture the essence of a hazy, distorted memory; The effect is hallucinatory, enough to make the hairs on your neck stand on end. Their meaning, if there is one, eludes you.

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

A kneeling knight clasps a doll's hand in his own, and armours it anew.

(Continued)

Rolled 6

>>31554527

But considering that they only last for so long, is that a good idea?

>>31554548
Yes. The added Essence from their kills could extend their operational time (given what we know about essence and Hellion shells), and it means that having Hellions target weaker enemies will lead to them being able to deal with stronger ones.

Most importantly, if we can install an Essence Assimilator into Red Joker we reap the essence of every Hellion destroyed and some amount from whatever they killed.

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>>31554545

A spider squats at the centre of a great web, with the ruler-straight lines of circuitry. A fox-head crest stares blankly up from it's abdomen.

A-

Your phone begins to ring. The sound is brittle, in the cold air - It judders in your grasp, as you key the button and-

On the other side; The howl of the wind. A faint creak, a distant rattle. And then-

"Anon-kun."

The voice is soft, hushed - Familiar.

"-No...It's 'Joker-kun' now, isn't it? I - keep forgetting." There's a slight catch to Megumi's voice, for a moment; The sounds in the background becoming clearer, little by little. She's somewhere with a lot of machinery - You hear the distinctive growl of engines coming to life.

"Joker-kun..."

"How have you been?"

[ ] "I've been well."
[ ] "I could be doing better."
[ ] "How about you?"
[ ] "Where are you now?"
[ ] "I didn't think you'd call."
[ ] Hang up.
[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>31554634

> that picture

I didn't need to sleep tonight anyway, OP. Thanks a lot.

Rolled 6

>>31554634

[ ] "It's still anon. To you, at least."
[ ] "Could be doing better."
[ ] "How about you?"

>>31554634
>"-No...It's 'Joker-kun' now, isn't it?
"You had it right the first time. I'm only Joker when I wear red. And I don't, as a rule."

[X] "I didn't think you'd call."
[X] "I've been well."
[X] "How about you?"

"Father Yasuda's worried. He wants you and yours home again."

>>31554634
"I'm both. Just call me what feels more natural to you."

>>31554545
>A multitude of grasping hands, reaching out towards the smoke-streaked heavens of a crimson sky. There is a violence to their motion, an avarice - Fingers with too many joints clawing their way towards the distant glimmer of light.
Metaphor for fighting in the Red?

>Figures, veiled and shrouded in gauzy white. They gather, in impressionistic strokes, beneath the shadow of an eclipse. A black silhouette lifts a crooked cross, as it leads them in prayer.

>They have the blank, featureless forms of puppets.
We know who that is. But what are the puppets? Smilers?

>A gloved hand clutches a sword's hilt.

>Skeletal fingers clutch them both.
Does that mean Akira is just under control of Phantom Edge? Can he maybe be saved?

>A kneeling knight clasps a doll's hand in his own, and armours it anew.
Old Joker to new Joker?

>>31554634
>A spider squats at the centre of a great web, with the ruler-straight lines of circuitry. A fox-head crest stares blankly up from it's abdomen.
Eh, is killing Fenox Fang's twin a trap?

>>31554688
We need to wear red on days where we know that shit is going down.
People will subconsciously learn to avoid us when we wear red. Maybe we can save our friends like that, without telling them anything.

> [X] "It's still anon. To you, at least."
> [X] "You had it right the first time. I'm only Joker when I wear red. And I don't, as a rule."

She chuckles. It's a gentle sound, a little sad.

"-Ah, is that so? Somehow...That makes me happy."

> [X] "I'm both. Just call me what feels more natural to you."

"I'll keep calling you 'Anon-kun', then. That way..." Megumi's voice trails off. For a moment, you think she's about to say something more - But then, she just sighs.

> "Father Yasuda's worried. He wants you and yours home again."

Silence.

Then, very slowly - "...I know," she says. "I know."

"But - The way things are now...We can't go back. *I* can't go back..."

> [X] "I've been well."
> [X] "How about you?"

"I see." Her voice is light, again - The cracks in the facade gone as quickly as they came. "-I'm glad to hear it." Megumi laughs, the sound airy, lilting; "If that's what you're saying...Then I'm fine too, Anon-kun~"

There's the faintest tremor to her words, almost imperceptible.

"Could it be...That you're worried about me?"

Then, playfully -

"Anon-kun...Want to go out?"

[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

Here's a vote for Leech Module. It will be hugely beneficial to us.

I like the Reaper upgrade, but I'm still in favor of teleport homer.

Also, any idea what the two new relics might be doing? Echo Regalia might remove our sounds or something.

Man, the Mnemosis Binder will save our asses against Rust Kaiser.

>>31554444
>>31554527

(Gentlemen, just to confirm; You want to research the REAPER MODULE?)

I initially intended to name it after the Tenth Plague, but 'Passover Module' didn't have the same ring to it.

>>31554820
Wait, did we have any plans for today?
Otherwise:
>"Anon-kun...Want to go out?"
"Sure. I would love to have my cassette player back, by the way.

So, I'm hearing machines in the background. You aren't about to be hooked up to a cradle, are you?"

Rolled 17

>>31554843

Its 15%. I'll go for it.

Joker OP, can you clarify, does each individual hellion process it on its on or is it a collective system>

>>31554843
I'm in favor of the Reaper Module, if we also do the Leech Module.

>>31554758
Yes.

Probably.

He's not under control and never has been--not directly at least. However, he's quite singleminded in his pursuit of the sword, and that's made him predictable and manipulable, if not inevitably doomed.

Joker to Hyade, I thought.

>>31554788
The jacket Anon is to wear if Kouichi can't make it to the play is red. It has the wrong Joker's mark on it (except not really if I'm reading the flow of this right) and the Hyade crest on it is going to change, but it's a flashy red jacket.

>>31554820
"Is this your way of pulling me aside again? I got in trouble the first time, I just found out. She cried and didn't tell me why until yesterday."

>>31554843
Circuit? And yes, please.

Why not name it "Samael Circuit"? I thought that was the angel who spread the plague in question.

>>31554855
Tyrian wants to see Joker, and we were thinking about following the lead Megumi left in the wallet. Other than that, no.

>>31554922
>Samael Circuit
This sounds awesome.

>>31554871
I LITERALLY cannot second this notion hard enough.

Also this gets me thinking, if the sun can reverse engineer shit to enhance the joker- can't it reverse engineer joker's shit to enhance the hellions?

>>31554922
>Joker to Hyade, I thought.
So we armor Cybele? Chalice Queen armor?

Wait... What if it's Hecate?

>>31554940

It's already doing that. There are options to give Hellions Tempest Scranders and Sinistrals.

>>31554940
>can't it reverse engineer joker's shit to enhance the hellions?
#YOLO #SWAG research?

I would love Hellions with our Vulcans. Or maybe just our basic gatlings.

I think Koleos might be a defensive relic.
Scarabs are armored beetles and hexagons are often a visual effect for defensive abilities.

I think Echo Regalia allows us to see with sound.

>>31554951
But those are external relics, I'm talkin bout the good shit son. If we can find a way to let the sun analyze the black core within our armor we should be able to give the hellions some SERIOUS firepower.

Rolled 19

>>31554871

I'm not in favour of the leech module at this point.

We should get more research started first.

>>31554993

We have a LOT of Hollow Sun energy. The more we use, the better.

>>31554993
We may or may not be fighting FFA combat tomorrow.

Also, what >>31555003 said.
We are at 56% charge.

>>31554955

(I'll be sure to keep that in mind.)

> Why not name it "Samael Circuit"? I thought that was the angel who spread the plague in question.

(That's a great name. I'll update the Hollow Sun List accordingly in the next chapter.)

>>31554871
>>31554940

(It works on an individual basis - Hellions use it to self-upgrade and increase their operating time.)

HOLLOW SUN: 11.7%

> [X] SAMAEL CIRCUIT

LEECH MODULE UNLOCKED.

Rolled 9

>>31555003

And the leech is immediate while research requires time to complete.

So it would be best to get more research underway first then buy the leech module when we need to.

>>31555016

The chances of getting to tomorrow in this thread is very low. We can purchase it on the next thread.

>>31555029
>And the leech is immediate while research requires time to complete.
>So it would be best to get more research underway first then buy the leech module when we need to.

Now I wonder: Is all research timed independantly or are researches done one at a time?

>>31555024
>(I'll be sure to keep that in mind.)
I now have this mental image of the owner of the Hollow Sun coming back and seeing that the Hellions are all customized to look like Joker's minions.

>>31555045

They appear to run concurrently.

>>31554940
The light fusion cells are derived from Joker tech.

And some of the research options that showed up after the raid were reminiscent of a few raid members--the in-universe explanation could be the Hollow Sun analyzed their performance through Joker and devised Hellion equivalents.

>>31554949
The winner of the Hyade battle sees his Hyade become Chalice Queen according to Cybele. It's going to be more complicated than that, but Akira probably intended to hijack the system to make Hecate a true Player.

>>31555003
He's right research is typically preferable to buying Relics/augments since research takes time to resolve. However in this case we're going into a situation where we expect to see multiple back to back combat scenarios, and we've got many other things to spend Cobalt charge on.

>>31555024
While we're renaming things, would you consider renaming the Dominion? "Merkabah" fits better, being the chariot of God, freeing up one of the angelic orders for a Hellion model.

We'll probably end up christening it White Base anyway, heh.

>>31555090
>While we're renaming things, would you consider renaming the Dominion? "Merkabah" fits better, being the chariot of God, freeing up one of the angelic orders for a Hellion model.
I hope we never meet a Christian player. The result would be hilarious if they saw the IDs of our Hellions.

On a slightly different note, I know its been said before that the joker armor is incomplete and has been producing and utilizing weapons inferior to what it could be. A thought crossed my mind recently- what if the means to unlock our true potential lies in the meter and limiter upgrades? People are wary of them because of diminishing returns, but we are an anomaly amongst anomalies. Remember that we are the only player capable of using essence to fuel our growth immediately upon leveling. If we were to remove all the roadblocks, what would the red joker be capable of? Something to consider as we progress forward.

>>31554855

> "Sure. I would love to have my cassette player back, by the way.
> "So, I'm hearing machines in the background. You aren't about to be hooked up to a cradle, are you?"

Megumi chuckles, again - But there's an edge to her words, this time. Only for a moment...But it's there.

"Anon-kun...You know I don't need one. And - You shouldn't take things that don't belong to you, you know ~ That's rude." The lilt to her words take the sting from it; Or at least, you think so.

>>31554922

>"Is this your way of pulling me aside again? I got in trouble the first time, I just found out. She cried and didn't tell me why until yesterday."

A giggle.

"-Is that so?" she muses aloud, a contemplative note to her voice. "Well...She shouldn't be around today, so - Why don't we meet at the mall? With all those people around...It's not like anyone's going to notice us."

"Besides..." Teasing, now - Huskier than before.

"...I'm afraid of being alone with you. Anon-kun is too much of a 'wolf', after all~"

Megumi laughs it off, as if it's nothing - And you realize, abruptly, that someone might be listening. "So - In a hour or two, then? It's not nice to keep a cute girl like me waiting..."

[ ] "-On second thought, I don't think that's a good idea."
[ ] "So soon? I had plans for the day."
[ ] "I'll be there."
[ ] "As long as it's just the two of us."
[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>31555135
>[ ] "I'll be there."

Last check, JokerOP, were we suppose to have anything scheduled for today?

>>31555090

One last thing that might help our arsenal would be the lucifer bits.

>>31555148

(You haven't scheduled anything at present.)

>>31555104
Merkabah's not Christian so much as mystic; it's not canon but it's one of those religious philosophies that pops up in surprising places when you know what you're seeing.

I still say we should name three of the Virtues "Michael", "Gabriel" and "Raphael".

>>31555135
"That's what I thought the first time, and yet there she was. How about this: tell me why you're giving me the means to find you and I'll think about it. Why the note in the wallet?"

Whatever we decide to do it's Hollow Sun/Tyrian first.

>>31555231
>I still say we should name three of the Virtues "Michael", "Gabriel" and "Raphael".
That would give me the urge to single them out and upgrade those.

...Can we use the Gospel Relay to go on Raids with three trusty Virtue-class Hellions, now that they can upgrade themselves?

>>31555244

They decay outside though... Could be a useful test. See if we can order units in the Hollow sun to go outside and follow us and then see how long they last before they decay completely.

>>31555263
Well, the Samel Circuit allows them to lengthen their operation time with essence.

>>31555244
Doubt it. There's the whole "degrade once they leave the Hollow Sun" thing. The defense and energy research options mitigate that, but not to the point where the Hellions are self-sustaining. I doubt we're going to be able to use the Hollow Sun to build an army of Relic weapons.

We should see if we can find the Armory again, or at least acquire its data. Could be useful, and the former would definitely be.

>>31555244
I think they still suffer from rapid degredation upon being separated from the sun, but maybe if they are steadily exposed to enough essence over a short period of time and we get them back into the sun before they dissapear completely I think they could be saved.

>>31555269

Yea but that means they'll have to kill stuff first.

Getting a baseline on how long they'll last would be a good thing.

>>31555313
Well, we do know where corrector hives are. This could end up like training a weak Pokemon.

OP, we would love to know how long a Hellion can last outside.

>>31555313

> [X] "That's what I thought the first time, and yet there she was. How about this: tell me why you're giving me the means to find you and I'll think about it. Why the note in the wallet?"

Silence descends.

Then, softly-

"Maybe-"

"-Maybe...I wanted you to come after me." Megumi exhales, a shallow breath that merges a creak and a sigh. "It was - A cry for help, I suppose. I had this silly idea that...I don't know. I can't remember."

She laughs, and - this time - it doesn't sound like a laugh at all.

"Ah, imagine that...I didn't think - I wasn't thinking - that you'd take so long to reach me..." A faint rustle, on the other end of the line. "...It's strange, but back then - Anon-kun."

"...If I'd asked you to run away with me..."

(Continued)

>>31555322

She bites her lip.

"-Well."

There's a quiet resignation to her voice, now, as she falls silent again.

"I just want to be sure, that's all. To be...absolutely, completely sure. That way, no matter what happens-" Her voice catches. "-That's all there is to it."

> [X] "I'll be there."

The phone clicks silent, abruptly. You're not certain if she heard you.

You should -

[ ] Call someone.
- [ ] Call Isao/Distortion Haze.
- [ ] Call Mio.
- [ ] Call Aoba/Armaros.
- [ ] Call Natsumi.

[ ] Go somewhere.
- [ ] Go to the Sterling Industries building.
- [ ] Visit the Salvation Children's Home.
- [ ] Visit the Hollow Sun.
- [ ] Visit the Metropolitan General Hospital.
- [ ] Visit the Red Joker's gravesite.
- [ ] Visit the address left in your wallet.
- [ ] Meet Megumi.

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>31555369
Hollow Sun, quick stop by the gravesite, and then meeting Megumi. Lots to do, no time to do it.

>>31555369
Well, fuck.

Time to save Megumi?

Maybe we can give her a merciful death. Let's visit the adress.

Watashi, how does that fit into your plan?

>>31555394

She won't be at the address now, though.

>>31555369
We should drop by the sun and apologize to the tri-stars for the distortion haze scare. Also just check up on them in general and see how everyone's holding up. Hopefully no black joker stuff... HOPEFULLY.

>>31555425
If we are still infected, we'll have the nature of the Black Joker down:
Black Joker is NTR

>>31555394
No keikaku here. A few contingencies maybe, including one that could get every one of the Smilers killed dead if we time it right, but I'm just responding to the requests other characters have made of Joker.

Come to think of it, maybe we should call Mio and say Yasuda asked us to talk to Megumi? She won't like it, but it could prevent misunderstandings.

>>31555431
>infected
I'm pretty sure Red Joker has Black Joker for a heart.

>>31555442
>I'm pretty sure Red Joker has Black Joker for a heart.
This reminds me:
How's the memory?

>>31555442
>Come to think of it, maybe we should call Mio and say Yasuda asked us to talk to Megumi? She won't like it, but it could prevent misunderstandings.
Maybe she will stalk us and kill all the Smilers that try to ambush us in the Real.
And then we take down everyone together and then she kills Megumi.

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>>31555452

> How's the memory?

(In much the same state as before. It still feels oddly soothing to the touch.)

>>31555392
>>31555425

> [X] Visit the Hollow Sun.

The pages of Asuna's sketchbook rustle, as you tuck it under your arm; The school has emptied out faster than you'd have thought, your footfalls echoing hollowly on the floor, then the path outside, as you follow the winding route to the tram stop.

It's not far.

The car lurches into motion, condensation fogging the windows - Night has been coming early, at this time of the year, and you estimate you have but a few hours before true dark dawns. There's something sickly in the enclosed air of the tram - A lattice of shadows playing against the empty seats.

You disembark at a mostly-empty stop, your breath already beginning to smoke and fume in the air. It's colder here than elsewhere, the mournful moan of the wind filling your ears as you wind your way through the twisting streets...

-To the Hollow Sun.

(Continued)

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>>31555524

The transition comes easily, now - The walls of the alley tremble and bulge around you, a breeze stirring the shreds of crumpled newspaper and trash that litter the way, before the Red bleeds through the bricks and spreads like a stain. Servoes whirr in your powered limbs, the vanes of the Tempest Scrander humming at your back as your mono-optic sensor swivels and locks-

The gate yawns open. You step through.

And everything changes.

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

The first thing - The very first thing - that draws your attention: Light. In the space of a breath, you glimpse the furious illumination that lights up the Hollow Sun from within - Blinding, all-consuming - before your visual baffles cut in, to keep your sensors from being overwhelmed.

The Hollow Sun's heart trembles with the high, singing chorus of power - Of great machines rumbling to life, of industry and numinous energy. The neon lines lining the walls and floor throb with renewed life, a honey-coloured radiance that spills out in every direction at once...

"-Oh, thank God."

Tyrian Edge's voice is exhausted, but entirely relieved - He's ensconced behind a back of monitors, his digits manipulating the hovering holographic windows in frenetic calculation, alternating between them and his wrist-mounted display; The glare-shields are raised, around the molten core of the Hollow Sun, and they crackle with leaping sparks of charge.

"Thank *God* you're here - I *don't know what to do*!"

[ ] "What's going on?"
[ ] "Did you do this?"
[ ] "Is that...The armour?"
[ ] "How long have you been here?"
[ ] "Where's Volt Regios?"
[ ] "What are you doing?"
[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>31555612
"What's happening? Did you find another superweapon for me?"

>>31555612

....what

>[ ] "Is that...The armour?"
>[ ] "Sit Rep. Now."

>>31555612
[X] "What's going on?"
[X] "Is that...The armour?"
[X] "What are you doing?"
"Let me guess: it's been like this since it detected the Black Joker."

Looks like it's rushing to finish the armor. We ought to choke it back, I half suspect any Hellion research we do gets integrated into it like it supposedly does the Dominion.

Wait, OP, does it still work that way?

>>31555636

"No!"

>>31555640

> [X] "Is that...The armour?"
> "Let me guess: it's been like this since it detected the Black Joker."

"N - Yes!"

Wrong-footed, Tyrian actually freezes in place - Before another alarm draws his attention back to the controls. His motions become increasingly frantic, though you're not sure exactly what he's trying to do.

> [X] "Sit Rep. Now."
> [X] "What are you doing?"

"The containment field - It's...*lowered* itself! The chamber's losing cohesion - I'm trying to, nnnn, keep it where it *should* be." A klaxon of sirens drowns out his words, momentarily - "It's like...It's like it *woke up*, all of a sudden - And I *don't know why*."

"When you brought *that guy here* - You triggered *something*. And now...The Hollow Sun - It's trying to release the armour...But it doesn't *have* a host! If this goes on..."

He swallows. Players don't need to breathe, but you hear the audible fuzz of his voxponder.

"-If this goes on, we're going to have a meltdown."

Tics of amber-coloured lightning writhe against the walls. Dimly, at the heart of a golden supernova, you make out a burning figure - Only vaguely humanoid - hovering in place, arms outstretched in the eternal gesture of peace.

It shudders, as if wracked by spasms from within.

[ ] "Can you shut it down?"
[ ] "Can you contain it?"
[ ] "Can we kill it?"
[ ] "I'm going in there."
[ ] "A host?"
[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>31555752
>[ ] "Can you shut it down?"
>[ ] "Can you contain it?"
>[ ] "A Host?"

>>31555752
"How deadly is immediate exposure? I'm thinking of going in."

>>31555752
Oh lord, we're not prepared for the gold joker yet. We don't have nearly enough essence to fuck with that.

>>31555752
I'd really hoped to keep this one backstage until Joker needed to disappear. Hope we can put it back to sleep, otherwise it might be time to find out if armor priority is a thing.

[X] "A host?"
[X] "I'm going in there."

>>31555793
Maybe we can take off an arm or something.

...is this where tyrian dies?

>>31555802
>Joker with Arm of Midas
>everything he touches is now gold

>>31555814
Maybe he's reborn.

>>31555825
Does that mean we heal all our relationships and unfuck the setting?

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> [X] "Can you shut it down?"
> [X] "Can you contain it?"

"...Not like this. Whatever's in there...Whatever it's *made* of - It's doing *something* to the shields. The Hollow Sun - I think the Hollow Sun was waiting for this. Like it was *meant* to do this-"

Tyrian hesitates, and - With his attention diverted - there's another bitter spray of sparks, bright enough to make him flinch.

"If you can damage it enough - Enough to force it to rebuild itself - maybe we can buy some time to-"

More klaxons. Tyrian looks down, and mutters -

"-Shit."

> [X] "A host?"
> [X] "How deadly is immediate exposure? I'm thinking of going in."

"That's what it *wants*, don't you see? If it *touches* you-"

He swallows, audibly. "-It'll overwrite you. Completely. If you're not the *one* it's waiting for..."

Tyrian looks past you. Through you.

"...Then you'll be dead. Just like that."

> [X] "I'm going in there."

"-Wait-"

Tyrian's jointed fingers sink into your shoulder pauldron, with a strength borne of terror. "Joker - *Don't let it touch you*. If it *touches* you, you're dead."

He's talking faster, now, like a machine speeding up-

"It's not *really* a weapon - It's a enhancer, a self-propagating system that *consumes* the host." A pause, a momentary hesitation - "...If you can - I don't know - keep *renewing* your armour's integrity...Give it something to feed off - It just *might* stabilize..."

He falls silent, and that silence swells to encompass the world.

"It might," Tyrian repeats. He sounds dubious, at best.

[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>31555906
>"It might," Tyrian repeats. He sounds dubious, at best.
"Do we have any additional energy sources?
Coincidentally, I have the ability to regenerate my armor. It just requires energy."

"Cybele, will you be able to handle this kind of power drain?"

>>31555906

A puzzle boss!

> "Dear, can you hear me? I need your help."

>>31555906

Well then.

Time to head in.

"Do what you can from out here. If things go badly, let Kouichi know. I should be able to transfer the operational rights to him completely before I'm gone."

>>31555906
...Huh. We actually can do that with Cybele's Emblem. Don't know that it will be enough, even if we use all our meter+cobalt though.

Tapping Cybele is a possibility, as is the Nihl Sphere. With this amount of HS energy we can't grab a last minute upgrade either.

OP, does the Leech Module work on non-Player entities, like Hellions?

>>31555935
The Sun goes to Tyrian or Volt. Kouichi's not in his right mind.

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>>31555906
>>31555925

> "Cybele, will you be able to handle this kind of power drain?"
> "Dear, can you hear me? I need your help."

"Who are you talking t- Holy shit!"

Tyrian flinches back, as a new shade enters the blaze of light. You feel an answering tug, as your Hyades mark begins to blaze with an inner radiance - Even as within the sealed chamber, Cybele's symbol begins to take form. Not cleanly, like before; It seems a mere drop in a deluge of radiance, fighting to draw itself into existence.

"What is that? What *is* THAT?"

> "Do what you can from out here. If things go badly, let Kouichi know. I should be able to transfer the operational rights to him completely before I'm gone."

He just stands there, for a long moment - But then he nods, slowly, clearly focusing on what he *can* do. A few keystrokes, and the light of the circular chamber dims; You hear a whine of crushing pressure, of machines being pushed to maximum capacity...

"-I'm engaging the dampeners at full power. That should hold it - Long enough for you to get in."

Tyrian hesitates, and adds -

"...I hope you know what you're doing, Joker."

(Continued)

>>31556016
>Implying we've known anything about what we've been doing since Nara Dreamland

>>31556026
>Everything past Nara Dreamland was Joker in a PTSD haze randomly doing stuff because he didn't know what to do without Hecate
>It's a metaphor of life after leaving school while having lost your first love in a messy and unconclusive way beforehand

>>31556049
No no, full Twin Peaks: The entire quest is Red Joker's delusion, he's really still fighting in the Hive.

>>31556016

The blast doors grind open, one after another, and you step through. The configuration of the Hollow Sun has changed slightly, since your last arrival - The short corridor beyond is lit from within by the sullen, magma-pulse glow of amber light, like the beating of an enormous heart. You note that every surface has the dull black of unpolished stone; Unreactive, superdense.

The chamber beyond is vaguely cylindrical - Like the core of a nuclear reactor. Your sensors prickle and fuzz with the beginnings of hard radiation; The great column of Daegal's containment unit rearing up from the ground, jagged traceries extending across the matter-black floor in pulsing lines.

The middle of the chamber has been sealed off. Great metal shutters have slammed down, locked in place - Amber light bleeds from below, enough to illuminate the arena; Control rods extending from either side of the walkway, like luminous growths.

A ghostly echo of Cybele's symbol - Flickering, uncertain - glows just before you, fighting to stay coherent. It fights to take form, with painful slowness; Failing, beginning again from scratch.

It's strangely quiet, here. Quiet - Almost peaceful.

There's a sound. A groan.

Complex mechanisms turn and clatter, and the impossible weight of the containment column - So heavy that the floor has been reinforced to bear it's weight, so dense that it's gravitation warps the fabric of space-time around it...

-Begins to move.

(Continued)

>>31556118
>A ghostly echo of Cybele's symbol - Flickering, uncertain - glows just before you, fighting to stay coherent. It fights to take form, with painful slowness; Failing, beginning again from scratch.

Can she hide behind us? That should shield her spark from the main effects of the whatever radiation that thing is throwing off.

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>>31556118

There is the sound of distant thunder, the buzz of ozone.

As the blast shield retracts, for the final time - The exhausted groan of failing mechanisms echoing in your sensors - and...

-And then inchoate light, golden and dazzling, flares into being. It's too bright, too terrible to behold - Your optic sensors cutting out, momentarily, at the wail of rending metal, and...

Daegal takes the form of a Player, simply because the armour was fashioned to bottle it into that shape. Like a knight, lit from within by the brightest lantern ever lit, it glows like the heart of a star. It is unfinished, a thing made of spooled golden cable and hollow segments - Metal greaves, shin-guards, thigh plates, a cuirass held together by the hungry radiance that spears out through the gaps and chinks of joints and seams.

Arm sections jerk. Light spears out through helmet eyeslits, as bright as a new sun.

It has no gloves or hands - The metal sections for upper and lower arms trail supporting wires that suspend bouquets of chiming orichalcum blades - the golden light sprouts from Daegal's wrists, and makes long, crackling claws of hissing lights, into which the blades form talons.

You can feel the palpable force of it's presence beating against you, in waves of invisible power. Cybele's Emblem flares brighter still, more fiercely than before, a candle banked against a blaze - It feeds humming force through you, from within.

Daegal takes a single step forward. Complex mechanisms turn, as molten eyes lock on you.

The ground trembles.

(Continued)

>>31556118
Here's hoping that absorbing Daegal will end the Sun's resource division--using it should free up some more energy for use elsewhere.

Like building death robots. Let's start building hellions again should we survive.

>>31556240

(Gentlemen, for the purposes of this fight, you have a new gauge - ENCROACHMENT. Encroachment indicates how thoroughly your armour has been comprised by DAEGAL; Direct contact will cause this to rapidly increase. If your Encroachment Rate ever exceeds your effective HP, your armour will have been completely overwritten.

Each round, Cybele will attempt to reduce your Encroachment - Utilizing her Emblem to heal yourself will hamper her efforts.)

HP: 260.0%
COBALT BOOSTER: 150%
ASSAULT SHROUD: 150%
METER: 15%
ENCROACHMENT: 12%

TIER ONE WEAPONRY UNLOCKED

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>31556278
We need to build up our meter ASAP so this is a quick fight. Use Booster instead of Meter whenever possible, I think.
Open up with the Tau gun and see where it goes from there.

>>31556278
Woah. Fuck.

Keep the distance and test him with the Tau.
Let's see how its defensive and offensive capabilities are.

>>31556278
Does the Shroud count towards eHP?

>>31556278
Just to check: this is a typical combat situation with the elimination of an enemy as our goal?

Awesome. We can do that. Tier 2 Sinistral, left hand Immolator primary, right hand Vulcan, activate Argus (booster) and release all five Rifle Bits.

Let's Cobalt the Immolator, and hope for damage over time.

>>31556303
No Tau Gun. Accuracy is too important, missing once would be disastrous.

>>31556278

TAU GUN TO THE FACE.

>>31556341
Too bad that MAXIMUM JOKER would lower our health.

>>31556356
Pretty much. Might still be worth it if only for bits that actually do something and the dodge.bonus, but we'll want to see how hard he hits.

At least there's the slowing field. Should help.

>>31556405
>At least there's the slowing field. Should help.
Depends on his types of attack.

>>31556417
It's his touch that's most dangerous right? Encroachment and all. So the field should mitigate that.

>>31556278

Joker op, how confined is the reactor area?

>>31556315

(Unfortunately, no.)

>>31556303
>>31556311

You level the Tau Gun at the blazing figure - The blunt ingot of the weapon sketching itself into existence, the targeting laser burning across the narrow distance as Daegal takes the first, lurching step forward...

-And as soon as the chime of a target lock flares on your sensors, you wrench both triggers. The powerful weapon judders, as the antimatter round - Just a powerful linear distortion - discharges-

Daegal doesn't even attempt to dodge.

You hit it dead-on. Daegal's right arm - An arm of light and burning energy - shatters; Actually *shatters*, with the splintering sound of smashing glass - as the air fills with sharp chips of fractured energy, hanging in the air like trembling particles as your blast chews a fist-sized chunk from the floors and wall, gritty vaporized matter boiling outwards into the air...

-And then beyond the smoke, furious light flares. A burning phoenix-talon of seething energy - Brilliant, barely coherent - punches across the distance, and *smites* into you. So fast - Just a momentary flash, and -

You cross the ground on your back. You skid and tumble and roll, sparks flaring from the point of contact; Your Sinistral flares to life, Rifle Bits fanning out from your shoulders as they flit into the air like knives-

(Continued)

>>31556492
Oh damn it's an energy attack. Run and gun, we can't sit still to aim and we've got no dodge bonus.

>>31556474

(It's actually quite large, like the heart-chamber of a power plant. You'd estimate that it has a radius of at least fifty meters.)

Your Inertia Field flickers to life. This time, you see it coming. Filaments - Hair-thin, razor-sharp - extrude from Daegal's core, from the supernova shape's burning heart, and jag through the air in arrow-straight lines. Only the faintest glimmer marks their presence as they whiplash towards you - You bring the Sinistral up in time, and they wrap *around* the solid-light field; A field that begins to flicker, fitfully, going from the brilliant white wedge of ghost-steel to a dull amber-

Radiance blossoms from the stump of Daegal's severed arm. Fragments of splintered light hover around it, like a halo - New fires stoked at the missing limb, coalescing into solidity once more.

HP: 234.3%
COBALT BOOSTER: 150%
ASSAULT SHROUD: 122%
METER: 20%
ENCROACHMENT: 25%

TIER ONE WEAPONRY UNLOCKED

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>31556540
I think we need to hit the core.

How smart would a Smite be?

>>31556540
Blow out the Sinistral before the threads contact, boost the Immolator to see if setting him on fire distorts the threads at the source to slow his attacks. Other that that, dodge like a mofo and Argus the crap out of him for more info.

>>31556540
>>31556540
IMMOLATE

>>31556573
Also, aim for the core with the Immolator.

In fact, why don't we set him on fire? Cobalt boost that bitch.
Should we attempt to run cobalt boosted missiles via energy transfer? (To not utilize meter)

>>31556540
Oh shit. Cobalt the sinistral's cutting mode, let those strings cut themselves. Have the bits cut at the filaments closer to the origin.

Get mobile, up in the air. Immolator secondary boosted, knock Daegal down. Vulcan in other arm for meter gain.

>>31556556
Not.

>>31556573
It's already touching. Blowing it gives Daegal an opening.

>>31556623

Sparks fly, as your Tau Gun demateralizes; You snap-draw your Immolator, as you trigger the Sinistral's cutting field. The humming edge shrieks, as it saws into oriachulum wire - They begin to glow with the strain, as you wrench your arm back and forth...The high-tension wail cutting into your ears, as the filaments begin to glow red with strain-

They don't give.

>>31556573
>>31556594
>>31556600

The Sinistral's field detonates with a plosive *bang* - Wrenching at you, fighting to draw you in, Daegal lurches backwards as it's grip vanishes. In motion, it's a graceless thing, as if in the hands of an inexpert puppeeter; But there's a growing fluidity, an evolving agility...

-It's learning. Adapting.

Your Rifle Bits fill the air with shrieking beams, orbiting Daegal - Searing into it again and again, each hit fracturing it's hard-light surface; Daegal's amber glow dims as it staggers, as if it's slipped a gear beneath the attack - Just long enough for you to swing the Immolator in line with it and...

Noxious blue flame swirls forth. Your Interceptors flit away, as you bathe Daegal in napalm - Keeping the torrent going, until the surface of the floor is marked with char, just a twisting shape at the heart of a inferno.

Daegal recoils, and then-

A shockwave of invisible force lashes forth. It slams out in all directions, a bow-wave of energy that sweeps your Rifle Bits aside like dead leaves - Three survive, flitting dizzily through the air to reorientate on the target. Two don't, shattered by the short-fused explosion...

An explosion exactly like the detonation of your Sinistral's field.

(Continued)

>>31556719
>An explosion exactly like the detonation of your Sinistral's field.
Fuckfuckfuckfuck

>>31556719
>An explosion exactly like the detonation of your Sinistral's field.
Shit.

>>31556719
>-It's learning. Adapting.
Bonus points because it's learning from the best.
I think we are fucking the whole world by teaching this thing how to fight properly.

>>31556760
If we don't kill it, we die and it explodes and probably vaporizes the Hollow Sun. If we kill enough of it I think we get it the way Argent has his silver thread.

Hopefully sans inevitable near-term death. Though Joker might need a heart/core transplant...

Would EXEC_Disrupt work to weaken its power?
Its system access might be too high.

Also, we can doom the world by teaching it REND.

>>31556803
Disrupt only hits players right?

>>31556803
>Teach it rend
>Show it smilers
>Leave
WORLD STATUS: SAVED

>>31556817
Until it runs out of Smilers.

>>31556719

Daegal rises, out of the inferno. It's cloaked in blue flame, a flickering second skin of liquid fire that plays across it's blazing surface. It has no myomer musculature to consume, no sensors to blind.

And orichalcum was made to withstand fires greater than napalm can muster.

Filaments detach from Daegal's shoulder binders, as it wades forward against the flames. It pays them no mind, as it seems to shudder and withdraw into itself...

The explosion comes again. This time, Daegal's form comes apart in a hail of lethal sharpnel - The blazing, azoic spark of it's core hovering in the air, as flickering shards of golden light swirl around it like prisms. Another one of your Rifle Bits explode: The last two lancing defiant beams of energy into it, making it check its steps as it's limbs reform from blazing light-

And you hurl yourself to the side, as golden shards whirl outwards in a horizontal rain. Your Sinistral is still fighting to recohere - It shreds through your assault shroud like a hail of knives, as you sweep it up in defense. Two flechettes punch into your cuirass, and *melt* into it - warnings begin to flickering on your HUD, the gold beginning to spread over the red. Another slams into your right arm - The response is sluggish, irregular readings shimmering into existence, new alarms flickering to life...

HP: 215.5%
COBALT BOOSTER: 110%
ASSAULT SHROUD: 87%
METER: 24%
RIFLE BITS: 2/5
ENCROACHMENT: 39%

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>31556869
Alright.
Riflebits are being riflebits: Shit.
It's immune to fire, that was a bit of a bad call.
Do we have the Hailfire Chaingun on us? If we get that out, it might be enough to keep him off of our back.

>>31556869
I wish we had higher level weapons by now.

We can't use melee. Napalm has no effect. But the cutting beams did. Tau was also ineffective, even if it destroyed an arm.
So... Energy weapons? Vulcans?
Cobalt Boost Vulcans and aim at its core? It seems like the Core is likely not capable of regeneration.

>>31556869

(Gentlemen, just to clarify: Daegal's 'anatomy' appears to be composed of mostly solid light. It has an 'internal structure' of orichalcum, which forms the manifestation's effective skeleton; Notably, they seem extremely resistant to energy damage.)

>>31556911
In light of this new information, I think we need to use a boostered Hailfire Chaingun.
Hopefully it'll die once we get our rails on.

>>31556869
The Bits seem to be damaging it more than anything. Beam weapon weakness? Use a Tyrant Beam to distract it, then pull the Chaingun and boost it. Don't stay still to take another attack.

>>31556911
Yep, time for Chaingun. DAKKA DAKKA.
And make it boosted.

>>31556900

Its not really our bits fault in this case.

Its immune to most of our usual loadout.

>>31556988
Contingency:
If it comes too close, impale it with the shroud. Remove the parts that are touching it from the colony while gaining distance. (So that the encroachment doesn't transfer via the shroud)
This is the most effective way for us to cancel any melee situations.

>>31556911

Hmm. Do our plasma vulcans count as energy? Because plasma is kinda iffy.

>>31557069
Yes, they are. It's specifically noted in the upgrade path from chainguns to vulcans.
The Chaingun is special because it adds kinetic attacks to our arsenal.

>>31556900
>>31556925

The maglocks on your back deploy, the gyro-arm swinging the great bulk of the Hailfire Chaingun into your grasp - The barrels beginning to spin up, gravimetric suspensors humming as you clamp both fists into the firing position...

Cold blue light flares through the contact elements in your gauntlets, the Cobalt Booster feeding strength through you as your armour fights to purge the infection; Cybele's Emblem glows, and you power forward against the burning lines creeping up your wrist like kudzu-

Fed by a long, swinging belt of ammunition, the Hailfire Cannon thunders. The rotating barrels crackle with fierce flash jags, a blend of numbing boom and metallic ping ripsawing through the air as the chamber begins to tear apart. The recoil, even braced, catches you off-guard; You have to muscle the Chaingun into position, the solid impacts slamming into Daegal, a violent flurry of bullets and splintering energy as you rip into it with your immense firepower-

Abruptly, Daegal hurls itself to the side. The burning form *gathers* itself, and springs - So fast it becomes a blur, a flash that wrenches itself ahead of the hail of tracers like a trick of the light. You switch around to follow it, but it's faster; It doesn't even pretend to stand, the burning light of it's form simply reshaping itself into a standing position as it balls up a taloned fist-

Impact sparks fly, as the heat builds - The chaingun's internal capacitors beginning to glow with actinic blue light, as smoke sobs from the barrels - Metal grates, as rounds riochet from Daegal's cuirass, the uranium-analogue slugs making it jerk and twitch as you walk your gunfire across it-

It throws a punch.

No, not a punch. It's entire arm.

(Continued)

>>31557102
>Abruptly, Daegal hurls itself to the side. The burning form *gathers* itself, and springs - So fast it becomes a blur, a flash that wrenches itself ahead of the hail of tracers like a trick of the light. You switch around to follow it, but it's faster; It doesn't even pretend to stand, the burning light of it's form simply reshaping itself into a standing position as it balls up a taloned fist-
You know, I'm really glad that we used neither the Carnifex nor the afterimages.

>>31557102

You try to duck, to dodge, but you're nowhere near fast enough - Daegal is *unravelling* itself, like unspooling wire, the talons of the articulated fist wrenching open in a vising grasp-

It smashes into your helm. Your vision fills with grey static, as needle-sharp points punch *through* the metal, applying terrible pressure-

If it *grasped*, your helmet would crumple like a tin can. The Hailfire Chaingun tilts, the belt of shots firing blindly into the ceiling, a crackling chain of impacts-

You actually *feel* the cold jags of Daegal's talons digging into you. The needles are reconfiguring, too - Lancing deeper by the instant, gouging, piercing. You can feel them, you can feel *every one of them*, and the sensation is so profoundly wrong that it surges through you like vomit-

-You can't *see*. You hear the *scrape* of metal dragging itself closer - Static flickering across your field of vision - the second impact of more filaments punching into your greaves - the not-heat of Cybele's Emblem burning fiercely as it tries to fight the surge...

HP: 196.0%
COBALT BOOSTER: 84%
ASSAULT SHROUD: 85%
METER: 29%
RIFLE BITS: 2/5
ENCROACHMENT: 75%

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>31557237
Argus, Double Tau.

>>31557237
Can Muleta destroy it without cutting us?

We really need some kind of purging shockwave attack...

Use Consume on that stuff.

Also, fire a lightning bolt at the target if there's a good chance of hitting it.

>>31557262
We still have an arm grabbing our face.

>>31557262

We don't need Argus, but I agree that double Tau would fuck up our opponent.

>>31557262

Agree on argus.

With radar, at least we can somewhat see whats going on.

But I don't see what double Tau will do, especially since the first exchange showed not too much impact

>>31557237

Argus up.

Summon Crisis Arm in one hand, don't drop the Chaingun.

Let the crisis arm rip into the arm that is grabbing us not not in a way where we punch our own head.

Hopefully it'll shatter it or do something.

>>31557435

Perhaps cobalt boost it.

The gravimetric properties of an attack like that might be what we need to shatter that arm.

>>31557435
>>31557450
We have EXEC_CONSUME.
The thing that kills stuff by touching it. And heals us.

You can't see - But the Muleta erups in razor-sharp blades, like great pinions curving inwards to cut your opponent in half. When they close, like crossing swords, like vicing metal, you hear the shriek of metal-on-metal; The Shrike Blades fracturing without flawing, shattering at the blunt impact-

They gouge deep wounds into Daegal's sides - Deep wounds that chip rather than bleed, that fill in with sobbing light a heartbeat later.

But now you know *exactly* where Daegal is. Your joints protest, grinding and growling, tangled power cords tightening brutally...But you overpower the motors, and swing the Crisis Arm across in a brutal, clubbing arc.

Superdense fist against oriachulum helm. The impact makes the gouging filaments wrench and slide - The sensation is sickening, awful, impossible - as it turns Daegal's helm; In return, more filaments punch through your limbs, bringing with them the awful, aching cold-

As you pull your other arm back - The scything talons of EXEC_CONSUME burning with sickening light - and punch them through Daegal's side, where burning light bleeds from the point of weakness between the seams of encasing armour.

(Continued)

>>31557532
I have a really damn bad feeling about this.
>inb4 the Nihil Sphere consumes it's physical form and we get a Midas Sphere

>>31557618
Maybe we are creating a perpetuum mobile.

>>31557641
FFFFFUCK.
2 chain mines using Booster.
KEEP AWAY

>>31557532

(My apologies, I forgot to count in the HP drain.)

It's a closed circuit. The wire coils of Daegal's substance *convulse* - Cold strength crackles down your arm, the Helix Gauntlet's high, rising whine echoing in your ears. Power sings - Electricity crackling, as you're buffeted and battered by hideous forces, locked in a lethal impasse; Your talons plunge deeper, gouging into your target, curled into hooking claws - Your right arm feels like it's wrapped in coils of red-hot barbed wire, growing leaden, heavy, the *hiss* of heat pulsing at the corner of your blinded vision-

Years pass in a thermite blaze.

Corrupted fragments of data flicker across your HUD - Streamers of code, symbols that make no sense, twisting and coiling in ways that make the air bleed-

And you can feel Cybele's Emblem burning, too, as your vision half-returns in a jumble of colours you never knew existed; Daegal's form beginning to crumple inwards upon itself, the filaments - Slowly, achingly slowly, like razored filaments - withdrawing an inch at a time...

HP: 146.2%
COBALT BOOSTER: 58%
ASSAULT SHROUD: 85%
METER: 37%
ENCROACHMENT: 106%

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>31557641
Add Muleta to our offensive and try punching the Crisis Arm into it from the other side.
Use Cobalt Booster to strengthen our attacks.

And SMITE with the Nihl charge.

>>31557669

Can we heal ourselves at this point? As long as our HP is higher, we won't lose right?

>>31557685
Healing ourselves cancels Cybele's attempts at keeping us uncorrupted.

>>31557673
Not enough energy for Smite even with Nihl.
Make a Nihl boosted SWARM instead.

>>31557669
Chain Mine that shit and prepare Fusion Annihilator.
If it won't kill it, then at least damage the place hard enough for it to go into Repair Mode.

>>31557685

Yes but it also interferes with Cybeles attempts at lowering the corruption.

>>31557669

Argus up.

Chainmine the bastard.

>>31557685

> Can we heal ourselves at this point? As long as our HP is higher, we won't lose right?

(Yes, that's about right.)

>>31557709
I say we keep entangled and drain the fucker further. Consume is clearly working and healing us.

Do we have a hands-free weapon that can be used in melee in addition to everything else?

>>31557730
>>31557740
How about healing with Meter?

>>31557740
>>31557753

Seconding this. We're WINNING.

>>31557780
Wait a moment.

Can EXEC_BARRIER stop this?
I mean, it does attack our system. Maybe it works similar to a codeburst.

...But it's too risky to try when we can just discharge EVERYTHING in melee.
SWARM, CONSUME, Muleta, FIST and HEAL.

>>31557753
>>31557780

Heal still means disrupting cybele's efforts.

>>31557923
But, judging from OP's reaction, the heal is likely stronger than the anti-corruption.

...Wait, we are brawling. The attacks will disrupt our heal.
Yeah, CANCEL HEAL.
What can we use the Meter for instead?

>>31557942

Searing iridescence - Like ripples of arc-welder flame - crawl across your armour; Even as you bring your Crisis Arm into play again - And again - and *again*, hammering blow after splintering blow into Daegal's form. Like a machine, like a piston hammer, each strike driven by grinding servoes-

*Now* the armour begins to buckle. *Now* it begins to weaken.

You're not killing it - You're not sure if you *can* kill it - but the punishment you're wreaking, which each thunderous blow, is forcing it to rebuild itself again and again; The golden radiance dulling to amber, the sullen glow of magma, until it begins to flicker in and out of existence.

The filaments sinking into you - Their animation begins to slacken, the barbed hooks retracting, tearing at you, as your vision returns; You're locked, face-to-blank-faceplate, and you can't help but think-

This thing - Painless, fearless, passionless - *this* is the ultimate armour?

A row of warning icons illuminate in fiery red along the bottom of your HUD, as your Helix Gauntlet begins to smoke with a burgeoning hiss - The cables of Daegal's form unravelling, the light bleeding away beneath your assault; You can actually *see* the lines of new circuitry etched into your armour, a creeping infection that sinks into the very core of your being...

(Continued)

>>31558003
>A row of warning icons illuminate in fiery red along the bottom of your HUD, as your Helix Gauntlet begins to smoke with a burgeoning hiss - The cables of Daegal's form unravelling, the light bleeding away beneath your assault; You can actually *see* the lines of new circuitry etched into your armour, a creeping infection that sinks into the very core of your being...
So now we have Red, Gold and Black invading our soul.
What's next?

>>31558039
Wait. Second thought.

Black
Red
Gold

Red Joker is German.

>>31557669
Oh dear.

Is it time for Gold Joker mode? I don't know what the implications of Daegal overwriting Red Joker are.

The Helix Gauntlet *glows*.

You begin to brighten from the outside in. Daegal's form shudders, one final time - Motes of light rising, in a blizzard of stars. So much mass, escaping, it seems impossible than any might be left behind - a million faint sparks ablating into luminous mist, as your limbs turn leaden, as error messages flicker to life...

And then the light of Cybele's Emblem engulfs your world, all is consumed in the fires of a new sun.

Blackness.

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

Light. Not blurred, this time.

The sky is a perfect, robin's-egg blue, without the faintest hint of cloud. Your senses seem to float in a strange, unearthly cup of pain, directionless and formless, disjointed from everything.

You focus. Moving is an effort. Servoes engage, dragging your limbs into motion - Not battle damage, not a system error, but the sluggishness that comes with a new...

-Wait.

Your right arm - You turn your wrist, slowly, as the autumn trees rustle in the silent wind. Leaves rustle, but do not fall, in the sudden gust. The Helix Gauntlet -

...It's changed. It's become an intricate thing, a limb with the unmistakeable gleam of orichalcum; Heavy, with new import. You curl your fingers into a fist, and open it again - Subtle mechanisms whirr and move, striated bands of gold shifting, locking into new configurations.

RELIC UPGRADED: MIDAS GAUNTLET

(Continued)

>>31558262
>RELIC UPGRADED: MIDAS GAUNTLET

EVERYTHING TURNS GOLD NOW

>>31558262
>...It's changed. It's become an intricate thing, a limb with the unmistakeable gleam of orichalcum; Heavy, with new import. You curl your fingers into a fist, and open it again - Subtle mechanisms whirr and move, striated bands of gold shifting, locking into new configurations.
>RELIC UPGRADED: MIDAS GAUNTLET
We just gained a part of the perfect armor.
Holy shit.

I'm grinning like a madman.

This will freak everyone else out. And our armor just got even more desirable.

So, OP, was this result planned?
I'm eager to know.

>>31558262
Excellent.

Maybe soon we can incorporate more of the armour. Instead of absorbing it all and stabilising it at once, we can go with a phased integration to avoid the whole 'overwritten personality' issue.

>>31558302

(I'll admit - The way you won surprised me.)

>>31558262

(The MIDAS GAUNTLET - The upgraded form of the HELIX GAUNTLET - is the containment unit for the ARMOUR OF MIDAS. Due to the nature of the integration, most of DAEGAL'S abilities remain dormant; However, the MIDAS GAUNTLET has the following abilities:

i) Any Hollow Sun weapon in contact with the MIDAS GAUNTLET has its costs waived.
ii) The cost of EXEC_CONSUME is waived.
iii) The MIDAS GAUNTLET 'counts as' having a TALON with two charging elements, minus the drawbacks.
iv) It integrates the functions of the CRISIS ARM, and waives the costs.

Further abilities will be unlocked as you reach the appropriate Essence threshold.)

>>31558462
>iii) The MIDAS GAUNTLET 'counts as' having a TALON with two charging elements, minus the drawbacks.
Woah.
This means we can mount our chaingun, in addition to the Tau.

So do we effectively have three charging elements on the right arm?

>>31558462

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSS THIS PLEASES ME.

>>31558462
This makes the second heavy weapon slot totally worth it. Now the 30% priming cost weapons are feasible.

>>31558462
>iii) The MIDAS GAUNTLET 'counts as' having a TALON with two charging elements, minus the drawbacks.

....Does this mean that along with our own charging elements, we now have 4!??

Also free talon and COMSUME.

>iv) It integrates the functions of the CRISIS ARM, and waives the costs.

Does that mean that we can have the crisis arm out while using the talon unit at the same time or does it mean one or the other?

>>31558506
Can we get the second slot right now? We should have 11% charge left and it costs 10%.

Man, Pazuzu will be so pissed if he sees our hand. Now we are not only utilizing his eye as a powerup, but also added a second energy source to it.

>>31558462
>i) Any Hollow Sun weapon in contact with the MIDAS GAUNTLET has its costs waived.
Delicious.

>ii) The cost of EXEC_CONSUME is waived.
Fuck yes

>iii) The MIDAS GAUNTLET 'counts as' having a TALON with two charging elements, minus the drawbacks.
Is... Is it time to dual wield Hailfire Chainguns?

>iv) It integrates the functions of the CRISIS ARM, and waives the costs.
Noice.

>The upgraded form of the HELIX GAUNTLET - is the containment unit for the ARMOUR OF MIDAS.
>Further abilities will be unlocked as you reach the appropriate Essence threshold.

So if we go eat a bunch of essence we unlock GOLD JOKER mode?

FUCK YES THIS IS THE BEST THING EVER OH MY GOD

>>31558462
>>31558520

Also require a further clarification.

One of the drawbacks of the talon system was that if it was ejected, it would take time to reassemble that in the field.

Does that mean that we can summon a weapon in talon configuration at will?

>>31558462
...Can we use the Emulator Module to mimic the Midas Gauntlet?

I'm sorry, I just have to ask. Dirty powergamer and all that.

>>31558569
Am I correct in interpreting the Talon function as something like having Doomguy's arm?
Basically, our right arm now doesn't give a fuck about recoil or energy costs and has two charging elements. So we can carry all kinds of hilariously oversized and overpowered stuff in one hand.

So I'm guessing "talon configuration" just means "grab it with your hand".

I guess this means Cobalt Booster comes first as the next upgrade and charging elements second.

Complete OT question:
Why is the Muleta in the Hollow Sun guide not marked as researched/upgraded?
Seems kind of weird to have it listed like we could take it again.

>>31558608

Yes and no. Its a stablising unit that allows us to use a two-handed weapon in one hand. Increased accuracy but I think recoil will still be a problem.

Think Megaman's forearm, built around a heavy weapon of our choice. Thats basically what the Talon unit is.

Drawback is of course, the hand can't do anything unless the system is ejected and Joker OP previously mention that if we eject it in the field, we won't be reassembling it in a hurry.

>>31558631

If the two charging units are in addition to our current two, we're good and we don't need to upgrade to acquire further charging element.s

>>31558658
>Yes and no. Its a stablising unit that allows us to use a two-handed weapon in one hand. Increased accuracy but I think recoil will still be a problem.Think Megaman's forearm, built around a heavy weapon of our choice. Thats basically what the Talon unit is.Drawback is of course, the hand can't do anything unless the system is ejected and Joker OP previously mention that if we eject it in the field, we won't be reassembling it in a hurry.
But there is nothing to re-assemble now if our hand itself is fullfilling this function.

OP needs to clarify on the matter.

>>31558631
We don't need any more charging elements. We have four now, so we can Emulate our heavy weapons for dual wielded maximum dakka mode.

I am in love with this Gauntlet.

>>31558718
Please wait for OP to clarify because you charge headlong into something retarded.

>>31558645

(My apologies, I'll update it accordingly next time.)

>>31558462

(Effectively, this means you no longer need to summon the Crisis Arm to utilize it's abilities - The MIDAS GAUNTLET has integrated all the functions of the Helix Gauntlet and the Crisis Arm, and counts as an 'advanced' Talon, without the delay that would usually come with equipping and unequipping a weapon.

It doesn't have the reattachment time issue, though the arm still physically reconfigures to mimic the function of a Talon. The weapons of the Hollow Sun, after all, were meant to be the weapons of DAEGAL.)

>>31558520

(To clarify, it's 'arguably' one or the other - You still only have one hand, after all - but it means that you can freely copy the Crisis Arm with the Emulator Module at any time. Your new gauntlet has a higher capacity, but it's limited to that hand. Your other hand has one charging element, as per normal.)

>>31558593

(Unfortunately, no. You can still copy weapons that you're using, however.)

In the distance, you hear-

...Singing.

The singer's voice is sweet, lilting - But the lyrics defy comprehension. They make the edges of your vision flicker with static, as you lever yourself to your feet.

If you had skin, it would be crawling.

(Continued)

>>31558813
>Your other hand has one charging element, as per normal.

Damnit, so we still need to purchase additional charging elements.

>>31558813
How does it interact with the Chaingun?
It's not a Hollow Sun weapon, but it requires two charging elements. Does it also gain the accuracy bonuses? Does it even gain access to the additional charging elements?

>>31558813

Can the charging elements on the midas gauntlet be shunted to other weapons even while the talon is being used?

Or can it only be used on the equipment on one hand? If thats the case we should see if we can use the equipment of the hollow sun to create a redirector.

File: 1397837099667.jpg-(277 KB, 850x1319, jokercybele.jpg)

277 KB JPG

>>31558854

(You can hold and fire the Chaingun with the MIDAS GAUNTLET alone, yes - As you have at least two charging elements in the GAUNTLET. There are weapons that will potentially require three charging elements on one hand to use.)

Cybele's private heaven is just as you remembered it - The blue sky. The small pavilion; The bridge over the quiet lake, the clear surface undisturbed by ripples...

-And Cybele herself, of course.

Her lissome legs are bare, as she crosses the surface of the lake - As graceful as a swan, her hands held out at her sides - her face composed, exquisite concentration on her pale features...

Until her gaze settles on you.

"Joker-kun..." she says, softly, sweetly - A flush to her cheeks, as she steps from water to soft grass, her footfalls unchanging as she tilts her head to the side. Her smile is warm but unfocused - So are her eyes.

"Joker-kun, you're *here*..."

[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>31558894

(No: They're unique to that hand. The Tau Gun's an exception - It *can* divert the charge.)

>>31558919
>"Joker-kun, you're *here*..."
"Didn't you bring me here?"

>>31558919

Ai Yai....

"Thanks for your help. That was abit of a bad situation down there."

We might want Cybele to look for Bell Zephyr. To see if Megumi is currently in the Red.

>>31558919
>Her smile is warm but unfocused - So are her eyes.

"Cybele, are you ok?"

>>31558919
Thanks for the help.

>>31558919
"You didn't bring me here?

Well... Either way, thanks for the save back there. I appreciate it."

Flex golden hand.

"You helped me acquire something which will probably be very important, later. Pretty, isn't it?"

>>31558919
Did she go blind from overexertion?

I wonder what the Nihl Sphere looks like right now. It was already full when we started draining that thing.

>>31558985
Seconded

>>31558933

She considers this, for a long moment - Doubt clouding her features. Then, at last, she nods.

"-I must have," Cybele murmurs - Then giggles. "...I must have..."

>>31558961
>>31558987

> "Thanks for your help. That was a bit of a bad situation down there."

She continues to smile, unwavering. She doesn't blink; Her footfalls make no sound, and fail to disturb the grass in her wake. The little mistakes - The way her hair never sways in the breezes that flutters her kimono - are faintly disquieting.

> "You helped me acquire something which will probably be very important, later. Pretty, isn't it?"

"Haaaaa..." A soft sigh, of admiration. Her slim fingers close on your hand, applying gentle pressure - You feel...

You *feel*. You can feel the unhealthy heat that radiates from Cybele's skin - Fever-hot, as she leans into you, her cheek against your curling fingers as she nestles close. She stands there, for a long, silent moment...A slight sway to her limbs, as if your presence is all that supports her.

>>31559052
> "Cybele, are you ok?"

You're not sure if she's heard you, at first - But then:

"...I'm tired."

Her shoulders seem to slump, as she breathes out - Her body feels fragile, weightless, against you. "Isn't it strange? Helping you...Being with you - It made me *so happy*. But now...I'm so tired, but I can't sleep."

"Joker-kun...I can't sleep."

There's a catch to her voice, a note of vulnerability, of dread - And beneath it, the fear. It's raw, unfeigned; Her eyes are so very wide, as she tilts her head up to regard you.

"I've put it off for so *long* - But I need to sleep, or, or..."

Her sleek throat works, as she swallows. "Joker-kun...What if I don't wake up?"

The tension mounts, in her words - "...What if I never wake up again?"

[ ] "I...don't understand."
[ ] "-Everyone needs to sleep."
[ ] "I'll be here when you wake up."
[ ] "Then it doesn't matter."
[ ] Free.

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>31559159
>Sleep. The game will nearly be over when you wake up. I promise.

>>31559159
>"Don't worry so much. I'm here with you now. I'll make sure you wake up, and I'll be here when you do.

>>31559159
I don't quite understand.
Why can't you sleep? Are you unable to sleep like a player? Or are you afraid that something will happen while you sleep?
If you are worried about me, rest assured. I can handle myself.
Get yourself some sleep.

>>31559159
>[ ] "-Everyone needs to sleep."

>[ ] "And if you truely don't wake up, I will mourn."

I don't think we can afford to be here when she gets up I think. We still have that meeting with Megs.

>>31559159
Is Cybele dying?

We should try to be comforting.

I wish we could bridge her into the Hollow Sun somehow. It would be better than sitting on that fucking moon all the time.

>>31559159
>[x] You can sleep. If you can't wake up by yourself, then I'll help you.

>>31559188
>>31559209

"Even if - I can't help you any more?"

Cybele's voice is a whisper, her face upturned towards yours - "I wanted...I wanted to do more for you, Joker-kun. More than anything else...I want you to be *happy* with me."

>>31559221

> [X] "And if you truely don't wake up, I will mourn."

A slow, shivery ripple courses through her, as her body relaxes - It's relief, pure and unalloyed.

"Really? You'll miss me?"

She reaches up. Her fingers trace the angular lines of your faceplate, then down along the corded cables of your neck.

"I wish...I wish I could see your face again. Just one more time..."

Her voice is hazy, now, dreamy - As if she's more than half-asleep, already.

"Joker-kun..."

"-Can you hold me? Just for a while?"

[ ] Free

YOU HAVE CONTROL

>>31559318
>Cybele's voice is a whisper, her face upturned towards yours - "I wanted...I wanted to do more for you, Joker-kun. More than anything else...I want you to be *happy* with me."
You did everything you could. Even to the point of becoming like this.
Why would I not miss someone like this?

>"-Can you hold me? Just for a while?"
Should we use the Nihl? She might very well be dieing and dieing in the arms of another human would be the humane thing to do.

>>31559341
>Why would I not miss someone like this?
*you

"this" sounds like her role is more important than she herself.

>>31559318

Man, now I'm starting to feel sorry for Cybele.

>>31559318
Put her into the real with the sphere.
"I'll miss you."

>>31559318
Let's not waste the Nihil's charge anymore than we need to now. We need it at full charge to deal with all the shit.
>[x] Gently cradle her in our arms so that she can sleep.

>>31559318
>"Of course I can, Cybele. I'll always be here for you."

I think she's dying. Lying to her, well, it's the kind thing to do.

I'm starting to wonder if Joker is more open-hearted and extremely passionate than emotionally dead.

>>31559384
And here comes the dude who only thinks about mechanical effects.
If you want to go that route, then I'm glad that we have one less competitor to Hecate. But even then, Cybele definitely deserves her last moment in the real world.
Anything else is incredibly assholish.

>>31559385
Almost everything we ever said to her was a lie and her love itself is pretty much artificial.
A girl made out of illusions, a love made out of lies. It's very ironic.

>>31559385

Lets not do this. Veto, please.

>>31559318

Hold her while she goes to sleep.

Gently lay her down to rest.

We've got places to be, Megs to meet.

>>31559420
The only Hyades that loved her champion. The only Hyades who had a champion that didn't love her. Such a shame she's dying.

>>31559439
And probably the only Hyades who felt fullfilment.

>>31559318
>"Even if - I can't help you any more?"

Sounds like Cybele knows RJ better than we ever guessed.

Man this sucks, is there nothing we can to to save her? Can we rip the emblem out and return it's power to her?

I don't think actual love for Cybele would've occured for us, but I did want find a way to win the hyades game so we could save both her and hecate.

>>31559457
Damn. She knew she was being manipulated, the whole time.

Her love was unconditional. It's a tragedy that she has to die so that Joker can get a shiny new hand.

>>31559492

I'm more worried what it means for our healing abilities and codebursts.

Losing some of those would be a bad blow.

>>31559318
"I'm sorry Cybele. You deserved better than me. You deserved all the good in the world. Thank you Saori. Sleep well."

How'd that old sleeping prayer go? "Now I lay me, down to sleep I pray the Lord my soul to keep."

Poor thing.

>>31559341
No pulling her into the real. Something is about to happen and it can only conclude here.

>>31559532
Do we get a new hand attachment whenever one of our girls dies?
Is this RJ's pimp hand?

>>31559543
>"I'm sorry Cybele. You deserved better than me. You deserved all the good in the world. Thank you Saori. Sleep well."How'd that old sleeping prayer go? "Now I lay me, down to sleep I pray the Lord my soul to keep."Poor thing.
Holy fuck.
She might die. It's not 100% sure that she will die. Talking openly about this possibility instead of just hinting is incredibly assholish.

>No pulling her into the real. Something is about to happen and it can only conclude here.
Wat.

The light of the Nihl Sphere bathes the chamber - A violet glow, that shines forth from the Midas Gauntlet. Bathed in it's light, Cybele smiles...Her pale hand resting on yours.

"-That light...I've been it before. Before - All this."

"...So beautiful, but so far away...So *lonely*, for so long..."

You kneel. She weighs nothing, now; The floor is no longer earth, or grass. Concentric tiles form a spiderweb, as machinery chirps and hisses - A column rising from the ground, with sleek ease of the Red's technology. Not like a Cradle at all, then: Unlike a Cradle, this was never meant to hold a human being.

-It's too small.

It begins to glow, faintly; Pulsing, like the beat of a failing heart. As great chrome bars slide up the curving walls, dissolving the illusion of an eternal autumn...

-Quietly, without any fuss, the sky begins to go out.

It's so pristine in here. So antiseptic.

So cold.

(Continued)

>>31559560
Sorry, I'm not trying to be cryptic. Something interesting is about to happen though, and I'm not sure if it will resolve in the real world.

And while I do think she is about to die, if you prefer we can change it to just "Thank you Saori" and the bedtime prayer.

>>31559583
>"-That light...I've been it before. Before - All this."
So her existence is related to the Nihl Sphere?

>-It's too small.
I guess we will now find out what she really is.

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>>31559583

Overhead, the black moon sheds its unlight. Beneath, the Red World glows a sullen crimson; Here, the light of the Nihl Sphere merges, seamlessly, with the violet glow of the containment field. Something bright and azoic flutters within, dulled to faint embers, now...As around you, the space grows starlight-dark and midnight-silent.

Small orange sparks dance, like fireflies.

You make out the outlines of alien, arcane machinery - Impossibly complex, yet all integrated into one. Like the petals of a metallic flower, protective shutters iris shut over the curving glass. In their silent rows, all around you - Rising up like vertical coffins - the shapes resemble nothing more than...

-Servers.

The shape before you is partly like a throne, and partly like a casket. Systems hum within, as it rises from its recess; Within that integument, your sensors isolate an Essence signature - Trapped, like a moth in a lantern, casting flickering shadows as it flutters its wings.

Within this sarcophagus-vault - With the universal chime that identifies a Player's form...

CYBELE

JOKER QUEST

EPISODE 90

TO BE CONTINUED

>>31559810

(Gentlemen; My sincerest apologies, but it's extremely late on my end, and I'm entirely exhausted. Fortunately, I'm still on break, so I should be able to run the next session in the space of a few days.

I'm aware that each effective 'day', game-wise, is getting longer - However, I suppose that's inevitable at this juncture. Good night and God bless; You've been a wonderful audience, and I look forward to seeing you all again soon.)

>>31559810
So the Hyades are players/moratoriums who are hooked up to servers which don't allow them to leave.

This means we can end the game. We just need to shut off the servers and get the Hyades out.

>>31559810

Just the essence. Without a shell.

Winner gets a body. The rest get to die.

>>31559905
I want to remove Cybele from that system and giver her a proper burial.

>>31559905

If you think about it, we were really very lucky. Sure we got trapped in hell, but at least our body was mobile.

>>31559882
Wouldn't shutting off the server kill them outright? They don't have a shell, outside the computer, they'll die as their essence disperses.

I wonder.
If we feed enough players to our Hollow Sun, think it can make a replacement player form?

>>31559810

Really really need to talk with the fangirls.

Find out all they know.

>>31559943
No, because the Hollow Sun doesn't build anything like that.

>>31559943

It sure can.

Hell.

It's building one right now. We just fought it.

>>31559926
They wouldn't die instantly, at least.
Hecate kept alive without armor. However, her situation might have meant that she had ways of keeping her form stable.

It seems like a Hyades is just a moratorium fighting for something while attached to that system.

But Cybele still has a player signature. Maybe >>31559943's idea would work - We might build a Hellion shell for a Moratorium.

Also, I'm weirded out by the fact that we are not in the Real after using the NIHL. Or, if we are, the Red might be a computer simulation that is running inside of reality. What the hell.

>>31558919
>There are weapons that will potentially require three charging elements
Wait holy shit what is this. OP if you're still around please expound.

So... Where is the REAL Hecate?
Now we know that she's a Moratorium. That she has no player armor and that the servers are substitutes for that.
That means she must have a real body somewhere.

Imagine if we found her real body and woke her up.
Man, this feels so wrong, considering the other girls.


Also, what were we like during our 100 years in hell? Like Mio? Or more like an emo teenager?

>>31559995
Hecate DID have a shell, it was just based on her flesh and blood body. Cybele lacks even that, since a computer is being used to hold her essence signature.

Actually, come to think of it, it's a signature, not even an existence. Her genetic code and not the essence body. What the hell is this thing?

>>31560044
Didn't we find her in the hospital?

>>31560061

Artificial player?

>>31560076
I meant Cybele.
Fuck my hands.

>>31560061
>>31560082
An AI?
Can we take her core and give it a body in the Hollow Sun?

>>31560127

Theres the problem of transporting essence.

I'd either dissipate or our own systems will consume it.

>>31560160
We have to talk to OP about how we'd attempt to do this.
Devouring her essence signature would obviously be a bad idea. We don't want to process Cybele.

...But what if processing her creates a Relic that is inhabited by her consciousness? Some kind of helpful AI?

Bonsu point: Her being a machine means that she doesn't have the kind of attraction that would make her jealous of our physical contact with other girls.
However, it would mean that we would need to sabotage AP's plan. Otherwise she would be trapped in the Red unless we kill her.

>>31560044
The 100 years took a single night. A single, apocalyptic night. Anon's body was like the other survivors, in shock trying to do whatever it took to survive.

That or he died and revived when he became Red Joker.

>>31560127
Probably not. The Hollow Sun hasn't done anything like that. Even Daegal was more of a Player augment than an armor.

>>31560219
>The Hollow Sun hasn't done anything like that.
Killsat.

It can use a generator to build something around that.

It might be able to build something around an essence signature.
I mean, technically it already did. That's where we get our hats.

>>31560061

Essence signature does mean Essence body, though. I think that your Essence signature is your soul.

Cybele's soul is trapped in that machine.

>>31560248
Pretty sure Side 3 was a plan it had already made but lacked a critical part for. The part from Ixion fit the bill, so it was just a matter of building the system around it.

Making a relic based on an essence signature is very different from rebuilding the person from their signature. There's the issue of data loss on the essence side and on the physical side there's actual ability to. A player's essence builds the armor automatically. If they don't have the ability to manifest their own armor, you can't make up for it externally.

>>31560306
The signature is a fingerprint for the soul. The signature is a personal identifier, while someone's essence is their soul.

>>31560425
So, in essence, we have to collect the essence from a corrector and use it to build a soul, with her essence signature as a template.

...Hey, don't we have a huge-ass essence mining device in our backyard?

>>31560469
No, because the Hollow Sun can't build player armor. It can build augments for armor, and it can create items from signatures, but building a unique suit of Player armor isn't something it knows how to do. Hell, how anyone does it is one of the central mysteries of this story, much less naturally as a function of existing in the Red.

>>31560562
I'M TALKING ABOUT A SOUL
Yes, it can't build armor. But a soul CAN build armor.
And we can build the signature with essence until it forms a soul. Because we have insane amounts of essence harvested.

>>31560616
Not all souls. Hecate couldn't. And this is a soul that is not even managing a physical manifestation on that level, that seems to require constant upkeep to stay extant.

And we don't have that harvested essence anymore, most of it went to building Daegal. We should have a 30% charge next time though, unless we get more per session now that Daegal's done.

>>31560616

I think I'm beginning to understand how the Red World is structured. It's all about human souls. Some souls have the potential to become full Players, like us, and they get the armour and powers.

Some of them die(?) and become Hyades, who are...observers? Support Players? My theory is that hecate looks the way she does, because she had the potential to become one of the Hyades. The problem was that she didn't die, so she got a hyades's unique player form without the powers.

>>31560726
>now that Daegal's done.
I think that was a major derail.
Weren't we supposed to weaken it, with explicit information that it can't actually be destroyed?

>>31560759
>Some of them die(?) and become Hyades, who are...observers
The Hyade system seems to be artificial. I think the Hyades were created by the Cardinal while he was trying to bring back Kotone. They were a first attempt at holding a soul.

Hecate was called a Moratorium, which is a legal term meaning a legal delay. She was also the last of them, meaning the others were killed as easy essence. The Moratoriums are the alternate player type, while the Hyades are something else entirely.

>>31560783
We went in to provide it a host, gambling that we'd be able to handle the strain. This isn't a derail so much as sequence breaking; we probably shouldn't have brought Rook to the Sun.

So do we now contain that entire thing or will the Sun try to rebuild it?
On that note, how will the Sun react? Are we now equipped with higher system access?

So we can go MAXIMUM GOLDEN JOKER now? Daegal's abilities are largely suppressed, I'm guessing as we build meter and kill stuff,their essence get used for sustaining the Carnifex and unlocking different tiers of Daegal stuff.

And damn, the Hellion weaponry were meant to be for Daegal in the first place, that's pretty fucking scary if you think about it. A one-man army with his own base and endless supplies of destructive arsenals.
Can't wait to find out just what Daegal's powers can do when integrated with the Red Joker's kit.

>>31560933
Look at the name. It's the Armor of Midas, one of the other finalists. We've just built the game's strongest defensive player into the game's strongest offensive player. The Red Joker has its arsenal, Daegal has the Hollow Sun and we've got both. Hopefully >>31560913 is right and we've now got higher control over the Sun.

>>31561047
What if the armor of Midas was built from scratch, based on that player's essence signature?

Watashi, can you list the finalists?

>>31561074
Red Joker - Being Red Joker
Chalice Queen [Hellebore] - Being the Chalice Queen
Black Cardinal- Possession of the Crux
Phantom Edge - Possession of Fatal Abyss
Argent Prominence
Black Joker

The Armor of Midas is the last endgame ticket, and to our knowledge was not in play in the last round. We seem to have found that the Hollow Sun builds the armor, which can only be claimed by a person with both the ability to reach the Hollow Sun's core and enough raw essence to endure Daegal's encroachment.

Or you can be a lucky motherfucker and have ways to circumvent both.

>>31561142
>Or you can be a lucky motherfucker and have ways to circumvent both.
Joker is a lot like Shirou in that regard.